Department of Molecular Medicine at the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine

The purpose of the program is to provide comprehensive predoctoral and postdoctoral training in Molecular and Cell Biology of Cancer. This program is structured to provide outstanding college graduates, physicians, and veterinarians as well as postdoctoral students with in-depth knowledge and research skills in selected areas of cancer biology, and, through formal course work, seminars, and peer interactions, a broad training base and a sound understanding of the complex issues and problems of cancer.

Predoctoral (including DVMs or MDs in a graduate program) student training is administered through the Graduate School of Cornell University. Students take a common core of four courses and participate in the cancer biology lecture series, the student seminar series, and the annual Cornell Cancer Symposium/Retreat. Additional course work consists of three required elective courses, three minicourses in advanced molecular and cellular biology, and two courses to satisfy their minor requirements (e.g., biochemistry, molecular biology). Thesis research is carried out in one of the laboratories of the 11 participating faculty members who have primary appointments in departments/sections of the College of Veterinary Medicine, the Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, and the Division of Nutritional Science.

Postdoctoral students are selected based on their ability to carry out independent research and on their promise to develop into independent scientists. Special consideration will be given to postdoctoral students that are proposed to work on joint projects of the participating faculty. Funding by the training grant will in general be limited to 2 years. Major components of the postdoctoral training program include: (1) Conduct of independent laboratory research focusing on a project outlined and initiated by one or more interacting, participating faculty members (principal training component); (2) Report and defense of research data in weekly meetings with participating faculty and their entire laboratory staff; (3) supervision and direction of graduate research (this component has been successfully used in cultivating skills in personnel management and research direction; it has been very favorably viewed by senior students and is an excellent preparation for independent careers); (4) reporting of research accomplishments in a formal 45-min presentation in the "Work in Progress" series of the Department of Molecular Medicine; (5) one-on-one or group-interaction with weekly seminar speakers; and (6) career development courses relevant for careers in science.

The participating faculty are all tenured Professors at Cornell University. They are James Casey (transgenic zebrafish models of retroviral accessory genes, viral oncogenesis), Richard Cerione (molecular mechanisms of cellular signaling), Jun-Lin Guan (FAK and its inhibitor FIP200 knockout mice models in cancer and cardiovascular diseases), Alexander Nikitin (modeling human cancers in genetically modified mice), Noa Noy (transcriptional regulation by nuclear hormone receptors), Robert Oswald (structure and dynamics of signal transduction proteins), Rodney L. Page (companion animal models of cancer, thermoradiotherapy, and thermochemotherapy), Bendicht Pauli (cell-cell adhesion and associated signaling in cancer metastasis), David Shalloway (pp60^c-src and PTPa in mitogenesis and oncogenesis), Bud Tennant (viral oncogenesis: woodchuck hepatitis virus), and Andrew Yen (transcriptional regulation by nuclear hormone receptors). The laboratories of each of these faculty members are supplied with state-of-the-art equipment to conduct experimental work in molecular and cell biology of cancer. Multi-user departmental and/or college facilities include a FACS laboratory, electron microscopy laboratories (transmission and scanning electron microscopy), tissue and cell culture laboratories, fluorescence microscopy and video imaging facilities, and immunohistochemical laboratories. Faculty and trainees will have access to a number of resources that are part of a major new Life Science Initiative at Cornell University, bridging the physical and biological sciences. These resources include equipment for cell culture and transformation, oligonucleotides synthesis, protein microsequencing, amino acid analysis, computer molecular modeling, nucleic acid analysis, monoclonal antibody production, large-scale fermentation, flow cytometry, and molecular biophysics applications.

Current predoctoral students supported by this training grant receive an annual stipend of $20,772. Postdoctoral (Ph.D., DVM) annual stipends begin at $35,568. Tuition for graduate students is approximately $18,000 and is partially paid by the training grant with any remaining balance carried by the department of the mentor.

Single students need approximately $12,680 to 18,680 per year. Married students without dependent children require an additional $8,000 per year; an additional $3,000 per year is needed for each child. University housing is available to a limited number of single students and student families.
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Ithaca, New York, home of Cornell University, is located in the heart of the Finger Lakes region at the southern tip of Cayuga Lake, about 250 miles from New York City. The spectacular natural beauty of this area is characterized by gorges, valleys, lakes streams, waterfalls, and rolling farmland. There is public bus and air transportation in and out of the area, as well as campus, city and county bus service throughout the community.

Cornell University is an internationally known research university consisting of thirteen colleges. Founded in 1865, Cornell is the youngest member of the Ivy League and is New York State's land-grant institution. Cornell faculty members are leaders in their fields, and many have been honored as Nobel laureates, Pulitzer Prize winners, and members of the National Academy of Sciences. Currently there are approximately 12,900 undergraduates, 4,500 graduate students and 1,800 professional students on campus.

Potential applicants are encouraged to communicate with faculty of the training program; personal interviews are encouraged before formal application. Applicants must be US citizens or permanent residents of the US. All applicants for graduate study are required to have a strong academic background and to be accepted by the Graduate School of Cornell University. Applicants should submit scores on the General Test of the Graduate Record Examinations. Class rank is also a helpful measure of academic performance. For more information or to apply to the graduate program, please contact Graduate Education Coordinator, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 or e-mail to graduate_edcvm@cornell.edu. Please indicate your area of interest. Candidates interested in Postdoctoral study should contact Dr. Bendicht U. Pauli, Director, Training Program in Molecular and Cell Biology of Cancer, Department of Molecular Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853-6401. Telephone (607) 253-3300; Fax (607) 253-3317.

Cornell University is an equal opportunity/affirmative action educator and employer.