UNC Research Training Program in Respiratory Diseases and Critical Care

This proposal for a new T32 Program titled “UNC Research Training Program in Respiratory Diseases and Critical Care” at The University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill supports 6 postdoctoral trainees with M.D., M.D./Ph.D. or Ph.D. degrees for research training in lung disease, emphasizing a joint training program for Medicine and Pediatric trainees. The Program provides multidisciplinary training in basic, translation and clinical research within the pulmonary and critical care divisions of the Departments of Medicine and Pediatrics and our three Research Centers devoted to understanding lung health and disease. Our Program offers a Training Faculty of 48 trainers (38 mentors, 8 junior mentors and 2 co-mentors) from 7 clinical (2) and basic science (5) departments in the School of Medicine. M.D. trainees will enter at years 3-5 in their clinical and research training, designed to provide them with skills required for a leadership career in academic pulmonary medicine. Ph.D. trainees will typically enter in the second year of their post-doctoral fellowship, and they will be well integrated into the basic, translational and clinical aspects of their project. Each trainee will have a scholarly oversight committee that includes mentors from varying disciplines who will facilitate their scientific growth and career development, including grant writing and leadership skills. Each area of lung research is multidisciplinary in nature and emphasizes a broader knowledge of the basic, translational, clinical and impact implications for each trainee's question. Areas of research include cystic fibrosis, primary ciliary dyskinesia, idiopathic bronchiectasis, cell and molecular biology of airway epithelia in health and disease, leukocyte kinetics and clinical research in COPD, control of airway inflammation, inflammatory and innate immune responses during ARDS and bacterial and viral infections, clinical trials, comparative effectiveness research, analyses of qualitative narrative data, and large cohort studies in critical care, basic and translational proteomics of airways and alveoli, the airway microbiome in health and disease, the responses to injury by physical, chemical, and microbial environmental agents, and clinical and basic science studies in asthma. Novel programs that exemplify the multi-disciplinary nature include ARDS and Critical Care Research, the CF Research Program, and Combustion-induced Bronchitis in the Military, each of which require cross-disciplinary interactions amongst a wide range of expertise to accomplish their goals. Clinical studies will be integrated with basic observations using translational physiologic, biochemical, molecular and genetic technologies, and -omics approaches and will provide training in state-of-the-art –omics and other basic technologies, bioinformatics, database design, use and analyses, and statistical interpretation. Emphasis is on mechanisms underlying lung diseases in pediatric and adult populations and development of novel therapeutic strategies. Our Program provides an opportunity for trainees to develop as scientists and become independent investigators and leaders within the national community.