Institute of Biology Bucharest

History of the Institute of Biology Bucharest

The Institute of Biology of the Romanian Academy was established in several stages, starting with 1949, when the Fauna of Romania, Flora of Romania, Plant Physiology and Animal Ecology groups were established. In 1950, the Plant Ecology and Animal Genetics groups were established, and in 1954, the Limnology, Oceanology and Animal Physiology groups. In 1957, all these laboratories were reunited and the first Biological Research Center in Romania was established. In 1958, within the newly established center, the Plant Genetics Laboratory was organized, and in 1959, the Animal Morphology Laboratory.

In 1960, the Biological Research Center was transformed into the “Traian Săvulescu” Institute of Biology and in 1964, all the research teams, dispersed in different locations in Bucharest, were reunited in a new building, at Splaiul Independenței no. 296. In the same year, the Institute's greenhouse was put into use and in 1965 the vivarium building was built.

In 1970, the Phytopathology and Animal Metabolism teams within the Animal Physiology Laboratory were transferred to the Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences.

At the beginning of 1973, the Central Institute of Biology was established as a national structure for organizing biological research, with the Institute of Biological Sciences in Bucharest as its pivot institute. In 1974, the Animal and Plant Physiology and Genetics teams, as well as a significant number of researchers from the Terrestrial Ecology Laboratory, were transferred to agricultural and zootechnical research units.

In 1990, the Central Institute of Biology was dissolved and the Institute of Biology was established, which returned to the structure of the Romanian Academy (H.G. 1220/1990), and the Biochemistry and Speleology laboratories were separated from it and returned to their old names and organizational status.

In1996, two laboratories with a strongly applied profile were separated, which became the INCD for Biological Sciences and the Research Center for Ecological Technologies.

As can be seen, in the over 65 years since its establishment, the Bucharest Institute of Biology of the Romanian Academy, under the different names it has had throughout this period, has had a turbulent history, and biological research, through the diversity and complexity of biological sciences, has not been received according to its value. Research nuclei in traditional fields of Romanian biological research have been maintained and new directions have been developed in other fields.

The Stages in the history of the Institute of Biology in Bucharest

Year	Event	Departments	Leading
1948	Establishment of Flora and Fauna Collectives	Flora, Fauna Plant physiology, Animal ecology	Prof. C.C. Georgescu Prof. N. Salageanu Prof. Gr. Eliescu
1950	New Departments	Plant Ecology Animal Genetics	Prof. I. Popescu Zeletin Prof. N. Teodoreanu
1954	New Departments	Limnologie Oceanologie Fiziologie animala	Prof. Th. Busnita Prof. M. Bacescu Prof. Gh. Nichita Acad. E. Pora Prof. N. Santa
1957	Biological Research Center		Director Prof. W. Knechtel Director adj. Prof. N. Salageanu Dr. A. Savulescu
1958	Plant Genetics Laboratory	Plant Genetics	Prof. P. Raicu
1959	Animal Morphology Laboratory	Animal Morphology	Director Prof. N. Salageanu Deputy Directors: Dr. Alice Savulescu Prof. Th. Busnita
1959	Animal Morphology Laboratory	Animal Morphology	Prof. V. Ghetie Prof. R. Codreanu
1960	"T. Săvulescu" Institute of Biology		Director Prof. N. Salageanu Director adj. Dr. Alice Savulescu
1964	Inauguration of the building in Splaiul Independentei 296	Microbiology, Plant physiology, Geobotany, Systematics, Morphology, Cytobiology, Plant Ecology Genetics Morphology, Animal Systematics Animal Ecology Animal Physiology Hydrobiology	Director Dr. Alice Savulescu Deputy Director Prof. N.Salageanu
1964			Acad. Alice Savulescu Acad. N. Salageanu Prof. C.C.Georgescu Prof. N. Teodoreanu Prof. M.A. Ionescu Prof. N. Santa Prof. Th. Busnita
1970	Reorganization of the Institute	Transfer of the Phytopathology and Physiology Departments to Agricultural Institutes
1973	Establishment of the Central Institute of Biology (ICEBIOL) Pivotal Institute: Institute of Biology		General Director: Prof.G. Zarnea ( 1973-1985) Deputy Director: N. Hondru (1973-1975)
1974	Reorganization of the Institute	Transfer of specialists from: Animal and plant physiology, Genetics, Terrestrial ecology, to agricultural units
1975-1985	Central Institute of Biology (ICEBIOL)		General Director: Prof.G. Zarnea ( 1973-1985) Deputy Director: M. Caloianu (1975-1985)
1985-1989	Central Institute of Biology (ICEBIOL)		General Director: Conf. D. Ivan Deputy Director: M. Caloianu
1990	Establishment of the Institute of Biology Bucharest, subordinated to the Romanian Academy (IBB) Dissolution of ICEBIOL		Director: Dr. C. Prunescu Deputy Director: Dr. M. Oltean
1990-1995	Institute of Biology Bucharest (IBB)		Director: Dr. Carol Prunescu Deputy Directors: Dr. Mircea Oltean (1990-1991) Dr. Marin Falca (1991-1995)
1995-1998	Institute of Biology Bucharest (IBB)	Aquatic Ecology, Terrestrial Ecology, Biosystematics, Animal Taxonomy, Nature Conservation, Microbiology, Plant Cytobiology and Genetics, Animal Morphophysiology	Director: Dr. Mircea Oltean Deputy Director: Dr. Marin Falca
1998-2005	Institute of Biology Bucharest (IBB)	Ecology and Nature Conservation, Biosystematics, Microbiology, Plant Cytobiology and Genetics, Animal Morphophysiology	Director: Dr. Marin Falca Deputy Director: Dr. Lucia Dumitru
2005-2008	Institute of Biology Bucharest (IBB)	Center for Ecology, Taxonomy and Nature Conservation; Center for Microbiology; Center for Plant and Animal Cytobiology.	Director: Dr. Lucia Dumitru Deputy Director: Dr. Madalin Enache
2008-2012	Institute of Biology Bucharest (IBB)	Center for Ecology, Taxonomy and Nature Conservation; Center for Microbiology; Center for Plant and Animal Cytobiology.	Director: Dr. Madalin Enache Deputy Director: Acad. Octavian Popescu
2012-2016	Institute of Biology Bucharest (IBB)	Department of Ecology, Taxonomy and Nature Conservation; Department of Microbiology; Department of Plant and Animal Cytobiology.	Director: Acad. Octavian Popescu
2016-2020	Institute of Biology Bucharest (IBB)	Department of Ecology, Taxonomy and Nature Conservation; Department of Microbiology; Department of Plant and Animal Cytobiology.	Director: Dr. Dumitru MURARIU
2020-2023	Institute of Biology Bucharest (IBB)	Department of Taxonomy, Ecology and Nature Conservation; Department of Microbiology; Department of Developmental Biology.	Director: Acad. Dumitru MURARIU Deputy Director: Dr. Sorin ȘTEFĂNUȚ
2023-2024	Institute of Biology Bucharest (IBB)	Department of Taxonomy, Ecology and Nature Conservation; Department of Microbiology; Department of Developmental Biology.	Interim Director: Dr. Sorin ȘTEFĂNUȚ
2024-prezent	Institute of Biology Bucharest (IBB)	Department of Taxonomy, Ecology and Nature Conservation; Department of Microbiology; Department of Developmental Biology.	Director: Dr. Sorin ȘTEFĂNUȚ

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Last modified: 09/01/26