Linking Disease Mechanisms and Outcomes in Rheumatic Diseases

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Mentorship has been identified as a critical facilitator for development of clinical research faculty. This K24 renewal application seeks to provide protected time for the applicant to continue to mentor numerous trainees in patient-oriented research (POR) and to expand the work they have started in pain and patient-centered research. 30% of the applicant's effort will be protected by this award for these activities. The applicant has demonstrated significant aptitude in mentoring trainees at all career stages and will continue to benefit from the rich and robust institutional environment that provides stellar research infrastructure and a large pool of patients and mentees to work with. During the funding period, further development of the applicant will include 1) Advanced mentorship training for POR; 2) Training in novel technologies to bring to POR; and, 3) Expansion of our collaborative niche for patient-oriented research in pain in rheumatic disease. These skillsets will be achieved through a combination of seminars, meetings, courses, and collaboration with the University of Michigan (U-M) Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center and the U-M Fibromyalgia Center of Research Translation (CORT). In addition, these skillsets will integrate and grow through continued mentorship of trainees within currently funded POR and new approaches through the K24 mechanism. These research opportunities include: work that examines the role of type I interferons on photosensitivity and pre-disposition to inflammation in lupus skin (Project 1); Heterogeneity of interferon sources and their impact on disease phenotype (Project 2); A large, novel immunophenotyped cohort of lupus and psoriasis/psoriatic arthritis patients that provides large scale datasets for analysis and clinical correlation (Project 3); and paired patient-reported outcome, pain surveys, social determinant of health and activity monitor datasets paired with biologic and clinical data from project 3 (Project 4). Successful completion of this award will result in successful mentoring of current and future mentees in POR and further expand the POR program of the applicant to ensure continued mentoring opportunities and development of the next generation of physician scientists in rheumatic disease research.