Departments and Laboratories

Department of Photobiophysics

Studies of mechanisms of primary conversion of solar energy in reaction centers of different photosynthetic organisms. Studies of the strategy of efficient functioning of natural light-harvesting antennae in accordance with our earlier concept on the strict optimization of the photosynthetic apparatus structure by functional criteria. An investigation of the in vivo light harvesting strategy allows one to obtain criteria for the design and optimization of biomimetic light-harvesting systems.

• Laboratory of Electrogenic Photoevents

  Leader: Mahir D. Mamedov

• Laboratory of structure and function of light-harvesting antennae

Department of Cell Signalling

Main directions of the research: Paraneoplastic antigens and a search for novel tumour markers. Degeneration and regeneration of the retina. Molecular mechanisms of the visual transduction.

• Leader: Evgeni Yu. Zernii

Department of RNA Structure and Functions

Department of Nucleic Acids Chemistry

The development of general approaches towards the analysis of the “molecular anatomy” and the functioning of various the nucleic acid /protein complexes. The study of the HIV-1 integrase that is one the main HIV enzymes. The development of new inhibitors of HIV-1 integrase using the compounds of different nature and study of the mechanism of their action.

Department of Molecular Immunology

Department of Chromatographical Analysis

The Department of the Chromatography analysis was organized in 1965. Dr. V.P. Korzhenko (PhD, Biology) was the first head of the Dpt. (1965-1971). Since 1971 г. till now the Dpt. is led by Doctor of Science (Chemistry) Prof. L.A. Baratova. Being a service division the Chromatography Dpt. has been providing the chromatography stages of investigation in the frame of Institution scientific tasks as well as analysis of composition and structure of biopolymers. The Dpt. has been also carrying out its own scientific studies.

• Laboratory of intermembrane interactions

Department of Animal Cell Biochemistry

Basic scientific trends of the Department: investigation of the role of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase in apoptosis and in the development of some neurodegenerative diseases; role of chaperones in the prevention of enzyme aggregation; structure, mechanism of action and regulation of thiamin-diphosphate dependent enzymes; role of glycolytic enzymes in regulation of sperm motility.

Department of Plant Proteins

Investigation of defense mechanisms of plant against phytopathogens and insect pests. Investigation of mechanisms of secretion and physiological role of hydrolytic enzumes of filamentous fungi. Investigation of mechanisms and organization of proteolysis of proteins in insects. Development of approaches to increase plant tolerance to biotic stress. Development of medicinal preparations for curing diseases of human digestive system.

Department of Plant Virus Biochemistry

Structure and mechanisms of genome expression of different plant visuses groups. Mechanisms of regulation of viral RNA translation. Molecular mechanisms of intracellular, cell-to-cell and long distance movement of tobamo-, potex- and hordeiviruses. Mechanisms of viral pathogenesis and supression of post transcriptional gene silencing. Construction of viral vectors based on genome of tobamoviruses, for production of target proteins in infected plants for biotechnological aims. Construction of transgenic plants resistant to viruses and viroids using new strategies of resistance induction. Development and improvement of immunochemical and molecular-genetic methods for large scale diagnostics of plant viruses and viroids.

• Laboratory of Genetic Engineering of Viruses

  Leader: Sergey Y. Morozov

• Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Viruses

Department of Virus-Cell Interactions

Studies on molecular mechanisms of reproduction of RNA viruses. Investigations of the nature virus-induced cell pathology. Studies on the regularities and mechanisms of evolution of RNA viruses. Investigation of the molecular epidemiology of poliovirus and other enteroviruses.

• Laboratory of Molecular Epidemiology

Department of Mathematical Methods in Biology

Themes: (1) Tumor cell normalization. (2) Mathematics and its applications in biology and medicine. Bioinformatics. (3) Local intracellular interactions. (4) Active molecules influence on human and animals cells and tissues.

Department of Molecular Basis on Ontogenesis

• Laboratory of genome structure

• Laboratory of protein topogenesis

Department of Physical Methods of Researches

The department is dedicated to technical and methodological work on physical and physicochemical methods of investigation of biomacromolecules (calorimetry, centrifugation, etc).

Department of Isotopic Analysis

Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry of Nucleoproteins

The research focus of the Department teams is in the field of molecular and cellular biology. Investigations are aimed at the elucidation of molecular mechanisms of programmed cell death, protein biosynthesis, cell signaling, and plant-pathogen interactions.

• Laboratory of Nucleic Acid-Protein Interactions

• Laboratory of Molecular Biology of the Gene

  Leader: Andrey B. Vartapetian

  We are investigating the molecular mechanisms of programmed cell death (PCD) in   plants via identification and characterization of specific death proteases – phytaspases. We are elucidating structure and properties of phytaspases, their trafficking and targets, and roles played by these enzymes in healthy and dying plant cells.

• Laboratory of Protein Synthesis Regulation

  Leader: Ivan N. Shatsky

Department of Bioenergetics

Basic scientific trends of the Department. Investigation of the role of mitochondria in apoptosis and phenoptosis. Studies on the molecular mechanisms of aging and the role of mitochondria in this process. Design of the artificial mitochodrially adressed antioxidants, derivatives of plastoquinone, and its application in therapy of pathologies induced by oxidative stress and aging. Investigation of the electrogenic stages in purified complex of Photosystem I and in bacterial chromatophores. Studies using artificial bilayer lipid membranes (BLM). Studies on the mechanism of regulated free (non coupled to ATP synthesis) oxidation in mitochondria and the role of intramitochondrial fatty acids.

• Laboratory of the Structure and Function of Membranes

  Leader: Lev S. Yaguzhinsky

• Laboratory of membrane biophysics

  Leader: Yuri N. Antonenko

Department of Electron Microscopy

Managing electronic and optical microscopes, instruments for probe preparation, consultation and technical support of researches which use microscopic techniques. Studying structural organization of the eukaryotic genetic apparatus in normal and pathalogical states, studying the role of high-level genome organization as a factor of epigenetic regulation, studying cell mobility mechanisms and role of the centrosome in organization of cytoskeleton.

• Laboratory of cell nucleus ultrastructure

  Leader: Eugene V. Sheval

• Laboratory of cell motility

  Leader: Irina B. Alieva

Department of Evolutional Biochemistry

Department studied in molecular phylogenetics, evolutionary genomics and molecular biogeorgaphy of different taxa of living creatures: perfect plants, unicellular and multicellular animals. On the base of these studies some evolutional and systematical concepts are developing.

• Laboratory of animal genosystematics

  Leader: Nikolay B. Petrov

• Laboratory of plant genosystematics

  Leader: Aleksey V. Troitsky

Department of Molecular Energetics of Microorganisms

Studying physiological and biochemical aspects of energy supply in various procariotes, non-proton coupling of respiration and phosphorylation, and a physiological role of the non-coupled respiration. Studying the programmed death of single-cell organisms. Investigation of the electron transfer and mechanisms of energy transduction in electron transport chains of bacteria and mitochondria. Developing of methods based on the circular dichroism and the magnetic circular dichroism techniques.

• Laboratory of the Electron Transport

  Leader: Roman A. Zinovkin

• Laboratory of heme proteins

  Leader: Alexander M. Arutyunyan

• Laboratory of biomembrane photochemistry

  Leader: Fedor F. Severin

Department of Photosynthesis and Fluorescent Methods of Investigation

Theoretical and experimental studies of primary processes of photosynthesis. Further development and application of optical spectroscopy methods (derivative spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy) in Life Sciences.

• Laboratory of Excitation Energy Transfer in Photosynthetic Systems

Department of Protein Chemistry

Structural, mechanistic and functional studies of polyphosphate hydrolases. Studies of the regulatory mechanism in CBS domain-containing proteins. Studies on the pyrophosphate-dependent transport of protons and sodium ions across membranes. Identification of the protein complexes of inorganic pyrophosphatase and their role in cell functioning. Studies on ribosome mechanism to set up the molecular basis for the design of new ribosomal antibiotics. Chemical synthesis of site-directed analogs of natural compounds.

Department of Biokinetics

Department is engaged in the kinetic study of biological phenomena at the molecular level and exploration of enzymatic mechanisms defining the rate of biological processes.

• Laboratory of enzymatic modification of physiologically active compounds

  Leader: Head of the department Vytas K. Švedas

Department of Scientific Information

Development and implementation of the Institute’s automatic information system. Information support of scientific research developed at the institute. Preparation of the results of the work of researchers for publication. Digitization of paper versions of Russian scientific journals. Scientometric studies of information flows of various areas of science. Citation analysis of the work of the Institute staff. Development and support of the Institute website.

Department of Functional Biochemistry of Biopolymers

Study of molecular basis of biological motility: the structure of flagellar apparatus of archaea, dynamics of actin and myosin filaments, myosin structure, organization and dynamics of cellular microtubules, microtubule role in the cellular transport of RNP and substrate-depending gliding of cells.

• Laboratory of the Structure and Function of Mitochondria

  Leader: Egor Y. Plotnikov

• Laboratory of motor systems biochemistry

  Leader: Denis N. Silachev

• Laboratory of structure and function of cytoskeleton

Laboratory of molecular mechanisms of aging

Laboratory of Cell Bioenergetics