Career Development Fellowship Grants

Mission

There is currently a paucity of researchers conducting basic, clinical, and translational research on biodefense-related microbes and the methods to prevent and treat infections by these agents. Therefore, an important component of the New England Regional Center for Excellence for Biodefense and Emerging Diseases (NERCE) is the Career Development in Biodefense program, whose aim is to increase the pool of highly skilled investigators in all aspects of biodefense research. The goal of this portion of the Center is to train researchers and leaders of the highest caliber for research, clinical, product development, and administration of biodefense programs of the future.

Our career development program plan is to integrate the educational and training efforts in biodefense from both the basic science and clinical aspects. The objectives of this program are:

1. To recruit investigators at early stages in their careers into biodefense work through training in basic science, clinical/translational research, and industrial rotations and internships.
   
2. To provide opportunities for established investigators to acquire new skills relevant to biodefense research.
   
3. To provide opportunities for continuing education for all investigators in biodefense research throughout the New England region. The outstanding academic institutions and laboratories in New England will provide numerous opportunities for acquiring new skills, and this is complemented by the potential for rotations in and collaborations with biotechnology and pharmaceutical groups.

 

Project	Principal Investigator
Studies on Ebola Virus Entry Into Cells	Kartik Chandran, Ph.D., Brigham and Women's Hospital
Analysis of Bacillus anthracis Genes Identified by IVIAT	Sean M. Rollins, Ph.D., Massachusetts General Hospital
Genomic Analysis of Poxvirus T Cell Epitopes	Stephen R. Walsh, M.D.C.M., Massachusetts General Hospital
Attenuated Listeria monocytogenes as a vector for viral antigens	Barbra McDonagh Blair, M.D., Massachusetts General Hospital
Identification of Cell-Surface Receptors of NIAID Priority Pathogens	Jens Holger Kuhn, Ph.D., M.D., M.S., New England Primate Research Center
Identification of RNA and protein modulators of Dengue virus translation	Glover W. Martin III, Ph.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Distinct priming signals for T Cell effector / memory differentiation following smallpox vaccination	Luzheng Liu, M.D., Ph.D., Brigham and Women's Hospital