The proposed University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus T32 training program in Molecular and Systems Toxicology (MST) provides a multi-disciplinary research mentorship program centered around training in systems toxicology including genomics/epigenetics, proteomics, and metabolomics as well as molecular approaches to understand underlying mechanisms of toxicity. The proposed T32 training program will be housed under the multi-institutional Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Sciences graduate programs which are based within the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Skaggs School of Pharmacy, but which includes faculty from the Schools of Medicine and Public Health on the Anschutz Medical Campus and also includes faculty from National Jewish Health. The proposed MST training program is requesting 2 predoctoral positions/year for 2 years of support (in years 3 & 4 for a total of 8 predoctoral trainees over 5 years). The proposed University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus MST training program will be supported by 16 faculty which are focused on systems toxicology research and are listed as mentors on this T32 application. This training program has the primary goal and responsibility of developing predoctoral students into independent and successful environmental health scientists with expertise in systems toxicology. This goal will be achieved by utilizing: 1) internationally recognized, well-funded research mentors in systems toxicology; 2) outstanding institutional support from the UC Anschutz campus; 3) targeted didactic learning approaches; 4) training in responsible conduct in research, grant writing and career development; 5) continued excellence in recruitment and enhancement of diversity; 6) continued student engagement in research, education and career development through various programs; 7) continual development of systems toxicology related coursework and experiences; 8) evaluation metrics to continually improve the UC Anschutz MST training program. Ultimately, we expect our trainees to develop into independent scientists with the knowledge and skills to address challenges in toxicology and environmental health using cutting edge `omics' and `big data' approaches.
This application requests the establishment of a new predoctoral training program at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus in Molecular and Systems Toxicology. The program requests stipend and tuition support for 2 predoctoral trainees in years 3 & 4 of their training (for a total of 8 predoctoral trainees over 5 years). The mission of this training program is to develop students into independent scientists that have skills and knowledge to utilize cutting edge research approaches in `omics' technology to address problems presented by complex exposures to environmental agents, drugs and therapies.
