The proposed training program will provide predoctoral and postdoctoral trainees with a solid academic background in immunology with emphasis on multi disciplinary approaches to study common mechanisms of inflammation. Training will include relevant course work, regularly scheduled seminars and journal clubs, and rigorous laboratory training with the goal of preparing our trainees for careers in research related to the goals of this program. Boston University has an outstanding group of faculty with long standing interests in inflammatory disorders who are members of the Boston University Training Program in Inflammatory Disorders (BU-TPID). In addition, recent recruitment efforts have resulted in the formation of a critical mass of established investigators and accordingly this application proposes to establish an integrated training program for predoctoral students and postdoctoral fellows in inflammatory disorders. In addition to their common research interests, many of these faculties already have substantial evidence for collaborative interactions including NIH support. Faculty research interests encompass three broad research areas including 1) Pathogen induced inflammation; 2) Chronic non-communicable inflammatory disorders; and 3) Therapeutics and preventative strategies. The BU-TPID Training Faculty all are current NIH grant recipients with funding from 10 NIH Institutes, and who, as a group have had substantial training history. As a whole this group enjoys national and international recognition in their respective fields. As part of this training grant the Core training faculty will also be involved in mentoring additional junior faculty members. The BU-TPID faculty represent a broad range of departmental affiliations, including the Departments of Medicine, Microbiology, Pathology, Physiology and Biophysics at the Boston University School of Medicine, the Department of Environmental Health at the Boston University School of Public Health, the Department of Oral Biology and Peridontology at the School of Dental Medicine and the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Boston University College of Engineering. The major goals of the program will be to 1) Recruit and enroll students of the highest quality, including underrepresented minorities; 2) Provide these trainees with a multidisciplinary background in inflammatory disorders coupled with intensive laboratory training in a particular research topic; 3) To teach the trainees critical thinking skills and how to ask relevant and feasible research questions; 4) To instill these trainees with a sense of ethical behavior; 5) To help develop effective written and oral communication skills among the trainees; 6) To facilitate collaborative interactions among both trainees and faculty of the training program and 7) To mentor Junior faculty members in pre and post doctoral training.
The rationale for establishing the BU-TPID was based on the common research interests of a number of investigators at Boston University, the recognition of the need to establish an integrated program in inflammatory disorders, and to train students and fellows in common mechanisms of inflammation with particular emphasis on clinical and translational science. A hallmark of the BU-TPID is its interschool, interdepartmental and interdisciplinary nature.
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