Cytokines Mediate the Adverse Effects of Social Stress in an Animal Model of Multiple Sclerosis
by Mary W. Meagher and C. Jane R. Welsh
C. Jane R. Welsh (left) and Mary W. Meagher (right)
Mary W. Meagher is Professor and Cornerstone Faculty Fellow in the Department of Psychology at Texas A&M University. Meagher received her doctorate in Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in Experimental and Biological Psychology and completed postdoctoral training in Clinical Psychology at Texas A&M University followed by a clinical internship at the San Antonio VA. Her research focuses on the role of stress and emotion in health, with an emphasis on pain and immune-related diseases. Meagher collaborates with immunologist Jane Welsh on research investigating the impact of psychosocial stressors on vulnerability to an animal model of multiple sclerosis. This work is funded by grants from NIH, NSF, and the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.
C. Jane R. Welsh is Professor and Associate Department Head in the Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences at Texas A&M University. Dr. Welsh has a B.Sc. in Microbiology and a Ph.D. in Biochemistry/Immunology from London University, UK. She received postdoctoral training in autoimmune diseases at the Liver Unit Kings' College Hospital, UK and the Department of Pathology at the Cambridge University, UK. Her current research focuses on understanding the mechanisms by which viruses cause autoimmunity, therapies for multiple sclerosis and the role of stress in autoimmune diseases, in collaboration with Dr. Meagher.
Introduction
When Charcot first described multiple sclerosis (MS) in the 1800s he suggested that social stress was related to the onset of MS (Charcot, 1877), but only in recent decades have scientists provided support for this hypothesis. Although human clinical studies have provided evidence that stress is correlated with disease onset and subsequent disease exacerbations (e.g., Mohr et al., 2000 and Mohr, Hart, Julian, Cox, and Pelletier, 2004), surprisingly little is known about the underlying mechanisms. Here we discuss research from our laboratory suggesting that stress-induced increases in central nervous system inflammation mediate the adverse effects of stress in an animal model of MS. These studies not only provide evidence that stress-induced increases in proinflammatory cytokines exacerbate disease; they also show that these adverse effects can be prevented by blocking stress-induced increases in cytokine activity. These findings are important because they suggest ways to prevent, and possibly reverse, the negative effects of social stress in humans.
Multiple Sclerosis
MS is a chronic inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS) that affects approximately 2.5 million individuals throughout the world. Demyelination is caused by the inflammatory and autoimmune responses that damage the myelin sheath surrounding the axons of neurons within the CNS. The clinical symptoms vary depending on the location of the inflammatory lesions, but can include muscle weakness, numbness, paralysis, vision problems, fatigue, depression, pain, and loss of bowel or bladder control. Although the etiology of MS remains uncertain, evidence suggests that environmental factors interact with genetic factors to cause disease (Sospedra & Martin, 2005). Family and twin studies indicate that genetic susceptibility is necessary, but not sufficient, for disease vulnerability. Although rates of disease are higher among relatives of MS patients, concordance rates for identical twins are modest (approximately 25%), suggesting that environmental factors must be involved. Potential environmental risk factors include viral infection and stress. Both human and animal studies indicate that adolescent exposure to certain viruses is associated with the later development of MS. Research from our animal laboratory suggests that stress may be an important co-factor that interacts with viral infection to determine vulnerability to MS.
Demyelination in the spinal cord of mice with Theiler's virus infection.
Investigating the Effects of Social Stress in an Animal Model of MS
To investigate the impact of social stress on disease course, our laboratory uses an animal model of MS, Theiler’s murine encephalomyelitis. Theiler’s virus infection induces a biphasic disease course in genetically susceptible strains of mice. The acute phase of disease is characterized by CNS inflammation as the result of infection of neuronal and non-neuronal (glial) cells. Susceptible strains of mice fail to clear the virus from the CNS and a persistent infection is established which results in autoimmune demyelinating disease similar to that seen in humans with MS. Although susceptibility to late disease is genetically regulated, other factors that influence the initial immune response to infection play a critical role in determining viral persistence and disease severity. For instance, exposure to chronic social stress prior to infection exacerbates disease (Johnson, Storts, Welsh, Welsh, & Meagher, 2004 and Johnson et al., 2006; Meagher et al., 2007; Welsh, Meagher, & Sternberg, 2006).
Our laboratory uses the social disruption stress to model the effects of chronic social stress. In this model, the social hierarchy within a group of three adolescent male mice is disrupted by repeatedly exposing them to a series of older male intruders. The older intruders are pre-selected to be socially dominant. During a typical session, a dominant intruder is placed into the home cage of the three adolescent mice for a two-hour session and the intruder repeatedly chases and pins the resident mice. In response to these aggressive encounters, the resident mice exhibit submissive responses indicative of social defeat. This procedure is repeated for three consecutive nightly sessions with one night off, followed by an additional three nightly sessions. Prior research indicates that social disruption stress induces profound effects on neuroendocrine and immune function. Unlike other commonly used laboratory stressors, it induces a phenomenon known as glucocorticoid resistance, which refers to a decrease in the immune system’s capacity to respond to the inhibitory effects of corticosterone (cortisol in humans) in terminating inflammatory responses. A reduction in tissue sensitivity to glucocorticoids induced by chronic social stress may be one mechanism that increases vulnerability to inflammatory diseases such as MS.
We have previously shown that exposure to social disruption stress one week prior to infection exacerbates both the early viral infection and the later autoimmune demyelinating MS-like phase of the disease (Johnson et al., 2004 and Johnson et al., 2006). Social disruption increases inflammation in the spinal cord and brain of mice infected with Theiler’s virus, which is associated with increasing circulating levels of the proinflammatory cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6) and the development of glucocorticoid resistance. These stress-induced increases in inflammation are associated with exacerbation of motor impairment, sickness behaviors, and disruption of viral clearance from CNS. During late disease, social stress increases circulating levels of antibodies to Theiler’s virus and myelin suggesting that social stress is altering the both the immune response and the autoimmune response to infection. Recently, we have shown that the deleterious effects of social stress can be prevented by blocking stress-induced increases in the proinflammatory cytokine IL-6 (Meagher et al., 2007; Meagher & Welsh, in press). IL-6 is released during stress and plays an important role in regulating the immune system’s response to infection. Our findings suggest that the stress-induced release of IL-6 may make socially stressed mice more vulnerable to infection.
The Role of IL-6 in Mediating the Adverse Effects of Social Stress
Proinflammatory cytokines help to orchestrate the immune responses involved in viral clearance during early infection and in demyelination during late disease (Oleszak et al., 2004). During acute Theiler’s virus infection, IL-6 and other proinflammatory cytokines are elevated in all strains of mice, but higher levels are observed in mice that develop severe demyelination. Elevated levels of IL-6 have also been found in the lesions and cerebral spinal fluid of MS. Other research indicates that stressors can increase circulating and central levels of IL-6 and other proinflammatory cytokines. These observations are consistent with reports that circulating levels of IL-6 are elevated in humans suffering from major depression and chronic stress (Maes et al., 1997; Kiecolt-Glaser et al., 2003). Prior exposure to a stressor can potentiate or prolong the release of proinflammatory cytokines following immune challenge. This phenomenon of cross-sensitization may explain how exposure to social disruption stress alters immune cell function and promotes sustained increases in inflammation following Theiler’s virus infection.
To test the hypothesis that stress-induced increases in central IL-6 mediate the adverse effects of social conflict, we conducted two experiments. Our first study was designed to determine whether social stress increased IL-6 levels and whether these stress-induced increases in IL-6 could be blocked by central administration of a neutralizing antibody to IL-6. As predicted, we found that mice exposed to social stress had elevated central and circulating blood levels of IL-6. However, infusions of a neutralizing antibody to IL-6 into the brain prevented this stress-induced increase in IL-6 in brain and in circulating blood.
Our second experiment was designed to determine whether intracranial administration of the neutralizing antibody to IL-6 could prevent the adverse effects of social stress on Theiler’s virus infection. Before each social disruption session, mice in the social stress and no stress groups received either an intracranial injection of a neutralizing antibody to IL-6 or the vehicle. Following the last social disruption session, the mice were infected with Theiler’s virus and monitored for the development of sickness behaviors, motor impairment, and physiological indicators of disease course. As expected, social stress exacerbated a range of virus-induced sickness behaviors. For example, the sucrose preference task was used to measure anhedonia, a loss of pleasure seeking behavior that occurs following stress or infection. In this test, mice are allowed drink from two containers, one with tap water and the other with 2% sucrose water. Although healthy mice prefer to drink sucrose water, social stress decreased sucrose preference following infection and this effect was blocked by the IL-6 neutralizing antibody treatment infused during the stress exposure period. Similarly, social stress increased virus-induced motor impairment, including increased hind limb impairment, reduced stride length, and decreased locomotor activity. On all of these behavioral measures, the deleterious effects of social stress were prevented by the infusion of the IL-6 neutralizing antibody during the stress exposure period.
Furthermore, the IL-6 neutralizing antibody reversed the adverse effects of social stress on several physiological measures of disease. Consistent with prior studies, social stress disrupted the normal process of viral clearance in spinal cord and brain, which occurs over the first month of infection. As expected, the non-stressed mice cleared the virus from the CNS to low levels by day 21 post-infection, whereas the socially stressed vehicle treated mice failed to clear the virus. Increased levels of virus during early disease have been shown to lead to more severe later demyelinating disease. Again, this negative effect of social stress on viral clearance was reversed by IL-6 neutralizing antibody treatment during the stress exposure period. As expected, social stress increased infection-related inflammation in spinal cord and brain at both 7 and 21 days after infection. Once more, this stress-induced increase in CNS inflammation was prevented by IL-6 neutralizing antibody treatment. Taken together, these findings suggest that stress-induced increases in central IL-6 contribute to the adverse effects of social stress during acute Theiler’s virus infection.
Based on these findings, we propose that the adverse effects of stress-induced IL-6 on Theiler’s virus infection play an important role in inducing a pro-inflammatory environment that interferes with the immune response to infection. Because the early immune response shapes the later specific immune response to infection, impairment of the early response could account for the increased viral level, prolonged viral infection, increased CNS inflammation, and the subsequent exacerbation of the chronic autoimmune disease.
Implications for Human Disease Vulnerability
These findings may have implications for understanding the mechanisms mediating the adverse effects of social stress on a broad range of diseases affecting humans. While acute inflammation is beneficial when it is tightly regulated, chronic inflammation can seriously damage host tissue when sustained at high levels or inappropriately regulated. Chronic inflammation plays a major role in mediating the damage caused by autoimmune diseases (e.g., MS, rheumatoid arthritis), while also greatly influencing the pathogenesis of other diseases where inflammation plays a modulatory role (e.g., cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease). Our research suggests that prolonged social stress is likely to amplify chronic inflammatory diseases by inducing glucocorticoid resistance and overproduction of the proinflammatory cytokine IL-6. Recent evidence indicates that humans exposed to chronic stress also develop glucocorticoid resistance (e.g., Miller, Cohen, & Ritchey, 2002; Miller & Chen, 2006) and overproductions of IL-6 (Kiecolt-Glaser et al., 2003), suggesting that similar mechanisms may increase disease risk in humans.
Our work indicates that the adverse effects of social stress on disease vulnerability in humans may be prevented by interventions capable of blocking stress-induced increases in proinflammatory cytokine expression. Potential interventions include certain anti-inflammatory drugs, exercise, antidepressant medication, omega-3 fatty acids, and mindfulness relaxation training. While the implications for human health are intriguing, additional animal studies and human clinical trials are needed to fully evaluate this issue.
Acknowledgements
This research is supported by the NIH’s National Institute for Neurological Disorders (R01-NS060822, R01-NS39569; F31-NS50476-2) and National Multiple Sclerosis Foundation (RG 3128). Additional support for this project has been provided by two NSF graduate fellowships to Robin Johnson and Elisabeth Good Vichaya and by a Texas A&M postdoctoral fellowship to Erin Young. Tom Welsh, Ralph Storts, Colin Young, Wentao Mi, Andrew Steelman, Mallory Frazier, Jessica Harrison, Patrick Bridegam, Elisabeth Harden, Marilyn Connor, and an army of undergraduate research assistants made important contributions to this research program.
References
Charcot, J. M. (1877). Lectures on the diseases of the nervous system delivered at la Salpetriere (translated by G. Sigerson), New Sydenham Society, London.
Johnson, R. R., Storts, R., Welsh, T. H., Jr., Welsh, C. J. R., & Meagher, M. W. (2004). Social stress alters the severity of acute Theiler's virus infection. Journal of Neuroimmunology, 148, 74-85.
Johnson, R. R., Prentice, T., Bridegam P., Young, C. R., Steelman, A. J., Welsh, T. H., Welsh, C. J. R. & Meagher, M. W. (2006). Social stress alters the severity and onset of the chronic phase of Theiler’s virus infection. Journal of Neuroimmunology, 175, 39-51.
Kiecolt-Glaser, J. K., Preacher, K. J., MacCallum, R. C., Atkinson, C., Malarkey, W. B., & Glaser, R. (2003). Chronic stress and age-related increases in the proinflammatory cytokine IL-6. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, 100, 9090-9095.
Maes, M., Bosmans, E., De Jongh, R., Kenis, G., Vandoolaeghe, E., & Neels, H., (1997). Increased serum IL-6 and IL-1 receptor antagonist concentrations in major depression and treatment resistant depression. Cytokine, 9, 853-858.
Meagher, M. W., Johnson, R. R., Young, E. E., Vichaya, E. G., Lunt, S., Harden, E., Connor, M., & Welsh, C. J. R., (2007). Interleukin-6 as a mechanism for the adverse effects of social stress on acute Theiler's virus infection. Brain Behavior & Immunity, 21,1083-1095.
Meagher, M. W. and Welsh, C.J.R. (in press). The impact of stress-induced central cytokines on disease exacerbation in an animal model of multiple sclerosis. In K. Kendall-Tackett (Ed), The Psychoneuroimmunology of Chronic Disease: The Link Between Negative Mental States, Inflammation, and Chronic Disease. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Miller, G. E., & Chen, E. (2006). Life stress and diminished expression of genes encoding glucocorticoid receptor and beta(2)-adrenergic receptor in children with asthma. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science USA, 103, 5496-5501.
Miller, G. E., Cohen, S., & Ritchey, A. K. (2002). Chronic psychological stress and the regulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines: a glucocorticoid-resistance model. Health Psychology, 21, 531-541.
Mohr, D. C., Goodkin, D. E., Bacchetti, P., Boudewyn, A. C., Huang, L., Marrietta, P., Cheuk, W., & Dee, B. (2000). Psychological stress and the subsequent appearance of new brain MRI lesions in MS. Neurology, 55, 55-61.
Mohr, D. C., Hart, S. L., Julian, L., Cox, D., & Pelletier, D. (2004). Association between stressful life events and exacerbation in multiple sclerosis: a meta-analysis. British Medical Journal, 328, 731-735.
Oleszak, E. L., Chang, J. R., Friedman, H., Katsetos, C. D., & Platsoucas, C. D. (2004). Theiler's virus infection: a model for multiple sclerosis. Clinical Microbiology Reviews, 17, 174-207.
Sospedra, M., & Martin, R. (2005). Immunology of multiple sclerosis. Annual Review of Immunology, 23, 683-747.
Welsh, C. J. R., Meagher, M. W., & Sternberg, E. M. (2006). Neural and neuroendocrine mechanisms in host defense and autoimmunity. New York: Springer.
Executive Director's Column
Making Science a Priority by Steven Breckler, Executive Director
In previous columns this year, I’ve made a big deal about the opportunities created by a presidential election. The campaigns bring into focus issues and concerns on the minds of citizens. They bring out the good – and the bad – in discourse, rhetoric, proposals, and plans. They create a media frenzy, elevating the attention we normally pay to social and economic issues.
More than other recent presidential elections, the campaigns this year have been focusing a lot on science. The candidates seem to recognize the importance and value of science in addressing the social and technological challenges of the 21st century. There is a growing realization and appreciation for the contributions to be made by science, especially in such areas as math and science education, energy, and global climate change.
Within the executive branch, the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) is charged with providing the President with advice and guidance on science and technology. OSTP serves as the President’s main advisor when it comes to assessing the role and impact of science in domestic and foreign policy, programs, and initiatives.
The Director of OSTP also serves as the President’s science advisor. Although today’s Office of Science and Technology Policy was only established in 1973, the position of science advisor can be traced back to the Truman administration. Many outstanding scientists have occupied this position. Most recently, Neal Lane (former Director of NSF) served as President Clinton’s science advisor, and currently John Marburger, III serves as President Bush’s science advisor.
When a new administration sets up shop, a flurry of new appointments occurs. Cabinet-level positions and heads of federal agencies are named. We can often gauge the importance and priority a President assigns to functions of the federal government by considering the care and speed with which such appointments are made.
The endorsing societies and institutions have signed on to a letter to both presidential candidates. The letter reinforces the candidates’ acknowledgements of the importance of science and the role science will play in their administration.
Perhaps most important of all, the letter calls upon the next President to elevate the position of Science Advisor to cabinet rank. The Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the U.S. Trade Representative are all cabinet rank appointments. The Director of OSTP is not.
If the next President is really serious about making science a priority, he will do two things. He will make sure that a science advisor is appointed early, and he will give that advisor appropriate stature and authority within the White House so the new President can make most effective use of science in addressing the many challenges we face.
APA is doing all that we can to make sure that science is a high priority for the next administration, and that psychological science is included. Indeed, all of us bear responsibility for getting psychology to the table. Always be on the look-out for ways to make your discipline known to the next generation of leaders. Connecting the science of psychology to the challenges of society has never been more important.
From the APA Science Student Council
The Science Student Council is a group of nine graduate students who spend a couple of weekends a year with the Science staff, advising on programs and activities that would benefit graduate students in psychological science. In this column, the students will present useful information that other graduate students need to know! Visit the Science Student Council page (www.apa.org/science/apasscweb.html) to learn more about the activities of the SSC.
In Search of Graduate Student Leaders! by Lisa Jaremka
Are you a research-oriented student who is interested in becoming involved in APA? Are you interested in learning more about the inner workings of the review process for research award applications? Are you interested in designing APA Convention programming geared towards research-oriented students?
If you replied "yes" to any of the above questions, then you should apply to become an APA Science Student Council (SSC) member! The SSC is composed of 9 graduate students from diverse research areas within psychology. There are currently 5 positions opening for the upcoming year. As a Science Student Council member, you will gain invaluable experience that will increase your knowledge and skills and boost your vitae at the same time. A recent SSC member summed up the experience well in stating that "it was a great opportunity to meet some of my psychology research idols and to learn more about the inner workings of APA and all that it does for psychologists."
As an SSC member, you will be required to attend two weekend meetings per year in Washington DC (at APA's expense) for the 2009 and 2010 calendar years. You will also participate in listserv discussions about council-related business, and work collaboratively online in preparing documents and informational leaflets on issues relevant to science-oriented students.
Are you eligible?
1) Applicants must be either second or third year doctoral students. First year doctoral students are eligible to apply if they have a master's degree in psychology.
2) Applicants must be able to travel to Washington, DC twice per year for two years for weekend meetings. Applicants must also be able to attend the weekend-long Science Leadership Conference in Fall 2009.
3) Applicants must be from one of the following areas:
If you are interested in learning more about becoming a student council member and you meet the eligibility requirements, please visit our website for complete applications details. On our website, you can also obtain contact information for current SSC members and learn more about the council and past activities that the council has sponsored. Remember, the APA SSC is a great opportunity for any graduate student interested in furthering their career!
So what are you going to do with this information? APPLY! It is a great opportunity. Applications are due by October 31st. Rather than question and wonder who represents you within APA, apply to be a representative!
NIH Announces Several Changes in Peer Review System
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) released a new policy on October 8, 2008, that will enhance success rates of new and resubmitted applications by decreasing the number of allowed grant application resubmissions from two to one. The agency also announced a timeline to implement additional changes to improve the system. These policies are a part of a continuing series of changes to the NIH peer review system following an in-depth review and self-assessment that concluded in June, 2008.
NIH working groups deliberated on challenges and recommendations, and sought input from both NIH scientific staff and the grantee/reviewer communities, including APA. The resulting set of recommendations will lead to changes in the following four core priority areas:
Continue to Engage the Best Reviewers
Improve the Quality and Transparency of Review
Ensure Balanced and Fair Reviews across Scientific Fields and Career Stages, and Reduce Administrative Burden
Continuous Review of Peer Review
Reducing administrative burden on reviewers and applicants has been a focal point of the peer review changes. A key recommendation is to shorten and restructure applications, which can now be up to 25 pages. Over the next year, NIH will implement shorter applications to 12 pages for January, 2010, receipt dates.
A main goal of the peer review changes is to enhance and improve the reviewer experience so that NIH can continue to attract and retain the most accomplished, broad-thinking, and creative scientists to serve on NIH study sections. To augment this goal and better accommodate reviewer schedules, beginning in 2009, NIH will increase flexibility of reviewers' tour of duty and will consider using high-bandwidth support for review meetings as an alternative for in-person meetings. As the NIH implements changes, critical training will be available to reviewers, as well as, Scientific Review Officers.
For an overview of the enhancing peer review effort, and to view implementation updates and further details, please visit http://enhancing-peer-review.nih.gov.
Reducing multiple resubmissions: NIH analysis shows that an increasing number of meritorious applicants that were ultimately funded had to resubmit their applications multiple times which increased burden on applicants and reviewers alike. NIH's previous policy allowed research applicants two attempts (amended applications known as A1 and A2 resubmissions) to improve upon their original application (known as A0 submission) based on feedback from peer reviewers. In times of budgetary constraint, however, data reveals a reduction in the number of awards made to original applications. An increasing number of projects were funded only after one or more resubmissions. This trend has been increasing over recent years. In 2006, successful applicants needed to apply on average twice as many times than in 2002 to get funded (see supporting data). To address these inefficiencies and extra burden -- and to fund meritorious applications earlier -- the NIH will phase out second amendments for new applications submitted beginning January 25, 2009.
The application must go through more rounds of submission today than it did just five years ago. In 2002, an investigator had a 17 percent chance of a first submission being funded as compared to a 7 percent chance in 2006.
The new policy applies to all NIH grant programs. Below are key excerpts from the Guide Notice:
Beginning with applications intended for the January 25, 2009 due date, all original new applications (i.e., never submitted) and competing renewal applications will be permitted only a single amendment (A1). For this and subsequent cohorts of original new and competing renewal applications, any second amendment (A2) will be administratively withdrawn and not accepted for review. Applicants who fail to receive funding after two submissions may resubmit but only if the application is fundamentally revised to qualify as new. A new application is expected to be substantially different in content and scope with more significant differences than are normally encountered in an amended application. Note that there is no time limit for the submission of the original and subsequent A1.
Apply to join the APA Science Student Council! by Amy Pitta
The Science Directorate is currently accepting applications to the APA Science Student Council (APASSC). Formed in 1993, the APASSC is a diverse group of research-oriented psychology graduate students who serve as an advisory group to the APA Science Directorate. The Council represents the interests of research-oriented students by providing valuable advice to the Directorate on how it can best serve the science student population. The Council has been actively involved in a number of projects, including awarding prizes for graduate-level research, organizing student programs for the APA Convention and making recommendations on the Directorate's student programs. The Council reports to the Board of Scientific Affairs and works cooperatively with the American Psychological Association of Graduate Students.
The Directorate is seeking applications from second or third year doctoral students, or first year doctoral students with a master's degree in psychology, to serve a two-year term for the 2009 and 2010 calendar years, during which time they must be actively engaged in their programs. Council members are required to attend two weekend meetings per year during the term in Washington, DC, at APA's expense. In addition, council members are expected to remain available during an unofficial third (non-meeting) year to advise new members.
Five (5) positions will be available on the Council for the 2009-2010 term. One person in each of the following areas of research will be selected:
Biopsychology Sample areas of interest: Neurobiological Mechanisms Underlying Behavior
Cognitive Science Sample areas of interest: Sensation/Perception, Action, Memory, Learning
Developmental Psychology Sample areas of interest: Infancy, Gerontology, Emerging Adulthood
Industrial/Organizational Research Sample areas of interest: Industrial, Organizational, Occupational Health
Psychological Methodology Sample areas of interest: Applied Experimental Psychology, Methodology (Quantitative or Qualitative), Statistics
Please note that the Council strives for diversity in all appropriate ways, including geographic diversity. Consequently, no more than one student from any given department may occupy a seat on the APASSC at any given time. Please check the list of current members before applying. If you have a question about your eligibility, please contact the Science Directorate via email.
To apply to the APASSC, please provide the following:
A letter of recommendation (not to exceed 500 words) sent directly from the student's advisor, endorsing the nomination.
An essay written by the student about why s/he wants to be on the Council and how s/he could contribute as a Council member (not to exceed 500 words).
A description written by the student about his/her research in psychology that demonstrates commitment to psychological science (not to exceed 500 words).
Abbreviated curriculum vitae (not to exceed two pages).
Applications are due electronically by close of business October 31, 2008. Please submit all application materials the Science Directorate via email. New members will be selected by early December.
Application materials may be submitted as either Word documents or as PDFs. Please note that our email systems block files over 10MB; if you submit materials over this limit, we will not receive your email. If the sum of your files is larger than 10MB, we suggest sending each attachment in a separate email.
You will receive an email confirming receipt of your application materials. If you do not receive an email, it means that we did not receive your application (see note, above, regarding file size). Please contact us before resubmitting your materials.
Please direct questions to the Science Directorate, tel.: 202-336-6000; email.
Nakamura Moves to NIMH Intramural Research Programs
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) recently announced that Richard Nakamura has accepted the appointment of Scientific Director for the Division of Intramural Research Programs. He left his position as Deputy Director for NIMH on September 28, 2008 to assume the new post.
Nakamura began his tenure as deputy director of NIMH in 1997, and was NIMH Acting Director from 2001-2002. He played a key role in revitalizing both NIMH's extramural and intramural research programs. He has been at the forefront of efforts to speed the translation of scientific knowledge into clinical practice and to transmit these advances to Congress and the public.
Nakamura arrived at NIMH in 1976 as a postdoctoral fellow in the intramural Laboratory of Neuropsychology, where he conducted behavioral and physiological studies in non-human primates to understand cognitive processing in the brain. He moved to NIMH headquarters in 1986, serving as Chief of the Behavioral and Integrative Neuroscience Research Branch in the early 1990s, and later as Associate Director of Science Policy and Program Planning.
Joint Committee Named to Revise Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing by Marianne Ernesto
A committee of researchers and experts in educational and psychological testing has been appointed to revise the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing (the Standards) - long considered to be the definitive source for information concerning sound test development and use.
Designed to establish criteria for appropriate development, use and interpretation of tests, the Standards have been widely cited by states, federal agencies, private organizations, legislative bodies and even the U.S. Supreme Court. They are based on the premise that effective testing and assessment requires test developers and users to be knowledgeable about validity, reliability and other measurement issues.
Co-chairs of the Joint Committee for the Revision of the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing (Joint Committee) are Barbara Plake, PhD, distinguished professor emerita at the University of Nebraska, and Lauress Wise, PhD, principal scientist at the Human Resources Research Organization, Monterey, CA. They, along with 13 additional members, are charged with revising and updating the Standards to reflect current research and best practices.
“The Standards are more important than ever given the current demand for educational accountability, the increase of testing in the workplace, and the popularity of computer-based testing” according to Dr. Wise. “We believe that we have assembled the right committee to achieve the goal of bringing the Standards up to date” said Dr. Plake.
Revision of the standards will continue a long collaboration among the American Educational Research Association, the American Psychological Association and the National Council on Measurement in Education. The three associations have been responsible for developing, publishing, selling and revising the standards since 1966, when the first edition was published. The Standards were revised in 1974, 1985 and 1999.The popularity of the Standards remains strong to this day, with nearly one million copies sold since 1985.
The Joint Committee plans to hold its initial meeting in early 2009. Staff support for the committee will be provided by the American Psychological Association; questions about the committee and its work should be addressed to Marianne Ernesto via email.
Members of the Joint Committee for the Revision of the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing are:
Barbara Plake, PhD, Co-Chair
Distinguished Professor Emeritus
University of Nebraska
Lauress (Laurie) Wise, PhD, Co-Chair
Human Resources Research Organization
Linda Cook, EdD
Educational Testing Service
Fritz Drasgow, PhD
University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign
Brian Gong, PhD
The National Center for the Improvement of Educational Assessment Inc.
Laura Hamilton, PhD
RAND Corp.
Jo Ida Hansen, PhD
University of Minnesota
Joan Herman, EdD
University of California-Los Angeles
Michael Kane, PhD
National Conference of Bar Examiners
Michael Kolen, PhD
University of Iowa
Antonio Puente, PhD
University of North Carolina-Wilmington
Paul Sackett, PhD
University of Minnesota
Nancy Tippins, PhD
Valtera Corp.
Walter (Denny) Way, PhD
Pearson
Frank C. Worrell, PhD
University of California-Berkeley
Announcements
Apply now for APA Travel Grants to Attend 2008/2009 International Conferences
The Office of International Affairs awards travel grants to cover or partially cover conference registration fees at international psychology conferences held outside the US and Canada. All APA and APAGS members are eligible to apply. Preference will be given to those meeting the following criteria:
Early career psychologist or graduate student;
Participation in the conference program (e.g., author, symposium chair, roundtable moderator, poster);
Have not attended an international conference in 2007 or 2008
All applications must include: Application Form; information about conference participation; information about conference registration fees and receipt if available; letter from Department Chair indicating need and other sources of support for travel.
Rolling deadlines: December 15, 2008; March 1, 2009; June 1, 2009
AAAS Program to Highlight Research on Comparative Cognition
The next annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) will feature a symposium on Comparative Cognition. The 2009 annual meeting of AAAS will be held in Chicago, February 12-16, 2009. The theme of the Annual Meeting is “Our Planet and Its Life: Origins and Futures" and will feature programs celebrating the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin's birth and the 150th anniversary of the publication of On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection. The symposium was organized by APA member Ed Wasserman of the University of Iowa, and will showcase the latest empirical discoveries in the field of comparative cognition. In addition to Wasserman, panelists include Elizabeth Brannon, Duke University; Nicola Clayton, University of Cambridge; Alex Kacelnik, University of Oxford; Sara Shettleworth, University of Toronto; Tetsuro Matsuzawa, Kyoto University; and Thomas Zentall, University of Kentucky. Presenters will discuss how scrub-jays can exhibit episodic-like memory and future planning; how chimpanzees can hold in memory extremely detailed environmental information; how monkeys can count and perform arithmetic operations; how pigeons and baboons can learn abstract concepts like same and different; how crows can fabricate and use tools; and, how monkeys and other animals may be aware of what they know and remember. Visit www.aaas.org/meetings for general information about the conference.
Faculty, Graduate Student Grants Available
The Fahs-Beck Fund for Research and Experimentation in the New York Community Trust provides grants for Doctoral Dissertation research and Faculty/Post-Doctoral research in the human services. The Fund's primary goal is to support research that contributes to a greater understanding of and solutions for problems affecting individuals, families and communities.
Doctoral Dissertation Grant Program
Grants of up to $5,000 are available to help support dissertation expenses of doctoral students in the United States and Canada whose studies have the potential for adding significantly to knowledge about problems in the functioning or well being of children, adults, couples, families, or communities, or about interventions designed to prevent or alleviate such problems. Doctoral Dissertation Grant Guidelines and Application
Faculty/Post-Doctoral Research Grant Program
Grants of up to $20,000 are available to help support the research of faculty members or post-doctoral researchers affiliated with non-profit human service organizations in the United States and Canada. Areas of interest to the Fund are: studies to develop, refine, evaluate, or disseminate innovative interventions designed to prevent or ameliorate major social, psychological, behavioral or public health problems affecting children, adults, couples, families, or communities, or studies that have the potential for adding significantly to knowledge about such problems. Faculty/Post-Doctoral Research Grant Guidelines and Application
Proposals for both programs are considered twice a year with deadlines of April 15 and November 1. For more information, contact:
Fahs-Beck Fund for Research and Experimentation
C/O The New York Community Trust
909 Third Avenue, 22nd Floor
New York, NY 10022
email
2009 National Science Foundation's East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes Fellowship Competition Is Now Open
WASHINGTON - The National Science Foundation (NSF) has announced that the 2009 East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes for U.S. Graduate Students (EAPSI) program is now open for applications. The EAPSI is a flagship international fellowship program for developing the next generation of globally-engaged U.S. scientists and engineers knowledgeable about the Asia and the Pacific region. The Summer Institutes are hosted by foreign counterparts who are committed to increasing opportunities for young U.S. researchers to work in research facilities and with host mentors abroad.. Fellows are supported to participate in 8-week research experiences at host laboratories in Australia, China, Japan (10 weeks), Korea, New Zealand, Singapore and Taiwan from June to August. The program provides a $5,000 summer stipend, a round-trip air ticket to the host location, living expenses abroad, and an introduction to the society, culture, language, and research environment of the host location.
NSF recognizes the importance of enabling U.S. researchers and educators to advance their work through international collaborations, and the value of ensuring that future generations of U.S. scientists and engineers gain professional experience beyond this nation's borders early in their careers. The program is intended for U.S. graduate students pursuing studies in fields of science and engineering research and education supported by the National Science Foundation. Women, minorities, and persons with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply for the EAPSI. Applicants must be enrolled in a research-oriented Master's or PhD. program, and must be U.S. citizens or U.S. permanent residents by the application deadline date.
Application instructions are available online at www.nsfsi.org. The program will close on December 9, 2008. For further information concerning benefits, eligibility, and tips on applying, applicants are encouraged to visit www.nsf.gov/eapsi or www.nsfsi.org.
The first Summer Institutes began in Japan in 1990, and to date approximately 1,800 U.S. graduate students have participated in the program. For the 2008 competition, NSF received 537 applications and issued 190 awards. EAPSI applicants are representative of most U.S. states and territories. The 2008 awardee pool included representation from 82 universities and 39 states.
The NSF-EAPSI Operations Center is administered by the American Society for Engineering Education (www.asee.org/fellowships).
National Science Foundation Seeks Assistant Director for SBE
The National Science Foundation has announced a national search for the NSF’s Assistant Director for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences (SBE) and seeks assistance in the identification of candidates.
The Assistant Director, SBE, manages a Directorate comprised of three divisions: Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences (BCS), Social and Economic Sciences (SES), and Science Resources Statistics (SRS). Employment may be on a temporary or permanent basis in the Federal Service or by temporary assignment under provisions of the Intergovernmental Personnel Act.
Dr. Jeremy A. Sabloff of the University of Pennsylvania has agreed to head the Search Committee. NSF seeks assistance in identifying candidates with the following qualifications: outstanding leadership; a deep sense of scholarship; a grasp of the issues facing the social, behavioral and economic science communities in the areas of education and research; and the ability to serve effectively as a key member of the NSF management team. We are especially interested in identifying women, members of minority groups, and persons with disabilities for consideration. Recommendations of individuals from any sector -- academic, industry, or government -- are welcome.
Please send your recommendations, including any supporting information that you might be able to provide, to the AD/SBE Search Committee via email or at the following address: National Science Foundation, Office of the Director, Suite 1205, 4201 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22230. NSF would appreciate receiving recommendations by November 15, 2008.
