New IDeAs, New Discoveries

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2021 Virtual North East Regional IDeA Conference (v-NERIC)

August 16–18

Rhode Island INBRE hosted the 2021 virtual North East Regional Institutional Development Award (IDeA) Conference this summer. The conference brought together researchers from IDeA programs throughout Delaware, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont and will feature keynotes, science sessions, breakouts, and lighting talks highlighting some exciting IDeA research and discoveries in the areas of neuro and cardiovascular health, cancer, addiction, host/microbe interactions and drug resistance, environmental health sciences, computational biology, and entrepreneurship.  Please find videos and slides of the presentations below.

 

Opening Session

• • Welcoming Remarks
    Bongsup Cho, PhD. Program Director RI-INBRE
    Donald DeHayes, PhD. Provost, University of Rhode Island
    Honorable Jack Reed, U.S. Senator for Rhode Island
  • Updates from NIGMS
    Presentation Slides
    Jon R. Lorsch, PhD. Director, National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
  • The NIH Common Fund’s High-Risk, High-Reward Research (HRHR) Program
    Presentation Slides
    Ravi Basavappa, PhD. Program Leader, National Institutes of Health, Office of Director Common Fund

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Keynote Speaker #1

• Introduction: Alan L. Rothman, MD. Research Professor, Department of Cell and Molecular Biology; Head, Laboratory of Viral Immunity and Pathogenesis, Institute for Immunology and Informatics, University of Rhode Island
  
• Rapid COVID-19 Vaccine Development
  Barney S. Graham, MD, PhD. Deputy Director, Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) at the National Institutes of Health

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• HRHR Breakout Session
  High-Risk, High Reward Awardees in the Northeast
  Moderator: Brett Pellock (RI)

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Scientific Sessions

• From Neurocircuitry to Neuromodulation
  Co-Chairs: Benjamin D. Greenberg (RI) and Arturo Andrade (NH)

• There is No Box: Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Medical Entrepreneurship
  Co-Chairs: Jake Reder (NH) and Julius Korley (DE)

• Cancer: Emerging Hallmarks and Enabling Characteristics
  Co-Chairs: Niall Howlett (RI) and Sherine Elsawa (NH) 

• Investigations of Microbial Fitness, Virulence, and Drug Resistance
  Co-Chairs: Sally Molloy (ME) and Suegene Noh (ME)

• Cardiovascular and Brain Health
  Co-Chairs: Mary Cushman (VT) and David Edwards (DE)

• Marine Microplastics Pollution: Impacts on Coastal Ecosystems and Human Health
  Co-Chairs: Koty Sharp (RI) and John Patrick “JP” Walsh (RI)

• Computational Biology, Data Science and Epidemiology
  Co-Chairs: Michael L. Whitfield (NH) and Cathy H. Wu (DE) 

• Emerging Research on Addiction and Overdose
  Co-Chairs: Josiah “Jody” Rich (RI) and Stephen T. Higgins (VT)

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Keynote Speaker #2

• Introduction: Peter M. Monti, PhD. Donald G. Millar Distinguished Professor of Alcohol and Addiction Studies, Professor of Behavioral and Social Sciences, Director of Alcohol and Addiction Studies
  
• Racing with Purpose: When Professional Sport and Citizen Science Go Hand-in-Hand
  Charlie Enright, Skipper, 11th Hour Racing Team

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Lightning Talks
By Trainees: Undergraduate and Graduate Students, and Postdoctoral Scholars
– Short, engaging presentations focusing on key points of research
Host: Samantha Meenach (RI) 

• Technology Lightning Talks – Moderator: Samantha Meenach (RI)

• Biology Lightning Talks – Moderator:  Brett Pellock (RI)

• Psychology/Health Lightning Talks – Moderator: Victoria Heimer-McGinn (RI)

• Cancer Lightning Talks – Moderator: Jyothi Menon (RI)

• Neuro Lightning Talks – Moderator: Amanda Crocker (VT)

• Microbial Lightning Talks – Moderator: Lori Banks (ME)

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Breakout Session

• National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) Funding Opportunities
  Heather Colley, NHGRI and Lisa Chadwick, NHGRI

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Keynote Speaker #3

• Introduction: Edward Hawrot, PhD. Brown University Alva O. Way University Professor of Medical Science, Senior Associate Dean of Biology. Program Coordinator, Advance CTR (NIH IDeA-CTR award). Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science
  
• Catching up with the CRISPR Craze: Applications and Implications of a Disruptive Technology
  Rodolphe Barrangou, PhD. Todd R. Klaenhammer Distinguished Professor,
  Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences, North Carolina State University

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• Collaboration and Program Evaluation: Sharing What Works for IDeA Programs,
  Hosted by the Program Evaluation and Administration of Research Leaders (PEARL) Group
  Chair: Laura Lessard (DE)
  This session is an IDeA Grant and Evaluator administrative meeting.