| Website | Home URL |
| Division | Biochemistry |
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| Specialties |
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| margot@chem.ucla.edu | |
| Office | Boyer Hall 459A |
| Office Phone | (310) 206-8064 |
| Lab | Boyer Hall 459 |
| Office Lab | (310) 206-7596 |
Short Biography
Dr. Quinlan obtained her B.A. at Reed College in 1991. She then spent two years in Germany doing research at the University of Erlangen-Nurnberg. She went to graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania where she worked with Yale Goldman and received her Ph.D. in 2002. She worked as a postdoctoral fellow at UCSF with Dyche Mullins until 2008 when she joined the faculty in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at UCLA.
Research Interests
We are using biochemistry, microscopy and genetic approaches to study dynamics of the actin cytoskeleton. We are currently focusing on Spire and Cappuccino, two proteins that collaborate to build an actin network essential for early body axis development in Drosophila. Combining an in vitro understanding of the mechanism of Spir and Capu with in vivo studies of oogenesis will provide insight into how the actin cytoskeleton is regulated and a broader understanding of cell polarity. In the Quinlan lab we are addressing four questions:
Molecular Mechanism: How do Spir and Capu collaborate?
Cell Biology: What role does the Spir-Capu complex play in Drosophila oogenesis?
Regulation: How is the Spir-Capu complex regulated?
Mammalian Disease: Is the Spir-Capu complex a polarity factor in other cell types?
Left: Domain organization of Spire and Cappuccino. Right: Model of nucleation by the Spir- Capu complex
Honors & Awards
- Hanson-Dow Excellence in Teaching Award, Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, 2022
- Undergraduate Research Week Faculty Mentor Award, UCLA Undergraduate Research Center – Sciences, 2018
- Faculty Fellows, UCLA Center for Diverse Leadership in Science, 2018
- Academic Leadership Training Workshop – 1 of 38 national applicants selected, Cottrell Scholars Collaborative, 2017
- Faculty Career Development Award, UCLA, 2014
- Seaborg Alpha Chi Sigma Award, UCLA, 2013
- Top 20 Women Professors in California, Statestats.org, 2013
- Faculty Career Development Award, UCLA, 2012
- Faculty Development Grant, Center for the Study of Women, UCLA, 2009
- Alexander and Renee Kolin Endowed Professorship of Molecular Biology and Biophysics, 2008
- Career Award in the Biomedical Sciences, Burroughs-Wellcome Fund, 2006-2011
- Postdoctoral Fellowship, American Heart Association, Declined, 2006
- Postdoctoral Fellowship, American Cancer Society, Honorable Mention, 2004
- Predoctoral Fellow in Biological Sciences, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, 1994-1999
- Predoctoral Fellowship, National Science Foundation, Honorable Mention, 1994
- Summer Fellow, American Heart Association, 1991
- Commended for Excellence in Scholarship, Reed College, 1991
- Lifetime member, California Scholarship Federation, 1986
Representative Publications
Below is the list of selected publications. For the full list, please visit here.
- Valencia, D.A., Quinlan, M.E. Formins. Current Biology. 2021 31(10):R517-522.
- Bradley, A.O., Vizcarra, C.L., Bailey, H.M., Quinlan, M.E. Spire Stimulates Nucleation by Cappuccino and Binds Both Ends of Actin Filaments. Molecular Biology of the Cell. 2020 31(4):273-286.
- Kudryashova, E., Heisler, D.B., Williams, B., Harker, A.J., Shaker, K., Quinlan, M.E., Kovar, K.R., Vavylonis, D., Kudryashov, D.S. Actin Cross-Linking Toxin is a Universal Inhibitor of Tandem-Organized and Oligomeric G-Actin Binding Proteins. Current Biology. 2018 28(10):1536-1547.
- Silkworth, W.T., Kunes K.L., Nickel G.C., Phillips M.L., Quinlan M.E., Vizcarra C.L. The Neuron Specific Formin Delphilin Nucleates Actin Filaments but Does Not Enhance Elongation. Molecular Biology of the Cell. 2018 29(5):610-621.
- Patel, A.A., Durer, Z., Loon, A.P. van, Bremer, K., Quinlan, M.E. Drosophila and Human FHOD Family Formin Proteins Nucleate Actin Filaments. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 2018 293(2):532-540.
- Vizcarra, C.L. and Quinlan, M.E. Actin Filament Assembly by Bacterial Factors VopL/F: Which End is Up? Journal of Cell Biology. 2017 216(5):1211-1213.
- Quinlan, M.E. Cytoplasmic Streaming Mechanisms in the Drosophila Oocyte. Annual Reviews of Cell and Developmental Biology 2016 32:173-195.
- Durer, Z., McGillivary, R.M., Kang, H., Elam, W.A., Vizcarra, C.L., Hanein, D., De La Cruz, E.M., Reisler, E., Quinlan, M.E. Metavinculin Tunes the Flexibility and the Architecture of Vinculin Induced Bundles of Actin Filaments. Journal of Molecular Biology 2015 427(17):2782-2798.
- Yoo, H.*, Roth-Johnson, E.*, Bor, B., Quinlan, M.E. Drosophila Cappuccino Alleles Provide Insight into Formin Mechanism and Role in Oogenesis. Molecular Biology of the Cell 2015 26(10): 1875-86. * Authors contributed equally.
- Bor, B., Bois, J.S., Quinlan, M.E. Regulation of the Formin Cappuccino is Critical for Polarity of Drosophila Oocytes. Cytoskeleton 2015 72(1): 1-15.
- Fattouh, R., Kwon, H., Czuczman, M.A., Copeland, J.W., Pelletier, L., Quinlan, M.E., Muise, A.M., Higgins, D.E., Brumell, J.H. The Diaphanous-Related Formins Promote Protrusion Formation and Cell-to-Cell Spread of Listeria Monocytogenes. Journal of Infectious Diseases 2015 211(7):1185-95.
- Rasson A.S., Bois, J.S., Pham, D.S., Yoo, H., Quinlan, M. E. Filament Assembly by Spire: Key Residues and Concerted Actin Binding. Journal of Molecular Biology 2015 427(4): 824-39.
- Vizcarra, C.L., Bor, B., Quinlan, M.E. The Role of Formin Tails in Actin Nucleation, Processive Elongation, and Filament Bundling. Journal of Biological Chemistry 2014 289(44):30602-30613.
- Roth-Johnson, E.A., Vizcarra, C.L., Bois, J.S., Quinlan, M.E. Interaction Between Microtubules and the Drosophila Formin Cappuccino and Its Effect on Actin Assembly.Journal of Biological Chemistry 2014 289(7): 4395-4404.