遗传发育所1959年成立于北京，前身是由中国科学院植物研究所遗传研究室与动物研究所遗传组合并组建的中国科学院遗传研究所。2001年，遗传研究所与中国科学院发育生物学研究所（1980年建立）整合成立遗传与发育生物学研究所（即遗传发育所）；2002年整合中国科学院石家庄农业现代化研究所（1978年建立），并成立了具有法人资格的农业资源研究中心；2003年研究所人类基因组研究中心（包括华大基因）成建制分离成立中国科学院北京基因组研究所。

遗传发育所下设基因组生物学、分子农业生物学、发育生物学、分子系统生物学和农业资源等5个研究中心，拥有公共技术平台、实验动物中心、现代化植物温室等平台设施，昌平生物技术育种基地、海南南繁育种试验基地、东营分子设计育种试验基地等试验基地，以及河北栾城农田生态系统国家野外观测试验站、南皮生态试验站、太行山试验站等网络台站。拥有植物基因组学国家重点实验室、植物细胞与染色体工程国家重点实验室、分子发育生物学国家重点实验室，中国科学院农业水资源重点实验室、河北省节水农业重点实验室、河北省土壤生态学重点实验室，是国家植物基因研究中心（北京）的依托单位。2014年联合中国科学院原上海生命科学研究院植物生理生态研究所（现分子植物卓越创新中心）与英国约翰英纳斯中心共同成立了中国科学院-英国约翰英纳斯中心植物和微生物科学研究中心。 

The Institute of Genetics and Development was founded in 1959 in Beijing. It was formerly the Institute of Genetics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), which was merged with the Genetics Division of the Institute of Botany and the Genetics Division of the Institute of Zoology. In 2001, the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology was integrated with the Institute of Developmental Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (established in 1980) to establish the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology. In 2002, Shijiazhuang Institute of Agricultural Modernization, CAS (established in 1978) was integrated and the Agricultural Resources Research Center with legal person status was established. 2003 The Human Genome Research Center of the Institute (including BGI) was separated and established as the Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The Institute of Genetics and Development has five research centers, including genome biology, molecular agricultural biology, developmental biology, molecular systems biology and agricultural resources. It has public technology platform, laboratory animal center, modern plant greenhouse and other platform facilities, Changping Biotechnology Breeding Base, Hainan South Breeding Experimental Base, Dongying Molecular Design Breeding Experimental Base and other experimental bases. And network stations such as the National Field Observation and Experimental Station for Agricultural Systems in Luancheng, Hebei, Nanpi Ecological Experimental Station and Taihang Mountain Experimental Station. It has the State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics, the State Key Laboratory of Plant Cell and Chromosome Engineering, the State Key Laboratory of Molecular Developmental Biology, the Key Laboratory of Agricultural Water Resources of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Key Laboratory of Water-Saving Agriculture of Hebei Province, and the Key Laboratory of Soil Ecology of Hebei Province. It is the supporting unit of the National Center for Plant Gene Research (Beijing). In 2014, the John Innes Centre for Plant and Microbial Sciences was jointly established by the Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology of the former Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences (now the Centre for Molecular Plant Excellence Innovation) and the John Innes Centre of Excellence.