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In 1953, a teenaged Alan Rein read about what James Watson and Francis Crick famously called “the secret of life”—the double-helix structure of DNA, which had just been published in Nature. Captivated, Rein decided at that moment that he wanted to be a biochemist. Rein’s biochemistry aspirations shifted to virology during college, leading him to a 60-year career in the field, the last 45 years of which were spent at NCI Frederick, studying how retroviruses like murine leukemia virus and HIV assemble themselves and infect host cells while somehow evading the immune response.

There’s a small, fenced enclosure a stone’s throw from NCI Frederick’s pavilion, just across the street from Building 538. Drawing near to it, you’d see two layers of fence encircling a sapling. If you’re botanically inclined, you might recognize the sharp, five-lobed leaves marking the tree as a Liquidambar styraciflua, a sweetgum—a common species in Maryland. You could be forgiven, then, if you’d think the fences are overkill. Yet this sweetgum is particularly worth protecting.

Researchers from around the world met in October to mark progress their field has made in developing drugs to treat cancers driven by the RAS oncogene, and to map out even more ways they can help cancer patients. “This is a great story about tackling an intractable disease that was said to be an impossible task,” said National Cancer Institute Director W. Kimryn Rathmell, M.D.

When people reminisce about the late David Derse, Ph.D., several words invariably get mentioned. Scholar. Mentor. Insightful. Caring. Many who knew him fondly recall him as an exemplar of the intellectual and compassionate sides of science. The same has been said about Carol A. Carter, Ph.D., SUNY distinguished professor at the Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University, who recently came to NCI Frederick to deliver a scientific lecture in Derse’s honor.

There’s a frequent tendency for employees to resort to the transportation box to get from floor to floor—an elevator. All conveniences aside, Occupational Health Services (OHS) has been using educational incentives and the chance to be entered into a raffle to encourage employees to think about their cardiovascular health and take the stairs. And, in an effort to leave no educational opportunity untapped, OHS adorned staircases around the Frederick campus with messages about sun safety throughout the months of June and July.

Genevieve Burns and her teammates watched as another team’s tiny robotic car collided with their own. Then the shouting started. “Get out of our way!” came the gleefully impatient cries from both teams. “Move it, people! Move it!”

After eight years, the annual Technology Showcase isn’t showing any signs of slowing. In fact, according to members of the planning committee, there are still abundant opportunities to do more. The 2024 Tech Showcase, the eighth annual, will be held at FNL's Advanced Technology Research Facility on September 4.

NCI Frederick recently bid farewell to its 33rd class of Werner H. Kirsten student interns. Having completed their senior year of high school—and a rigorous year-long internship—the students are off to confront their next big challenge. The campus recognized them all in the program’s first in-person closing ceremony since 2019.

Steak is always good, but it’s better with some sizzle. So said Kedar Narayan, Ph.D., in preparation for his keynote address at the 2024 Fort Detrick Spring Research Festival. Like a chef preparing a meal, he aimed for his lecture to offer the audience something particularly enticing.

Robot R, part of NCI Frederick’s new automated apparatus for screening potential cancer therapeutics, uses its arm to meticulously fill the wells of a 384-well plate with droplets of human tumor cell cultures smaller than a raindrop. Robot L stands at the ready on the other side of the apparatus, awaiting its own instructions. Laboratory staff members work nearby, but after they load the apparatus with the supplies it needs, the robotic system carries on independently.