Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute (CHORI) is a biomedical research institute affiliated with California’s pediatric medical center, UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland. CHORI is based in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the B ...

, and operates a biomedical research facility that houses 300 staff members. It includes eigh
research centers
that conduct focused research on

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal bl ...

critical care medicine Intensive care medicine, also called critical care medicine, is a medical specialty that deals with seriously or critically ill patients who have, are at risk of, or are recovering from conditions that may be life-threatening. It includes pro ...

genetics Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in organisms.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is an important branch in biology because heredity is vital to organisms' evolution. Gregor Mendel, a Moravian Augustinian friar wor ...

, immunobiology and

vaccine A vaccine is a biological preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious or malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verified.

development, blood and marrow transplantation and cellular therapies,

nutrition Nutrition is the biochemical and physiological process by which an organism uses food to support its life. It provides organisms with nutrients, which can be metabolized to create energy and chemical structures. Failure to obtain sufficient ...

and

metabolism Metabolism (, from el, μεταβολή ''metabolē'', "change") is the set of life-sustaining chemical reactions in organisms. The three main functions of metabolism are: the conversion of the energy in food to energy available to run ...

, prevention of

obesity Obesity is a medical condition, sometimes considered a disease, in which excess body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it may negatively affect health. People are classified as obese when their body mass index (BMI)—a person's ...

cardiovascular disease Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. CVD includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack). Other CVDs include stroke, ...

and

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level (hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ap ...

sickle cell disease Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a group of blood disorders typically inherited from a person's parents. The most common type is known as sickle cell anaemia. It results in an abnormality in the oxygen-carrying protein haemoglobin found in red blo ...

and

thalassemia Thalassemias are inherited blood disorders characterized by decreased hemoglobin production. Symptoms depend on the type and can vary from none to severe. Often there is mild to severe anemia (low red blood cells or hemoglobin). Anemia can resul ...

. The

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in the late ...

is CHORI's primary funding source.

Research Centers

* Center for Cancer * Center for Critical Care Medicine * Center for Genetics * Center for Immunobiology & Vaccine Development * The Jordan Family Center for Blood and Marrow Transplantation and Cellular Therapies Research * Center for Nutrition & Metabolism * Center for Prevention of Obesity, Cardiovascular Disease & Diabetes * Center for Sickle Cell Disease & Thalassemia

Research Services

* BACPAC Resource Center * Cell Sorting * Elemental Analysis * Genetic Testing * Mass Spectrometry * Microscope Imaging * Molecular Diagnostics * Sibling Donor Cord Blood

Research Applications

CHORI’s translational research applications include providing cures for blood diseases, developing new vaccines for infectious diseases, and discovering new treatment protocols for previously fatal or debilitating conditions such as cancers, sickle cell disease and thalassemia, diabetes, asthma, HIV/AIDS, pediatric obesity, nutritional deficiencies, birth defects, hemophilia and cystic fibrosis. CHORI is also a teaching institut

with educational programs for high school, college, doctoral and post-doctoral students.

Research Achievements

CHORI is the first research institute in North America to transplant and cure a child with Alpha-thalassemia, alpha thalassemia major, is a leading center for the use of cord blood and bone marrow transplantation in children with sickle cell anemia and thalassemia, and offers the only not-for-profit Sibling Donor Cord Blood Program in the world. The Research Institute’s recombinant DNA library contains over 20 million DNA samples that are used in research programs around the world.

History

CHORI began in 1959 with a small group of scientists and initial financial support from Children’s Hospital Oakland and the family of Lt. Bruce Lyon. Founded as the Bruce Lyon Memorial Research Laboratory (BLMRL), it was the first research laboratory in Northern California dedicated exclusively to children’s diseases. BLMRL was renamed “CHORI,” the research branch of the newly name
Children's Hospital & Research Center Oakland
in 1986. In 1999, CHORI moved to the former University High School campus, where it is currently located.

References

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External links

Official site

Children's Hospital & Research Center Foundation
Healthcare in Oakland, California Research and development in the United States Research institutes in the San Francisco Bay Area Pediatrics in the United States Gene banks