Biohub

Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, also known as Biohub and CZ 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, UCSF and Stanford.[6][7] The Biohub’s medical science research center is funded by a $600 million commitment from Facebook CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan. It is currently co-led by Stephen Quake and Joseph DeRisi. Gajus Worthington was named as Biohub's Chief Operating Officer in 2017 and Sandra Schmid joined as Chief Scientific Officer in 2020.[8][9]

Biohub
Established2016
PresidentJoseph DeRisi, Stephen Quake
Endowment$600 million
Location
Mission Bay
,
San Francisco
,
California
,
United States
Coordinates37°45′57″N 122°23′16″W
Websitewww.czbiohub.org

History

The idea for Biohub originated in 2015 when the current leaders, along with Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan, discussed the need for a collaborative effort by those three universities for fundamental medical research.[10]

The organization's aims are to cure, prevent, and manage disease by investigating diseases and developing diagnostics and therapies. It focuses on cell biology, detection of infectious diseases around the world, developing research tools, and funding research. [9]

Biohub is presently headquartered next to UCSF's Mission Bay campus, with a satellite site at Stanford. It will provide basic researchers and clinical scientists with flexible laboratory space, the latest technological tools, and funding for ambitious research projects.

The Chan Zuckerberg Biohub consists of an internal team of researchers and “investigators” from the three universities.

Joe DeRisi is co-president of CZ Biohub and a professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics at the University of California, San Francisco. DeRisi is known for his discovery of the SARS virus for which he was named a MacArthur fellow (the "Genius" award) in 2004.[11][12]

Co-president Steve Quake is the Lee Otterson Professor of Bioengineering and Professor of Applied Physics at Stanford University. Dr. Quake is also well known for his work inventing new diagnostic tools, including the first non-invasive prenatal test for Down syndrome, and other aneuploidies.

Jennifer Doudna, UC Berkeley professor of molecular and cell biology and chemistry, Li Ka Shing Chancellor's Chair in Biomedical and Health Sciences, and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, is a member of Biohub's Science Advisory Group. Dr. Doudna is known for her pioneering work on CRISPR-Cas9, a gene-editing technology that has the potential to revolutionize genetics, molecular biology, and medicine.[13]

Biohub will allow researchers at leading institutions to collaborate and accelerate the development of breakthrough scientific and medical advancements, applications, and therapeutics. Scientists chosen for the initial 47 research positions are working on a wide range of projects, but the selection committee tried to focus on new technologies and the basic science and mechanism behind diseases.[14][15][16][17] This includes 13 from UC Berkeley,[18] 15 from UCSF,[19] and 19 from Stanford.[20] The 2018 awards were chosen in late 2018.[21] Biohub is structured as a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, but it has retained close control of the outcomes of its efforts, including patent rights.[22] To increase access to scientific research and promote open science, CZ Biohub requires its investigators and staff scientists to publish submitted manuscripts and related data on preprints servers like bioRxiv.[6][23]

Two of the three universities in Biohub already have affiliations with major medical research facilities. Stanford University is affiliated with the VA Palo Alto Health Care System. VAPAHCS maintains the third-largest research program in the VA with extensive research centers in geriatrics, mental health, Alzheimer's disease, spinal cord regeneration, schizophrenia, Rehabilitation Research and Development Center, HIV research, and a Health Economics Resource Center. UC San Francisco is affiliated with the UCSF Medical Center, the leading hospital in California, and the San Francisco VA Medical Center. SFVAMC has the largest funded research program in the Veterans Health Administration with $90.2 million in research expenditures (2015). The current Medical Center Director is Bonnie S. Graham. UC Berkeley, though not having a hospital affiliation, has a premier research botanical garden, the University of California Botanical Garden. This and other botanical gardens will serve as a resource for Biohub pharmacology research.

The Biohub has played a role in: COVID-19 response, the identification of viruses using metagenomic sequencing data, advanced 3D imaging, the Human Cell Atlas, infectious disease research, and the biology of mosquitos.[5][24][25][26][27][28]

Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg's other philanthropy, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, has recently provided grant funding for an AI tool to make millions of published medical/scientific findings more readily accessible.[29]

References
  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. Kaiser, Jocelyn (February 8, 2017). "Chan Zuckerberg Biohub funds first crop of 47 investigators". sciencemag.com. 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. "Dr. Sandra Schmid". bizjournals.com. May 4, 2020. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  9. 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.
  11. "UCSF virus hunter DeRisi wins Heinz award". sfgate.com. September 10, 2008. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  12. Ledford, Heidi (October 6, 2018). "Blood test for Down's syndrome unveiled". nature.com. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  13. Ledford, Heidi (October 6, 2018). "Blood test for Down's syndrome unveiled". nature.com. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  14. 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.
  15. Kaiser, Jocelyn (February 7, 2017). "Chan Zuckerberg Biohub funds first crop of 47 investigators". Science. AAAS.
  16. Buhr, Sarah (February 7, 2017). "The Chan Zuckerberg Biohub invests $50 million in its first 47 research initiatives". TechCrunch.
  17. "Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Awards $50M+ to 47 Investigators". Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News. February 8, 2017.
  18. Sanders, Robert (February 8, 2017). "CZ Biohub awards nearly $14.5 million to Berkeley researchers". Berkeley News.
  19. Billings, Mike (February 7, 2017). "15 UCSF Researchers Named to First Cohort of Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Investigators". UC San Francisco.
  20. "Stanford faculty named in first cohort of Chan Zuckerberg Biohub investigators". Stanford News. February 8, 2017.
  21. https://www.czbiohub.org/competition/%5B%5D
  22. Levine, Martin (November 4, 2016). "CZI's Biohub: Who Will Benefit If It Hits a Health Homerun?". Nonprofit Quarterly.
  23. "FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: CHAN ZUCKERBERG BIOHUB INTERCAMPUS RESEARCH AWARDS". czbiohub.org. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  24. Heger, Monica (June 24, 2019). "Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Aims to Enable Infectious Disease Sequencing Globally". genomeweb.com. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  25. Robbins, Rebecca (September 4, 2019). "Deep-learning AI technique helps scientists see more clearly inside the cell". statenews.com. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  26. Molteni, Megan (October 1, 2018). "The Human Cell Atlas Is Biologists' Latest Grand Project". wired.com. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  27. Rozenblatt-Rosen, Orit (October 17, 2017). "The Human Cell Atlas: from vision to reality". statenews.com. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  28. Cepelewicz, Jordana (February 12, 2020). "New Clues About 'Ambigram' Viruses With Strange Reversible Genes". quantamagazine.com. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  29. Conti, Katheleen (January 16, 2018). "Chan Zuckerberg philanthropy taps UMass Amherst to create AI scientific research tool". The Boston Globe.
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