Celestino Velasquez, PhD

Why did you choose the University of Pittsburgh?

I liked the benefits that the graduate program offers (competitive stipend, health insurance, educational enrichment account, lack of teaching obligations, etc.) and that the university attracts some of the best minds in biomedical research, either for faculty positions or for highly engaging talks. In addition, resources are abundant at this institution, and it is very easy to set up collaborations with other researchers for almost any kind of experiment that you would like to perform. Pittsburgh is a wonderful city, has a reliable bus transportation system, and proves to be very safe and affordable for students.

Education & Training

  • PhD in Integrative Molecular Biology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, 2017
  • BS in Biomedical Chemistry, Oral Roberts University, 2013

Publications

Velasquez C, Cheng E, Shuda M, Lee-Oesterreich PJ, Pogge von Strandmann L, Gritsenko MA, Jacobs JM, Moore PS and Chang Y. 2016. Mitotic protein kinase CDK1 phosphorylation of mRNA translation regulator 4E-BP1 Ser83 may contribute to cell transformation. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 113: 8466-8471. |  View abstract

Shuda M, Velasquez C, Cheng E, Cordek DG, Kwun HJ, Chang Y and Moore PS. 2015. CDK1 substitutes for mTOR kinase to activate mitotic cap-dependent protein translation. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 112: 5875-5882. |  View abstract