Advanced Skills Development in Glyco-Hematology and Glyco-Oncology

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 DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The 2012 National Research Council (NRC) report titled `Transforming Glycoscience: A Roadmap for the Future' from the National Academy of Sciences, USA states that "Relatively little attention has been paid to this class of molecules, and glycoscience remains a relatively understudied field". The current RFA HL-15-006 attempts to address this state through development of creative educational activities that focus on "research area related to blood research, clinical procedures for research, or specialized research techniques. [e.g.] techniques for blood glycoscience, ... stem cell isolation/handling techniques " (see Section 1 of the RFA). In this grant application, we propose a skills development program that relies on a combination of didactic courses and hands-on research to train future generation scientists with expertise in the glycosciences of importance to hematology and oncology. Our program focuses on understanding structural and functional aspects of a) low and ultralow molecular weight heparins (LMWHs & ULMWHs) and b) N/O-glycans (NOGs) of blood proteins/cells. We proposed to 1) develop a research education plan that combines didactic teaching, literature analysis and hands-on research to train a cadre of graduate students and postdocs in the areas of glyco-hematology and glyco-oncology; 2) develop innovative research modules on structural and functional characterization of LMWHs/ULMWHs (modules 1 and 2) and NOGs of coagulation factors (module 3) and cancer stem cells (module 4); and 3) disseminate results and achievement in both skills development and research to enhance the impact of glycosciences in the biological and therapeutic arena. The combination of the teaching program proposed here with four highly innovative research modules is expected to impart the value of glycoscience to the young trainees, while also generating substantial new knowledge, technology and translational science that advances their careers. A distinguishing point about our program is its pharmaceutical/therapeutic (or translational) relevance. (End of Abstract)