The UNC ID trainees are supported from a variety of revenue streams, including clinical income, hospital contracts and individual research grants and contracts. The most significant source of funding, however, is NIH training grants, which are organized programs designed to help trainees develop as independent investigators.
- UNC-NIH Pathogenesis Training Program in Infectious Diseases (Director, David Margolis, four postdoctoral positions): This training grant is now in its 28th year of funding. MD and PhD trainees are guided by a mentor in the broad fields of microbial pathogenesis and epidemiology. This program provides research training in molecular and epidemiological processes critical to microbial and viral pathogenesis.
- UNC-NIH AIDS and STD Training Program (Director, P.F. Sparling, four predoctoral positions, six postdoctoral positions): This program provides trainees with research opportunities in the broad area of AIDS and STDs. Training includes basic and epidemiologic research. This training grant is in its 29th year of funding. MD and PhD trainees and predoctoral students interested in STD research are guided by a mentor.
- UNC-NIH Immunology Training Program (Director, Jeffery Frelinger, two predoctoral positions, two postdoctoral positions): This program focuses on training in molecular immunology. The immunology training grant provides support to pre and postdoctoral fellows interested in basic research in host defenses.
- UNC-NIH Virology Training Program (Director, Ron Swanstrom, four predoctoral positions): This program focuses on training in molecular virology.
- NIH Fogarty AIDS International Training Program (AITRP) (Director, Ada Adimora, six positions): This program is designed to provide basic and epidemiological research skills in STD/HIV prevention for selected international scholars from the People’s Republic of China, Cameroon and Malawi. This program supports in-country research and training with UNC faculty in Chapel Hill.
- ID-Pharmacy Partnership (Director, M.S. Cohen; Chair Anti-Infectives Committee, David Weber, one position): Effective utilization of antimicrobial therapy is critical to the health of UNC Hospitals. Accordingly, the Pharmacy Program supports an infectious diseases fellow interested in antimicrobial therapy and research. This program collaborates with Hospital Epidemiology (Infection Control).
- Clinical Research Curriculum (NIH HL04127): UNC was one of the initial recipients of the NIH K30 clinical research curriculum award. The clinical research curriculum provides an in-depth, two-year training program for a group of 8-10 trainees, each of whom is committed to a career as a clinical investigator. A major goal for each trainee is to develop appropriate grant funding such as a K23 or, in some cases, an R01. The clinical research methods include patient-oriented, epidemiologic- and population-based, and outcomes-oriented health services.
