# Summer Medical student Aging and Alzheimer disease Research Training (SMAART) program

> **NIH NIH T35** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE · 2024 · $89,030

## Abstract

Summary/Abstract:
Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) is a public health crisis compounded by the insufficient
number of skilled clinicians and investigators with high quality training and expertise to provide care and
conduct translational research. It is vital to foster a new generation of physician researchers that possess a
diverse array of knowledge and skills, including understanding basic (genetics, molecular and cellular biology,
neuroscience), patient level (clinical care, neuropsychology, fluid biomarkers, neuroimaging, epidemiology),
and cross cutting (biostatistics, ethics) research design and methods. Thus our proposed SMAART T35
program will grow the pipeline of medical students with research experiences inspiring new physician scientists
to focus their careers in the ADRD space. The low availability of skilled ADRD translational physician scientists
represents a threat to the national ADRD research agenda. Therefore, in this T35 application we propose to
engage MD students in hands on research, mentoring, publishing, career development and leadership.
Through our leadership expertise in multidisciplinary translational ADRD research we aim to enhance the
diversity and availability of physician scientists through these three specific aims: 1) Champion mentored
career development by providing an integrated program that consists of outstanding leadership and oversight
at all levels. 2) Create a flexible and innovative curriculum that emphasizes both core and advanced
competencies in clinical, translational, and basic science 3) Maximizing access to Summer Mentoring and
Research Training (SMAART) Program. Through formal check ins and ADRD themed journal clubs, trainees
will receive guidance and support from the Program directors. The program will longitudinally track students
through the four years of medical school encouraging continued engagement in research activities.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10877677
- **Project number:** 5T35AG076424-03
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE
- **Principal Investigator:** Joshua Grill
- **Activity code:** T35 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $89,030
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2022-06-01 → 2027-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10877677

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10877677, Summer Medical student Aging and Alzheimer disease Research Training (SMAART) program (5T35AG076424-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10877677. Licensed CC0.

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