The Pacific Northwest Diabetes Research Institute (PNDRI) is a private non-profit biomedical and clinical

Clinical research

Clinical research is a branch of medical science that determines the safety and effectiveness of medications, devices, diagnostic products and treatment regimens intended for human use...

 research institute

Research institute

A research institute is an establishment endowed for doing research. Research institutes may specialize in basic research or may be oriented to applied research...

 in Seattle, Washington, U.S.A. originally founded to investigate heart surgery, cancer

Cancer

Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...

 and endocrine disease

Endocrine disease

Endocrine diseases are disorders of the endocrine system. The branch of medicine associated with endocrine disorders is known as endocrinology.-Types of endocrine disease:Broadly speaking, endocrine disorders may be subdivided into three groups:...

s. The current focus of the Institute is pioneering basic and clinical research to prevent diabetes, to arrest its development, to block and reduce its complications, and to treat it more effectively.

History

It was the first such institute in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States and was created in 1956 by Dr. William B. Hutchinson under its former name the Pacific Northwest Research Foundation (PNRF); that name still remains on the exterior of the building. Its name evolved to the Pacific Northwest Research Institute (PNRI) until 2008 when the Institute added Diabetes to its name making it the Pacific Northwest Diabetes Research Institute. In 1972, PNRF received federal funding to develop a division called Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center‎ into an independent research institute: This institute was opened 3 years later.

Name

The organization was founded in 1956 as the Pacific Northwest Research Foundation. In 1997 the organization changed its name to Pacific Northwest Research Institute. In 2008 the organization changed its name to Pacific Northwest Diabetes Research Institute.

Staff

The Institute currently has 85 employees in 6 investigative teams. The current Scientific Director replacing R. Paul Robertson

R. Paul Robertson

R. Paul Robertson, M.D. is an American endocrinologist and President and Scientific Director of the Pacific Northwest Diabetes Research Institute . He is active in research of metabolic studies of diabetes. Dr. Robertson is currently the President-Elect, Medicine & Science of the Volunteer Board...

 is Dr. William A. Hagopian M.D., Ph.D.

Community involvement

Each year the Institute hosts one of the Northwest's most successful wine events featuring one of the largest blind wine tasting games in the Puget Sound

Puget Sound

Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...

 area. Boutique wineries from Washington State partner with the Institute to make An Evening of Wine feature Washington State's latest varietal

Varietal

"Varietal" describes wines made primarily from a single named grape variety, and which typically displays the name of that variety on the wine label. Examples of grape varieties commonly used in varietal wines are Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Merlot...

s.