NHGRI's Oral History Collection: Interview with Jeffery Schloss

Jeff Schloss, Ph.D. is the founding director of the Division of Genome Sciences of the Extramural Research Program at the National Human Genome Research Institute. He retired in early 2017 after 24 years with the institute. He managed a diverse portfolio of grants involved in developing a range of nucleic acids-related technologies – in particular, DNA sequencing technology and the well-known $1,000 Genome Program. This oral history follows him from his post-doctoral work in a Yale University microscopy lab studying nucleic acids to meeting NHGRI program director Dr. Jane Peterson at a cell and biology meeting, where she recruited him to come to work at NHGRI. Dr. Schloss compares the research and development efforts of NHGRI and the biotech world, and discusses the consequences of the draft sequence quality standard.

NHGRI’s Oral History Collection features discussions with influential figures in the field of genomics and the history of institute. Intended for researchers and scholars, each oral history contains extensive conversation about science and medicine, biographical details and insights into the inner workings of institutions and initiatives.

[genometv]

00:20 - Early Life
02:16 - Where did you go to college?
03:56 - Who did you do your postdoc with?
04:36 - Why the switch?
07:51 - What happened after your postdoc?
08:08 - What was your experience at University of Kentucky like?
10:19 - What was going on at NCHGR?
11:12 - When did you first hear about the Human Genome Project?
12:50 - this period of transition at NCHGR - what did that look like?
16:49 - How would you describe Jane Peterson?
18:56 - What was Mark Guyer's role?
20:16 - What were your first impressions of Francis Collins?
22:05 - When did you become involved in sequencing technology development?
26:20 - What were the major constraints in developing cheap sequencing?
32:10 - How did the roles of NHGRI and the biotech sector differ in funding these projects?
38:00 - Is Ron Davis's lab a good example of this?
40:00 - What was Craig Venter's contribution to the Human Genome Project?
46:25 - Around 2001, where did the technology need to go?
49:47 - Can you say more about differing data quality standards for sequencing?
58:00 - In a broader view, what has NHGRI's role been in technology development?
01:06:05 - How did you get involved in the $100, 00 Genome?
01:12:05 - How did NHGRI get involved in nanotechnology?