This is a revised application for the continued support of an Institutional Training Grant in the Neurobiology of Drug Abuse. The long range goal of this program is to prepare and develop scientists who will be in a position to continue to define mechanisms underlying the effects of drugs of abuse using interdisciplinary approaches. The 12 core training faculty and 12 supporting faculty are drawn from 2 clinical and 7 basic science departments on the Main Campus and in the Medical Center. Their NIDA relevant research is focused on several areas including the 1) role of stress in augmenting the adverse effects of drug addiction, 2) structure and function of nicotinic receptors and genetic predisposition to addiction and 3) the involvement of excitatory amino acids in CMS disorders and their participation in the neurotoxic effects of addictive drugs. These focused research areas are integrated with faculty who have expertise in 1) cognition and computational neuroscience, 2) the role of role of neurotrophic factors in development and 3) receptor pharmacology and mechanisms of signal transduction. The training environment is excellent for collaborative, multidisciplinary research efforts of both faculty and trainees. Many of the faculty have previous or ongoing collaborations and students are encouraged to seek co-mentorship between faculty with complementary research interests. We are requesting support for 6 predoctoral trainees during the first 2 years of their training and course work. Thereafter, students are encouraged to apply for fellowships and nearly 80% of the trainees have been successful in obtaining awards from NIH or DoD to complete their thesis research. An aggressive recruitment of students in underrepresented racial and ethnic groups is a top priority of Georgetown and has been a particular strength of this program. The predoctoral trainees will receive their Ph.D. from either the Pharmacology or the Interdisciplinary Program in Neurosciences at Georgetown. The training program includes broad-based didactic coursework, as well as rotations in laboratories of the training faculty. In addition to their formal course work, the trainees participate in a number of ongoing seminar series, joint Neurology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience grand rounds, national professional meetings and a journal club with special emphasis of the neurobiology of drugs of abuse. Outside experts in the field are invited to lecture in a required course dedicated to the most recent advances in the effects of addictive drugs. Trainees are also required to take courses related to improving professional skills (writing and reviewing manuscripts, grantsmanship, mentorship, teaching, conflict resolution, career choices, oral presentations) and understanding the ethical issues surrounding biomedical research.
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