This is a revised application for continued support of a multidisciplinary predoctoral program that focuses on training in the study of neural plasticity. We are requesting funds for ten trainees, exclusively at the predoctoral level. The program trains students to conduct high caliber research in neuroscience, specifically focusing on neural plasticity at the molecular, cellular, and systems levels. Neural plasticity is essential for basic neurobiological functions such as learning and memory, sensory processing, and synaptic modulation, and is critically impaired in many key mental and neurological disorders such as AIzheimer's disease and drug addiction. The participating training faculty include members of the Departments of Neurobiology and Behavior, Pharmacology, Anatomy and Neurobiology and Cognitive Science. All training faculty are broadly interested in neural plasticity. The faculty are recognized authorities in their fields, as evident by sustained productivity in research, scholarly awards, and research funding from federal agencies. The faculty are further distinguished by their extensive track record in providing predoctoral research training, as evidenced by 25 years of uninterrupted funding of this training grant (prior to this grant cycle). The program described in this proposal has been significantly modified, both in light of our own training goals and in response to the concerns of the reviewers. The modified program has the following features: During the first year, trainees complete a sequence of core courses ranging from molecular and cellular neurobiology to systems neuroscience to behavior. This core provides the trainee background for admission to the training program (in their second year). Students may choose to rotate through three different laboratories during the first year, or choose a home laboratory at the outset. In subsequent years, students complete four other advanced courses in subjects appropriate to the individual's interests, as well as supplementary courses in bioethics, statistics and writing. Full time thesis research follows the course work and laboratory rotations. Throughout their tenure, students are also involved in other training activities including teaching, journal clubs, seminars, and opportunities for data presentations. Trainees are evaluated for their ongoing progress in scholarship and research in quarterly meetings by the training faculty. An examination is required prior to advancement to candidacy as well as a dissertation defense for all predoctoral trainees. Our expected time to degree is 5-6 years. Our primary facilities are of two kinds. First, the facilities within individual laboratories specialized to the unique experimental questions examined therein. Second, core facilities which include (1) imaging (confocal and 2-photon), (2) a transgenic facility, (3) a genomic/microarray facility, (4) a proteomics facility (SELDI instrument), (5) a viral vector facility, and (6) a computer laboratory. Substantial effort has gone into making this program a highly interactive experience with extensive formal and informal contact between students, faculty, and visiting scholars. We believe that our revised training program provides an outstanding opportunity for predoctoral students interested in neural plasticity to gain critical experience in both basic scientific and clinical research. ? ?
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