Functional Multi-omics of Aging

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Project Summary / Abstract A group of principal investigators at the University of Minnesota seeks to renew our Training Program under the new title “Functional Multi-omics of Aging” to support predoctoral and postdoctoral trainees. The goal of the Training Program is to assist exceptional young scientists develop the intellectual and technical skills needed for productive careers as biomedical researchers and educators in aging biology with a focus on training in -omics technologies. The Training Program is in its 14th year of funding and has trained 23 pre- and 15 post-doctoral trainees. Didactic training occurs through four T32-led courses covering fundamental biology that drives aging, the Geroscience Hypothesis of Aging, emerging -omics technologies in aging research, and professional development to prepare trainees for the next step in their scientific careers. Novel to this funding period, the Training Program will interface with the newly established and continually expanding Institute on the Biology of Aging and Metabolism (iBAM) at the University of Minnesota to further provide trainees experiential training in the biology of aging and multi-omics through workshops, conferences, seminars, symposia, journal clubs, and a visitorship program. Through iBAM, our institution has recruited internationally prominent researchers in aging biology and with this explosion of energy and ideas, our training faculty has grown from 19 to 23, diversifying rank, background, and departmental homes. Training faculty research focuses on the use of -omics technologies to reveal the molecular details behind aging and they draw trainees from five graduate programs: Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biophysics, Chemistry, Integrative Biology & Physiology, Neuroscience, and Rehabilitation Science. New leadership of this T32 takes on an MPI structure to capture the breadth of needs with Drs. Arriaga, Lowe, and Niedernhofer synergizing their expertise in graduate education, -omics technology, aging research, and professional development. Our aging research is supported by outstanding genomics, proteomics, and imaging cores at UMN equipped with state-of-the-art single cell and spatial transcriptomics and proteomics platforms. These new developments have led to an even stronger Training Program as measured by the publication records and research career success of past trainees as well as the funding and training records of Training Program faculty. Together, the team of distinguished mentors, the extensive interdisciplinary collaborations among faculty and trainees from multiple departments, the technological resources, and the didactic and experiential training helps our trainees to shape successful careers in aging research.