Salk Institute for Biological Studies
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
Points to look into
- It reported loans to or from officers, directors or other insiders.
These come from the organization's own tax return. There may be a good explanation; ask the charity.
What it says it does
UNLOCKING THE SECRETS OF LIFE ITSELF IS THE DRIVING FORCE BEHIND THE SALK INSTITUTE. OUR TEAM OF WORLD-CLASS, AWARD-WINNING SCIENTISTS PUSHES BOUNDARIES OF KNOWLEDGE IN AREAS SUCH AS NEUROSCIENCE, CANCER RESEARCH, AGING, IMMUNOBIOLOGY, PLANT BIOLOGY, COMPUTATIONAL BIOLOGY, AND MORE. FOUNDED BY JONAS SALK, DEVELOPER OF THE FIRST SAFE AND EFFECTIVE POLIO VACCINE, THE INSTITUTE IS AN INDEPENDENT, NONPROFIT RESEARCH ORGANIZATION AND ARCHITECTURAL LANDMARK: SMALL BY CHOICE, INTIMATE BY NATURE, AND FEARLESS IN THE FACE OF ANY CHALLENGE.
- Income
- $181.4 million
- Spending
- $176.9 million
- Spent on programs
- 84%
- Reserves
- 4.6 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- government grants, 47%
- Employees
- 1,092
- Volunteers
- 26
- Highest pay
- $969,960, president / professor
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Good: 81 out of 100. Higher than 66% of charities in its peer group (science, over $100m).
Reserves
20 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 4.6 months of spending.
Debt
16 of 20It owes 18% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 2% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 13% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1584% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 4 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Good: 80 out of 100. Higher than 9% of charities in its peer group (science, over $100m).
Independent board
25 of 2524 of 29 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
0 of 10Did not give the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
0 of 10Reports at least one of: diversion of assets, excess benefits, loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (1)
- $148.6 million spent. THE SALK INSTITUTE FOR BIOLOGICAL STUDIES IS A WORLD-RENOWED, INDEPENDENT RESEARCH INSTITUTE DEDICATED TO ADVANCING OUR UNDERSTANDING OF LIFE SCIENCES AND IMPROVING HUMAN HEALTH. ITS PROGRAMS BRING TOGETHER LEADING SCIENTISTS ACROSS DISCIPLINES TO EXPLORE FUNDAMENTAL QUESTIONS IN BIOLOGY, FROM THE MOLECULAR MECHANISMS OF DISEASE TO THE COMPLEXITIES OF THE BRAIN AND THE IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON LIVING SYSTEMS. THROUGH COLLABORATIVE, CURIOSITY-DRIVEN RESEARCH AND INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY, SALK'S PROGRAMS AIM TO TRANSLATE SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERIES INTO REAL-WORLD SOLUTIONS THAT BENEFIT SOCIETY. BELOW ARE HIGHLIGHTED SCIENTIFIC ACHIEVEMENTS DURING JULY 2024 THROUGH JUNE 2025. STUDY REVEALS KEY GENE PROTECTING PLANTS FROM HARMFUL METALS IN SOIL - THE EXCESSIVE USE OF MANURE AND SEWAGE SLUDGE CAN INCREASE HEAVY METAL CONCENTRATIONS IN AGRICULTURAL LAND WHERE VITAL CROPS ARE GROWN. ONE OF THESE HEAVY METALS IS ZINC, A MICRONUTRIENT NECESSARY FOR PLANT AND ANIMAL HEALTH. IN EXCESS, HOWEVER, ZINC CAN BE EXTREMELY DAMAGING TO SENSITIVE PLANT SPECIES. SALK RESEARCHERS IDENTIFIED A GENE, CALLED TRICHOME BIREFRINGENCE OR TBR, THAT HELPS PLANTS MANAGE EXCESS ZINC BY TRAPPING IT IN THEIR ROOT CELL WALLS. SCIENTISTS AND FARMERS CAN NOW USE THIS INFORMATION TO DEVELOP AND GROW CROPS THAT ARE MORE RESILIENT TO SOIL CONTAMINATION. ENHANCING PLANT RESILIENCE IN THIS WAY IS A MAJOR GOAL OF SALK'S HARNESSING PLANTS INITIATIVE. THE STUDY WAS LED BY WOLFGANG BUSCH, PHD, AND PUBLISHED IN NATURE COMMUNICATIONS ON JULY 11, 2024. NEW TOOLS REVEAL NEUROPEPTIDES, NOT FAST NEUROTRANSMITTERS, ENCODE DANGER IN THE BRAIN - IN THE SPLIT SECOND THAT YOU ACCIDENTALLY TOUCH THE HOT HANDLE OF A CAST IRON SKILLET, PAIN AND A SENSE OF DANGER RUSH IN. RESEARCHERS ASSUMED THIS PROCESS MUST BE MEDIATED BY FAST-ACTING NEUROTRANSMITTERS, BUT SALK RESEARCHERS CREATED TWO NEW TOOLS TO STUDY THE EMOTIONAL FEAR RESPONSE CIRCUIT IN LIVE MICE FOR THE FIRST TIME. THEY FOUND THAT LARGER, SLOWER MOLECULES CALLED NEUROPEPTIDES ARE THE MAIN MESSENGERS IN THIS CIRCUIT-AND MORE THAN ONE NEUROPEPTIDE IS INVOLVED. THEIR FINDINGS MAY EXPLAIN WHY EXISTING MEDICATIONS THAT TARGET ONLY ONE NEUROPEPTIDE ARE OFTEN INEFFECTIVE AND COULD INSPIRE THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW TREATMENTS FOR FEAR-RELATED CONDITIONS LIKE ANXIETY AND PTSD. THE STUDY WAS LED BY SUNG HAN, PHD, AND PUBLISHED IN CELL ON JULY 22, 2024. FUEL LEVEL LOW! ENERGY DEFICITS HARM ATHLETES' HEALTH, NEW RESEARCH TOOL REVEALS HOW - RELATIVE ENERGY DEFICIENCY IN SPORT, OR REDS, IS ESTIMATED TO AFFECT MORE THAN 40% OF PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES-AND THE RATE COULD BE EVEN HIGHER IN RECREATIONAL ATHLETES AND EXERCISERS. ATHLETES DEVELOP REDS BY CONSISTENTLY EXPENDING MORE ENERGY THAN THEY TAKE IN. OVER TIME, THIS ENERGY DEFICIT CAN LEAD TO HORMONAL AND REPRODUCTIVE ISSUES, INSOMNIA AND FATIGUE, BONE WEAKNESS AND INJURY, AND A HIGHER RISK OF ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION. SALK SCIENTISTS CREATED A LANDMARK MOUSE MODEL OF REDS, WITH WHICH THEY FOUND THAT REDS AFFECTS ORGAN SIZE AND GENE EXPRESSION PATTERNS ACROSS THE ENTIRE BODY. WHAT'S MORE, THE SYNDROME APPEARS TO IMPACT MALE AND FEMALE MICE DIFFERENTLY, IMPACTING KIDNEY HEALTH THE MOST IN MALES AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND MUSCLE MASS IN FEMALES. THIS WORK COULD IMPROVE REDS DIAGNOSIS AND REVEAL MOLECULAR TARGETS FOR FUTURE THERAPEUTICS TO HALT, REVERSE, OR PREVENT THE SYNDROME. THE STUDY WAS LED BY SATCHIDANANDA PANDA, PHD, AND PUBLISHED IN CELL METABOLISM ON SEPTEMBER 3, 2024. ONE IN THREE AMERICANS HAS A DYSFUNCTIONAL METABOLISM, BUT INTERMITTENT FASTING COULD HELP - MORE THAN ONE-THIRD OF ADULTS IN THE UNITED STATES HAVE METABOLIC SYNDROME, A CLUSTER OF CONDITIONS THAT SIGNIFICANTLY RAISE A PERSON'S RISK OF HEART DISEASE, STROKE, AND TYPE 2 DIABETES. THESE CONDITIONS INCLUDE HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE, ELEVATED BLOOD SUGAR, EXCESS ABDOMINAL FAT, AND ABNORMAL CHOLESTEROL LEVELS. IN A NEW CLINICAL TRIAL, RESEARCHERS AT SALK AND UC SAN DIEGO FOUND THAT TIME-RESTRICTED EATING-ALSO KNOWN AS INTERMITTENT FASTING-COULD OFFER SIGNIFICANT HEALTH BENEFITS TO ADULTS WITH METABOLIC SYNDROME. COMPARED TO OTHER PRESCRIBED LIFESTYLE CHANGES, TIME-RESTRICTED EATING COULD OFFER A MORE PRACTICAL INTERVENTION ACCESSIBLE TO A WIDER RANGE OF PATIENTS. THE STUDY WAS LED BY SATCHIDANANDA PANDA, PHD, AND PUBLISHED IN ANNALS OF INTERNAL MEDICINE ON OCTOBER 1, 2024. NEW BRAIN-MAPPING TOOL MAY BE THE "START" OF NEXT-GENERATION THERAPEUTICS - WHEN REPAIRING A CAR, IT'S IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND ITS BASIC BLUEPRINT AND HOW ALL THE PARTS CONNECT. TREATING BRAIN DISORDERS IS NO DIFFERENT, EXCEPT THAT SCIENTISTS ARE STILL MISSING KEY DETAILS OF THE BRAIN'S WIRING DIAGRAM. TO ADDRESS THIS, SALK RESEARCHERS DEVELOPED A NEW BRAIN-MAPPING TECHNOLOGY CALLED START. THE CUTTING-EDGE TOOL ALLOWS NEUROSCIENTISTS TO TRACE THE CONNECTIVITY BETWEEN DIFFERENT TYPES OF BRAIN CELLS WITH UNPRECEDENTED RESOLUTION. USING THIS TECHNIQUE, THE RESEARCHERS BECAME THE FIRST TO RESOLVE CORTICAL CONNECTIVITY AT THE RESOLUTION OF TRANSCRIPTOMIC CELL TYPES. THE DISCOVERIES MADE WITH START WILL HELP RESEARCHERS DESIGN NEW THERAPEUTICS THAT CAN TARGET CERTAIN NEURONS AND BRAIN CIRCUITS WITH GREATER SPECIFICITY AND EFFICACY, AND WITH FEWER SIDE EFFECTS THAN CURRENT PHARMACOLOGICAL APPROACHES. THE STUDY WAS LED BY EDWARD CALLAWAY, PHD, AND PUBLISHED IN IN NEURON ON SEPTEMBER 30, 2024. SCIENTISTS CREATE FIRST MAP OF DNA MODIFICATION IN THE DEVELOPING HUMAN BRAIN - A SALK, UC LOS ANGELES, UC SAN FRANCISCO, UC SAN DIEGO, AND SEOUL NATIONAL UNIVERSITY TEAM CREATED THE FIRST MAP OF DNA MODIFICATION IN THE HIPPOCAMPUS AND PREFRONTAL CORTEX-TWO REGIONS OF THE BRAIN CRITICAL TO LEARNING, MEMORY, AND EMOTIONAL REGULATION, AND ALSO FREQUENTLY INVOLVED IN DISORDERS LIKE AUTISM SPECTRUM AND SCHIZOPHRENIA. THE STUDY PROVIDES AN UNPRECEDENTED LOOK AT HOW GENE REGULATION EVOLVES DURING HUMAN BRAIN DEVELOPMENT, SHOWING HOW THE 3D STRUCTURE OF CHROMATIN (DNA AND PROTEINS) PLAYS A CRITICAL ROLE. THE PUBLICLY AVAILABLE ONLINE RESOURCE WILL BE A VALUABL
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 30, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 10, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending June 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since August 1961.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 7, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.