The ABRF annual meeting is rapidly approaching. Beth Fowler, with the assistance of Audree Fowler and Gordon Nye, has put together an excellent program for this year's meeting which will be held on July 23-24 in San Diego just prior to the Protein Society meeting. Your participation is very important, so we hope that you plan on attending both the Friday evening welcoming reception and the full day of activities on Saturday. Beth Fowler has also organized a workshop on "Peptide Libraries" which the ABRF is co-sponsoring with the Protein Society and which will be held during the Protein Society meeting.
We are pleased that the ABRF, through the efforts of the Peptide Synthesis/Mass Spectrometry Committee, has been invited to participate in a workshop at the American Peptide Society Meeting in Edmonton, Alberta Canada to be held June 20-25. The presentation, which is based on the three studies conducted by the Peptide Synthesis/Mass Spectrometry Committee, will be given by Janis Young as part of a workshop entitled, "Approaches and Advances in Peptide Synthesis, Purification and Analysis". The ABRF also sponsored a symposia at this year's ASBMB meeting entitled, "Understanding Biological Macromolecules: Cutting Edge Techniques", organized by Ron Niece and Ruth Angeletti.
A few months ago we sent out a postcard questionnaire asking for your input on the idea of holding an independent meeting. So far, we have received 250 responses with 116 in the affirmative and 134 negative. We are sensitive to the fact that, although there was not a clear mandate one way or the other, there are a significant number of members on each side of the issue. We will continue to weigh this matter with regard to what is most appropriate for the future of the ABRF and keep you informed.
The last newsletter contained an article outlining the unfortunate state of instrumentation funding. Since then we have sent several letters on that subject to various government officials. A copy of one such letter is reprinted in this newsletter. If you feel as strongly as we do about the need to improve this situation, please do not hesitate to exercise your right as citizens to petition your government. Let us hear from you if you have any thoughts on the matter that you would like to share and be sure to send us a copy of any letters you send. With a good effort on the part of all of our members, we might be able to make a difference.
We are looking forward to seeing you in San Diego.
Gregory A. Grant
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