# Predoctoral Training in the Molecular Biology of Aging

> **NIH NIH T32** · BROWN UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $196,996

## Abstract

Aging is a fundamental biological process and age-related diseases have become the leading causes of death
in modern societies. The objective of the Brown University Molecular Biology of Aging Predoctoral Graduate
Training Program (MBoA) is to train the next generation of scientists to attack the immensely challenging yet
important task of understanding and eventually manipulating human aging. In its first four years of operation
the MBoA has brought together molecular biologists, computational and population biologists, and clinicians to
provide instruction and training to graduate students in the molecular mechanisms of aging. The MBoA
provides PhD candidates with a strong academic and experimental foundation in the current landscape of
molecular aging research, and equips them with the skills to pursue a research career in this field. Our
understanding of aging has reached a watershed in the past 10-15 years that was enabled by the increasing
use of forward genetics in simple model systems. Fifteen faculty trainers from seven different departments and
two established graduate programs have come together and comprise the MBoA Training Program. Their
research interests span from insulin/IGF signaling, chromatin structure, cellular senescence, mitochondrial
function and protein quality control to degenerative disorders of the nervous system, heart and cartilage. The
experimental systems span from the nematode and Drosophila to mammalian models including the mouse and
a variety of cell culture models. Continuing support is requested at the previous level for four trainees per year
for a period of five years. The MBoA Training Program operates as a track under the auspices of two existing
and well established programs at Brown University, the Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry
Graduate Program (MCB), and the Graduate Program in Pathobiology. Candidates for support are drawn from
talented students in the program, either in their first year based on academic excellence, or in subsequent
years based on the caliber of their research, and are supported for a period of two years. The MCB and
Pathobiology programs have different, but with respect to the biology of aging, very complementary and
synergistic areas of activity: MCB has expertise in molecular biology and model organisms, and Pathobiology
in mammalian and human physiology and pathology. The combination and integration of these approaches is
the cornerstone of the philosophy of the MBoA. While research in invertebrate models informs us on the
fundamental molecular mechanisms of aging, these principles have to be interpreted in terms of mammalian
physiology and ultimately integrated with human pathology. Only an interdisciplinary approach can hope to
implement therapies to alleviate the suffering caused by age-associated degenerative processes.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10190750
- **Project number:** 5T32AG041688-10
- **Recipient organization:** BROWN UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** John M Sedivy
- **Activity code:** T32 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $196,996
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2012-05-01 → 2022-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10190750

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10190750, Predoctoral Training in the Molecular Biology of Aging (5T32AG041688-10). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10190750. Licensed CC0.

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