The population of older adults with chronic disease states and functional and cognitive decline is growing rapidly in the US and around the world. In parallel, there has been a rapid expansion in the understanding of aging-related biological changes that may impact these conditions. Despite these parallel trends, there has to date been minimal application of this new biological knowledge to the health and well-being of older adults. A critical mass of interdisciplinary aging research expertise and infrastructure has evolved at Johns Hopkins University that has greatly accelerated the translational capability of faculty members and trainees. However, a notable gap in salary support for post-doctoral fellows interested in translational aging research has slowed the development of a robustly trained scientific workforce in this critical area of investigation. The Translational Aging Research Training Program described here will help fill a crucial gap in the training. This development of expertise will take place through a series of classroom and experiential learning opportunities leveraged from the outstanding aging-focused research and training programs that already exist at Johns Hopkins University. The scientific leadership, the infrastructure, the collaborative nature, and the collegial environment provided by these programs and affiliated faculty will enable the provision of broad exposure to all trainees to the tenets of basic aging biology as well as to the major tenets of clinical investigation and clinical teaching relevant to older adults across a number of health care disciplines.
Specific aims i nclude: 1) the implementation of a rigorous interdisciplinary training program in translational aging research for post-doctoral fellows with MD and PhD degrees through a structured program consisting of a core series of required coursework and interdisciplinary scientific meetings, weekly trainee focused translational aging seminars offered by aging-focused research programs across the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, the development of an individualized training program, and a series of leadership and career development seminars that will help to ensure future leadership in this important area of investigation; 2) the provision of trainees with a primary directed translational aging laboratory or clinically oriented research project in collaboration with an experienced mentor with research resources; 3) the provision of trainees with access to the robust interdisciplinary and translation-focused aging research infrastructure and collaborative research opportunities available across the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions. At the end of this training program, trainees will have a broad interdisciplinary knowledge of basic aging biology and major clinical issues facing older adults, a broad knowledge of translational science, and specific research skills will enable successful future academic careers. Further, the trainee will have learned career development and leadership skill sets that will facilitate the future development of influential interdisciplinary translational aging careers and research programs.
The population of older adults in the United States is expanding rapidly as is the understanding of the basic biology that underlies the many clinical changes that happen to older people. There is a great need to train the next generation of researchers to better integrate and translate this understanding of aging biology into better treatment and prevention strategies for chronic disease states and disabilities. The purpose of this proposal is to seek funds to train post- doctoral fellows in translational aging research so that they can go on to become scientists focused on important medical conditions related to aging.
