Parker Johnson

Parker Johnson has a diverse work experience in the biotechnology industry and academic research. They began their career as an Undergraduate Research Assistant at UCLA, where they gained practical research experience. Following that, they worked as a Graduate Student Researcher at UC Irvine, conducting structural and functional analysis of bacterial toxin/immunity pairs. This research aimed to identify drug targets for antimicrobial development.

After completing their graduate studies, Parker joined City of Hope as a Postdoctoral Fellow in the John Williams Lab. Here, they utilized X-ray crystallography and molecular modeling to determine structures of antibody-peptide complexes for the engineering of cancer therapeutics. Their work contributed to the founding of Xilio Therapeutics, which attracted funding from top-tier venture capital firms.

At Xilio Therapeutics, Parker held various roles, starting as a Scientist in Structural Biology. They then became a Senior Scientist in Protein Engineering, utilizing protein structures and molecular modeling software to design and engineer therapeutic proteins. They also conducted in vitro and biophysical characterization of proteins to examine their function and establish structure-function relationships.

Currently, Parker is the Principal Scientist in Protein Engineering at Xilio Therapeutics, responsible for designing and optimizing therapeutic proteins to meet project requirements. Their extensive experience in protein engineering and structural biology make them a valuable asset to the company.

Parker Johnson completed a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics from UCLA between 2007 and 2011. Following that, Parker pursued a higher degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at UC Irvine from 2011 to 2016, earning a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree.