This paper is dedicated to the memory of Professor Edward Pojnar (1919-2011), Head of the Department of
Botany (1974-1990) at the University of Agriculture in Krakow, who initiated research on isolated plant protoplasts
in Poland. Studying in Professor E.C. Cocking’s Plant Physiology Laboratory at the University of Nottingham,
Professor Pojnar became acquainted with the enzymatic method procedure for protoplast isolation.
His postdoctoral thesis was published in 1969 as the first paper on protoplast isolation and culture procedures
in Poland. The present paper is a survey of Professor Pojnar’s research, as well as further studies inspired by his
pioneering achievements. Recent research into protoplast technology, focused on the structural changes involved
in protoplast regeneration, is also discussed.