Educating Physician-Neuroscientists: The UE5 at UCSF

Project Summary/Abstract The Department of Neurology at UCSF has been the institutional sponsor for the R25 program at UCSF over the past 15 years and is the home department for this UE5 application. Neurology (including adult and child neurology), Neurosurgery, and Neuropathology have all supported outstanding research training candidates through this program. The Departments of Neurology and Neurosurgery have an excellent record for attracting outstanding medical students destined for these specialties, including many focused on physician-scientist careers. Neuropathology attracts a similar cohort from pathology residencies to the neuropathology fellowship. The neurology department aspires to train the next generation of national neurology leaders, and our neurology residency graduates transition in high numbers to long-term academic careers as laboratory investigators, clinical science (patient-based) investigators, as well as university-based clinician teachers. The openings of the Sandler Neurology Research Building in 2012 and the Weill Institute for Neurosciences Building in 2021 on the Mission Bay campus (see facilities below) have resulted in greatly expanded opportunities for research trainees and collaboration between laboratory research programs in a common space and with nearby research programs (e.g., Gladstone Institute, VA Laboratories at Mission Bay). The intellectual environment is productive and exciting for trainees. Weekly multidisciplinary conferences (e.g., Seminar Sessions and Grand Rounds) host speakers who discuss translational science issues that attract both clinicians and bench scientists, and many of these programs are directed at the level of the trainee. The current R25 program (transitioning to a UE5 mechanism) has been a crucial linchpin for the development of research skills by our talented young physician scientists in neurology, neurosurgery, and neuropathology at UCSF. In an era of increased competition for limited resources, the R25 has become a reliable source of encouragement as well as a stable NIH program for ensuring that our most talented early career neuroscientists are well-supported and well-mentored, allowing them to transition to a K award more successfully than ever before.