Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research is a world-renowned genomics research center located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1982 by Nobel laureate and MIT professor Phillip A. Sharp, Whitehead Institute has been at the forefront of scientific discovery for over three decades, innovating new approaches to understanding the function and regulation of genes.
Today, Whitehead Institute is home to 27 faculty members — all leaders in their fields — who are supported by a highly collaborative environment that encourages interdisciplinary approaches to research. Our faculty’s groundbreaking discoveries have led to major advances in our understanding of cancer, developmental biology, immunology, and many other areas of biomedical science.
As an independent nonprofit research institute affiliated with MIT, Whitehead Institute receives its primary funding from philanthropy and government grants. We are also committed to training the next generation of scientific leaders through our graduate student program and our innovative education initiatives.