Members of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology have elected several new leaders. Three members of the governingCouncilwere re-elected. Theres a new secretary. And both theNominating Committeeand the Publications Committeehave new members.

Council

TheASBMB Councilserves as an advisory board to the president and the executive director for setting priorities and strategic directions, overseeing resource allocations, and ensuring that all activities align with the mission of the society. Councilors are elected for three-year terms and can be re-elected or reappointed to serve one additional term. Three incumbents were re-elected to the Council.

Suzanne Barbourisa professor anddean of the Graduate School at theUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She wrote in her candidate statement: During my first term, I have learned more about our society, its challenges and opportunities. I am particularly intrigued by an opportunity that was discussed at a recent Council meeting: pursuing philanthropic support for the ASBMB. My experience as a dean, working with alumni, friends and prospective donors, will be helpful for this effort. Barbour is a former member ofthe Minority Affairs Committee (now the Maximizing Access Committee), has organizedannual meeting symposiaand was honored as a member ofthefirst class of ASBMB fellowsin 2021.Read herfull candidate profile.

Joan Broderickis a professor and department head atMontana State University. In 2022, she becamean elected member of the National Academy of Sciences. Broderick has been at Montana State since 2005; before that she was on the faculty ofa small liberal arts college and a research-intensive state university. This range of experiences has given me a broad perspective on science education and academic research and the intersection of the two, she wrote.Read herfull candidate profile.

Matthew Gentryis a professor at theUniversity of Kentucky. He has served on the societys Membership Committee, Public Affairs Advisory Committee andJournal of Biological Chemistry editorial board. For this term on the Council,he has prioritized sharing with members how to utilize their passions to serve on an ASBMB committee, recruiting the societys next executive director; serving as a resource and adviser to PresidentAnn Stock, who was elected in 2021, and headquarters leaders; and spreading the word about how the ASBMB can help biochemists at all career stages.Read hisfull candidate profile.

Nominating Committee

TheASBMB Nominating Committeenominates regular members of the society to stand for election for president, the Council, the Publications Committee and the Nominating Committee.Committee members are elected for three-year terms and can be re-elected or reappointed to serve one additional term. ASBMB members elected two new committee members this year.

Juan L. Mendozais an assistant professor at theUniversity of Chicago. He twice has co-chaired the Enzyme Interest Group at the ASBMB annual meeting and is an active advocate for diversity and inclusion. I am passionate about making education in STEM accessible to everyone and inspiring future generations of scientists. For me, this includes active participation in community outreach and societies such as the ASBMB, he wrote.Read hisfull candidate profile.

Jeremy Thorneris a distinguished professor emeritus at theUniversity of California, Berkeley. He won the ASBMBsHerb Tabor Research Award in 2019. The many activities of ASBMB are best achieved by ensuring gender equity and diversity in its advisory bodies and leadership, as well as in its general membership, he wrote. To thrive, our organization needs to be inclusive, and to hear from and recruit diverse voices. Hence, the most important function of the Nominating Committee is to make certain we draw on the rich pool of our membership and secure the participation of individuals from all quarters of the biochemical sciences.Read the full candidate profile.

Secretary

The secretary is responsible for reviewing the minutes of the society, serving on the Nominating Committee and the Audit Committee, and completing other duties as assigned by the Council, which may include certifying Council resolutions to support the operations of the society.The secretary is a voting member of Council and participates in the governance of the society. The secretary serves a three-year term.

George Carmanis a distinguished professor atRutgers Universityand director of theRutgers Center for Lipid Research. He won the ASBMBsAvanti Award in Lipids in 2012,has beenan associate editorfor the societys Journal of Lipid Research and Journal of Biological Chemistry, and has served on the Council and several committees. He co-directs the societysLipid Research Division. The ASBMB has been a large part of my professional life since I joined the society in 1980, he wrote. Throughout my career, I have profited from formal and informal mentors, and I am obliged to pay forward my knowledge and experiences to early-career scientists including undergraduate and graduate students, and postdoctoral associates. Carman was a member of the societysinaugural class of fellowsin 2021.Read hisfull candidate profile.

Publications Committee

TheASBMB Publications Committeeoversees the societys scholarly publishing activities, advises the Council on policy and ethical issues that may arise, and advises journal editors about editorial matters, including the approval of associate editor appointments. Committee members are elected for five-year terms and can be re-elected or reappointed to serve one additional term. ASBMB members elected four new committee members.

Walid Houryis a professor at theUniversity of Toronto. Hes been a member of the Journal of Biological Chemistry editorial board since 2017. During his term on the committee, he intends to advocate for innovative article review and publication formats. He wrote: I find this to be especially important given the new and different article reviewing and publishing approaches being used by other journals. Hence, a clear policy needs to be established to address how ASBMB journals will interact with open-access preprint repositories such as bioRxiv and what value will be placed on reviews provided by journal-independent peer-review platforms such as the Review Commons.Read hisfull candidate profile.

Marcelo Kazanietzis a professor at theUniversity of Pennsylvania. He has been an editorial board member for the Journal of Biological Chemistry and several other peer-reviewed publications. I understand emerging challenges to keep disseminating our scientific discoveries in a highly competitive environment.I aim to support efforts toward facilitating communication between editors, authors and readers, with the ultimate goal of promoting high-impact science while affirming strong ethical publishing values, he wrote.Read hisfull candidate profile.

Daniel Leahyis a professor atUniversity of Texas at Austin. He served on the ASBMB Council from 2012 to 2015, has helpedorganize meeting themes and other society events,and is a member of the societys2022 class of fellows. Chief among the jewels in the ASBMB crown are its publications, which are run by scientists for scientists, and I am delighted at the opportunity to help continue the ASBMBs tradition of excellent publications as modes of scientific communication continue to evolve, he wrote.Read hisfull candidate profile.

Anne-Frances Milleris a distinguished professor at theUniversity of Kentucky. She has been a member of the Journal of Biological Chemistry editorial board and a member of the Publications Committee before. I understand that publications are central to both the professional conduct of science and also its social fabric, she wrote. I am a big admirer of how ASBMBs publications have spanned both spheres via the several journals the society produces. ASBMB Today nurtures networks of people and interest and keeps the science fun, engaging us all beyond the boundaries of our own specializations and keeping the best of our humanity connected to the best of our science. Meanwhile, ASBMBs established research journals provide critical channels for sharing high-quality scientific progress, complete with the assurances of expert peer review.Read herfull candidate profile.

About the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB)

The ASBMB is a nonprofit scientific and educational organization with more than 12,000 members worldwide. Founded in 1906 to advance the science of biochemistry and molecular biology, the society publishes three peer-reviewed journals, advocates for funding of basic research and education, supports science education at all levels, and promotes the diversity of individuals entering the scientific workforce. For more information about the ASBMB, visitwww.asbmb.org.

Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.

Read this article:
10 scientists elected leaders of the ASBMB - EurekAlert