Prof. Melina Schuh

Prof. Melina Schuh is a world-leading expert on female fertility, with over 20 years of research experience in the field. As a Director of the Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences, she leads a team of ~20 individuals dedicated to deciphering the biology of mammalian eggs. Previously, as a tenured group leader at the MRC LMB in Cambridge, she pioneered groundbreaking studies on human eggs using state-of-the-art microscopy.

Melina’s pioneering work not only uncovers new biology but also drives transformative innovations that shatter boundaries in fertility research. Her breakthrough technologies include platforms for in vitro maturation of mammalian egg follicles outside the body (Pfender et al., 2015, Nature); the Trim-Away system, enabling rapid and selective protein depletion (Clift et al., 2017, Cell); and ex vivo tracking of ovulation in real time (Thomas et al., Nature Cell Biology). Committed to translating discovery into impact, she also set up a Satellite Research Lab in Bourn Hall, the world’s first IVF clinic.

Melina is a member of the Leopoldina (German Academy of Sciences) and EMBO and has received numerous prestigious awards, including the EMBO Gold Medal, Leibniz Prize, and Colworth Medal.

Dr Agata Zielinska

Dr Agata Zielinska is a physician scientist. She earned a triple degree from the University of Cambridge, remaining unwavering in her commitment to solving infertility throughout her journey. For her bachelor’s degree, she worked with Prof. Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz to track the pre-implantation development of mouse embryos. In 2014, she first joined forces with Melina to investigate why human egg quality declines with age. For her discoveries in the field of female ageing, she has been recognised with the Max Planck Society’s Otto Hahn Medal and the Young Scientist of 2018 title.

Agata has conducted research in leading reproductive biology labs across Cambridge, Göttingen, Munich, London and Kyoto, resulting in first/co-first author publications in Science, Nature Communications, and Current Biology, with over 700 citations. After completing the MD-PhD program, she became a resident doctor at Chelsea & Westminster and Imperial College London NHS Trusts, and worked as a medical trials physician in the team of Prof. Waljit Dhillo. Since 2019, she has been sharing her passion for Women’s Health as a supervisor in Human Reproduction at University of Cambridge. Driven by her commitment to translating research into clinical impact, she co-founded Ovo Labs to bring fertility solutions directly to patients.

Dr Oleksandr Yagensky

Sasha applies his expertise in business strategy and entrepreneurial experience to help couples worldwide achieve their dreams of becoming parents through Ovo Labs’ technology.

Before joining forces with Agata and Melina, Sasha spent five years at Bain & Company, where he became one of the fastest-promoted non-business hires to achieve the rank of Senior Manager in the history of the Bain DACH organization. At Bain, he completed over 45 commercial due diligence and strategy projects for Private Equity clients, leading teams on $100M to $10B transactions in the healthcare industry.

Sasha brings entrepreneurial experience to Ovo Labs, having previously co-founded a company in in vitro diagnostics. Sasha also holds a PhD in molecular biology from the Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences (Göttingen), where he studied the molecular mechanisms of another age-related challenge, which is cognitive decline.

Dr Saba Manshaei

Dr Saba Manshaei earned her PhD in Developmental Biology with a focus on endocrinology from University College London (UK), where her passion for female fertility first took root. In 2022, she joined Melina’s basic science lab at the MPI-NAT (Germany) as a postdoctoral researcher, further deepening her expertise in the field.

She later transitioned to managing the group’s Satellite Research Facility, which is located on the premises of the world’s first IVF clinic, Bourn Hall in Cambrideshire, UK. Working with human oocytes gave Saba invaluable first-hand experience in clinical workflows across the fertility journey. With her background at UCL’s Translational Research Office, Saba is passionate about bridging the gap between laboratory discoveries and commercial applications.