Molecular Pathways to Pathogenesis in Toxicology

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PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT The North Carolina State University “Molecular Pathways to Pathogenesis in Toxicology” NIEHS T32 training grant is a long-standing, impactful and multidisciplinary initiative that has supported 130 pre-doctoral trainees and 18 post-doctoral researchers over the past 41 years. Graduates of this program conduct basic and applied research, teach at universities and colleges, evaluate product safety, and assist public agencies and private industries in resolving important public health and environmental problems. Our mission is to provide the next generation of toxicologists/environmental health science (EHS) researchers with the technical, operational and professional skills necessary to conduct high impact EHS research, communicate effectively to a wide variety of audiences, and work as part of multidisciplinary teams to understand how human health is impacted by environmental factors. In this competitive renewal, we will continue with the current Molecular Pathways to Pathogenesis in Toxicology training theme and our overarching systems biology framework. This approach aims to integrate all levels of biological organization from biomolecules to human populations to elucidate the fundamental mechanisms through which environmental stressors influence human health outcomes. We have added 10 new research-active faculty for a total of 28 mentors, enhanced our mentor training requirements, reorganized key research areas, and updated core curricula. We have enhanced our core professional development series in scientific rigor, reasoning, experimental design and methods, and data analysis and interpretation through formal training in science communication, training in grant writing, coding in “R”, and methods for enhancing reproducibility. Participating mentors of this NIEHS T32 training grant are supported by research grants from NIEHS, other NIH Institutes, other federal agencies including DOD, EPA, NSF, state agencies and private foundations. Environmental health science research at NC State has never been stronger as evidenced by the renewal of our NIEHS EHS Core Center (P30) and the recent award of a Superfund Research Program (SRP) (P42). These centers serve to facilitate collaborations among participating mentors/trainees and provide access to cutting-edge institutional infrastructure and financial support to advance EHS research at NC State. Both centers serve as an extraordinary resource for trainees through access to core facilities, sponsored symposia, seminars, workshops and professional development opportunities. The NIEHS T32 training program is the foundation of NC State's highly ranked graduate program in toxicology; our well- qualified mentors, strong pool of applicants, and rigorous and comprehensive EHS training opportunities will ensure the continued success of this initiative. We request continued support for six trainees.