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from SBS’ president
Charting a New Course for SBS
By G. Sitta Sittampalam
 In the last few issues of SBS News, I discussed a variety of topics that challenge us at SBS as a scientific society in the forefront of drug discovery—from the emerging technologies in bioimaging, to educating the public at-large on HTS and its contributions to discovering medicines, and finally asking where we are going as a society.
A friend of mine shared with me that the debate about future directions in small, young, and successful organizations is based on a simple (simplistic?) assumption. The assumption is that we will continue to grow at or above the same rate as in the early years. For us, the experience of emerging as a successful society, advancing HTS technology, and the associated growth have been exhilarating. This is where we have been for the past 10 years.
However, all disciplines and technologies mature, and begin either to be replaced by others or penetrate other disciplines. Doubts and confusion set in when it appears that we do not know what we want to be when we “grow up.” Maintaining the same growth level and enthusiasm becomes difficult, particularly during unfavorable economic conditions. This is the time for action by the membership-at-large and the society leadership in defining the direction and working on it with great passion. This is the partnership that a viable and vibrant society should deliver.
SBS is such a society, and I predict that we are embarking on an exciting growth phase. Our successful conferences with SEBIOT in Spain (November 2003), and the Harvard-SBS Joint meeting (May 2004), are clear indications of movement in this direction. The publication of microplate standards and their recognition by American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is another. The growing prestige and popularity of the Journal of Biomolecular Screening is a feather in our cap. And finally, the evolution of the annual conference & exhibition that brings our membership together into the premier drug discovery conference is something we are all proud of. This is all the more reason that we should define our strategies and direction and boldly move forward.
Leroy Hood said in a recent visit to Eli Lilly & Company, “Data space is infinite. You must define the space of interest in terms of a hypothesis to be successful.” A particularly interesting way of defining our operating space was elegantly articulated by Emilio Diez in the June 2004 issue of SBS News (SBS: A Melting Pot, p. 5). It’s something that we can all work on. With the help of our standing committees, office staff, and members, the board of directors is ready to make the move. We look forward to your increased participation.
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discovery at sea
Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution: Probing the Depths for Promising Compounds
In 1984, Dr. Amy Wright came to Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution (HBOI) in Ft. Pierce, Florida, as a post-doctoral fellow. Today, this long-time SBS member is Director of HBOI’s Division of Biomedical Marine Research (http://www.hboi.edu/dbmr/ dbmr_home.html), and her enthusiasm for the institution clearly has not abated. “I’m a chemist by training, and what’s exciting is that we’re constantly obtaining new compounds from deep-sea organisms,” she said in a recent interview.
Key players in the institution’s drug-discovery efforts are Harbor Branch’s manned submersibles, the Johnson-Sea-Link I and II, which are devoted to research in the marine sciences. “These submersibles give us unique access to deep-water habitats,” said Dr. Wright. “We can get compounds from organisms you can’t just get scuba diving or trawling” (see Drug Discovery at HBOI).
The submersibles operate to a depth of 3,000 feet. The forward compartment, a five-inch thick acrylic sphere, accommodates the pilot and an observer, and allows panoramic visibility. A second crew member and another observer occupy the aft observation chamber, where a video monitor and side view ports provide forward and side observation.
Specialized equipment such as a uniquely outfitted manipulator arm, suction devices, and rotary plankton samplers makes it possible for the crew to accomplish almost any task from within the subs, which in the past could only be done at shallow depths by divers. The vehicles are also outfitted with active sonar, laser-aimed video cameras, and specially developed xenon arc lights.
Human Therapeutics
Dr. Wright’s current research program focuses on the discovery of novel marine natural products with potential use as human therapeutic agents or as lead structures for rationale drug design. Compounds are obtained from marine plants, invertebrates, and microorganisms associated with marine invertebrates using bioassay-guided purification, she explained. The structures of new compounds are determined through spectroscopic means with an emphasis on the use of nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.
“A newer project focuses on the identification of biosynthetic gene clusters,” she said. “We’re also involved in evaluating the ecological role of marine natural products, applying natural-products chemistry to systematics of the Porifera and deep water Gorgonacea, and developing micro-analytical methods for monitoring aqua and cell cultures used in the production of therapeutically important marine natural products.
“We have an antimicrobial program where we’re focusing on finding new antibiotics for drug-resistant microbial infections,” she continued. “And, in collaboration with scientists from the Center of Excellence in Biomedical and Marine Biotechnology, Florida Atlantic University, we’re looking at enzymes associated with neurodegenerative disease—in particular, the role of the methionine sulfoxide reductase system (Msr) in protecting cells against oxidative damage.”
The theory behind the deep-sea work, she explained, is that marine invertebrates, like plants, make chemical defenses because they can’t move around to protect themselves. “We collect these organisms, make extracts and then put them through our own screening process, which is fairly straightforward—for example, cell-based assays for cancer agents and cell-cycle assays where we detect particular proteins related to cell cycle.” The resultant compound libraries are submitted to partner commercial companies for further screening and development.
Although the HBOI screening laboratory can handle a broad range of screening projects derived from both in-house research and from external collaborations, current primary screen throughput rates are only from 500-1500 samples per run of an assay. Commercial companies willing to donate (tax deductible) used equipment or collaborate on research projects may contact Dr. Wright by e-mail: wright@hboi.edu.
- Marilynn Larkin |
Advancing The Science of Drug Discovery
Stories in This Issue:
