Our Research Fellowship

and training opportunities

in human reproduction and

infertility represent one of the

most active and state-of-the-

art programs of its kind in the

United States.

Research Fellowshipin Reproductive Medicine

Center for Reproductive Medicine

Fellowship GoalsThe overall goal of our fellowship is to

train each person to become not only a

successful independent researcher but

also, through our unique mentorship

approach, become a superior professional.

GoalsAt the end of the fellowship term, candidateswill have:

1.Demonstratedaprofoundunderstandingofhuman infertility(maleand/orfemale) 2.Participatedinclinicalandbasicscienceresearch 3.Knowledgeofdesigningandexecutingnovel scientificresearch 4.Anunderstandingoftheessentialsofscientific writing,includingliteraturereviewandanalysis 5.Developedanunderstandingofbasicbiostatistics, includingskillsinpatientchartreview,data collection,dataentry,andorganization 6.Publishedresearchfindingsinpeer-reviewed scientificjournals 7.Developedsuperiorcommunicationskillspertaining toscientificpresentationanddiscussion 8.Knowledgetoobtainthenecessarycertification forconductingresearchonhumansubjects (IRB/HIPPA) 9.Learnedhowtowriteascientificresearchproposal forfunding

ResearchFellowship2|ClevelandClinicCenterforReproductiveMedicine

WonJunChoi,MD,PhD|2004–05Jinju,SouthKorea

TamerSaid,MD,PhD|2002–06Toronto,Canada

Testimonials from past Research Fellows:

“ I was extremely fortunate to work with renowned experts in the field of Reproductive Medicine from the United States, Germany, and the U.K. as a part of their collaboration with the Center for Reproductive Medicine. The innovative research that we produced remains a cornerstone in the areas of sperm sorting and sperm genomic integrity. I was able to publish more than thirty articles in high-impact Reproductive Medicine Journals as well as book chapters. In addition, I was provided with the opportunity to attend several international conferences during which I presented more than sixty oral and poster presentations.”

“I was impressed by the systematic environment in the laboratory. Although I was unfamiliar with bench research at first, I was soon able to focus on my project

without hesitation … The experiences in the lab gave me a strong belief that if I had an idea, I could make anything possible in that setting”

“My memories of the Cleveland Clinic are of being pushed to work harder and to never accept mediocre quality of work. This program teaches one to set high goals, and to

become better at everything one does.”

FabioPasqualotto,MD|1998-99CaxiasdoSul,Brazil

“I sincerely believe that the Center for Reproductive Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic helped me accomplish my short-term and long-term goals. I would highly

recommend this program for anyone who has a desire to learn and become successful in the world of academic medicine.”

DeepinderGoyal,MD|2006-2007UCLA,California

Testimonial from past Research Fellows:How to applyPleasesendthefollowinginformation:

• Up-to-dateCurriculumVitae

• 3recentlettersofrecommendationbyyour professors,chairman,orpersonsfirst-hand knowledgeofyourwork

• Acolorpassportpictureandacopyof thepassport

• Address,telephonenumber(mobile,home,and officeforpossiblepersonalinterview)

• Thedatewhenyoucanbeginthefellowship

• Thenames,datesandplacesofbirthofall familymemberswhowillaccompanyyou. Informusiftheyneedavisatoenterthe UnitedStates.(Foreignapplicantsonly)

Where to submitCRM@ccf.org

Click here for more information

ResearchFellowship3|ClevelandClinicCenterforReproductiveMedicine

Who can apply?Medicalgraduates,residents,physicians,

andscientistsinterestedinconducting

cutting-edgebasicscienceandclinical

researchinthefieldofReproductive

Medicinecanapplytoourprogram.

Applicantsareselectedonacompetitive

basisfromapoolofcandidatesfrom

aroundtheworld.Onceapproved,the

applicantisappointedasaResearch

FellowthroughtheClevelandClinic’s

GraduateMedicalEducationProgram.

Other Important Information• Candidatesshouldnotethatallappointments forresearchtrainingareforaminimumof1 yearandthereisnofinancialsupport.

• Candidatesmusthaveindependentfundsbefore beingconsideredforanappointment.Examples are:privateorgovernmentscholarshiptosupport livingexpensesintheUnitedStates.

• Researchappointmentsdonotresultinthe awardofadegree(MSc,PhD,orMD); successfulcompletionoftrainingresultsinthe awardofaCertificateofResearchTrainingfrom theCenterforReproductiveMedicine(CRM).

• Candidatesregisteredwiththeirparentinstitution foranadvanceddegree,suchasMaster’s,PhD, orMD,canselecttheClevelandClinicfortheir researchstudiesrequirements.Researchfindings, oncecompletedinourCenter,canbesubmitted towardsfulfillmentofadegreefromthe candidate’sowninstitutions.

• ResearchFellowsareencouragedtopublish theirfindingsinAmericanandEuropean peer-reviewedjournals.

Research & Training Methods1. Hands-ontraininginrelevantlaboratory techniques

2. Personalmentorship

3. On-siteandonlinecourses

4. Literaturereviewtools

Faculty

ShyamAllamaneni,MD|2003–04Buffalo,NewYork

“The program inculcates a great deal of ability to do hard work, punctuality, sincerity, art of communication with professionals, feeling of responsibility and aptitude to

work as team-member in fellows. The fellows will learn how to do multiple tasks simultaneously and efficiently”

Testimonials from past Research Fellows

“This program helped me interact with many experts in the field of ART from around the world. My stay at the Cleveland Clinic helped me to obtain the position of Scientific Director of a leading

corporate hospital’s IVF program back in India.”

AlexC.Varghese,PhD|2007–08Calcutta,India

ResearchFellowship4|ClevelandClinicCenterforReproductiveMedicine

Clickhereformoretestimonials

Ashok Agarwal, PhD, HCLDDirector,CenterforReproductiveMedicineProfessor,LernerCollegeofMedicine

Edmund Sabanegh, MDChairman,DepartmentofUrologyHead,SectionofMaleInfertility

Sajal Gupta, MDAsst.ResearchCoordinatorCenterforReproductiveMedicine

Jeffrey M. Goldberg, MDHead,SectionofReproductiveEndocrinologyandInfertilityOB-GYN&Women’sHealthInstitute

Rakesh Sharma, PhDResearchCoordinatorCenterforReproductiveMedicine

Tommaso Falcone, MDChairman,ClevelandClinicOB-GYN&Women’sHealthInstitute

Research OverviewMale InfertilityOneofthemajorgoalsofourCenteristobetterunderstandthecausesofmaleinfertilityandtodesignstudiesaimedatimprovingsemenquality.Wehopethislineofresearchwilleventuallyresultinstrategiesthatwillenableustousethehealthiestspermatozoaforfertilizationtoimprovethechancesofpregnancy.

Alongtheseobjectives,wearecurrentlyinvolvedinprojectsevaluatingoxidativestress-inducednuclearDNAdamageanditseffectsonspermqualityandpregnancyoutcome.StudiesdesignedtounderstandhowfreeradicalscauseDNAdamageandthepossiblemethodstocounteractthemarecurrentlybeingconducted.Wearealsocurrentlyevaluatingtheroleofnutritionalsupplementsinreducingoxidativestressininfertilemenandincreasingthenumberofsuccessfulpregnancies.Furthermore,theeffectsoflifestylechoicesonmaleinfertility,suchassmokingandcellphoneusage,arebeingevaluatedinlaboratorystudies.Tolearnmoreaboutourmaleinfertilityresearchclickhere.

Female InfertilityThefocusofourresearchintheareaoffemaleinfertilityistounderstandtheetiologyofendometriosis,bothsuperficialanddeep,andstudythemechanismsassociatedwithinfertility.Acurrentprojectexaminestheroleofoxidativestressandinfertilityassociatedwithendometriosis.Inaddition,newmodelsarebeinginvestigatedtodeveloptechniquestooptimizecryopreservationofovariesandstudytheirfertilizingpotential.Weareexaminingischemia-relatedfollicularlossutilizingmicrovascularanastomosisforlong-termsurvivalandfertilizingpotentialusingsheepasthestudymodel.Also,newinnovativemethodsfortissuere-engineeringandenrichmentoftheovariangraftsarecurrentlybeingpursuedtoimprovepost-transplantationovariangraftviabilityandfunctionality.

Anotherareaofinterestisthevitrificationofembryos,blastocysts,andisolatedblastomeresinconjunctionwithinvasiveandnoninvasivetechniquesoffreezing.TheeffectofblastocystvitrificationonDNAdamagearebeingexamined.Foradditionalinformationonourfemaleinfertilityresearchclickhere.

Research Collaborators & International FacultyTheCenterforReproductiveMedicinehascollaborativerelationshipswithmanyhighlyesteemedscientistsandcliniciansfromover14countries.Someoftherenownedcollaboratorsinclude:

Stefan du Plessis PhD, MBASouth Africa

Nabil AzizMB, ChB, FRCOG, MDUnited Kingdom

Rima DadaMD, PhDIndia

Sandro EstevesMD, PhDBrazil

Uwe PaaschMD, PhDGermany

Giancarlo Balercia MD Italy

Philip KumanovMD, PhD, DMSciBulgaria

Juan Alvarez MD, PhD Spain

Research InnovationsTolearnaboutallourresearchinnovationsinmaleandfemaleinfertilityclickhere.

Scientific PublicationsOur researchers and faculty have published numerous articles in reputedscientific journals, including over 500 peer-reviewed original articles andreviews,morethan100chaptersinspecializedmedicalbooks,andovertwodozentextbookspertainingtohumanreproductionandinfertility.Inaddition,wehavepresentedover750researchpapersatnationalandinternationalmeetings.OurfacultyaremembersofeditorialboardsofesteemedmedicaljournalssuchasFertility Sterility, Urology, and Obstetrics & Gynecology.Tolearnmoreandviewourpublicationsclickhere.

ResearchFellowship5|ClevelandClinicCenterforReproductiveMedicine

About Cleveland ClinicLocatedinCleveland,Ohio,ClevelandClinicisanonprofit,multispecialtyacademicmedicalcenterthatintegratesclinicalandhospitalcarewithresearchandeducation.Foundedin1921byfourrenownedphysicianswithavisionofprovidingoutstandingpatientcarebasedupontheprinciplesofcooperation,compassionandinnovation,itisthesecondlargestgrouppracticeintheworldwith2,000physiciansandscientistspracticingandresearchinginmorethan120medicalspecialitieswithmorethan1,300beds.InadditiontothemainhospitallocatednearCleveland’shistoricUniversityCircle,theClevelandClinicoperatesnineregionalhospitals,achildren’shospital,and17familyhealthcentersinOhioaswellashospitalsinFlorida,LasVegas,Canada,andDubai,employingmorethan40,000individualsandprovidingglobalworld-classmedicalcare.Lastyearalone,3.7millionpatientsfromover80countriesandall50statesreceivedtheircareatClevelandClinic.

Themainhospitalcampus,locatedneardowntownCleveland,occupies180acresand50buildings.Itincludesahospital,anoutpatientclinic,achildren’shospital,cancerinstitute,eyeinstitute,researchinstitute,amedicalschoolandsupportinglabsandfacilities.Tolearnmore,visittheClevelandClinichomepage.

FacilitiesResearchandClinicalLaboratoriesoccupyover2500squarefeetofworkspacewithstate-of-the-artinstrumentsandfacilitiesforadvancedresearchinthepathophysiologyofmaleandfemalereproductivedysfunction.Instrumentsinclude:computerassistedsemenanalyzers,luminometerforoxidativestressmeasurements,equipmentforwesternblot,cultureroomequippedwithasterilehood,severalincubators,microscopes,aNarishigeandRImicromanipulatorfittedonaninvertedphase-contrastmicroscope,spectrophotometers,ELISAplatereader,centrifuges,liquidnitrogenstoragetanks,programmablefreezers,andcoldroom.ThecenterhasreadyaccesstooveradozenspecializedcorelaboratorieswithintheClevelandClinicResearchInstitute.Theseinclude:molecularbiotechnology,flowcytometry,geneexpression,andtransgenic/knockoutfacilities.Clickhereformoreinformationonthesecorelaboratories.

Takeavirtualtourofthecenter’slabs.

Theofficespaceforfellowsisequippedwithover2dozencomputerswithlaserprinters,scanners,copiers,andallthenecessarysoftwareprograms.AllcomputersinthecenterareconnectedtotheClevelandClinic’snetworksystemthatprovidesdirectaccesstomostonlinejournalsrelatedtothefieldofmedicine,urology,reproductivemedicine,andrology,etc.Alargecollectionofscientificjournals,electronicjournals/books,andotherdatabasesarealsoavailablethroughournewlymodernizedClevelandClinicAlumniLibrary.AteamofstatisticiansworkingintheDepartmentofQuantitativeHealthSciencesprovideresearchsupporttotheFellows,andtheArtsandGraphicsDepartmentsupportsthepreparationofresearchpostersandlectureslidesforpresentationsatnationalmeetings.

Center for Reproductive MedicineTheClevelandClinicCenterforReproductiveMedicineisajointprogramoftheGlickmanUrological&KidneyInstituteandtheObstetrics-Gynecology&Women’sHealthInstitute.Establishedin1993,theCenterisdedicatedtoitsmissionofresearch,physicianeducationandpatientcare.

TheCenterforReproductiveMedicinehasaninternationalreputationforexcellenceininnovativeresearchinhumanfertilityandisdedicatedtodisseminatingitsresults.ResearchpapersfromtheCenter’sfacultyareselectedregularlyforpublicationindistinguishedspecialtymedicaljournals.

TheCenter’swebsitehasbeenranked#1forresearchinreproductivemedicineandandrologysince2001bythetopfiveinternationalsearchengines,includingGoogleandAltavista.Morethan150physiciansandscientistsfromover40countrieshavereceivedtheirtrainingattheCenterforReproductiveMedicineinthepast18years.Also,morethan100pre-medandmedicalstudentshaveparticipatedinresearchinternshipswiththecenter.

ResearchFellowship6|ClevelandClinicCenterforReproductiveMedicine