Stem Cell Biology Training Program

描述（由申请人提供）：研究人员建议在明尼苏达大学建立一个新的跨学科干细胞生物学博士前培训项目。明尼苏达大学干细胞研究所成立于1999年，是广泛开展干细胞研究的强大中心。随着干细胞生物学领域的迅速发展，需要更多训练有素的研究人员来解决这一领域的基本生物学问题，以及将新的干细胞疗法转化为临床医学。干细胞生物学培训计划的总体目标是培养优秀的博士预科学员的职业发展，使他们能够发展成功的干细胞研究事业。为了实现这一目标，该培训计划汇集了来自生物医学科学和工程部门的25名优秀教师。研究机会涉及利用多能干细胞和成体组织特异性干细胞的动物和人类模型的全谱工作。该项目的教师拥有推进干细胞研究领域所需的全方位学科的专业知识，包括：基础发育生物学，分子生物学/基因治疗，细胞生物学，免疫学，生物医学工程，临床和兽医学以及生物伦理学。该项目学员将完成干细胞生物学的研究生课程，以及发育生物学等相关课程。培训的核心部分将是参与干细胞生物学的研究项目，并参加干细胞研究所的研究会议、期刊俱乐部和专题讨论会。培训生将由项目指导委员会在竞争的基础上选出。来自10个不同研究生项目的教员将指导一大批博士生预科生候选人。总之，这些组成部分将提供干细胞生物学所需的全面培训，以满足具有知识和专业知识的研究人员的需求，以推进干细胞的基础生物学研究和转化为新的基于干细胞的临床疗法。

DESCRIPTION (Provided by Applicant): The investigators propose to establish a new interdisciplinary predoctoral training program in Stem Cell Biology at the University of Minnesota. The Stem Cell Institute at the University of Minnesota was established in 1999 and forms a strong hub for a broad spectrum of stem cell-based research. As the field of stem cell biology continues to rapidly expand, significantly more trained investigators are needed to address both the basic biological questions in this field, as well as translate new stem cell-based therapies to clinical medicine. The overall aim of this Stem Cell Biology Training Program is to foster the career development of outstanding predoctoral trainees to enable them to develop successful stem cell-focused research careers. To achieve this aim, this proposed training program has assembled 25 outstanding faculty members from both biomedical science and engineering departments. Research opportunities involve a full-spectrum of work on animal and human models utilizing both pluripotent stem cells as well as adult tissue-specific stem cells. Faculty in this program have expertise in the full range of disciplines that are required to advance the stem cell research field, including: basic developmental biology, molecular biology/gene therapy, cell biology, immunology, biomedical engineering, clinical and veterinary medicine, as well as bioethics. Trainees in this program will complete graduate-level courses in stem cell biology, as well as related courses such as developmental biology. A central part of the training will be to engage in a research project in stem cell biology, and participate in Stem Cell Institute research conferences, journal clubs, and symposia. Trainees will be selected by the program Steering Committee on a competitive basis. Faculty members from ten different graduate programs are to mentor a strong pool of predoctoral trainee candidates. Together, these components will provide the comprehensive training in stem cell biology required to address the need for investigators with the knowledge and expertise to move forward both the basic biological studies of stem cells and translation to novel stem cell-based clinical therapies. RELEVANCE: Stem cell biology provides the opportunity to produce new cell-based therapies to better treat and cure a range of diseases caused by cell and tissue degeneration or injury. These diseases consist of many where there are currently no good curative options, including but not limited to diabetes, Parkinson's disease, and other neurological disorders, malignancies, and cardiovascular injury.