October 2016 Newsletter

Issue 33 Number 3

Message from the President Last week, I upgraded my iPhone’s operating system. The result was incredibly frustrating (especially for my poor husband, who had to listen to my complaints)! Everything looked different, I couldn’t manage my email like before, and the emojis that popped into my messages were unprofessional and embarrassing. However, after a while (and a lot of whining), I started to enjoy new aspects of the new system, such as typing in either French or English without having to manually change the keyboard. This is a trivial demonstration of the age-old lesson that improvement requires change, and while the road to that change can be bumpy, the results are worth transitory discomfort.

In this context, the SSR Board and Committees are pleased that the Journal of our Society, Biology of Reproduction (BOR), will be published through Oxford University Press, effective January 2017. BOR has developed into a prestigious and well-respected journal thanks to the leadership of a distinguished line of Editors (both -in-Chief and Associate), beginning in 1969 with Professor Harold Harrison Cole (1897–1978) from the Department of Animal Husbandry (now Animal Science) at University of California, Davis, to the current Editors-in-Chief (EIC), Tom Spencer and Francesco DeMayo. A list of Editors who have served the Society in these crucial positions is found at the end of this letter. The list of innovations put forth over the years by BOR is lengthy. Publishing BOR online through the work of Bob Burghardt; implementing an electronic submission system and completely digital figure processing (a major advancement for publication of color images at the time) via Virendra Mahesh’s efforts; these are but a few highlights. Our current BOR heroes include Katrina Ashworth as Production Editor, John Wolf as Peer-Review Coordinator, and Melissa Clifton as Managing Editor. Times change, and so must the SSR. We welcome incoming EICs Wei Yan and Hugh Clarke, who have an exciting, new vision for BOR. It is anticipated that the shift to Oxford University Press as publisher will be fiscally advantageous to the SSR and will improve BOR’s visibility.

In terms of the SRR’s fiscal well-being, I’d like to address some myths that have come to my attention. Overall, the SSR is financially sound: we have the equivalent of one year’s operating budget in our coffers, another in the general endowment fund, and three years’ worth in investments. According to our accountants, this indicates that the SSR should be able to withstand an unforeseen economic disaster. This is good news, of course; however, there are challenges that we must address.

Our Annual Meetings are becoming more expensive for many reasons. Traditional governmental grant support for our meetings has dwindled shockingly, despite our proposals continuing to earn top scores. While meeting attendance is typically strong in trendy, cosmopolitan cities such as Portland and Montreal, the on-site costs are correspondingly high. It is true that the SSR has a long history of inexpensive meetings on campuses. However, universities are now more business-savvy than ever—charges have increased dramatically over the years, despite potential for marvelous local sponsorship. Moreover, costs for travel to out-of-the-way campuses are steep, and this plays a part in the constant increase in speaker expenses. We could save money by inviting speakers who live and work near the meeting site, but my belief is that the SSR should invest in the most exciting speakers possible irrespective of their geographical location. The SSR is—and needs to be—international in its outlook. Altogether, a wide range of variables contribute to the expensive nature of our meetings.

There is also a myth regarding Trainee travel to the Annual Meeting. The Larry Ewing Memorial Trainee Travel Fund (LEMTTF) is credited for providing travel support for all Trainees who qualify. Continued on next page.

SSR Newsletter October 2016 1

This is untrue. The LEMTTF is not an endowed fund; it is too small, and the entirety of annual donations is allocated to Trainees for travel grants. Over the past two years, donations to the LEMTTF have averaged about $5,000 per year; the average annual LEMTTF support of Trainee travel has been closer to $52,000. In other words, the SSR operating funds have subsidized Trainee travel by ~$47,000 per year in 2014 and 2015. The SSR values and supports our Trainees, but this expense is considerable. As a consequence, the Board has had to take the rather unpleasant measure of limiting the annual subsidy to the LEMTTF. Membership should recognize that there is a pressing need to support Trainee travel.

Despite this dire message, SSR Members should be aware that we do not typically lose money on our Annual Meetings. San Juan 2015 was a rare exception—we lost $100,000 because of unexpected facility expenses, people being admitted without tickets to the closing reception, and extremely high Trainee travel support costs. Although the final fiscal report on San Diego 2016 has not been released as of this writing, it is noteworthy that revenues exceeded expenses for the five Annual Meetings prior to San Juan.

By far, the SSR’s most substantial losses are from the Membership side and not from the Annual Meeting. Its decline—mostly in the US—has resulted in fewer dues, which are now grossly insufficient relative to Member expenses. Quite frankly, the SSR would have no financial concerns if Membership was not a problem. Thus, there is an urgent need to stabilize Membership. There are many reasons why it is dropping, with very low research funding in reproductive biology and a poor profile of the field as among the more significant. Ironically, some of the hottest research topics have roots in reproductive sciences: transmission and mechanisms of the Zika virus, DOHaD and foetal programming, and reproductive tract pathologies. Despite this, and largely due to declining membership, the Society suffered extensive annual losses in 2014 (approximately $100,000) and 2015 ($300,000). A $340,000 loss is projected in 2016. This is a serious situation, indeed. I do not have a miracle solution for how to stem our hemorrhaging membership, so I welcome your ideas. Please contact me if you have helpful suggestions.

There is some good news. As mentioned above, changing our BOR publisher to Oxford University Press is a solid financial strategy anticipated to provide at least $200,000 in additional annual revenue. The SSR will also receive a signing bonus of $300,000. Contrary to popular belief, the Board is not using this signing bonus “to clean up meeting debt.” In contrast, the Board wants to reinvest in Journal- and publications-related activities and will discuss strategies with the Publications Committee upon securing this bonus. Again, please contact me if you have ideas on how this signing bonus can be used to enhance the SSR’s publication-related undertakings.

With respect to Trainee travel support, FASEB recently received a new NIGMS/NIH R-25 IPERT grant entitled “Diversity Resources for Enrichment, Access and Mentoring 2” (DREAM). Through this new grant, the SSR, which is a member of FASEB, will have funding available to support mentored travel awards for Trainees attending their first meeting at the SSR 2017 Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. The SSR Diversity Committee will work with the SSR Business Office to take advantage of this opportunity.

Led by Ben Tsang, the Golden Anniversary Fundraising Campaign is also well underway, with a goal of raising $1.2 million to support both Annual Meetings and the SSR endowment. To date, approximately $441,000 in member donations and $175,000 in corporate sponsorship have been promised, representing 1/3 of our fundraising goal.

Some SSR members wonder why and where we need to invest. As mentioned above, we need to subsidize Trainee costs to encourage them to attend the Annual Meeting and stay with the SSR as Regular Members. Fifty percent of meeting attendees are Trainees, many of whom are international, so travel assistance is of particular importance. Most events at the Annual Meeting for Trainees are also supplemented by the fees of nontrainees, so it is desirable to help offset these payments through contributions to support meeting events. Many Members have expressed their concern for young PIs who are no longer Trainees but are not yet established. These are vulnerable researchers, and they could also benefit from support from the SSR. These are just a few examples of how we can invest in the next generation of SSR Members. I hope that the Board can have a productive strategic discussion to structure an investment plan for our Society.

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As always, I am open to constructive suggestions—if you have some helpful ideas for the Board on how to strengthen and enhance the SSR to ensure its long-term well-being, please let me know.

All the best for a productive fall season, Janice Bailey, SSR President Centre for Research in Reproduction, Development and Intergenerational Health Université Laval Quebec City, Canada Janice.bailey@fsaa.ulaval.ca

Years of Service Editors-in-Chief 1969–1970 H.H. Cole 1970–1974 J.D. Biggers 1975–1977 G.S. Greenwald 1978–1981 A.V. Nalbandov 1981–1985 L.L. Ewing 1985–1989 D.J. Dierschke 1989–1995 F.W. Bazer 1995–1999 G.D. Niswender 1999–2004 V.B. Mahesh 2005–2009 J.J. Eppig, M.A. Handel 2009–2013 B. Robaire, B.D. Murphy 2013–2017 F. DeMayo, T. Spencer 2017–2021 H.J. Clarke, W. Yan

Years of Service Associate Editors 1970–1974 G.J. Marcus 1975–1977 J.M. Yochim, D.C. Johnson 1978–1981 J.M. Bahr 1981–1985 B.R. Zirkin 1985–1989 J.A. Robinson, R.C. Wolf, R.L. Ax 1989–1992 W.W. Thatcher, J.S. Davis, D. Garbers

1992–1995 R.C. Burghardt, J.S. Davis, D. Garbers

1995–1999 T.M. Nett 1999–2001 D.W. Brann, T.F. Ogle 2001–2004 D.W. Bran 2005–2007 F.W. Bazer, J.S. Davis, E.M. Eddy, K.E. Latham, S.M. Moenter, S.P.

Darney, J.S. Richards, B. Robaire, R.M. Schultz, T.E. Spencer, D.M. Stocco

2007–2009 F.W. Bazer, J.S. Davis, E.M. Eddy, K.E. Latham, S.M. Moenter, J.S. Richards, B. Robaire, R.M. Schultz, T.E. Spencer, D.M. Stocco, R.L.

Stouffer

2009–2012 J.M. Baltz, D. Carson, P.S. Cooke, D.G. de Rooij, J.A. Flaws, M. Hunzicker-Dunn, J.R. McCarrey, T.M. Nett, D.A. O’Brien, L.A

Salamonsen, S.S. Suarez, R. Viger

2012–2013 J.M. Baltz, D. Carson, P.S. Cooke, D.G. de Rooij, J.A. Flaws, G.L. Gerton, M. Hunzicker-Dunn, J.R. McCarrey, T.M. Nett, L.A.

Salamonsen, R. Viger

2013–2014 J.M. Baltz, B.M. Gadella, P. Lonergan, K. Moley, J.J. Peluso, M.G. Petroff, D. Russell, R. Viger, W. Yan, H.H.-C. Yao

2015–2017 H.J. Clarke, B.M. Gadella, P. Lonergan, R. Nowak, J.J. Peluso, M.G. Petroff, D. Russell, C. Yallampalli, W. Yan, H.H.-C. Yao

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For up-to-date information on the 2017 SSR Annual Meeting,

visit http://www.ssr.org/17Meeting

From the Local Affairs Committee The 2017 Local Arrangements Committee (LAC) has been busy preparing for the 50th Anniversary Meeting next July in Washington, D.C. The 2017 LAC is comprised of 20 members from 11 institutions and agencies located in the greater D.C. area. Its main tasks are to recommend venues and activities for social events, help attendees find their way from/to the airports as well as around the D.C. area, and answer any local questions. In addition to several conference calls, the LAC met at the SSR Annual Meeting in San Diego to begin assigning tasks to its various members. The LAC Co-Chairs also met with SSR President Janice Bailey and the SSR Business Office staff during a recent site visit to evaluate various locations for scientific sessions and social events. Washington is readily accessible via Reagan National Airport and two international airports (Dulles and Baltimore–Washington). A user-friendly metro system also services the city (http://www.wmata.com/). The meeting itself will be held at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park, only 2 blocks from the nearest metro station. Numerous museums, monuments, and international restaurants are easily accessible as well. The 50th Anniversary Meeting of the SSR in D.C. promises to be special. The LAC will be posting updates and adding information to the SSR meeting website on a regular basis. We look forward to welcoming you in July 2017!

—Pierre Comizzoli, V.M.D., Ph.D. and Mark Mirando, Ph.D., Co-Chairs 2017 LAC

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

Abstract Submissions Open: 15 December, 2016 Abstract Submission Deadline: 7 March, 2017 (no late-breaking submissions accepted)

Meeting Dates: 13-16 July, 2017

The exciting program will focus on how the vast span of research outcomes in our field underpin breakthroughs in Agriculture, Biomedicine and Developmental Biology.

Selected Highlights:

Keynote presentation by Professor Azim Surani, Cambridge University Joint premeeting symposium with American Society for Animal Science

Flash Talk sessions to spotlight posters Historical Perspectives and Expanding Horizons Sessions with established and emerging thought-leaders in

Reproductive Biology Global Entrepreneurs: Propelling High Impact Outcomes

Delegates requiring Visas for entry into the USA are reminded to make their abstract submissions early and request

necessary support letter from the SSR. From the Treasurer

“Money won’t buy happiness, but it will pay the salaries of a large research staff to study the problem.”

Bill Vaughan (Kansas City Star, 1946–1977)

As indicated in the President’s letter, the SSR has faced financial challenges over the last few years. I am pleased to report that we are making significant progress in correcting this situation. The problem comes from both a decline in Membership and increasing costs of the Annual Meeting. The Board, however, is committed to increasing our revenue and ensuring that the Annual Meeting pays for itself.

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To renew your membership for the upcoming year, visit

http://www.ssr.org/Renewal

Changes in the business model of Biology of Reproduction (BOR) should increase our revenue by at least $200,000 annually. We are indebted to those who, over the years, have built BOR into such a valuable resource for the field and such a valuable asset for the Society. Mary Ann Handel, Tom Curry, and the Publications Committee, along with many others, have worked diligently on behalf of the Society to produce such a good outcome for the SSR.

I found the meeting in San Diego to be one of the best I have ever attended in terms of science, fellowship, and location, and I hope you will agree with me. San Diego is an expensive place to have a meeting—initial projections of the budget were not pretty. Bruce Murphy, Judy Jansen, Gwen Abramson, and others worked very hard to have such a great meeting while tightly controlling costs. We will probably lose about $1,500 altogether, which is a pittance when you consider total expenses for the Society for 2016 totaled over $1.5 million.

The Golden Anniversary Campaign led by Ben Tsang will allow the society to invest in the future—in its Trainees, and in the kind of programs needed for the SSR to thrive in a world different in many ways from the one in which it was founded.

All in all, we are on the right track.

—Pete Hansen SSR Treasurer From the Nominating Committee The task at hand for the 2016–2017 SSR Nominating Committee lies in selecting the candidate for Vice-President-Elect and two Directors for the Board. The Committee suggested several potential candidates for these positions at our meeting in San Diego. A formal solicitation from all the SSR Members appears separately in this Newsletter. The Committee stressed the importance of nominating candidates with diverse perspectives in terms of geography, gender, and research interests. I look forward to receiving nominations from all Members as we strive to elect those who will work towards the success of our Society.

—T. Rajendra Kumar, Chair 2016–2017 SSR Nominating Committee

Nominations for Major Awardees are Due 1 December 2016! The Society sponsors five major awards that recognize outstanding contributions to the science of reproductive biology. The Awards Committee encourages SSR Members to exercise a privilege of membership by nominating individuals for these awards. The five major awards presented annually are:

The Carl G. Hartman Award, named for a distinguished reproductive biologist, is the SSR’s highest award. It recognizes a career of research and scholarly activities in the field of reproductive biology. The nominee does not have to be a Member of the Society.

The SSR Research Award recognizes an active, Regular Member of the Society for outstanding research published during the previous six years.

The SSR Distinguished Service Award recognizes an individual who has demonstrated unselfish service and leadership in advancing the discipline of reproductive biology.

The SSR New Investigator Award recognizes an active, Regular Member of the Society for outstanding research completed and published within 12 years of receiving the Ph.D. or other equivalent professional degree.

The SSR Trainee Mentoring Award recognizes an active, Regular Member of the Society who as a mentor has

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had a significant impact on Trainees within the SSR. The Trainee Mentoring Award is intended for individuals who exceed the basic roles of an academic advisor, becoming a mentor to those with whom they interact.

To nominate an individual, please fill out the application form at (http://www.ssr.org/content/ssr-awards-nomination). You will be asked to provide evidence that the nominee fulfills the criteria of the award for which he or she is being nominated, as well as to upload supporting letters and the nominee’s CV. Guidelines for nominating candidates for awards, the award criteria, and the list of past recipients are also available at www.ssr.org/Awards.shtml

Nominations are due via the online application by 11:59 PM CST on 1 December 2016.

If you have questions about award criteria, please contact Rebecca Krisher, Chair of the SSR Awards Committee, by email (rkrisher@FLColo.com) or phone (303-781-2797). For technical questions about the form, please contact the SSR Business Office at 608-256-2777 or ssr3@ssr.org.

Awards Committee members for 2016–2017 are: Rebecca Krisher, Jodi Flaws, Daniel Bernard, Marisa Bartolomei, Melissa Pepling, Rina Meidan, Karen Racicot, Judith Smith, Charles Allan, Alex Evans, Joanna Burdette, Kanako Hayashi, Kyle Orwig, Jason Ross, Wei Yan, and Vargheese Chennathukuzhi. The Trainee representatives are Hannah Brown and Hayley Furlong. The liaison to the Board of Directors is Romana Nowak. —Rebecca Krisher, Chair Awards Committee Hello from the Trainee Affairs Committee!

Wrap-up from San Diego

Your Trainee Representatives, Dr. Patrick Hannon (Senior Representative; University of Kentucky) and Dr. Jitu George (Junior Representative; Michigan State University) were so glad to see everyone in sunny San Diego for our Annual Meeting. I am sure you will agree that the meeting and all Trainee-related events were a huge success. We owe our sincere gratitude to the outgoing Trainee Representative, Dr. Jenna Haverfield (University of Montreal), and the SSR Business Office for their tireless efforts to make the meeting in San Diego so successful. Dr. Haverfield possesses a strong passion for advancing Trainee interests in the Society; her work in coordinating the Trainee Forum on “Communicating Science to Enhance Your Career” and establishing the CV Review Center is truly commendable. The SSR Business Office also deserves a ton of praise for their diligent work behind the scenes in making each event a reality and having them run smoothly.

We also owe a great deal of thanks to the following Trainees who helped make this year’s meeting great:

• Veronica Negron-Perez (University of Florida) and Dr. Erica Schoeller (University of California, San Diego) for coordinating the volunteer activities and Sunichi Shimisaki (University of California, San Diego) for organizing the Fun Run.

• Dr. Amanda Patterson (Michigan State University) for coordinating the Trainee-Mentor Luncheon. • CQ Zhou (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) for coordinating the Roommate Referral Service. • Dr. Jitu George (Michigan State University) for coordinating the Larry Ewing Memorial Trainee Travel

Fund (LEMTTF).

In addition, SSR’s Annual Meeting would not function as well as it does without the help of Trainee volunteers. We and the Society thank you for your help! This year’s volunteers are recognized at the end of this section.

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Trainee Research Award Winners

Congratulations to the 2016 Trainee Research Award winners! The awards for the platform competition went to Fei Zhao (1st), Dr. Pavla Brachova (2nd), and Hao Wu (3rd). The Trainee poster competition winners were Estela J. Jauregui (1st), Douglas A. Gibson (2nd), and Pramod Dhakal (3rd). Congratulations to all finalists as well!

Looking ahead to SSR 2017 in Washington, D.C.

We are already hard at work preparing for what is looking to be an outstanding Annual Meeting in 2017, and are excited to announce a few Trainee-specific events already scheduled within the SSR 2017 Program:

1) On-Site at NIH: Personalized Feedback on Your Grant Application. Wednesday, 12 July 2017, 1:00–5:00 p.m. At this event, you will tour the NIH campus as well as receive feedback on YOUR prospective grant/fellowship applications. Please see the flyer below for more information, and be on the lookout for registration details in the near future.

2) 2017 Trainee Forum, “Becoming an Effective Reviewer: A Means to Enhance Your Scientific Writing”. Thursday, 13 July 2017, 10:30a.m.–12:30 p.m. Learn from Editors-in-Chief of the field’s top journals and members of NIH on how the peer-review process works and how to become a skilled peer reviewer of both manuscripts and grant applications. Learning to properly conduct peer review will greatly enhance your scientific writing abilities.

*Please note: the event at NIH and the Trainee Forum are held one day before the Annual Meeting and on the

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morning of the first day of the Annual Meeting, respectively. Please plan accommodations and travel accordingly. You do not want to miss these great events!

In addition to these events, we are also planning to continue these other exceptional events/services:

1) Trainee-Mentor Luncheon (TML). At this event, Trainees will be able to engage with established Regular Members of the Society in an informal and personalized setting. Mentors at the Luncheon will span several stages of career development, numerous occupations within science, and represent the breadth of disciplines in our field. This year’s TML Coordinator is Ashley George (Rutgers University).

2) CV Review Center. We are bringing back the CV Review Center for SSR 2017 and plan to broaden the topics covered by the Center. This year, Trainees can seek input from Regular Members on their CV, cover letters for job applications, or issues they may be having in their graduate/postdoctoral careers. Dr. Pavla Brachova (University of Kansas Medical Center) is the 2017 CV Review Center Coordinator, and she will be sending out more information about this service shortly.

3) Larry Ewing Memorial Trainee Travel Fund (LEMTTF). As with previous years, eligible Trainees will receive travel support for the Annual Meeting from the LEMTTF. Applications will be due around the time of abstract submission and will be handled by this year’s LEMTTF Coordinator, Saniya Rattan (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign).

4) Roommate Referral Service (RRS). In order to ensure that Trainee accommodation costs are kept at a minimum, Katie Chiang (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) is coordinating the RRS. She will be setting up the service shortly if you are in need of a roommate for the night of the NIH event alone, just the SSR Annual Meeting, or both.

Welcome to our 2016–2017 TAC members!

Trainee Volunteer Subcommittee/Local Arrangements Committee: Dr. Erica Schoeller (University of California, San Diego) and Dr. Pei-Chih Lee (Smithsonian Institute)

Heritage Committee: Shreya Patel (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) and Dr. Amanda Patterson (Michigan State University)

Membership Committee: Dr. Rajini Sreenivasan (Hudson Institute of Medical Research) and Dr. Fei Zhao (NIEHS)

Diversity Committee: Gauthier Schang (McGill University) and Dr. Shavahn Loux (University of Kentucky) Program Committee: Dr. Shuo Xiao (Northwestern University) and Dr. Malavika Adur (Iowa State University) Publications Committee: Dr. Douglas Gibson (University of Edinburgh) and Dr. Miranda Bernhardt (NIEHS) Nominating Committee: Dr. Jackson Nteeba (University of Kansas Medical Center) and Dr. Jane Fenelon

(University of Ottawa) Public Affairs Committee: Dr. Amy Winship (Hudson Institute of Medical Research) and CQ Zhou (University

of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) Bylaws Committee: Dr. Jill Bennett (Oregon Health Science University) and Saniya Rattan (University of

Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) Awards Committee: Dr. Hannah Brown (University of Adelaide) and Dr. Hayley Furlong (McMaster

University) Golden Anniversary Fundraising Committee: Dr. John Schjenken (University of Adelaide) and Dr. Clotilde

Maurice (Health Canada) Future Meetings Committee: Dr. Birendra Mishra (University of California, Irvine) Trainee Facebook Group If you are not already a member of the Trainee Facebook Group, make sure you join today! We regularly post

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pertinent information and events related to Trainee development within the Society and beyond. It is a great way to keep up to date with the SSR and engage in discussion with your fellow Trainees. We also post current job opportunities to the Facebook Group, but remember that Trainee Affairs Placement Services is the best place to search for graduate, postdoctoral, faculty, and technician positions in reproduction.

Get more involved in SSR We will soon be seeking nominations for SSR Trainee Representative to the Board of Directors for 2017–2019. As Trainee Representative, you will serve as a bridge between the Board of Directors and SSR Trainees across the globe. You will have the opportunity to expand and improve current SSR Trainee activities and make invaluable connections with colleagues within the field. Nominees should submit a candidate platform statement, including a photo. Nominations are due on Friday, 11 November 2016. Last year’s nominee statements can be found here. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Dr. Jitu George. We are also actively recruiting Trainees to serve as Trainee Representatives on the SSR committees for 2017–2018. If you are interested, please contact Dr. Jitu George. As always, the best way to initiate involvement in the Society is to volunteer at the Annual Meeting. Check the relevant box on your meeting registration to get more involved!

We look forward to making SSR 2017 the best experience for Trainees, so keep on the lookout for more information regarding the events we are developing. If you have any questions or suggestions on how to improve the Trainee experience at SSR 2017, please let us know at trainees@ssr.org.

— Patrick Hannon, Ph.D. and Jitu George, Ph.D. Trainee Representatives 2016 SSR Annual Meeting Volunteers Carlos Alonso Kate Anthony Gustavo Desire Antunes Gastal Valentina Baena Soumi Bairagi Katharine Beason Hermance Beaud Martina Belli Miranda Bernhardt Micka Bertucci Katie Bidne Barnali Biswas Amine Bouchareb Anna Boudoures Pavla Brachova Kelly Campen Fernanda M. Carvalho Catheryne Chiang Kellie Church Rachel Cinco Nicole Clark Heidi Cook-Andersen Keely Corder Juanmahel Davila Pramod Dhakal

Mackenzie Dickson Adel Driss Sudi Dutta Jeremy Egbert Fazle Elahi Evan Evanson Mina Farahbakhsh David Fleck Joseph Folger Warren Foster William Fritz Anqi Fu Paul Fullerton Hayley Furlong Kristal L. Gant Ashley George Jitu George Rashin Ghaffari Kahina Ghanem Adel Ghnenis Kelsey Grieve Benjamin Hale Jenna Haverfield Hanne Hoffmann Megan Hornung

Camilla Hughes Sossi Iacovides Estela J. Jauregui Jhenifer Kliemchen Rodrigues Fae Koohestani Erin Legacki Yasser Lenis Robin Lindeman Loïze Marechal Clotilde Maurice Kathryn Mcclelland Erin McWhorter Birendra Mishra Diana Monsivais Manjunatha Nanjappa David Natale Veronica Negron-Perez Ziru Niu Jackson Nteeba John Odhiambo Arin Oestreich Kimberly Oliva Omonseigho Omonseigho Florence Page-Lariviere Hari Om Pandey

SSR Newsletter October 2016 9

Shreya Patel Amanda Patterson Rachel Piersanti Stacia Prosser Suzanne Quartuccio Kelsey Quinn Saniya Rattan Sydney Reese Cheyenne Robinson Amanda Rodriguez Matthew Romoser Andree-Anne Saindon Gauthier Schang Erica Schoeller

Yasmin Schuermann Laura Schuetz Jake Seibert Megan Sheridan Shunichi Shimasaki Mary Smallman Arianna Smith Hye-Won Song Rajini Sreenivasan Kimberly Stephens Eillen Tecle Angel Thalhofer Karen Tonsfeldt Gerialisa Van Gronigen Caesar

Sreelakshmi Vasudevan Ellen Velte Rosalina Villalon Landeros Hanan Wahid Xia Wang Xiyin Wang Hannah Wear Rachel West Rukmali Wijayarathna Amy Winship Rebecca A. Winters Kandis Wright Shuo Xiao Fei Zhao

From the Publications Committee This has been a busy and productive last few months for the Publications Committee. We have been involved in the selection of new Editors for Biology of Reproduction (BOR) as well as the transition of BOR to Oxford University Press (OUP). Highlights are outlined below:

New Editors for BOR: Congratulations to Drs. Wei Yan and Hugh Clarke for being named the new Editors-in-Chief of BOR!

One of the most important tasks for the Publications Committee has been the selection of a new editorial team for BOR. A call for new Editors went out to the SSR Membership. In addition, the Publications Committee actively contacted individuals. Applications were received 1 May and ranked by the Publications Committee. We were fortunate to have a number of outstanding applications for this important role in our Society. The Board of Directors interviewed the top 2 editorial teams and Dr. Wei Yan (University of Nevada) and Dr. Hugh Clarke (McGill University) were selected as the Editors-in-Chief. They will take the reins of the Journal in July 2017. Transition of BOR to OUP: As announced previously, the SSR agreed to publish BOR with OUP beginning January 2017. Importantly, BOR will remain our Journal and the SSR will continue to have complete control over its content.

The transition to OUP has been ongoing for most of the year, with the SSR Business Office, the Editors-in-Chief, and the Publications Committee having worked diligently to make this a success. Mary Ann Handel has taken the lead on many of the transition details and deserves a sincere note of appreciation for her efforts.

During the most recent SSR meeting, we were fortunate to have Dr. Rachel Warren, OUP’s managing editor for BOR, present to discuss the transition process and address questions from the Publications Committee and Editorial Board. A mind-boggling number of files and information have accumulated, been reviewed, and transferred to OUP. Most recently, a new cover design has been created, and a new website is planned to come on line in October. Look for these exciting changes in the design, appearance, and presentation of BOR! Publish your work in BOR!: One of the major concerns voiced at the past Editorial Retreat was that members of the SSR are not publishing in BOR. There needs to be a grassroots movement to change this culture, and that grassroots movement starts with you! This is your Journal, so please submit your best work to BOR.

—Tom Curry and Mary Ann Handel, Co-Chairs Publications Committee

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From the Editors-in-Chief of BOR

In January 2017, BOR will be published with OUP. The transition has been pretty smooth, and we appreciate the efforts of Mary Ann Handel, Tom Curry, and everyone at Jansen Editorial Services for ensuring its success. We are excited about this new endeavor for BOR and hope it will inspire you and other reproduction researchers to submit their outstanding papers to the Journal. Achieving a greater number of submissions from SSR members is key to bolstering the impact and prestige of our Journal. Publishing in BOR is the best way to ensure your manuscript will be read by investigators in the reproduction field. As we move forward, we would like to acknowledge the outstanding contributions of Melissa Clifton, Katrina Ashworth, and Judy Jansen, as well as the other staff of Jansen Editorial Services, whose exceptional efforts have kept BOR strong for many years.

As we enter the final phase of our terms as Editors-in-Chief of BOR, we are excited to bring a new Editorial team in July 2017 to the Journal, headed by Wei Yan and Hugh Clarke. It is particularly gratifying that two Associate Editors from our Editorial team have the initiative and dedication to serve the Journal and the SSR. Indeed, we are grateful to all of our Associate Editors (Hugh Clarke, Bart Gadella, Pat Lonergan, Romana Nowak, John Peluso, Peggy Petroff, Daryl Russell, Chandra Yallampalli, Wei Yan, and Humphrey Yao); they are the backbone of the Editorial team.

Both of us welcome and encourage feedback on and suggestions for any aspect of your Journal, including its editorial process and direction. Importantly, we look forward to your submitting and publishing the best manuscripts in BOR. Thank you for letting us serve as Editors-in-Chief!

— Franco DeMayo (demayo.boreic@gmail.com) and Tom Spencer (spencerte@missouri.edu) Editors-in-Chief, Biology of Reproduction News from the Fertility and Infertility Branch, NICHD

New NICHD Director Named Diana Bianchi, M.D., was named NICHD Director last August to replace Dr. Alan Guttmacher, who retired in the fall of 2015. She will join the NIH on 7 November 2016. Dr. Bianchi is a practicing medical geneticist with expertise in reproductive genetics. She focuses her research on prenatal genomics with the goal of advancing noninvasive prenatal DNA screening and diagnosis to develop new therapies for genetic disorders that can be administered prenatally. Previous to coming to NIH, Dr. Bianchi was the Natalie V. Zucker Professor of Pediatrics and professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Tufts University School of Medicine. She was also founding Executive Director of the Mother Infant Research Institute at the Floating Hospital for Children in Boston.

Dr. Bianchi earned her M.D. from the Stanford University School of Medicine. Following medical school, she completed her residency training in pediatrics at Boston Children’s Hospital and her postdoctoral fellowship training in medical genetics and neonatal-perinatal medicine at Harvard Medical School. She is board certified in all three specialties.

From 2011–2015 she served on NICHD’s National Advisory Council, and she is a past president of the International Society for Prenatal Diagnosis and the Perinatal Research Society. She was elected to membership in the Institute of Medicine (now National Academy of Medicine) in 2013. Dr. Bianchi recently received two major lifetime achievement awards: the Landmark Award in 2015 from the American Academy of Pediatrics in

SSR Newsletter October 2016 11

recognition of her research and contributions to genetics and newborn care, and the Maureen Andrew Award for Mentoring in 2016 by the Society for Pediatric Research, which recognized her commitment to mentoring the next generation of clinician-scientists.

NICHD Unveils New Institute-Wide Funding Strategy In her capacity as Acting NICHD Director, Dr. Cathy Spong recently announced a new institute-wide funding strategy that will employ more flexibility in making funding decisions (https://www.nichd.nih.gov/about/overview/directors_corner/Pages/default.aspx). In essence, the institute has decided to enhance its ability to address scientific priorities and public health needs by moving away from funding research grants strictly in rank order, i.e., by a payline. The new system for funding decisions on R01, R03, R13, R15, and R21 grant applications will start in FY 2017. However, funding decisions for applications using other grant mechanisms, such as Fs and Ks, will continue using the past system. This strategy is not entirely new to the Fertility and Infertility (FI) Branch, as it has used limited discretion in the past to fund research applications that addressed areas of high programmatic significance or those from new investigators. As with all extramural program branches within the Division of Extramural Research, NICHD has now identified high-program-priority (HPP) areas that can be found at https://www.nichd.nih.gov/Pages/index.aspx. The FI Branch has listed seven HPP areas that can be found at https://www.nichd.nih.gov/about/org/der/branches/fi/Pages/overview.aspx. The seven areas are (in no priority order):

• Studies of gamete quality and preplacental processes as they relate to the etiology of early pregnancy loss.

• Identification of critical windows for epigenetic alteration of reproductive processes and the mechanisms of transgenerational inheritance.

• Studies that investigate fertility status as a marker of overall health. • Studies to elucidate the genetic basis of idiopathic male and female infertility. • Research to examine metabolic and nutritional regulation of fertility with emphasis on the role of

tissue-specific microbiomes. • Identification of reliable biomarkers to study reproductive transitions across the life span of

males and females, including puberty and reproductive aging. • Development of innovative technologies and model systems to study fertility/infertility and/or

preservation of fertility. It should be noted that strict internal guidelines for this new funding strategy have been established. Moreover, please be assured that applications judged to be meritorious by peer review will be given careful consideration for funding whether or not they address an HPP area or one of the branch-specific funding opportunity announcements (FOA) listed below. Finally, if you are submitting an application that addresses one of the branch HPP areas or that was submitted in response to a branch FOA, we encourage you to mention this in a cover letter or as part of either the specific aims or significance sections of the application. Recent FI Branch Funding Opportunity Announcements

• Spermatogenic Stem Cell Culture Systems to Preserve and Restore Reproductive Capacity in Males (R01); Next Receipt Date: 5 June 2017; Expiration Date: 6 June 2018 (Special Review)

o http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-16-114.html • Dual Purpose with Dual Benefit: Research in Biomedicine and Agriculture Using Agriculturally

12 Volume 33, Number 3

Important Domestic Animal Species (R01) (with USDA-NIFA); Next Receipt Date: 27 September 2017; Expiration Date: 28 September 2018 (Special Review)

o http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-16-366.html • Oocyte Mitochondrial Function in Relation to Fertility, Aging and Mitochondrial Diseases

o R01; Next Receipt Date: 5 February 2017; Expiration Date: 8 May 2019 http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-16-088.html

o R21; Next Receipt Date: 16 February 2017; Expiration Date: 8 May 2019 http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-16-087.html

• Characterization of the Adult Reproductive Transition (CHART) o R01; Next Receipt Date: 5 February 2017; Expiration Date: 8 September 2019

http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-16-314.html o R21; Next Receipt Date: 16 February 2017; Expiration Date: 8 September 2019

http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-16-315.html o R03; Next Receipt Date: 16 February 2017; Expiration Date: 8 September 2019

http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-16-316.html • Trophoblast Differentiation and Function

o R01; Next Receipt Date: 5 February 2017; Expiration Date: 8 January 2020 http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-16-445.html

o R21: Next Receipt Date: 16 February 2017; Expiration Date: 8 January 2020 http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-16-444.html

—Louis V. DePaolo, Ph.D., Branch Chief Division of Extramural Research, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development From the Bylaws Committee Dr. Bruce Murphy filled in for Dr. Rabindranath De La Fuente, Chair of the Bylaws Committee, at the Annual Business Meeting of the Society for the Study of Reproduction on Tuesday, 19 July 2016. He announced that the Board of Directors had received a request to change the Bylaws so as to provide Trainee members with voting privileges on their respective committees. As it stands, the current Bylaws state:

ARTICLE VIII: MEETINGS OF MEMBERS - Section 6. Voting – subsection (b) http://www.ssr.org/sites/ssr.org/files/uploads/attachments/node/75/ssrbylaws.pdf

(b) Except as otherwise provided by statute, or by the Articles of Incorporation, at each meeting of Members, each Regular Member shall be entitled to one vote.

The members of the Bylaws Committee unanimously agreed on the aforementioned change, and have introduced new language in Section 6. (b) of the Bylaws as indicated and underlined below:

(b) Except as otherwise provided by statute, or by the Articles of Incorporation, at each meeting of Members, each Regular Member shall be entitled to one vote. Trainee members serving on committees are entitled to vote on all matters and decisions being considered by their respective committees.

Explanation of change to the Bylaws: Trainees will be allowed to vote in the committees matters on the committees that they are permitted to serve as dictated by the Bylaws. The Publications, Nominations, and Awards committees do not include Trainees in their rosters and will not be affected by the change in the Bylaws.

SSR Newsletter October 2016 13

The change was approved by the SSR Board of Directors. This topic was discussed at the meeting in great detail, with the majority vote indicating that Trainees be allowed to vote on the committees on which they serve.

The next step is to arrange an electronic vote for members to affirm their decision, either positive or negative, on the proposed change to SSR’s Bylaws in accordance with the procedures for revision of the Bylaws, Article XVI: Amendments, Section 1. By Members: “All Bylaws of the Society shall be subject to alteration or repeal, and new Bylaws may be made, by the affirmative vote of 2/3 of the Membership entitled to vote and responding to a ballot, following discussion at the Annual Business Meeting.”

— Rocío Melissa Rivera, Chair Bylaws Committee Committee Members: Jill Bennett-Toomey (Trainee), Karla Hutt, James MacLean, Kelle Molley (Board

Liaison), Saniya Rattan (Trainee), Karen Schindler

Happy Birthday SSR! Outstanding Success in Capital Campaign Kick-off in San Diego

SSR’s Golden Anniversary Fundraising Campaign officially kicked off at the 2016 Annual Meeting on Sunday, 17 July in the Grande Ballroom of the Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina. The ceremony consisted of brief, but informative, motivational speeches, and check presentations. Members of the Campaign Cabinet were introduced to the audience.

Campaign buttons designed by the Workgroup on SSR Trainees (headed by Jenna Haverfield) were handed out to those who donated to the Campaign. The buttons generated conversation and self-promoted the Campaign, thereby stimulating donation by SSR members. In addition, a Campaign booth was set up to facilitate promotion of, dialogue about, and donation to, the Campaign. These two initiatives, together with the success of the Campaign kick-start, generated considerable excitement and energy. A similar promotion will be in place at the 2017 Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.

Between donations and pledges, the Campaign Team has accumulated a promised $408,600 (>34 % of the Campaign Target of $1.2 million) in the first four months of the 24-month campaign period. On behalf of the Society, I thank them sincerely for their most generous support of this important initiative.

Why an SSR Capital Campaign?

Despite the tremendous success of the Campaign kick-off in San Diego, many SSR Members are still unclear as to the rationale and needs of this fundraising campaign. Here is an explanation.

Since 1967, the SSR has grown from a small, visionary cadre of scientists with a primary interest in the agricultural sciences to an international group spanning the field of comparative reproductive sciences. The Society’s focus has also expanded from basic reproductive biology and now includes translational aspects related to male and female reproductive health in many species, including humans. SSR Members are employing molecular, cellular, and systems biology to explore the genetic and environmental causes of reproductive disorders, and their prevention or treatment. Concomitantly, the Society’s Journal, Biology of Reproduction, evolved from its original publication by the American Society of Animal Science to becoming self-published by the SSR, and in 2017 will transition to Oxford University Press with the objective of

14 Volume 33, Number 3

enhancing its worldwide marketing and impact. Since its inception, the SSR has been committed to training the next generation of reproductive and developmental biologists by placing Trainees on various committees, plus supporting Trainee travel to SSR meetings.

Despite the economic downturn over the past decade, the SSR continues to thrive as a site of cutting-edge research through its vibrant Annual Meeting, high-quality Journal, and creative leadership. The SSR is poised to increase its international impact in the coming years, and plans are underway to enhance programs in research, training, and outreach. This Campaign is consistent with the theme for the 50th Annual Meeting in 2017: 50 Years of SSR Research: Looking Back and Moving Forward.

Please consider participating in the SSR’s Capital Campaign to recognize its accomplishments and assist in taking the Society to a new level of service in the next five decades. The SSR is a unique society that serves an important role in the basic and clinical areas of reproduction research; please help it continue this valuable work and expand its scope through your generous contributions!

Leadership and Campaign Achievement to Date

The success of a professional society is the culmination of its leadership, commitments, and engagement of its membership. The success of this Campaign is no different. Our leadership teams aim for the Campaign to be a resounding success. This is evident thanks to the persistence of the SSR Board and Campaign Cabinet Workgroup (headed by Richard Schultz); donations and pledges totalling $200,500 have been received. We thank them for their generous support, especially Fuller Bazer and Janice Bahr. Their vision, generosity, and support for SSR are inspirational.

Dr. Fuller Bazer, Past SSR President, former Editor-in-Chief of BOR, and an effective mentor of many:

“I believe that the SSR must continue to position itself and its annual meeting as the ‘go-to’ society for reproductive biologists throughout the world. The continued growth and vitality of the SSR depends on its being truly an international society. This means attracting top international scientists to our Annual Meetings [and] recognizing excellence in research by those outside the boundaries of North America.”

“One step in that direction would be the establishment of an award that recognizes international scientists who have consistently demonstrated excellence in research and graduate education at an institution outside of North America. For this reason, I am pleased to support this Campaign with my gift of $25,000 and ask SSR members to support this important initiative.”

Dr. Janice Bahr, Past SSR President and Chair of the SSR Endowment Committee:

“The major event of SSR is its Annual Meeting. We need to invite the best national and international scientists as speakers to encourage attendance by reproductive scientists from all over the world. Also, we need to grow SSR membership by financially supporting junior faculty to attend the annual SSR meeting. For these two reasons, I am excited to support this Campaign with my gift of $125,000.”

Corporate Support for the Campaign The Workgroup on Foundations (headed by Asgi Fazleabas) has had a good start in soliciting funds from outside the Society, already receiving assurance from the Asia-Pacific Biomedical Research Foundation (South

Dr. Fuller Bazer

Dr. Janice Bahr

SSR Newsletter October 2016 15

Korea) of a gift of $150,000 and has indicated that a gift of $25,000 will be forthcoming from the CReATe Fertility Centre (Toronto).

Johan Smitz, Chair of the Workgroup on Industries, is already hard at work including industrial partners in our efforts. Together with Mara Lucato, SSR’s newly appointed professional fundraiser, his Workgroup expects to bring in substantial revenue from the pharmaceutical and laboratory industries in support of the 2017 Annual Meeting and the Capital Campaign.

Have You Contributed Yet? We Need Your Support Now!

If you have not already contributed to the Capital Campaign, please consider a gift when approached by a member of the Campaign team. It is an opportunity to give back to the SSR, a gesture of appreciation of the benefits provided to Members over the past 50 years.

We recognize that every individual has different financial commitments and giving capacity. Please consider making your donations over a five-year period. The future of the Society is in your hands. You can make a difference by supporting one or more of the priority areas identified by the SSR Board:

• An enriched Annual Meeting scientific program. • Travel support to the Annual Meetings for Trainees and new investigators. • Developing the SSR as an international society. • Providing seed money to promote collaboration in translational research. • Organizing workshops on career development for new investigators.

• Organizing outreach activities to promote the importance of reproductive biology and its scope to the public, especially stakeholders.

Alternatively, you could also donate to one or more of the existing funds of the Society:

• SSR Endowment Fund • Past Presidents’ Endowment Fund • BOR Legacy Fund • Anita Payne Endowment Fund • William Hansel Ovarian Research Program Fund • John J. Eppig Endowment Fund • Virendra B. Mahesh Neuroendocrine Program Fund • Larry Ewing Memorial Trainee Travel Fund • SSR New Investigator Fund • Trainee Mentoring Fund

Thank you! In closing, I would like to thank the Chairs of Campaign Workgroups for their leadership and enthusiasm in moving the Campaign forward. The Workgroups on Past Presidents and Board Members, SSR Awardees, the BOR Editorial Board, Development Committee, and general membership—headed by Fuller Bazer, Doug Stocco, Bernard Robaire, Brent Bany, and Janice Bahr, respectively, have already outlined their areas of focus and are well into their solicitation activities. This Campaign could not succeed without their commitment and hard work!

16 Volume 33, Number 3

Dr. Janice Bailey, SSR President:

“I sincerely thank those SSR members who have donated to this important Golden Anniversary Campaign. They clearly believe in the mandate of the Society to support our activities and Trainee affairs. If you are not part of our donor group, there is still plenty of time to make your donation! I also am incredibly grateful to our industrial sponsors for supporting the Annual Meeting, which will help us to create an enriching and celebratory event.”

I would like to thank President Janice Bailey, members of the Executive Council, and the Board of the Society for their confidence, encouragement, and support. I am also indebted to Judy Jansen and her team for the support they provide to this Campaign.

— Ben Tsang, Ph.D., Chair, SSR Golden Anniversary Fundraising Campaign From the Vice President It is a great honor to be on board as your Vice President. As an SSR Member, I urge you to take part in shaping the future of science. This is not the time to be on the sidelines. The 2017 Meeting will be in Washington D.C., providing the perfect opportunity to visit congressional representatives and NIH officials.

Please contact me (jsdavis@unmc.edu) if you would like to get more involved in SSR by serving on one of our important committees. To learn about the various committees, visit http://www.ssr.org/Committees. We are currently looking for a talented and innovative person to help publish the SSR Newsletter. After many years of outstanding service, Katie Dunlap, our current Newsletter Editor, is ready to pass the baton and aid in the transition process. If you are interested, please contact Dr. Dunlap (kdunlap@tamu.edu), Patricia Morris, Chair of the Public Relations Committee (p-morris@popcbr.rockefeller.edu), or me (jsdavis@unmc.edu).

It’s not too early to start planning to attend the 51st SSR Annual Meeting, to be held on 10–13 July 2018 at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Program Chairs for this meeting are Moira O’Bryan, Ph.D. (moira.obryan@monash.edu) and Bo Rueda, Ph.D. (brueda@partners.org). The meeting’s theme centers on pathways for successful reproduction, with plenary talks that focus on the various ways in which physiologic and pathologic signals regulate development and reproductive processes. We welcome your ideas in shaping the scientific program.

—John S. Davis, Vice President

SSR Newsletter October 2016 17

Minutes of the Annual Business Meeting of the Society for the Study of 5

Reproduction Wednesday, 19 July 2016

Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina, San Diego, California Call to Order: 10 President Bruce Murphy called the Business Meeting to order at 5:55 PM. Approximately 100 members were in attendance. Approval of the Minutes of the 2015 Annual Business Meeting. Dr. Bruce Murphy asked if there were any additions or corrections to the Minutes of the 2015 Business Meeting. No additions or corrections were offered. 15 Dr. Pete Hansen moved, and Dr. Jennifer Wood seconded, the motion to accept the Minutes of the 2015 Annual Business Meeting. The motion carried. President’s Remarks 20 Dr. Bruce Murphy thanked the SSR Board and the Business Office for helping with the meeting. He stated that the Business Office was the glue that held the Society together and thanked them for all of their hard work and effort. He also recognized Miles Wilkinson, Ph.D., as Chair of the 2016 Local Arrangements Committee (University 25 of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California) and Shunichi Shimasaki, Ph.D. (University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California), as the Fun Run Organizer. Dr. Murphy further recognized Lynda McGinnis, Ph.D. (University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California) and Barbara S. Durrant, Ph.D. (Zoological Society of San Diego, Institute for Conservation 30 Research, Escondido, California) for organizing the 2016 Outreach Program, supported generously by the Burroughs Wellcome Fund. Reports: Program Committee’s Report: Since there was not a formal report from the Program Committee, Dr. Bruce 35 Murphy thanked both Drs. Lane Christenson and Blanche Capel for the provocative and stimulating program they developed for the 2016 SSR Meeting. He said that approximately 900 people attended the meeting this year in San Diego, which was a great turnout. He also indicated that the Board would appreciate feedback from the membership on what was liked, and what did not work as well. Dr. Murphy also thanked the session chairs for their help in picking oral presenters for the sessions. All of the efforts of the many who contributed their 40 time and efforts made for a very successful SSR Meeting in San Diego, California. Dr. Kate Loveland moved, and Dr. Jacques Tremblay seconded, the motion to accept Bruce Murphy’s report on behalf of the Program Committee Chairs, and to thank both Drs. Lane Christenson and Blanche Capel for an exceptional job working on the 2016 SSR program. The motion carried. 45 Treasurer’s Report Treasurer Pete Hansen stated that the contract with Oxford University Press will have a positive effect on finances of the Society with at least a minimum of $300,000 income per year and maybe more than that—depending on subscriptions to the Journal. SSR net operating reserves were $3,442,971 and the five-year rate of 50 return has been approximately 3.86%. He also showed a list of endowment funds, and explained how much money was in each, with total donations for 2015 at $23,000 for endowments. He had anticipated that the Society would lose approximately $300,000 at last year’s annual meeting. The actual loss, however, was $104,600. Most of the anticipated loss last year was due to unforeseen expenses, changes in the economy, and

18 Volume 33, Number 3

the anticipated cost of travel grants for Trainees. In 2016, Dr. Hansen conservatively estimates a net gain of 55 $50,000 on the Annual Meeting. The net gain or loss at the Annual Meeting is tied to the venue and to the costs associated with many of the social events, along with number of Members attending. Dr. Janice Bailey moved, and Dr. Lane Christenson seconded, the motion to accept the Treasurer’s report. The motion carried. 60 Editors-in-Chief Report: Tom Spencer, Co-Editor-in-Chief of Biology of Reproduction, thanked the team of 10 Associate Editors (AEs) who have assisted the Editors-in-Chief (EICs) in the last 12 months: Hugh Clarke, Bart M. Gadella, Patrick Lonergan, Romana Nowak, John J. Peluso, Margaret G. Petroff, Darryl Russell, Chandra Yallampalli, Wei Yan, and Humphrey H.-C. Yao. 65 Dr. Spencer reported that the editorial team managed 1000 manuscripts during the past year (1 June 2015 to 11 May 2016). Of note, approximately 70% of those manuscripts came from outside of the United States. The number of manuscripts by SSR Members submitting to the Journal has declined. The transition to Oxford University Press (OUP) is going well, and the editorial website will be active at the end of the next month. 70 Starting January 2017, the Journal will be live on the OUP site. Dr. Spencer then recognized Drs. Tom Curry, Mary Ann Handel, and Judy Jansen for their efforts in transitioning the Journal to OUP. Biology of Reproduction’s Impact Factor has increased to 3.42 and is in the top 5 journals in reproductive biology. Dr. Spencer also announced that Wei Yan, M.D., Ph.D., and Hugh Clarke, Ph.D., will be the new EICs and that he and Dr. Franco DeMayo would aid these new EICs in their transition to the Journal in 2017. 75 Dr. Janice Bahr moved, and Dr. Richard Schultz seconded, the motion to accept the report of the Editors-in-Chief. The motion carried. Publications Committee’s Report: Dr. Tom Curry reported that the Board of Directors interviewed two 80 different groups for the Editor(s)-in-Chief position(s). They selected Yan, M.D., Ph.D., and Hugh Clarke, Ph.D. as new EICs. Dr. Curry expressed appreciation to those SSR members who ran for EIC and thanked them for the time they gave to the process. He noted that the Publications Committee was in the process of determining what the new cover of BOR would look like. Dr. Curry also informed members that OUP sells subscriptions to libraries as a bundle with its other publications. Thus, our Journal may be in libraries that have not carried BOR 85 before, which would increase the amount of money that SSR expects to obtain from OUP each year (approximately $418,000). He also said that other changes were expected, and OUP will be asked to provide a timeline for the “changeover”—which may start as early as November. OUP also uses J&J for managing submissions to journals and thus the whole process will be a little different. Dr. Curry ended his report stating that he believed that the transition to OUP will run smoothly with the help of the Business Office and the 90 editorial team. Dr. Lane Christenson moved, and Dr. Tom Spencer seconded, the motion to accept the Publication Committee’s report. The motion carried. 95 Trainee Affairs Committee Report: There was no formal report from the Trainee Affairs Committee, thus Dr. Bruce Murphy stated that he appreciated the active role that the Trainees maintained on the Board and appreciated all of the work of the Trainees in assisting the Business Office on site at the Annual Meeting. The Trainee Forum and Trainee-Mentor Lunch were both successes this year. Dr. Murphy also stated that the Larry Ewing Trainee Travel Fund is spent out each year, and the Board makes up the shortfall. The Board gave less 100 than the year before due to budget constraints and losses from the previous Annual Meeting. He encouraged members of the society to give to the Larry Ewing Trainee Travel Fund to increase the travel award amount given to Trainees to participate in the Annual Meeting. Dr. Jenna Haverfield moved, and Dr. Jacques J. Tremblay seconded, the motion to accept the Trainee 105

SSR Newsletter October 2016 19

Affairs Committee’s Report. The motion carried. Bylaws Committee’s Report: Dr. Bruce Murphy filled in for Dr. Rabindranath De La Fuente, Chair of the Bylaws Committee. He announced that the Bylaws Committee will send out an electronic vote, which will request a change in the Bylaws to provide Trainee Members with voting privileges on their respective 110 committees. As it stands, the current Bylaws state:

Section 6. Voting (a) Except as otherwise provided herein, or by statute, or by the Articles of Incorporation, the affirmative vote of at least a majority of the membership present in person or by proxy and voting at a meeting of 115 Members with respect to a question or matter brought before such meeting shall be necessary and sufficient to decide such question or matter. (b) Except as otherwise provided by statute, or by the Articles of Incorporation, at each meeting of Members, each Regular Member shall be entitled to one vote.

120 The members of the Bylaws Committee unanimously agreed on the need for this change and have drafted a change in Section 6(b) of the Bylaws, as indicated below:

(b) Except as otherwise provided by statute, or by the Articles of Incorporation, at each meeting of Members, each Regular Member shall be entitled to one vote. Trainee members serving on committees are 125 entitled to vote on all matters and decisions being considered by their respective committees.

Dr. Pete Hansen moved, and Dr. Kate Loveland seconded, the motion to accept the Bylaws Committee’s Report. The motion carried. 130 Membership Committee’s Report: Dr. Jon Oatley stated that the number of Members was greater this year than last—which was a positive change, rather than a steady decrease. To provide value for Members in maintaining their membership, his committee has developed a system of recognition including how many years one has been a Member of the Society (by decade: 10 year, 20 year, 30 year, 40 year, etc.) and also by SSR Fellow status. To become an SSR Fellow, a Member must have been a Member for 20 years and served as chair 135 of a committee, on the Board, or conducted major service to the Society. Also, the committee requested that the Board support “retooling” the Associate Membership category to allow a break on dues and registration for research professionals and technicians. The Board passed the motion that the Associate Member category would be for research associates and technicians, and that dues and meeting registration rates for these individuals would match the as those received by Postdoctoral Trainees, thereby relieving the financial burden in becoming 140 a Member of SSR and attending the Annual Meeting. Dr. Oatley then asked for a moment of silence to honor SSR members who had passed away this last year:

Philip J. Dziuk, Ph.D. 145 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, IL Founding Member, 1967 150

Louis J. Guillette, Jr., Ph.D. Medical University of South Carolina Charleston, SC 155 Member since 1983

William J. Silvia, Ph.D. University of Kentucky 160 Lexington, Kentucky Member since 1979

Dr. Susan Suarez moved to accept the Membership Committee’s Report, and Dr. Asgi Fazleabas seconded the motion. The motion passed. 165 Nominating Committee’s Report: Dr. Susan Suarez presented the report of the Nominating Committee, and named the new Directors elected to the SSR Board, Dr. Sarah Kimmins and Dr. Greg Johnson; the new Vice-President-elect, Dr. Janice Evans; and new Secretary, Dr. Troy Ott. Dr. Suarez also thanked the Members for

20 Volume 33, Number 3

voting and for nominating individuals to the Board. She encouraged members to respond to an e-mail from the new 170 Chair of the Nominating Committee, Dr. Richard Schultz, who would be soliciting nominations for next year, and to please nominate your best colleagues. Dr. Pete Hansen moved, and Dr. Geula Gibori seconded, the motion to accept the Nominating Committee’s report. The motion carried. 175 Recognition of Retiring Officers: Dr. Murphy recognized the retiring officers and thanked them for their service: Past President―Dr. Richard M. Schultz Secretary—Dr. Andrea S. Cupp 180 Director―Dr. Michael J. Soares Director―Dr. Kate L. Loveland Trainee Representative―Dr. Jenna T. Haverfield Vice President—Dr. Janice L. Bailey Vice President-Elect—Dr. John S. Davis 185 Installation of President Janice Bailey: Dr. Bruce Murphy then installed Dr. Janice L. Bailey to the office of SSR President by handing her the gavel. Recognition of New Members of the Board: 190 Vice President John S. Davis Vice President-Elect Janice Evans Past President Bruce Murphy Secretary Troy Ott Director Greg Johnson 195 Director Sarah Kimmins Trainee Representative Jitu George New Business: Update on Program Development for 2017: Dr. Janice L. Bailey stated that next year, the 50th Annual Meeting of 200 SSR would be held on 13‒16 July in Washington, D.C., at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel. She introduced the 2017 Program Co-Chairs, Kate Loveland, Ph.D., and Jacques J. Tremblay, Ph.D., who stated that they have gone over the program with the Program Committee and would welcome input from the Membership on what they would like to see at the meeting. Dr. Bailey then introduced the Co-Chairs of the Local Arrangements Committee, Pierre Comizzoli, Ph.D., and Mark Mirando, Ph.D., who commented on the venue and the number of airports (3) 205 that serviced the Washington area, along with the easy access to the metro, Zoo, Smithonian Museum, etc. The theme of the meeting is 50 Years of SSR Research: Looking Back and Moving Forward. Dr. Tom Curry then asked to recognize Dr. Bruce Murphy, the outgoing President, for all of his hard work and dedication this last year. The membership thanked him by applauding for Dr. Murphy’s giving of his time and 210 effort this past year. Since there was no further New Business, Dr. Jodi Flaws moved to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed. The meeting was adjourned at 6:30 pm. 215 Respectfully submitted: Andrea S. Cupp, outgoing SSR Secretary

SSR Newsletter October 2016 21

New Members and Changes of Status Changed

Associate

Breen Church, Kellie Kwon, Sojung Emeritus

Blake, Charles A. Salamonsen, Lois A. Suarez, Susan S. Regular

Ting, Alison Wolff, Erin Yoon, Minjung Trainee

Derussi, Ana Augusta P. Tingen, Candace M. Tokuhiro, Keizo New

Associate

Aljahdali, Anan Alshlebly, Mashael M. Arnoult, Christophe Aroche, Cristina Bagherian, Elhaam Baranov, Igor Barker, Nick Betzig, Eric Bigelow, Dana Bond, Kise Calhoun, Andrea Cohn, Martin J. Cui, Xiang Shun De Leon, Marino Diaz Gimeno, Patricia Dulac, Catherine El Amrawi, Gamal Elsegaey, Maher S.E.H. Erlebacher, Adrian Esselman, Walter J. Fahrenkrug, Scott C. Hasegawa, Ayumi He, Zuyong Hendrich, Brian Huppertz, Berthold

Ideker, Trey Ideraabdullah, Folami Jasti, Susmita Jellerette Nola, Teru Jovine, Luca Kaiser, Ursula B. Kauffman, Alexander S. Kaufman, Steven Kim, Eun Kyung Kim, Jihyang Lee, Seunghoon Lee, Yin Lau Li, Tianjie Lim, Hyun Joo Lindenthal, Bernhard Lindstrom, Beatriz Liu, Wei Min Locatelli, Yann Lukasik, Karolina Lyu, Lihua Mackie, Paula Mager, Jesse Mazaud Guittot, Severine McCallie, Blair McPartlin, Lori Memarzadeh, Sanaz Menke, Marie Miyata, Haruhiko Mochida, Keiji Mulla, Irena Obata, Yayoi Ostrander, Elaine Paredes, Alfonso H. Parks, Jason Patel, Nirali Powell, Theresa L. Redgrove, Kate Reynaud, Karine Sadovsky, Yoel Saitou, Mitinori Satouh, Yuhkoh Smith, Lee Sohn, Jie Ohn Song, Hyun Jin Spiller, Kathryn Stanczyk, Frank Z. Szostek, Anna Terret, Marie Emilie Thornburg, Kent L. Tran, Nam Tuteja, Geeta Vandenberg, Laura N. Vilain, Eric

22 Volume 33, Number 3

Winn, Brad Yamagata, Kazuo Yamashita, Yukiko Yin, Yan Yoshida, Shosei Zeng, Cheng Zerrad Saadi, Amal Zhang, Bo Zhao, Minghui Zhu, Jia Qiao Regular

Kallen, Amanda N. Nagaoka, Kentaro Trainee

Abarca, Victor Ahn, Ji Yeon Alonso, Carlos Agustin Isidro Balbach, Melanie Biehl, Matthew Brown, Megan Caixeta, Felippe Manoel Costa Charif, Santiago Elias Chen, Qing Choi, Jeong Woo Choi, Yunjeong Copley Salem, Christian Cromwell, William Daughtry, Brittany del Collado, Maite Doblado, Manuel Fung, Leslie Gonzalez, Tania L. Goto, Teppei Guo, Jing Hennessy, Madison E. Hernandez Silva, Gabriela Ishikawa, Yu Ispada, Jessica Jeong, Pil Soo Jones, Samantha Kamoshita, Maki Kanter, Jessica

Kawai, Tomoko Kim, Riji Kim, Sae Won Kim, Sung Min Kuete, Martin Lee, Bora Lee, Jeong Woong Li, Qian Lindeman, Robin Liu, Shichao Lopez Torres, Aidee Saray Lord, Tessa Loux, Shavahn Manriquez Trevino, Yolanda Eliana Mayfield, Brianna L. Nagashima, Kiyoshi Nakamura, Keigo Niu, Huiran Nowak, Marta Okeyo Owuor, Theresa Oliva, Kimberly Olson, Mark Oyama, Kanako Penalver Bernabe, Beatriz Quiroz, Alonso Riestenberg, Carrie Rodrigues Franca, Moana Rodriguez Borbon, Adriana Rwigemera, Arlette Santander, Nicolas Schutz, Laura Shinagawa, Masahiro Tang, Chong Tanimoto, Ren Tecle, Eillen Thalhofer, Angel Tomaszkiewicz, Marta Umehara, Takashi Vadnais, Melissa Vailes, McCauley Wang, Xia Yang, Peng Yang, Woo Sub Yenuganti, Vengala Rao