# Translational Research in Biomaterials

> **NIH NIH T32** · BOSTON UNIVERSITY (CHARLES RIVER CAMPUS) · 2020 · $197,466

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
This application proposes the second renewal of Boston University's NIH training program, Translational
Research in Biomaterials (TRB). The mission of the TRB is to develop PhD students into interdisciplinary
and translational research scientists and engineers. Through their TRB training, students acquire a
fundamental and quantitative understanding of materials, surface science, biomaterial-tissue response, and
molecular and cell biology, as well as training experiences in interdisciplinary programs that promote
discussion and scientific inquiry in areas outside students’ “comfort zones.” New for this renewal are: a junior
faculty mentoring plan, integrated student governance, better data collection, and more targeted efforts for
underrepresented minority recruitment. Furthermore, we expand the educational, research, and training
opportunities for TRB Fellows to include BU’s NSF ERC in Cellular Metamaterials and partnerships with
Massachusetts General Hospital and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
The cornerstones of the TRB program are the curriculum and the program elements that combine
interdisciplinary research, quantitative science, engineering, and translational-based courses in clinical trials
and business, with student-organized seminar club, dinners with clinicians, training in professional ethics,
individual career plans, and professional development workshops. Our aim is to teach the unique skills and
competencies that are essential to thrive in a multidisciplinary collaborative team striving to meet common
goals in research, development, translation, and, ultimately, commercialization. Since 2009, the BU TRB has
had 35 interdisciplinary trainees (15 women, 20 men; 26% minority; 97% retention; 100% employment; 5.1
years average PhD completion; 14 graduates and 20 current students, one of whom will graduate next month)
who have excelled on multiple fronts, including publishing papers (99), filing patents (7), oral (47) and poster
(155) presentations at local and national meetings, and participating in societal / community activities (e.g.,
President of the BU Student Association of Graduate Engineers, tutoring for high school students, etc.). All
trainees have been supported after their TRB funding ended through independently written fellowships (one
NIH NRSA F31, one NIH NRSA F30, seven NSF GRFP awards, one US Pharmacopeial Global Fellowship
Award, one CIMIT Engineering Fellowship, one Glacier NSF GK12 Fellowship, one BUnano Cross-
Disciplinary Fellowship, one Clare Booth Luce Fellowship, and one Ford Foundation Fellowship) or the NIH
R21 / R01 grants of their mentors.
In this renewal, the continuation of the TRB, with eight trainees per year funded via NIH, is aligned with the
expertise of participating faculty, the availability of a large and strong applicant pool eligible for and interested
in the TRB program, and an extramural funding base to provide the appropriate research environment and
continued support for NIH t...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9935510
- **Project number:** 2T32EB006359-11
- **Recipient organization:** BOSTON UNIVERSITY (CHARLES RIVER CAMPUS)
- **Principal Investigator:** MARK W. GRINSTAFF
- **Activity code:** T32 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $197,466
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 2020-09-09 → 2022-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9935510

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9935510, Translational Research in Biomaterials (2T32EB006359-11). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9935510. Licensed CC0.

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