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Company Spotlight Series: Greice Krautz-Peterson
Meet Greice, Associate Director of Germline Assay Development at Variantyx!
I am from Brazil but have been living in the US for over 20 years. I love my native country and its incredible culture, but I also love and admire the US, so it is no surprise that I see myself as half Brazilian and half American. I also see myself as a very dedicated and empathic person who enjoys knowing and working with others. I love to socialize, ride bicycles in nature, dance, walk on the beach, and (of course) talk about science!
My college years were at my beloved Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG) in Brazil where I graduated with a BS degree in Biology, majoring in Parasitology and Biology Education. My choices at the time were guided by my interest in research and teaching. Soon after graduating from college, I became a High School Biology teacher. At this time, I was granted an internship by the prestigious Oswaldo Cruz Foundation in Brazil to work with diagnosis and treatment follow up of patients with chronic Chagas’ Disease.
This inspired me to get an MS and PhD in Biochemistry & Immunology. As a PhD student, I received an international scholarship from the Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development to study at Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago, where I was introduced to the field of molecular diagnostics, my major area of interest and expertise to this day.
My career since then has been focused on IVD assay development. At Tufts University, from my pos-doctoral to my assistant professor years I worked with specialists in the field of diagnosis/treatment of human infectious diseases. Then I broadened my experience in industry by joining the biotech company ANDE, where I was developing rapid fingerprint molecular tests for point-of-care and for the FBI. Later, I worked at Quest Diagnostics developing a companion diagnostic test for FDA approval gaining significant experience in clinical development and validation of diagnostic assays.
I joined Variantyx in 2022, inspired by the company’s values and willingness to bring new technologies and innovations to the whole genome sequencing (WGS) based clinical diagnostics to provide the best in genetic diagnostic products and services to the market. From the start, I have felt welcomed by Variantyx’s collaborative team, and I am proud to contribute to our success as part of the R&D group.