This proposal requests continued support of the grant T35 DK 007431 for short-term research training experiences at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) for 24 medical and other health professional students in areas that fall within the broad spectrum of diabetes and lipid abnormalities, as well as renal and cardiovascular disease. This application builds on the strengths of MUSC's Summer Health Professional (SHP) Program that has provided a 10-12 week training in biomedical research for more than 700 health professional students at MUSC. The major objectives of the program are to: (1) attract talented and highly motivated medical students and other health professionals into careers in biomedical research in areas related to the NIDDK mission; (2) offer research training experiences to medical students from the University of South Carolina in Columbia, SC to expand their opportunities and diversify the applicant pool; (3) encourage increased awareness of research methods and results as a fundamental skill in the practice of medicine; (4) stimulate further interaction between research programs and clinical services, especially with regard to diseases that disproportionately affect the large African American population served by MUSC, e.g., diabetes, macrovascular disease, renal disease, hypertension, atherosclerosis, lipid disorders, obesity; and (5) provide a forum where accomplished investigators can act as role models by sharing their enthusiasm and biomedical research expertise with medical and other health professional students. The program is designed such that students can participate in original research training during the summer between their first and second years of school. Research projects are offered in the thematic areas of Diabetes, Renal and Vascular Pathophysiology, Signal Transduction and Human Disease, Health Disparities, and Emerging Technologies. At the conclusion of the training period, students write a paper describing their findings and present their findings at the annual two-day SHP colloquium and to the entire university community at Student Research Day. Additional programmatic activities include instruction in the responsible conduct of research, a seminar series covering the thematic research areas delivered by local and invited speakers, a career exploration workshop, and travel to scientific meeting.
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