A mentor group composed of 13 senior and mid-level investigators, each with experience in research training and each with active and competitive research programs, propose to continue a relatively new research Training Program in Vision Science at the Medical College of Wisconsin (MOW) for another 5 years. The request is for 5 pre-doctoral trainees annually. The objective is to prepare trainees for research careers in ocular and vision research. This requires that students have a broad, multidisciplinary appreciation of the major features of the visual system, a contemporary understanding of the diseases that impact vision, and modern research skills and technologies for experimental work in the visual system. It also requires that trainees acquire the analytical and communication skills necessary to function in a multidisciplinary research environment. The mentor group provides experience in multiple facets of the visual system, ranging from fundamental photoreceptor biology and color vision to organization of the central vision within the brain. The mentors in the program also offer a wide range of state of the art technological know-how that includes molecular genetics, confocal and multiphoton imaging, adaptive optics, optical coherence tomography, functional magnetic resonance imaging, and electron spin resonance spectroscopy. Pre-doctoral trainees will complete a core curriculum of Molecular Genetics, Biochemistry, Cell Biology, and Neurobiology as well as required courses in """"""""Ethics and Integrity in Science"""""""" and """"""""The Biology of Vision"""""""" as a prelude to conducting dissertation research under the mentorship of a member of the program faculty. All trainees in mentor labs will also participate in a monthly Research Forum/Journal Club in Vision Science, a monthly Distinguished Lecture Series in Vision Science, and an annual Vision Science Colloquium. They will also attend and present papers at National meetings. Relevance: The goal of the project is to train a new generation of Vision Science researchers that are highly competent in the newest technologies and at the same time mindful of the important role of interdisciplinary and collaborative research in major scientific advances. Our challenge is to expose them to the major problems that need to be solved in vision research while providing in depth training in the technologies essential for research.
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