History IGM

Our History

The Institute of Molecular Genetics Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza (IGM LLCS) of the National Research Council was founded in 1970 in Pavia as proposed by Prof. Luigi Luca Cavalli Sforza to the CNR then-president with the name of Institute of Biochemical Genetics and Evolutionary (IGBE).

Prof. LL Cavalli-Sforza’s letter dated 1968 requesting to establish the IGBE in Pavia

In September 2000 the CNR IGBE and CNR Center for Histochemistry Studies of Pavia (CSI) merged with the name of Institute of Molecular Genetics (IGM).

In 2007, the IGM was enriched with two sections in Bologna and Chieti, both previously associated with another CNR Institute (ITOI: Institute for Organ Transplantation and Immunology). Thanks to a collaboration agreement, the Secondary Unit of the IGM in Bologna is housed within the Rizzoli Hospital. The Chieti unit was suppressed in 2014 and transformed into a work site.

In 2018, a Research Unit (URT) of the IGM was established at the FIRC Institute of Molecular Oncology (IFOM) based in Milan.

Thanks to these acquisitions, the Institute has been able to enrich itself with new skills and today the various components of the Institute share common scientific interests with a high level of methodological complementarity. Indeed, IGM combines high-profile scientific basic research investigations on fundamental biological processes with applied and translational research.

In 2019, the IGM was officially dedicated to its founder, acquiring the official name of Institute of Molecular Genetics Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza (IGM LLCS).

IGM Directors: