Wyoming Sensory Biology COBRE

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Abstract The primary mission of the Wyoming Sensory Biology COBRE (SBC) is to foster and conduct high-quality scientific research that advances the understanding of our sensory systems and disorders related to them. SBC will accomplish its mission through the augmentation and strengthening of UW's institutional biomedical research capacity. This will be accomplished through building a critical mass of investigators whose research interests center around sensory processes at the molecular, cellular, physiological and system levels. SBC will promote the competitiveness of the core investigators by providing mentoring, training, collaboration and research support. The SBC will be led by the PI with the help of an excellent group of additional mentors. The PI is an established sensory system investigator with expertise that is germane to the research theme of the center, has an active research laboratory, has obtained peer-reviewed funding and has extensive administrative leadership and mentoring experience. The SBC is comprised of the Administration Core, the Integrated Microscopy Core (IMcore), and four interrelated research projects. As a whole, the SBC will support four new junior investigators and four future faculty hires that are committed to the SBC, during the five years of the COBRE funding. The Center will comprise a multi-disciplinary team of investigators with expertise across multiple sensory modalities, including somatosensation, chemosensation, and vision. The SBC investigators' research portfolios demonstrate a balance of basic and translational research across multiple fields. The five-year goals of the SBC are the following: 1. Establish a multi- disciplinary center that brings together investigators with expertise in diverse areas of sensory neuroscience and experimental methodology, and fosters collaborations to address key issues in sensory function and dysfunction. 2. Support the projects of junior investigators by providing strong mentoring and guidance to help them obtain independent funding and professional success. 3. Grow the SBC in both size and scope through the recruitment of new faculty, as described in the Institutional Commitment, and fostering multi-disciplinary research among current UW faculty, respectively. 4. Build the required research infrastructure by expanding the capabilities of the Microscopy Core. 5. Advance our understanding of the development and function of sensory systems and their dysfunctions. Successful operation of the Center is expected to achieve the following milestones within the initial five years of funding: successful expansion of a state-of-the-art imaging and microscopy core facility, all four Project Leaders successfully competing for R01-level funding; four to six new or early-stage investigators added to the Center; two to four new mentors added (including Project Leaders who recently graduated from COBRE support); and at least 20 manuscripts accepted for publication or published in reputable peer-reviewed journals.