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The Invisible World of the Cell August 2011 The invisible world of the cell American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology T ired of dancing around? One step and you’re done. USB® HT ExoSAP-IT® High-Throughput PCR Product Cleanup NOW for high-throughput PCR purification. means the ease of one-step purification. The HT ExoSAP-IT method is a unique, one-step enzymatic cleanup of PCR products. Now, specifically designed for the unique requirements of high-throughput, automated platforms, and multichannel pipettes. 100% sample recovery – no loss of PCR products regardless of the fragment size Removes excess primers and dNTPs – does not interfere with downstream applications Exceptional accuracy with HT ExoSAP-IT reagent – achieve high data quality and sequencing accuracy, even with long read lengths Take a step closer at usb.affymetrix.com/onestep © 2011 Affymetrix Inc. All rights reserved. ExoSAP-IT is covered by US Patent Nos. 6,379,940 and 6,387,634. Exonuclease I/Shrimp Alkaline Phosphatase—This product is licensed under US Patent Nos. 5,741,676 and 5,756,285, and corresponding patents issued in other countries. Purchase of this product includes a license to use this product in a restricted way within the scope of rights granted to USB by GE Healthcare. No other license is granted to the purchaser either directly or by implication, estoppel or otherwise. Affymetrix-USB_ExoSAP-IT-HT_ASBMB-Ad.indd 1 3/30/11 9:36 AM contents AUGUST 2011 On the Cover: David Goodsell’s drawings showcase scientific knowl- news edge and art. Here, he 2 President’s message depicts the cross-section The best in bench-to-bedside research: of a red blood cell. 22 honoring Cindy Parseghian IMAGE COURTESY OF GOODSELL. 4 News from the Hill Bringing it all back home 6 Member update 8 Tabor Award: Inaugural winners named features 10 The toxic professor syndrome 12 Angel investment from the masses 14 Science Focus Anne-Claude Gingras: probing phosphatase complexes 18 Why pursue a Ph.D. in the biosciences? Everyday donors funding pilot science projects. 20 The Singapore ArtScience 12 Museum: a modern marvel of science, technology and art 22 David Goodsell: The master of mol art departments 25 Meetings 10 tips for green meeting travel 26 Education Ninety percent of the job is half communication 28 Lipid News Recent developments in the generation and application of lipid probes 30 World Science International, collaborative science courses Combining art and science in Singapore. 20 32 Journal News 32 A new role for cytochrome P450 3A4 32 The JBC unveils thematic minireview series asbmb today online 34 Career Insights What do you want to do after school? Go to the online version of ASBMB Today to read more in-depth versions 36 Minority Affairs of our articles, and to view bonus materials, including videos and Giving minority investigators a hand slideshows. www.asbmb.org/asbmbtoday August 2011 ASBMB Today 1 president’smessage A monthly publication of The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology The best in bench-to- Officers bedside research: honoring Suzanne R. Pfeffer President Jeremy M. Berg President-Elect Mark A. Lemmon Secretary Cindy Parseghian Merle S. Olson Treasurer Council Members BY SUZANNE PFEFFER Karen N. Allen Ruma V. Banerjee Dafna Bar-Sagi Benjamin F. Cravatt Michael A. Marletta David Sabatini magine a scenario in which a group of scientists with a common goal agree John D. Scott Wesley I. Sundquist to meet every year at a lovely location to share their results and to discuss Jonathan S. Weissman I the most important next steps needed to move that science forward. The group Ex-Officio Members Russell DeBose-Boyd would work under the presumption that all results, reagents and information Hongtao Yu would be shared openly and all members would collaborate wherever possible Co-chairs, 2012 Annual Meeting Program Committee Peter J. Kennelly to help the group achieve its shared goal. The meetings would end with a panel Chair, Education and Professional Development Committee discussion to help identify the most important next steps to be taken over the Joan W. Conaway subsequent 12 months. Members would support each other during manuscript Chair, Meetings Committee Terri Kinzy and grant reviews and cooperate wherever possible to move the science forward. Chair, Membership Committee Sound unusual? If only all research could be carried out this way. Squire J. Booker Chair, Minority Affairs Committee Cindy Parseghian, president of the Ara Parseghian Medical Research Foun- Bettie Sue Masters dation, established precisely this type of framework to bring together research- Chair, Public Affairs Advisory Committee Charles Brenner ers seeking a cure (or beneficial treatments) for Niemann-Pick Type C disease. Chair, Publications Committee Niemann-Pick Type C is a genetic disorder in which homozygous carriers of Martha J. Fedor, Editor-in-chief, JBC mutations in NPC1 or NPC2 proteins accumulate excess cholesterol and glyco- Herbert Tabor, Co-editor, JBC Ralph A. Bradshaw sphingolipids in their lysosomes. The disease causes progressive neurological A. L. Burlingame deterioration leading to death, usually during childhood. Sadly, Cindy lost three of Co-editors, MCP Edward A. Dennis her four children to NPC disease. In 1994, together with her husband, Michael, Joseph L. Witztum and well-known, former Notre Dame football coach (and father-in-law) Ara Par- Co-editors, JLR seghian, Cindy created a foundation to support NPC research and bring together ASBMB Today Editorial Advisory Board Alex Toker (Chair) clinicians and researchers to try to find a cure. In 1997, with support from the Mike Bradley Craig E. Cameron APMRF, the gene for NPC1 was identified (1); in 2000, the gene responsible for A. Stephen Dahms Alex C. Drohat Ben Ellington Irwin Fridovich NPC2 disease also was identified (2). Cindy has devoted countless hours over Richard W. Hanson Gerald Hart many years to fundraising for NPC research; the APMRF recently helped cre- Peter Kennelly Carol C. Shoulders ate the Center for Rare and Neglected Diseases at the University of Notre Dame ASBMB Today to carry forward NPC disease research. This summer, Notre Dame’s dean of Nicole Kresge Editor [email protected] sciences, Gregory Crawford, and his wife, Renate, rode their bicycles more than Nancy J. Rodnan Director of Publications 2,000 miles to raise funds and awareness for NPC disease (3). [email protected] Barbara Gordon Executive Director The APMRF continues to sponsor annual conferences to bring lab findings [email protected] more quickly to the clinic. Topics presented range from the molecular roles of For information on advertising, contact NPC1 and NPC2 proteins to the initial results of pilot trials of potential drug thera- Capitol Media Solutions at 800-517-0610 pies in affected children. Some scientists report results from high-throughput drug or [email protected] screens designed to identify compounds that clear cholesterol from the lyso- somes of cultured mutant cells; others report on studies of genetically modified mice generated to determine which parts of the cerebellum are most sensitive www.asbmb.org/asbmbtoday to loss of NPC function or which drugs may benefit mouse or cat models of the disease. Parents of children with NPC disease also attend these meetings and remind the scientists that time is not on their side. The stories told by parents leave every researcher wishing he or she could do more. What is unique about these meetings is the gathering of basic researchers 2 ASBMB Today August 2011 president’smessage somes (5). Other therapeutic strategies currently being used involve cholesterol chelation by cyclodextrin or glycosphin- golipid synthesis inhibition by miglustat (N-butyl-deoxynojirimycin or Zavesca). These days, there is a lot of interest in translating lab discoveries into patient therapies. Yet there are few examples that I am aware of that demand and reward the kind of close, successful collaboration achieved by APMRF scientists and clini- cians. The National Institutes of Health’s Clinical and Translational Science Award consortium was established in 2008 with the goal of reducing the time it takes for laboratory discoveries to become treat- Suzanne Pfeffer and Cindy Parseghian, president of the Ara Parseghian Medical Research Foundation. ments for patients and to engage com- munities in clinical research efforts. With a budget of $500 million per year and 60 together with clinicians and families as well as the require- medical school members, the CTSA program also seeks to ment that all discussions be carried out completely openly. address the critical need to train the next generation of clini- The expertise of everyone present is brought to bear on how cal and translational researchers. best to do more for children with NPC disease. Could this CTSA directors, take note: Cindy Parseghian knows model be applied to other diseases or important scientific how to foster the most productive interactions between questions? Because NPC disease affects only about one in NPC researchers. Her approach should serve as a guide 100,000 individuals, there is not a large number of patients to stimulate collaborative science to tackle any disease. or researchers working in this area. This is a serious disad- Researchers take note: When we share a common goal, vantage when planning clinical trials, but it can be a signifi- the entire community wins. When we share our results, we cant advantage in terms of facilitating interactions among can only benefit from the feedback obtained. Cures will be key researchers and encouraging open dialogue. found fastest if we work together. The paths to the cures Mutations in NPC1 protein are responsible for 95 percent will be straightest if we draw them together. Cindy Par- of disease cases. This protein spans the membrane 13 seghian, we salute you. times and has three large lumenal domains, each contain- ing numerous disulfide bonds.
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