Project Summary/Abstract
The Multidisciplinary Pulmonary Research Training Program is focused on developing independent academic
investigators dedicated to studies in respiratory diseases. The Lung Institute at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
(CSMC) has been in a growth phase for the last decade with a large influx of highly collaborative investigators
all with well-recognized research programs in respiratory research. Peter Chen, MD, and William Parks, PhD,
are co-Program Directors and will work with a diverse research faculty that bring knowledge from several
scientific disciplines and clinical faculty that provide an interface to collect human samples for translational
research as well as provide a foundation of medical education. All faculty, ranging from early-stage to senior
investigators, are provided mentorship training and education on bias and inclusion. Building upon the strong
history of recruitment of underrepresented populations at CSMC, four positions will be available (two in the first
year) for MD, MD/PhD, and PhD scientists to undergo a rigorous 2-year training program in basic and
translational respiratory research. Trainees will have a primary mentor (often coupled with a co-mentor) to guide
their research training in one of the following six core research areas: 1) Cystic fibrosis; 2) Development and
regeneration; 3) Fibrosis; 4) Lung immunology; 5) Lung injury; and 6) Transplant immunology. To ensure
multidisciplinary training and teach team science concepts, several of the following affiliated research programs
will be integrated into the research project: 1) Aging; 2) Bioengineering; 3) Biomarker discovery; 4)
Computational Biology; 5) Drug Discovery; 6) Imaging; 7) Microbiome; 8) -Omics; 9) Regenerative Medicine; 10)
Translational Research. Required coursework will provide instruction on topics such as research integrity and
bioethics, biostatistics, and grantsmanship and have required workshops that focus on diversity, equity, and
inclusion. Physician-scientist trainees will be provided additional scientific training either through the Clinical
Scholar program, which is a CSMC program that has an established record of successful academic development
or by obtaining a Master’s Degree via the Graduate Program in Biomedical and Translational Sciences at CSMC.
PhD trainees will have instruction in pulmonary medicine to provide deeper medical knowledge particularly as it
pertains to their research. A Mentoring Committee will also be created to oversee the overall training progression
and career development of each trainee during the training period and beyond. The trainee, mentors, and
program will be reviewed quarterly by an internal advisory committee and annually by an external advisory
committee. Upon completion of the training program, the trainee will be required to demonstrate research
productivity (i.e., publications), growth toward independence in developing research questions and implementing
studies, and grantsmanship skills with successful submissions for research funding.