March/April 2005 Issue

Annual Meeting Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . 1Member in the News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2President’s Message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3Biophysicist in Profile. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Permeation & Transport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Membrane Structure & Assembly. . . . . . . 8Exocytosis/Endocytosis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Membrane Bioenergetics . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Membrane Biophysics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11Molecular Biophysics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11Minority Affairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Education Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Early Careers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13CPOW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14International Relations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15SRAA winners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Undergraduate Student Symposium . . . . 17Public Affairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22Opportunities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27Upcoming Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

NEWSLETTER

Biophysical Society’s 50thAnnual Meeting

Mark your calendars to join the celebra-tion in Salt Lake City, Utah, February18–22, 2006, for the BiophysicalSociety’s 50th Annual Meeting.

2005 Annual MeetingSummary

The California torrential rains held offjust long enough for nearly 6,000 bio-physicists to meet in Long Beach duringthe Biophysical Society's 2005 AnnualMeeting. Judging from the question-naires completed by meeting attendees,the scientific symposia and workshops,committee and subgroup programs, andthe warm weather all received ravereviews.

Board and Council Activites

Reports from the Society Committeesand Subgroups about their activities atthe Annual Meeting are included withinthis newsletter. Below is a summary ofthe major actions taken by the Society'sExecutive Board and Council, which alsomet during the Annual Meeting in LongBeach.

8 Two members of Council were electedto serve two–year terms on the ExecutiveBoard. Linda Kenney, of the University ofIllinois, Chicago, and Frederick Sachs, ofSUNY, Buffalo, were elected to succeedoutgoing Board members Ligia Toro deStefani and Eva Nogales. 8 David Millar, of Scripps ResearchInstitute, was elected Chair of the 2006Nominating Committee. Also elected tothe Committee were Taekjip Ha, of theUniversity of Illinois, Urbana; Suzanne

Scarlata, of SUNY,Stony Brook; and R.John Solaro, ofthe University ofIllinois, Chicago.The Committee ischarged with devel-oping the slate ofcandidates forPresident-Elect andCouncil for the2006 elections. Theslate will be present-ed to Council forapproval when itmeets in Salt LakeCity in February2006.8 Suzanne Scarlatawas elected to servea three-year term onthe Annual MeetingProgram Comm-ittee. She will serveon committeesplanning the 2007,2008, and 2009annual meetings.8 Molecular Motors:Point Counterpoint,organized by SharynEndow and Steven S.Rosenfeld, was select-ed as the topic of the2006 BiophysicalDiscussions.

Linda KenneyUniversity of Illinois,

Chicago

Frederick SachsSUNY, Buffalo

David MillarScripps Research

Institute

(Continued on page 2.)

2005 NationalLecture

The 2005 NationalLecture, given byJoachim Frank at theAnnual Meeting inLong Beach, is nowavailable in video

online. To view the lecture visit:

http://www.netbriefings.com/event/ biophysics/Archives/ awards2005/

9650 Rockville PikeBethesda, Maryland 20814-3998

Tel: 301-634-7114; Fax: 301-634-7133E-mail: society@biophysics.orghttp://www.biophysics.org/

OfficersPresidentSteven M. BlockPresident-ElectBarry R. LentzPast-PresidentStephen C. HarveySecretaryRuth A. AltschuldTreasurerMordecai P. Blaustein

CouncilPaul H. AxelsonStephen M. BaylorChristopher L. BergerRichard G. BrennanClara Franzini-ArmstrongSharona E. GordonKathleen HallEric JakobssonLinda J. KenneyElizabeth A. KomivesBen de KruijffStephen L. MayoTobias MeyerRuth NussinovDiane M. PapazianNils PetersenEduardo RiosFrederick SachsSuzanne ScarlataPaul R. SelvinR. John SolaroLynmarie K. Thompson

Biophysical JournalEditor-in-ChiefRobert Callender

Executive OfficerRo Kampman

Publications ManagerDianne McGavin

Newsletter ProductionMichelle Norman

ProfilesMelody Williams

Public AffairsEllen Weiss

The Biophysical Society Newsletter(ISSN 0006-3495) is published six timesper year January/February, March/April,May/June, July/August, September/October, and November/December bythe Biophysical Society, 9650 RockvillePike, Bethesda, Maryland 20814-3998.Distributed to USA members and othercountries at no cost. Canadian GST No.898477062. Postmaster: Send addresschanges to Biophysical Society, 9650Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20814-3998.

Copyright © 2005 by the BiophysicalSociety. Printed in the United States ofAmerica. All rights reserved.

8 The Board approved San Francisco for the 2010Annual Meeting site.

8 Council agreed to continue subsidizing onsite child-care services at the Annual Meeting. The CPOWagreed to seek outside funding to reduce the Society'sfinancial exposure.

8 The Board approved and Council ratified the decisionto take all meeting management in–house by the SocietyOffice.

8 Council approved the Board decision to give the Federation of AmericanSocieties for Experimental Biology (FASEB) the required 12–month noticethat the Society plans on withdrawing its membership in FASEB.

8 Council approved the Education Committee's recommendation to beginoffering undergraduate student travel awards.

8 The International Relations Committee's requests to offer a one-year com-plimentary membership to travel grant awardees and to create a collabora-tion website with the Minority Affairs Committee were approved.

8 Society President Steve Block was entrusted with naming the chair of acommittee charged with developing a proposal for the publication of land-mark papers in biophysics.

8 The Board decisions to raise membership rates and extend the eligibilityfor early careers rates were approved by Council and presented at theBusiness Meeting. Early career rates will be available for five years beginningin 2006 and six years beginning in 2007. The regular member rate willincrease by $10 in 2006, to $160. The Early Career rate will increase by $5in 2006, to $55. Student rates will remain unchanged at $25.

(Continued from page 1.)

Member in the News

Antonio Scarpa, of Case WesternResearch School of Medicine andSociety member since 1979, has beennamed Director of the NationalInstitutes of Health Center forScientific Review (NIH/CSR).

Suzanne ScarlataSUNY, Stony Brook

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March/April 2005 Newsletter

Biophysical Society ReconsidersIts Membership in FASEB

The Biophysical Society (BPS) joined theFederation of American Societies forExperimental Biology (FASEB) in 1992.At the time, FASEB consisted of sevensocieties, and the BPS had 4,200 mem-bers and a staff of four. The ExecutiveBoard and Council believed that theSociety would benefit from joining anorganization that had just restructureditself to focus on public advocacy servicesfor its constituent societies. That restruc-turing included a lowering of FASEBdues, which were nearly $70 per societymember, to $10 per member. The moti-vation for lowering the dues was to keepexisting society members, attract newones like our own and the AmericanSociety for Cell Biology (ASCB), andeliminate the financial barrier to joiningfor larger societies like the Society forNeuroscience (SfN) and the AmericanSociety for Microbiology (ASM). The

Steven M. Block

President’s Message FASEB services, including printing,meetings management, IT, and mailing,which all societies had been required touse, were to become self-sufficient.Profits from those services, coupled withdues from constituent societies, were tofully support FASEB administration andpublic affairs efforts.

Starting in 1999, however, ourSociety began expressing concerns aboutFASEB's management, governance, andservices. We felt that services were deteri-orating, with little attention given to cus-tomer service, while fees were consistent-ly increased by 6% per year. Our con-cerns and suggestions for changes andimprovements were largely ignored.

This resulted in many societies,including our own, using better, less cost-ly services. Additionally, some societies,like our own, grew enough in member-ship, staff, and technological capabilitiesto realize efficiencies by bringing servicesin-house.

Throughout these years, on severaloccasions FASEB mid-year budget pro-jections appeared dire, resulting in feeincreases for services to societies. Oncethe year-end budgets were complete,however, the crises appeared to have beenoverestimated, yet no commensuratedecrease in fees to societies were realized.

A few years ago, FASEB initiatedplans to build a new addition to theFASEB building, at a projected$12,000,000 cost. At the time, our rep-resentatives to the FASEB Board andFinance Committee expressed concernthat the decision was being made withoutaccurate financial data. One of our con-cerns was that projected revenues werebased on rental rates far higher than com-

parable market rates, while resident soci-eties were being told that those rates weresubstantially below market rates. OverBPS objections, the building was built.

This past year, FASEB found that itsdebt/service ratio was in breach of itsbuilding loan agreement. Analysisshowed that FASEB services had beenlosing customers, its budget projectionshad been based on unrealistic numbers,its operations had been relying on incomefrom reserves, and its administration andgovernance had not been functioningwell.

Although the number of FASEBmember societies has now grown to 22,none of the new societies are large ones,and total representation remains atapproximately the same 69,000 membersas in 1992 (the ASCB left FASEB in1999). With membership dues revenuesstagnant, the BPS and other FASEBbuilding resident societies have borne thebrunt of the financial burden. In addi-tion to paying dues to FASEB, residentsocieties also have been paying high rentsand increased costs for incidental andcontracted services to pay for theincreased costs of administration andpublic affairs.

To address its business, governance,and communication problems, FASEBundertook a strategic planning processthis past year. In the interim, faced withincreasing rental rates, the BPS Officelooked for comparable space and discov-ered that by moving to another buildingit could realize substantial savings. Weprovided FASEB with our findings;

(Continued on page 4.)

4

Biophysical Society

FASEB agreed to prepare a counter pro-posal.

In October 2004, in an effort toaddress its financial problems, FASEBraised its dues for 2005, four months intoour own FYE 2005 budget. As a memberof FASEB, we were forced to pay theadditional 2005 dues for which we hadnot budgeted.

At the October 2004 BPS ExecutiveBoard meeting, the Board received thedraft FASEB strategic plan. Although theplan included five goals, one of which wasfinancial stability, it provided no imple-mentation plan other than increased rev-enue through increases in dues. Absent abusiness plan that provided both adecrease in expenses and sustainableincreases in revenues, the Executive Boardfelt that it was in the best interest of theSociety to give FASEB the requisite 12-month notice to withdraw its member-ship. The Society Board did not want tofind itself again next year forced to paysubstantial increased dues mid-waythrough our own fiscal year. A copy ofthe letter sent to FASEB can be found onthe adjacent page. The letter states thatthe Society is willing to consider rejoiningif FASEB develops a sustainable businessmodel.

The Board's decision was not takenwithout significant thought and discus-sion over many years. Many BPS mem-bers, serving as representatives to theFASEB Board and committees, haveinvested considerable personal time intrying to address FASEB's problems andhave been frustrated by FASEB's lack ofresponsiveness. The Biophysical Society,

(Continued from page 3.) now nearly 8,000 members strong, hasgrown into one of the larger FASEB soci-eties. Although it would have been easierto remain silent, the Board felt that it wasin a good position to make a strong state-ment and, perhaps, force FASEB toreassess its relationship and responsivenessto all its member societies. If FASEB isto survive, it must fundamentally changehow it does business, how it responds toits members, how it is governed, and howits administration and departments areheld accountable.

FASEB has taken several positivesteps. It has hired a capable ChiefFinancial Officer. Finally realizing that itsrental rates are not competitive, FASEBhas undertaken a reevaluation of its ratesand is preparing new proposals for all res-ident societies. The Office of PublicAffairs’ new Director of LegislativeRelations has been very willing to shareinformation and work with the societies.Some efforts have been made to cut costs.Much, much more needs to be done,however, before a real systemic changecan take place.

Several other FASEB societies havesubsequently written letters to the FASEBadministration expressing the same con-cerns we articulated, particularly the cur-rent reliance on dues increases, whichwould place many of the smaller societiesin financial jeopardy. It is clear thatFASEB can only be as strong as its mem-bers, the societies. FASEB cannot surviveat the expense of the societies.

At the recent meeting of the BPSCouncil in Long Beach, the full Councildiscussed this issue at length. Councilvoted unanimously to support theExecutive Board in its decision and in itsongoing efforts to help FASEB make

Annual Meeting Visa Workshop

Individuals interested in the US visapolicy post-9/11 were treated to anexcellent presentation by Wendy White,Director of the Board on InternationalScientific Organizations at the NationalAcademies of Science. White explainedthe visa process for scientists visiting orstudying in the United States, the short-comings of the system since the terrorattack of September 2001, and the stepsthe National Academies have taken onbehalf of scientists. She also was able toreport the newly announced changethat security clearances will now be validfor the length of a student's studies inthe United States. This change willallow students to travel to and fromtheir home country during their studieswith more ease. White's slide presenta-tion can be viewed on the BiophysicalSociety website at www.biophysics.org/visa-workshop.pdf.

effective changes, with the understandingthat a reversal of our decision will onlytake place if changes are made to theBoard's satisfaction.

The BPS leadership is committed tomaintaining open communication withthe Society membership, which it repre-sents, on all issues. We will keep youinformed of what happens with regard toFASEB throughout this coming year andwelcome your comments.

5

March/April 2005 Newsletter

OFFICERSPresident

Stephen C. HarveyGeorgia Institute of Technology

President-Elect Steven M. BlockStanford University

Past-President Yale E. GoldmanUniversity of Pennsylvania

Secretary Ruth A. AltschuldOhio State University Medical Center

Treasurer Mordecai P. BlausteinUniversity of Maryland School of Medicine

Executive OfficerRosalba Kampman

Biophysical Society, Bethesda

COUNCILStephen M. BaylorChristopher L. BergerRichard G. BrennanRobert M. CleggJulio M. FernandezClara Franzini-ArmstrongSharona E. GordonEric JakobssonLinda J. KenneyElizabeth A. KomivesBarry R. LentzStephen L. MayoTobias MeyerJustin E. MolloyEva NogalesDiane M. PapazianEduardo RiosFrederick SachsPaul R. SelvinLukas K. TammLynmarie K. Thompson

COMMITTEE CHAIRSAwards

W. David WilsonFinance

Mordecai P. BlausteinNominating

Linda J. KenneyProfessional Development

Jackie C. TanakaEarly Careers

Patricia L. ClarkEducation

Bernard M. Chasan, Co-ChairRichard Ludescher, Co-Chair

International Relations Ligia G. Toro de Stefani

Minority AffairsBarry R. Lentz

Professional Opportunities for Women (CPOW)Ishita Mukerji

PublicationsRobert L. Jernigan

Public AffairsMary Dicky Barkley, Co-ChairKen Dill, Co-Chair

BIOPHYSICAL JOURNAL Editor

Robert Callender

9650 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, Maryland 20814-3998

Phone: (301) 634-7114 Fax: (301) 634-7133E-Mail: society@biophysics.org Web: http://www.biophysics.org/

Paul Kincade, PhDFASEB PresidentOklahoma Medical Research FoundationImmunobiology Program825 NE 13th StOklahoma City, OK 73104-5097

November 11, 2004

Dear Dr. Kincade,

At its October meeting, the Biophysical Society Executive Board discussed its relationship with FASEB. Everyone agreedthat FASEB has been quite successful in its public affairs activities and achieved wide recognition as an advocate for thebasic biomedical scientist. Unfortunately, the Board also agreed that there have been and continue to be serious problemswith how FASEB is managed and how it interacts with and serves its member societies.

The two major problems are interrelated. First, FASEB has not been managed in a business-like manner. Second, therehave been problems with the transparency of the decision-making process.

Let me expand briefly on these concerns. Up until very recently, FASEB budgets did not reflect actual income and expen-ditures in the various cost centers. This has made it difficult to manage FASEB in a responsible manner, resulting in deficitsthat had to be covered by reserves. Also historically, votes have often been taken at Board meetings on proposals that havenot been circulated far enough in advance to permit our representatives to discuss them with the Biophysical Society lead-ership. While some progress has been made on these issues, real solutions are not yet in place.

The draft strategic plan recommendations, which we received several days before our Board meeting, did nothing to assuageour concerns that the problems would be addressed. It contains generalities, rather than proposing specific solutions.

The management and fiscal problems facing FASEB over the last six years have also required substantial investment of timeand effort from our representatives to the various FASEB committees and Board, as well as from our executive officer.Based on the communications we've received from FASEB and the draft strategic plan recommendations, our Boardremains unconvinced that any viable business plan has been developed or that less time, effort, or financial support will berequired from the societies in the future. The recommendations do not address the basic issue: the current FASEB coststructure is not sustainable without continued increased costs to the societies. Our Board cannot support an increase inFASEB dues in the absence of a sound business plan, and we have asked our representatives to FASEB to vote against theproposed dues increase.

FASEB exists to do collectively what individual societies cannot easily do alone. The Biophysical Society joined FASEB in1992 for its advocacy efforts. The doubling of the NIH budget, championed by FASEB, was a great accomplishment.More recently, some advocacy efforts have dispersed into areas that are not high priorities for our members, while somethat have been important to us have been either given minor attention or no attention at all. Biophysical Society and othermember societies have not been sufficiently involved in the decisions on the focus areas of FASEB’s public policy efforts.This has forced us to invest in our own public affairs efforts.

For these reasons, our Board has voted to terminate the Biophysical Society's membership in FASEB. In accordance withArticle V, Section I, of the FASEB Constitution and Bylaws, please consider this letter formal notification that our mem-bership to FASEB will end effective December 2005. If at anytime FASEB does develop a viable and comprehensive busi-ness plan, we would be happy to reconsider our membership in FASEB. Every member of the Biophysical Society Boardexpressed the hope that this can be accomplished soon enough that we will be able to reverse our decision on withdrawingat the end of 2005.

We wish FASEB to succeed, and we will continue in good faith during the next twelve months to work at helping FASEBaddress the many issues it faces.

Sincerely,

Stephen C. HarveyBiophysical Society President

6

a partial scholarship to Smith College.Although she started as a pre-med major,she graduated with a degree in chemistry.

After completing her PhD at Rice,Clare married Val Woodward, a biologyprofessor at Rice, and promptly moved tothe University of Minnesota (UM) whereVal had accepted a professorship. There,she worked without pay for a year and ahalf because of anti–nepotism policies.After completing a postdoc in chemistry,she took a non–tenure track position inthe medical school at UM. In 1972, shebecame the first woman at that institu-tion hired for a tenure track position. Sheremained in the Biological Sciencesdepartment at UM for her entire profes-sional career. Although the tenure-trackappointment of a woman was met withopposition by some older faculty in herdepartment, the support from youngerfaculty was heartening.

Clare Woodward's research is in thearea of hydrogen exchange and its rela-tionship to protein fluctuation and fold-ing, an interest she developed as a post-doc. She initially used a tritium exchangemethod, and in the mid-seventiesswitched to Nuclear Magnetic Resonance(NMR) to measure deuterium-hydrogenexchange at atomic level resolution.

Her research involves study of thekinetics of hydrogen-deuterium isotopeexchange of backbone NH hydrogens inproteins. As Woodward describes it, "ofparticular interest are amide hydrogensthat are buried in a folded protein, andthat undergo slow isotope exchange withsolvent hydrogens on the hour-to-daytime scale at neutral pH and room tem-perature. Slow exchange immediatelyimplies the existence of internal motionsof the folded state that expose buriedamide NH groups to solvent and therebyto isotope exchange. Although exchangeis a result of protein internal motility, thehydrogen exchange experiment does notusually yield the frequency or amplitudeof a motion, but rather a probability that

integration." Rice was still segregated,and Woodward felt she had plunged intoa "caldron of divisiveness and racism."After three different advisors, Woodwardfinished her PhD degree in the lab of thedepartment chair, Clark Reed, a propo-nent of integration who faced burningcrosses in his front yard. Through Reed,Woodward met Val Woodward, who laterbecome her husband, and who was alsoengaged in civil rights and the integrationof Rice.

Woodward was born in Houston,Texas, a few days after the attack on PearlHarbor. One of five children, she wasencouraged by her mother, BerniceKeating, to embrace cultural and intellec-tual pursuits. Her mother, who had beenthe youngest graduate of Baylor Collegein Waco in the 1920s, taught Biology andEnglish. Woodward's father, Carl, was anentrepreneur and salesman. Woodwarddescribes her mother as having many ofthe same traits she later admired in herhusband, namely, their "social outlookand respect for scholarship and teaching.They both cared about the disenfran-chised," she says. " and saw themselves asagents of social change and social justice."

Colleague and friend Mary Barkley,of Case Western University, sees those

traits in Clare aswell. "Clare hasincredibly insight-ful perspectivesand good judg-ment," Barkleynotes, "her integri-ty and courage,plus the patience

of Job, make her a very effective changeagent."

Woodward developed an interest inscience and academic achievement earlyin life, an interest that was fostered inlarge part by ther mother. Graduatingfrom high school at age 17 — in a class ofabout 100, of which a small percentagewent on to college — Woodward received

Biophysicist in Profile

Clare Woodward

After growing up in a segregated southerncity, Clare Woodward arrived in 1959 atSmith College, a place she describes as'liberating'. "It was so refreshing to besurrounded by women who had intellec-tual aspirations," she explains, "and byfaculty who encouraged us to achieve."

Smith provided a rich cultural mixthat included teachers like Leonard Baskinand Mary Ellen Chase, and heated discus-sions of the writings of Smith alumnaeBetty Friedan and Sylvia Plath. Just asimportant, Woodward met with socialdiversity and consciousness. The campuswas abuzz with analy-ses of the Holocaust,and many drew paral-lels to civil rights issues.Woodward notes that"this was the first timeI was introduced tosocial history and itsrelationship to the con-temporary scene."

After her mother's death during hersenior year, Woodward returned to herhome in Houston and began graduateschool at Rice University. The culturalshock couldn't have been more startling."Universities and other institutions werepolarized and changing fast," Woodwardsays, "and the overriding controversy was

“Universities and other insti-tutions were polarized andchanging fast," Woodward says,"and the overriding controver-sy was integration.”

Biophysical Society

7

from afar, she was encouraged by theesteemed John Edsall, whom she refers toas a "Great Grandfather" of the field.

Have things changed since she firststarted science? "I think professionaldoors opened up somewhat for womenand underrepresented minorities andthen closed again”, Woodward says. Shehas worked hard to ensure that diversityin science is fostered. "It's better for sci-ence to have diverse perspectives,"Woodward notes, "the way a question isframed and the way data are interpreted,are significantly influenced by theresearcher’s overview of the field. When ascientific field is primarily a white, maledominated club, it is constrained by auniform overview promulgated by a rigidhierarchy, and that's not good for sci-ence."

Woodward has won national andUM awards for her work in teaching andmentoring young people. In fact she saysthat she is most proud of the work she hasdone to help identify, mentor, encourage,coach, and open doors for younger peo-

ple, women, andunderrepresentedminorities at theundergraduateand graduatelevel. A formerundergraduate

advisee of Clare's, Va l e r i e Cop i é ,Professor of Chemistry at Montana StateUniversity, notes that "I do not think Iwould ever have gone to graduate school,or obtained a PhD in chemistry at MIT,if not for the crucial role Clare played inmy education and in my career."

Wayne Bolen, Professor of StructuralBiology/Biophysical Chemistry, Univ-ersity of Texas Medical Branch, first metClare when he joined the laboratory ofRufus Lumry in 1970. Bolen says that"Her enthusiasm for science is engagingand contagious, so she always has people

March/April 2005 Newsletter

Woodward and her associates alsoconclude that their results and analysesindicate that the part of the protein thatis least susceptible to exchange when the

protein is folded isalso the part tobecome organizedfirst during folding.This is embodied inthe hypothesis thatthe slow exchangecore is the foldingcore, sometimes nick-named last out, first

in. The mutually packed elements of sec-ondary structure that contain the slowestexchanging protons are the elements ofsecondary structure that are most likely tosample native configurations during fold-ing.

Woodward's work has had far–reach-ing impact. Bertrand Garcia-Moreno,Professor of Biophysics at John HopkinsUniversity, says that "the work in our lab-oratory (and in many others!) has beeninfluenced significantly by some of theconcepts that emergedfrom Clare's researchon hydrogen exchangeand protein dynamicsand folding. Clare wasone of the pioneers ofhydrogen exchangestudies with proteins by NMR. This wasvery exciting work at a very exciting timewhen protein chemists had to come toterms with the fact that proteins werehighly dynamic molecules."

In addition to her mother and thesupport and encouragement of her hus-band, Woodward credits a number ofothers with having had a lasting impacton her science. Among them are RufusLumry, emeritus professor at theUniversity of Minnesota and a Fellow ofthe Biophysical Society; the late GregorioWeber, who was very influential in pro-tein dynamics; and the late Linderstrom-Lang and his associate, Aase Hvidt. And

a given NH will exchange with solventhydrogens. This deceptively simplemeasurement of protein behavior opens awindow on complex dynamical proper-ties and associatedbiological func-tions, and monitorsa subset of these.Woodward and herassociates thinkthat the internalfluctuations of fold-ed proteins respon-sible for slowexchange of buried amides most likelyinvolve rapid, small motions (tenths ofangstroms) that occasionally allow tran-sient access, or penetration, of solvent toburied regions of the protein.

Jannette Carey, Professor ofChemistry, Princeton University, charac-terizes other aspects of Woodward'sresearch, "Based on her abundant andsound evidence collected by NMR, Clareproposed that faster amides exchangeindependently of the global unfolding ofthe protein, while, in the same experi-ment, the slowest amides usually marksecondary structure elements thatexchange only by cooperative unfoldingof the entire chain. Clare's proposal,known as the 'two process model', hasbecome a founding concept in our cur-rent understanding of protein hydrogenexchange and folding."

“Clare’s proposal, known asthe ‘two process model’, hasbecome a founding concept inour current understanding ofprotein hydrogen exchange andfolding”

(Continued on page 26.)

Clare and Val Woodward met at RiceUniversity during the socially turbulent 1960s.

“her integrity and courage,plus the patience of Job, makeher a very effective changeagent.”

8

lipids and NMR to show that ceramide-rich gel phases are present in POPCmembranes at 37 oC even at low concen-trations of ceramide. Joke Bouwstra usedx-ray and electron diffraction and FTIRto explore the structure of stratumcorneum (skin) lipids. By systematicallyomitting, or varying the chain length ofthe ceramides, Bouwstra revealed that thesignature double periodicity in the gelphase skin structure depends on CER 1and CER 9 in her sandwich model.

In the third talk, the property ofhydrophobic matching of the lipid thick-ness to several peptides was presented byHuey Huang, using x-ray and neutron dif-fraction and oriented circular dichroism.While longer and shorter lipids generallydeform to match the thickness of the pep-tide channels gramicidin and alamethicin,this was not the case for the syntheticWALP peptides. Huang calculated theenergetics of deformation during peptideinsertion into the bilayer.

After the coffee break, Robert Cantorrelated how his calculations regarding thelateral pressure profile could explain themechanism of action of anaesthetics.Not all anaesthetics act the same, andthose with long–chain alcohols do notwork, presumably since there is no differ-ential deformation across the bilayer.Antoinette Killian tested some of Cantor'sideas about the lateral pressure profileconcept as applied to association of theKcsA potassium channel using NMR andfluorescent microscopy. When she addedsmall solvent molecules together withlipids with small (PE) or large (PC) head-groups, she found that lipids stabilize thetetramer form of the KcsA channelagainst solvent-induced dissociation in away that depends on the overall shape ofthe lipids. Margie Longo discussed herresults on elastic properties and area whenshe added short chain alcohols of increas-ing chain length to SOPC GUVS bymicropipette aspiration, which relate tothe effects of anaesthetics on membranes

Biophysical Society

Transporter. The judging process hasbeen quite tedious for the students (andjudges) the past few years, and betterjudging mechanisms are being imple-mented for next year's SRAA competi-tion. Graduate students doing work onion channel permeation or membranetransport biophysics are strongly encour-aged to enter their posters for the compe-tition in Salt Lake City at the time ofabstract submission next October.

—David D. Busath, Chair

Membrane Structureand Assembly

Symposium

The 2005 Membrane Structure andAssembly Subgroup meeting, Relevance ofLipid Bilayer Structure and Dynamics forBiological Function, was held on Saturday,February 12, and was attended by astanding–room–only audience of over400.

All seven speakers described investi-gations that probed the relationshipbetween the physical properties of theunderlying lipid bilayer to cell membranefunction. The talks focused on the bilay-er properties of membrane ordering,hydrophobic matching, lateral pressureprofile, lipid shape and membrane curva-ture. The motivation for much of theresearch in this session was to understandthe structural and dynamical differencesbetween different lipids in order toaccount for the enormous lipid diversityin cell membranes. The old paradigm ofthe fluid mosaic model from the 70s isgradually being replaced by a membranemodel where lipid–lipid, lipid–proteinand protein–protein interactions playdominant roles.

The first two talks presented evi-dence for gel phase lipids in biomem-branes; Jenifer Thewalt used deuterated

Permeation and Transport

Symposium

The Permeation and TransportSubgroup, which is dedicated to biophys-ical analysis of molecular transport acrosscell membranes, held its third annualmeeting with another short (one hour)meeting at noon on Saturday, February12. The two speakers, H. Ronald Kabachand Robert Stroud, presented crystallo-graphic descriptions of two importantmembrane transporters from bacteria,lactose permease and the ammonia trans-porter. These crystal structures, whichwere published last year, provide chal-lenges to the computational and experi-mental communities. The lactose perme-ase is a 12-helix bundle that appears tooscillate between inward and outward fac-ing binding-site conformations. Theammonia transporter structure containscrystallographic ammonia positions in anapparently otherwise vacant pore.Fluorescent dye experiments indicate thatvesicles are basified by uptake, ruling outprevious cation transport theories. A setof Trp and His residues near the entrywayare postulated to strip ammonium of aproton as it enters.

Governance

The meeting was attended by about 300people. Next year's subgroup leadershipwas announced to be David Busath,Chair, Benoit Roux, Vice-Chair and ChairElect, and Wolfgang Nonner, Treasurerand Vice-Chair Elect.

SRAA Competition

The subgroup also presented one SRAAPoster Competition award to VeronicaSegarra, Yale University, for her work onthe molecular topology of the TheTopology of Vcx1p, a vacuolar H+/Ca2+

Exhanger in Saccharomyces cerevisiar

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and to viticulture. Increases in area/mol-ecule (including alcohol) and decreases inKc (the bending constant) occurred inthe order butanol> propanol> ethanol>methanol, and followed Traube's rule.

Finally, Michael Brown discussed hisflexible surface model in which the spon-taneous curvature of a monolayer actstogether with hydrophobic mismatch tostore energy within the bilayer, which canfacilitate protein function. Using plas-mon-waveguide spectroscopy and FRET,Brown obtained evidence for rhodopsinelongation and its interaction with the Gprotein transducin (Gt), especially in thepresence of DOPE recombinants. Brownintroduced a new concept, "spontaneouscurvature matching" of the lipid bilayerto the mean curvature of the lipid/waterinterface adjacent to the protein, whichbalances the lipid/protein solvationenergy.

Business Meeting

The subgroup’s annual business meetingwas held after the talks. In the future,abstract submission to our subgroup'stalks will be encouraged, since they arenow being published in the AbstractsIssue. A suggestion to reduce the numberof candidates for election of chairs to two,down from the current four or five, wasdiscussed. The new chair for 2006 isLeonid Chernomordik, and for 2007 it isFrances Separovic.

Other Activites

The subgroup dinner was held onSaturday night at l'Opera Ristorante.Twenty–six people attended and enjoyedthe opera singing and viticulture.

On Sunday evening Kalina Hristovaserved as the subgroup’s judge for theSRAA student poster competition. TheMSAS gave out two SRAA prizes of $100each, provided by the Biophysical Society.The recipients were Hiaki Ishii, of theDepartment of Chemistry, Stanford

self-assembles into spirals and onto lipidbilayers. Dynamin-decorated lipid tubesare formed that undergo a large confor-mational change upon GTP, additionresulting in membrane constriction. Thethree-dimensional structure of dynaminin the non-constricted and constrictedstates was determined by high-resolutionelectron microscopy and image process-ing methods. The results suggest that theconstriction is the consequence of a GTP-induced conformational change withinthe dynamin oligomer.

The second part of the symposiumwas devoted to the coupling between exo-cytosis and endocytosis or retrieval. TimRyan, of Weill Medical College of CornellUniversity, discussed three distinct mech-anisms: Full fusion followed by endocyto-sis of membrane elsewhere in the nerveterminal, reversible fusion pore opening,and exocytosis followed by endocytosis ofthe same vesicle. The presentation titlewas Exo-Endocytosis Coupling at NerveTerminals. Experiments using the pH-dependent synapto-pHluorin indicateexocytosis is followed by endocytosis witha time constant that increases with theextent of exocytosis and appears to be asaturable process that proceeds at a rate ofabout 1 vesicle/s. The re-acidificationoccurs with a time constant of about 4sand his experiments indicate that a rapidre-use of exocytosed vesicles is unlikely.Richard Tsien, of Stanford UniversityMedical Center, gave a presentation enti-tled Tipping the Balance between Modes ofVesicle Fusion and Retrieval. The experi-ments he reported show that the mem-brane marker FM dyes are releasedincompletely in single fusion events andindicate that some dye remains trapped.The conclusion from these experiments isthat at low stimulation frequencies mostexocytosis is non-classical (not full fusion)

University, and Bradley Akitake, of theDepartment of Biology, University ofMaryland. It has been an honor andpleasure for me to serve this year as theMSAS chair.

—Stephanie Tristram-Nagle, Chair

Exocytosis/Endocytosis

Symposium

The third Exocytosis and EndocytosisSubgroup Meeting on February 12 inLong Beach was organized by subgroupchair Manfred Lindau of CornellUniversity, Chair-Elect Meyer Jackson ofthe University of Wisconsin, past-chairKevin Gillis of the University of Missouri,Eileen Lafer of the University of Texas,and Guillermo Alvarez de Toledo of theUniversity of Seville, Spain.

The first presentation by ZhuanZhou, of Peking University, China, wasentitled Ca- independent but Voltage-dependent Exocytosis and Endocytosis in aSensory Neuron. He presented results fromDRG neuron somata where depolariza-tion induces exocytosis in the absence ofcalcium and which is apparently also notdue to intracellular Ca release. At highstimulation frequencies exocytosis in theabsence of calcium is followed by endocy-tosis in a dynamin-independent process.He also reported on Ca sparks in thesecells which can trigger small exocytoticresponses.

The next talk, Structural Properties ofDynamin Reveal a Mechanism forMembrane Constrictio, was presented byJenny Hinshaw, of NIDDK, NIH. Shedescribed structural features of the 100-kDa GTPase dynamin, which is involvedin the constriction and fission of clathrin-coated pits from plasma membrane dur-ing receptor-mediated endocytosis as wellas during membrane retrieval followingexocytosis in nerve terminals. Dynamin

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and that non-classical exocytosis is still very significant at high stimulation.Multiple fusion events of the same vesicleoccur in a 10s time interval.

Sir Bernard Katz Award

In memory of Sir Bernard Katz, whodeveloped the quantal hypothesis oftransmitter release and who was awardedthe Nobel Prize in Medicine orPhysiology in 1970, the subgroup pres-ents an annual award to an individualwho has made outstanding contributionsto the field of exocytosis and/or endocy-tosis.

The second Sir Bernard Katz Awardfor Excellence in Research in Exocytosisand Endocytosis was sponsored byHEKA Electronic, Axon Instruments,Rapp Opto Electronic, Till Photonics,Applied Scientific Instrumentation, ALAScientific Instruments, Sutter Instru-ments Company, Bruxton Corporation,NPI Electronic, Invitrogen, and Elsevier(TINS and TCB).

This year's award recipient wasWolfhard Almers from the VollumInstitute at Oregon Health and SciencesUniversity, in recognition of his outstand-ing biophysical studies of exocytosis andendocytosis, employing patch clampcapacitance measurements and fluores-cence imaging. His contributions includethe first electrophysiological characteriza-tion of single fusion pore conductances.In recent years, his application of totalinternal reflection fluorescencemicroscopy has provided much newinsight into the mechanisms and stimu-lated many studies in other laboratories.Almers presented his award lecture enti-tled How Separate are Exocytosis andEndocytosis?, taking up the theme of thepreceding presentations. He pointed outthat often vesicles retain shape and mem-brane proteins after exocytosis in PC12cells. FM dye experiments show that even

if fusion is transient, lipid exchangeoccurs between vesicle and plasma mem-brane. Cavicaptured vesicles can be re-exocytosed. The cavicapture of these vesi-cles appears to involve dynamin.

Following the symposium the sub-group enjoyed a Mexican Fajita BuffetGala Dinner at the Acapulco MexicanRestaurant y Cantina.

—Manfred Lindau, Chair

Membrane Bioenergetics

Symposium

The Membrane Bioenergetics Subgroupsponsored a full–day symposium onSaturday, February 12, 2005. The morn-ing symposium on the Mitochondria inDiseases and Therapeutics, organized andchaired by Shey-Shing Sheu and JohnLemasters, centered on the interdiscipli-nary approaches including biophysicalmethods to elucidate the important roleof mitochondria in disease and the devel-opment of drug treatments. Shey-ShingSheu opened the session with his presen-tation on Ca2+, ATP, and ROS: a mito-chondrial love/hate triangle, in which animbalance among the Ca2+ homeostasis,energy metabolism, and ROS generationis the origin of numerous diseases. PaulBrookes described the role of mitochon-dria in cardiac ischemia-reperfusioninjury. John Lemasters presented the mito-chondrial pathways to apoptosis andnecrosis. He identified VDAC as the"governator" because of its role in regulat-ing mitochondrial function. Mei-Jie Jouextended her work on mitochondrialDNA defects in pathogenesis, apoptosis,and therapeutics. The session ended withBrad Gibson's presentation on mitochon-drial proteomics and oxidative stress.

Just after the lunch break, the YoungBioenergeticist Award was presented toChristoph Maack, a postdoctoral fellow in

(Continued from page 9.) the laboratory of Brian O'Rourke at JohnsHopkins University Medical School.

The afternoon symposium inMitochondria in Cell Dynamics, organizedand chaired by Gyorgy Hajnoczky andCarmen Mannella, brought togetherinvestigators who study mitochondrialbiology and signaling in the context ofcellular function. The presentationsreported recent progress on mitochondri-al structure, biogenesis, fusion, fission,movement and death. Most of the stud-ies utilized advanced microscopic imagingapproaches.

Carmen Mannella used cryo-electrontomography to illustrate near-nativemitochondrial structure and describedhow proteins involved in membranefusion (Mgm1) and apoptosis (tBid) maybe involved in maintaining and remodel-ing cristae morphology.

Michael Yaffe described mechanismsof mitochondrial motility in the fissionyeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe.Mitochondria are tethered to micro-tubules by CLASP-like proteins, and trav-el via tubule polymerization/depolymer-ization. Moreover, specific positioning ofmitochondria relative to the mitotic spin-dle is important for proper distribution ofmitochondria between daughter cells.

Heidi McBride summarized the func-tion of GTPases that control mitochondr-ial morphology in mammalian cells.Fission and fusion depend on the activityof dynamin related protein 1 (Drp1) andits regulation by SUMO1.

Gyorgy Hajnoczky described mecha-nisms that allow individual mitochondriato interact with each other and to syn-chronize the activity of the entire mito-chondrial population. The interactionsrequire positioning of the organelles,which is achieved by anchorage to andmovement along the microtubules andmicrofilaments.

Nicolas Demaurex described the coor-dinated function of endoplasmic reticu-lum and mitochondria in intracellular

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March/April 2005 Newsletter

calcium signaling. The dynamic interac-tion between these organelles involvescontinuous remodeling of the mitochon-dria by fusion and fission.

Mariusz Karbowski spoke further onthe role of the mammalian mitochondri-al fission and fusion proteins Fis1, Drp1,endophilin B1and Opa1 in mitochondri-al morphology and apoptosis.

Business Meeting

The organizers would like to thank B&BMicroscopes, Olympus, PTI, UniversalImaging, Zeiss, Strathkelvin, and Shey-Shing Sheu for the generous financial sup-port. A special thanks is extended toGyorgy Hajnoczky for highly effectivefundraising and to Casey Kinnally for herfour years of service as treasurer. The newtreasurer, by acclimation, is LarryProchaska of Wright State University.

—Marco Colombini, Chair

Membrane Biophysics

Symposium

The Membrane Biophysics subgroupheld its annual symposium on Saturdayafternoon, February 12, in Long Beach,California. This year's symposium themewas Intracellular Ion Channels: Trafficking,Regulation, and Function. The session wasorganized and moderated by this year'ssubgroup chair, Deborah Nelson,University of Chicago. Presenters includ-ed David Clapham, Harvard MedicalSchool; Sergio Grinstein, Hospital for SickChildren; Terry Machen, University ofCalifornia, Berkeley; Victor Faundez,Emory University; Deborah Nelson,University of Chicago; Christine Bear,Hospital for Sick Children; and KevinFoskett, University of Pennsylvania. Thesubgroup thanks Debby Nelson for organ-izing an excellent symposium.

Business Meeting

At the business meeting following thesymposium, Nael A. McCarty, GeorgiaInstitute of Technology, was selected asChair-Elect. David T. Yue, JohnsHopkins University, is the current chair,and he is organizing the 2006 sympo-sium. Carol L. Beck, Thomas JeffersonUniversity, was elected Secretary-Treasurer. The subgroup thanks BillWonderlin, West Virginia University, pastSecretary-Treasurer, for his four years ofservice to the group.

Cole Award

The Cole Award dinner was held atSmooth's restaurant. Following dinner,the Cole Award was presented to BarbaraEhrlich, Yale University.

Twelve students attended the ColeAward dinner as guests of the subgroup.Guest student tickets for the dinner wereawarded by lottery. The subgroup plansto continue this tradition. Interested stu-dents should watch for newsletterannouncements to participate in nextyear's lottery.

—Carol L. Beck, Secretary-Treasurer

Molecular Biophysics

Symposium

The Molecular Biophysics subgroup helda symposium on Single MoleculeBiophysics. The program consisted of avariety of lectures aiming to provide anoverview of the current state-of-the-art ofthe methodology and giving an impres-sion of the widths of topics being studied.The program started with two lecturesgiven by Taekjip Ha, University ofIllinois, and Ben Schuler, University ofZürich, on the observation of dynamicalprocesses in biomolecules at the level of

individual molecules in vitro. First, enzy-matic processing of novel DNA/RNAstructures and their dynamic formationwas presented (Ha), followed by the pres-entation of protein folding dynamics bysingle-molecule FRET (Schuler). Thesymposium was continued by three lec-tures on single-molecule/single-particleanalysis in live cells given by Peng Chen,Harvard University, Thomas Schmidt,Leiden University, and Xiaowei Zhuang,Harvard University. It was shown thatindividual motors could be followed asthey stepped on microtubules within thecell (Chen), and how viruses and genedelivery vectors were transported throughthe cell (Zhuang). Analysis of the mobili-ty of individual signaling moleculesallowed the observation of the domainstructure of the cell membrane(Schmidt). On average more than 250participants followed the exciting lecturesand took part in the lively discussionsduring the session and in the break.

SRAA Competition

As outreach activity, our subgroup took abig share in the student award competi-tion. Thanks to our jurors, Ben Schuler,University of Zürich, and John van Noort,Leiden University, all 35 student presen-tations in this category were carefullyjudged. The winners selected wereRodolphe Katra, Case Western ResearchUniversity and John Mongan, Universityof California, San Diego.

Business Meeting

At the business meeting Peter Hinterdorferfrom the University of Linz, Austria, wasunanimously elected 2007 chair. CynthiaStauffacher, from Purdue University, isthe 2006 Chair. She is looking forward toseeing everyone again at next year’s meet-ing.

–Thomas Schmidt, Chair

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Minority Affairs

MARC and Student TravelGrant Awardee Reception

Each year the Biophysical Society, in col-laboration with the Minority Access toResearch Careers (MARC) office atFederation of American Societies forExperimental Biology (FASEB), fundstravel awards to support the participationof students and faculty/mentors at theBiophysical Society Meeting. Lydia Sohnand Stephen Mayo of the Minority AffairsCommittee (MAC) coordinated the 2005MARC award competition. The 14 win-ners of MARC awards were recognizedand honored on Saturday, February 12, inLong Beach at the Student Travel Grantand MARC Awardees Reception. StephenMayo from the Minority AffairsCommittee and Bernard Chasan, Co-Chair of the Education Committee, co-hosted the event. The winners were indi-vidually recognized and presented certifi-cates from the Biophysical Society andMARC/FASEB program. Each recipient,in turn, expressed his or her gratitude forthe opportunity to attend the BiophysicalSociety Meeting and briefly described theresearch that he or she would present atthe poster sessions.

Committee Meeting andFuture Plans

The Committee held its annual businessmeeting following the Awards Reception.Guests at the meeting included StevenBlock, Society President-Elect at the time;Bernard Chasan, Education CommitteeCo-Chair and creator and principal lec-turer of the biophysics summer course;Yvonne Cissel, BPS Staff; JohnHakizimana, Florida A&M Universitystudent; Mark Jack, assisting lecturer ofthe 2006 summer course; Ro Kampman,BPS Executive Director; and Alberto Roca,SACNAS liaison.

The Committee discussed plans forcontinuation and improvement of theHerman R. Branson Summer HonorsCourse in Biophysics, Case Studies in thePhysics of Life, developed in collaborationwith the National Society of BlackPhysicists (NSBP). The mini–course willbe expanded from the initial three–weekoffering at Hampton University in 2004to a five–week program at BostonUniversity in 2005, June 12–July 17.Students will also be matched with facul-ty mentors so that they can pursueresearch studies in a biophysics laboratoryduring the following academic year. Aproposal for future support of the sum-

mer school at Florida A&M Universityhas been recently submitted. Mark Jack,who will assist Bernard Chasan with the2006 course, is a member of the FloridaA&M physics faculty and the lecturerdesignated for the planned 2006 course.

Also discussed at the business meetingwere assignments of Committee members'responsibilities for the coming year. LuisMarky and Linda Kenney will representthe Biophysical Society at the annualSociety for Advancement of Chicanosand Native Americans in Science (SAC-NAS) meeting in Denver, Colorado,September 29–October 2, 2005. LydiaSohn and Alfred McQueen will be attend-ing the Annual Biomedical ResearchConference for Minority Students (ABR-CMS) meeting in Atlanta, Georgia,November 2–5, 2005. Colin Wraight,who organized a mini–symposium onmacromolecular biophysics at theNational Society of Black Physicists/National Society of Hispanic Physicists(NSBP/NSHP) meeting in Orlando,Florida, February 16–19, 2005, immedi-ately following the Long Beach meeting,will also organize the BiophysicalSociety's participation in the 2006NSBP/NSHP meeting in San Jose,California, February 15–18, 2006.Timothy Cross and Michael Chapmanfrom Florida State University joinedColin Wraight as lecturers at the 2005NSBP/NSHP mini–symposium.

Barry Lentz will oversee the 2005Herman R. Branson Honors SummerCourse in Biophysics and organize futuresummer courses if the aforementionedrequest for funding is successful. BarryLentz, Robert MacDonald, and WilmaOlson will work with the Society staff onthe outreach program, including theMinority Affairs Committee web pageand resource/research clearing house.

Stephen Mayo and Gabriel Montanowill coordinate the 2006 MARC travelaward competition and co-host theStudent Travel Grant and MARC

Six of the fourteen 2005 MARC Student Travel Awardees at the awards reception, with Steven C.Harvey, Past–President (far left).

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changes that are needed to finalize andmake the web page useful to bothstudents and faculty.

—Wilma Olson, Chair

Education The Education Committee sponsored apanel discussion on UndergraduateEducation which drew over a hundredpeople. We consider this to be an excel-lent turnout, particularly since a lunch-eon on biophysics in PrimarilyUndergraduate Institutions (PUI) washeld almost simultaneously. More thanjust numbers, we were impressed by thelevel of interest. A show of hands indicat-ed that a large fraction of the audiencewas either teaching an undergraduate bio-physics course at present, or planning toin the future. Presentations were given byPhil Nelson, University of Pennsylvania;Richard Ludescher, Rutgers; Jerry Smith,Georgia State University; and BernardChasan, Boston University emeritus. Afollow–up panel is planned for the 2006meeting in Salt Lake City.

—Bernard Chasan and Richard Ludescher,Co–Chairs

Early Careers

Meet & Greet atOpening Mixer

Expanding on last year's Valentine's Day-inspired 'Lonely Hearts' table, Early Careerscommittee members were again on hand tomeet early career attendees at the OpeningMixer and spread the word about earlycareers-related events happening at theMeeting. This year, a group of 16 extendedthe event into a self-assembled dinner atCalifornia Pizza Kitchen after the Mixer. Besure to look for this popular gathering in SaltLake City in 2006!

Postdoctoral & GraduateStudent Breakfasts

As customary, postdoctoral and graduate stu-dent attendees met with Early Careers com-mittee members during two separate buffetbreakfasts, sponsored by the Burroughs-Wellcome Foundation. At both breakfasts,attendees voiced their concerns related toearly career development, and offered sug-gestions for mechanisms by which the EarlyCareers Committee and the Society as awhole could facilitate early career transitions.A recurring theme was the need for moreinformation (on a variety of fronts), and inparticular better organization of existinginformation. For example, many attendeesuggestions corresponded to ongoing orcompleted projects of the Early Careers com-mittee (see box entitled "Did YouKnow?......Early Career Resources"), butinformation about these projects is oftenhard to find on the Society website. As aresult, a major focus of the Committee for2005/6 will be the consolidation, organiza-tion, and expansion of existing resources,rather than many new projects. Topics forthis focus include job negotiation skills, fel-lowship/grant opportunities for young inves-tigators, fellowship/grant writing advice, andmore efficient mechanisms to connect earlycareers members of the Society. Keep youreyes on this part of the Newsletter forupdates!

Early Career DevelopmentPanel Discussion

Committee member Sean Wilson, Universityof Mississippi, moderated the fourth of thesehighly popular panels, entitled Negotiatingthe Transition. Panelists included representa-tives from academia and industry.Discussion was lively on a variety of topics related to seeking, obtaining, and flourishingin an independent scientist position. Plansfor next year's panelists include representa-tives from a Primarily Undergraduate

Awardees Reception in Salt Lake City.Wilma Olson will lead the Committee asa whole in the development of a formalprogram for the 2006 Minority AffairsCommittee Forum.

The appointments of Ishita Mukerjiand Wilma Olson to the Committee wereapproved at the New Council meeting.

Forum

On Sunday, February 13, the MinorityAffairs Committee sponsored a forumentitled, New Society Resources forAttracting Minorities to Biophysics. BarryLentz reported on the first Herman R.Branson Summer Honors Course inBiophysics, Case Studies in the Physics ofLife, held at Hampton University in 2004and provided an update on the course tobe held in 2005 at Boston University.Jean Chin, NIH-NIGMS Division ofCell Biology and Biophysics, presented avaluable survey of NIH resources avail-able for the training and support ofminority students in the biomedical sci-ences. James Cassatt, Director, NIH-NIGMS Division of Cell Biology andBiophysics, spoke enthusiastically aboutthe biophysics summer course. BarryLentz also presented a draft of theMinority Resources web site and receiveduseful feedback from members of theaudience, including representatives of sev-eral Biophysics Training Programs, on

March/April 2005 Newsletter

Additional 2005 MARC Travel Awardees at theawards reception.

(Continued on page 14.)

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Biophysical Society

information can be obtained by visitingthe Biophysical Society website.

Career Panel Discussion

The Panel Discussion on Starting in aNew Position: Managing People was a greatsuccess with an attendance of close to 100people. The discussion was moderated byveteran scientist and former BiophysicalSociety president, Mary Barkley. NormaAllewell, Dean of the College of Arts andSciences, University of Maryland, andMark Meyer, Laboratory Chief of Cellularand Molecular Neurophysiology, NIH,provided perspectives from more sea-soned investigators, while Susan Green,Millenium Pharmaceuticals provided theindustry perspective, and Mike Varnum,University of Washington, representedthe perspective of a tenure–track investi-gator. Each participant offered excellentsuggestions on how to deal with difficultstudents and how to foster lab communi-ty. The consensus was to maintain a levelof professionalism at all times and keepthe lines of communication open.Routine assessment and establishingexpectations were also seen as importantfactors in maintaining a productive workenvironment.

Career Luncheon

Whether a postdoctoral fellow or a youngor seasoned investigator, skills in writing agrant and in negotiations are both key toa successful career in biophysics. Thesewere the topics of discussion at the Careerluncheon sponsored by CPOW, whichwas attended by over 70 scientists at alllevels. Biophysical Society membersRobert Clegg, Kathy Giangiacomo, SteveHarvey, Suzanne Scarlata, Lynn MarieThompson, and Andrea Yool, who haveserved on study sections and have well-established research programs, provided

Institution (PUI), patent law, and sciencewriting/editing.

Grant Writing Workshop -Jointly Sponsored with PublicAffairs Committee

A capacity crowd met with representativesfrom the NIH and NSF, led by Jean Chin(NIH) and Kamal Shukla (NSF), toreview grant writing dos and don'ts, witha special emphasis on writing and submit-ting a first proposal. Highlights of theworkshop were a mock study sectionreview of three proposals, comparisonsand contrasts between the funding prior-ities and procedures at NIH and NSF,and a steady stream of questions from theaudience. Funding agency representativesgenerously remained after the workshopto answer numerous one-on-one ques-tions. For additional information, seepage 22.

Placement Center

Notable changes to the on-site Center for2005 were a small increase in fees foremployers listing jobs, and two self-servecomputers for entering CV/resume andjob description information. The extracomputers/network connections, fin-anced in large part by the increased feeschedule, streamlined the on-site Centerregistration process. Once again, EdBocko returned to the Center to give hishighly popular series of career develop-ment workshops and one-on-one consul-tations throughout the meeting.Remember: the online Placement Service,where Society members can post theirCVs at no cost (job advertisers pay a smallnominal fee) operates year-round (learnmore at http://www.biophysics.org/placement).

On-site Child Care – a JointProject with CPOW

For the first time in recent memory, theAnnual Meeting offered onsite childcareat the Hyatt Hotel, adjacent to theConvention Center. Financial supportfrom the Society meant that studentmeeting attendees were able to use thefacility for half price (postdoctoral atten-dees were charged 75%). For additionalinformation, see the CPOW reportbelow.

—Patricia L. Clark, Chair

CPOW Report

Childcare

CPOW was very active at the 49thAnnual Meeting, sponsoring panel andluncheon discussions on a variety of top-ics including lab management, negotia-tions and grant writing. WithBiophysical Society staff, CPOW alsoworked to bring childcare to the meetingfor the first time. Childcare was providedby an outside agency, Kiddie Corp. Tenfamilies participated for a total of 11 chil-dren with ages ranging from infant to 8years old. For 75% of the families, thechildren's program offered by KiddieCorp did make a difference in their abili-ty to attend the meeting. Everyone whoused the service was very happy with itand said that they would use it again. Thekids liked it, too — many of them did notwant to leave when it was time to go backto Mom and Dad! Given the success ofthis first year's offering, the BiophysicalSociety will offer childcare at the 50thannual meeting in Salt Lake City.CPOW along with the Society staff areworking hard to find corporate sponsorsto substantially reduce the price. More

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March/April 2005 Newsletter

International Biophysics Congressin Montpellier, France August27–September 1, 2005. For appli-cation and rules, visithttp://worldbiophysics2005.sfbio-phys.org/ travel.html.

The International Relations Comm-ittee also oversees other opportunitiesincluding:

8 Funding for International Coursesin countries in need.

8 Travel grants for non-US graduatestudents from countries in need to visitlabs of Society members.

8 Travel awards to the BiophysicalSociety Annual Meeting. For applicationguidelines visit: http://www.biophysics.org/opportunities/international.htm#visiting.

8 Students from countries in need(low-, lower-middle-, upper-middle-income countries as per the World BankList) pay a special $10 membership rate.New, regular members from countries inneed pay a one–year, one time $50 rate.Visit http://www.biophysics.org/members/.

—Ligia Toro de Stefani, Chair

invaluable insight into these topics. Ingeneral, everyone had something to learnfrom these discussions. For grant writing,some of the most salient points includedobtaining preliminary data, identifyingappropriate funding sources and someagencies outside of government ones,addressing controversies in the fieldhead–on and having parallel specificaims, especially for first–time investiga-tors. For negotiating, discussions cen-tered on items needed when starting as anew assistant professor and strategies forsuccessful negotiation at any career stage.From both discussions, it was clear thatknowing the facts is key to successfulnegotiation. Being a team player andmaking your requests reasonable and inkeeping with your needs were also seen tobe important. Look for expanded articleson the art of negotiation and grant writ-ing from CPOW in upcoming newslet-ters. CPOW looks forward to sponsoringmore luncheon and panel discussions atthe 50th Annual Meeting — forward anysuggestions for topics to KathyGiangiacomo, new CPOW chair(giang@unix.temple.edu).

—Ishita Mukerji, Chair

International Relations

Awardee Luncheon

The International Relations Committeegreeted the 2005 International TravelAwardees at a luncheon on SundayFebruary 13. The 17 grantees, fromthroughout the world, all expressed theirgratitude to the Biophysical Society forthe opportunity this program brings tointernational students and biophysicistswith economic constraints to attend theSociety Annual Meeting.

New Initiatives

The International Relations Committeekeeps working to attract members fromthe international community to theSociety and has launched two new initia-tives:

8 Besides receiving complimentaryregistration to the meeting, theInternational Travel Awardees will receiveone year complimentary membership tothe Society.

8 Together with the Minority AffairsCommittee, the International RelationsCommittee will work on an InternationalCollaboration site to encourage collabora-tions of Society members with biophysi-cists in countries in need.

Opportunities

Through the International AffairsCommittee, the Society and the U.S.National Committee (USNC) for theInternational Union of Pure and AppliedBiophysics (IUPAB) will provide travelawards to the IUPAB/EBSA

2005 International Travel Awardees pictured: Daniel Fraiman Borrazas, Sebastian Brauchi,Svetlana Khaymina, Juliana Cortines, Svetlana Baoukina, Olga Ostrumova, Yen Sun, CesarCardenas, Piotr Bednarczyk, Rosen Ugrinov, Allen Kaasik, Lia Pietrasanta, Gregor Zupancic, TatianaHushcha, Tatiana Demina, Luis Chaves, and Cecilia Bouzat (not pictured is Mahnaz Amini).Committee members pictured: Ligia Toro de Stefani (Chair), Cristobal dos Remedios, CatherineRoyer, Frederic Mandel, Anthony Watts.

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Fourteen Students Receive 2005 Student Research Achievement Awards

Each year at the Annual Meeting theBiophysical Society honors graduatestudents for their achievements in bio-physics, by presenting them with aStudent Research Achievement Award(SRAA). These awards are given to thegraduate students who make the bestposter presentations in the StudentResearch Achievement Awards PosterCompetition, in each of the subcate-gories represented by the subgrouptopics.

Members from each of the eightsubgroups and Education Committeereviewed and judged the postercompetition. Students gave 5–10minute presentations of their posters,focusing on procedures, techniques,results, and their consequences. The students fielded a number of questions from the judges, in range from the general tothe highly specific. The poster presentations were a pedagogical exercise, and as such, conversation was at the heart of thecompetition.

Out of the 108 submissions, 14 winners were selected to receive monetary awards. The Biophysical Society extendscongratulations to the winners of the Student Research Achievement Awards competition listed below:

Bioenergetics Subgroup Membrane Structure & Assembly SubgroupJiunn Heng, University of Illinois Bradley Akitake, University of Marlyand, College ParkLing Qin, Michigan State University Chiaki Ishii, Stanford University

Biological Fluorescence Subgroup Molecular Biophysics SubgroupSejin Han, University of Maryland, College Park Rodolphe Katra, Case Western Research UniversityBenedict Hebert, McGill University John Mongan, University of California, San Diego

Exocytosis/Endocytosis Subgroup Motility SubgroupWonchul Shin, University of Missouri Xiaoying Lu, University of Iowa

Bridget Salzameda, University of NevadaMembrane Biophysics SubgroupAnn Marie Stanley, Johns Hopkins Univeristy Permeation Transport SubgroupWenyi Zhang, Stony Brook University Veronica Segarra, Yale University

SRAA winners pictured (from left to right): Ling Qin, Sejin Han, Wonchul Shin, Ann Marie Stanley,Bradley Akitake, Chiaki Ishii, Veronica Segarra, with Steven C. Harvey, Past-President. (Not pic-tured: Jiunn Heng, Benedict Hebert, Wenyi Zhang, Rodolph Katra, John Mongan, Xiaoying Lu,Bridget Salzameda).

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March/April 2005 Newsletter

2005 Undergraduate Student Symposium and Poster Session

The Annual Meeting of the Biophysical Society has grown substantially in both attendance and abstract submissions overthe last several years. Undergraduate students who attend may be intimidated by the large scope and breadth the AnnualMeeting, as seen in 6,000 attendees and over 3,000 abstract submissions. Thus, each year the Education Committee pres-ents the Undergraduate Student Symposium. This symposium serves as a smaller meeting within the context of the largermeeting, by allowing undergraduate students the opportunity to participate in Annual Meeting activities, but within a groupof their peers and advisors in a more intimate setting.

This year's Undergraduate Symposium opened with two talks in Emerging Topics in Biophysics. Cathy Royer, from Centrede Biochimie Structurale in Montpellier presented Pressure Denaturation of Proteins, and Achillefs Kapanidis, from theUniversity of Oxford, presented Single Molecule Biophysics. The Emily Gray Award Lecture followed, presented this year byBarry Lentz, from University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. His talk was entitled Why Did Nature Design Membranes withSo Many Lipid Species? The symposium ended with a poster session that was open only to undergraduates, giving thestudents an opportunity to present their own work to a smaller audience of their peers.

The Society would like to extend thanks to the under-graduate students listed below for presenting posters in theUndergraduate Poster Session.

Shari Anthony, University of Maryland, Baltimore CountyBrady Atwood, Brigham Young UniversityVioleta Beleva, Kent State UniversityLacramioara Bintu, Brandies UniversityCourtney L. Brown, Oakwood CollegeDorothy Dederko, University of California, San DiegoKrisna Duong-Ly, Swarthmore CollegeShawnalea Frazier, Kansas State UniversityCarolyn Hemmer, Florida State UniversityYee Seir Kee, Luther CollegeAndrew Kohlway, University of Maryland, Baltimore CountyMegan McDonald, Davidson CollegeStephen Okaine, Syracuse UniversityJared Pearson, Brigham Young UniversityMegan Prasse, Illinois State UniversityEric Richardson, Brigham Young UniversityDavid Sauer, Purdue UniversityJill Savla, Washington UniversityJason Schmucker, Goshen CollegeTilmann Schober, Georgetown UniversityPatrick Shea, University of HoustonLindsay Sicks, Illinois Wesleyan UniversityWilliam Terrell, Marshall University

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March/April 2005 Newsletter

LL O N GO N G BB E A C HE A C H ,,CC A L I F O R N I AA L I F O R N I A 20052005

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Education Committee SeeksExperiments

The Education Committee, noting a seeming lack of suit-able experiments for an undergraduate biophysics course,wants to address this problem. If you have developed,used, or otherwise know of a suitable experiment, weinvite you to allow the Education Committee to post iton its website. Copyrighted material will be so labelled.The experimental write–up and any explanatory notesshould be sent as a Word document to Richard Ludescher(ludescher@AESOP.Rutgers.edu), Co-Chair of theEducation Committee. We hope to generate a collectionof experiments of varying cost and sophistication.

Did You Know?......Early CareerResources at www.biophysics.org

General Informationhttp://www.biophysics.org/committees/resources.htm

Student Travel Awardshttp://www.biophysics.org/opportunities/travel.htm

Grant and Fellowship Information: Links to FundingOpportunities and Writing Tipshttp://www.biophysics.org/opportunities/grants.htm

Peer Contact Database – Find someone to talk to at an institution of interest, or sign up to be contacted!http://www.biophysics.org/committees/early-careers.htm

International Contact Databasehttp://www.biophysics.org/mentor.htm

Placement Service - Browse the online job listings, or upload your CV!http://www.biophysics.org/placement/

Careers in Biophysicshttp://www.biophysics.org/education/biophyscareers.htm

How to Get Started in Another Country – An article by Maurits de Planquehttp://www.biophysics.org/abroad.pdf

Ask Professor Sarah Bellum – Archive of early career advice columnshttp://www.biophysics.org/education/biophyscareers.htm#sb

The Next Step – A bi-monthly e-newsletter with links toother early career resources and articles, plus original con-tent. Email drita@biophysics.org to subscribe.

Interested in Starting a Subgroup?

Is your specific area of biophysics not represented by thecurrent list of Society subgroups? Starting a new subgroupis easy. All that is required is a petition, signed by at least100 current, regular Biophysical Society members, a set ofbylaws, and final approval by Council. Subgroups holdscientific symposia and business meetings each year on theSaturday preceding the start of the Annual Meeting. Theyalso sponsor several awards, including the StudentResearch Achievement Awards (SRAA) for undergraduateposters. Membership to the Society's subgroups is open toall Society members.

Current Subgroups:

BioenergeticsBiological FluorescenceExocytosis/EndocytosisMembrane Biophysics

Membrane Structure & AssemblyMolecular BiophysicsMotilityPermeation/Transport

For more information, please visit our website atwww.biophysics.org

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March/April 2005 Newsletter

Nominee______________________________________________________________________________________

Present Title/Department/Institution ________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

Nominee Biographical Data: Highest degree ____________________________ Year received __________________

Discipline/Field ________________________________________________________________________________

Institution where degree was received ________________________________________________________________

Research Interests & Experience ____________________________________________________________________

Previous Biophysical Society experience (Officer, Executive Board, Council, Editor, Committee Chair or Member,Subgroup

Chair, etc.) ____________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

The undersigned members of the Biophysical Society hereby nominate ____________________________________

for the office of ________________________________________________________________________________

Signature Typed Name

1. ________________________________________________ ________________________________________2. ________________________________________________ ________________________________________3. ________________________________________________ ________________________________________4. ________________________________________________ ________________________________________5. ________________________________________________ ________________________________________6. ________________________________________________ ________________________________________7. ________________________________________________ ________________________________________8. ________________________________________________ ________________________________________9. ________________________________________________ ________________________________________

If I am elected to the office of __________________________, I agree to serve and to attend Council meetings asdescribed in Article VIII of the Bylaws. My reason for running for the office is ________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

Signature: __________________________________________ Date:____________________________________

Biophysical Society Ballot by Petition Form

Mail or fax completed form to:Biophysical Society

9650 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20814-3998Fax: 301-634-7133

Society bylaws allow for members to run for Council by petition. To be included in the 2006 ballot, completed forms must be received in the Society Office by October 1, 2005. Signatures must be of current,

regular Society members.

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the debt, etc) comprise 67 percent of thebudget and defense discretionary spend-ing makes up the remaining 18 percent ofthe Federal budget.

The chart below, shows current fund-ing by agency, as well as the amountPresident Bush has requested for nextyear. Additional budget information byagency follows.

NIH: Individual NIH Institutes willreceive only about a 0.4 percent increase,once the money is distributed. The NIHincrease is below the 3.2 percent that isrequired to maintain pace with biomed-ical inflation.

NSF: If Congress appropriates at thePresident's requested level, the FY 2006budget will still be less than the $5.652million that Congress appropriated in FY2004. A portion of the increase for 2006is for the NSF taking over responsibilityfor funding ice breaking activities fromthe U.S. Coast Guard. During a hearingon the Hill, Arden Bement, the NSF direc-

Biophysical Society

Public Affairs

Annual Meeting Activities

Over 300 people attended the grant writ-ing workshop, How To Write Your FirstProposal, co-sponsored by the PublicAffairs and Early Career committees dur-ing this year's Annual Meeting. KamalShukla, the program director forMolecular Biophysics at the NationalScience Foundation provided an overviewof the grant application process at hisagency, while Jean Chin, the programdirector in the Division of Cell Biology &Biophysics, NIGMS at the NationalInstitutes of Health, explained the NIHprocess and rating system.

For most of the session, participantswere treated to mock review panelsdemonstrating how grants are rated, andhighlighting the pitfalls to which manyfirst–time investigators succumb. NIHemployees participated in the mockreviews, with NSF representatives provid-ing input on how the process differs attheir agency. Plenty of time was left forparticipants to ask questions. The NIHpanel members were James Cassatt,Catherine Lewis, Charles Edmonds, andDon Schneider. Mona Norcum represent-ed the NSF along with Shukla.

If you missed the session, the slidesfrom the presentation are available on theBiophysical Society website. Additionalinformation also can be found on boththe NIH (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/grant_tips.htm) and NSF(http : / /www.ns f .gov/pubs/gpg/nsf04_23/) websites on how to prepare asuccessful grant application. The NIHwebsite offers webcasts of mock reviewpanels similar to those included in theAnnual Meeting event. In addition, NSF

will be holding their next regional grantwriting conference April 4–5 in Oakland,California. More information on theworkshop can be found ath t t p : / / w w w. n s f . g o v / b f a / d i a s /policy/outreach.jsp.

President's Budget Requestfor 2006

President Bush submitted his FY2006budget to Congress on February 7, 2005.Overall, the President is proposing anincrease of 2.1% for discretionary pro-grams. However, the President actually isproposing a cut of 0.6% for non-defense/non-homeland security discre-tionary funding. Defense and homelandsecurity programs are receiving the bulkof the overall increase in discretionaryprograms.

The President has said that these cutsare necessary to meet his target of halvingthe deficit within four years.Nevertheless, his cuts are affecting just 19percent of the budget. Mandatory spend-ing (social security, Medicare, interest on

Agency2004Enacted

2005 Enacted

2006President’sRequest

% Changefrom 2005 to 2006

NIH27.8 28.4 28.6 0.7%

NSF5.600 5.5 5.6 2.4%

DOE Officeof Science 3.5 3.6 3.46 -3.9%NASA

15.4 16.1 16.5 2.4%NIST ATPProgram .169 .140 0 -100%NISTLaboratories .331 .373 .421 12.7%

U.S. Budget for Discretionary Non–defense R & D(in billions)

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March/April 2005 Newsletter

tor, indicated that the agency wouldincrease success rates during these tightfinancial times by soliciting grant applica-tions only for programs essential to majoragency priorities and focusing those solic-itations sharply. The goal is to attractfewer proposals, thus improving successrates. (In some cases, the success rate hasbeen as low as 10 for solicited proposals.)

DOE: The Department of Energy's(DOE) Office of Science would see itsbudget fall 4%, and environmental R&Dprograms would decline across the board.Multi-agency initiatives in nanotechnolo-gy, IT, and climate change science wouldall decline in funding.

NASA: The National Aeronautics andSpace Administration (NASA) wouldcontinue to receive additional resourceseven though most other nondefenseR&D funding agencies would see theirfunding decline or fall well short of infla-tion. Under the FY 2006 budget pro-posed by President Bush, NASA wouldget $16.456 billion, an increase of 2.4%over FY 2005 levels.

Security Clearances forScientists Extended

In February, the State and HomelandSecurity Departments announced thatsecurity clearances provided to interna-tional students will now be valid for thelength of a student's studies in the UnitedStates, not to exceed four years. In addi-tion, foreign scientists will have theirclearances extended from one year to fouryears. This change will allow students totravel to and from their home countryduring their studies with more ease. TheVisas Mantis program, as the screeningprocess is known, often resulted inlengthy delays in the past.

In addition to the extension of valid-ity for Visas Mantis clearances, theDepartment of State has made severalother improvements in the Visas Mantisprogram in the past year. By increasingstaffing, improving systems and workingwith interagency partners, theDepartment has been able to decrease theaverage time to obtain a Visas Mantisclearance to less than 14 days.

NIH Announces Plan forPublic Access to NIH-fundedResearch Articles

On Thursday, February 3, the NIHreleased its plan to provide public accessto NIH-funded research articles. NIH-funded investigators will be asked to sub-mit voluntarily to PubMedCentral theauthor's final manuscript once a journalhas accepted it for publication. Therequest is for any article supported inwhole or in part with direct costs fromNIH. PubMedCentral is the NIH digitalrepository of full-text, peer-reviewedresearch journals.

The final plan allows authors to indi-cate when the manuscript can be madeavailable to the public within the nextyear. This is a change from the proposedpolicy NIH released in the fall, whichasked that the articles be made publicafter six months.

Stakeholders on both sides of theissues are expressing concern about thepolicy. Those that wanted immediate,free access to all NIH-funded researchthink the policy does not go far enough.Those that are concerned about the via-bility of scientific journals when the infor-mation is freely available onPubMedCentral are concerned thatauthor's can choose to have the articlesavailable immediately, which could affectsubscriptions.

In a document entitled, Policy onEnhancing Public Access to ArchivedPublications Resulting from NIH-FundedResearch, the NIH explains the details ofthe plan and also provides answers to thequestions received during the publiccomment period. This document, alongwith a questions and answers section, canbe found at http://www.nih.gov/about/publicaccess/index.htm. The policy goesinto effect May 2, 2005.

NIH Announces StrictConflict of Interest Policy forEmployees

On February 1, the NIH announced itsnew conflict of interest policy for employ-ees. Facing pressure from Congress, EliasZerhouni stated that the tough regula-tions are necessary to preserve public con-fidence in science and the NationalInstitutes of Health. The new regulationfocuses on outside activities, financialholdings, and awards for all NIH employ-ees. The changes come a year after theLos Angeles Times ran a story aboutlucrative outside consulting deals held byNIH employees with private companies.A series of Congressional hearings fol-lowed, turning up several unreportedpaid consulting relationships held byNIH employees.

Under the new rules, all NIHemployees are prohibited from engagingin certain outside employment with: 1)substantially affected organizations,including pharmaceutical and biotech-nology companies; 2) supported researchinstitutions, including NIH grantees; 3)health care providers and insurers; and 4)

(Continued on page 24.)

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related trade, professional or similar associations. Investments in organizationssubstantially affected by the NIH, such asthe biotechnology and pharmaceuticalindustries, are also not allowed for thoseemployees who are required to file publicand confidential financial disclosurereports, and are restricted for other staff.

In a town hall meeting the day afterthe announcement, employees expressedtheir outrage at the new regulations.Employees have also resurrected theAssembly of Scientists, an internal NIHemployee's group, to represent their con-cerns to the NIH leadership. TheAssembly argues that the rules couldadversely affect recruiting, with the bestscientists choosing to work elsewhere.The Assembly is working on a proposalmore in line with those a blue ribbonpanel recommended to Zerhouni lastsummer. Those recommendations urgedZerhouni to ban consulting by seniorofficials, but allowed limited consultingby other NIH employees.

The rules could also affect scientificsocieties such as the Biophysical Society.NIH scientists would have to get permis-sion to serve on the Board or as an editorfor such bodies. As the rules are current-ly written, each scientist has to get per-mission on a case-by-case basis.

This is an interim final regulation,which means that it went into effectimmediately and stays in effect unlesschanged by subsequent regulations. Asnoted in the new regulation, HHSintends to evaluate certain provisions inthe rule, including those regarding out-side activities and financial holdings,within the next year.

The objectives under Goal 1 indicatethat the NIBIB is cognizant of the need tobalance its portfolio between basic researchand the development and application ofemerging technologies. In funding the"development and application of emergingtechnologies," we hope the NIBIB will seizethe opportunity to fund high risk researchthat has the potential to have big pay-offs inbiology, but may take 5-20 years before thosepay-offs are realized. When speaking aboutthe Roadmap for Biomedical Research, Dr.Zerhouni has stated that the NIH shouldhave a broad range of investments in itsportfolio, including those that could pay offbig, or may not pay off at all. The NIBIBshould ensure that its portfolio include highrisk research."

Roundup:

On the Hill: The House AppropriationsCommittee reorganized to reduce thenumber of panel subcommittees from 13to 10. The panels approve the annualbudgets for the agencies under their juris-diction, prior to sending those budgets tothe floor for a full vote of the House. Thereduction in panels means that someCongressmen have had to relinquish theirchairmanships. The juggling of commit-tees also means that agencies will havenew "competition" for dollars. Each sub-committee is allocated a certain amountof money for the programs in its jurisdic-tion; the subcommittee then doles thatout.

The three eliminated subcommitteesare: 1) the Veterans Administration/Housing and Urban Development(VA/HUD) subcommittee; 2) theLegislative Branch subcommittee; and (3)the District of Columbia subcommittee.Frank Wolf (R-VA), Chairman of the

For further information, visit: NIHConflict of Interest Information andResources (http://www.nih.gov/about/ethics_COI.htm).

BPS comments on NIBIBStrategic Plan

The NIBIB released a five–year strategicplan and solicited comments from thecommunity. The Biophysical Societysubmitted the following comments, reit-erating the concerns of the Bridging theSciences Coalition in funding basicresearch:

"The Biophysical Society applaudsNIBIB for recognizing the critical role inter-disciplinary research and the physical sci-ences play in biomedical research. We areheartened to see that the Institute is priori-tizing research at the interface of the life andphysical sciences. The mission of the insti-tute is greater than just support for biomed-ical imaging, and the NIBIB rightly high-lights that in this strategic plan.

The strategic plan specifically mentionsthat "some important areas of research in theengineering, physical, and imaging scienceshave not been traditionally well representedat the NIH." While dedicating a majorityof the Institute's resources to support thisunderrepresented community is a positivestep towards bringing those communitiesinto NIH, we encourage the NIBIB torespect the culture and norms of these com-munities. To achieve this goal, the NIBIBmust set up review panels that include engi-neers, chemists, and physicists to reviewgrant proposals in those fields. We alsoencourage the Institute to clarify that the"underrepresented communities" includemathematics and computational science, inaddition to the engineering, physical andimaging sciences.

(Continued from page 23.)

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newly created Subcommittee on Science,State, Justice, and Commerce, andRelated Agencies, will have jurisdictionover the National Science Foundationand NASA. These agencies were previ-ously in the VA/HUD subcommittee.Ralph Regula (R-OH), Chairman,Subcommittee on Labor, Health andHuman Services and Education(L/HHS), will continue to have jurisdic-tion over NIH.

On the Senate side, the Veterans'Affairs-Housing and Urban Develop-ment Subcommittee, which previouslyoversaw funding for the National ScienceFoundation, NASA and the Office ofScience and Technology Policy, will beeliminated. The Commerce, Justice andScience Subcommittee, chaired bySenator Richard Shelby (R-Ala), will beresponsible for funding for these agencies.From the science perspective, the Houseand Senate panels match up well, whichwill ease negotiations when the two sidespass bills that must be reconciled.

Bridging the Sciences: The final report fromthe NIH/NSF November 9 meeting onBridging the Sciences was published onFebruary 4. The report findings focus onways to facilitate interdisciplinaryresearch, through increased funding, thecreation of new infrastructure, andchanges to training. The report notesthat one suggestion for implementingthese actions is a national effort aimed atbridging the sciences. The report is avail-able on the NIBIB website at:w w w. n i b i b 1 . n i h . g o v / E v e n t s /110904Conf/index.htm. Click on"Final Report" at the bottom of thewebpage.

March/April 2005 Newsletter

Making Your Voice Heard InWashington

Concerned about the budget?

Have opinions about the new NIH ethicsregulations?

Want to see increased federal support forstem cell research?

As a working scientist, you have the power to influence yourelected officials and change the course of U.S. science policy.You can do so by contacting your Congressmen and writing let-ters to the editor to your local papers. As a respected scientist inyour community, you can educate your elected leaders as well asyour community on science-related matters.

To facilitate the process, the Federation of American Societies forExperimental Biology (FASEB) maintains a legislative actioncenter on its website. Elected leaders like to hear from their con-stituents, and by writing, you can reinforce the stances theBiophysical Society and FASEB take on your behalf.

With permission of the Biophysical Society, FASEB occasionallysends you email alerts regarding legislation that may be impor-tant to you as a scientist. These emails outline the matter athand and direct you to the legislative action center where you cancontact Congress and express your views. On this page, you canenter your zip code to identify your Congressman and Senators,and send messages with a click of a button.

The legislative action center provides updated information onrelevant issues, even when an action alert has not been sent viaemail. You can use it to find alerts on issues such as stem cellresearch and fiscal year (FY) 2006 funding, or to see what is cur-rently happening in Congress.

You can also use the legislative action center to .write letters toyour local papers. The site identifies local media outlets for you,and links you to their sites to submit your letter.

The legislative action center can be found on FASEB's Office ofPublic Affairs website at: http://capwiz.com/faseb/home/.

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Biophysical Society

requesting time with her to discuss theirwork. Her passion for science and sup-port of the careers of colleagues andyoung researcherscarries an endur-ing legacy, alongwith the superbexample she setfor others in theSociety." Garcia-Moreno alsopraises Wood-ward's commit-ment to youngscientists. "Clarehas always been very highly supportiveof young scientists," he explains."She played an active role in supportingand promoting the science and the pro-fessional development of many youngbiophysicists."

Woodward advises those starting outin biophysics to "try and understandeverything there is to know about yourscientific area, and then formulate aninteresting question that can be feasiblyprobed by specified methodologies. Youhave to persuade your colleagues thatyour question is worthwhile, and that youhave identified and acquired appropriatetheoretical and/or experimental tech-niques to pursue the question. At thepersonal level, I have observed that thosewho organize their life to ensure relation-ships in which the career aspirations ofboth partners are mutually supported, aremore likely to find science a joy, not asource of stress."

The Biophysical Society hasbeen an important component ofWoodward's professional career. Sinceher initial national meeting in 1970,Woodward says the Society is "where Ifirst established contact with colleagues.This is most important, especially forwomen — having colleagues who trulyexamine your work, consider it deeply,and give you critical feedback." She

immediately began bringing her studentsand postdocs to the meetings as well, andsays the Society has always been particu-larly "hospitable to young people and stu-dents." Woodward has served on many

Society committees,and was President in1997-1998, successful-ly overseeing a very dif-ficult and tumultuousperiod in the Society'sfinancial and gover-nance structure.

Wo o d w a r dand her husband nowreside in Utah. Bothare officially retired,

although she maintains a formal affilia-tion with the University of Minnesota asProfessor Emerita, which permits her tocontinue collaboration with ProfessorGeorge Branay. She co-advises studentsand postdocs, mainly through telephoneand email. "I was fortunate to get aresearch–teaching position when univer-sities were first hiring women,"

Woodward says, "and to retire at a timewhen electronic communication has blos-somed." In addition, she lectures andreviews papers for colleagues.

"Clare Woodward is a multidimen-sional person with many interests, andshe knows how to have fun," explainsBolen. "She and her husband Val enjoythe great outdoors, living in the moun-tains of Utah, with frequent trips in theircamper to the desert, the coast, andnational parks. It has been my pleasureand good fortune to have them asfriends."

"There is an essential unity of thehumanities and sciences. I never felt theyare dichotomous, but rather that they areintertwined in the life of the mind,”Woodward says. "I feel fortunate to havehad teachers and colleagues who knowand appreciate both."

(Continued from page 7.)

“those who organize their lifeto ensure relationships in whichthe career aspirations of bothpartners are mutually support-ed, are more likely to findscience a joy, not a source ofstress.”

Photos: Clare Woodward and colleague Ann Rougvie, University of Minnesota, hiking in the northernUtah mountains (upper left). With former student Natalia Carulla, a biophysicist in Barcelona, Spain,in front of the Woodward cabin in northern Utah (upper right), and hiking in the northern UtahMountains (bottom).

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March/April 2005 Newsletter

Opportunities

Burroughs Wellcome Fund – Career Awards at theScientific Interface Up to $500,000 over 5 yearsDeadline: May 2, 2005

http://www.bwfund.org/

Japan Society for the Promotion of SciencePostdoctoral Fellowships for Foreign ResearchersYEN 650,500 plus a round-trip air ticket and insurance Deadline: May 13, 2005 and September 10, 2005

http://www.jsps.go.jp/english/e-fellow/postdoctoral.html#long

Science and Engineering Visualization ChallengeDeadline: May 31, 2005

http://www.nsf.gov/od/lpa/events/sevc/

Molecular Motors: PointCounterpoint

BIOPHYSICAL SOCIETY DISCUSSIONS MEETING

OCTOBER 2006, ASILOMAR, CALIFORNIA

Application Deadline: June 2006

The Discussions are small meetings that focus on a cut-ting-edge or emerging topic in biophysics, topics thatbenefit from intense discussions. The meetings are pat-terned after the Farraday Society and have a unique for-mat that stresses discussion over formal presentations.Plenary sessions consist of five-minute presentations byspeakers, followed by a lengthy discussion. In additionthere are poster sessions. This format allows for greater,less-inhibited participation by participants. TheDiscussions meeting will be limited to 150 participantsand will last for approximately three days.

The 2006 Discussions topic will be Molecular Motors:Point Counterpoint. Organized by Sharyn Endow ofDuke University and Steven Rosenfeld of ColumbiaUniversity. Molecular Motors: Point Counterpoint willfocus on aspects of the motor mechanism, juxtaposingrecent findings from the kinesins with those from themyosins and dyneins. Presentations on other motorswill be included where relevant. Talks will emphasizemechanistic themes among motors of different families,pointing out differences and similarities. Discussionswill focus on findings from biophysical and biochemi-cal approaches, taking into account those from biologi-cal and theoretical methods.

Visit the Biophysical Society website,www.biophysics.org, for information and programupdates.

Breakthroughs in Bioscience

The latest article in theBreakthroughs in Bio-science series can be foundon the FASEB Break-throughs website athttp://www.faseb.org/opa/break/. The article,written by CathrynDelude, is entitled ClotBusters!! — Discovery ofThrombolytic Therapy for

Heart Attack & Stroke. It can be located directly at:http://www.faseb.org/opa/break/thrombosis.pdf.Additonal copies can be obtained by contacting FASEBOffice of Public Affairs.

Biophysical Society March/April 2005 Newsletter

May 23-25, 2005Morphogenesis and Regenerative Medicine SymposiumThe Morphogenesis and Regenerative Medicine Institute atthe University of Virginiawww.morphogenesis.virginia.edu

May 28-June 2, 2005American Crystallographic Association, Annual MeetingOrlando, Floridahttp://www.hwi.buffalo.edu/aca/

June 1-4, 2005Biophysical Chemistry meets Molecular MedicineSesimbra Beach, Portugalhttp://www.ycw.fc.ul.pt/

*Please visit http://www.biophysics.org/ for a complete list of upcomingevents.

Upcoming Events*

April 30-May 46th European Symposium of The Protein SocietyBarcelona, Spainhttp://www.proteinsociety.org/

May 7-102nd Molecular Mechanisms of NeurodegenerationMilan, Italyhttp://users.unimi.it/triplet

May 19-25, 2005 Evolving Methods in Macromolecular CrystallographyErice, Italyhttp://www.crystalerice.org/2005.htm

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