Founded by John D. Rockefeller, the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research was incorporated on June 14, 1901. It was the first institution in the United States devoted solely to biomedical research--to understanding the underlying causes of disease.

Today, renamed Rockefeller University, it is one of the foremost research centers in the world, contributing to 23 Nobel Prizes as well as numerous other awards.

In its first century of accomplishment, Rockefeller was a leader in basic scientific research and graduate education. Among their many breakthroughs, world-renowned scientists at Rockefeller have

• Discovered that genes are made of DNA.
• Found the Rh factor in blood.
• Pioneered the physiology and chemistry of vision.
• Demonstrated the connection between cholesterol and heart disease.
• Developed vaccines against meningitis.
• Introduced methadone to manage heroin addiction.
• Discovered that distribution of proteins to various cellular compartments is accomplished by a "ZIP code" system.

The First U.S. Biomedical Research Center

At the time of Rockefeller's founding, infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, diphtheria and typhoid fever were considered the greatest known threats to human health. New research centers in Europe, including the Koch and Pasteur Institutes, were successfully applying laboratory science to understanding those and other diseases. Following their lead, The Rockefeller Institute became the first biomedical researcher center in the United States.

A Philanthropist's Vision Becomes Reality

Society's good fortune came, in part, as a result of personal tragedy. After John D. Rockefeller's grandson died from scarlet fever in January 1901, the capitalist and philanthropist moved to formalize plans for the research center he had been discussing for three years with his advisor Frederick T. Gates and his son John D. Rockefeller Jr. At first, the Rockefeller Institute awarded grants to study, among other health concerns, bacteria contamination in New York City's milk supply. After two years in temporary quarters, laboratories were opened in 1906 on the site of the former Schermerhorn farm at York Avenue (then called Avenue A) and 66th Street.

A New Kind of Hospital

The Rockefeller Hospital, crucial to the Institute’s mission, opened in 1910. The Hospital was the first center for clinical research in the United States, a place where researchers could bridge the gap between science and the bedside, studying diseases both in the laboratory and as they manifested in patients. Early on, researchers at the Hospital studied polio, heart disease and diabetes, among other diseases. The Rockefeller Hospital served as a model for dozens of other clinical research centers established in the next decades.

A Century of Scientific Breakthroughs

From the beginning, Rockefeller researchers made important contributions to understanding and curing disease.

• Simon Flexner, first director of the Institute, developed and distributed an anti-meningitis serum.
• Hideyo Noguchi studied the syphilis microbe and searched for the cause of yellow fever.
• Louise Pearce developed a drug to use against African sleeping sickness.
• Peyton Rous deduced that cancer can be caused by a virus.
• During World War I, the surgeon Alexis Carrel, a Nobel laureate, trained doctors headed for the front to sterilize wounds, and thus prevent infection, with up-to-date methods.

A Landmark Discovery: DNA is Genetic Code

By the 1930s, Rockefeller researchers also were delving into basic research to understand, for example, the physiology of nerve cells, how the immune system works and the biochemistry of proteins essential for life. Such fundamental research often led to unexpected findings. Oswald T. Avery came to Rockefeller in 1913 to study differences in virulence among strains of pneumococcus, a bacterium that causes severe pneumonia. Avery’s research, however, led him ultimately to discover in 1944 that DNA transmits hereditary information–a finding that would set the course for biological research for the rest of the century.

Creating the Science of Cell Biology

Other Rockefeller researchers created the science of cell biology in the 1940s. Making use of the newly developed electron microscope, which provided magnification hundreds of thousands of times that of traditional light microscopes, Rockefeller scientists were the first to see inside cells. They demonstrated that the fluid inside cells, which once had been considered an undifferentiated chemical soup, contained structures that carry out functions that cells need to live. Knowledge of how cells function underlies the understanding of, for example, cancer, aging and the immune system.

A University is Born

In 1955, Rockefeller expanded its mission to include education, admitting its first class of graduate students. It granted its first doctoral degrees in 1959. In 1965, The Rockefeller Institute became The Rockefeller University, broadening its research mandate further. In the early 1960s, new faculty with expertise in physics and mathematics came to Rockefeller. In 1972, the University began its collaboration with Cornell University to offer graduate students an M.D.-Ph.D. program. Later, the Sloan-Kettering Institute became a partner in the program.

Scientific Excellence Continues

Over the century, the biomedical sciences remained at the center of Rockefeller research. In the 1960s and 1970s, immunologists and protein chemists made Nobel Prize-winning contributions in determining the chemical structure of antibodies–key immune-system molecules–and inventing new methods for studying and synthesizing protein molecules.

In the last few years, Rockefeller researchers have

• Determined the shape of telomeres (bits of DNA on the end of chromosomes that tell a cell when to die).
• Located genes regulating the sleep/wake cycle.
• Identified genes influencing obesity.
• Solved the structure of RNA polymerase (an enzyme responsible for the read-out of DNA into RNA).
• Determined the structure of the potassium ion channel–a finding that provides insights into the function of the nervous system.

The Rockefeller University in the 21st Century

Like their predecessors early in the 20th century, some Rockefeller researchers today seek to solve urgent public health problems. Others focus on basic research. Various laboratories study bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics, multidrug treatments for AIDS and genetic causes of cancer. Others are devoted to understanding the brain–how it develops during embryonic growth; how it makes sense of sights, sounds and smells; and what happens when Alzheimer’s disease develops. In addition, faculty focus their research on human genetics, molecular biology, neuroscience and protein chemistry.

In recent years, Rockefeller has expanded its faculty, attracting talented young researchers with creative new approaches to understanding the basic science of disease and the development of treatments. New research areas include the interfaces between physics and biology and between chemistry and biology, as well as computational biology.

When Rockefeller was founded a century ago, its researchers sought to conquer infectious diseases--the biggest killers of the day--in the new century. Today, the genetic basis of cancer, heart disease, and mental illness constitute a similar challenge. Looking ahead to a second century of endeavor, leading scientists at The Rockefeller University remain dedicated to unlocking the mysteries of basic science that will lead to longer, healthier human life.