Students who choose to do their thesis research in laboratories of faculty in the Molecular Pharmacology Training Area of the UC San Diego  Biomedical Sciences (BMS) Graduate Program are eligible to be part of the Pharmacological Sciences Training Program (PSTP). The program provides trainees with contemporary education in Pharmacology and state-of-the-art research training in Pharmacological Sciences. Didactic and experimental efforts prepare students for a wide range of career opportunities in aca demia and industry, where their broad scope of training in pharmacology, integrated with sister disciplines of physiology and molecular sciences, will be valued. Faculty interests and training areas emphasize understanding signaling pathways that are relevant to disease, elucidating new targets for drug action and using novel approaches to identify chemicals that modulate drug targets.  The Training Faculty work in interdigitating areas, the largest of which is Signal Transduction. This category encompasses work on receptors and G-proteins, kinases and phosphatases, intracellular signaling pathways, cancer and growth regulation. Other major areas include: Cardiovascular science, Neuroscience, Drug metabolism and Chemical and structural biology/drug discovery.

 

The PSTP is supported by one of the largest and longest standing NIH training grants. There are 15 pre-doctoral trainee slots, making our training grant the largest of its kind nationwide. Trainees apply to the program and are selected on the basis of their planned research, mentor and academic accomplishments. The training grant provides stipend and fees support for two years, and defrays part of the travel and research expenses to each trainee. Trainees are encouraged to select and host seminar speakers, given opportunities to present their work and interact with world renowned faculty at the weekly Research Discussion meeting and the Spring Retreat, and include this training support on their curriculum vita.

FACULTY AND RESEARCH: