Pioneering research in many fields such as reproductive endocrinology, genetics, infectious diseases, trauma and respiratory medicine has brought worldwide attention to the Harbor-UCLA campus. Among the major milestones are: • In 1984, Harbor-UCLA was the first institution in the world to achieve successful pregnancies using the technique of ovum transfer. The research team was directed by Dr.
John Buster that performed history's first
embryo transfer from one woman to another resulting in a
live birth and led to the announcement on February 3, 1984. In the procedure, an
embryo that was just beginning to develop was transferred from one woman in whom it had been conceived by
artificial insemination to another woman who gave birth to the infant 38 weeks later. The sperm used in the artificial insemination came from the husband of the woman who bore the baby. This scientific breakthrough established standards and became an agent of change for women suffering from the afflictions of infertility and for women who did not want to pass on genetic disorders to their children. Donor embryo transfer has given women a mechanism to become pregnant and give birth to a child that will contain their husband's genetic makeup. Although donor embryo transfer as practiced today has evolved from the original non-surgical method, it now accounts for approximately 5% of in vitro fertilization recorded births. This work established the technical foundation and legal-ethical framework surrounding the clinical use of human
oocyte and
embryo donation, a mainstream clinical practice, which has evolved over the past 25 years. in the United States to infertile women, who otherwise would not have had children by any other existing method. • The discovery by A.F. Parlow, PhD, of the molecular structure of the human follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone. The Parlow Pituitary Hormone and Antisera Laboratory produces highly purified pituitary components which are used in research and therapy around the world. One of the hormones produced, human growth hormone, is used to prevent severe growth retardation in thousands of children around the world. • Dr. Delbert Fisher was the first to comprehensively characterize the ontogenesis of fetal thyroid development. He went on to conceptualize and then develop a simple, highly effective newborn screening test for congenital hypothyroidism, including developing the micro assay methods that made it possible to screen on a national scale. • Internationally renowned genetics research to help treat and prevent short stature, led by Dr.
David Rimoin. He was responsible for early work on disorders of growth hormone metabolism, for expanding the knowledge of dwarfism and developing the $2.2 million Skeletal Dysplasia Center at Harbor-UCLA. • Dr.
J. Michael Criley's cardiac research into improved cardiac resuscitation techniques and better training of emergency paramedics, leading to the country's first hospital-based paramedic training program. • A major discovery in defining the basic biochemical defect in a skin disease, known as
x-linked ichthyosis. Dr. Larry Shapiro's discovery that this was a hereditary disease was a significant breakthrough and led to improved treatment strategies. • Dr.
Michael Kaback's advances in developing and improving screening for
Tay–Sachs disease, an inherited, fatal disorder. Harbor-UCLA has become the headquarters for the California and international screening programs for the disease. • Definitive studies of lung surfactant have resulted in saving the lives of thousands of premature infants who would have died because of immature lungs. • The establishment of the UCLA Center for Vaccine Research. Work at the center has contributed to the licensure of several new vaccines and to the establishment of new national recommendations for childhood immunizations. These new vaccines have protected millions of newborns, children and adults from diseases such as meningitis, whooping cough and pneumonia. • The development of
scintimammography to detect
breast cancer without invasive biopsies, is one of the many imaging procedures developed at Harbor-UCLA. • A detachable
balloon catheter, an artificial elbow, and an implant for use in maxillofacial surgery, are among the many devices developed here. • The receipt of a $1 million grant from the
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the
Pew Charitable Trusts to redesign how patient care is delivered. Harbor-UCLA was one of 20 hospitals nationwide—and the only one on the
West Coast—to be awarded the grant. As a result, culture shifts occurred which emphasize leadership, community and the development of interdisciplinary collaboration. The grant also provided seed money and resources to assist with individual and group development. • FDA approves Endari, developed by Dr. Yutaka Niihara, the first treatment for sickle-cell disease in almost 20 years, and the first ever approved for children ==Controversial research practices==