Chan Zuckerberg Biohub

Coordinates: 37°45′57″N 122°23′16″W / 37.765807°N 122.387716°W / 37.765807; -122.387716
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Chan Zuckerberg Biohub
Established2016; 8 years ago (2016)
PresidentJoseph DeRisi
EndowmentUS$600 million
Location, , ,
Coordinates37°45′57″N 122°23′16″W / 37.765807°N 122.387716°W / 37.765807; -122.387716
Websitewww.czbiohub.org Edit this at Wikidata

Chan Zuckerberg Biohub (CZ Biohub), or simply Biohub, is a nonprofit research organization.[1][2][3][4][5] In addition to supporting and conducting original research, CZ Biohub acts as a hub and fosters science collaboration between UC Berkeley, UC San Francisco (UCSF) and Stanford.[6][7] The Biohub is funded by a $600 million contribution from Facebook CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan. It was co-led by Stephen Quake and Joseph DeRisi from its inception in 2016 until 2022, when Quake left to become president of the Biohub Network. Sandra Schmid joined as Chief Scientific Officer in 2020.[8][9]

History[edit]

The idea for CZ Biohub originated in 2015 when DeRisi and Quake, along with Chan and Zuckerberg, agreed on the need for a collaborative alliance of Stanford University, UC San Francisco and UC Berkeley devoted to fundamental biomedical research.[10] The organization was established in 2016, funded by a $600 million endowment from Chan and Zuckerberg.[11] DeRisi and Quake led the organization as co-presidents[12] for the first five years, before Quake became the president of the CZ Biohub Network when that initiative launched in 2022.[13] Gajus Worthington was named as Biohub's Chief Operating Officer in 2017; he left the position in 2022.

In 2017, CZ Biohub selected an initial group of scientists for its first cohort of Investigators, individuals chosen from the three partner universities to each receive $1 million in funding for five years of innovative research in the life sciences.[14][15] In total, the organization provided $50 million to 47 individuals in research positions working on a range of projects.[16][17]

In 2021, Chan and Zuckerberg announced that they intended to provide a further $800 million to $1 billion to CZ Biohub over 10 years, extending the organization's funding through 2031.[18][19]

The organization selected its second cohort of Investigators in 2022. It awarded grants of $1 million each to 86 individual researchers from multiple science and health-related disciplines at Stanford University, UC Berkeley, and UCSF to support five years of research.[20]

Organization[edit]

The Biohub is a non-profit biomedical research organization[21] that was created to support the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative's efforts to cure, prevent, or manage all disease by the end of the century.[22] Its aim is to facilitate collaboration between medical, scientific, and engineering researchers from three Bay Area institutions: Stanford University, the University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley), and UC San Francisco (UCSF).[13] It also supports research by its own scientists and engineers in its own facilities. It is organized as both a research institute and a network for researchers to find overlap between their own work and scientists and engineers working in different areas or disciplines, to help accelerate research.[12]

The organization's president is Joseph DeRisi, a professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics at UCSF. DeRisi is known for inventing genomic tools to rapidly identify unknown pathogens, work for which he was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2004.[23][24] Sandra Schmid joined the organization as its chief scientific officer in 2020.[8][9] As of 2020, the Biohub had 100 employees including operations staff, scientists, data scientists and engineers.[12] Its headquarters are located In San Francisco, adjacent to UCSF's Mission Bay campus.[25]

Research programs[edit]

The Biohub's research is organized around two main projects: a quantitative approach to cell science,[26] including mapping different types of cells; and an infectious disease initiative,[27] which includes research on infection and immunity as well as developing techniques for early detection of emerging pathogens around the world.[24] Additionally, the organization's technology platform teams develop new technology and tools for biomedical research, and for clinical and public health applications.[25][28]

The Biohub allocates one third of its funding towards its extramural programs.[12] The Investigator Program provides five years of funding to scientists from a variety of disciplines who are faculty members at Stanford University, UC Berkeley, and UCSF.[20] As a requirement of the program, investigators meet up twice a month to share findings. The meetings are intended to encourage collaboration and accelerate development of scientific and medical advancements through finding commonalities investigators might not otherwise have known about.[12] The investigator grants are unrestricted, and focused on supporting research that may not be sufficiently developed to qualify for funding from the pharmaceutical industry or the National Institutes of Health.[25]

To increase access to scientific research and promote open science, CZ Biohub requires its Investigators and staff scientists to post submitted manuscripts and related data on preprint servers such as bioRxiv at the same time they are submitted to journals for publication.[6][12]

Structure and funding[edit]

CZ Biohub is structured as a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, but it has retained close control of the outcomes of its efforts, including patent rights.[29] The Biohub operates independently from CZI but partners with it on some initiatives and programs.[21] In 2016, CZI formed the Biohub with a $600 million endowment over 10 years.[12] In December 2021, CZI announced it was committing up to $1 billion in further funding to support the Biohub's operations through 2031.[18][19]

Biohub Network[edit]

In December 2021, Chan and Zuckerberg announced that they were providing $1 billion in funding to develop a network of Biohubs to focus on their goal of longer-term research over 10 to 15 years into "scientific challenges".[18] The Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Network was launched with the goal of connecting co-located scientific institutions in other areas of the US, beyond the initial CZ Biohub group in the Bay Area, to work together on research into major issues.[19][13]

Stephen Quake is the president of the CZ Biohub Network, and head of science at the Chan Zuckerberg Institute.[13][30]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Anwar, Yasmin (September 21, 2016). "UC Berkeley to partner in $600M Chan Zuckerberg science 'Biohub'". Berkeley News.
  2. ^ Farley, Pete; Anwar, Yasmin; Adams, Amy (October 24, 2018). "$600M Chan Zuckerberg 'Biohub' led by UCSF, UC Berkeley announced". University of California.
  3. ^ "CZ BIOHUB Trademark Application of Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, Inc. - Serial Number 87375113". Justia Trademarks.
  4. ^ Hatmaker, Taylor (April 29, 2020). "CZI teams up with UCSF and Stanford to research COVID-19's prevalence in the Bay Area". techcrunch.com. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  5. ^ Lewis, Michael (April 16, 2020). "Notes From A Pandemic: The Covid Test Lab That Could Save America". bloomberg.com. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  6. ^ a b Kaiser, Jocelyn (February 8, 2017). "Chan Zuckerberg Biohub funds first crop of 47 investigators". sciencemag.com. AAAS. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  7. ^ McGrane, Clare (October 3, 2018). "Chan Zuckerberg Biohub launches open-access database of mouse cells to fuel research". geekwire.com. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  8. ^ a b "Dr. Sandra Schmid". bizjournals.com. May 4, 2020. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  9. ^ a b Yong, Ed (October 16, 2018). "A Simpler Way to Get to the Bottom of Mysterious Illnesses in Poor Countries". theatlantic.com. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  10. ^ Bai, Nina (September 21, 2016). "Joe DeRisi on How the Biohub Will Create Opportunities for Research Collaboration". UC San Francisco. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
  11. ^ Offord, Catherine (December 9, 2021). "CZI Pledges Billions More Dollars in Science Funding". The Scientist. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g DeFrancesco, Laura (October 1, 2020). "The making of the Biohub". Nature Biotechnology. 38 (10): 1116ñ1120. doi:10.1038/s41587-020-0685-y. ISSN 1546-1696. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
  13. ^ a b c d Leuty, Ron (December 7, 2021). "Chan Zuckerberg Initiative outlines multibillion-dollar plans to extend Chan Zuckerberg Initiative's Bay Area Biohub, build out imaging institute - San Francisco Business Times". San Francisco Business Times. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
  14. ^ "Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Awards $50M+ to 47 Investigators". Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News. February 8, 2017.
  15. ^ Kaiser, Jocelyn (February 7, 2017). "Chan Zuckerberg Biohub funds first crop of 47 investigators". Science. AAAS.
  16. ^ Ramsey, Lydia (February 8, 2017). "Here's how the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub picked scientists as part of its plan to cure all diseases". Business Insider.
  17. ^ Buhr, Sarah (February 7, 2017). "The Chan Zuckerberg Biohub invests $50 million in its first 47 research initiatives". TechCrunch.
  18. ^ a b c "Chan Zuckerberg Initiative announces biomedical science initiative". Philanthropy News Digest (PND). December 8, 2021. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
  19. ^ a b c Hadero, Haleluya (December 7, 2021). "Zuckerberg, Chan to invest up to $3.4B for science advances". AP News. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
  20. ^ a b "Chan Zuckerberg Biohub awards $86 million in investigator grants". Philanthropy News Digest (PND). January 13, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  21. ^ a b Alexander, Donovan (January 6, 2019). "Mark Zuckerbergís $5 Billion Project to End Disease Within a Generation". Interesting Engineering. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  22. ^ Farr, Christina (September 15, 2018). "Mark Zuckerberg is selling up to $13 billion of Facebook stock to fund an ambitious project to end disease: Here's an early look inside". CNBC. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
  23. ^ "UCSF virus hunter DeRisi wins Heinz award". sfgate.com. September 10, 2008. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  24. ^ a b Kahn, Jennifer (June 10, 2021). "The Disease Detective". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
  25. ^ a b c Siu, Antoinette (February 23, 2017). "Staked with $600 million, the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub is writing new rules for life science research". San Francisco Business Times. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
  26. ^ "CZ Biohub | Quantitative Cell Science". CZ Biohub. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  27. ^ Park, Andrea (December 9, 2021). "Chan Zuckerberg Initiative to pour $3.4B over 10 years into AI, imaging and other tech to unravel biomedical challenges". Fierce Biotech. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  28. ^ "CZ Biohub | Technology Platforms". CZ Biohub. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  29. ^ Levine, Martin (November 4, 2016). "CZI's Biohub: Who Will Benefit If It Hits a Health Homerun?". Nonprofit Quarterly.
  30. ^ "Chan Zuckerberg Initiative: Cori Bargmann Steps Down As Science Head, Stephen Quake To Take Over". ABP Live. June 24, 2022. Retrieved October 3, 2022.

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