Interactivity a Key to Good Science

Jeffrey Strathern, Ph.D., Deputy Director of the Center for Cancer Research since August 2005, and Chief of the Gene Regulation and Chromosome Biology Laboratory (GRCBL), is a strong advocate for interactivity. In a recent interview, he noted that “One of the best aspects of the GRCBL is that it is highly interactive in nature, and I’ve always encouraged this. The staff works at making it interactive, so much so that its Thursday morning meetings have long been used as a forum for new NCI researchers to meet NCI-Frederick staff and become familiar with the research and resources available here.” The GRCBL staff also helps to organize interactive forums such as the NCI-Frederick Interdisciplinary retreat, held annually in Rocky Gap, the postdoctoral seminar series, and other seminars that encourage scientists to exchange information and ideas.

Interactivity Improves Communication among Labs
Now, Dr. Strathern carries the idea of interactivity through to his work as Deputy Director of the CCR. “One of the best things about this job is that it forced me to think more broadly about all the science done here. We need to have better communication, to know when a new technology in one lab would impact work in another; to know that someone else is doing the same research you are.”

As a way of promoting such interactivity throughout NCI-Frederick, Dr. Strathern has lunch in the NCI-Frederick Café with the lab chiefs every Wednesday, enabling him to hear about research and issues that need to be addressed. “Everyone knows that at one o’clock on Wednesday, I’ll be in the café, and if they want to share some new result or talk about an issue or concern, they can bring it up informally there. Some people come each time; others less often. They discuss science and problems. It promotes interaction among investigators,” he said.

Each week, Dr. Strathern focuses on a different concern or issue; for example, recently he led discussions about the SAIC-Frederick, Inc., Research Technology Program, emphasizing the resources that are available and how to make the best use of the RTP.

Consolidating Information Electronically Will Aid Communication
Interactivity is just a part of his vision for the long-term health and direction of NCI-Frederick. As Deputy Director, he’s often asked to gather information for various uses, some of which may influence NCI’s funding and thus its mission and direction. So he’s also working on how to consolidate annual and other reports. “Not everyone realizes how important these reports are; they are used in ways not everyone knows. NCI Office of the Director often receives requests for information on specific topics. For example, a congressperson might ask what work is being done on a particular cancer. I’d like to find a way to have that information up to date, immediately available, rather than having to hunt down answers and solicit information from various PIs/chiefs each time. We need to get information on scientific advances, partnerships, and annual reports consolidated,” he said.

A Balancing Act: Deputy Director, Lab Chief, and Family Man
Being Deputy Director commands much of the time that Dr. Strathern would otherwise spend in the lab or with his family. He makes numerous trips to Bethesda for meetings and also is responsible for keeping track of site visit reviews, promotions and hirings, and for scrutinizing budgets. He is very careful and conscientious about the spending, and considers the small items as important as the large ones. Each item must be carefully evaluated for its need and importance to the lab’s budget, whether it’s a $1,000 item or a $10,000 one. So, to get everything done, he finds himself doing experiments at night and on weekends. But, he says, that’s really why he’s in science—to do research.

Dr. Strathern came to NCI-Frederick from Cold Spring Harbor in 1984, where he had been a postdoctoral fellow, a junior member of the staff, and then a senior member, all within a five- to six-year period. At Cold Spring, he carried out a “delightful, seminal project on gene regulation by DNA recombination that was fun and well received,” he commented. Elements of the project, which involved yeast research, continue even now.

At NCI-Frederick, as Chief of the Laboratory of Eukaryotic Gene Expression, he recruited Drs. Amar Klar and David Garfinkel. He worked closely with Drs. Don Court, Stuart Austin, and others in the Laboratory of Chromosome Biology. In 1995, the two labs were combined into the Gene Regulation and Chromosome Biology Laboratory, and have since been joined by Drs. Mikhail Kashlev and Ding Jin.

Dr. Strathern noted that his family provides a good support net and is understanding of the time his work takes. Perhaps they are so understanding and supportive because they, too, have demanding jobs and interests. His daughter, Leslie Anne, is a researcher in the Protein Expression Laboratory, SAIC-Frederick, Inc. With his daughter, Dr. Strathern continues a tradition his father started with his sister--having lunch together once a week. Dr. Strathern and Leslie call it their "Tuesday lunch," although it doesn't always take place on a Tuesday. His son, Russell, is in the Coast Guard and was one of the first responders to enter New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina hit last year. His wife, Ann, raises golden retrievers and is heavily involved in nationally competed field trials.

Diving and fishing have long been favorite family hobbies, and Dr. Strathern spoke fondly of a family trip several years ago to Roatan, Honduras, as “one of the best we ever had. Spectacular diving.” Unfortunately, he finds little time for these activities now because of all his commitments. Some time ago, he and his wife bought a “fixer-upper” house in Puerto Rico, intending to use it as a base for diving vacations. “Now we only go once a year, and of course, the house has a year’s worth of repairs that need to be done when you get there. The last vacation, I spent the entire time on house repairs, and didn’t do any diving at all.”

Dr. Strathern was finally planning a real diving vacation as this article was written.

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