Genetic and molecular approaches to cardiovascular disease

Children'S Hospital & Res Ctr At Oakland, Oakland CA

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This proposal stems from a long-standing NHLBI-funded post-doctoral training program based at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory that has evolved over time to maintain focus on the most cutting edge topics in cardiovascular research, and has trained many scientists with a wide range of backgrounds who have been actively recruited by academia as well as industry. The leadership and management of this multidisciplinary program will move to Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute, and it will retain some of the original faculty from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. A major emphasis of the training is the use of genomic technologies to investigate mechanisms involved in atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. The eight program mentors each run successful and well-funded laboratories, and bring varied and complementary expertise in cellular, molecular, biophysical, computational, genetic, and genomic aspects of lipoprotein metabolism, atherogenesis and cardiovascular biology. We offer training in state-of-the art areas such as manipulation the genomes of mice, next-generation sequencing, computational analysis of sequence data, analysis of genetic association, computational analysis of human sequence variation to predict its potential role in disease, gene expression profiling, and epigenetics, as well as biophysical studies of lipoprotein structure. In addition, there is strong emphasis on genomic approaches to study gene regulation with a focus on the cardiovascular system and on resequencing and genotyping to identify human sequence variation responsible for cardiovascular disorders. Our location within a major research institution and in close proximity to the University of California, Berkeley creates a rich training environment with potential for numerous collaborations and training opportunities beyond the scope of this grant. The cross- disciplinary training that the trainees receive will provide them with the skills to develop independent research programs that exploit the experimental and computational approaches required for modern biomedical research. RELEVANCE (See instructions): This proposal supports the training of the next generation of scientist who will understand the genetic and biochemical basis of cardiovascular disease.