This is the first competitive renewal for our Training in HIV Pathogenesis program. During its first funding cycle, 4 predoctoral and 3 postdoctoral fellows were supported each year. A total of 17 trainees working in 12 different labs have been supported by this T32. Of the 9 predoctoral fellows, 5 have graduated from the program while 4 are currently being supported. Of the graduates, one has begun a pediatric residency after having spent time working in a Penn-sponsored HIV clinic in Botswana, 3 are nearing the end of their thesis work, and 1 has just begun a postdoctoral fellowship at the Vaccine Research Center at the NIH. Of the 8 postdoctoral trainees supported by this T32, 5 have 'graduated'from the T32 while 3 are currently supported. Of the 5 graduates, 1 will begin a faculty position in the Laboratory of Viral Diseases at the NIH on January 1, 2005, 2 are scientists in industry and 2 are completing their postdoctoral training. Of the 17 current and past trainees, 7 are women, 10 are men, and 2 are minorities. Two additional minority predoctoral students (M. Sanchez and P. Sanchez) were nominated for inclusion on this T32, but both obtained their own NRSA grants before they could be appointed. At present, there are 26 Ph.D. and M.D./Ph.D. students working in labs directed by our trainers;25 are either U.S. citizens or permanent residents, 15 work directly on HIV projects, 3 work on immunology projects with relevance to HIV and one works on KSHV. Of the 19 students who work on HIV or HIV-related projects, 4 are currently supported by this T32 grant, 1 is supported by a different T32 grant and 1 has his own fellowship. Thus, our T32 support rate is only 26%. We have recruited 5 new faculty trainers since the inception of this T32 4 years ago, with 4 of these faculty (Bushman, Robertson, O'Doherty, Jordan-Sciutto) being new to Penn. Two additional HIV pathogenesis faculty are actively being recruited. In addition, our graduate group has nearly tripled in size over the past two years, with our matriculating students being exceptionally well qualified. Coupled with our well integrated and highly collaborative training program, made stronger by our recently renewed Center for AIDS Research and an NIH AIDS funding base of more than $50 million per year, we are requesting one additional predoctoral training slot in each of the next 2 years, for a new steady-state level of 6 trainees, which would make our T32 support level approximately 33%. Thus, appointment to this T32 will remain highly competitive. We wish to continue to train 3 postdoctoral trainees per year, many of whom aspire to careers in academic research. PARTICIPATING FACULTY: The 13 training faculty consists of 5 professors, 3 assistant professors, and 5 associate professors. One member of the training faculty is a woman. Primary areas of research include HIV entry and tropism, HIV neuropathogenesis, immune responses, and integration and molecular virology. FELLOWS: This program is designed for Ph.D. postdoctoral fellows. Three Ph.D. postdoctoral fellows have been trained per year for the first 4 years of this grant, and the applicant proposes to continue training 3 postdoctoral fellows per year if this program is renewed. The applicant intends to appoint postdoctoral fellows for two year terms, with the second year being dependent upon satisfactory progress. Currently, 27 postdoctoral fellows (48% women) work in labs associated with this T32 application. The number of postdoctoral trainees associated with this grant is expected to grow. Most postdoctoral applicants apply directly to the trainers of the program. However, for the past two years, the applicant has distributed a poster at the HIV Pathogenesis Keystone meeting and at the National Retrovirus Conference. There are also postdoctoral positions advertised on thie Biomedical Postdoctoral Programs Web site. RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT: The School of Medicine underwent a serious expansion program in the 1990s, with three new research buildings being constructed. Of the 13 trainers, 11 are in well-equipped laboratories in very close proximity to one another. Many of the buildings are connected by walkways, so they form a circle. The one trainer that is some distance from the others is next to the labs of several other virologists that are popular with the students. Importantly for this HIV Training Program, two new BSL3 facilities were constructed over the past 5 years. In addition, a BSL-3 flow cytometry and cell sorting facility was established at the adjoining Children's Hospital in 2003, and the CFAR BSL3 was established at the Wistar Institute.
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