PROJECT SUMMARY / ABSTRACT This is a competing renewal application for a T32 grant that supports Training in Craniofacial and Oral Health Research (T-COHR), an integrated research training program based in the College of Dental Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). The overarching objective of T-COHR is to foster the development of clinician scientists and scientists focused on oral, dental and craniofacial research. To accomplish this goal, T-COHR offers mentored, interdisciplinary research training opportunities in oral health, craniofacial biology and bioengineering. T-COHR provides a strong curriculum and thematic research experiences in an integrative framework that emphasizes mentoring, scientific advancement, academic career development, grantsmanship, and productivity. For this renewal period, we are requesting (1) continued support for the Dental Scientist Training Program (DSTP), offering a consolidated DMD/PhD degree pathway; (2) continued support for predoctoral research training leading to the PhD degree in biomedical sciences or bioengineering with applications to oral/craniofacial health; and (3) continued support for postdoctoral research training for dentist-scientists and/or non-clinician PhD scientists in basic, translational or bioengineering sciences important to dental, oral or craniofacial health. T-COHR is an integral part of the Center for Oral Health Research (COHR), a University Center of Research Excellence in the College of Dental Medicine that engages faculty and trainees in other disciplines and departments in the Colleges of Medicine, Graduate Studies, Pharmacy and Dental Medicine at MUSC, the Department of Bioengineering at Clemson University, and the NCI-designated Hollings Cancer Center at MUSC. Mentoring and training activities are thematically grouped into 4 strategic areas of research focus: (i) molecular and cellular biology of oral infectious diseases, (ii) oral pharyngeal cancer biology and cancer immunology, (iii) bioengineering/biomechanics of the oral and craniofacial complex, and (iv) craniofacial growth and development. T-COHR benefits from excellent administrative support and institutional commitment that have provided continued support to the Center for Oral Health Research. An integrated multi-year evaluation plan will be used to measure the extent to which T- COHR goals and objectives are met.

PROJECT NARRATIVE In the United States, there remains a critical need for well-trained investigators in dental, oral and craniofacial research. This training grant application supports Training in Craniofacial and Oral Health Research (T-COHR), an integrated program based in the College of Dental Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) to help train the next generation of clinician scientists and scientists engaged in dental, oral and craniofacial research. Research training will be in the areas of oral infection and inflammation, oral cancer, bioengineering/biomechanics and oral/craniofacial complex growth and regeneration.