Pipettes and Politics

Elaine Fuchs, a professor at the Rockefeller University and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, won the 2022 Bert and Natalie Vallee Award in Biomedical Science. Established in 2012 by the Bert and Natalie Kuggie Vallee Foundation, this award recognizes outstanding accomplishments in basic biomedical research. She presented her award lecture, "Tissue stem cells: survival of the fittest," on Tuesday, April 5, at the 2022 ASBMB Annual Meeting held in conjunction with Experimental Biology. Learn more about her work:https://www.asbmb.org/asbmb-today/people/122221/fuchs-goes-boldly-where-no-stem-cell-biologist.

J. Martin Bollinger Jr., a professor at the Pennsylvania State University, won the 2022 William C. Rose Award, which recognizes outstanding contributions to biochemical and molecular biological research and a demonstrated commitment to the training of younger scientists. He presented his award lecture, "Progress Toward Understanding Protein Control of Reaction Outcome in the Diverse Reactivity of Iron(II)- and 2-Oxoglutarate-dependent Oxygenases" on Sunday, April 3, at the 2022 ASBMB Annual Meeting, held in conjunction with Experimental Biology, in Philadelphia. Learn more about his work: https://www.asbmb.org/asbmb-today/people/121021/bollinger-built-a-bioinorganic-powerhouse-at-penn.

Alex Toker, winner of the 2022 Avanti Award in Lipids, which recognizes outstanding lipid research contributions, presented his lecture, "PI 3-Kinase signaling: A journey in three AKTs," on Monday, April 4, at the 2022 ASBMB Annual Meeting, held in conjunction with Experimental Biology, in Philadelphia. Learn more about his work: https://www.asbmb.org/asbmb-today/people/120721/toker-recognized-for-seminal-contributions-to-lip.

Janet Smith, a professor at the University of Michigan Medical School, associate director of the UM Life Sciences Institute and scientific director of the GM/CA beamlines at the Argonne synchrotron, won the 2022 Mildred Cohn Award in Biological Chemistry, which honors scientists at all stages of their careers who have made substantial advances in understanding biological chemistry using innovative physical approaches. She presented her award lecture, "Flavivirus NS1: Structure and function of an enigmatic virulence factor," on Monday, April 4, at the 2022 ASBMB Annual Meeting, held in conjunction with Experimental Biology in Philadelphia. Learn more about her work: https://www.asbmb.org/asbmb-today/people/121721/smith-unravels-secrets-of-nature-s-catalysts.

Kathleen Collins, winner of the 2022 Earl and Thressa Stadtman Distinguished Scientist Award, presented her lecture, "Telomerase holoenzymes" on Monday, April 4, at the 2022 ASBMB Annual Meeting, held in conjunction with Experimental Biology, in Philadelphia. Learn more about her work: https://www.asbmb.org/asbmb-today/people/122121/telomerase-studies-led-collins-to-discoveries.

Joseph Provost, winner of the 2022 ASBMB Exemplary Contributions to Education Award, presented his lecture, "It's all about the students," on Sunday, April 3, at the 2022 ASBMB Annual Meeting, held in conjunction with Experimental Biology, in Philadelphia. Learn more about his work: https://www.asbmb.org/asbmb-today/people/121421/provost-makes-chemistry-accessible-for-undergrads.

Michael Airola, winner of the 2022 Walter A. Shaw Young Investigator Award in Lipid Research, presented his lecture, "Snapshots of lipid synthesis and fat storage" on Sunday, April 3, at the 2022 ASBMB Annual Meeting, held in conjunction with Experimental Biology, in Philadelphia. Learn more about his work: https://www.asbmb.org/asbmb-today/people/120321/airola-learns-from-failure.

Couldn't attend his talk at the annual meeting? Not to worry! Airola will be presenting "Snapshots of lipid synthesis and fat storage" as a webinar on August 9, 2022 at 12 p.m. Eastern. Learn more and register for this free virtual event, which will be moderated by Yusuf Hannun of Stony Brook University: https://www.asbmb.org/meetings-events/snapshots-of-lipid-synthesis-and-fat-storage.

Robert V. Farese Jr. and Tobias C. Walther won the 2022 ASBMB–Merck Award, which recognizes outstanding contributions to research in biochemistry and molecular biology. The pair’s joint lab studies lipid homeostasis and storage and neurodegeneration. Farese and Walther are professors at Harvard Medical School and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and both are associate members of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard.

They presented their award lecture, "The phase of fat: Mechanisms and physiology of lipid storage" on Sunday, April 3, at the 2022 ASBMB Annual Meeting, held in conjunction with Experimental Biology, in Philadelphia. Learn more about their work: https://www.asbmb.org/asbmb-today/people/121521/farese-and-walther-find-depth-in-a-droplet.

Farese and Walther are also organizing the 2023 Deuel Conference on Lipids, which will be March 7–10, 2023 in Dana Point, Calif. The ASBMB Deuel conference is a must-attend event for leading lipids investigators — and for scientists who’ve just begun to explore the role of lipids in their research programs. Learn more and save the date: https://www.asbmb.org/meetings-events/deuel.

Greg G. Wang, a professor at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine and member of the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, won the 2022 ASBMB Young Investigator Award, which recognizes outstanding research contributions to biochemistry and molecular biology and contributions to the community of scientists. Wang’s lab studies how chromatin structure and epigenetic modifications contribute to gene regulation and cancer development.

He presented his award lecture, "Chromatin-based modulations underlying gene regulation and pathogenesis," on Tuesday, April 5, at the 2022 ASBMB Annual Meeting in Philadelphia. Learn more about his work: https://www.asbmb.org/asbmb-today/people/121621/wang-s-studies-are-fueled-by-interest-in-cells.

On August 9, 2022 he will also be presenting this talk as a webinar. Register here to join and participate in a Q&A session: https://www.asbmb.org/meetings-events/chromatin-based-modulations.

Apprenticeships offer pathways into biotechnology for a growing number of students. How does the training model work, why are policymakers excited about it, and who wants to be an apprentice? Laurel Oldach, a science writer for the ASBMB, and Sarina Neote, ASBMB's science policy manager, have the story. Read their ASBMB Today article to learn even more: https://bit.ly/3pi7JNh.