About the A&I Fellowship

First- and second-year fellows attend a Friday Conference.

Credit: NIAID

The majority (80%) of the first year of training in the Allergy & Immunology (A&I) Fellowship Program is dedicated to clinical activities, with intensive exposure to the broad spectrum of allergic and immunologic diseases in children and adults. Clinical rotations covering outpatient and inpatient aspects of the specialty are completed at the NIH Clinical Center (outpatient clinics, inpatient ward, allergy and immunology consultation service, and pulmonary function lab), the Children's National Medical Center (pediatric allergy and immunology; pediatric consultations), and the Johns Hopkins Pediatric Allergy Clinic (pediatric allergy, with a focus on food allergy).  

In the second year of training, 20% of time is devoted to direct clinical activities, including a monthly primary immunodeficiency clinic at NIH, allergy continuity clinic, and coverage of the NIH Clinical Center Allergy and Immunology Consultation Service.  The training program complies with the requirements of the ACGME and the American Board of Allergy and Immunology (ABAI).  Fellows who successfully complete all training program requirements in the first two years are eligible to sit for the American Board of Allergy and Immunology Certification Examination.

Research Training

The core of this clinical fellowship program is the effort devoted to research training and performing original basic, translational, and clinical research. Fellows work under the direct supervision and mentorship of senior NIAID investigators. The research experience is characterized by close contact with the preceptor, individual instruction, and continuity during the training period. The goal of the research training is to provide a productive experience leading to the development of successful independent investigators.

Fellows perform clinical research and/or laboratory research for about 10 percent of the time during the first year, 60 percent in the second year, and exclusively in the third year. Allergy and immunology fellows may request to work in any of the laboratories within the intramural NIAID program. Research opportunities involve a wide range of investigations in various aspects of allergy and immunology. These range from basic cell and molecular biology or immunology to clinical research endeavors:

• Biology of mast cells, basophils, or eosinophils and clinical programs or clinical trials targeting these cells in diseases
• Pathophysiology and treatment of anaphylaxis and other allergic disorders
• Effect of cytokines on cellular responses
• Diagnosis of and host responses to infectious agents
• Diagnosis, molecular characterization, and treatment of primary immune deficiency disorders
• Biology and mechanisms of food allergy
• Role of antibody and cellular immune systems in inflammation and autoimmunity
• Function of cellular receptors for immunoglobulin, cytokines, and matrix components
• Basis of mucosal immunity
• Humoral and cellular immunoregulation and immunoregulatory defects
• Bology of polymorphonuclear leukocytes, monocytes, and macrophages
• Pathogenesis of HIV
• Vaccine immunology and vaccine clinical trials