Predoctoral Training in Exercise Physiology and Aging

描述（由申请人提供）：马里兰大学帕克学院运动机能系运动生物学和衰老项目有培养训练有素的博士的历史，他们完成博士后培训并成为富有成效的教员。在这个项目的前9年里，我们已经支持了18名学员，其中12人完成了博士学位，5人仍在接受培训，1人正在攻读不同学科（神经科学）的医学博士/博士学位。12名毕业生中有11人（92%）继续获得NIH博士后研究奖学金。在这12名毕业生中，有7人已担任终身教职，1人在工业界工作，1人兼职，3人仍在从事博士后工作。此外，我们还培养了3名非裔美国女性毕业生，她们在ut -西南大学、维克森林大学和坦普尔大学获得了NIH博士后研究奖学金。该计划为学员提供完成高质量论文研究项目所需的技能：1)与年龄相关的身体成分、代谢、心血管和肌肉骨骼功能的变化，以及心血管疾病的危险因素；2)运动训练引起的这些参数的变化；3)这些参数基线测量的遗传结构、它们随年龄的变化以及它们随运动训练干预的变化；4)利用细胞和分子生物学方法在动物和细胞培养模型中负责这些反应的机制。这个更新培训计划的一个重要增强是翻译部分，受训者可以将他们的研究从人类生理研究扩展到动物模型和细胞培养研究，以描绘潜在的细胞和分子机制。受训者的研究可以在马里兰大学医学院老年学部、内分泌、糖尿病和营养学部、生理学学部、护理学院和国家医学中心儿童遗传医学研究中心的密切合作实验室与初级、中级和副导师进行。学员完成老化基础生物学课程；在运动、心血管、肌肉骨骼、代谢、细胞和分子生物学和生理学方面具有特定知识；遗传学;生物统计学和研究设计。我们建议继续这个项目，为6名博士预科学员提供4年的资金，以完成他们的博士学位，并提供高质量的课程和论文研究项目，这将为他们获得NIH博士后研究奖学金和最终的学术教职做好准备，研究项目重点是运动生物学和衰老。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The University of Maryland College Park Department of Kinesiology exercise biology and aging program has a history of producing well-trained PhDs who complete postdoctoral training and become productive faculty members. We have supported 18 trainees over the first 9 yrs of this program with 12 completing their PhD degrees, 5 still in training, and 1 pursuing an MD/PhD degree in a different discipline (neuroscience). Eleven of the 12 who graduated (92%) have gone on to NIH postdoctoral research fellowships. Seven of these 12 graduates are now in tenure-track academic positions, 1 is in industry, 1 is part-time faculty, and 3 are still in postdoctoral positions. Furthermore, we have graduated 3 African-American women who have gone on to NIH postdoctoral research fellowships at UT-Southwestern, Wake Forest, and Temple. This program provides trainees with the skills necessary for them to complete high-quality dissertation research projects addressing: 1) age-related changes in body composition, metabolic, CV, and musculoskeletal function, and CV disease risk factors; 2) exercise training-induced changes in these same parameters; 3) the genetic architecture underlying the baseline measures of these parameters, their changes with aging, and their changes with exercise training interventions; and 4) the mechanisms responsible for these responses in animal and cell culture models using cell and molecular biology methodologies. A substantial enhancement of this renewal Training Program is this translational component, whereby trainees can extend their studies from human physiological studies to investigations in animal models and cell culture to delineate the underlying cell and molecular mechanisms. Trainees' research can be conducted with Primary, Secondary, and Associate Mentors at closely collaborating laboratories at the University of Maryland School of Medicine Division of Gerontology, Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Nutrition, Department of Physiology, and School of Nursing and Childrens National Medical Center Research Center for Genetic Medicine. Trainees complete coursework in the basic biology of aging; specific knowledge in exercise, CV, musculoskeletal, metabolic, cell, and molecular biology and physiology; genetics; and biostatistics and research design. We propose to continue this program to fund each of 6 predoctoral trainees for 4 yrs to complete their PhD degrees with high-quality coursework and a dissertation research project that will prepare them for an NIH postdoctoral research fellowship and an eventual academic faculty position with a research program focusing on exercise biology and aging. RELEVANCE: This program will support 6 trainees/yr who will complete their PhD degrees with high quality research projects. The long-term goal is to prepare trainees to pursue high-level NIH postdoctoral research fellowships and, eventually, academic faculty positions that focus on research and teaching in the prevention of such major age-associated issues as sarcopenia, obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and CV disease.