The European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) is a scientific organization that promotes excellence in molecular biology and life sciences research in Europe. It was founded in 1964, and its headquarters are located in Heidelberg, Germany. EMBO has over 1700 members from 40 different countries, who are elected by their peers based on their outstanding contributions to the field of molecular biology. The organization also provides financial support for young scientists through fellowships and travel grants.
EMBO’s mission is to encourage and support high standards of scientific research in Europe through its programs and activities. One of EMBO’s main goals is to promote communication between researchers across Europe, which it does through conferences, workshops, and training courses. EMBO also publishes two highly respected peer-reviewed journals: The EMBO Journal and EMBO Reports. In addition, the organization offers an online database called EuroMatrixPlus that provides access to information on European life science research projects.
The majority of EMBO’s funding comes from annual subscriptions from its member states as well as from private donations and foundations. Some of the notable people who have been associated with EMBO include Nobel Prize winners James Darnell, François Jacob, Gunter Blobel, Tim Hunt, Paul Nurse,and Venkatraman Ramakrishnan; as well as eminent scientists such as Susumu Ohno, Sydney Brenner, Aaron Klug , Rita Levi-Montalcini , Severo Ochoa , Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard , Leland Hartwell , John Sulston , Tony Hunter , and many others.