The Institute was established in 1970 as a result of organizational changes introduced by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education in the structure of the universities under its jurisdiction. The new organizational unit included the previously existing Departments of Organic Chemistry, Organic Synthesis, and the Microanalysis Laboratory within the Faculty of Chemistry. The leadership of the Institute was assumed by a full member of the Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN), Prof. Jan Michalski.
In subsequent years, the duties of Director were held by: Prof. Mirosław Leplawy (1972-1992), Prof. Ryszard Bodalski (1992-2002), Prof. Stefan Jankowski (2002-2011), Prof. Zbigniew Kamiński (2011-2017), and Prof. Tomasz Janecki (2017-2022). Currently, the Institute is headed by Prof. Łukasz Albrecht.
In the early years of the Institute, the scientific work conducted there was largely a continuation of research previously carried out in the parent departments. The first research team, created and led by Prof. Michalski, focused on the organic chemistry of phosphorus and sulfur. In 1972, Prof. Michalski was appointed Director of the Molecular and Macromolecular Research Center of the Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN), which was established in Łódź with his personal involvement. This led to the division of his group into four independent teams, led by senior researchers, which continued research in phosphorus chemistry. These teams were led by Prof. Andrzej Zwierzak (1972-2003), Prof. Anna Markowska (1972-1992), Prof. Ryszard Bodalski (1972-2002), and Dr. Stanisław Musierowicz (1972-1977). Over time, a team led by Prof. Tadeusz Gajda (1995-2022) split off from Prof. Zwierzak's group, while four other teams emerged from Prof. Bodalski's group, including those of Prof. Tomasz Janecki (1996-2022), Prof. Henryk Krawczyk (2001-2017), Dr. Piotr Majewski (1995-2012), and Prof. Stefan Jankowski (1995-2015). All these teams continued research in phosphorus chemistry, gradually expanding their scientific interests to include modern chemical issues. Prof. Krawczyk’s successor was Prof. Łukasz Albrecht, who founded the Asymmetric Synthesis team, while Prof. Gajda’s successor, Prof. Katarzyna Błażewska, now leads the Chemical Biology team. Both teams opened new research directions at the Institute.
The second founding research team, which significantly influenced the current shape of the Institute, was created by Prof. Mirosław T. Leplawy, whose focus was the chemistry of amino acids and peptides. After Prof. Leplawy’s retirement, the leadership was taken over by Prof. Janusz Zabrocki (1997-2008). In 2008, Prof. Stefan Jankowski became the head of this group, expanding its program to include SAR studies using NMR techniques, thereby introducing a new research direction at the Institute.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, two new research teams focused on peptide chemistry were established at the Institute—one led by Prof. Zbigniew Kamiński (1997-2017), and the other by Prof. Aleksandra Olma (2000-2019). The team of Prof. Kamiński is currently led by Prof. Beata Kolesińska (2017-).
In the mid-1970s, the Institute’s research was further complemented by studies on nucleic acid chemistry, initiated by Prof. Dr. Hab. Andrzej Małkiewicz. He led this research group until 2009, after which Prof. Elżbieta Sochacka took over (2009-2023). The current head of the group is Prof. Grażyna Leszczyńska (since 2022).
Additionally, the Institute originally included a group led by Prof. Bolesław Bochwic (1970-1975), which focused on the chemistry of terpenes and isoprenoids. Between 1987 and 2000, the Institute also housed a group led by Prof. Andrzej Frankowski, which emerged from Prof. Bochwic’s group and focused on the chemistry of imidazoles and imidazole sugars. The last of the founding teams was led by Dr. Henryk Zając, who specialized in the synthesis of modified steroids.