On Thursday, 1 September 2011 at 10 A.M., the reconstructed building of biochemistry of the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the ASCR, dedicated to Prof. Antonín Holý, who celebrated his birthday that day, had its grand opening. The Jubilee celebrant attended the opening of the peak laboratories in person despite a serious illness. President of the Academy of Sciences of the CR Prof. Jiří Drahoš wished Prof. Holý particularly plenty of good health and emphasised that ‘besides the basic conditions like genius, intuition and luck, exceptional results of scientific work are always based on systematic and long-term basic research’.
Prof. Drahoš further welcomed the fact that the newly reconstructed building, opened precisely
on the day of the life jubilee of Prof. Holý, provides scientists with an ultramodern workplace,
which is equal to the absolute world pinnacle: ‘It is precisely the discoveries of Prof. Holý,
which have brought profit also to the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the
Academy of Sciences of the CR. Patents for medicines from his laboratory have made it possible to
finance the magnanimous reconstruction of the entire complex, whose first stage has been completed
exactly on the day when the most important Czech scientist has lived to be 75 years old’.
The complex of the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the ASCR in Dejvice has
been gradually changing. It is undergoing a total reconstruction, which began last year and will
continue until 2015. The result of the first stage of the reconstruction is the fashionably
modified building of biochemistry with spacious laboratories of the biochemical research teams and
the research-service team. A newly built laboratory for the testing of the biological activities of
potential medicines connects directly to the biochemical laboratories. The testing of biological
activity is an indispensible and inseparable component of the development of active agents prepared
at the IOCB.
‘Work took place so that the researchers could return to their laboratories as soon as
possible,’ added the representative of the project implementer Ing. Martin Plch, Director of
Division 3 of Metrostav.
The reconstruction of the entire complex will continue with further stages; the costs are
estimated at three billion Czech crowns. Also a new pavilion, which could be named after Antonín
Holý according to Director of the IOCB Dr.
ZdeněkHavlas, will be built.
Prepared by: Department of Media Communication (Head Office of the ASCR) and IOCB
20 Sep 2011
