The Heart of Lifesaving Discoveries
Together with our network of recovery partners and researchers, we persevered in honoring the Donor Gift while simultaneously advancing medicine!
Conducting research on non-transplantable human organs and tissues is the best way to understand the processes of diseases, discover treatments and cures, and enhance the development of safe and effective drugs. For more than 38 years, through our network of every U.S. organ procurement organization, IIAM has been serving the medical and scientific communities by making these non-transplantable biomaterials available for research. IIAM has access to over 52,000 organs and tissues annually, leading to discoveries that have the potential to cure or prevent diseases. IIAM links donors to the scientific community conducting vital medical research.
Human Tissue for Research
The International Institute for the Advancement of Medicine (IIAM) links organ and tissue donors with the scientific community. Virtually every human organ and tissue is needed for medical research. Everyday heroes donate these tissues to assist in the discovery of cures and treatments to ensure better health for all.
Research Made Possible
For over 38 years, IIAM has been working with researchers and scientists seeking to develop countless cures, and uncovering invaluable information to save and enhance the lives of others. These publications share some of the research made possible with the gifts of human tissues donated for research.
Our Connection to Purpose
IIAM is proud to showcase ongoing and extraordinary research projects involving the more than 30,000 organs and tissues annually referred. These donations have provided for a magnitude of research and medical advances.
The Application Process
With profound respect for the individuals and families who donate organs and tissues for medical research, IIAM requires all end-users to complete an Application and Biomaterial Transfer Agreement to ensure that the donors’ gifts are utilized as they were intended.
Please complete the information below and IIAM will prepare and send an Application for your review and completion.
Researcher Testimonials
We would love to hear about IIAM’s relationship with your Research and Education Community. Please consider sharing your experience with us.
Researcher
Donation of organs for research is a precious resource allowing understanding of human-specific scientific information that can advance the development of efficacious and safe of medicine. The information cannot be obtained with animal models due to species difference.
Researcher
The research donations create the ability for researchers to make positive change in the medical community and society. There simply is no substitute.
Researcher
This opportunity further enhances the gift that the donor family has chosen to give upon authorizing donation. Through research medical advances and discoveries are made, research is the keystone of growth in the medical field.
Researcher
These little lungs, heart and spleen were beautiful and well formed. In this particular case, we were able to test new methods of preservation to increase the value of the tissues for imaging by immunofluorescence microscopy and mass spectroscopy. The multiple tissue donation allows us, for example, to look at location of cells of the immature immune system, comparing lung, heart and spleen at this young age. Heart muscle will be provided to a cardiologist studying maturity of the mitochondria, the powerhouses of heart cells. — The generosity of the family is greatly appreciated. It is through donations like this that we learn so quickly when we least expect it. Recently our work with neonatal lung donations contributed to research describing the difference between receptors for the COVID virus in newborn lung as compared to older children and adult lung. I will see to it that these little angel’s donation helps in such a way to make our world a better place. Please give my sincere thank you to the Family, to the OPO Coordinators, the recovery team and to IIAM staff for doing the very hard work of making this donation possible and so successful.
Researcher
The urinary bladder studies have allowed us to uncover a diversity of contractile responses and confirm the interaction between the urothelium and the underlying muscle layer that previously was only postulated to occur in humans based on animal studies. For the Gastro-esophageal junction studies, there are very few animal models that have the same muscle fiber anatomy as the human and these are somewhat difficult to obtain for research purposes. Our continuing studies allow us to make important observations that help explain the functional studies performed using high resolution manometry coupled with high resolution ultrasonography, and are beginning to provide insight into the mechanisms behind the events that cause gastro-esophageal reflux disease.
Researcher
Adverse drug effects — from pharmaceuticals for treatment of disease or alleviation of symptoms — may cause serious harm, and are a major societal problem. Most of these adverse effects are unique to humans and cannot be detected in laboratory animals. Because of our research using human tissues from IIAM, we have developed experimental approaches to detect human-specific adverse drug effects. These approaches are now part of FDA regulations and are used by pharmaceutical companies to develop new drugs with improved safety profiles. We thank IIAM for our continued collaboration.
Researcher
Transplant can save up to eight lives; however, research can potentially save millions.
Researcher
The donations made at tragic times in the lives of the families are invaluable to humanity. Through contributions to medical sciences, we may learn more about our own biology and lives may be saved.
Researcher
Thanks to the generous donations, we have made incredible progress in not only understanding the underlying biology of a class of gastrointestinal disorders but also concrete advances in bringing forward a therapy for patients suffering from these debilitating conditions. These studies are laying down the foundation for what we hope will introduce a new era in curing these devastating conditions to the benefit of future generations.
Researcher
This opportunity further enhances the gift that the donor family has chosen to give upon authorizing donation. Through research medical advances and discoveries are made, research is the keystone of growth in the medical field.
Researcher
Researchers established a 3D infection model based on donated human lungs to more effectively create therapeutic options to treat patients with pneumonia, the third most common cause of death, especially for the elderly and children under five years old.
Researcher
We are very happy with the tissue we have received and the service. Everything was exceptional: the contact people, the delivery and the continuous updates. We are interested in obtaining more tissue. Thank you again and I am looking forward to continue working with you!