Russian bacteria will teach people how to live a long time

07.09.2010 — Analysis

- What is the importance of the Yakut microbiota for scientists?

- Bacteria were discovered long ago in the permafrost, very far down in a well in Antarctica. At the time, it was assumed that the bacteria could have frozen there millions of years ago, but then scientists from Pushchino found a large number of different bacteria in various samples of frozen rocks. At that point the hypothesis arose that perhaps the bacteria are not just being stored there, but were still living and reproducing.

Then Professor Anatoly Brushkov, the head the geocryology department at Moscow State University, discovered a bacillus on Mount Mamontova in Yakutia (with which he has been working for six years) that is assumed to be very ancient. That assumption, by the way, is key. One needs to be absolutely sure, that it is, in fact, very ancient. There have been a number of scientific conflicts about how to determine the bacteria's age. After experimenting, it was determined that bacteria from the distant past have a shorter genome than they do today. The reasoning is that since they lived for long periods under unchanging conditions, they did not need adaptive mechanisms.

- What are some of the characteristics of the bacteria?

- The main thing is that we have been given a unique opportunity to see the results of an experiment that is millions of years old and that was conducted by nature without human intervention. During this time, the bacteria learned to live under unchangingly harsh conditions - in fact, it was a natural incubator for them - and during that time they learned to adapt and survive, which is also the dream of mankind. Then a new idea arose, would it be possible to take these characteristics that enabled the bacteria to survive and transfer them to humans? These characteristics could be introduced in the form of substances that the bacteria naturally produce. Could there be some kind of adaptive substances, which, for the purposes of discussion, could be isolated from the bacteria and transferred to modern living organisms, including warm-blooded creatures?

Experiments helped to develop this hypothesis. For example, if the bacteria is incubated where it is warm, then a subgroup of bacteria appear, which, when transferred to warm-blooded cells, allow those cells to survive in a warm atmosphere. And if the bacteria is incubated in the cold, then a new subgroup emerges. When bacteria from that group are transferred into warm-blooded cells, they allow those cells to survive for a prolonged time period in cold temperatures. If this experiment is developed further, we will have a substance that might even help humans adapt to conditions of extreme heat or cold. And the source of these substances will be these same bacteria from the permafrost.

- What research will be done in the future and what are the questions that need to be answered?

- The bacteria will be identified and sequenced in Japan and Sweden. The primary task right now is to fully identify the entire line of subgroups and substances mentioned above. We need to determine their chemical structure and mechanisms. We are just now at the beginning of this very serious work. We need to get as much information as possible about the bacteria themselves. It's a very difficult task - but the results we have gotten have been very encouraging. Everything is possible if we can get funding. We have the scientific personnel and equipment.

- Where can the microbiota be used?

- The study's practical purpose is to develop a new generation of drugs that will be able to, if not prolong human life, then to noticeably improve it, especially for the elderly. But there is one big "however" to that. The purpose of science to obtain new knowledge and this is what we are actively doing. If someone is interested in these substances and an investor appears who will allow us to obtain industrial-scale amounts of these substances, then of course, a new pill or medicine will be much closer on the horizon. But if the project does not get the support it needs in Russia, then it will have to go abroad, into the hands of people who see a quick commercial profit in it. And we won't have time to say a word, just as when Sikorsky helicopters began flying under the American flag instead of the Russian one.

- What are the project's sources of financing?

- We have various sources of funding. Of course, ideally we would have one, dependable source of funding, so we wouldn't have to think about how to earn our daily bread but could just do our work. But unfortunately, right now, this is impossible in our country and for our case in particular.

- How would you evaluate the current state of Russian science?

- I am neither a complete pessimist nor a complete optimist. I think that science in Russia is still alive. All you have to do is go to Akademgorok to see that not all intellectual potential has been lost. It exists.

- And what about Russia's brain drain to foreign countries?

- The problem is that a person who discovers something new in our country does not have any right to his discovery. Even with a patent, anyone can take this discovery and use it and modify it. We do not have true protection of proprietary rights for scientists. So far, there's been nothing but talk on this subject, although musicians have some kind of protection for their authors' rights in Russia. As soon as there is a global system to provide something similar for scientists and it's no longer possible to steal a patent and funds are allocated for research, then the situation will be different. Do you know what the biggest obstacle to our research is? The fact that funding for implementation and funding for research are completely separate. If scientists had a guarantee of proprietary rights, then they would understand what they're working for.

- What does science in Russia still need to progress and develop?

- We need a system to help provide the scientific community with a reasonable quality of life. I'm not talking about the managers at the highest levels - they're doing fine - I'm talking about what we call a "golden fund" for Russian science. We need a system that will support young scientists. For example, I have a problem with graduate students. These are talented, young people and I have to give them a salary and a place to live. But I can't, so what do I have to offer them? A nation's intellectual property should be an undisputed priority. Once we figure that out, everything will fall into place.

This interview was prepared by Anna Khorkova