Infectious diseases persistently remain among the most pressing threats to global health — from antimicrobial resistance and emerging pandemics to HIV and infections in immunocompromised patients. Yet the number of clinical scientists trained to tackle this complex challenge continues to fall short of demand.
A new initiative at Duke University School of Medicine aims to change that by sparking early interest and cultivating the pathway of physician-scientists tackling these global health threats
The Trans-disciplinary Research in Infectious Diseases to Engage Third-Year Medical Students (TRIDENT) program is designed to enhance the research training of medical students with skills training, career development, and expanded mentorship during their dedicated third year — a distinctive feature of Duke’s doctor of medicine since the 1950s.
Funded with a $362,312 R25 grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the initiative builds on Duke’s longstanding strengths in microbiology, global health, physician-scientist training, and robust research infrastructure across clinical and translational domains.
Duke's Defining Feature
“The scholarly research experience is one of the defining features of the Duke Medical School curriculum. Although the dedicated scholarly experience has grown to include a variety of basic, translational, clinical research and dual degree opportunities, the basic mission- to help prepare our students to become academic leaders and shape the future of medical practice- has remained unchanged,” said Dr. Daniel Laskowitz, professor and vice chair of Academic Affairs in the Department of Neurology and assistant dean for Scholarly Education. “In particular, infectious diseases remain one of the most pressing global health concerns- from antimicrobial resistance to emerging pandemics.”
“Many of the most impactful careers in infectious disease research aren’t visible to students early in their training,” said Dr. Vivian Chu, professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases, and co-lead on the initiative. “We want to bring those opportunities into focus and provide a clear pathway for students to join this critical field.”
TRIDENT builds on the unique curriculum of the Duke MD program, which reserves the third year of training for rigorous, mentored quantitative research, as well as research assets across Duke’s clinical, global health, microbiology, and vaccinology enterprises. Indeed, the operating committee for the TRIDENT program consists of faculty drawn from Infectious Diseases, Molecular Genetics & Microbiology, the Duke Human Vaccine Institute, the Duke Center for AIDS Research, and the Duke Global Health Institute.
TRIDENT Impact
The impact of the program will be measured by tangible scholarly products of the program participants, comparative surveys of TRIDENT scholars, and tracking career trajectory.
The program will provide interdisciplinary, tiered faculty- and peer-mentorship in ID research and implement skills and career-development curricula tailored to trainee needs. This includes training in cross-cutting series on the fundamentals of data science, exploration, visualization, manuscript writing and presentation skills, complemented by seminar and course offerings from Duke’s Clinical Research Training Program and the Office of Physician Scientist Development. Additionally, program participants will benefit from a partial scholarship to offset their educational costs and access to dedicated support for project expenses and career development activities.
Through TRIDENT, third-year medical students who are matched with faculty mentors will pursue research projects across a wide range of disciplines, including:
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Infection control and hospital epidemiology
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Bacteriology and antimicrobial resistance
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HIV prevention, care, and management
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Global health
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Infections in immunocompromised hosts
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Microbial pathogenesis
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Immunology and vaccinology
“Infectious disease research is most effective when conducted by teams with diverse expertise — from clinical medicine and microbiology to global health and data science,” said co-investigator, Dr. Steve Taylor, professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases and Global Health. “By cultivating that interest and skillset early, TRIDENT is preparing our students to become leaders in this essential work.”
The NIH-funded TRIDENT initiative is a testament to the dedication and educational commitment of faculty members Drs. Taylor and Chu, Dr. Laskowitz said, and is a unique opportunity for students to jumpstart an academic career in the area of infectious diseases.