After a productive year in business, the NCI Frederick Media Laboratory is closing again. The service, with its longtime goal of sustainability, was in the hands of Nancy Martin and Dan McVicar, Ph.D.
The move comes on the heels of Martin’s retirement from NCI. In light of the change, Poster recognizes her steadfast dedication for the past year.
Martin, a former biologist at NCI, took on the task of reviving the Media Lab in 2023 after it had been closed by CCR, in 2022.
“We were able to reopen it with a smaller footprint, … more green and more … lean and mean,” she said.
She worked alongside McVicar, her supervisor and deputy director of the Center for Cancer Research. “Lean,” being a small workplace and only one autoclave to work with, didn’t come at the cost of quality service. In fact, the lab had the same mission as it did before the first closing: to offer pre-made and customized media—plates, buffers, and solutions—to the NCI Frederick community.
These media are essential to creating cell cultures and running experiments, but manufacturing these products tends to result in excess waste. For Martin’s Media Lab, being green, lean, and mean involved avoiding as much waste as possible. By formulating the exact amount of media that a lab desired and reclaiming containers from closing labs, the Media Lab helped improve sustainability.
“The Media Lab is a great resource,” said Kylee Stenersen, an EHS officer and Green Team member on campus, citing the lab’s waste reduction through the reuse of glassware, such as beakers and flasks.
The Green Team’s goals and mission to increase sustainability while saving money through community activities aligned closely with the Media Lab’s goals.
As such, Stenersen collaborated with Martin to promote the Media Lab to the Green Team, sharing a slideshow about its potential to reduce waste at NCI Frederick. The lab became part of NCI Frederick’s sustainability efforts, along with other projects Stenersen and the Green Team have pursued, such as the NIH Freezer Challenge or tree-planting initiatives.
The Media Lab’s pursuit of sustainability also reduced costs by cutting down on waste. The lab’s prices were often lower in comparison to those of commercial vendors.
“We can offer very competitive pricing,” Martin said.
That was especially useful for scientists with tight budgets.
Thanks to Martin’s efforts, the Media Lab’s services were both tailor-made and speedy. She strived to complete orders faster than the typical commercial vendor would be able. At the same time, the lab’s customized services reduced or eliminated the time researchers needed to spend modifying media or plates for their labs’ specific needs.
It may come as no surprise that the Media Lab was in high demand, with orders ramping up after it reopened. However, Martin didn’t mind this demanding workload. She said she appreciated the ability to talk to different labs and promote environmentally friendly practices, and that she liked to help the scientific community.
Although Martin is retiring, her impact and vision for the Media Lab aren’t lost. Her passion for quality service and environmentally friendly laboratory practices were cherished and made a mark at NCI Frederick.
Sophia Yang was a Werner H. Kirsten intern for the Molecular Pharmacology Program (MPP) at the FNLCR. She worked with her mentor to investigate the effects of cell cycle inhibitors on lung cancer.