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A Publication by The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics

Pharmacologist Vol. 57 • Number 4 • December 2015

The Birth of Modern Chemotherapy

Inside: 2016 Annual Meeting Program 2016 Election Meet the 2016 Washington Fellows

186 The Pharmacologist is published and distributed by the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics.

Contents 187 Message from the President 189 2015 Year in Review 193 2015 Contributions 195 2016 Election Story: Sidney Farber, Methotrexate, 200 Feature and the Jimmy Fund: The Birth of Modern Chemotherapy

212 Meeting News 226 Science Policy News 233 Education News 235 Journal News 238 Membership News 242 Members in the News 244 Division News News 249 Chapter

250 Meetings & Congresses

THE PHARMACOLOGIST PRODUCTION TEAM Rich Dodenhoff Catherine Fry, PhD Judith A. Siuciak, PhD Suzie Thompson COUNCIL President Kenneth E. Thummel, PhD President-Elect David R. Sibley, PhD Past President Annette E. Fleckenstein, PhD Secretary/Treasurer Dennis C. Marshall, PhD Secretary/Treasurer-Elect Charles P. France, PhD Past Secretary/Treasurer Paul A. Insel, PhD Councilors Wayne Backes, PhD John D. Schuetz, PhD Margaret E. Gnegy, PhD Chair, Board of Publications Trustees Mary E. Vore, PhD Chair, Program Committee Scott Waldman, MD, PhD FASEB Board Representative Brian M. Cox, PhD Executive Officer Judith A. Siuciak, PhD The Pharmacologist (ISSN 0031-7004) is published quarterly in March, June, September, and December by the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, 9650 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20814-3995. Annual subscription rates: $20.00 for ASPET members; $45.00 for U.S. nonmembers and institutions; $70.00 for nonmembers and institutions outside the U.S. Single copy: $20.00. Copyright Š 2015 by the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics Inc. All rights reserved.

Periodicals postage paid at Bethesda, MD. GST number for Canadian subscribers: BN:13489 2330 RT. ASPET assumes no responsibility for the statements and opinions advanced by contributors to The Pharmacologist.

Postmaster: Send address changes to: The Pharmacologist, ASPET, 9650 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20814-3995.

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Message from

The President We are coming to the close of the 2015 calendar year, and I would like to take this opportunity to highlight some significant accomplishments that we achieved during the past 12 months and new ventures for 2016 that I believe will strengthen our society and its ability to serve the community of pharmacologists.

By now, I hope that all of you are aware of major transformations to the ASPET web site. These changes were intended to make the site more attractive and informative to the casual visitor, pulling them into the fold, and to enhance the ease of site navigation and use for business by ASPET staff and members. Most noticeable, I hope, has been the introduction of an Experimental Biology (EB) meeting microsite customized for ASPET members, reinvigoration of divisional sites, and a complete rebuild of the ASPET awards submission site that we hope will improve the user experience when applying for and evaluating the various scientific achievement and travel awards offered by the society.

We will continue to make strategic investments in software and hardware that enhance our ability to communicate with society members and the world community.

As part of an ongoing effort to improve our outreach to young scientists who may be interested in a career in pharmacology, ASPET now offers travel and poster competition awards specifically for undergraduate students conducting research in pharmacology and applied disciplines. There will also be opportunities at EB for undergrads to participate in peer networking and professional development events. These activities are all part of a BIG IDEAS initiative to “Enhance Undergraduate Involvement at EB,” overseen by Carol Beck and Katie Davis, with support from the Division for Pharmacology Education. Additional initiatives that are new to EB2016 include an ASPET Summer Undergraduate Research Fellow (SURF) symposium and the ASPET Mentoring Network. The latter program, led by Lynn Wecker and Susan Ingram, and funded through a BIG IDEAS initiative, will use a model developed by Dr. Rick McGee at Northwestern University to “break the diversity roadblock” by training skilled career coaches who will then serve as mentors for underrepresented minority mentees. Along with a recent expansion in the number of graduate and postdoctoral fellow travel awards offered to trainees attending the EB meeting, we believe that these new investments of time and financial resources represent critical investments in the future of ASPET that we hope ensure a robust, diverse and intellectually vibrant membership for years to come.

On the note of expanding membership and remaining scientifically vibrant, ASPET has created a new Division for Cancer Pharmacology. This was undertaken in response to membership and other scientists looking for a scientific forum that emphasizes target discovery, preclinical development, and clinical translation of new therapies for the treatment of cancer. In its inaugural year, the Cancer Division has been led by Dr. Susan Cole (Chair) at Queens University in Canada and Kip Guy (Secretary-Treasurer) at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis TN. Those interested in participating in divisional activities are encouraged to contact this leadership (see web site for contact info). As part of its launch at EB2016, the division will be sponsoring three symposia on cancer pharmacology (“Chronopharmacology in Cancer: Does Time Really Matter?,” “Cancer Stem Cells as Pharmacological Targets,” and “Translating MicroRNA Cancer Biology to Therapy”), running its first divisional executive and business meetings, and co-hosting an open mixer for division members and well-wishers. In addition, the 2016 President’s Symposium will be devoted to “Precision Medicine in Anti-Cancer Pharmacology,” with an exciting slate of basic discovery scientists, clinical pharmacologists, and practitioners who will talk about the use of host and tumor genomic testing for advancing anti-cancer therapeutics.

In response to a grass roots effort by postdoctoral fellows and graduate students to increase their involvement in the society, ASPET Council has approved the formation of a Young Scientists Committee. The inaugural committee

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188 leadership and members have been charged to advance the overall mission of ASPET through contributions to EB programming and representation on the Science Policy, Mentoring and Career Development, and Program Committees.

The Young Scientists are also planning to interact with a sister committee that is part of the British Pharmacological Society, possibly through shared events and programming in future annual meetings of the two societies. Their enthusiasm for our society is infectious and heartwarming and bodes well for the future of ASPET. Finally, it is Nobel Prize season and the announcement was made recently that the recipients of the prize in physiology or medicine are pharmacologists Youyou Tu for the discovery of artemisinin, a traditional Chinese medicine now used in the treatment of malaria, and William C. Campbell and Satoshi ĹŒmura for their discovery of avermectin, a natural product of the bacteria Streptomyces, the derivatives of which are now used in the treatment of river blindness and lymphatic filariasis. This well-deserved recognition of research excellence highlights the value of basic pharmacological research when clinical application is only a far-off vision and public health significance is unproven. Investment in basic research is just as essential today as it was when they began their work decades ago. The announcement of the award to Youyou Tu came in close advance of the 30th Anniversary of the Chinese Pharmacological Society, which was held November 2-4, 2015 in Beijing, China. The intersection of events is quite fitting and one that I am sure will inspire a new generation of young Chinese pharmacologists and potentially future Nobel laureates.

My best wishes to all of you during the coming holiday season, and I look forward to seeing you at EB2016, in San Diego, California.

Kenneth E. Thummel ASPET President

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ASPET 2015

Year in Review

2015 has been an incredible year for ASPET and our nearly 5,000 members! Here’s a recap of some exciting events: 2015 ASPET Annual Meeting at Experimental Biology This year we held our annual meeting in Boston with a robust attendance of 1,490 members at the ASPET meeting and 14,321 attendees at the overall Experimental Biology meeting. Our program was filled with cutting-edge science led by outstanding speakers in our field. We awarded 89 Graduate Student Travel Awards, 30 Young Scientist Travel

Awards, 4 SURF Fellow Travel Awards, and welcomed 9 ASPET Washington Fellows. The 2016 meeting will be held in San Diego, CA from April 2-6, 2016. Be sure to check out our program for 2016. In 2016, there will also be a post-meeting colloquium hosted by ASPET and the Academic Drug Discovery Consortium (ADDC) on Drug Discovery in Academia: Recent Successes and Emerging Opportunities. Check out the full program online.

2015 ASPET Graduate student travel award winners

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The BIG IDEAS Initiative The three BIG IDEA projects selected by ASPET Council made great strides in 2015. All three projects are currently in development, and we are excited to announce the following updates on each project: Enhancing Undergraduate Engagement in ASPET at EB Meetings – ASPET has added new undergraduate travel and best presentation awards for 2016 and is working on an undergraduate networking luncheon for EB2016.

Pharmacology Industry Internships for PhD Students (PIIPS) – A PIIPS steering committee has been established and has been working on developing the program guidelines, application process, review criteria, and other program details.

The program will be launched at the end of 2015.

From Senior Mentor to Highly Skilled Career Coach: A Novel Approach to Breaking the Diversity Roadblock – The ASPET Mentoring Network has been created to match mid- to late-career scientists with cohorts of young scientists to help guide them in their development and career advancement. The first year-long cohort will begin at EB2016 with in-person activities and be followed by virtual interactions throughout the year.

Stay tuned for updates on the BIG IDEAS II Initiative, which is currently underway.

New Award Gift This year we received a very generous gift from longtime ASPET member Dr. Charles O. Rutledge.

The gift from Dr. Rutledge funds the return of the Otto Krayer Award in Pharmacology. The award will be given for the purpose of recognizing a distinguished, mature investigator whose research has contributed significantly to a better understanding of the mechanisms of action of drugs or other chemicals. To read more about this award and Dr. Otto Krayer, turn to page 194.

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Website Updates Over the last year, we have made major improvements to the ASPET website. The awards pages received a major overhaul and incorporated the new awards application platform. In addition to the easier awards application and review process, the website now has expanded left rail menus, the ability to log in to the awards platform from anywhere on the awards template, a cleaner look utilizing accordion menus within the body of the pages, and a unifying ASPET awards brand. We also re-designed all ten division websites. The changes to the division websites include new branding and imaging, as well as updated division membership pages, descriptions, and goals. In an effort to give users better access to the division website, we also separated out divisions on our main homepage menus and added a menu for committees and chapters. Now all the divisions are listed in the division drop down menu, and it is easier to navigate between division pages. We also created a new annual meeting microsite for EB2016. The microsite has everything our meeting attendees need, including the full meeting program, abstract information, information for speakers, travel information, and more in an easily navigable format. Be sure to visit the microsite at www.aspet. org/eb2016 as we add and edit new items weekly.

In addition to these changes, we also updated several pages under our education tab, added a page with TEDx talks by ASPET members, updated our donations pages, and instituted a new search functionality powered by Google. If you haven’t visited the ASPET website in a while, we suggest you take a look around as we add interesting new content daily. We plan to continue making improvements to the ASPET website functionality and usability in 2016.

Additionally, our presence on social media has continued to increase with now over 1,000 followers on Twitter, over 1,500 fans on our Facebook page, and over 2,000 members in our LinkedIn group. We encourage you to follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook, and join our LinkedIn group.

Divisions This year saw the formation of ASPET’s newest division, the Division for Cancer Pharmacology. Under the leadership of Dr. Susan Cole and Dr. Kip Guy, the division is off to a great start with plans for symposia

191 at EB2016, a mixer, and other great opportunities and activities for members.

The division communications officers have been active this year in generating new content for the division websites, putting together newsletters, assisting the ASPET office with new division imaging, working on their LinkedIn groups, and much more. In an effort to improve and facilitate communications between the divisions and ASPET, ASPET’s program coordinator, Carla Burns, now serves as a liaison to all ten divisions.

Journals The ASPET journals staff and editors have been hard at work implementing new and important processes for the journals. Earlier this year, CrossCheck/iThenticate plagiarism detection was implemented so that all manuscripts submitted to ASPET’s journals are examined for plagiarized text.

Visual abstracts were implemented on February 19 and the first image was published on March 27. Content in ASPET’s journals was indexed for the ReadCube Discover service as of May 19.

ReadCube provides a suite of scholarly tools, and ASPET’s content will gain greater visibility through ReadCube’s web, desktop, and mobile platforms.

ASPET also announced support of the NIH Principles and Guidelines for Reporting Preclinical Research on June 11 and revised the Instructions to Authors for DMD, JPET, and MOL to establish preferred standards for reporting experimental design and

methodology and also set reporting requirements for randomization, blinding, normalization and statistical analysis, and reagent validation. This past summer, we also implemented image forensics. Images in all manuscripts tentatively accepted for publication are examined for inappropriate manipulation. Finally, in December, an open access option for ASPET’s authors was introduced, allowing them to publish under a CC-BY or CC-BY-NC license and retain the copyright in their work. ASPET’s OA option meets the requirements of the Wellcome Trust, the Research Councils UK, and other funders with an OA mandate.

We also hit record numbers on our journals social media accounts with over 2,000 likes on Facebook for JPET, MOL, and DMD.

Membership We recruited a record number of new members (110) at EB2015 this year. In addition to EB, we brought in new members through our chapters and other scientific meetings. We hope to continue to grow the Society and attract more members who are doing research in pharmacology and experimental therapeutics, and we hope that you will continue to do your part to keep our membership strong. Please tell a friend, colleague, or student about ASPET and spread the word about our member-driven programming at EB, our exciting science policy efforts, our travel awards and support for students, and much more. Currently, ASPET is running a memberget-a-member campaign in which we are rewarding members for their recruitment efforts. For more information about this program, visit www.aspet.org/ membership/member-get-a-member.

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Fundraising In an effort to streamline and clarify our opportunities for giving, the ASPET Council, aided by the Awards Task Force decided to merge our travel award funds into one Young Scientist Travel Award Fund. This fund is used to provide travel awards for undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctoral scientists to attend the ASPET Annual Meeting at Experimental Biology. We also combined many of our named travel awards into the ASPET Memorial Travel Award Fund to commemorate the lives and work of deceased members by request of their families and the ASPET Council. As the end of the year approaches, we hope that you will consider donating to ASPET as part of your year-end giving.

Consider supporting the Young Scientist Travel Award Fund to help young scientists travel to the ASPET annual meeting to advance their careers and the future of pharmacology. A great way for you to give

back to your scientific community this year would be to contribute toward this important fund. Your tax-deductible contribution in any amount will make a tremendous difference to the Society’s efforts. For more information on how you can help, visit us online at www.aspet.org/donate.

It has been an outstanding year, and we thank you all for being a part of our important Society. As always ASPET is committed to driving the Society’s mission forward by fulfilling the needs of its members. We have exciting plans for the coming year, so we hope that you will renew your membership—if you haven’t already—and gear up for an exciting 2016!

As always, we would love to hear your feedback.

Email us at membership@aspet.org to tell us how we can help make your membership as beneficial as possible!

Wishing you a happy, healthy, and successful new year!

Consider donating to ASPET as part of your year-end giving ASPET is committed to providing the best possible Society for our members who conduct research to save lives. The research efforts of our members help to develop new medicines and therapeutic agents to fight existing and emerging diseases. Contributions from members like you help increase ASPET’s impact in 2016 and support our mission. Take time to donate today at www.aspet.org/donate.

You can also support ASPET when you shop this holiday season!

Help ASPET by shopping on AmazonSmile.

AmazonSmile is a website operated by Amazon that lets customers enjoy the same wide selection of products, low prices, and convenient shopping features as on Amazon.com. When you make purchases on AmazonSmile, Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of eligible purchases to ASPET! What a great way to get your holiday shopping done and support your society! Start shopping now at https://smile. amazon.com/ch/58-6032060.

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2015 Contributions ASPET gratefully acknowledges the contributors to the following funds during 2015: John J. Abel Award in Pharmacology Fund Julius Axelrod Award in Pharmacology Fund Thomas F. Burks Student Travel Fund P.B. Dews Award Fund Goodman and Gilman Award in Receptor Pharmacology Fund

Graduate Student Travel Fund Keith F. & Eva K. Killam Student Travel Fund Otto Krayer Award Fund Benedict R. Lucchesi Lecturship in Cardiac Pharmacology Steven E. Mayer Student Travel Fund Memorial Travel Award Fund

Sustaining Member Fund Paul M. Vanhoute Lectureship Fund Young Scientist Travel Fund

ASPET gratefully acknowledges the following individuals who made contributions for 2015: Susan G. Amara Shawn Anderson Aisar Atrakchi Louis A. Baker William T. Beck Jeffrey L. Benovic Jack Bergman James V. Bruckner Sakina E. Eltom James J. Galligan

Ingeborg Hanbauer Dale G. Hoyt Kenneth A. Jacobson Zvonimir Katusic Mark M. Knuepfer Kevin R. Lynch Craig C. Malbon Dennis C. Marshall Mark A. Osinski James E. Patrick

Merle G. Paule Walter C. Prozialeck John R. Raymond Sr. Robert Roskoski Ibolya Rutkai Charles O. Rutledge Elaine Sanders-Bush Roger K. Sunahara Pancras C. Wong

Thank you to our 2015 Corporate Contributors:

And a special thank you for a new award gift!

Bristol-Myers Squibb DiscoveRx International Association of Medical Science Educators Jazz Pharmaceuticals Merck Optivia Biotechnology, Inc.

The Otto Krayer Award in Pharmacology is made possible by a gift to ASPET from Dr. Charles O. Rutledge. For more information see page 194.

This list reflects contributions received as of November 1, 2015.

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Otto Krayer Award in Pharmacology

ASPET is pleased to announce the return of the Otto Krayer Award in Pharmacology.

The award will be given for the purpose of recognizing a distinguished, mature investigator whose research has contributed significantly to a better understanding of the mechanisms of action of drugs or other chemicals.

This award was originally established in 1985, retired in 2003 and will be returning to active status with a presentation at the 2017 ASPET Annual Meeting at Experimental Biology. After that, the Krayer Award will be presented biennially in even-numbered

years starting in 2018. Its return was made possible by a gift to ASPET from Dr. Charles O. Rutledge.

Otto Krayer (1899-1982) was born and educated in Germany. He left in 1934 soon after refusing a prestigious chair appointment offered by the Nazi government when a new law was established banning Jews from such positions thus creating the open position. For this act of courage, he was forbidden to enter any German university or library.

Read this fascinating story of his moral stand in an article by Rebecca Anderson, published in Molecular Interventions 5: 324-329 (2005).

Dr. Krayer eventually landed at Harvard Medical School where he remained until retirement. He was so beloved by his students that they presented the dean with a petition that led to him being granted tenure and made head of the department. After the war, he participated in war relief efforts and founded the Committee to Help German University Scientists to rebuild the devastated German academic community. Even after his retirement from teaching and research, he and his wife, Ruth, dedicated themselves to helping young pharmacologists.

We are honored to list Dr. Krayer as a past president of ASPET (1957). In 1961 he was awarded ASPET’s inaugural Torald Sollmann Award in Pharmacology.

Nominations for this award will open in the summer of 2016 for presentation of the award in the spring of 2017.

Past recipients of the Otto Krayer Award in Pharmacology include such notable scientists as: • Norman Weiner • William W. Fleming • John R. Blinks • Thomas F. Burks • Edwin E. Daniel • Michael J. Brody • Salomon Z. Langer

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• Michael J. Kuhar • Arnold Schwartz • Irving H. Goldberg • David J. Triggle • Edson X. Albuquerque • John C. McGiff • Theodore Slotkin

• Horace Loh • Toshio Narahashi • Erik De Clercq • Alan C. Sartorelli

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2016 Election The ASPET election for president-elect, secretary/ treasurer-elect, and councilor is now open. All regular, postdoctoral, and emeritus members are eligible to vote. In addition, the following divisions are holding elections: • Division for Cancer Pharmacology • Division for Drug Discovery and Development • Division for Drug Metabolism • Division for Molecular Pharmacology • Division for Neuropharmacology

Nominees for President-Elect

John D. Schuetz, PhD Scott A. Waldman, Member and Vice MD, PhD, FCP, FAHA Chair, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

Professor, Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Department of Medicine, Thomas Jefferson University

• Division for Toxicology • Division for Translational and Clinical Pharmacology Members may view the full candidate biographies online at: www.associationvoting.com/aspet.

As the by-laws require, the election will be open for a minimum of thirty (30) days from the day of notification. The election opened on December 7, 2015 and will close on January 15, 2016.

John D. Schuetz, PhD Candidate’s Statement This is an honor to be nominated for the president of ASPET. It has been my privilege to interact and work with both ASPET members and staff. I would like to share with you some of the reasons why ASPET is important to me and likely all of us working in the pharmacological sciences.

ASPET membership How does ASPET benefit you?

I believe our journals provide an opportunity to disseminate our ideas, concepts, and discoveries to a broad audience.

Another visible way ASPET benefits its members is by developing a top-notch annual meeting that programs symposia which become unique forums that foster one-on-one scientific exchanges among our members. Of course, this could not be achieved without your involvement and initiative. In essence, ASPET is an organization whose direction is determined by you; it works from the bottom up.

To enhance our members’ experience, new and emerging scientific areas are recognized that can fulfill the diverse scientific interests of our membership.

One might consider as an example ASPET’s recent establishment of a new Cancer Pharmacology Division that was catalyzed, in part, by the recognition of an increased number of abstracts submitted in this

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discipline. The evolution of old, and the development of new, divisions is another way ASPET increases opportunities for our members to enrich their science.

Another mechanism is the continued support of our regional chapters.

An important goal of mine and ASPET is the development of young scientists, from undergraduates to those in their first academic appointments. One tangible example of this shared vision was ASPET allocating financial resources (the BIG IDEAS initiative) to subsidize mentorship and internship programs for young scientists. I support and believe these programs can serve as an incubator to develop and cultivate our future scientific leaders.

This goal can also be achieved by providing additional leadership opportunities within the organization for young scientists.

I am sure there are additional bonuses to being an ASPET member, but I believe these represent some of the common values we all share with ASPET membership.

ASPET’s role in growing pharmacology: This is an exciting time to be a pharmacologist, to be engaged in the process of “transforming discoveries into therapies.” I am committed to increasing ASPET visibility as a scientific organization and as the “go-to organization” for expertise in pharmacology. To accomplish this, we need to recognize that pharmacology is a multifaceted discipline with core principles. To facilitate our growth, we need to embrace areas of pharmacology that have been revolutionized by technological developments and breakthroughs. This includes further recognition of the importance of genomics and personalized medicine. But this also includes concepts such as targeted therapies that rely on structural and chemical biology, as well as novel model organisms. Our profile can be further magnified by creative inclusion of these areas in our journals. Finally, I believe our international visibility can be increased by developing and sustaining strategic partnerships with other pharmacological societies like those that have been established with the British Pharmacological Society and the Chinese Pharmacological Society.

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ASPET as an advocate for science: Our success as scientists is tied, in part, to our imagination. To accomplish what we envision, we need support and resources. An important reason to be one of the over 5000 members of ASPET is that it advocates to the NIH and other funding institutions on your behalf. It is very difficult as an individual to lobby on your behalf to Congress. Our members’ research is the major driver of new drugs and therapies, and I believe ASPET can represent the sum of our collective efforts, efforts that help us achieve our scientific dreams.

In closing, I hope you share my enthusiasm for the future of the pharmacological sciences and in particular, ASPET, and look forward to working with you to achieve our goals.

Scott A. Waldman, MD, PhD, FCP, FAHA Candidate’s Statement Our discipline of pharmacology is experiencing an unprecedented time of contrasts and paradoxes.

Emerging technologies have yielded extraordinary discoveries in molecular mechanisms underlying disease. However, we find ourselves in an era of fiscal constraint that compromises opportunities to translate those discoveries into algorithms for disease prediction, prevention, and cure. Beyond these economic realities, the integration of diagnostics and therapeutics into clinical management paradigms holds the promise of tailored treatments for diseases.

Paradoxically, the very relevance of our discipline, whose core concepts embody the creation and application of those personalized approaches, is being challenged in academic, public, and private sectors. These environmental challenges frame the essential role of ASPET as the voice of pharmacology, establishing strategies that advance the discipline locally and nationally. In that context, I believe the role of the ASPET president is to collaborate with members and leaders to maximize the value of the society, sustain the discipline, advance the science, and create opportunities for individual career growth.

As president, I will advance the discipline through well-established and familiar mechanisms. For example, as chair of the Scientific Program Committee, I have had the opportunity to showcase cutting-

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edge content for the annual meeting, offering our members unique opportunities for exposure to the latest scientific advances, to meet experts pioneering technologies evolving the discipline, and for global advancement of our science through international partnerships. Organizationally, as a member of ASPET Council, I have the honor of working with outstanding leaders to advocate nationally for the importance of pharmacology through the Science Policy Committee, and in collaboration with our sister organizations in FASEB, to sustain and expand research support that forms the lifeblood of our discipline. Moreover, as both a scientific contributor and Council member, I take great pride in our portfolio of scientific journals, which serves as the reigning voice of the discipline, the vehicle that disseminates the most impactful pharmacologic research, the forum for interdisciplinary discourse, and the conveyance for local and national policy related to pharmacology.

Beyond these traditional mechanisms, I will lead the organization into the future employing creative strategies that maximize membership value and grow the discipline. Reflecting inwardly on members, our future is the next generation of committed pharmacologists, and I will work diligently to develop organizational strategies that support career development. For example, innovative mentoring programs that match successful career pharmacologists with nascent practitioners can maximize the likelihood of success. Similarly, organizational roadmaps can provide clear pathways to Society ladders of responsibility, creating (inter) national leadership experiences required for career advancement. Further, I will establish scientific divisions as incubators for the next generation of leaders by creating mandates that recognize and cultivate talent, provide divisional leadership opportunities, and promote scientific contributions to the annual meeting to create depth and breadth in a leadership pool that secures the future. Additionally, I

will enhance award and grant programs that, in part, fill the gap created by government austerity to provide a lifeline to trainees and young faculty struggling to establish a career foothold. Moreover, I will work with our Society experts to define the contemporary portfolio of essential core concepts differentiating pharmacology from other disciplines, disseminate those concepts at our annual meetings and in our journals, provide best practices for pharmacology education, and advocate for the essential nature of pharmacology in undergraduate and graduate curricula, in order to re-affirm the central relevance of the discipline. Finally, I will work to engage program directors in government agencies and the biopharmaceutical community, and journal editorial leadership, and secure their participation in our annual meeting, to create opportunities for interactions with young scientists that enhance career success. In addition to this internal focus on member value, I will lead the organization in developing strategies that reflect outwardly, championing the central nature of basic and applied pharmacology in therapeutic discovery, development, regulation, and application to academia, biopharmaceutical, regulatory, and funding communities. Beyond these agencies directly linked to our discipline, I will drive outward organizational strategies to educate citizens as key stakeholders in the benefits and deliverables of pharmacology in the context of emerging experimental therapeutics that prevent and cure disease.

It is true that pharmacology, like all of modern science, is under duress. However, where there are challenges, there also are opportunities to evolve, succeed, and even grow, in the context of leadership with vision and strategy to navigate that course.

As president, I look forward to the opportunity to work with ASPET leaders and members to develop that vision and strategy and continue evolving the organization and discipline.

The ASPET 2016 election is now open! Vote online by visiting www.associationvoting.com/aspet.

You must have your email address and member ID to login. If you need assistance with your login credentials, please contact membership@aspet.org.

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Nominees for Secretary/ Treasurer-Elect

Michael F. Jarvis, PhD Volwiler Senior Research Fellow & Scientific Director, Global Medical Affairs, AbbVie; Adjunct Professor of Biopharmaceutical Sciences, University of Illinois, Chicago

John J.G. Tesmer, PhD Professor of Pharmacology and Biological Sciences, Life Sciences Institute, University of Michigan

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Nominees for Councilor

Carol L. Beck, PhD Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacology & Experimental Therapeutics, Sidney Kimmel Medical College; Assistant Dean for Curriculum, Jefferson College of Biomedical Sciences, Thomas Jefferson University

Randy A. Hall, PhD Professor of Pharmacology, Emory University School of Medicine

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Sidney Farber, Methotrexate, and the Jimmy Fund:

The Birth of Modern Chemotherapy Rebecca J. Anderson, PhD

In the Public Domain

President Richard Nixon signing the National Cancer Act (December 23, 1971)

On December 23, 1971, President Richard Nixon sat at a table in the White House to sign the National Cancer Act, and with that, he declared war on cancer. Attacking cancer as a war has been controversial ever since. But at the time, intensive lobbying and publicity had generated great hope within Congress and across the nation that cancer could be cured. The enthusiasm was propelled by a string of clinical successes, all of which could be traced back to a small basement laboratory in Boston and to an indefatigable champion who was neither a lobbyist nor an oncologist.

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201 Sidney Farber was the son of Polish immigrants who settled in Buffalo, New York. The third of 14 children, Sidney thrived in a family that put a high priority on academic excellence (1). His father, an insurance agent, often brought home textbooks, which the children studied around the dinner table. They were as fluent in German as in English and prepared detailed reports from the textbooks for their father’s inspection.

Reprinted with permission from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

sense of humor and a fondness for mystery novels (1, 2, 4). His bedside manner was compassionate, and with children, he showed a grandfatherly gentleness (4).

But he could be obstinate, argumentative, and “devastatingly objective” (1, 2). “He never looked for a fight, but he never dodged one” (1). His gentle voice was persuasive, and he excelled at separating fact from “fuzzy thinking,” a mental discipline he imprinted on his trainees and junior faculty (1, 2).

In his lucid pathology lectures, Farber enlivened an otherwise dry anatomic and histologic recitation by emphasizing the dynamic biological events that occur during human disease (2). His 1937 book on autopsies, The Postmortem Examination, remains a classic.

Like his personal appearance, Farber’s 9 x 12 foot pathology laboratory in the basement of The Children’s Hospital was the epitome of precision and tidiness (2). He had an unparalleled work ethic, and during his first two decades at The Children’s Hospital, Farber made a number of important contributions to pathology. He called attention to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and was among the first to report that encephalitis in infants and children was caused by the Eastern equine virus (1). Along with his associates, he described cystic fibrosis as a generalized disorder, drew attention to hyaline membrane disease in newborns, and defined many of the enzymatic abnormalities associated with celiac syndrome and pancreatic insufficiency (1, 2).

The young Dr. Sidney Farber (1947)

From Pathologist to Chemotherapist Sidney worked his way through the University of Buffalo studying biology and philosophy by day and playing violin in music halls at night. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1923 and began medical school at the Universities of Heidelberg and Freiburg in Germany (1).

The next year, he secured a seat at Harvard Medical School and graduated in 1927 (1, 2). Farber then trained in pathology at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital.

By 1929 and at the age of 26, he had become the first full-time pathologist at The Children’s Hospital in Boston and was also appointed instructor in pathology at Harvard Medical School (2, 3).

Even as a student, Farber conveyed a European stateliness. He stood a commanding six feet tall and was always impeccably attired (1, 4). His diction was precise and deliberate, and he addressed his colleagues formally by title (1, 2, 4).

Those who knew him well enjoyed the friendship of a warm, considerate, and generous man with a sly

In 1946, Farber became Chairman of the Division of Laboratories and Research at The Children’s Hospital and in 1947 was named pathologist-in-chief. In 1948, he was appointed professor of pathology at Harvard Medical School. During this time, still working out of his small basement laboratory, Farber began focusing his attention on leukemia, a rare but invariably fatal childhood cancer. Life expectancy for children with acute leukemia usually extended only a few weeks after the onset of symptoms (1, 5).

Life expectancy for children with acute leukemia usually extended only a few weeks after the onset of symptoms.

Leukemia had been shunted to a no-man’s-land between hematology and oncology, and little was

December 2015 • The Pharmacologist

202 known about it because internists had no drugs to treat it and surgeons could not operate on blood (6).

Some physicians tried radiation therapy, but mostly they provided supportive care to make the children’s last days more comfortable.

Farber’s introduction to hematology came in medical school through the inspiring lectures of George Minot, who discovered that pernicious anemia could be cured by supplemental vitamin B12. In the 1940s, Farber read several papers claiming that folic acid (vitamin B9) inhibited the growth of sarcomas and caused regression of some spontaneous breast cancers in mice (7). This prompted him to wonder whether leukemia, like pernicious anemia, was the result of a vitamin deficiency (1).

Minutes after the broadcast ended, nearby residents walked or drove to The Children’s Hospital with cash donations.

Farber contacted Yellapragada Subbarow, a former Harvard colleague who had recently been appointed research director at Lederle Laboratories. Subbarow and his associates had succeeded in synthesizing folic acid and were actively evaluating a series of analogs as nutritional supplements (6, 7). Farber requested and received several of those compounds.

With the cooperation of surgical and medical associates at several Boston hospitals, he treated 90 patients who were suffering from two dozen different malignancies, including eleven children with acute leukemia (5, 7). The results were disastrous.

Instead of helping the patients, folic acid accelerated tumor growth.

Meanwhile, Subbarow’s team found that several of their synthesized analogs interfered with folic acid metabolism and normal cell growth, both in vitro and in chicks (1, 7). This discovery, coupled with Farber’s clinical failure using folic acid, led Farber to a new hypothesis: “folic acid antagonists might be of value in the treatment of patients with acute leukemia” (8).

The two major classes of leukemia, acute and chronic, were divided into two biological subtypes, lymphoid and myeloid. However, despite Farber’s expertise as a pathologist, he found it “impossible to diagnose with certainty the exact morphologic type of leukemia because of the primitive nature of the blasts”

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(5). In most cases, he diagnosed the children simply with acute leukemia.

In the spring of 1947, Farber and Subbarow devised a plan for assessing the various folic acid antagonists synthesized at Lederle. They would systematically test the compounds, first in laboratory animals and then in patients, with the goal of finding the most effective and least toxic antagonist in the series (5).

In March 1947, Farber began daily intramuscular injections of the first folic acid antagonist, pteroylaspartic acid, to a four-year-old girl with acute leukemia. The girl died a week later, but Farber was encouraged because her bone marrow had greatly improved. “A change of this magnitude in such a short time has not been encountered in the marrow of leukemic children in our experience” (8). He continued his study, giving either pteroylaspartic acid or another antagonist, methylpteroic acid, to a series of 21 children with acute leukemia (8).

In November 1947, Subbarow sent Farber a new compound. It was simply folic acid modified with a 4-amino substituent, but it proved to be a powerful antagonist. They called it aminopterin. Farber, Louis Diamond, and their associates gave aminopterin to 16 children with acute leukemia. Ten of the children showed clinical, hematologic, and pathological evidence of improvement. In April 1948, Farber sent patient narratives describing the top five responders to the New England Journal of Medicine (8).

Although some of the children remained alive for many months, the remissions were temporary. By the time Farber’s paper was published on June 3, 1948, most of them had died. Furthermore, aminopterin was toxic, causing diarrhea, ulcerations of the tongue and mouth, and other signs of folic acid deficiency.

Farber emphasized that his results did not justify any suggestion of a “cure,” and the scientific community reacted with skepticism and disbelief to his claim of remissions. Remissions, even temporary, were unheard of in leukemia (1).

Nevertheless, aminopterin-induced remissions were real and marked a major breakthrough. This was the first time that any cancer had responded to chemotherapy, and Farber’s NEJM paper became a widely cited classic (7).

Unfortunately, Subbarow died unexpectedly in August 1948, essentially ending the synthesis of new folic acid analogs (7). But Farber was encouraged by the aminopterin remissions and enthusiastically continued the clinical evaluation of Subbarow’s

203 compounds. The antagonists, amethopterin and amino-an-fol, were especially effective. By the end of the year, Farber and his colleagues had treated 60 children with acute leukemia and also received reports from other clinicians who were following his lead (5).

More than 50% of the children showed clinical and hematological improvement after treatment with the newer folic acid antagonists.

Farber found that the folic acid antagonists also induced a “temporary, definite but inconsistent” improvement in patients with related tumors such as lymphosarcoma and Hodgkin’s disease, as well as with apparently unrelated forms of incurable cancer, such as neuroblastoma and metastatic bladder cancer (5).

From these early studies, amethopterin would emerge as the best folic acid antagonist. Chemically, it was strikingly similar to aminopterin. Subbarow had simply added a methyl group to the aminopterin molecule. Today, amethopterin is more commonly called methotrexate.

Jimmy Hits a Home Run In May 1947, a group representing the Variety Club of New England toured The Children’s Hospital.

Founded by members of the entertainment industry, the Variety Club’s philanthropic mission was to assist children, and the club was already providing funds to operate the hospital’s blood bank (3).

On their tour, the group stopped at Sidney Farber’s basement laboratory, where the enthusiastic physician described his ongoing leukemia studies. Intrigued

by Farber’s progress and ambitious plans, the Variety Club established the Children’s Cancer Research Foundation and over the next few months, raised modest funds to support Farber’s small outpatient clinic (3, 4).

Bill Koster, the Variety Club’s executive director, felt that a “poster child” would enhance their fundraising efforts, and Farber chose a 12-year-old boy for this purpose. He was treating Jimmy for Burkitt’s lymphoma, a rare intestinal tumor that is fatal in about 85 percent of pediatric patients. Jimmy was the perfect poster child for Koster’s campaign: a tall, blond farmer’s son from New Sweden, Maine, and a fan of the Boston Braves (3).

The Variety Club members arranged for Jimmy to speak with Ralph Edwards, the host of the popular radio program, Truth or Consequences. On May 22, 1948, through the magic of radio, Edwards in Hollywood interviewed Jimmy in his Boston hospital

bed. During the eight minute live broadcast, the entire starting lineup of the Boston Braves trooped into Jimmy’s room and presented him with the first baseman’s bat, a baseball autographed by the team, and a custom-tailored official Boston Braves uniform (3, 4).

The nationwide audience immediately responded to Edwards’s request for donations to the Children’s Cancer Research Fund. Minutes after the broadcast ended, nearby residents walked or drove to The Children’s Hospital with cash donations. Telegrams and letters brought additional contributions, some addressed simply to “Jimmy, Boston, Mass” (3). Koster hoped to raise $20,000. The tally came to more than $231,000 ($2.2 million today).

The broadcast, coupled with Farber’s NEJM article, which appeared a few weeks later, generated great interest among pediatricians throughout New England.

They wrote to Farber for help and advice, and he answered each one personally (4). By the end of 1948, patients were arriving in overwhelming numbers at Farber’s outpatient clinic—still just a single room in the Pathology Department of The Children’s Hospital. To accommodate the influx of patients, Farber moved to a nearby apartment building. The “Children’s Medical Center Tumor Therapy Clinic” occupied five apartments on the building’s first floor (3).

In 1949, Koster and the Variety Club launched a second fundraising drive.

They placed red and white canisters in the lobbies of movie theaters and outside baseball stadiums. Little League players in their uniforms went door-to-door with collection cans (3, 6).

The “Children’s Cancer Research Fund” was simplified to the “Jimmy Fund,” but Jimmy himself had quietly Reprinted with permission from slipped into the background. the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Without fanfare, he continued Jimmy Fund coin canister making trips from New Sweden to Boston for treatments and checkups, hitchhiking in cars, trucks, and delivery vans with anyone who was driving up or down the coast (6). The public Jimmy was now a generic child with cancer (3).

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204

Reprinted with permission from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

The Jimmy Fund Building

The donations allowed Farber to expand his research and clinical studies. In the fall of 1949, construction began on the Jimmy Fund Building, one block from Farber’s original laboratory in The Children’s Hospital.

Farber oversaw every detail of the new building.

The wide cement steps leading up to the front door were graded so that children could easily climb them and were steam-heated to stay dry during Boston’s brutal winters. The main waiting room had boxes of toys, a whirling carousel, and an electric toy train (3, 6). Hundreds of books filled the library, along with several rocking horses and bicycles (6).

Hallway murals of 39 Disney characters (Snow White, Pinocchio, Bambi, Jiminy Cricket, etc.) guided patients and caregivers to the various patient rooms (3, 6).

When the five-story Jimmy Fund Building was dedicated in January 1952, it was the first facility of its kind in the country: a center dedicated entirely to the research and treatment of childhood cancers (3). The ground floor housed the Jimmy Fund Clinic.

Farber wanted everyone involved in caregiving— physicians, nutritionists, social workers, and other specialists—to make decisions as a team. The concept would become known as “total patient care,” and it was remarkable that this innovation came from a pathologist whose training had not focused on living

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patients (3, 4). Upstairs were state-of-the-art research labs, and their proximity to the Clinic reflected Farber’s belief that scientific advances and clinical care must go hand-in-hand (3). It was another innovation that is now commonplace: translational medicine.

Among the Clinic’s early research successes was a remedy for Wilms’ tumor, a rare form of kidney cancer. In 1954, Farber tested a number of antibiotics on a series of mouse tumors, thinking he could repurpose some of the more cytotoxic antibiotics as cancer drugs. Actinomycin D emerged as the best candidate. In mice, it attacked not only leukemia and lymphomas but also breast cancers (1, 6). Next, Farber began a clinical trial in children with a variety of cancers and found actinomycin D was particularly effective against Wilms’ tumor.

Standard treatment was surgical removal of the Wilms’ tumor, followed by radiation to kill residual cancer cells surrounding the extracted kidney (1).

However, the cancer sometimes metastasized, usually to the lungs, and resisted therapy. Collaborating with radiologists, Farber and his research fellow,

Reprinted with permission from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Sidney Farber, MD, with a young patient

205 Donald Pinkel, found that intravenous actinomycin D, in conjunction with radiation therapy to the lungs, eradicated the lung metastases (1, 6). Overall, the 2-year survival in the 68 treated children was 80%— another milestone for Farber’s group (1). Wilms’ tumor was the first metastatic solid tumor to respond to chemotherapy (6).

In the Public Domain

Bottle of methotrexate

Methotrexate Inspires Cures Among those who noted Farber’s success in treating childhood leukemia with antifolates were Min Chiu Li and Roy Hertz, researchers in the obstetrics service at the National Cancer Institute. They were studying choriocarcinoma, a cancer of the placenta that was even rarer than leukemia. In abnormal pregnancies, choriocarcinoma can grow out of the placental tissue and metastasize to the lung and brain—a lethal malignancy. In the first metastatic patient they treated with methotrexate, Li and Hertz saw miraculous results (9). The woman’s chest X-ray improved, she looked healthy, and by every standard indicator, her bleeding lung tumors had vanished (6).

But Li was troubled by one puzzling observation.

He could still detect a tiny amount of human choriogonadotrophin (hCG) in the patient’s blood.

Because hCG is secreted by choriocarcinoma cells, he reasoned that miniscule amounts of cancer were still present. So, Li continued to administer cycles of methotrexate, ignoring the mounting adverse reactions of extended treatment, until, at last, the hCG level sank to zero.

Li’s patients remained free of cancer, even months after they completed his prolonged methotrexate regimen, and some never relapsed (6, 9). Li was

the first to use a valid biomarker (i.e., hCG) to guide drug treatment, and his strategy resulted in the first chemotherapeutic cure of cancer in adults (6).

At Burroughs Wellcome, Gertrude Elion and George Hitchings discovered another promising chemotherapeutic agent, 6-mercaptopurine. Like methotrexate, 6-mercaptopurine induced a rapid remission of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children.

But like methotrexate, the benefit was short-lived.

The leukemia cells soon developed resistance and the patients relapsed.

Investigators at NCI decided to take a page from the recent successes in treating tuberculosis. Like leukemia cells, TB developed resistance to single drug treatment, but pulmonologists found that they could overcome TB resistance by using a combination of antibiotics. Multi-antibiotic treatment effectively stopped bacterial division, staving off resistance, and the TB infection could be eradicated.

In a similar manner, cancer investigators sought to attack leukemia at multiple points of cellular metabolism, hoping that synergistic drugs would reduce the emergence of resistance. Clinical trials established that the combination of methotrexate and 6-mercaptopurine produced longer leukemia remissions compared to single-drug treatment (6, 10).

Expanding on this result, they next wanted to see if a multi-drug combo could eradicate leukemia. But finding the optimal dose and treatment duration of each compound in these multi-drug regimens would require too many patients and take too long. There were simply too many variables to manage.

Cancer investigators sought to attack leukemia at multiple points of cellular metabolism, hoping that synergistic drugs would reduce the emergence of resistance.

In Alabama, Howard Skipper developed an animal model using laboratory mice that had been implanted with L1210 cells (a lymphoid leukemia cell line developed by Lloyd Law). Using his animal model, Skipper worked out optimal drug combinations, doses, and treatment schedules to cure mouse leukemia (11).

At NCI, Emil Frei and Emil Freireich applied Skipper’s empirically derived principles and began

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206 a clinical trial in September 1962, aimed at curing childhood leukemia. They chose four cytotoxic compounds with different mechanisms: vincristine (a microtubule toxin), amethopterin (i.e., methotrexate, a folic acid antagonist), 6-mercaptopurine (an antipurine), and prednisone (an anti-mitotic steroid). The regimen was known by its acronym, VAMP. VAMP catastrophically suppressed bone marrow.

Children were brought to the brink of coma and required intensive care, including artificial respiration.

Some died from infection because VAMP destroyed their white blood cells. The remaining children, after enduring weeks of excruciating side effects, slowly improved. Their bone marrow rebounded and started producing normal red and white blood cells and platelets—all without any trace of leukemia (6, 11).

As news spread of Frei and Freireich’s success, a few additional centers embraced the VAMP regimen.

When doctors in Boston diagnosed 13-year-old Karen Lord with acute leukemia, they opted to try VAMP (12). Karen began the regimen in June 1964, and during the unrelenting chemotherapy, she grew progressively weaker, suffered nerve damage, and at times was delirious from pain. Her weight dropped from 108 to 50 pounds. For months, she hovered near death, and priests administered the church’s Last Rights three times. But then, she began to recover.

After a year in the hospital, she was discharged, cancer-free (6, 12).

Fifty years later, Karen still shudders when she leafs through her collection of photos and medical records, recalling that terrible ordeal (6, 12). But she is still healthy—one of the VAMP-treated children who established that leukemia could be cured.

Sidney Farber was not involved with Karen’s treatment. Like many other physicians and hospital administrators, he was unwilling to give the extremely harsh VAMP regimen to children who were already very sick (12). Instead, Farber continued studies of single-drug treatments. At the same time, though, he was impressed with the VAMP results. While Karen was still being treated in Boston, he went to Washington to advocate larger appropriations for the National Cancer Institute. Photos of patients in remission were irrefutable proof that chemotherapy could conquer cancer (6).

Unfortunately, only about 5% of those who completed the year-long VAMP treatment were “cured” (6). Remissions for most of the children lasted only a year or two. Then, they returned to

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the clinic with new symptoms: headaches, seizures, numbness, and paralysis (6, 13). Their bone marrow and blood remained free of cancer, but leukemia cells had colonized in their brains—beyond the reach of the drugs (10, 13). By 1968, most of the children in the original VAMP trial had died (6).

To kill the leukemia cells sequestered in the brain, Donald Pinkel embellished the VAMP regimen. After a year with Farber, Pinkel had become chief of pediatrics at Roswell Park Cancer Institute. In 1961, he was hired as the first medical director at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, a new hospital in Memphis. Pinkel called his multifaceted regimen “total therapy” (10, 11, 14).

At St. Jude’s, he treated leukemia with a multidrug regimen (methotrexate, 6-mercaptopurine, vincristine, prednisone, and the alkylating agent, cyclophosphamide). To circumvent the blood-brain barrier, he injected methotrexate directly into the spinal column and irradiated the patient’s brain with high doses of X-rays. The cycles of treatments lasted three years and involved alternating chemotherapy and multiple exposures to radiation (14). Keeping the children alive required intensive supportive care, including platelet transfusions to prevent bleeding and aggressive use of antibiotics to treat infections (14).

“Total therapy” was the harshest anti-leukemia regimen yet devised. But in eight consecutive trials over more than a decade, Pinkel racked up an impressive record of success. Through sequential refinements of his regimen, he achieved a disease-free survival rate of 80% (10, 14). By 1979, as far as anyone could tell, those patients had been “cured” (6, 10).

MOPPing Up Hodgkin’s Disease Hodgkin’s disease patients also benefitted from combination chemotherapy, and methotrexate again led the way. Hodgkin’s lymphoma is characterized by enlarged lymph nodes and spleen, and without treatment, advanced Hodgkin’s disease was uniformly fatal (11, 15). In the 1950s, investigators reduced the size of the tumors using radiation (15). In the 1960s, physicians began administering nitrogen mustard, an alkylating agent (11). About 25% of the patents benefitted from these procedures, but the remissions were brief and usually incomplete (11).

In parallel with the VAMP trials in leukemia patients, Vincent DeVita at NCI began the first multi-drug clinical trial in patients with Hodgkin’s disease, using another four-drug combination:

207 nitrogen mustard, vincristine (brand name, Oncovin), methotrexate, and prednisone. The treatment was given the acronym, MOMP. DeVita soon modified the regimen, lengthening treatment from 2.5 months to 6 months and replacing methotrexate with a newer and more powerful compound, the alkylating agent, procarbazine. The new combination’s acronym was MOPP (11).

Hodgkin’s disease thus became the first advanced cancer of a major organ system in adults to be cured by chemotherapy After three years of clinical trials with MOMP and MOPP, DeVita saw remissions in 80 percent of the patients (16). He followed the patients in the original MOPP trial for more than 40 years. About 60 percent of those who had attained complete remission never relapsed (11, 15). Hodgkin’s disease thus became the first advanced cancer of a major organ system in adults to be cured by chemotherapy (11).

But like VAMP and the other early chemotherapy combinations, MOPP was harsh. Many investigators refused to use it because MOPP could cause secondary acute leukemia, heart disease, and sterility (11, 13, 15). Subsequent refinements in drug combinations reduced the toxicity and boosted the cure rate, which is currently 90 percent for patients with limited-stage Hodgkin’s disease (15).

Pushing the Agenda In addition to Bill Koster, who joined the Children’s Cancer Research Foundation as executive vice president and chief fundraiser, Mary Lasker became one of Sidney Farber’s strongest allies (3). An entrepreneur and philanthropist, Lasker made a fortune in merchandising and began her mission against cancer when her longtime housekeeper was diagnosed with breast cancer (17). At that time, “cancer was a word you simply could not say out loud,” and Mary was outraged when her housekeeper was sent to a home for incurables (17).

Her first coup was to make the American Cancer Society a more action-oriented body. The small organization’s board was dominated by physicians, and none of its $102,000 annual budget was devoted to research (17). In 1944, Mary and her husband,

Albert, who was a supremely successful Madison Avenue advertising executive, maneuvered to place a group of businessmen and other well-connected friends on the ACS board of directors, and they used their advertising and publicity acumen to dramatically increase fundraising (6, 17). Donations soared to $14 million in 1948, a quarter of which was earmarked for research (17).

Mary first met Sidney Farber in Washington, shortly after his aminopterin results were published, and like Farber, she was fascinated by the notion that chemicals might be able to cure cancer outright (6). They subsequently maintained a regular correspondence. Farber, the willing tutor, wrote meandering “scientific treatises” on his findings, and Lasker, the intelligent, enthusiastic student, absorbed and acted on what she learned (6).

In 1951, Albert Lasker was diagnosed with colon cancer and underwent surgery. He died in May 1952 (17). About the same time, Farber quietly underwent surgery to remove an inflamed colon. He had suffered from chronic inflammatory bowel disease (likely ulcerative colitis, a precancerous disorder that predisposes to colon cancer) (3, 6). Farber never discussed the surgery, and few people knew about the colostomy bag that he expertly concealed under his lab coats and tailored three-piece suits (3, 6).

Lasker and Farber emerged from these events more determined than ever. Their cancer crusade was now personal, and it assumed a more urgent, tenacious tone (6).

They shared a common, pragmatic view about how cancer research should be done. The early successes with childhood leukemia and Wilms’ tumor convinced them that a systematic search could identify effective drugs, and laser-focused clinical trials of those drugs could optimize treatment regimens to cure all types of cancer. Achieving that goal required only an ironwilled national effort underwritten by Congress (4).

While Lasker lobbied behind the scenes, Farber testified at Congressional appropriations hearings (4). He was compelling, convincing, and animated— and not given to understatement. He had a flair for dramatic, carefully crafted anecdotes and shared poignant stories of cancer patients cured by drug treatment (4).

Their first political success came in 1954. Speaking for the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute, Lasker and Farber pushed Congress to fund an organized search for more anticancer

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208 drugs. The result was the Cancer Chemotherapy National Service Center, a centralized national drug screening program that was established within NCI in 1955 (1, 2, 11). It proved to be one of the government’s most successful programs (11).

By 1974, the Service Center had a budget of $68 million and annually screened 40,000 compounds in about 3 million tumor-bearing mice (11). Vincent DeVita, former director of NCI, claimed that the Service Center was responsible entirely, or in conjunction with the pharmaceutical industry, for all of the cancer drugs discovered and developed between 1955 and 1990 (11).

You can cure cancer.” The ad quoted Farber, “We are so close to a cure for cancer. We lack only the will and … the money.”

Through their influence on an advisory panel commissioned by President Nixon, Lasker and Farber also pushed to have the National Cancer Institute restructured. They wanted NCI to operate independently from the rest of NIH and to concentrate exclusively on applied cancer research. As examples, they pointed to the Manhattan Project and NASA’s Apollo space program, independent federal agencies that had achieved lofty technical goals through total commitment and generous appropriations.

Declaring War

Both houses of Congress overwhelmingly passed the National Cancer Act, and President Nixon signed it, with Mary Lasker looking on.

In his remarks, Nixon officially declared war on cancer.

Through Lasker and Farber’s efforts in Washington, NCI’s annual budget almost quadrupled from $48 million in 1957 to $176 million in 1967 (1, 3, 4). In the late 1960s, they expanded their messaging beyond Washington to the general public. And, they began referring to their effort as a war on cancer. In December 1969, a full page ad ran in the New York Times and Washington Post, boldly stating, “Mr. Nixon:

In the Public Domain

Full page ad from the New York Times (December, 1969)

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Not everyone agreed. Critics argued that the science behind cancer was not understood well enough to implement simple solutions. In the words of one cancer expert, Sol Spiegelman, “An all-out effort at this time would be like trying to land a man on the moon without knowing Newton’s laws of gravity” (17).

Nevertheless, the publicity blitz, along with Lasker and Farber’s incessant lobbying, were generating tremendous momentum on Capitol Hill. In 1971, both houses of Congress overwhelmingly passed the National Cancer Act, and President Nixon signed it, with Mary Lasker looking on. In his remarks, Nixon officially declared war on cancer.

Although NCI remained within the National Institutes of Health—a bitter disappointment to both Farber and Lasker—their influence was apparent in the mandated appropriations. The new law allocated $1.5 billion over three years to NCI, most of which went toward a crash program of clinical trials to investigate various chemotherapy combinations.

Generous funds also supported the search for universal causes of cancer, such as cancer viruses.

Farber was intrigued by the discovery of cancercausing viruses in animals. In 1964, he pushed NCI to create the Special Virus Cancer Program. The program consumed 10% of the NCI budget, but after

209 a decade of work, it failed to identify a single human cancer virus (6).

To the chagrin of academic scientists and public health officials, the War on Cancer pushed basic research and cancer prevention programs to the sidelines. And a skeptical Chicago Tribute editor noted, “A crash program can produce only one result: a crash” (6).

Interestingly, the first notable clinical trial funded under the new Cancer Act was conducted outside the United States (6). NCI researchers had shown that methotrexate, combined with cyclophosphamide and the anti-pyrimidine, 5-flurouracil, using the acronym CMF, could produce impressive, but temporary, remissions in metastatic breast cancer (11).

Paul Carbone at NCI thought it would be better to use chemotherapy to attack the microscopic cancer cells at the margins of the resected breast tumor as an adjunct to surgery rather than as a separate treatment after the cancer had metastasized. He called it “adjuvant chemotherapy.” It was the same strategy that Farber and Pinkel had used a decade earlier to cure Wilms’ tumors (13).

In preliminary experiments, Carbone obtained encouraging results with the CMF combo as adjuvant chemotherapy in conjunction with mastectomy. But surgeons in the United States were not interested in collaborating on a controlled clinical trial. At that time, they thought a radical mastectomy was sufficient to eradicate breast cancer.

Gianni Bonadonna, an oncologist at the Instituto Tumori in Milan, Italy, and his colleague, Umberto Veronesi, the chief breast surgeon at the Instituto, were interested. Bonadonna visited Carbone at NCI to study the CMF protocol and was subsequently awarded a contract under the new Cancer Act to conduct a clinical trial in Italy (11).

The randomized controlled trial began in 1973 and showed that women who received the CMF adjuvant regimen had longer disease-free survival than those who received no CMF treatment (13, 18). Adjuvant chemotherapy with various drugs was subsequently incorporated alongside breast, bone, and colorectal surgeries and led to a significant decline in cancer mortality (11, 13).

Farber’s Legacy Meanwhile, Sidney Farber continued to expand the Children’s Cancer Research Foundation in

Reprinted with permission from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Dr. Sidney Farber watching construction of the Charles A. Dana Building in June, 1971

Boston. In 1958, the Jimmy Fund Building grew from five to nine stories, providing additional laboratory and office space, along with a special suite for Farber on the top floor (3). In the 1960s, Charles A. Dana and his family’s foundation made a series of substantial donations to the Jimmy Fund. In 1969, Farber’s cancer clinic and “total patient care” philosophy were opened to adult patients as well as children (3). To accommodate this expanded mission, the Cancer Research Foundation began construction of the 17-story Charles A. Dana Cancer Center in June 1971. Farber watched construction progress with pride from his office window across the street (3).

Although Farber retired from the Harvard Medical School faculty in 1970, he remained director of the Foundation. Two heart attacks in the late 1960s forced him to slow his workaholic schedule, but he still saw patients and led the Foundation’s ambitious and prolific research agenda (3). On March 30, 1973, he suffered a third and fatal heart attack while working at his desk in the Jimmy Fund Building.

The Children’s Cancer Research Foundation was renamed the Sidney Farber Cancer Center in his honor in 1974 and then the Sidney Farber Cancer Institute in 1976. In 1983, it was renamed the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, in recognition of the contributions of both Sidney Farber and the Charles Dana family (1).

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Reprinted with permission from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Bronze statue depicting Dr. Sidney Farber and “Jimmy” (2013)

Jimmy Returns In May 1998, Einar Gustafson returned to Boston to help Dana-Farber celebrate the 50th anniversary of the original Jimmy Fund radio broadcast. Einar had been the star of that broadcast, but Sidney Farber had chosen to call him Jimmy, partly to protect Einar’s privacy and partly to make him a generic poster child, representing all childhood cancer patients. In New England, “Jimmy” was a nickname synonymous with “the boy next door” (6).

Whether through Farber’s treatments at the Clinic, spontaneous remission, or both, Einar survived his Burkitt’s lymphoma. Farber kept in touch with his young patient, and Einar’s family made modest donations to the Jimmy Fund every year. But Einar had returned to a quiet life in Maine (3).

The 62-year-old grandfather of six made no secret that he was Jimmy, but he was inherently modest and spent his time raising three daughters and running his trucking business. When his sister contacted DanaFarber in 1998 to reconnect the Institute with Jimmy, Einar was more relieved than annoyed. He willingly re-entered the spotlight and represented Dana-Farber in a series of personal appearances as the nowgrownup Jimmy (3, 4, 6).

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With elucidation of the human genome, the discovery of oncogenes, and most recently the immunotherapy approach, scientists and clinicians continue to make progress, and Dana-Farber remains at the forefront of cancer research, therapeutics, and prevention. Sidney Farber’s philosophy of translational medicine and total patient care has now been widely adopted, and NCI’s network of Comprehensive Cancer Centers ensures that laboratory discoveries move seamlessly to the clinic as innovative treatment and supportive care for all cancer patients.

Curing cancer was always Sidney Farber’s goal.

Although he could not claim victory, in his lifetime and largely through his efforts, acute childhood leukemia, Wilms’ tumor, Hodgkin’s disease, choriocarcinoma, and metastatic breast cancer went from incurable to diseases with dramatically high survival rates. And methotrexate, the compound that emerged from his original folic acid antagonist research more than 60 years ago, remains a mainstay (now often coupled with leucovorin rescue) of combination chemotherapy regimens as well as a treatment for autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis.

Methotrexate also remains on the World Health Organization’s Model List of Essential Medicines.

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References: 1. Miller D R (2006) A tribute to Sidney Farber—the father of modern chemotherapy. Brit J Haematol 134:20-26.

Biosketch:

2. Foley G E (1974) Obituary: Sidney Farber. Cancer Res 34:658-661.

3. Wisnia S (2002) Images of America: The Jimmy Fund of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, SC. 4. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (2015) History of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; available from: http://www.dana-farber.org/About-Us/History-and-Milestones.aspx 5. Farber S (1949) Some observations on the effect of folic acid antagonists on acute leukemia and other forms of incurable cancer. Blood 4:160-167.

6. Mukherjee S (2010) The Emperor of All Maladies. Scribner, New York.

7. Diamond L K (April 8, 1985) This week’s citation classic: Farber et al., Temporary remissions in acute leukemia in children produced by folic acid antagonist 4-aminopterol-glutamic acid.

Current Contents 14:16.

8. Farber S, Diamond L K, Mercer R D, Sylvester R F, and Wolff J A (1948) Temporary remissions in acute leukemia in children produced by folic acid antagonist, 4-aminopteroylglutamic acid (aminopterin). N Engl J Med 238(23):787-793.

9. Li M C, Hertz R, and Bergenstal, D (1958) Therapy of choriocarcinoma and related trophoblastic tumors with folic acid and purine antagonists. N Engl J Med 259:66-74.

10. Simone J V (2008) Curing pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia, in 50 Years in Hematology: Research That Revolutionized Patient Care, pp 11-12, American Society of Hematology, Bethesda, MD; available from: http://www.hematology.org/About/History/50Years/1530.aspx 11. DeVita, V T, Jr. and Chu, E (2008) A history of cancer chemotherapy. Cancer Res 68(21):8643-8653.

12. Goodman B (2015) Cancer: The Emperor of All Maladies, DVD, Florentine Films, Laura Ziskin Pictures and WETA, Washington, DC.

Rebecca J. Anderson holds a bachelor’s in chemistry from Coe College and earned her doctorate in pharmacology from Georgetown University. She has 25 years of experience in pharmaceutical research and development and now works as a technical writer.

Her most recent book is Nevirapine and the Quest to End Pediatric AIDS. Email rebeccanderson@msn.com.

13. Frei E (1985) Curative cancer chemotherapy. Cancer Res 45:6523-6537.

14. Pinkel D, Simone J, Hustu, H O, and Rhomes J A A (1972) Nine years’ experience with “total therapy” of childhood acute lymphocytic leukemia. Pediatrics 50(2):246-251.

15. Horning S J (2008) The cure of Hodgkin lymphoma, in 50 Years in Hematology: Research That Revolutionized Patient Care, pp 16-17, American Society of Hematology, Bethesda, MD; available from: http://www.hematology.org/About/History/50-Years/1528.aspx 16. DeVita V T, Serpick A A, and Carbone P P (1970) Combination chemotherapy in the treatment of advanced Hodgkin’s disease. Ann Intern Med 73(6):881-895.

17. National Library of Medicine. The Mary Lasker papers: cancer wars, in Profiles in Science; available from: http://profiles.nlm.nih.gov/ps/retrieve/Narrative/TL/p-nid/201 18. Bonadonna G, Brusamolino E, Valagussa P, Rossi A, Brugnatelli L, Brambilia C, DeLena M, Tancini G, Bajetta E, Muscumeci R, and Veronesi U (1976) Combination chemotherapy as an adjuvant treatment in operable breast cancer. N Engl J Med 294(8):405-410.

In the next issue of The Pharmacologist…

Dr. Anderson will share the story of ivermectin and river blindness.

Don’t miss the March 2016 issue.

December 2015 • The Pharmacologist

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Meeting News Don’t miss our Business Meeting and Opening Events!

Saturday, April 2, 2016 ASPET Business Meeting and Awards Presentation

6:00 pm - 7:30 pm

ASPET-PhRMA Foundation Opening and Awards Reception

7:30 pm - 9:30 pm

ASPET Annual Meeting Program Schedule subject to change. Check the EB2016 program book and mobile app for final schedule.

For full session descriptions and speaker information, visit www.aspet.org/Annual_Meeting_EB_2016/Program

Friday, April 1, 2016 Session/Event Give a Day of Service to San Diego at EB 2016 Contact Dr. Charles France to participate (france@uthscsa.edu or 210-567-6969)

Time UG GS PD

7:00 am - 3:00 pm

Saturday, April 2, 2016 Session/Event

Time

Securing NIH Intramural Fellowships to Enhance Your Pharmacology Training Chairs: J. Clark and A. Reid

GS PD

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Teaching Institute: Developing Mentees Using IDPs Chairs: K. Karpa and J.P. Neiswinger

GS PD

12:00 pm - 2:30 pm

Graduate Student – Postdoctoral Colloquium: Mentoring Your Mentor: Key Skills for Effective Mentoring Relationships with Shared Responsibility Speaker: Rick McGee

UG GS PD

2:45 pm - 5:15 pm

ASPET Business Meeting and Awards Presentation

UG GS PD

6:00 pm - 7:30 pm

ASPET-PhRMA Foundation Opening and Awards Reception

UG GS PD

7:30 pm - 9:30 pm

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Sunday, April 3, 2016 Session/Event

Time

Diversity Mentoring Breakfast (by invitation only) Facilitator: M.A. Nivet

UG GS PD

7:30 am - 9:30 am

Julius Axelrod Award in Pharmacology Lecture: Therapies of Brain Diseases, Past, Present and Future Keynote: Jean Rossier

8:30 am - 9:20 am

Julius Axelrod Symposium: New Vistas on Drug and Gene Therapies of Cognitive Deficits in Down Syndrome, Autism, Leucodystrophies and Alzheimer’s Disease Chair: J. Rossier

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Emerging Roles for the Ubiquitin-Proteasome System in Therapeutics Chairs: B. Sjogren and H.L. Paulson

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Undergraduate Research: Cultivating the Next Generation of Researchers Through SURF and Beyond Chairs: C. Fry, C. Davis, and L. Aleksunes

UG

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Drugs of Abuse and Antiretrovirals: Interactions and Toxicities Chairs: S. Kumar and K. Jordan-Sciutto

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Newly Recognized GPCRs in Health, Disease, and as Therapeutic Targets Chairs: R. Corriden and P.A. Insel

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Advances in Toxicogenetics of Metals Chairs: J. Kim and T. Maher

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Important Dates Thursday | January 28, 2016

Saturday | April 2, 2016

Deadline to Submit Late Breaking Abstracts

ASPET Annual Business Meeting from 6:00-7:30 pm in San Diego

Tuesday | February 23, 2016

April 2 - April 6, 2016

Discounted Housing Deadline

EB2016 in San Diego

Tuesday | March 1, 2016

April 6 - 7, 2016

Discounted Registration Deadline

Drug Discovery Colloquium (separate registration and fee)

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Sunday, April 3, 2016 (continued) ASPET Undergraduate Networking and Career Development Luncheon (pre-registration required) Chairs: C. Beck and C. Davis ASPET Poster Presentations

UG

12:15 pm - 2:00 pm

UG GS PD

12:30 pm - 2:30 pm

Goodman and Gilman Award in Receptor Pharmacology Lecture

2:00 pm - 2:50 pm

Keynote to be announced in January

Cannabinoid Signaling in Pain and Addiction: Translating Preclinical Basic Research to the Clinic Chairs: D. Morgan and J. Guindon

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Dose Selection Using Physiologically Based Modeling Chair: J. Wahlstrom

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

ASPET Presidential Symposium: Precision Medicine in Anti-Cancer Pharmacology Chairs: K. Thummel and S.P.C. Cole

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Sex Differences in Cardiovascular and Renal Pharmacology Chairs: S.H. Lindsey and E. Gohar

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

From Ligands to Signaling: Recent Advances in Adhesion GPCR Pharmacology and Biology Chairs: X. Piao and R.A. Hall

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division for Pharmacology Education Symposium: Meet the New POPS - They’ll Flip Your Teaching Chairs: M.A. Simmons and R. Theobald

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

ASPET Student/Postdoc Poster Competition

UG GS PD

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm

ASPET Student & Postdoc Mixer

UG GS PD

8:30 pm - 11:00 pm

Monday, April 4, 2016 Session/Event

Time

John J. Abel Award in Pharmacology Lecture Keynote to be announced in January

8:30 am - 9:20 am

Beyond Traditional Assessments of Pain: Implications for Drug Discovery of Novel Pain Therapeutics Chairs: C.A. Paronis and H. Neelakantan

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Pharmacometabolomics Enabling Tools for Systems Pharmacology and Precision Medicine Chairs: R. Kaddurah-Daouk and R. Weinshilboum

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

A Pharmacokinetics Primer: From Equations to Application Chair: R. Mehvar

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Wnt Signaling: From Disease Mechanisms to Therapeutic Interventions Chairs: R. Gosens and W.M. Blankesteijn

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

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Monday, April 4, 2016 (continued) Substrate Modulation of Organic Anion and Cation Transporters Chairs: B. Hagenbuch and J. Lampe Hear It from the Editors: Navigating the Course through Journal Submission and Publication Chairs: M. Vore and E. Morgan ASPET Poster Presentations

9:30 am - 12:00 pm GS PD

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

UG GS PD

12:30 pm - 2:30 pm

P.B. Dews Lifetime Achievement Award for Research in Behavioral Pharmacology Lecture Keynote to be announced in January

2:00 pm - 2:50 pm

Bernard B. Brodie Award in Drug Metabolism Lecture Keynote to be announced in January

2:00 pm - 2:50 pm

Diversity 3.0: From Fairness to Excellence Speaker: Marc A. Nivet

UG GS PD

2:00 pm - 2:50 pm

Division for Translational and Clinical Pharmacology: Young Investigator Awards Platform Session Platform speakers to be announced in January

UG GS PD

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division for Behavioral Pharmacology Symposium: Quantitative Pharmacological Analysis of In Vivo Data and Its Implications in CNS Drug Discovery Chairs: J. Li and L. Gerak

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division for Drug Metabolism James Gillette Award and Platform Session Awardees and platform speakers to be announced in January

UG GS PD

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division for Molecular Pharmacology Postdoctoral Scientist Award Finalists Finalists to be announced in January

UG GS PD

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Novel Platelet Therapies: Attacking Them from the Inside and Out Chair: M.T. Nieman

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division Annual Meetings for: • Drug Metabolism • Behavioral Pharmacology • Pharmacology Education • Molecular Pharmacology • Translational and Clinical Pharamcology

UG GS PD

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

Division Mixers for: • Behavioral Pharmacology and Neuropharmacology • D rug Discovery and Development, Pharmacology Education, and Translational and Clinical Pharmacology • Molecular Pharmacology

UG GS PD

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm

Young Experimental Scientists Y.E.S. Mixer (EB sponsored event for students and postdocs)

UG GS PD

9:00 pm - 11:30 pm

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Tuesday, April 5, 2016 Session/Event ASPET Networking Walk

Time UG GS PD

7:00 am - 8:30 am

Invited Lecture: RhoA in Focus: Pathways from GPCRs to Disease Keynote: Joan Heller Brown

8:30 am - 9:20 am

Invited Symposium: GPCR and RhoA as Mediators of Disease Chairs: R. Neubig and S. Miyamoto

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Central Mechanisms Contributing to Novel Antidepressant Efficacy Chair: D. Lodge

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Chronopharmacology in Cancer: Does Time Really Matter?

Chair: S. Gaddameedhi

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Nicotinic Agonist/Antagonist Drug Development: Implications for Treatment of Neurodegenerative and Addictive Disorders Chairs: A. Fleckenstein and M. Quik

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Current Trends in Antibody Drug Conjugates: From Discovery to the Clinic Chairs: T. Esbenshade and L.C. Wienkers

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Patient-Specific Stem Cells as Models for Gene-Disease, Drug, and Environment Interactions Chair: J. Richardson

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

ASPET Poster Presentations

UG GS PD

12:30 pm - 2:30 pm

Meet-the-Experts in Translational and Clinical Pharmacology Luncheon (pre-registration required)

UG GS PD

12:30 pm - 2:30 pm

UG GS PD

2:30 pm - 4:30 pm

Division for Cardiovascular Pharmacology Trainee Showcase Showcase speakers to be announced in January

Register Now for EB

˝

Check Pharmacology and ASPET when you register for EB to ensure you receive all relevant information for pharmacology programming.

˝

Renew your membership to receive the deepest registration discounts! Renew your membership today and encourage your colleagues to join ASPET!

Register now at http://bit.ly/20tU15N

■ = Lectures ■ = Networking Time Included UG = Session of Interest for Undergraduate Students GS = Session of Interest for Graduate Students PD = Session of Interest for Postdocs The Pharmacologist • December 2015

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Tuesday, April 5, 2016 (continued) Division for Drug Discovery and Development Symposium: Chemical Biology as an Engine for Drug Discovery Chairs: J.S. Lazo and C. Beeson

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division for Cancer Pharmacology Division Programming: TBD Chairs: TBD

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division for Neuropharmacology Postdoctoral Scientist Award Finalists UG GS PD Finalists to be announced in January

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division for Toxicology Symposium: Fortuitous Protein Modification in Disease Pathogenesis and Treatment Chair: S. Lau

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Tang Prize in Biopharmaceutical Science Keynote: Tasuku Honjo

3:15 pm - 5:15 pm

(EB-wide lecture for all societies)

Paul M. Vanhoutte Distinguished Lectureship in Vascular Pharmacology Keynote to be announced in January

4:30 pm - 5:30 pm

Division Annual Meetings for: • Cancer Pharmacology • Toxicology • Cardiovascular Pharmacology • Neuropharmacology • Drug Discovery and Development

UG GS PD

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

Division Mixers for: • Cardiovascular Pharmacology • Drug Metabolism, Toxicology, and Cancer Pharmacology

UG GS PD

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm

Wednesday, April 6, 2016 Session/Event

Time

Ray Fuller Lecture in the Neurosciences: Sex Biased Stress Signaling Keynote: Rita J. Valentino

8:30 am - 9:20 am

Ray Fuller Symposium: Sex Differences in Biology: Challenges and Opportunities for Drug Development Chair: R.J. Valentino

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Keep Calm and Target Peptides: Modulation of Stress-Related Behaviors by Neuropeptide Systems Chairs: S. Clark and V. Sabino

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Novel Targets for Treatment of Cardiometabolic Diseases Chairs: J. Ren and S. Nair

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Cancer Stem Cells as Pharmacological Targets Chairs: J.S. Gutkind and T. Reya

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

■ = Lectures ■ = Networking Time Included UG = Session of Interest for Undergraduate Students GS = Session of Interest for Graduate Students PD = Session of Interest for Postdocs December 2015 • The Pharmacologist

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Wednesday, April 6, 2016 (continued) Intracellular GPCR and Lipid Signaling Chairs: A. Marchese and A. Smrcka

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

Drug Transporter Protein Quantification by LC-MS/MS for In Vitro to In Vivo Extrapolation (IVIVE) and Prediction of Interindividual Variability of Transporter Mediated Drug Disposition Chairs: B. Prasad and Y. Lai

9:30 am - 12:00 pm

ASPET Poster Presentations

UG GS PD

12:30 pm - 2:30 pm

Drug Discovery Colloquium – Individual Partnering Meetings (separate registration fee required)

2:00 pm - 8:00 pm

Translating MicroRNA Cancer Biology to Therapy Chairs: A. Yu and A.G. Bader

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Modulation of BSEP and MDR3 in Drug-Induced Liver Injury (DILI) Chairs: K. He and D. Rodrigues

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

The Biology and Translational Potential of Hydrogen Sulfide: One Person’s Trash is Another Person’s Treasure Chairs: J.L. Wallace and A. Papapetropoulos

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

New Twists on Neurotransmitter Transport: Unraveling Novel Therapeutic Targets for Addiction and Psychiatric Disorders Chairs: L.C. Daws and H.H. Sitte

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

ASPET Closing Reception

UG GS PD

6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

Thursday, April 7, 2016 Session/Event

Time

Drug Discovery in Academia: Recent Successes and Emerging Opportunities A colloquium sponsored by ASPET and Academic Drug Discovery Consortium

UG GS PD

8:00 am - 8:00 pm

Chairs: M. Wood and B. Slusher (separate registration fee required)

Sponsorship Opportunities at EB2016 Partner with us to increase your visibility among more than 12,000 life scientists and students who are directly interested in your products and services.

Gain maximum exposure for your organization while showing your support for pharmacology and the life sciences!

For a full listing of sponsorship opportunities, visit www.aspet.org/Annual_Meeting_EB_2016/Sponsors and/or contact Suzie Thompson, ASPET Director of Marketing at sthompson@aspet.org

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Division Meetings and Activities

Sunday, April 3

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm

BEH Executive Committee Meeting (invitation only)

Monday, April 4

2:00 pm - 2:50 pm

P.B. Dews Lifetime Achievement Award for Research in Behavioral Pharmacology Lecture

Monday, April 4

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division Programming: “Quantitative Pharmacological Analysis of In Vivo Data and Its Implications in CNS Drug Discovery”

Monday, April 4

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

BEH Annual Division Meeting

Monday, April 4

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm

Joint Mixer - BEH with Neuropharmacology

Monday, April 4

7:00 am - 8:15 am

DCP Executive Committee Meeting (invitation only)

Tuesday, April 5

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division Programming: TBD

Tuesday, April 5

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

DCP Annual Division Meeting

Tuesday, April 5

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm

Joint Mixer - DCP with Drug Metabolism & Toxicology

Monday, April 4

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm

CVP Executive Committee Meeting (invitation only)

Tuesday, April 5

2:30 pm - 4:30 pm

Division Programming: Trainee Showcase

Tuesday, April 5

4:30 pm - 5:30 pm

Paul M. Vanhoutte Distinguished Lectureship in Vascular Pharmacology

Tuesday, April 5

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

CVP Annual Division Meeting

Tuesday, April 5

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm

CVP Mixer

BEH = Behavioral Pharmacology, CVP = Cardiovascular Pharmacology, DCP = Cancer Pharmacology, DDD = Drug Discovery and Development, DM = Drug Metabolism, MP = Molecular Pharmacology, NEU = Neuropharmacology, DPE = Pharmacology Education, TCP = Translational and Clinical Pharmacology, TOX = Toxicology December 2015 • The Pharmacologist

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Monday, April 4

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm

DDD Executive Committee Meeting (invitation only)

Monday, April 4

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm

Joint Mixer - DDD with Pharmacology Education & Translational and Clinical Pharmacology

Tuesday, April 5

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division Programming: “Chemical Biology as an Engine for Drug Discovery”

Tuesday, April 5

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

DDD Annual Division Meeting

Sunday, April 3

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm

DM Executive Committee Meeting (invitation only)

Monday, April 4

2:00 pm - 2:50 pm

Bernard B. Brodie Award in Drug Metabolism Lecture

Monday, April 4

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division Programming: James Gillette Award and Platform Session

Monday, April 4

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

DM Annual Division Meeting

Tuesday, April 5

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm

Joint Mixer - DM with Cancer Pharmacology & Toxicology

Sunday, April 3

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm

MP Executive Committee Meeting (invitation only)

Monday, April 4

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division Programming: Postdoctoral Scientist Award Finalists

Monday, April 4

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

MP Annual Division Meeting

Monday, April 4

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm

MP Mixer

Monday, April 4

7:00 am - 8:15 am

NEU Executive Committee Meeting (invitation only)

Monday, April 4

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm

Joint Mixer - NEU with Behavioral Pharmacology

Tuesday, April 5

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division Programming: Postdoctoral Scientist Award Finalists

Tuesday, April 5

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

NEU Annual Division Meeting

BEH = Behavioral Pharmacology, CVP = Cardiovascular Pharmacology, DCP = Cancer Pharmacology, DDD = Drug Discovery and Development, DM = Drug Metabolism, MP = Molecular Pharmacology, NEU = Neuropharmacology, DPE = Pharmacology Education, TCP = Translational and Clinical Pharmacology, TOX = Toxicology The Pharmacologist • December 2015

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Sunday, April 3

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division Programming: “Meet the New POPS - They’ll Flip Your Teaching”

Monday, April 4

7:00 am - 8:15 am

DPE Executive Committee Meeting (invitation only)

Monday, April 4

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

DPE Annual Division Meeting

Monday, April 4

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm

Joint Mixer - DPE with Drug Discovery and Development & Translational and Clinical Pharmacology

Monday, April 4

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm

TOX Executive Committee Meeting (invitation only)

Tuesday, April 5

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division Programming: “Fortuitous Protein Modification in Disease Pathogenesis and Treatment”

Tuesday, April 5

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

TOX Annual Division Meeting

Tuesday, April 5

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm

Joint Mixer - TOX with Drug Metabolism & Cancer Pharmacology

Monday, April 4

7:00 am - 8:15 am

TCP Executive Committee Meeting (invitation only)

Monday, April 4

3:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Division Programming: Young Investigator Awards Platform Session

Monday, April 4

5:30 pm - 6:30 pm

TCP Annual Division Meeting

Monday, April 4

6:30 pm - 8:30 pm

Joint Mixer - TCP with Drug Discovery and Development & Pharmacology Education

New discounts for travel to Experimental Biology on Southwest and United Airlines. Visit www.aspet.org/Annual_ Meeting_EB_2016/Travel_Information for details.

BEH = Behavioral Pharmacology, CVP = Cardiovascular Pharmacology, DCP = Cancer Pharmacology, DDD = Drug Discovery and Development, DM = Drug Metabolism, MP = Molecular Pharmacology, NEU = Neuropharmacology, DPE = Pharmacology Education, TCP = Translational and Clinical Pharmacology, TOX = Toxicology December 2015 • The Pharmacologist

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ASPET Meetings The following are invitation-only meetings. Schedule is subject to change.

Thursday, March 31 5:00 pm - 10:00 pm

Finance Committee Meeting

Friday, April 1 8:00 am - 8:00 pm

Mentoring Network: Coaching for Career Development

8:00 am - 6:00 pm

Council Meeting

Saturday, April 2 8:00 am - 2:00 pm

Mentoring Network: Coaching for Career Development

Sunday, April 3 7:00 am - 8:15 am

Division Communications Officers Meeting

7:00 am - 9:00 am

JPET Associate Editors Meeting

7:30 am - 9:30 am

Diversity Mentoring Breakfast

12:15 pm - 2:00 pm

ASPET Undergraduate Networking and Career Development Luncheon

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm

Division for Molecular Pharmacology Executive Committee Meeting

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm

Division for Behavioral Pharmacology Executive Committee Meeting

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm

Division for Drug Metabolism Executive Committee Meeting

12:30 pm - 2:30 pm

ASPET Board of Publications Trustees Meeting

7:30 pm - 10:00 pm

Board of Publications Trustees Joint Editorial Boards Dinner

Monday, April 4 7:00 am - 8:15 am

Division for Translational and Clinical Pharmacology Executive Committee Meeting

7:00 am - 8:15 am

Division for Pharmacology Education Executive Committee Meeting

7:00 am - 8:15 am

Division for Neuropharmacology Executive Committee Meeting

7:00 am - 8:15 am

Division for Cancer Pharmacology Executive Committee Meeting

7:00 am - 9:00 am

Molecular Pharmacology Editorial Board Meeting

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm

Division for Drug Discovery and Development Executive Committee Meeting

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm

Division for Toxicology Executive Committee Meeting

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm

Division for Cardiovascular Pharmacology Executive Committee Meeting

12:15 pm - 1:45 pm

Science Policy Committee Meeting

12:30 pm - 2:30 pm

Pharmacological Reviews Editorial Board Meeting

6:30 pm - 9:00 pm

Past Presidents’ Dinner

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Tuesday, April 5 7:00 am - 9:00 am

Drug Metabolism and Disposition Editorial Board Meeting

7:00 am - 8:15 am

Nominating Committee Meeting

12:15 pm - 2:15 pm

Mentoring and Career Development Committee Meeting

12:30 pm - 2:30 pm

Pharmacology Research & Perspectives Editorial Board Meeting

3:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Pharmacology Research & Perspectives Management Committee Meeting

Wednesday, April 6 7:15 am - 8:15 am

Young Scientists Committee Meeting

12:00 pm - 3:00 pm

Program Committee Meeting

8:00 pm - 10:00 pm

President’s Reception

Ancillary Functions at EB2016 The following are affiliated events organized by groups other than ASPET but taking place during EB2016.

Please contact the organizers for more information.

AMSPC Reception

Sunday, April 3

Behavioral Pharmacology Society (BPS) - GUEST SOCIETY

Friday-Saturday April 1-2

Catecholamine Club Dinner

Tuesday, April 5

Global GI Club - GUEST SOCIETY

Sunday, April 3

Michigan State University Pharmacology and Toxicology Reception

Sunday, April 3

PhRMA Foundation Reception

Monday, April 4

University of Michigan Department of Pharmacology and Department of Biological Chemistry Social Hour

Saturday, April 2

Give a Day of Service to San Diego at EB 2016 ASPET’s Division for Behavioral Pharmacology is again sponsoring a volunteer opportunity at EB 2016 in San Diego on Friday, April 1, 2016. For the third time, we will spend the day at St. Vincent de Paul Village, doing whatever we can to help the dedicated people at Father Joe’s Villages provide assistance to San Diegans.

If you plan to join us, please contact Charles P. France at france@uthscsa.edu.

Space is limited and further details will be provided to those who volunteer.

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This colloquium sponsored by ASPET and the Academic Drug Discovery Consortium (ADDC) will include a full day of lectures, platform sessions, case studies, panel discussions, and scientific posters. It will explore drug discovery in academia, in particular, biological therapies, small-molecule success stories and emerging opportunities, and rare and neglected diseases.

Schedule at a Glance Wednesday, April 6, 2016 Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina 2:00 pm - 8:00 pm

Pharma-Academic Individual Partnering Meetings

Thursday, April 7, 2016 San Diego Convention Center 8:00 am - 12:00 pm

Small Molecule Success Stories and Emerging Opportunities

12:00 pm - 1:00 pm

Networking Lunch

1:00 pm - 3:00 pm

Rare and Neglected Diseases

3:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Government Funding Opportunities to Advance Drug Discovery

4:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Panel Session: Advancing and Partnering Drug Discovery Programs

5:30 pm - 8:00 pm

Scientific poster session and dinner reception

Separate registration fee is required. Register here: http://bit.ly/1NcNByj Early Discounted Fees

Regular Fees

(on or before Friday, Dec 11, 2015)

(after Friday, Dec 11, 2015)

ASPET member

$150

$250

ADDC member with join date prior to Oct 4, 2015

$150

$250

Non-member

$300

$400

$75

$100

Undergraduate students Graduate students Postdocs

Full schedule with speaker information available at www.aspet.org/Annual_Meeting_EB_2016/Drug_Discovery_Colloquium

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How well do you know

Courtesy of Joanne DiBona, SanDiego.org

In preparation for the upcoming annual meeting, check out these fun facts about San Diego: ❂ Since 1960, ASPET has met in San Diego as part of Experimental Biology 5 times. ❂ Holy guacamole! San Diego County produces more avocados than any other region in the country. ❂ Jason Mraz, the singer-songwriter of the hit single “The Remedy,” owns an avocado farm in the San Diego area that has a 30,000 pound harvest each year. ❂ For most of the 20th century, San Diego was known as the Tuna Capital of the World.

Today the city is known as the capital of craft beer and is home to more than 100 breweries and brew pubs. ❂ Between The Old Globe and the Tony Award-winning La Jolla Playhouse, San Diego has sent more shows to Broadway than any other city in the U.S. ❂ The University of California – San Diego’s Geisel Library houses the world’s largest collection of original Dr. Seuss manuscripts and other materials. ❂ Due to be in peak bloom during EB2016 are 50 acres of extraordinary color cascading down a hillside overlooking the Pacific Ocean at The Flower Fields in nearby Carlsbad, CA. ❂ In 2015, Balboa Park is celebrating 100 years of being San Diego’s historical and cultural centerpiece. ❂ Within a short stroll from the convention center is San Diego’s modern new Central Library with not only stunning architecture, but also an impressive 8th floor collection of baseball memorabilia donated by the Ted Williams Chapter of the Society for American Baseball Research.

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Science Policy

Congress Passes Two-Year Bipartisan Budget Deal to Raise Spending Caps, Extend Debt Limit After years of gridlock and less than a week before a treasury default, Congress has finally passed a two-year bipartisan budget deal. The Senate voted 64-35 to pass a two-year budget agreement (H.R. 1314) that would raise the caps on discretionary spending above sequestration levels in fiscal years (FYs) 2016 and 2017 and extend the statutory limit on the federal debt until early 2017. Earlier, the House passed the measure, 269-167. President

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Obama signed the bill into law on November 2nd.

Outgoing House Speaker John Boehner backed the bill, as did his successor Congressman Paul Ryan.

Aides say the agreement is a byproduct of bipartisan negotiations with the White House, which have been ongoing since September 17th.

The fight does not end with the passage of the Bipartisan Budget Act (BBA), however. The bill adjusts

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the 302(a) topline allocations for all discretionary programs. The next step is to ensure the bills that support health programs get as strong a 302(b) subcommittee allocation as possible. The $33 billion provided for non-defense discretionary programs (NDD) in the BBA is nothing to sneeze

at, but divided over 11 bills, it doesn’t come close to meeting needs across all core government functions. ASPET will continue to work with our coalition partners to push the House and Senate Appropriations Chairmen to provide the highest possible allocations for Labor-HHS.

The Outlook for the Federal Science Agencies Although it is not clear how this deal will specifically affect the federal science agencies, we can be cautiously optimistic about the outlook for funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The Ryan-Murray agreement of 2013 raised the NDD cap by $22.4 billion and this deal boosts the cap by slightly more ($25 billion). Following the passage of the Ryan-Murray deal, Congress approved an FY 2014 omnibus appropriations bill that included a $760 million increase for the NIH. If the NIH got just under a billion dollar increase when the cap was raised by $22.4 billion, it’s entirely possible that a $25 billion increase in the cap could produce an even bigger boost for the agency. We are now in a position where House Labor, Health, and Human Services (LHHS) Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Tom Cole (R-OK) and his Senate counterpart, Roy Blunt (R-MO) are on the same page about wanting to give the NIH a big boost in 2016 (the House proposed a $1 billion increase and the Senate a $2 billion bump). Cole has been saying for months that the NIH will certainly be a top priority if there is a deal to raise the caps and other members of Congress from both parties have publicly stated their desire to increase the NIH’s funding this year. The additional spending for NDD could also benefit the National Science Foundation (NSF). House Commerce, Justice, and Science Subcommittee Chairman John Culberson (R-TX)

previously indicated that he would like to provide an increase for NSF whenever the caps are raised.

Next, the chairs of the House and Senate appropriations committees will re-do the subcommittee spending allocations and give new spending targets to each. It is possible that the money will be allocated proportionally or that certain areas will be favored with a larger percent of the new money. It is also possible that a subcommittee could be given a spending ceiling in the House and a different one in the Senate. Once the allocations are made, it becomes the responsibility of each subcommittee to revise its earlier, committee-passed appropriations bill. We do not know whether the finished appropriations bills will move forward as stand-alone legislation or whether they will be rolled up into an omnibus. Most people think the latter. Either way, the deadline is December 11th.

For ASPET members, this is the end-result we were hoping for; it puts the appropriations committees back in charge, to sort national priorities and allocate the additional funds to areas of greatest need. It gives FDA its only chance to receive further increases in FY 2016 funding.

ASPET has been working hard on messaging for this throughout the fall and will continue to work collaboratively on advocacy efforts with our coalition partners.

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ASPET Joins FASEB’s 125,000 Researchers in Letter Calling on Congress to Raise Spending Caps, Increase Science Funding ASPET President Dr. Kenneth Thummel joined over 20 FASEB Society Presidents in signing a letter urging Congress to raise the spending caps and pass a bipartisan budget that includes increased funding for scientific research.

Earlier this year, the importance of federal investment in biological and biomedical science and research was recognized by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, which approved legislation to increase funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Science Foundation. “It is crucial that the United States remains at the front lines of biomedical research,” said Parker B. Antin, PhD, FASEB President.

“If Congress doesn’t act, research will be disrupted, and those who are waiting for cures will pay the price.

After years in which funding levels did not keep pace with rising costs, this modest increase confirms that funding scientific research is a national priority and helps safeguard our standing as a global leader in life sciences.”

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Meet the 2016 ASPET Washington Fellows!

ASPET received a record number of applications for the 2016 Fellowship program and all applications were strong, making this the most competitive application process since the program’s inception four years ago. All submissions were carefully considered and the strongest applicants were selected for the program. In addition to their trips to Washington, DC, Washington Fellows receive complimentary registration to attend the ASPET Annual Meeting at EB2016 in San Diego where they will have an opportunity to meet with ASPET leaders and interact with each other.

Brenda Gannon was born in Arizona. She studied mathematics, chemistry, and spanish at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. During this time, she also worked in a laboratory at the local water company, where she was exposed to Brenda Gannon the intersection of University of Texas Health Science Center, science and policymaking. To expand upon San Antonio this newly-discovered interest, she co-enrolled in the interdisciplinary toxicology and regulatory sciences graduate programs at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Upon completion of her PhD, she accepted a postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio.

Her research investigates the reinforcing effects of psychostimulant drugs of abuse and how to predict/phenotype specific vulnerabilities to these compounds. Brenda hopes that the ASPET Washington Fellows program will help her learn how to communicate effectively as a scientist with politicians making policy decisions that impact science and hopes this experience will encourage

future dialogue between the scientific community and elected officials.

Lauren Haar was raised in Ohio and earned her bachelor of science in chemistry from George Washington University. She then worked with the J. Craig Venter Institute near Washington, DC and later the Shriners Lauren Haar Hospital in Cincinnati, Loyola University of OH under the direction Chicago of Cora Ogle, PhD. She was then accepted into the physiology & cell biophysics doctoral program at the University of Cincinnati. Her dissertation work was completed under the direction of W. Keith Jones, PhD, and she is currently working as a postdoctoral research associate in his laboratory at Loyola University of Chicago. Her primary research focus is to understand the gene expression changes that occur with nutritional intervention as a therapeutic for cardiac ischemic injury. The broader goal of this research is to increase the quality of life and the chances of survival for people undergoing myocardial ischemia. Lauren’s career has been shaped by mentorship and support from professors, colleagues, and public institutions. She is passionate about increasing public access to science and science education.

By doing so, she hopes to raise awareness about how scientific research positively affects the public good, and to support equal access to scientific resources and opportunities.

Sara Humphreys hails from a sheep farm in rural New Zealand. She completed her bachelor’s degree in biochemistry at the University of Otago, followed by a one year master’s in structural

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biology at the University of Auckland. In 2010, she was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to attend graduate school in the United States.

Sara is currently a PhD candidate at Washington State University. Under the joint supervision of Sara Humphreys Jeff Jones and James Washington State Brozik, she works with University the cytochrome P450 enzyme complex. P450s are responsible for metabolizing over 50% of FDA approved drugs. Unfavorable P450-drug interactions lead to toxicity. Sara’s focus is to ‘deconvolute the dance’ between the different components of the P450 machine in time and space at the molecular level. Her research will contribute to a better understanding of how we metabolize drugs, and how we can predict metabolism of drug candidates. As an ASPET Washington Fellow, Sara aims to increase congressional awareness about the dire funding situation in basic biomedical research, and the impact that has on the health of future generations in an increasingly populated world.

Brandon Lucke-Wold was born and raised in Colorado Springs, CO. He graduated magna cum laude from Baylor University with a distinction in honors. He is currently completing an MD/PhD program and master’s in clinical and translational science at Brandon Lucke-Wold West Virginia University West Virginia University.

Upon graduation, he plans to pursue a neurosurgery residency program. He is in his 3rd year of PhD training and studies neuropharmacologic treatment for concussions. While in the laboratory, he directed a project that found a link between endoplasmic reticulum stress and tauopathy. Tauopathy is seen

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in football players several years after injury. The laboratory is investigating compounds that target the endoplasmic reticulum stress pathway post-injury.

Outside of the laboratory, he is an avid long-distance runner, diabetes education health coach, and frequently volunteers at a local medical clinic for the homeless. As an ASPET Washington Fellow, he wants to advocate for scientific advancement that will help patients.

Allyson Marshall was raised in New Jersey and received her bachelor’s degree in cell biology and biochemistry from Bucknell University in Lewisburg, PA. She worked as an organic chemistry research student at Bucknell University and traveled Allyson Marshall to the University University of Massachusetts School of Cadiz, in Cadiz, Spain for a summer of Medicine research fellowship.

She developed an interest in translational research and earned her PhD in integrative physiology and pharmacology from Wake Forest University School of Medicine in 2014.

Allyson’s dissertation investigated the long-term physiological consequences of fetal exposure to betamethasone, a drug commonly used to prevent respiratory distress syndrome in premature babies. Her research found changes in the brain renin-angiotensin system in drugexposed offspring, identifying a potential target for pharmaceutical intervention to correct the effects of betamethasone-induced programming.

Currently, Allyson is a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Massachusetts School of Medicine studying dopamine neurotransmission in models of addiction and neurodegenerative disease. As an ASPET Washington Fellow, she is eager to become involved with legislation supporting scientific funding and take a proactive role in communicating the impact of funding biomedical research.

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A Kansas native, Amber McBride received undergraduate degrees in political science and biology from the University of Kansas and Kansas State University, respectively, and her doctoral degree in nanoscience Amber McBride and microsystems Sandia National engineering from the Laboratories University of New Mexico. Her graduate research focused on the development of magnetically targeted aerosol dry powders for the therapeutic treatment of lung cancer. Currently, she is a postdoctoral researcher at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, NM working on a counter bioterrorism defense project to develop an inhaled treatment strategy against Tularemia francisella. Like many states, funding for basic science at the university level continues to decrease, greatly impacting New Mexico. Amber has been active in science advocacy for New Mexico graduate education and research at the 2015 New Mexico Legislative Session. As an ASPET Fellow, she hopes to affect public policy locally and nationally as an advocate for increased basic research funding.

Victoria S. Parker was born in North Carolina and raised in Newport News, VA. She received her BS in chemistry/premedicine from Norfolk State University where she was also a recipient of the DNIMAS Full Ride scholarship. She is currently a third-year PhD Victoria S. Parker candidate in the division University of Iowa of medicinal and natural products chemistry at the University of Iowa. Her research focuses on the effects of inhibiting steroid hormone sulfation upon exposure to commonly occurring airborne polychlorinated biphenyls. After

obtaining her PhD, she would like to become a medical scientist and work in the industrial field or government. Her passion is to help increase the number of underrepresented students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) through mentoring. Diversity is a powerful component that will bring in multiple ideas from people of diverse backgrounds to achieve a common goal and improve the quality of new drugs and ideas. She believes the ASPET Washington Fellows Program will provide first-hand experience in communicating her scientific ideas and becoming active in public policy in an effort to advocate for increased diversity in decision-making processes, increased funding for biomedical research, and increased awareness about major issues that our communities are facing.

Naeem Patil was born and raised in India. He completed his medical school degree from BJ Medical College, Pune, India. Subsequently, he joined the graduate program in pharmacology and toxicology at University of Arkansas Naeem Patil for Medical Sciences.

Vanderbilt University Naeem’s graduate School of Medicine work focused on characterizing the renal mitochondrial dysfunction during sepsis. He graduated with a PhD in August 2014 and subsequently joined the laboratory of Edward Sherwood MD, PhD as a postdoctoral fellow at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Currently, he is working on an immunology project related to alterations in immune responses during sepsis and burn injury and evaluation of immunotherapies for their treatment. Through ASPET’s Washington Fellows program, Naeem wants to learn effective scientific advocacy and public policy skills. He wishes to utilize this newly gained knowledge to convey to other scientists and non-scientists around him the importance of active participation by everyone in influencing the lawmakers to maintain a strong federal research program.

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Natalie Patzlaff is a PhD candidate in the molecular and cellular pharmacology program in the School of Medicine and Public Health at the University of WisconsinMadison. She studies adult neural stem cells and their regulation Natalie Patzlaff by autism-associated University of WisconsinRNA binding proteins.

Madison In joining the stem cell field, she was struck by the political controversy surrounding the research and the public’s desire for stem cell-based therapies. As scientists, she believes, it is in our best interest to communicate the importance of our work to the public in order to gain their continued support. In addition to advocating for science funding, Natalie is interested in the regulatory aspects of science policy, which can have profound effects on many levels, from our ability to perform research to the approval of new drugs.

Annie M. Racine grew up in Cincinnati, OH and completed her undergraduate degree in philosophy, neuroscience, and psychology at Washington University in St. Louis. She is a fourth year graduate student Annie M. Racine in the neuroscience and University of Wisconsinpublic policy Program Madison at the University of Wisconsin-Madison through which she earned a master of public affairs in the spring of 2015 and is currently working towards completing her PhD in neuroscience. The focus of her research is to characterize neuroimaging and fluid biomarkers of preclinical Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathology and cognitive decline, with the long-term goal of informing clinical trials for interventions to delay or prevent AD onset. While federal funding for AD research has increased, it is still proportionally

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underfunded given the magnitude of its impact on individuals, families, and society, illustrating the great need for science advocates. When Annie isn’t at the Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, she can often be found biking around Madison or in her second lab—her kitchen— experimenting with new recipes.

Rebecca Benham Vautour grew up in Virginia, where her close proximity to Washington, DC exposed her to politics and advocacy from a young age.

Rebecca has since moved north, receiving her BA in neuroscience Rebecca Benham from Hamilton College Vautour in Clinton, NY. Her Harvard Medical School graduate studies brought her to Boston, MA, where she received her PhD in pharmacology and neuroscience from Boston University. Her thesis research focused on the role of BDNF signaling in altering brain inhibitory processes, under the direction of Dr. Shelley Russek. Rebecca is currently a postdoctoral fellow in Dr. Uwe Rudolph’s laboratory at McLean Hospital/Harvard Medical School. Her research examines the role of different GABA-A receptor subtypes in depression and its treatment. Rebecca is excited to be a part of the ASPET Washington Fellows program. She is looking forward to gaining a better understanding of science policy-related issues at the national and local level, and facilitating communication about these issues to fellow scientists, lawmakers, and the general public.

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Education News Undergraduate Events at EB2016 What is Experimental Biology (EB)?

This multidisciplinary scientific conference is comprised of over 14,000 scientists and exhibitors representing six sponsoring societies and multiple guest societies. The fields of study represented include pharmacology, anatomy, biochemistry and molecular biology, investigative pathology, nutrition, and physiology. The attendees represent university and academic institutions as well as government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and private corporations. The 2016 conference is taking place April 2-6 in San Diego, CA. EB is a unique opportunity to learn about an array of disciplines, present your own research, network, and explore careers. With so much happening at one meeting, it’s both exciting and a little daunting. To get the most out of your EB experience, it’s helpful to start planning early.

For 2016, ASPET is excited to offer both new and ongoing events for undergraduates. In addition to first-rate scientific sessions where you can expand your research horizons, the following are some highlights of events of interest to undergraduates:

Saturday, April 2, 2016 Attend the Grad Student/Postdoc Colloquium. It’s never too early to start thinking about your career plans! Undergraduates are encouraged to attend this professional development event. Rick McGee, Assoc. Dean for Faculty Recruitment and Professional Development, will be discussing “Mentoring Your Mentor: Key Skills for Effective Mentoring Relationships with Shared Responsibility”.

Attend the ASPET Business Meeting and Awards Presentation to hear updates about society activities and recognize excellence in pharmacology through the presentation of awards to members. Attending this meeting is a great step toward becoming a more engaged ASPET member!

The ASPET Opening Reception, immediately following the business meeting, is an informal gathering where you can reconnect with friends and meet other ASPET members. It’s also a chance to practice the “elevator version” of your talk before more formal presentations later in the meeting.

Sunday, April 3, 2016 Hear about opportunities for undergraduates and network with peers and scientists at the ASPET

Undergraduate Networking and Career Development Luncheon (new for 2016! – pre-registration required).

Undergraduate students will learn about research opportunities available at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and in the San Diego area, in addition to ASPET funding for undergraduate research through the SURF (Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship) program. The keynote speaker, Dr. Janet Clark, Director for Fellowship Training at the National Institute of Mental Health, will present detailed information regarding NIH programs designed specifically for undergraduates. A Q&A period will follow the presentations. Attendees will receive tips and resources detailing how to find and select a research opportunity that relates to their future career goals, enhance their basic science education, and increase the impact of their graduate and medical school applications.

The 2016 symposium, Undergraduate Research: Cultivating the Next Generation of Researchers through SURF and Beyond, will highlight ASPET’s Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program and feature both faculty and student panelists discussing their perspectives on undergraduate research (new for 2016!). This session will allow time for small-group discussions, and is designed to encourage conversations between December 2015 • The Pharmacologist

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students and faculty about how to maximize the benefits of participating in research.

Best Presentation awards are available through ASPET’s Student/Postdoc Poster Competition (new for 2016! – expanded award opportunities for undergraduates include eligibility in all ASPET divisions). Share your research, network with peers and faculty, and possibly win a cash prize or other perks as well.

ASPET’s Student/Postdoc Mixer is a great place to meet up with friends, make some new ones, dance, and unwind after a full day!

Monday, April 4, 2016 The Young Experimental Scientists (Y. E. S.) mixer offers another chance to network and meet students and scientists from other EB societies.

In addition, don’t miss: ASPET’s member lounge, where you can meet potential mentors and learn more about the society and how it can help guide your career (new for 2016!); Division mixers, where you can network with others who have similar research interests; and ASPET’s Day of Service on April 1, where you can volunteer alongside other ASPET members to give back to the local community.

Individual Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Program Applications Due March 1, 2016 for Summer 2016 Fellowships ASPET’s individual SURF program introduces undergraduate students to pharmacology research through a 10-week laboratory research experience.

The goal of the program is to use authentic, mentored research experiences in pharmacology to heighten student interest in careers in research and related health care disciplines. The SURF individual awards are intended to support students whose institutions do not have a currently funded institutional SURF program.

Research may be conducted at the student’s home institution or another institution, as appropriate to the research project. A list of currently funded institutions can be viewed at: www.aspet.org/awards/SURF/ institutional-Funded.

Who Should Apply Undergraduate students conducting pharmacologyrelated research including, but not limited to, students representing departments of pharmacology, toxicology, pharmaceutical sciences, and/or biological chemistry are invited to apply to the program.

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Applications from women and underrepresented minorities are particularly encouraged.

Program Details • Students must apply with a mentor who is a regular member of ASPET in good standing or a retired member who is still active in research.

• Students and mentors must have already identified, and briefly describe, a summer research project that the student proposes to undertake.

• If awarded, ASPET will provide a student stipend of $2800 for a minimum of ten weeks’ participation.

• The mentor is expected to sponsor the SURF Fellow for student membership in ASPET at the beginning of their summer research experience. Undergraduate student membership in ASPET is free.

For more information and to apply, please visit www.aspet.org/awards/SURF. For questions, please contact Catherine L. Fry, PhD, ASPET’s Education Manager, at cfry@aspet.org or 301-634-7782.

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Journal News New Editors, BPT Members, and Editorial Board Members JPET and PharmRev ASPET’s Board of Publications Trustees is pleased to announce that Dr. Kenneth D. Tew and Dr. Eric L. Barker have been selected to succeed Dr. Michael F. Jarvis as editor of the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics and Dr. David R. Sibley as editor of Pharmacological Reviews, respectively. The transition to the new editors is effective January 1, 2016.

Dr. Tew is professor and chair of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics at the Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston.

He is also the John C. West Chair in Cancer Research and Director of the Developmental Kenneth D. Tew Cancer Therapeutics Program at the Hollings Cancer Center.

He has served on the JPET editorial board since 1993 where he has been an associate editor since 2004. He currently serves on the editorial boards of nine other journals in a variety of senior positions. His primary research interests include anticancer drug discovery/ development and drug target identification, mechanisms of redox stress response, glutathione metabolism, and mechanisms of drug resistance.

He has published over 150 research articles, 130 editorials, reviews, and book chapters, and 1 book.

Additionally, he has served as an editor for nearly 20 books and holds a number of patents. More information about Dr. Tew is available at http://bit. ly/1Sm8XNW. Dr. Barker is professor and Associate Dean for Research with the Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology at Purdue University College of Pharmacy, West Lafayette, IN. He has taught in the Purdue University Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Graduate Eric L. Barker Training Program and the Neuroscience Graduate Training Program. He is currently with the Purdue University Life Science (PULSe) Integrative Neuroscience Program.

Dr. Barker has been an associate editor for Pharmacological Reviews since 2010. He has served as a reviewer for a dozen other journals including BJP, JBC, Molecular Pharmacology, Neuropsychopharmacology, and PNAS. More information about Dr. Barker can be found at http://bit. ly/1Hpt6MS.

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PR&P

New BPT Members

2016 will bring a change in the leadership of Pharmacology Research & Perspectives (PR&P) as well. Dr. Darrell R. Abernethy, who has served as the PR&P deputy editor since the journal’s launch, will become the next editor-in-chief, succeeding Dr. Michael J. Darrell R. Abernethy Curtis, the founding editor-inchief. Dr. Abernethy holds a faculty appointment with the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He has served as editor-in-chief of Pharmacological Reviews and is an associate editor of JPET, among other editorial board positions.

PR&P is jointly published by ASPET, the British Pharmacological Society, and Wiley. The editor-inchief and deputy editor each serve for three years with both positions alternating between a member of ASPET and the BPS. The PR&P Management Committee has selected Dr. Andrew J. Lawrence to succeed Dr. Abernethy as deputy editor.

Dr. Lawrence is NHMRC Principal Research Fellow, Associate Director, and Division Head for Behavioural Neuroscience at the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne. He is also a professor at the Centre for Neuroscience Research, University of Melbourne.

He has served as an editor and senior editor of The British Journal of Pharmacology and is currently reviews editor for that journal. He has served or currently serves as an editorial board member or associate editor of the American Journal of Physiology – Regulatory, Integrative & Comparative Physiology, Addiction Biology, Neurochemical Research, The Open Neuropsychopharmacology Journal, The Journal of Pharmacological Sciences, ISRN Addiction, and Progress in Neuropsychopharmacology.

Dr. Randy Hall, Dr. Kim A. Neve, and Dr. Jeffrey M. Witkin of the Board of Publications Trustees will end their six-year terms at the end of 2015. In addition to their successors, a fourth at-large member will join the BPT to balance the number of editors, which has increased with Dr. Abernethy representing PR&P. Terms of the new members will be staggered to avoid another large turnover on the BPT. The new at-large members and their terms are Dr. Jack Bergman (20162021), Dr. Lynette Daws (2016-2018), Dr. Emily E. Scott (2016-2020), and Dr. Jeff Stevens (2016-2019).

The Society is indebted to our retiring editors and BPT members for their dedicated service. These are challenging times for scientific publishing. Their steadfast leadership and commitment to ASPET’s publications program leave the journals in excellent condition for their successors.

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New Editorial Board Members Dr. Stephanie Watts, full professor with the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology at Michigan State University, and Dr. Richard Ye, Zhyiuan Chair Professor and dean of the School of Pharmacy at Shanghai Jiao Tong University and professor of pharmacology at the University of Illinois at Chicago, are now associate editors for Pharmacological Reviews.

Dr. Cheryl Rockwell, Assistant Professor in the Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology at Michigan State University, joined the Molecular Pharmacology Editorial and Advisory Board.

Dr. Lisa Hazelwood, Senior Scientist III at AbbVie, is now a member of the JPET Editorial Advisory Board.

The Board of Publications Trustees welcomes these new editorial board members and is grateful for their service.

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New Open Access Option The Society’s journals recently added an open access option to ASPET’s four wholly owned journals (Drug Metabolism and Disposition, Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, Molecular Pharmacology, and Pharmacological Reviews). Often referred to as “gold open access,” it allows authors to retain the copyright to their work, deposit the fully formatted version of the article in an institutional repository to meet employer policies, and post the article wherever they wish, including on file sharing services.

Whether or not an author has opted for open access is not known to the editor, associate editor, or reviewers. Choosing or not choosing open access has no bearing on the peer review process.

Authors may select one of two Creative Commons licenses at the time of manuscript submission. Those choosing open access will complete an open access agreement in place of a copyright transfer form. All authors on a manuscript must agree to publish under the selected open access license. The two licenses and related fees are: • Attribution 4.0 International license (CC-BY) for an open access charge of $3,000.00 plus page charges, or • Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 International license (CC-BY-NC) for an open access charge of $2,000.00 plus page charges The Creative Commons website, accessible via the links above, provides details about the licenses.

Publishing under the CC-BY license meets the requirements of the Wellcome Trust, the Research Councils UK, and other funders that require authors to use an open access option if it is available. The copyedited and formatted version of articles published under the two licenses will be freely available

immediately from the journals and will be deposited with PubMed Central and Europe PubMed Central.

Authors should note that the open access charge is in addition to page charges. Only articles published in Pharmacological Reviews and invited articles in the other journals are exempt from page charges. Check with the ASPET staff by emailing journals@aspet.org if you are unsure of whether your page charges have been waived.

Open access charges are handled through the Copyright Clearance Center’s RightsLink® system.

Page charges are paid using a form sent to authors with their page proofs later in the production process and are processed by the ASPET office, just as they are now for other papers.

The open access fee must be paid prior to publication of the copyedited and formatted version of the paper. When an open access option is selected at the time of submission and the manuscript is accepted for publication, the CCC will automatically contact the corresponding author with instructions to pay the open access charge. Any author who decides to publish under an open access option after submission must contact the journal as soon as possible.

Additional fees may apply. Please contact the ASPET journals department with any questions by emailing journals@aspet.org.

ASPET has made the manuscript version of all articles published in DMD, JPET, and Molecular Pharmacology freely accessible since April 2005. All content in the four journals is made freely accessible 12 months after publication. The new open access option meets the requirements of funders and authors who either want or are required to retain greater control over their published research.

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Membership News 2015 Annual Membership Survey: Evaluating Member Benefits We would like to thank everyone who took the time to participate in the 2015 ASPET Annual Membership Survey. This year’s survey focused on member benefits. The questions we asked in the survey were designed to gauge the quality of our benefits from our members’ standpoint. We also sought out ideas to improve our benefit offerings.

We had 511 members participate in the survey, with representation from all categories of membership.

Regular members represented over 60% of survey respondents, with 46% of respondents having been members for over ten years, and 18% of respondents having been members for less than one year.

“I think you’ve left off the most important reason for most people, and the main reason that I joined. I wanted to belong to the premier professional organization in my field of research.

Everything else is gravy.”

–Anonymous Survey Respondent We asked respondents which member benefit most closely represents why they joined ASPET. Survey participants were asked to choose from a list of benefits. While all of the benefits were chosen by participants, the top three benefits were: • Opportunities to present your work at the ASPET Annual Meeting (200 respondents) • Free full-text online access to ASPET journals, including all back issues (199 respondents) • Reduced registration fees to attend the ASPET Annual Meeting at Experimental Biology (193 respondents)

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We also questioned respondents about which member benefits they have used. The most popular benefits were: • Free full-text online access to ASPET journals, including all back issues (267 respondents) • Reduced registration fees to attend the ASPET Annual Meeting at EB (249 respondents) • Free online subscription to the ASPET newsletter, The Pharmacologist (216 respondents) • Opportunities to present your work at the ASPET Annual Meeting (206 respondents) • Networking opportunities with fellow members and pharmacologists (205 respondents) • Free membership in the divisions (190 respondents) • Reduced publication fees and no submission fee to publish in the ASPET journals (185 respondents) • Free email subscription to the bi-monthly ASPET NewsBrief (166 respondents) Many survey respondents (53%) feel very knowledgeable about the benefits ASPET offers, with most respondents indicating that they receive information about available benefits from the ASPET website, ASPET emails, and The Pharmacologist.

When asked what member benefits respondents were interested in learning more about, the answers were split evenly across the board. Over the last year, ASPET has been working hard to advertise our benefits more clearly and has made a concerted effort to reach out to new members to make them more aware of our benefit offerings. We hope to continue to expand on our communications as we continue to improve our services.

We are pleased to report that 68% of survey participants are happy with the member benefits they receive from ASPET.

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In an effort to understand the needs of our members by membership category, respondents were asked if they felt that ASPET offered enough benefits to attract undergraduate students, graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, industry members, government members, and academic members.

See Table 1.

We followed up this question by asking what kinds of benefits ASPET should offer these different groups of members that we do not currently offer. For undergraduates, we received many responses about offering more travel awards, mentoring opportunities, and summer programs. ASPET has recently increased funding for undergraduate travel awards and has been working hard to increase undergraduate activities at the annual meeting. We also continue to fund the ASPET Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship program which is currently in its 23rd year.

For graduate students, many of the openended answers included more travel awards, more networking opportunities, mentoring, and reduced

Table 1 Yes

No

Undergraduate students

33.78% 152

24.22% 109

Graduate Students

70.74% 324

8.95% 41

Postdoctoral fellows

69.85% 322

6.29% 29

Industry members

40.67% 183

6.00% 27

Government members

35.79% 60

7.83% 33

Academic members

75.05% 346

4.99% 23

Table 2 Answer Choices ASPET offers better benefits than other societies ASPET’s benefits are comparable to other societies ASPET’s benefits are lacking compared to other societies Total

fees for ASPET activities. Last year ASPET awarded 96 travel awards to graduate students and we expect to offer a comparable number of awards in the coming year. Also, from last year’s BIG IDEAS campaign, we have recently launched a brand new Mentoring Network for graduate students and postdocs. ASPET has always offered graduate students discounted rates on all our activities and we hope to continue to offer this important benefit.

For postdoctoral fellows, several respondents indicated we needed to offer more career opportunities and postdoctoral jobs. ASPET’s career center is free to all job seekers and we encourage our postdoctoral members to register on our site. This summer we introduced a reduced postdoctoral job rate on our career center, making it more affordable to post postdoctoral opportunities. Several of our members have already taken advantage. We also post all our jobs from the career center on LinkedIn, Twitter, and in the ASPET NewsBrief.

Survey participants were asked to compare how our benefits rated against other society benefits. See Table 2.

We note that most respondents feel that our benefits are either Not Sure Total comparable or better than other 42.00% societies’ benefits.

450 189 Most of ASPET’s web content is 20.31% free to the public, but many societies 458 93 offer members the exclusive benefit of additional resources behind a 23.86% 461 110 member login and password. We asked respondents, “If ASPET offered 53.33% 450 educational, teaching, and other useful 240 resources behind a member login and 56.82% 447 password protected area, would you 254 log in and use these resources?”. See 19.96% Figure 1 for the results.

461 92 Additionally, respondents were requested to share ideas about what types of online resources they would find valuable. We received a wide Responses variety of answers, but some common 21.33% 90 themes included teaching resources (slide sets, animations, graphics, and 69.19% 292 more), workshops, webinars, lectures, and a networking platform.

9.48% 40 Some societies offer member 442 discounts and partnerships with

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Figure 1 Yes

No

It depends on the resource 0% 10%

20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

outside services such as car insurance and AAA discounts. We asked members if this is something that they would be interested in receiving from ASPET. The majority of survey respondents answered that they would not be interested in participating in these kinds of benefits.

Based on survey responses and open-ended comments, ASPET members are satisfied with the level of benefits that we offer. Our benefits are

comparable to other societies and it is encouraging to note that members are taking advantage of all the benefits that we offer. We are pleased that several of the recommendations suggested by the responses are already underway, and we will continue to take our members’ feedback into account as we expand or refine our benefits. Our goal as a membership organization is to provide opportunities for members to connect with other scientists, share their research, and enhance their careers. Through our journals, meetings, awards, and other benefits, we hope to continue to support our members and their research efforts.

We are always open to suggestions for improvement. If you have any additional comments, suggestions, or ideas, please feel free to contact us at membership@aspet.org.

Congratulations to Dr. Kathryn Meier and Dr. Jordan Warnick, winners of the survey raffle drawing!

A Tribute to Dr. Ken Koe (1925-2015) Ken Koe, one of the chemists who co-invented the antidepressant sertraline hydrochloride (Zoloft), passed away on October 7th, 2015 at the age of 90, in Shrewsbury, MA. He earned degrees in chemistry from Reed College in Portland (BS, Credit: Reed College 1945), the University of Dr. Ken Koe Washington (MS, 1948) and the California Institute of Technology (PhD, 1952). In 1955, he joined Pfizer as a Research Scientist in the chemistry department

In Sympathy The Pharmacologist • December 2015

of Pfizer Research Laboratories in Brooklyn, NY. He initially worked in antibiotic drug discovery, but spent most of his career focused on developing novel drugs to treat central nervous system disorders including schizophrenia and depression.

Drs. Koe and Willard Welch began developing Zoloft in the 1970s. It was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1991 and eventually became one of the most widely prescribed antidepressant drugs in the United States. He spent 40 years with Pfizer, retiring in 1995 as a Research Advisor in Pfizer’s neuroscience department in Groton, CT. Dr. Koe was a member of ASPET since 1967.

Miodrag Radulovacki

Theodore L. Sourkes

Walter D. Wosilait

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New Members REGULAR MEMBERS Margaret A. Bush, Duke Univ, NC Hua Linda Cai, Univ of California, Los Angeles Rocio A. Chavez-Santoscoy, Univ Autonoma de Baja California, Mexico Jaehyung Cho, Univ of Illinois, Chicago Sylvia Fitting, Univ of North Carolina, Chapel Hill Lawrence Fourgeaud, Janssen R&D, CA Raghu Ganugula, Texas A&M HSC Coll of Pharmacy Thomas M. Keck, Rowan Univ, NJ Jae-Sung Kim, Univ of Florida Yulia Komarova, Univ of Illinois, Chicago Vidhya Kumaresan, Boston Univ Sch of Med, MA Brian T. Layden, Northwestern Univ, IL Kevin Li, Univ of Cincinnati - Coll of Pharmacy, OH Anastasios Lymperopoulos, Nova Southeastern Univ, FL Wanshu Ma, St Jude Children’s Research Hospital, TN RaviKumar Majeti, Texas A&M HSC Dolly Mehta, Univ of Illinois John P. O’Bryan, Univ of Illinois, Chicago Krzysztof Palczewski, Case Western Reserve Univ, OH Avi Priel, The Hebrew Univ of Jerusalem, Israel Servio Ramirez, Temple Univ, PA Sigrid C. Roberts, Pacific Univ, OR Grace Rossi, Long Island Univ, NY Joseph M. Salvino, Drexel Univ - Coll of Med, PA Lee Sweeney, Univ of Florida David M. Virshup, Duke-NUS Graduate Med Sch, Singapore Susan E. Waltz, Univ of Cincinnati - Coll of Med, OH Eric M. Wauson, Des Moines Univ, IA

POSTDOCTORAL MEMBERS Jessica P. Anand, Univ of Michigan Allison M. Andrews, Temple Univ, PA Michelle A. Carroll Turpin, Louisiana State Univ HSC, Shreveport Mohammad Elnakish, OH Felicia U. Izunobi, USAT, FL Matthew L. Jennis, Janssen Pharmaceutical, PA Sean R. Marcsisin, Walter Reed Army Inst of Res, MD

Stacy McAllister, Stanford Univ, CA Ivan Merdzo, Tulane Univ Sch of Med, LA Nikoleta G. Tsvetanova, Univ of California, San Francisco Sarah L. Withey, Harvard Univ, MA

GRADUATE STUDENT MEMBERS Ashfaq Ahmad, Univ Sains Malaysia Nouf K. Alkahtani, Temple Univ - Sch of Pharmacy, PA Serena Allen, East Tennessee State Univ Chuck E. Hay, Univ of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Jiawen Huang, Boston Univ, MA Anisha G. Korde, Northeastern Univ, MA Kumiko M. Lippold, Virginia Commonwealth Univ Shiwei Liu, Univ of California Pankaj Paliwal, IIT BHU, India Kyle J. Seamon, Johns Hopkins - Sch of Med, MD Mitsu R. Shah, Howard Univ, MD Katherine E. Stockstill, Saint Louis Univ Sch of Med, MO Alexandria Trujillo, SUNY, Buffalo Andrew M. Waters, Leidos Biomedical Res Inst, MD Christopher D. Bostick, West Virginia Univ Alisha Caliman, Univ of California, San Diego Sung-joon Cho, Univ of Illinois, Chicago Brandy N. Garzel, Univ of Maryland, Baltimore Candice A. Gellner, Univ of California, Irvine Shrinidh A. Joshi, North Dakota State Univ Nikita Katila, Yeungnam Univ, South Korea

Shannon M. Kozlovich, Washington State Univ Deborah J. Luessen, Wake Forest - Sch of Med, NC Evan M. Lutton, Temple Univ - Sch of Med, PA Zahid Manzoor, Isra Univ, Pakistan Felix P. Mayer, Med Univ of Vienna, Austria Walatta-Tseyon Mesquitta, Univ of Wisconsin, Madison Shaukat H. Munawar, Isra Univ, Pakistan Rachel A. Murphy, Marshall Univ, WV Shmuel Negussie, Nova Southeastern Univ, FL Miaoran Ning, Univ of Illinois, Chicago Nima Samie, Univ of Malaysia - Fac of Med, Malaysia Rajesh K. Suman, MGM Inst of Health Sci, India Guncha Taneja, Univ of Houston, TX Zachary K. Zabarsky, Wake Forest Univ, NC

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT MEMBERS Michelle Alvarado, Univ Autonoma del Estado de Mexico, Mexico Anthony J. Bolson, SUNY, Buffalo Maria C. Erazo Munoz, Univ Autonoma del Estado de Mexico, Mexico Samuel R. Kerr, Univ of North Carolina, Chapel Hill Jordan B. McCreary, Pacific Univ, OR Josh S. Mytych, California State Univ Fany G. Ochoa Arriaga, UAE Mexico, Mexico Xingyi Pan, Univ of Michigan Timothy N. Tran, California State Univ

2016 Membership Renewal We hope you continue your membership and take advantage of all of the many benefits ASPET membership has to offer. If you are one of the first 1,000 members to renew, you will be entered into a raffle drawing for a $100.00 American Express gift card. We wish you good luck and thank you for your valued support!

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Members in the News Achievements, Awards, Promotions, and Scientific Breakthroughs Kelly R. Monk, PhD

Dr. Kelly Monk Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis

Dr. Monk was recently named as an ASCB-GIBCO Emerging Leader Prize Finalist (www.ascb.org/gibco/) for her work on adhesion G proteincoupled receptors in the nervous system. She is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Developmental Biology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. She studies the molecular and genetic mechanisms that govern nervous

system development and myelination with a focus on the class of adhesion G protein-coupled receptors in these processes.

Dr. Monk has been a member of ASPET since 2015. She is a member of the Division for Molecular Pharmacology, Division for Neuropharmacology and Division for Drug Discovery and Development.

Share Your Career Achievements with ASPET Membership Is there something exciting happening in your career that is worth sharing with other ASPET members? Let us put the word out! Submit a brief 150-word summary of your recent career achievements, awards, promotions, and scientific breakthroughs for inclusion in the members in the news segment of The Pharmacologist. Email divisions@aspet.org.

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Samina Salim, PhD Dr. Salim recently received an Academic Research Enhancement Award (R15) from NIMH. This grant is focused on examining the biochemical basis of behavioral and cognitive impairments that occur in response to psychological stress. Chronic psychological stress is known to trigger anxiety and lead to cognitive impairment. In general, acute psychological stress is considered “good” and essential for adaptation while chronic stress is believed to be “bad” and responsible for maladaptive changes causing anxiety and cognitive disturbances. The question of what triggers “bad” effects of stress is quite intriguing. Salim’s previous funding (01/04/12-03/31/15) produced interesting and provocative results suggesting oxidative stress as a biochemical trigger which causes behavioral and cognitive deficits in rats. Her published work that came out of this funding was highly commended, and her grant continuation was enthusiastically supported by the committee. Dr. Salim’s new funding will enable her team to investigate and carve out a mechanism that she believes is central to functional impairment in behavior and cognition. The study is expected to provide novel clues that would inform drug design and therapeutic intervention for anxiety, depression, and cognitive impairment. She also was a recipient of this year’s University of Houston early career mentoring award and College of Pharmacy’s research excellence award. Currently she serves on two NIH study sections as an ad hoc reviewer and as a reviewer for many prestigious journals and international granting agencies;

she is also a frequent invitee for talks and meetings.

Dr. Salim has been a member of ASPET since 2007. She is a member of the Division for Neuropharmacology, Division for Behavioral Pharmacology, Division for Cardiovascular Pharmacology, Division for Pharmacology Education, Division for Translational & Clinical Pharmacology, and Division for Molecular Pharmacology.

Vikas V. Dukhande, PhD Dr. Dukhande was recently appointed as a tenure-track assistant professor in pharmaceutical sciences at St. John’s University. He completed his undergraduate education from the Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai, India. After a brief stint in industrial research, he earned his PhD in pharmacology from Idaho State University under the guidance of Dr. James Lai, studying the role of mitochondrial antioxidants in apoptotic cell death and neuroprotection. He then joined Dr. Matthew Gentry’s lab at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine and researched molecular mechanisms in Lafora disease, a rare fatal neurodegenerative epilepsy. He was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship from American Heart Association for his research on Lafora disease.

Dr. Dukhande has been a member of ASPET since 2009. He is a member of the Division for Neuropharmacology, Division for Translational & Clinical Pharmacology, and Division for Molecular Pharmacology.

Dr. Samina Salim University of Houston, College of Pharmacy

Dr. Vikas Dukhande St. John’s University

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Division News 2016 Division Nominees The 2016 election includes nominees for ASPET Council (President-Elect, Secretary/Treasurer-Elect, and Councilor), as well as Division officers (Division for Cancer Pharmacology (DCP), Division for Drug Discovery and Development (DDD), Division for Drug Metabolism (DM), Division for Molecular

Pharmacology (MP), Division for Neuropharmacology (NEU), Division for Toxicology (TOX), and Division for Translational and Clinical Pharmacology (TCP)).

Please vote for all ASPET Council offices but only vote for those divisions to which you belong as a primary or secondary member.

Division for Cancer Pharmacology Nominees for Chair-Elect Mary-Ann Bjornsti, PhD Professor and Chair, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Alabama at Birmingham; Newman H. Waters Chair of Clinical Pharmacology; Associate Director for Translational Research, UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center William F. Elmquist, PharmD, PhD Professor and Department Head, Department of Pharmaceutics, University of Minnesota

Bonnie Sloane, PhD Distinguished Professor and Chair, Pharmacology, Wayne State University School of Medicine

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Nominees for Secretary/Treasurer-Elect Larry H. Matherly, PhD Professor, Oncology and Pharmacology, Wayne State University School of Medicine; Director of Cancer Biology Graduate Program, Department of Oncology; Program Leader, Molecular Therapeutics Program, Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute Jack C. Yalowich, PhD Professor and Chair, Division of Pharmacology, The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy

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Division for Drug Discovery and Development Nominee for Chair-Elect Timothy A. Esbenshade, PhD Project Director/Sr. Principal Research Scientist, Global Research and Development, AbbVie

Nominee for Secretary/Treasurer-Elect Tom J. Parry, PhD Senior Director, Pharmacology and Safety, Research and Development, Acorda Therapeutics, Inc.

Division for Drug Metabolism Nominees for Chair-Elect

Nominees for Secretary/Treasurer-Elect

Deepak Dalvie, PhD Research Fellow, Department of Pharmacokinetics, Dynamics and Metabolism, Pfizer

NamandjĂŠ N. Bumpus, PhD Associate Professor, Medicine and Pharmacology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; Associate Dean for Institutional and Student Equity

Nina Isoherranen, PhD Associate Professor, Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmacy, University of Washington

Xiaobo Zhong, PhD Associate Professor, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Connecticut

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Division for Molecular Pharmacology Nominees for Chair-Elect

Nominees for Secretary/Treasurer-Elect

Henrik G. Dohlman, PhD Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina

Lisa Hazelwood, PhD Senior Scientist III, Liver Fibrosis, AbbVie

J. Silvio Gutkind, PhD Professor, Department of Pharmacology, University of California San Diego; Associate Director of Basic Science; UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center

Adriano Marchese, PhD Associate Professor, Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Health Sciences Division, Loyola University Chicago

Nevin A. Lambert, PhD Professor and Vice Chair, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Georgia Regents University

Have You Joined a Division?

Take full advantage of ASPET membership by joining a division!

• Participate in creating scientific programs for the annual meeting • Network with people in your field at mixers, division programs, and on each division’s LinkedIn group • Participate in running the division and planning activities • Receive special notices about events and activities of interest in your field

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Division for Neuropharmacology Nominees for Chair-Elect

Nominees for Secretary/Treasurer-Elect

Anil Kumar, PhD Professor and Chair, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Missouri-Kansas City

Doo-Sup Choi, PhD Professor, Pharmacology and Psychiatry, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine; Director of the Samuel C. Johnson Genomics of Addiction Program

John Traynor, PhD Professor of Pharmacology and Associate Chair for Research, Department of Pharmacology, University of Michigan Medical School

Charles D. Nichols, PhD Associate Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, LSU Health Sciences Center

Styliani-Anna (Stella) E. Tsirka, PhD Professor, Department of Pharmacological Sciences, Stony Brook University

Division for Toxicology Nominee for Chair-Elect Monica A. Valentovic, PhD Professor, Department of Pharmacology, Physiology, and Toxicology, Marshall University School of Medicine; Toxicology Research Cluster Coordinator

Nominee for Secretary/Treasurer-Elect Qin M. Chen, PhD Professor, Department of Pharmacology, University of Arizona College of Medicine

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Division for Translational and Clinical Pharmacology Nominee for Secretary/Treasurer-Elect

Nominee for Chair-Elect Michael Holinstat, PhD Associate Professor, Pharmacology and Internal Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School

Felix Kim, PhD Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Drexel University College of Medicine; Director of the Graduate Program in Pharmacology

Check out the new division websites This summer, your division and ASPET staff were working hard to redesign each of the ten division websites. With ASPET’s recent rebranding efforts, we wanted to incorporate the new branding across all the divisions with a goal toward a more unified, fresh look and website for each division.

The changes to all ten division websites include new imaging, updated division membership information, descriptions and goals, and links to your division’s LinkedIn group. For ease of navigation, we also made changes to the main homepage menus and included each division in the division drop down menu. We hope that you will find these changes more user friendly and attractive. Check them out online at www.aspet.org/divisions-chapters/divisions.

Divisions are always looking for new and interesting content for their websites, and members are an important part of this. If you have content ideas or would like to share your news, please contact your division communications officer or the ASPET office at divisions@aspet.org.

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Chapter News 2015 MAPS Annual Meeting The Mid-Atlantic Pharmacology Society (MAPS; www.aspet.org/MAPS/) held its annual meeting on October 22, 2015. Inaugural hosting by Cooper Medical School of Rowan University (CMRSU) was well-received and nicely showcased their state-ofthe-art medical education building. The theme of this year’s meeting was “Advances in the Mechanisms and Therapeutics of Inflammation”. Inflammation has been increasingly recognized across disciplines as playing a major detrimental role in the development and progression of numerous diseases. As such, the program included presentations highlighting the exciting Mid-Atlantic-based research into the novel roles of, and therapeutic approaches to, inflammation in relation to arthritis (Andrea Bottaro, PhD, CMRSU), autoimmunity (Stefania Gallucci, MD, Temple University), traumatic brain injury (Melanie Elliott, PhD, Thomas Jefferson University) and cancer (Jose Conejo-Garcia, MD, PhD, Wistar Institute).

Additionally, the keynote address was given by renowned researcher Matthias Nahrendorf, MD, PhD, Massachusetts General Hospital, whose recent work on the role of hematopoetic cells in cardiovascular stress-induced inflammation has quickly garnered worldwide attention.

In addition to research talks, MAPS hosted a biotech roundtable discussion, featuring Joseph Rucker, PhD, Vice President of Research and Development at Integral Molecular, and Osvaldo Flores, PhD, President and CSO of Noviva Introduction of keynote speaker Dr. Matthias Therapeutics. Fielding Nahrendorf (left) by MAPS president Dr. Douglas Tilley questions from faculty and (right) trainees alike, the discussion

proved insightful with respect to pharmaceutical technology development, small biotech operations, and the evolution of scientific careers. Further, the George B. Koelle Award was presented to LeeYuan Liu-Chen, PhD, Temple University, for her achievements in neuropharmacology research and mentoring of trainees over her 30-year career.

Continuing its tradition of promoting trainee development, the MAPS meeting also featured two invited oral presentations given by Allison Andrews, Temple University and Elisabetta Liverani, Temple University, as well as a poster competition in which 1st and 2nd place prizes were awarded in each of MAPS councilor Dr. Bradford the following categories: Fischer (center) presents Lili undergraduate (Lili Mo and Mo (left) and Fionya Tran Fionya Tran, co-presenters, (right) with their 1st place Temple University; Msema prize for undergraduate poster presentation Msackyi, Temple University), graduate (Hao Wu, Rowan University; Tie: Evan Lutton, Temple University and Jae Kim, Temple University) and postdoctoral fellow (Sarah Schumacher, Temple University; Christine Pol, Temple University). Finally, MAPS was pleased to announce that, making use of the ASPET awards portal, it will be offering a travel award for an eligible MAPS trainee to attend Experimental Biology 2016 in San Diego, CA. See you there!

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Meetings & Congresses December 2015 EORTC-NCI-EMA-AACR Int’l. Conf. on Innovation & Biomarkers in Cancer Drug Development www.aacr.org/Meetings/Pages/ MeetingDetail.aspx?EventItemID=71#.

VjkVymddHcs Dec. 3–4, Brussels, Belgium

Axons: From Cell Biology to Pathology www.keystonesymposia.org/16J4 January 24–27, Santa Fe, NM Biology of Down Syndrome: Impacts Across the Biomedical Spectrum www.keystonesymposia.org/16A4 January 24–27, Santa Fe, NM

The Cancer Genome www.keystonesymposia.org/ index.cfm?e=web.Meeting.

Program&meetingid=1374 February 7–11, Banff, AB, Canada Fibrosis: From Basic Mechanisms to Targeted Therapies www.keystonesymposia.org/16Q3 February 7–11, Keystone, CO

54th Ann. Mtg. of the Amer. Coll. of Neuropsychopharmacology www.acnp.org/annualmeeting/default.aspx Dec. 6–10, Hollywood, FL

Cancer Immunotherapy: Immunity and Immunosuppression Meet Targeted Therapies www.keystonesymposia.org/16J6 January 24–28, Vancouver, BC, Canada

San Antonio Breast Cancer Symp. www.sabcs.org Dec. 8–12, San Antonio, TX

Drug Discovery for Parasitic Diseases www.keystonesymposia.org/16A5 January 24–28, 2016, Tahoe City, CA

Stromal Cells in Immunity www.keystonesymposia.org/16Q4 February 7–11, Keystone, CO

2015 Ann. Mtg. of the Amer. Soc. of Cell Biology www.ascb.org/2015meeting Dec. 12–16, San Diego, CA

Purinergic Signaling www.keystonesymposia.org/16J5 January 24–28, Vancouver, BC, Canada

ACNS Ann. Mtg. www.acns.org/meetings/annual-meetingand-courses/2016 February 10–14, Orlando, FL

Pharmacology 2015 www.bps.ac.uk/news-events/ future-scientific-meetings/2015/ pharmacology-2015# Dec. 15–17, London, UK

January 2016

Small RNA Silencing: Little Guides, Big Biology www.keystonesymposia.org/16A6 January 24–28, Keystone, CO Traumatic Brain Injury: Clinical, Pathological & Translational Mechanisms www.keystonesymposia.org/16J3 January 24–27, Santa Fe, NM

Systems Immunology: From Molecular Networks to Human Biology www.keystonesymposia.org/16A1 January 10–14, Big Sky, MT

Cell Biology & Immunology of Persistent Infection www.keystonesymposia.org/16A8 January 31–February 4, Banff, AB, Canada

Cytokine JAK-STAT Signaling in Immunity & Disease www.keystonesymposia.org/16A2 January 10–14, Steamboat Springs, CO

Ligand Recognition & Molecular Gating www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=12689 January 31–February 5, Lucca (Barga), Italy

Metabolism, Transcription & Disease www.keystonesymposia.org/16J2 January 10–14, Snowbird, UT

Neurological Disorders of Intracellular Trafficking www.keystonesymposia.org/16A7 January 31–February 4, Keystone, CO

Molecular & Cellular Basis of Growth & Regeneration www.keystonesymposia.org/16A3 January 10–14, Breckenridge, CO Nuclear Receptors: Full Throttle www.keystonesymposia.org/16J1 January 10–14, Snowbird, UT

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February 2016 Alcohol & the Nervous System www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=16702 February 7–12, Galveston, TX

Genomics & Personalized Medicine www.keystonesymposia.org/16Q2 February 7–11, Banff, AB, Canada

Plasminogen Activation & Extracellular Proteolysis www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=12243 February 14–19, Ventura, CA Thalamocortical Interactions www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=17257 February 14–19, Ventura, CA Obesity & Adipose Tissue Biology www.keystonesymposia.org/16B2 February 15–19, Banff, AB, Canada Angiotensin www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=13998 February 21–26, Lucca (Barga), Italy Enhancer Malfunction in Cancer (Joint with Noncoding RNAs in Health & Disease) www.keystonesymposia.org/16Q6 February 21–24, Santa Fe, NM Noncoding RNAs in Health & Disease (Joint with Enhancer Malfunction in Cancer) www.keystonesymposia.org/16Q5 February 21–24, Santa Fe, NM Immunometabolism in Immune Function & Inflammatory Disease (Joint with New Frontiers in Understanding Tumor Metabolism) www.keystonesymposia.org/16Q8 February 21–25, Banff, AB, Canada

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New Frontiers in Understanding Tumor Metabolism (Joint with Immunometabolism in Immune Function & Inflammatory Disease) www.keystonesymposia.org/16Q7 February 21–25, Banff, AB, Canada G Protein-Coupled Receptors: Structure, Signaling & Drug Discovery www.keystonesymposia.org/16B3 February 21–25, Keystone, CO Peptides, Chemistry & Biology of Crossing Barriers by Peptide Science for Health & Wellness www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=11886 February 21–26, Ventura, CA T Follicular Helper Cells & Germinal Centers www.keystonesymposia.org/16B4 February 26–March 1, Monterey, CA Basal Ganglia www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=16708 February 28–March 4, Ventura, CA Immunity in Skin Development, Homeostasis & Disease www.keystonesymposia.org/16B5 February 28–March 2, Tahoe City, CA Tuberculosis Co-Morbidities & Immunopathogenesis www.keystonesymposia.org/16B6 February 28–March 3, Keystone, CO

April 2016 Experimental Biology 2016 experimentalbiology.org/2016/Home.aspx April 2–6, San Diego, CA 18th Int’l. Neuroscience Winter Conf. www.winterneuroscience.org/2016/ April 2–6, Sölden, Austria Cardiac Development, Regeneration & Repair www.keystonesymposia.org/16Z2 April 3–7, Snowbird, UT Amer. Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Ann. Mtg. www.aacr.org/Meetings/Pages/ MeetingDetail.aspx?EventItemID=63#.

VjorC2ddHcs April 16–20, New Orleans, LA

May 2016 Immunology 2016 www.immunology2016.org/ May 13–17, Seattle, WA 2016 AAPS Nat. Biotechnology Conf. – Amer. Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists https://www.aaps.org/nationalbiotech/ May 16–18, Boston, MA

June 2016 March 2016 Behavior, Biology & Chemistry: Translational Research in Addiction pharmacology.uthscsa.edu/bbc.asp March 5–6, 2016, San Antonio, TX Stem Cells & Cancer www.keystonesymposia.org/16C1 March 6–10, Breckenridge, CO Stem Cells & Regeneration in the Digestive Organs www.keystonesymposia.org/16X6 March 13–17, Keystone, CO DNA Damage, Mutation & Cancer www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=12940 March 13–18, Ventura, CA Sleep Regulation & Function www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=16792 March 13–18, Galveston, TX Soc. of Toxicology 55th Ann. Mtg. & ToxExpo www.toxicology.org/events/am/AM2016/ index.asp March 13–17, New Orleans, LA

Fragile X & Autism-Related Disorders www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=15073 June 5–10, West Dover, VT IBNS – Int’l. Behavioral Neuroscience Soc. 2016 Ann. Mtg. www.ibnsconnect.org/ibns-2016-annualmeeting June 7–12, Budapest, Hungary Cyclic Nucleotide Phosphodiesterases www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=12897 June 12–17, Girona, Spain The 11th Int’l. ISSX Meeting – Int’l. Soc. for the Study of Xenobiotics issxbusan2016.org/ June 12–16, Busan, Republic of Korea Common Mechanisms of Neurodegeneration (Joint with Microglia in the Brain) www.keystonesymposia.org/16Z3 June 12–16, Keystone, CO

Human Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms & Disease www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=16744 June 12–17, South Hadley, MA Drug Safety www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=16738 June 26–July 1, Easton, MA

July 2016 10th Forum of Neuroscience forum2016.fens.org/ July 2–6, Copenhagen, Denmark Ion Channels www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=11436 July 10–15, South Hadley, MA Proteoglycans www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=12038 July 10–15, Andover, NH Amer. Physiological Soc. & The Physiological Soc. Joint Mtg.: Physiology 2016 www.physiology2016.org/ July 29–31, Dublin, Ireland Int’l. Academy of Cardiology Ann. Scientific Sessions 2016 – 21st World Congress on Heart Disease www.cardiologyonline.com/wchd2016/index. html July 30–August 1, Boston, MA Notch Signaling in Development, Regeneration & Disease www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=15087 July 31–August 5, Lewiston, ME

August 2016 Visual Systems Development – Circuits, Evolution and Disease in Visual System Development www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=12990 August 7–12, West Dover, VT Synaptic Transmission www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=12757 August 14–19, Waterville Valley, NH Mechanisms of Epilepsy & Neuronal Synchronization www.grc.org/programs.aspx?id=13762 August 21–26, Girona, Spain

Microglia in the Brain (Joint with Common Mechanisms of Neurodegeneration) www.keystonesymposia.org/16Z4 June 12–16, Keystone, CO

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