Mentoring and Research in Mouse Pathobiology

描述（由申请人提供）：候选人是委员会认证的解剖病理学家和神经病理学家，在培育和研究转基因小鼠以模拟疾病发病机制和基本生物学机制方面具有丰富的经验。Tourtellotte博士的独立研究项目专注于神经发育和行为的早期基因调控，并为西北大学小鼠病理生物学研究的本科生、博士生和博士后提供培训项目。具体来说，Tourtellotte博士的研究项目集中在：(1)介导神经-肌肉相互作用的分子机制，(2)自主神经系统的发育和功能障碍，以及(3)人类家族性自主神经障碍中IKBKAP基因功能的机制。Tourtellotte博士还担任临床病理学住院医师和研究员的导师，其中许多人从事使用小鼠病理生物学来模拟人类疾病机制的研究项目。Tourtellotte博士提议通过帮助加强西北大学的小鼠病理生物学培训和研究基础设施来扩大他的指导作用。通过他在西北大学转基因和靶向诱变实验室和小鼠表型核心实验室的领导，他建议加强对小鼠病理生物学研究的培训和服务，这些研究面向希望为自己的独立研究项目使用和/或开发小鼠模型的初级和高级研究人员。Tourtellotte博士正在寻求职业发展支持，使他能够减少临床服务的承诺，并将精力集中在小鼠病理生物学的研究和培训上。具体而言，他将继续加强他的独立研究和培训计划，并加强西北大学小鼠病理生物学相关的核心实验室资源和培训计划。后一种努力将使他能够最大限度地发挥他作为未来一代小鼠病理生物学家导师的影响力，而不是他目前在他的独立研究项目中指导的相对较少的学员。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The Candidate is a board certified Anatomic Pathologist and Neuropathologist with extensive experience in generating and studying genetically-modified mice to model disease pathogenesis and basic biological mechanisms. Dr. Tourtellotte's independent research program focuses on immediate early gene regulation in neurodevelopment and behavior, and it serves as a training program for undergraduate, predoctoral and postdoctoral students in mouse pathobiology research at Northwestern University. Specifically, Dr. Tourtellotte's research program focuses on: (1) molecular mechanisms mediating nerve-muscle interactions, (2) autonomic nervous system development and dysfunction and (3) the mechanisms of IKBKAP gene function in human familial dysautonomia. Dr. Tourtellotte also serves as a mentor to clinical pathology residents and fellows, many of whom are engaged in research projects that use murine pathobiology to model mechanisms of human disease. Dr. Tourtellotte is proposing to expand his mentoring role by helping to enhance the mouse pathobiology training and research infrastructure at Northwestern University. Through his leadership of the Transgenic and Targeted Mutagenesis Laboratory and the Mouse Phenotyping Core Laboratory at Northwestern University, he is proposing to enhance the training and service in mouse pathobiology research that is available to both junior and senior investigators who wish to use and/or develop mouse models for their own independent research programs. Dr. Tourtellotte is seeking career development support to enable him to decrease his clinical service commitment and focus his efforts on mouse pathobiology research and training. Specifically, he will continue to strengthen his independent research and training program and enhance mouse pathobiology related core laboratory resources and training programs at Northwestern University. The latter efforts will enable him to maximize his influence as a mentor to a future generation of mouse pathobiologists beyond the relatively small number of trainees he currently mentors in his independent research program.