Training Grant in Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism

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This application is for the renewal of a post-doctoral training grant at the University of Minnesota in diabetes, endocrinology, and metabolism that has been in existence since 1977. The need for this training program has never been greater. Diabetes, obesity, and other endocrine diseases now affect more than half of the United States population but the number of research scientists committed to this area of investigation of has not kept pace with the growth in disease prevalence. The long-standing goal of this program has been to prepare physicians and graduates of PhD programs for successful research careers in academic medicine. This preparation has been centered upon the critical interaction between the trainee and the research mentor. All mentors in this program have national or international reputations in their respective areas and have strong track records in mentoring. Their efforts are supported by a strong administrative structure that encourages trainees to be deliberate in obtaining the skills they will need to become independent investigators. This structure also regularly evaluates and monitors the success of the trainee and the overall program as well as supports the development of a highly interactive relationship between the trainee and mentor. The particular research strengths of our faculty include cellular metabolism and genetics; endocrinology and signaling; neurobiology and appetite regulation of obesity; stem cell biology, autoimmunity, and β-cell biology; and clinical aspects of endocrine disease. Applicants for this program come from leading Universities and Medical Schools from around the world. Our trainees have all either completed a residency program in internal medicine in the United States or received a PhD in a biological science at a major research University before enrolling in this fellowship. In this application, we request an increase in the number of our post-doctoral fellowship positions from three to four each year so we can support more PhD trained scientists interested in endocrinology as a career while continuing our long standing commitment to training physician scientists. These positions will be used to provide support for 2 MD trained and 2 PhD trained post-doctoral fellows selected for their outstanding potential to become leading scientists in diabetes, endocrinology, and metabolism each budget year.