Institutes, Centers and Programs | Duke Department of Pediatrics

The Department of Pediatrics is one of 14 clinical departments in the Duke School of Medicine engaged in breakthrough science. Duke Pediatrics researchers work in collaboration at the following department-based institutes, research centers and programs.

Department of Pediatrics Institutes, Centers and Programs

Children's Health & Discovery Initiative

For more than eight decades, the faculty and staff in the Department of Pediatrics at Duke University School of Medicine have conducted pioneering child health research, and expertly trained future pediatrician-scientists. Now, under the umbrella of the recently launched Children's Health & Discovery Initiative, these efforts will have an even bigger and broader impact. By bringing together pediatric physician-scientists and faculty experts from a variety of fields across the Duke campus, the new initiative will drive multidisciplinary research collaborations focused on improving children's health and identifying pediatric origins of disease.

Y.T. and Alice Chen Pediatric Genetics and Genomics Research Center

In April 2006, Myozyme (recombinant acid alpha-glucosidase) was approved by the FDA for use in patients with Pompe disease, representing the culmination of efforts by YT Chen, MD, PhD, and colleagues to develop a life-saving treatment for this deadly condition. With the goal of reproducing the bench-to-bedside approach that generated alglucosidase alfa and now offers hope for patients with Pompe disease, the Chens made a gift to the Department of Pediatrics to establish the Alice and YT Chen Pediatric Genetics and Genomics Research Center. This initiative focuses on single gene disorders amenable to treatment approaches such as enzyme replacement therapy, small molecule therapy, substrate therapy, gene therapy, and others. Priya Kishnani, MD, Chief of the Division of Medical Genetics and the lead investigator in the international clinical trials of Myozyme, serves as the Medical Director of the Center.

Duke Center for Childhood Obesity Research (DCCOR)

The overall mission of the Duke Center for Childhood Obesity Research (DCCOR) is to advance effective and equitable obesity prevention and treatment by conducting innovative interdisciplinary research to achieve optimal health for all children. DCCOR conducts independent, groundbreaking research that seeks to change practice and policy to help children lead healthier lives.

Duke FusOnC2 Center

Corinne Linardic, MD, PhD and Christopher Counter, PhD are leading a team that has been awarded a federal grant to study one of the least-understood but most-fatal forms of childhood cancer, fusion-positive alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma (ARMS). The $5.8 million, five-year grant is part of the Cancer Moonshot Initiative, a National Institutes of Health program dedicating $1.8 billion over seven years to accelerating the discovery of new ways to prevent, diagnose, and cure cancer.

Pediatric Statistics and Data Sciences Support Core

The mission of the Pediatric Statistics and Data Sciences Support Core is to facilitate cutting-edge scientific studies by providing expertise in biostatistics and informatics and to enhance the education and mentoring of junior faculty and trainees with research interests in children's health. The Pediatric Statistics and Data Sciences Support Core is a collaboration between the Department of Pediatrics Office of the Vice Chair for Research and the Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Research Design (BERD) Core, part of Duke’s Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (CTSI).

Jean and George Brumley, Jr. Neonatal Perinatal Research Institute (NPRI)

The Jean and George Brumley, Jr. Neonatal Perinatal Research Institute (NPRI), established in 1997, is dedicated to developmental biology and focuses its research on the serious health problems of newborns. Among the areas of active investigation are the mechanisms of brain, lung and cardiovascular injury and the cellular etiology of birth defects.

Duke University Institutes and Research Centers

Department of Pediatrics researchers also work in collaboration at the following university institutes and research centers. In addition, our investigators benefit from the services provided by the institution's numerous core research facilities, which provide researchers with sophisticated equipment, knowledgeable advisors, and experienced support staff to facilitate discovery.