This renewal application for a Mid-career Investigator Award (K24) in Patient Oriented Research (POR) seeks support for an investigator who is committed to excellent research in human nutrition, and to mentoring future leaders in Pediatric Nutrition. The objective of the application is to enable the candidate to continue her efforts in POR, and to foster her ability to mentor clinical investigators and other trainees in Pediatric Nutrition. The candidate has an excellent record of conducting POR, which has been funded by both federal and non-federal sources. During the first four years of her original K24 award, she has coauthored 47 publications and 30 abstracts, and she has mentored 20 pre- and post-doctoral trainees, including 4 physician fellows, and 3 post-doctoral fellows, all of whom conducted research projects directly relevant to Pediatric Nutrition. The candidate's primary research focus is micronutrient nutrition, especially in infants and young children. She is currently conducting several trials related to zinc (Zn) homeostasis and bioavailability in developing countries. A second area of interest and collaborative research is pediatric obesity prevention and treatment. Three funded POR projects are described in the application: a cluster randomized trial providing meat as a complementary food to infants and toddlers in 4 developing countries;a metabolic study comparing 3 different complementary feeding regimens in U.S. breastfed infants;and a pilot study examining the feasibility of an office-based electronic system to enhance providers'assessment of obesity and cardiovascular disease risk in children. The specific mentoring aims are 1) to recruit outstanding trainees, especially physicians, to the field of Pediatric Nutrition so as to increase the number of physician leaders in this area;and 2) to implement a structured, rigorous training program for post-doctoral fellows in Pediatric Nutrition through an updated, collaborative training track. This award will substantially contribute to the candidate's career goals by enabling her to relinquish some clinical and administrative duties and to take advantage of career enhancement opportunities, both of which will enhance her ability to mentor the next generation of clinical investigators. Relevance: This project addresses human nutrition research in two major areas of public health importance in Pediatrics: micronutrient deficiencies and obesity. The award seeks support for an applicant who has a long track record of conducting patient oriented research and of mentoring clinical investigators in the area of Pediatric Nutrition.
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