Cell Type Taxonomies A-Z: Webinar Series

How many brain cell types are there? What is their form, function, and how do they connect? Teams at the Allen Institute for Brain Science are working to answer these foundational neuroscience questions. By cataloguing and genetically profiling cell types of the brain with incredible precision and detail, we are working to improve our fundamental understanding of brain development, evolution, and disease.

Join us for a webinar series to learn all about the ins and outs of the Allen Institute’s open data and cell type taxonomy tools. We will start at the very beginning with answering questions such as: What’s a cell type? What’s a taxonomy? As the series progresses, we will dive into deeper questions such as: What are the techniques used to define cell types? How do cell types relate across species?

We will be addressing these questions and more during our live and interactive webinars. Register for the webinar you are interested in attending. The series can be watched either sequentially or individually. You will get a reminder email closer to the date along with information on how to join the webinar online. For questions or assistance, please contact education@alleninstitute.org. 

This webinar series was supported by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number U24NS133077. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. 

Learn more about the series and register: https://alleninstitute.org/events/cell_type_az_webinars/

The techniques behind the Cell Type Knowledge Explorer | February 28, 2024 | 10:00 AM PST

This webinar will focus on the Cell Type Knowledge Explorer, a cell type taxonomy tool created by the Allen Institute and their collaborators. Here we will learn how transcriptomic, morphological, and electrophysiological data is generated and used to define cell types in the CTKE.

Please register in order to receive a reminder email and links to watch the webinar live on Zoom or Youtube.

Cross-species cell types | March 27, 2024 | 10:00 AM PST

This webinar will also focus on the Cell Type Knowledge Explorer, a cell type taxonomy tool created by the Allen Institute and their collaborators. Here we will learn how multimodal data is used in the CTKE to determine cell type homologies across species (mouse, human, and marmoset) in the primary motor cortex.

Please register in order to receive a reminder email and links to watch the webinar live on Zoom or Youtube.

What is your cell type: MapMyCells | April 24, 2024 | 10:00 AM PST

This webinar will focus on MapMyCells, a new interactive cell type taxonomy tool. MapMyCells allows for users to upload their own cell type data and compare it to taxonomy datasets generated by the Allen Institute and their collaborators.

Please register in order to receive a reminder email and links to watch the webinar live on Zoom or Youtube.

Introduction to ABC Atlas | May 22, 2024 | 10:00 AM PST

This webinar will focus on the Allen Brain Cell (ABC) Atlas, a platform for visualizing single cell transcriptomic data in the brain. Currently, the atlas features spatial, non-spatial, human, and mouse data; this webinar will be an introduction to and a general overview of the atlas.

Please register in order to receive a reminder email and links to watch the webinar live on Zoom or Youtube.

Past Webinars

Cell Types 101 | January 10, 2024 | 10:00 AM PST

This webinar will feature an introduction to the study of cell types! We will cover evolving cell type definitions, cell types across species, the types of data used to define cell types, and the importance of having standard definitions for cell types. This will be a great starting point for those who are new to cell types, and refresher for the experts. Recording of this webinar is available on our YouTube channel here.

What is a taxonomy? | January 31, 2024 | 10:00 AM PST

This webinar will focus on the systematic classification of cell types and their hierarchical relationships. Much like species taxonomy (family, genus, species, etc.), researchers at the Allen Institute and their collaborators are working to create a standard taxonomy for cell types. Recording of this webinar is available on our YouTube channel here

Learn more about the series and register: https://alleninstitute.org/events/cell_type_az_webinars/