In Brief

Inaugural Frank J. Dixon Lecture to be Held February 11

Internationally known immunologist Emil Unanue will present the inaugural Frank J. Dixon Memorial Lecture on Tuesday, February 11, 4 PM, in the Auditorium at TSRI. The new annual lecture honors Frank Dixon, a pioneering immunologist who was among the founding biomedical scientists of Scripps Clinic and Research Foundation (predecessor organization to The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI)) and who led the organization’s research division for many years. He passed away in 2008 at the age of 87.

A postdoctoral fellow in the Dixon lab in the 1960s, Uananue is a recognized leader in studying how the immune system identifies and responds to antigens. Currently the Paul and Ellen Lacy Professor in the Department of Pathology and Immunology at Washington University School of Medicine, he is an Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award winner and a member of the National Academy of Science, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Institute of Medicine.

TSRI Professor Emeritus Charles Cochrane, also among the institute’s founding scientists, will deliver the lecture’s welcoming address. Immediately following the lecture, a reception will be held in the Faculty Club on the TSRI campus.

The lecture is supported by the Frank J. Dixon Memorial Lectureship Fund, established with support from more than two dozen friends and former colleagues

The Auditorium at TSRI is located at 10640 John Jay Hopkins Drive, San Diego, 92121. Directions and parking information are available on the auditorium’s website. For additional lecture information, email vogtadm@scripps.edu.

Mike Matrone Elected Treasurer of Graduate Career Consortium

Mike Matrone, program coordinator for the Career and Postdoctoral Services Office, has been elected treasurer of the Graduate Career Consortium (GCC), a national organization supporting providers of career and professional development for doctoral students and postdoctoral scholars. GCC members represent 80 leading universities, schools of medicine, and research institutions and organizations, including the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Institutes of Health.

Career Workshop: Enriching the Mentoring Relationship

Practical advice about finding, making use of and being a mentor will be offered at an upcoming training workshop—“Enriching Your Mentoring Relationships”—sponsored the Society of Fellows, to be held Thursday, January 23, from 2 to 3 PM, in the Keck Auditorium on the California campus and streamed live to the Florida campus from 5 to 6 PM in classroom B159.

Coordinated with the Career and Postdoctoral Services Office, the “how-to” workshop for mentees and mentors will be conducted by Joanne Kamens, executive director of Addgene, a nonprofit biotechnology organization headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that facilitates collaboration in the scientific community. Kamens holds a PhD in genetics from Harvard University and more than 15 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.

Kamens will also be available on the California campus to meet with postdoctoral fellows and graduate students for an informal lunch session to discuss career paths and work/life balance issues. Scheduled from noon to 1:30 PM in the Beckman Building’s BCC5 North Conference Room, the lunch is limited to 15 attendees. RSVP (required) to Arryn Craney at craney@scripps.edu.

Are Your Glasses Safe to Wear in the Lab?

Not all eyeglasses are created equal; regular eyewear does not meet resistance-impact safety standards to protect eyes and face in scientific labs according to a “Lessons Learned” document developed by the TSRI Operational Safety Committee. The resource outlines the risks presented by inadequate eye protection and provides a checklist of eyewear safety criteria.

At a minimum, safety glasses or goggles must be worn in TSRI labs if a splash or projectile hazard is present. In chemistry labs or when hazardous materials are used, safety glasses, goggles, face shields or a combination are required at all times.

Regardless of their size or the durability of the frame and lenses, regular prescription eyeglasses do not qualify as safety glasses unless they meet specific criteria. However, TSRI’s Environmental Health and Safety (EH&S) department sponsors a Prescription Safety Eyewear Program that covers the expense of most safety glasses at no cost to the employee or lab.

A current eyewear prescription is required to participate in the program, and employees may choose from more than 20 frame options, including metal and plastic styles. Standard bifocal and progressive lenses are covered at no cost; additional fees apply to Varilux Comfort and Sola One progressive lenses. Complete details about the Prescription Safety Eyewear Program, including FAQs, are available on the EH&S website.

CA Biosafety Committee Meeting Materials Due January 31

The TSRI Institutional Biosafety Committee is scheduled to meet on Wednesday, February 12, in the DAR Conference Room. To receive committee consideration, registration documents must be submitted to Environmental Health and Safety via email to rachellv@scripps.edu by Friday, January 31.

ScrippsAssists to Sponsor Blood Drive February 10 on CA Campus

To help meet the ongoing urgent need for blood donations, appointments are now available for a ScrippsAssists-sponsored blood drive, scheduled for Monday, February 10, from 9 AM to 2:30 PM on the California campus. The bloodmobile will be located in the parking lot adjacent to the Molecular Biology/Skaggs Building, 10596 N. Torrey Pines Road.

Eligible donors are asked to make an appointment on the San Diego Blood Bank website. Walk-in donors will be accepted. Guidelines and eligibility requirements are also listed on the blood bank website. Donors should bring photo identification, record of medications they currently take and a list of locations visited outside the United States in the past three years.

All donors will automatically be entered into a prize raffle. For further information on the blood drive, contact project coordinator, Leslie Madden, administrative assistant in the TSRI Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, at lmadden@scripps.edu.

TSRI Holiday Programs Reach Those in Need

With the generous help of TSRI faculty and staff on both the Florida and California campuses, several ScrippsAssists community programs helped support those in need during the holidays last month.

The annual California ScrippsAssists Craft Fair raised more than $1,800 from raffle ticket sales, donations and exhibitor fees to support the TSRI employee volunteer organization’s community projects, according to event coordinator Mishelle McClanahan-Shinn, administrative assistant in the Department of Chemistry.

With the sale of 76 pies and donated pies in the “Pie in the Sky” program, coordinated by Holly Wheeler, administrative assistant in the TSRI counseling services office on the California campus, ScrippsAssists raised $1,785 for Mama’s Kitchen, a local nonprofit that provides free home-delivered meals and food pantry resources to San Diego residents whose lives have been impacted by cancer or AIDS.

The Scripps Florida Society of Research Fellows held a “Volley for the Cause” tournament in early December to raise funds for victims of Super-Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. Organized by Cesare Orlandi, research associate in the Martemyanov lab, and Laura Walker, research assistant in the Petrie lab, the event included a four-person team volleyball tournament, raffle prizes and refreshments. The benefit’s proceeds—$1,200—were donated to the Red Cross for distribution in the Philippines.

Seventeen families were served through ScrippsAssists’ participation in the Home Start organization’s Adopt-A-Family campaign. The annual San Diego program supplies holiday meals and children’s gifts to families in need identified by Home Start counselors. Coordinated by Jessica Sheu-Gruttadauria, graduate student in the MacRae lab, TSRI’s collections also included toy drives by the Graduate Program and the Cravatt lab, organized by Kim Masuda, which collected more than 50 toys.

Through ScrippsAssists and coordinated by Deborah Witherden, staff scientist in the Havran lab, TSRI donors also contributed two carloads of new and used men's and women’s clothing, shoes, books, magazines, board games, blankets, backpacks and hats—plus $450 in cash donations—to Standing Tall Together, a non-profit organization providing assistance and direct financial support to veterans and servicemen and servicewomen. The donations were delivered to veterans in Veterans Administration hospitals in San Diego and Los Angeles over the holidays.

At the Auditorium: The McDermott Trio

The McDermott Trio will perform a Mainly Mozart’s Spotlight Concert Series on Thursday, January 23, at the Auditorium at TRSI. The group will play Mozart Piano Trio in B flat, K. 502, the Zwilch Piano Trio and the Brahms Piano Trio No. 1 in B, Op. 8. A wine and cheese reception begins at 6:30 PM; the concert starts at 7:30 PM. For more information, see http://www.mainlymozart.org. To buy tickets, go to https://itkt.choicecrm.net/templates/MMOZ/index.php?prod=TSRI14-1

Send comments to: mikaono[at]scripps.edu

Scripps California Claims Third Win in Rideshare Challenge

For the third straight year, the Scripps California campus captured first place in the iCommute Rideshare Corporate Challenge, a program of the San Diego Association of Governments to promote work commute alternatives to driving alone. Shown above, Human Resources staff members Melody Gajus (left) and Sylvia Saiz pose with the newest Rideshare plaque in front of the “winner’s wall” of previous campus Rideshare accomplishments. (Photo by Cindy Brauer.)

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