This application seeks to renew a T-32 grant focused on training of pre-doctoral students in the areas of lipid science, inflammation, and chronic diseases. Disturbances in lipid metabolism and inflammation are central to the pathogenesis of many chronic diseases including atherosclerosis, lupus, asthma, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, obesity, hepatosteatosis, end-stage renal disease, and cancer, but there are no NHLBI predoctoral training programs that focus on lipid sciences in the pathogenesis and treatment of chronic diseases. This training program has 14 mentors, with diverse backgrounds and expertise, who have primary academic appointments in five departments. Funds are being requested to support the training of four predoctoral trainees who are earning the PhD degree in one of six graduate programs of the Wake Forest University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. This training program has resulted from the natural on-going collaboration of a number of established investigators who have been assembled onto one floor of a state-of-the-art research building on the downtown campus of the Wake Forest School of Medicine. Mentors have a common research interest in the role of lipid metabolism in the pathogenesis of chronic diseases that continue to be among the leading causes of death and morbidity of US citizens. All mentors are currently collaborating with at least one other mentor and are principal investigators on NIH grants and/or project leaders on Program Project or Center grants. Training will involve an integrated, multidisciplinary approach that uses molecular, cellular, and whole animal experimentation. Training for students will include rigorous didactic courses, seminars, journal clubs, Program Project meetings, Botanical Center meetings, responsible conduct of research and professional development training, participation in cutting-edge research projects, grant writing, scientific presentations at regional and national meetings and organization of an annual Lipid Sciences Mini-Symposium. All trainees are required to write a pre-doctoral fellowship application (i.e., F31 or AHA) after initial support on the T-32. Areas of training focus will include: 1) Functional genomics of lipid metabolism, 2) In vivo imaging of lipi deposition, 3) Botanical lipids in the pathogenesis and treatment of chronic diseases, 4) Macromolecular assembly of lipids, 5) Lipid transport biology, and 6) Bioactive lipids in the pathogenesis and treatment of chronic diseases. Each of these areas of focus contains at least two faculty members who will participate in the training and supervision of graduate students in a co-mentoring relationship. There is also a translational research track for students who enroll in the Molecular Medicine and Translational Science graduate program and multiple Mentors have translational research projects for student training. Graduate students completing our Training Pro- gram will have the knowledge, skills, and training to join the national effort in academia, government, or industry to reduce the suffering and death of US citizens from chronic diseases that result from disturbances in lipid metabolism and inflammation.
This application seeks to renew a T-32 grant focused on training of pre-doctoral students in the areas of lipid science, inflammation, and chronic diseases. Graduate students completing our Training Program will have the knowledge, skills, and training to join the national effort in academia, government, or industry to reduce the suffering and death of US citizens from chronic diseases that result from disturbances in lipid metabolism and inflammation.
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