Liberty Mutual Appoints Chief Actuary for Group Benefits Operation

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Boston-headquartered Liberty Mutual Insurance has appointed Brian Dunham as senior vice president and chief actuary of its group benefits operation.

Prior to joining Liberty Mutual, Dunham was responsible for the pricing and financial management of Unums large case group life and disability business. He is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries and a member of the American Academy of Actuaries.

Brian Dunham

Liberty Mutual said Dunham brings a wealth of experience in large-case life and disability insurance. He has both the actuarial and management skills to help continue Liberty Mutuals strong growth in the group life and disability, the insurer said.

Liberty Mutual Insurance is a diversified global insurer and the third-largest property/casualty insurer in the U.S. based on net written premium. At the end of 2011, Liberty Mutual had $117.1 billion in consolidated assets, $99.3 billion in consolidated liabilities, and $34.7 billion in annual consolidated revenue.

Liberty Mutual offers a wide range of insurance products and services, including personal automobile, homeowners, workers compensation, property, commercial automobile, general liability, global specialty, group disability, reinsurance and surety. Liberty Mutual Insurance employs over 45,000 people in more than 900 offices throughout the world.

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Liberty Mutual Appoints Chief Actuary for Group Benefits Operation

Liberty-Dream Preview

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The Atlanta Dream are hoping this is the second consecutive season that their first win comes against the New York Liberty.

That wish may come true with the way the Liberty have played so far.

Atlanta opens its home schedule Friday night when the Liberty try to avoid their first 0-4 start in six years.

After opening with three losses in 2011, the Dream began their run to a second straight WNBA finals appearance with a 79-58 road victory over the Liberty on June 14.

Atlanta, which plays eight of its next 10 at home, will try to get into the win column for the first time in 2012 following Saturday's season-opening 92-84 loss at Indiana. The Dream never led and trailed by 17 in the fourth quarter.

"In the gym. Gotta get better," forward Angel McCoughtry, who had 26 points and seven rebounds, wrote on her official Twitter account Tuesday.

The same is true for the Liberty, who lost 80-62 to defending WNBA champion Minnesota on Tuesday.

New York, which last opened 0-3 in 2009, will try to avoid its first 0-4 start since 2006 when it finished a franchise-worst 11-23.

"We are figuring it all out," said point guard Cappie Pondexter, averaging a team-high 17.3 points with 2.3 assists. "... I think going into Atlanta we have to pound the ball inside. We have a lot of key big players. We need to make an impact inside. That way we can get an open shot and not make it hard for the perimeter."

While Plenette Pierson, Essence Carson, Kara Braxton and Kia Vaughn - combining to average 21.0 rebounds - could give McCoughtry and Sancho Lyttle headaches in the post, Pondexter and the Liberty will be attempting to shoot better.

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Liberty-Dream Preview

Liberty Global Passes This Key Test

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There's no foolproof way to know the future for Liberty Global (Nasdaq: LBTY.A) or any other company. However, certain clues may help you see potential stumbles before they happen -- and before your stock craters as a result.

A cloudy crystal ballIn this series, we use accounts receivable and days sales outstanding to judge a company's current health and future prospects. It's an important step in separating the pretenders from the market's best stocks. Alone, AR -- the amount of money owed the company -- and DSO -- the number of days' worth of sales owed to the company -- don't tell you much. However, by considering the trends in AR and DSO, you can sometimes get a window onto the future.

Sometimes, problems with AR or DSO simply indicate a change in the business (like an acquisition), or lax collections. However, AR that grows more quickly than revenue, or ballooning DSO, can also suggest a desperate company that's trying to boost sales by giving its customers overly generous payment terms. Alternately, it can indicate that the company sprinted to book a load of sales at the end of the quarter, like used-car dealers on the 29th of the month. (Sometimes, companies do both.)

Why might an upstanding firm like Liberty Global do this? For the same reason any other company might: to make the numbers. Investors don't like revenue shortfalls, and employees don't like reporting them to their superiors.

Is Liberty Global sending any potential warning signs? Take a look at the chart below, which plots revenue growth against AR growth, and DSO:

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Data is current as of last fully reported fiscal quarter. FQ = fiscal quarter.

The standard way to calculate DSO uses average accounts receivable. I prefer to look at end-of-quarter receivables, but I've plotted both above.

Watching the trendsWhen that red line (AR growth) crosses above the green line (revenue growth), I know I need to consult the filings. Similarly, a spike in the blue bars indicates a trend worth worrying about. Liberty Global's latest average DSO stands at 30.6 days, and the end-of-quarter figure is 28.6 days. Differences in business models can generate variations in DSO, and business needs can require occasional fluctuations, but all things being equal, I like to see this figure stay steady. So, let's get back to our original question: Based on DSO and sales, does Liberty Global look like it might miss its numbers in the next quarter or two?

I don't think so. AR and DSO look healthy. For the last fully reported fiscal quarter, Liberty Global's year-over-year revenue grew 12.4%, and its AR grew 4.7%. That looks OK. End-of-quarter DSO decreased 5.8% from the prior-year quarter. It was down 17.9% versus the prior quarter. Still, I'm no fortuneteller, and these are just numbers. Investors putting their money on the line always need to dig into the filings for the root causes and draw their own conclusions.

What now?I use this kind of analysis to figure out which investments I need to watch more closely as I hunt the market's best returns. However, some investors actively seek out companies on the wrong side of AR trends in order to sell them short, profiting when they eventually fall. Which way would you play this one? Let us know in the comments below, or keep up with the stocks mentioned in this article by tracking them in our free watchlist service, My Watchlist.

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Liberty Global Passes This Key Test

Dunkin’ Donuts in Greater Philadelphia Supports Liberty USO, Local Troops and Their Families

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PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Dunkin Donuts in Greater Philadelphia is partnering with Liberty USO to help support their mission of serving the needs of active duty, National Guard and reserve military personnel and their families throughout Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey. Dunkin Donuts is donating $1 (up to $2,000) for every new Like on the Dunkin Philly Facebook page (www.facebook.com/DunkinPhilly) through June 1. Additionally, Dunkin Donuts hosted 200 Liberty USO military members and their families at a special movie advance screening for Men In Black 3 on Thursday, May 24.

Dunkin Donuts has a strong commitment to the Greater Philadelphia Region and to the communities we are proud to keep running every day, says Lou Conte, Manager of Field Marketing, Greater Philadelphia Region, Dunkin Donuts. Were proud to support Liberty USO as they continue their mission to support local troops and their families in Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey.

To learn more about Dunkin Donuts, visit http://www.DunkinDonuts.com or follow Dunkin Donuts Greater Philadelphia on Facebook (www.facebook.com/DunkinPhilly) and Twitter (www.Twitter.com/DunkinPhilly). For more information about Liberty USO visit, http://www.LibertyUSO.org.

About Liberty USO

For nearly seven decades, the USO of Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey, Inc. (LibertyUSO) has served the needs of active duty, National Guard and reserve military personnel andtheir families throughout Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey. Liberty USOs mission is toenhance the quality of life of the U.S. Armed Forces personnel and their families. In short,Liberty USO is the bridge between the civilian population and our service members. In times ofwar and peace, Liberty USO has delivered its special brand of support, comfort, moraleboosting, and recreational activities to service members and their families.

About Dunkin' Donuts

Founded in 1950, Dunkin' Donuts isAmerica's favorite all-day, everyday stop for coffee and baked goods. Dunkin' Donuts is a market leader in the regular/decaf coffee, iced coffee, hot flavored coffee, donut,bagel and muffin categories. Dunkin' Donuts has earned the No. 1 ranking for customer loyalty in the coffee category by Brand Keys for six years running. The company has more than 10,000 restaurants in 32 countries worldwide. For the full-year 2011, Dunkin' Donuts' restaurants had global franchisee-reported sales of approximately $6.4 billion. Based inCanton,Mass., Dunkin' Donuts is part of the Dunkin' Brands Group, Inc. (DNKN) family of companies. For more information, visitwww.DunkinDonuts.com.

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Dunkin’ Donuts in Greater Philadelphia Supports Liberty USO, Local Troops and Their Families

Penn Jillette Revisits Obama Drugs Rant On Hannity

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video

Penn Jillette visited Hannity today to expand on comments he made earlier this week on his podcast about President Obama comments that got Sean Hannitys attention as Jillette made the point that, had President Obama been prosecuted under his own drug policies, he never could have been President.

RELATED: Its Not A God Damn Joke!: Penn Jillette Destroys Beyond Hypocritical Obama Over Marijuana Laws

Hannity began the interview asking out of curiosity why Jillette paints one of his fingernails red (an homage to his mother), but quickly turned to the Presidential election, in which Jillette has admitted to be leaning towards voting for Gary Johnson. I think Gary Johnson is pretty good, he confirmed, adding that their personal beliefs dont matter if they have a really strong theory of government, meaning that they know their opinions cant be imposed on others through the power of the state. He refused to vote for someone he disliked less than President Obama, however, based only on that: I think voting for the lesser of two evils in game theory always leads to more evil, he told Hannity. He added that he thought that those who supported Romney on his own merits should vote for him, but that he was on in that party. To me, they are much more similar than they are to you, he said of the two major candidates to Hannity.

Hannity noted he supported Romney but that he would be disappointed if he governed as a moderate: its not a time for half-measures. The conversation, as always, returned to libertarianism in theory, which Jillette described as as far right as you can go on money, as far left as you can go on sex, and which he attributed in part for him to the believe that the vast majority of people are good. Hannity disagreed on that latter point.

The segment via Fox News below:

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UCLA graduate student and Libertarian Steve Collett runs for Congress

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Not many students can juggle five classes, a business and a congressional campaign.

But UCLA graduate student Steven Collett, 57, is currently studying public policy at the Luskin School of Public Affairs, running his own accounting firm and pursuing a bid for Congress.

Collett, the sole Libertarian in the race for Californias 33rd Congressional District, will square off in June against Democratic, Republican, Green and independent candidates, including longtime Democratic incumbent Henry Waxman.

Brad Rowe, who is Colletts colleague, said he met Collett early during their tenure in the public policy graduate program.

Rowe said he found it inspiring to see Collett take a pivot in his career while building on his previous experiences and time at UCLA to realize his political aspiration.

Its been a lot of fun to watch (Collett) progress and grow, Rowe said.

Collett said that although he sometimes draws different conclusions from course material presented in class, he has found his classes and professors very valuable.

It was at the school of public affairs that Collett said he hoped to find the tools to develop his political platforms and accrue the credentials for a congressional race.

Mark Kleiman, Colletts adviser and a professor of a public policy, acknowledged that Collett is a busy guy.

Im hoping he will have some time, if he doesnt get elected, to do research, Kleiman said.

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UCLA graduate student and Libertarian Steve Collett runs for Congress

Libertarian candidate to speak at Oaksterdam

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While President Obama rakes in the dough out in Palo Alto Thursday, the junior member of the Libertarian Party's presidential ticket will be making a stop in Oakland.

Jim Gray, the Libertarian Party's vice presidential nominee will be speaking from 3:30 to 5 p.m. at Oaksterdam University, 1600 Broadway. The event is free and open to the public.

Gray, a retired Orange County Superior Court Judge, supports legalizing marijuana, as does the Libertarian Party's presidential candidate, former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson.

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Libertarian candidate to speak at Oaksterdam

Libertarian Party releases first ad featuring Gary Johnson

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Posted at: 05/24/2012 7:20 PM By: Stuart Dyson, KOB Eyewitness News 4

Gary Johnson continues his long shot against-the-odds campaign for the U.S. presidency, with a new internet ad that hits hard on the issue of war and peace.

The new ad for the Libertarian Party candidate is so simple and direct, that it's almost staggering in today's political climate.

Its the stuff politicos call "red meat".

The ad does a slow pull from a crowd of people and tilts its perspective to reveal the peace symbol - the image that galvanized the antiwar movement in Johnson's own youth more than 40 years ago.

It's an unmistakable message that reverberates with millions of Americans - yet you won't see it in the mainstream campaigns of Democrats and Republicans.

It's a message Johnson has stuck with since his switch from republican to Libertarian last December, and his successful quest for that party's presidential nomination.

"I'm doing this today because this is agenda that I think resonates with most Americans," Johnson said in his formal Libertarian announcement last December. "It's an agenda that's not being addressed by either political party."

In fact Johnson was anti-war while he was running for the Republican nomination last year, and even came out against the American invasion of Iraq while he was still governor of New Mexico.

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Libertarian Party releases first ad featuring Gary Johnson

Is Gary Johnson Another Ron Paul?

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He has a very long way to go, but Gary Johnson is trying to pick up where Ron Paul left off.

Johnson is the Libertarian Party nominee for president, a perch that Paul has used in the past to run for the White House. But this year, Paul is still pursuing his long-shot bid for the Republican presidential nomination and it is Johnson who wants to emerge as the main alternative to the major parties.

Normally, there would be little reason to think that a Libertarian candidate would make much difference. But 2012 could be different because Paul has shown that some libertarian ideas have unusual power this year, such as an emphasis on individual liberty and on massive reductions in federal power and spending.

[See pictures of Ron Paul]

And Johnson, the former two-term governor of New Mexico, is starting to make his move to capitalize on what he sees as a promising environment. He is running a new ad on the Internet that bills him as the peace candidate because of his long-time opposition to the Iraq war and other U.S. military involvements abroad. This parallels Ron Paul's position.

And in a fund-raising appeal on the Internet, Johnson's senior adviser Ron Nielson recalls how Johnson reached the summit of Mount Everest on May 30, 2003, and Nielson uses the upcoming anniversary of that climb as a deadline for contributions. "Now, in 2012, Governor Johnson is on another, even greater, climb," Nielson says. "A climb to restore Liberty as the bedrock governing principle of this great nation. And he would be the first to tell you that this year's climb is far, far more important than the one he made 9 years ago."

[See a collection of political cartoons on the 2012 campaign.]

Nielson adds: "We know there are millions of Americans who see that Barack Obama and Mitt Romney will only offer more of the same big government, less liberty and interventionist policies that are driving us off a cliff."

Johnson's campaign has set a goal of raising $29,035 by May 30, matching the 29.035-foot height of Mount Everest. It's a relatively tiny amount, but Johnson supporters hope it will lead to bigger things.

He, in fact, is starting to register in some state polls as the Libertarian nominee. In Wisconsin, he gets support from 6 per cent of voters in the latest Reason-Rupe survey, while Obama is backed by 46 per cent and Romney 36 per cent. Public Policy Polling finds that Johnson garners 9 per cent in Arizona. If this trend continues, Johnson could conceivably make a difference in some states by pulling libertarian-conservative support away from Romney and making it harder for Romney to defeat Obama.

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Is Gary Johnson Another Ron Paul?

Cayman Islands native Webb elected CONCACAF president

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Jeffrey Webb of the Cayman Islands was officially elected as the new CONCACAF president on Wednesday after running unopposed.

The 47-year-old will complete the four-year term of Jack Warner, who was elected in May 2010 but resigned all of his positions in football in June after 20 years in the office.

Webb, who is also the president of the Cayman Islands Football Association, thanked the CONCACAF membership for demonstrating its faith in his ability to take the confederation forward.

Over the last year, our mission and our vision have been blurred, from lawyers, to audit reports to compensation, we have deviated from our mission, Webb said in his acceptance speech. I am here, we are here, because of our love for football; the passion for the game drives and motivates our every action.

Webb also serves as deputy chairman of the FIFA Internal Audit Committee and sits on the FIFA Transparency and Compliance Committee. In addition, he is chairman of the CONCACAF Youth Committee and completed his term as chairman of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Normalization Committee on Tuesday, following the organizations Ordinary Congress that was also held in Budapest, Hungary.

The events over the past year will not define and determine our destiny, Webb said. We have a responsibility to ensure that history isnt repeated. Let us use the events over the past year as a catalyst to promote positive change. Lets see it as an opportunity to return to the core values of the beautiful game the values which enchanted and sparked our love affair with this game.

Webb becomes the fourth president in CONCACAFs 51-year history: Ramn Coll Jaumet (Costa Rica, 1961-1968), Joaqun Soria Terrazas (Mexico, 1968-1990) and Warner (Trinidad and Tobago, 1990-2011). Honduran Alfredo Hawit has been serving as interim president since Warner stepped down.

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Cayman Islands native Webb elected CONCACAF president

Britain's best islands

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Our islands have become the custodians of character, where the busy grocery and car-free country road are not just a bygone. On these time-protected sanctuaries you still meet the Morris Minor burbling between hawthorn hedges to greet the morning ferry, the postie loading mail sacks and Amazon packets into an open boat. Nothing's quite the same on an island.

Clattering on to the deck of the Skye ferry in the Arctic half-light of a January blizzard, I felt as if we were crossing to a land invented by Tolkien. I first went to Skye as a teenager to climb mountains. Back then the island felt as remote as Spitsbergen. It still feels very Lord of the Rings. Toothsome fangs of old grey rock loom 3,000ft above silent lochs and hobbity crofts, while paths climb in riddles to the clouds. These days the ferry has been replaced by a slender parabola of concrete, so the transition from mainland to island is less sensational, but Skye is still a world apart.

There are sights on Skye you will see nowhere else in Britain. Up in the north, the road between Staffin and Uig squirms above the 250m contour past the pinnacles and cliffs of Quiraing, with its alien place-names such as The Needle, The Prison and The Table. Over on the west coast, on the moor beyond Talisker, there's a mountain walled with polygonal columns of solidified lava as strange as the Giant's Causeway. Then there are the Black Cuillins, the most ferocious range of peaks in Britain.

One of the most extraordinary boat trips in Britain can be taken from Elgol to the fjord-like chasm of och Coruisk, painted giddily by Turner and described by Lord Tennyson as "the wildest scene in the Highlands".

Where to stay and eat Sligachan Inn (01478 650204; sligachan.co.uk) set beneath the Black Cuillins with a sea loch on one side and mountains on the other. It has a little garden and a decent restaurant.

Information isleofskye.com.

Nick Crane

Forget Stonehenge and the Pyramids; the island of Mainland, largest among the Orkney Islands, is the place to come for prehistory. At each end of an isthmus, squeezed between lochs are the stone circles of Brodgar and Stenness. The Ring of Brodgar is the largest stone circle in Scotland and 27 of the original 60 stones remain. Nearby is Maeshowe, the most remarkable passage grave in Britain built in about 2,700BC and aligned on the midwinter sunset. In the 12th century, Vikings tagged the grave with graffiti. One of the less vulgar messages reads "Haermund Hardaxe carved these runes".

But Brodgar, Stenness and Maeshowe are just the prehistoric warm-up for Skara Brae, over on the west coast of Mainland, beside the Bay of Skaill. It's a Neolithic village, complete with walls and stone furniture. Built 5,000 years ago, before Stonehenge and the Egyptian pyramids, the village was engulfed intact by drifting sand. Now the houses have reappeared, complete with their box beds and hearths, and even the stone dressers that would have been used to display family treasures. You are closer to your ancient British ancestors on this island than in any capital city.

Where to stay and eat The Lynnfield Hotel and Restaurant (01856 872505; lynnfield.co.uk).

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Britain's best islands

Police extend HPP to islands

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25th May, 2012

KOTA KINABALU: Police will extend its High Profile Policing (HPP) programme to the islands of Sabah to enhance security.

Police would work together with islanders and resort operators on the islands, said State Deputy Commissioner of Police, Datuk Tan Kok Liang yesterday.

The HPP programme to be conducted on the islands will include educating resort operators on sea crime awareness and be alert on the presence of suspected criminals from a neighbouring country, he told reporters after launching a three-hour meet-the-people programme held at City Mall, here.

Tan said security in inhabited islands was under control and security was maintained by General Operations Force (GOF) teams and assisted by routine boat patrol from Marine Operations Force (MOF).

So far there is no untoward incident reported on the islands including those inhabited by fishing community except for thieving of fishing boats and outboard engines he added.

He said although crimes in these inhabited islands are isolated, police would conduct various types of operations.

In an unrelated incident, Tan said police in certain districts would mount roadblocks and carry out spot checks in plantations to track down motorcycle and car theft syndicate members and to recover stolen vehicles.

We have identified several plantation areas with reported stolen bikes and 4WD vehicles and we will act on them, Tan said.

To a question, Tan said the overall crime in Kota Kinabalu from January until May 23 had dropped by 370 cases or 33.18 per cent.

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Vertex Appoints Dr. David Altshuler to its Board

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More Topics: Choose a Sector Accounting Firms Advertising/Media/Communications Capital CEO/Board General Business Health/Biotech Internet/Technology Investment Firms Law Firms Mergers & Acquisitions Money Managers People Private Companies Public Companies Venture Capital

Posted May 24, 2012

David Altshuler

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (Nasdaq: VRTX) announced that David Altshuler, M.D., Ph.D., joined its board of directors as an independent director. Dr. Altshuler was appointed to the class of directors whose term expires in 2015. With the addition of Dr. Altshuler, the Vertex board consists of 9 members.

"David's unique scientific experience with human genetics coupled with his background as a practicing physician will provide our board with strong scientific and medical direction as we both advance our broad pipeline of later-stage medicines and focus on early-stage research activities," said Jeffrey Leiden, M.D., Ph.D., Chair, President and Chief Executive Officer of Vertex. "I welcome David to our board and look forward to his contributions at this exciting time for our company."

Dr. Altshuler is a Professor of Genetics and Medicine at Harvard Medical School, where he has served on the faculty since 2000. He is also one of the four founding members of the Broad Institute of Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Trained as a clinical endocrinologist and a human geneticist, Dr. Altshuler's clinical work is focused on characterizing patterns of variation in human genetics and applying this information to help isolate the genetic contribution to common diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer.

Through his work with multiple public-private partnerships, including the SNP Consortium, the International Haplotype Map Project and the 1000 Genomes Project, Dr. Altshuler has helped further the scientific community's understanding of DNA sequence variation in the human genome and its contribution to the development of specific diseases. At the Broad Institute, he has directed its Program in Medical and Population Genetics since 2003 and has served as Chief Academic Officer since 2009. He is also on the faculty of Massachusetts General Hospital's Department of Molecular Biology, the Diabetes Unit of the Department of Medicine and the Center for Human Genetic Research.

Dr. Altshuler has received numerous awards for his research and clinical activities related to human genetics, including the Stephen Krane Award from Massachusetts General Hospital, which recognized him as the Department of Medicine's top young investigator, the 2011 Curt Stern Award of the American Society of Human Genetics given for outstanding scientific achievements in the last 10 years and the Richard and Susan Smith Pinnacle Award of the American Diabetes Association, which recognized his research into the contributing genetic cause of diabetes. He is a member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation, the Association of American Physicians and the US Institute of Medicine. In 2010, Dr. Altshuler was elected to the Board of Directors of the American Society of Human Genetics. He has served on advisory boards for many leading institutions, government organizations and nonprofit foundations, including The National Institutes of Health, The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, The Wellcome Trust and Merck Research Laboratories.

Dr. Altshuler received his B.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a Ph.D. from Harvard University and his M.D. from Harvard Medical School. He completed his internship, residency and clinical fellowship training at Massachusetts General Hospital.

About Vertex

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Vertex Appoints Dr. David Altshuler to its Board

Male fertility genes discovered

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Public release date: 24-May-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Lisa Lyons elyons@cell.com 617-386-2121 Cell Press

A new study has revealed previously undiscovered genetic variants that influence fertility in men. The findings, published by Cell Press on May 24th in the American Journal of Human Genetics, shed much-needed light on human reproduction and might provide answers for countless men suffering from infertility.

Despite its high incidence, infertility remains a sensitive topic. Some of the stigma surrounding infertility arises from a lack of known scientific causes. In fact, nearly a quarter of reported infertility cases remain unexplained. Research regarding the genetics of fertility has come primarily from studies involving infertile subjects. "Such studies have not been able to identify genes or pathways contributing to variation in natural human fertility," remarks Carole Ober, the lead author of the study. This is because numerous non-genetic factors, such as alcohol and tobacco use, certain medications, and disease history, can contribute to infertility.

Ober and her graduate student, Glm Kosova, at the University of Chicago have taken a different approach. By studying a founder population, the Hutterites, Ober's research maximizes genetic influences and minimizes non-genetic ones. The Hutterites are a branch of Anabaptists who conscribe to a common set of religious and social beliefs. "Hutterites [forbid] contraception and uniformly desire large families, providing an outstanding population in which to study the genetics of normal human fertility," explains Ober. Rather than studying infertile subjects, the team included Hutterite men who had one or more child, and it took both family size and birth rate into consideration.

The study uncovered more than 40 genetic regions that influence fertility in Hutterite men. Nine of these regions were additionally found to impact sperm quality in non-Hutterites. These regions harbor genes involved in several essential biological processes, including protein regulation, nucleotide binding, and immunity, and shed light on the complexity of human fertility. Ultimately, says Ober, further studies might find that mutations in these genes underlie some of the currently unexplained cases of male infertility.

###

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

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Male fertility genes discovered

Vertex Appoints David Altshuler, M.D., Ph.D., to its Board of Directors

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CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (VRTX) today announced that David Altshuler, M.D., Ph.D., joined its board of directors as an independent director. Dr. Altshuler was appointed to the class of directors whose term expires in 2015. With the addition of Dr. Altshuler, the Vertex board consists of 9 members.

Davids unique scientific experience with human genetics coupled with his background as a practicing physician will provide our board with strong scientific and medical direction as we both advance our broad pipeline of later-stage medicines and focus on early-stage research activities, said Jeffrey Leiden, M.D., Ph.D., Chair, President and Chief Executive Officer of Vertex. I welcome David to our board and look forward to his contributions at this exciting time for our company.

Dr. Altshuler is a Professor of Genetics and Medicine at Harvard Medical School, where he has served on the faculty since 2000. He is also one of the four founding members of the Broad Institute of Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Trained as a clinical endocrinologist and a human geneticist, Dr. Altshulers clinical work is focused on characterizing patterns of variation in human genetics and applying this information to help isolate the genetic contribution to common diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer.

Through his work with multiple public-private partnerships, including the SNP Consortium, the International Haplotype Map Project and the 1000 Genomes Project, Dr. Altshuler has helped further the scientific communitys understanding of DNA sequence variation in the human genome and its contribution to the development of specific diseases. At the Broad Institute, he has directed its Program in Medical and Population Genetics since 2003 and has served as Chief Academic Officer since 2009. He is also on the faculty of Massachusetts General Hospitals Department of Molecular Biology, the Diabetes Unit of the Department of Medicine and the Center for Human Genetic Research.

Dr. Altshuler has received numerous awards for his research and clinical activities related to human genetics, including the Stephen Krane Award from Massachusetts General Hospital, which recognized him as the Department of Medicines top young investigator, the 2011 Curt Stern Award of the American Society of Human Genetics given for outstanding scientific achievements in the last 10 years and the Richard and Susan Smith Pinnacle Award of the American Diabetes Association, which recognized his research into the contributing genetic cause of diabetes. He is a member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation, the Association of American Physicians and the US Institute of Medicine. In 2010, Dr. Altshuler was elected to the Board of Directors of the American Society of Human Genetics. He has served on advisory boards for many leading institutions, government organizations and nonprofit foundations, including The National Institutes of Health, The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, The Wellcome Trust and Merck Research Laboratories.

Dr. Altshuler received his B.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a Ph.D. from Harvard University and his M.D. from Harvard Medical School. He completed his internship, residency and clinical fellowship training at Massachusetts General Hospital.

About Vertex

Vertex creates new possibilities in medicine. Our team discovers, develops and commercializes innovative therapies so people with serious diseases can lead better lives.

Vertex scientists and our collaborators are working on new medicines to cure or significantly advance the treatment of hepatitis C, cystic fibrosis, rheumatoid arthritis, epilepsy and other life-threatening diseases.

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Vertex Appoints David Altshuler, M.D., Ph.D., to its Board of Directors

Armuchee junior to study human genetics at Duke University this summer

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by Floyd County Schools reports Rn T.Com

With small class sizes, the highly-selective courses in the Duke program are very competitive with limited availability. Just to be eligibility for enrollment is an honor and indicates the student has exhibited outstanding intellectual ability and dedication to academics. Duke TIP provides participants with an exciting, stimulating and challenging opportunity to augment their interests and capabilities. Through a variety of experiential activities, lab work, discussions, fieldwork, collaboration, presentations, and the use of advanced technology and lab equipment, participants in the genetics program will delve into cutting-edge human genetic research. Topics included in the program are: human gene expression, pharmacogenomics, and epigenetic control of DNA, SNP genotyping, gene sequencing, forensic biology, and medical genetics. Hosmer's experience will culminate with the creation of an individual laboratory project that she will present to Duke faculty and her institute peers.

At Armuchee High School, Hosmer is involved with the National Honors Society and Academic Decathlon and she has maintained a 4.0 GPA. Hosmer also volunteers in the community at Mount Berry Animal Hospital and the Rome Action Ministries Food Pantry. She plans to pursue undergraduate degrees in Biology and Veterinarian Sciences at Berry College or at the University of Georgia before deciding upon a school of medicine.

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Armuchee junior to study human genetics at Duke University this summer