(l to r) Jason Bubier, Laura Reinholdt, and Gary Churchill
Three scientists from The Jackson Laboratory are being recognized for their outstanding achievements by the International Mammalian Genome Society (IMGS), a group that fosters research in mammalian genetics, and represents its members in their professional activities.
The 2024 IMGS Memorial Keynote Lecture
Each year, IMGS bestows its prestigious keynote lecture in memory of a scientist who made significant contributions to the mammalian genetics community through their research and service. The 2024 lectureship has been dedicated to the memory of Beverly (Bev) Paigen, Ph.D. Paigen was widely recognized for her pioneering work on mouse models for cardiovascular disease and her early adoption of computational biology and statistical genetics during her tenure as a professor at JAX.
In tribute to Paigen's memory, the 2024 lectureship has been awarded to Professor Gary Churchill, Ph.D. Churchill is known for his groundbreaking work in developing sophisticated statistical methodologies and computational tools for systems genetics in laboratory mice. His keynote lecture is scheduled to take place during the plenary sessions at the The Allied Genetics Conference in March 2024.
The 2024 IMGS President’s Award
Senior Research Scientist Jason Bubier, Ph.D., has been honored as the first recipient of the IMGS President's Award. This newly established award celebrates the remarkable achievements of early-career scientists who are members of IMGS. This award recognizes Bubier’s outstanding contributions at the intersection of genetics, substance use disorders, and the microbiome. As part of this prestigious award, he will join Churchill at The Allied Genetics Conference in March 2024 and deliver the IMGS President’s Award platform talk.
Associate Professor Laura Reinholdt, Ph.D., currently serves as IMGS Vice President, and will serve as President of the Society in 2025 and 2026. Her research focuses on comparative and functional mammalian genomics, reproductive development and stem cell biology.
“For more than thirty years, IMGS has been committed to fostering and stimulating mammalian genetics research, with a focus on trainee and professional development,” Reinholdt said. “We are proud to celebrate the accomplishments of our members at all career stages with this series of awards and lectureships, and I am excited to recognize Gary and Jason, and celebrate the memory of Bev Paigen, at this year’s meeting.”
Related links:
- In March 2021, the Paigen Endowed Fellowship was created in memory of Bev Paigen and her husband Kenneth Paigen, Ph.D., who served as the director of JAX from 1989 to 2003. Inaugural Paigen Fellow Cara Hardy, Ph.D., studies bladder-brain connections.
- Gary Churchill’s recent research includes a study to identify age-related protein changes shared across tissues, published in Cell Reports, and a study that investigated the proteomes found in pluripotent stem cells, published in Cell Genomics.
- In June, Jason Bubier received a $1.3 million grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse research on the molecular mechanisms underlying individual variability to fentanyl toxicity using genetically diverse mice.