What we do

The SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics is an internationally recognized non-profit organization dedicated to biological and biomedical data science. It is present in the main academic institutions of Switzerland and leads numerous national and international projects with a major impact on life science research and health.

SIB’s scientists are passionate about creating knowledge and converting complex questions into solutions in many fields, from biodiversity and evolution to medicine. They provide essential databases and software platforms, data management, software engineering and biocuration services, as well as computational biology know-how and training. The Institute delivers this expertise to academic groups and clinicians as well as to private companies.

SIB federates the Swiss bioinformatics community of some 800 scientists, encouraging collaboration and knowledge sharing. It also cooperates with national and international institutions on research infrastructure matters.

The Institute contributes to keeping Switzerland at the forefront of innovation by fostering progress in biological research and enhancing health.

Vision

The SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics fosters excellence in data science to support progress in biological research and health.

Mission

SIB leads and coordinates the field of bioinformatics in Switzerland. Our data science experts join forces to advance biological and medical research and enhance health. SIB:

1. provides the national and international life science community with a state-of-the-art bioinformatics infrastructure, including resources, expertise and services,
2. federates world-class researchers and delivers training in bioinformatics.

Commitment

To achieve its mission, SIB is committed to

	Creating, maintaining and disseminating worldwide a large portfolio of reliable, sustainable and top-quality core bioinformatics services and resources, such as databases, software and competence centres Serving the national life science community by offering easily accessible world-class competencies, expertise and support in bioinformatics
	Supporting hospitals and clinicians with know-how, resources and infrastructure dedicated to personalized health
	Bringing together bioinformatics research groups from Swiss universities and research institutes Fostering collaboration and innovation at the highest level of scientific excellence
	Providing life scientists, clinicians, and PhD students with a large portfolio of courses and workshops Fostering exchanges among bioinformatics and computational biology PhD students and training them in the most up-to-date methods necessary for their doctoral research
	Representing and promoting bioinformatics locally and internationally

About bioinformatics

Bioinformatics encompasses:

• Databases and knowledgebases for storing, retrieving and organizing biological information to maximize the value of biological data;
• Software tools for modelling, visualizing, analysing, interpreting and comparing biological data;
• Computing and storage infrastructure to process large amounts of data;
• Analysis of complex biological datasets or systems in the context of particular research projects;
• Research in a wide variety of biological fields using computer- and data science and leading to applications in diverse areas, from agriculture to precision medicine.

Bioinformatics is thus a multidisciplinary field bringing together biologists, computer scientists and mathematicians, as well as statisticians and physicists.