CTP PCP RAS was founded by Leo Piruzyan in 2000 as the ideological successor of the Research Institute for Biological Testing of Chemical Compounds (RI BTCC).

In 1972 L.A. Piruzyan (then Corresponding Member of the USSR Academy of Sciences) organized the Research Institute for Biological Testing of Chemical Compounds (RI BTCC). L. A. Piruzyan developed a new strategy of pharmacology, which consists in creating a metabolic passport of a person aiming at individual prevention and prediction of various diseases, selection of staff for working in hazardous chemical industries, for needs of transplantology, toxicology and medicine.

In 1984 the RI BTCC was reorganized.

The ideas of metabolic certification, personalized and ethnically specialized pharmacology formed the basis of scientific directions in the creation of CTP PCP RAS. Over time, new directions appeared. These directions were research on cell biophysics, mathematical physiology, systems biology and systemic pharmacology, and the theory of personalized medicine. The institute is currently conducting research across a range of experimental and theoretical life science areas related to new pharmacological strategies.

CTP PCP RAS was established in May 2000 as an independent institution on the basis of one of the departments of the Semenov Institute of Chemical Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The first director of the institute was Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences L.A. Piruzyan. Initially it belonged to the Department of Chemistry and Materials Science of the Russian Academy of Sciences. By Decree of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences No. 69 of March 10, 2009 CTP PCP RAS was transferred to the Department of Physiological Sciences of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Since January 1, 2012 bears the official name of the Federal State Budgetary Institution of Science Center for Theoretical Problems of Physicochemical Pharmacology of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

From 2006 to 2018 the Director of the Institute was a corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Prof. F.I. Ataullakhanov. Since 2018 , the director is Prof. M. A. Panteleev.

Leo Piruzyan

Leo Piruzyan, an outstanding scientist in the field of medical biophysics, was born on July 16, 1937 in the village of Manes (Alaverdi) of the Alaverdi region of the Armenian SSR.
In 1961 he graduated from the Yerevan Medical Institute and had his post-graduate in the Scientific Research Institute of Experimental Surgical Equipment and Instruments in Moscow.

In 1964 he defended his thesis for the PhD in medical sciences.

Since 1968 he worked at the Institute of Chemical Physics of the USSR Academy of Sciences. For 43 years Leo Piruzyan's scientific activity has been associated with the Semenov Institute of Chemical Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

With the support of academicians N.N. Semenova, N.M. Emmanuel, M.V. Keldysh and V.A. Kirillin in 1970 created the Department of Medical Biophysics at the Institute of Chemical Physics (ICP), in which, on an interdisciplinary basis, at the junction of physico-chemical and medical-biological sciences, fundamental research was carried out in a new and promising direction - medical biophysics.

In 1972 he founded and until 1984 was the director of theResearch Institute for Biological Testing of Chemical Compounds (RI BTCC). At the same time, in the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, he creates the Department of Medical Biophysics.

At the RI BTCC, L.A. Piruzyan worked wath talented scientists: physicists, chemists, mathematicians, design engineers, biologists, pharmacologists, doctors. Their combined efforts, and interdisciplinary approaches led to the creation of the first original system of biological tests of chemical compounds in USSR, which allows registering and identifying promising chemical compounds and conducting biological studies to determine their biological activity (screening) and safety. The ultimate goal of these studies was the release of the finished drug into practical medicine.

As a result of the application of the system created at the Piruzyan Institute, 35 potential drugs were identified. The institute was unique. It had a branch called FPP (finished pharmaceutical products), which interacted with clinics and conducted clinical studies of potential therapeutic agents

The novel directions of Piruzyan's scientific activity were also: the study of the effect of physical factors (magnetic field, laser radiation) on biological systems; development of non-invasive methods for examining organs and tissues in health and disease. As a result, an electrical facility was created to create a high-resolution nuclear magnetic tomograph.

Under the leadership of Piruzyan, the institute carried out the studies on the problem of jaundice in newborns. As a result of these studie an original method of phototherapy was proposed and successfully tested in Moscow clinics.

Unfortunately, in 1984 L.A. Piruzyan was dismissed from the post of director of the RI BTCC by the decision of the authorities (after criticism of the institute by a member of the CPSU Central Committee Solominsev), and the institute was literally eliminated. L.A. Piruzyan was charged with violations in financial and economic activities. The autorities allegedly found a foreign spy at the institute and found a man who allegedly took bribes from foreign firms. L.A. Piruzyan was accused of recruiting only Jews and Armenians. As it later became clear, these all were fabricated cases. It was a difficult time both for the director and for the staff of the institute - a "witch hunt".

Since 1984 Leo Piruzyan continued to work as the head of the department of the Institute of Chemical Physics of the USSR Academy of Sciences, since 1998 - the head of the department of theoretical problems of physiological chemistry at the Institute of Chemical Physics RAS.

In 2000 L.A. Piruzyan became the director of the new academic Center for Theoretical Problems of Physicochemical Pharmacology of the Russian Academy of Sciences. In 2000 he was elected a full member of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Department of Physiology and Fundamental Medicine, Section of Fundamental Medicine). When in 2006 Leo Piruzyan left the post of director by age, he did not abandon the institute, but invited the talented biophysicist F.I. Ataullakhanov. Under him, young talented researchers came to the Institute, the subject area expanded and now the Center has one of the highest scientific ratings in the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Professor of Moscow University, the famous therapist of the XIX century M. Ya. Mudrov said: "It is necessary to treat not a disease, but a specific patient." Following this maxim of Russian medicine, L.A. Piruzyan worked on a new strategy of pharmacology, consisting in the development of a human metabolic passport, aimed at the development of individualized medicine.

In the fundamental work "Human metabolic passport - the basis of a new strategy in pharmacology" (2004), L.A. Piruzyan substantiates the urgent need for "metabolic portrayal" - the individualization of the action of drugs - taking into account the ethnic and individual characteristics of a person. When prescribing a medicine to a patient, the doctor must proceed from taking into account their metabolism and the effect on the body of this particular person. Piruzyan's idea of ​​the importance of the metabolic status of a person, taking into account his ethnicity in treatment, developed by him from the late 70s - early 80s of the XX century, formed the basis of new scientific directions in biomedical sciences. Piruzyan's work "A New Strategy in Pharmacology" was highly appreciated and recognized by scientists from different countries: Professors V. Scheler (Germany), Anna McLaren (University of Cambridge), Francois Gros (France), Peter V. Bennett (USA) are grateful to Piruzyan for his research on individual metabolic certification, allowing a more complete understanding of the patient's individual reactions to drugs.

L.A. Piruzyan is the author of over 400 works, including three monographs.

L.A. Piruzyan was awarded for services to the national science:

- Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" II degree (May 5, 2008) - for a significant contribution to national and world science, many years of fruitful work and training of qualified scientific personnel
- Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" III degree (July 29, 2002) - for outstanding achievements in scientific activity and great contribution to the training of highly qualified personnel
- Order "For Services to the Fatherland" IV degree (December 31, 1997) - for services to the state, long-term conscientious work and great contribution to strengthening friendship and cooperation between peoples
- Order of the October Revolution (1981)
- Order of the Red Banner of Labor (1975)
- Laureate of the USSR State Prize
- Gold medal of the USSR Exhibition of Economic Achievements.

In 2005 the publishing house "Medicine" published a monograph in 2 volumes "Medical Biophysics. Biological tests of chemical compounds "(Lessons of history). It shows the fundamental contribution of academician Piruzyan to national science on the basis of a large amount of factual material and memoirs of former employees of the institute.

L.A. Piruzyan was not only an outstanding scientist. He possessed tremendous charisma, along with outstanding intellect and scientific intuition, he was inherent in sparkling humor and artistic gift. He was a talented storyteller, but at the same time we never heard from him any negative remarks about his colleagues. It especially clearly contained such qualities as kindness, the ability to empathize, and the willingness to always help people. "We must help" - this was Leo Piruzyan's credo. L.A. Piruzyan actively helped people both in life and in science. It was enough for him to know that the person was in trouble - he immediately called the doctors, arranged for the best specialists and the hospital. As director of the Research Institute for Biological Testing of Chemical Compounds, he recruited many of those who could not find a job for some unrelated reason. So, in difficult times, when Academician A.D. Sakharov was in disgrace, he recruited his daughter Tatyana to work with him. Oncologist L.S. Salyamon was fired from his job on the eve of defending his dissertation due to "unwanted acquaintances" with A.I. Solzhenitsyn. “For a long time I could not find a job. And then L.A. Piruzyan invited me to the institute he had recently created. Thanks to Piruzyan's assistance, the research I conducted at his institute was successful in preventing cancer. Personal merits of L.A. Piruzyan, his humanity, his benevolence was felt by everyone who worked and communicated with him. Leo is a humanist” says L.S. Salyamon. Much more can be said about his good deeds. It is no exaggeration to say that Leo Piruzyan was a happy person - throughout his life he was surrounded by the highest scientific, cultural and moral environment. And we, who had the good fortune to know him, to work with him, thank fate for giving us this chance, and we will remember Leo Piruzyan.