Life Sciences in Russia: the Race for Outsiders
Russia: clinic
Evgeny Pozhidaev, RosbaltOne of the key components of the next technological leap should be the emergence of a "new medicine".
In particular, we are talking about the so-called postgenomic technologies, the appearance of which became possible after reading the human genome. The three pillars of the "postgenome" are genomics, proteomics and bioinformatics.
Genomics is "busy" studying and decoding genetic information. However, a complex mechanism is "embedded" between the genetic "blueprint" and its implementation into reality. Therefore, proteomics is being built over genomics, which is engaged in the "inventory" of proteins. If genomics studies what DNA "can" do, then proteomics is what really turns out. Another superstructure is metagenomics, which studies the genome of a "superorganism" consisting not only of Homo Sapiens as such, but also of its countless inhabitants (bacteria, viruses, etc.). Bioinformatics, in turn, allows you to successfully store and process the information obtained using mathematical methods, programs and algorithms.
From a practical point of view, the development of this direction means, firstly, a radical improvement in diagnostics. Secondly, the transition to individualized and preventive medicine (genome analysis, for example, may indicate a predisposition to certain diseases). Thirdly, the creation of fundamentally new drugs (for example, targeted synthesis of proteins with the right structure – this is the future of pharmacology). Fourth, the use of fundamentally new methods of treatment in general (for example, gene therapy, which allows you to correct "substandard" genetic material).
Another promising area is regenerative medicine, which includes cellular technologies (the use of stem cells). The technology of creating artificial organs and tissues – heart, liver, cartilage tissue, skin - is developing quite vigorously.
In addition, great hopes are pinned on nanomedicine (in theory, this direction should be of particular interest to the Russian authorities, since they are so interested in nanotechnology). We are talking, for example, about diagnostic tools from a set of microscopic sensors capable of detecting certain biological molecules. Ideally, one nanochip will be able to provide a complete diagnosis for a single drop of blood.
Another direction related to nanotechnology is the "targeted" delivery of drugs to the right cell (for example, cancer).
Neuropharmacology and technologies of nonpharmacological manipulations with the brain are also progressing quite quickly. Last year, the Human Connectome Project was launched – a project to study the human connectome, that is, the complete structure of connections in the brain of a particular person. The task is to link the features of brain structures with abilities and behavior, which obviously has a long series of specific medical applications.
Finally, a direction rarely mentioned here is the infiltration of robotics into medicine (and the informatization of medicine in general). Robot surgeons ("Da Vinci") are already quite widely used – for example, to perform "minimally aggressive" operations.
These are the main directions of the coming breakthrough. What are Russia's prospects here?
The "living sciences" have traditionally aroused much less interest in Russia/the USSR than in the West (for example, in biology, the Union has not received a single Nobel Prize or any higher awards in its entire history). In the 1990s and early noughties, the share of publications on various branches of biology decreased even more (a significant part of scientists emigrated to the West, experiencing a biotechnological boom). In the case of clinical medicine, this process has acquired particularly monstrous forms – in Russia, 10 times less work was carried out in this area than in other countries of the world.
However, the quality of research in this area is radically higher than the average for Russian science. The most popular publication in the world among the countless journals of the Russian Academy of Sciences is "Biochemistry". Russian biologists are published from time to time in the "top" Western publications. However, firstly, the quality of Russian works looks optimistic only at the level of the rest of our science, which is firmly stuck in the 1980s - on the Midwestern (or even Chinese–South Korean-Brazilian) background, the level of our publications is anecdotal. Secondly, the vast majority of qualitative research is carried out jointly with "Westerners". In general, there are 1,565 clusters of advanced research in the field of clinical medicine in the world. Russian publications and articles with Russian co-authorship cover 47 of them.
Now let's get down to specifics. Let's start with genetic engineering – here it should be borne in mind that most Western and non-Western medicines have long been genetically engineered. In other words, it is a critical technology.
By the 1980s, the USSR had a fairly decent level of development in the field of genetics and genetic engineering. In 1990, the International Organization for the Study of the Human Genome (HUGO) was established. In the first two years, about $20 million was allocated for research under the Human Genome program in Russia – a little less than for the American project.
But by 1994, when it came to direct genome sequencing, funding practically stopped, and then Russia withdrew from the genome decoding program. However, one way or another, all government agencies lost – in the summer of 2000, the private company Celera Genomicus completed genome sequencing. In Russia, the first independent sequencing took place only in 2009. Russia participates in the Human Proteome project, but it plays a secondary role by "occupying" proteins encoded by the genes of the 18th chromosome. In general, Russian achievements in the field of genetic engineering are an anachronism.
Advances in the field of bioinformatics were once quite significant. However, now the number of specialists in Russia is less than in one major American university.
As a result, our pharmaceuticals also do not shine (recall that most Western drugs are genetically engineered). Foreign manufacturers now account for 80% of the market. There are no really large pharmaceutical companies in the country – and the process of creating innovative medicines is long, difficult and costly. Often, however, existing developments are not implemented either – we have traditional problems with the introduction of innovations into industrial production.
In the field of neuroscience and neuropharmaceuticals, where Americans are rampaging with their "connectome", the USSR once occupied leading positions – so, neuropeptides (short proteins-regulators of the nervous system) The Military Medical Academy was actively engaged. But then the situation changed radically. If you look at the number of publications in top thematic publications, the figures for 2006-2011 are as follows: USA – 600, China – 74, Germany – 60, Japan – 50, Russia - 0.
In the field of regenerative medicine – in particular, the cultivation of artificial organs – Russia has only "first-level" technologies (the hierarchy of complexity is as follows: the easiest way is to grow artificial skin and cartilage, followed by vessels, bladder and uterus, and, finally– heart and kidneys). The first large flap of artificially grown skin was obtained from us in 1988, but the Russian Federation does not yet have technologies of the following levels of complexity.
In Russia, Western–made medical robotics is used to a limited extent - its own is rather dead than alive.
In other words, even purely chronologically, we are 10-20 years behind. By the standards of modern life sciences and biotechnologies, this is an eternity. And it cannot be said that the domestic elite does not understand this. In the "Forecast – 2030" created by the Russian Academy of Sciences, on the basis of which President Dmitry Medvedev announced his modernization program, medical technologies occupy quite an honorable fifth place in the list of priorities – right after space. Rosnauka allocates 25% of the total volume of federal targeted programs funded by it to "Living Systems" – in terms of state investments, this area is second only to nanotechnology. Biotech also plays a rather serious role in the Skolkovo project. Within the framework of the pharmacology development strategy "Pharma-2020", it is planned to develop about 200 innovative drugs and take away half of the domestic drug market from transnationals.
According to the statements of the recipients of these 25%, according to the results of 2011, "thirty-forty" innovative products have already been developed, ready to enter clinical trials. For example, we are talking about anti-cancer drugs and neuroprotectors that prevent the development of Alzheimer's disease and restore memory. The ex-compatriots invited from the West within the framework of the megagrant program work, for example, in such a promising field as the creation of models of genetic resistance to diseases and the use of "knockout" methods that simply turn off the problematic gene.
However, the progress of the "living sciences" is extremely fast – and Russia will have to run in order to just stay in place. And to catch up, extraordinary efforts will be required, and at the same time the world level will not be reached immediately.
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14.02.2012