Training Program: The NSRDCRN Training Program in Clinical and Translational Research in Human Glomerular Disease 1. Introduction 1.1. Objectives: The NSRDCRN training program is designed for advanced post-doctoral and junior faculty trainees, or established investigators interested in redirecting their investigative focus, who are preparing to become independent investigators in clinical and translational research in human glomerular disease. Training will be individually tailored for each trainee, combining a didactic program with a mentored research experience that employs the resources of the Nephrotic Syndrome Rare Disease Consortium. 1.2. Rationale: As detailed elsewhere in this NSRDCRN application, clinical investigation of human glomerular disease has progressed slowly over the past several decades leaving renal practitioners with inadequate information to properly direct their patient's care. The absence of an investigative infrastructure and insufficient funding have impeded the advances that are now possible using modern genetics, molecular biology, and systems biology tools. These same tools have propelled advances in fields such as oncology where multiple rare diseases predominate. Without a collaborative infrastructure, relatively few established investigators have emerged to conduct glomerular disease investigations. Moreover, given poor opportunity, few potential investigators have been drawn to this area of study and few are presently training to carry this field forward. The creation of the first North American collaborative network to study rare glomerular diseases provides opportunity and a valuable resource that will be exploited to expand the pool of scientists who employ modern experimental approaches for work in this field. To address this need, the NSRDCRN will create a program that provides talented trainees interested in studying glomerular disease with financial support, a strong mentoring research environment, and access to the unique resources, clinical data, or specimens assembled by the NS Rare Disease Consortium.
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