Matthew Watowich

Education:

Carleton College
Biology major
B.A., 2021

Honors & Awards:

• Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award for Predoctoral MD/PhD Fellows, National Cancer Institute, 2026 - 2030

MSTP Student Governance:

• Student Admissions and Recruitment Committee, 2024-2026 (Co-Chair 2025-2026)

Thesis Advisor: David Masopust, Ph.D. 

Publications

Ghirardelli Smith OC, Dao TT, Gavil NV, O'Flanagan SD, Rubin AJ, Nguyen S, Watowich MB, Liu N, Weyu E, Quarnstrom CF, Soerens AG, Joag V, Rosato PC, Krummel MF, Geller MA, Miller JS, Giubellino A, Vezys V, Shalek AK, Masopust D. Intratumoral T cell activation kills tumors regardless of T cell specificity. Nat Immunol. 2026 Sep 8. doi: 10.1038/s41590-026-02642-z.

For work prior to the UMN MSTP:

Watowich MB, Gilbert MR, Larion M. T cell exhaustion in malignant gliomas. Trends Cancer. 2023 Apr;9(4):270-292. PMCID: PMC10038906. Review