About
We are not an academic institution nor a tech company. We combine parts of both models to advance our science.
We are asking challenging and long-standing questions. Answering these questions requires a long-term perspective, agile decision-making, new technologies, investments in computation and data science, a focus on the fundamental processes underlying brain function, and deep collaborations within the institute and with the scientific community at large.
Our culture and values are shaped to advance team science. Our progress is measured by the discoveries we share, the methods and technologies we develop and disseminate, the collaborations we advance, and the careers we nurture.
We are committed to open and reproducible science.
Answers will be in terms of neural activity in defined neuron types interacting across the whole brain and body. This requires next-generation neurotechnologies. Knowledge, data, and tools will be widely shared, to facilitate science elsewhere and to support the development of therapies for brain disorders.
We are an independent institute in Seattle. Together with the Allen Institute for Brain Science, Allen Institute for Immunology, Allen Institute for Cell Science, Seahub, and the Frontiers Group, we constitute the Allen Institue.
The learning mFISH group aims to study cell type-specific activity dynamics during change detection task learning using longitudinal calcium imaging combined with post hoc spatial transcriptomics. Our goal is to understand how neural coding and circuit interactions evolve over time as mice learn a multi-stage task, and to link physiological properties to the diversity of cell types in the brain. A particular area of focus is on novelty processing and inhibitory circuit plasticity.
The dynamic routing group is studying task-switching behaviors in mice to determine how the brain controls the flow of its own activity and how neuronal circuits are reconfigured to dynamically route information for different tasks.
The scientific computing group is developing data pipelines for a wide range of neuroscience. These cloud pipelines build on modern data science practices to facilitate reproducible data analysis, data sharing, and collaboration.
The optical physiology group focuses on optical methods to measure neural signaling in behaving animals. These span spatial and temporal scales ranging from populations of input synapses onto individual neurons, to populations of neurons within a brain region, to dynamics of diverse neuromodulator systems across the brain.
The SIPE group develops and maintains high-impact engineering solutions for biological research for the entire Allen Institute. The team designs and builds new instruments, software, and pipelines. The team also maintains and evolves critical pipelines and instruments to ensure their continued effectiveness.
OpenScope provides access to cutting-edge neurophysiological methods to scientists across the world. Similar to astronomical observatories, scientists propose experiments that are then executed at the Allen Institute. All data is made openly available using modern data science pipelines and standardized formats.
The scientific operations group manages projects and collaborations, both internal and external.
The goal of the theory and computation group is to link neural activity in neural circuits to computation and behavior. Approaches include theoretical neuroscience, statistics, and machine learning.
The research operations department consists of several teams that provide experimental support and expertise to the entire Allen Institute. Areas of support include surgery, behavior, imaging, and histology.
The neurobiology of action group develops and uses genetic, electrophysiological, optical, and behavioral approaches to investigate how the brain adaptively controls behavior and internal organ function. The team focuses on understanding the descending circuits controlling the execution of actions and characterizing the descending innervation of internal organs and how the brain learns to modulate their functions.
The behavior group develops behavioral tasks that probe specific brain functions. The current focus is on foraging behaviors, in which animals have to maximize the acquisition of resources in environments of varying complexity.
The electrophysiology group advances the practice of electrophysiology in behaving animals. Ongoing projects include developing more efficient ways to record from specific neuron types in many connected brain regions.
The molecular anatomy group is developing histological, optical and computational methods to map neural connections on spatial scales from synapses to entire brains.
We share and distribute data, tools, and knowledge as soon as is practical and useful. We share the generosity of our founder and other sponsors to accelerate scientific discovery elsewhere. Sharing is necessary to maximize scientific progress. One measure of our success is the value the larger scientific community derives from the scientific and technical resources we produce. Sharing data, tools, and resources also facilitates reproducible science.
Team science is an effort to address complex and deep scientific challenges by leveraging the joint strengths and expertise of diverse scientists, engineers, and other staff trained in different disciplines, working in a coordinated manner towards a scientific goal.
Many major advances in science and technology are the result of team science, including the development of the transistor, the discovery of gravitational waves, the sequencing of the human genome, the delineation of the brain’s cell types, the mapping of brain connectomes, and the development of cancer treatments and other modern medicines. Given that the mammalian brain is the most complex object being tackled by science, solving major mysteries in brain science will benefit from team science.
The Allen Institute is an independent nonprofit bioscience research institute aimed at unlocking the mysteries of biology.
The scientific possibilities within our research and discoveries are limitless. We share our data, insights, and tools openly with the world to accelerate progress and catalyze breakthroughs.
