In 1977, the multiple research programs that had developed were formally drawn together into the Research Institute of Scripps Clinic and by the mid-1980s laboratory space had grown to some 300,000 square feet.

Major programs in cell and molecular biology, synthetic and bioorganic chemistry, and the neurosciences had developed, in addition to efforts in immunology and clinically oriented investigations.

In 1991, when Scripps Clinic and Research Foundation and Scripps Memorial Hospitals reaffiliated, the Institute became a separate corporation under the parent organization, Scripps Institutions of Medicine and Science. With that change its name became The Scripps Research Institute.