CCR Fellows & Young Investigators Newsletter Center for Cancer Research Volume 20, Issue 3 Summer 2021 CCR-FYI Newsletter Team Special newsletter edition: 21st CCR FYI Colloquium EDITOR IN CHIEF – From Mechanisms to Therapies: Alida Palmisano Current Highlights in Cancer Research MANAGING EDITOR – Annan Timon EDITORS – Enitome Bafor Sarah Burnash Dorothy L. Butler Molly Congdon Jessica Eisenstatt Amy Funk Mary Grace Katusiime Victoria Hill Sarwat Naz Carlos Villapudua CONTRIBUTORS – Srikanta Basu Dorothy Butler Sunita Chopra Molly Congdon Mary Grace Katusiime Katelyn Ludwig Isita Jhulki Babul Ram Geraldine Vilmen In the picture above, the CCR-FYI Colloquium Planning Committee: CCR-FYI Association is Chairs: Srikanta Basu, Katelyn Ludwig. Vice Chairs: Dorothy L. Butler, Anna Ratliff. supported by the NCI Knicki Bergman, Molly Congdon, Ruchika Bhujbalrao, Vasty Osei Amponsa, Sabina Kaczanowska, Center for Cancer Training Neha Wali, Joshua Rose, Sunita Chopra, Isita Jhulki, Mary Grace Katusiime, Sumirtha Balaratnam. (CCT) and CCR Office of Not in the picture, but part of the Planning Committee: Cassey Singler, Jose Delgado the Director. Support of the CCT-Office of Training and Education, CCR-FYI SC and CBIIT was essential for the success of this event, in particular the Committee wants to thank Amy Funk, Jessica Connect with CCR-FYI Eisenstatt, Angela Jones, Robert Montano, Erika Ginsburg and Oliver Bogler. VOLUME 20 – ISSUE 3 – SUMMER 2021 While the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a major impact on the life of many NCI fellows, we are happy to see that one of the big CCR events of the year (the CCR-FYI Colloquium) returned in 2021 after being cancelled in 2020. Even though this annual two-day event was held virtually in April 2021, fellows and young investigators had the chance to participate in keynote addresses from extramural and intramural speakers along with panels and workshops to highlight the career development of CCR fellows. In this edition of the Newsletter we feature summaries of each section of the Colloquium, to give anyone who was not able to attend the chance to get some of the valuable insights and information that was shared by speakers and panelists. And if you want to listen to some of the workshops or panels again, make sure to click the links to the video recordings of the event! I hope you enjoy reading the Summer 2021, Special edition of the FYI Newsletter! – Alida Palmisano (Editor-In-Chief) (background image created with BioRender.com and picture by guy stevens on Unsplash) Inside this issue 2021 CCR-FYI Colloquium Awards .................................................................................................................................................. 2 Opening Remarks from Colloquium Planning Committee Chairs ...................................................................................... 3 Watch the recordings of the CCR-FYI Colloquium! .................................................................................................................. 4 Remarks from the NCI Director, Dr. Sharpless ........................................................................................................................... 5 “The Role of Multidrug Transporters in Drug Resistance in Cancer” .................................................................................. Keynote talk: Dr. Michael M. Gottesman ...................................................................................................................................... 6 “Release of PKC from Quarantine by mTORC2” Keynote talk: Dr. Alexandra Newton ............................................... 8 Management Techniques (Workshop hosted by Shannon Bell) ....................................................................................... 11 Careers in Academia: A summary of the Panel Discussion.................................................................................................. 13 Panel Discussion: Non-profit Organizations ............................................................................................................................. 16 DNA-based Vaccines: an emerging technique for safe and efficient vaccination ......................................................... (Keynote talk: Dr. Barbara Felber) ................................................................................................................................................. 20 CCR Directors’ Addresses ................................................................................................................................................................. 22 From Past to Future: Catching up with the Founding Director of the CCR ................................................................... 24 Marty Tenenbaum, Computer Scientist and Cancer Survivor, delivers a clarion call to redesign oncology .... 25 Virtual Interview Techniques (Workshop by Scott Morgan) ............................................................................................... 28 “Networking -The open secret for a highly successful scientist” (Workshop by Dr. Phil Ryan) ............................ 30 Advice from the 2021 CCR-FYI Colloquium Drug Development and Industry Career Panel ................................. 33 CCR FYI Newsletter p. 1 VOLUME 20 – ISSUE 3 – SUMMER 2021 2021 CCR-FYI Colloquium Awards CCR FYI Newsletter p. 2 VOLUME 20 – ISSUE 3 – SUMMER 2021 Opening Remarks from Colloquium Planning Committee Chairs by: Srikanta Basu and Katelyn Ludwig The 21st Annual CCR-FYI Colloquium, entitled of the Colloquium, Dr. Barbara Felber, a Senior “From Mechanisms to Therapies: Current Investigator in the Vaccine Branch and Head of Highlights in Cancer Research,” took place on the Human Retrovirus Pathogenesis Section at April 19-20th, 2021. In response to the COVID-19 the NIH, delivered her talk entitled “DNA vaccine pandemic, the Colloquium was held virtually for for Broad and Durable Immunity.” Additionally, the second year in a row. Despite these we heard a talk from Dr. Sachi Horibata, who was circumstances, we strove to design an event selected as the 2021 Outstanding Postdoctoral featuring scientifically diverse topics and fellow awardee. Dr. Horibata spoke about professional development opportunities to “Identifying underlying determinants of develop the skills of the CCR fellows. chemotherapy resistance in cancer,” and she detailed her work examining distinct gene profiles The first day of the Colloquium began with in refractory acute myeloid leukemia. opening remarks by Dr. Srikanta Basu, the CCR- FYI Colloquium Planning Committee co-chair In addition, we hosted two extramural speakers from Frederick. Next, Erika Ginsburg, the Chief of and one survivorship speaker. Dr. Alexandra the Office of Training and Education, Center for Newton, a Distinguished Professor of Cancer Training (CCT), spoke about the resources Pharmacology at the University of California, San available for the CCR fellows, including fellowship Diego, spoke about “Reversing the Paradigm: opportunities. The attendees then heard from Dr. Protein Kinase C as a Tumor Suppressor.” On the Oliver Bogler, the Director of the CCT, regarding second day of the Colloquium, Dr. J. Carl Barrett, the current directives of the CCT and its future the Vice President of Oncology and Translational directions. We also heard remarks from Dr. Ned Sciences at AstraZeneca, and the founding Sharpless, the Director of the NCI. The second Director of the CCR, spoke about “Translational day of the Colloquium was also opened with talks Medicine in Driving Drug Development in by NCI leadership including Dr. Glenn Merlino, Oncology.” Next, we heard from Dr. Marty the CCR Scientific Director for Basic Research, and Tenenbaum, a computer scientist and cancer Dr. William Dahut, the CCR Scientific Director for survivor. He is the founder of Cancer Commons Clinical Research, who spoke about the ongoing and CollabRx, and he spoke about his experience work at the NCI, including an update on the as a cancer patient as well as the work he does in clinical trials in progress. the cancer field as a computer scientist. Over the course of the two days, we hosted two Finally, we hosted concurrent oral presentations intramural keynote speakers from the NCI. The and virtual poster presentations to provide the first was Dr. Michael Gottesman, the Deputy CCR fellows with opportunities to share their Director for Intramural Research & Chief of the work. We also hosted three panels and three Laboratory of Cell Biology. Dr. Gottesman gave a workshops covering topics related to professional talk entitled “The Role of Multidrug Transporters development. Two panels covered academia and in Drug Resistance in Cancer.” On the second day CCR FYI Newsletter p. 3 VOLUME 20 – ISSUE 3 – SUMMER 2021 industry career topics, while the last panel all their help designing a virtual colloquium. We focused on scientific opportunities at nonprofit would also like to thank the CCR-FYI volunteers organizations. Additionally, we hosted workshops that helped plan and run the 2021 Colloquium. on virtual interview techniques, scientific communication, and management techniques, to If you would like to get involved in the CCR-FYI enhance the non-technical skills of the CCR and the planning of the 2022 Colloquium, fellows. please contact either Dorothy Butler ([email protected]) or The articles in this edition of the CCR-FYI Anna Ratliff ([email protected]) for more Newsletter summarize the details of the events