Physiological adaptations to stress encompass a wide range of responses from alterations of molecular structure affecting cellular metabolism to organismal remodeling. Adaptations may be positive, such as those brought about by increased participation in regular physical activity, or they may have pathological sequelae, e.g. disordered inflammatory responses leading to rheumatoid arthritis, or skeletal muscle and islet Beta-cell pathologies engendered by obesity. This proposal describes a course of training in physiology with a specific focus on adaptations to stress. We propose a pre-doctoral training program that will take advantage of the existing, internationally recognized strengths of faculty located at the College of Medicine in Hershey and at the Noll Physiological Research Center (and other units) at the University Park campus of The Pennsylvania State University. The goal of the proposed training program is to produce scientists with the ability to generate, integrate, and apply information gathered by multiple approaches to the study of physiology. The training program will be housed in the Intercollege Graduate Program in Physiology which has a thirty-year history of graduate student education. Faculty of the training program are committed to enhancing diversity with minority recruitment and to promoting ethics in research. The training program seeks support for 6 predoctoral trainees per year whose proficiency to integrate information gathered at all levels of inquiry will be developed by a rigorous curriculum, structured research experiences and dedicated mentorship by program preceptors. Students will integrate knowledge (rather than simply gaining technological proficiency) gained through laboratory rotations with preceptors whose research programs span a broad range of inquiry. The Stress Physiology Seminar Series will involve renowned speakers who investigate physiological adaptations to stress from diverse perspectives. After the formal presentations, trainees will interact as a group with each speaker. A core course, required of all of trainees and delivered via state-of-the-art telecommunications, will emphasize physiological mechanisms for maintaining homeostasis under acute and/or chronic stress conditions. The preceptors have been selected because of their research focus on stress and the strengths of their individual and combined research programs. A rich academic environment is provided at both campuses with strong research support and institutional commitment. The Pennsylvania State University will provide four new full assistantships if this application is funded. Students who complete their training through this program will not only have a thorough knowledge of lab techniques ranging from molecular to whole organism, but the capacity to understand and synthesize complex information resulting from research examining the physiological (molecular, metabolic, and systemic ) adaptations to stress.
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