History

The first professional organization of Croatian biochemists was founded in 1957, as the Section for Biochemistry of the Croatian Chemical Society. Later it became a member of the Commission for Biochemistry of the Union of Chemical Societies of Yugoslavia, founded in 1965, which joined the Federation of European Biochemical Societies (FEBS) in the same year. In 1976, the independent Croatian Biochemical Society (HBD) was founded. HBD joined the newly established Association of Biochemical Societies of Yugoslavia (1976, based in Zagreb), which became a member of the International Union of Biochemistry (IUB) in 1977.
As an independent society, HBD became a member of FEBS and International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (IUBMB) in 1992. In 2003, the Society changed its name to Croatian Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (HDBMB).
Numerous biochemists, as well as other scientists in the field of molecular life sciences, have contributed significantly to the activities and reputation of the Society. The presidents and secretaries of the Society made a particularly important contribution, while the honorary and deserving members of the Society contributed significantly to its international recognition.
This historical overview chronologically lists the major activities of the Society from the founding of the Biochemistry Section of Croatian Chemical Society (1957) to 1992.

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1992.

HBD becomes a member of the Federation of European Biochemical Societies (FEBS) and International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (IUBMB)

2^nd International Meeting on Esterases Interacting with Organophosphorus Compounds, Salsomaggiore, Italy (the meeting should be held in, but due to the war in Croatia it was held in Italy)

6^th Congress of the Association of Biochemical Societies of Yugoslavia, Opatija, Croatia – CANCELLED

1991.

HBD becomes a member of the Croatian Society of Natural Sciences

FEBS Advanced Course: Microbial Breeding, Dubrovnik, Croatia, October 14 – 21, 1991 (the main organiser: Marija Alačević) – CANCELLED

1990.

9^th Regional Meeting of Biochemists, Biophysicists, and Biotechnologists, Opatija, Croatia

1989.

5^th Congress of the Association of Biochemical Societies of Yugoslavia, Novi Sad, Serbia

1988.

With a support and participation of the representatives of the International Union of Biochemistry (IUB), the Meeting on theoretical and practical teaching of Biochemistry on the undergraduate level Teaching Biochemistry at graduate level was held Dubrovnik, Croatia

1^st International Meeting on Esterases Hydrolysing Organophosphorus Compounds, Dubrovnik, Croatia

7^th Balkan Biochemical and Biophysical Days (BBBD), Dubrovnik, Croatia

1987.

18^th FEBS Congress, Ljubljana, June 28 – July 3, 1987

Croatian biochemists significantly contributed to the successful organisation of the Congress (Sessions Chairs: Slobodan Barbarić, Branko Brdar, Stjepan Gamulin, Vera Johanides, Pavao Mildner, Berislav Pende, Milivoj Popović, Blanka Ries, Božidar Strauss, Nikola Škreb, Ljubinka Vitale, and Ivana Weygand-Đurašević), and many HBD members participated in the Congress Programme.

8^th Regional Meeting of Biochemists, Biophysicists and Biotechnologists, Graz, Austria

1986.

4^th Congress of the Association of Biochemical Societies of Yugoslavia, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina (celebration of the 10^th jubilee of the Association of Biochemical Societies of Yugoslavia)

1985.

7^th Regional Meeting of Biochemists, Biophysicists and Biotechnologists, Ljubljana, Slovenia

6^th Balkan Biochemical and Biophysical Days (BBBD), Plovdiv, Bulgaria

1983.

3^rd Congress of the Association of Biochemical Societies of Yugoslavia, Skopje, Macedonia

6^th Regional Meeting of Biochemists, Biophysicists and Biotechnologists, Trieste, Italy

5^th Balkan Biochemical and Biophysical Days (BBBD), Thessaloniki, Greece

1981.

5^th Regional Meeting of Biochemists – Graz, Ljubljana, Padua, Trieste, Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia

1980.

2^nd Congress of the Association of Biochemical Societies of Yugoslavia, Belgrade, Serbia

3^rd Balkan Biochemical and Biophysical Days (BBBD), Belgrade, Serbia

1979.

FEBS Special Meeting: Regulation and Mechanism of Action; Industrial and Clinical Enzymology, Cavtat (in these times the FEBS annually organised either FEBS Congress or FEBS Special Meeting on particular topic). Publications: Enzyme regulation and mechanism of action (P. Mildner and B. Ries, Eds.) Pergamon Press, Oxford, 1980; Industrial and clinical enzymology (Lj. Vitale and V. Simeon, Eds.) Pergamon Press, Oxford, 1980.

Regional meeting of biologists and biochemists from Yugoslavia and Trieste, Trieste, Italy

FEBS Advanced Course: Recombinant DNA,Zagreb, Croatia, October 15 – 27, 1979 (the main organisers: Zoran Zgaga and V. Škarić)

1978.

HBD established the Board for Terminology and Nomenclature

1977.

1^st Annual General Assembly of the HBD was held on April 20, 1977 (jointly with the Croatian Chemical Society). On that day, the Society has 85 members. The journal Periodicum biologorum becomes an official journal of the HBD.

The Association of Biochemical Societies of Yugoslavia was established (President – Pavao Mildner, Secretary General – Blanka Reis (until 1987))

The Association of Biochemical Societies of Yugoslavia becomes a member of the International Union of Biochemistry (IUB)

Yugoslav Symposium on Enzymes, Zagreb

1976.

Founding Assembly was held on July 14, 1976 on the initiative of the Initiative Committee (Elsa Reiner, Pavao Mildner, Blanka Ries, Vera Simeon, Sonja Iskrić, Ljubinka Vitale, Dina Keglević, Sergije Kveder, Jelka Tomašić, and Vera Gamulin). Elsa Reiner (President), Vera Gall-Palla (Vice-President), Ljubinka Vitale (Secretary General), Sonja Iskrić (Treasurer), and Slobodan Đokic, Aleksandar Lutkić, Pavao Mildner, Blanka Ries, and Mirjana Marijana Fišer-Herman were elected as members of the Board of Directors. Members of the Supervisory Board were Zlatko Kniewald, Sergije Kveder, and Božidar Straus, and members of the Court of Honour were Vera Johanides, Dina Keglević, and Stanko Šir. The HBD Statute was confirmed on December 29, 1976. The Society’s headquarter was in Zagreb (Marulićev trg 19/II). Administrative secretary was Mrs. Vera Mikulčić.

1^st Congress of the Yugoslav Biochemists, Portorož, Slovenia (during the Congress, the Founding Assembly of the Association of Biochemical Societies of Yugoslavia

FEBS Advanced Course: Post-synthetic Modifications of Proteins, October 18 – 22, 1976, Dubrovnik, Croatia (the main organisers: A. P. Mathias and Pavao Mildner)

1975.

1^st International Meeting on Cholinesterases and Cholinergic Receptors, Split, Croatia

1974.

The publishing of bulletin Informacije (Information) (2 times per year). The first editor was Elsa Reiner. Bulletin contained information that have not been included in the FEBS Bulletin-u, i.e. information related to the HBD and the Association of Biochemical Societies of Yugoslavia. In the period 1981 – 1987 the editor was Ljubinka Vitale, and in the period 1993 – 1996, Karmela Barišić.

1971.

FEBS Advanced Course: Catalytic & Regulatory Properties of Enzymes, Zadar, September 13 – 17, 1971. (the main organiser: Pavao Mildner)

1965.

The Commission for Biochemistry of the Union of Chemical Societies of Yugoslavia becomes a member of the FEBS.

The Union of Chemical Societies of Yugoslavia established the Commission for Biochemistry, with a purpose to represent Yugoslav biochemists in the Federation of the European Biochemical Societies (FEBS). The President of the Commission for Biochemistry was Pavao Mildner, and Elsa Reiner was the Secretary General.

1964.

Federation of European Biochemical Societies (FEBS) has been established

1957.

The Section for Biochemistry of the Croatian Chemical Society was founded (Head – Pavao Mildner, 1957 – 1974; Elsa Reiner, 1974 – 1976). The journal Croatica Chemica Acta becomes an official journal of the Section.