Leder Human Biology and Translational Medicine (LHB)
Introduction
The future success of translational research relies upon training a cadre of dedicated and talented individuals who are well versed in human biology. There is a critical need for graduate programs that provide for the integrated training of PhD students in the translation of advances in basic investigation to the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of disease. Harvard University recently created the Leder Human Biology and Translational Medicine (LHB) Program to fulfill this goal. An outline of the Program is given below.
Goals of LHB Program
The LHB Program has two goals. First, it provides PhD students with a working knowledge of the fundamentals of human biology and disease, primarily through a series of courses, to enrich their basic science training and broaden their research interests. Second, it demystifies the culture and practice of medicine, facilitating future collaborations with clinicians and physician-scientists, through activities designed to bring students into a hospital environment for direct contact with physicians, patients, medical students, and physician-scientists. The full program runs for one and one half years, beginning in Spring of the G1 Year, and it is interdigitated with a student’s other graduate program requirements. Students who successfully complete the LHB Program will receive a certificate of distinction with their PhDs. Students who do not enter the LHB program but wish to learn about human biology will have access to LHB courses on an ad hoc basis. After the formal LHB Program is completed, students are encouraged to continue to participate in Program activities and are provided with ongoing mentoring opportunities throughout their time at Harvard.
Admissions
Students who are enrolled in one of the Harvard Life Sciences (HILS) graduate programs may choose to apply to LHB. All G1 students interested in applying at this time will be asked to provide an essay describing their motivation to work in an area related to human disease. Students must be in good standing in their graduate program, as ascertained by the Admissions Committee through direct communication with each HILS Program head. Each applicant will be interviewed by members of the Admissions Committee, including at least one of the Program Directors.
Applicants to the PhD Program in Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS) may indicate their interest in LHB at the time of their application for admission to BBS by checking the box labeled “Human Biology and Disease” on their application. This is not a binding commitment, nor is it exclusive as an applicant may also check off other areas of interest at this time. Formal admission to LHB occurs during November of Year 1 in graduate school (i.e. the G1 year).
To provide more information about the LHB program, there will be an information session in October of the Fall semester. Members of the first five classes of LHB students will be in attendance so that prospective students can meet and talk to them.
Course Requirements
The curriculum does not replicate the pre-clinical coursework taken by medical students; rather, it focuses on knowledge and concepts of particular use to biomedical investigators. To this end, there are 3 full semester courses that are required. BCMP 234: Metabolism, HT 035: Principles and Practice of Human Pathology (offered at MIT), and BCMP 235: Principles of human disease: physiology and pharmacology. In addition, there are two required quarter courses. One is an introductory 2 week course in January of Year 1: HBTM300 (akaHB233): Case studies in human biology and translational medicine (offered only to LHB students) and the other is in January of the G2 year, BCMP 300. Translational Pharmacology.
In addition to the above courses, at least one semester long course (or its equivalent in quarter and nanocourses) is required as an elective. These will be chosen in consultation with an LHB Program Advisor to allow students to broaden their exposure to human biology and to study selected topics (e.g., immunology, neuroscience, human genetics, infectious disease, epidemiology) in greater depth. Electives include a subset of courses currently available to medical and graduate students, along with courses designed specifically for LHB students. Since the elective is meant to broaden a student’s background, it should not be taken in an area directly relevant to a student’s thesis work, and it must be related to human biology and disease.
All courses taken for the LHB Program can be counted towards a student’s requirements for their PhD Program, as allowed by each individual PhD Program.
Clinical Experiences
In parallel with formal courses, LHB students have structured opportunities to learn about the culture of medicine and explore roles for basic scientists in clinical settings. These opportunities are in the form of two courses, the Mentored Clinical Casebook Course (MCCB) and the Disease-Centered Tutorial and Clinic. Students may choose between these two courses, or may choose to take both of these courses, which are limited to LHB students. In the MCCB course, offered during Year 2, each student follows a patient longitudinally and develop their observations into a written case. They are introduced to the patient by the patient’s physician, and they meet in small groups with medical students and a faculty mentor to develop the case. In the Spring of the G2 year, in the Disease-Centered Tutorial and Clinic, students meet weekly with a physician-scientist and/or physician, to explore a particular disease. Patient presentations and visits to clinics are included each week. Each LHB student will also be assigned a clinical mentor, chosen according to the student’s research interests, if a student so desires.
LHB Program Administration
Co-Directors
Connie Cepko Professor of Genetics and Ophthamology cepko@genetics.med.harvard.edu |
Thomas Michel Professor of Medicine (Biochemistry) and thomas_michel@harvard.edu |
Associate Director
Pat D’Amore
Prof. of Ophthalmology
Schepens Eye Institute
Opthalmology, 20 Stanford St., 2 West
pdamore@vision.eri.harvard.edu
617-912-2559
Steering Committee
Joe Loscalzo, Chair
Professor of Medicine
Hersey Professor of Medicine
Head of the Department of Medicine
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
jloscalzo@partners.org
(617) 732-6340
David Altshuler
Prof. of Genetics
MGH, Genetics
altshuler@molbio.mgh.harvard.edu
617-726-5940
Richard B. Simches Research Bldg
185 Cambridge St, CPZN-6818
Elizabeth Engle
Assoc. Prof. of Neurology
CHB, Neurology
engle@enders.tch.harvard.edu
617-919-4030
Enders 560.2, Div. of Genetics
Randy King
Assist. Prof. of Cell Biology
HMS, Cell Biology
randy_king@hms.harvard.edu
617-432-3629
Seeley G. Mudd Bldg. 604
David Reich
Assist. Prof. of Genetics
HMS, Genetics
reich@receptor.med.harvard.edu
617-432-6548
NRB 336
Frank Bunn
Professor of Medicine
Department of Medicine
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Karp Building, Rm 5-215
617-732-5841
hfbunn@rics.bwh.harvard.edu
Jim Adelstein
Paul C. Cabot Distinguished Professor of Medical Biophysics
HMS, Pathology
TMEC 145
james_adelstein@hms.harvard.edu
617-432-3997
Board of Fellows
Elio Raviola
Bullard Prof. of Neurobiology
HMS, Neurobiology
elio_raviola@hms.harvard.edu
617-432-1742
B2-201
Heidi Rehm
Instructor in Pathology/Markey Alumnus
Harvard-Partners Ctr. for Genetics & Genomics
rehm@helix.mgh.harvard.edu
617-768-8291
65 Landsdowne Street
Cambridge, MA
Jeffrey Tong
Vice President
Infinity Pharmaceuticals
Jeffrey.Tong@ipi.com
617-453-1198
780 Memorial Dr.
Cambridge, MA
Christie Hershey, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
Yang Laboratory
HMS, Microbiology & Molecular Genetics
617-432-5416
hershey@post.harvard.edu