Structural Biology Program

The Dimitar Nikolov Lab

Dimitar B. Nikolov, PhD

Professor

Research in our laboratory aims to characterize the molecular mechanisms underlying cell-to-cell interactions and signal transduction across the cell membrane. We are particularly interested in understanding how receptors located on the surface of developing axons and neurons interact with extracellular ligands to guide the development of the nervous system and the wiring of the brain.

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Schematic depictions of the molecular assembly of EphA2 receptor kinases on the cell surface.

Publications Highlights

Saha N, Chan E, Mendoza RP, Romin Y, Tipping MJ, Nikolov DB. (2025). Antibodies targeting ADAM17 reverse neurite outgrowth inhibition by myelin-associated inhibitors. Life Science Alliance, 8(6):e202403126. doi: 10.26508/lsa.202403126. PMID: 40132887; PMCID: PMC11938383

Saha N, Lee SG, Brockmann EC, de la Cruz MJ, Goldgur Y, Mendoza RP, Stanchina E, Love TM, Marvald J, Xu Y, Xu K, Himanen JP, Lamminmäki U, Veach D, Nikolov DB. (2024) Fully human monoclonal antibody targeting the cysteine-rich substrate-interacting region of ADAM17 on cancer cells. Biomed Pharmacother. 2024 Nov;180:117605. doi: 10.1016/j.biopha.2024.117605. Epub 2024 Oct 25. PMID: 39461016; PMCID: PMC11787792

Shi X, Lingerak R, Herting CJ, Ge Y, Kim S, Toth P, Wang W, Brown BP, Meiler J, Sossey-Alaoui K, Buck M, Himanen J, Hambardzumyan D, Nikolov DB^*, Smith AW^*, Wang B^*. (joint corresponding authors). (2023) Time-resolved live-cell spectroscopy reveals EphA2 multimeric assembly. Science. 2023 Dec;382(6674):1042-1050. doi: 10.1126/science.adg5314. Epub 2023 Nov 16. PMID: 37972196; PMCID: PMC11114627

Xu K, Wu Z, Renier N, Antipenko A, Tzvetkova-Robev D, Xu Y, Minchenko M, Nardi-Dei V, Rajashankar KR, Himanen J, Tessier-Lavigne M, Nikolov DB. (2014). Structures of netrin-1 bound to two receptors provide insight into its axon guidance mechanism. Science, 344(6189): 1275-1279. PMID: 24876346; PMCID: PMC4369087

Xu K, Olsen O, Tzvetkova-Robev D, Tessier-Lavigne M, Nikolov DB. (2015). The crystal structure of DR6 in complex with the amyloid precursor protein provides insight into death receptor activation. Genes Dev, 29:1-6. PMID: 25838500; PMCID: PMC4403255

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People

Dimitar B. Nikolov, PhD

Professor

The Nikolov laboratory focuses on the structural, biophysical, and biochemical characterization of the molecular mechanisms of cell-cell interactions and signal transduction across the plasma membrane.
PhD, The Rockefeller University

nikolovd@mskcc.org: Email Address
212-639-6784: Office Phone
Download CV: Word File

Members

Dimitar B. Nikolov, PhD — Dimitar B. Nikolov
Member

Juha Himanen, PhD — Juha Himanen
Senior Research Scientist

Nayanendu Saha
Senior Research Scientist

Dorothea Robev, MS — Dorothea Robev
Research Assistant and Laboratory Manager

Lab Alumni

Alexander Antipenko, PhD — Alexander Antipenko
Senior Research Scientist

Momchil Kolev, MS — Momchil Kolev
Research Assistant

Emilia Mason, PhD — Emilia Mason
Postdoctoral Research Scholar

Lab Affiliations

Open Positions

To learn more about available postdoctoral opportunities, please visit our Career Center

To learn more about compensation and benefits for postdoctoral researchers at MSK, please visit Resources for Postdocs

Get in Touch

nikolovd@mskcc.org

Lab Head Email
212-639-6784

Office Phone
212-639-6837 / 6806

Lab Phone
212-717-3135

Lab Fax

Disclosures

Doctors and faculty members often work with pharmaceutical, device, biotechnology, and life sciences companies, and other organizations outside of MSK, to find safe and effective cancer treatments, to improve patient care, and to educate the health care community.

MSK requires doctors and faculty members to report (“disclose”) the relationships and financial interests they have with external entities. As a commitment to transparency with our community, we make that information available to the public.

Dimitar B. Nikolov discloses the following relationships and financial interests:

No disclosures meeting criteria for time period

The information published here is a complement to other publicly reported data and is for a specific annual disclosure period. There may be differences between information on this and other public sites as a result of different reporting periods and/or the various ways relationships and financial interests are categorized by organizations that publish such data.

This page and data include information for a specific MSK annual disclosure period (January 1, 2023 through disclosure submission in spring 2024). This data reflects interests that may or may not still exist. This data is updated annually.

Learn more about MSK’s COI policies here. For questions regarding MSK’s COI-related policies and procedures, email MSK’s Compliance Office at ecoi@mskcc.org.

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