History

The IGM opened on the University of Southern California’s Health Sciences Campus in 1997. During the next decade, the institute became nationally recognized for cutting-edge programs in gene therapy for delivery of cancer therapeutics, genetic risk factors for hypertension and developmental mechanisms of inherited craniofacial disorders.

In July 2008, founding director Larry Kedes, MD stepped down, and M. Elizabeth Fini, PhD, vice dean for research at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, was appointed as IGM director.

Over the next year, the IGM was reorganized and merged administratively with the Keck School’s Office of Research Advancement. This created a streamlined and flexible management structure and has positioned IGM to serve a central role in the next phase of research development at the Keck School. At the same time, IGM has been undergoing transformation with new faculty recruitment, new programs and collaborations and broadening of the mission to advance genetics, genomics, and other approaches across the Keck School.