1. Quincey Ann Justman
qjustman@mcb.harvard.edu • (415) 606-2293 • http://www.linkedin.com/in/quinceyjustman/
Education
Ph.D. in Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco March 2009
» Recipient of the 2009 Clement’s Award for Distinction in Biophysics
» Graduate Group in Biophysics nominee for the 2009 Krevans’ Distinguished Dissertation Award, UCSF
B.A. in Biology, Reed College May 1999
Research Experience
American Cancer Society Post-Doctoral Fellow, Harvard University 2009-present
Advisor: Andrew W. Murray (Dept. of Molecular and Cellular Biology, FAS Center for Systems Biology)
Collaborators: Rachelle Gaudet and Ethan C. Garner (both Harvard University)
Project: Defining the impact of environmental fluctuations on growth and division in S. cerevisiae
• Identified a new point of intersection between metabolism, the cell cycle, and the history of single cells; employed
microfluidics and long-term, 4D microscopy
• Discovered a new class of biological polymers; fostered collaboration across disciplines to characterize its structure
• Awarded over $400,000 of competitive research funding from the American Cancer Society, the Jane Coffin Childs
Memorial Fund, and the NIH
Ph.D. Candidate, Graduate Group in Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco 2002-2009
Advisor: Kevan M. Shokat (Dept. of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology and HHMI)
Collaborators: James E. Ferrell, Jr. (Stanford University) and Hana El-Samad (UC San Francisco)
Project: Systems analysis of kinase signaling in Xenopus oocyte maturation
• Pioneered a new research direction; connected systems-level function to kinase network structure using single-cell
experiments, small molecule inhibitors, and mathematical models
• Coordinated a long-standing, cross-disciplinary collaboration between three labs
• Took primary responsibility for manuscript writing, communication with editors, and rebuttals
• Published this work as a Report in Science; work was highlighted in Science's "Perspectives"
Research Technician, Oregon Health & Science University 1999-2002
Advisor: Gail M. Clinton (Dept. of Biochemistry)
Project: Characterization of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) signaling in a tissue culture model of breast cancer
• Characterized Herstatin, an EGFR splice-variant, as an uncoupler of signaling downstream of the EGFR
• Published this work as a two author paper in The Journal of Biological Chemistry
Senior Thesis Research, Reed College 1998-1999
Advisor: Steve Arch (Dept. of Biology)
Project: Characterization of action potential-dependent tyrosine kinase signaling in Aplysia californica
Teaching, Leadership, and Service
Harvard University
Lecturer: MCB292, Cell Biology, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology 2013
• Designed a primary literature- and physics-based curriculum for Harvard’s flagship graduate-level cell biology course;
combined interactive lectures with discussions of classic and current papers
• Team-taught with Harvard professors (responsible for 25% of lectures and 50% of paper discussions)
» Tasking post-doctoral fellows with curriculum revision is unprecedented in this course’s history
» Best-ranked graduate level course (2013) by MCB course by student evaluations
Teaching Fellow: Writing, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology 2011-2012
• Built a new, mandatory scientific writing course for Harvard Ph.D. students
• Critiqued writing based on clarity and scientific accuracy; subjects ranged from protein structure to neuroscience
» Best-ranked graduate level course (2011 & 2012) by MCB course by student evaluations
—continued
2. Leadership and Service: Harvard 2009-2014
• Responsible for mentoring 6 Harvard Ph.D. students and 1 Ph.D. candidate
• Routinely assist diverse colleagues with manuscripts, grant-writing, job talks, and proposals
» Example publications: PMID 21233390 (metabolic inputs to a circadian clock), PMID 22722252 (force generation at
kinetochores), PMID 24994654 (proof-of-principle: synthetic ecology), PMID 21636745 (bacterial cell wall synthesis)
• Peer-reviewed manuscripts on Andrew Murray’s behalf (6, topics range from dynamical systems theory to the cell cycle)
• Founding member, joint Harvard University-Harvard Med. association for Fellows in Systems Biology 2011
University of California, San Francisco
Initiating Course Director, “Cell Biology Bootcamp,” Graduate Group in Biophysics 2004-2008
• Spearheaded the creation of an immersive cell biology course for physicists with no biology training
• Led teams of approx. 12 biophysicists to create approx. 80 hours of coherent, effective content
• Refined Bootcamp’s structure and content every year based on longitudinal data and student interviews
• Funded Bootcamp with awards from NIH and HHMI; grants were written in collaboration with UCSF faculty
» Bootcamp remains a mandatory component of the UCSF Integrative Program in Quantitative Biology
» Our bootcamp model has been implemented by other graduate programs at UCSF and beyond
Leadership and Service: UCSF
• Student representative, UCSF Biophysics graduate admissions committee (2 selected out of approx. 60) 2005-2007
• Student representative, UCSF Biophysics curriculum committee (student inclusion is non-standard) 2004-2005
• Prepared more than 40 students from 5 programs for Ph.D. candidacy exams (written and oral) 2003-2009
• Peer-reviewed manuscripts describing kinase signaling on Kevan Shokat’s behalf (2)
Invited Talks (selected out of more than 12 total) 2004-2014
• Departmental Seminars: University of Chicago, UCSF 2013, 2010
• Niche meetings: Gordon Research Conference (Growth and Proliferation), Gordon Research Seminar (Growth and
Proliferation, Session Chair 2015), Cold Spring Harbor (Cell Biology of Yeasts, The Cell Cycle)
• Society Meetings: American Society for Cell Biology, Biomedical Engineering Society
Publications
In Preparation
• Q.A. Justman and A.W. Murray. Defining an adaptive, checkpoint-independent arrest program in the S. cerevisiae cell cycle.
» Expected submission date: December, 2014
• Q.A. Justman and A.W. Murray. The core metabolic enzyme Hexokinase 2 collaborates with AMP-dependent Protein
Kinase to impose glucose-dependence on the S. cerevisiae cell cycle.
» Expected submission date: January, 2015
• Q.A. Justman and A.W. Murray. S. cerevisiae populations contain standing physiological heterogeneity that determines the
viability of cell lineages during starvation.
» Expected submission date: Spring, 2015
Published
• Q.A. Justman, Z. Serber, J.E. Ferrell Jr., H. El-Samad, and K.M. Shokat. Tuning the Activation Threshold of a Kinase
Network by Nested Feedback Loops (2009). Science 324: 509-512.
• Q.A. Justman and G.M. Clinton. Herstatin, an autoinhibitor of the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 tyrosine kinase,
modulates epidermal growth factor signaling pathways resulting in growth arrest (2002). J. Biol. Chem. 277(32): 20618-
20624.
References
Andrew W. Murray, Ph.D.
Harvard University
e-mail: amurray@mcb.harvard.edu
phone: (617) 496-1350
Bodo Stern, Ph.D.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
e-mail: sternb@hhmi.org
phone: (301) 215-8689
Kevan M. Shokat, Ph.D.
University of California, San Francisco
e-mail: shokat@cmp.ucsf.edu
phone: (415) 514-0472
David A. Agard, Ph.D.
University of California, San Francisco
e-mail: agard@msg.ucsf.edu
phone: (415) 476-2521
John E. Dowling, Ph.D.
Harvard University
e-mail: dowling@mcb.harvard.edu
phone: (617) 495-2245
Hana El-Samad, Ph.D.
University of California, San Francisco
e-mail: helsamad@biochem.ucsf.edu
phone: (415) 476-2596