Congratulations to Dr. David Stillman for receiving a $1.8 million grant award from the National Institutes of Heath (NIH) to continue support of the Genetics Training Program for PhD students at the University of Utah for another five years.

Over the past 30 years, the Genetics Training Program (GTP) has played an integral role in genetics research here at the University of Utah, and has aided in producing capable and talented scientists through active participation in the exciting research that goes on at the University of Utah.  Headed up by Dr. Stillman of the Department of Pathology, the interdepartmental GTP includes qualified faculty members from many departments at the U including the Experimental Division of the Department of Pathology.  The University of Utah is a national leader in the field of genetics, and the GTP has played an important role in genetics research here.

The Genetics Training Program is for 12 of the top graduate students pursuing Doctoral Degrees at the University of Utah.  The students not only receive training and enrichment during their study, but the program also provides money for tuition and stipends. Additionally, the GTP provides funds for students to travel to scientific conferences to present the results of their research. It also provides a focal gathering point for the campus genetics community, with monthly Genetic Interest Groups lectures and an Training Program Retreat for all students and faculty.  The proud history of the GTP includes the fact that during one such retreat a discussion about mapping human disease genes led to the concept of using restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RLFPs) for genetic mapping, and this breakthrough pioneered development of a genetic map of the human genome.

The GTP is a resounding success, based on the accomplishments of the former graduate students, who published excellent scientific papers and have gone on to outstanding postdoctoral training opportunities. Five of the recent trainees are now Assistant Professors at Lewis and Clark College, Ohio State University, University of Pittsburgh, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and Harvard Medical School. The GTP provided them with training, and exposed them to forums for collaboration and discussion of ideas in all areas of genetics.

Student Erik Zimmerman reported having a great experience in the GTP. Zimmerman will soon complete his PhD work studying the HIV virus in Vicente Planelles’ laboratory in the Department of Pathology after being provided with thee years of support by the GTP.  He said one of its greatest strengths was that it provided “exposure to more systems and different fields of research.” That exposure allows for “input from people from different fields of expertise and ideas from people outside the Pathology Department which helps you to think of things in other ways.”