All biological phenomena, whether it's digestion of a sugar molecule, beating of the human heart, or neutralizing an invading virus, are the result of complex systems. Thus our approach at the Institute is to focus research on biological systems as a whole, rather than pursue the traditional approach of focusing on individual genes, proteins, or parts of an organism.

Scientists at the Institute conduct considerable research on model organisms (bacteria, yeast, sea urchins, fish, and mice), as well as on humans. Model organisms can be easily perturbed -- genetically, biologically, or environmentally. The impact of such perturbations on the functioning of particular systems in the organism helps us understand the interrelations and roles of the component parts of organism, and the overall organism. Studying biological systems of model organisms is critical to our understanding of how these same systems function in humans.

What is truly unique about the Institute is our interactive and integrative research. Scientists from multiple disciplines (biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics, etc.) work closely together to fully understand all aspects of the inherently complex systems intrinsic to living organisms. Such in-depth understanding is ultimately essential to realizing our goal of predictive, preventive, personalized medicine.