Career Development of Environmental Health Investigators

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Specific Aims Future progress in the translation of environmental health research into new strategies for the prevention and control of environmentally related diseases will require the collaboration of clinical, basic and public health (including epidemiological and behavioral) scientists with a broad range of skills. Therefore, a major objective of the Center for Research on Environmental Disease (CRED) is to increase the capacity within the CRED for conducting high-quality multidisciplinary environmental health research that integrates clinical, basic, and applied research strategies and methodologies. This objective will be accomplished through the following specific aims: 1. Cross-train new and existing basic science investigators in the research knowledge and skills required to enhance collaborative environmental science research that integrates basic science methodologies with clinical and/or population-based research. This will be accomplished through the delivery of an annual short course, co-organized by the EHRCDP and members of the Integrative Health Sciences Facilities Core (IHSFC). The short course will be open to trainees and junior faculty, as well as to established Center investigators and will include discussions on study design, study populations (including issues related to access to participants and/or specimens), sample size and other feasibility issues, HIPAA regulations, writing effective IRB protocols as well as integration of biomarkers into epidemiologic and clinical research, and related statistical and informatics issues. The course will also provide participants with a thorough introduction to the IHSFC, including current and future biospecimens in the repositories available to CRED members through this Core. 2. Cross-train new and existing clinical and population-based investigators in the standard techniques and concepts of molecular and cellular biology and genetics to facilitate collaborations and improve the quality of multidisciplinary research. This will be accomplished through the delivery of a short-course, organized by the EHRCDP in collaboration with the four technology based facility cores (FC1-4). The course will provide hands-on experiences with the basic techniques of molecular and cellular biology (including relevant animal models) that are being applied to cutting edge environmental health research. 3. Prepare new investigators (and existing investigators transitioning to environmental health research) to develop independent, NIEHS-funded research programs by increasing their knowledge and grant writing skills through the Environmental Health Grants and Grantsmanship Workshop. This will consist of a 2-day workshop and informal brown bag that will provide a thorough understanding of the types of funding mechanisms available to environmental health investigators at all levels. The workshop will provide hands-on experiences, feedback and mentorship in the planning, writing and review of research proposals, and will equip each participant with resource materials, websites, and contact information that can assist with the successful development of grant applications. 4. Provide models and foster collaborations in the area of translational environmental health research through the Integrative Environmental Health Sciences (IEHS) Seminar Series. This will be a monthly seminar, videoconferenced to each of the CRED campuses, that will link basic science, clinical science and public health science investigators working (either together or separately) on a similar environmental health-related topic. Twice each year, a leading translational environmental scientist from outside the CRED will present in this series and meet with CRED members in an advisory capacity to stimulate and enhance integration of environmental health research within the CRED. 5. Identify, recruit and provide mentoring and professional development for new CRED members, especially junior faculty, and serve as a liaison to facilitate collaborations between these new members and other basic, clinical and population-based investigators. This will be accomplished by establishing formal mentoring teams for junior faculty as well as mid-level faculty new to environmental health research. The EHRCDP will also serve as a "broker" to facilitate linkages between new and existing CRED members from different disciplines but with similar research interests (i.e., a basic scientist working on obesity and wanting to link with a clinical trialist; an epidemiologist wanting to collaborate with a basic scientist to develop and use biomarkers of environmental exposure).