NIH T32 Training Grant in Joint Health

The NIH T32 Training Grant in Joint Health supports post-doctoral fellowships and short-term medical student research. The grant is directed by Rick Sumner, PhD and co-directed by Markus Wimmer, PhD and Anne-Marie Malfait, MD, PhD.

Overview

Three people walking down a corridor

This multi-disciplinary post-doctoral training program in musculoskeletal biology emphasizes research training in joint health, encompassing five major programmatic areas: osteoarthritis and cartilage, total joint replacement, bone disease and regeneration, spine degeneration and small molecule therapeutics. The program supports pre-doctoral PhD students, post-doctoral fellows and provides 3-month research experiences for medical students. For the post-doctoral positions, we encourage candidates with medical, dental or veterinary doctorates to apply in addition to those with PhD’s.

Training takes place in the laboratories of NIH funded faculty in three basic science departments (Anatomy & Cell Biology , Microbial Pathogens & Immunology, and Physiology & Biophysics) and four clinical departments (Internal Medicine, Orthopedic Surgery, Pediatrics and the RUSH Alzheimer’s Disease Center). The faculty are internationally respected scientists and physician-scientists devoted to musculoskeletal research, with a special focus on osteoarthritis (including pain), cartilage and bone biology, total joint replacement, spine degeneration and muscle physiology. Trainees have many resources available including the T32/P30 Joint Seminar Series, which features internationally renowned scholars.

After completing our program, post-doctoral trainees are better positioned to becoming independent, team-oriented, principal investigators and doctoral graduates are well-suited for their next step, be it a post-doctoral fellowship or position in industry. Short-term medical student trainees are better positioned for seeking residencies.

On

Eligibility
- U.S. citizen or permanent residency status required
- For the post-doctoral slots: a doctoral degree (M.D., D.O., Ph.D., D.V.M., D.D.S. or equivalent)
- For the short-term training slots: be a current medical student.
Mentors/Research areas

Research areas of the mentors are outlined on this page below, with links to individual labs.

Training program

The objective of the proposed program is to provide education, training and research opportunities to post-doctoral fellows and short-term trainees who wish to have scientific careers in the multi-disciplinary area of musculoskeletal biology with the ultimate aim of developing future leaders in orthopedic- and rheumatology-related research. The program emphasizes research training in Joint Health, encompassing three major programmatic areas:
1. Osteoarthritis (OA)
2. Total Joint Replacement (TJR)
3. Small Molecule Therapeutics (SMT)
The multidisciplinary training that is offered integrates the research endeavors of scientists in basic and clinical departments with clinician investigators, caregivers, and educators who specialize in musculoskeletal disease and joint health. The net result is a large and internationally respected group devoted to musculoskeletal research, with a special focus on OA (including pain), cartilage and bone biology, TJR, and muscle physiology. There are close inter-departmental collaborations in both clinical and basic research, which yields a truly unique environment for mentoring junior investigators in joint health.

Each fellow, with the aid of his/her primary advisor, establishes a mentoring committee. Specific functions of the mentoring committee will include (i) ensuring appropriate training, (ii) monitoring research progress, and (iii) providing feedback on the mentee’s required individual grant applications. The mentoring committees work with the trainee, using training guidelines published by the National Post-doctoral Association and Science (DOI: 10.1126/science.opms.r1100101). The mentor-mentee relationship is a two-way street and both parties need to be proactive in recognizing and fulfilling their responsibilities. An important means to ensure communication on these topics between the trainee and mentor is the use of an individual development plan using myIDP, agreed upon by both the mentee and mentor. These plans are updated yearly by the trainee and mentor and reviewed by the mentoring committee.

To organize the training we focus on the 6 competencies for post-doctoral trainees outlined and defined by the National Post-doctoral Association. These are: (i) discipline-specific conceptual knowledge; (ii) research skill development; (iii) communication skills; (iv) professionalism; (v) leadership and management skills; (vi) responsible conduct of research. An important milestone for T32 appointees will be the submission of an individual training grant application to the NIH (F32) or another appropriate agency (such as the Arthritis Foundation or the Orthopaedic Research and Education Foundation) by the end of Year 1.

The RUSH Post-doctoral Society (RPS), which is an affiliate of the National Post-doctoral Association, collaborates with local institutions such as the University of Chicago, Northwestern University, the University of Illinois at Chicago and Argonne National Laboratory to help create a sense of community for Chicago-area postdoctoral fellows. At RUSH, resources are provided to assist new post-doctoral scholars transitioning to RUSH and support those leaving RUSH as they embark on new careers. The idea is to provide a community where post-doctoral scholars can share ideas and concerns, and socialize with peers. The RPS has a committee comprised of RUSH postdoctoral fellows who meet once a month to organize career development seminars, workshops and social events. There are about 10 organized sessions per year. Each session touches upon one or more of the 6 National Post-doctoral Association competencies.

T32 post-doctoral trainees have ready access to the resources of the RUSH Mentoring Programs, which was created to ensure successful transition to independency of junior faculty recruits at Rush. One of the major advantages of this program is that it gives post-doctoral fellows an opportunity to learn directly from their successful peers and junior faculty.

Other key training mechanisms include local activities such as seminar series, journal clubs, clinical rounds, research rounds, residency didactic programs and the mentee’s lab meetings. We do not expect each trainee to participate in all of the local activities, but do expect the trainee and their mentor to develop a plan for participating in the most helpful ones. An important aspect of training is attendance at regional, national and international research meetings.

Compensation

We adhere to NIH guidelines, which can be found at https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-19-036.html. Health insurance will be provided as will support to attend one national meeting per year.

Payback obligation

The NRSA legislation requires postdoctoral recipients of support to “pay back” the U.S. Government by engaging in health-related biomedical or behavioral research. This includes direct administration or review of health-related research, health-related teaching, or any combination of these activities. Please see https://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/nihgps/HTML5/section_11/11.4_payback_requirements.htm for details. For individuals receiving postdoctoral support under individual fellowships or institutional research training grants, a payback obligation is incurred for the first 12 months of Kirschstein-NRSA support. However, the 13th and subsequent months of postdoctoral NRSA supported research training serves to pay back this obligation month by month. A Payback Agreement (PHS 6031) is required but only for the initial 12-month postdoctoral support period.

Application process

Please contact Dr. Rick Sumner for current availability of positions supported by the training grant. We strongly encourage those interested in this program to directly contact the mentor of most interest, with a cc to Dr. Sumner (rick_sumner@rush.edu).
- For the post-doctoral positions, required elements include a cover letter indicating your area of interest/desired mentor, NIH Biosketch, your best published work (manuscript or meeting abstract) and three letters of recommendation. Please arrange a phone or in-person interview with your prospective mentor. The prospective mentor is responsible for submitting the application.
- For the short-term positions, please submit all required elements for the Dean’s Fellowship as you normally would, indicating on the face page that you wish to be considered for the T32 fellowship. Please send an email to Dr. Sumner, alerting him of your submission. If not selected for support by the training grant, your application will be considered for a Dean’s Fellowship.
Criteria for being a preceptor

We have classified the training grant faculty into “preceptor” and “co-preceptor” categories. Criteria for being selected as a preceptor and continuing to be listed as a preceptor include (i) willingness to commit to training a post-doctoral fellow; (ii) adequate research funding to support the research effort; (iii) availability of a project relevant to joint health that will serve as a good training vehicle; and (iv) current or recent mentoring experience with TGE trainees. Several RUSH faculty who meet the first three preceptor qualifications but lack previous or recent mentoring experience with TGE post-doctoral fellows are classified as co-preceptors. These faculty can serve as the primary advisor to a post-doctoral fellow as long as there is a formal co-sponsor from the preceptor faculty. Current RUSH faculty wishing to transition to preceptor status or new faculty recruited to RUSH wishing to be a training grant preceptor should submit their NIH Biosketch, history of mentoring and outline of research area to the Executive Committee, who will make a decision after consulting with the Advisory Board. We anticipate adding new preceptors to the training grant through recruitment of new faculty to RUSH and through junior faculty establishing research independence and senior faculty re-establishing their funding base.

Obligations/Responsibilities

The mentor must commit to focusing on the 6 competencies for post-doctoral trainees outlined and defined by the National Post-doctoral Association. These are: (i) discipline-specific conceptual knowledge; (ii) research skill development; (iii) communication skills; (iv) professionalism; (v) leadership and management skills; (vi) responsible conduct of research. There are many resources available at Rush and through the T32 training program to help mentors meet these obligations. The mentor must also recognize that the mentor-mentee relationship is a two-way street and both parties need to be proactive in recognizing and fulfilling their responsibilities. An important means to ensure communication between the trainee and mentor is the use of an individual development plan using myIDP. These plans are updated yearly by the trainee and mentor and reviewed by the mentoring committee. The mentor will work with a formal mentoring committee, consisting of the primary advisor and two other faculty members who themselves may or may not be training grant faculty. It is expected that the post-doctoral trainee will meet weekly or bi-weekly in one-on-one sessions with the primary advisor. Periodic meetings with mentoring committee members to discuss research progress and career development occur approximately once a quarter. A formal mentoring committee meeting is scheduled every 6 to 12 months with either the Training Grant Director (Dr. Sumner) or one of the co-directors (Dr. Malfait or Dr. Wimmer). These more formal reviews provide feedback to the trainee and mentor on progress with respect to the research project and the trainee’s development plan.

An important outcome for the training grant is the publication record and subsequent funding success of our mentees. Thus, we expect the mentors to be fully committed to ensuring timely submission of manuscripts and grant applications. An important milestone for T32 appointees will be the submission of an individual training grant application to the NIH (F32) or another appropriate agency (such as the Arthritis Foundation or the Orthopaedic Research and Education Foundation) by the end of Year 1. The mentor must be willing to aid the trainee in writing individual grants will be a major point of emphasis and will serve as an excellent training vehicle.

Personal statements from trainees

On

Name	Personal statement
Mohammed J. AbuAlia	With valuable past experience in mechanics, my areas of interest include artificial implants, friction, lubrication, and the wear of natural and artificial joints. My current project supported by the T32 grant focuses on studying the rheological properties and behavior of bovine knee cartilage using a rheometer to help in understanding the mechanisms and progression of osteoarthritis, which is key for prevention and for optimal design of replacements. I do this by testing cartilage under a range of different loads and frequencies that resemble the physiological conditions in the knee joint.
Amal Adra	I am working on understanding the effects of the circadian rhythm of the gut microbiome on bone health, specifically, how knocking out the Bmal 1 gene in our mouse models alters vertebral trabecular bone mass density and microarchitecture.
Kyle Anderson	Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) is a world-wide epidemic that is diagnosed in anywhere from 8% to 22% of all total joint replacement patients where the disease significantly increases the risk for implant failure as well as costly revision surgery. It is known that T2DM directly alters bone structure and quality as well as reduces mechanical properties, but osseointegration, or the ability for bone to integrate and stabilize cementless implants, has not been adequately described. Drawing upon RUSH’s excellent basic scientists in bone, outstanding clinicians in Orthopedics, and funding from the T32 grant I have been able to meaningfully begin my research career and lay the foundation for a future career as a physician-scientist.
Thomas Cunningham	The purpose of my study is to utilize multiplex immunofluorescence for immune cell profiling in osteolytic bone samples. Multiplex immunofluorescence provides clinically relevant information on protein expression, colocalization of expressed antigens, and the spatial orientation of immune cells. Application of this technique to osteolytic bone may reveal insights into the disease processes and direct discovery of novel therapeutic treatment opportunities.
Alexander L. Hornung	With the increase in total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA) incidence, examining the relationship between wear and corrosion of failed TSA prostheses as well as cellular reactions in the periprosthetic tissues is imperative. The goal of my project is to continue to elucidate this relationship in hopes that it will impact not only future device design, but potential treatment recommendations as well.
Zoe Maria Dominique M. Reyes	X-linked hypophosphatemia (XLH) is the most common cause of vitamin-D-resistant rickets, affecting 1 in 20,000 people. Building upon past research on XLH, my primary research objective is to evaluate the expression of sclerostin in isolated primary osteoblasts and dental follicle progenitor cells to determine the mechanisms of skeletal and periodontal defects in patients with X-linked hypophosphatemia. I cannot express my gratitude enough for the support of the T32 grant, but especially to Dr. Ryan Ross and his lab, for greatly contributing to my training to become a physician.
Kerry Sung	Extensive research has shown that the gut microbiome maintains a critical role in influencing systemic inflammation. However, the direct relationship between gut microbiome and rheumatoid arthritis is not well documented. Our project involves performing systematic reviews of the current literature surrounding this topic, with a focus on uncovering novel communication pathways and notable proinflammatory biomarkers that dictate the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis.
Daniel Wichman	Continuing past research on the biomechanics of femoroacetabular impingement syndrome (FAIS), I am studying the ways in which acetabular cartilage damage influences movement patterns during athletic-type maneuvers. Data is collected intra-operatively to define degree of cartilage damage based on live arthroscopic imaging, and biomechanics data is collected pre-operatively in the RUSH Motion Analysis Lab using complex methods to identify performance metrics, dynamic joint angles, and dynamic joint forces. Our team was able to identify the degree of cartilage damage that influences movement during squatting and therefore, we are now better prepared to understand the relationship between FAIS and movement. We hope that this will eventually allow us to use movement as a clinical biomarker for hip joint disease progression.

Name	Personal statement
Mary Bucklin	I am a postdoctoral fellow working in the laboratory of John Martin (Department of Orthopedic Surgery). I bring a unique background of gait analysis, motor learning, and biomechanics to a new area of study that I am passionate about growing in. I am determining the relationship between spine health and socioeconomic status/stress using machine learning and imaging techniques.
Terese Geraghty	I am a postdoctoral fellow working in the laboratories of Rachel E. Miller and Anne Marie Malfait (Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Rheumatology). My primary research project is developing flow cytometry for immune cell characterization in the dorsal root ganglia during osteoarthritis. We aim to elucidate how macrophages and other immune cells contribute to osteoarthritis pain.
John Hamilton	I was a postdoctoral fellow working in the laboratories of Markus Wimmer (Department of Orthopedic Surgery) and Sasha Shafikhani (Department of Internal Medicine). My primary research project involved the use of methods to prevent or reduce the severity periprosthetic joint infection. I worked on testing strategies involving immune cell stimulation and surface augmentation to the metal bone implant.
Brittany Wilson	I am a postdoctoral fellow working in the laboratory of Anna Spagnoli (Department of Orthopedic Surgery). My primary research project involves investigating molecular mechanisms of fracture repair using transgenic mouse models to conditionally delete certain factors before, at the time of, or after bone fracture. Specifically, this project aims to determine the consequences of conditional deletion of paired related homeobox gene 1 (prx-1) on osteochondrogenic differentiation and fracture healing using both in vitro and in vivo approaches.
Catherine Yuh	I am a postdoctoral fellow working in the Biocompatibility and Implant Pathology Laboratory under Dr. Robin Pourzal (Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Division of Biomaterials). My research project involves utilizing infrared spectroscopy to perform high throughput chemical mapping on musculoskeletal tissues. Our goal is to investigate the chemical features within these tissue systems in both pre-arthritic conditions and end-stage osteoarthritis, with the goal of elucidating disease progression.

Mentors

Preceptor	Research Interest
Fill, Michael, PhD (Lab)	Intracellular Ca signaling and arrhythmias
Hallab, Nadim James, PhD (Lab)	Immune responses to implant wear debris; implant debris analyses
Jacobs, Joshua, MD (Lab)	Biocompatibility of implant materials; joint replacement
Lundberg, Hannah, PhD (Lab)	Computational modeling of human joint biomechanics
Malfait, Anne-Marie, MD, PhD (Lab)	OA and pain
Martin, John, PhD (Lab)	Spine degeneration, regeneration and function
Miller, Rachel, PhD (Lab)	Osteoarthritis, pain, biomechanics
Pourzal, Robin, PhD (Lab)	Implant materials
Pratap, Jitesh, PhD (Lab)	Osteoblast differentiation and cancer cell survival in the bone microenvironment
Ross, Ryan, PhD (Lab)	PhD Bone quality, hormonal role of the skeleton
Samartzis, Dino, PhD (Lab)	Spine degeneration and pain
Shafikhani, Sasha, PhD (Lab)	Wound healing; infection; innate immunity; cancer
Spagnoli, Anna, MD (Lab)	Bone repair
Sumner, D. Rick, PhD (Lab)	Bone regeneration, implant fixation
Wimmer, Markus, PhD (Lab)	Tribology, motion analysis, cartilage, joint replacement

Co-Preceptor	Research Interest
Al-Harthi, Lena, PhD (Lab)	HIV and HIV latency
Barker, Edward, PhD (Lab)	HIV innate immunity
Buchman, Aron, MD (Lab)	Neurobiology underlying age-related cognitive and motor decline
Inoue, Nozomu, MD, PhD (Lab)	Spine biomechanics
Keshavarzian, Ali, MD (Lab)	Gut microbiome and permeability
Ko, Frank, PhD (Lab)	Bone regeneration
Maki, Carl, PhD (Lab)	Cancer therapy resistance
Patel, Aloka, MD (Lab)	Nutrition and growth of preterm infants
Plaas, Anna, PhD (Lab)	Connective tissue pathobiology
Schneider, Jeffrey, PhD (Lab)	Infection response, HIV and cART
Yanke, Adam, MD, PhD (Lab)	Cartilage regeneration and repair

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NIH T32 Training Grant in Joint Health in the News

Trainees Accomplishments

Congratulations to Brittany Wilson, PhD

Dr. Wilson in Dr. Sumner’s lab won the first place for the Postdoctoral Platform Presentation Award (sponsored by Developmental Dynamics) at the recent annual meeting of the American Association for Anatomy.

The title of her presentation was “Mineral Metabolism Markers in a Pig Model of Preterm Birth Mimic Clinical Findings”. The co-authors on the paper included Martin Rasmussen, Thomas Thymann and Per Sangild (all of the University of Copenhagen) and D. Rick Sumner (Rush).

The 2023 annual meeting of the American Association for Anatomy (Anatomy Connected 2023) had over 1,000 attendees and was held in Washington, D.C. on March 25-27. This meeting is the world’s largest gathering of anatomical science researchers and educators.

Trainees Accomplishments

Congratulations to Catherine Yuh, PhD

Postdoctoral trainee Catherine Yuh, PhD was awarded a grant from the AO Foundation for “Novel chemical spatial mapping of human intervertebral discs for future poly-omic and AI solutions.” Dr. Yuh is working with Dr. Robin Pourzal.

Trainees Accomplishments

Congratulations to the Rush Mentoring Programs 8th Annual Symposium - Poster Competition Winners

Catherine Yuh, PhD, instructor of Department of Orthopedic Surgery, is the 1st Place (Joint) winner of the Rush Mentoring Programs 8th Annual Symposium - Poster Competition.

Trainees Accomplishments

Congratulations to Terese Geraghty, PhD

Terese Geraghty earned her PhD in Immunology & Microbiology at Rush University Medical Center studying the efficacy and mechanisms of a small molecule agonist of integrin CD11b as a novel lung cancer immunotherapy. Soon after graduating, she was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship through Rush’s T32 Joint Health fellowship program working in Dr. Rachel Miller’s laboratory, where she investigated the contribution of immune cells, such as macrophages, in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG) to the establishment and maintenance of osteoarthritis (OA) pain. During her T32 postdoc, she applied for an individual F32 postdoctoral fellowship grant entitled, “Elucidating how macrophages contribute to osteoarthritis pain.” She was recently awarded the F32 grant and continues to investigate the role of DRG macrophages in OA pain. She is excited to answer critical questions in the fields of osteoarthritis, neuro-immunology, and pain using support from her F32 grant.

The proposed research takes advantage of her mentors, Drs. Rachel Miller and Anne-Marie Malfait, respective expertise. Throughout her PhD and post-doctoral training, she has co-authored 8 publications and presented at more than 15 national and international conferences. Terese’s combined experiences and strongest research interests are in onco-immunology and neuro-immunity, and her long-term goal is to become a senior scientist in industry, where she can be at the forefront of translating new scientific discoveries to the clinic.