Category: Meetings/Events

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International Year of Crystallography Is Under Way

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A crystal of hen egg white lysozyme. Credit: Alex McPherson, University of California, Irvine.

A crystal of hen egg white lysozyme. Credit: Alex McPherson, University of California, Irvine.

As you may know from the coverage in various popular news outlets and science journals (see below for a list), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization has declared 2014 to be the “International Year of Crystallography Link to external web site.” This is in recognition of the 100th anniversary of the Nobel Prize in physics to Max von Laue for the discovery of diffraction of X-rays by crystals.

I first learned about crystallography in college, when I took a course in physical chemistry that included an introduction to chemical crystallography. Crystallography combines math, computer science, chemistry and biology—and that’s what convinced me to do graduate work in the field. When you determine structures, you’re often the first person to ever see that molecule, and that’s pretty exciting.

Since 1914, scientists have made many advances in the use of X-rays for the atomic-level determination of the 3-D structure of molecules. For instance, in the early years of the 20th century, William and Lawrence Bragg, father and son, learned that the newly discovered X-ray radiation could be used to locate the atoms in a crystal of matter. Their work ultimately led to Bragg’s Law for understanding X-ray diffraction and the structure determination of materials ranging from table salt to the ribosome. Breakthroughs made possible by crystallography (and diffraction) have led to 15 Nobel Prizes, including 7 with NIGMS support.

X-ray crystallography has impacted all areas of science, including biomedical research. The first biological finding was made by James Sumner, who discovered that enzymes could be crystallized (urease was the enzyme). In the years following, X-ray diffraction and crystallography have been used to reveal the structure of DNA and countless proteins and enabled structure-based drug design efforts. Crystallography has become an established tool of small molecule and protein studies.

Today, modern biological crystallography is practiced at synchrotron facilities, with access to 20 X-ray crystallography beamlines supported entirely or in part by NIGMS. Efforts are under way to make smaller, more intense beamlines that will allow the study of small crystals. Crystallography is also very much a part of the new X-ray laser facilities, where several NIGMS investigators are carrying out pioneering research on very small crystals of proteins, including membrane proteins, on X-ray scattering of proteins in solution and on protein dynamics.

Clearly, crystallography continues to be a cutting-edge field, and I’m excited to see what advances it brings during the coming years.

Articles about the International Year of Crystallography:

January 30 Special Issue of Nature Link to external web site
UN to Raise Awareness of Little-Known Science Behind DNA, Computer Memory, New Drugs
2014 Is the International Year of Crystallography (‘What’s Crystallography?’ You Ask) Link to external web site

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Web Chat to Stimulate Student Interest in Cell Biology and Research Careers

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Cell Day 2014: Web Chat with NIH Scientists. February 28, 2014. 10a.m. to 3 p.m. ESTWe’re hosting another Cell Day interactive Web chat on Friday, February 28, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. EST. During this time, members of the NIGMS scientific staff, including our director Jon Lorsch, will answer questions from students, teachers and the public about cell biology and research careers.

You can follow the chat live from the Cell Day Web site or read the transcript, which will be posted there shortly after the event. The site also includes registration information, the transcript from the 2012 event and classroom resources about the cell.

Please let people in your local schools and community know about Cell Day.

This event is just one example of the Institute’s commitment to encouraging and preparing future generations of scientists via formal research training and informal learning opportunities.

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Advisory Council Meeting: Attend, Watch, Comment

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The National Advisory General Medical Sciences Council will have its winter meeting on January 23-24, 2014. Although the first day is a closed session for the review and discussion of grant applications, Friday’s portion of the meeting is open to the public. The agenda includes presentations on NIGMS programs and policy changes as well as a public comment period.

You may attend the open session in person or watch the presentations and discussions live or later.

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Fostering Open Science

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Recently, I participated in a workshop on Open Science: Driving Forces and Practical Realities. The idea to make scientific research, data and information accessible to the public isn’t new and arguably has historical roots dating back to the late 1600s, when academic journal publishing began. But it’s particularly timely today in light of the rapid increase in the volume of data and the value it has to the public.

During the workshop, we explored the technical, financial, political and cultural forces that drive open science and how these forces impact information sharing, re-use, interoperability and the preservation of the scientific record. I also talked about NIH’s ongoing commitment to open science.

In 2003, NIH created a Data Sharing Policy, and, in 2008, it issued a Public Access Policy for publications. A Genomic Data Sharing Policy is currently in draft form. All of these documents communicate the need to ensure public access to the relevant biomedical data, information and publications that are a result of federally funded biomedical research.

In addition to establishing these guidelines, NIH funds projects that foster open science, including the RCSB Protein Data Bank Link to external web site, The Cancer Genome Atlas, The Cancer Imaging Archive Link to external web site, the Neuroimaging Informatics Tools and Resources Clearinghouse Link to external web site and PhysioNet Link to external web site. NIH is also playing a role in crowdsourced projects, such as the systems biology-related Dialogue for Reverse Engineering Assessments and Methods challenges (no longer available), as well as projects to develop common languages for research, such as the Common Data Element Resource Portal. Another exciting NIH-funded initiative is the Medical Device “Plug and Play” Interoperability Program Link to external web site, which aims to create cost-effective and innovative third-party medical “apps” for clinical diagnosis, treatment, research and safety.

In preparing my presentation for the recent workshop, I recalled the day when I heard about the biomedical community taking a quantum leap forward into open science. It was the early spring of 1996, and I was eating lunch with my graduate student and postdoc colleagues. We were discussing the International Large-Scale Sequencing Meeting and the resulting “Bermuda principles” for the release of data generated by the Human Genome Project. We were particularly excited to learn that scientists associated with that project had unanimously agreed that all genomic sequencing data should be freely available and in the public domain prior to publication.

Nearly 20 years later, the move toward open science continues to offer a forum for scientists–from fields that range from astronomy and physics to medical and clinical research–to discuss policies and practical tools for collaboration. It also allows the community to come together and tackle the challenges and unique opportunities of sharing science in a truly collaborative way. I invite you all to join me in the discussion and in furthering progress in this important area.

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NIH’s Sally Rockey on PubMed Comments, 2013 Success Rates, Lead Time for Inviting NIH Staff to Meetings

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Within the last week, NIH’s Sally Rockey has published posts that may be of interest to you:

PubMed Gets Interactive: The broader public now can view opinions and information shared by authors on scientific publications in PubMed.

Application Success Rates Decline in 2013: An early analysis of 2013 competing research project grant applications and awards at NIH shows a downward trend for success rates. NOTE: We at NIGMS are currently working on our annual funding trends post.

Understanding Lead-time for NIH Staff Participation in Scientific Meetings: Invitations for NIH program, review or other staff to speak at or attend a meeting need to be made as early as possible due to approval requirements and budget constraints. NOTE: Sally Rockey’s post suggests at least 4 months advance notice, but at NIGMS, we recommend at least 6 months.

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Support for Scientific Meetings

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To ensure that we are using our resources in the most effective and efficient way possible, we are examining all of our funding mechanisms. One area that we have recently focused on, in part due to the current fiscal situation, is our support for scientific meetings, conferences and workshops. We understand the importance of these meetings, but we receive a large number of requests to support them and have concluded that it is not cost-effective to consider most of these requests. The numerous applications for small conference grants are costly to process and review, and the funds used for them compete directly with research project grants, including R01s. Our priority is to use our resources in the ways that most directly promote research and training, which already include mechanisms to allow students and fellows to attend scientific meetings.

In general, we will only support meetings that:

  • Are closely aligned with our central mission and interests;
  • Are non-recurring, unless they focus on training or workforce development in areas pertinent to our mission;
  • Include participants who do not frequently interact in other venues.

Simply because a meeting falls within the general areas of science we support does not mean that we will consider it for funding.

We therefore anticipate that we will accept very few R13 or U13 applications in the future. We strongly encourage potential applicants to contact us before requesting approval to submit an application. For a list of contact people and more information on the application process, see http://www.nigms.nih.gov/Research/Mechanisms/Pages/
SupportScientificMeetings.aspx

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Meet Us at the ASCB Meeting

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In recent weeks, a number of investigators have asked me, “Are you going to the ASCB meeting  this year?” I will be there, along with our new director, Jon Lorsch, and a few other NIGMS staff members. The meeting takes place on December 14-18 in New Orleans. If you’re also attending, we hope to have a chance to chat with you there. It’s a great way for us to get to know you and your research better, as well as to answer your questions.

In addition, you may want to attend one of the sessions with NIGMS staff. Jon will discuss his vision and plans for NIGMS in the “Face-to-Face with NIH” session at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, December 16. Earlier that day, at 11 a.m., I will participate in a panel discussion on careers in science policy and research administration. NIGMS staff are also participating in the ASCB Women in Cell Biology Committee’s career discussion and mentoring roundtables taking place at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, December 17.

ASCB is just one of the meetings that our scientific staff go to each year to learn about the latest findings and emerging areas, meet with investigators and participate in informational talks or mock study sections. I encourage you to find out if your program director or other NIGMS staff members will be attending your next science conference so you can plan to meet. If you’re a relative newcomer to the NIH system, you can find your program director listed in your eRA Commons account and on your summary statement and Notice of Award. And of course, you can always call or e-mail us to let us know about your work or ask us your questions.

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Upcoming Advisory Council Meeting Includes Videocast and Public Comment Period Opportunities

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The National Advisory General Medical Sciences Council will have its fall meeting on September 19-20. For the session open to the public on the second day, we will be trying something new: a videocast. If you’re interested in watching the presentations and subsequent discussions—and learning more about what happens during advisory council meetings—tune in at http://videocast.nih.gov. The videocast will also be archived for a limited time. If enough people watch the meeting live or later, making the experiment successful, we will continue to videocast the open session of future advisory council meetings.

Previously, the Feedback Loop posted a description of advisory council roles. Council members provide the second level of peer review of grant applications, assess the merits of appeals of study section reviews and provide ideas and guidance on scientific and training priorities.

We have just posted the open session agenda, which includes a presentation by Council member and Yale University chemistry professor and chair Scott Miller on recent discoveries at the chemistry-biology interface; a presentation by NIH Principal Deputy Director Larry Tabak on data reproducibility in biomedical research; and another new feature of the meeting: a period reserved for public comment.

Before I started at NIGMS, I was able to attend the open session of the May Council meeting, where I heard very exciting presentations about recent developments in cryo-electron microscopy and pharmacogenomics, plus lively discussions about training and workforce development issues. Although I have only been to this one meeting so far, based on what I heard at it, I recommend that you try to catch some of the September meeting—I think you’ll find it interesting and informative.

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Chemical Biology Career Workshop Builds Model for Similar Efforts

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CBI Career Development Conference Program CoverAn action recommended in our strategic plan for biomedical and behavioral research training and by a working group of the Advisory Committee to the Director, NIH, is providing graduate students with a greater awareness of their career options. An inaugural career development conference that we co-sponsored and that was recently highlighted in a Chemical & Engineering News article Link to external web site may lead to the development of a sustainable workshop model to inform graduate students about and help them prepare for a range of scientific careers.

Organized by the directors of chemistry-biology interface graduate training programs at 10 Midwestern institutions, the 3-day event took place in June on the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus. It brought together nearly 100 graduate students and 30 career mentors with jobs in academia, government and the private sector, including in nontraditional areas such as consulting, patent law and communicating science to the public.

A significant portion of the meeting consisted of structured discussion and presentations organized around different job opportunities. The meeting also included activities that let students improve their communication skills by explaining their research clearly and concisely to various audiences. Other career sessions focused on entrepreneurship and acquiring a postdoctoral position.

Early in the group discussions, students considering careers outside academia shared their concerns about the job market and about whether their graduate research training might potentially narrow their employment opportunities.  By the end of the meeting, however, most had the sense that their graduate training would actually open up new opportunities.  The group discussions also enhanced the mentors’ knowledge of various career paths and raised their awareness of the students’ career development needs.

A formal evaluation of the meeting’s usefulness and effectiveness is under way, and the organizers are experimenting with a variety of novel approaches to ensure sustainability for the conference by rotating venues, sharing organizational responsibilities and developing consistent sponsorships.

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Meeting to Highlight NIGMS-Funded Systems Biology Program

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National Centers for Systems Biology Portal - Find updates, news stories, training opportunities and moreFor 10 years, our National Centers for Systems Biology (NCSB) program has enabled pioneering research, research training, education and outreach programs focused on systems-level inquiries of biomedical phenomena within the NIGMS mission.

Currently, the program funds 15 centers that are focused on molecular and cellular biology, genetics, pharmacology and physiology. The centers have advanced research in these scientific areas and have significantly contributed to the development of systems biology courses, graduate programs and departments at institutions across the nation, supporting and further building research teams that integrate expertise across traditional disciplinary boundaries.

To mark the program’s anniversary, we are hosting a special annual centers meeting to inform the broader scientific community about the status and achievements of the program. In addition to presentations highlighting each center’s activities, the agenda includes a plenary talk by Arthur Lander of the University of California, Irvine, titled “Lighting the Way: Ten Years of National Centers for Systems Biology,” and presentations by young scientists whose careers have been impacted by the program.

The meeting will be held on July 11-12 in the Natcher Conference Center on the NIH campus. You can now register to attend and see who is participating (no longer available).

Here are a few examples of how the research being conducted by the NIGMS-funded systems biology centers is advancing our knowledge in a broad range of scientific areas:

  • The Virtual Physiological Rat Project at the Medical College of Wisconsin used data analysis and computational modeling to show that arterial stiffening alone best explains the development of hypertension in aging individuals; the methodology can serve as a model for studying the basis of other diseases.
  • The Center for Systems and Synthetic Biology at the University of California, San Francisco, has created minimal circuits that can reprogram the self-organization of structures within the cell, offering a potential method for engineering cells to carry out specific therapeutic functions.
  • Using dynamical modeling, the San Diego Center for Systems Biology at the University of California, San Diego, has helped explain how quantitative differences in epigenetic steady states may result in qualitatively different cell-type-specific control of signaling.
  • The Center for Complex Biological Systems at the University of California, Irvine, has provided novel insights into the strategies underlying robust pattern formation in biological systems.
  • The Center for Modular Biology at Harvard University has explored whether networks of interacting components, or modules, are pervasive building blocks in biological systems, and how the existence of these building blocks restrains or enhances the generation of diversity.
  • The Center for Systems Biology  Link to external web site at the Institute for Systems Biology is seeking out how dynamic molecular networks of cells process inputs from their environment to mount appropriate responses, such as metabolic, morphological and phenotypic changes.
  • The Center for Genome Dynamics at the Jackson Laboratory has developed and commercialized two highly sought-after genotyping platforms that are useful in mouse research.

For more highlights, including a recent award from Science magazine for an online computational biology course from the Center for Genome Dynamics, see the NCSB news page. An array of databases, software and other resources, including training materials, developed by the centers are available for use through the NCSB portal (no longer available).