Origins and promising 1960s (1962–1972)

The Institute of Experimental Botany of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences (IEB CSAS) was founded on January 1, 1962, with its headquarters in Prague. It was based on the phytopathology and plant physiology departments of the former Institute of Biology of the CSAS. Other facilities in Prague, Brno, and Olomouc, as well as several field research bases, were also gradually incorporated into the new institute.

 

The first director was Ctibor Blattný, a prominent phytopathologist specializing mainly in insect pests and viral diseases of plants. In the 1960s, good results were achieved particularly by teams focusing on phytopathology (with an emphasis on virology), photosynthesis and water transport in plants, and the regulation of growth and development.

The apple breeding station in Střížovice near Turnov and the base in Olomouc gradually developed their activities. The IEB also included the Laboratory for the Study of Life Processes by Film in Brno. Its head, Jan Calábek, gained international recognition mainly thanks to his successful time-lapse films documenting plant development.

The institute also began publishing two international scientific journals, which continue to be published to the present day. The first is Biologia Plantarum, founded in 1957 and focused on experimental plant biology. In 1967, Photosynthetica was established, specializing in photosynthesis research.

 

Zdeněk Šesták in front of an apparatus for measuring photosynthesis rates at the Department of Plant Physiology, Institute of Biology CSAS, 1960. Masaryk Institute and Archives of the Czech Academy of Sciences (MIA CAS), fond Reportáže ČSAV a AV ČR, FOP_316-48.

 

Phytopathologist and the first director of our institute Ctibor Blattný (right) with his colleague Jiří Pozděna in an experimental hop garden on the premises of the Institute of Biology CSAS, 1960. MIA CAS, fond Reportáže ČSAV a AV ČR, FOP_318-5.

 

The second half of the 1960s brought a partial liberalization of the communist regime in Czechoslovakia, which also had a positive impact on scientists. They were able to communicate more freely with their foreign colleagues and travel more easily on internships even to developed Western countries, from where they brought back valuable experiences.

This promising development was brought to an end by the Soviet occupation of Czechoslovakia in 1968. This marked the beginning of so-called normalization, which was a euphemism for the renewed tightening of the ruling regime. Within a few years, strict state control over the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences was restored and the academy was hit by financial restrictions.

From 1968, the institute was headed by phytopathologist Jaroslav Brčák, a student of the first director Blattný. However, in 1973, he was replaced for political reasons by František Pospíšil, who remained director until 1990.

 

Phytopathologist Jaroslav Brčák, who headed the institute from 1968 to 1973. Source: Biographical Dictionary of the Czech Lands, (biography.hiu.cas.cz), CC BY-SA 3.0 license.

 

Science during the “normalization” period (1973–1989)

Scientific work continued even under these more difficult conditions. For example, studies of plant hormones (phytohormones) and the regulation of flowering showed promising advances. Researchers working on phytohormones gained such recognition abroad that they were able to organize several international conferences in Czechoslovakia during the 1970s and 1980s, attended by experts from both Western and Eastern countries of the divided world.

A global trend that the institute also joined were plant tissue cultures grown with the use of phytohormones in sterile conditions, or in vitro. A great promoter of in vitro cultivation at the Prague workplace (and at the field base in Alšovice in northern Bohemia) was Zdeněk Landa, but he died prematurely in 1975.

 

Since its establishment in 1963, the Olomouc part of the institute has been involved in the use of modern biological methods in plant breeding. Initially a small team, it began to grow dynamically when František J. Novák became its leader in 1973. He turned out to be not only a good scientist but also a capable manager.

In Olomouc, he established a renowned laboratory focused mainly on the application of in vitro techniques in breeding practice. The facility collaborated intensively with breeding companies and agricultural research institutes. In 1984, it also organized an international conference on this topic.

 

Head of the Olomouc facility František J. Novák in 1989. Archive of J. Číhalíková.

 

Marie Doleželová in a cultivation room for growing plant in vitro cultures. Approximately 1980, archive of J. Doležel.

 

During the 1980s, molecular biology and genetic engineering methods began to penetrate plant biology worldwide. The institute was able to keep pace with this fundamental development. For example, the team led by Miloš Ondřej was one of the pioneers in Czechoslovakia in the use of the bacterium Agrobacterium tumefaciens to introduce foreign genes into the plant genetic information.

 

In 1976, a government resolution decided that some of the CSAS workplaces would be relocated from Prague to other cities. Several biological institutes, including ours, were to move to České Budějovice, where the academy began building a large research center for them.

However, its construction was delayed and few scientists were willing to move from Prague, where they had professional and family ties. In 1989, only about a quarter of the institute's employees, mainly phytopathologists and molecular biologists, were working in České Budějovice.

 

Laboratory assistant Blanka Čermáková in a greenhouse taking care of Chenopodium, which was used to study the regulation of flowering. Circa 1980, archive of J. Krekule.

 

Participants of the 1990 conference on phytohormones that was organized by the IEB at the Liblice chateau. MIA CAS, fond Reportáže ČSAV a AV ČR, sign. FOP3399, č. 41.

 

New opportunities, new challenges (1990–2000)

The fall of the communist regime in November 1989 brought major changes also in science. Researchers could freely, without any official restrictions, start to teach at universities, communicate with the world, collaborate with foreign colleagues, and travel to their laboratories for internships.

Another positive development was that in 1990, the Academy of Sciences halted the transfer of the IEB to České Budějovice. The institute thus remained in Prague and Olomouc, while the departments that had already moved to České Budějovice formed the new Institute of Plant Molecular Biology of the CSAS.

With the division of Czechoslovakia on January 1, 1993, the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences ceased to exist. The institute thus became part of its successor organization, the Czech Academy of Sciences (CAS).

One negative aspect of the early post-revolution years was the underfunding of research. Nevertheless, the institute gradually managed to improve its equipment and obtain projects through a grant system, which was new to the country's scientists.

 

Two post-revolution directors of the IEB. Top Jiří Velemínský (in office 1990–1998). Photo from 2007, source: Czech Academy of Sciences. Bottom Ivana Macháčková, director from 1998 to 2007, at work in the laboratory. Photo from around 1983, archive of J. Krekule.

 

The second half of the 1990s brought some major changes. The institute had to leave its large premises in Prague-Vokovice, and in 1997 the employees moved to a new building in the Czech Academy of Sciences campus in Prague-Lysolaje. In 1996, the Laboratory of Growth Regulators split off from the Olomouc facility and moved to the Palacký University campus, becoming a joint laboratory of IEB and the university.

In July 1997, Moravia (the eastern part of Czechia) was hit by catastrophic floods. Our Olomouc site was not spared, with water destroying much of the equipment, experimental material, and documentation. It was only thanks to the tremendous efforts of the employees, the help of the CAS management, and the solidarity of other academic institutions that the buildings were repaired and operations resumed before the end of the year.

 

In July 1997, Moravia was hit by exceptionally severe floods. The Olomouc facility of the institute was also flooded, almost up to the roof. The photo was taken when the water had already partially receded. Archive of IEB Olomouc.

 

Three experts in phytohormone research. Miroslav Kamínek (center) led a team that studied cytokinins at the institute's Prague facility. On the left is Ladislav Kohout from the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry CSAS, who focused on brassinosteroids. On the right is Eva Zažímalová, a specialist in auxin research and director of the IEB from 2007 to 2012. Photo from 1991, archive of J. Krekule.

 

Plant biology for the 21st century (2001–2010)

The new millennium offered new opportunities. The Institute succeeded in acquiring large research projects, investing in equipment, and improving the quantity and quality of scientific publications. European Union funds became an important source of financing for development after the Czech Republic joined the EU in 2004.

 

Fundamental research increasingly focused on advanced molecular biology, highly sensitive methods of chemical analysis (using, for example, mass spectrometry) and cutting-edge microscopy (especially confocal). Research topics include, among many others, hormonal regulation of plant growth and development, cell biology, pollen biology, pathophysiology, and plant biotechnology.

The Olomouc facility has gradually established itself as a world-renowned center in the field of plant genomics, i.e., the study of the complete genetic information of organisms. Its head, Jaroslav Doležel, received the Czech Head National Government Award in 2018 for his many years of work and pioneering innovations in plant genomics. This is the most prestigious scientific award given in the Czech Republic.

The Laboratory of Growth Regulators, which was spun off from the Olomouc facility as a joint laboratory of the IEB and Palacký University, is successfully researching phytohormones and their synthetic derivatives that have interesting application opportunities in agriculture and medicine. Its results in the field of analytical chemistry of phytohormones are also outstanding.

 

The breeding station in Střížovice has achieved remarkable success in applied research. Under the leadership of Jaroslav Tupý, it has specialized in breeding new apple varieties resistant to scab and other serious diseases. Its varieties are now grown in many countries around the world.

 

In November 2018, Jaroslav Doležel (on the right) received the prestigious Czech Head National Government Award for his scientific work. The award was presented to him by the Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš at a gala evening ceremony. Source: Česká hlava.

 

The era of construction and excellence (since 2011)

In the second decade of the new century, the IEB carried out three key construction projects. In 2012, the second building was opened in the Academy of Sciences campus in Prague-Lysolaje, where some laboratories were already located. Teams from several other Prague workplaces moved there, making it possible for the first time in the institute's history to concentrate all Prague laboratories (with a few exceptions) in one place.

At the turn of 2012 and 2013, our Olomouc facility moved to a new building on the campus of Palacký University in Olomouc-Holice. This allowed the institute to leave its previous premises in a problematic flood area near the Morava river.

And thirdly, in 2017, the breeding station underwent a significant modernization. A new greenhouse and storage facilities equipped with advanced technologies were built, which greatly streamlined the work of breeders.

 

Martin Vágner was the director of the institute from 2012 to 2022. Source: Czech Academy of Sciences.

 

We cannot list all the personalities who worked at our institute during its more than 60 years of existence. Let us therefore mention at least its directors: Ctibor Blattný (1962–1968), Jaroslav Brčák (1968–1973), František Pospíšil (1973–1990), Jiří Velemínský (1990–1998), Ivana Macháčková (1998–2007), Eva Zažímalová (2007–2012; president of the Czech Academy of Sciences from 2017 to 2025), Martin Vágner (2012–2022), and Jan Martinec (since 2022).

 

In recent years, the IEB has focused mainly on increasing the scientific excellence of its teams. Two new laboratories led by young scientists have been established, working on current hot topics in plant biology. The institute is also becoming increasingly international: more and more foreign researchers are coming to the institute for internships or longer-term positions. Many of them continue to collaborate with our teams even after they leave for other institutions.