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training and the career paths followed byWellcome PhD students. The key findingsshowed that, overall, supervisors were veryhappy with the scheme. Generally, it was feltby those questioned that the Trust need notprovide further training for students itselfother than the suggestion of specific trainingin ethics and communication. Almost threequarters of those questioned viewed thepoint of a PhD being to train people for acareer in scientific research, but that it wasunwise to focus training solely for academicresearch careers. Interestingly, one fifth ofrespondents thought that a PhD shouldprovide training for a wider range of careersand not solely scientific research. As mightbe expected, suggestions for enhancing thequality of UK PhD student recruitmentcentered on raising stipends and providing abetter career structure. The full report isavailable at: www.wellcome.ac.uk D.S.
Proteome chips – a tantalizingnew flavorIn a landmark study, investigators from Yaleand North Carolina State Universities reportthe simultaneous analysis of practically everyprotein encoded by the yeast genome [Zhu, H.et al. (2001) Science Express Reports10.1126/science.1062191]. The group, led byMichael Snyder, made ‘proteome chips’comprising microarrays of 5800 differentproteins (93.5% of all yeast ORFs) and testedtheir ability to bind to various biomolecules.Using calmodulin as a probe, six previouslyknown, and thirty-three novel, bindingproteins were identified. However, four othercalmodulin-binding proteins were notdetected as they were present at very lowlevels on the chip. Interactions with variouslipids were also tested and confirmed byindependent techniques. By developing ahigh-throughput approach, the group wasable to overcome the formidable obstacle ofcloning, expressing and purifying a very largenumber of proteins. Similar methods shouldallow the preparation of arrays using theproteome of any organism whose genomehas been sequenced. Some fine-tuning isnecessary to ensure representation ofspecifically modified proteins and those thatare poorly or improperly expressed. However,proteome chips are set to become a major newtool in biomedical research as they permit thescreening of a comprehensive and defined setof proteins for a variety of activities, includingposttranslational modifications andinteractions with other proteins andpharmaceutical compounds. S.L.
Women take the lead at EMBLThe European MolecularBiology Laboratory(EMBL, http://www.embl-heidelberg.de/) hasannounced thatJanet Thornton and NadiaRosenthal will lead theEuropean BioinformaticsInstitute (EBI) in Hinxton,UK, and the EMBL MouseBiology Programme inMonterotondo, Italy,respectively. Theappointments come at atime when EMBL boostsfunding of both institutes.EMBL Director GeneralFotis Kafatos said: ‘The
new five-year scientific plan at EMBL stressesfunctional genomics and foresees substantialexpansion at the EBI and the Mouse BiologyProgramme at Monterotondo.’ JanetThornton, currently Professor of BiomolecularStructure and Modelling at University CollegeLondon, will follow in the footsteps of GrahamCameron and Michael Ashburner. NadiaRosenthal, Associate Professor at Harvardand consulting editor of the New EnglandJournal of Medicine, has recently taken thebaton from Klaus Rajewsky. J.d.B.
Wellcome senior fellowshipsfor central and eastern EuropeThe Wellcome Trust announced plans earlierthis year for an expansion of its InternationalSenior Fellowship Programme to include morecountries from central and Eastern Europe.Having previously provided support forscientists in South Africa, India, Australia andNew Zealand, the scheme has now expandedto include the Czech Republic, Hungary, Estoniaand Poland. The scheme supports applicantsat a senior level who wish to establish researchprogrammes in these countries, with the aimof producing a cohort of outstanding youngbiomedical researchers in these regions. TheTrust also hinted at further plans for expansionof the scheme in the future. D.S.
Marrow for the heartThe world’s first transplantation of bonemarrow cells to the heart of a heart-attackpatient was performed recently at theUniversity of Rostock in Germany. During abypass operation, Gustav Steinhoff, directorof the heart surgery clinic, transplanted the
patient’s own bone marrow stem cells intothe heart muscle. There the stem cells areexpected to differentiate into myocardiumand replenish the cells that were lost duringthe infarct. The operation was the first in aseries of 20 in which efficacy and risk of thetreatment will be assessed. The proof ofprinciple of the procedure was demonstratedpreviously in mice in a study where bonemarrow stem cells contributed significantlyto the heart muscle when delivered locally toan infarcted region [Orlic, D. et al. (2001)Nature 410, 701–705]. J.d.B.
Greenpeace avoids GM debateEnhancing the debate between science andsociety is a key aim of the European MolecularBiology Organization. In particular, one of theobjectives of EMBO Reports since its launchin July 2000 has been to increase informeddebate through its discussion columns.Earlier this year, EMBO Reports wished topublish both sides of the debate on the use ofgenetically modified organisms, particularlyin agriculture. Two activists from theenvironmental organization Greenpeacewrote, but later withdrew, an article criticizingthe use of GM organisms. The withdrawal wassparked when the authors realized that acompanion piece would also be publishedthat would detail the scientific arguments forthe use of such technology [Trewavas andLeaver (2001) EMBO Rep. 2, 455–459].Greenpeace has frequently spoken outagainst the use of GM crops, and Trewavasand Leaver begin their article with atranscript of proceedings from the House ofLords in which Lord Melchett, Chairman ofGreenpeace, states his objection to thetechnology not only at present but as a‘permanent and definite and completeopposition based on a view that there willalways be major uncertainties’. EMBO Reportsis likely to continue the debate on GM foodsand other topics of major public interest. Theneed for scientific debate on such issues withkey relevance to the general public is quiteclear, and it is unfortunate that both sides of thisargument were not presented together. D.S.
TRENDS in Cell Biology Vol.11 No.10 October 2001
http://tcb.trends.com 0962-8924/01/$ – see front matter © 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
403News&Comment
Jan de Boer
[email protected] Chung L. Lau
[email protected] Lawler
[email protected] Stephens
Nadia Rosenthal
Janet Thornton
