This application requests continued support for a comprehensive training program in endocrinology and metabolism (ETP) that has been funded for 20 years. The purpose of this program is to train pre-doctoral fellows and postdoctoral fellows (M.D. and Ph.D.) in the fundamentals of cellular and molecular hormone research and its application to medical practice. During the previously funded 10 years of this program 14 of 17 participating faculty had at least one NRSA-supported trainee, and of these trainees, 75% are continuing in academic careers and 90% are still performing research. Two trainees have interrupted their research careers, one for health reasons, the other for family reasons. These program trainees are collectively responsible for co-authoring 170 manuscripts, while trainees from the past 5 years have co-authored 125 manuscripts since leaving the program. Our improved endocrine program has dropped one faculty member with no RO1 funding (Dr. Maue), but added three more (Drs. Beisswinger, Korc, and Sheldon), and therefore now includes 19 faculty from the Endocrine-Metabolism Divisions of Physiology, Medicine, Biochemistry, and Pharmacology. All are actively engaged in molecular and cellular research, and are members of endocrine research at Norris Cotton Cancer Center. Some are members of a newly invigorated DHMC Clinical EDM Fellowship Program. All are committed to preparing fellows for independent careers in endocrine research. Predoctoral Fellows are enrolled as Ph.D. or M.D./Ph.D. candidates in graduate programs of the departments of Physiology, Biochemistry, or Pharmacology. A new program In experimental and molecular medicine (PEMM) will also start this year directed by our Drs. Korc and Galton, and will provide an additional source of candidates for this ETP. Postdoctoral fellows are primarily engaged in research under the tutelage of one faculty member, overseen by the Director. Each fellow completes a course of scientific ethics, and has their education and experience broadened by regular interactions with faculty and other fellows through conferences, weekly seminars, a grantmanship course, and teaching. Individual needs are addressed through specialized courses. While the body of highly skilled physicians/scientists made available to public health centers by this program is expected to have a significant impact on the delivery of effective patient care, the research being conducted by trainees carries the promise of radical new therapies for treating endocrine disorders and cancer. The ETP also provides a center for improved teaching and health delivery for Northern New England.
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