The NIH has long recognized the steady decline in the physician-scientist workforce. We have great concern
over the critical shortage of physician-scientists in the field of Infectious Disease. We are equally concerned
about assuring the next generation of leaders needed to combat the emergence of new pathogens. Even
more, the gap between clinical and laboratory investigators limits the potential for progress. The recent SARS-
CoV-2 pandemic, mpox epidemic, and multiple filovirus outbreaks have highlighted these challenges. This R13
proposal requests support for a symposium on “Tropical and Emerging Infectious Diseases for Clinicians and
Translational Scientists” to be held in Galveston, Texas, April 9-12, 2024. The overarching goal is to ignite
interest of physician and scientist trainees in the evolving field of tropical and emerging infectious diseases. We
will convene 60-80 clinician and scientist participants along with speakers who are global leaders in this field.
The target audience will be clinical trainees with an interest in developing as clinician-scientists and PhD
postdoctoral fellows with an interest in clinical/translational research. We strongly believe that interprofessional
and multidisciplinary collaboration is essential to move the field forward. The Specific Aims of this symposium
and R13 application are twofold. Specific Aim 1 is to ignite interest in the field of tropical and emerging
infectious diseases through a program that captures recent research advances and next steps for moving the
field forward. Toward this end the 2½-day symposium will have 5 keynote addresses and 18 speaker
presentations that will be organized in 4 blocks around key themes of 1) One Health approach to Emerging
Infectious diseases, 2) Emergence of antimicrobial resistance, 3) Special Pathogens: From the Laboratory to
the Bedside, and 4) Global emergence of vector-borne diseases in the era of climate change. Specific Aim 2 is
to promote career development opportunities for junior-level clinicians and scientists through peer-to-peer
interactions and discussions with leaders in the field. This will be promoted by a unique format, which includes
attendees and speakers having intentional but informal interaction over meals, multiple structured small group
discussion sessions, and an interactive poster session. Select attendees will present their own research
through oral presentations. Finally, tours will be offered of UTMB’s Galveston National Laboratory (GNL), a
Biosafety Level 4 (BSL-4) research facility on the UTMB campus, and UTMB’s Biocontainment Care Unit
(BCU) which is a Regional Emerging and Special Pathogens Treatment Center. Targeted efforts will be made
to ensure that women, attendees with accompanying children, under-represented minorities, and persons with
disabilities will attend this symposium. This symposium will spark interest in clinical and translational research
in tropical and emerging infectious diseases and will provide a forum for junior clinicians to gain a vision for
how they could successfully embark on a career as a physician-scientist. Funds from the R13 application
would be used to offer travel scholarships for trainees who submit an abstract of their own research.