Writing a Powerful Meeting Abstract

APS Professional Skills Course:

Making Scientific Presentations:

Critical First Skills

Why Submit an Abstract to a Meeting?

• Present your scientific findings

• Exercise writing and speaking skills

• Receive timely peer-review

• Networking opportunities

Before Writing the Abstract

• Be confident of your data

• Chose an appropriate meeting– Know your audience

• Know the time frame for the meeting – Scheduled oral & poster sessions

• Be prepared to accept any time slot

Understand Submission Requirements

• Deadline for abstract submission– Day ? Specific time?

• Forms required– Paper vs. on-line submission

• Membership requirements• Abstract submission fee• Process for abstract selection

– All accepted or reviewed

Why Write a Great Abstract?

A Great Abstract

• Self-contained summary of work and significance

• Important in attracting scientists to your poster or oral presentation

• Demonstrates your skills to potential future employers and collaborators

• Citation for CV

Meeting vs. Journal Abstract

• Different focus– Meeting vs. journal article

• Meeting abstracts• Journal abstracts

discussion to follow

Effective Title

• Key element describing the content of study• Commands attention from attendees

– Intriguing title makes people stop and read

• Deciding factor on whether to read the abstract

• Targets presentation to the right scientific session

Writing the Title

• Most important part of the poster

• Tells the complete story

• Is not ambiguous

• Includes model system

• Should be short and succinct– 1-2 lines only

Remember…• A strong title commands attention from

readers

• An intriguing title makes people stop and read

Title Tips

• Begins with an important word– Avoid “Effect of” and other waste words

• Be succinct (there are often word limits)• Be specific• Avoid “catchy” or “cute” titles• Use of colons, question marks, and “Part 1”

– OK if really necessary

How Could These Titles Be Improved?

• Carbon monoxide causes changes in cerebral arteries

• The effect of hepatitis virus on apolipoprotein B100

Actual Titles

• Mouse cerebral arteries dilate to carbon monoxide

• Hepatitis C virus inhibits apolipoprotein B100 secretion

Take 2

• Take 2 minutes and using the worksheet, write as many titles as you can think of for your abstract

• Then, when you go into your small groups, do the 2nd half of that exercise and try to come up with a new dynamic title!

Writing the Meeting Abstract• New data, not previously presented• Usually a single paragraph • Self-contained description of the major parts of

the study• Follow the meeting’s requirements and guidelines

(if not specifically stated, it’s up to you)– Word limits– Space limitation (specific dimensions or box)– Sections allowed/required– Font size, capitalization and indentation– Allowable figures and tables

Parts of a Meeting Abstract

• Background

• Hypothesis/Aim

• Methods

• Results

• Conclusions/Significance

• Acknowledgements

Background• 1-3 sentences

• Describe general topic & why it’s important

• Include enough background to set stage

• May include limited references to relevant literature

Alcohol (ALC) intoxicated traumatic injury victims in the US have mortality rates higher than 50%. One of the most critical determinants of outcome within the first 48 hours of injury is the victim’s mean arterial blood pressure (MABP) at the time of admittance into the emergency department.

Williams-Mathis. EB 2007

Hypothesis• 1-2 sentences• Specific question being investigated • State as a hypothesis

– Not imperative that the word “hypothesis” is used

We hypothesized that attenuation of neuroendocrine and sympathetic nervous system (SNS) responses to HS plays a significant role in the accentuated hemodynamic instability in AAI animals. We investigated whether choline, a precursor of acetylcholine (ACH), would improve hemodynamic stability in AAI animals.

Methods• 1-2 sentences

• Keep fairly general

• Include any new or innovative methods

• Describe model system used (rat, human, in vivo); include specifics if needed (strain)

Chronically-catheterized, conscious male Sprague-Dawley rats received a primed (1.75 g/kg) continuous (250-300 mg/kg/h) 15-h intragastric (IG) infusion of 30% ALC or isocaloric/isovolumic dextrose (DEX). Animals underwent fixed-volume (50%) HS and fluid resuscitation (FR; 3X blood volume removed), 15 min after ICV choline administration.

Results• 1-3 sentences

• Summary of main outcomes for THIS study

• Data can be included– Limited amount and clear presentation

AAI (174 ± 13 mg/dL) decreased basal MABP (-15%), accentuated the initial drop in MABP (-20% at 15 min) and prevented restoration of MABP at the end of FR (all p<0.05). ICV choline increased basal MABP (+17%), but did not alter the initial % decrease in MAP nor the response to FR in DEX-treated animals. ICV choline produced a similar increase in basal MABP in AAI animals but did not improve MABP throughout HS or FR. Baseline plasma epinephrine (EPI), norepinephrine (NE), and arginine vasopressin (AVP) were not altered by AAI. In contrast, ICV choline produced a marked increase in baseline EPI (198%), NE (76%) and AVP (145%) which were abolished in ALC-intoxicated animals.

Conclusions/Significance• 1-3 sentences

• Clearly summarize significance of findings

• State conclusions when possible– Speculate when not conclusive results– Implications often included to indicate

importance

These results suggest that ICV choline results in immediate stimulation of SNS outflow, which does not appear to be sustained sufficiently to improve MABP response to HS in AAI. Current studies will examine if combined ICV administration of acetylcholinesterase and choline will improve hemodynamic instability in AAI HS animals.

Acknowledgements• Follow abstract submission guidelines

• Keep it short

• Acknowledge– Funding support– Technical assistance – Disclaimers or conflicts of interest

Supported by DOD-W81XWH-06-1-0236 and NIAAA-5T32AA-007577-7.

Meeting vs. Journal Abstract

• Meeting abstracts have:– More background in introduction– Methods discussed in more detail– Data included

• Figures/tables on occasion

– References often cited– Conclusions are expanded– Implications often included to indicate

importance

Meeting vs. Journal Abstract

• Journal abstracts have:– Little background (found in manuscript)– Methods mentioned only briefly and generally– Data not included– References never cited– Conclusions limited (found in manuscript)– Implications not included (found in manuscript)

Remember a Great Title

• Will entice readers to read the abstract

• Will interest readers on your work– Seek you and your poster for additional

information– Provide peer-review before you publish!

Resources - Articles

• How to Write (and Review) a Scientific Paper and

Why is Good Writing Important for a Scientist? Perspectives from an APS Journal EditorKim E. Barrett, Ph.D. http://www.the-aps.org/careers/careers1/mentor/workshop/01wrkshp.htm

• How to Write and Structure Your Manuscript Patricia K. Sonsalla, Ph.D. http://www.the-aps.org/careers/careers1/mentor/workshop/01wrkshp.htm

• How to Write an Abstract That Will Be Accepted for Presentation at a National Meeting David J. Pierson, M.D., FAARC http://www.rcjournal.com/contents/10.04/10.04.1206.pdf

Resources – Books

• How To Write & Publish a Scientific Paper (6th ed.) (ISBN: 0-313-33040-9)Robert A. Day & Barbara Gastel, 2006, Greenwood, $29.95

• Essentials of Writing Biomedical Research Papers (ISBN: 0-07-134544-2)Mimi Zeiger (2nd ed.), 2000, McGraw-Hill $44.10

• Successful Scientific Writing (ISBN: 0-521-78962-1)Janice R. Matthews, John M. Bowen, and Robert W. Matthews (2nd ed.), 2005, Cambridge Univ., $29.00

Resources – Web Sites

• International Guidelines of Journal Editorshttp://www.icmje.org/

• University of Wisconsin, Madison Writing Center - Writer’s Handbookhttp://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/ScienceReport.html

• George Mason University Department of Biology: A Guide to Writing in the Biological Sciences: The Scientific Paper http://classweb.gmu.edu/biologyresources/writingguide/ScientificPaper.htm