Biophysical Society Bulletin | July/August 2018

Publications

Know the Editor Alan Grodzinsky

the International Space Station (ISS). As part of the “Chips in Space Program” (supported by NIH-NCATS and the Center for Advancement of Science in Space [CASIS]), our organ co-cul- ture model will be carried by SpaceX up to the ISS for a one- month experiment during the next year to test the effects of microgravity and radiation on cartilage-bone degradation and the effectiveness of potential therapeutics to ameliorate such degradation. Taken together, this is an exciting combination for our group of interdisciplinary biophysical, biochemical, and cell biologic studies. What have you read lately that you found really interest- ing or stimulating? (a paper, a book, science or not science) Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery , by Scott Kel- ly, and Indivisible by Four: A String Quartet in Pursuit of Harmony , by Arnold Steinhardt (about the Guarneri String Quartet). Who would you like to sit next to at a dinner party?

Massachusetts Institute of Technology Editor, Systems Biophysics

Alan Grodzinsky

From the Blog Pipeline Leaks Require Institutional Transformation The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine released a report in June on the Climate, Culture and Consequences of Sexual Harassment of Women. In this blog post, Karen Fleming , Professor of Biophysics in the TC Jenkins Department of Biophysics at Johns Hop- kins University and member of the Biophysical Society’s Committee for Professional Opportunities for Women, discusses the report: http:/www.biophysics.org/blog/ pipeline-leaks-require-institutional-transformation biophysics.org/blog in vitro (mimicking joint injury), and then co-cultured for weeks with joint capsule synovium explants obtained from the same human knees. Inflammatory cytokines and addi- tional factors released from the synovium and cartilage-bone plugs lead to cell-mediated proteolytic breakdown of carti- lage and weakened subchondral bone tissue. These sequelae initiate pathways known to occur in patients following tears of the anterior cruciate ligament and/or meniscus, leading to osteoarthritis (OA) in a high percentage of these patients within 10–20 years. There are currently no available drugs that can halt or reverse the progression of OA (or PTOA), only pain killers that have limited short-term effectiveness and no effects on the disease itself. Our objective is to use this organ culture system to identify mechanisms and pathways of joint tissue degradation and to test the efficacy of therapeutics to block OA/PTOA. Interestingly, exercise-related injuries are the most frequent source of injuries for astronauts living aboard What are you currently working on? We are developing an in vitro organ co-culture model of acute joint injuries that are known to cause post-traumatic osteo- arthritis (PTOA) in normal, healthy, young to older humans following common sports injuries or accidents. Living osteo- chondral explants are freshly harvested from normal human donor knees, subjected to precise impact compressive loads

(Scientist or not) Michael Faraday!

At a cocktail party of non-scientists, how would you explain what you do?

Turns out to be a very common occurrence since, unfortu- nately, many people suffer from osteoarthritis in general, as well as the consequences of joint injuries occurring even at a young age. There is a visceral reaction to the description of tissue breakdown caused by osteoarthritis, and almost a de- mand to know what “cures” might be in the offing. This leads to the difficult discussion that, currently, there is no cure, and still no effective drugs (unlike the case for rheumatoid arthritis, for which there are now quite a few very successful blockbuster biologic drugs).

Marrying Protein Structure with Machine Learning for Simulating Function Smiruthi Ramasubramanian and Yoram Rudy , Washington University in St. Louis, write about their cover art for the June 5 issue of Biophysical Journal , which illustrates the ar- tificial intelligence algorithm “learning” the intricate details of the protein structure. Read more: http:/www.bio- physics.org/blog/marrying-protein-structure-with-ma- chine-learning-for-simulating-function

July/August 2018

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