Interdisciplinary Training Program in Muscle Biology

 描述(由申请者提供)：该项目为博士后和博士后研究员提供肌肉生物学的跨学科培训。该计划强调骨骼肌、心肌和平滑肌的功能、结构和分子特性，以及在不同疾病状态下这些特性的修改。我们的17名教职员工来自马里兰大学巴尔的摩大学医学院的3个基础科学系(生物化学和分子生物学、药理学和实验治疗与生理学)和3个临床系(内科、骨科和外科)。附属教师还来自我们的姊妹大学马里兰大学巴尔的摩县分校的机械工程系和数学系，以及摩根州立大学。学员来自所有参与的部门和我们的跨部门博士项目。培训内容包括肌肉发育的分子生物学决定因素、肌肉蛋白质结构和功能的分子方面、肌肉细胞骨架和基质的细胞生物学方面、对单个肌肉细胞功能和整个肌肉和肌肉器官的生物力学特性的生物物理和生理学分析，以及所有这些水平的肌肉疾病的影响，反映了我们不同的教职背景。我们的教职员工遍布全国和国际。 在肌肉功能和肌肉细胞骨架和基质的钙控制领域获得认可。我们的学生将接受这些和各种相关领域的培训，重点是使用几种免费的技术来处理每个调查问题。博士前培训的主要教学方面是两门为期一学期的肌肉跨学科课程，这两门课程已经由项目教员定期提供，受到了过去的学生团体的好评，并由所有博士后实习生进行审计。该计划的活动包括每年一次的校园小型务虚会，包括实习生海报和口头演示，以及作为计划访问者和主旨演讲者的知名肌肉研究人员，每半年举行一次韦德纪念讲座和所有实习生的午餐会，以及专业发展和拨款撰写方面的培训，以及负责任的研究工作。在整个续订期间，我们将继续保持目前的5名博士前实习生和6名博士后实习生的水平。进入博士后培训的学员将继续拥有扎实的生物、化学和/或物理背景，优异的GRE成绩和强有力的推荐信。未来的博士后实习生将完成扎实的博士论文，并有强有力的推荐信。这个项目的学员将准备好运用广泛的方法来回答肌肉生物学中的基本问题，以及肌肉疾病及其可能的治疗和最终治愈的基础。因此，该计划服务于全国对肌肉功能和疾病的合格多学科调查人员的需求。

 DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This program provides interdisciplinary training in muscle biology for pre- and postdoctoral fellows. The program emphasizes the functional, structural and molecular properties of skeletal, cardiac and smooth muscle, and the modification of these properties in various disease states. Our 17 faculty members come from 3 basic science departments (Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics and Physiology) and from three clinical departments (Medicine, Orthopedics and Surgery) at the School of Medicine, University of Maryland Baltimore (UMB). Affiliate faculty also come from the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Department of Mathematics at our sister campus, University of Maryland Baltimore County and from Morgan State University. Trainees are drawn from all of the participating departments and from our interdepartmental PhD Programs. Reflecting our diversity of faculty backgrounds, the training offered ranges from the molecular biological determinants of muscle development and molecular aspects of structure and function of muscle proteins through cell biological aspects of muscle cytoskeleton and matrix, biophysical and physiological analysis of individual muscle cell function and biomechanical properties of whole muscles and muscular organs, and the effects of muscle disease at all these levels of examination. Our faculty is nationally and internationally recognized in the areas of calcium control of muscle function and muscle cytoskeleton and matrix. Our students will receive training in these and in a variety of related areas, with emphasis on the use of several complimentary techniques to approach each question under investigation. The major didactic aspect of the predoctoral training is two one-semester interdisciplinary courses on muscle that are already regularly offered by the program faculty and which have been well received by past student groups and are audited by all postdoctoral trainees. Program activities include an annual on campus Mini-Retreat which includes trainee posters and oral presentations and a well-known muscle researcher as program visitor and keynote speaker, a semiannual Wade Memorial lectureship and lunch meetings for all trainees, as well as training in professional development and grant writing, and in the responsible conduct of research. We will continue at our present level of 5 predoctoral trainees and 6 postdoctoral trainees throughout the renewal period. Entering predoctoral trainees will continue to have a solid background in biology, chemistry and/or physics, excellent GRE scores and strong letters of recommendation. Incoming postdoctoral trainees will have completed a solid PhD thesis and have strong letters of recommendation. Trainees from this program will be prepared to bring a wide range of approaches to bear on answering basic questions in muscle biology and on the bases for muscle diseases and their possible treatment and eventual cure. This program therefore serves a national need for competent multi-disciplinary investigators of muscle function and disease.