Rigor and Reproducibility Policy One Year Later:How Has the Biomedical Community Responded?

WHAT: Leonard P. Freedman, PhD, president of Global Biological Standards Institute (GBSI) will lead a panel discussion convened by GBSI, titled “Rigor and Reproducibility One Year Later: How Has the Biomedical Community Responded?” At the session, Freedman and experts from National Institutes of Health (NIH), Howard Hughes Medical Institute/Dana Farber Cancer Institute and University of Wisconsin will explore progress in scientific reproducibility, and implementation of the NIH rigor and transparency guidelines that went into effect January 25, 2016. The panel will discuss how successful implementation of the NIH guidelines should lead to increased rates of reproducibility, greater returns on research funding investments, and ultimately better quality scientific research that leads to new treatments and cures. They will also discuss challenges that remain, and other initiatives being considered to improve research reproducibility. Freedman will also introduce a new GBSI report on the life science community’s multiple years of progress toward improved reproducibility by 2020. “Reproducibility2020 Report: Progress and Priorities,” also tracks the GBSI Reproducibility2020 challenge issued February 2016.

WHERE: AAAS Annual Meeting, Hynes Convention Center, 900 Boylston St., Room 302, Boston.

WHEN: Sunday, February 19, 2017, 10:00 -11:30 a.m.

WHO: Moderator and organizer Leonard P. Freedman, PhD, president, GBSI leads the session and introduces GBSI’s new report on progress toward improved reproducibility by 2020.

Speaker Michael S. Lauer, M.D., deputy director for Extramural Research at the NIH, will describe and answer questions about NIH’s rigor and transparency guidelines implemented last year for all grant applicants. He is the recipient of the Arthur S. Flemming Award for Exceptional Federal Service in recognition of his efforts to grow a culture of learning and accountability.

Speaker William G. Kaelin Jr., M.D. will comment on rigor and reproducibility from a PI’s perspective. He is a professor in the Department of Medicine at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute at Harvard Medical School, associate director of Basic Science for the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center, and a recipient of the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research and the Gairdner Foundation International Award. He is a member of the Institute of Medicine and National Academy of Sciences.

Discussant Judith Kimble will respond to the other panelists and provide further perspective from academia. She is a Henry Vilas professor of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Medical Genetics and Cell and Regenerative Biology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Dr. Kimble is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Sciences.

The NIH guidelines represent fundamental changes to the grant application and review process in four areas: the scientific premise of the proposed research; rigorous experimental design for robust and unbiased results; consideration of relevant biological variables such as sex and age; and authentication of key biological resources. The session includes feedback about lessons learned in the first year of the guidelines, and where the research community still needs to address best practices, policies and standards to ensure optimal compliance going forward.

About Global Biological Standards Institute (GBSI)GBSI is an independent non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing the quality of biomedical research by advocating best practices and standards to accelerate the translation of research breakthroughs into life-saving therapies. GBSI was founded by ATCC. For more information, visit GBSI.org and Twitter @GBSIorg.