The goal of this program is to provide a formal mechanism for training Ph.D. scientists capable of transitioning basic scientific discoveries in NeuroAIDS into improvements in disease treatment and prevention. This program will provide research training opportunities in NeuroAIDS at Temple, Drexel University, and the College of Medicine. This training program will integrate research training, mentoring, shared research resources, and educational opportunities at both institutions. At Temple University, graduate students will be recruited and trained in the School of Medicine within the Departments of Neuroscience, Pharmacology, Physiology, and Microbiology and Immunology. Additional Temple training faculty are located in the College of Engineering. At Drexel University College of Medicine, students will be recruited and trained within the Departments of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Microbiology and Immunology, Neurobiology and Anatomy, and Pharmacology and Physiology. Additional faculty from Drexel’s School of Biomedical Engineering and Health Science Systems will also participate in the training program. This program will foster an interdisciplinary and collaborative environment that will promote research and discovery in NeuroAIDS, capitalizing on the strengths and synergies available at both institutions. The interactions with the University of Pennsylvania will enhance the exposure of our trainees to additional NeuroAIDS investigators and provide access to seminars in the Penn Center for AIDS Research Seminar Series. Graduates of this integrated environment will be well-trained junior scientists ready to seek postdoctoral positions in the field of NeuroAIDS or other complementary research areas in neuroscience, immunology, virology, molecular therapeutics, vaccine discovery, and cell and molecular biology in academic, industrial, or governmental research environments.
The joint program, with the involvement of three institutions takes advantage of major strengths in NeuroAIDS research in Philadelphia. This arrangement will increase the quality of the training and mentoring experience, increase the strength and number of peer and mentor-mentee networks, and provide additional avenues to foster collaborations between institutions. Futhermore, this organization will enable interactions between students with other students at neighboring institutions, enhancing a sense of graduate student in NeuroAIDS identity. Students will further gain exposure to activities at other institutions, gain additional perspective regarding their own work in the overall NeuroAIDS research landscape and provide for interactions leading to career development and opportunities at the post-doctoral or junior faculty level in NeuroAIDS.