The Institute of Neurobiology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences was founded in 1947 as an Institute of Experimental Medicine. INB is one of the oldest institutes of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, founded by Academician Dimitar Orahovac in 1947 as an Institute of Experimental Medicine with the purpose of conducting fundamental research in three areas of medical sciences: physiology, pharmacology and biochemistry. Subsequently, in 1960, the Institute of experimental medicine was transformed into an Institute of Physiology. In 1995, to the institute are added parts of the former BAS Institute for research of the brain. In 2006, on the basis of an internal expert assessment, the Institute was transformed into an Institute of Neurobiology, and in 2013, by decision of the Board of Directors of the BAS, the Experimental and Breeding Base for experimental animals "ERBOZ" - Slivnitsa was also added to it. The base is the only one of its kind for the entire country and is the main source of experimental animals for BAS institutes, predominantly from the "Biomedicine and Quality of Life" direction, as well as for medical, pharmaceutical and other organizations.

INB has long-standing traditions in the fundamental and applied research in the field of neuroscience. In 2009, during an international audit of BAS, conducted by the experts of the European Science Foundation and the European Federation of Academies of Sciences (ALLEA), INB was highly evaluated in three areas of its activity - high scientometric parameters, conducting socially significant research and perspectives for future development, being ranked second among BAS institutes, working in medico-biological fields, and in 2016 was ranked third in the report of the Expert Commission at the Ministry of Education and Culture for monitoring, evaluation and analysis of the research activities carried out by the scientific organizations and higher schools in Bulgaria in the field of Biological Sciences and Biotechnologies.