This multidisciplinary program supports 3 predoctoral and 1 postdoctoral fellows per year at Thomas Jefferson University (TJU) for training in birth defects research. Its goal is to provide the basic and applied skills necessary to become independent investigators in research to uncover genetic and molecular control of cellular function in developing systems and to apply these principles to understanding mechanisms of developmental defects caused by environmental toxicants. One in 33 babies is born with a serious structural malformation. Two-thirds of these cases have no obvious cause. Because of human health concerns about the developmental toxicity of environmental agents, scientists and regulators have focused efforts on understanding and protecting against potential hazards of these agents to developing embryos, fetuses, and children. TJU historically comprises one of the world's largest academic centers for birth defects research and has contributed substantially to the pipeline of investigators in this important research area. The Program reflects a modern understanding that developmental defects are best studied through gene-environment interaction and with newer technologies for high-throughput measurement and functional analysis. Resources come from a core of well-funded faculty in several departments at Jefferson including the new Daniel Baugh Institute for Functional Genomics and Computational Biology. Research interests of these faculty fall into three overlapping categories: 1) genetic signals and responses during normal embryonic development; 2) mechanisms of developmental toxicity and teratogenesis; and 3) functional genomics and computational biology. Applied skills are provided by opportunities for formal collaboration with scientists at major pharmaceutical companies and teratology contract laboratories in the Philadelphia-New Jersey region. Program integration is enhanced by a broad core curriculum in cellular, molecular, and developmental biology with focused training in developmental toxicology, teratology, and biostatistics. Students are required to attend and participate in weekly seminar and journal club programs. Duration of training averages 5-years for predoctoral students and 3 years for postdoctoral fellows, with 2 years of training grant support per individual. The Program has a successful track record of minority trainees.
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