T32 for Training in Microbiology and Infectious Diseases - PROJECT SUMMARY This proposal is a new application for five years of funding to support Training in Microbiology and Infectious Diseases at UC Irvine. The primary objective of this Training Program is to provide doctoral students with integrated training in three focus areas: 1) microbial structure and metabolism, 2) microbe- host interactions, and 3) microbial communities. The rationale behind this training structure is that there will be tremendous value in individuals with a fluency in these related areas that are vital to combating and/or exploiting microbes to positively impact human health and the environment. The Training Program will leverage areas of excellence at UCI in microbial ecology, microbe-host interactions, and structural biology to bring together faculty trainers with expertise in microbial pathogenesis, molecular genetics, metabolism, structure, immunity and infectious diseases, and microbial diversity. The program will be comprised of 18 well-funded training faculty (10 women, 8 men) from the School of Biological Sciences and the School of Medicine at UCI. The faculty mentors conduct research on microbiology and infectious diseases at the molecular, cellular, organismal, population, and community levels. UCI has a strong history in the fields of microbiology and infectious disease research, as the Pacific-Southwest Regional Center of Excellence in Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases was housed at UCI from 2005- 2014. The Training Program will ensure that the trainees will be equipped with the necessary tools and expertise to pursue a productive and independent career in microbiology. In addition to faculty mentorship, the trainees will benefit from seminars, journal clubs, research in progress talks, and an annual symposium. Trainees will also receive funds to travel to and present their research at a national meeting in their field. Finally, UCI is home to the NIH-funded GPS-BIOMED program, which will ensure that trainees have exposure to career development seminars, workshops, and mentorship throughout their training. The application requests support for three predoctoral trainees, who will be drawn from students who enroll at UCI through one of several gateway or departmental programs, including the Cellular & Molecular Biosciences Program, Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Mathematical, Computational & Systems Biology Program, Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP), and the departmental Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Program. The mean incoming GPA for this cohort of students over the last five years was 3.61, reflecting a strong overall academic performance by the potential trainees. On average over the last five years, 23% of the training-grant eligible entering students were under-represented minorities. UCI has been recognized as a Hispanic-serving institution (HSI) and an Asian American, Native American, and Pacific Islander serving institution (AANAPISI), and the Training Program is expected to reflect this rich cultural and ethnic diversity on the UCI campus.
