SCRIPPS RESEARCH | WINTER EDITION 2019
Science Changing Life | Winter Edition 2019
Education: Our Infinite Promise to Science
Science Changing Education SCRIPPS RESEARCH MAGAZINE | WINTER EDITION 2019
Letter from the Dean 02 Unending Impact 04 Stepping into the Future 10 Perspectives 18 Kenan Fellow 36 Show Me the Data 42 Discoveries 14 Translations: Osteoarthritis 38 Awards Honors Grants 50 Events 54 Infinite Human Progress 46 Take a look at our new brand
FRONT COVER: Scripps Research Magazine, formerly Endeavor, has been renamed to better represent our new branding and message of Science Changing Life. The excellence of our science and the impact it has on human lives stems from our enduring belief in infinite human progress.
Letter from the Dean
Scientific research, by necessity, is a collaborative endeavor. When knowledge is shared, new roads to discovery open and we gain added capabilities to harness science for the benefit of humankind. Science not only builds on the past, it also lays a foundation for the future. That is why educating and training the scientists of tomorrow is a priority for Scripps Research. The Skaggs Graduate School of Chemical and Biological Sciences was founded by our faculty in 1989 and quickly rose to prominence. For 19 years in a row, it has ranked among the top ten in the nation according to U.S. News & World Report. We are the only non-university-based program on that top ten list. In this issue, we highlight the people, the science, and the impact of our exceptional graduate program. In addition, we share a multitude of complementary educational programs that have been cultivated by the institute to enrich the creative minds of our entire community, from elementary schoolchildren to physician-researchers. As science progresses, so does Scripps Research. The institute’s tradition of outstanding fundamental research is world-renowned, and through the formation of productive alliances we have expanded our scope to encompass the discovery and development of life-changing medicines. We are also optimizing the use of genomic data and digital technologies to advance individualized medicine. Our redesigned website serves to communicate our expanded outlook and message; and the easily recognizable infinity loop logo represents our continuing pursuit of knowledge, as well as the unending promise to make better lives for people around the world. That is who we are and what we do. Scripps Research: Science Changing Life. I would like to share one additional item: Nature Index recently released another round of rankings and named Scripps Research the top nonprofit research institute in the U.S. for producing high quality research. This new ranking was based on author contributions to primary research articles published in a select group of highly respected science journals and complements our continuing number one ranking by Nature Index for influence on innovation. Thank you for partnering with us on this extraordinary journey. We appreciate your support.
Philip Dawson, PhD Professor of Chemistry Dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies
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SCRIPPS RESEARCH PREPARES THE NEX T GENER ATION OF SCIENTISTS TO CHANGE THE WORLD
UNENDING IMPACT
To appreciate the global impact of the educational programs at Scripps Research, you might start with a name unveiling ceremony held earlier this year. In a courtyard architecturally designed to promote scientific contemplation, people gathered to share their thoughts—and to celebrate. The Skaggs family, longtime Scripps Research supporters, had made a significant lead gift toward the i nstitute’s $100 million endowment campaign and in recognition, the graduate program was being renamed the Skaggs Graduate School of Chemical and Biological Sciences.
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—Ellen Browning Scripps | Founder, Scripps Research
Focused investigation
The event was a homecoming of sorts, as one speaker after another recounted how the extraordinary education and training they’d received at Scripps Research had launched their highly successful careers. One, Phil Baran, PhD, completed his postdoctoral studies at Harvard before choosing to return to Scripps Research for the freedom to run his own lab and train other young scientists attracted to the institute’s vibrant environment. Another speaker, first-year graduate student Hannah Burdge, related how she’d attended an American Chemical Society seminar as an undergraduate and discovered that every person on the panel had earned a doctorate at Scripps Research. If all her heroes had studied there, why not her? She sought enrollment at once.
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The Scripps Research Graduate Program in Macromolecular and Cellular Structure and Chemistry is launched. Norton “Bernie” Gilula, PhD, is its founding dean.
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Their stories underscore the broad impact Scripps Research educational programs have on the global science community. Scientists trained here disperse to universities and research institutions and biotechnology companies around the world to continue producing critical discoveries…and influencing other scientists. I n turn, their achievements send flocks of new students to this one-of-a-kind, non-university-based graduate program that continually ranks among the best in the nation. As Jamie Williamson, PhD, executive vice president of Research and Academic Affairs notes, “We now have students of students of students returning to Scripps Research.”
Students and teachers alike relish Science Saturdays
How did a non-university graduate school come to rival Caltech, Harvard and Berkeley? According to many, the program’s success lies in prioritizing scientific exploration over conventional regulations. “The founders were visionary,” said Baran in his speech. “Richard Lerner [former institute president] and Bernie Gilula [founding dean of graduate studies] took a clean slate approach. They extracted the essence of what matters most to earn a PhD and discarded the rest. From a cold start, this program rocketed to the top in only 10 years.” By giving students free rein to follow their instincts, Scripps Research honored a precept of its founder. Ellen Browning Scripps, a one-time teacher who provided the funding to establish the Scripps Metabolic Clinic in 1924, was a relentlessly curious and self-taught researcher and a strong believer in lifelong learning. Whenever she backed an educational institution, she emphasized thinking over knowing, stressing that “the paramount obligation of a college to its students is to train them to develop the ability to think clearly and independently.” After becoming quite wealthy, she gave away nearly all of her fortune in her lifetime to schools, churches, hospitals and research institutes, nevertheless insisting, “I hate to be called a philanthropist. What I do, I do as an investment.”
The graduate program holds its first commencement ceremony, awarding a PhD to one student.
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Science Changing Education
“The paramount obligation of a college to its students is to train them to develop the ability to think clearly and independently.”
U.S. News & World Report ranks the graduate program among the ten best in the nation.
The graduate program’s California staff
Board Chair John Diekman and his wife, Susan, endow the first summer fellowship for science teachers.
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2001
The institute also adheres to Ellen Browning Scripps’ direction to train students “to think clearly and independently,” a principle that is especially evident in its unique Summer Undergraduate Research Fellows (SURF) Program. Unlike the traditional college format, where the course of study is determined by the instructor,
Scripps Research and Oxford University establish a joint doctoral program, the Skaggs-Oxford Program.
each participant in the 10-week-long SURF Program identifies an individual interest and is then paired with a mentor who helps them design and launch a research project. After a few weeks of guidance, the student is expected to work independently. Not only do the SURF undergrads work full-time in the laboratory— receiving a stipend and housing—they participate in regular academic and research seminars. At the end of the summer, each delivers an o ral presentation of his or her work at a symposium to which the entire Scripps Research community is invited. SURF participants depart this challenging program equipped with practical experience that instills confidence and provides a solid foundation for subsequent studies. Another institute program, the Academic Year Research Internship for Undergraduates (AYRIU), invites dedicated science students to work alongside Scripps Research faculty for an even longer period. Again, the program emphasizes critical thinking, strong research skills, and the opportunity to gain greater independence and confidence. By committing to a minimum of three months of full-time work—for which they receive academic credit from their home college or university—the AYRIU interns also begin establishing their own scientific identity within the biomedical research community. That’s a valuable asset when pursuing future employment or postgraduate education.
Scripps Research expands its graduate program to Florida, naming chemist William Roush, PhD, associate dean. Classes are held bicoastally.
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Like her, Scripps Research invests in today’s brilliant young minds, and strives to inspire those in groups currently underrepresented in biomedical research. To enrich science curriculums in area schools, for example, the institute’s California campus invites teachers and their students to attend Science Saturdays where they learn about recent Scripps Research discoveries and participate in hands-on research activities. At its Florida campus, hundreds of children, parents and community members attend Family Science Nights, designed to share the wonders of science with all ages. One generous benefactor, the William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust, following its founder’s belief that “a good education is the most cherished gift an individual can receive,” has supported Florida’s High School Summer Internship Program for more than a decade. During the eight-week internship, select students attend a boot camp to learn laboratory skills and safety practices then conduct research under the guidance of an institute scientist. The experience exposes them to the excitement of biomedical research, its real-world applications and to career opportunities they might not have considered.
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Ready to recruit graduate students in Florida
Institute Board members create the Leadership Fellows Fund to support 15 graduate student fellowships.
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Science Changing Education
Biologist Katrin Karbstein, center, discusses research with graduate students
“Flame of Knowledge” sculpture
“By encouraging scientific interest at every age level and by bringing more diversity into the field, we enrich the future of scientific discovery,” says Dawn Eastmond, director of Graduate Studies. “To solve today’s most pressing health problems requires broad talent and deep understanding. We’re equipping the scientists of tomorrow for success.”
On the California campus stands a sculpture dedicated to Gilula, the educational visionary who co-founded the graduate school. Called “The Flame of Knowledge,” the 15-foot-high polished steel sculpture was conceived by artist John Safer, then a trustee of the institute, to symbolize “what education is about—an unending search […]. But you never quite get there,” he said. “So, it’s cut off at the top.” Until the next generation, newly kindled by the brilliant scientists preceding them, picks up the torch and continues the search.
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The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Program debuts.
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Understanding that one’s education continually progresses, Scripps Research even makes it possible for clinical physicians w ho have discovered a passion for research to return t o the “classroom.” Eric Topol, MD, founder and director o f the Scripps Research Translational Institute, epitomizes these complementary interests. Formerly the chief of cardiovascular medicine at Cleveland Clinic, he is now a Scripps Research professor in the Department of Molecular Medicine and is working to meld genomics, big data, and both information and digital health technologies t o advance the promise of personalized medicine. Physicians who want to join him in this pursuit can enroll i n the KL2 Clinical Scholars Program, a 2- to 3-year research-centric endeavor. Toluwalase Ajayi, MD, is one clinical scholar who is employing state-of-the-art wearable monitors to help her patients—critically ill children— manage pain and then sharing her findings with others. [Learn more about Ajayi’s work on page 32.] What’s learned in practice educates researchers and further refines therapeutics. It’s an infinite loop of understanding.
Unveiling the graduate school’s new name
Founded by an educator and championed by educators, Scripps Research is lauded for the way its scientists transform the world. When Mark Skaggs spoke at the name unveiling ceremony about his father, L.S. “Sam” Skaggs, a food and drug store pioneer, he said, “Dad lived by two philosophies: Education is important; it makes you a better person. And work is important; always work hard and always work with the best. That’s why my family supports Scripps Research. The faculty and students here work at the pinnacle of their respective fields and they are most definitely the best. Dad had one more belief: To solve the problems of tomorrow, educate the children of today.” That’s exactly what Scripps Research is doing—educating and empowering students of all ages to better the world through science.
The Florida campus announces a n education collaboration with neighboring Florida Atlantic U niversity and Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience.
Funded by the Farrell Family Foundation, a Saturday Science program is launched for area students.
“I have been involved in the graduate education at Scripps Research at all levels because an enhanced quality of life for society going forward depends on the next generation of scientists being able to solve major problems facing humanity.� Jeffery Kelly, PhD Co-chair, Department of Chemistry
The Skaggs family, via The ALSAM Foundation, gives $2 million to the graduate program.
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2016
For 19 years in a row, the Scripps Research graduate program has ranked with the best in the nation
Following a lead gift by the Skaggs family, Scripps Research announces a $100 million campaign to endow fellowships in its graduate program.
In Florida, the Farris Foundation establishes an endowed graduate fellowship with a gift of $1.1 million. SCRIPPS.EDU
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Science Changing Careers
stepping into the future Alumni of the Skaggs Graduate School of Chemical and Biological Sciences at Scripps Research apply their education and training to a range of careers. 219
Pharmaceutical, biotech or for-profit industry
130
Faculty position in academia
102
Postdoctoral position
63
Non-faculty (academia or government)
57
Business management, finance consulting or entrepeneurship Unknown
40 15
Law or intellectual property Writing, editing, media or publishing
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Clinical practice or research management, medical testing
9
Sales, marketing, technical support
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Government administration or policy-making 5
3 Other 2 0
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40
60
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100
120
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COUNT OF ALUMNI
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Vice President of Biologics
Senior Research Investigator
TRAVIS YOUNG, PhD, Calibr
EMILY CHERNEY, PhD, Bristol-Myers Squibb
Travis Young, PhD, completed his doctorate in chemical biology in 2010, and later joined Calibr, the drug discovery division of Scripps Research. He led Calibr’s development of a new T cell-based cancer immunotherapy, one of two cancer therapies that Calibr will soon move into clinical trials.
During her graduate school years, Emily Cherney, PhD, worked with Scripps Research Professor Phil Baran, PhD, looking for innovative ways to build some of nature’s most complex molecules in the laboratory. After receiving her doctorate in chemistry in 2014, she joined the pharmaceutical company Bristol-Myers Squibb to apply her skills as a chemist to the search for new medicines.
How did your experience as a grad student at Scripps Research influence your career? Scripps Research offers an unparalleled focus on research which provides the time and resources to accelerate training. The environment of experienced research staff and postdocs here at Scripps Research fosters the development of critical thinking skills. For me, these were very significant in shaping how I approached my science and ultimately my career.
You have bridged foundational and translational science. What is the trick to working in both areas? The trick is to balance hypothesis-driven research with a drug discovery-oriented mindset, but committing to both sides of the equation can be very rewarding. It’s allowed us to move forward high-risk, high-reward programs and discover novel approaches that would otherwise be overlooked.
What will you be working on over the next six months? This is a very exciting time for Calibr. We’re getting ready to move two potentially transformative immuno-oncology programs into human clinical trials next year. The first program, a bispecific antibody for prostate cancer, is a unique take on an antibody-drug conjugate, using unnatural amino acid methods developed by Pete Schultz’s group. The second is a universal cellular therapy program, developed at Calibr, and recently partnered with AbbVie. For both programs we’re building an outstanding team of basic and clinical researchers to get these programs to patients.
What stands out about your experience as a grad student at Scripps Research? I had the opportunity to focus completely on my research. I walked straight into the laboratory immediately after arriving at Scripps Research. Coursework ended after my first year, and I was never required to TA undergraduate courses. In hindsight, I now see what a privilege that was compared to what most other graduate students experience. In short, I never had to dilute my efforts.
What did you study? Any achievements during grad school you’re particularly proud of? I studied natural product total synthesis: applying organic chemistry to make complex molecules made in nature from simple building blocks. Understanding the fundamentals of known reactivity and extrapolating them in new ways for use in the context of complex molecule synthesis was the best part of my work. My proudest moments were when those extrapolated ideas succeeded.
What is your focus at Bristol-Myers Squibb? I am a medicinal chemist. The therapeutic area I work in is immuno-oncology. Specifically, I pursue the discovery of small molecules capable of helping a patient’s own immune system recognize and attack cancer.
What attracted you to going into industry? I remember a student left Scripps Research to go to medical school. At the time, he said (and I’m paraphrasing) he could spend his whole life working in industry and never discover a drug, whereas, he knew he’d be able to help at least one person if he became a doctor. I would counter that by saying that, even if I only discover one new medicine during my entire career, I may be able to help thousands or even millions of people. SCRIPPS.EDU
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Global Director of Health Policy
Scripps Fellow
PHYLLIS FROSST, PhD, Seqirus
MICHAEL BOLLONG, PhD, Scripps Research
When When Phyllis Frosst, PhD, graduated with a doctoral degree in biology in 2001, she wasn’t sure where her scientific career would lead. Now she’s the global director of Health Policy for Seqirus, a multinational influenza vaccine company. Here’s how her Scripps Research education equipped her for her journey.
Michael Bollong, PhD, started his undergraduate education as a premed student, but laboratory experience at Scripps Research drew him toward a career in science. Bollong completed his graduate studies in chemistry at Scripps Research in 2016, and is the first researcher to join the Scripps Fellows Program, which supports the next generation of scientific leaders in launching impactful careers.
How did you travel from biology to public policy? At Scripps Research, I was president of the Society of Fellows, an organization that promotes professional and social exchange between postdocs and other scientists and discovered that I enjoyed leading that sort of interaction. My peers seemed to think I was good at it as well. Then, at a conference in Washington, D.C., I networked with some Scripps Research alumni and ended up applying for—and getting—a policy analyst position with the National Institutes of Health.
What are your current responsibilities? I direct government affairs and global pandemic policy for Seqirus, the second largest influenza vaccine company in the world. We partner with governments to prepare for and mitigate the devastation of an influenza pandemic.
Any advice for today’s graduate students embarking on their scientific journeys? Think about what you enjoy doing as well as the subject area. Then talk to lots of people; most are happy to spend 30 minutes sharing their job experience. Your PhD has taught you how to analyze and solve problems, so there are lots of ways to have an incredible, meaningful and rewarding career whether you stay in academia or pursue a position outside of it.
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What did you focus on during your graduate studies? In my PhD work in Pete Schultz’s lab, I focused on identifying drug-like small molecules that can alter cell fate in the context of disease. This led to a number of interesting findings, including the development of a preclinical drug candidate for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a lung disease. We also discovered an important chemical connection between a cell’s sugar metabolism and its antioxidant response. This study uncovered a new drug target and mechanism for activating the antioxidant response to treat diseases like neurodegeneration.
What stands out to you from your time as a grad student? What makes Scripps Research so special are its scientists. I look back fondly on the many discussions had and friendships made with my fellow grad students, as well as the chance to learn from my heroes in chemical biology. The fact I can continue working with these scientists as colleagues in my new role of Scripps Fellow is a real privilege.
Where do you plan to go with your research now? My new lab is focused on using chemical genetics to solve essential problems in cell biology and to generate the chemical starting points for new drugs. We have an interest in identifying drugs which safely activate cellular defense mechanisms to various stressors like heat and heavy metals to intervene in neurodegenerative and autoimmune disease. We are also searching for drug molecules that manipulate cell growth pathways so that we might be able to perform organ repair in diseases of unmet medical need like heart failure.
Director of Biology
Professor
JACQUELINE BLANKMAN, PhD, Abide Therapeutics
ERICA OLLMANN SAPHIRE, PhD, Scripps Research
Since receiving her doctorate in chemistry in 2012, Jacqueline Blankman, PhD, joined Abide Therapeutics, a San Diego company founded on work from labs of two Scripps Research professors, Dale Boger, PhD, and Ben Cravatt, PhD. As director of biology at Abide, Blankman works on developing drugs that target an enzyme she worked on during her graduate research in Cravatt’s lab.
Erica Ollmann Saphire, PhD, earned her doctorate in 2000 and has come full circle as a professor at Scripps Research, mentoring graduate students who represent the next generation of scientists. Her research, which bridges molecular biology, virology and immunology, is paving the way to developing vaccines and therapeutics to counter deadly viruses such as Ebola and Lassa.
What did you focus on during your graduate research?
What attracted you to Scripps Research for graduate school?
My thesis work focused on communication pathways within cells that rely on signaling lipids, molecules built from fatty acids. I first became interested in lipid biology when I worked at the biotech FFA (“Free Fatty Acid”) Sciences in San Diego after my undergraduate degree. The naturally occurring molecules in the body that activate cannabinoid receptors are lipids, which fascinated me. When I learned that Ben Cravatt was studying the activity of these lipid neurotransmitters through chemically and genetically inactivating their metabolic enzymes, I was immediately interested in joining his group.
Infinite flexibility and the absence of boundaries. I began grad school at Stanford studying marine biology in Monterey, scuba diving every day. But structural biology caught hold of me. Being able to visualize the fold and motion of a protein in three dimensions was the most intellectually satisfying thing I had ever seen. I knew I had to do that. The dean, Bernie Gilula, knew who I was and called me on the phone. He said, “You can come tomorrow, and you can work on what you want.”
What are you focused on at Abide? Much of my thesis work centered around the generation and characterization of a mouse lacking one of the enzymes that regulate these lipids, monoacylglycerol lipase (MGLL), which is the target of the clinical program that I work on at Abide Therapeutics. I am the lead biologist on the ABX-1431 team, which is working to bring our first-in-class clinical MGLL inhibitor ABX-1431 all the way from the lab bench through clinical trials to one day treating patients with CNS and pain disorders. I lead the nonclinical development work on the program, which includes pharmacology, toxicology, drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics (DMPK) and clinical biomarkers.
Why did you decide to go into industry as opposed to pursuing an academic position? I seriously considered both options. When Abide chose MGLL as the target for its lead program, they approached me about the opportunity to join the company and develop a drug targeting the enzyme that I had spent years characterizing. It was an offer that I couldn’t refuse!
How did your experience in the graduate school influence your career path? I found immunology and virology, disciplines that require us to consider things at both the molecular level and the organismal and population level. I learned that tenacity and grit are frequently all that stand between failure and success. And I was inspired by professors Dennis Burton and Ian Wilson. Ian has incredible attention to detail and command of the literature. Dennis bridged the way to opportunities and collaborations. Both agreed that when something was important, you need to be willing to take risks.
What are you focused on now in your research? There is a change in the nature of Ebola virus research, and a fresh challenge. The virus has a whole other side to it, lurking in immune privileged sites, circulating subclinically or asymptomatically. We are no longer putting out fires, but instead approaching it in a more complex way to understand its immunology, its replication, its effect on populations. What we have done before and the tools for structural biology we have historically had are no longer adequate. In the movie Jaws, there’s a quote when they realize what they are up against: “We’re going to need a bigger boat.” My lab is building that boat. SCRIPPS.EDU
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DiscoveriesCalifornia Mobile health devices diagnose hidden heart condition in at-risk populations As many as six million Americans live with AFib, an irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia) that is associated with stroke and known to double the risk of death. Fortunately, effective therapies can reduce the risk of stroke in people with AFib. However, approximately a third of individuals with the disorder are asymptomatic, and the lack of effective screening prevents or delays diagnosis and treatment.
Chemists introduce ‘atomic glue gun’ Led by chemist Phil Baran, PhD, scientists at Scripps Research and Bristol-Myers Squibb have c reated a powerful new tool for precisely controlling the 3D architecture—also called stereochemistry—of linkages know as thiophosphates, found in some promising new drugs that target genetic molecules and other disease targets. The researchers have dubbed this first-of-its-kind technology an “atomic glue gun” for its ability to bind molecules together.
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Now researchers at the Scripps Research Translational Institute have found that wearable mobile health devices improved the rate of AFib diagnoses almost threefold, according to a first-of -its-kind, home-based clinical study. “We hope t hat it will set a precedent for future real-world, participant-centric clinical trials that leverage the power of digital medicine technologies,” says Steven Steinhubl, MD, director of digital medicine at the Translational Institute and an associate professor at Scripps Research.
The secret to how red blood cells stay in shape—and fight malaria Red blood cells are on a wild ride. As they race through the body to deliver oxygen, they must maintain a distinct dimpled shape—and bounce back into form even after squishing through narrow capillaries. Red blood cells that c an’t keep their shape are associated with diseases like sickle cell anemia. In a new study, Velia Fowler, PhD, and her lab on the California campus of Scripps Research report that a protein called myosin IIA contracts to give red blood cells their distinctive inner tube-like shape. The findings, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, could shed light on sickle cell diseases and other disorders where red blood cells are deformed. “Red blood cells have been studied for centuries, but there are still a lot of unanswered questions about how they adopt their shape,” says Alyson Smith, graduate student at Scripps Research and co-first author of the study. “Our study adds an important piece to this puzzle.” Red blood cells also have some impressive super powers. A recent study from Professor Ardem Patapoutian, PhD, and colleagues on the California campus shows how a mysterious mutation may protect people from malaria.
The researchers found that a mutation in the gene PIEZO1, which codes for a pressuresensing protein, can dehydrate red blood cells. This red blood cell dehydration condition, called hereditary xerocytosis, was thought to be extremely rare, so the researchers were surprised to find it could be present in one in three people of African descent. The new findings, published in Cell, suggest the mutation may have evolved as a way to protect red blood cells from the malaria parasite. In fact, in a mouse model, this mutation made it harder for the malaria parasite Plasmodium to infect red blood cells and cause cerebral malaria (a severe neurological complication of Plasmodium infection). And what about blood vessels, the highways where blood cells, antibodies, drug molecules and pathogens come together? Patapoutian and his colleagues recently identified a protein, called GPR68, that senses blood flow and tells small blood vessels called arterioles when to dilate. As they report in Cell, medications that activate GPR68 could one day be useful to treat medical conditions, including ischemic stroke.
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DiscoveriesFlorida How soil-dwelling bacteria might help save lives
To develop better medicines, scientists have gotten their hands dirty. It turns out the dirt beneath our feet is home to bacteria that make a huge range of molecules that can guide drug design. In two new studies, Ben Shen, PhD, and his team on the Florida campus of Scripps Research report that they’ve found clues to improving chemotherapy drugs and antibiotics, thanks to soil-dwelling bacteria. First, the team investigated a deadly mystery: What makes cancer cells resistant to chemotherapy drugs? They found that some bacteria in soil have a gene that lets them identify toxic substances and send molecules to bind to those substances and sequester them from the r est of the cell. Could human cancer cells be doing the same thing to protect themselves from drug molecules they deem harmful? Looking closer, the researchers discovered that bacteria in the human gut also have the genes needed t o lock away toxic molecules. Shen thinks these bacteria may share the products of these genes with cancer cells, making it possible for cancers to ward off chemotherapy drugs. “This mechanism could be clinically relevant for patients getting these drugs, so it’s very important to study it further,” says Shen, who led the Cell Chemical Biology study. “Future efforts to survey the human microbiome for resistance elements should be an important part of natural product-based drug discovery programs.” In Nature Communications, Shen reported that soil- dwelling bacteria around the world have the genes to make molecules called thiocarboxylic acids. These molecules are very similar to human-made carboxylic acids— nicknamed “warheads” for their ability to home in on disease targets. Shen’s research shows that nature-made thiocarboxylic acids may work even better than carboxylic acids, giving antibiotics and other medicines new disease-fighting powers. “There are many, many thiocarboxylic acid natural products waiting to be discovered, making them a treasure trove of potential new drug leads or drugs,” says Shen.
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Opioid users could benefit from meth-relapse prevention strategy
Tumor-like spheres help scientists discover smarter cancer drugs Most cancer research begins in cells grown on flat plates, but that’s not optimal—tumors aren’t twodimensional, says Louis Scampavia, PhD, director of High Throughput Chemistry and Technologies at Scripps Research in Jupiter. Screening for anti-cancer drugs using 3-D, ball-like clumps of cells, called spheroids, may provide more realistic results, he says.
For people in recovery from substance use disorders, specific memory triggers can spark an urge to return to drug use. Scientists on Scripps Research’s Florida campus say a compound designed to modify meth-linked memories and reduce the power of cravings may help those with opioid addiction, too. The potential drug, a modified form of the compound blebbistatin, “would be the first compound to directly target the motivational power of craving triggers,” says Courtney Miller, PhD, associate professor and study senior author.
Using the spheroids in a large-scale screen for anti-cancer agents, Scampavia, Timothy Spicer, PhD, Joseph Kissil, PhD, and colleagues, identified an important compound that targets a difficult oncogene, KRAS. The compound wouldn’t have been found using traditional methods, the scientists write in the journal Oncogene. “With these 3-D spheroids, we emulate much more closely what’s found in living tissues,” Scampavia says. “It shows you can look at libraries of drugs that have already been approved for other diseases, and find drugs that may also work for cancer,” Kissil adds. “In theory, you could use this s creening method for any line of cancer cells, and any mutation you want.”
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Science Changing Lives
Perspectives
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What has your education or contribution to education at Scripps Research meant to you?
Science, ultimately, is about people... About the people who learn science, the people who teach science, the people who do science. We asked people about how science education at Scripps Research has change d their lives. Here’s what they shared.
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The Graduate Students LISA BARTON I’ve always been aware of Scripps Research and its excellent reputation, especially in chemistry. When I was an undergraduate at Northeastern University in Boston, I participated in a program that alternated six months of classroom studies with six months of internships at pharmaceutical companies. So, I had the opportunity to work at three different companies, two large ones—Cubist Pharmaceuticals [acquired by Merck & Co.] and Millennium Pharmaceuticals [acquired by Takeda]—as well as a startup. Since I was working among top chemists, I quickly learned where the best chemistry research was being performed and where the best education and training were offered. And both were at Scripps Research. Although I really wanted to stay in the Boston area to do my graduate studies, I didn’t want to limit my options, so I investigated the graduate program at Scripps Research along with the faculty members associated with the program. When I saw the amazing research Phil Baran was accomplishing, I decided I could not not work with the #1 synthetic chemist in the field. Later, when I reached out to him to express my interest and he said there was a space in his lab if I wanted it, I quickly accepted. What I really like about working in Phil’s lab is his understanding of how chemistry can be most useful. He can look at a hypothesis and say “that will be a hard bond to make, but it would be really useful for such-andsuch a purpose; let’s find a way to do it.” My career goal is to work with biologists to understand drug targets then use my chemistry training to design molecules that hit those targets. I’m learning to do that here.
GETTING TO KNOW LISA BARTON Graduate Student S kaggs Graduate School of Chemical and B iological Sciences
SCHOLAR Won a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship
CO-AUTHOR Co-authored a paper in Science describing how to more easily make a class of molecules proven useful for drug development
DANCER Danced competitively for nine years
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The Graduate Students
Science Changing Lives
MATTHEW COSTALES I was born in Toronto, Canada, and raised in North Olmsted, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland. My mom was a nurse and my dad was a civil engineer. In high school, he got a job working on Dulles airport, so we moved to Maryland. My parents wanted me to become a doctor. I went to the University of Maryland as a chemistry major, but when I started doing undergraduate research, my perspective really changed. No disrespect to doctors, but if you look from a bird’s-eye view, the only way to completely solve diseases— to cure them—is to attack the disease itself. So senior year I called my parents and said, “I don’t want to be a doctor.” They were disappointed. I took a break from school to experience more research working at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Immunobiology Branch in the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. After two years of research into foodborne disease, I felt ready to apply to graduate school. I came up with a mission statement for myself: We need to apply chemistry to solve biological problems in many incurable diseases. Looking at graduate schools, I did what everyone does and looked at U.S. News & World Report. People want to be at a reputable place, but you can’t pick a grad school based just on rank. You have to look at the people who work at an institution. I wanted to do completely new things and put my stamp on a field where others have said “you can’t do that.” When I interviewed at Scripps Research and I looked at different labs, I came across the Disney lab. Matt Disney is a very charismatic, charming guy; honestly, the most passionate person about research that I’ve met. A lot of people think that diseases are caused by proteins. Accessing the RNA machinery behind them, learning what chemical space we can use to target these diseases, that can open up new ways to solve incurable diseases. That was his elevator pitch to me. At that moment, I was in.
GETTING TO KNOW MATTHEW COSTALES Graduate Student S kaggs Graduate School of Chemical and B iological Sciences
FELLOWSHIP The American Chemical Society’s Division of Medicinal Chemistry awarded him one of its prestigious Medicinal Chemistry Predoctoral Fellowships
NORTH TO SOUTH Born in Toronto, grew up near Cleveland, and attended high school and college in Maryland
FOCUS
I just found out my sister was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia and I felt completely helpless when she told me the news. When something like this happens, you look back and say, “This is my sister and she is suffering, and I cannot do anything.” If 20 years from now, what I’m working on actually becomes a therapy, maybe then I will no longer feel helpless. Maybe other people in this position won’t have to feel helpless. I wouldn’t be able to do this without this institution, without this infrastructure, without all of these great scientists who are here, with all of the collaborations. We’re this organism working toward making life easier for people with currently untreatable diseases.
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Developing tools and approaches to optimizing the selectivity of potential oral medications to target RNA, a strategy for addressing previously “undruggable” diseases
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Science Changing Lives 24
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The Graduate Students CECILIA MONTEIRO, MD After earning my medical degree, I decided to become a neurologist mainly because I was fascinated by the large number of “unknowns” in the neuroscience field. Most neurological diseases, especially the neurodegenerative ones, are still incurable, and I wanted to be involved in new impactful discoveries. I did my residency at Hospital Geral de Santo António in Porto, Portugal, which is a reference center for patients with familial amyloid polyneuropathy, a progressively fatal neurodegenerative disease associated with aggregation of a protein called transthyretin. As a neurology resident, my clinical research focused on investigating methods to diagnose these patients before they became too sick for treatment. The hospital had an ongoing research collaboration with Dr. Jeffery Kelly, one of the experts in this field, and whose work led to the first approved drug for the treatment of these diseases. Through this collaboration, I first learned about Scripps Research. After finishing my neurology residency, I decided to formally pursue a PhD and Scripps Research was my top choice. It is a challenging program, but I tell people if you are looking for a place with a lot of freedom to pursue your idea, you can find a way to do it here. I was able to continue working with Hospital Geral de Santo António and collected lots of clinical data and received patient samples that I analyzed with new methods developed here in the lab. Thanks to this work, I published one paper and am currently finalizing two more. More importantly, I have found new biomarkers and disease mechanisms. This is a very productive place for scientists who want to have an impact on human health. I miss working directly with patients; there is an immediate gratification at the end of the day. You think, maybe I helped that person a little bit; but I know, ultimately, that the translational research I have done at Scripps Research will have a greater impact on patients’ lives.
GETTING TO KNOW CECILIA MONTEIRO, MD Graduate Student S kaggs Graduate School of Chemical and B iological Sciences
PORTUGUESE ROOTS Previously an assistant neurologist at Hospital G eral de Santo António i n Porto, Portugal
AWARDS Received the Ellen Browning Scripps Foundation Fellowship Award
INVENTOR Patented a new diagnostic m ethod for transthyretin a myloid diseases
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Science Changing Lives 26
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The Graduate Students REBECCA GOYDEL I moved to Florida my sophomore year of high school because my dad lived there, and he was sick with stomach cancer that had metastasized. When he was well, Dad used to wake up at 2 in the morning to deliver bread. Sometimes he would take me in the truck. People loved him. He always joked around, making people smile. Gleevec had recently come out—the first targeted cancer therapy—and that gave him 5 years. I was 16 when he passed. I am the first in my family to go to college. I had a collegeprep class in high school with a phenomenal teacher who really believed in me. I loved science and math. I thought I could help people by teaching. She showed me that by earning a PhD, I could fulfill all of my career goals. I knew if I was going to go to college I was going to have to apply for every scholarship I could find. I received a full ride from Fairmont State University in West Virginia, majoring in chemistry with a minor in biology. While visiting my dad in Jupiter, I had watched Scripps Research being built. That memory prompted me to apply for a summer internship. Also, I heard about the DiVerge program, which brings underrepresented students from across the country to the Scripps Research Jupiter campus for a weekend. At a poster session, two projects from the Rader lab caught my attention. Both focused on using the immune system to fight cancer. The following year I was selected for the summer program and worked with (then graduate student) Alex Nanna, who worked in the labs of both Immunology Professor Christoph Rader and Chemistry Professor Bill Roush. I did biology during the day and chemistry at night. I put in long days, but enjoyed every minute because it showed me what I really wanted to do. For my current thesis project, I am developing an antibody that would direct immune cells to kill cancer cells, only in the presence of the tumor microenvironment. I am focusing on ovarian cancer, since fewer than half of all patients have a five-year survival rate. I want to improve this. If I could talk to my dad, I would tell him that I feel like I am making a difference. The research I am working on has the potential to advance the cancer research field, and to help so many people.
“Graduate students challenge us as much as we challenge them, and we are a far better research institute because of that.” Ian Wilson, PhD Chair, Dept. of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology
GETTING TO KNOW REBECCA GOYDEL Graduate Student S kaggs Graduate School of Chemical and B iological Sciences
JUPITER, FLORIDA ROOTS A first-generation college student who attended Jupiter High School in 2009.
FELLOWSHIP The Frenchman’s Creek Women for Cancer Research supports her graduate fellowship.
INSPIRATION Her father’s struggle with stomach cancer spurred her interest in developing better, more targeted anti-cancer treatments.
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The Professors Science Changing Lives
COURTNEY MILLER, PhD
Associate Professor epartment of D Molecular Medicine Department of Neuroscience Faculty Graduate Program
GETTING TO KNOW COURTNEY MILLER, PhD I integrate two instructional methods within the Scripps Research graduate program: support and individualization. None of us enters science with the same strengths and weaknesses, so I make it a point to adjust my teaching or mentoring style to best suit each student. Some need help reining in their overly ambitious, experimental ideas, while others need encouragement to keep improving their writing or presentation abilities. Then there are those with imposter syndrome—many, unfortunately, exceptionally bright female students—who need reminding that they do have the talent to succeed and that science will benefit from their particular skills and outlook. I can relate especially well to those individuals who feel marginalized by the scientific status quo. When I was a grad student, more-senior scientists focused on my physical appearance rather than my intellect. Thankfully, supportive mentors in my own graduate program helped me address that problem head-on. They gave me the backing to persist and succeed
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so now I’m well equipped to help the young scientists at Scripps Research reach their potential. One of the aspects I like most about our graduate program is its flexibility in allowing students to customize their curriculums. By taking courses outside their field of study, they gain a broader perspective, which ultimately enhances their contributions to science. A favorite English teacher in high school, who held a PhD in philosophy while also serving as the athletic director, impressed upon me the importance of looking at a problem from as many angles and perspectives as possible, even if that meant leaving your comfort zone. There was absolutely no getting away with confirmation bias, which is also critical in science. Now, I try to convey that same dedication to finding the truth to up-andcoming scientists. I tell them they must face the possibility of disproving their hypothesis. But it’s absolutely okay to be wrong at the start; as we all eventually learn, that often leads to more interesting discoveries.
AWARDS Received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and E ngineers, the highest honor b estowed by the U.S. government on young professionals
LEADERSHIP Co-founded the Professional Women’s Nexus to promote w omen in academia a nd industry
SCHOLAR-ATHLETE Earned two academic scholarships, as well as an athletic one (diving), at her university
Richard and Alice Cramer Professor of Chemistry D epartment of Chemistry Faculty Graduate Program
DALE BOGER, PhD
GETTING TO KNOW DALE BOGER, PhD
When the graduate school at Scripps Research launched in 1989, it was the first program focused on the science at the interface between chemistry and biology. That really set the program apart, captured many people’s imaginations, and defined a new frontier for the field of chemistry. Richard Lerner, who was the president at the time, hired some of the world’s best chemists and put them in an environment where they could interact with world-class biologists. It wasn’t forced, it happened organically, and the graduate school still plays a central role in how biology and chemistry at Scripps Research come together in really unique ways. The first students in the program had a pioneering spirit. Some of them were turning down well-established Ivy League schools to enroll in an unknown and unaccredited program. I can only imagine the conversations they must have had with their parents about that decision. That adventurous spirit still permeates our program. The students who come here aren’t looking for a conventional program. They are looking for the opportunity to focus on science above all else and the flexibility to pursue the scientific questions that keep them up at night. They come with
remarkable motivation, curiosity and capacity to absorb information. This allows us to present highly detailed and in-depth courses that lay the foundation for doing great science. We have always fully integrated students into the science of the institute, so that our educational mission and our research mission support one another. The graduate program pushed the Scripps Research faculty to become better educators. In the early days, we looked at the best programs around the country. We didn’t have a history or a tradition, so we could adopt what we saw worked for other programs and forego what didn’t. When we couldn’t find something we thought was needed, we created it—textbooks, literature research tools…you name it. For instance, with the help of 15 graduate students, I created a textbook on organic chemistry that is still widely used. It’s like the CliffsNotes for organic synthesis—but nearly 500 hundred pages long. If you consider the legion of highly accomplished graduates from our program who have gone on to great things and the educational resources we’ve created, our impact goes well beyond Scripps Research to the whole scientific community.
CHEMISTRY CLIFFSNOTES Authored Modern Organic Synthesis, a widely used chemistry textbook.
IVY ROOTS Earned his doctorate in chemistry from Harvard University
COMPANY MAN Scientific co-founder of Abide Therapeutics, Inc.
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Science Changing Lives
The Postdoctoral Researchers NATHAN GRUBAUGH, PhD I’m an arbovirologist by training, meaning I study viruses that are spread by arthropods such as mosquitoes. I wanted to develop new skills after getting my PhD, so I reached out to Kristian Andersen, PhD, at Scripps Research about working as a postdoc in his lab. Kristian is not an arbovirologist, but he is great at studying genomics and outbreaks. So I wanted to sort of integrate the two fields. Zika virus wasn’t really in the news then, but in the months following my first talk with Kristian, Zika exploded. Studies showed the association with congenital Zika virus syndrome and microcephaly, and it became clear that there was a lot going on with Zika that we didn’t know. All of a sudden Kristian and I were sending emails back and forth like “We’re working on Zika!” As soon as I got into the lab, my focus was Zika. We needed to sequence viral genomes to understand how it was spreading. One thing that was unique was that we had direct access to the Genomics Core at Scripps Research. In the midst of an outbreak, it was critical to have samples come in and then have data in hand just four days later. I look back, and I can’t believe it all came together so quickly. We had international collaborators who all banded together to work on this. I learned a lot from Kristian during this time about the art of collaboration. I’ve just started my own lab at Yale, and I have this vast network of collaborators already. I’m also taking what I learned from Kristian, what we called genomic epidemiology, to sequence field samples and better understand outbreaks. Getting a faculty position after doing just two years as a postdoc is crazy—I’m about five years ahead of where I expected to be. I think I’ve gotten lucky along the way, but I’ve also chosen really great people to work with.
Assistant Professor Yale University School of Medicine Former postdoctoral researcher in Kristian Andersen’s lab
GETTING TO KNOW NATHAN GRUBAUGH, PhD TECH-DRIVEN Uses “open science” to quickly share new data with collaborators around the world
MOSQUITO WHISPERER Has studied mosquitoes from Liberia to Florida to his backyard in Fort Collins, Colorado
SOCIAL MEDIA Participated in Reddit’s AMA (Ask Me Anything) series
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DAVID OYEN, PhD In the area of structural biology, which is what I am interested in, a lot of great findings come from Scripps Research, and I wanted to be a part of that. I came here in 2012 to work in the lab of Peter Wright and then moved to the lab of Ian Wilson. We’re interested in how antibodies bind to pathogens like HIV and malaria. This is a field called “rational vaccine design.” The idea is that in order to design a nextgeneration vaccine, you need to know the atomic details of highly protective antibody interactions. With malaria, for example, you need to know what part of the elicited antibodies recognizes what part of the malaria antigen. And we’re getting the firstever looks at those interactions now. Besides technical skills, I’ve improved on my people skills since I’ve been here. Especially since Scripps Research is such an international environment, you have an opportunity to meet people with different backgrounds and viewpoints which will widen your own perspective. My goal has been to keep on learning, keep on improving. And of course, hopefully, that will lead to good publications as well. I want to do research that I enjoy, is challenging and has an impact. Whether that may be in industry or academia comes second. I’m originally from Belgium, and my experience as an international scholar at Scripps Research has been great. Since there are many other internationals here, it is easy to get help and tips on how to adjust to American life, get a driver’s license, do taxes, etc.
Postdoctoral Researcher Scripps Research Ian Wilson’s Integrative Structural and Computational Biology lab
GETTING TO KNOW DAVID OYEN, PhD MALARIA DETECTIVE Oyen’s most recent study showed that human antibodies can neutralize the malaria parasite by working together to lock a protein on malaria’s surface into a “spiral staircaselike” structure. This phenomenon had never been seen before and opens the door to better targeting malaria through vaccines.
SUPPORTING TEAMWORK Oyen’s recent malaria study was a close collaboration with researchers in Andrew Ward’s lab at Scripps Research.
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Science Changing Lives 32
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The Clinical Scholar/Physician TOLUWALASE AJAYI, MD I was born in Ibadan, Nigeria and lived there for several years until the country went through political upheaval. My mother was actually imprisoned for protesting the government. Her friends managed to get her out, and we fled to the U.S. My mother, sisters and I arrived in Ithaca, New York, where my mother secured a teaching position at Cornell University. My father joined us a year later and we eventually settled in Lawrence, Kansas. I always knew that I wanted to be a pediatrician. I wanted to give kids a voice and advocate for those who could not advocate for themselves. During my residency at the University of Kansas, where I received my medical degree, I discovered a passion for the field of pain medicine. I was specifically interested in helping kids with sickle cell disease, cystic fibrosis and survivors of cancer. I love talking to families and helping them through crisis situations. Helping reduce or eliminate a child’s pain or nausea so they can go back to being a normal kid is hugely rewarding. But there’s a lot of room for improvement when it comes to the way we currently treat pain. Our approach needs to be more personalized. That’s why I applied for the KL2 Clinical Scholars program at the Scripps Research Translational Institute. I’m interested in figuring out ways to harness digital health technologies to guide pain management. Currently, a number of wearable devices exist that continuously monitor various vital signs. A change in these signs—heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature—might indicate the patient is in distress, allowing the doctor to adjust medications to meet the patient’s individual needs. Since graduating from the Clinical Scholars program, I’ve continued my research. I’m currently conducting two small clinical trials: one in adult cancer patients, assessing the impact of neurostimulation technology to provide relief from chronic pain, and the other in kids with sickle cell disease or cancer, evaluating the utility of a wrist-worn monitor that tracks vital signs as well as sleep.
GETTING TO KNOW TOLUWALASE AJAYI, MD Clinical Researcher Digital Medicine Scripps Research Translational Institute
EDUCATION Earned her medical degree from University of Kansas Medical Center
TRAINING Trained as a palliative care physician with a special interest in pediatrics
ADVANCING CARE Interested in harnessing digital health technologies to guide pain management
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The Donors Science Changing Lives
CHRISTINE KOEHN, PhD As executive director of The Celia Lipton Farris and Victor W. Farris Foundation, I help identify which organizations best align with the foundation’s philanthropic priorities. Our relationship with Scripps Research began in 2014 when we created the Farris Foundation Fellowship at Scripps Florida because it aligned with our interests in biomedical research, STEM education and postsecondary educational support. We were so pleased with our relationship and the impact the foundation’s funding was making that we decided to endow the fellowship in 2016.
Executive Director The Celia Lipton Farris and Victor W. Farris Foundation
GETTING TO KNOW CHRISTINE KOEHN EDUCATION Earned her doctoral degree in applied psychology
GIVING BACK Launched multiple c ollaborative efforts, including ones to help low-income students obtain a p ostsecondary education
SOCIALLY-MINDED Strategically invests f oundation funds for m aximum impact on social issues that include educational a chievement
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This fellowship continues to support the foundation’s interests in multiple ways. First, it provides high quality education to budding scientists. We’re thoroughly impressed with the caliber of the students and believe that the educational programs at Scripps Research are exceptional. Second, by contributing to the education and training of the next generation of leading scientists, we’re enhancing cutting-edge biomedical research; that was one of the original priorities for Victor Farris. And, third, because our Fellows mentor younger students, working side-by-side with aspiring scientists of high school and college age, we’re also able to enrich STEM education in the Palm Beach County area. That’s one of our foundation’s current interests: enabling young people with the skills to reach their full potential and lead successful lives. So, the endowed fellowship at Scripps Research provides a lot of depth for our dollars. Personally, I’ve enjoyed meeting our Fellows—there are three to date—and watching their careers blossom. Each brings unique skills to the institute and is pursuing a different area of research. That adds to our excitement because we see our support subsequently reaping results across diverse scientific arenas. We are also really pleased with the communications we receive from each Fellow and their advisor. When we bring board members for site visits, the science and its impact are always clearly explained. And, in observing the positive relationship between student and advisor, we can see that Scripps Research provides a very supportive training environment. Further, we always leave feeling that the work we’re supporting has the potential for real world impact, something we may all benefit from one day. Overall, this has been a great partnership for us. We’re truly excited to continue it.
CLAUDIA SKAGGS LUTTRELL My family, beginning with my parents, Sam and Aline Skaggs, has always believed in the important role education plays in improving our world. So, shortly after I was elected to the Board of Directors at Scripps Research, I began looking for ways I could help expand the already exceptional resources at the institute. My dad and I were able to establish a one-of-a-kind academic partnership with the University of Oxford that enables select students to blend doctoral studies at either the California or Florida campus of Scripps Research with studies at the university campus in Oxford, England. Students graduate from the five-year Skaggs-Oxford Program with a combined PhD/DPhil degree, along with a multidisciplinary education and academic connections on two continents. Those are real assets to young scientists. I know that one of the Skaggs-Oxford Scholars, Keary Engle, went on to become an assistant professor at Scripps Research where he is developing promising molecules for drug discovery. Having added my support to his graduate education is very gratifying. As a Board member, I get to meet and talk with the institute president and I’m very impressed with Pete’s vision for the institute. When he shared his idea for launching a $100 million campaign to endow fellowships for all students in the graduate program, I encouraged my family to lend their support. We decided to make a lead gift to the campaign and, to motivate other supporters, established a plan whereby each $500,000 gift from a donor could be supplemented with an equal amount from our foundations to create a $1 million named student fellowship. It was an honor for all of us when the institute subsequently chose to name the school the Skaggs Graduate School of Chemical and Biological Sciences. At the name unveiling ceremony, former students and current faculty members underscored the importance of this graduate program by speaking movingly about how it had positively impacted their research. I really believe in the value of the graduate program at Scripps Research and in this endowment campaign. My son, Dallas Luttrell, and daughter, Jennifer LuttrellBenardoni, have added their own contributions, extending our family’s tradition of supporting Scripps Research across three generations now. I know that would make my father proud.
Claudia and daughter, Jennifer
GETTING TO KNOW CLAUDIA SKAGGS LUTTRELL Board of Directors Scripps Research President Skaggs Institute for Chemical Biology
AVID HORSEWOMAN Has won several national championships showing her horses during a 30-year career
MODERN COWGIRL Farms the land and breeds cattle and polo horses on her Idaho ranch
GIVING BACK Serves on multiple boards for foundations, churches and nonprofits
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Kenan fellowships ignite career quest for cures
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— Tom Kenan
accomplish some things.”
convinced. They will have decades to contribute and really
going to cure so many of the ailments that exist now, I am
“I feel like I have 150 children. They are the future. They are
Science Changing Futures
Kenan Fellow Most people can recall a turning point that defined their life path and set their career trajectory. Greg Poore’s turning point came in the summer of 2011, after his junior year of high school. Thanks to the generosity of the William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust— and his own hard work—Poore gained a coveted place interning in Glenn Micalizio’s chemistry laboratory at Scripps Research’s Florida campus. There, he devoted his summer to the design of new medications. The experience changed his life. “The Kenan fellowship taught me the fundamentals of research and showed me how someone goes about asking good questions and designing effective experiments to find answers. It proved to me that research was something I wanted to do for the rest of my life,” Poore says. Growing up in West Palm Beach, Florida, Poore had a talent for mathematics, but little familiarity with the world of scientific research—his family worked in real estate. A gift to Scripps Research from the William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust opened that door. The Kenan family, one with historic ties to Florida’s development, had endowed science education programs at the bicoastal institute’s Florida campus beginning in 2005. The trust’s namesake, William R. Kenan, Jr. was a talented chemical engineer. As an undergraduate, William R. Kenan, Jr.’s studies contributed to the discovery and identification of calcium carbide and the
development of a process for making acetylene gas from it. In 1901, his sister, Mary Lily Kenan, married Henry Morrison Flagler, a founder of Standard Oil and developer of the Florida East Coast Railway and the Breakers Hotel of Palm Beach, among other ventures. Following Henry Flagler’s death in 1913 and Mary Lily Kenan Flagler’s death in 1917, a majority of the Flagler fortune was inherited by William R. Kenan, Jr. and his sisters. The family’s enduring commitment to science and education continues to touch lives for the betterment of all of society. In 2012, thanks in part to his internship, Poore not only won admission to Duke University, he obtained financial aid that covered nearly all of his educational expenses. That was critical for his family amid South Florida’s severe real estate downturn. At Duke, Poore thrived. He was thrilled to meet a descendent of William R. Kenan, Jr., Thomas S. Kenan, III, of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, to thank him for the opportunity to learn at Scripps Research. They stayed in contact through the years.
“I feel like I have 150 children. They are the future,” Tom Kenan says. “They are going to cure so many of the ailments that exist now, I am convinced. They will have decades to contribute and really accomplish some things.” Poore completed a second Kenan fellowship at Scripps Research in Florida as an undergraduate, this time working in the lab of cancer immunologist Christoph Rader, PhD, on unique antibody-drug conjugates engineered to attack cancer and spare healthy tissue. Poore’s decision to dedicate his career to cancer research came through personal tragedy a few months prior, when his grandmother developed an aggressive form of pancreatic cancer; it was strengthened during that second Kenan fellowship. “She went from being almost symptomfree, to passing within four weeks despite targeted chemotherapy,” Poore says. “I wanted to understand what could be done to prevent others from going through the same experience. It became a calling.”
“It’s something special when you meet someone who just wants to give, and is pleased when you do good work,” Poore says.
Today, Poore is pursuing joint MD/PhD degrees at the University of California, San Diego, and writing a thesis on the cancer microbiome.
“It just blew me over that he wanted to come and say thank you. He is very, very special,” Tom Kenan says. Kenan keeps tabs on all of the Kenan Fellows at Scripps Research.
“I am so thankful for all of the opportunities the Kenan fellowship has made possible,” Poore says. “My entire career trajectory has been shaped by it.”
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Translations New Scripps Research drug progressing through clinical trial, seeking to reverse underlying causes of osteoarthritis As we get older, the aging of our bodies
When given to animals, the compound
The trial is focused on assessing the
may often seem like a one-way street,
was effective at regenerating cartilage.
safety of the drug, as well as its initial
what with the steady arrival of blurry vision,
The researchers reported their findings in a
effectiveness in combatting osteoarthritis.
gray hair, wrinkled skin and other signs of
groundbreaking paper in the journal Science.
Together with Calibr, the clinical head of the
time. But there is reason to take heart—
KA34 program, Martin Lotz, MD, a professor
at least for people suffering from one of
The promise of regenerating cartilage
at Scripps Research, has tested the drug
the most common scourges of aging,
spurred Schultz and his team to pursue a
on 16 osteoarthritis patients. Enrollment is
osteoarthritis.
version of the compound that could reverse
accelerating as no drug-related adverse
osteoarthritis in humans. To do this, they
effects have been seen.
Osteoarthritis is the prevalent form of
turned to the drug discovery capabilities
arthritis, affecting tens of millions of
of Calibr, a separate nonprofit founded by
The Phase 1 trial is slated to wrap up by
people worldwide. The disease stems
Schultz that recently merged with Scripps
September 2019, after the drug is tested
from the wearing down of the cartilage
Research as its drug discovery division.
in all 60 participants. Assuming KA34
that protects the ends of bones. Currently,
proves safe and shows initial signs of
the only non-surgical therapies for the
“The story of KA34 is proof positive that
effectiveness, the next step would be
disease are drugs that treat the pain
integrating academic science and drug
a Phase 2 clinical trial to robustly test
and inflammation—the symptoms—while
discovery capabilities offers incredible
its ability to stop or even reverse the
having no impact on the loss of cartilage,
potential for speeding translation of
progression of osteoarthritis. In anticipation
the underlying cause of the disease.
foundational discoveries into real-world
of the next trial, Calibr scientists are
medicines,” says Schultz. “From the time
developing an extended release version
A new drug, developed by scientists at
we had a preclinical candidate identified
of KA34.
Scripps Research and being tested in an
to giving the drug to patients was roughly
early-stage clinical trial, could change
two years.”
that. The idea for the compound, called
38
“This is the first program of our new benchto-bedside initiative to enter the clinic,”
KA34, emerged from the laboratory of
In May 2018, Calibr scientists launched
Schultz says. “Over the next two years we
Peter Schultz, PhD, a chemistry professor
a Phase 1 clinical trial to test KA34 in 60
expect to move additional programs into
and the president of Scripps Research.
patients between the ages of 40 and
development including therapies for cancer,
Schultz and his team discovered a
75 with osteoarthritis. The California Institute
malaria, and lung and neurodegenerative
compound, called kartogenin, that
for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), which
diseases.”
generates chondrocytes from stem cells,
financially supported the KA34 preclinical
the early-stage, highly flexible cells from
research effort from inception, awarded Calibr
which all specialized cell types develop.
an additional $8.4 million for the clinical trial.
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KA34 Osteoarthritis afflicts about
40 million people in the United States and Europe.
reversing osteoarthritis
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#ScienceChangingEducation
Preparing and inspiring the next generation of #scientists and #leaders is essential to the continued advancement of human health. @ScrippsResearch offers highly motivated high school, undergraduate, and professional students opportunities to test drive a career in science through various #internship programs. For many students, these experiences represent the start of a lifelong journey of #scientificdiscovery. #sciencechangingeducation
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Scripps Research @scrippsresearch • Sep 15
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G-protein coupled receptors in #diabetes during her summer internship @scrippsresearch in #Florida #sciencechangingeducation
Scripps Research Translational Institute @scrippsRTI • Aug 17
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translational research.
300
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Ashwath Radhachandran, a @UCBerkeley undergraduate & summer intern in the lab of @K_G_Andersen, mastering the art of pipetting. #lablife
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Post-Journal Club smiles! Summer interns learning about the latest trends & innovations in
Scripps Research @scrippsresearch • Aug 7
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Kenan Fellow Alexandria Bustabad, a student @OxbridgeAcademy, studies the role of specific
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Scripps Research @scrippsresearch • Sep 4
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Romesberg Lab @RomesbergLab • Aug 15
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For six weeks, high school interns from across #PalmBeachCounty #FL learned in labs
Sad saying goodbye to two of the best summer interns we’ve ever had, Jenna and Emily. Best of luck
@ScrippsResearch. At lunch time, they met in the cafe to compare notes on #neuroscience, robotic
with whatever the future holds, but you guys killed it in our lab so I’m sure you don’t need it!
drug discovery, #RNAbiology #cancerresearch, microfluidic microarrays... #sciencechanginglife
Scripps Research @scrippsresearch • Jul 30
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Scripps Research Translational Institute @scrippsRTI • Sep 6
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Our summer internship program aims to train and prepare young scientists to become future leaders
It’s intern season at Scripps Research! #STEM #womeninstem #science #research
in the realm of translational science.
science TEST DRIVING A CAREER IN
Tomorrow’s discoveries lie within today’s young scientists. You can help them achieve their potential while delivering a lasting gift to humanity. • Endow a graduate student fellowship • Sponsor a summer internship for a college student • Support a high school in-lab program Scripps Research Translational Institute @scrippsRTI • Aug 30
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Aline & Katie hanging out while taking a break from their digital medicine internship projects. #sciencechanginglife
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To learn more about these and other philanthropic options, please visit: www.scripps.edu/support-us/giving-opportunities/
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Science Science Changing Changing Education Education 42 SCRIPPS SCRIPPSRESEARCH RESEARCHMAGAZINE MAGAZINE 42
WINTER2019 2019 WINTER
Show me the data: Science relies on good data to validate research quality. By numerous measures then, the scientific education programs offered at Scripps Research produce top quality results. Here’s an overview.
“We are so fortunate to get the best and brightest students. They bring curiosity, hard work, enthusiasm and great ideas to the labs and often drive the science in novel directions.” Wendy Havran, PhD Professor, Department of Immunology and Microbiology
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K-12 & Undergraduates
Graduate Students
100s of children
92%
and their families, many from underserved communities, have participated in Family Science Nights at the Florida campus of Scripps Research where they have been inspired by the wonder of science.
500 students
from kindergarten through fifth grade spoke with Scripps Research scientists at the Marshall Elementary Career Fair in San Diego.
179 teens
from nearly every public high school in Palm Beach County, Florida have explored hands-on science during eight-week Kenan fellowships at Scripps Research.
of students, despite the challenging program, graduate.
2 campuses
with telecommunications capabilities support bicoastal education at Scripps Research.
4.37 scientific papers are published, on average, by each graduate student over the five-year program.
19 years
in a row the graduate program at Scripps Research has ranked among the top ten in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.
823 applications
to the Skaggs Graduate School of Chemical and Biological Sciences at Scripps Research were received in the most recent year.
143
students interested in genomics and translational research have taken part in the eight-week Student Research Internship program at the Scripps Research Translational Institute.
270
Florida Atlantic University undergraduates have completed internships at the neighboring campus of Scripps Research.
22%
of applicants were accepted into the competitive program.
Alumni
700+ alumni
currently drive scientific progress in academia, industry and government.
33%
Science Scholars
131 teachers
from middle schools and high schools in Florida have participated in multi-day, hands-on science workshops at Scripps Research, returning to their classrooms with cutting-edge scientific knowledge to share with their students.
of graduate program alumni currently work in the pharmaceutical or biotechnology sectors.
20% of graduate students go on to earn tenure-track positions at major universities and research institutes.
26 physicians
interested in translating scientific discoveries into meaningful healthcare have enrolled in the Translational Institute’s KL2 Clinical Scholars program.
100%
of the first-year medical students at Florida Atlantic University participate in ResearchFest at the nearby Florida campus of Scripps Research, helping bridge the gap between biomedical research and clinical practice.
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infinite human progress
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Do great science. Advance human health.
How do you take a nearly 100-year-old institution, founded by a philanthropic icon and respected throughout the scientific world, and give it a makeover—freshening its image and message for a wider audience? You begin by fixing a compass on your core mission. At Scripps Research, our mission is fundamentally this: Do great science. Advance human health. Our ability today to connect scientific discovery directly with patients is unprecedented. “This is the age of individualized, precision medicine,” says Eric Topol, MD, executive vice president and founder of the Scripps Research Translational Institute. “Combining each person’s genomic and sensor data is helping accelerate discoveries and our goal is to get these new insights quickly delivered to patients. We’re often able to predict risk and potentially prevent or better manage diseases, thus helping people live longer, healthier lives. There’s tremendous promise in the scope of our scientific work here at Scripps Research and that’s a story we needed to tell.” In partnership with a talented San Diego creative agency, Grizzly, the Communications department began developing expansive messaging and imagery—and entirely redesigned the institute website—to tell that story. Throughout the process they solicited input from people inside and outside the institute: scientists, donors, Board members, students and staff. “At its core, Scripps Research is about people, our scientists, helping people with unmet health needs,” says AnnaMarie Rooney, vice president of Communications. “We kept returning to that principle as w e reviewed early sketches of logos and discussed taglines. The feedback was always ‘make it human, demonstrate this profound connection we have with improving human health.’” So, here’s how we’re reinforcing that connection and telling our story:
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our tagline
Education Health Society Medicine A good tagline conveys the particular work and spirit of an enterprise in a concise, memorable fashion. The new tagline for Scripps Research does just that, capturing—in essence—what we’re all about: Science Changing Life. From sharing scientific insights to creating innovative health technologies and delivering valuable medicines, the people at Scripps Research work every day to improve the lives of people around the world. This tagline offers the additional benefit of being customizable to individual stories: Science Changing Medicine. Science Changing Education. Science Changing Healthcare. A bonus to a compact message.
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our logo
our palette
The infinity loop
What is the color of science?
A good logo well represents an enterprise, sets it apart from its peers and is easily recognizable. Our new institute logo, dubbed the “infinity loop,” represents continual scientific discovery. At Scripps Research, we are constantly striving, adapting and renewing. We pursue scientific discovery with unwavering resolve because we believe in its infinite promise to make better lives for people. As some have noted, the loop’s twisting design is also a subtle nod to the helical structure that makes us all human. The “human element” is, indeed, at the core of everything we do here at Scripps Research.
Color plays a powerful role in any imagery. Red excites, for example, while blue calms. But what color best defines science? And what color captures the wide range of scientific achievement accomplished at Scripps Research? Ultimately, a ll of them, the entire spectrum. Science is the white light that encompasses all the colors of nature. To extend that metaphor, the institute serves as a prism, through which light refracts into a rainbow of scientific disciplines: chemistry, immunology, molecular medicine and others. Each is essential to the whole; each helps light the way to continual scientific progress.
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Awards Honors Grants
CANCER THERAPIES
Ben Cravatt receives Outstanding Investigator Award from National Cancer Institute Scripps Research chemical biologist Benjamin Cravatt, PhD, has received a National Cancer Institute (NCI) Outstanding Investigator Award to support the development of advanced technologies for discovering and advancing new cancer targets and drugs. The prestigious award, given to only a handful of scientists each year who have demonstrated particular promise and innovation in cancer research, will support the Cravatt laboratory with $7.8 million over seven years. “Having such a generous amount of funds for such an extended period is a huge opportunity and a huge relief, because it allows us to focus on the science—it’s a transformative opportunity for our research group,” says Cravatt, a professor and the Gilula Chair of Chemical Biology at Scripps Research.
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PAIN MANAGEMENT
Quest for safer pain medications garners $3.6 million, five-year grant The National Institute on Drug Abuse, part of the National Institutes of Health, has awarded a five-year, $3.68 million grant to two Scripps Research scientists, Laura Bohn, PhD, and Thomas Bannister, PhD, to advance their work developing safer pain medications.
DRUG DISCOVERY
With grant, Thomas Kodadek to lead new research into faster, cheaper drug candidate screening CANCER RESEARCH
INDIVIDUALIZED MEDICINE
Translational Institute secures renewed NIH funding The Scripps Research Translational Institute has received over $34 million in renewed funding from the National Institutes of Health’s National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences to advance medical research and clinical care through genomic and digital technologies. This is the third Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) grant to be awarded to Eric Topol, MD, founder and director of the Translational Institute.
An innovative proposal to dramatically reduce the cost of drug discovery has won Scripps Research chemist Thomas Kodadek, PhD, one of ten Transformative Research awards from the Director of the National Institutes of Health, Francis Collins, MD, PhD. Kodadek’s award, worth more than $4 million over five years, is part of an initiative called the NIH Common Fund High-Risk, High-Reward program, which is intended to support unconventional approaches to major challenges in biomedical and behavioral research. Kodadek’s proposal harnesses the power of scale both large and small. It employs miniaturization technologies developed by Kodadek and others at Scripps Research, reducing the amount, and thus the expense, of compounds required to test drug candidates against cellular targets. It also envisions development of vast “libraries” of millions of biologically important compounds displayed on beads roughly the size of a human cell.
Michael Erb receives NIH Director’s Early Independence Award Michael Erb, PhD, a Scripps Fellow in the Department of Chemistry, has received a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director’s Early Independence Award to support his research into identifying and developing drugs that target the transcriptional pathways supporting cancer cell survival. The Early Independence Award is given to junior scientists who quickly launch independent research careers, bypassing the traditional postdoctoral training period. Erb earned his doctoral degree in biological and biomedical sciences at Harvard in 2017. With this award, he will receive $250,000 toward the direct costs of his research per year for up to five years. “My team and I are honored and excited to receive this award,” says Erb.
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Awards Honors Grants 2019 AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY PRIESTLEY MEDAL
The American Chemical Society (ACS) has awarded the 2019 Priestley Medal to Nobel laureate K. Barry Sharpless, PhD, W.M. Keck Professor of Chemistry at Scripps Research. The medal is the highest honor given by the ACS.
2019 Priestley M edal goes to K. Barry Sharpless
Sharpless is known for taking risks in uncharted territory to develop new chemical tools and methods. For example, in 1992, his lab became the world’s first in academia to use robotics for running chemical reactions. He received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2001 for his work on chirally catalysed oxidation reactions. But at the same time, he was also lecturing on a new method he’d invented for the rapid discovery of useful chemical function—click chemistry used reliable, spring-loaded, easy to-perform reactions to ‘click’ together molecular building blocks with desirable properties. “Dr. Sharpless has made numerous contributions to chemistry that have each significantly moved the field forward,” says Thomas Connelly, PhD, ACS executive director and CEO. “Whether his work in asymmetric synthesis, which earned him the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2001, or the development of the concept of click chemistry, his service to advancing chemistry is beyond measure. He is truly deserving of the Priestley Medal and I offer my heartfelt congratulations.”
2018 ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR
Saying his discoveries had “launched a new front in the war on disease,” Florida’s statewide biotechnology industry organization, BioFlorida, named Scripps Research Chemistry Professor Matthew Disney, PhD, the 2018 Weaver H. Gaines Entrepreneur of the Year. Disney is the scientific founder of Expansion Therapeutics, Inc., which pursues oral medicines for diseases that involve specific types of damage to RNA.
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2018 BRISTOL-MYERS SQUIBB UNRESTRICTED GRANT
Chemist Keary Engle, PhD, an assistant professor, has been awarded the 2018 BristolMyers Squibb Unrestricted Grant in Synthetic Organic Chemistry. The $75,000 in award funding will support Engle’s work to invent new tools to make drug candidates quickly, efficiently and sustainably.
2018 OUTSTANDING MENTOR AWARD
Wendy Havran, PhD, a professor at Scripps Research and associate dean of the Skaggs Graduate School of Chemical and Biological Sciences, was recently named the 2018 Outstanding Mentor by the Society of Fellows, a postdoctoral organization at Scripps Research. The recognition reflects Havran’s skills in encouraging trainees to find their place in the research world. “While, of course, the standards for science are high in her lab, what makes Wendy such a great mentor is the focus she puts into training lab members,” said Daisy Johnson, a fifth-year graduate student in the Havran lab, at the award presentation.
2019 TETRAHEDRON YOUNG INVESTIGATOR AWARD
Scientific publisher Elsevier has awarded the 2019 Tetrahedron Young I nvestigator Award to Ryan Shenvi, PhD, an associate professor at Scripps Research. Shenvi was recognized for his work in organic synthesis, which is focused on synthesizing molecules important for brain cell communication and the treatment of diseases like malaria.
INTERNATIONAL MASS SPECTROMETRY FOUNDATION : THOMSON MEDAL
Professor John Yates, PhD, has been awarded the Thomson Medal from the International Mass Spectrometry Foundation for his “invention of mass spectrometry and informatics methods to analyze protein expression, protein interactions and modifications.” Yates’ research in mass spectrometry has been fundamental in establishing the field of large-scale proteomics, a discipline that has shed light on diseases such as malaria and anthrax— and fueled drug discovery.
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Events
Meet the Architects
Architects Billie Tsien and Tod Williams took a break from their work on the Obama Presidential Library to visit Scripps Research on August 17. The pair talked about what inspired them to design Scripps Research’s Hazen campus in La Jolla and joined attendees for tea after the event.
Suds & Science Series
Researchers Kendall Nettles, PhD, and Mark Sundrud, PhD, were just two of our great speakers who took the mic this summer for the new Suds & Science series, hosted at DAS Beer Garden in Jupiter, FL.
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Front Row Lecture Series
An Afternoon of Celebration
On May 31, we welcomed Scripps Research President a nd CEO Pete Schultz, PhD, to the stage to launch our new Front Row Lecture Series.
Scripps Research employees make it all happen! On August 22, we celebrated our scientists, staff and students with picnics on both campuses.
(Left to right) Courtney Green, Thangaselvam Muthusamy, Avi Kumar, Michal Handzlik, Esther Lim, Martina Wallace and Thekla Cordes
(Left to right) Benita Mayer, Elfriede Schloss, Marisa Roberto, Edmund Schloss and Stanley Mayer
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Florida Calendar
Science Changing Futures
Here’s something to chew on in 2019 Scientists at Scripps Research in Florida w ill describe their innovative ideas for fighting cancer, autoimmune disease and infections during the 2019 Food for Thought luncheon lecture series, presented by Scripps Research and PNC Wealth Management. Topics include brain cancer, digestive diseases and the immune system.
January 17
Mark Sundrud, PhD “Fighting Back: Treating Clinical Diseases Through our Immune System.”
February 12
Matthew Pipkin, PhD “Kicking It Up a Notch: Killer T Cells Spark a Fight Against Cancer and Infections.”
March 13
Timothy Spicer, PhD “3-D Modeling: Fighting Pancreatic and Brain Cancers Through a New Lens.”
For more information, please contact Jenny Zdankowski at jzdankow@scripps.edu or call 561-228-2015
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California Calendar
Erica Ollmann Saphire, PhD January 31, 2019 Leader of a global alliance to battle Ebola and related viruses. She will share her discoveries in a lecture that will change the way you think about how we can battle future outbreaks.
LECTURE SERIES presented by Scripps Research
This is your front row seat to history, as some of the world’s leading scientists share their view of science and medicine. From fascinating insights into how the brain works to dispatches from the frontiers of drug discovery and medicine, our scientists will take you to the edge of science and keep you on the edge of your seat. Reserve your seat today at
Eric Topol, MD April 18, 2019 Pioneer of individualized medicine and bestselling author. He merges genomic and digital health technologies with artificial intelligence to advance a new era of High Performance Medicine.
frontrow.scripps.edu
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Establish a powerful legacy.
“An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.”
Endow a graduate student fellowship at Scripps Research and forever transform the future of health.
—Benjamin Franklin
Join Scripps Research faculty and supporters in a bold $100 million campaign to endow fellowships for every student in its nationally ranked graduate program. Your donation ensures that the school’s rigorous cycle of training and discovery— California Philanthropy office Meredith Johnston Senior Director merejohn@scripps.edu (858) 784-2874 India Mittag Senior Director india@scripps.edu (858) 784-2037
Florida Philanthropy office Tara Holcomb Senior Director tholcomb@scripps.edu (561) 228-2013 Sue Rode Director scrode@scripps.edu (561) 228-2056
which ultimately improves the quality of life for everyone—continues uninterrupted. Scientists emerging from the Skaggs Graduate School of Chemical and Biological Sciences at Scripps Research leverage their unparalleled education and training to improve our world. They become respected thought leaders within government departments, innovators at pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, and influential educators at top universities and research institutes. Thanks to a commitment by a generous donor, you can double the impact of your legacy: Each $500,000 gift to the graduate program at Scripps Research will be supplemented with an equal amount, offering you the opportunity to establish a $1 million graduate student endowed fellowship. Your investment in knowledge supports—in perpetuity—generations of dedicated young scientists pursuing a doctoral degree and a dream. Innovative minds produce the most life-changing science. To learn how you can transform the future of health, please contact our Philanthropy department. Or visit us at give.scripps.edu.
“Supervising students in my own lab and on committees has made me a more effective mentor to everyone in my lab. It is wonderful to see our students going on to achieve great things.� Velia Fowler, PhD Professor, Department of Molecular Medicine Associate Dean of Graduate Studies
Peter G. Schultz President & CEO, Scripps Research Eric Topol Executive Vice President, Scripps Research Director, SRTI Anna-Marie Rooney Vice President, Communications Chris Emery Senior Director, Communications Virginia Chambers Senior Manager, Communications & Digital Strategy
Stacey Singer DeLoye Senior Manager, Communications Florida
Care Dipping Executive Assistant, Communications
Diane Wilson Senior Manager, Communications California
Faith Hark Graphic Designer, Communications
Anna Andersen Communications Manager
erowe design Design/Production
Madeline McCurry-Schmidt Science Editor / Community Liaison
Don Boomer/Scott Wiseman Photographers
Office of Communications SGM-300 10550 North Torrey Pines Road La Jolla, CA 92037 scripps.edu
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