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About me in a nutshell
About me in a nutshell
I am a results-driven scientist and communicator with over 20 years of experience across academia and biotech. Proven record of leadership in research, strategy, and communications, with a passion for building cross-functional collaborations that accelerate discovery and drive impact. Recognized as a subject matter expert, with >7,700 citations, for pioneering scientific platforms, leading strategic communication, guiding high-stakes initiatives, and influencing company-wide vision in dynamic, innovation-focused environments.
As a first generation, boots-on-the-ground scientist in the biomolecular condensate science field -- while at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, I contributed to the foundational understanding on how the protein structure & dynamics at the molecular level contribute to mesoscale structure and emergent properties of intermolecular networks inside condensates. This work provided insights into the mechanisms that describe the structure and function of the nucleolus -- the cell's ribosome factory, as well as mechanisms involved in diseases, such as ALS and various forms of cancer.
I brought this first line expertise to Dewpoint Therapeutics -- the first biotech company to apply condensate science to drug discovery, where I contributed to the development and optimization of the discovery platform and its applications across various therapeutic areas, expanding the company's portfolio, as well as promoting awareness and education for internal team members and the broader scientific and investor community into this emerging scientific field.
Highlights
Highlights
Positioned Dewpoint Therapeutics as the world leader in the condensate-targeted drug discovery space, while leading the internal and external communication strategy.
Led pioneering research at the intersection of biophysics and cell biology at St. Jude Children’s Hospital, and learned about patient, caregiver and public engagement, building trust, purpose and influence, and cross-functional collaboration.
Recognized and addressed unmet needs & opportunities, by reprioritizing, learning new skills, assembling multidisciplinary teams and assuming new roles and responsibilities spanning scientific research, project management and strategic communications.
Work experience
Work experience
DeMix Solutions, LLC, Canton MA
DeMix Solutions, LLC, Canton MA
Founder | Sep 2025 – present
Partner with startups to implement scalable and adaptable strategic communications solutions and processes to support organizational growth and evolution
Dewpoint Therapeutics, Boston MA
Dewpoint Therapeutics, Boston MA
Director, Head of Scientific & Corporate Communications | Jun 2024 – Sep 2025
Directed scientific and corporate communication strategies, including publication strategy, brand recognition, internal and external communications, and supported materials preparation for regulatory affairs, investor relations, and executive presentations.
Led the content creation, management and maintenance of internal and external websites, social media (>2x following increase) & community outreach initiatives.
Created multimedia content to support the strategic goals of the company, through its evolution from a platform to a clinical-stage company.
Enhanced company knowledge sharing through tailored intranet tools, slide libraries and D.hangout series of internal educational seminars.
Facilitated academic and CRO collaborations to expand capabilities.
Associate Director, Scientific Communications | Mar 2022 – Jun 2024
Led the publication strategy.
Supported the brand launch & implementation, design and content creation for Dewpointx.com, and the intranet.
Conceptualized and led the implementation, content curation and maintenance of Condensates.com redesign to serve as Dewpoint’s educational platform, expand its audience beyond academia.
Created and maintain the c-mods (550+ entries) and condensatopathies (240+ entries) encyclopedias -- research resources based on literature mining, that consolidate experimental evidence to support hypothesis generation and condensate-targeted drug discovery.
Associate Director, Condensate Biophysics | Mar 2022 – Mar 2023
Developed strategic project proposals, pioneered and scaled biophysical capabilities and efficient integration of experimental and digital tools to support scientific and drug discovery in oncology, neurology, cardio-pulmonology, and infectious diseases.
Designed and led Dewpoint’s first program to integrate AI/ML into workflows from the conceptual stage, ensuring alignment between digital strategies and experimental design from the outset. This approach was subsequently adopted as a model for implementation across additional company programs.
Group Leader, Condensate Platform – Biochemistry | Apr 2020 – Mar 2022
Led matrixed, international teams and managed up to nine direct reports, fostering innovation, mentorship, and execution excellence across the portfolio.
Led assay development in support of drug discovery and target engagement efforts across wholly-owned and partnered programs in neurodegeneration, cardiopulmonary, virology and oncology therapeutic areas.
Served as the condensate expert for the infectious diseases therapeutic area.
Research Investigator, Technology Development | Aug 2019 – Apr 2020
Established the biochemistry & biophysics infrastructure and team capabilities in the Boston laboratory.
Led assay development efforts for protein production, in vitro condensate reconstitution, target engagement, as well as quantitative characterization of condensates in cells and in vitro.
Served as a founder in the Condensate Science Council – a subject matter expertise group; designed and taught internal, cross-functional introductory courses in condensate science.
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis TN
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis TN
Staff Scientist | Jun 2015 – Aug 2019
Conceptualized, kick-started and managed several collaborative scientific projects, focused on understanding the role and condensate-centric mechanisms that relate to (1) ribosome biogenesis; (2) hijacking of physiological condensate function by di-peptide repeats generated in ALS patients harboring the C9Orf72 repeat expansion; (3) a variety of cancers driven by fusion oncogenes.
Wrote manuscripts and grants, managed inter-disciplinary teams and projects, and mentored graduate & undergraduate students.
Postdoctoral Research Associate | Sep 2010 – Jun 2015
Discovered that NPM1 -- a well-known nucleolar marker, functions as a scaffold for the formation and regulation of the liquid-like nucleolar layer called the granular component
Characterized the molecular structure and dynamics that contribute to the formation and regulation of the complex molecular network responsible for ribosome biogenesis and nucleolar stress response, inside the nucleolus.
Mentored trainees, wrote grants and manuscripts.
SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse NY
SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse NY
Postdoctoral Research Associate | 2009-2010
Spearheaded two new protein engineering projects and mentored graduate & undergraduate students.
Graduate Research Assistant | 2004-2009
Developed and executed research plans on protein engineering and biophysical, structural and functional characterization of fusion proteins with tunable enzymatic activity | Wrote manuscripts and mentored 3 graduate students.
Undergraduate Researcher | 2003
Produced and functionally characterized visual GPCRs.
Education
Education
Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology | 2009
Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology | 2009
SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY
BS in Biochemical Engineering | 2004
BS in Biochemical Engineering | 2004
Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Publications
Publications
Mitrea DM, Patel A, Klein IA, Nathwani A, Dewpoint Therapeutics’ vision for biomolecular condensates to revolutionize drug discovery, Nature Collection – Sponsor Feature (2024) Full text
Mitrea DM, Leveraging the power of molecular communities, Drug Discovery World, Special eReport ‘Neuroscience’ (2024) Full text
Martin EW, Iserman C, Olety B, Mitrea DM, Klein IA. Biomolecular Condensates as Novel Antiviral Targets. Journal Molecular Biology (2023)
Dar F, Cohen SR, Mitrea DM, Phillips AH, Nagy G, Leite WC, Stanley CB, Choi JM, Kriwacki RW, Pappu RV. Biomolecular condensates form spatially inhomogeneous network fluids. Nature Communications (2024)
Tripathi S, Shirnekhi HK, Gorman SD, Chandra B, Baggett DW, Park CG, Somjee R, Lang B, Hosseini SMH, Pioso BJ, Li Y, Iacobucci I, Gao Q, Edmonson MN, Rice SV, Zhou X, Bollinger J, Mitrea DM, White MR, McGrail DJ, Jarosz DF, Yi SS, Babu MM, Mullighan CG, Zhang J, Sahni N, Kriwacki RW., Defining the condensate landscape of fusion oncoproteins, Nature Communications (2023)
Rostam N, Ghosh S, Chow CFW, Hadarovich A, Landerer C, Ghosh R, Moon H, Hersemann L, Mitrea DM, Klein IA, Hyman AA, Toth-Petroczy A., CD-CODE: crowdsourcing condensate database and encyclopedia, Nature Methods (2023)
Boeynaems S, Chong S, Gsponer J, Holt L, Milovanovic D, Mitrea DM, Mueller-Cajar O, Portz B, Reilly JF, Reinkemeier CD, Sabari BR, Sanulli S, Shorter J, Sontag E, Strader L, Stachowiak J, Weber SC, White M, Zhang H, Zweckstetter M, Elbaum-Garfinkle S, Kriwacki R., Phase separation in biology and disease; current perspectives and open questions, Journal of Molecular Biology (2023)
Patel A, Mitrea DM, Namasivayam V, Murcko MA, Wagner M, Klein IA, Principles and functions of condensate modifying drugs, Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences (2022)
Mitrea DM, Mittasch M, Gomes BF, Klein IA, Murcko MA, Modulating biomolecular condensates: a novel approach to drug discovery, Nature Reviews in Drug Discovery (2022). Press release
Rizzolo K & Mitrea DM#, Flipping the switch, Nature Chemical Biology (2022)
Guy C, Mitrea DM, Chou PC, Temirov J, Vignali K, Liu X, Zhang H, Kriwacki RW, Bruchez M, Watkins S, Workman C, Vignali D, LAG3 associates with TCR/CD3 complexes and suppresses signaling by driving CD4/CD8:p56lck dissociation, Nature Immunology (2022)
Chandra B, Michmerhuizen NL, Shirnekhi HK, Tripathi S, Piosio BJ, Mitrea DM, Iacobucci I, White M, Chen J, Park CG, Wu H, Pounds S, Medyukhina A, Khairy K, Qu C, Gormann S, Bawa S, Maslanka C, Kinger S, Dogra P, Klco JM, Mullighan CG, Kriwacki RW, Phase separation mediates NUP98 fusion oncoprotein leukemic transformation, Cancer Discovery (2022). Press release
Levin B, Mittasch M, Ferreira Gomes B, Manteiga J, Patel A, Zamudio A, Beutel O, Mitrea DM#, Harnessing the power of fluorescence to characterize biomolecular condensates, Methods in Microbiology (2021)
Riback JA, Zhu L, Ferrolino MC, Tolbert M, Mitrea DM, Sanders DW, Wei MT, Kriwacki RW, Brangwynne CP, Composition-dependent thermodynamics of intracellular phase separation, Nature (2020)
White MR, Mitrea DM, Zhang P, Stanley CB, Cassidy DE, Nourse A, Phillips AH, Tolbert M, Taylor JP, Kriwacki RW, C9orf72 dipeptide repeats disturb biomolecular phase separation and disrupt nucleolar function, Molecular Cell (2019). Press release
Ferrolino MC, Mitrea DM, Michael JR, Kriwacki RW, Compositional adaptability in NPM1-mediated scaffolding networks enabled by switching of phase separation mechanisms, Nature Communications (2018). Press release
Mitrea DM, Cika JA, Stanley CB, Nourse A, Onuchic PL, Banerjee PR, Phillips AH, Park CG, Deniz AA, Kriwacki RW, Self-interaction of NPM1 modulates multiple mechanisms of liquid-liquid phase separation, Nature Communications (2018). Press release
Mitrea DM#, Chandra B, Ferrolino M, Gibbs E, Tolbert M, White M, Kriwacki RW, Methods for physical characterization of phase separated bodies and membrane-less organelles, Journal of Molecular Biology (2018)
Mitrea DM, Kriwacki RW, On the relationship status for Arf and NPM1--it’s complicated, FEBS Journal (2018)
Feric M, Vaidya N, Harmon TS, Mitrea DM, Zhu L, Richardson TM, Kriwacki RW, Pappu RV, Brangwynne CP, Coexisting liquid phases underlie nucleolar subcompartments, Cell (2016)
Mitrea DM, Hunter JC, Guy CS, Ban D, Banerjee PR, Stanley CB, Nourse A, Deniz AA, Kriwacki RW, NPM1 integrates within the nucleolus via multi-modal interactions with proteins displaying R-rich linear motifs and rRNA, Elife (2016). Press release
Lee KH, Zhang P, Kim HJ, Mitrea DM, Sarkar M, Freibaum BD, Cika J, Couphlin M, Messing J, Molliex A, Maxwell BA, Kim NC, Temirov J, Moore J, Kolaitis RM, Shaw TI, Bai B, Peng J, Kriwacki RW, Taylor JP, C9orf72 dipeptide repeats impair the assembly, dynamics, and function of membrane-less organelles, Cell (2016). Press release
Mitrea DM, Kriwacki RK, Phase separation in biology: functional organization of a higher order, Cell Communications and Signaling (2016)
Banerjee PR, Mitrea DM, Kriwacki RW, Deniz AA, Mapping the order-disorder transition pathways in the N-terminal oligomerization domain of NPM1, Agew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl. (2015)
Mitrea DM, Grace CR, Buljan M, Yun MK, Pytel NJ, Satumba J, Nourse A, Park CG, Babu MM, White SW, Kriwacki RW, Structural polymorphism in the N-terminal oligomerization domain of NPM1, PNAS (2014). Press release
Mann B, Thornton J, Heath R, Wade KR, Tweten RK, Gao G, El Kasmi K, Jordan JB, Mitrea DM, Kriwacki RW, Maisonneuve J, Alderson M, Tuomanen EI, Broadly Protective Protein-Based Pneumococcal Vaccine Comprised of Pneumolysin Toxoid-CbpA Peptide Recombinant Fusion Protein, Journal of Infectious Diseases (2013)
Mitrea DM & Kriwacki RK, Regulated unfolding of proteins in signaling, FEBS Letters (2013)
Mitrea DM & Kriwacki RW, Cryptic disorder: an order-disorder transformation regulates the function of nucleophosmin, Pacific Symposium on Biocomputing (2012)
Mitrea DM, Yoon MK, Ou L, Kriwacki RW, Disorder/function relationships for the cell cycle regulatory proteins, p21 and p27, Biological Chemistry (2012)
Yoon MK, Mitrea DM, Ou L, Kriwacki RW, Cell cycle regulation by the intrinsically disordered proteins p21 and p27, Biochem. Soc. Trans. (2012)
Mitrea DM, Parsons LS, Loh SN, Engineering an artificial zymogen by alternate frame protein folding, PNAS (2010)
Butler JS*, Mitrea DM*, Mitrousis G*, Cingolani G, Loh SN, Structural and thermodynamic analysis of a conformationally strained circular permutant of Barnase, Biochemistry (2009)
Stratton MM, Mitrea DM, Loh SN, A Ca2+-sensing molecular switch based on alternate frame protein folding, ACS Chemical Biology (2008)
Ha JH, Butler JS, Mitrea DM, Loh SN, Modular enzyme design: regulation by mutually exclusive protein folding, Journal Molecular Biology (2006)
Beutel BA, Dandliker PJ, Hale SP, Murcko AA, Boczek EE, Mittasch M, Mitrea DM, Methods for characterizing condensate-associated characteristics of compounds and uses thereof, WO2022035989A1 (2022)
Loh SN, Ha JH, Mitrea DM, Domain swapping modules, US patent appl. 20150010947 (2015)
#corresponding author; *equal contribution authors
Scientific Talks
Scientific Talks
“Leveraging biomolecular condensates to discover the next generation therapies”, invited speaker, EMBO workshop: Cellular Matters, Ascona, Switzerland (2025)
"Leveraging biomolecular condensates to discover the next generation therapies", invited speaker, Cancer Biology Program, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis TN (2025)
"Leveraging biomolecular condensates to discover the next generation therapies", invited speaker, Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology Seminar Series, Vanderbilt University, Nashville TN (2024)
“C-mods: a revolution in drug discovery”, invited speaker, TSRC Workshop: Phase Separation in Biology and Disease, Telluride CO (2024)
C-mods: a revolution in drug discovery”, keynote speaker, UMass Amherst BTP Retreat, Boston MA (2024)
"Biomolecular condensates: from basic science to drug discovery", invited speaker, Sanoulli Lab, Stanford University (2023)
“Biomolecular condensates: the power of community in drug discovery”, invited speaker, TSRC Workshop: Phase Separation in Biology and Disease, Telluride CO (2022)
“Biomolecular condensates: the power of community in drug discovery”, invited speaker, BTP Symposium, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Amherst MA (2021)
“Dynamic Rearrangements within NPM1-Mediated Scaffolds: Implications for Ribosome Biogenesis Regulation”, Keystone Symposium on Biomolecular Condensates: Phase-Separated Organizers of Cellular Biochemistry, Snowbird UT (2019)
“Structural insights into the nucleolar liquid-like molecular networks”, invited speaker, SHUG/CNMS Joint User Meeting, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge TN (2017)
“Multiple mechanisms mediate NPM1-dependent phase separation in the nucleolus”, invited speaker, TSRC Workshop: Intrinsically Disordered Proteins; How conformational landscapes control intra- and inter-molecular interactions of IDPs; Telluride CO (2017)
“NPM1 facilitates assembly of nucleolar components through phase separation”, ACS SERMACS, Memphis TN (2015)
“Acidic Patches in Nucleophosmin Recruit Nucleolar Proteins via Arginine-Rich Linear Motifs”, Biophysical Society, Disordered Motifs and Domains in Cell Control, Dublin, Ireland (2014)
“Order, disorder and protein multitasking”, invited speaker for Cutting Edge St. Jude Research Seminar Series, Rhodes College, Memphis TN (2012)
“Protein switches: Modulating toxic activity by conformational strain”. Life Sciences Retreat, Syracuse University, Syracuse NY (2007)
Educational Talks
Educational Talks
"Creating impactful slides", D.hangout Seminar Series, Dewpoint Therapeutics (2025)
"Introducing the new Dewpoint PowerPoint template", D.hangout Seminar Series, Dewpoint Therapeutics (2025)
“Phase transitions from academia to industry”, invited speaker, BRET ASPIRE Career Stories, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN (2024
“Phase transitions from academia to industry”, invited speaker, Cancer Biology Program Retreat, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN (2025)
"Leveraging biomolecular condensates to discover the next generation therapies", guest lecture, BIO401, Stanford University (2024)
"Concepts and terminology", Condensate Lecture Series, Dewpoint Therapeutics (2020)
"Tools and methods", Condensate Lecture Series, Dewpoint Therapeutics (2020)
"Case study: Biomolecular condensation in nucleolar function and disease", Condensate Lecture Series, Dewpoint Therapeutics (2020)
“The multiple phases of life”, invited speaker, Biomedical Research Symposium, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse NY (2019)
Awards & Community Service
Awards & Community Service
2023-present
2017 - 2018
2009, 2012, 2013
2017 - present
Frontiers in Biophysics | Associate Editor
2019
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis TN | Research Staff of the Year
2017 - 2018
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis TN | St. Jude Select
2009, 2012, 2013
Protein Science Young Investigator Travel Grant / The Protein Society Finn World Travel
2017 - present
Reviewer for Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences, Nature Cell Biology, Nature, Nature Communications, Nature Reviews Molecular and Cell Biology, Science Translational Medicine, BBA – General Subjects, Journal of Molecular Biology, Cancer Letters, Oncogene, Communications Biology
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