Pushing the frontiers of science--the Mellon reproductive biology centers.

The 20-year history of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation's support for US reproductive biology centers and junior investigators is summarized. The main results of the Foundation's program during the 1990s are described under the following headings: research generated by seed money, research generated by the twinning program, and commercial partnerships. The twinning program supports research collaborations between US centers and reproductive biology centers in developing countries, and was recently reviewed by an external panel. Both the seed money and twinning mechanisms were judged to have been successful in promoting research relevant to contraception which, in many instances, resulted in publications in peer-reviewed journals and in follow-on funding from other sources. The Foundation established a new program in 1998. The paper lists the US centers included in the new program and the 'target' areas of research that will be emphasized.