For the first time in Croatia and in this part of Europe, in the academic year 1957/58, the subject Chemistry and Technology of Antibiotics was introduced at the Food Technology (later Biotechnology) Department of the Faculty of Technology, University of Zagreb. Lectures were then given by Prof. Gavra Tamburašev, PhD. At that time, he also participated in giving lectures at the Faculty of Pharmacy and Biochemistry of the University of Zagreb with the subject Biological drugs and at the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, with the subject Basics of microbiology. At that time, the first postgraduate study course in Croatia, and one of the first in Europe, in Chemistry and Technology of Antibiotics was implemented due to biotechnological production of oxytetracycline in Pliva. Prof. Gavra Tamburašev, PhD, was the head of the Laboratory for Chemistry and Technology of Antibiotics until his retirement. From 1981, the head of the Laboratory was Prof. Zdravko Duvnjak, PhD, then Prof. Srećko Matošić, PhD (from 1984), and since 2003, the head has been Prof. Jagoda Šušković, PhD. Expanding its scientific activity, the Laboratory for Chemistry and Technlogy of Antibiotics will be transformed into the Technology of enzymes in 1976. The subject Enzyme technologies was taught by Prof. Zdravko Duvnjak, PhD, until 1984, and later, the subjects Technology of enzymes and, according to the new programme (from 1998), the subjects Biotechnological production of drugs and specific chemicals and Enzyme production and enzyme engineering, were taught by Prof. Srećko Matošić, PhD. The teaching staff of the Laboratory for the Antibiotic and Enzyme Technology, in addition to the abovementioned subjects, taught in the undergraduate study course and lectured in the following subjects: Process practice, Design, Industrial microbiology and Biochemical engineering until 1997, and since then in the subjects Biotechnological process design, Physiology of industrial microorganisms and Biochemical engineering I, and in the postgraduate course subjects: Biotechnology of industrial antibiotics, Development of enzyme production and application process and Biochemical engineering. Then, due to fifty years of widespread and uncontrolled use of antibiotics and burning problems with antibiotic resistance, in 1987, the laboratory started its research on the concept of probiotics (the manipulation of intestinal microflora with probiotic bacteria), which would enhance the defence mechanism of the body and thus reduced the risk of developing infectious diseases, which would result in a reduction in the use of antibiotics, and hence antibiotic resistance itself. Over the last 35 years, the research is focused on the isolation, identification and biotechnological process of aseptic production of wet and lyophilized probiotic bacteria and starter cultures for the production of various fermented foodstuffs in the food industry. This research has expanded the scientific and teaching activities of the Laboratory, which was renamed the Laboratory for Antibiotic, Enzyme, Probiotic and Starter Cultures Technology in the year 2006. Since 2021, the head of the Laboratory is prof. Blaženka Kos, PhD. Nowadays, the aim of Laboratory scientific research are lactic acid bacteria which produce specific macromolecules such as bacteriocins, exopolysaccharides, surface layer proteins and proteolytic enzymes with promising applications, ranging from the design of future functional food, food supplements or live biotherapeutic products, produced as nano- and micro-encapsulated, freeze-dried preparations.
