The principal activity of the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry (IOCB Prague) is scientific research in the fields of organic chemistry, biochemistry, molecular and cellular biology, chemistry of natural substances and computational chemistry. Research is focused on basic science, but the Institute has always stressed the possibility of using scientific results to improve the human life. A considerable part of the research is represented by medicinal chemistry. This research is focused on unmet medical needs, including for example viral diseases, cancer, diabetes, inflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases. An important feature is the interdisciplinarity of research, combining organic chemistry, biology and computational chemistry. This approach proved to be successful in the past, which can be represented by more than a dozen of drugs on the market, based on original discoveries by the IOCB scientists. The principal task is nevertheless to conduct high-quality basic research, which is reflected by a growing number of high-impact publications as well as fast increasing citations of publications produced by the IOCB. The IOCB’s exceptional scientific results led Gilead Sciences to set up its only research centre outside of the US in Prague in cooperation with the IOCB.