Biotechnology Predoctoral Training Program

描述（由申请人提供）：本申请申请西北大学博士前生物技术培训项目的续期资金。这个跨学科和跨部门的项目为来自五个参与单位的博士生提供生物技术培训机会：生物与化学工程系（ChBE），生物医学工程系（BME），材料科学与工程系（MSE），化学系（Chem）和跨部门生物科学研究生课程（IBiS）。从生命科学实验室中选择的研究机会由核心跨学科课程补充。三至六个月的工业实习使受训者接触现代生物技术的工业环境。所有的学员和许多导师都参加了IBiS，为期两天的校外年度静修，这使得来自不同学科的学生和教师之间有了广泛的互动，增加了学员群体的凝聚力。生物技术研究进展会议每月举行一次，是学员和教师展示和讨论他们的研究成果并与其他学员互动的论坛。学员组织和主持生物技术系列研讨会，将工业界和学术界的科学家带到校园与学员进行讨论。学生还可以利用校园内其他一些与生命科学相关的研讨会项目，特别是一年一度的凯洛格生物技术会议和生物技术硕士项目研讨会。对负责任的研究行为的指导主要通过“生物学研究中的伦理”这门课程来进行。培训生由项目和参与单位通过小册子、www页面和会议演示来招募。在过去4年里，我们努力从弱势群体中招收学生，并取得了相当大的成功，30%的学员来自弱势群体。学员已从化学、生物医学工程、生物医学工程和生物医学工程中挑选出来，鉴于他们在生物技术研究方面的努力，以及教师和研究生队伍的实力，我们建议将MSE加入更新。参与该计划的教师人数将从31人增加到42人。要求将资助职位从6个增加到8个，以支持这一扩大的导师基数和现有的学生人数。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This proposal requests renewal funding for the Predoctoral Biotechnology Training Program at Northwestern University. This interdisciplinary and interdepartmental Program offers biotechnology training opportunities for a select group of PhD students from five participating units: the Departments of Biological & Chemical Engineering (ChBE), Biomedical Engineering (BME), Material Sciences & Engineering (MSE), Chemistry (Chem), and the Interdepartmental Biological Sciences (IBiS) graduate program. Research opportunities, chosen from among a selection of laboratories in the life sciences, are complemented by a core interdisciplinary curriculum. Three- to 6-month industrial internships expose trainees to the industrial environment of modern biotechnology. All trainees and many preceptors participate in the IBiS, 2-day, off-campus annual retreat, which allows extensive interactions among students and faculty from many disciplines and increases the cohesiveness of the trainee group. The Biotechnology Research in Progress Meetings occur monthly and is the forum where trainees and faculty present and discuss their research results and interact with other trainees. Trainees organize and host a Biotechnology Seminar Series that bring industrial and academic scientists to campus for discussions with trainees. Students also take advantage of several other life sciences-related seminar programs on campus, notably the annual Kellogg Biotechnology Conference and seminars for the Master's in Biotechnology Program. Instruction in the responsible conduct of research is carried out primarily through the course, "Ethics in Biological Research." Trainees are recruited by the Program and the participating units using brochures, www pages, and conference presentations. Intensive efforts are made to recruit student from underrepresented groups, and have been quite successful with 30% of trainees from the past 4 years from underrepresented groups. Trainees have been selected from Chemistry, BME, ChBE, and IBiS, and we propose to add MSE for the renewal due to their efforts in biotechnology research and strength of the faculty and the graduate student pool. The number of preceptors participating in the Program will increase from 31 to 42. An increase from 6 to 8 funded positions is requested to support this expanded preceptor base and available student pool.