| In this section:
» Training the Next Generation of Scientists
» Enhancing Behavioral Research and
Training
» Targeting AIDS Through Research
and Training
» Joining Forces
for Neuroscience
» Increasing Minority Opportunities
in Research
Training the Next Generation
of Scientists
NIGMS continues its long history of leadership in the area of research
training, supporting nearly half of the predoctoral trainees and
more than a quarter of all of the trainees who receive assistance
from NIH. In recognition of the rapidly changing, interdisciplinary
nature of biomedical and behavioral research today, the Institute’s
training programs cut across disciplinary and departmental lines
and prepare trainees to pursue creative research careers in a wide
variety of areas.
So that biomedical science can benefit from the broadest possible
intellectual resources, NIGMS promotes the training of a scientific
workforce that reflects the composition of the U.S. population.
In addition to the special programs to increase the number of minority
biomedical and behavioral scientists described later in this section,
the Institute requires its institutional training programs to document
how they plan to recruit and retain underrepresented minority students
and to report on the success of their efforts. These plans are carefully
evaluated, with the evaluations used in making funding decisions
as well as in spurring continual improvement in the programs.
NIGMS trainees frequently contribute to significant research advances.
In FY 2005, for example, a research team that included NIGMS predoctoral
trainees discovered that toxic proteins involved in some neurodegenerative
diseases, such as Huntington’s, severely interfere with the
cellular machinery responsible for removing damaged proteins within
a cell. This finding could lead to new ways of treating and preventing
these diseases.
The Institute has several long-standing research training programs
focused on areas with particularly pressing needs for well-prepared
scientists. One of these, the Medical Scientist Training Program
(MSTP), supports training leading to the combined M.D.-Ph.D. degree
and produces investigators who can bridge the critical gap between
basic and clinical research. In addition to providing training in
the biological, chemical, and physical sciences, the program encourages
and supports training in computer science, social and behavioral
science, economics, epidemiology, public health, bioengineering,
biostatistics, and bioethics.
The MSTP supported 919 trainees in FY 2005. These exceptional students
participated in a variety of research projects and helped make noteworthy
findings, such as one that challenges an established view of how
nerve cells communicate with each other. A better understanding
of this fundamental process would have applications in the treatment
of disorders that have been linked to abnormalities in neurotransmitter
function, including depression, epilepsy, and autism. A different
MSTP trainee was the first author on a major journal article about
the transmissibility of the 1918 pandemic influenza virus.
The Pharmacology Research Associate (PRAT) Program is a specialized
training effort that constitutes the Institute’s only intramural
activity. PRAT fellows conduct 3 years of postdoctoral research
in NIH or Food and Drug Administration laboratories, working in
such cutting-edge areas as molecular pharmacology, neurobiology,
and cell signaling. In FY 2005, a PRAT fellow was part of a team
that showed that a lab-made version of a human protein alleviates
symptoms of both acute and chronic arthritis in mice and could be
the basis for a new arthritis drug for people.
Other NIGMS training programs advance scientific progress by preparing
researchers to enter the fast-growing fields of biotechnology, bioinformatics,
and computational biology. The Institute’s newest predoctoral
training program is in biostatistics, a field that contributes to
many biomedical research areas. In FY 2005, NIGMS and other NIH
institutes awarded grants to support the first 23 trainees in this
program. Future grants will be supported solely by NIGMS.
Another new activity addresses the serious shortage of scientists
trained in the study of how organ systems and whole organisms respond
to drugs and other physiological stimuli. In FY 2005, NIGMS funded
four short courses that offered intensive, hands-on experiences
in this area, which has applications in the fields of pharmacology,
physiology, and toxicology.
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Enhancing Behavioral Research and
Training
NIGMS funds basic behavioral research in areas that include the
genetic and biochemical mechanisms underlying behavior, neurobiology,
drug metabolism, the mechanism of anesthetic action, and trauma
and burn injury. Much of this research involves the use of model
organisms, and NIGMS supports the development of genetic tools and
genomic resources that enable researchers to exploit the full potential
of such model systems. Building on the opportunities in this area,
in October 2005 NIGMS and the National Institute of Child Health
and Human Development jointly announced their interest in supporting
collaborations involving behavioral scientists and investigators
who have expertise in molecular biology or genomics. One objective
of these collaborations is the development of new animal models
and the enhancement of existing models for behavioral research.
The MIDAS program described above has a behavioral research element
related to modeling the effects of social networks on the spread
of infectious diseases. NIGMS is also participating in the NIH Neuroscience
Blueprint, which has a significant behavioral component.
NIGMS funds some research training in the behavioral sciences through
institutional grants, primarily in its medical scientist and systems
and integrative biology training programs as well as in programs
administered by the NIGMS Division of Minority Opportunities in
Research (MORE). MORE also funds graduate fellowships in the behavioral
sciences, and the NIGMS Division of Genetics and Developmental Biology
funds postdoctoral fellowships in neurogenetics and the genetics
of behavior.
To capitalize on the wealth of opportunities that exist at the
intersection of the biological and behavioral sciences, NIGMS is
working with other NIH components to develop an innovative new training
program in this interface area. The Institute expects to fund the
first grants in this program in FY 2007.
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Targeting AIDS Through Research
and Training
NIGMS support related to AIDS currently falls into three areas:
program project grants that fund structure-based drug design, AIDS-related
research training in molecular biophysics, and research grants to
improve understanding of AIDS and its associated opportunistic infections.
NIGMS initiated its AIDS-related program project grants in FY 1987
to bring together crystallographers, chemists, and biologists to
determine the detailed, three-dimensional structures of potential
drug targets in HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Scientists supported
by this program continue to advance our understanding of the virus
using the tools of structural biology. In FY 2005, for example,
a grantee determined the structure of a rare human antibody that
essentially neutralizes HIV particles, possibly offering a new direction
for designing an effective AIDS vaccine.
Although researchers have determined the structures of many HIV
proteins in isolation, they know the structures of only a few HIV
proteins interacting with cellular components. Because HIV works
through such interactions, knowing the structures of more of these
complexes will provide targets for new generations of anti-AIDS
drugs.
To speed progress toward this goal, in FY 2007 NIGMS plans to replace
the expiring program project grants with two to three new centers
for the determination of the structures of additional complexes
between HIV proteins and cellular components. The centers will take
advantage of the technologies developed through the Protein Structure
Initiative and will be complemented by individual, investigator-initiated
research grants that are linked to the centers and funded by the
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
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Joining Forces
for Neuroscience
The NIH Neuroscience Blueprint enhances cooperative activities
among NIGMS and 14 other NIH institutes and centers that support
research on the nervous system. By pooling resources and expertise,
the Blueprint benefits from economies of scale, confronts challenges
too large for any single institute or center, and develops research
tools and infrastructure that serve the entire neuroscience community.
This approach allows the broad implementation of best practices
developed at a single institute or center, the coordination of planning
at the early concept stage, the expansion of access to neuroscience
resources, and the creation of multi-institute working groups to
focus on cross-cutting scientific issues.
One element of the Blueprint that NIGMS is funding is the NIH Neuroscience
Microarray Consortium. This resource provides NIH-supported scientists
with access to state-of-the-art technologies for profiling gene
activity and identifying genetic sequence variations. To speed research
progress, the consortium deposits data in a shared database, and
it also offers technical assistance, reagents, and other services
at a reasonable cost.
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Increasing Minority Opportunities
in Research
NIGMS has a strong commitment to increasing the number of minority
biomedical and behavioral scientists. The focal point for this effort
is the Division of Minority Opportunities in Research, which encourages
minority students to pursue training for scientific careers and
enhances science curricula and faculty research capabilities at
institutions with substantial minority enrollments. MORE’s
main components are Minority Access to Research Careers (MARC),
Minority Biomedical Research Support (MBRS), and special initiatives.
Minority Access to Research Careers
MARC supports student and faculty research training and helps institutions
with substantial minority enrollments strengthen their biomedical
research training capabilities. As a result, these schools are better
able to interest and prepare students for doctoral studies and biomedical
research careers. In FY 2005, MARC supported 664 undergraduate students
at 56 institutions, 157 predoctoral fellows, and 2 faculty fellows.
Minority Biomedical Research Support
MBRS awards grants to institutions with substantial minority enrollments
to support research by faculty members, strengthen the institutions’
biomedical research capabilities, and provide opportunities for
students to work as part of a research team. In FY 2005, 840 faculty
members at 111 institutions worked on 421 research projects. MBRS
also supported 1,392 undergraduate and 582 graduate students who
worked as research assistants on scientific projects at their own
institutions or in other settings, including laboratories at research-intensive
institutions.
Special Initiatives
Several MORE initiatives take new approaches to recruiting and
retaining minority biomedical scientists. One of them, Bridges to
the Future, assists students in associate’s or master’s
degree programs in making the sometimes-difficult transition to
the next level of training (the bachelor’s or Ph.D. degree).
Since the program’s inception in 1992, NIGMS and the program’s
co-sponsor, the NIH National Center on Minority Health and Health
Disparities, have funded 165 grants, 6 of which received initial
support in FY 2005.
Two innovative programs foster career development at the postdoctoral
and faculty levels. The Institutional Research and Academic Career
Development Award provides postdoctoral researchers with teaching
experience at minority-serving institutions. The ancillary benefits
of this program include motivating the next generation of minority
scientists and promoting linkages between research-intensive universities
and minority-serving institutions. The Faculty Development Award
enables minority institution faculty members to enhance their research
skills by working in a laboratory at a research-intensive university.
A partnership with the Indian Health Service links the Native American
community with organizations that conduct health research. This
program encourages research on diseases relevant to American Indians
and Alaska Natives while also preparing Native American scientists
and health professionals to compete for NIH funding.
In addition to the activities described above, MORE supports workshops
and mini-courses on a number of topics, including grant writing
and program evaluation. It also funds studies of the effectiveness
of interventions to increase minority and other student interest,
motivation, and preparedness for biomedical and behavioral research
careers. Finally, MORE plays a key role in supporting two of the
largest scientific meetings of minority scientists, the Annual Biomedical
Research Conference for Minority Students and the annual meeting
of the Society for Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans
in Science.
Successful Results
Many MORE participants move on to productive scientific careers
in academia, industry, or government. This shows the benefit of
an educational strategy that involves students in hands-on research
experiences.
A prime example is Erich Jarvis, Ph.D., an associate professor
at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC, who participated
in the MARC and MBRS programs as an undergraduate and graduate student.
Jarvis was one of only 13 scientists in the country to receive a
2005 NIH Director’s Pioneer Award. He plans to use the award
to study the genetic machinery underlying vocal learning.
Other MORE success stories include:
- Michael Anderson, Ph.D., who received MARC undergraduate support
and is now a postdoctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins University in
Baltimore, MD;
- Tracy Ferea, Ph.D., who received MARC undergraduate and MBRS
predoctoral support before becoming a research scientist at Applied
Biosystems in Palo Alto, CA; and
- Belinda Pastrana-Rios, Ph.D., an MBRS participant at the undergraduate
and graduate levels who is now an associate professor of chemistry
at the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez.
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