We’re funding kidney research today for a healthier tomorrow.

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The UKRO Story

Our nonprofit was founded because of one simple question.

How can so little be known about kidney disease—a problem that affects 1 in 7 adults in the U.S.?

After entertainment lawyer Ken Kleinberg’s kidneys failed, he and his physician, Dr. Vito M. Campese, then Chief of Nephrology and Hypertension at USC, founded University Kidney Research Organization (UKRO) to fund life-saving kidney research.

To boost innovative therapies, UKRO partnered with the University of Southern California to establish the newly renamed Vito M. Campese, M.D./UKRO Kidney Research Center (KRC) on USC’s Health Sciences Campus in Los Angeles.

We’re working to transform patients’ lives by funding research, education and more. Our support for the KRC enables the discovery of new solutions, primarily the development of a transplantable “synthetic” kidney, made from stem cells, that can replace dialysis.

We Have Some Big News!

We’re thrilled to announce that we’ve expanded our mission.

In addition to funding vital research, we’re providing educational outreach to our local communities and beyond. We’re also supporting and inspiring the next generation of nephrologists and researchers—starting with the amazing students from USC’s Kidney Disease Screening and Awareness Program.

With your help, we can get our new programs off the ground. Stay tuned for more on our progress!



Research Spotlight: A Stem Cell Revolution at USC

Synthetic kidney project team leader Dr. Zhongwei Li has recently been recognized with a prestigious NIH Directors’ New Innovator award.

His team was the first in the world to generate high quality kidney-forming cells quickly. They have since developed mini kidneys that self-organize in the lab and are already being used to test treatments for genetic disorders, including polycystic kidney disease (PKD).

The Li Lab is making great progress and expects to produce the world’s first transplantable kidney prototype from human stem cells in 2030.

Read more about the synthetic kidney project.

Watch our video to learn about the synthetic kidney and UKRO.