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Volunteer

Division of Extramural Operations

Education

Ph.D. Baylor College of Medicine, 1971

Biography

Dr. Bettie Graham is one of NHGRI’s founding staff members. She was the third employee to join the then-named National Center for Human Genome Research (NCHGR) in 1989. Up until her retirement became official on December 30, 2023, she served as outgoing Director of the NHGRI Division of Extramural Operations. In this role, she oversaw grants administration and scientific review. Prior to that, Dr. Graham was instrumental in the creation and nurturing of NHGRI’s suite of extramural training programs. She has promoted diversity in NHGRI- and NIH-funded programs and her legacy has spread beyond the walls of NHGRI, where she is recognized for her passion for mentoring people.

As a program director for then-Division of Extramural Research (DER) from 1989-2012, she oversaw the NHGRI Training and Career Development Program, the Small Business Innovation Research Program/Small Business Technology Transfer Program, and the Loan Repayment Program. Dr. Graham was involved in the trans-NIH mouse initiative, as well as the scientific program management of grants related to mapping technology and the application of mass spectrometry to DNA and protein sequencing.

The annual Bettie J. Graham Leadership Award for Enhancing Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) in the Genomics Workforce was developed to honor investigators who have had a significant influence on enhancing DEIA in the genomics workforce.

Dr. Graham received the PHS Special Recognition Award in 1993 and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director's Award in 1986, 1991, 1993, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2023. She received her Ph.D. in virology from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.

Publications

Graham, B.J., Minamishima, Y., Dressman, G.R., Haines, H.G. and Benyesh Melnick, M.: Complement requiring neutralizing antibodies in hyperimmune sera to human cytomegaloviruses. J. Immunology, 107 (6): 1618 1630. 1971. [PubMed]

Minamishima, Y., Graham, B.J., and Benyesh Melnick, M.: Neutralizing antibodies to cytomegaloviruses in normal simian and human sera. Infect. Immun, 4 (4): 368 373, 1971. [PubMed]

Graham, J.J., Ludwig, J., Bronson, D.L., Benyesh Melnick, M. and Biswal, N.: Physiocochemical properties of the DNA of Herpes Viruses. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta, 259: 24 34, 1972. [PubMed]

Bronson, D.L., Graham, B.J., Ludwig, H., Benyesh Melnick, M. and Biswal, N.: Studies on the relatedness of Herpes Viruses through DNA-RNA hybridization. Biochemica et Biophysica Acta, 259:24 35, 1972. [PubMed]

Simonds, J.A., Robey, W.G., Graham, B.J., Oie, H. and Vande Woude, G.F.: Purification of Herpesvirus Saimiri and properties of the viral DNA. Archives of Virol, 49: 249 259, 1975. [PubMed]

Robey, W.G., Graham, B.J., Rupp, B., Bell, C., Conlon, T., and Kleeker, J.: Purification of Herpesvirus nucleocapsids by flourocarbon extraction. Microbios 16, 105 110, 1976. [PubMed]

Graham, B.J., Bengali, Z. and Vande Woude, G.F.: A physical map of the origin of defective DNA in Herpes Simplex virus Type 1 DNA. J. Virol, 25: 878 887, 1978. [PubMed]

Graham, B.J. and Duane, T.D.: Ocular Melanoma Task Force Meeting. Am J. Ophtha, 90 (5): 728 733, 1980. [PubMed]

Salans, Lester B. and Graham, Bettie J., Ed. Proceedings from the Task Force on Animals Models Appropriate for Research on Diabetes Mellitus and Its Complications. Diabetes, Vol. 31, Supplement 1: 1 102, 1982.

Graham, B. J., The Extramural Programs of the Fogarty International Center. The Physiologist, 30(5): 249 ,1987. [PubMed]

Graham, B.J., Research and Career Development Opportunities for Meeting the Challenges Presented by the Human Genome Project. SIGBIO Newsletter, 19(3): 17-23, 1999.

Graham, B., Battey, J., and Jordan, E., Report of Second Follow-Up Workshop on Priority Setting for Mouse Genomics. Mammalian Genome, (12): 1-2, 2001. [PubMed]

Last updated: January 4, 2024