Amy Strom
@dnamystrom.bsky.social
220 followers 530 following 25 posts
Chromatin and cancer and condensates. Lab Head in Discovery Oncology at Genentech. AmyStrom.com
Posts Media Videos Starter Packs
Pinned
dnamystrom.bsky.social
If heterochromatin is really a liquid-like condensate, why is it not spherical?
We investigated whether mechanical interactions between a condensate and a fiber network can explain the variety of morphologies seen in phase-separated nuclear compartments
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
dnamystrom.bsky.social
Just two scientists building our empires with style 💅🏼🙌🏼
dnamystrom.bsky.social
Thanks Jase! It's a whirlwind so far but I'm psyched to get started. Let's catch up!
dnamystrom.bsky.social
First, organize and label. Then, science.
dnamystrom.bsky.social
Getting Strom Lab set up!
dnamystrom.bsky.social
First day at my new job!
I'm a Lab Head, Principal Scientist in Discovery Oncology at Genentech.
I'll be searching for new targets to develop cancer treatments.

2nd photo is my newest friend on campus, decoy-ote.
@genentech.bsky.social
dnamystrom.bsky.social
The latest in my favorite love triangle:
Chromatin <-(💜)-> Condensates <-(💚)-> Mechanics
dnamystrom.bsky.social
Cancelling grants that were already competitively won and awarded is the waste and abuse.

www.nytimes.com/2025/07/10/u...
The Surprising Scientists Hit by Trump’s D.E.I. Cuts
www.nytimes.com
dnamystrom.bsky.social
Huge thanks to my family, mentors, and funders for making this path possible — and to Genentech for the leap of faith. Can’t wait to get started next month!
dnamystrom.bsky.social
I'm thrilled to announce my next career step-- I’m joining Genentech as a Principal Scientist & Lab Head in Discovery Oncology!
I’ll be hunting new ways to target cancers using my background in disordered nuclear proteins.
dnamystrom.bsky.social
Yes drew this sketch, love an excuse to spend a few mins in Illustrator :)

Re bulk chromatin it's hard to tell in vivo since we can't see H3K9me. But, in vitro work suggests yes. Lucy Brennan combined HP1 with Methylated and unmod nucleosomes--only Me in HP1 drops!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
www.biorxiv.org
dnamystrom.bsky.social
The HP1 and BRD4 chimeric constructs help us answer this-- if it were solely the denser placement of affinity polymer blocks, we'd expect the HP1-BRD4 construct (HP1's chromodomain + BRD4's IDR) to also engulf chromatin, but we find the opposite-- it can localize to HC but reduces chrom. density!
dnamystrom.bsky.social
Thanks for your great questions!
Yes, exactly, we find that wetting condensates bundle fibers and stiffen the network, contributing to mechanical frustration alongside fiber flexibility and density.
Interestingly, this is re-entrant, with a sweet spot of wetting vol frac (see Ext Data Fig 4f-i)
dnamystrom.bsky.social
hah thanks David!
dnamystrom.bsky.social
This work was a joint effort with Hongbo Zhao, with contributions from Jorine Eeftens, Mikko Haataja, Andrej Kosmrlj and Cliff Brangwynne. It was funded by Princeton University and through multiple federal sources. Please read the full story and write to your senators to support scientific funding.
dnamystrom.bsky.social
The structure of condensates and chromatin are interdependent.

Surface tension and stiffness– not just binding affinity or location– shape genome structure.

Elastocapillarity offers a physical basis for mesoscale nuclear morphology, with implications for gene regulation and disease.
dnamystrom.bsky.social
Multiple types of condensates coexist within one nucleus, potentially interacting mechanically through modulating the chromatin network– we found that wetting condensates bundle and stiffen chromatin, constraining the size of non-wetting condensates.
dnamystrom.bsky.social
We investigated the determinants of condensate wetting and chromatin stiffness in living cells.

Stiffness arises from chromatin density, while wetting is controlled by the strength and extent of chromatin binding, with heterochromatic protein HP1alpha’s chromodomain providing strong wetting
dnamystrom.bsky.social
Elegantly, the variety of morphologies seen in nuclei can arise from varying just two parameters– condensate wetting and chromatin stiffness.

Nonwetting condensates in flexible networks cavitate and exclude fibers, while wetting condensates engulf and bundle them. Stiff networks inhibit growth.
dnamystrom.bsky.social
Through simulations and experiments of a chromatin fiber networks and liquid-like condensates, we revealed that both chromatin-including, aspherical structures and chromatin-excluding, spherical structures seen in the mesoscale nucleus can be recreated through elastocapillarity
dnamystrom.bsky.social
Liquid-fiber interactions– governed by the physical principle of elastocapillarity– are invoked when liquids adhere to flexible structures like membranes and microtubules. The liquid can influence the shape/structure of the fiber, and vice versa.
dnamystrom.bsky.social
If heterochromatin is really a liquid-like condensate, why is it not spherical?
We investigated whether mechanical interactions between a condensate and a fiber network can explain the variety of morphologies seen in phase-separated nuclear compartments
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...