Institute for Systems Biology (ISB) is a non-profit research institution located in Seattle, Washington, United States. ISB concentrates on systems biology, the study of relationships and interactions between various parts of biological systems, and advocates an interdisciplinary approach to biological research. Goals Systems biology is the study of biological systems in a holistic manner by integrating data at all levels of the biological information hierarchy, from global down to the individual organism, and below down to the molecular level. The vision of ISB is to integrate these concepts using a cross-disciplinary approach combining the efforts of biologists, chemists, computer scientists, engineers, mathematicians, physicists, and physicians. On its website, ISB has defined four areas of focus: P4 Medicine - This acronym refers to predictive, preventive, personalized and participatory medicine, which focuses on wellness rather than mere treatment of disease. Global Health - Use of the systems approach towards the study of infectious diseases, vaccine development, emergence of chronic diseases, and maternal and child health. Sustainable Environment - Applying systems biology for a better understanding of the role of microbes in the environment and their relation to human health. Education & Outreach - Knowledge transfer to society through a variety of educational programs and partnerships, including the spin out of new companies. Early history Leroy Hood co-founded the Institute with Alan Aderem and Ruedi Aebersold in 2000. However, the story of how ISB got started actually begins in 1990. Lee Hood was the director of a large molecular biotechnology lab at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, and was a key advisor in the Human Genome Project, having overseen development of machines that were instrumental to its later success. The University of Washington (UW), like many other universities, was eager to recruit Hood, but had neither the space nor the money to accommodate Hood's large laboratory. Lee Huntsman, director of University of Washington's Center for Bioengineering, was attending a University of Washington football game, sharing a luxury box with Bill Gates, the former CEO and current chairman of Microsoft. Huntsman took the opportunity to tell Gates about Hood. Bill Gates already had a considerable interest in biotechnology, both as a philanthropist and as an investor, and after meeting Hood, donated $12 million to UW to enable him to head a new department of molecular biotechnology, where Hood continues to hold a faculty position as the Gates Professor of Molecular Biotechnology. ISB