Short Courses in Integrative and Organ Systems Pharmacology
The National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) has awarded four Education Project (R25) grants to support short course workshops for training in integrative and organ systems pharmacology. NIGMS recognizes the importance of studies using intact organ systems and in vivo models in the conduct of research.
NIGMS also recognizes the importance of training that enables scientists to integrate information from the most basic molecular and cellular systems to the whole organism and to relate such studies to the human condition. These awards resulted from a solicitation for support of short courses in this scientific area (
RFA-GM-05-006), which was issued in April 2004. This solicitation may or may not be reannounced in the future. The awards have been made to the lead institutions of consortia that will play a collaborative role in teaching and research interactions among the course participants.
The courses are intended to provide training opportunities for students at the graduate, postdoctoral, and faculty levels; and for students from industry and government as well as academia. The grantees are responsible for recruitment and selection of students. The first courses will be offered during the Summer 2005. Please contact the lead institutions for additional information about specific courses:
Descriptions of Funded Courses and Contact Information
Michigan State University (Joseph R. Haywood, Program Director)
The Michigan State University Short Course in Integrative and Organ System Pharmacology will be held August 6-17, 2007, in East Lansing, MI. The course will be an intensive 2-week experience for a small number of students. The course is built around three cornerstones: hands-on laboratory exercises, laboratory demonstrations, and interactive lectures, which will deal with animal models of disease, practical knowledge in integrative sciences, and current topics in pharmacology and toxicology, including computer modeling. It will focus on various organs and tissues, including the autonomic, renal, gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, respiratory, and neurological systems. Faculty members will be drawn from Michigan State University, Pfizer, DataSciences, and nine other institutions and companies. For additional information contact Ms. Faye Spencer, 517-353-7145, or visit:
http://www.phmtox.msu.edu/education/shortcourse.html.
University of California, San Diego (Laurence L. Brunton, Program Director)
-co-funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
UCSD will offer an intensive 3-week summer course in Systems Pharmacology and Translational Biology for up to 20 participants. The course (July 10-28, 2006) will focus on the central nervous system, on the cardiovascular system and its autonomic regulation, and on recent techniques for imaging organ function. It will stress basic principles of pharmacology and quantitative analysis of data. Additionally, the course will provide training in a variety of mouse imaging techniques, introduce the use of radiopharmaceuticals and the interpretation of imaging data, train participants in the assessment of phenotype in genetically altered animals, familiarize participants with the use of animal and organ systems in the development of new drugs, provide instruction and experience in the responsible and ethical conduct of research and use of animal subjects, provide opportunities to analyze and present laboratory findings stressing quantitative methods and basic principles of pharmacology, and establish long-term tracking of and communication with and among participants. The course faculty are UCSD professors in the School of Medicine. Adjunct faculty are from San Diego's biotech and pharmaceutical industries. For further information contact Pat Luetmer,
pharmeducation@ucsd.edu, or visit
http://pharmacology.ucsd.edu/Other_Academic_Programs/summer.asp.
University of Nebraska Medical Center (David B. Bylund, Program Director)
An Integrative and Organ Systems Pharmacology Short Course will be held in Omaha, NE June 5-16, 2006. The course consists of a 2-week intensive experience for 24 students followed by an optional internship. The course will focus on the cardiovascular system and neuropharmacology. It includes lectures, demonstrations, and an abundance of laboratory exercises designed to give the participants significant hands-on experience with the effect of drugs on organ systems and on intact conscious animal models. These models will include the Langendorff perfused heart, behavioral paradigms in rats and mice, and cardiovascular parameters in dogs and rats. The instruction will be provided by faculty from University of Nebraska Medical Center, Creighton University Medical Center, University of Kansas Medical Center, and Abbott Laboratories. For additional information contact Joan Husted, 402-559-6235 or toll-free 877-832-6924, or visit
http://unmc.edu/iosp.
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Gary M. Pollack, Program Director)
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, School of Pharmacy presents "An Integrative and Organ Systems Pharmacology Short Course" held in Chapel Hill, NC. July 25 - August 5, 2006. The course is intended for students of various levels (undergraduate, graduate, medical, pharmacy, etc.) as well as those in industry and government who seek to enhance their pre-clinical laboratory skills. It consists of a 2-week intensive experience for 30 students. The course emphasizes routine rodent procedures (gavage, injection, cannulation), isolated and
in situ perfused organ systems (liver, kidney, intestine, brain) and neuropharmacology (antinocioception, seizure threshold, brain microdialysis). Learning experiences will include lectures, demonstrations, and intensive laboratory exercises designed to give the participants significant hands-on experience with the effect of drugs on organ systems and on intact conscious animal models. These models will include mainly mice and rats along with some introduction to higher animal models (dogs, pigs, and nonhuman primates). The instruction will be provided by faculty from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Long Island University, and Wake Forest University. For additional information contact Adam M. Persky, Ph.D., 919-966-9104, or visit
http://pharmacy.unc.edu/pkpd/isop_frame.htm.
Postdoctoral Fellowships for Integrative and Organ Systems Pharmacology
NIGMS reminds graduate students and postdoctoral researchers about the availability of Ruth L. Kirschtein National Research Service Award individual postdoctoral fellowships to support their training.
These fellowships are available to support individual postdoctoral training in all areas of research that fall within the NIGMS mission. There is no particular set-aside of funds for training in Integrative and Organ Systems Pharmacology. The number of awards will be determined by the number of applications and their scientific merit in competition with other applications for individual postdoctoral fellowships. For additional information on Kirschstein-NRSA Individual Postdoctoral Fellowships, see:
