The RNA Center was created to facilitate communication between laboratories in multiple departments with a shared interest in RNA science and to encourage collaborative research. The success of the Center in these endeavors lead to its formal recognition as an independent unit in 2001. Its expanded charge was to recruit new investigators in existing and emerging areas of RNA biology while continuing to provide a fertile environment for collaborative research using shared expertise and resources. The Center also provides exceptional opportunities for graduate and postdoctoral training in an open and interactive setting.

One measure of the success of the Center is that it was ranked first in the nation in NIH funding in the category of Other Basic Sciences in 2004 when compared with peer departments at other medical schools