By Michelle Pflumm

In December, Jeremy Berg announced plans to step down from the helm of the US National Institute of General and Medical Sciences (NIGMS), the $2 billion branch of the National Institutes of Health charged with funding basic research related to diverse biological processes and diseases. In his seven years as NIGMS director, Berg spearheaded the institute’s first formal strategic plan, led efforts to increase workforce diversity and kick-started an open conversation with the scientific community about funding and peer review. In recognition of his many accomplishments, last year Berg was elected to the US Institute of Medicine and awarded a prestigious public service prize from the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. At the end of June, Berg will start up a lab studying protein structures at the University of Pittsburgh, as well as serve as the first associate senior vice chancellor for science strategy and planning for Pitt’s Schools of the Health Sciences. Ahead of his move, Michelle Pflumm spoke to Berg about his contributions at NIGMS and his plans moving forward.

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Image: NIH