Richard M. Witas, Ph.D.

Richard M. Witas, Ph.D. is a patent scientist in the firm’s DC office and has technical experience in the life sciences (molecular biology, cell biology, neuroscience, immunology).

As an undergraduate, Richard Witas investigated the roles of chaperone proteins, scaffolding proteins, and exosomes in the propagation of the Aβ cascade in Alzheimer’s disease. During his Ph.D. studies at the University of Florida, Richard explored the use of small molecule drugs to prevent Zika virus infection and examined suppression of cancer cell growth through the blocking of the Axl signaling pathway. Richard’s graduate work focused primarily on identifying defects in macrophage function that contributed to an environment conducive to autoimmunity in Sjögren’s syndrome.