The Emory Alcohol and Lung Biology Training Program formally began on July 1, 2002. However, its roots can be traced to 1996 when the Program leaders began their novel studies of the mechanisms by which chronic alcohol abuse renders the lung susceptible to injury. In the past decade the Program investigators have made a series of seminal observations in both clinical studies and in animal models that have revealed previously unrecognized effects of alcohol abuse on lung structure and function. Importantly, the health effects of alcohol abuse on lung disease rival or even exceed the effects on other organs considered to be the primary targets of alcohol toxicity. The goal of the Program is to train a new generation of alcohol researchers with the skills to perform cutting edge translational research, using both experimental models and clinical studies, to advance our understanding of the pathophysiology and treatment of alcohol-induced lung disease. Capitalizing on a highly collaborative group of alcohol researchers from multiple disciplines, the Program will continue to recruit promising young scientists from basic science as well as clinical training programs and provide a fertile and nurturing environment for post-doctoral MD and PhD trainees to work together. Unique aspects of the Program include a close association with Historically Black College and University (HBCU) institutions in the Atlanta area. In parallel, several key faculty mentors have leadership positions in other training programs at Emory University, allowing this Program to be highly integrated with other training programs and greatly increase the educational and training opportunities of the fellows. In addition, the Program will identify and recruit outstanding pre-doctoral minority students from Emory University and the HBCU institutions for short-term training opportunities with faculty mentors in order to increase the pool of qualified minority candidates for subsequent careers in alcohol research. Epidemiological studies by Program investigators provide new but daunting evidence that alcohol abuse has an enormous societal impact on lung health, and may cause more premature deaths, and at even younger ages, than alcoholic liver disease. Therefore, there is a compelling need for well-trained investigators with the basic and clinical research skills to perform high quality translational research with a goal of developing effective treatments that can decrease the enormous morbidity and mortality of alcohol-related lung disease.
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