Research Discoveries Highlights
The Medical Research Institute is distinguished by its many important contributions to biomedical and behavioral research:
1950s: Development of the membrane oxygenator type heart-lung machine for use in open-heart surgery.
1960: Insights into the intellectual and behavioral after effects of viral encephalitis.
1965: Developed and implemented the first computer-based respiratory monitoring system in an intensive care unit in
1979: Designated as one of nine Public Health Service Alcohol Research Centers in the nation and the only center studying the epidemiology of alcohol problems.
1980: Found evidence for an abnormal antibody to the nerve cells in the blood serum of some amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease) patients.
1981: Development of a computerized technique to measure visual abilities in infants as young as three weeks of age.
1981: Work demonstrating for the first time how cancer drugs are taken up by leukemia cells in tissue culture and how this correlates closely with uptake in patients.
1982: Method developed for isolating the enzyme inhibitor alpha-1-antitrypsin in sufficient quantities to use in replace ment therapy to prevent or control lung disease.
1982: Pioneered a pharmacological treatment for the correction of strabismus (crossed eyes).
1983: Developed leukapheresis for the treatment of hairy cell leukemia.
1984: First reported successful use of the Left Ventricle Assist Device as a "bridge" from critical cardiac failure to organ transplantation.
1984: Landmark national epidemiological study identified, for the first time, differences in the characteristics of groups at high risk for alcohol problems among whites, blacks, and hispanics.
1991: Method of diagnosing diabetes developed utilizing the intravital microscope to study the blood vessels under the nail fold.
1991: Seven year clinical trial established that treatment of isolated systolic hypertension helps to prevent strokes.
1992: First report in world's literature demonstrating the efficacy of the antibiotic Azithromydn in treatment of Mycobacterium avium complex in AIDS patients.
1992: Published the first report documenting that mutations in the tumor suppressor gene, p53, result in an aggressive form of breast cancer.
1994: Researchers obtain first glimpses of the role that the gene Id-1 may play in the development of breast cancer.
1997: CPMCRI launches its research program in complementary medicine.
2000: The Longevity Consortium at CPMCRI’s Coordinating Center is founded (supported by a grant from the National Institute on Aging) with the aim to test the function of gene variations that contribute to human longevity and aging.
2003: CPMCRI launches the Centers of Research in Clinical Excellence (CRCLE), which benefits patients by coupling state-of-the-art clinical care with advanced information gathering.
2007: The Addiction and Pharmacology Research Laboratory (APRL) opens on the St. Luke’s Campus of CPMC.
2012: Researchers at CPMCRI identified the first-ever blood test to determine rejection in kidney transplant patients, without the need for biopsy.
Donald Hill, M.D.; Frank Gerbode, M.D.; John J. Osborn; Mogens Bramson