The goal of the program is to provide training to young researchers, at both the pre-doctoral and postdoctoral stages of their careers, in research that is relevant to diabetes, metabolism, and obesity. The Indiana University School of Medicine is an outstanding forum for such an initiative. Twenty two faculty from four Departments will participate as mentors in the program. This group of faculty has a strong training record and has over $7,500,000 of external funding. The program supports two pre-doctoral students and two post-doctoral fellows, and has successfully trained three students and two post-doctoral fellows over the four year period covered by this application. Pre-doctoral students will take a Minor in Diabetes and Obesity which includes a course in Diabetes and Obesity. Post-doctoral fellows will also take the course. Both students and post-doctoral fellows will attend Center for Diabetes Research seminars, will present their results in the same series, and will be encouraged to present their work at national meetings such as the American Diabetes Association scientific sessions. Additionally, they will take the Research Ethics course (G505). By training in an environment and culture that gives strong multi-disciplinary support for diabetes research, there is a significant probability that the trainees will sustain an interest in diabetes, even as their specific research interests evolve over their careers. Relevance. Diabetes mellitus is one of the predominant causes of premature loss of life in the United States and other developed countries. Furthermore, the incidence of type 2 diabetes is on the increase to the extent that it can be considered an epidemic in this country and one in three children born in 2003 is predicted to be afflicted with the disease in their lifetime. Therefore, it is important to provide training in the area of diabetes research with the goal of increasing the number of young researchers committed to careers confronting this common disease.
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