Trans-NIH Recruiting Effort Brings in Nine Investigators
BY MONIKA DESHPANDE, NCI
NIH welcomes the 2010-2011 class of Earl Stadtman Investigators, named for the legendary biochemist, who worked at NIH for 50 years. Stadtman mentored and inspired countless researchers including two who went on to become Nobel laureates—Michael Brown and Stanley Prusiner—and others who were later elected to the National Academy of Sciences. The Stadtman program, launched in 2009, a year after his death, aims to attract outstanding scientists whose research areas are not restricted to the interests of particular institutes but span the biomedical fields.
Exploring Inflammation, Cardiometabolic Diseases, and PTSD
BY LAURA STEPHENSON CARTER
Nehal Mehta and Jessica Gill recently joined NIH as the first two NIH-Lasker Clinical Research Scholars, a joint initiative of NIH and the Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation that will nurture the next generation of clinician-scientists.
Sea Creatures Providing Clues on the Evolution of Vision
BY JEANNINE MJOSETH, NHGRI
Bioluminescent sea creatures that emit and detect light are providing clues to the evolution of sight and may, in time, shed light on our understanding of eye diseases. Research published in a recent issue of BMC Biology has pinpointed the genes involved in making and sensing light in this organism.
Stadtman: A Rose by Any Other Name
BY MICHAEL GOTTESMAN, DDIR
Earl Stadtman, renowned NIH biochemist and mentor to two Nobel laureates and many elected members of the National Academy of Sciences, loved to cultivate his gardens. He was a serious horticulturist who had an azalea named after him—the yellow Stadtman azalea (Rhododendron ‘Stadtman’). He also mulched, pruned, watered, and fertilized the intellects of two generations of students and fellows who remember with gratitude “the Stadtman way” of doing rigorous, creative research.
AAAS WEBINAR
Between Thought and Therapy: Translating Neurobiology Research into Treatments
Taping: Tuesday, February 5, 2013, 11:45 a.m.–1:00 p.m.; Wilson Hall (Building One)
Broadcast: Wednesday, February 13, 2013, noon–1:00 p.m.
All are welcome to attend the taping of the second Science/American Association for the Advancement of Science Webinar. This year’s panelists—NEI’s Anand Swaroop (age-related macular degeneration), NHGRI’s Ellen Sidransky (Gaucher’s disease), and NIMH’s Carlos Zarate (depression)—will share their experiences of applying basic research at the bedside; discuss the best environments for conducting translational research; provide advice on working in new experimental systems such as stem cells; and answer questions submitted by the audience at the taping. No latecomers can be admitted once the taping is in progress.
NIEHS: BACTERIAL PROTEIN IN HOUSE DUST TRIGGERS ASTHMA
Household dust typically contains many allergens including those derived from dust mites, cockroaches, and animal dander. A bacterial protein called flagellin in the dust may worsen allergic responses to indoor allergens, according to research conducted by NIEHS and Duke University (Durham, N.C.) scientists. The finding is the first to document the presence of flagellin in house dust, bolstering the link between allergic asthma and the environment.
Safety First
Wes Hickman (NIAID) won first place in the second annual “In Focus Safe Workplaces for All” photography contest for this surrealistic vision of a masked, goggled, gloved, and lab-coated colleague (Towanda Carroll) who is protected in a world of biological and chemical surroundings. Sponsored by the Division of Occupational Health and Safety in the Office of Research Services, the contest challenged anyone with a passion for photography to use their imagination and creativity to capture an image of workplace safety and health and share it with the NIH community.
Read about your recently tenured colleagues:
James Anderson (NHLBI), Jeffrey Gildersleeve, (NCI) Dax Hoffman (NICHD), Leping Li (NIEHS), and Deborah Merke (CC)
Reconnecting with NIH Alumni
Staying in Touch With Fellows from Japan
BY GEORGE MARTIN, NIDCR
A recent trip to Japan left me appreciating the rich experience that fellowships in the NIH intramural program provide for scientists from other countries and those of us who work with them. In particular, it got me thinking about the many Japanese fellows we hosted in the NIDR (now NIDCR) Laboratory of Developmental Biology and Anomalies (now the Laboratory of Cell and Developmental Biology).
Learning Ally Volunteers at NIH Open Up the World of Science to Reading-Impaired Students
BY HEATHER DOLAN
Ever dream of becoming a recording artist? If so, there’s a studio in Building 31 that could use your voice. It’s the NIH satellite of Learning Ally, a nonprofit organization that converts books into audio recordings for reading-disabled students of all ages.
NIDDK Research Clinic in Arizona Aims to Lessen Health Disparities
BY AMY F. REITER, NIDDK
On a dusty road just south of Phoenix, a small one-story building has completed its first year open for research. The building sits on the Avenida del Yaqui in Guadalupe, a town made up primarily of Yaqui Indians and Hispanic Americans. The Yaqui who first settled in the town were from Sonora, Mexico; descendants have preserved many elements of their culture, including elaborate Easter and Lent ceremonies with dancing, costumes, music, and masks.
SPECIAL ESSAY
Goldilocks and Science Writing
BY HEATHER DOLAN, SPECIAL TO THE NIH CATALYST
Despite my childhood aspirations to become a writer, I arrived at the NIH with a B.S. in chemical engineering. A reluctant scientist at best, I struggled to fit into the research scene as a post-baccalaureate trainee. Fortunately, I transitioned midyear from bench work to interning with the NIH Catalyst. At last, I was able to use my technical background to do something I truly enjoy—writing.
News from and About the NIH Scientific Interest Groups
Read about the Translational Research and Proteostasis Interest Groups.
Reubin Andres (died on September 23, 2012, at age 89) was NIA’s first clinical director. He is known for the invention of the glucose-insulin clamp technique, a method that remains the gold standard in the study of glucose and insulin homeostasis, and for his original and fundamental observations on the hormonal abnormalities in diabetes.
Earl M. August (died on November 21, 2012, at age 54) was a senior scientist in NCI’s developmental therapeutics program (1990–1994).
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