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< Arkansas Children's Research Institute

About Arkansas Children’s Research Institute (ACRI)

Since 1989, Arkansas Children’s Research Institute has supported scientists and clinicians working to advance discoveries that improve children’s health. Today, our over 170 investigators lead innovative research across the laboratory, clinic, and community to better understand childhood disease and translate new knowledge into real-world solutions. Together, we are building a future where research drives better health and brighter possibilities for children.

The Role of Arkansas Children’s Research in Advancing Pediatric Health

Advances in pediatric medicine begin with a vision for a future in which all children can grow up to be healthy adults. Arkansas Children's Research Institute (ACRI) researchers share this common vision and have devoted their lives to making this vision a reality. At ACRI, children are at the center of everything that we do. Researchers at ACRI are addressing a broad spectrum of children's health concerns, such as the biological mechanisms underlying birth defects; diabetes-related complications; and numerous childhood diseases, including asthma and cancer. Research expertise is diverse, ranging from basic science to clinical and community-based research.

 

Advancing Child Health

ACRI History & Timeline

  • 1989
    Arkansas Children's Research Institute established.

  • 1994
     Selected by National Institutes of Health (NIH) as one of seven national pediatric drug trial sites, launching more than 60 clinical trials over 4 years.

  • 1997
    Arkansas Children's Nutrition Center opens as the second pediatric nutrition research program in the nation and one of only six nutritional research facilities funded by the USDA.
  • 1998
    The National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) awards $4 million to study the prevention and treatment of birth defects.
  • 2008
    The NIH awards $14.4 million to participate in the 25-year National Children’s Study. This is the largest ever investigation of child health tracking a sample of 100,000 children from birth to age 21.

  • 1999
    In its first decade, ACRI investigators make multiple breakthroughs: discovering genetic alterations in pediatric tumors, leading to better methods of diagnosis and cancer therapy; identifying several naturally-occurring proteins to enhance bone repair in patients of all ages; and developing cranial ultrasound screening tests to determine which sickle cell disease patients were high risk for strokes.
  • 2007
    Arkansas Children's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) becomes one of only three sites worldwide using cooling cap technology to reduce newborn brain injury.
  • 2010
    Stacie Jones, M.D., conducts a groundbreaking peanut allergy study, incrementally exposing participants to peanut protein.
  • 2020
    ACRI, along with 65 other sites, conducts a groundbreaking clinical trial, producing the first FDA approved oral immune therapy to treat peanut allergies.
  • 2024
    Research leads to the first FDA-approved treatment for children and adults with multiple food allergies

  • 2016
    ACRI joins the IDeA State Pediatric Clinical Trials Network to expand research opportunities for rural children in Arkansas.
  • 2016
    Judith Weber, Ph.D., R.D., creates the Center for Childhood Obesity Prevention with a $9.4 million award from the NIH.
  • 2017
    NIH awards $11.5 million to develop the Center for Translational Pediatric Research (CTPR), which aims to produce new treatments and therapies developed specifically for children.
  • 2021
    A team from ACRI and UAMS receives $7.2 million from NIH to continue participating in the nationwide HEALthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) Study, which follows a large cohort of pregnant women and their children for at least 10 years to better understand how prenatal and perinatal experiences impact brain and behavioral development.
  • 2022
    Became the first site in the nation to enroll patients in a clinical trial to expedite development of new treatments for hard-to-treat childhood leukemias and replace one-size-fits-all chemotherapy.
  • 2023
    Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin awards $50 million of opioid settlement funds to Arkansas Children’s to establish the National Center for Opioid and Addiction Research (NCOAR), positioning Arkansas as a national leader in understanding the child health impacts of opioid.
  • 2024
    Research conducted at ACRI leads to the first FDA-approved treatment for children and adults with multiple food allergies — from milk to cashews.
  • 2024
    T. Konrad Rajab, M.D., publishes groundbreaking findings. In a first-of-its-kind partial heart transplant, donor heart valves continued to grow along with the recipient, a baby boy.

  • 2025
    Aline Andres, Ph.D., R.D., is one of 20 scientists appointed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) & USDA to serve on the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, which reviews the current body of science on key nutrition topics.

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