Scientists-in-Training Impress at Virtual Event
By Brandon Levy
Monday, May 10, 2021
Despite the challenges of working during a global pandemic, IRP scientists continue to make groundbreaking discoveries and mentor the next generation of researchers. This includes the hundreds of recent college graduates conducting research in NIH labs through the Postbaccalaureate IRTA program. On April 28, 29, and 30, many of these budding scientists presented the fruits of their efforts at this year’s virtual Postbac Poster Day. Read on to learn about a small sampling of the scientific strides NIH’s postbacs are making.
Photos Document NIH Response to COVID-19
By Gabrielle Barr
Monday, March 15, 2021
This past January marked the one-year anniversary of NIH’s role in addressing COVID-19. For many, it has been a year of hardships and grief, but the race to subdue this new virus has also tapped into the resolve and ingenuity of IRP staff who have already helped create diagnostic tests, vaccines, and therapeutics. Let's take a look back to see a few examples of how IRP scientists and staff have contributed to the fight against COVID-19, as well as how the pandemic has changed life at the NIH.
Virtual Symposium Showcases Scientists-in-Training
By Brandon Levy
Monday, March 8, 2021
Even in the midst of a global pandemic, life at NIH goes on. IRP researchers continue to run experiments, publish scientific papers, and train the next generation of scientists, including the many graduate students performing research in IRP labs through the Graduate Partnership Program. On February 17 and 18, more than 100 of these scientists-in-training presented their work virtually at the NIH’s 17th annual Graduate Student Research Symposium. Like last year’s entirely online Postbac Poster Day, the event overcame the constraints of COVID-19 precautions to showcase a broad range of research, including several studies focused on the novel coronavirus.
IRP Study Examines Less Time-Intensive Method for Improving Mental Health
By Brandon Levy
Tuesday, January 5, 2021
While working in healthcare can be extremely rewarding, it is also undoubtedly stressful. In particular, the COVID-19 pandemic has had severe repercussions on the mental health of medical professionals, as doctors and nurses struggle to care for unprecedented numbers of sick patients. Fortunately, new NIH research suggests that a relatively brief workplace mindfulness program can reduce stress and anxiety in healthcare workers.
Program Gives Boost to Early Stage Investigators
By Brandon Levy
Monday, December 14, 2020
If TV shows like The Voice and America’s Got Talent are any indication, there are many extremely talented people out there who could become huge successes if presented with the right opportunity. This is no less the case in science, with thousands of extremely bright individuals quietly toiling away in their mentors’ labs as they await the chance to establish research programs of their own.
Fortunately, initiatives like the NIH’s Lasker Clinical Research Scholars Program exist to boost promising young researchers on to the next stage of their careers. Every year, the Lasker program allows a small group of early stage physician-scientists to establish their own labs at the NIH and carry out independent clinical research there for at least five years.
The five talented investigators selected as 2020 Lasker Scholars are pursuing a wide range of research questions, from how the immune system influences blood clotting to the mechanisms driving a rare and devastating skeletal disorder. Read on to learn more about the latest crop of researchers ramping up IRP labs of their very own.
NIH History Office Explores Life During a Pandemic
By Gabrielle Barr
Tuesday, October 13, 2020
The NIH has played a critical role in supporting research and therapeutic development aimed at curbing the spread of the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The people doing that important work have had their lives changed by the pandemic in many ways. For that reason, the Office of NIH History and Stetten Museum has launched an initiative to encourage NIH employees and volunteers to share their professional and personal experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. These contributions will be the primary source material future historians will use to understand how NIH fared and adapted at this critical time.
Mouse Study Suggests Common Fungus Could Worsen Respiratory Infections
By Brandon Levy
Tuesday, September 29, 2020
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, both scientists and the media have focused on the factors that influence who experiences mild symptoms or none at all and who faces potentially life-threatening consequences from the disease. Other respiratory viruses like the flu also have widely varying effects on different patients. New IRP research has found that exposure to a common variety of mold primes the immune system to overreact to the flu virus, dramatically increasing the illness’s severity.
IRP Leverages Supercomputing to Combat Coronavirus
By Brandon Levy
Wednesday, August 19, 2020
Over the past six months, a tiny virus has completely upended life in the United States and many other countries. To combat this microscopic threat, some IRP researchers have turned to a tool the size of a small building.
Biowulf, the NIH’s supercomputer, is supporting more than a dozen different IRP research projects focused on the novel coronavirus. As the world’s most powerful supercomputer solely dedicated to biomedical research, Biowulf allows scientists to analyze data and run simulations at unprecedented speed. Two weeks ago, a blog post described how IRP investigators are using Biowulf to elucidate the structure of the novel coronavirus and simulate how potential therapeutics might interact with it. Picking up where that post left off, this blog will explore the application of Biowulf to important questions about the spread of COVID-19 and the way that its genes, along with our own, might influence its impact on the body.
Biowulf Lends Massive Computing Power to NIH Research Efforts
By Brandon Levy
Monday, August 3, 2020
Nations around the world are bringing every weapon in their arsenals to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic: vaccines, new and existing therapeutics, personal protective equipment like face masks, and enough hand sanitizer to fill the Atlantic Ocean. The NIH community is contributing to this unprecedented effort with a tool that no other research institution can claim: Biowulf, the world’s most powerful supercomputer solely dedicated to biomedical research.
IRP Research Examines Pandemic From All Angles
By Brandon Levy
Tuesday, July 7, 2020
The sheer number of labs and wide variety of scientific perspectives in the IRP make it particularly well-suited to combating a disease like COVID-19, which is affecting patients’ health and the world around them in a huge number of ways. IRP researchers specializing in psychology, genetics, epidemiology, and many other disciplines are pursuing an array of strategies to learn more about the novel coronavirus.
