Mid-Career Award in Patient-Oriented Drug Abuse Research

描述(申请人提供)：药物滥用和成瘾是破坏性的慢性疾病，给我国带来了巨大的医疗、经济、法律和社会负担。跨学科合作与技术进步相结合，带来了前所未有的机会，以提高成瘾治疗的有效性和持久性，并减少成瘾的脆弱性。持续的进展对于改进现有的循证治疗和开发新的治疗方法至关重要。因此，关键是要吸引和培训临床研究人员，以确保拥有一支多样化的高技能科学家队伍，以满足这些紧迫的卫生保健需求。艾米·麦克雷-克拉克博士是一名富有成效的职业生涯中期研究员，她一直为NIH在药物开发和成瘾方面的性别差异方面的创新工作提供持续的资金支持。此外，她在吸引和成功指导医学、研究生和博士后以及初级教师进行专注于药物使用障碍的临床研究方面有着良好的记录。这个以患者为中心的研究的职业生涯中期奖的目的是为受保护的时间提供支持，以便麦克雷-克拉克博士能够制定一个更正式、更密集的指导临床研究培训和职业发展活动的计划，以促进药物滥用和成瘾领域的初级学者的发展。还将特别强调增加代表人数不足的少数群体参与以病人为导向的研究。此外，她将在现有研究计划的基础上，纳入新的熟练程度和研究方向，包括先进的生物统计学方法和探索内源性大麻素系统在应激反应中所起的作用。这一奖项将使她能够增加她能够投入到指导工作中的时间，巩固她的培训活动，并将她的研究活动带到新的和令人兴奋的方向。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Drug abuse and addiction are devastating and chronic conditions that place a significant medical, financial, legal and social burden on our country. Interdisciplinary collaboration combined with technical advances has resulted in unprecedented opportunities to enhance addiction treatment efficacy and durability, and reduce vulnerability to addiction. Continued progress is vital to improving existing evidenced-based treatments and developing new treatments. It is therefore critical to attract and train clinical researchers in order to ensure that a diverse pool of highly skilled scientists will be available t address these urgent health care needs. Dr. Aimee McRae-Clark is a productive mid-career investigator who has maintained consistent NIH funding for her innovative work in the area of medications development and gender differences in addictions. In addition, she has a strong track-record of attracting and successfully mentoring medical, graduate and post-doctoral students as well as junior faculty in clinical research focused on substance use disorders. The objective of this Midcareer Investigator Award in Patient-Oriented Research is to provide support for protected time so that Dr. McRae-Clark can develop a more formal, intensive program of mentored clinical research training and career development activities to promote junior scholars in the area of drug abuse and addiction. Particular emphasis will also be placed on increasing the participation of underrepresented minorities conducting patient-oriented research. In addition, she will build on her existing program of research by incorporating new proficiencies and research directions, including advanced biostatistical methods and exploration of the role the endogenous cannabinoid system plays in stress response. This award will enable her to increase the time she is able to devote to mentorship, to consolidate her training activities, and take her research activities in new and exciting directions.