Research Training in the Prevention of Drug Abuse & AIDS in Communities of Color

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This revised application for a MIDARP program at Howard University describes a mentoring program in drug abuse research and AIDS prevention in communities of color, which is designed to increase the capacity of faculty and students at Howard to conduct rigorous and competitive research in the prevention of drug abuse and HIV/AIDS in communities of color. The program will emphasize training in transdisciplinary research on relationships between environmental stress, biological responses, risk behaviors and health outcomes and will utilize collaborations with senior investigators in research intensive universities to mentor Howard faculty investigators. The MIDARP will also work closely with existing programs that link Howard faculty and students to research training opportunities to (1) increase knowledge and interest in drug abuse and AIDS prevention research among faculty and students in these programs and (2) utilize the resources of these programs to expand the range of training opportunities available to MIDARP investigators and students. Howard students will be introduced to drug abuse and AIDS prevention research and career development by augmenting existing drug abuse courses in the College of Arts and Sciences and the curriculum for medical, basic science, nursing, and pharmacy students to include information on drug abuse and AIDS prevention research. They will also fund a pre-doctoral dissertation stipend and recruit students to serve as research assistants in the MIDARP pilot studies. The unique strengths of the program include the opportunity to (1) integrate education regarding drug abuse and AIDS prevention research into existing research training programs for faculty and students;(2) train individuals in diverse disciplines such as the health professions and sciences (i.e., medicine, basic sciences, pharmacy, nursing) who are less likely to pursue research careers in drug abuse and AIDS prevention research; and (3) support transdisciplinary research in drug use and AIDS prevention based on strong existing university research programs in genetics, physiology, and psychobiology. A transdisciplinary approach will be reflected in the MIDARP leadership that includes a Director who is a behavioral scientist specializing in research on environmental stress, drug use, and AIDS risk in communities of color and a Deputy Director who is an immunogeneticist with expertise in microbiology, and founding Director of the Human Genome Project at Howard University.