The Biomedical Imaging program, directed by Daniel Turnbull, PhD (a member of the MSTP Faculty Operating Committee), trains doctoral candidates in the area of biomedical imaging with an emphasis on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The program requires strong background in physics, chemistry, or engineering. A tailored program of study is designed for each student. Students participate actively in research seminars, a journal club in which graduate students present their own research as well as that from the current literature, and laboratory group meetings. A number of the program's over 15 full-time members hold joint appointments in both clinical and basic science departments, and their research interests vary. Thesis research can be done in a number of areas of advanced MRI: magnetic resonance spectroscopy, magnetic resonance engineering and technology, or molecular and cellular MRI.

The Cellular and Molecular Biology training program is headed by Daniel Rifkin, PhD, and includes 37 faculty members in six basic science departments. Training is offered in the general areas of structure, function, and biogenesis of macromolecules and organelles, as well as mechanisms that regulate cell metabolism, differentiation, and growth. The training program encompasses a strong representation in several areas at the cutting edge of cell and molecular biology, signal transduction, and molecular pathogenesis.

Directed by Michael Shelley, PhD, the Computational Biology program is designed to bring together the faculty and resources of the NYU Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) departments of biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, and neuroscience, the NYU School of Medicine (Sackler), and the Mount Sinai School of Medicine to train students in the fundamentals and applications of computational methods to biological and biomedical problems involving macromolecular structure and function (proteins, DNA, RNA), genomics, and physiological systems. COB offers unique training features and program requirements to meet current scientific challenges and career opportunities in computational biology. The Sackler graduate advisor for this program is Timothy Cardozo, MD PhD, a member of the MSTP training faculty and a graduate of our MSTP.

Directed by Ruth Lehmann, PhD (HHMI investigator, Director of the Skirball Institute, and a member of the MSTP Advisory Committee), the Developmental Genetics program offers graduate students a curriculum focused on the use of genetic approaches to unraveling developmental mechanisms. Students train with investigators who employ a wide variety of genetic systems, including Drosophila, C. elegans, Xenopus, Arabidopsis, mouse, and zebrafish, to study diverse developmental processes, including pattern formation, self-determination, cell lineage, and cell-cell interactions. This program brings together more than 15 investigators from the GSAS Biology Department and the School of Medicine, though its core is located in The Skirball Institute of Biomolecular Medicine.

The Medical Parasitology program, directed by Karen Day, PhD, offers training in molecular, cellular, organismal, epidemiological, genetic, and genomic methods to analyze parasites of medical significance and their vectors. These include the agents of malaria, trypanosomiasis, trichomoniasis, pneumocystis pneumonia, and the mosquito vectors of malaria. The curriculum emphasizes biochemistry, cellular and molecular biology, genetics, immunology, parasitology, microbial pathogenesis, epidemiology, and bioinformatics. Daniel Eichinger, PhD, a member of the MSTP Faculty Operating Committee, is the graduate advisor.

The Microbiology training program, directed by Robert Schneider, PhD, a member of the MSTP training faculty, prepares doctoral candidates in the biology of infectious disease processes. Training is offered in prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbial and molecular genetics; mechanisms of pathogenicity and host resistance to infectious agents; AIDS, retrovirology and oncogenic viruses; growth factors; cytokines; mechanisms of signal transduction and transcriptional regulation, as well as the biochemistry, cell biological, and immunological phenomena associated with infections. The curriculum emphasizes molecular aspects of pathogenesis with courses in biochemistry, cellular and molecular biology, genetics, immunology, and medical microbiology, microbial pathogenesis, and virology. Joel Belasco, PhD, of the Skirball Institute and Department of Microbiology, and a member of the MSTP training faculty, serves as the graduate advisor.

Directed by Angel Pellicer, MD, PhD (a member of the MSTP training faculty), the Molecular Oncology and Immunology training program trains doctoral candidates in the areas of molecular oncology, viral oncology, virus-cell interactions, molecular and cellular immunology, and molecular genetics. Research experience may be acquired in the following areas: tumor virus-cell interaction, regulation of gene expression, oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes, DNA repair, lymphomas, cell differentiation, autoimmune disease, interferon, interleukins and growth factors, AIDS, and various problems in cellular, tumor, and parasite immunology. Courses are given in biochemistry, molecular biology, immunology, molecular oncology, and virology. The graduate advisor, David Levy, PhD, is a member of our MSTP training faculty.

The Molecular Pharmacology and Signal Transduction program, directed by Herbert Samuels, MD, a member of the MSTP training faculty, trains doctoral candidates in molecular and biochemical pharmacology. Training is offered in growth factor mediated signal transduction, tyrosine kinase receptors, receptor phosphatases, G-protein coupled receptor signaling, steroid/thyroid hormone nuclear receptors, exocytosis mechanisms, and proteolytic processing of receptors and ligands. The curriculum includes core system molecular pharmacology, biochemistry, cellular and molecular biology, and signal transduction.

The Neuroscience and Physiology program is directed by Rodolfo Llinás, MD PhD, Chairman of the Department of Physiology and Neuroscience, a member of the National Academy of Sciences, and a member of the MSTP training faculty. Doctoral candidates can study membrane physiology, cellular physiology, synaptic transmission, cellular neurophysiology, developmental neurobiology, molecular neurobiology, brain cell microenvironment, computer-based anatomy, and neuronal modeling. A diverse curriculum is offered to students through courses taught by faculty in several basic medical science departments, including physiology and neuroscience, biochemistry, cell biology, and pharmacology as well as the Center for Neural Science located at the Washington Square campus.

The program has been reorganized significantly over the past year. There is a new program office located in the Smilow Research Building, in which Stewart Bloomfield, PhD (who serves on the MSTP Faculty Operating Committee) serves as a coordinator and Eric Lang, MD, PhD (a graduate of our MSTP), is graduate advisor. This office coordinates all graduate courses and neuroscience seminars offered at the medical school as joint efforts with the Center for Neural Science (CNS) at Washington Square campus in an effort to integrate the courses offered by both programs. At present, the core neuroscience courses are team-taught by both faculties and are attended by students within both graduate programs. Further integration of the Neuroscience training programs will continue over the next year in the areas of student recruitment and lab rotations. The ultimate goal is to create a seamless integration of the neuroscience graduate programs at NYU.

Developed in 2006 by David Roth, MD, PhD, to train doctoral candidates for careers in translational research at the interface of biology and medicine, the Pathobiology program provides students with experience in team-oriented research using a basic/clinical co-mentoring paradigm, with a major emphasis on collaborative science. The Pathobiology program provides an attractive option for some MSTP students, especially those interested in pursuing pathology as a clinical discipline. Because of the overlap between some aspects of the Pathobiology curriculum with the medical school, MSTP students choosing Pathobiology save some time in their coursework in graduate school. The program is codirected by David Levy, PhD (a member of the MSTP training faculty) and Cindy Loomis, MD, PhD (a graduate of our MSTP).

The Structural Biology program is directed by David Stokes, PhD, of the Skirball Institute and the Department of Cell Biology, and member of the MSTP training faculty. Program faculty employ X-ray crystallography, electron microscopy, mass spectrometry, MRI, ultrasound, and genetic and computational methods to elucidate the structure/function relationships of a wide variety of proteins. Advanced students will learn one or more methodologies that they will then apply to a particular system during their thesis research. Courses include an introduction to structural biology and advanced methods. In addition to an active seminar schedule, the program meets regularly to discuss ongoing research in structural biology at NYU.