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NIH's Francis Collins Expresses Concern over Epic CRISPR Misadventure
On November 28, the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Dr. Francis Collins expressed deep concern about Dr. He Jiankui’s announcement, presented at the Second International Summit on Human Genome Editing in Hong Kong, describing his efforts using CRISPR-Cas9 technology on human embryos. Collins, and many other research community leaders, believe Jiankui’s work flouted international ethics norms, lacked proper informed consent procedures, and was conducted in an opaque non-transparent fashion.“It is profoundly unfortunate that the first apparent application of this powerful technique to the human germline has been carried out so irresponsibly,” said Collins. Read the full statement here.
NSF Lifts PI Proposal Cap for BIO Directorate
On September 27, Joanne Tornow, Acting Assistant Director for the Biological Sciences (BIO), NSF, unveiled reforms to the BIO division’s grant/solicitation process. BIO proposed placing caps on the number of annual grant submissions from a single PI (or co-PI) to its various programs. A single PI would only be able to be listed as a PI or co-PI on one BIO grant annually. However, on November 15, Tornow reversed this policy after hearing numerous concerns from the research community and witnessing a decline in grant proposals. Read Tornow's full statement.
Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson Prepares to Assume House Science Panel, Rep. Frank Lucas Named Ranking Member
After eight years in the minority, House Democrats are set to assume the majority in January and are preparing to chair the various House committees. Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX-30) will assume the chair of the House Committee on Science, Space, & Technology, which maintains broad jurisdiction over the nation’s research & development enterprise. She has laid out three major goals for her chairmanship:
- Ensuring the United States remains the global leader in science and innovation;
- Addressing the challenges of climate change and;
- Restoring the credibility of the Science Committee as a place where science is respected and recognized as a crucial component of the public policy process.
Rep. Johnson further described her intentions for the committee in an interview with Science Magazine here. On November 30, House Republican leadership revealed that Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK-3) will serve as the Ranking Member on the Science Panel. He is taking over the top Republican spot from retiring Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX-21), who had served as Chairman since 2013.
Rep. Nancy Pelosi Secures Key Vote on Path to House Speakership
House Democratic leaders have come under fire as some rank-and-file and newly elected Democrats have called for new leadership. The current leadership team of Reps. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Steny Hoyer (D-MD), and Jim Clyburn (D-SC) has been in place since 2006. Despite calls for change, the leadership critics have been unable to coalesce around an alternative leadership team and a few have broken ranks and pledged their support to Leader Pelosi. On November 28, Rep. Pelosi secured the Democratic Caucus’s nomination for Speaker, losing only 32 votes, and the rest of her leadership team was also reelected. For comparison, in 2016, when Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH) challenged Rep. Pelosi for Minority Leader, he secured 63 votes. Rep. Pelosi is gaining momentum for her ultimate test, a speakership floor vote in January. She can only afford to lose 17 Democratic votes, assuming Republicans unanimously oppose her, on the floor. Read more at Politico.
Rep. Rosa DeLauro Shares Predictions for FY 2020 NIH Funding
Following the mid-term elections, Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) is set to assume the chairmanship of the Appropriations subcommittee responsible for NIH funding. She recently shared her thoughts on a potential FY 2020 funding scenario for the NIH. Rep. DeLauro indicated that it may be challenging for her panel to continue the recent funding boosts the NIH has enjoyed for the past four years. Further, without a budget deal, there is potential for significant cuts. Read more of her thoughts at CQ (pay wall).
Washington Mourns Former President George H.W. Bush; Punts on Shutdown Fight
While many in the biomedical community were thrilled to see the National Institutes of Health (NIH) funded on time, Congress still failed to clear 7 of its 12 annual appropriations bills and was facing a December 7 deadline to fund the rest of the government. However, former President George H.W. Bush passed away on November 30 and Congress and the White House have since signalled that they will delay a shutdown fight in order to mourn the former President. On December 3, Congressional leaders in the House unveiled a two-week stop gap measure that will keep the government funded until December 21. This package is widely expected to pass and be signed by President Trump.
Yet, Congress and the White House have not yet resolved key issues to prevent a partial shutdown on the 21st. President Trump’s proposed border wall is proving to be a major point of contention as Republicans see the current lame-duck session as their last major opportunity to extract concessions from Democrats before they assume the House majority in January. The House’s Department of Homeland Security bill provides $5 billion for border security, including fencing and technology improvements, while the Senate’s version only allocates $1.6 billion. Senate Democrats have signaled they will not entertain any increases above the $1.6 billion level they have already approved. It remains to be seen if Congress will be able to reach a broad funding deal for the remaining agencies or kick the can down the road by passing another Continuing Resolution.
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