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cell science
unlocking the hidden rules of how cells become organs—and using those rules to build biology's next research frontier
explore cell science
Scientist in white coat and purple gloves examining medical test tube in laboratory

Every organ in your body started as a small cluster of identical cells. How those cells knew what to become is still one of science's great mysteries.

A group of stem cells doesn't just grow and expand. The cells self-organize, communicate, and shape themselves into three-dimensional structures that become the tissues and organs of the body. Until now, we've lacked the tools to study this process at the scale and level of detail needed to truly understand it—and then use that knowledge to build something transformative. 

We're building CellScapes: an integrated framework for how cells self-organize by combining imaging, computational modeling, and synthetic biology. Once we understand the rules, we can program them into synthetic tissues that act like miniature organs—giving researchers a new platform to study how cells behave in health, in disease, and in response to medicine.

‍

Microscopic cross-section showing green cells surrounded by purple vascular network on black background
Understanding the rules of how cells become tissues opens an entirely new frontier, where biology becomes programmable and disease interventions become even more precise.

featured stories

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Allen Impact 2025
Technology and innovation are fueling discovery in science like never before we’re proud to be leading the way. 2025 was a year of tremendous impact...
video 
Simularium: Accelerating discovery by animating insight
Simularium is an innovative online tool designed by the Allen Institute’s Cell Science team that visualizes 4D simulations (animations) of complex...
news 
Allen Institute cells blast off into outer space
Researchers from Cedars-Sinai are using Allen Institute cell lines to grow organoids in space, which could help design better drugs for disease
We study how cells self-organize by integrating imaging, computational modeling and synthetic biology, revealing fundamental principles in cell biology and laying the groundwork for breakthroughs in diagnosing and treating disease.
Ruwanthi (Ru) Gunawardane
Executive Vice President and Director, Cell Science
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featured publications

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publication / 2025
A suite of enhancer AAVs and transgenic mouse lines for genetic access to cortical cell types
Cell
publication / 2025
Enabling global image data sharing in the life sciences
Nature Methods
publication / 2025
Comparing simulations of actin filament compression reveals tradeoff between computational cost and capturing supertwist
microPublication Biology
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Medical scan showing multiple cells with purple and yellow fluorescent markers on black background

access open tools, brain atlases, neuroscience databases, and more

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Attendee Details: Summer Teacher Academy
Thank you for joining us for the 2023 Cell Science Teacher Academy. At this workshop , you’ll learn about the Allen Institute, tour several cell biology labs, learn about current research, and explore curriculum units that use research-grade open data from the Allen Institute for Cell Science.
event 
2023 Cell Science Teacher Academy
Interested in bringing cutting edge cell biology data and visualization tools to your classroom?  Join us at the Allen Institute for the 2023 Cell Science Teacher Academy! At this workshop, learn how to enhance cell biology instruction with research-grade human cell image data. Teacher Academy is an opportunity for educators to work with our scientists and researchers to learn how to use our open data tools in their classrooms, explore our curriculum resources, tour our specialized research labs, and learn from scientific staff about the latest and greatest in STEM career pathways and research. Teachers will receive a $600 stipend and 16 continuing education STEM clock hours will be available for eligible Washington educators for participation.
event / February 15–19, 2025
BPS 2025 - Allen Institute for Cell Science
Meet scientists from the Allen Institute for Cell Science, learn about our open resources, explore career opportunities, and more at booth #713 at BPS 2025.
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cell science scientific advisory council

Bruce R. Conklin
Gladstone Institutes and University of California, San Francisco
Gaudenz Danuser
Institute of Human Biology
Jan Ellenberg
Professor and Director of SciLifeLab
Margaret Gardel
Director of the James Franck Institute
Quincey Justman
Harvard Medical School
Alan Lowe
Director of AI/ML at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative
Wallace Marshall
University of California, San Francisco
Lucas Pelkmans
University of Zurich
Philip Tagari
Chief Scientific Officer, insitro
Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz
California Institute of Technology
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