Multidisciplinary Research Training Program in Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders

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PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT This is a T32 training grant from the University of Kansas Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (KU ADRC) to train the next generation of researchers in Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD). The KU ADRC was funded in 2011 and is one of 33 national research centers with unique thematic expertise in mitochondria / bioenergetics, lifestyle modification, and AD prevention research. The KU ADRC research base has grown dramatically in the last decade and there is now a clear need to grow its research training programs to accelerate the research efforts and create the next generation of ADRD researchers. The proposed T32 program will provide multidisciplinary, translational ADRD research training for 2 predoctoral, 2 postdoctoral, and 4 summer students. Program faculty include 23 Primary Preceptors who are uniquely qualified to support full-time (pre- and postdoctoral trainees) and summer trainees and 19 Short-Term Preceptors who are eligible to support summer students. The 42 faculty come from 18 departments and include basic, translational, and clinical investigators who all have a history of collaboration with each other and the ADRC. We have a large and growing pool of training grant eligible trainees who are attracted by the diverse and growing portfolio of NIH funded research. Our training approach includes a dual mentorship plan (i.e., basic and clinical mentors) for full-time trainees that is structured as an Individual Development Plan to encourage multidisciplinary and translational approaches. The program is designed to provide the skills needed to develop an independent research career in ADRD research through 4 objectives: 1) provide a broad ADRD foundation with exposure to diverse research approaches (basic, clinical, and translational) and clinical care (patients and caregivers), 2) develop ADRD research skills (basic, clinical, and translational), 3) develop multidisciplinary research skills to foster collaborations among trainees and mentors, and 4) develop presentation and grant-writing skills. The summer training program is designed to expose clinical students to ADRD research and clinical care to foster interest in careers in ADRD research. The training program leverages institutional resources and the KU ADRC's research strengths to create a developmental pathway for the next generation of ADRD basic, translational, and clinical scientists. T32 funding will provide critical support to synergize with ongoing institutional efforts, further enhance the ADRC's training efforts, and draw on the center's unique resources, exceptional mentors, supportive collaborators, and growing breadth of educational opportunities.