The Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) is an international center for research and education in biology, biomedicine and environmental science. Founded in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, in 1888, the MBL is a private, nonprofit institution affiliated with the University of Chicago. After being independent for most of its history, it became affiliated with the university in 2013. It also collaborates with other institutions including, Brown University, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and the Woods Hole Research Center.