The economy may be suffering, but UCSF's fund-raising campaign has now surpassed $1 billion to support scientific discoveries aimed at improving human health.

Contributions to the Campaign for UCSF, a seven-year effort to raise $1.4 billion for the University of California, San Francisco, have topped the $1 billion mark -- the first time a graduate institution in the U.S. has raised so much in a single campaign.