In this renewal proposal, we request five additional years of support (years 44-48) for the University of California, Los Angeles Training Grant in Gastroenterology. This is to maintain six (either MD's or PhD's) trainee positions. Post-graduate trainees are recruited from UCLA STAR (Specialized Training in Academic Research) Program, adult UCLA GI Fellowship Training Program, the Pediatric GI Training Program, the General Surgery Department (for research track trainees), and from UCLA affiliated Ph.D. training programs. This NIH T32 Training Grant has been funded continuously since 1974 and Dennis M. Jensen, M.D. has been the PI/Director since 2000. In the last 10 years, 31 trainees were enrolled. Among the 26 (17 MD's, 3 PhD's, and 6 MD/PhD's), who will have graduated from the T32 training by July 2015,100% completed at least 1 year of mentored research and 92% (24/26) completed 2 or 3 years of research training. 6 of them obtained further support for research and/or career development, including 3 K08's, 1 K01, and 1 from ACG Foundation. Research awards were 2 from CCFA, 1 R03, and 1 as a CURE Pilot and Feasibility Grant. For the 26 trainees (3 PhD's and 23 MD's or MD/PhD's) who will have completed all their post-MD training before July 2015,, 20 (77%) will hold an academic, teaching, or laboratory research position. For these 26 trainees, 12 completed additional graduate degrees during T32 training and those were 4 PhD's and 8 Masters degrees (MS or MPH). They are significantly enhancing the academic and scientific environment. For T32 trainees who completed 1 or more years, 57% published at least one peer-reviewed research paper (median number for those publishing was 3). The administrative structure of the Training Grant has evolved during the past 10 years to maximize productivity and satisfaction plus emphasize successful career pathways for all trainees. The leadership of this training grant is well balanced. The PI is a clinical and outcomes researcher and the co-Director, Dr. Yvette, is a renowned researcher in neuroscience. The Executive Committee ensures that all research trainees are closely supervised and allowed to give feed-back throughout their career development. Trainees enroll in formal courses and research seminars to expand their scientific knowledge. The UCLA STAR program has the added dimension of requiring Masters or Ph.D. degrees as part of the research training and career development. This training serves as the foundation and model for a highly evolved and successful UCLA Research Training Program in Gastroenterology. Continued support is needed to maintain the quality and productivity of this program to train future academicians in digestive diseases.
This training grant supports post-graduate mentored research for the next generation of academic leaders and researchers in digestive diseases and gastroenterology (GI). Digestive complaints, disorders, and diseases are very common in the United States and highly relevant to the public health because they cause significant morbidity and health care costs for them are very high. Improvements in our understanding and knowledge of digestive disorders and discovery in this field have the potential of significantly improving public health
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