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June 2014

New Animal Model Could Boost Research on AIDS Drugs and Vaccines

In a research milestone reported in the June 20 issue of the journal Science, scientists have developed a minimally modified version of HIV-1, the virus that causes AIDS in infected humans, that is capable of causing progressive infection and AIDS in monkeys. The advance should help create more authentic animal models of the disease and provide a potentially invaluable approach for faster and better preclinical evaluation of new drugs and vaccines.

New Hires at the National Cancer Institute at Frederick

Fifty-six people joined the facility in January, February, and March 2014.

NCI Researchers Discover Exceptionally Potent Antibodies with Potential for Prophylaxis and Therapy of MERS-Coronavirus Infections

In a recent article published in the Journal of Virology, Tianlei Ying, Ph.D., Dimiter Dimitrov, Ph.D., and their colleagues in the Laboratory of Experimental Immunology, Cancer and Inflammation Program, NCI Center for Cancer Research, reported the identification of three human monoclonal antibodies (m336, m337, and m338) that target the part of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) that is responsible for binding to its receptor.

How You Can Help Save a Life

Kevin Zecher, a maintenance mechanic in Facilities Maintenance and Engineering, Leidos Biomedical Research, Inc., hasn’t missed a double-red cell donation at a blood drive at NCI at Frederick in four years. He marks the time by his first granddaughter’s birth—that’s when he first decided to donate more than whole blood.

Susan Koogle Marks 40+ Years at NCI at Frederick

In 1973, Susan Koogle commuted from Washington County to a small data processing company in Arlington, Va. When gas prices spiked from 25 to 54 cents a gallon, she began to look for a job closer to home. That’s when she came to work at NCI at Frederick, and in December 2013, she marked her 40th year with the facility.