01 — Research

Four threads, one question: how do condensates compute cell state?

We use interdisciplinary approaches across chemical, molecular, and cellular scales to answer this.

MOLECULAR RECOGNITION

Condensates & RNA function

How do condensate environments shape RNA structure, interactions, dynamics, and function? We combine cellular, biochemical, and biophysical approaches to uncover how subcellular organization regulates RNA behavior.

APPROACHES

— RNA structure probing
— Biochemical assays
— Optogenetics
— In vitro reconstitution

CHEMICAL BIOLOGY

Small-molecule modulators of condensates

How does subcellular organization influence where small molecules act and what they do? We use chemical biology to uncover the principles that govern small-molecule activity within condensates and to develop new strategies for controlling therapeutic function.

APPROACHES

— Small-molecule synthesis
— Chemical genetics
— Cheminformatics and machine learning

TECHNOLOGY

Quantitative phenotyping

Can cellular organization reveal what is happening biochemically inside a cell? We develop AI-powered microscopy approaches, including Deep-Phase, that transform changes in condensate morphology into quantitative readouts of cellular function and enable discovery at scale.

APPROACHES

— High-content microscopy
— Image analysis and machine learning
— Perturbation screens

Translation

Disease biology

How does altered subcellular organization contribute to cancer progression and therapeutic response? We investigate how condensate states define cancer cell behaviors, reveal disease mechanisms, and create new therapeutic vulnerabilities.

APPROACHES

— Quantitative imaging
— Functional profiling
— Clinical collaborations

Curious what this looks like on the page?

See our publications