Genetics Society of America
| Founded | 1931 |
|---|---|
| Location | 9650 Rockville Pike Bethesda, MD 20814 |
| Key people | President: Philip Hieter President-Elect: Michael Lynch Past President: Paul W. Sternberg Secretary: Mariana F. Wolfner Treasurer: Carol S. Newlon Executive Director: Adam P. Fagen |
| Members | 4,942 |
| Website | www.genetics-gsa.org |
The Genetics Society of America (GSA) is a scholarly membership society of approximately 5,000 genetics researchers and educators, established in 1931. The Society was formed from the reorganization of the Joint Genetics Sections of the American Society of Zoologists and the Botanical Society of America.[1]
GSA members conduct fundamental and applied research using a wide variety of model organisms to enhance understanding of living systems. Some of the systems of study include Drosophila (fruit flies), Caenorhabditis elegans (nematode roundworms), yeasts, zebrafish, humans, mice, bacteria, Arabidopsis thaliana (thale cress), maize (corn), Chlamydomonas (green algae), Xenopus (frogs), and other animals, plants, and fungi.
Contents |
[edit] Mission
The mission of the Genetics Society of America is
- to facilitate communication among geneticists,
- to promote research that will bring new discoveries in genetics,
- to foster the training of the next generation of geneticists so they can effectively respond to the opportunities provided by our discoveries and the challenges posed by them, and
- to educate the public and their government representatives about advances in genetics and the consequences to individuals and to society.
The Genetics Society of America endeavors to be the collective voice of its members on subjects where a deep knowledge of genetics and biological science is critically important.
The Genetics Society of America seeks to foster a unified science of genetics and to maximize its intellectual and practical impact.
[edit] Current programs
Current programs address these goals by promoting:
[edit] Investigation of inheritance and heredity
The GSA advocates funding of research in genetics, primarily through its membership in the Coalition for the Life Sciences (CLS), Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB), Research!America, and American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS). These organizations of leading scientists fosters public policies to advance basic biological research and its applications in medicine and other fields. The GSA also strives to inform state and national legislators about advances and issues in genetics.
[edit] Interaction among geneticists
The GSA organizes and sponsors several conferences for researchers (see below). These include the long-running model organism meetings: Yeast (biennial), C. elegans (biennial), Fungal (biennial) and Drosophila (annual meetings), and the new Society-wide Model Organisms to Human Biology meeting (biennial). The Meetings and Membership Committee welcomes opportunities to sponsor other meetings appropriate to its mission. GENEtics, the Society’s newsletter (published three times a year), keeps members apprised of Society activities.
[edit] Communication of discoveries
The GSA publishes GENETICS, the leading journal for geneticists since the first issue in 1916. The GSA is also exploring new opportunities for scientific communication, such as those offered by the organism-specific genetic databases.
[edit] Education of students and the public
The GSA’s Education Committee seeks to facilitate the integration of advances in genetics in the K through college curriculum. The GSA communicates to the public advances in genetics and answers to issues by providing expert opinion to the press and others.
[edit] Publications
GSA publishes two peer-edited scientific journals:
- GENETICS. Established in 1916, GENETICS is a monthly scientific journal publishing investigations bearing on heredity, genetics, biochemistry, and molecular biology. The current editor-in-chief is Mark Johnston. [2]
- G3: Genes|Genomes|Genetics. Established in 2011, G3 is an open access scientific journal which provides a forum for the publication of high‐quality foundational research, particularly research that generates useful genetic and genomic information such as genome maps, single gene studies, genome‐wide association studies, and QTL studies, as well as mutant screens and advances in methods and technology. The current editor-in-chief is Brenda Andrews. [3]
The Society also publishes The GSA Reporter (formerly GENEtics), GSA's member newsletter.
[edit] GSA Conferences
GSA organizes a number of scientific meetings, including many focused on model organisms of use in genetic studies.
Upcoming meetings include the following:
- 53rd Annual Drosophila Research Conference, March 7-11, 2012, Chicago, IL
- Model Organisms to Human Biology - Cancer Genetics, June 17-20, 2012, Washington, DC
- 10th International Conference on Zebrafish Development and Genetics, June 20-24, 2012, Madison, WI
- Yeast Genetics and Molecular Biology Meeting, July 31-August 5, 2012, Princeton, NJ
- Mouse Molecular Genetics, October 2-6, 2012, Pacific Grove, CA
- 27th Fungal Genetics Conference, March 12-17, 2013, Pacific Grove, CA
- 54th Annual Drosophila Research Conference, April 3-7, 2013, Washington, DC
- 19th International C. elegans Meeting, June 26-30, 2013, Los Angeles, CA
[edit] GSA Awards
The Genetics Society of America recognizes outstanding geneticists with following awards:
- The Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal for lifetime contributions to the field of genetics
- The Genetics Society of America Medal for outstanding contributions to the field of genetics in the last 15 years
- The George W. Beadle Award for outstanding contributions to the community of genetics researchers
- The Elizabeth W. Jones Award for Excellence in Education in recognition of significant and sustained impact on genetics education
- The Edward Novitski Prize in recognition of extraordinarly creativity and ingenuity in solving problems in genetics.
- The DeLill Nasser Awards for Professional Development in Genetics for young geneticists to attend national and international meetings and enroll in laboratory courses.
