The IDP Subgroup provides a forum for the discussion of intrinsically disordered proteins, with topics including but not limited to experimental and theoretical studies of i) their intrinsically flexible state, ii) the mechanisms of their interactions with each other and with diverse partners including but not limited to structured proteins and nucleic acids, iii) their broadly defined functional roles in biological systems, and iv) their potential involvement in the pathogenesis of conformational and other diseases. The subgroup invites participants with an interest in broadening our understanding of IDPs, ranging from biophysical studies of individual proteins to genomic and proteomic studies in whole organisms. The subgroup welcomes participants from all scientific disciplines, from biophysics and structural biology to proteomics and genomics and beyond.
In order to join the Intrinsically Disordered Proteins Subgroup, you must be a member of the Society.
IDP State Letter — A virtual journal club for the IDP literature
Research in the area of intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) is, appropriately, very dynamic. To help keep up with the research, trainees within the IDP subgroup have organized a virtual journal club – The IDP State letter. Approximately once a month the completely trainee-generated newsletter highlights either a particular aspect of developments in the burgeoning field of disordered protein structure and function, or brings together a set of papers on a particular topic in IDP research.
Go to the website to register to receive the IDP State Letter directly. To see the current and past IDP State Letters or to subscribe to new editions of the letter, please click here.
Intrinsically Disordered Proteins Subgroup Bylaws
Article I
Purpose: The purpose of the Intrinsically Disordered Proteins (IDP) Subgroup shall be to advance and disseminate knowledge regarding the principles that govern the structural and physical properties, sequence-ensemble relationships, interaction mechanisms, and biological functions of intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) and proteins with intrinsically disordered regions (IDRs). IDPs and IDRs are unique in that they extend the principles of the protein structure-function paradigm to include heterogeneous and fully or partly unfolded conformational ensembles as major functional units in contrast to the conformationally homogeneous native state of folded protein domains. Therefore, IDPs/IDRs were also initially known as unstructured proteins, natively unfolded proteins and rheomorphic proteins, amongst other names.
Article II
Membership: Members of the Biophysical Society can join the IDP Subgroup; nonmembers of the Biophysical Society are welcome to attend IDP Subgroup symposia but are unable to join the Subgroup, serve as Officers of the Subgroup, or vote.
Article III
Meetings: Business meetings of the Subgroup membership shall be held in connection with or in close proximity to the Annual Scientific Meeting of the Biophysical Society. If any matters come up that require a vote at any time of year, Subgroup members can transact Subgroup business by a virtual vote. For virtual votes, decisions shall be made by two-thirds of the Subgroup members voting on the measure.
Article IV
Officers: The Officers of the Subgroup will be a subgroup Chair, Chair-Elect, Secretary-Treasurer, two Program-Co-chairs, three Advisory Board members, a Postdoc Representative and a Graduate Student Representative. The Chair-elect shall serve one year as such followed by one year as Chair. The Secretary-Treasurer shall be elected for a term of two years with an option to run for a second two-year term, and the Program Co-Chairs shall be elected for a period of one year. The Advisory Board members shall be elected for a three-year term. The Postdoctoral Fellow and Graduate Student Representatives will be elected to serve one year with an option to run for a second one -year term. These positions have the following responsibilities:
Chair & Chair-Elect: As chair, will organize and conduct the annual Subgroup meeting; apprising the Biophysical Society of the activities and needs of the Subgroup; advising the Society on matters related to the Subgroup; promoting and overseeing the Student Research Achievement Award (SRAA) competition; communicating with the Society concerning meeting plans and public communications (flyers, announcements, newsletter reports, etc.); and participating in activities that benefit the Subgroup and Society. Responsible for the Subgroup meeting all deadlines established by the Subgroup Manager and monitoring all efforts that contribute to the Subgroup Report Card. They will also act as members of the awards committee. The chair-elect will provide advice and support by executing tasks delegated by the Chair.
Secretary-Treasurer: Will work with the Society to manage Subgroup membership, budgets, keep up to date with financial information and sponsorships, and will work with the Chair to carry out necessary correspondence and other organizational tasks.
Program Co-Chairs: Will be responsible for assembling the scientific program for the Annual Subgroup Meeting, which will involve inviting and confirming speakers, setting the symposium program, finalizing symposium food & beverage and AV needs, and if applicable selecting flash talks from submitted abstracts. They will also act as members of the awards committee.
Advisory Board Member: Will serve on the executive committee which is responsible for the fulfillment of the scientific and business obligations of the group. Will assist in the general tasks of the Subgroup and will contribute the perspective of their peers on topics related to Subgroup membership.
Postdoc Representative: will contribute the perspective of their peers on topics related to Subgroup membership.
Student Representative: will contribute the perspective of their peers on topics related to Subgroup membership.
Article V
Eligibility for Office: Only members of the IDP Subgroup may be elected to Subgroup leadership positions. If an elected officer does not become a member prior to the Annual Meeting where they would be taking office, the second runner-up candidate shall assume the position instead. The runner up must also be a BPS member and a member of the Subgroup in order to assume office. In order to serve as a regular Subgroup Officer, the member must be a Regular, Emeritus, or Early Career member of BPS. Graduate students/Postdocs can only serve if the Subgroup has a designated trainee position, in which case the position title will reflect the career stage of eligible members. Members may not be elected to the same position in the Subgroup more than once every five years, except for the Treasurer-Secretary, Postdoctoral Fellow and Graduate Student representative positions, which may be reelected once.
Article VI
Elections: Elections must be held and concluded electronically two weeks prior to the Subgroup’s Business Meeting. The candidate for each office receiving the highest number of votes will be elected. In the case of a tie, the deadline will be extended for an extra three days. If the tie remains after three days, BPS staff will send out a new ballot with just the tied candidates to break the tie. The results will be announced to the Subgroup’s membership during the Subgroup’s Business Meeting. Officers will take office at the end of the annual Business Meeting held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of the Biophysical Society. Interim vacancies in officers will be filled in accordance with Bylaw Article XVIII of the Biophysical Society.
Article VII
Executive Committee: The Executive Committee will be responsible for the fulfillment of the scientific and business obligations of the group. The Officers and the immediate past Chair shall constitute this Executive Committee. The Advisory Board members will serve staggered three-year terms, with one new member elected each year. The affairs of the Subgroup shall be handled by the officers in accordance with the policies determined by the Executive Committee and the Biophysical Society Council.
Article VIII
Nominating Committee: The Nominating Committee is responsible for soliciting nominations from Subgroup membership and for preparing the final slate of candidates. Nominations can come from anyone, with self-nominations also permitted. The members of the Executive Committee shall constitute the Nominating Committee. Nominations will be received electronically no later than one month prior to the Annual Meeting. Nominees must accept their nomination prior to being placed on a ballot.
Article IX
Awards Committee: The Awards Committee will be responsible for inviting nominations from all Subgroup members and selecting awardees based on the established eligibility criteria, nomination packets, and judging rubric. This committee will be formed by the Chair, Chair-Elect and the two Program Co-chairs, or appointed by the Chair as necessary. If any of these have a conflict of interest with the Award nominees or sponsors, the Chair may appoint Subgroup members to serve in their place on the Awards Committee.
Each year, the Committee must review and confirm award eligibility requirements and the rubric with BPS staff. While the primary selection criteria will focus on scientific excellence, the committee is also responsible for ensuring that the candidate pool gives meaningful access to underrepresented individuals and groups of the Biophysical Society.
Committee members must avoid any conflicts of interest with nominees or award sponsors in a given year.
Article X
Dissolution: The IDP Subgroup must be in accordance with the Biophysical Society’s constitution and bylaws, mission, values, goals, and operational guidelines. If not, the group will be placed on probation and may be dissolved at the discretion of the Council of the Biophysical Society.
Article XI
Amendments to the Bylaws: Amendments can be proposed by any member of the IDP Subgroup, approved by a two-thirds majority of the Executive Committee, and be ratified in an electronic ballot by a majority of the members of the group voting.