and studied under Russian fungal expert Lev Semionovich Tsenkovsky. In 1861, he continued his scientific career as a teacher at his alma mater and became a professor (1867-1889). In 1890, Famintsyn founded and headed the Laboratory of Plant Anatomy and Physiology of the Academy of Sciences (today's Timiryazev Institute of Plant Physiology of the Russian Academy of Sciences).

Famintsyn is considered