Draft:American Peptide Society

The American Peptide Society (APS) is an international nonprofit scholarly organization based in the United States with the mission to advance and promote knowledge of the chemistry and biology of peptides. The APS currently has well over 2000 members from all over the world at all degree levels, drawn from academia, the pharmaceutical industry, and the biotechnology sector. The APS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. Through myriad activities, the APS has played a pivotal role in fostering research, education, and collaboration within the peptide community.

History
The APS has its roots in response to the growing importance of peptides in diverse areas of science, including pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, and materials science. Recognizing the need for a dedicated organization to bring together researchers, educators, and professionals in the field, a group of peptide chemists convened a conference held in 1968 at Yale University (New Haven, CT), with Saul Lande (Yale) and Boris Weinstein (University of Washington) serving as Chairs. This event spawned the formal incorporation, on November 4, 1970, of an organization named “American Peptide Symposium”. Subsequently, the organization was reincorporated as “The American Peptide Society”, founded on February 15, 1990, under the leadership of Charles Deber (Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario), Arthur Felix (Hoffmann-La Roche Inc., Nutley, NJ), Victor Hruby (University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ), and Clark Smith (Upjohn Co., Kalamazoo, MI). The “Bylaws and Constitution” were published originally on March 5, 1990 and updated on January 15, 2020.

Symposia and Other APS Activities

The flagship events conducted under APS auspices are the biennial American Peptide Symposia, which are attended by hundreds of research scientists (in a few cases, over a thousand) from all over the world, and feature invited and submitted lectures from distinguished scientists on cutting-edge research. Each Symposium also provides a platform for graduate and postdoctoral students to present their results in poster sessions, with a portion of these contributions selected by the organizing committee for oral presentation. These are further buttressed by extensive networking opportunities, outreach activities, and workshops specifically designed for students. At the same time, leading manufacturers, suppliers, vendors, and publishers showcase their most recent wares in suitable exhibition space.

The first such Symposium was held in 1968 at Yale University, well before the Society was formally established. As of 2023, the American Peptide Symposium has been held 28 times throughout the United States and Canada.

Awards

The APS also administers a number of awards that are officially bestowed at the Symposia, where the recipients deliver their award addresses and receive their plaques. Additional APS awards support student travel, and at various points in its history, the APS has sponsored or maintained specialized peer-reviewed scientific journals that are dedicated to various aspects of peptide science.

The R. Bruce Merrifield Award, previously known as the Alan E. Pierce Award and established in by an endowment from Rao Makineni, recognizes the lifetime achievement of a peptide scientist, whose work exemplifies the highest level of scientific creativity.

The Vincent du Vigneaud Award, sponsored by Bachem, recognizes outstanding achievement in peptide research at mid-career.

The Murray Goodman Scientific Excellence & Mentorship Award recognizes an individual who has demonstrated career-long research excellence and has been responsible for significant mentorship and training of students, post-doctoral fellows, and/or other co-workers.

The Rao Makineni Lectureship recognizes an individual who has made a recent contribution of unusual merit to research in the field of peptide science.

The APS Early Career Lectureship Award recognizes outstanding early career investigators who have demonstrated innovative research in peptide science are recognized and given the opportunity to address the biennial Symposia. Two recipients are chosen biennially.

In addition to the aforementioned awards, the biennial Symposia include a Young Investigators Poster Competition in order to recognize and honor the most noteworthy contributions from graduate and postdoctoral students.

Publications
The official journal of the American Peptide Society is Peptide Science.