The discipline of clinical pharmacology seeks to apply an understanding of the fundamental mechanisms of drug action to improve the therapy of human diseases. Clinical Pharmacology at Vanderbilt is a Division of the Department of Medicine and of the Department of Pharmacology. The 16 faculty members in the Division, along with selected faculty members with whom they collaborate in their research activities, constitute the training faculty for this postdoctoral training program. Collaborations among investigators focusing on common research themes are well established in the Division; these research areas include eicosanoid biology, ion channel biology, control of the circulation, and drug disposition. In the last period of support, new collaborative efforts have been launched in cancer pharmacology, neuroscience, and pharmacogenetics. The primary activity of trainees is research training on issues directly relevant to mechanisms of drug action in human subjects, under the direction of an individual faculty mentor. The usual duration of training is two to three years, and individuals holding either the M.D. or Ph.D. degree are supported. Research training under the direction of an individual faculty mentor is supplemented by attendance at the weekly Experimental Therapeutics seminar hosted by the Division, at Clinical Pharmacology Grand Rounds (constituting a core curriculum in Clinical Pharmacology), at the Responsibility in Research seminar series, and by didactic courses. Trainees may elect to participate in the Vanderbilt Master of Science in Clinical Investigation, a program that grew in large part out of the Division. Trainees also participate in the clinical services of the Division, including Hypertension, Autonomic Dysfunction, Arrhythmia, and Clinical Toxicology. The overall goal of this program is to train investigators who ultimately will assume leadership positions in academic medicine, in industry, or in regulatory affairs. Of the 64 trainees supported by this award who have completed training since 1977, 31 hold faculty positions in academic medical centers and 12 are in the pharmaceutical industry or national regulatory agencies. Support for seven training positions per year is requested in this renewal.
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