BMB Weekly #1: January 3, 2025

 

Three BMB professors recognized at 2024 NatSci Awards Featuring Ben Orlando, Robert Last, and Robert Hausinger. Read the full article here.

 

 

Frank C. Schroeder from Cornell University – Boyce Thompson Institute will be presenting "Host-microbe metabolic interactions in C. elegans and mouse".

To join us on Zoom, click this link. Password: bmbseminar

The Spring BMB Seminar Series will run through April 24, 2025. The complete schedule is available on the BMB Spring Seminar Series website. If you are interested in meeting with any of these speakers please email Leslie Williams, glady@msu.edu. Many speakers are planning to visit in-person. A Zoom option will continue to be offered for all seminars.

 

In this session Dr. Shannon Lynn Burton (MSU Ombudsperson) will present key strategies in discussing the importance of academic integrity, as well as in preventing misconduct, both in its more traditional forms, as well as in the digital space. Participants will have the chance to discuss scenarios and think about strategies for how to communicate clearly with students including discussions about AI. Learn more and register here.

In this session, we will discuss the preparation you should go through in order to be able to assess students effectively based on Learning Outcomes. Examples on how to assess students in the various disciplines will be shared and discussed. Learn more and register here.

New graduate teaching assistants are invited to participate in the Spring 2025 Graduate Teaching Assistant Preparation Programs. These virtual sessions will help prepare you for your role and include topics like:

• Using D2L
• Managing your roles and responsibilities
• Developing a syllabus
• And more

Learn more here.

Registration for the BITSS Research Transparency and Reproducibility Training (RT2) 2025 is now open! Next year's RT2 will be held in Berkeley, CA from May 21-23, 2025. Participants will receive hands-on training on open science tools and methodologies, including pre-specification and data management. Participants are expected to come prepared to present their own research project and to provide a statement on how RT2 will benefit their current research. Learn more and register here.

The Office of Bioscience Postdoctoral Affairs at UCLA invites you to apply to UCLA Bio-Launch, a recruitment initiative for bioscience researchers. This program includes professional development workshops, networking opportunities, and a faculty matching service. Learn more and apply here.

 

This award is named in honor of Arthur C. Neish (1916-1973). In the 1950’s and 1960’s, Dr. Neish was a pioneer in the synthesis and use of radiolabeled precursors and was one of the major contributors to knowledge of plant natural product biosynthetic pathways (Romeo, J.T. 2000. Forward. Recent Advances in Phytochemistry 34:viii.). He was a dedicated mentor of young scientists and has been recognized by having the young investigator award named after him. The Neish Young Investigator Awards were first bestowed in 1999 at the PSNA meeting in Montreal, Canada.

The Neish awards support young investigators as featured speakers at annual meetings, providing an important professional and career development opportunity for young investigators. It also enriches diverse participation in the PSNA, while supporting a diversity of topics. There is no application or self-nomination procedure, as this award is by nomination only. We encourage nominations of people from diverse backgrounds. Learn more and submit a nomination here.

The Plant Journal (TPJ)-PSNA Early Career Award recognizes research excellence by outstanding postdoctoral researchers and research scientists in academic, research and government institutions with a preference for early career individuals who are ready to start an independent position and can engage with PSNA for the advancement of phytochemical research field. We encourage applications from people from diverse backgrounds. Learn more and submit an application here.

 

The Graduate Educator Advancement and Teaching Office is conducting a study to explore the challenges and experiences faced by international graduate students and postdocs to enhance our understanding of their well-being and identify potential areas for support. This survey will take 15-20 minutes, and participants will be entered into a raffle to win a prize. Learn more here.

Nominations are now open for the North American Arabidopsis Steering Committee’s Arabidopsis Community Awards! Nominate your colleagues, trainees, or yourself to recognize excellence in the Arabidopsis community in three award categories:

1. P. N. Benfey Arabidopsis Community Lifetime Achievement
2. Dissemination of Arabidopsis Knowledge (early & later career awards)
3. Excellence in Supporting Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging in the Arabidopsis Community (early & later career awards)

Learn more and submit a nomination here.

The MSU Student Food Bank is a resource available to students and scholars who may be experiencing food insecurity. The Food Bank provides free food and other essential items to those in need within our MSU community. Learn more here.

 

The Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology invites applications and nominations for a tenured or tenure-track faculty position at the Associate or Full Professor level to serve as Co-Director of the nascent Center for Cancer Health Equity Research (CCHER). CCHER is a developing initiative in partnership with the Colleges of Human Medicine and Osteopathic Medicine and the Henry Ford Health System, with a mission to advance cancer health equity through innovative research, collaboration, and community engagement.

We seek an experienced and motivated leader with an established research program in cancer biology, cancer health disparities, or related fields, who is committed to playing a key role in shaping the Center's future and contributing to a growing initiative that addresses cancer disparities in underserved populations. Learn more about this MSU Careers posting here.

 

 

Nevarez, J. L., Turmo, A., Gatreddi, S., Gupta, S., Hu, J., & Hausinger, R. P. (2024). Overcoming barriers for investigating nickel-pincer nucleotide cofactor-related enzymes. mBio, e0340424. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1128/mbio.03404-24

Nigam, S., Gjelaj, E., Wang, R., Wei, G. W., & Wang, P. (2025). Machine Learning and Deep Learning Applications in Magnetic Particle Imaging. Journal of magnetic resonance imaging : JMRI, 61(1), 42–51. https://doi.org/10.1002/jmri.29294

Hozumi, Y., & Wei, G. W. (2024). Analyzing scRNA-seq data by CCP-assisted UMAP and tSNE. PloS one, 19(12), e0311791. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0311791

Subramanian, S., Bergland Drarvik, S. M., Tinney, K. R., Doore, S. M., & Parent, K. N. (2024). Moo19 and B2: Structures of Schitoviridae podophages with T = 9 geometry and tailspikes with esterase activity. Science advances, 10(51), eadt0022. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adt0022

Laseke, A. J., Lohman, J. R., & St Maurice, M. (2024). Hydrolysis of the acetyl-CoA allosteric activator by Staphylococcus aureus pyruvate carboxylase. Archives of biochemistry and biophysics, 110280. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.abb.2024.110280

 

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College of Natural Science | BMB Weekly | Vol. 58, No.1