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March 4, 2011, NIH Record, Vol. LXIII, No. 5

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March 4, 2011, NIH Record, Vol. LXIII, No. 5 MARCH 4, 2011 The Second Best Thing About Payday VOL. LXIII, NO. 5 Fought for Freedom, Respect Black History Event Honors African Americans’ ABOVE · NIH hosts visit by USAID adminis- Civil War Contributions trator Dr. Rajiv Shah. See story below. By Valerie Lambros his year’s Black History Month ob- features T servance focused on the role of Af- 1 rican Americans in the Civil War. The African-American Role in Civil War country marks the 150th anniversary of Is Topic of Black History Month Talk the start of the conflict this year. 3 The event, sponsored by the Office of Collins Names New Senior Advisor Equal Opportunity and Diversity Man- agement and the NIH Black Employ- 5 ment Program committee, provided “an AMA Honors NHGRI’s Gahl opportunity to hear more about the con- 12 tributions of African Americans to this Eight NIH’ers Named to AAAS nation,” said Dr. Lawrence Tabak, prin- Historian Royce Kinniebrew gives keynote address at cipal deputy director of NIH, in welcom- Black History Month observance. ing remarks. departments He recalled several prominent black scientists who have guided NIH, including the see black history, page 6 Briefs 2 USAID’s Shah Calls for More Science to Digest 9 Sustain Global Health Gains Milestones 10 By Steve Goldstein Paying tribute to NIH as an institution that envisions the world as it could be, not as it is today, USAID administrator Dr. Rajiv Shah extolled the role of scientific research in rais- ing health standards around the world. In a health address at NIH, Shah called for a new global health system that better con- Dr. Sean Eddy of HHMI Janelia Farm explains how nects NIH research discoveries with develop- researchers read the code of the human genome. ment efforts on the ground “and produces real Scientists Shed Light on Future of breakthroughs in our capacity to improve the Genomics health of the poor.” By Jeannine Mjoseth Harnessing the power of invention—scien- Prominent investigators in genomic research tific, technological and behavioral—on behalf shared their visions of the field’s future with a of the developing countries is what will make crowd at Natcher Conference Center on Feb. 11. a real impact on improving global health, he The meeting, hosted by the National Human declared. “We cannot simply seek to do more Genome Research Institute, marked the release of the same in an effort to provide services of its new strategic vision for genomics, which using currently available tools and technolo- was published Feb. 10 in Nature. gies,” he said. “Instead, we need to focus our The NIH Record is recyclable efforts on facilitating a continuum of inven- as office white paper. Joining NHGRI director Dr. Eric Green for tion and innovation from bench to bush.” see genomics, page 4 see global health, page 8 and non-traditional options for the treatment and management of pain. Alternative Testing Panel To Meet briefs The National Toxicology Program Interagency Center for the Evaluation of Alternative Toxicologi- cal Methods, which is headquartered at NIEHS, is Author Skloot To Give convening an international peer review panel Mar. Rall Lecture 29-30 in the Natcher Conference Center. The panel The annual J. Edward will evaluate results from an international validation Rall Cultural Lecture study of an in vitro test method using a human cell is titled “The Immor- line to detect endocrine-disrupting compounds. The tal Life of Henrietta meeting is free and open to the public. Register by Lacks,” and will be Mar. 15 at http://iccvam.niehs.nih.gov/contact/reg- given by Rebecca form-EDpanel.htm. Skloot, an award- winning science Women’s History Month Program Set, Mar. 16 writer whose articles NIH’s annual Women’s History Month observance have appeared in will be held on Wednesday, Mar. 16 from 11 a.m. to the New York Times noon in Wilson Hall, Bldg. 1. This year’s theme is Magazine, O, The “Our History is Our Strength.” NIH deputy director Oprah Magazine and others. The talk will be held for extramural research Dr. Sally Rockey will be the Monday, Mar. 14 from 10 to 11 a.m. in Masur keynote speaker. She will share information on her Auditorium, Bldg. 10. career trajectory, how she became interested in Skloot’s debut book The Immortal Life of Hen- extramural research administration and reflections rietta Lacks became an instant New York Times on the impact of women in science at NIH. bestseller. It won the Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize and the Wellcome Trust Book Prize and was The NIH Record is published biweekly at NIH Golf Association To Begin Play Bethesda, MD by the Editorial Operations named Best Book of 2010 by Amazon.com and a Branch, Office of Communications and Public Best Book of the Year by Entertainment Weekly, The NIHGA is an 18-hole co-ed league that welcomes Liaison, for the information of employees of O, The Oprah Magazine, the New York Times and golfers of all skill levels to play in a friendly, competi- the National Institutes of Health, Department numerous others. It is being translated into more tive environment. Play occurs mid-week at a different of Health and Human Services. The content is than 20 languages and adapted into a young adult nearby course approximately every second week reprintable without permission. Pictures may be available upon request. Use of funds for book and an HBO film produced by Oprah Winfrey beginning in April. The NIHGA currently has 6 teams printing this periodical has been approved by and Alan Ball. of about 25 players each. The league plays 8 stroke play events, followed by a double-elimination team the director of the Office of Management and Skloot has worked as a correspondent for NPR’s Budget through September 30, 2011. match play tournament of up to 7 outings. Handicaps Radiolab and PBS’s NOVA scienceNOW and is are maintained by the league. Play in any or all of the To receive alerts to our latest issue, send an guest editor of The Best American Science Writing outings at some of the best golf courses in the Mary- email to [email protected] with the words 2011. She has taught at the University of Memphis, land/Virginia area, as your schedule permits. And “Subscribe NIHRECORD” in the message body. the University of Pittsburgh and NYU. enjoy the benefit of mid-week, group-outing prices, NIH Record Office Bldg. 31, Rm. 5B41 Phone (301) 496-2125 Fax (301) 402-1485 Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. Once usually in the $50 range. There are prizes for longest Masur hits capacity, people will be directed to drive and closest-to-the-pin at every event. The year Web address http://nihrecord.od.nih.gov Lipsett Amphitheater for overflow seating. is capped off with a scramble that includes golf, cart and dinner as well as trophies and other prizes. For Editor An online simulcast of the lecture will be available Richard McManus more information about the league, including the at http://videocast.nih.gov. For more information, [email protected] 2011 schedule, see www.recgov.org/nihga or contact contact Sarah Freeman at (301) 594-6747 or sarah. Howard Somers at [email protected]. Assistant Editor [email protected]. Carla Garnett [email protected] STEP Forum on Pain Management, Mar. 22 Circus Night Benefits NIH Children’s Charities Staff Writers The staff training in extramural programs (STEP) Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus will bring Jan Ehrman the 140th edition of “The Greatest Show on Earth” [email protected] committee will present a Current Controversies in Medicine forum on the topic “I Haven’t Got Time for to Verizon Center on Wednesday, Mar. 23. The 14th Valerie Lambros annual Children’s Premiere Night, hosted by R&W [email protected] the Pain—Is It Ever That Simple?” on Tuesday, Mar. 22, from 9 a.m. to noon in Rockledge II conference and benefiting the NIH Charities, begins with a free The NIH Record reserves the right to make center, Rm. 9112-9116. pre-show at 6 p.m. followed by the main event at 7. corrections, changes or deletions in submitted Tickets are on sale at the R&W activities desk in Bldg. copy in conformity with the policies of the Many diseases, syndromes and conditions cause paper and HHS. 31, Rm. B1W30 or by calling (301) 496-4600. Orders chronic and acute pain that affect quality of life. can be placed for tickets at any R&W store. Tickets Pain is the most common reason people seek treat- available include Circus Celebrity—front row/interac- ment; however many people still experience pain tive seating where you become part of the show $80 unnecessarily. Join us for this informative forum to (reg. $110), front row $53 (reg. $75), VIP $39 (reg. learn about the latest breakthroughs in traditional $52), section 111 & 112 (best seats) $24 (reg. $35). 2 NIH RECORD MARCH 4, 2011 2 MARCH 4, 2011 MARCH 4, 2011 VOL. LXIII, NO. 5 new challenges,” he said. “The potential to have broad impact in biomedical sci- ence is, for me, the biggest attraction. “I am a Ph.D. scientist,” he continued, “but I have always been interested in clini- cal applications of my work. Looking back, my biggest regret is that I didn’t get an M.D., which would have given me a chance to help patients directly. But this [new] job offers the potential of indirectly helping those in need.” Before working at Novartis, Ranganathan was a scientific consultant for Care Capital LLC.
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