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PSU Biologists Explore Microbiology, Genetics and Biomedicine, Unite Scholars Global Wide

The Faculty of Biology at Perm State University (PSU) has run the 13th International Conference of Biologists “Symbiosis-Russia ’2022” as part of the “Science and Global Challenges in the 21st Century” Inter-University Forum. The Conference united scholars from Afghanistan, Australia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Israel, Kazakhstan, Russia, Scotland, Slovenia, USA and Uzbekistan.

In total, the Conference participants presented more than 180 reports in microbiology, biotechnology, biomedicine, genetics, botany, zoology, plant physiology, soil science, ecology and nature management.

Key speakers included:

Other international participants included:

On behalf Perm State University, two PSU scholars spoke in the Springer section – Danila Apushkin, Senior Lecturer of the Department of Pharmacology and Evgenia Akhremenko, a researcher at the Laboratory of Experimental Pharmacology, Faculty of Chemistry, PSU.

“The geography of the Conference participants covered, with no exception, all regions of Russia, and over 45 cities: from Kaliningrad to the Far East, from Arkhangelsk and St. Petersburg to Rostov-on-Don and Pyatigorsk,” says Mikhail Lyamin, Deputy Dean for Research, Faculty of Biology, PSU.

18 reports in English have been presented at the Conference. Meeting the requirements of the publishers and related ethics, the speakers’ papers have been checked for plagiarism, double-blind peer reviewed by foreign and Russian scholars, and, keeping in mind their relevance, original character and impact – recommended for publishing in the “Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems” series at the SpringerLink digital library https://link.springer.com/, and indexed in Scopus https://www.scopus.com/.

PSU Scholars Present at St. Petersburg International Gas Forum

On 13-16 September, Perm State University (PSU) is participating 11th St. Petersburg International Gas Forum, presenting its research and practice activity in photonics and bioconversion, along with Perm Scientific and Educational Center “Rational Subsoil Use”.

Among the Forum participants are Professor Sergey Pyankov, Vice-Rector for Research and Innovation, and Anatoly Pankov, Research Engineer at the “Photonics” NTI Competence Center at PSU.

At the Forum, the “Photonics” NTI Competence Center at PSU has presented four types of specially coated optical fibers, resistant to high temperatures (up to +400’C) and electromagnetic radiation, which makes their effective operation in wells and mines. Also exhibited, were two kinds of optical signal modulators developed by PSU “Photonics” Center (https://ntiphotonics.ru/), and used as a signal source for transmitting information via optical fibers from mines and wells to control panels.

The developments of PSU scientists in biotechnology and bioconversion of oily waste are used to restore ecosystems after industrial accidents and in mining areas, across several Russian regions. In that field, PSU joins its efforts with the Laboratory of Alkanotrophic Microorganisms at the Institute of Ecology and Genetics of Microorganisms, Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, which stocks the world’s largest collection of bacteria capable of oxidizing natural and anthropogenic hydrocarbons.

“The gas industry may rely on Russian science in the tasks of developing technological independence, as  our scientists’ latest developments tend to prove. Here at the Forum, we are promoting photonics technologies that can be applied in advanced well monitoring equipment. Another direction is biotechnologies, which help in the rehabilitation of ecosystems in the mining area or industry-related accidents,”

said Pavel Ilyushin, Head of of Perm Scientific and Educational Center “Rational Subsoil Use”.

Rational Subsoil Use and Photonics at PSU

The Perm Scientific and Educational Center “Rational Subsoil Use” had been created within the national project “Science” by the President of the Russian Federation, aiming  to create an ecosystem ensuring  technological breakthroughs in subsoil use, attracting young and  talented scholars.

Photonics is a dynamically developing area in science and technology, adjoining optics and electronics. Photonics uses photons rather than electrons to transmit data compared to electronics, introducing revolutionary change into entire industry. The solutions offered by photonics allow to increase the speed of information transfer and processing, reduce power consumption and provide a higher margin of competitiveness over electronic counterparts.

The annual income from the sale of devices and systems using photonics exceeds any expectations. While in 2019 the photonics market was valued at $686.86 billion, it is now expecting to reach $1080.3 billion by 2025.

Fancy Arctic and Subarctic Exploration? Bio-Engineering? Science Management?

The Faculty of Biology at Perm State University will expand the range of educational disciplines in 2022.

Bachelor students will be able to study the Microbial and Cellular Technologies both in Russian and English. The course includes the study of enzymes, nucleic acids, biopolymers, metabolites and biosynthetic products – allowing its graduates to become biotechnologists or genetic bioengineers.

Two more programs are being opened in Pedagogical Education – “Biology” and “Biology and Physical Education”, providing methodology of individual learning. The Program graduates will be able to work both in educational institutions and sports clubs – as teachers of biology and physical education.

MSci students in Living Systems of the Arctic and Subarctic will gain knowledge on fundamentals of bio-systems of natural areas, at all levels of wildlife. The students will master environmental monitoring in the Arctic zone, GIS technologies and modern mathematical data processing tools.

The MSci distance learning course “Ecological Expertise and State Supervision in Land Use” will allow lto examine land resources, and estimate related reclamation activities. Upon completion, the graduates will be able to measure and perform restoration and protection of soil resources.

Modern Biology Education is another new distance learning profile. Through the course, the students will learn to design educational programs in biology, and run analytics of scientific research – allowing them to further work at scientific and educational centers, or related administrative institutions.

“About 70% of our graduates tend to be employed the same graduation year. The skills gained in class and lab projects help them to get in the leading profile institutes of the Academy of Sciences, resource extraction and processing enterprises,”

explains Andrey Elkin, Dean of the Faculty of Biology, PSU.

PSU Scholars Become Guest Editors of Microorganisms Journal

Which knowledge, gained through university studies, will be required by your future employee? In most fields of natural production – like oil, gas or minerals’ extraction and processing, a company is interested in compliance with the international norms of environmental protection. Environment degradation makes it extremely useful to search for prevention or compensation of anthropogenic pollution. Cleaning the pollutants out of the biosphere remains a constant challenge for humanity.

The scholars from the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, PSU have been invited as editors for the special issue “Microbial Biodegradation and Biotransformation” by of the Microorganisms international scientific journal (ISSN 2076-2607, Web of Science, Scopus, Q2). The issue will present experimental and review articles on modern approaches to microbial destruction and transformation of xenobiotics, as well as innovative technologies for bioremediation of contaminated ecosystems.

Xenobiotics are known as ‘unnatural’ chemical substances found within organisms, artificially introduced or unexpected; they may also be present in much higher concentrations as opposed to the usual ones. Natural compounds can also become xenobiotics if they are taken up by other organism, like the uptake of natural human hormones by fish found downstream of sewage treatment plant outfalls.

In search of rational ways of biodegradation, the efforts of most researchers have been concentrated in applied microbiology.

“Such challenge makes us expand and intensify the study of microorganisms in contaminated environments, the so-called extremotolerant microorganisms or stress-tolerants. These microorganisms play the role of a primary response system to unfavorable or potentially dangerous environmental changes, and initiate their adaptive responses at the earliest stage,”

notes Dr. Irina Ivshina, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and professor at PSU.

Dr. Irina Ivshina and Dr. Elena Tyumina, researchers from the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Perm State University, will act as guest editors for the “Microbial Biodegradation and Biotransformation” special issue, section “Environmental Microbiology” by the Microorganisms Journal. Invitations to publish are being sent to leading experts and researchers from Russia, USA, Germany, France, China, Spain, Poland, Great Britain, Australia. The articles will be peer reviewed and published accordingly, the whole process taking about two weeks. Applications are welcomed until 31 July, 2022.

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging, and using its submission form, until the deadline. As already mentioned, all papers will be accepted pert arrival, peer-reviewed, and listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Microorganisms is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI’s English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Original message from guest editors and editor in chief.
Special Issue “Microbial Biodegradation and Biotransformation”.

Discover the Faculty of Biology with PSU International Students!

International students of the Faculty of Biology, PSU, has attended a summer training course at the Preduralye national reserve, Perm krai, Russia. The course aimed at studying biodiversity of species, methods of collecting and identifying material, and gaining the skill of field research.

Islam Saparov (Turkmenistan): “Going to Preduralye national territory reserve has been truly exciting. Besides studying Botany and Zoology, we did enjoy the local nature and made new friends. Russian students have been very open, positive and interactive.”

The Faculty scholars traditionally explore the diverse wildlife and flora of Perm krai, attribute to solutions within the agricultural complex, conduct research on HIV and Hepatitis C, and step into collaborations with the Faculty of Chemistry at PSU, nationally and abroad.

So, what professions can you get while studying at the Faculty of Biology?
• ecologist: studies, evaluates the condition and protection of flora, fauna, microorganisms;
• environmental engineer: analyzes the ecological challenge and develops measures to reduce recent and potential harm to nature;
• bioinformatist: deals with information contained inside the cell, primarily genome;
• biologist: researches flora and fauna;
• botanist: researches flora;
• engineer and interpreter of telemetry data: supervises operation of mining facilities; carries out harvesting, systematization and analysis of the data received in natural environment;
• geneticist: studies principles and mechanisms of heredity;
• zoologist: studies wildlife and animals;
• microbiologist: studies microorganisms;
• hydrobiologist: studies biological processes in the hydrosphere, and the practical use of biological resources of aquatic ecosystems;
• bioecologist: explores nature and its laws, uses biological systems in economic and medical spheres, solves problems of environmental protection and problems of rational use of natural resources.

Interested? Apply at Perm State University and share your prospects with your friends!

International Biologists Research Pollen to Study Past

Dr. Lyudmila Shumilovskikh and Dr. Thomas Giesecke, Department of Palynology and Climate Dynamics, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen (GAUG, Germany), University of Utrecht (Netherlands) have contributed to a research seminar “Environmental reconstructions based on palynological analysis” at Perm State University (PSU).

From 18 May to 4 June, a series of online meetings were held, revealing the role of the palynological method in the study of the natural environment of past eras. In addition, all participants had the opportunity to ask questions and evolve them into a further scientific discussion.

Palynology is known as the study of plant pollen, spores and certain microscopic plankton organisms, collectively termed as palynomorphs, in both living and fossil form. The earliest reported observations of pollen under a microscope are likely to have been in the 1640s by the English botanist Nehemiah Grew. Palynomorphs form a geological record of importance in determining the type of prehistoric life. Microfossils provide important clues to the prevailing climatic conditions of the time.

“The lectures have been quite involving and useful, demonstrating a deep overview of dating methods. I personally enjoyed the vegetation analysis of the Kungur forest-steppe, as it is local and familiar for us, yet given a fresh angle of research. Looking forward for new collaborations in that direction,”

comments Natalia Moskvina, Associate Professor of the Department of Plant Physiology and Soil Ecology, PSU.

“Attending the seminar granted me the opportunity to gain new knowledge in the field of paleoecology. Most of all, I liked the lecture on the history of vegetation of the Perm territory in the Holocene, since it is my native region of study. The missing parts of the seminar can be covered by watching the sessions’ video recordings,”

notes Elizaveta Mekhonoshyna, student of the Faculty of Geography, PSU.

“The seminar expands boundaries for the scientific knowledge, provides updates in methodology and promotes live communication, to mention the participation of international researchers. I am very much looking forward for it to be continued,”

shares Elena Korkina, head of the Department of Geography, Nizhnevartovsk State University (Нижневартовский государственный университет).

The seminar was attended by about three dozen participants, including students, graduate students, teachers and researchers from various higher institutions. Including Perm State University, St Peterburg State University, Moscow State University, Nizhnevartovsk State University, Tomsk State University, Institute of Geography RAS and international partners.

The seminar was organized by the Department of Biogeocenology and Nature Conservation and the Center for Educational and Scientific Exchanges, Perm State University (PSU).



PSU Expert Presents for the Largest Polytechnic University in Canada

On 26 February, Pavel Mikheev, a researcher and teacher at Perm State University, delivered a lecture for the largest polytechnic university in Canada – the British Columbia Institute of Technology.

Pavel Mikheev, PhD is an associate professor at the Department of Vertebrate Zoology and Ecology, Faculty of Biology, PSU. He is also a leading research fellow at Khabarovsk Branch of All-Russian Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography.

The Lecture titled “Fisheries Research of Aquatic Biological Resources of Amur River” had been delivered in English to the students in Fish, Wildlife and Recreation, and contributed to international cooperation in fisheries science.

The choice of topic and audience was not accidental, as the economy of British Columbia relies primarily on natural resources. Serving a hub point and premise for largest ports in the Nothern Pacific, the place acquires international trade in most ways. The seas and rivers of British Columbia are home to many large populations of fishery-valuable species, salmon and sturgeon, in particular.

The lecture by Pavel Mikheev regarded the biodiversity of the Amur River fish fauna. The Amur River being the fourth longest river in Russia, and tenth largest river in the world, shares its catchment area with China and Mongolia. Fisheries at the Amur River are a great contribution to the local economy.

“Located at the connection of various biogeographic zones, the Amur basin possesses a unique terrestrial and aquatic biota,” comments Pavel Mikheev. “The river ichthyofauna includes about 130 species and subspecies of fish. Among them are boreal ones, such as coregonids and salmonids, as well as species of Chinese and Indian origin”.

Pavel Mikheev presented the key aspects of fishery research of freshwater fish stocks inhabiting the main channel and tributaries of the Amur River, as well as Pacific salmon spawning in the river basin. The lecturer addressed the specific character of fisheries, related to that. An emphasis was done on methods used to estimate the stocks and forecast the volume of catch. Also, Pavel Mikheev spoke on measures taken to preserve and restore the fish abundance, such as environmental monitoring and ecosystem observations.

As a response, the lecture aroused positive feedback both among students and Canadian experts in biodiversity, ecology, and fisheries management in the Pacific Northern Hemisphere.

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