Society news briefs: November 2022

Today: It's time to renew your ASBMB membership
Please take a moment to . Contact us at membership@asbmb.org or 240-283-6604 if you need assistance.
ASBMB meets with federal science agencies
In June, the ͵͵ and ͵͵ Biology Public Affairs Advisory Committee held a series of meetings with officials at the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy. The PAAC advocated for policy changes that will benefit the biomedical research enterprise, such as improving training programs and increasing re-entry research supplements. Read more at asbmb.org/asbmb-today/policy.
Society recommends improvements to T32 program
Ruth L. Kirschstein Institutional National Research Service Award, or T32, programs provide and/or enhance an institution’s ability to conduct predoctoral and postdoctoral training. The ASBMB has recommended several changes to the program to alleviate the administration burden of these training programs. Read more at .

Headquarters welcomes new finance chief
Matthew Hilliker joined the ASBMB as the director of finance in August. Hilliker is a certified public accountant with 10 years of experience with scientific societies. He has worked with nonprofit organizations as well as in public accounting. He earned his B.A. in accounting from the College of William and Mary in Virginia.

Two new publications team members
Emily Ulrich joined the publications department as a technical editor at the end of June. She earned her Ph.D. in chemical biology from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and completed postdoctoral research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Tyrone Lofton provides administrative support to the publications department. A Towson University graduate, Lofton studied molecular biology, biochemistry and bioinformatics on the biochemistry concentration track. He is a native of Washington, D.C., and a two-time AmeriCorps alum. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, hiking, rock climbing and horseback riding. He also is a mentor with a nonprofit serving youth in the foster care system.)

Nov. 30: On-time abstracts due for #DiscoverBMB
If you're planning to present your work at , the ASBMB's new annual meeting, the regular abstract-submission deadline is Nov. 30. All accepted abstracts will be published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry. Also, ASBMB members presenting as first authors are encouraged to for the following awards, also by Nov. 30:
Not an ASBMB member? Join today to take advantage of these awards and registration discounts.

Dec. 6: Deuel lipids meeting early registration deadline
The ASBMB Deuel conference is a must-attend event for leading lipids investigators — and for scientists who’ve just begun to explore the role of lipids in their research programs. This event will bring together a diverse array of people, including those who have not attended Deuel or perhaps any lipid meeting before. The conference is a forum for the presentation of new and unpublished data, and attendees enjoy the informal atmosphere that encourages free and open discussion. Interested scientists are invited to attend and encourage trainees to submit abstracts by Jan. 10. Learn more.

Call for virtual scientific event proposals
The ASBMB provides members with a virtual platform to share scientific research and accomplishments and to discuss emerging topics and technologies with the BMB community.
The ASBMB will manage the technical aspects, market the event to tens of thousands of contacts and present the digital event live to a remote audience. Additional tools such as polling, Q&A, breakout rooms and post event Twitter chats may be used to facilitate maximum engagement.
Seminars are typically one to two hours long. A workshop or conference might be longer and even span several days.
Prospective organizers may submit proposals at any time. Decisions are usually made within four to six weeks.

Take over the JLR Twitter account
If you are a graduate student, postdoc or early-career investigator interested in hosting a , . You can spend a day tweeting from the Journal of Lipid Research's account () about your favorite lipids and your work.
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Meet Robert Helsley
The Journal of Lipid Research junior associate editor studies chronic liver disease and was the first in his family to attend college.

Exploring life’s blueprint: Gene expression in development and evolution
Meet Julia Zeitlinger and David Arnosti — two co-chairs of the ASBMB’s 2025 meeting on gene expression, to be held June 26-29, in Kansas City, Missouri.

ASBMB names 2025 fellows
͵͵ and ͵͵ Biology honors 24 members for their service to the society and accomplishments in research, education, mentorship, diversity and inclusion and advocacy.

When Batman meets Poison Ivy
Jessica Desamero had learned to love science communication by the time she was challenged to explain the role of DNA secondary structure in halting cancer cell growth to an 8th-grade level audience.

The monopoly defined: Who holds the power of science communication?
“At the official competition, out of 12 presenters, only two were from R2 institutions, and the other 10 were from R1 institutions. And just two had distinguishable non-American accents.”

In memoriam: Donald A. Bryant
He was a professor emeritus at Penn State University who discovered how cyanobacteria adapt to far-red light and was a member of the ͵͵ and ͵͵ Biology for over 35 years.