Steven Salzberg
Encyclopedia
Steven Salzberg is an American Biologist and Computer Scientist who since 2011 has been a Professor of Medicine and Biostatistics in the Institute of Genetic Medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
. From 2005-2011 he was the Director of the Center for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology at the University of Maryland, College Park
, where he was also the Horvitz Professor of Computer Science
. He was previously the head of the Bioinformatics
department at The Institute for Genomic Research
, one of the world's largest genome sequencing centers, and prior to that he was a computer science professor at Johns Hopkins University
. He graduated from Yale University
in 1980 and received his Ph.D. from Harvard University
in 1989.
Dr. Salzberg together with David Lipman started the Influenza Genome Sequencing Project
in 2003, a project to sequence and make available the genomes of thousands of influenza virus isolates. He has been a leader in the field of gene finding and created the GLIMMER
program for bacterial gene finding as well as several programs for finding genes in animals, plants, and other organisms. He has also been a leader in genome assembly research and is one of the initiators of the open source AMOS project. He was a participant in the human genome project
as well as many other genome projects, including the malaria
genome (Plasmodium falciparum
) and the genome of the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana
. In 2001-2002, he and his colleagues sequenced the anthrax
that was used in the 2001 anthrax attacks
. They published their results in the journal Science
in 2002. These findings helped the FBI track the source of the attacks to a single vial at Ft. Detrick in Frederick, Maryland.
Salzberg has also been a vocal advocate in favor of the teaching of evolution
in schools in the U.S. and has authored editorials and appeared in print media on this topic.
Johns Hopkins School of Medicine
The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine , located in Baltimore, Maryland, U.S., is the academic medical teaching and research arm of Johns Hopkins University. Hopkins has consistently been the nation's number one medical school in the amount of competitive research grants awarded by the National...
. From 2005-2011 he was the Director of the Center for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology at the University of Maryland, College Park
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
, where he was also the Horvitz Professor of Computer Science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
. He was previously the head of the Bioinformatics
Bioinformatics
Bioinformatics is the application of computer science and information technology to the field of biology and medicine. Bioinformatics deals with algorithms, databases and information systems, web technologies, artificial intelligence and soft computing, information and computation theory, software...
department at The Institute for Genomic Research
The Institute for Genomic Research
The Institute for Genomic Research was a non-profit genomics research institute founded in 1992 by Craig Venter in Rockville, Maryland, United States. It is now a part of the J. Craig Venter Institute.-History:...
, one of the world's largest genome sequencing centers, and prior to that he was a computer science professor at Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
. He graduated from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
in 1980 and received his Ph.D. from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1989.
Dr. Salzberg together with David Lipman started the Influenza Genome Sequencing Project
Influenza Genome Sequencing Project
The Influenza Genome Sequencing Project is an American-based genome project aimed at improving the availability of genomic sequence data from influenza viruses and related information....
in 2003, a project to sequence and make available the genomes of thousands of influenza virus isolates. He has been a leader in the field of gene finding and created the GLIMMER
Glimmer
GLIMMER was the first bioinformatics system for finding genes that used the interpolated Markov model formalism. It is very effective at finding genes in bacteria, archaea, and viruses, typically finding 98–99% of all protein-coding genes. The GLIMMER software is open source and can be...
program for bacterial gene finding as well as several programs for finding genes in animals, plants, and other organisms. He has also been a leader in genome assembly research and is one of the initiators of the open source AMOS project. He was a participant in the human genome project
Human Genome Project
The Human Genome Project is an international scientific research project with a primary goal of determining the sequence of chemical base pairs which make up DNA, and of identifying and mapping the approximately 20,000–25,000 genes of the human genome from both a physical and functional...
as well as many other genome projects, including the malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
genome (Plasmodium falciparum
Plasmodium falciparum
Plasmodium falciparum is a protozoan parasite, one of the species of Plasmodium that cause malaria in humans. It is transmitted by the female Anopheles mosquito. Malaria caused by this species is the most dangerous form of malaria, with the highest rates of complications and mortality...
) and the genome of the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana
Arabidopsis thaliana
Arabidopsis thaliana is a small flowering plant native to Europe, Asia, and northwestern Africa. A spring annual with a relatively short life cycle, arabidopsis is popular as a model organism in plant biology and genetics...
. In 2001-2002, he and his colleagues sequenced the anthrax
Anthrax
Anthrax is an acute disease caused by the bacterium Bacillus anthracis. Most forms of the disease are lethal, and it affects both humans and other animals...
that was used in the 2001 anthrax attacks
2001 anthrax attacks
The 2001 anthrax attacks in the United States, also known as Amerithrax from its Federal Bureau of Investigation case name, occurred over the course of several weeks beginning on Tuesday, September 18, 2001, one week after the September 11 attacks. Letters containing anthrax spores were mailed to...
. They published their results in the journal Science
Science (journal)
Science is the academic journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and is one of the world's top scientific journals....
in 2002. These findings helped the FBI track the source of the attacks to a single vial at Ft. Detrick in Frederick, Maryland.
Salzberg has also been a vocal advocate in favor of the teaching of evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
in schools in the U.S. and has authored editorials and appeared in print media on this topic.
Sources and further reading
- umd.edu biosketch
- genome.fieldofscience.com Salzberg's science blog
- http://blogs.forbes.com/stevensalzberg Salzberg's column at Forbes magazine
- cs.duke.edu Duke Computer Science Colloquia Steven Salzberg - includes biography
- umd.edu Steven Salzberg's home page
- Editorial on evolution and the flu, Philadelphia Inquirer