Fetal origins of disease research at OHSU

1959

Herbert Griswold, M.D., created Heart Research Laboratory to be housed in the not yet completed Medical Research Building.

1961

James Metcalfe, M.D., hired from Harvard Medical School as first director of the Heart Research Laboratory. The Heart Research Laboratory studied pregnancy and fetal development long before the early origins of disease was discovered.

1988

David Barker, M.D., Ph.D., the father of the field of developmental origins of health and disease, and Kent Thornburg, Ph.D., met at an international scientific meeting.

1994

OHSU Heart Research Center (HRC) began as official entity. Kent Thornburg, Ph.D., named director.

First annual HRC lecture: 'Born Bigger … Live Longer,' presented by David Barker, M.D., Ph.D.

1997 - present

Thornburg program project grant funded by NICHD: Maternofetal Signaling and Lifelong Consequences.

1999

Kent Thornburg, Ph.D., convened an international conference on Fetal Origins of Adult Disease in San Diego, CA. The group that became the DOHaD council met there to organize the idea of an international organization.

2003

David Barker, M.D., Ph.D., joined OHSU faculty and Heart Research Center to collaborate more closely with Kent Thornburg, Ph.D. and his lab on the study of pregnancy and fetal development.

The International Society for the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease formed with Thornburg and Barker on Council. The society now includes over 500 members from 35 countries.

Kevin Grove, Ph.D., awarded NIH grant to determine how brain chemistry in early life affects abnormal body weight management during adulthood.

2005

David Barker, M.D., Ph.D., awarded Danone International Nutrition Award.

2006 - 2008

Oregon Women’s Study — funded by Northwest Health Foundation, Collins Medical Trust and private donors. A study of 150 women of childbearing age in Klamath Falls, OR to determine how food intake of pregnant women influences growth patterns of fetus and later the infant through its first year. Cynthia Morris, Ph.D., served as principal investigator.

2007

Heart Research Center formed developmental origins of health and disease group, led by, Susan Bagby, M.D.

Kevin Grove, Ph.D., awarded NIH grant to study maternal high fat diet and health of offspring.

Kent Thronburg, Ph.D. joined Finland Epidemiology Group.

2009

HRC education committee formed to share knowledge, create curriculum and improve health of adolescents with West Linn-Wilsonville School District.

Kent Thornburg, Ph.D., and David Barker, M.D., Ph.D., collaborate with researchers at Université de la Méditerranée, Marseilles, France, to study childhood growth as a predictor of abnormal heart growth in young adults.

2010

NIA funds Barker/Thornburg collaborative project with Finland to determine how maternal nutrition and childhood living conditions and growth predict physical and mental health in the elderly.

HRC hosted meeting of international experts to determine optimal pre-conception and prenatal nutrition for Oregon women and to explore potential interventions for Oregon, sponsored by the March of Dimes.

Collaboration formed with University of Colorado Health Sciences Center.

Kevin Grove, Ph.D., Kent Thornburg, Ph.D., and Friedman awarded NIH funds to study the impact of maternal diet on development of a healthy fetus.

2011

David Barker, M.D., Ph.D., awarded Agnes Higgins Award from March of Dimes.

National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development Scientific Vision Workshop on Developmental Origins of Health and Disease, co-chaired by Kent Thornburg, Ph.D., issues a white paper on DOHaD. 

Co-hosted meeting with Portland State University to educate local leaders about the public health implications of DOHaD and to explore policy changes to improve public health. Funded by Northwest Health Foundation.

2012

DOHaD World Congress held in Portland with David Barker, M.D., Ph.D., as honorary president.

David Barker, M.D., Ph.D., awarded Richard Doll Prize from International Epidemiological Association.

OHSU Bob and Charlee Moore Institute for Nutrition & Wellness founded, Kent Thornburg, Ph.D., named director.

2013

Moore Institute's founding three projects selected. 

David Barker, M.D., Ph.D., passed away.

2014

Tessa Roseboom, Ph.D., University of Amsterdam, announced as Senior International Fellow of the Moore Institute.

Let's Get Healthy! epigenetics station completed as part of the Moore Institute's founding research projects.

2015

Moore Institute hosts International Summit on the Nutrition of Adolescent Girls and Young Women with gift form Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

2017

Diane Stadler, Ph.D., Moore Institute Associate Director for Nutrition, awarded the Wimpfheimer-Guggenheim Award for International Exchange in Nutrition, Dietetics and Management for work done through the Lao-American Nutrition Institute in Vientiane, Laos.

Diane Stadler, Ph.D., Moore Institute Associate Director for Nutrition, awarded the Outstanding Dietitian of the Year, State of Oregon, Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics.

2018

Kent Thornburg, Ph.D., awarded Agnes Higgins award from March of Dimes.

Diane Stadler, Ph.D., Moore Institute Associate Director for Nutrition, awarded the Wimpfheimer-Guggenheim International Lecturer, Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Food & Nutrition Conference and Exhibition, Washington, DC.

Diane Stadler, Ph.D., Moore Institute Associate Director for Nutrition, awarded the Transforming Vision into Action Award, Council on Future Practice, Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics.

2019

Moore Institute hosts first Nutrition in Pregnancy Conference in Washington, D.C. 

Alaska Native Health and Wellness Research Center was formed, as part of the Moore Institute

Moore Institute created a First Foods brochure, in conjunction with the OHSU School of Medicine Alliance, to raise awareness of the importance of introducing babies to healthy foods when transitioning to complementary feeding.

Kent Thornburg, Ph.D., awarded the David Barker Medal, the highest honor awarded from The International Society for Developmental Origins of Health and Disease.

Leslie Myatt, Ph.D., FRCOG, Moore Institute Associate Director for Women’s Health, received
the Senior Award in Placentology from IFPA, the International Federation of Placenta Associations.