S CRIPPS F LORIDA F UNDING C ORPORATION
A NNUAL R EPORT
F OR
THE
Y EAR E NDED S EPTEMBER 30, 2015
2015 B OARD
OF DIRECTORS
D AVID J. G URY , CHAIRMAN ∙ D R . P AMELLA D ANA , V ICE C HAIRMAN
C. G LEN G ED ∙ C. G ERALD G OLDSMITH ∙ M ARK J. K ASTEN
R ICHARD M. L UCERI , M.D. ∙ E DWARD S ABIN ∙ A RT W OTIZ
S ARA M ISSELHORN , P ROJECT D IRECTOR
130 S CRIPPS W AY , S UITE B41 J UPITER , FL 33458 (561)655-9669
S CRIPPSCORP @ BELLSOUTH . NET
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation Annual Report
For Year Ended September 30, 2015
INTRODUCTION
Florida Statute 288.955 (the “Enabling Statute”) created Scripps Florida Funding Corporation (“SFFC”)
to facilitate the establishment and operation of a biomedical research institution for the purposes of
enhancing education and research and promoting economic development and diversity. In addition, the
Enabling Statute charged SFFC with the obligation to assure the compliance by The Scripps Research
Institute (“TSRI”) with the Enabling Statute and the agreement between SFFC and TSRI (the “Operating
and Funding Agreement”). The Enabling Statute provides that SFFC shall prepare or obtain certain
reports, audits, and evaluations of TSRI’s compliance with the performance expectations and
disbursement conditions contained in the Enabling Statute. As such, SFFC is submitting this Annual
Report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House, as required by the
Enabling Statute to be submitted by December 1 of each year. This SFFC Annual Report addresses the
activities and outcomes of SFFC and Scripps Florida (“SF”) for the fiscal year ended September 30,
2015 (“Fiscal 2015”). The Scripps Florida Annual Report addressed the activities and outcomes of
Scripps Florida for the year ended June 30, 2015, and SFFC received the Scripps Florida Annual Report
on August 31, 2015. The information in the Scripps Florida Annual Report was informally updated for
this SFFC Annual Report.
The SFFC Annual Report is presented in two parts: first, a summary that highlights the substantial
events that have occurred during the year ended September 30, 2015; and second, an itemized report that
corresponds with the applicable sections of the Enabling Statute.
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About the Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
In November 2003, Governor Bush signed into law an historic piece of legislation that laid the
framework for The Scripps Research Institute to expand its world-renowned scientific research and
endeavors into Florida. The bill, passed by the Florida Legislature during special session, provided a
one-time investment of $310 million from federal economic stimulus monies to create Scripps Florida
and pay certain expenses for the first seven years, specifically salaries and equipment purchases. In June
2006, The Scripps Research Institute revised the Scripps Florida business plan and the SFFC and TSRI
revised the scheduled disbursements from the SFFC, which expanded grant funding to December 16,
2013.
To oversee the investment and spending of the State’s investment in Scripps Florida, the Florida
Legislature created the Scripps Florida Funding Corporation, hereto referred to as SFFC, a non-profit
entity comprised of a nine-member Board of Directors and one ex-officio member. The role of SFFC
was enunciated by Governor Bush: “My vision for this board is that it manages the financial portion of
our partnership, but lets Scripps do what it does best – conduct biomedical research.”
SFFC Board of Directors
Of the nine-member Board of Directors, three Directors are appointed by each of the Governor,
House Speaker and the Senate President. Mr. David Gury serves as Chair of the Board of
Directors and Dr. Pamella Dana as Vice-Chair. The full Board of Directors consists of the Chair
and Vice Chair and Mr. Charles Glen Ged, Mr. C. Gerald Goldsmith, Mr. Mark Kasten, Dr.
Richard M. Luceri, Mr. Ed Sabin and Mr. Art Wotiz.
About The Scripps Research Institute
The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) is one of the world's largest independent, not-for-profit
organizations focusing on research in the biomedical sciences. TSRI is internationally recognized for its
contributions to science and health, including its role in laying the foundation for new treatments for
cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, hemophilia, and other diseases. An institution that evolved from the Scripps
Metabolic Clinic founded by philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps in 1924, the institute now employs
about 3,000 people on its campuses in La Jolla, CA, and Jupiter, FL, where its renowned scientists—
including two Nobel laureates—work toward their next discoveries. The institute's graduate program,
which awards PhD degrees in biology and chemistry, ranks among the top ten of its kind in the nation.
For more information, see www.scripps.edu.
About Scripps Florida
Scripps Florida, in the Town of Jupiter in Palm Beach County, Florida, sits on 100 acres adjoining the
Florida Atlantic University campus. Over 580 scientists, technicians, and administrative staff work in
the 345,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art biomedical research facility which opened in March 2009.
Scripps Florida focuses on basic biomedical science, drug discovery and technology development. In
addition to the one-time grant from the State of Florida, Palm Beach County provided an economic
package that included funding for land and construction of the current permanent facility.
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Scripps Florida Overview and Significant Highlights for the Year Ended September 30, 2015
With over a ten-year presence in Florida, Scripps Research Institute has made definitive impressions on
the community, state, national and international level. The initial narrative section of this annual report
highlights the major scientific accomplishments of the past year. Palm Beach County is fortunate to
reap the benefits of having this biomedical powerhouse located in Jupiter and this report showcases the
personal impact the Institute has on its surrounding area in terms of education and jobs and for all of
mankind with its important research, which has been awarded over $475m since its inception.
There are more than 200 principal investigators at The Scripps Research Institute and in Florida, there
are six departments, namely the:
Cancer Biology Department, headed by Thomas Kodadek,
Chemistry Department, chaired by Dale Boger,
Immunology & Microbial Science Department, chaired by Dennis Burton,
Metabolism and Aging Department, headed by Roy Smith,
Molecular Therapeutics Department, of which Don Phinney is the Active Chair; and
Neuroscience Department, headed by Ronald Davis.
One of the many standout research areas of Scripps in Florida is the Scripps Research Institute
Molecular Screening Center which uses Scripps Florida's high throughput robotics to screen discoveries
made in laboratories in La Jolla and Jupiter, as well as other research institutions, against various
biological targets. The goal is to uncover "proof-of-concept molecules" that could be useful in
developing new treatments for a large number of human diseases. The center has been a recipient of an
$80 million National Institutes of Health Molecular Libraries grant and $3 million in equipment support
from the State of Florida.
The Scripps center is one of only four such large centers nationwide. Together with five smaller
specialized centers, they comprise the Molecular Libraries Production Centers Network, a part of the
NIH's strategic funding plan, the Roadmap Initiative. This Center is headed by Tim Spicer and Louis
Scampavia, Ph.D., whose wife, Deborah Leach-Scampavia serves as the Educational Outreach
Coordinator for the Florida campus.
The outreach program has been a robust endeavor since 2005 when Scripps Florida launched several
programs for teachers, students in high school and in undergraduate studies as well as overall
community outreach to expose the public to the high level research the campus conducts. During the
summer of 2015, the Scripps Florida campus saw ten high school students who committed to a six-week
research program and 15 undergraduates who participated in ten-week program, many of which of
whom are return participants.
The Institute has made an impact on all ages: from young children who witnessed the results of a
chemical reaction during the CELLebrate Science Day at the Gardens Mall or high school interns who
have been retained to continue their research activities even when their required time had ended to
graduate students from all over the world. Scripps embarks on endeavors that have inspired a whole
new generation of researchers and offers many of them an opportunity to pursue their love of science.
Next, please read about two important events that have impacted the Institute as a whole.
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Collaborative Announcement between TSRI, FAU and Max Planck
In March 2015, Florida Atlantic University and the globally acclaimed Max Planck Florida Institute and
The Scripps Research Institute, announced that the three institutions will build on existing relationships
to further scientific discovery and education through shared resources and facilities. The three
institutions will provide undergraduate and graduate students the unprecedented opportunity to enroll in
unique degree programs in collaboration with Max Planck and Scripps Florida at the MacArthur
Campus in Jupiter, Florida.
The initiative will allow students to work and study alongside some of the world’s leading scientific
researchers as part of their degree programs, while undergraduate research projects will be mentored by
these same scientists. The Institutes will collaborate to develop premier STEM programs — Science,
Technology, Engineering, Math — and combine FAU Jupiter’s existing strengths in STEM areas, with
support from the arts, to create a leading STEAM initiative.
FAU President John Kelly said the alliance will help cure diseases, develop drugs, educate students and
generate jobs. FAU’s economic impact on Florida’s economy during 2010-2011, the most recently
available data, was $6.3 billion. This initiative creates unique opportunities for FAU’s colleges of
science, medicine, and engineering and computer science to greatly increase that number, Kelly said.
“This initiative comes from the core of economic development,” Kelly said. “FAU, Max Planck
and Scripps will solve real-world problems and take strides to improve human health. We will
create the knowledge economy of the future,” he said. “Moreover, we will provide students
unique scientific research programs that will be the envy of the world.”
A shared facilities environment will provide students access to state-of-the-art scientific equipment. Max
Planck and Scripps Florida researchers will have access to FAU faculty, teaching space, and research
equipment.
James Paulson, acting president and CEO of The Scripps Research Institute, said the Scripps mission is
to build a world-class biomedical research presence in Florida for the benefit of human health and to
train the next generation of scientists.
“We believe this new agreement strengthens our existing collaboration with FAU and the Max
Planck Institute and enables us to work more closely with our local partners to achieve these
critical goals,” Paulson said.
David Fitzpatrick, CEO and scientific director at Max Planck, said, importantly, the collaboration will
increase research funding in areas of common interest. The Max Planck Florida Institute’s research
focus is neuroscience, specifically, gaining insights into brain circuitry. The institute utilizes some of the
world’s most advanced technologies in brain research.
“Combining our resources makes this collaboration a potent force in the scientific and healthcare
fields,” Fitzpatrick said. “The advances we can take in many important research areas will be
significant. Together, FAU, Max Planck and Scripps will train the scientific leaders of
tomorrow,” he said.
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In September 2015, TSRI named their new leadership team appointing chemist Peter G. Schultz
as CEO and biologist Steve A. Kay as President
Schultz is currently a member of the TSRI faculty, as well as Director of the California Institute for
Biomedical Research (Calibr). He is also a successful entrepreneur and has led major drug discovery
efforts in both the commercial and nonprofit sectors. Kay, a former TSRI faculty member, is currently
dean of the Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences at the University of Southern California
(USC). His work has been highlighted in Science magazine’s “Breakthroughs of the Year” on three
separate occasions.
"I am delighted that Pete and Steve will assume leadership roles at TSRI," said Dick Gephardt,
Chair of the TSRI Board of Trustees and President/CEO of Gephardt Government Affairs.
"Their shared vision of creating a unique position for the Institute at the forefront of basic and
translational research is tremendously exciting. I expect great things to come.”
"After 16 years on the faculty, I am delighted with the opportunity to give back to the Institute in a
leadership role," said Schultz. "I have a tremendous respect for TSRI’s commitment to scientific
excellence, and the collegiality and entrepreneurial spirit of the faculty. These qualities are key as we
move forward into a new era of biomedical research in which TSRI will play a leadership role. There is
a lot to be done, and I look forward to working with Steve, the Board, faculty and staff as a team to
further expand the footprint of Scripps in science and medicine."
“I welcome the opportunity to return to Scripps,” said Kay, “and to realize a vision of combining the
Institute’s world-class reputation in basic biological and chemical sciences with the ability to advance
novel therapeutics for major unmet medical needs. I look forward to working together with Pete and
TSRI’s board, faculty, staff, administration, postdocs, students, friends and donors to enhance the
Institute’s contributions to biomedical research, graduate education and human health.”
Gephardt noted that Schultz will take the lead in developing long-term strategy and external alliances,
with a focus on building “bench-to-bedside” research capabilities, while Kay will spearhead the
academic and operational activities of the Institute. Schultz and Kay will work together to further
enhance the Institute’s scientific reputation and build a strong financial base for the Institute. Schultz
assumes his role immediately, while Kay will begin as president-elect as he transitions from USC.
Peter G. Schultz
Peter Schultz graduated from Caltech with a B.S. in Chemistry and continued there for his doctoral
degree in 1984. After a postdoctoral year at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he moved to the
University of California, Berkeley, where he was a Professor of Chemistry, a Principal Investigator at
the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and an Investigator in the Howard Hughes Medical
Institute. He moved to TSRI in 1999, where he is currently the Scripps Family Chair Professor of
Chemistry.
Schultz’s research is at the interface of chemistry and biology. He has pioneered technologies to make
and characterize molecules and materials hundreds to millions at a time—work that has dramatically
impacted our ability to create new medicines and materials. He has led the development of new drugs
that affect endogenous stem cells for neurodegenerative diseases and diseases of aging, and has directed
efforts that have resulted in breakthrough therapies for the treatment of cancer, autoimmune and
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infectious disease. Most recently his laboratory has successfully created new “synthetic” organisms in
which the evolutionary constraints of the 20-amino acid genetic code are lifted, allowing scientists to
create biomolecules with new activities that are not possible using Mother Nature’s code.
Schultz has coauthored roughly 600 scientific publications and trained more than 300 coworkers, many
of whom are on the faculties of major institutions throughout the world. He is a founder of nine
biotech/tech companies that have pioneered the development and application of new technologies to
challenges in energy, materials and human health. In 1999 he founded the Genomics Institute of the
Novartis Research Foundation (GNF), one of the world's leading translational research institutes, and in
2012 he formed the nonprofit biomedical research institute Calibr as a new model to accelerate the
discovery of medicines for unmet needs.
Schultz has received numerous awards including the Alan T. Waterman Award, National Science
Foundation (1988), the American Chemical Society (ACS) Award in Pure Chemistry (1990), the Wolf
Prize in Chemistry (1994), the Paul Erhlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Award (2002), the ACS Arthur C.
Cope Award (2006), and the Solvay Prize (2013). He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences,
USA (1993) and the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences (1998).
Steve A. Kay
Steve A. Kay, a graduate of the University of Bristol, United Kingdom (BSc, 1981; PhD, 1984; DSc,
2014), conducted postdoctoral work at The Rockefeller University with Professor Nam-Hai Chua. He
was subsequently appointed a member of the faculty at Rockefeller and then joined the University of
Virginia in 1992.
In 1996, he moved to TSRI, where he rose to become professor in the Department of Cell Biology,
chairman of the Department of Biochemistry, director of the Institute for Childhood and Neglected
Diseases and chairman of the Scripps Florida Steering Committee. During this time (1999-2004), he was
also director of discovery research at GNF, where he helped build research programs applying human
genome science to biomedical research and drug discovery.
In 2007, Kay joined the University of California (UC), San Diego, where he was dean of biological
sciences and Richard C. Atkinson Chair in Biological Sciences. In 2012, he joined USC as dean of
Dornsife College, also holding the Anna H. Bing Dean’s Chair. While at USC, Kay was responsible for
building large-scale academic programs and was widely recognized for prolific fundraising to support
his vision.
An internationally renowned expert on genes and circadian rhythms, Kay has published more than 250
papers and was recently named by Thomson Reuters as a Highly Cited Researcher. He was elected a
member of the National Academy of Sciences in 2008 and a fellow of the American Association for the
Advancement of Science in 2009. In 2010, he was awarded the UC San Diego Chancellor’s Associates
Faculty Award for Excellence in Research. In recognition of his pioneering work in plant sciences, Kay
was chosen to receive the 2011 Martin Gibbs Medal by the American Society for Plant Biology.
Kay also has founded several biotechnology companies, most recently Reset Therapeutics, a San
Francisco-based drug development corporation.
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Scripps Florida Scientific Accomplishments
This section highlights Scripps Florida scientists’ research findings that were published in noted
scientific journals and then outlines major financial awards from October 1, 2014 through September 30,
2015. Please note at that the sourcing of funding is indicated in several of these scientific endeavors,
demonstrating the wide variety of grants and awards earned by Scripps Florida scientists. Additionally,
Scripps Florida scientists keep record of each of their personal and lab’s scientific outreach efforts. A
detailed report of those activities is included at the end of this section.
Scientific Publications
New Clinical Trial Data: Scripps Research Institute MS Drug Candidate Also Shows Promise for
Ulcerative Colitis
Positive new clinical data were released on a drug candidate for ulcerative colitis that was first
discovered and synthesized at TSRI. According to recent results from a Phase 2 study of 199 patients
with active, moderate to severe disease, the drug candidate RPC1063 has potential to significantly
improve the treatment paradigm for ulcerative colitis patients. The latest results show that, after eight
weeks of treatment with a 1 mg dose of RPC1063, 16.4 percent of patents were in clinical remission, as
compared to 6.2 percent of patients on placebo.
“We are delighted that RPC1063 is showing promise for ulcerative colitis patients in addition to its
already significant efficacy and safety data in multiple sclerosis,” said TSRI Professor Hugh Rosen, who
together with Professor Ed Roberts led the team that discovered RPC-1063. “Research carried out at
TSRI since 2002 has led to the discovery of fundamental mechanisms that can be modulated for
potential treatments of a variety of autoimmune diseases including ulcerative colitis and multiple
sclerosis, and the unique multidisciplinary environment in chemistry and biology at TSRI allowed this
progression to clinical trials.” The clinical trial, sponsored by Receptos, Inc., the San Diego
biotechnology company now developing the drug, also showed that RPC1063 was generally well
tolerated.
Ulcerative colitis is a chronic condition that involves inflammation and sores in the inner lining of the
digestive tract. Ulcerative colitis is an inflammatory bowel disease, which, along with Crohn’s disease,
affects more than one million people nationwide, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention. Some people have mild disease, while others are affected with life-threatening
complications. While existing medications for ulcerative colitis do help some patients, 23 to 45 percent
of ulcerative colitis sufferers progress and eventually require surgical removal of all or part of the colon,
according to the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America.
The drug candidate RPC1063 was derived from a screening “hit” from the National Institutes of Health
molecular library at Scripps Florida’s Molecular Screening Center, using assay technology from the
Rosen lab in La Jolla. The Roberts and Rosen labs then developed significant medicinal chemistry to
turn that hit into a validated lead, and then ultimately a drug candidate. TSRI then licensed the
compound to Receptos, which is developing RPC1063 for approval by the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration.
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Scripps Florida Scientists Uncover Major Factor in Development of Huntington’s Disease
Scripps Florida scientists uncovered a major contributor to Huntington’s disease, a devastating
progressive neurological condition that produces involuntary movements, emotional disturbance and
cognitive impairment.
Using an animal model of Huntington’s disease, the study shows that signaling by a specific protein can
trigger onset of the disease and lead to exacerbation of symptoms. These findings, published in the
October 28, 2014 issue of the journal Science Signaling, offer a novel target for drug development.
It has been more than 20 years since scientists discovered that mutations in the gene huntingtin cause
Huntington’s disease; the product of the gene, Huntingtin protein, is widely expressed is almost all of
the cells in the body.
Scripps Florida Scientists Unveil New Targets and Test to Develop Treatments for Memory
Disorders
In a pair of related studies, Scripps Florida scientists identified a number of new therapeutic targets for
memory disorders and have developed a new screening test to uncover compounds that may one day
work against those disorders. The two studies, one published in the journal Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the other in the journal ASSAY and Drug Development Technologies,
could lead new approaches to some of the most problematic diseases facing a rapidly aging world
population, including Alzheimer’s and Huntington’s diseases and dementia.
“We are actively looking at molecules critical to memory formation, so these two studies work in
parallel,” said Sathyanarayanan V. Puthanveettil, a TSRI biologist who led both studies. “In one study,
we’re reaching for a basic understanding of the process, and in the other, we’re finding new ways to
identify drug candidates so that we can cure these diseases.”
“This shows for the first time how kinesins expressed in the same neurons can carry substantially
different cargos,” said Research Associate Xin-An Liu, the first author of the study. “We can use this
approach to identify what molecules may be targeted for memory and in major disorders. The next step
is to find how the synaptic proteome changes in neuropsychiatric diseases.”
Scripps Florida Scientists Determine Structure of a Molecular Complex Critical for Joining Cells
Together
Scientists have for the first time determined the structure of a large molecular complex that plays a vital
role in cell adhesion, the force that binds cells together in all animals, including humans—without it,
there would be a tendency for them to simply fall apart. The study, led by Scripps Florida Associate
Professor T. Izard, was published December 8, 2014, and highlighted in an “In this Issue” article by the
Journal of Cell Biology.
This critical cell binding is done through specialized cell surface adhesion complexes called adherens
junctions (which direct the formation of tight, Velcro-like contacts among cells), other structural
proteins called F-actin (the “F” stands for filament) and focal adhesion complexes. This process is
necessary for cell migration and morphogenesis, the shaping of tissues and organs that is an important
part of development.
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In the study, the scientists produced an x-ray crystallography image of the cytoskeleton protein vinculin,
an essential regulator of adherens junctions and focal adhesion, binding with a fat or lipid known as
PIP2, a major component of all cell membranes. The images revealed that PIP2 binding alters vinculin
structure to direct oligomerization—the linking together of a few protein or nucleic acid
macromolecules—which, in turn, stabilizes focal adhesion complexes.
Scripps Research Institute Scientists Uncover New, Fundamental Mechanism for How Resveratrol
Provides Health Benefits
Resveratrol, the red-wine ingredient once touted as an elixir of youth, powerfully activates an
evolutionarily ancient stress response in human cells as found by Scripps Florida scientists. The finding
should dispel much of the mystery and controversy about how resveratrol really works.
“With these findings we have a new, fundamental mechanism for the known beneficial effects of
resveratrol,” said lead author Mathew Sajish, a senior research associate in the Schimmel laboratory.
The discovery was reported in the advance online edition of Nature on December 22, 2014.
Resveratrol is a compound produced in grapes, cacao beans, Japanese knotweed and some other plants
in response to stresses including infection, drought and ultraviolet radiation. It has attracted widespread
scientific and popular interest over the past decade, as researchers have reported that it extended lifespan
and prevented diabetes in obese mice and vastly increased the stamina of ordinary mice running on
wheels.
Scripps Florida Scientists Develop Novel Platform for Treatment of Breast, Pancreatic Cancer
TSRI scientists from Florida identified a novel synthetic compound that sharply inhibits the activity of a
protein that plays an important role in in the progression of breast and pancreatic cancers. In the new
study, published in the February 2015 print edition of the journal Molecular Pharmacology, the
scientists showed that the compound, known as SR1848, reduces the activity and expression of the
cancer-related protein called “liver receptor homolog-1” or LRH-1.
“Our study shows that SR1848 removes LRH1 from DNA, shutting down expression of LRH-1 target
genes, and halts cell proliferation,” said Patrick Griffin, chair of the TSRI Department of Molecular
Therapeutics and director of the Translational Research Institute at Scripps Florida. “It’s a compound
that appears to be a promising chemical scaffold for fighting tumors that are non-responsive to standard
therapies.”
LRH1 plays a crucial role in breast cancer through its regulation of genes involved in hormone synthesis
and cholesterol metabolism—also key risk factors in cardiovascular disease. LRH-1 has also been
implicated as a tumor promoter in intestinal and pancreatic cancer. Overexpression of LRH-1 has been
shown to promote invasiveness and metastasis, the usually lethal spread of the disease.
Scripps Florida Scientists Establish that Drug Candidates Can Block Pathway Associated with
Cell Death in Parkinson’s Disease
In a pair of related studies, scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI)
have shown their drug candidates can target biological pathways involved in the destruction of brain
cells in Parkinson's disease. The studies, published in the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry and Scientific
Reports, suggest that it is possible to design highly effective and highly selective (targeted) drug
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candidates that can protect the function of mitochondria, which provide the cell with energy, ultimately
preventing brain cell death. These drug candidates act on what are known as the JNK (pronounced
“junk”) kinases—JNK1, JNK2 and JNK3—each an enzyme with a unique biological function. JNK is
linked to many of the hallmark components of Parkinson's disease, such as oxidative stress and
programmed cell death.
“These are the first isoform selective JNK 2/3 inhibitors that can penetrate the brain and the first shown
to be active in functional cell-based tests that measure mitochondrial dysfunction,” said Philip
LoGrasso, a TSRI professor who led both studies. “In terms of their potential use as therapeutics,
they’ve been optimized in every way but one—their oral bioavailability. That’s what we’re working on
now.”
The new studies raise the hope that such a therapy could prevent the gradual degeneration of brain cells
in Parkinson's disease and halt these patients’ decline.
Scripps Florida Scientists Discover a Key Pathway That Protects Cells Against Death by Stress
When it comes to protecting cells from death brought on by the calamities of environmental stress, the
human body is particularly ingenious. From cellular components that suck up misfolded proteins to a
vigilant immune system, the ways we protect our cells, and ourselves, are many and mysterious.
Scientists from the Florida campus have now uncovered the workings of another cell-protection device,
one that may play a major role in a number of age-related diseases, including diabetes and Parkinson’s,
Alzheimer’s and Huntington’s diseases. The study, led by Srinivasa Subramaniam, a TSRI assistant
professor, and Solomon H. Snyder, a neuroscience professor at Johns Hopkins University School of
Medicine, was published February 5, 2015 in the journal Cell Reports.
The study focuses on a new pathway through which Rheb, a regulator that many believe is active in the
brain’s ability to change in response to learning, actually plays two roles, rather than one—stimulating
and inhibiting protein synthesis. The interplay between the two roles may be the key that enables cells
to alter protein synthesis and protect the cell in response to varying environmental stresses. “We found
Rheb acts like the gas pedal in a car,” Subramaniam said. “It can either increase translation or decrease
it. And because translation is a fundamental process that is affected in a lot of diseases, we now think
that Rheb may act like a switch in some disease states—helping to turn them off and on.”
Microbes Prevent Malnutrition in Fruit Flies—and Maybe Humans, Too
Microbes, small and ancient life forms, play a key role in maintaining life on Earth. As has often been
pointed out, without microbes, we’d die—without us, most microbes would get along just fine. A study
by scientists from the TSRI Florida campus sheds significant new light on a surprising and critical role
that microbes may play in nutritional disorders such as protein malnutrition.
Using fruit flies—Drosophila melanogaster—as a simple and easily studied stand-in for humans, these
new findings advance our understanding of the fundamental mechanisms underlying microbial
contributions to metabolism and may point to long-term strategies to treat and prevent malnutrition in
general. In the study, published February 12, 2015 in the journal Cell Reports, a team led by TSRI
biologist William Ja showed that Issatchenkia orientalis, a fungal microbe isolated from field-caught
fruit flies, promotes nutritional harvest that rescues the health and longevity of undernourished flies.
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Using a range of radioisotope-labeled dietary components such as amino acids (the components of
proteins and the basic building blocks of the body) and sucrose (sugar) to measure the transfer of
nutrients from food to microbe to fly, the study shows that the microbes first harvest amino acids
directly from the fly’s food sources and then transfer that protein to the fly—by being eaten.
“Flies in the wild carry microbes to every surface they touch,” said Research Associate Ryuichi
Yamada, who spearheaded the study in the Ja lab. “As flies land on low-protein fruit, they deposit
microbes, which take up and concentrate the available amino acids. By eating the microbes, flies gain a
much needed source of dietary protein.”
Scripps Florida Scientists Announce Anti-HIV Agent So Powerful It Can Work in a Vaccine
In a remarkable new advance against the virus that causes AIDS, scientists from TSRI have announced
the creation of a novel drug candidate that is so potent and universally effective, it might work as part of
an unconventional vaccine. The research, which involved scientists from more than a dozen research
institutions, was published February 18, 2015 online ahead of print by the prestigious journal Nature.
The study shows that the new drug candidate blocks every strain of HIV-1, HIV-2 and SIV (simian
immunodeficiency virus) that has been isolated from humans or rhesus macaques, including the hardestto-stop variants. It also protects against much-higher doses of virus than occur in most human
transmission and does so for at least eight months after injection.
“Our compound is the broadest and most potent entry inhibitor described so far,” said Michael Farzan, a
professor on TSRI's Florida campus who led the effort. “Unlike antibodies, which fail to neutralize a
large fraction of HIV-1 strains, our protein has been effective against all strains tested, raising the
possibility it could offer an effective HIV vaccine alternative.”
New Study Shows Decreased Aggressive Behavior Toward Strangers in Autism Spectrum
Disorder Model
While aggression toward caregivers and peers is a challenge faced by many individuals and families
dealing with autism, there has been much speculation in the media over the possibility of generally
heightened aggression in those diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. A new study by scientists from
the Florida campus of TSRI found no evidence of increased aggressive behavior toward strangers in an
animal model of the condition.
In fact, the study, published recently online ahead of print in the journal Genes, Brain and Behavior,
found these animals showed decreased aggressive behavior toward strangers and, instead, engage in
more repetitive behavior than normal mice.
“These mice show traits relevant to autism, such as an overgrown brain and reduced social interaction,”
said Damon Page, a TSRI biologist who conducted the study with Research Associate Amy Clipperton
Allen. “What we don’t see in this model is a general increase in aggressive behavior.”
Autism spectrum disorder is a highly inheritable condition characterized by impaired social behavior
and communication skills and a tendency towards repetitive patterns of behavior. A 2010 survey of
eight-year-olds in 11 communities across the United States by the Centers for Disease Control and
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Prevention (CDC) found a rate of autism spectrum disorder of approximately one in 68 children. Boys, it
found, are at four- to five-times greater risk than girls.
Scripps Florida Scientists Find a Defect Responsible for Memory Impairment in Aging
Everyone worries about losing their memory as they grow older—memory loss remains one of the most
common complaints of the elderly. But the molecular reasons behind the processes remain unclear,
particularly those associated with advancing age.
Scripps Florida scientists have discovered a mechanism that causes long-term memory loss due to age in
Drosophila, the common fruit fly, a widely recognized substitute for human memory studies. The new
study, published recently in The Journal of Neuroscience, describes in detail the loss of connectivity
between two sets of neurons that prevents the formation of long-term memory.
“We show how long-term memory is impaired with age in Drosophila,” said Ron Davis, a TSRI
professor and chair of the Department of Neuroscience who led the study. “This isn’t due to any
functional defects, but to connectivity problems between neurons.”
Scripps Research, Mayo Clinic Scientists Find New Class of Drugs that Dramatically Increases
Healthy Lifespan
A research team from TSRI, Mayo Clinic and other institutions has identified a new class of drugs that
in animal models dramatically slows the aging process—alleviating symptoms of frailty, improving
cardiac function and extending a healthy lifespan. The new research was published March 9, 2015
online ahead of print by the journal Aging Cell. The scientists coined the term “senolytics” for the new
class of drugs.
“We view this study as a big, first step toward developing treatments that can be given safely to patients
to extend healthspan or to treat age-related diseases and disorders,” said TSRI Professor Paul Robbins,
PhD, who with Associate Professor Laura Niedernhofer, MD, PhD, led the research efforts for the paper
at Scripps Florida. “When senolytic agents, like the combination we identified, are used clinically, the
results could be transformative.”
Senescent cells—cells that have stopped dividing—accumulate with age and accelerate the aging
process. Since the “healthspan” (time free of disease) in mice is enhanced by killing off these cells, the
scientists reasoned that finding treatments that accomplish this in humans could have tremendous
potential. The scientists were faced with the question, though, of how to identify and target senescent
cells without damaging other cells.
Scripps Florida Scientists Confirm Key Targets of New Anti-Cancer Drug Candidates
Ribosomes, ancient molecular machines that produce proteins in cells, are required for cell growth in all
organisms, accomplishing strikingly complex tasks with apparent ease. But defects in the assembly
process and its regulation can lead to serious biological problems, including cancer. In a study
published in the March 16, 2015 issue of The Journal of Cell Biology, scientists from TSRI’s Florida
campus have confirmed the ribosome assembly process as a potentially fertile new target for anti-cancer
drugs by detailing the essential function of a key component in the assembly process.
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“This study confirms that ribosome assembly is a good therapeutic target in cancer,” said Katrin
Karbstein, a TSRI associate professor who led the study. “Whether or not we have pinpointed the best
molecule remains to be shown, but this is a vindication of our basic research. There should be effort
devoted to exploring this pathway.” In the new study, Karbstein and her group—working closely with
three labs across the state of Florida, including the laboratory of William Roush at Scripps Florida—
used Hrr25, the yeast equivalent of Casein kinase 1δ (CK1δ) and CK1ε, as a research model.
The work was supported by the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the
ThinkPink Kids Foundation, the PGA National Women’s Cancer Awareness Days and the Swiss
National Foundation
New Compound Prevents Type 1 Diabetes in Animal Models—Before It Begins
TSRI scientists have successfully tested a potent synthetic compound that prevents type 1 diabetes in
animal models of the disease.
“The animals in our study never developed high blood sugar indicative of diabetes, and beta cell damage
was significantly reduced compared to animals that hadn’t been treated with our compound,” said Laura
Solt, Ph.D., a TSRI biologist who was the lead author of the study.
Type 1 diabetes is a consequence of the autoimmune destruction of insulin-producing beta cells in the
pancreas. While standard treatment for the disease aims to replace lost insulin, the study focuses instead
on the possibility of preventing the initial devastation caused by the immune system—stopping the
disease before it even gets started. In the study, published in the March 2015 issue of the journal
Endocrinology, the scientists tested an experimental compound known as SR1001 in non-obese diabetic
animal models. The compound targets a pair of “nuclear receptors” (RORα and RORg) that play critical
roles in the development of a specific population (Th17) of immune cells associated with the disease.
“Because Th17 cells have been linked to a number of autoimmune diseases, including multiple sclerosis,
we thought our compound might inhibit Th17 cells in type 1 diabetes and possibly interfere with disease
progression,” said Solt. “We were right.”
Scripps Florida Scientists Reveal Unique Mechanism of Natural Product with Powerful
Antimicrobial Action
Scripps Florida scientists have uncovered the unique mechanism of a powerful natural product with
wide-ranging antifungal, antibacterial, anti-malaria and anti-cancer effects. The new study, published
online ahead of print by the journal Nature Communications in March 2015, sheds light on the natural
small molecule known as borrelidin.
“Our study may help the rational design of compounds similar to borrelidin with a range of useful
applications, particularly in cancer,” said Min Guo, a TSRI associate professor who led the study.
Guo and his colleagues were interested in borrelidin because it inhibits a specific type of enzyme known
as threonyl-tRNA synthetase (ThrRS), ultimately impeding protein synthesis. Compounds similar to
borrelidin have been used as treatments for microbial infections. For example, the natural product
mupirocin is approved as a topical treatment for bacterial skin infections and febrifugine (the active
component of the Chinese herb Chang Shan (Dichroa febrifuga Lour)) has been used for treating
malaria-induced fever for nearly 2,000 years.
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Scripps Florida Scientists Uncover How Molecule Protects Brain Cells in Parkinson’s Disease
Model
Scientists from the Florida campus of TSRI have found how a widely known but little-studied enzyme
protects brain cells in models of Parkinson’s disease. These findings could provide valuable insight into
the development of drug candidates that could protect brain cells in Parkinson’s and other
neurodegenerative diseases. The study, published recently online ahead of print by the journal
Molecular and Cellular Biology, focuses on the enzyme known as serum glucocorticoid kinase 1
(SGK1).
“The overexpression of SGK1 provides neuron protection in both cell culture and in animal models,”
said Philip LoGrasso, a TSRI professor who led the study. “It decreases reactive oxygen species
generation and alleviates mitochondrial dysfunction.”
The LoGrasso lab plans to continue to explore SGK1 as a therapeutic possibility for Parkinson’s disease.
The work was supported by the Department of Defense, the National Institutes of Health, the Michael J
Fox Foundation/23&Me, the Saul and Theresa Esman Foundation and a gift from the McCubbin Family.
Scripps Florida Scientists Uncover Surprising New Details of Potential Alzheimer’s Treatment
Taking a new approach, scientists from TSRI’s Florida campus have uncovered some surprising details
of a group of compounds that have shown significant potential in stimulating the growth of brain cells
and memory restoration in animal models that mimic Alzheimer’s disease. The new study points to
promising new directions using a known therapeutic strategy for Alzheimer’s disease—a disorder that
will affect nearly 14 million Americans by 2050, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. The study,
which was led by TSRI Associate Professors Courtney Miller and Gavin Rumbaugh, appeared online
ahead of print in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology in April 2015.
This new study builds on previous findings from Miller and Rumbaugh demonstrating the memoryrescuing potential of inhibiting histone deacetylases (HDACs), a family of signaling enzymes that act
like molecular switches, silencing gene expression by controlling access to the cell’s nuclear cache of
tightly compacted DNA. Mutations in HDACs genes have been associated with health problems
including cancer, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, metabolic disorders and loss of memory
function.
Scripps Florida Scientists Show Antitumor Agent Can Be Activated by Natural Response to Cell
Stress Findings Point to New Therapy Against Prostate and Other Cancers
Scientists from the Florida campus of TSRI have found that a drug candidate with anticancer potential
can be activated by one of the body’s natural responses to cellular stress. Once activated, the agent can
kill prostate cancer cells.
“There is no proven drug right now with these activities,” said Ben Shen, vice chair of TSRI’s
Department of Chemistry and senior author of the new study, “so this points the way toward a new
therapeutic opportunity.”
The study, published in June 2015 by the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences, highlights the potential of the natural compound called leinamycin (LNM) E1 for development
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as a “prodrug,” a medication converted through a metabolic process in the body to become an active
therapy. Shen’s research has focused on developing natural products into potential therapies. As part of
this effort, he heads the Natural Products Initiative at TSRI, a library available for screening with 500
pure natural products, 2,000 fractions, and 7,500 crude extracts, prepared from 4,000 Actinomycetals.
Among these are “antitumor antibiotics” like LNM, which are produced by species of the soil dwelling
bacterium Streptomyces and are known to impede cancer cell growth and multiplication. Some
antitumor antibiotics are already in use as chemotherapy agents.
New Study Brings Together Neuroscience and Psychology to Paint More Complete Picture of
Sleep and Memory
In Macbeth, Shakespeare describes sleep as “the death of each day’s life,” but he may have gotten it
wrong. Sleep, as it turns out, may be the one thing that keeps our memories alive and intact. A new
study from Scripps Florida integrates neuroscience and psychological research to reveal how sleep is
more complex than the Bard might have imagined. The new research, published online ahead of print by
the journal Cell, shows in animal models that sleep suppresses the activity of certain nerve cells that
promote forgetting, insuring that at least some memories will last.
“Many scientists have tried to figure out how we learn and how our memories become stabilized,” said
Ron Davis, chair of the TSRI Department of Neuroscience and senior author of the study. “But far less
attention has been paid to forgetting, which is a fundamental function for the brain and potentially has
profound consequences for the development of memory therapeutics. Our current study merges the
neuroscience of forgetting, that is, the brain mechanisms that lead to forgetting, and the psychology of
forgetting into an integrated picture.”
Scripps Florida Scientists Uncover Unique Role of Nerve Cells in the Body’s Use of Energy
While it is well-known that weight gain results from an imbalance between what we eat and our energy
expenditure, what is not obvious is the role that the nervous system plays in controlling that energy
balance. Scientists from the Florida campus of TSRI have shed light on that question.
“Our new study has identified novel populations of nerve cells that regulate appetite, thermogenesis and
physical activity,” said TSRI Professor Baoji Xu, who led the research. “We think these neurons could
be targets for drug development.”
The findings were published by the journal Cell Metabolism online ahead of print on June 11, 2015. In
the new study, Xu and his colleagues examined several groups of neurons that express a substance
called “brain-derived neurotrophic factor” (BDNF) within a small brain region called the paraventricular
hypothalamus. BDNF is an extremely important protein in the brain and is involved in a number of
functions. It has been shown that deleting the BDNF gene causes significant problems, among them,
dramatically increased appetite (hyperphagia) and severe obesity.
Scripps Florida Scientists Identify a Potential New Treatment for Osteoporosis
Scripps Florida scientists have identified a new therapeutic approach that, while still preliminary, could
promote the development of new bone-forming cells in patients suffering from bone loss. The study,
published in the journal Nature Communications, focused on a protein called PPARy (known as the
master regulator of fat) and its impact on the fate of stem cells derived from bone marrow
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(“mesenchymal stem cells”). Since these mesenchymal stem cells can develop into several different cell
types—including fat, connective tissues, bone and cartilage—they have a number of potentially
important therapeutic applications.
The scientists knew that a partial loss of PPARy in a genetically modified mouse model led to increased
bone formation. To see if they could mimic that effect using a drug candidate, the researchers combined
a variety of structural biology approaches to rationally design a new compound that could repress the
biological activity of PPARy. The results showed that when human mesenchymal stem cells were
treated with the new compound, which they called SR2595 (SR=Scripps Research), there was a
statistically significant increase in osteoblast formation, a cell type known to form bone.
“These findings demonstrate for the first time a new therapeutic application for drugs targeting PPARy,
which has been the focus of efforts to develop insulin sensitizers to treat type 2 diabetes,” said Patrick
Griffin, chair of the Department of Molecular Therapeutics and director of the Translational Research
Institute at Scripps Florida. “We have already demonstrated SR2595 has suitable properties for testing in
mice; the next step is to perform an in-depth analysis of the drug’s efficacy in animal models of bone
loss, aging, obesity and diabetes.”
Scripps Florida Study Points to Drug Target for Huntington’s Disease
Huntington’s disease attacks the part of the brain that controls movement, destroying nerves with a
barrage of toxicity, yet leaves other parts relatively unscathed. Scripps Florida scientists have
established conclusively that an activating protein, called “Rhes,” plays a pivotal role in focusing the
toxicity of Huntington’s in the striatum, a smallish section of the forebrain that controls body movement
and is potentially involved in other cognitive functions such as working memory.
“Our study definitively confirms the role of Rhes in Huntington’s disease,” said TSRI Assistant
Professor Srinivasa Subramaniam, who led the study. “Our next step should be to develop drugs that
inhibit its action.”
The study was published recently online ahead of print by the journal Neurobiology of Disease.
In an earlier study, Subramaniam and his colleagues showed that Rhes binds to a series of repeats in the
huntingtin protein (named for its association with Huntington’s disease), increasing the death of
neurons. The new study shows deleting Rhes significantly reduces behavioral problems in animal
models of the disease.
Small RNAs Found to Play Important Roles in Memory Formation
Scripps Florida scientists found that a type of genetic material called “microRNA” plays surprisingly
different roles in the formation of memory in animal models. In some cases, these RNAs increase
memory, while others decrease it.
“Our systematic screen offers an important first step toward the comprehensive identification of all
miRNAs and their potential targets that serve in gene networks important for normal learning and
memory,” said Ron Davis, chair of TSRI’s Department of Neuroscience who led the study. “This is a
valuable resource for future studies.”
The study was published in the June 2015 edition of the journal Genetics.
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Scripps Florida Scientists Pinpoint Mechanism for Altered Pattern of Brain Growth in Autism
Spectrum Disorder
As early as 1943, when autism was first described by psychiatrist Leo Kanner, reports were made that
some, but not all, children with autism spectrum disorder have relatively enlarged heads. But even
today, more than half a century later, the exact cause of this early abnormal growth of the head and
brain has remained unclear. Scripps Florida scientists have uncovered how mutations in a specific
autism risk gene alter the basic trajectory of early brain development in animal models.
The study, published in the July 15 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience, focused on the
gene PTEN (Phosphatase and tensin homolog), which is mutated in around 20 percent of individuals
with autism spectrum disorder and enlarged heads (macrocephaly). In new research, the team led by
Scripps Florida biologist Damon Page found that mutations in the mouse version of PTEN, which
approximate those found in a subgroup of individuals with autism spectrum disorder, lead to dynamic
changes in the number of two key cell types that make up the brain—neurons and glia. At birth,
neurons are more abundant than normal. Surprisingly, in adulthood the number of neurons in the brains
of mutant animals is virtually the same as normal, and glia (which provide support for neurons) are
overrepresented.
“In the adult brain, excess glia are a primary cause of the overall change in brain size,” Page said.
“This raises the intriguing possibility that these excess glia may, in fact, contribute to abnormal
development and function of brain circuitry when PTEN is mutated.”
Autism spectrum disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social deficits and
communication difficulties, repetitive behaviors and interests, as well as cognitive delays in some
individuals. The disorder affects in approximately one percent of the population; some 80 percent of
those diagnosed are male.
Scripps Research Institute-Designed Drug Candidate Significantly Reduces HIV Reactivation
Rate AIDS Study Points to 'Functional Cure'
HIV-infected patients remain on antiretroviral therapy for life because the virus survives over the longterm in infected dormant cells. Interruption of current types of antiretroviral therapy results in a
rebound of the virus and clinical progression to AIDS. But now, scientists from TSRI’s Florida
campus have shown that, unlike other antiretroviral therapies, a natural compound called Cortistatin A
reduces residual levels of virus from these infected dormant cells, establishing a near-permanent state
of latency and greatly diminishing the virus’ capacity for reactivation.
“Our results highlight an alternative approach to current anti-HIV strategies,” said Susana Valente, a
TSRI associate professor who led the study. “Prior treatment with Cortistatin A significantly inhibits
and delays viral rebound in the absence of any drug. Our results suggest current antiretroviral regimens
could be supplemented with a Tat inhibitor such as Cortistatin A to achieve a functional HIV-1 cure,
reducing levels of the virus and preventing reactivation from latent reservoirs.”
The study was published in the journal mBio in July 2015 and this work was supported by the National
Institutes of Health and by amfAR, a foundation for AIDS research.
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Scripps Florida Scientists Collaborate to Determine First Structure of Crucial Plant Hormone
An international collaboration including scientists from Scripps Florida has determined the structure of
a plant hormone that plays a crucial role in regulating plants’ responses to insects and disease-causing
microorganisms as well as normal growth and development. The new study, published by the
journal Nature in August 2015, focused on a plant hormone called jasmonate and two proteins
involved in its molecular signaling, MYC and JAZ. Previous attempts to determine a threedimensional picture of this interaction were frustrated when scientists had great difficulties forming
crystals of MYC and JAZ bound to one another—a necessary step to determine molecular structure
using a high-resolution technique called x-ray crystallography.
“The outstanding question answered in the study is why the protein complex crystallization between
MYC and the JAZ motif was so difficult, given the binding affinity is so tight,” said Patrick R. Griffin,
chair of the Department of Molecular Therapeutics and director of the Translational Research Institute
at Scripps Florida. “As a collaborative effort, the study revealed structural intricacies in the MYC
factor that are highly flexible.”
The study included scientists from Michigan State University, Howard Hughes Medical Institute
(HHMI), the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Nanjing Agricultural
University, Van Andel Research Institute, Western Michigan University and Northwestern University.
Griffin’s laboratory contributed to the study with its leading-edge expertise in HDX (short for
hydrogen-deuterium exchange mass spectrometry), an advanced method of examining alterations in
the dynamics of proteins and how these changes relate to protein function. With the help of HDX, the
team was able to show that the structural conformation of the MYC factors changes profoundly when
bound to one of the JAZ repressors. This key finding led to the making of a JAZ-MYC fusion
construct, resulting in high quality crystals.
This research was supported by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the China Scholarship
Council, Van Andel Research Institute, the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Energy,
Michigan Economic Development Corporation and the Michigan Technology Tri-Corridor.
Scripps Florida Scientists’ Structural Discoveries Could Aid in Better Drug Design
F. Scott Fitzgerald once said that the test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed
ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function. Scientists from TSRI’s Florida
campus have found the biological equivalent of that idea or something very close. For the first time,
they have uncovered the structural details of how some proteins interact to turn two different signals into
a single integrated output. These new findings could aid future drug design by giving scientists an edge
in fine tuning the signal between these partnered proteins—and the drug’s course of action.
“Thyroid, vitamin D and retinoid receptors all rely on integrated signals—their own signal plus a partner
receptor,” said TSRI Associate Professor Kendall Nettles, who led the study with TSRI colleague
Associate Professor Douglas Kojetin. “These new findings will have important implications for drug
design by clearly defining exactly how these signals become integrated, so we will be able to predict
how changes in a drug’s design could affect signaling.”
The study was published in August 2015 in the journal Nature Communications. The work was
supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Frenchman’s Creek Women for Cancer Research, the
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James and Esther King Biomedical Research Program, the Florida Department of Health and the State of
Florida.
Scripps Florida Scientists Move Closer to a Personalized Treatment Solution for Intellectual
Disability
Scripps Florida Scientists produced an approach that protects animal models against a type of genetic
disruption that causes intellectual disability, including serious memory impairments and altered
anxiety levels. The findings, which focus on treating the effects of mutations to a gene known
as Syngap1, have been published online ahead of print by the journal Biological Psychiatry.
“Our hope is that these studies will eventually lead to a therapy specifically designed for patients with
psychiatric disorders caused by damagingSyngap1 mutations,” said Gavin Rumbaugh, a TSRI
associate professor who led the study. “Our model shows that the early developmental period is the
critical time to treat this type of genetic disorder.”
Damaging mutations in Syngap1 that reduce the number of functional proteins are one of the most
common causes of sporadic intellectual disability and are associated with schizophrenia and autism
spectrum disorder. Early estimates suggest that these non-inherited genetic mutations account for two
to eight percent of these intellectual disability cases. Sporadic intellectual disability affects
approximately one percent of the worldwide population, suggesting that tens of thousands of
individuals with intellectual disability may carry damaging Syngap1 mutations without knowing it.
As a result of these studies, Rumbaugh and his colleagues are now developing a drug-screening
program to look for drug-like compounds that could restore levels of Syngap1 protein in defective
neurons. They hope that, as personalized medicine advances, such a therapy could ultimately be
tailored to patients based on their genotype.
Scripps Florida Scientists Determine How Antibiotic Gains Cancer-Killing Sulfur Atoms
In a discovery with implications for future drug design, Scripps Florida scientists have shown an
unprecedented mechanism for how a natural antibiotic with antitumor properties incorporates sulfur into
its molecular structure, an essential ingredient of its antitumor activity. This new discovery could open
the way to incorporating sulfur into other natural products, potentially advancing new therapies for
indications beyond cancer. The study, which was led by TSRI Professor Ben Shen, was released online
ahead of print by the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA in August 2015.
“We found a novel mechanism to incorporate sulfur into natural products, which is unprecedented,”
Shen said. “Until our study, we didn’t really know how sulfur atoms are incorporated into a natural
product—now we have discovered a new family of enzymes and have a workable mechanism to account
for sulfur incorporation into a larger class of natural products, known as polyketides, that include many
drugs such as erythromycin (antibacterial) and lovastatin (cholesterol lowering).”
Sulfur is critical not only to human life, but to plants and bacteria as well, and is one of the most
abundant elements in the human body by weight. A number of compounds that contain sulfur have
proven useful in the treatment of conditions ranging from acne and eczema to arthritis and cancer.
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Scripps Florida Scientists Make Strides in Therapy Preventing Addiction Relapse by Erasing
Drug-Associated Memories
Single Injection of Drug Candidate Prevents Meth Relapse in Animal Models
Recovering addicts often grapple with the ghosts of their addiction—memories that tempt them to
relapse even after rehabilitation and months, or even years, of drug-free living. Scientists from TSRI’s
Florida campus have made a discovery that brings them closer to a new therapy based on selectively
erasing these dangerous and tenacious drug-associated memories.
“We now have a viable target and by blocking that target, we can disrupt, and potentially erase, drug
memories, leaving other memories intact,” said TSRI Associate Professor Courtney Miller. “The hope is
that, when combined with traditional rehabilitation and abstinence therapies, we can reduce or eliminate
relapse for meth users after a single treatment by taking away the power of an individual’s triggers.”
The new study, published in August 2015 online ahead of print by the journal Molecular
Psychiatry, demonstrates the effectiveness of a single injection of an early drug candidate called
blebbistatin in preventing relapse in animal models of methamphetamine addiction.
The new study builds on previous work in Miller’s lab. In 2013, the team made the surprising discovery
that drug-associated memories could be selectively erased by targeting actin, the protein that provides
the structural scaffold supporting memories in the brain. However, the therapeutic potential of the
finding seemed limited by the problem that actin is critically important throughout the body—taking a
pill that generally inhibits actin, even once, would likely be fatal.
In the new study, Miller and her colleagues report a major advance—the discovery of a safe route to
selectively targeting brain actin through nonmuscle myosin II (NMII), a molecular motor that supports
memory formation. To accomplish this, the research used a compound called blebbistatin that acts on
this protein. The results showed that a single injection of blebbistatin successfully disrupted long-term
storage of drug-related memories—and blocked relapse for at least a month in animal models of
methamphetamine addiction.
Scripps Florida Scientists Show How Aging Cripples the Immune System, Suggesting Benefits of
Antioxidants
Scripps Florida Scientists have shown how aging cripples the production of new immune cells,
decreasing the immune system’s response to vaccines and putting the elderly at risk of infection. The
study goes on to show that antioxidants in the diet slow this damaging process. The research, published
August 6, 2015 in the journal Cell Reports, focused on an organ called the thymus, which produces T
lymphocytes, critical immune cells that must be continuously replenished to respond to new infections.
“The thymus begins to atrophy rapidly in very early adulthood, simultaneously losing its function,” said
TSRI Professor Howard Petrie. “This new study shows for the first time a mechanism for the longsuspected connection between normal immune function and antioxidants.”
Scientists have been hampered in their efforts to develop specific immune therapies for the elderly by a
lack of knowledge of the underlying mechanisms of this process. To explore these mechanisms, Dr.
Petrie and his team developed a computational approach for analyzing the activity of genes in two major
thymic cell types—stromal cells and lymphoid cells—in mouse tissues, which are similar to human
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tissues in terms of function and age-related atrophy. The team found that stromal cells were specifically
deficient in an antioxidant enzyme called catalase, which resulted in elevated levels of the reactive
oxygen by-products of metabolism and, subsequently, accelerated metabolic damage.
This work was supported by U.S. Public Health Service grants.
Scripps Florida Scientists Identify a Key Morphine Regulator that May Reduce Risk of PainKiller Abuse and Addiction
Once used in the 18th century as currency to reverse the trade imbalance between China and Britain,
opiates that contain morphine have been misunderstood and misused almost continually ever since.
Morphine works its euphoric effect by acting on a specific protein that has been part of vertebrate
anatomy for nearly a half-billion years. Despite that lengthy pedigree, regulation of these receptor
proteins has never been well understood.
A study led by Kirill Martemyanov, an associate professor at Scripps Florida, has shown that a specific
molecule controls morphine receptor signaling in a small group of brain cells. The findings could lead to
a new drug target for developing less-addictive pain medications and even offer a clue to the genetic
predisposition of patients to addition before treatment. The study was published in September 2015
online ahead of print by the journal Biological Psychiatry.
The molecule in question is known as a regulator of G protein signaling (RGS) protein, which controls
the morphine receptor (mu opioid receptor). Using genetically modified animal models lacking a
particular RGS protein called RGS7, a protein abundant in the brain, the study showed that eliminating
the protein enhanced reward, increased pain relief, delayed tolerance and heightened withdrawal in
response to self-administered morphine doses. In other words, without the protein, the animals were
predisposed to morphine addiction.
“The mu opioid receptor acts as a conductor of the drug’s effects, while RGS7 acts as a brake on the
signal,” Martemyanov said. “The animals could press a lever to receive an infusion of morphine. We
looked at the number of lever presses to determine how much they liked it and, judging from this test,
mice lacking RGS7 craved the drug much more than their normal siblings.”
RGS7 appears to exert its effects by regulating morphine-induced changes in excitability of neurons and
plasticity of synapses—the ability of the synapse, the junction between two nerve cells, to change its
function.
Scripps Florida Scientists Identify Promising Drug Candidate to Treat Chronic Itch that Avoids
Side Effects
If you have an itch, you have to scratch it. But that’s a problem for people with a condition called
“chronic intractable itch,” where that itchy sensation never goes away—a difficult-to-treat condition
closely associated with dialysis and renal failure. Scientists from the Florida campus described a class
of compounds with the potential to stop chronic itch without the adverse side effects normally associated
with medicating the condition.
“Our lab has been working on compounds that preserve the good properties of opioids and eliminate
many of the side effects,” said TSRI Professor Laura Bohn. “The new paper describes how we have
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refined an aspect of signaling underlying how the drugs work at the receptor so they still suppress itch
and do not induce sedation. Developing compounds that activate the receptors in this way may serve as a
means to improve their therapeutic potential.”
The study, which was published in the journal Neuropharmacology, used a compound called
isoquinolinone 2.1 to target the kappa opioid receptor, which is widely expressed in the central nervous
system and serves to moderate pain perception and stress responses. The compound was effective in
stopping irritant-induced itch, without causing sedation, in mouse models of the condition.
Scripps Florida Scientists Identify Key Neurotransmitter Receptor as Potential Target for
Individualized Treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorder
Grant of $2.4 Million Will Support Further Research
Scripps Florida scientists uncovered a significant—and potentially treatable—relationship between a
chemical that helps transmit signals in the brain and genetic mutations present in a subset of individuals
with autism spectrum disorder.
The new research findings, which were published recently in the journal PLoS One, focus on the role
that the neurotransmitter serotonin plays in the development of social behavior. Serotonin, together with
the serotonin receptors it activates in the brain, plays a significant role in neurological processes,
including mood, anxiety, aggression and memory. The study made use of an animal model of mutations
in the gene Pten, a risk factor present in a subgroup of individuals with autism. Treatment of this model
with a drug that suppresses the activity of a particular serotonin receptor, 5-HT2cR, can have a dramatic
effect.
“We found a striking contrast between the effects of dialing down the activity of the receptor using a
drug, which improved social deficits in the Pten model, versus removing the receptor completely by
mutation, which actually impaired social behavior,” said TSRI Assistant Professor Damon Page, who
led the study. “Important issues will be uncovering the mechanism by which modulating serotonin
receptor activity can influence autism-relevant symptoms and identifying the time window and dose
range where targeting serotonin receptors is most effective.”
Page was awarded a $2.4 million, five-year grant from the National Institute of Mental Health of The
National Institutes of Health (NIH) to further study the relationship between abnormal patterns of brain
growth, neurotransmitter signaling and the behavioral and cognitive symptoms in individuals with
autism spectrum disorder.
“The new grant will let us expand our research into the relationship between specific risk factors,
altered brain development and key neurotransmitter systems, with the ultimate goal of moving
toward individualized treatments for particular subgroups of individuals with autism spectrum
disorder,” he said.
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23
Grant Awards
$60 million was awarded from October 1, 2014 to September 30, 2015 and the major awards are
highlighted on the next several pages.
Scripps Florida Scientists Win $1.5 Million to Study New Strategies for Parkinson’s Disease and
Other Disorders
Scripps Florida Scientists were awarded nearly $1.5 million from the National Institute of General
Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health to explore the therapeutic potential of a class of
proteins that play essential roles in the regulation and maintenance of human health. These proteins
are expressed throughout the body, including the central nervous system during brain development,
and are associated with conditions including Parkinson’s disease, inflammation, arthritis, cancer,
metabolic disorders (dyslipidemia, obesity, diabetes) and cardiovascular disease.
“These protein receptors have not been well studied, particularly in terms of small-molecule
compounds that could affect their function,” said TSRI Associate Professor Douglas Kojetin, who is
the principal investigator of the new four-year study. “We’ve found several natural small-molecule
binding partners for a particular orphan receptor called Nurr1. It’s called an orphan receptor because
natural small-molecule binding partners for this receptor are currently unknown, and this new grant
will help uncover important details of the process. This study will potentially open up an entire new
class of compounds that could affect millions of people with crippling diseases such as Parkinson’s.”
Kojetin’s laboratory focuses on the mode of action of small-molecule ligands (molecules that bind to
other molecules and alter their function). In particular, the team studies how these ligands change the
structure and dynamics of the proteins they target and how this contributes to biological function,
disease and drug discovery.
Scripps Florida Scientists Receive $2.8 Million to Develop Innovative Approach to Latent HIV
Infection
Scientists from TSRI’s Florida campus were awarded a pair of grants totaling nearly $2.8 million from
the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of The National Institutes of Health to
develop a new therapeutic agent to reduce latent levels of HIV that hide from the immune system in
infected individuals. TSRI Associate Professor Susana Valente will be the principal investigator of the
multiyear grants.
“Our approach is aimed at a novel antiviral target, a protein known as a potent activator of HIV gene
expression,” Valente said. “With this new funding, we can continue to develop our approach to the
difficult problem of HIV latency, finding a way to suppress the virus in these latently infected cells.”
Valente’s research is focused on blocking the Tat protein, which is essential for viral amplification. In
the new project, Valente’s team will explore the potential of didehydro-Cortistatin A (dCA), a
molecule closely related to a natural compound isolated from a marine sponge, to reduce the size of the
latent reservoir pool of HIV by blocking ongoing viral replication, reactivation and replenishment.
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
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24
Scripps Florida Scientists Awarded $3.5 Million to Expand Development of New Diabetes
Therapies
Scientists from the Florida campus were awarded $3.5 million from the National Institute of Diabetes
and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health to accelerate development of a
new class of anti-diabetic compounds. Patrick R. Griffin, chair of the Department of Molecular
Therapeutics at Scripps Florida and a leader in the field, is the principal investigator of the new five-year
grant.
“Effective management of diabetes and the complications associated with the disease remains a
significant medical challenge,” Griffin said. “Due to significant safety concerns, a class of drugs that
have proven effective at improving the body’s response to insulin (insulin sensitizers known as
glitazones) has essentially been removed from the arsenal of therapeutics used to treat type 2 diabetes.”
Over the past decade, the Griffin lab along with the Kamenecka lab has focused on the molecular details
of the mode of action of insulin sensitizers. Using this information, the scientists have made significant
advances in developing drug candidates targeting a receptor known as peroxisome proliferator-activated
receptors gamma (PPARG). These drug candidates inhibit the receptor, a unique mode of action
compared to the glitazones. This new award will fund deep dissection of the molecular mechanism of
the new class of compounds developed at TSRI, and this information will help pave the path toward
clinical development. In addition, the Griffin lab, in collaboration with researchers at the University of
Toledo, will look at the effects of these compounds on bone, an emerging safety issue with the
glitazones.
Diabetes affects more than 29 million people in the United States, according to the American Diabetes
Association 2012 report. Between 2010 and 2012, the incidence rate was about 1.7-1.9 million per year,
and in 2013, the estimated direct medical costs were $176 billion.
Scripps Florida Scientists' 'Mad Cow' Discovery Points to Possible Neuron Killing Mechanism
Behind Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Diseases
$1.4 Million Grant Will Enable Team to Follow Up with Search for Drug Candidates
Scripps Florida scientists have for the first time discovered a killing mechanism that could underpin a
range of the most intractable neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and ALS.
The new study, published recently in the journal Brain, revealed the mechanism of toxicity of a
misfolded form of the protein that underlies prion diseases, such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy
(“mad cow disease”) and its human equivalent, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
“Our study reveals a novel mechanism of neuronal death involved in a neurodegenerative proteinmisfolding disease,” said Corinne Lasmézas, a TSRI professor who led the study. “Importantly, the
death of these cells is preventable. In our study, ailing neurons in culture and in an animal model were
completely rescued by treatment, despite the continued presence of the toxic misfolded protein. This
work suggests treatment strategies for prion diseases—and possibly other protein misfolding diseases
such as Alzheimer’s.”
In the study, the scientists used a misfolded form of the prion disease protein, called TPrP, a model they
had previously developed, to study misfolded protein-induced neurodegeneration in the laboratory.
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Misfolded proteins are the common cause of the group of diseases comprising prion, Alzheimer’s,
Parkinson’s diseases, ALS and other conditions.
A recent $1.4-million grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
will support further work to look for drug candidates based on the new findings. Lasmézas and Louis
Scampavia, a TSRI associate professor of molecular therapeutics, will be co-principal investigators for
the new three-year study, whose team will also include Tom Bannister, a TSRI associate scientific
director at Scripps Florida’s Translational Research Institute. The scientists have developed several
primary tests for compounds that could restore NAD+ and plan to begin those tests at Scripps Florida’s
High Throughput Screening facility.
Since it was established in 2005, the Scripps Florida High Throughput Screening facility has screened
more than 200 targets in more than 235 industrial and academic collaborations—several of these
collaborations have produced successful clinical trial candidates. The drug discovery facility is currently
capable of routinely screens one quarter of a million compounds in a single day.
Scripps Florida Scientists Win $3.3 Million Grant to Accelerate Development of Treatments for
Intellectual Disability, Autism, Epilepsy
Scripps Florida scientists were awarded $3.3 million by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to
identify biomarkers to accelerate drug development for disorders including autism spectrum disorder,
epilepsy and some types of intellectual disability. Gavin Rumbaugh, a TSRI associate professor, is the
principal investigator of the new five-year project.
“Our long-term goal is to increase the success rate of therapies translated from animal models to
patients,” Rumbaugh said. “By validating biomarkers in mice and using this information in combination
with pharmacological or genetic treatment strategies, we hope to create a set of tools and methods that
can be used successfully to develop new therapeutics.”
Rumbaugh has been a pioneer in the study of Syngap1, one of the most commonly disrupted genes in
patients with sporadic developmental disorders of the brain. His work in animal models has shown that
life-long cognitive disruptions are caused by isolated damage to developing neurons in the forebrain (in
humans, the forebrain is responsible for higher cognitive processes, such as language and reasoning).
Rumbaugh and his colleagues plan to validate several highly quantifiable biomarkers of brain damage
that occur in these animal models during a critical period of early development. Because abnormal
cognition in these models can be traced to this early developmental window, these measures have the
potential to provide a roadmap of cognitive ability to guide drug design.
Scripps Florida Scientists Win $2.4 Million to Expand Development of New Pain Therapies
Scripps Florida scientists were awarded $2.4 million from the National Institute on Drug Abuse of The
National Institutes of Health to expand development of new pain medications with fewer side effects
than those currently available. Professor Laura Bohn, who has been a leader in the development of pain
therapies, will be the principal investigator of the new five-year grant.
“We are developing substitutes for narcotic pain killers with less risk for overdose and fewer side
effects,” Bohn said. “The new grant enables us to study how these potential drugs, which utilize the
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
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26
same biological target as morphine, fundamentally differ from the current pain medications in how they
engage neuronal signaling.”
Adverse side effects of current opioid drugs such as morphine and oxycodone can be serious and include
respiratory suppression, constipation and addiction. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control,
nearly two million Americans abused prescription painkillers in 2013; almost 7,000 people are treated
each day in hospital emergency rooms for abuse of these drugs.
While the new compounds under development activate the same receptor as morphine—the mu opioid
receptor or MOR—they do so in a way that avoids recruiting the protein beta-arrestin 2. Genetic studies
have shown that animal models lacking beta-arrestin 2 experience robust pain relief with diminished
side effects.
“The difference in the way that these new compounds work results in greater pain relief without as much
respiratory suppression (overdose risk) and persistent constipation in preclinical studies,” said Bohn.
“We are hoping to dial out dependence liabilities as we pursue bringing these drugs to clinical trials.”
Scripps Florida Scientists Win $2.3m Grant to Uncover Ways to Erase Toxic PTSD Memories
The Department of Health and Human Services of the National Institutes of Health awarded $2.3 million
to Scripps Florida to better understand how memories are stored in the hopes of eventually being able to
treat posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by erasing traumatic memories without altering other, more
benign ones. Courtney Miller, a TSRI associate professor, is the principal investigator for the new fiveyear study.
“We hope this new study will make a significant contribution to the goal of developing new and more
effective treatments for mental illness,” Miller said.
While literally thousands of mechanisms for how a memory initially forms have been identified, only a
few mechanisms are known for how the brain stores these memories for weeks to years. To produce a
memory, a lot has to be done, including the alteration of the structure of nerve cells via changes in the
dendritic spines—small bulb-like structures that receive electrochemical signals from other neurons.
Normally, these structural changes occur via actin, the protein that makes up the infrastructure of all
cells. Miller is investigating the possibility that microRNAs, naturally occurring small RNAs that act to
suppress the production of proteins, may be capable of coordinating the complexity required for the
brain to maintain this actin-based structural integrity of a long-lasting memory.
“Our study will investigate the microRNA profile of a PTSD-like memory, with the idea that the
persistence of a traumatic memory is maintained by the recruitment of a unique set of microRNAs
within the amygdala—the brain’s emotional memory center and a critical participant in PTSD,” Miller
said.
An understanding of how the brain actually stores these toxic memories should result in the
development of new targets that can then be exploited to selectively target harmful memories, as in the
case of PTSD, or to preserve fading memory, such as with age-related cognitive decline. In 2013, Miller
and her colleagues were able to erase dangerous memories associated with drugs of abuse in mice and
rats, without affecting other more benign memories. That surprising discovery, published in the journal
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
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Biological Psychiatry pointed to a clear and workable method to disrupt unwanted memories while
leaving others intact.
Scripps Florida Scientists Win $2.2 Million to Expand Study of Innovative Obesity Therapy
Scientists from the Florida campus were awarded nearly $2.2 million by the National Institute of
Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to advance an
innovative approach to the treatment of obesity, a serious health problem that affects more than onethird of all Americans. Anutosh Chakraborty, a TSRI assistant professor, is the principal investigator of
the new five-year project.
Obesity, especially when combined with type 2 diabetes, leads to conditions including coronary heart
disease, stroke, hypercholesterolemia, fatty liver, sleep apnea, osteoarthritis, certain cancers and various
other diseases. If current trends continue, the number of Americans who are obese could reach 50
percent by 2030, according to the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
According to Britain’s Fiscal Times, the estimated cost of obesity in the United States is already $305.1
billion annually. Current medications have limited success. In an effort to address this dilemma,
scientists want to identify relevant proteins, especially enzymes, to target with new and more effective
drug candidates.
“Anti-obesity drugs generally work on reducing how much you eat or absorb,” Chakraborty said. “We
investigate the problem from a different perspective.”
Chakraborty and his colleagues discovered that an enzyme called inositol hexakisphosphate kinase-1
(IP6K1) plays a significant role in promoting the action of insulin on energy/fat storage. Mice without
IP6K1 are not only lean on regular chow diet, they are also protected against high-fat-diet-induced
obesity and insulin resistance.
In addition to gaining a broader understanding of the fundamental mechanism by which IP6K1 regulates
metabolism, Chakraborty and his colleagues—including Scripps Florida’s Ted Kamenecka, assistant
professor and associate scientific director of the Translational Research Institute, and Michael Cameron,
associate professor of molecular therapeutics and DMPK—are working on the development of drugs
which are expected to treat obesity, type 2 diabetes and other metabolic diseases via IP6K1 inhibition.
Scripps Florida Scientists Win $2.1 Million to Study Protein Linked to Parkinson’s Disease
Scientists were awarded $2.1 million from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
of The National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study a protein that has been closely linked in animal
models to Parkinson’s disease and Huntington’s disease. Assistant Professor Srinivasa Subramaniam
will be the principal investigator of the new five-year grant. The focus of the study is a multifunctional
protein known as rapamycin (mTOR), which is involved in embryonic development, cancer and
diabetes. Malfunction in mTOR activity—either too much or too little—has also been linked to a variety
of brain dysfunctions such as epilepsy, mental retardation, Huntington’s disease and Parkinson’s
disease.
In the new project, the researchers will use a wide variety of techniques to examine the role and
regulation of this protein in a brain region called the striatum, which controls motor, psychiatric and
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
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cognitive functions. Subramaniam’s long-term goal is to understand the system well enough to advance
new therapies.
“Even though mTOR is widely expressed throughout the body, its brain-specific regulation and function
remain unclear,” Subramaniam said. “While we know that inhibiting mTOR protects against symptoms
of Huntington’s and Parkinson’s diseases in animal models, the new grant will help us answer two
critical questions: ‘How is mTOR regulated, and what happens when it is depleted selectively in the
striatum?’ ”
Scripps Florida Scientists Win $1.5 Million Grant to Develop New Cancer Drugs
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) awarded $1.5 million to Scripps Florida scientists to develop
drug candidates that could treat cancer and neurodegenerative disease. Derek Duckett, a TSRI associate
professor of molecular therapeutics, is the co-principal investigator for the three-year study, along with
John Cleveland of the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida (formerly head of the Cancer Biology
Department at TSRI). Duckett, Cleveland and their teams will look for compounds that affect a key
enzyme involved in the degradation and ultimate recycling of damaged cellular material.
This process, called “autophagy,” is an ancient, cannibalistic (literally “self-eating”) pathway that acts as
the main recycling center of all cells. In autophagy, bulk cytoplasmic material and aged or damaged
organelles are recycled via the lysosome to recoup essential building blocks and adenosine triphosphate
(ATP) as a survival strategy during times of stress or nutrient limitation. Autophagy is an important cell
survival pathway, and any defects in its regulation can lead to a variety of disorders, including
neurodegenerative disorders, liver disease and cancer. The study is focused on targeting a particular
enzyme, UNC-51-like kinase-1 (Ulk1), a critical on-off switch that regulates this pathway.
“Using these funds, we will identify new inhibitors of Ulk1,” Duckett said. “Developing selective
molecular probes that function as Ulk1-specific inhibitors would improve our understanding of the
autophagy pathway, its relationship to cancer and its utility as a target that could augment conventional
or targeted anti-cancer treatments.”
Duckett and his colleagues plan to use the high-throughput screening facilities at Scripps Florida and the
Scripps Drug Discovery Library and its 650,000-plus library of small-molecule compounds.
Scripps Florida Scientists Awarded $1.2 Million to Find Drug Candidates that Could Treat a
Wide Range of Cancers
Scientists from the Florida campus were awarded $1.2 million from the National Cancer Institute of the
National Institutes of Health (NIH) to accelerate the development of drug candidates to curb one of the
most important drivers of human cancer. TSRI Associate Professors Joseph Kissil and Louis Scampavia
will be co-principal investigators for the three-year grant, which will focus on the “Hippo-YAP
signaling pathway.”
“This pathway, which was discovered less than a decade ago, appears to regulate processes that are
closely linked to an increasing number of cancers,” Kissil said. “The more we study it, the more we see
its involvement. This new grant will help expand our investigation.”
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The Hippo-YAP signaling pathway has been found active in breast, colorectal and liver cancers, in
hepatocellular and squamous cell carcinoma, and in melanoma of the eye. Cancers initiated through this
pathway tend to thrive and proliferate, relatively immune to destruction from programmed cell death.
Kissil, Scampavia and their colleagues plan to use Scripps Florida’s ultra-high-throughput screening
resources and the campus’s library of more than 600,000 compounds to develop a series of screens to
identify and optimize compounds to target the pathway and combat cancer.
Scientific Meetings
The following are some of the national and international events that Scripps Florida scientists attend to
promote their own research and foster collaborative efforts. Florida scientific outreach events are
presented in Subsection (9) (f).
Date
Scientist
Event and location
1-Oct-14
Oct-14
Oct-14
Oct-14
2-Oct-14
3-Oct-14
10/3/2014
4-Oct-14
6-Oct-14
7-Oct-14
8-Oct-14
12-Oct-14
14-Oct-14
14-Oct-14
14-Oct-14
16-Oct-14
16-Oct-14
20-Oct-14
21-Oct-14
23-Oct-14
23-Oct-14
24-Oct-14
25-Oct-14
27-Oct-14
28-Oct-14
29-Oct-14
30-Oct-14
30-Oct-14
30-Oct-14
31-Oct-14
Nov-14
Doug Kojetin
Chakraborty
Niedernhofer
Ja
C. Miller
Roy Smith
Chakraborty
Davis and E.
Petersen
Paul Robbins
C. Rader
C. Rader
Matt Disney
M. Farzan
Martemyanov
Kendall
Nettles
Patrick Griffin
Laura Bohn
Karbstein
Doug Kojetin
Matt Disney
Paul Robbins
Ben Shen
Roy Periana
Kate Carroll
Brock Grill
C. Rader
Hyeryun Choe
Karbstein
Patrick Griffin
C. Miller
Niedernhofer
Seminar, Emory University, Department of Biochemistry
The Obesity Society Scientific Review Committee Conference Call
Attended the 5th Annual Mayo Clinic Aging Conference, Rochester, MN
Attended "Annual Student Symposium", Lake Arrowhead, CA
NIH/BRLE Center for Scientific Review Meeting, Invited Guest Participant
Conf call with Bill Zollers, Aratana Pharmaceuticals
EGG Grant review and decision
Neurofly 2014 - European Fly Neurobiology, Conference, Crete Greece
Participant - Korean Society of Gene and Cell Therapy - Seoul Korea
Invited Speaker at 2014 Osong BioExcellence Conference at Osong New Drug
Development Center in Osong, Korea
Invited Speaker at Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
ALS TDI Leadership Summit Discussion
2014 Strategies for an HIV Cure at NIAID, Bethesda, MD
External Seminar Series, TSRI, La Jolla
Invited Speaker: Predicting Phenotypes for Estrogen Receptor Ligands, UT
Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, TX
DMP Study Section, New Orleans, LA
Functional Selectivity at NIDA, Seminar, Washington, DC
Reviewer - NSF Biology REU Panel 150222, Arlington, VA, USA
AHA Lipids Basic Science # Committee Spring 2015
Keynote speaker SUNY Albany RNA Center
Participant - Mayo-Groningen - Rochester MN
The 8th Sino - US CBDD, Changsha
University of Tokyo, and Keio University, Murai Symposium
Mike Radtke, NIH SBCA Review Meeting, New Orleans, LA
NIH/NDPR study section, Arlington VA
Invited Speaker at TSRI La Jolla, California on 10/29/14
Dr. Jonathan Abraham, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
Speaker - M-LSA Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
CDRD Board of Directors Meeting, Vancouver, BC, Canada
NPR Interview
Attended/Presented "R24 Geroscience Network Coordinating Group Meeting and GSA
Meeting", Washington, DC
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Annual Report 2015
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Nov-14
Niedernhofer
Nov-14
4-Nov-14
4-Nov-14
5-Nov-14
5-Nov-14
6-Nov-14
6-Nov-14
7-Nov-14
9-Nov-14
Niedernhofer
Roy Smith
Chakraborty
Jun-Li Luo
Paul Robbins
Ron Davis
Paul Robbins
Matt Disney
C. Rader
10-Nov-14
11-Nov-14
14-Nov-14
14-Nov-14
14-Nov-14
14-Nov-14
Laura Bohn
Paul Robbins
C. Miller
Martemyanov
Matt Disney
see list
15-Nov-14
15-Nov-14
17-Nov-14
19-Nov-14
Rumbaugh
Rumbaugh
Paul Robbins
C. Rader
19-Nov-14
20-Nov-14
Damon Page
C. Rader
20-Nov-14
21-Nov-14
22-Nov-14
Dec-14
7-Dec-14
8-Dec-14
Kodadek
Kodadek
Tina Izard
Niedernhofer
C. Miller
Seth Tomchik
9-Dec-14
Roy Smith
10-Dec-14
11-Dec-14
14-Dec-14
15-Dec-14
15-Dec-14
15-Dec-14
17-Dec-14
22-Dec-14
11-Jan-15
11-Jan-15
13-Jan-15
14-Jan-15
Matt Disney
C. Rader
C. Rader
C. Rader
Matt Disney
Scott Hansen
Roy Smith
Matt Disney
Gardner
Ben Shen
Kodadek
Patrick Griffin
19-Jan-15
21-Jan-15
27-Jan-15
C. Miller
Matt Disney
Karbstein
Attended/Presented/Meeting Co-organizer "5th US-EU Conference on Repair of
Endogenous DNA Damage", Santa Fe, NM
Presented at "The Xeroderma Pigmentosum Family Support Group", Kansas City, MO
Prader Willi Syndrome Annual Meeting, Invited Guest
Attended Obesity Week, Boston, MA
NIH Review Board
Participant - R24 Geroscience Network Coordinating Group Meeting - Washington DC
Molecular Psychiatry Association - San Francisco Conference, California
Participant - Xeroderma Pigmentosum Family Support Group - Kansas City MO
ALS TDI Leadership Summit Talk
Invited Speaker at 2014 Cold Spring Harbor Engineering & Phage Display Course,
Cold Spring Harbor, New York
Anesthesiology Research Seminar, St. Louis, MO
Participant - US EU DNA Repair Meeting - Sante Fe NM
NIH/NIDA Frontiers in Addiction Research Mini Convention, Invited Guest Participant
Mt. Sinai Medical School, New York
C9 orf72 discussion with Target ALS group
SFN Annual Meeting, Washington DC. Participants: Ron Davis, Jacob Berry, Germain
Busto, Yunchao Gai, Ze Liu, E. Nick Petersen, C. MacMullen, C. Miller, Seth Tomchik
NIH Study Section
SFN Meeting
Participant - Baxter Meeting - Chicago IL
Meeting with Institute of Biochemistry, University of Zurich in Zurich, Switzerland re:
collaboration
Rhett Syndrome Review Board, Chicago, ILL
Meeting with Department of Medicine II-Hem/Onc, University of Würzburg,
Würzburg, Germany
Lecture at UTSW Dept. of Pharmacology Seminar Series, Dallas, TX
Lecture at UTD Chemistry Seminar Series, Dallas, TX
Meeting with collaborator, Dr. Michael Rossman with Perdue University
Attended FASEB Board of Directors Meeting, Arlington, VA
ACNP Annual Meeting (American College of Neuropsychopharmacology)
Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN “Mechanisms of memory encoding in
Drosophila”
The Conference on Bioactive Peptides for Cell-Cell Communication, Invited Guest,
Kyoto, Japan
Discussion with NIH
Invited Speaker , Prof. Shabat Graduate Class, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
Invited Speaker - TAU Research Group, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
Meeting with Dr. Ronit Satchi-Fainaro, TAU Research Group, Tel Aviv University
Talk Brainstorming DM
NIH Common Fund High Risk-High Reward Research Symposium, Bethesda, MD
Conf Call with Bill Zollers at Aratana Pharmaceuticals
Visit from Patrick Brannely from the TAU Consortium
Presentation and Talk at Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
NP Discovery & Development, SIMB, San Diego, CA
TSRI Faculty Lecture, La Jolla, CA
Invited speaker to the Canada Foundation for Innovation Multidisciplinary Assessment
Committee, Ottawa, Canada
Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, Invited Guest Speaker
Tau Consortium meeting, San Francisco, CA
Attended Peer Review Committee for RNA Mechanisms in Cancer, Atlanta, GA
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
31
31-Jan-15
1-Feb-15
7-Feb-15
8-Feb-15
8-Feb-15
10-Feb-15
12-Feb-15
12-Feb-15
12-Feb-15
15-Feb-15
15-Feb-15
17-Feb-15
18-Feb-15
18-Feb-15
18-Feb-15
18-Feb-15
19-Feb-15
21-Feb-15
22-Feb-15
26-Feb-15
Mar-15
Laura Bohn
Martemyanov
Doug Kojetin
Kate Carroll
Paul Robbins
C. Miller
Matt Disney
Doug Kojetin
Patrick Griffin
Rumbaugh
Shen, Davis,
Smith, Bohn
Matt Disney
M. Gardner
Matt Disney
C. Miller
Paul Robbins
Baoji Xu
M. Farzan
Laura Bohn
Patrick Griffin
Niedernhofer
Mar-15
2-Mar-15
3-Mar-15
4-Mar-15
4-Mar-15
8-Mar-15
9-Mar-15
10-Mar-15
12-Mar-15
12-Mar-15
13-Mar-15
15-Mar-15
15-Mar-15
15-Mar-15
20-Mar-15
21-Mar-15
21-Mar-15
23-Mar-15
23-Mar-15
24-Mar-15
24-Mar-15
25-Mar-15
26-Mar-15
27-Mar-15
28-Mar-15
29-Mar-15
29-Mar-15
Ja, Deshpande
Matt Disney
Mark Sundrud
Gardner
Baoji Xu
Paul Robbins
Hyeryun Choe
Ron Davis
Kodadek
Matt Disney
Lovell
Martemyanov
Rumbaugh
Patrick Griffin
Matt Disney
M. Farzan
Bohn, Disney
Jun-Li Luo
Patrick Griffin
Huang
Kodadek
Matt Disney
Matt Disney
Bohn & Stahl
Brock Grill
Tina Izard
Patrick Griffin
29-Mar-15
30-Mar-15
Mi Ra Chang
Patrick Griffin
Gordon Research Conferences, Ventura, CA
University of Texas, Houston
Biophysical Society 59th Annual Meeting
Mike Radtke, NIH SBCA Review Meeting, Washington, DC
Seminar - GRC Mammalian DNA Repair - Ventura CA
Interview with Ozy.com
Seminar Department of Chemistry University of Alabama Birmingham
NIH MSFB study section
DMP Study Section, Washington, DC
UCI Seminar Presentation
Frontiers in Biomedical Research Symposium, Indian Wells, CA
Seminar Novartis in San Francisco, CA
Present at AIDS Vaccine Research Lab in Madison, WI
Seminar: Chemistry, Chemical Engineering & Biochemistry, Stanford University
Neurotherapeutics Discovery and Development Course, Invited Participant
Participant - Exosome Meeting - Italy
NIH Neurological Sciences and Disorders B study section
Presenter: Conference on Retrovirology and Opportunistic Infections , Seattle, WA
NIH Grant R01 DA031927, University of Kansas
Invited speaker at University of Missouri (Host Stefanos Sarafinos, PhD)
Host Dr. Janine Kruit (expert in endocrinology and metabolism), Assistant Professor,
University Medical Center of Groningen, to help with experiments
Attended "56th Annual Drosophila Research Conference", Chicago, IL
AstraZeneca Seminar Cambridge, MA
Reviewer - NIH/NIAID Review Special Emphasis Panel, Bethesda, MD, USA
Present at Palm Springs Symposium on HIV/AIDS in Palm Springs, CA
Seminar presenter at University of Alabama at Birmingham
Participant - MIRM Retreat - Nemacolin Woodlands
Reviewer, ISF (The Israel Science Foundation) Research Grants
NIH/NINDS Review Panel Meeting, Arlington VA
Lecture at Sigma-Aldrich
Myotonic Dystrophy Foundation Science Advising
Behavior, Biology and Chemistry: Translational Research, San Antonio, TX
ASPET Conference
NIH Study Section
Invited speaker – University of Phoenix, Phoenix, Arizona
Seminar at Johns Hopkins Medical Center
Presentation at Keystone Symposia in Banff, Canada
American Chemical Society Symposium, Denver, CO
NIH Review Board
Invited speaker at Keystone Symposia, Whistler, British Columbia, Canada
Wiring the Brain Meeting at Cold Spring Harbor, New York
DARPA Review Meeting, Arlington, VA
Discussion with Rutgers University regarding collaborative project
Discussion with NIH
Experimental Biology 2015 Annual Meeting, Boston, MA
Co-Chair: ASPET Annual Meeting in Boston, MA
2015 ASBMB Annual Meeting
Invited speaker at ASPET (American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental
Therapeutics) Symposium 2015, Boston, MA
Attended ASPET Conference - presented poster, Boston, MA
Molecular Pharmacology Editorial Board meeting
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
32
30-Mar-15
31-Mar-15
1-Apr-15
2-Apr-15
9-Apr-15
13-Apr-15
13-Apr-15
14-Apr-15
15-Apr-15
20-Apr-15
Tina Izard
Matt Disney
C. Miller
Karbstein
Patrick Griffin
Baoji Xu
Matt Disney
Matt Disney
Puthanveettil
Morgenweck
23-Apr-15
23-Apr-15
24-Apr-15
24-Apr-15
30-Apr-15
May-15
Kodadek
Patrick Griffin
Lasmezas
C. Miller
Roy Smith
Niedernhofer
May-15
Niedernhofer
4-May-15
5-May-15
6-May-15
6-May-15
8-May-15
Kate Carroll
Kate Carroll
Doug Kojetin
Paul Robbins
Howard Petrie
8-May-15
13-May-15
13-May-15
Matt Disney
M. Farzan
see list
15-May-15
16-May-15
19-May-15
26-May-15
26-May-15
26-May-15
29-May-15
30-May-15
31-May-15
31-May-15
31-May-15
1-Jun-15
Jun-15
Puthanveettil
Laura Bohn
Lasmezas
Lasmezas
Karbstein
D. Phinney
Roy Smith
Matt Disney
Ben Shen
Goswami,
Dharmarajan
Patrick Griffin
Nettles
Ja
2-Jun-15
2-Jun-15
3-Jun-15
4-Jun-15
10-Jun-15
10-Jun-15
14-Jun-15
15-Jun-15
M. Farzan
Roy Periana
Laura Solt
Paul Robbins
Kate Carroll
Doug Kojetin
Matt Disney
Rumbaugh
Meeting with collaborator, Dr. Robert Stroud, University of California, San Francisco
Margaux's Miracle Foundation about Childhood Ewing's Sarcoma Research
NIH/NIDA Special Emphasis Review Panel
Invited Speaker & Editorial Board member , ASBMB Annual Meeting, Boston, MA
Invited speaker - University of Texas, Arlington, Texas
Keystone Symposium, Snowbird, Utah
Seminar Chemistry and Biosciences Departments University of Chicago
Target ALS Meeting NYC
Columbia University Presentation, New York
Kappa Therapeutic Conference 2015 Third Conference on the Therapeutic Potential of
Kappa Opioids in Pain and Addiction, Chapel Hill, CA
NIH Director’s New Innovator Award Review meeting
CDRD Board of Directors Meeting, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Presentation for the Scripps Florida Luncheon series "Food for thoughts"
Society on NeuroImmune Pharmacology (SNIP), Invited Participant
Conference Call with Claudio Pietra, Helsinn Therapeutics
Attended/Presented/organizer "Geropathology Research Network Symposium",
University of Washington South Lake Union Campus, Seattle, WA
Attended "Frontiers in Aging and Regeneration Research", Marine Biological
Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA
Drs. Derek Tan and Alex Kentsis, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, NY
Drs. Tom Muir and Dr. Van Zandt Williams, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ
AHA Greater Southeast Affiliate Research Committee
Participant - R24 Pathology of Aging Network Symposium - Seattle
Attend American Association of Immunologists "Immunology 2015" Annual Meeting
in New Orleans, LA
NIH Pioneer Appicant Stage 2 Review
Guest speaker - Merck Cure Roundtable, Philadelphia, PA
International Meeting for Autism Research in Salt Lake City, UT. Participants: Damon
Page, Amy Clipperton Allen, Youjun Chen, Wen-Chin Huang
Washington State University Seminar Presentation
ASCEPT-BPS Joint Scientific Meeting, Hong Kong
Continuous Medical Education Presentation at VA Medical Center, West Palm Beach
Prion 2015 Working Conference, Ft. Collins, CO
Attended 20th Annual Meeting of RNA Society, Madison, WI, USA
ISCT 2015 Annual Meeting, Las Vegas, Nevada
iHuman Institute at Shanghai Tech, Invited Guest Speaker
Tau Consortium Deep Dive, Cambridge MA
ASM Meeting, New Orleans
ASMS Meeting - presented poster, St. Louis, MO
ASMS Board of Directors Meeting, St. Louis, MO
2015 ASCO Annual Meeting, IL
Attended "3rd Biennial Conference of the North American Society for Comparative
Endocrinology", Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Present at NIAID Development of Monoclonal Antibodies for HIV in Rockville, MD
ADHOC2015 International Symposium Speaker, Madison, WI
NIH Study Section Participant
Participant : Mayo - C-Sig Minisymposium , Rochester MN
Mike Radtke, NIH SBCA Review Meeting, Seattle, WA
NIH MSFB study section
Gordon Research Conference Invited Speaker
Korean KAVLI Conference
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
33
19-Jun-15
24-Jun-15
M. Farzan
D. Phinney
24-Jun-15
Baoji Xu
24-Jun-15
29-Jun-15
30-Jun-15
Jul-15
Jul-15
Patrick Griffin
Mark Sundrud
Matt Disney
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
3-Jul-15
Kate Carroll
14-Jul-15
Brock Brill
15-Jul
Min Guo
16-Jul-15
21-Jul-15
22-Jul-15
22-Jul-15
25-Jul-15
25-Jul-15
30-Jul-15
31-Jul-15
Aug-15
Joseph Kissil
Tina Izard
Subramaniam
Laura Bohn
Tina Izard
Scott Hanson
S. Valente
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Aug-15
3-Aug-15
5-Aug-15
Niedernhofer
Phinney
Karbstein
6-Aug-15
10-Aug-15
C. Miller
M. Farzan
19-Aug-15
C. Miller
19-Aug-15
20-Aug-15
Roy Smith
Gardener
Sep-15
Sep-15
Min Guo
Niedernhofer
Sep-15
Niedernhofer
Sep-15
Sep-15
1-Sep-15
10-Sep-15
13-Sep-15
Keith Murphy
Bill Ja
Subramaniam
Roy Peiana
Kate Carroll
14-Sep-15
Lasmezas
Present at Gordon Research Conference - Viruses & Cells in Girona, Spain
Participant in Science Webinar - Sourcing Niche Cell Populations: Techniques for
Isolating and Characterizing Progenitor Cells
15th International Symposium by the Society of Chinese Bioscientists in America,
Taipei, Taiwan
CDRD Board of Directors Meeting, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Speaker - Pathology Seminar Series, NYU School of Medicine, New York, NY
Gordon Research Conference Invited Speaker
Invited speaker "Aspen Cancer Conference", Aspen, CO
Attended/Presented "2015 International Family Medical Conference for Cockayne
Syndrome", Atlanta, GA
Imperial College London, Aston University and University of Glasgow, Proxomics
Project -- Novel Tools and Technologies for Studying Cells and Tissues
Ad Hoc Reviewer for NIH, Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Neuroscience
(MDCN) study section
Invited Speaker: "“Chemical Translation of Human Aminoacyl-tRNA Synthetases into
Disease Therapy” Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of
Sciences, Shanghai
Grand Rounds at University of Miami School of Medicine
Meeting with collaborator, Dr. Gerard Bricogne, with Global Phasing Limited
Alzheimer's Association International Conference AAIC
NIH Study Section SEP reviewer
2015 ACA Annual Meeting and Poster Presentation - Philadelphia, PA
Gordon Research Conference
NIH ADDT Meeting
NIH Undiagnosed Disease Program to establish a funded collaboration
Invited speaker NIH Workshop: Genetic and molecular pathways in human aging and
longevity
Meeting with collaborators at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN
ISCT MSCT Committee Meeting
Seminar – The roles of Rok 1 and Rrp5 in 40S, Ribosome Assembly, University of
Muenster, Germany
SYNGAP Board Member Site Visit
Plenary Speaker at the Conference on Cell & Gene Therapy for HIV Cure 2015, Seattle,
WA
Conference Call with Corey McCann of Pear Therapeutics
Fei Xu, iHuman Institute, Shanghai
Meet with representatives from the International AIDS Vaccine Institute, New York,
NY
AACR Inaugural International Cancer Immunotherapy Conference, New York, NY
Invited Speaker at 2015 Metabolomics Program Consortium Meeting , University of
Kentucky, Lexington, KY
Invited speaker: 6th Annual Alliance for Healthy Aging Conference, Newcastle,
England
Attended "Neurobiology of Drosophila Meeting", Cold Spring Harbor, NY
Attended "Annual Student Symposium", Lake Arrowhead, CA
Scripps, Genzyme, Rhes & Huntington's Disease web meeting
Attend workshop on Catalysis for Qatar Environment and Energy Institute
Redox Biology Conference on "ESF-EMBO Thiol-based Redox switches in life
sciences", Vrije Universiteit, Brussels
Peer Review Panel of the EU Joint Programme -- Neurodegenerative Disease Research
for the JP co-fuND, Helsinki Finland
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
34
16-Sep-15
Laura Bohn
17-Sep-15
18-Sep-15
18-Sep-15
20-Sep-15
C. Miller
Ben Shen
Brock Grill
Gardener
29-Sep-15
12/30/201401/03/2015
12-14-Nov-14
1-4-May-15
16-19-Nov-14
19-20-Feb-15
21-24-Mar-15
Seth Tomchik
Niedernhofer
2-3-June-15
28-Jun to 3Jul-15
29-31-Jan-15
Invited Speaker - Vanderbilt University, Seminar for Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical
Biology (VICB), Nashville, TN
Invited Speaker, Janelia Farms Behavioral Epigenetics Conference
The 2nd Annual Symposium of Purdue Center for Drug Dscovery
Invited Speaker: Rutgers, Department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, Rutgers, NJ
Presenter at Harvard Medical School 23rd Fields Prize in Microbiology, nominated for
award, Boston, MA
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories Neurobiology of Drosophila Conference, New York
Hosted to Dr. Robert Sobol, University of Pittsburgh
Ben Shen
Niedernhofer
Mark Sundrud
Niedernhofer
Roy Periana,
Michael
Konnick,
Brian
Hashiguchi
Niedernhofer
Scott Hansen
Iowa State University, Seminar
Host Dr. Simon Watkins Chair of Cell Biology, University of Pittsburgh
Speaker - Concordia/NDSU, Moorshead, MN
Reviewer, NIA/NIH Study Section Cellular Mechanisms of Aging and Development
249th ACS National Meeting & Exposition, Denver, CO
Niedernhofer
Attended/presented at PPG "Cell autonomous and nonautonomous mechanisms of
aging", University of Pittsburgh
NIH study section: Member Conflict: Cell Biology, Development and Aging
23rd Annual American Association of Cancer Research
Speaker: UT Southwestern, Dallas, TX
Invited speaker/member, Genome Canada Oversight Committee
Xiamen, Genetic dissection of the neural basis for BDNF-regulated appetite and body
weight, Fujian, China
Cell Symposia: Multifaceted Mitochondria, Chicago, IL
8th IAS (International AIDS Society) Conference on Pathogenesis, Treatment &
Prevention, Vancouver
Drug Discovery and Therapy World Congress 2015, Boston, MA
NIH Study Section
Annual Meeting of the American Society of Pharmacognosy (ASP 2015), Copper
Mountain Resort and Conference Center, Copper Mountain, CO
Tau Consortium Investigator's Meeting-San Francisco, CA
IBRO Conference in Buenos Aires
Cosmetic Bootcamp
Mayo Clinic Visit
Invited speaker - ACS Meeting, Boston, MA
ACS National Meeting, Boston, MA
ISN Meeting in Cairns Australia
Attend the quarterly review meeting at Hyconix, Chicago, IL
4-5-Aug-14
7/12-7/15/15
7/13-7/14/15
7/15-7/17/15
7/1-7/4/15
Niedernhofer
Paul Robbins
Ron Davis
Patrick Griffin
Baoji Xu
7/19-7/21/15
7/19-7/22/15
Ilaria Drago
S. Valente
7/21-7/25/15
7/23-7/24/15
7/25-7/29/15
Ron Davis
Rumbaugh
Ben Shen
7/27-7/29/15
7/8-7/12/15
7/9-7/11/15
8/12-8/14/15
8/15-8/17/15
8/16-8/20/15
8/17-27/15
8/18-8/19/15
8/19-8/23/15
Disney
Martemyanov
Paul Robbins
Paul Robbins
Patrick Griffin
Ben Shen
Rumbaugh
Roy Periana,
Michael
Konnick,
Brian
Hashiguchi
Karbstein
8/21-8/22/15
Paul Robbins
8/23-8/26/15
Paul Robbins
Reviewer NIA/NIH K99 Biology of Aging Review Committee B study section
FASEB - Ion Channel Regulation
10th EMBO Conference on Ribosome Synthesis, Brussels, Belgium
Vail Scientific Summit, Regenerative & Translational Medicine: A Collaborative
Vision
Cockayne Syndrome Meeting
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
35
8/26-8/27/15
8/31-9/3/15
8/5-8/6/15
8-13-Feb-15
9/13-9/16/15
9/14-9/17/15
9/15-9/16/15
9/16-9/17/15
9/18-9/19/15
9/20-9/23/15
Brian Paegel
Kodadek &
Paegel
Disney
Niedernhofer
Cameron
Madoux
Damon Page
Kodadek
Disney
Brock Grill
9/22-9/30/15
9/24-9/26/15
9/25-9/27/15
9/29-10/05/15
Martemyanov
Patrick Griffin
Paul Robbins
Paul Robbins
9/7-9/10/15
9/7-9/9/15
9-10-Mar-15
May 31-June
01, 2015
Monthly
Monthly
Monthly
Monthly
Monthly
Monthly
yearlong
yearlong
yearlong
yearlong
yearlong
Yearlong
Yearlong
Yearlong
Yearlong
Yearlong
Yearlong
Subramaniam
Patrick Griffin
M. Farzan
Niedernhofer
Yearlong
Laura Bohn
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
P. Griffin
P. Griffin
P. Griffin
P. Griffin
P. Griffin
D. Phinney
D. Phinney
D. Phinney
Laura Bohn
Laura Bohn
Laura Bohn
Ohio State University
Fold F(x) Review Meeting-DARPA grant, Utah*
Annual Blavatnik Science Symposium-NY, NY
Session chair, Gordon Research Conference "Mammalian DNA Repair"
Invited Speaker - European Soxiety of Toxicology
HTRF 2015 Symposium, Cape Cod, USA
ERA-NET Neuron (German Federal Ministry of Education and Research) grant review
Seminar at University of Pittsburgh
2015 Annual MDF Conference, Washington, DC
AXON 2015 European Conference on Axon Guidance, Circuit Development and
Regeneration, Klosterneuburg Austria
Ribbon Synapses Conference in Germany
ASMS Board of Directors Meeting, Houston, TX
NIH Common Fund - Metabolomics Symposium
6th Annual Alliance for Healthy Aging Conference
GTC World Bio Conference, Philadelphia, PA
Invited Speaker - Ohio State University
Meet with Gates Foundation, Seattle, WA
Attended "FASEB Animals in Research and Education Subcommittee Meeting; Science
Policy Symposium; and Board of Directors Meeting", Arlington, VA
Conference call with Geropathology Network
Geropathology Network
Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN
NCATS regarding clinical trials for Cockayne syndrome
Board of Directors of FASEB
American Society for Clinical Investigation
Elected Treasurer, ASMS (American Society of Mass Spectrometry)
Molecular Pharmacology Editorial Board member
JMB Editorial Board Member
DMP Study Section Member
CDRD (Centre for Drug Research and Development) Board Member
Editor - Cytotherapy
Member - ISCT MSCT Committee
Editor, Cytotherapy
Editorial Board Member - Journal of Biological Chemistry, ASBMB Journals
Molecular Pharmacology, ASPET Journals - Editoral Board Member
ASPET Neuropharmacology Division Executive Committee - Elected Chair & Program
Committee Representative
Gordon Research Conference on Molecular Pharmacology - Conference Organizer
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
36
Itemized Report for the Year Ended September 30, 2015
INTRODUCTION
Florida Statute 288.955, referred to as the Enabling Statute, sets forth certain information that is required
to be included in the SFFC Annual Report. The information that follows has been organized to
correspond to the sections of the Enabling Statute that address information to be included in the SFFC
Annual Report. As not every section of the Enabling Statute relates to the SFFC Annual Report, only
the sections of the Enabling Statute that apply are referenced herein. For convenience, the text of the
Enabling Statue that describes the information to be reported in the SFFC Annual Report is set forth
next to each Enabling Statute section reference.
Florida Statute 288.955
Subsection (14)
ANNUAL REPORT
By December 1 of each year, the corporation shall prepare a report of the
activities and outcomes under this section for the preceding fiscal year. The
report, at a minimum, must include:
Subsection (14) (a)
A description of the activities of the corporation in managing and enforcing
the contract with the grantee.
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation Board of Directors Meetings
Purpose: To oversee the disbursement of the State’s funds invested in Scripps Florida, the Florida
Legislature created the Scripps Florida Funding Corporation, hereto referred to as SFFC, a non-profit
entity governed by a nine-member Board of Directors and one ex-officio member.
Membership: Of the Board of Directors, three members each were appointed by the Governor, the
House Speaker and the Senate President. Former Governor Bush’s appointees are Mr. David Gury,
former President and CEO of Nabi Pharmaceuticals, of Boca Raton, and Dr. Pamella Dana, Senior
Strategic Advisor for Institute for Human & Machine Cognition, of Destin. Governor Crist reappointed Mr. David Gury in March 2008 and Dr. Pamella Dana in February 2009. Governor Scott
appointed Mr. Art Wotiz, CEO of Novabone, of Jacksonville on March 25, 2013. Former Senate
President Jeff Atwater named Mr. Ed Sabin, Vice-President Biomet, Inc., of Palm Beach Gardens, on
February 9, 2009 and Mr. Gerry Goldsmith, former Chairman of First Bank of the Palm Beaches, of
Palm Beach, on November 15, 2009. Former Senate President Mike Haridopolos appointed C. Glen
Ged, a founding partner of Ellis, Ged, & Bodden, P.A., of Boca Raton on November 5, 2012. Former
speaker Dean Cannon appointed Dr. Richard M. Luceri, former Vice President of Healthcare Services
for JM Family Enterprises, Inc., and Mr. Thomas G. Kuntz, retired President and CEO of SunTrust
Bank, Florida, on August 3, 2011 who resigned his position on December 31, 2014. Speaker Will
Weatherford reappointed Dr. Luceri on January 24, 2013 to serve until November 14, 2016. Speaker
Weatherford appointed Mr. Mark J. Kasten, CEO of Kasten Insurance, of Tequesta on August 9, 2013.
The head of the Florida’s Department of Economic Opportunity or his designee may serve as an exoficio member of the SFFC meetings. Beth Walker from the DEO office has called in for the SFFC
BOD and Audit Committee meetings.
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
37
Meetings and activities: From October 1, 2014 through September 30, 2015, the SFFC Board of
Directors (“BOD”) met once on November 24, 2014 at the Scripps Florida campus in Jupiter, FL. Board
members in attendance were Chairman Mr. Dave Gury, Vice-Chair Dr. Pamella Dana, Mr. Gerry
Goldsmith, Mr. Ed Sabin, Dr. Richard Luceri, and Mr. Mark Kasten as well as Project Director Ms. Sara
Misselhorn, SFFC counsel Ms. Kathy Deutsch. Phoning in was Mr. Scott Porter, the outside auditor
from Caler, Donten, Levine, et al. Chairman Gury reviewed the future of the SFFC emphasizing that a
critical component of the future was the availability of SFFC operational funding. Ms. Misselhorn
covered the major components of the SFFC budget, followed by a BOD discussion. Questions arose on
the obligations of the BOD to continue to exist under the agreement (with or without funding) and what
the time frame was under the agreement for continued State oversight. Staff explained that under the
agreement timeline, the SFFC would no longer be receiving operational funding beyond what funds
were remaining in its account. At the expenditure rate of approximately $100k per year, the SFFC
existing funds could only sustain operations for four more years. Ms. Deutsch explained that if SFFC
was to dissolve, then any remaining money in its account would go into the Biotech fund established by
the Legislature, and that the Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) would then assume all rights
and obligations under the agreement. It was agreed that a letter from the SFFC should be sent to the
DEO to explain this situation. The BOD also discussed the Compliance Report and the need for Staff to
add components to it to evaluate royalty payments back to the State of Florida, since that part of the
requirement was now in effect. Staff was also requested to put language in the cover letter to the annual
report about the substantial amount of interest income that was generated on the funds invested by the
State of Florida into Scripps Florida, as held by the State Board of Administration and distributed to
Scripps Florida over ten-years.
SFFC Committee Meetings
Investment Committee
Purpose: The Investment Committee receives and reviews monthly investment reports from the State
Board of Administration (SBA) to ensure that SFFC’s investments are consistent with the objectives
established in the Trust Agreement and that the SFFC is able to make the disbursements anticipated in
the Operating and Funding Agreement between SFFC and TSRI.
Meetings and activities: Since the grant monies at the State Board of Administration had been
apportioned through the last disbursement and that last disbursement was made on December 2013, the
investment committee did not meet.
Audit Committee
Purpose: The Audit Committee reviews financial information and monitors the financial condition of
TSRI and Scripps Florida. The Audit Committee also engages the SFFC auditor, provides oversight for
the annual audit of SFFC and compliance monitoring of TSRI and Scripps Florida with the terms of the
Operating and Funding Agreement. The Audit Committee provides direction on the scope of the audit
engagements and reviews any finding or recommendations related to the audits. The Audit Committee,
in turn, reports its recommendations on the reports to the full Board.
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
38
The SFFC receives and the Audit Committee reviews the following reports:
 TSRI and Scripps Florida unaudited quarterly financial statements
 TSRI and Scripps Florida audited annual financial reports
 TSRI and Scripps Florida annual budgets
 Scripps Florida Annual Report
 Scripps Florida Annual Scientific Report
There are three types of annual audit reports that are received and reviewed by the Audit Committee:
I. Scripps Florida and TSRI provide the following reports to SFFC:
1) Audited financial statements of TSRI, including the operations of Scripps Florida.
2) Audited financial statements of Scripps Florida as a separate division, including a
report on internal control and compliance in accordance with Government Auditing
Standards.
3) A Federal Single Audit of TSRI in accordance with OMB Circular A-133.
The audits are prepared by Deloitte and Touche (“D&T”), the independent auditors for TSRI.
SFFC’s independent auditor has been granted access to the D&T workpapers in order to assess
the application of generally accepted accounting principles and the significant assumptions made
by TSRI management in the preparation of its financial statements.
II. SFFC receives the following reports prepared by an independent auditor engaged by the SFFC:
1) Audited financial statements of SFFC, including a report on internal controls and
compliance in accordance with Government Auditing Standards.
2) A Federal Single Audit of SFFC in accordance with OMB Circular A-133.
III. A contractual monitoring and compliance audit of the Operating and Funding Agreement
between TSRI and SFFC (“contractual monitoring and compliance audit”) to address the
Monitoring Checklist (Exhibit A-1 to the Funding and Program Agreement between OTTED
(now known as the Department of Economic Opportunity) and SFFC). The contractual
monitoring and compliance audit is completed by an independent auditor contracted by the SFFC
who verifies many of the items covered in this Annual Report, including, but not limited to:
 the number of jobs created
 the salaries and their consistency with the approved Business Plan
 designation of a person to assist in collaborative efforts with OTTED and compliance
with OTTED’s requests for cooperation
 purchase of equipment consistent with the approved budget
 achievement of collaborative efforts with Florida universities
The independent auditor contracted by the SFFC also prepares the annual not-for-profit organization tax
return (Form 990) for SFFC, which is reviewed by the Audit Committee prior to submission to the
Internal Revenue Service.
Membership: Mr. Ed Sabin was appointed as the Chairman of the Audit Committee in January 2013.
Dr. Pamella Dana and Mr. Gerry Goldsmith serve on the Audit Committee. Other participants in the
Audit Committee meetings include SFFC’s auditor, Mr. Scott Porter from Caler, Donten, Levine, Porter
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
39
& Veil, P.A., TSRI’s Chief Financial Officer, Ms. Donna Weston and TSRI’s Controller Mr. Jared
Machado.
Meetings and activities: During Fiscal 2015, the Audit Committee met on October 24 and November
24, 2014. At the October meeting, the audit committee reviewed and accepted the audit engagement
letter and then Ms. Donna Weston reviewed the March 31, 2014 and June 30, 2014 unaudited financial
statements. SFFC staff noted that there were to be some changes to the compliance audit based on the
funding being completely distributed, so they would be working on those. At the end of this meeting,
Ms. Weston commented that Scripps had received some positive national press news as TSRI was the
primary people who created the ZMapp drug which was being used to treat Ebola. In November, the
audit committee met to review the SFFC audit for inclusion in the annual report. They also discussed
possible changes in the compliance report. It was agreed that legal counsel needed to weigh in on some
of the matters to be included in the compliance report so the committee agreed to work on the
compliance report engagement letter once Ms. Deutsch had returned and reviewed it.
Reports Committee
Purpose: The predominant purpose of the Reports Committee is to review, edit and approve the SFFC
Annual Report before it is reviewed and approved by the SFFC Board of Directors.
Membership: Mr. David Gury served as the head of this committee in 2012 and in January 2013, Dr.
Luceri and Mr. Ged agreed to serve on the Reports Committee.
Meetings and Activities: The Reports Committee reviewed drafts of the annual report.
Subsection (14) (b)
An accounting of the amount of funds disbursed during the preceding fiscal
year to the grantee.
The final disbursement was made in December 2013 and consequently, the SBA and SFFC agreed to
terminate their contract in early 2014. The total amount disbursed to Scripps Florida from 2003 to 2013
was $351,977,664.39, which included interest in the amount of $41,977,664.39.
Subsection (14) (c)
An accounting of the expenditures by the grantee during the fiscal year of
funds disbursed under this section.
Category
Scientific Salaries & Benefits
Supplies
Scientific Equipment
External Affairs & Other Program Support
Project Commencement, Facilities, Administration & Capital Expenditures
Amount
$ 8,246,521
$
220,154
$ 2,465,758
$ 3,717,905
$ 7,434,639
Total
$ 22,084,977
This schedule reflects cash expenditures charged to the grant from the State of Florida from October 1,
2014 through September 30, 2015. The expense categories set forth above reflect those used by Scripps
to report grant activity to grantors. This schedule excludes unpaid commitments, unspent grant funds
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
40
received of approximately $64 million (including interest income) and expenditures funded by other
sources.
Subsection (14)(d)
Information on the number and salary level of jobs created by the grantee,
including the number and salary level of jobs created for residents of this
state.
On September 30, 2015, Scripps Florida employed 528 full-time people.
Employee Count
Year 10 Target
Position
as of September 30, 2015
(December 31, 2013)
Faculty
49
> 38
Scientific Staff
322
> 298
Administration
158
> 89
Current Total 529
Job Creations Target 545
In the above chart, faculty includes tenure track professors, associate professors and assistant
professors. Scientific staff includes non-tenure track scientists (research faculty and staff scientists),
research associates/ post-docs, lab technicians, and Scripps paid graduate students. Administration
includes all other support personnel.
Category
(as set forth in the
Revised Business Plan)
Hired
in
Fiscal
2015
Required
Salary
Range
(using CPI
6.30.15)
Professors /
Chairs
0
$163,357 $390,637
Associate
Professors
0
$99,434 $209,523
Assistant
Professors
0
Research Faculty
0
Staff Scientists
0
Research
Associates
37
Administration*
44
TOTAL
81
$85,230 $152,704
$85,230 $313,694
$63,923 $133,763
$40,248 $65,106
$57,531
Actual
Salary in
Fiscal 2015
Florida
Residents
Palm
Beach
Co.
Residents
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
3
2
24
12
27
14
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
$37,000 $53,019
$41,492**
Scripps Florida hired 81 employees between October 1, 2014 and September 30, 2015. Of the 81
employees, 27 were Florida residents of which 14 were Palm Beach County residents at the time of hire.
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
41
* Administration is a combination of Scientific Support (non-Ph.D.) and Administrative Support
positions, including newly hired graduate students. The average expected salary for this employee
category is given, rather than the range that would result in combining all Administrative position
salaries. An expected average salary, rather than a range, is a better representation because the various
job classifications and range of salaries are broad.
** This average salary represents the amount for new hires only, not for all Administration employees,
and includes the value of graduate student tuition remission. When all Administration employees are
counted, the average is approximately $54,047 at September 30, 2015.
The required salary range is adjusted annually from that stated in the revised Business Plan based on
increases in the CPI for the annual period. The base salary of all persons employed in a particular
category falls within the range for that category, as adjusted by the cumulative change to the CPI. The
CPI adjustment to salary ranges for June 2014 was 2.1%. Certain employees of Scripps Florida may
receive additional compensation for assuming administrative responsibilities beyond their scientific
duties. For example, a faculty member who also serves as an Associate Dean of the Graduate School
will receive additional compensation for that service. The ranges set forth above do not incorporate
such additional compensation.
Subsection (14) (e)
Information on the amount and nature of economic activity generated
through the activities of the grantee.
The Business Development Board of Palm Beach County is undergoing a comprehensive analysis of the
biotech industry in Palm Beach County, as part of this analysis, SFFC is working to conduct an
economic analysis of Scripps Florida and its cumulative economic effects on the County and State. This
report will cover the economic activity of the project since its inception to offer the bigger picture of its
economic impact. This report will be sent to the Governor, Speaker of the House, President of the
Senate, government agencies such as DEO and OMB, and any other entity which requests it when
completed in 2016.
Subsection (14) (f)
An assessment of factors affecting the progress toward achieving the
projected biotech industry cluster associated with the grantee’s operations,
as projected by economists on behalf of the Executive Office of the Governor.
This subsection was completed with information provided by a variety of local, regional and state life
science, economic development and life science support organizations. Following the final
organization’s synopsis, there is a listing of all the community outreach activities committed to by
Scripps Florida scientists and administrators.
BioFlorida
525 Okeechobee Blvd, Ste. 1500
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
(561) 653-3839
www.bioflorida.com
BioFlorida is the voice of Florida's life sciences industry, representing nearly 5,500 establishments
and research organizations in the biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, medical devices/diagnostics and
bioagriculture sectors that collectively employ nearly 80,000 Floridians (Source: Battelle/BIO State
Bioscience Jobs, Investments and Innovation 2014). BioFlorida’s member driven initiatives provide a
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
42
strong business climate for the advancement of innovative products that improve lives and promote
economic benefits to the state.
This past October, BioFlorida hosted its annual conference in Ft. Lauderdale. Key influencers from
emerging and established companies, universities, research institutions, economic development
agencies, investment community and the state legislature participated in the expanded programming
highlighting Florida's leading-edge science, business innovations and public policy debates. The
Conference followed three tracks: BioBusiness, BioScience and BioTrends. During the Conference,
BioFlorida emphasized the organization's successful efforts to advocate and facilitate the growth of the
industry. This included highlighting regional companies and research institutions that have
experienced success this past year. BioFlorida recognized significant achievements awarding the
BioFlorida Leadership Award, the Weaver H. Gaines Entrepreneur of the Year Award, Legislator of the
Year Awards and the David J. Gury Company of the Year Award. Nova Southeastern University was
also honored for their 50th anniversary of academic excellence.
Business Development Board of Palm Beach County
310 Evernia Street
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
(561)835-1008
www.bdb.org
The Business Development Board of Palm Beach County, Inc. (“BDB”) is a public-private partnership
established in 1982 to be the official economic development organization for Palm Beach County. It is a
non-profit organization that is funded in part by the Palm Beach County Board of County
Commissioners and in part by private corporate members. BDB is the official partner of Enterprise
Florida, Inc. in Palm Beach County.
The BDB explains that five municipalities and Palm Beach County drafted an Interlocal Agreement to
establish a Bioscience Research Protection Overlay to protect portions of land for biotechnology and
biosciences land uses that are in proximity to Scripps and Max Planck. Furthermore, several
municipalities have adopted expedited permitting initiatives for life sciences companies. Scripps has
supported, collaborated and even partnered with several of the successful companies in Palm Beach
County. Some examples of those successful companies include: Anspach Synthes, Atlas Spine,
BIOMET 3i, BioTools, Biotest Pharmaceuticals, CHS Pharma, Dyadic International, Cytonics, Envoy
Therapeutics, Opko Health and Sancilio and Company. There is a 46,000 square-foot innovation center
less than a quarter mile from Scripps Florida which holds state-of-the-art wet labs are available for lease,
with shared office and administrative services.
Palm Beach County is home to one of only four biotech investment banks nationwide: Dawson James in
Boca Raton. There are numerous angel investor networks in Palm Beach County, as well as venture
capital firms. Two in particular include New World Angels and the Gold Coast Venture Forum. New
World Angels, a group of private investors dedicated to providing equity capital to early-stage
entrepreneurial companies in the state of Florida, has chapters in South Florida and the Tampa Bay area
and is typically a lead or co-investor in transactions totaling between $0.5 million and $2.5
million. Members of NWA have extensive experience in founding, building, and managing companies
in a wide variety of industries. In addition to providing funding, NWA members make their expertise
and resource networks available to portfolio companies. The Gold Coast Venture Forum is designed to
facilitate the flow of information between entrepreneurs and investors. Created by the Gold Coast
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
43
Venture Capital Association, the Forum provides start-up, early stage, and expansion or second stage
companies, with a venue to reach funding sources, i.e; angel investors, venture capital companies,
investment bankers, fund managers, etc. The Forum also provides these companies with the opportunity
to meet professionals such as attorneys, CPAs, financial consultants, management consultants, business
plan consultants, marketing specialists, service providers, and other entrepreneurs.
The BDB supports this industry with zest and as noted in Subsection (14)(e) is in the process of
undergoing a comprehensive analysis of the life science industry in Palm Beach County.
Enterprise Florida, Inc.
800 N. Magnolia Ave., Suite 1100
Orlando, FL 32803
(407)956-5600
www.eflorida.com
Enterprise Florida, Inc. (“EFI”) is a public-private partnership serving as Florida's primary organization
devoted to statewide economic development. The organization’s mission is to facilitate job growth for
Florida's businesses and citizens leading to a vibrant statewide economy. EFI accomplishes this mission
by focusing on a wide range of industry sectors, including clean energy, life sciences, information
technology, aviation/aerospace, homeland security/defense, financial/professional services,
manufacturing and beyond. In collaboration with a statewide network of regional and local economic
development organizations, EFI helps to improve Florida's business climate, ensuring the state's global
competitiveness.
As a target industry within Florida, the life sciences are heavily supported by EFI. EFI reports that
Florida is home to more than 260 biotech companies and R&D institutes specializing in therapeutics,
diagnostics, industrial/ag biotech and other areas. Florida boasts the #3 largest medical device
manufacturing industry in the U.S. and nearly 19,000 Floridians work in this industry. Florida’s 220+
pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing companies specialize in the development and manufacture
of novel treatments, generics, nutraceuticals and OTC drugs. These companies employ nearly 4,500
researchers, engineers, technicians and workers.
EFI’s web site connects to the University of Florida’s Sid Martin Biotech Database’s Fall 2015 State of
the Industry Report. In this, it points to recently released reports from Ernst & Young and Nature
Biotechnology which indicated that the expansion of the US biotechnology sector finally turned the
corner in 2014 with a 7.2% growth rate in the number of companies during the previous 12 months. This
is the strongest nationwide showing in 5 years with an overall growth rate of 43.6% since 2008. Notably,
Florida’s biotechnology industry has grown by more than 92% over the same time period with an 8.7%
increase in the number of companies in 2014.
Florida Institute for the Commercialization of Public Research
3651 FAU Blvd., Suite 400, Boca Raton, FL 33431
747 SW 2nd Ave, Suite 258, Gainesville, FL 32601
(561)368-8889
www.florida-institute.com
The Institute for Commercialization of Public Research (“Institute”), formed in 2007, works
collaboratively with technology licensing officers across the state to create new companies and jobs in
industries that are driving the global economy. The Institute’s proven, two-pronged approach includes
both company building and company funding programs, ensuring that the most promising start-ups
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
44
receive the support and capital they need in order to grow. With funding from the State of Florida
through the Department of Economic Opportunity, and through the generosity of mentors, advisors and
donors, the Institute connects the dots between research, discovery and commercialization to build
companies that are solving some of today’s toughest challenges.
The Institute's mission is economic development through the commercialization of new discoveries
generated from publicly funded research. Success is measured by the number of companies and jobs that
are created and the amount of capital invested into new ventures. Through the Institute, Florida will
build a critical mass of technology-based companies upon publicly supported research, manifesting a
globally-recognized science and technology economy.
Throughout the year, the Institute finalized first-round funding agreements with a variety of companies,
held several “lunch and learn” sessions, assisted companies in raising seed money and participated in
state- and nation-wide conferences.
Palm Beach State College
Eissey Location - 3160 PGA Boulevard
Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410
(561)207-5059
www.palmbeachstate.edu
Palm Beach State College (“PBSC”) is Florida's first public community college. Established in 1933,
PBSC has been recognized as a premier two-year institution, lauded for achievement at the local, state
and national level. PBSC has over 48,000 students enrolled in over 100 programs of study. Currently,
PBSC offers an Associate in Science degree, Associate in Arts degree and a College Credit Certificate in
Biotechnology. PBSC has four campuses in Palm Beach County: Belle Glade, Boca Raton, Lake Worth
and Palm Beach Gardens. Plans for a fifth PBSC campus to be built in Loxahatchee Groves were
recently announced.
PBSC’s BioScience and Technology Complex opened for classes Spring 2008: this 90,000-square foot,
$15 million science and technology complex features two wings connected by a multi-media lecture hall
and courtyard. The building encompasses state-of-the-art classrooms and laboratories for the core
science classes (biology, microbiology, anatomy and physiology, physics and chemistry). The second
wing houses biotechnology, environmental science, and environmental horticulture classrooms and labs.
The new innovative center will lead in the training of future science-related professionals. These
components are vital for the success of students entering into the science and biotechnology workforce
in South Florida.
Companies interested in renting laboratory space for R&D or academic biotechnology startup activities
may rent bench and office space in this facility, demonstrating how PBSC helps support the industry not
only through education, but also through providing incubator space at a nominal fee.
Scripps Florida scientists serve as Adjunct Professors in the Biotechnology Program and provide
valuable input regarding curriculum development and internships. Palm Beach State offers AA and AS
degree programs, a Biotechnology College Credit Certificate (CCC) and a non-credit Advanced
Laboratory Techniques in Biotechnology program is also available through Palm Beach State's
Corporate and Continuing Education Department. This outstanding division offers students the ability to
expand their laboratory skills and techniques, at an advanced level, while using our extensive biotech
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
45
equipment, including a DNA sequencer and bioreactors, housed in our state of the art labs. Palm Beach
State's biotech business partnership, consisting of over 25 different biotech firms, allows our students
unique internship opportunities which develop the skills and gain the experience required for a
successful career in the biotechnology field.
The Biotechnology program has seen significant gains in student employment following graduation. In
2015, students and recent and graduates received full-time employment offers from numerous county
biotechnology companies including Sancilio & Company (Riviera Beach), Akron Biotech (Boca Raton),
Biotest Pharmaceuticals (Boca Raton), Dyadic International (Jupiter), as well as Scripps Florida
(Jupiter).
Research Park at Florida Atlantic University
3651 FAU Boulevard, Suite 400
Boca Raton, FL 33431
(561)416-6092
www.research-park.org
The Research Park at Florida Atlantic University is the only state university affiliated research park in
South Florida, and is home to 22 high tech, high wage companies and five support organizations. In
addition, the Research Park at Florida Atlantic University operates the premier Technology Business
Incubator (TBI) in the region, which is managed by a very successful regional economic development
engine, Enterprise Development Corporation of South Florida (EDC). Also housed in the TBI are two
organizations: New World Angels, a structured angel investor group and the Institute for the
Commercialization of Public Research, a clearinghouse for Florida’s technology transfer offices and
other publicly funded research institutes.
In 2000, responding to a lack of available resources for local entrepreneurs and early stage companies,
the Research Park started the region’s first business incubator, and the Technology Business Incubator
(TBI) was born. The TBI works closely with start-ups and middle-stage companies, providing costeffective space solutions, valuable mentoring and resources, and a deep network of professionals
dedicated to growing the entrepreneurial base in the region.
2014 marked a pivotal turning point in the Research Park ecosystem with the establishment of Florida
Atlantic University’s Tech Runway initiative. Conveniently located within the Research Park and close
to the TBI, Tech Runway is the heretofore missing link in South Florida’s entrepreneurial supply chain.
By establishing a place and program dedicated to helping students, faculty, and alumni move past the
ideation stage of business development and provide budding entrepreneurs a boot-camp approach to the
start-up process, Tech Runway is filling the gap between entities that are too early-stage for the
incubator, and scaling them to middle-stage growth. After this period of pre-incubation, these companies
are ready to grow into the Technology Business Incubator and eventually the broader Research Park.
This entrepreneurial ecosystem allows the Research Park to cultivate local talent, attract global
entrepreneurs, and keep the region at the forefront of economic growth and technological innovation.
For 2014, the FAU Research park boasted total employment of 1,798 with an average salary of $87,077
18 research park companies, 37 new patents received, $49.1m in New Capital Raised and a total
economic impact of $755.3m.
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
46
CareerSource Palm Beach County
3400 Belvedere Road
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
(561)340-1060
http://www.careersourcepbc.com
CareerSource Palm Beach County’s dedicated team of career counselors, business coaches and training
providers – and career centers in West Palm Beach and Belle Glade – help area businesses stay
competitive through training grants and talent acquisition, and job seekers find new jobs through career
assessments, training and employment assistance. CareerSource Palm Beach County is chartered by the
state of Florida to develop and retain a high quality workforce system in Palm Beach County. Its career
centers are instrumental in placing thousands of entry-level through executive suite job seekers.
CareerSource Palm Beach County works with organizations such as BioFlorida and the Life Science
Technology Hub; educational entities such as Florida Atlantic University, Scripps Florida, Palm Beach
State College and the Banner Center for Life Sciences; and a multitude of companies that have
collaborated to advance the life sciences in Palm Beach County. The Business Development Board is a
close partner and spearheads the Life Sciences Strategic Steering Group with the goal of furthering the
economic and talent development of the life sciences.
The following are some of the activities in which Scripps Florida scientists interact with the community:
Date
1-Oct-14
2-Oct-14
6-Oct-14
6-Oct-14
8-Oct-14
16-Oct-14
16-Oct-14
17-Oct-14
20-Oct-14
21-Oct-14
24-Oct-14
30-Oct-14
3-Nov-14
10-Nov-14
11-Nov-14
11-Nov-14
13-Nov-14
13-Nov-14
1-Dec-14
3-Dec-14
5-Dec-14
9-Dec-14
10-Dec-14
11-Dec-14
17-Dec-14
Participant(s)
Event / Location
Kodadek
Kodadek
Kodadek
Kodadek
Niedernhofer
Smith, Miller,
Robbins,
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Kodadek
Kodadek
Paul Robbins
Kodadek
Kodadek
Ron Davis
Niedernhofer
Thomas Kodadek
Matt Disney
Thomas Kodadek
Ron Davis
Martemyanov,
Puthanveettil
Ron Davis
Thomas Kodadek
Paul Robbins
Thomas Kodadek
Niedernhofer
Christoph Rader
Focus Group Meeting with Margaret Wilesmith
Moments of Change Conference at The Breakers
Kravis Center Forum Club
Homeless Coalititon Event
Lunch & Scripps Tour with Philanthropy guest Diane Trout
Philanthrophy Event: BMO/Harris Bank - Aging Presentations
BMO Cocktail Reception and tour of Scripps
LPBC Bowl-a-thon
Palm Beach Civic Association meeting
District 18 Congressional Debate
Leadership Palm Beach County
Keynote speaker at Ballenisles LGA Welcome Back Lunch
Meeting and Tour with Community Foundation (D. Houston), Scripps Florida
Scripps tours for philanthropy
Frenchman's Creek Cancer/ALS Event
Night at Frenchmen's Creek
Address North County Development Board Meeting
Community Foundation presentation at Palm Beach Yacht Club, West Palm Beach
O'Keefe Symposia
Alzheimer’s presentation at Palm Beach Yacht Club, West Palm Beach, FL
Leadership Palm Beach County
Philanthropy Lunch & Learn Presentation
Frenchman's Creek Lab tour and lunch
"Smith College Club", EastPointe Country Club, Jupiter, FL Guest speaker
Klorfine Foundation, Scripps Florida Campus
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
47
29-Dec-14
5-Jan-15
7-Jan-15
12-Jan-15
13-Jan-15
14-Jan-15
14-Jan-15
16-Jan-15
20-Jan-15
22-Jan-15
22-Jan-15
23-Jan-15
28-Jan-15
1-Feb-15
3-Feb-15
3-Feb-15
10-Feb-15
12-Feb-15
15-Feb-15
19-Feb-15
21-Feb-15
22-Feb-15
26-Feb-15
26-Feb-15
26-Feb-15
27-Feb-15
9-Mar-15
10-Mar-15
11-Mar-15
12-Mar-15
15-Mar-15
15-Mar-15
15-Mar-15
16-Mar-15
21-Mar-15
22-Mar-15
25-Mar-15
31-Mar-15
31-Mar-15
1-Apr-15
1-Apr-15
10-Apr-15
14-Apr-15
14-Apr-15
15-Apr-15
16-Apr-15
18-Apr-15
Thomas Kodadek
Thomas Kodadek
Thomas Kodadek
Thomas Kodadek
Ron Davis
Ron Davis
Niedernhofer
Thomas Kodadek
Roy Smtih
Thomas Kodadek
Matt Disney
Thomas Kodadek
Niedernhofer
Martemyanov
Hyeryun Choe
Ron Davis
Thomas Kodadek
Thomas Kodadek
Martemyanov,
Puthanveettil
Thomas Kodadek
Thomas Kodadek
Thomas Kodadek
Thomas Kodadek
Davis, Page, Grill
Niedernhofer
Thomas Kodadek
Thomas Kodadek
Courtney Miller
Ron Davis
Patrick Griffin
Martemyanov,
Puthanveettil
Kirill
Martemyanov
Gavin Rumbaugh
Damon Page
Mark Sundrud
Davis, Smith
Davis, Page, Grill
Thomas Kodadek
Damon Page
Ron Davis,
Damon Page
Niedernhofer
Seth Tomchik
Ron Davis
Davis, Smith
Thomas Kodadek
Thomas Kodadek
Roy Smith
Venture Meeting
BCG interview on cancer immunotherapy and innovation waves in oncology
PGA National Forum
Economic Forum of PBC at the Kravis
Alzheimer presentation at Mandel Jewish Community Center, Palm Beach Gardens
Ryan Licht Sang Symposium: Onset Bipolar Medical Briefing Luncheon, Palm Beach
Hunters Run TSRI Tour
Leadership Palm Beach County meeting
Philanthrophy: Women of Vision PNC Event
LPBC Reception at Scripps
Leadership Palm Beach County
Hosted Frenchman's Creek Women's Cancer Association dinner
Women's Foundation of Palm Beach County Meeting
Neuroscience Symposia
Infectious Diseases in Children, NJ
Meeting and Tour with Community Foundation (D. Hanley), Scripps Florida
Meeting at Lewis Center-Food for Homeless
PGA Women's Cancer Awareness Days Luncheon
O'Keefe Symposia
Greenwich CT Public radio station interview regarding BioMedical Research
Black Ties & French Fries in Wonderland
Hosted Families First dinner
Presentation to the Central Palm Beach County Chamber of Commerce
O'Keeffe Neuroscience Symposium
Scripps tour for American Association of University Women of Palm Beach County
Frenchman's Creek Focus Group
Palm Beach State College Congressional Awards
The Society of the Four Arts, Guest Speaker
Mass General Alzheimers Presentation - Lake Pavillion, West Palm Beach, FL
Presentation/discussion on diabetes presented to Mandel JCC
Carol Mostad Group
Northern Trust Event
Society for the 4 Arts Presentation
Autism Speaks Town Hall Meeting, Palm Beach Country Club, Palm Beach, FL
Speaker - Crohn's & Colitis Foundation education program, Jupiter Medical Center
Scripps Science will make 80 the new 50 at Palm Beach Country Club, Palm Beach
O'Keeffe Neuroscience / Northern Trust March Session Neurological Issues
presentation, Scripps Florida
Meeting w/ Margaux's Miracle Foundation about Childhood Ewing's Sarcoma Research
Autism Event at Palm Beach Yacht Club, West Palm Beach, FL
O'Keeffe Neuroscience Symposium Dinner "Brain Health: Understanding Brain
Disorders", Scripps Florida
TSRI Aloha event
Palm Beach Mental Health Association Lunch and Learn
Sea Colony Tour, Scripps Florida
Quantum Foundation, Scripps Florida
Presentation to the Jewish Community Center
Families First
Prader Willi Florida Chapter, Invited Speaker
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
48
23-Apr-15
24-Apr-15
24-Apr-15
Paul Robbins
Thomas Kodadek
Gill
Meeting with June Jones at Scripps
LPBC Excellence Award
PNC Food for Thought Lunch Series
28-Apr-15
Thomas Kodadek
PGA National gift presentation to Scripps Cancer Biology department
28-Apr-15
Patrick Griffin,
Chakraborty
Ja, Niedernhofer
Paul Robbins
Niedernhofer
Thomas Kodadek
Thomas Kodadek
Thomas Kodadek
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Thomas Kodadek
Niedernhofer
Paul Robbins
Niedernhofer
Davis, Page,
Berry, Pryor
Niedernhofer
Thomas Kodadek
Thomas Kodadek
Martemyanov,
Puthanveettil
Thomas Kodadek
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Ron Davis
Scampavia, Spicer
Seth Tomchik
Davis, Page, Grill
Donald Phinney
Thomas Kodadek
Brock Grill
Roy Smith
Robbins,
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Courtney Miller
Courtney Miller
Courtney Miller
Courtney Miller
Brian Paegel
Thomas Kodadek
Scripps Faculty
Davis, Page, Grill,
Chen
Niedernhofer
Diabetes presentation and receptioin @ Scripps Florida
28-Apr-15
28-Apr-15
5-May-15
6-May-15
7-May-15
11-May-15
11-May-15
11-May-15
16-May-15
18-May-15
18-May-15
28-May-15
3-Jun-15
8-Jun-15
9-Jun-15
10-Jun-15
15-Jun-15
17-Jun-15
17-Jun-15
23-Jun-15
Jul-15
Jul-15
2-Jul-15
8-Jul-15
9-Jul-15
9-Jul-15
15-Jul-15
15-Jul-15
17-Jul-15
28-Jul-15
28-Jul-15
Aug-15
5-Aug-15
7-Aug-15
10-Aug-15
11-Aug-15
13-Aug-15
27-Aug-15
1/28-31/15
10/2027/14
Monthly
Invited Speaker, Palm Beach Yacht Club
Presentation at Palm Beach Yacht Club
Presenter at the Young Entrepreneurs Academy graduation
Lewis Center
Presentation to The Nexus Society
BDB Life Sciences & Healthcare Task Force
Radio Show interview by Scott Greenberg, OMG my mom's getting older and so am I!
FAU Medical School Celebration at the home of Sydell Miller, Palm Beach
Central Palm Beach Chamber of Commerce
Vice Mayor Mary Lou Berger tour of Scripps
Vice Mayor Berger visit
Attended BioFlorida "Raising Capital for Biotech Ventures in Florida", Scripps-Florida
Community Foundation at Kravis Center, West Palm Beach, FL
Videographer/Interview for TSRI
Faculty representative for the Community Relations Group Meeting at Scripps
Address Economic Forum at the Kravis Center
Foundations Symposia
North Palm Beach Chamber of Commerce
Business Before Hours - State of the Chamber: Game Changer Edition
TSRI Tours for Philanthropy
NCNC Tour of Scripps
North Palm Beach Chamber hYPE Steering Council
Iris and Junming Le Foundation Tour, Scripps Florida
HTS laboratory presentation: Dr. Fred Sanfilippo, Marcus Foundation
O'Keeffe Seminar Demonstration at Scripps, "Watching Memories Form in the Brain"
O’Keeffe Neuroscience Symposium - Foundations, Scripps Florida
North Palm Beach Chamber of Commerce Meeting
North Palm Beach Chamber of Commerce Breakfast
Podcast participation: People behind the science. McNeely host.
Dept Chairs Roundtable Discussion with Paul Bradshaw and Jerry McDaniel
NCNC Tour of Metabolism & Aging
CBS News program
Press interview with Michael Miller, Washington Post
Press interview with Mike Kasper, KCBS San Francisco
Press interview with Caroline Gregoire, Huffington Post
Press interview with Ellie Robins, The Fix
Palm Beach County Science Symposium
CBS News Interview
CELLebrate Science Reception, Gardens Mall, Palm Beach Gardens, FL
O'Keeffe Neuroscience Symposium
Community Relations Group Scripps FL, Meetings
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
49
Monthly
Monthly
Monthly
Quarterly
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Scripps Florida representative to the Northern Palm Beach County Chamber, Trustee
Faculty Philanthropy Committee
Organizer of WFPBC GLI-STEM, monthly organizational meetings
Meeting with Ms. June Jones, Scripps benefactor
Subsection (14) (g) A compliance and financial audit of the accounts and records of the
corporation at the end of the preceding fiscal year conducted by an independent certified public
accountant in accordance with the rules of the Auditor General.
Please see the “SFFC Audit 2015” file at the end of this report.
Subsection (14) (h)
A description of the status of performance expectations under subsection (9)
and the disbursement conditions under subsection (10).
Subsection (9)
PERFORMANCE EXPECTATIONS
Subsection (9) (a)
The number and dollar value of research grants obtained from the Federal
Government or sources other than this state.
Between October 1, 2014 and September 30, 2015, Scripps Florida scientists were awarded 64 research
grants from non-Florida sources. Those 64 grants were for a total of $60,066,416.
Subsection (9) (b)
The percentage of total research dollars received by TSRI from sources other
than this state which is used to conduct research activities by the grantee in
this state.
For fiscal 2015, the percent of research funding from sources other than SFFC was 85%.
Subsection (9) (c)
The number or value of patents obtained by the grantee.
In fiscal 2015, 37 foreign and domestic patent applications were filed. Since inception, 85 “families” of
patent applications have been filed covering Scripps Florida technology, with each family containing 2-6
patent applications. The patents are still under review and no value has been assigned to them.
Subsection (9) (d)
The number or value of licensing agreements executed by the grantee.
Two license agreements were executed during fiscal 2015 with respect to Scripps Florida technologies.
Subsection (9) (e)
The extent to which research conducted by the grantee results in commercial
applications.
Because of the early stage of the technology being developed at Scripps Florida, no commercial
applications have emerged to date. Several research reagents developed at Scripps Florida are now
commercially available through license agreements.
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
50
Subsection (9)(f)
The number of collaborative agreements reached and maintained with
colleges and universities in this state and with research institutions in this
state, including agreements that foster participation in research
opportunities by public and private colleges and universities and research
institutions in this state with significant minority populations, including
historically black colleges and universities.
The Scripps Research Institute has developed a template entitled the Joint Cooperation Agreement
(JCA) to encourage and support research collaborations with Florida institutions. Provisions are
included to make it easier to collaborate on filing patents for jointly developed technologies and to share
revenues from commercialized innovations. By executing these agreements in advance, TSRI expects to
streamline the scientific collaboration process between Florida organizations and Scripps Florida as they
work together on biomedical research. Nine Florida institutions have currently executed this formal
agreement with TSRI: Florida International University, University of Florida, Florida Atlantic
University, University of Central Florida, University of Miami, Florida State University, Nova
Southeastern University, University of South Florida and Max Planck Florida Institute.
Scripps Florida Institutional
Collaborator
Collaborator Institution
William Roush
Gregg Fields
FAU
William Roush
Dimitriy Minond
TPIMS
William Roush
Nagi Ayad
U Miami
William Roush
Daiqing Liao
U of FL
Karbstein
FSU
Karbstein
Elizabeth
Stroupe
John Cleveland
Puthanveettil
Puthanveettil
Puthanveettil
Puthanveettil
Puthanveettil
Mark Sundrud
Tom Capo
Lynne Fieber
Leonid Moroz
Robert Stackman
Long Yan
Maria T Abreu
Niedernhofer
William
Hauswirth
Janet Blanks
Michal
Masternak
Eduardo
Sotomajor
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Christoph
Rader
Description of Collaboration
U of FL
Design and synthesis of inhibitors of metallomatrix
proteinases
Design and synthesis of inhibitors of metallomatrix
proteinases (MMP’s and ADAM’s)
Design, synthesis and biological characterization of
inhibitors of Wee1degradation
Design, synthesis and biological characterization of
inhibitors of class I HDACs and lysine acetyl transferase
P300
Electron microscopic analysis of pre-ribosomal complexes
and ribosome assembly factors.
The role of CK1delta in ribosome maturation and
tumorigenesis
Aplysia Aging
Aplysia Aging
Aplysia Genome
Long-term memory storage
Super Resolution Microscopy
Immunophenotypic analysis of inflammatory immune cells
in Crohn’s disease patient tissues
Aging-related loss of vision
FAU
UCF
Aging-related loss of vision
Role of the somatotroph axis in aging
H. Lee Moffitt
Cancer Center &
Research Institute
(Tampa, FL)
Antibody-drug conjugates targeting mantle cell lymphoma
Moffit Cancer
Center
U Miami
U Miami
U of FL
FAU
MPFI
U Miami
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
51
Christoph
Rader
Lori A.
Hazlehurst
Christoph
Rader
Ronan T. Swords
Michael Farzan
Martemyanov
Martemyanov
Dr. Ron
Desrosiers, Dr.
Deshraim
Ashana
Ken DawsonScully
Yuquin Li
Ryohei Yasuda
Martemyanov
Samuel Young
Matthew
Disney
Thomas
Bannister
Thomas
Bannister
Thomas
Bannister
Leonard
Petrucelli
Claes
Wahlestedt
John L.
Cleveland
Shouguang Jin
Susana Valente
Jay McLaughlin
William Ja
Min Guo
Ken DawsonScully
Matthew Gill,
William Ja, and
Anutosh
Chakraborty
TSRI; Kailiang
Jia, FAU; and
Jun-Yong Cho,
Rosalind
Franklin
University of
Medicine and
Science
John Cleveland
Min Guo
Alan Marshall
Brock Grill
Shuji Kishi
H. Lee Moffitt
Cancer Center &
Research Institute
(Tampa, FL)
University of
Miami Miller
School of Medicine
(Miami, FL)
U of Miami
Chemically programmed antibodies targeting multiple
myeloma
FAU
Circuit and molecular mechanisms of electroconvulsive
seizure in the nematode C. elegans
Use of genetic mouse models
Imaging neuronal signaling
U of FL
Max Planck
Florida Institute
Max Planck
Florida Institute
Mayo Clinic,
Jacksonville, FL
U of Miami
Biomarker discovery in acute myeloid leukemia
Therapeutic effector functions of AAV-expressed transgenes
Electrophysiological characterization of mouse models
Inhibitors of c9RAN Translated Peptides and Toxicity in
c9FTD/ALS
Nociceptin Receptor Agonists for Cocaine Abuse and PTSD
Moffitt Cancer
Center- Tampa
University of
Florida College of
Pharmacy
University of
Florida
FAU
Targeting Slc16a/Mct Lactate Transporters in Cancer
Therapeutics
Countering beta-lactam resistance in Pseudomonas
aeruginosa
FAU
Cross-species genetics of Spinster genes in development and
senescence/aging
Moffit Cancer
Center
Fluorophore-NanoLuc BRET Reporters Enable Sensitive In
Vivo Optical Imaging and Flow Cytometry for Monitoring
Tumorigenesis.
Structural and Functional Studies of LysRS in Mast Cell
Activation
Florida State
University
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
dCA inhibition of Tat neurological activity
Drosophila aging and nutrition
52
Donald Phinney
Dr. Elliott
University of
Miami, Miami,
Florida
Patrick Griffin
Dr. Gary Laco
Donald Phinney
Dr. Singla
The Roskamp
Institute, Sarasota,
Florida
University of
Central Florida,
Orlando, FL
Scampavia
Shouguang Jin
UF
Scampavia
Paul Robbins
Paul Robbins
Paul Robbins
Dimitriy Minond
Ghivizanni
Ricordi, Camillo
Michal
Masternak
Noam Alperin,
Kenneth Weiss
Xianlin Han
TPIMS
U of F
U of Miami
University of
Central Florida
University of
Miami, Miami, FL
Sanford Burnham
Institute Orlando,
Orlando, FL
Scott Hansen
Scott Hansen
Scripps provides mesenchymal stem cells derived from the
bone marrow of inbred, transgenic or knockout mice isolated
via immune-depletion and expanded in a closed, low oxygen
(5%) system
HDX collaboration on HIV drug target
Scripps provides recombinant retroviral expression vectors
and UCF transfects or infects the constructs and virus
containing the constructs into human ES and iPS cells
maintained in his lab
Countering beta-lactam resistance in Pseudomonas
aeruginosa
HTS for selective inhibitors of Meprin alpha and beta
Arthritis gene therapy
Diabetes therapies, exosomes
Mesenchymal stem cells from fat vs. bone marrow to treat
aging
The effects of intracranial pressure on headache
Role of signaling lipids in anesthesia
Scripps Florida scientists hosted, participated and presented in a variety of forums, conferences and
meetings in the local area and throughout the State of Florida from October 1, 2014 through September
30, 2015.
Date
Participant
10/1/2014
10/3/2014
10/7/2014
10/8/2014
10/10/2014
10/22/2014
10/24/2014
11/1/2014
11/18/2014
12/5/2014
12/12/2014
12/13/2014
12/17/2014
12/19/2014
Ja
Brock Grill
C. Miller
H. Choe
H. Choe
C. Rader
Roy Smith
Ja
C. Miller
H. Choe
M. Sundrud
Roy Smith
M. Gardner
Niedernhofer
1/9/2015
1/23/2015
1/30/2015
2/5/2015
2/6/2015
2/27/2015
Brock Grill
Niedernhofer
Ron Davis
T. Kodadek
M. Sundrud
Matt Disney
Event
Presented at "PNC Food for Thought Lunch Series", Scripps-Florida, Jupiter, FL
Speaker: University of South Florida, Tampa Bay, FL
Meeting with FAU Neuroscience Guest Speaker, David Dietz
Dr. Sharon Isern, Florida Gulf Coast University, Ft. Myers, FL
Dr. Sirish Namilae, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, FL
Invited Speaker, Department of Infectious Diseases, TSRI-Florida
Sancilio & Co Scientific Advisory Board Meeting
Attended "Florida Biomedical Career Symposium", Scripps-Florida, Jupiter, FL
Karen Dodge meeting
Reviewer, CFAR Pilot Grants, HIV-1 Vaccines and Immunology
Speaker - VGTI Florida, Port St. Lucie, FL
MPFI Neuroscience Discovery Day
Presentation at the University of Miami
Presented at the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Dept. Seminar Series at University of
Miami School of Medicine, Miami, FL
Speaker: TINNS Seminar Series, FAU Jupiter, FL
Invited speaker Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Central Florida
FAU Poster Event - Synapse 2015 - Jupiter, FL
Neil DeGrass Tyson seminar and lunch at the Kravis
Speaker - FAU, Department of Basic Sciences, Boca Raton, FL
Frenchman's Creek Luncheon Invitation
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
53
3/1/2015
4/1/2015
4/9/2015
4/13/2015
4/16/2015
4/18/2015
Murphy
Ja
S. Tomchik
Brock Grill
S. Tomchik
See list of
participants
4/22/2015
5/21/2015
6/1/2015
6/15/2015
6/23/2015
7/27/2014
3/30/2015
M. Gardner
M. Farzan
Damon Page
Martemyanov
T. Kodadek
Damon Page
See list of
participants
4-31-May15
10/9/2014
Andrew Giles
Jan-Feb-15
Monthly
ongoing
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Phinney,
Haga
Brock Grill
Niedernhofer
ongoing
13-15Sept-14
8/28/2014
10/28/2014
12/19/2014
5/11/2015
5/28/2015
07/2014present
07/01/14 06/30/15
7/2/2015
7/9/2015
7/10/2015
7/22/2015
8/10-12/15
8/18/2015
8/19/2015
8/20/2015
Doug Kojetin
Attended "MPFI Sunposium 2015: Neural Circuits and Sunshine", Palm Beach Gardens, FL
Attended "Flies on the Beach Conference", FAU Jupiter Campus, Jupiter, FL
Host Scripps - Florida External Seminar Series Speaker, Shawn Xu
Speaker: University of Miami Dept of Biology Seminar Series, Miami FL
Talk LSSF Webinar
2015 Flies on the Beach, FAU Boca Raton Florida. Participants: Damon Page, Ron Davis,
Germain Busto, Ilaria Drago, Anna Phan, Isaac Cervantes-Sandoval, Jacob Berry, Ze Liu,
Yunchao Gai, Sophie Ziegler-Himmelreich
University of Miami
Eli Gilboa, Director of the Dodson Interdisciplinary Immunotherapy Institute, Miami, FL
Speaker: FAU CARD - Autism Breakfast, FAU Boca Raton, FL
FASEB Meeting
Speaker at American Peptide Symposium, Orlando, FL
Speaker: Florida Brain Project Symposium, Tallahassee, FL
Max Planck Florida Institute Sunposium 2015 at PGA National, Palm Beach Gardens, FL.
Participants: Ron Davis, Germain Busto, Tugba Guven-Ozkan, Ilaria Drago, Anna Phan,
Isaac Cervantes-Sandoval, Jacob Berry, Ze Liu, Yunchao Gai, Nathaniel Noyes, Sophie
Ziegler-Himmelreich, Andrew Giles, Scott Baker, Youjun Chen, Amy Clipperton-Allen,
Wen-Chin Huang, Julien Sejourne, Courtney Miller, Seth Tomchik
University of South Florida - College of Marine Science: Software Carpentry, St.
Petersburg, FL
National High Magnetic Field Laboratory User Committee meeting, Tallahassee, FL
Interviewer for the TSRI Graduate Program
Supervisory role for TSRI Histology Core
Life Science Technology Hub Meetings
Paul Robbins
Paul Robbins
Paul Robbins
Paul Robbins
Paul Robbins
Bill Ja
Faculty Search Committee, FAU Jupiter, FL
Attended/Presented "Environmental Mutagenesis and Genomics Society 45th Annual
Meeting", Orlando, FL
Univesity of Miami Visit to meet with Dr. Camillo Ricordi
Meeting with Exiqon - exosomes advances, biomarker discovery and pipeline validation
University of Miami - seminar - Diabetes Research Institute
To The Point Interview - Radio Show
Participant - BioFlorida
Mentor Keith Murphy, Graduate Student, FAU
Laura Bohn
Intern/Thesis Advisor to 1 FAU undergraduate
Smith,
Grande,
Levine
L.Scampavia,
Tim Spicer
S. Valente
Joseph Kissil
P. Griffin
X. Pan
Kamenecka
S. Valente
Prader Willi Syndrome Foundation
Meeting with Shouguang J.; Langaee T. University of Florida
CFAR Miami, Florida State Pilot Awards Reviews
Basic research Grand Rounds at Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, FL
ASMS Board of Directors Meeting, Clearwater, FL
Attend the 250th American Chemical Society National Mtg & Exposition
Attend the Orexin-1 Antagonist for Smoking Cessation Project planning meeting
Jennifer Rainho Thesis Defense, Mario Stevenson Laboratory, University of Miami,
External Thesis Seminar
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
54
8/24/2015
8/26/2015
8/27/2015
9/5/2015
9/10/2015
September
16-17,
2015
L.Scampavia,
Tim Spicer
Christoph
Rader
L.Scampavia,
Tim Spicer
C. Bailey
Ron Davis
Valente,
Mousseau,
Houssier,
Kessing
Subsection (9) (g)
Unnasch T.R. Department Chair of Global Health, USF
Meeting with collaborators at the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of
Miami, Miami, FL, on the topic “Antibody drug and target discovery in acute myeloid
leukemia”
Schatzle J,. Director of Basic and Population Science Shared Resources at Moffitt Cancer
Center
Present at University of Miami - Miami, FL
Speaker at FSU, Biological Science Colloquium, Tallahassee, FL
BTS (Bridging the Sciences) Ft Lauderdale
The number of collaborative partnerships established and maintained with
businesses in this state.
Scripps Florida continues to maintain collaborative relationships with these Florida based biotechnology
companies:
Dyadic
A collaborative effort between scientists at Scripps Florida and Dyadic was established to provide a
complete annotation of the genome of Dyadic's proprietary fungal organism, Chrysosporium
lucknowense ("C1"). The knowledge gained from this effort is expected to facilitate further development
of the C1 Host Technology as a robust platform for the discovery, development and production of
various materials for medical and industrial applications. Furthermore, this collaboration promotes the
development of a successful biotechnology cluster in South Florida as Dyadic International, Inc. is a
global biotechnology company based in Jupiter, Florida.
Florida Power and Light
Scripps is collaborating with Florida Power and Light, a Juno Beach, Florida-based power utility that is
the principal subsidiary of NextEra Energy Inc., to develop novel and proprietary technology which may
yield cheaper and more effective ways at producing fuels and other commodities from natural gas
Opko Health
Opko Health, Inc., based in Miami, is a publicly traded healthcare company involved in the discovery,
development, and commercialization of pharmaceutical products, vaccines and diagnostic products.
Opko and Scripps are currently collaborating in three major areas: the area of novel diagnostic products
to detect Alzheimer’s and other diseases, the development of novel drug candidates to treat Parkinson’s
Disease, and the discovery of novel antibodies.
Vova Ida Therapeutics
Vova Ida Therapeutics is a Palm beach County-based company founded in 2013 to commercialize
research from Corinne Lasmeza’s lab at Scripps Florida. Lasmeza is a professor in the Department of
Infectious Diseases and her lab researches neurodegenerative diseases.
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
55
Subsection (9) (h)
The total amount of funding received by the grantee from sources other than
the State of Florida.
Since inception, Scripps Florida has been awarded approximately $473 million from non-State fund,
including state and federal agencies, such as the NIH, foundations, pharmaceutical companies and other
grantors.
During fiscal 2015, Scripps Florida received the following grants:
GRANT AWARDS ($472,554,164 since inception) 1
$60,066,416
2
OTHER REVENUE SOURCES
($289,808)
3
CONTRIBUTIONS AT NET PRESENT VALUE
$3,669,283
$63,445,891
TOTAL
1
This amount includes federal funding of $43,516,138 for fiscal 2015.
2
Other Revenue Sources:
Other
$929,605
Investment Income on Florida funds ($1,219,413)
Total
($289,808)
3
Contributions include gifts not dedicated to a specific type of research; grants typically have a
dedicated area of research or are awarded to a specific scientist.
Please note: Palm Beach County provided the funding for the land and buildings for Scripps Florida.
The County funds expended to date by fiscal year are as follows: 2004 - $1,713,494, 2005 $11,419,527, 2006 - $12,557,455, 2007 - $59,215,156, 2008 - $90,353,050, 2009 - $34,810,750, for a
total of $210,069,431. Palm Beach County has completed work on the permanent facilities so it is
unlikely that there will be a change in the total amount of funds expended by the County in future years.
Subsection (9) (i)
The number or value of spin-off businesses created in this state as a result of
commercialization of the research of the grantee.
The three Florida companies that spun off from Scripps Florida and the additional Florida company
located in Jupiter to access Scripps Florida - Envoy Therapeutics - are described in Section (9)(g). In
February 2011, CuRNA, based on research by Claes Wahlestedt, a Professor in Molecular Therapeutics
Department of Scripps Florida, was one of the first spin-offs from Scripps Florida and was purchased by
Miami-based Opko Health for $10,000,000. In November 2012, Envoy Therapeutics was purchased by
Japan-based Takeda Pharmaceuticals for $140,000,000.
Subsection (9) (j)
The number or value of businesses recruited to this state by the grantee.
To assign a numerical value to business recruitment activities is virtually impossible. Scripps Florida is
extensively involved in local, state and national efforts to promote and develop the biotech industry in
the State of Florida. Please see the detailed list of outreach activities to businesses in Subsection (10)(l).
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
56
Subsection (9)(k)
The establishment and implementation of policies to promote supplier
diversity using the guidelines developed by the Office of Supplier Diversity
under s. 287.09451 and to comply with the ordinances, enacted by the County
and which are applicable to this biomedical research institution and campus
located in this state.
Scripps Florida has adopted the following Mission and Vision Statements for Supplier Diversity:
Mission: Scripps Florida’s Supplier Relations and Diversity Program will integrate small and diverse
businesses into the procurement process - creating awareness, ownership, and an understanding of the
principals of a competitive supply base. These partnerships will maximize cost savings and efficiencies
within Scripps Florida’s internal processes and supply chain.
Vision: Scripps Florida recognizes the importance of a diverse supply chain and strives to develop
relationships with small and diverse life science and service suppliers who can assist in achieving
Scripps Florida’s biomedical research goals. Also, Scripps Florida expects its strategic suppliers to
establish business opportunities for small and diverse suppliers.
Subsection (9) (l)
The designation by the grantee of a representative to coordinate with the
Office of Supplier Diversity.
Mr. Adrian Orozco serves in this position as the Sourcing Manager/Supplier Diversity Coordinator. He
represents Scripps in working with small and minority business enterprises in the State of Florida, and is
actively involved in many state and local supplier diversity outreach shows. These shows help Scripps
Florida to identify diverse businesses that can provide goods and services to the institute at a competitive
price. Participation in these shows has resulted in partnerships with local companies that provide
furniture, pipette calibrations, refrigeration services, relocation services, dry ice services, landscaping
and irrigation services, building maintenance services, printing services, shredding services and more.
Subsection (9) (m)
The establishment and implementation of a program to conduct workforce
recruitment activities at public and private colleges and universities and
community colleges in this state which request the participation of the
grantee.
Scripps Florida has extended workforce recruitment efforts to Florida’s higher education institutions
throughout the state.
Event
Career Fair
Location
Statewide, Orlando FL
Date
5/14/2015
Attendee
Jennifer Brown
Subsection (10)
DISBURSEMENT CONDITIONS
Subsection (10)(a)
Demonstrate creation of jobs and report on the average salaries paid.
See reply to Subsection (14) (d).
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
57
Subsection (10)(b)
Beginning 18 months after the grantee’s occupancy of its permanent facility,
the grantee shall annually obtain $100,000 of non-state funding for each fulltime equivalent tenured-track faculty member employed at the Florida
facility.
There were 49 faculty employed on September 30, 2015 and the award total was $60,066,416, therefore
in this fiscal year each Scripps Florida faculty obtained about $1,225,845 in non-Florida funding.
Subsection (10) (c) No later than 3 years after the grantee’s occupancy of its permanent facility,
the grantee shall apply to the relevant accrediting agency for accreditation of
its Florida graduate program.
The re-accreditation of the Scripps Ph.D. program was successfully completed in early 2011, which is
approximately two years after Scripps Florida’s occupancy of its permanent facility. The Kellogg
School of Science in Technology is a bi-coastal Ph.D. program, reflecting the “one institution/two
campus” makeup of The Scripps Research Institute. Owing to the larger size and earlier date of
establishment of the Ph.D. program on the La Jolla campus, the reaccreditation process was handled by
WASC (the Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting Commission for Senior Colleges
and Universities). The re-accreditation process included a specific site visit and assessment of the
Scripps Florida graduate program in October 2010, by Dr. Karen Holbrook, Senior Vice President for
Research, Innovation & Global Affairs, University of South Florida, and President, University of South
Florida Research Foundation. As a result of the overall review and re-accreditation process, the Kellogg
School of Science and Technology—including the graduate program at Scripps Florida—received reaccreditation for a 10-year period, effective March 7, 2011.
Subsection (10) (d) The grantee shall purchase equipment for its Florida facility as scheduled in
its contract with the corporation.
The Scripps Florida business plan requires $10 million in equipment purchases within 18 months of
occupancy of the permanent facility and Scripps occupied the permanent facility on March 31, 2009, so
the effective date for the $10 million required equipment purchase was September 30, 2010. The
amount of equipment purchased as of September 30, 2010 was $10.7 million, thereby meeting the
required amount.
Additionally, Scripps Florida was required to purchase a total of $45m of equipment over the term of the
contract. The total cost of equipment purchased by Scripps Florida from inception through contract year
end January 29, 2013 was $53,895,431 and thus the requirement was fully satisfied. $2,709,216 of
equipment was acquired with State grant funds this fiscal year.
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
58
Subsection (10)(e)
No later than 18 months after occupying its permanent facility, the grantee
shall establish a program for qualified graduate students from Florida
universities permitting them access to the facility for doctoral, thesis-related
research.
Scripps Florida has established a Ph.D. program in 2005 as part of Scripps’ Kellogg School of Science
and Technology, well ahead of the September 2010 deadline, which was 18 months after the anticipated
occupancy of the permanent facility.
Forty-nine (49) graduate students are currently enrolled in the Scripps Florida graduate program. A total
of 20 students have now completed Ph.D. degrees at Scripps Florida since the establishment of the Ph.D.
program in 2005 and 14 new graduate students entered the program on August 1, 2015. Of the 14 new
students, one has an undergraduate degree from Florida Atlantic University Honors College campus in
Jupiter. Of the 54 graduate students who will be in the Scripps Florida graduate program as of
September 2015, at least seven will have a Florida connection (undergraduate degrees from Florida
colleges and universities, or is a native Floridian who took her/his undergraduate degree out of state).
Please see a detailed listing in Subsection (10) (g) of Scripps Florida scientists who have participated in
assisting doctoral candidates in their thesis research and defense.
Subsection (10) (f)
No later than 18 months after occupancy of the permanent facility, the
grantee shall establish a summer internship for high school students.
Since 2005, high school students, teachers, and university undergraduates have been provided an
opportunity to work with world-class scientists at Scripps Florida in a six-week summer research
internship program. In the summer of 2015, ten high school students participated in the summer
internship program. Students were placed in the Departments of: Neuroscience, Infectious Diseases,
Cancer Biology, Metabolism and Aging, Molecular Therapeutics, Chemistry and the Translational
Research Institute. Support for the internship program has been provided by the William R. Kenan, Jr.
Charitable Trust, TSRI’s Graduate Studies Program, and the Ballen Isles Charities Foundation, Inc.
These students are placed at the research bench with the faculty, post-docs, and Ph.D. students working
at the cutting edge of basic biomedical research. The program culminated in a public presentation at the
Scripps Florida campus where each student presented their research findings to an audience that
contained Scripps research mentors, parents, teachers, and Palm Beach County students. During the
course of the internship, the participants may attend faculty seminars, and a comprehensive list of those
seminars may be found in Subsection (10)(k). High school students must be 16 year old or older,
beginning their junior or senior year in a Palm Beach County school in the Fall preceding their summer
internship and have a GPA of 3.0. They are awarded a gross compensation of $8.00 per hour for the
six-week summer program.
Scripps Florida Education Outreach Director, Ms. Deborah Leach-Scampavia, continues to work in
collaboration with the Palm Beach County School District, to insure that all county high schools,
principals, science teachers, science supervisors, and parents are aware of the annual high school
program. Faculty presentations, undergraduate “ambassadors” from the high school program, and
correspondence with department Chairs at targeted academic institutions provide information about the
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
59
sponsored undergraduate program. Detailed descriptions and on-line applications can be found on the
Scripps Florida Education Outreach web pages.
Special emphasis is placed on providing opportunities for students from underrepresented populations
(i.e., female, minority). Since its inception in 2005 the eight year average for underrepresented
participation in the Scripps Florida summer internship programs is ~ 68%.
The Kenan Fellows Facebook page continues to allow Scripps Florida to maintain contact and track
alumni from the high school program. To date, 100% of the college age alumni are pursuing or have
completed post-secondary degrees at top-tier universities throughout the United States. Of those who
have completed their baccalaureate degrees, 30% are enrolled in MD graduate programs and 25% are
enrolled in doctoral graduate programs in biomedical research fields.
Additional Education Outreach Programs at Scripps Florida
The William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust, The Berlin Family Foundation, the Ballen Isles Charitable
Foundation and The Gardens Mall (Forbes Company) supply funding for the following K-12 education
programs developed through the efforts of Scripps Florida education outreach staff, faculty and research
staff. The extensive participation by Scripps Florida scientists and administration in educational
programs for the community, schools and colleges of Florida is evident through these programs and is
detailed in Subsection (10) (g).
The Scripps Florida Biotechnology Tour
An up-close view of the biomedical technologies used in the battle against human diseases at Scripps
Florida continues to be presented to Science Saturday high school students. The “Biotechnology Tour”
provides students an opportunity to see basic biology and chemistry research laboratories. As students
move through the laboratories, they gain an understanding of how genomics based research and the
processes of organic synthesis lead contemporary efforts in the therapeutic drug discovery process.
The Scripps Florida – Middle School Wow Chemistry
The middle school Wow Chemistry is now a part of Scripps Florida’s annual science festival,
“Cellebration.” This allows SF education outreach programs to reach not only middle school students,
but their families as well, as their goal is to enlist parents and guardians in encouraging their children to
study science in school. Student interaction is encouraged and the exciting demonstrations include:
chemical clock reactions, vacuum experiments with eggs, freezing and shattering objects with liquid
nitrogen, and exploding hydrogen balloons!
The Scripps Florida High School Career Panel
In an after-school interactive panel with Scripps Florida Ph.D. graduate students and post-doc fellows,
Scripps scientists share experiences about their undergraduate and graduate careers and the type of
research they are conducting at Scripps. The intent is to demystify the higher education/science process,
encourage relationships, and answer student questions. The panel concludes with a tour of the Scripps
Florida research laboratories.
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
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60
Scripps Florida Middle School Genomics with Kenan High School Fellows
High school students from the summer intern program visit Palm Beach County middle schools, sharing
their love of science, their experience as a summer researcher at Scripps and a lesson in genomics,
geared for the middle school classroom. The high school students are enthusiastic role models for the
younger students and are well received by the classroom teachers.
CELLebrate Science Day with Scripps Florida
Since 2009, Scripps Florida researchers have hosted an annual public science day, sponsored by and
held at the Gardens Mall in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. More than 100 Scripps Florida research
faculty, post doctoral fellows, graduate students and staff interact with thousands of Palm Beach County
students, parents, teachers and interested community members - all excited to learn about the science of
Scripps and to have an opportunity to meet research scientists.
Six fun, interactive science booths dot the mall grand court, each themed around Scripps Florida’s
research and technology. These booths include:
 “Chemistry”- with an interactive chemistry demonstrations, including an electronic periodic
table,
 “Technology” – showing engineering and robotics,
 “Science of Safety” – trying on a lab coat, goggles and respirator to see how safe science is done
in the lab,
 “Model Organisms” – questioning what zebra fish, fruit flies, worms and slugs tell us about
human biology and disease,
 “Disease Biology” – demonstrating the difference between a viral and bacterial infection and
how Scripps scientists study and use each to understand disease, and
 “Inner Life of a Cell” – crawling inside a human cell, an inflatable dome, with animation from
Harvard University and narration by Scripps Florida PhD students and postdoctoral fellows.
Scripps Florida also uses their CELLebrate day to provide a public opportunity for Palm Beach County
School District middle and high school Science Fair winners to display their winning posters before
moving on to the Florida state competition.
Scripps Florida Undergraduate Internships
In addition to high school internships, Scripps Florida provides internship opportunities for a variety of
undergraduate students. The ten-week undergraduate program continues to elevate the intensity and
independence of the research experience. Working with faculty and post-doc mentors, students are
provided the research and laboratory experience needed to successfully compete in graduate school
admissions and gain valuable experience outside the context of basic undergraduate laboratory
instruction. The program culminates in a Scripps-wide research poster competition.
Students return to their academic institutions possessing the knowledge and experience to participate in
campus undergraduate poster sessions, to act as ambassadors for the research and graduate programs
offered at Scripps Florida, and to enjoy an enhanced knowledge base as they continue their classroom
instruction.
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This past year, three of the undergraduate summer interns were accepted to present their research posters
at national scientific conferences. Six alumni of undergraduate summer program are now PhD graduate
students in the TSRI Kellogg School of Science and Technology. The Undergraduate Facebook page
allows Scripps Florida to continue their mentorship with this talented group of students and promote an
ongoing interest in the research and graduate efforts at Scripps Florida.
In April 2014, a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant was awarded to Cancer Biology Associate
Professor Katrin Karbstein, from the Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) national program.
Funds from the grant support Summer Undergraduate Research Fellows (SURF) on the Scripps Florida
campus. Titled “SURFing the Interface between Chemistry and Biology”, the program runs
concomitantly with other undergraduate programs sponsored by the Kenan Trust and TSRI.
Sponsored Undergraduate Internships
In the summer of 2015, 17 undergraduates participated in the sponsored internship program.
Undergraduates are awarded gross compensation of $12.50 per hour for the ten-week summer program,
housing support and a weekly meal allowance of $80.00.
Summer Undergraduate Interns
In addition to the sponsored summer undergraduate initiative on the Scripps Florida campus, Scripps
Florida attempts to accommodate as many students as possible who contact them for research
opportunities during the summer months. Eight undergraduate students worked with Scripps Florida
scientists in the summer of 2015.
FAU Wilkes Honors College Program
In 2005, Scripps Florida established an intern program for FAU Honors College students to perform
research in the laboratories of Scripps Florida faculty members. The students receive FAU academic
credit or a stipend for research performed during the school term or summer months. During the fiscal
year, 34 FAU undergraduate students participated in research internships at the Scripps Florida research
facility.
Palm Beach State College (PBSC)
PBSC offers two degree programs in biotechnology in response to the community need for research
technicians and associates. Students enrolled in the PBSC program can receive academic credit for
additional experience in the laboratory. To help students gain this experience, internships have been
made available at the Scripps Florida facility as space has been available. Three PBSC biotechnology
students have participated in this program each year since its inception in 2013.
Undergraduate Travel Award
The undergraduate poster competition awards the top three students an opportunity to submit their
winning research poster to a national conference of the intern and faculty mentor’s choice. Expenses are
paid for registration, travel, and housing for the intern and their faculty advisor so that the undergraduate
student intern may present their poster.
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Subsection (10) (g)
No later than 3 years after occupancy of the permanent facility, the grantee
shall establish a research program for middle and high school teachers.
Scripps has established a professional development science workshop for secondary science teachers
and middle school math and science teachers. In addition, Scripps Florida offers summer internships to
secondary science teachers.
Scripps Florida High School Teacher Summer Internship Program
Continued support from the William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust, has allowed Scripps Florida
Education Outreach to continue to expose teachers to current laboratory techniques and procedures,
provide information on a variety of contemporary issues in basic biomedical research, create ties and
linkages to working scientists who can assist them in curriculum development, and create opportunities
for teachers to share information and knowledge with their peers.
High school science teachers in the Palm Beach County School District conduct basic biomedical
research in a laboratory under the supervision of a Scripps Florida scientist. The program emphasizes
the scientific process, research planning, bench experience, experimental design, data analysis and
interaction with laboratory personnel. As an adjunct to their day-to-day responsibilities, participants are
required to attend specially designed seminars throughout the course of the summer. In addition to the
intensive, hands-on six-week summer program, teachers are expected to use the laboratory experience as
a springboard to create opportunities in discovery-based learning for their students, affect change in their
classrooms and serve as a resource for other educators. Each participant gives a presentation and writes
a scientific abstract on his/her project at the end of the summer.
Edwin Meagher, a teacher at Atlantic High School in Delray Beach, worked in Dr. Brock Grill’s
laboratory in the Department of Neuroscience this summer. Edwin worked on designing and
implementing protocols for using C. elegans to do in class experiments on genetics, behavior and
neuroscience.
Scripps Florida Secondary and Middle School Teacher Workshops
Scripps Florida is directing greater efforts to address the needs of the classroom science teacher by
establishing Teacher Workshops in basic science, math and laboratory skills. The “InSPIRE” programs
(Instructional Support Program for Innovative Research Education) programs offer direct interaction
with the bioscience researchers at Scripps Florida and provide greater professional development
opportunities for pre-service and in-service middle and high school science teachers in a supportive
engaging environment. Institutes are designed around curriculum units that integrate lessons, activities
and laboratory-based biological and chemical experiments designed by research scientists at Scripps
Florida. Portability of the lessons allows teachers to leverage the institute curriculum to their own
classrooms during the course of the school year.
The programs provide opportunities for teachers from all of the secondary and middle schools within the
Palm Beach County school district to attend the Teacher Workshops. Through its partnership with the
school district, Scripps Florida emphasizes teacher recruitment from schools with limited resources in
rural and urban Palm Beach County, particularly in areas with large underrepresented and disadvantaged
student populations.
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Scientists at Scripps Florida have offered education outreach programs to Palm Beach County’s middle
and high school science teachers and students since 2004. The programs described in Subsections
(10)(f) and (10)(g) define the goals of Scripps Florida’s K-12 education programs: to work directly with
students and teachers, to help develop instructional materials, and to contribute to science literacy in
Palm Beach County and the State of Florida. Since initiating its outreach program, Scripps Florida has
been invited to speak about its efforts in science education with Florida State Department of Education,
Florida Council of 100, and the State University System of Florida Board of Governors. To date, more
than ten thousand students, teachers, and community members of Palm Beach County have participated
in the Scripps Florida Education Outreach programs.
For Fiscal 2015, the following is a detailed list of some of these educational outreach activities:
Date
Scientist
Event / location
9-Oct-14
10-Oct-14
28-Oct-14
Miller
Matt Disney
Nettles
Children's Service Council/PBS Panel - Raising America
Discussion with postdoctoral associates on career opportunities
Invited Presenter: Nuclear Receptors & Disease, Cold Spring Harbor, NY
Nov-14
7-Nov-14
7-Nov-14
8-Nov-14
Niedernhofer
Rader
Laura Bohn
see list
13-Nov-14
see list
25-Nov-14
7-Dec-14
17-Jan-15
Brock Grill
Laura Bohn
Scripps-wide
26-Jan-15
Graduate
students:
Sany Hoxha,
Walter Rogal,
Zachary J.
Tickner
Matt Disney
Teaching in TSRI Graduate Program Investigations in Molecular Biology
Florida Biomedical Career Symposium, Scripps Florida Campus
Florida Biomedical Career Symposium, Jupiter, FL
Science Family – DNA Isolation, Elliot Museum at Martin County. Attendees: Dr. Rosie
Albarran-Zeckler, Deborah Leach-Scampavia, and Kristin Lidinsky
High School Teacher Workshop at Scripps Florida. Participants: Drs. Xin-An Liu,
Kymberly Lovell, Jenny Morgenweck, Akaitz Dorronsoro, Heike Fuhrmann-Stroissnigg,
Sarbani Goshal, Rosie Albarran-Zeckler; and Deborah Leach-Scampavia
Ph.D. thesis committee meeting for Scott Baker (University of Minnesota)
American College of Neuropsychopharmacology
Neuroscience Saturday. Participants: Deborah Leach-Scampavia and Jennifer Kabis, and
Drs. Ilaria Drago, Xin-an Liu, Komolitdin Akhmedov, and Rosie Albarran-Zeckler
High School Students/Career panel at Scripps
29-Jan-15
30-Jan-15
14-Feb-15
Paul Robbins
18-Feb-15
Gill, LeachScapavia, and
AlbarranZeckler
LeachScapavia,
AlbarranZeckler
Brock Grill
Damon Page
Tina Izard
21-Feb-15
24-Feb-15
26-Feb-15
1-Mar-15
Graduate Faculty Town Hall Meeting
Students from 5th and 6th grades / Rosarian Academy – Career Day. Invitation made
through Dr. Matthew Pipkin, Deborah Leach Scampavia, and Rosie Albarran-Zeckler
Grad recruiting brunch
Jerry Thomas Elementary School – Science Fair
Inlet Grove Community High School – Careers in medical field day
Visit to Loxahatchee High School C. elegens course in Loxahatchee, FL
Renaissance Learning Center Board Meeting, West Palm Beach, FL
Development of Weiss Middle School 2016 School Year Science and Lab curriculum
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7-Mar-15
15-Mar-15
17-Mar-15
Puthanveettil
Karbstein
17-Mar-15
Marra,
AlbarranZeckler
Izard, LeachScampavia
and AlbarranZeckler
AlbarranZeckler and
Kabis
AlbarranZeckler and
Kabis
Niedernhofer
Damon Page
Kodadek
Baoji Xu
Miller
1-Apr-15
16-Apr-15
17-Apr-15
4/22/2015
30-Apr-15
5-May-15
8-May-15
16-Jun-15
23-Jun-15
25-Jun-15
30-Jun-15
Jul-15
1-Jul-15
18-Sep-15
1-4-2015
1/2015Present
01-15Present
01/2015Present
01/2015Present
3-6-2015
Teachers/ Dr. Paegel's Microscopy Teacher Workshop – Beta testing Day 1 . Participants:
Dr. Brian Paegel, Marie Malone, Wes Conchrane, Jennifer Kabis, Rosie Albarran-Zeckler
Mandel Public Library Lectures
FIU Undergraduate Research Conference - Quality Control Mechanisms in Ribosome
Activity, Miami, FL
Florida International University Research Undergraduate Conference
Middle school students/ Weiss School – Dr. Izard’s outreach project
Leadership Youth Visit to SF
Undergraduate Students/ Visit from PBSC North Campus
Damon Page
AlbarranZeckler
Bill Ja
Miller
Cari Kessing
Ja
Niedernhofer
Teaching in TSRI Graduate Program Cancer Biology
Renaissance Learning Center Board Meeting, West Palm Beach, FL
Education Foundation
Chao Chen Thesis Defense at Georgetown University, Washington, DC
Thesis Committee External Examiner, Univ of Miami Medical School Graduate Program
PBSC's MSI Program participants/ Visit to SF and lab tour. Leaders: Dr. Pedro Reis
Rodrigues, Rosie Albarran-Zeckler, Jennifer Kabis
Renaissance Learning Center Board Meeting, West Palm Beach, FL
Girls Excelling in Math and Science at Science Center in WPB. Scripps Florida's Speaker:
Dr. Heike Fuhrman
Lead discussion on Grant/Fellowship Writing Mentoring Session
Invited Speaker to talk to TSRI-FL SURF Summer Interns
Research Fest 2015 at Scripps Florida
Mentor Shivani Patel, Undergraduate Intern, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College/FAU
Mentor Clayton Sims, Intern, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College/FAU
Niedernhofer
Mentor Rachael Candela, Intern, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College/FAU
Ja
Mentor Diana Singkornrat, Intern, FAU
Bill Ja
Mentor Diana Singkornrat, Intern, FAU
Niedernhofer
3-8-2015
5-13-5/2015
5-7-2015
5-8-2015
5-8-2015
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Ja
5/15Present
05/2015Present
Niedernhofer
Mentor Jolanta Czerwinska, Graduate Student Intern, Institute of Biochemistry and
Biophysics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
Mentor Junaid Raya, Intern, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College/FAU
Teaching in Frontiers in Aging and Regeneration Research, Woods Hole, MA
Mentor Margo Orlen, Intern, Spanish River Community High School
Mentor Sanjay Chandrasekhar, Undergraduate Intern, University of Pennsylvania
Mentor Keuri Reis Santos, Intern, Universidade Federal do ABC, Sao Bernardo do Camp,
São Paulo, Brasil
Mentor Jamie Harris, Intern, Atlantic High School
Ja
Mentor Margaux Ehrlich, Intern, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College/FAU
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05/2015Present
06/0815 08/14/15
06/15/15 08/27/15
07/2014present
8/14-5/2015
08/2014Present
8/15Present
09/2012Present
09/2013Present
9/14-1/2015
9/14-6/2015
9/14-6/2015
10/13-12/14
1/15 – 5/15
2 -3-Apr-15
2014-2015
1/15 – 5/15
3-5-Mar-15
5/11/15 6/30/15
6/5-30/15
6/8-30/15
7/14 - 6/15
7/14-8/14
7/14 - 4/15
8-30-Jun-15
8-30-Jun-15
1-8/ 2015
7/14 -6/15
2014-2015,
monthly
Monthly
Monthly
11/14-2/15
Bill Ja
Mentor Margaux Ehrlich, Intern, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College/FAU
Laura Bohn
Mentor, SURF REU Undergraduate - Brenna Appleton
Brock Grill
Host high school teacher Edwin Meagher
Ja
Mentor Keith Murphy, Graduate Student, FAU
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Bill Ja
Mentor Srigita Madiraju, Intern, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College/FAU
Mentor to interns from Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College/FAU: Danielle Hennessy-Wach,
Jonathan Kato, Stephanie Lazo, Mariya Muravia, Erin Wade,
Mentor Chenchen Su, Intern, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College/FAU
Shuji Kishi
Mentor Delacia Ingram, Intern/Lab Helper, FAU
Ja
Mentor Tania Rodriguez, Intern, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College/FAU
Kishi
Kishi
Niedernhofer
Ja
Tomchik
Baoji Xu
Niedernhofer
Damon Page
Ben Shen
Paul Robbins
Mentor Luke Otfinowski, Undergraduate Intern, FAU
Co-Mentor Jiwon Kong, Graduate Student, Seoul National University
Mentor Tommy Vo, Intern, SunCoast High School
Mentor Cathy Ray, Intern, Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College/FAU
mentor to undergraduate interns Brandon Gilliland and Alisha Goldberg
External Graduate Student Seminars at Georgetown University, Washington, DC
Thesis Committee member, Visiting Graduate Student Jing Zhao
Mentor to undergrad interns Dalina Laffita and Stacy Cabral
Seminar speaker, Boston College
Mentor Christina Bukata, graduate student
Paul Robbins
Paul Robbins
Paul Robbins
Ja
Paul Robbins
Scripps
Faculty
Scripps
Faculty
Karbstein
Mentor Heather Nick, undergraduate student
Mentor to High School students: Robert Halfon, Jordan Vo, Devon Wasche
Mentor Jing Zhao, graduate student
Mentor Alina Soto Obando, Trainee, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Peru
Mentor Priscilla Tang, graduate student
Kenan High School intern program - Rosie Albarran-Zeckler
SURF Undergraduate intern program - Rosie Albarran-Zeckler
Chakraborty
Niedernhofer
Mentoring high school interns, Maria Dattolo (Jupiter, FL) and Ethan Ward (Manhattan
Beach, CA)
Mentor Hector Mora, intern, FAU
Mentor Savannah Barkdull, undergraduate, University of Virginia
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Chakraborty
Mentoring session for M&A Post-doctoral fellows
Mentor Michael Rohr, FAU honors student
Mentor to Arushi Thaper, undergraduate intern, FAU
Subsection (10) (h) No later than 18 months after occupancy of the permanent facility, the
grantee shall establish a program for adjunct professors.
Many current Scripps Florida faculty have received adjunct faculty appointments with the University of
Florida, University of Miami and/or Florida Atlantic University. Such adjunct appointments are
intended to provide a mechanism for graduate students enrolled in Florida research universities to
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collaborate with, to be co-mentored by, and to perform research in the laboratories of a Scripps Florida
faculty member.
A mechanism has been established for faculty members at Florida institutions who have established
collaborative research programs with Scripps Florida faculty to be appointed to an Adjunct Professor
position. The process is initiated by a Scripps Florida faculty member who submits a nomination to
his/her department chair. If the chair concurs, the chair submits the nomination to the Office of the
President for review and approval. Current adjunct faculty are:
Dr. Chris Liang of Xcovery in West Palm Beach, FL
– Adjunct Associate Professor, Molecular Therapeutics
Dr. Andrew Hodge of BioMotion Institute in Jupiter, FL
– Adjunct Professor, Metabolism and Aging
Dr. Samuel Young of Max Planck Florida Institute in Jupiter, FL
– Adjunct Assistant Professor, Neuroscience
Dr. Jason Christie of Max Planck Florida Institute in Jupiter, FL
– Adjunct Assistant Professor, Neuroscience
Dr. James Schummers of Max Planck Florida Institute in Jupiter, FL
– Adjunct Assistant Professor, Neuroscience
Dr. Thomas Burris of Saint Louis School of Medicine in Saint Louis, MO
– Adjunct Professor, Molecular Therapeutics
Dr. Stephan C. Schurer of University of Miami in Miami, FL
– Adjunct Associate Professor, Molecular Therapeutics
Dr. Gregg Fields of Florida Atlantic University, FL
– Adjunct Professor, Chemistry
Dr. Scott Snyder of University of Chicago, IL
– Adjunct Associate Professor, Chemistry
Subsection (10) (i)
No later than 6 months after commissioning its high throughput technology,
the grantee shall establish a program to allow open access for qualified
science projects.
Scripps Florida initiated the “Access to Technologies” program in January of 2006 to invite scientists
from Florida universities and other academic research institutions to use state-of-the-art screening
technologies at Scripps Florida’s facilities in Jupiter for qualifying projects. An additional “Core”
platform is now available at the Scripps Florida facility that combines basic research with advanced
technology.
Access to Technologies
Scripps Florida was created to interface cutting-edge high throughput technologies with pioneering
research programs relevant to current medical needs in human diseases. One of its key goals is to
develop dynamic relationships with Florida institutions to foster a knowledge-based economy that will
transcend traditional barriers to moving scientific discoveries into the clinic. Florida scientists who may
not have these technologies available at their respective institutions are encouraged to open the links to
learn more about these core technologies and opportunities to access them online. A list of collaborative
Florida researchers can be found in Section (9)(f) - Collaboration with Florida Colleges and
Universities.
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X-ray Crystallography Facility
The macromolecular x-ray crystallography core facility of Scripps Florida offers state-of-the-art
equipment and resources to scientists inside and outside of the Scripps Florida campus by providing
crystallographic analysis of chosen biological macromolecules. This past funding year, the core facility
increased experimental capability to include services for small molecule X-ray crystallography by
commissioning a new diffraction system with a molybdenum sealed X-ray tube.
The core facility offers and operates as a full service core by performing protein crystallization, x-ray
diffraction data collection (both in-house and at various synchrotron sources) and processing, phasing,
crystallographic refinement, model building, and visualization. The structural data obtained by the core
provide scientists with a wealth of information including but not limited to biological functions, 3Dfolding, ligand binding (small molecule or protein), or mutational effect of target macromolecules of
their interest.
This past year, the core facility researchers produced four publications in major peer-reviewed research
journals and an additional five manuscripts are in preparation for publication. The core facility
researchers supported six intramural and two external laboratories for their on-going grant researches. In
addition, this core facility also supported three laboratories for their new grant application processes.
The researchers were also actively involved in preliminary studies for grant applications of these
laboratories. Finally, the core successfully initiated a collaboration with an external laboratory that will
continue until 2016.
Genomics Core
The Scripps Florida Genomics Core was established to enable access by Scripps Florida and external
investigators to the latest technologies for next generation sequencing and microarray analysis. These
technologies allow for interrogation and subsequent comparison of the role genetics play in disease state
at the global level, or at specified locations in the genome. Gene expression analysis provides a profile
of active and inactive genes in a given tissue sample or cell type. The technologies used in the
Genomics Core allow for a wide range of cost effective options for discovery on multiple platforms.
The Cell Based Screening Core
Researchers in the Cell-Based Screening Core leverage high-throughput technologies towards a
systematic description of the function of genes encoded by the human genome, and a more
comprehensive understanding of the genetic basis for human disease. The CBS group provides Scripps
investigators, as well as select outside collaborators, with access to genome-wide collections of cDNAs
and siRNAs that can be used to interrogate cellular models of signal transduction pathways and
phenotypes.
The Proteomics Core
The Proteomics Core at Scripps Florida offers a wide range of mass spectrometry-based proteomics
services to assist with protein characterization, identification and quantification. It is essential to
examine the expression and action of proteins and other gene products during normal conditions as well
as disease state. The core provides support to Scripps faculty and staff who focus on such questions. In
particular, the scientists concentrate on developing and applying the techniques of mass spectrometry for
discovery and quantitative proteomic experiments. The core also supports the small molecule mass
spectrometry needs of the institute and collaborators.
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The Flow Cytometry Core
Flow cytometry measures and analyzes the characteristics of single particles, normally cells, as they
move in a stream and are passed through a laser. Thousands of cells can be analyzed by a flow
cytometer in a single second. Among the measurements derived from flow cytometry are the size,
relative fluorescence and complexity of the particle. Flow cytometry can be used for a variety of
applications including complex cell analysis and cell sorting.
The Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Core
Nuclear magnetic resonance, known as NMR, uses the magnetic properties of certain nuclei to study
molecular structure. A wide variety of information can be gathered using NMR including protein and
nuclei acid structure and function. The Scripps Florida NMR core facility boasts three state-of-the-art
machines that run 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year. By connecting these highly sensitive instruments
to the Internet via a proprietary Scripps Florida server, scientists can access the data produced from their
office or the laboratory.
High Throughput Screening Core
High Throughput Screening (HTS) is a drug-discovery process widely used in the pharmaceutical
industry. It leverages automation to quickly assay the biological or biochemical activity of a large
number of drug-like compounds. It is a useful for discovering ligands for receptors, enzymes, ionchannels or other pharmacological targets, or pharmacologically profiling a cellular or biochemical
pathway of interest. Typically, HTS assays are performed in “automation-friendly” microtiter plates
with a 96, 384 or 1536 well format.
Capabilities: The Lead Identification group at Scripps Florida has set-up a state-of-the art HTS
operation to support Scripps’ intramural HTS efforts. This Core has both HTS and compound
management automation, and expertise in adapting biological and biochemical bench-top assays
into high-throughput screens.
HTS users include: Dimitry M. Minond from Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies,
Daiqing Liao from the University of Florida, and Corinne Lasmezas, Kate Carroll, Derek
Duckett, Joseph Kissil, Sathyanarayanan Puthanveettil, Gavin Rumbaugh, Ronald Davis and Min
Guo, all from Scripps Florida.
Behavior Core
The Behavior Core at Scripps Florida provides state-of-the-art equipment and software for measuring
rodent behavior. All behavioral rooms are fully equipped and supplied. Many of the behavioral tasks
are completely automated, with software providing control over hardware and trial protocols. Standard
protocols for the behavioral tasks have been developed by the Director; expertise for the development of
custom protocols is available. The behavioral experiments can be fully conducted by Behavior Core
staff, or individual labs can utilize the rooms and equipment for their own experiments. Training and
consultation are provided free of charge. Behavior Core resources are also available to non-Scripps
Florida scientists through collaboration with the Director.
The Behavior Core officially opened for business in June 2011. In the past year, the Behavior Core
resources and/or personnel have been included on multiple Scripps Florida Faculty grant applications
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(many of which have been awarded funding), and data collected in the Behavior Core has been included
in multiple publications.
An Advisory Committee comprised of faculty members was formed in March 2013 to advise the Core
Director regarding research progress and future directions for the Core. As a result of this committee’s
input, equipment was updated to better meet the needs of the faculty, including the addition of some new
equipment. In 2014, the Behavior Core added an additional staff member (research Technician) to assist
with the daily upkeep and maintenance of the Behavior Core and with experiments performed by the
Behavior Core.
Metabolic Core
The Metabolic Core offers prompt access to validated in vitro and in vivo tests to help advance the
metabolic characterization of genetic and pharmacological research models of metabolic diseases,
cancer, circadian rhythms, aging, inflammation and more. This Core has analytical and in-vivo
laboratories with a number of applications ranging from feeding, sleep, temperature, blood pressure,
body composition and metabolic monitoring in mice, to cellular metabolism and in-depth chemical
analysis of hormones, nutrients, inflammatory mediators and more. Additionally, it assists users with
trainings, experimental design and data analysis as needed and promptly responds to their
troubleshooting requirements during experimentation.
The Informatics Core
The Informatics Core provides data management and analysis services for the Scripps research
community as well as for external collaborators. The Core offers scientific and technical support to
assist in the collection, analysis, integration and dissemination of biomedical data and knowledge.
Projects will often vary in time and cost depending on the scientific goals of the work, and the desired
level of detail. The Core’s goal is to use existing software, tools developed by the group, along with
open source software to support and advance the science of TSRI’s faculty in a cost-effective manner.
The Informatics Core has expertise analyzing data and building tools across many different scientific
areas – however, the Core has identified four specific focus areas: genomics data analysis, proteomics
data analysis, cheminformatics data analysis, and custom software development.
Histology Core
The Histology Core at Scripps Florida was established in 2014 to provide full histological services as
well as technical support for the investigators inside and outside of the Scripps FL campus. The Core
facility is equipped with a Sakura VIP 5 tissue processor, Biocare Decloaking Chamber, Shandon rotary
microtome and embedding center, routine/special stain center, a Leica CM1950 Cryostat, and a Leica
BOND-MAX Automated Immunostainer.
The cryostat is available for use at an hourly rate by anyone who has had proper training by the Core
staff. The Histology Core is capable of processing and staining investigator’s specimens for routine
analysis as well as many special stains or Immunohistochemical/Immunofluorescence techniques.
These are available services provided by the Histology Core: fixation techniques, tissue processing,
embedding, paraffin sectioning, H&E’s, special stains, Immunohistochemistry / Immunofluore-scence,
cryostat embedding and sectioning, and decalcification of bone specimens.
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The Histology Core provides a broad range of special stains for paraffin or frozen sections of fixed
tissues. Some of the special stains offered are Congo Red, Crystal Violet, Gram Stain, Luxol Fast Blue,
Masson Trichrome, Oil Red O, Periodic Acid Schiff (PAS) and Safronin O. Additional stains are
available upon request. The Core also offers optimization of antibodies and protocols for double and
triple staining Immunohistochemistry and Immunofluorescence techniques. In addition, the Core offers
consultation in staining methodology to customize the protocols in order to obtain “publication quality”
results.
Researchers can apply for access to Scripps expertise through the “Access to Technologies” program.
Subsection (10) (j)
Beginning June 2004, the grantee shall commence collaborative efforts with
Florida public and private colleges and universities, and shall continue
cooperative collaboration through the term of the agreement.
See the reply to Subsection (9) (f).
Subsection (10) (k) Beginning 18 months after the grantee occupies the permanent facility, the
grantee shall establish an annual seminar series featuring a review of the
science work done by the grantee and its collaborators at the Florida facility.
External Seminars
External seminars are part of the institute series, inviting prominent researchers from national and
international institutions to speak. The seminars serve as a major foundation for creating knowledgeand technology-sharing opportunities, team building, and collaborations among biomedical researchers
between Scripps Florida, Florida, and other research and academic institutions and companies. The
sessions are open to interested professionals within the Scripps Florida and Florida scientific
communities.
The presenters and their lecture titles are listed below:
October 23, 2014
David Schneider, Associate Professor of Microbiology and Immunology,
Stanford University
Title: Warping disease space to improve recovery from infections
October 30, 2014
Matthew Goldberg, Assistant Professor of Neurology & Neurotherapeutics,
Psychiatry University of Texas, South West Medical Center
Title: Analysis of Knockout Rat Models of Parkinson's Disease and LRRK2
Oligomerization
November 6, 2014
Wilfred van der Donk, Prof. of Chem., Univ. of Illinois, Urbana-Champagne
Title: Biosynthesis of Cyclic Peptide Antibiotics
November 13, 2014 Frank Schroeder, Research Group Leader, Boyce Thompson Institute
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology,
Cornell University
Title: The Chemical Language of Worms: A Modular Library of Small
Molecule Signals
November 20, 2014 Julien Sage, Associate Professor of Pediatrics (Cancer Biology) and of
Genetics, Stanford University
Title: Novel Therapeutic Approaches in Lung and Pancreatic Cancer
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
71
December 4, 2014
December 11, 2014
January 8, 2015
January 15, 2015
January 22, 2015
January 29, 2015
February 5, 2015
February 12, 2015
February 19, 2015
February 26, 2015
March 5, 2015
March 12, 2015
Michael VanNieuwenhze, Associate Professor, Chemistry, Indiana
University, Bloomington
Title: Novel Chemical Probes for Use in the Study of Bacterial Peptidoglycan
Biosynthesis
Anna Mapp, Professor of Chemistry and Director of the Program in Chemical
Biology, University of Michigan
Title: Allosteric modulators of protein-protein interactions
Angelica Gonzalez, Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Yale
University
Title: Engineered Human Microvasculature: Composite Cellular and Matrix
Structures Regulate Leukocyte Recruitment
Charles Chavkin, Professor of Pharmacology, University of Washington
Title: Therapeutic Potential of Kappa Opioids in Pain and Addiction
Gregg Fields, Professor and Chair, Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry,
Florida Atlantic University, Jupiter, Adjunct Professor of Chemistry, Scripps
Florida
Title: Using the Mechanism of Collagenolysis to Develop Novel Matrix
Metalloproteinase Probes
Paul Hanson, Professor of Chemistry, University of Kansas
Title: Developing a Discovery Platform for Novel Electrophilic Probes:
Emerging Chemotypes in Chemical Biology
Ian Wilson, Hansen Professor of Structural Biology Chair, Dept. of
Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, Skaggs Institute for
Chemical Biology
The Scripps Research Institute, California
Title: Broad Neutralization of Viral Pathogens and Implications for Vaccine
Design
Thomas Schwarz, Professor of Neurology and Neurobiology, Department of
Neurology, Harvard University
Title: Moving and Removing Mitochondria in Axons
Jonathan Javitch, Lieber Professor of Experimental Therapeutics in
Psychiatry, Professor of Pharmacology in the Center for Molecular
Recognition and in Physiology & Cellular Biophysics, Columbia University
Title: Single-Molecule Imaging of GPCR Organization in Living Cells
Charles Gersbach, Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Duke
University
Title: Genome and Epigenome Editing for Gene Therapy, Regenerative
Medicine & Disease Modeling
Timothy Jamison, Professor of Chemistry, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology
Title: Continuous Flow Multistep Synthesis
Yasmin Hurd, Professor of Psychiatry/Neuroscience, Mount Sinai School of
Medicine
Title: Cannabis, Neurodevelopment and Psychiatric Vulnerability
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
72
March 19, 2015
April 9, 2015
April 16, 2015
April 23, 2015
April 30, 2015
May 7, 2015
May 8, 2015
May 14, 2015
May 15, 2015
May 15, 2015
Eric T. Wang, Principal Investigator, Medical Engineering/Medical Physics,
Bioinformatics & Integrative Genomics, Harvard-MIT Division of Health
Sciences & Technology
Title: Genomic approaches to understand RNA regulation in neuromuscular
disease.
X. Z. Shawn Xu, Bernard W. Agranoff Collegiate Professor of the Life
Sciences, Life Sciences Institute, University of Michigan, Professor of
Molecular & Integrative, Physiology at U-M Medical School
Title: Sensory signaling in C. elegans: what can’t a worm
sense?
Kent Gates, Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of
Missouri, Columbia
Title: Interstrand cross-links derived from abasic sites in duplex DNA:
candidates for endogenous DNA lesions that drive aging and
neurodegeneration?
Roy Parker, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Professor of chemistry and
biochemistry and the Cech-Leinwand Endowed Chair of Biochemistry,
University of Colorado Boulder
Title: Assembly and properties of stress granules and P-bodies in eukaryotic
cells.
George Georgiou, Professor, Section of Molecular Genetics and
Microbiology, University of Texas, Austin
Title: What’s in your Blood? System Level Analysis of Human Humoral
Immunity Following Vaccination or Infection
Randy Blakely, Allan D. Bass Professor of Pharmacology and Psychiatry,
Director Silvio O. Conte Center for Neuroscience Research & Postdoctoral
Training Program in Functional Neurogenomics, Vanderbilt School of
Medicine
Title: Synaptic Serotonin and Autism: Insights into Novel Therapies from
SERT Regulatory Networks
Dale Boger, Richard and Alice Cramer Professor of Chemistry, Department
of Chemistry, Skaggs Institute for Chemical Biology Chairman, Department
of Chemistry, The Scripps Research Institute
Title: Redesign of Vancomycin for Resistant Bacteria
Warren Hirst, Associate Research Fellow and Group Leader,
Neurodegeneration & Neurologic Diseases Department, Pfizer Neuroscience
Research Unit
Title: Progress and challenges in developing novel therapeutics for the most
common known causes of Parkinson’s disease: GBA and LRRK2
Joel Barrish, VP, Head of Discovery Chemistry, Bristol-Myers Squibb R&D
Title: Innovation in Kinase Inhibitor Drug Discovery: Evolution of a Drug
Target Class
Erick Carreira, Prof. of Organic Chemistry, Nobel Laureate Signature Award
Title: Discovery and Surprises with Small Molecules
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
73
May 21, 2015
September 10, 2015
September 17, 2015
September 24, 2015
William Robinson, Associate Professor of Medicine, Immunology and
Rheumatology, Stanford School of Medicine
Title: Sequencing Antibody Repertoires to Decipher Pathogenic Mechanisms
in Rhuematoid Arthritis
Thomas Rando, Professor, Neurology and Neurological Sciences, Stanford
School of Medicine
Title: Muscle stem cell aging: Notch signaling, p53, and mitotic catastrophe
M.Kevin Brown, Assistant Professor, Department of Synthetic Chemistry,
Indiana University
Title: No Strain, No Gain: Advances in the Synthesis and use of
Cyclobutanes
Brent Martin, Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, University of
Michigan
Title: Chemical approaches to understand protein lipidation and oxidation
Collaborative Seminars
Collaborative seminars feature prominent Florida-based speakers from the academic, biotechnology or
pharmaceutical communities and focus on topics within the broad fields of biomedical science,
advanced technologies applied to biomedical research, drug discovery, and energy. They serve as a
major foundation for creating knowledge- and technology-sharing opportunities, team building, and
collaborations among biomedical researchers between Scripps Florida, Florida, and other research and
academic institutions and companies. The sessions are open to interested professionals within the
Scripps Florida and Florida scientific communities.
October 16, 2014
November 7, 2014
November 7, 2014
January 22, 2015
February 6, 2015
Ann Nicole Imber, M.D., Ph.D., Florida Atlantic University
“The role of Ca2+ in central respiratory control neurons of the locus
coeruleus: development of chemosensitive regulation:
Ken Dawson-Scully, Ph.D., Florida Atlantic University
“Invertebrate Models of Epilepsy: Uncovering Drugs and Targets for Febrile
and Electronoconvulsive Seizure”
The Florida Biomedical Career Symposium
Keynote Speaker: Sir Harold W. Kroto, Florida State University
“The Global Educational Outreach for Science, Engineering and
Technology (GEOSET) Project Pioneered from Florida State University”
Gregg Fields, Ph.D., FAU, Jupiter & Scripps Florida
“Using the Mechanism of Collagenolysis to Develop Novel Matrix
Metalloproteinase Probes”
Dr. Samuel Young, Max Planck Florida Institute
“Mechanisms of Synaptic Vesicle Release Dynamics that Support the Early
Stages of Auditory Processing”
Summer Intern Seminars
The weekly summer intern series, an adjunct to summer intern day-to-day responsibilities, features
faculty members from Scripps Florida. High school and college undergraduate interns attend specially
designed seminars throughout the course of the summer. Each seminar highlights basic science
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
74
principles and the research focus/application efforts of the Scripps Florida biology, chemistry, and core
laboratories.
June 10, 2015
William R. Roush, Ph.D., Associate Dean of the TSRI Graduate Program
Topic: “Ethics in Science”
Rosie G. Albarran-Zeckler, Ph.D., Coordinator, Education Outreach
Topic: “Time Management”
Matthew Pipkin, Ph.D., Associate Professor, TSRI, Department of Cancer
Biology
Topic: “Unraveling How Chromatin Structure
Regulates Cytotoxic T Lymphocyte Differentiation and Immunity”
Peter Norris and Galina Judge, Environmental Health and Safety
Topic: “Environmental Health & Safety Training”
Silvia Licciulli, Ph.D., Department of Cancer Biology
Topic: “Trying to Fool Cancer”, The New York Times, March 2015
Erica Young, Ph.D., Department of Metabolism and Aging
Topic: “Understanding Addiction”
Jenny Morgenweck, Ph.D., Department of Molecular Therapeutics
Topic: “Understanding Itch”
June 17, 2015
June 24, 2015
June 9, 2015
June 16, 2015
June 23, 2015
June 30, 2015
Subsection (10) (l)
Beginning June 2004, the grantee shall commence collaboration efforts with
the Office of Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development (OTTED) by
complying with reasonable requests for cooperation in economic
development efforts in the biomed/biotech industry. No later than July 2004,
the grantee shall designate a person who shall be charged with assisting in
these collaborative efforts.
Scripps Florida has designated Mr. Tom Northrup as its designee to assist the Department of Economic
Opportunity (“DEO”), nee OTTED, regarding collaborative economic development efforts between
Scripps and DEO.
Business outreach efforts include participation in meetings with local businesses, government agencies
such as the Palm Beach County Business Development Board and hospitals and Boards in the greater
Palm Beach County area.
Date
8-Oct-14
10-Oct-14
10-Oct-14
16-Oct-14
monthly
22-Oct-14
monthly
17-Nov-14
18-Nov-14
Participant(s)
C. Rader
C. Rader
C. Rader
Chakraborty,
Gill, Robbins
Ron Davis
Niedernhofer
Ron Davis
C. Rader
C. Rader
Event / Location
Meeting with abontek, Inc. and iBio, Inc., Seoul, Korea
Presentation at Celltrion, Inc, Incheon, Korea
Presentation at Dong-A Socio Holdings, Inc., Yongin, Korea
BMO
St. Mary's Medical Center - Governing Board Meeting, West Palm Beach
Skype with CEO of Peter Thiel's enterprise
NAMI Advisory Council Meeting, West Palm Beach, FL
Scientific Advisory Board of NBE Therapeutics in Basel, Switzerland
Talk "Research Funding and Option Agreement by and between TSRI and NBETherapeutics: Progress by Nov 2014"
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
75
21-Nov-14
3-Dec-14
7-Jan-15
14-Jan-15
20-Jan-15
29-Jan-15
10-Feb-15
12-Mar-15
20-Mar-15
26-Mar-15
27-Mar-15
7-Apr-15
20-Apr-15
21-Apr-15
22-Apr-15
24-Apr-15
14-May-15
28-May-15
29-May-15
17-Jun-15
16-23-Oct-14
17-19-Nov-14
28-Oct-14
9-10-Apr-15
Monthly
Monthly
Monthly
Monthly
Weekly
8-Jul-15
10-Jul-15
13-Jul-15
21-Jul-15
22-Jul-15
28-Jul-15
30-Jul-15
8/5-8/7/15
10-Aug-15
11-Aug-15
18-Aug-15
27-Aug-15
28-Aug-15
28-Aug-15
Sep-15
2-Sep-15
Paul Robbins
Niedernhofer
Kodadek
Miller
Ron Davis
Kodadek
Roy Smith
Paul Robbins
Niedernhofer
Phinney
Paul Robbins
Paul Robbins
Damon Page
Roy Periana
Kodadek
Niedernhofer
Paul Robbins
Niedernhofer
C. Rader
Niedernhofer
Ben Shen
Griffin,
Pascal
Ben Shen
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Niedernhofer
Ron Davis
Scampavia &
Spicer
Niedernhofer
Tina Izard
Paul Robbins
Patrick
Griffin
Scampavia &
Spicer
Rumbaugh
Patrick
Griffin
Scampavia
Robbins,
Huffman
Damon Page
Miller
Scampavia &
Spicer
Niedernhofer
Laura Bohn
Aldabra Biosciences
Conference call with the CEO of Alliance for Aging Research
Presentation at Future Energy FPL
James Dunning and Chip Block
Mayor Muoio State of the City Address, West Palm Beach
Seminar presented at Merck, West Point, PA
PNC Event Palm Beach
Breakfast Business Meeting
Skype with CEO of Peter Thiel's enterprise
Participate in BDB Life Sciences & Healthcare Luncheon, West Palm Beach
Palm Beach Business Development Breakfast - Jupiter Beach Resort
Aldabra Biosciences - SAB teleconference
Palm Beach Civic Association's Annual Meeting, West Palm Beach, FL
Presentation to the Board of Hyconix, Atlanta, GA
Meeting with Takeda
Chamber University; NPBC Chamber
Aldabra Biosciences - SAB teleconference
Attended BioFlorida "Raising Capital for Biotech Ventures in Florida", Scripps-Florida
Scientific Advisory Board of NBE Therapeutics in Basel, Switzerland
Business Before Hours - State of the Chamber: Game Changer Edition
ISCN28 & ICOB8, China
Thermo Fisher Meeting, Wasington, DC
Visit IBC & GRC at Taipei
Host to Dr. Peter Wehling, Orthopedist, Dusseldorf, Germany
Board of Directors of FASEB, monthly conference call
Conference call with American Society for Clinical Investigation
Community Relations Group Scripps FL, Meetings
Scripps Florida representative to the Northern Palm Beach County Chamber, Trustee
Founder and SRA with Aldabra Biosciences
Economic Council Board of Directors Meeting, MFPI, Jupiter, FL
Ono Pharma visit and meeting
Novartis meeting
Dr. Gerard Bricogne,Global Phasing Limited
Aldabara Bioscience Meeting
Roundtable with Southern Strategies
Opko Health Inc. SFP
Syngap Board Tour of Campus
Southern Strategies Meeting
Abide Therapeutics SFP
Ventures Meeting
Renaissance Learning Center Board Meeting, West Palm Beach, FL
Senator Bill Nelson, Kravis Center
Proteostasis Therapuetics SFP
Presentation for BNY investment team
Teleconference with Accelerator Venture Capital group
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
76
8-Sep-15
11-Sep-15
21-Sep-15
21-Sep-15
22-Sep-15
24-Sep-15
9/29-10/3/15
Monthly
Scampavia &
Spicer
Robbins,
Smith
Ron Davis
Robbins,
Niedernhofer
Kodadek
Scampavia &
Spicer
Puthanveettil
Niedernhofer
Paule Belony: Quality Systems Executive Director at Belony Group LLC, Miami/Fort
Lauderdale
Meeting NuVista's Institute for Healthy Living at Jupiter
Economic Council Board of Directors Meeting, MFPI, Jupiter, FL
NuVista's Institute for Healthy Living at Jupiter Ground Breaking Ceremony
Speak to Commercial Real Estate Women group
Takeda California SFP
Seimens
MAPI Group
On the next pages, please see the SFFC Audit, respondent to subsection (14) (g).
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Annual Report 2015
77
Audited Financial Statements
and Supplementary Information
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
A Component Unit of the
State of Florida
September 30, 2015
CALER , DONTEN , LEVINE,
COHEN, PORTER & V EIL, P.A.
CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
SCRIPPS FLORIDA FUNDING CORPORATION –
A COMPONENT UNIT OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA
AUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
AND SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
September 30, 2015
Page
INDEPENDENT AUDITOR'S REPORT .................................................................................................................. 1
MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS ............................................................................................ 3
BASIC FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Government-wide/Fund Financial Statements
Governmental Fund Balance Sheet/
Statement of Net Position .............................................................................................................................. 8
Statement of Governmental Fund Revenues, Expenditures and
Changes in Fund Balance/Statement of Activities .................................................................................... 9
Notes to Financial Statements......................................................................................................................... 10
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
Required Supplementary Information
General Fund
Budgetary Comparison Schedule............................................................................................................... 15
Notes to Budgetary Comparison Schedule ............................................................................................... 16
COMPLIANCE REPORT AND MANAGEMENT LETTER
Independent Auditor’s Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
and on Compliance and Other Matters Based on an Audit of Financial
Statements Performed in Accordance With Government Auditing Standards............................................ 17
Management Letter Required by the Rules of the Auditor General
for the State of Florida ..................................................................................................................................... 19
CALER, DONTEN, LEVINE,
COHEN, PORTER & VEIL, P.A.
CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
WILLIAM K CALER, JR , CPA
LOUIS M COHEN, CPA
JOHN C COURTNEY, CPA, JD
DAVID S DONTEN, CPA
JAMES B HUTCHISON, CPA
JOEL H LEVINE, CPA
JAMES F MULLEN, IV, CPA
MICHAEL J NALEZYTY, CPA
THOMAS A PENCE, JR , CPA
SCOTT L PORTER, CPA
MARK D VEIL, CPA
505 SOUTH FLAGLER DRIVE, SUITE 900
WEST PALM BEACH, FL 33401-5948
TELEPHONE (561) 832-9292
FAX (561) 832-9455
MEMBERS
AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF
CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF
CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
info@cdlcpa com
Independent Auditor’s Report
To the Board of Directors
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Jupiter, Florida
Report on the Financial Statements
We have audited the accompanying financial statements of the governmental activities and major fund of
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation, a component unit of the State of Florida, as of and for the year ended
September 30, 2015, and the related notes to the financial statements, which collectively comprise the basic
financial statements of Scripps Florida Funding Corporation as listed in the table of contents.
Management’s Responsibility for the Financial Statements
Management is responsible for the preparation and fair presentation of these financial statements in
accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles; this includes the design, implementation, and
maintenance of internal control relevant to the preparation and fair presentation of financial statements that
are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.
Auditor’s Responsibility
Our responsibility is to express opinions on these financial statements based on our audit. We conducted our
audit in accordance with U.S. generally accepted auditing standards and the standards applicable to financial
audits contained in Government Auditing Standards, issued by the Comptroller General of the United States.
Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the
financial statements are free from material misstatement.
An audit involves performing procedures to obtain audit evidence about the amounts and disclosures in the
financial statements. The procedures selected depend on the auditor’s judgment, including the assessment of
the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to fraud or error. In making those
risk assessments, the auditor considers internal control relevant to the entity’s preparation and fair
presentation of the financial statements in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the
circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the entity’s internal
control. Accordingly, we express no such opinion. An audit also includes evaluating the appropriateness of
accounting policies used and the reasonableness of significant accounting estimates made by management, as
well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements.
We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our
audit opinions.
1
Opinions
In our opinion, the financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the respective
financial position of the governmental activities and major fund of Scripps Florida Funding Corporation, as of
September 30, 2015, and the respective changes in financial position for the year then ended in accordance
with U.S generally accepted accounting principles.
Other Matters
Required Supplementary Information
U.S. generally accepted accounting principles require that management’s discussion and analysis on pages 3
through 7 and the budgetary comparison information on pages 15 and 16 be presented to supplement the
basic financial statements. Such information, although not a part of the basic financial statements, is required
by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board, who considers it to be an essential part of financial
reporting for placing the basic financial statements in an appropriate operational, economic, or historical
context. We have applied certain limited procedures to the required supplementary information in
accordance with U.S. generally accepted auditing standards, which consisted of inquiries of management
about the methods of preparing the information and comparing the information for consistency with
management’s responses to our inquiries, the basic financial statements, and other knowledge we obtained
during our audit of the basic financial statements. We do not express an opinion or provide any assurance on
the information because the limited procedures do not provide us with sufficient evidence to express an
opinion or provide any assurance.
Other Reporting Required by Government Auditing Standards
In accordance with Government Auditing Standards, we have also issued our report dated November 28, 2015,
on our consideration of Scripps Florida Funding Corporation’s internal control over financial reporting and
on our tests of its compliance with certain provisions of laws, regulations, contracts, and grant agreements
and other matters. The purpose of that report is to describe the scope of our testing of internal control over
financial reporting and compliance and the results of that testing, and not to provide an opinion on internal
control over financial reporting or on compliance. That report is an integral part of an audit performed in
accordance with Government Auditing Standards in considering Scripps Florida Funding Corporation’s internal
control over financial reporting and compliance.
West Palm Beach, Florida
November 28, 2015
2
Management’s Discussion and Analysis
Acting in our capacity as the management of Scripps Florida Funding Corporation (“SFFC”), we offer
readers of SFFC’s financial statements this narrative overview and analysis of the financial activities of
SFFC as of and for the year ended September 30, 2015. SFFC is governed by a nine member Board of
Directors, three of whom are appointed by the Governor of the State of Florida, three of whom are
appointed by the President of the Senate of the State of Florida, and three of whom are appointed by the
Speaker of the House of Representatives of the State of Florida. For financial reporting purposes,
management determined that SFFC should be reported as a governmental organization and a component
unit of the State of Florida based on the appointment of the Board of Directors by officials of State
government.
SFFC is a Florida not-for-profit public benefit corporation created by Florida Statutes, Section 288.955,
and was incorporated on December 8, 2003, for the primary purpose of overseeing the establishment and
operation of a state-of-the-art biomedical research institution and campus in Palm Beach County, Florida,
by The Scripps Research Institute (“TSRI”). The development of the Scripps Florida project was financed
by a Federal economic development grant of $310 million to the State of Florida that was passed through
to SFFC to administer. SFFC was required to distribute to TSRI the $310 million grant proceeds, plus the
net investment income thereon and less an annual administrative appropriation to SFFC over a ten year
period ending with a final grant distribution to TSRI on December 15, 2013. Thereafter, SFFC is required
to oversee the Scripps Florida project and the State’s investment of public funds through the year 2024.
As part of the annual audited financial statements of SFFC, the Governmental Accounting Standards
Board requires the presentation of certain comparative information for the current and prior year in this
Management’s Discussion and Analysis.
Financial Highlights

The assets of SFFC exceeded its liabilities at September 30, 2015 by $324,158 (net position), all of which
will be utilized in future years for SFFC’s oversight of the Scripps Florida project.

SFFC’s total assets were $328,411 at September 30, 2015, consisting primarily of cash attributable to
the unexpended portion of the annual $200,000 administrative appropriation for the operations of
SFFC. The annual administrative appropriation ended with a final payment on December 15, 2013.

As of September 30, 2015, the General Fund of SFFC reported ending fund balance of $324,158. Of
this total amount, $9,714 is nonspendable for prepaid items and $314,444 is unrestricted and available
to fund the future operations of SFFC.
Overview of the Financial Statements
This discussion and analysis is intended to serve as an introduction to SFFC’s basic financial statements.
The basic financial statements of SFFC include three components: (1) government-wide financial
statements, (2) fund financial statements, and (3) notes to the financial statements. This report also
contains other supplementary information in addition to the basic financial statements themselves.
Government-wide financial statements. The government-wide financial statements are designed to provide
readers with a broad overview of SFFC’s finances, in a manner similar to a private-sector business.
The statement of net position presents information on SFFC’s assets and liabilities, with the difference
between the two reported as net position. Over time, increases or decreases in net position may serve as a
useful indicator of whether the financial position of SFFC is improving or deteriorating.
3
The statement of activities presents information showing how SFFC’s net position changed during the most
recent fiscal year. All changes in net position are reported as soon as the underlying event giving rise to
the change occurs, regardless of the timing of related cash flow. Thus, some revenues and expenses may be
reported in this statement for items that will only result in cash flows in future fiscal periods.
The government-wide financial statements present functions of SFFC that are principally supported by
the unexpended portion of an annual administrative appropriation from the State for the operations of
SFFC (governmental activities). The annual administrative appropriation ended with a final payment on
December 15, 2013. The governmental activities of SFFC include all General Fund functions.
SFFC has no business-type activities that are intended to recover all or a significant portion of their costs
through user fees and charges.
The government-wide financial statements can be found on pages 8 and 9 of this report.
Fund financial statements. A fund is a grouping of related accounts that is used to maintain control over
resources that have been segregated for specific activities or objectives. SFFC, like other state and local
governments, uses fund accounting to ensure and demonstrate compliance with finance-related legal
requirements. SFFC utilizes only one fund, the General Fund, which is classified as a governmental fund
and accounts for all financial resources of SFFC.
Governmental funds. Governmental funds are used to account for essentially the same functions reported
as governmental activities in the government-wide financial statements. However, unlike the governmentwide financial statements, the governmental fund financial statements focus on near-term inflows and
outflows of spendable resources, as well as on balances of spendable resources available at the end of the fiscal
year. Such information may be useful in evaluating a government’s near-term financing requirements.
Because the focus of governmental funds is narrower than that of the government-wide financial
statements, it may be useful to compare the information presented for governmental funds with similar
information presented for governmental activities in the government-wide financial statements. By doing
so, readers may better understand the long-term impact of SFFC’s near-term financing decisions. Both the
governmental fund balance sheet and the governmental fund statement of revenues, expenditures, and
changes in fund balance provide a reconciliation to facilitate this comparison between the governmental
fund and governmental activities. Since SFFC had no long-term assets or liabilities, there were no
differences between the revenues and expenditures/expenses of the governmental fund and governmental
activities.
The basic governmental fund financial statements can be found on pages 8 and 9 of this report.
Explanations of the reconciling items between the governmental fund and the governmental activities can
be found in Note D on page 14. SFFC adopts an annual appropriated budget for its General Fund. A
budgetary comparison schedule has been provided on page 15 for the General Fund.
Notes to the financial statements. The notes provide additional information that is essential to a full
understanding of the data provided in the government-wide and fund financial statements. The notes to
the financial statements can be found on pages 10-14 of this report.
Other information. In addition to the basic financial statements and accompanying notes, this report also
presents certain required supplementary information concerning SFFC’s budget to actual results for the
General Fund for the current fiscal year. The required supplementary information can be found on pages
15 and 16 of this report.
4
Government-wide Financial Analysis
As noted earlier, net position may serve over time as a useful indicator of a government’s financial
position. The assets, liabilities and net position of SFFC at September 30, 2015 and 2014 are summarized
as follows:
Net Position
2015
2014
Assets
Cash and other current asset
$
328,411
$
409,982
Liabilities
Current liabilities
$
4,253
$
3,195
Net position
Unrestricted
$
324,158
$
406,787
SFFC’s unrestricted net position of $324,158 represents the funds available for the future operations of
SFFC that will be expensed in subsequent fiscal years. At the end of the current fiscal year, SFFC reported
a positive balance of $324,158 in net position that will decrease over time as funds are expensed for future
administrative operations of SFFC.
Governmental activities. Governmental activities decreased SFFC’s net position by $82,629 in 2015 and
by $121,577 in 2014. Key elements of this change are as follows.
Changes in Net Position
2015
$
Revenues
Expenses
General government
Change in net position
Net position – beginning of year
Net position – end of year
$
2014
-
$
-
82,629
121,577
(82,629)
(121,577)
406,787
528,364
324,158
$
406,787
The final grant payment was made by SFFC on December 15, 2013 and the expenses for 2015 and 2014
consisted solely of administrative expenses for the operations of SFFC. The general government expenses
consisted primarily of professional fees associated with the monitoring responsibilities of SFFC and
administrative expenses, such as insurance.
Financial Analysis of the Government’s Funds
As noted earlier, SFFC uses fund accounting to ensure and demonstrate compliance with finance-related
legal requirements.
5
Governmental funds. The focus of the governmental funds is to provide information on near-term inflows,
outflows and balances of spendable resources. Such information is useful in assessing SFFC’s financing
requirements. In particular, unreserved fund balance may serve as a useful measure of a government’s net
resources available for spending at the end of the fiscal year. As noted previously, SFFC has only one
governmental fund, the General Fund.
As of the end of the current period, SFFC’s governmental fund reported ending fund balance of $324,158.
Substantially all of the ending fund balance ($314,444) constitutes unassigned fund balance, which is
available to finance future spending by SFFC for activities related to its ongoing statutory oversight
responsibility for the Scripps Florida project through the year 2024. The remaining fund balance of $9,714
relates to prepaid items and is considered nonspendable because it is not in spendable form.
Key factors to consider in analyzing the fund balance for the General Fund are as follows:



SFFC is limited by Florida statutes to expenditures of $200,000 annually for administrative
expenses.
The final appropriation of $200,000 to finance the administrative expenses of SFFC was received
on December 15, 2013.
The unexpended portion of each annual administrative budget allocation of $200,000 was carried
over from prior years and will be used to fund the future administrative operations of SFFC.
General Fund Budgetary Highlights
There were no differences between the original budget and the final amended budget for the year ended
September 30, 2015.
During the year, revenues consisted solely of an allocation of $126,470 from accumulated fund balance.
Expenditures were less than budgetary estimates by approximately $45,000, which was attributable
primarily to lower professional fees incurred for the grant monitoring activities of SFFC.
Capital Asset and Debt Administration
Capital assets. SFFC has not purchased any capital assets.
Long-term debt. SFFC is not permitted to incur long-term debt.
Economic Factors and Next Year’s Budget
SFFC’s budget for the 2015-2016 fiscal year is based on the following considerations:

The contract between SFFC and TSRI does not expire until the year 2024. During this remaining
time period, SFFC has a contractual obligation to exercise continued oversight of the Scripps
Florida project and the State’s investment of public funds. The operations of SFFC for the fiscal
year ending September 30, 2016 and for future years will include administrative expenses related
to this ongoing oversight responsibility.

Following the final grant disbursement to TSRI and related administrative allocation to SFFC on
December 15, 2013, there are presently no arrangements to provide further funds for SFFC to
carry out its contractual oversight obligations of the Scripps Florida project through the year
2024. Accordingly, SFFC will continue to operate utilizing its remaining cash balances, until those
amounts are depleted (currently estimated to be depleted in 2018). Thereafter, management
expects that SFFC will cease operations and dissolve the corporation, and all contractual
responsibilities of SFFC for the Scripps Florida project will revert to the State of Florida.
6
Requests for Information
This financial report is designed to provide a general overview of SFFC’s finances for all those with an
interest in the organization’s finances. Questions concerning any of the information provided in this
report or requests for additional financial information should be addressed to the Scripps Project Director
at 130 Scripps Way, #B41, Jupiter, Florida, 33458.
7
SCRIPPS FLORIDA FUNDING CORPORATION
GOVERNMENTAL FUND BALANCE SHEET/STATEMENT OF NET POSITION
September 30, 2015
Governmental
Fund
General
Fund
ASSETS
Cash
Prepaid items
TOTAL ASSETS
LIABILITY
Accounts payable
TOTAL LIABILITY
$
318,697
9,714
$
328,411
-
328,411
$
4,253
4,253
-
4,253
4,253
FUND BALANCE/NET POSITION
Fund balance
Nonspendable - prepaid items
Unassigned
TOTAL FUND BALANCE
TOTAL LIABILITY AND
FUND BALANCE
Adjustments
(Note D)
$
$
-
Statement of
Net Position
Governmental
Activities
$
318,697
9,714
9,714
314,444
(9,714)
(314,444)
-
324,158
(324,158)
-
328,411
Net Position
Unrestricted
324,158
TOTAL NET POSITION
See notes to financial statements.
8
$
-
324,158
$
324,158
SCRIPPS FLORIDA FUNDING CORPORATION
STATEMENT OF GOVERNMENTAL FUND REVENUES, EXPENDITURES,
AND CHANGES IN FUND BALANCE/STATEMENT OF ACTIVITIES
Year Ended September 30, 2015
Governmental
Fund
General
Fund
$
Revenues
Expenditures/Expenses
Current
General government
Expenditures over revenues/
Change in net position
Fund balance/Net position at
October 1, 2014
Fund balance/Net position at September 30, 2015
$
-
Adjustments
(Note D)
$
-
Statement of
Activities
Governmental
Activities
$
-
82,629
82,629
-
82,629
82,629
(82,629)
-
(82,629)
406,787
-
406,787
324,158
See notes to financial statements.
9
$
-
$
324,158
SCRIPPS FLORIDA FUNDING CORPORATION
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
September 30, 2015
NOTE A - SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation (“SFFC”) is a Florida not-for-profit, public benefit corporation created
by Florida Statutes, Section 288.955, and was incorporated on December 8, 2003, for the purpose of enhancing
education and research and promoting, developing, and advancing the business prosperity and economic
welfare of the State of Florida and its residents by facilitating and overseeing the establishment and operation
of a state-of-the-art biomedical research institution and campus in the State by The Scripps Research Institute
(“TSRI”). SFFC is exempt from income taxes under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
SFFC is governed by a nine member Board of Directors, three of whom are appointed by the Governor of the
State of Florida, three of whom are appointed by the President of the Senate of the State of Florida, and three
of whom are appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives of the State of Florida.
Financial Reporting Entity: For financial reporting purposes, management determined that SFFC should be
reported as a governmental organization and a component unit of the State of Florida based on the
appointment of the Board of Directors by officials of State government. In considering potential component
units to include in the SFFC financial reporting entity, management applied the criteria set forth in U.S.
generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). As defined by GAAP, the financial reporting entity consists
of (a) the primary government, (b) organizations for which the primary government is financially
accountable, and (c) other organizations for which the primary government is not accountable, but for which
the nature and significance of their relationship with the primary government are such that exclusion would
cause the financial reporting entity’s financial statements to be misleading or incomplete. Component units
are legally separate organizations for which the elected officials of the primary government are financially
accountable. In addition, component units can be other organizations for which the nature and significance of
their relationship with the primary government are such that exclusion would cause the financial reporting
entity’s financial statements to be misleading or incomplete. Based upon the application of these criteria, SFFC
found that there were no entities to consider as potential component units.
Government-wide/Governmental Fund Financial Statements: SFFC is a special-purpose government engaged
in one primary governmental activity, to facilitate and oversee the establishment and operation of a state-ofthe-art biomedical research institution and campus in the State by The Scripps Research Institute. SFFC
accounts for all financial resources in one fund, the General Fund, which includes all governmental activities of
SFFC, which are supported primarily by accumulated net position/fund balance from prior years’
administrative appropriations received from the State of Florida. Accordingly, the Government-wide and
Governmental Fund financial statements of SFFC are combined using a columnar format that reconciles
individual line items of General Fund financial data to Government-wide data in separate columns on the face
of the financial statements. The Governmental Fund financial statements include a Balance Sheet and a
Statement of Revenues, Expenditures and Changes in Fund Balance for the General Fund. The Governmentwide financial statements consist of the Statement of Net Position and the Statement of Activities. Note D
explains the reconciling items presented in the adjustments column of the combined Government-wide and
Governmental Fund financial statements.
Measurement Focus and Basis of Accounting: Financial reporting is based upon pronouncements of the
Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB), as well as pronouncements of the Financial Accounting
Standards Board (FASB) that do not conflict with or contradict GASB pronouncements.
10
SCRIPPS FLORIDA FUNDING CORPORATION
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
September 30, 2015
NOTE A - SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)
The government-wide financial statements are reported using the economic resources measurement focus and
the accrual basis of accounting. Revenue is recognized when earned and expenses are recognized when
incurred, regardless of the timing of related cash flows. SFFC does not allocate indirect expenses.
Governmental fund financial statements are reported using the current financial resources measurement focus
and the modified accrual basis of accounting. Under the modified accrual basis of accounting, revenues are
recognized in the period in which they become both measurable and available. Revenues are considered to be
available when collectible within the current period or soon enough thereafter to pay liabilities of the current
period. SFFC considers revenues to be available if collected within 90 days of the end of the fiscal year to
which they apply. Revenue items are considered to be measurable and available only when received in cash
by SFFC. Expenditures are generally recognized in the accounting period in which the fund liability is
incurred.
Cash: Cash consists of amounts on deposit in a non-interest bearing checking account with a financial
institution.
Prepaid Items: Certain payments to vendors reflect costs applicable to future accounting periods and are
recorded as prepaid items.
Fund Balance/ Net Position:
Fund Balance
In the fund financial statements, governmental funds report fund balance classifications that comprise a
hierarchy based primarily on the extent to which SFFC is legally bound to honor the specific purposes for
which amounts in fund balance may be spent. The fund balance classifications are summarized as follows:
Nonspendable - Nonspendable fund balance includes amounts that cannot be spent because they are
either 1) not in spendable form; or, 2) legally or contractually required to be maintained intact.
Restricted - Restricted fund balance includes amounts that are restricted to specific purposes either by
1) constraints placed on the use of resources by creditors, grantors, contributors, or laws or
regulations of other governments; or, 2) imposed by law through constitutional provisions or
enabling legislation. SFFC has no restricted fund balance.
Committed - Committed fund balance includes amounts that can only be used for specific purposes
pursuant to constraints imposed by SFFC’s Board through a resolution. SFFC has no committed fund
balance.
Assigned - Assigned fund balance includes amounts that are constrained by SFFC’s intent to be used
for specific purposes but are neither restricted nor committed. Assignments of fund balance are made
by SFFC management based upon direction by SFFC’s Board. SFFC has no assigned fund balance.
Unassigned - Unassigned fund balance includes amounts that have not been restricted, committed, or
assigned to specific purposes within the General Fund.
11
SCRIPPS FLORIDA FUNDING CORPORATION
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
September 30, 2015
NOTE A - SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)
SFFC considers restricted fund balance to be spent when an expenditure is incurred for the restricted purpose.
SFFC considers committed, assigned or unassigned fund balance to be spent when an expenditure is incurred
for purposes for which amounts in any of those fund balance classifications could be used.
The SFFC Board has not adopted a formal minimum fund balance policy because the mission of SFFC is to
expend all remaining fund balance for monitoring the economic development grant to TSRI, pursuant to the
terms of the Operating and Funding Agreement between SFFC and TSRI.
Net Position
The government-wide financial statements utilize a net position presentation, which is categorized as follows:
Restricted – This component of net position consists of constraints placed on the use of net position by
external restrictions imposed by vendors, contributors, or laws or regulations of other governments
or constraints imposed by law, constitutional provisions or enabling legislation. Restricted resources
are used first to fund expenses incurred for restricted purposes. SFFC has no restricted net position.
Unrestricted – This component of net position consists of amounts that do not meet the definition of
Restricted.
Economic Development Grant: SFFC entered into an Operating and Funding Agreement (the “Agreement”)
with TSRI dated January 30, 2004. Pursuant to the terms of the Agreement, SFFC provided an economic
development grant to TSRI in the amount of $310 million plus the net investment income thereon and less an
annual administrative appropriation to SFFC. Subject to compliance by TSRI with the terms of the Agreement
and annual approval of a grant request by SFFC, the economic development grant was payable to TSRI in
quarterly installments on March 15th, June 15th, September 15th and December 15th of each year through the
final payment date of December 15, 2013. At September 30, 2015, all grant payments were disbursed and TSRI
was in compliance with the Agreement.
Property Taxes: SFFC receives no property taxes.
Risk Management: SFFC is exposed to various risks of loss related to torts; theft of, damage to, and
destruction of assets; errors and omissions; injuries to employees; and natural disasters. SFFC purchases
commercial insurance for the risks of losses to which it is exposed. Policy limits and deductibles are reviewed
annually by management and established at amounts to provide reasonable protection from significant
financial loss. Settlements have not exceeded insurance coverage since inception.
Income Taxes: SFFC is exempt from income taxes as a public charity under the provisions of Internal
Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3), except for any net income derived from unrelated business activities.
Management does not believe that SFFC has any unrelated business activities that could result in a tax
liability or any uncertain tax positions that would be material to the financial statements. SFFC’s tax returns
for tax years prior to 2011 are no longer subject to examination by taxing authorities.
New Accounting Pronouncements: SFFC has implemented all applicable GASB Statements effective through
the fiscal year ended September 30, 2015. GASB has also issued Statements Nos. 72 through 77, which will be
effective in future years, although management does not believe that any of these GASB Statements will be
applicable to SFFC.
12
SCRIPPS FLORIDA FUNDING CORPORATION
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
September 30, 2015
NOTE A - SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)
Estimates: Management uses estimates and assumptions in preparing financial statements in accordance with
U.S. generally accepted accounting principles. Those estimates and assumptions affect the reported amounts
of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities, and the reported revenues and
expenditures. Actual results could vary from the estimates that were used.
NOTE B - CASH
At September 30, 2015, SFFC had deposits with financial institutions with a carrying value and bank balance
of approximately $326,000. The deposits with financial institutions were entirely covered by federal
depository insurance and a collateral pool pledged to the State Treasurer of Florida by financial institutions
that comply with the requirements of Florida Statutes and have been designated as a qualified public
depository by the State Treasurer. Qualified public depositories are required to pledge collateral to the State
Treasurer with a fair value equal to a percentage of the average daily balance of all government deposits in
excess of any federal deposit insurance. In the event of a default by a qualified public depository, the amount
of public funds would be covered by the proceeds of federal deposit insurance, pledged collateral of the
public depository in default and, if necessary, a pro rata assessment to the other qualified public depositories
in the collateral pool. Accordingly, all deposits with financial institutions are considered fully insured or
collateralized in accordance with the provisions of GASB Statement No. 3.
NOTE C - COMMITMENT AND CONTINGENCY
Contract Commitment: Pursuant to the terms of the Operating and Funding Agreement, SFFC provided an
economic development grant to TSRI of $310 million plus the investment income thereon and less an annual
allocation to SFFC for administrative expenses of $200,000 through the contract year ended January 30, 2014,
the tenth and final year of the economic development grant. The grant funds were paid to TSRI in quarterly
installments over the ten year period to establish and operate a state-of-the-art biomedical research institution
and campus in Florida, known as Scripps Florida. The final grant payment to TSRI was paid on December 15,
2013 and included all amounts on deposit with the State Board of Administration, less a final allocation of
$200,000 to SFFC for its fiscal year administrative expense budget.
Although the final payment from SFFC to TSRI for the Scripps Florida economic development grant was
made on December 15, 2013, the contract between SFFC and TSRI does not expire until the year 2024. During
this remaining period, SFFC has a contractual obligation to exercise continued oversight of the Scripps Florida
project and the State’s investment of public funds. Following the final grant disbursement to TSRI and related
budget allocation to SFFC on December 15, 2013, there are no commitments to provide further funding to
SFFC to carry out its contractual obligations through the year 2024. Accordingly, SFFC presently intends to
continue operations until its remaining cash balances are depleted (currently estimated to be depleted in
2018). Thereafter, management expects that SFFC will cease operations, the corporation will be dissolved and
all contractual responsibilities of SFFC for the Scripps Florida project will revert to the State of Florida.
Grants: Amounts received or receivable from grantor agencies are subject to audit and adjustment by those
agencies. Any disallowed claims, including amounts already received, might constitute a liability of SFFC for
the return of those funds.
13
SCRIPPS FLORIDA FUNDING CORPORATION
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
September 30, 2015
NOTE D - EXPLANATION OF ADJUSTMENTS BETWEEN GOVERNMENTAL FUND AND
GOVERNMENT-WIDE FINANCIAL STATEMENT AMOUNTS
The only adjustment between the Governmental Fund financial statements and the Government-wide
financial statements is the reclassification of the Fund Balance reported for SFFC’s General Fund into the Net
Position category reported for Governmental Activities in the Statement of Net Position. There were no
differences between the Governmental Fund Statement of Revenues, Expenditures and Changes in Fund
Balance and the Statement of Activities.
14
REQUIRED SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
SCRIPPS FLORIDA FUNDING CORPORATION
BUDGETARY COMPARISON SCHEDULE GENERAL FUND - NON-GAAP BUDGETARY BASIS
Year Ended September 30, 2015
Budgeted Amounts
Original
Final
Revenues
Fund balance allocation for
administrative expenses
$
TOTAL REVENUES
General Government
Bank charges
Insurance
Licenses and fees
Meeting expenses
Office supplies
Postage
Professional fees
Legal
Accounting and auditing
Bookkeeping
Consulting
Research
Public meeting notices
Telephone
Travel
Board members
TOTAL EXPENDITURES
REVENUES OVER (UNDER)
EXPENDITURES - BUDGETARY BASIS
$
126,470
$
Variance with
Final Budget
Positive
(Negative)
Actual
Amounts
126,470
$
-
$
(126,470)
126,470
126,470
-
(126,470)
29,500
120
500
500
250
29,500
120
500
500
250
48
28,750
61
107
45
68
(48)
750
59
393
455
182
40,000
32,500
150
16,000
4,000
300
650
40,000
32,500
150
16,000
4,000
300
650
21,285
18,359
11,157
60
710
18,715
14,141
150
4,843
4,000
240
(60)
2,000
2,000
921
1,079
126,470
126,470
81,571
44,899
-
$
-
See notes to budgetary comparison schedule.
15
$
(81,571)
$
(81,571)
SCRIPPS FLORIDA FUNDING CORPORATION
NOTES TO BUDGETARY COMPARISON SCHEDULE
September 30, 2015
NOTE A - BUDGETARY ACCOUNTING
An appropriated budget is legally required and has been legally adopted for each contract year ending
December 15th for the General Fund on the cash basis of accounting, except that for budgetary purposes,
the Board of Directors must approve all changes or amendments to the total budgeted expenditures of
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation (SFFC). Total expenditures may not legally exceed total budgeted
appropriations at the fund level. SFFC has not made any supplemental appropriations for the contract
year ending December 15, 2015. Appropriations lapse at the end of each contract year.
Expenditures for general government purposes are legally limited by Florida Statutes to $300,000 for the
first contract year of operations, ending on December 15, 2004, and $200,000 for each contract year
thereafter. Because SFFC is legally required to adopt its budget for the contract year ended December 15th,
the General Fund budgetary comparison schedule is not intended to and does not present budgetary
compliance on a contract year basis. For purposes of the contract year budget and legal limitation, the
budgetary basis expenditures for general government purposes were $81,632 through September 30,
2015, and were within the $200,000 statutory limitation for the contract period ending December 15, 2015.
Expenditures for the contract year ended December 15, 2014 were within the statutory limitation of
$200,000.
NOTE B - BUDGET TO ACTUAL COMPARISONS
The General Fund budgetary comparison schedule presents actual amounts for the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2015 and budgeted amounts based on an allocation of the budget for the contract years
ended December 15, 2014 and 2015. The budget amounts presented in the accompanying budgetary
comparison schedule reflect the original budget and the amended budget based on legally authorized
revisions to the original budget during the year.
U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) require that the General Fund budgetary
comparison schedule be prepared under the cash basis of accounting used in preparing the budget. As a
result, General Fund revenues and expenditures reported in the budgetary comparison schedule differ
from the revenues and expenditures reported on the GAAP basis. The difference can be reconciled as
follows:
Revenues
Budgetary basis
GAAP basis adjustments:
Fund balance allocation to revenues
Modified accrual basis adjustments
$
Expenditures
126,470
$
(126,470)
-
GAAP Basis
$
16
-
81,571
1,058
$
82,629
COMPLIANCE REPORT AND
MANAGEMENT LETTER
CALER, DONTEN, LEVINE,
COHEN, PORTER & VEIL, P.A.
CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
WILLIAM K CALER, JR , CPA
LOUIS M COHEN, CPA
JOHN C COURTNEY, CPA, JD
DAVID S DONTEN, CPA
JAMES B HUTCHISON, CPA
JOEL H LEVINE, CPA
JAMES F MULLEN, IV, CPA
MICHAEL J NALEZYTY, CPA
THOMAS A PENCE, JR , CPA
SCOTT L PORTER, CPA
MARK D VEIL, CPA
505 SOUTH FLAGLER DRIVE, SUITE 900
WEST PALM BEACH, FL 33401-5948
TELEPHONE (561) 832-9292
FAX (561) 832-9455
MEMBERS
AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF
CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF
CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
info@cdlcpa com
Independent Auditor’s Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
and on Compliance and Other Matters Based on an Audit of Financial
Statements Performed in Accordance With Government Auditing Standards
To the Board of Directors
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Jupiter, Florida
We have audited, in accordance with U.S. generally accepted auditing standards and the standards applicable
to financial audits contained in Government Auditing Standards issued by the Comptroller General of the
United States, the financial statements of the governmental activities and major fund of Scripps Florida
Funding Corporation, a component unit of the State of Florida, as of and for the year ended September 30,
2015, and the related notes to the financial statements, which collectively comprise Scripps Florida Funding
Corporation’s basic financial statements, and have issued our report thereon dated November 28, 2015.
Internal Control over Financial Reporting
In planning and performing our audit of the financial statements, we considered Scripps Florida Funding
Corporation’s internal control over financial reporting (internal control) to determine the audit procedures
that are appropriate in the circumstances for the purpose of expressing our opinions on the financial
statements, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of Scripps Florida Funding
Corporation’s internal control. Accordingly, we do not express an opinion on the effectiveness of Scripps
Florida Funding Corporation’s internal control.
A deficiency in internal control exists when the design or operation of a control does not allow management or
employees, in the normal course of performing their assigned functions, to prevent, or detect and correct,
misstatements on a timely basis. A material weakness is a deficiency, or combination of deficiencies, in internal
control, such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of the entity’s financial
statements will not be prevented, or detected and corrected on a timely basis. A significant deficiency is a
deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal control that is less severe than a material weakness, yet
important enough to merit attention by those charged with governance.
Our consideration of internal control was for the limited purpose described in the first paragraph of this
section and was not designed to identify all deficiencies in internal control that might be material weaknesses
or, significant deficiencies. Given these limitations, during our audit we did not identify any deficiencies in
internal control that we consider to be material weaknesses. However, material weaknesses may exist that
have not been identified.
17
Compliance and Other Matters
As part of obtaining reasonable assurance about whether Scripps Florida Funding Corporation’s financial
statements are free from material misstatement, we performed tests of its compliance with certain provisions
of laws, regulations, contracts, and grant agreements, noncompliance with which could have a direct and
material effect on the determination of financial statement amounts. However, providing an opinion on
compliance with those provisions was not an objective of our audit, and accordingly, we do not express such
an opinion. The results of our tests disclosed no instances of noncompliance or other matters that are required
to be reported under Government Auditing Standards.
Purpose of this Report
The purpose of this report is solely to describe the scope of our testing of internal control and compliance and
the results of that testing, and not to provide an opinion on the effectiveness of the entity’s internal control or
on compliance. This report is an integral part of an audit performed in accordance with Government Auditing
Standards in considering the entity’s internal control and compliance. Accordingly, this communication is not
suitable for any other purpose.
West Palm Beach, Florida
November 28, 2015
18
CALER, DONTEN, LEVINE,
COHEN, PORTER & VEIL, P.A.
CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
WILLIAM K CALER, JR , CPA
LOUIS M COHEN, CPA
JOHN C COURTNEY, CPA, JD
DAVID S DONTEN, CPA
JAMES B HUTCHISON, CPA
JOEL H LEVINE, CPA
JAMES F MULLEN, IV, CPA
MICHAEL J NALEZYTY, CPA
THOMAS A PENCE, JR , CPA
SCOTT L PORTER, CPA
MARK D VEIL, CPA
505 SOUTH FLAGLER DRIVE, SUITE 900
WEST PALM BEACH, FL 33401-5948
TELEPHONE (561) 832-9292
FAX (561) 832-9455
MEMBERS
AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF
CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF
CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
info@cdlcpa com
Management Letter
To the Board of Directors
Scripps Florida Funding Corporation
Jupiter, Florida
Report on the Financial Statements
We have audited the financial statements of Scripps Florida Funding Corporation, a component unit of
the State of Florida, as of and for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2015, and have issued our report
thereon dated November 28, 2015.
Auditor’s Responsibility
We conducted our audit in accordance with U.S. generally accepted auditing standards; the standards
applicable to financial audits contained in Government Auditing Standards, issued by the Comptroller
General of the United States; and Chapter 10.700, Rules of the Auditor General.
Other Reports and Schedule
We have issued our Independent Auditor’s Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting and on
Compliance and Other Matters Based on an Audit of Financial Statements Performed in Accordance with
Government Auditing Standards. Disclosures in that report, which is dated November 28, 2015, should be
considered in conjunction with this management letter.
Prior Audit Findings
Chapter 10.700, Rules of the Auditor General, requires that we determine whether or not corrective
actions have been taken to address findings and recommendations made in the preceding annual
financial audit report. There were no prior year findings and recommendations.
Other Matters
Chapter 10.700, Rules of the Auditor General, requires disclosure in the management letter of
noncompliance with provisions of contracts or grant agreements, or abuse, that have occurred, or are
likely to have occurred, that have an effect on financial statement amounts that is less than material but
which warrants the attention of those charged with governance. In connection with our audit for the year
ended September 30, 2015, we did not have any such findings or other recommendations to improve
financial management.
19
Purpose of this Letter
Our management letter is intended solely for the information and use of the Legislative Auditing
Committee, members of the Florida Senate and the Florida House of Representatives, the Florida Auditor
General and the Board of Directors, management and others within Scripps Florida Funding Corporation,
and is not intended to be and should not be used by anyone other than these specified parties.
West Palm Beach, Florida
November 28, 2015
20