Academician Sergey Deev: “KFU has fantastic capacity for the most serious research”
Chief Research Associate of the Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry (Russian Academy of Sciences) is holding a series of open lectures at Kazan University.
Dr Deev is one of the world’s preeminent experts in genetic engineering of antibodies – the topic he spoke on during his presentation on 24 October. The lecture touched on pre-designed genetically engineered antibodies for personalized medicine, engineered immunoglobulins and monoclonal antibodies.
Academician Sergey Deev has obtained a number of nanoantibodies to tumor cell markers and proposed a new principle of creating multivalent nanoantibodies based on barnase-barstar proteins – “molecular constructor”. The scientist has designed hybrid biocompatible derivatives of nanoantibodies with semiconductor fluorescent nanocrystals (quantum dots), nanogold, radionuclides, and toxins. These bifunctional nanostructures recognize tumor cells and carry agents for their imaging and/or degradation. Academician Deev spoke at KFU about framework proteins, which are a new class of guidance molecules in anti-tumor targeted personalized therapy.
Chair of the Department of Biochemistry, Biotechnology and Pharmacology, Head of the Laboratory of Biomarkers Ramziya Kiyamova noted, “I invited Sergey Mikhailovich to give three lectures at Kazan University on modern strategies of antitumor therapy, as he is a recognized expert in this field. The main goal of our research laboratory is to study and characterize molecular markers. We use these markers for the diagnosis and therapy of cancer. We met Sergei Mikhailovich at the conference, and he was very interested in our developments. It was decided to create a targeted anti-tumor drug directed against the target we are studying. Our drug will be synthesized on the basis of monoclonal antibodies. With the help of Sergey Mikhailovich, we plan to conjugate these antibodies with cytostatics and, perhaps, with radioisotopes, which will increase their effectiveness and give them antitumor properties.”
Academician Deev explained, “A member of my lab is immunizing alpacas to produce single-chain antibodies that may prove promising for the development of targeted drugs. The Kazanian group has provided us with antigens for immunization. I am impressed by the team led by Ramziya Kiyamova. The young people in the laboratory are very motivated, we held a joint seminar where we discussed the work of the laboratory and the prospects of research. I think that the fusion of the laboratory researchers with our help will be able to create modern and highly demanded radiopharmaceuticals, targeted drugs based on the antibodies that Dr. Kiyamova and her research team have been studying for many years.”
Academician Deev visited the KFU History Museum. He found out that his teachers, Vladimir Engelhardt and Alexander Baev, studied in Kazan. He was also very impressed with KFU’s biomedical research equipment.
On 25 and 26 October, the guest will present two more lectures on therapy and diagnostics with a focus on personalized treatment of cancer.