Chemical world This week havioral genetics, and neurobiology/' The rejected recommendations asked for an examination of educational implications of human behavioral genetics and for establishment of an academy working group to study the feasibility of a long-range study of interactions of genetic and environmental factors in human development. As the academy moves more openly into matters of public—and political—interest, it is coming under increasing scrutiny. Philip M. Boffey has resigned from the staff of Science magazine to conduct a nine-month study of NAS for Ralph Nader's Center for the Study of Responsive Law. The book-length report that will likely be the result of the study will cover several broad questions, Mr. Boffey says. Among them: How and where does NAS exert influence on public affairs? How good is its advice? And what do its client federal agencies do with the advice?
Expands membership scope The National Academy of Sciences may be about to expand the scope of its membership, but this year's 50 new members include a solid representation of 21 scientists from chemistry and chemically related fields, such as molecular biology and geophysics. Seventeen of the new members are ACS members. Academic scientists among the new members include Philip P. Cohen, University of Wisconsin; Mildred Cohen, University of Pennsylvania; Josef Fried, University of Chicago; Luigi C. Gorini, Harvard; Harry B. Gray, Caltech; Ernest M. Grunwald, Brandeis; Arie J. Haagen-Smit, Caltech; Norman Hackerman, Rice; William P. Jencks, Brandeis; Michael Kasha, Florida State; Irving M. London, Alfred Einstein College of Medicine; Frederic M. Richards, Yale; Oliver Smithies, Wisconsin; and Gerald J. Wasserburg, Caltech. Industrial scientists include Arthur M. Bueche, General Electric; Vladimir Haensel, Universal Oil Products; Earl L. Muetterties and William D. Phillips, Du Pont; and Sidney Udenfriend, Roche Institute of Molecular Biology. Two other new academy members are 1970 Nobel Prize winner Julius Axelrod, of the National Institute of Mental Health, and Cleveland Clinic Foundation director emeritus Irvine H. Page. 8
C&EN MAY 3, 1971
BIOCHEMISTRY:
Regulating cell division Although scientific sessions at last week's annual meeting of the National Academy of Sciences were cut back to make way for extended business meetings, there was still room for two papers from Dr. Albert Szent-Gyôrgyi's group at the Institute for Muscle Research, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, Mass. The scientists —Dr. Szent-Gyorgyi, Dr. Laszlo G. Egyud, and Dr. J. A. McLaughlin— disclosed results in support of their theory of how cell division is regulated: Cells become cancerous when the regulation fails. For a number of years, Dr. SzentGyorgyi and his colleagues have pursued the idea that cell division is prevented by the donor-acceptor interaction of an electrophilic chemical with cellular nucleophiles —perhaps sulfhydryl groups. The scientists have speculated that a glyoxal—a compound with a terminal aldehyde group and an adjacent ketone function—might fill the role of the endogenous electrophile. Methylglyoxal is the simplest example. They also have noted that cells contain a glyoxalase system of two enzymes that convert glyoxals to a-hydroxycarboxylic acids. Activation of the glyoxalase system might act in the regulation of cell division by decreasing the concentration of glyoxal and thus making cell division possible. Dr. Szent-Gyorgyi and his colleagues have now found in animal tissues a natural glyoxal with a molecular weight between 500 and 1000. An extract from mouse or calf liver injected in mice suppresses tumor growth. Tumor growth is also suppressed
Albert Szent-Gyorgyi
when the scientists inject the ketoalcohol produced by the reaction of methylglyoxal with maleimide. They think that maleimide protects the glyoxal from reaction with the glyoxalase system until the derivative arrives at the tumor cells. There, enzymes may split the ketoalcohol to produce methylglyoxal. LABOR RELATIONS:
Professors organize Increasing activities on campus of the National Labor Relations Board and of the American Association of University Professors are profoundly affecting the traditional atmosphere of faculty-administration relations. For the first time, NLRB has extended its jurisdiction to all employees of private nonprofit schools. And AAUP, in reversing its earlier nonbargaining stance, is openly seeking certification as a collective bargaining agent on campus. NLRB last month ruled against Long Island University's administration in ordering elections to be held before May 20 to certify a collective bargaining agent for faculty at two of three campuses. Vying for bargaining agent in the forthcoming election are the United Federation of College Teachers (UFCT) and AAUP at the university's Zeckendorf campus, Brooklyn, N.Y. UFCT runs unopposed at the C. W. Post College campus at Brookville, N.Y. And no agent has filed for election at Long Island's Southampton, N.Y., campus. Briefs are due today at NLRB in a dustup that AAUP is having with Fordham University, New York City, over eligibility of faculty to bargain collectively. At Monmouth College, West Long Branch, N.J., the Faculty Association of Monmouth College (FAMCO) has been negotiating a first contract with the administration since FAMCO won certification in February in an election under NLRB jurisdiction. Until 1970, NLRB had not established jurisdiction over faculties at private schools, and public college professors were covered under state public employee laws. In 1951 NLRB declined jurisdiction over faculty at Columbia University. Last summer, however, the board accepted jurisdiction over library employees of Cornell University in a door-opening decision. Last November the board exercised its rule-making function to extend jurisdiction to all employees of non-
