The Jackson Laboratory

The Jackson Laboratory
The Jackson Laboratory · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Name	The Jackson Laboratory
Established	1929
Founder	Clarence Cook Little
Type	Nonprofit biomedical research institution
Headquarters	Bar Harbor, Maine
Locations	Bar Harbor, Maine; Farmington, Connecticut; Sacramento, California; Cold Spring Harbor, New York
Fields	Genetics; Genomics; Mouse models; Cancer; Neurology; Immunology; Aging

The Jackson Laboratory is a nonprofit biomedical research institution and genetic resource center specializing in mammalian genetics, genomics, and the development and distribution of genetically defined mouse models. Founded in 1929, it combines basic and translational research with large-scale repository, informatics, and educational activities that support investigators across academic, pharmaceutical, and clinical institutions.

History

The Laboratory was founded in 1929 by Clarence Cook Little and has been associated with figures such as William Earle, Charles W. Cotter, and Hans Spemann through shared historical networks in Harvard University, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, and the early 20th-century genetics community. Its development intersected with milestones at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, the Carnegie Institution for Science, and the emergence of model organism science exemplified by work at The Rockefeller University and Institut Pasteur. The Laboratory's growth paralleled federal initiatives such as programs supported by the National Institutes of Health and collaborations with the United States Department of Agriculture and private foundations including the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

Research and Scientific Contributions

Investigators at the Laboratory have published alongside authors affiliated with Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, University of Cambridge, and Harvard Medical School on genetic mapping, positional cloning, and functional genomics. The institution contributed to positional cloning approaches used in studies related to the Human Genome Project and partnered with consortia including the International Mouse Phenotyping Consortium and the Genome Reference Consortium. Research programs have addressed cancer biology connected to findings from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, neurological disease with clinical ties to Mayo Clinic and Johns Hopkins University, and immunology overlapping work at Scripps Research and Karolinska Institutet. Laboratory scientists have characterized quantitative trait loci following statistical genetics frameworks developed at University of Chicago and bioinformatics pipelines used at European Bioinformatics Institute.

Mouse Resources and Services

The Laboratory operates one of the largest repositories of inbred and genetically engineered mouse strains, supplying models to investigators at institutions such as University of California, San Francisco, Yale University, Columbia University, and pharmaceutical firms like Pfizer and Merck & Co.. Its cryopreservation, rederivation, and quality-control services align with standards from the International Council for Laboratory Animal Science and collaborate with repositories like the Mutant Mouse Resource & Research Centers and the Wellcome Sanger Institute. The Laboratory's repository supports studies ranging from oncology models used in collaborations with Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center to immunodeficient strains applied in xenograft research with groups at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and the Broad Institute.

Education and Training

Educational programs include courses, workshops, and graduate-level training delivered in partnership with universities such as University of Maine, University of Connecticut, University of California, Davis, and Princeton University. The Laboratory hosts visiting scientist programs and internships that attract trainees from institutions including Brown University, Dartmouth College, Boston University, and Mount Sinai Health System. Outreach and curriculum development have connections with initiatives at National Science Teachers Association and graduate training networks supported by the National Science Foundation.

Facilities and Campuses

Primary facilities include the historic Bar Harbor campus and additional campuses in Farmington, Connecticut; Sacramento, California; and a research hub near Cold Spring Harbor, New York, facilitating collaborations with Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine partners and nearby institutes such as Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and Stony Brook University. Laboratories are equipped for high-throughput genomics compatible with platforms from Illumina, single-cell technologies parallel to work at 10x Genomics, and vivarium operations meeting accreditation standards from the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International. Computational infrastructure supports pipelines integrated with resources at National Center for Supercomputing Applications and cloud collaborations with Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud Platform.

Funding and Partnerships

Funding has been drawn from federal agencies including the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the Department of Defense for specific programs, as well as philanthropic support from entities like the Simons Foundation and private donors associated with institutions such as Rockefeller University and the Kresge Foundation. Strategic partnerships extend to academic collaborators at University of California, San Diego, industry partners including Genentech and Roche, and international research centers like Max Planck Society and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique to enable shared projects in genetics, preclinical research, and resource distribution.

Category:Medical research institutes Category:Genetics organizations