The XII Russian Forum of Biotechnology, OpenBio 2025, has begun its work in the science town of Koltsovo. Leading scientists, innovators, business people and public officials from across Russia and abroad have gathered to discuss current problems in the development of fundamental medicine and biotechnology, biophysics and virology, as well as molecular informatics and personnel training.
More than 1,500 innovators from 47 regions of Russia and seven foreign countries (Syria, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Iran, Latvia, Kazakhstan, and China) have registered as participants for the forum. 377 young scientists submitted their abstracts for the scientific conference.
Opening of the XII OpenBio Open Communications Platform
Koltsovo’s Mayor, Nikolay Krasnikov, highlighted the significance of the OpenBio forum in advancing Russia’s biotechnology sector. He noted that the science town of Koltsovo consistently attracts entrepreneurs, scientists, and innovators from the industry. Krasnikov expressed confidence that a successful, open, educational initiative like OpenBio could only originate in a place like Koltsovo, where a community passionate about science resides. He added that each year, thousands of visitors from across Russia and abroad observe how ideas are transformed into developments and products dedicated to protecting life and enhancing its quality.
Yulia Linyushina, the founder of the OpenBio forum, extended her wishes for a productive and enjoyable experience for all participants, fostering meaningful communication with colleagues and industry experts. Over the course of four days, the OpenBio space will host 20 scientific sections featuring more than 200 presentations by leading researchers in the life sciences. The forum addresses current global challenges, including the development of anti-cancer therapies, epidemiology of socially significant infections, food security, virus evolution, innovative clinical research methods, artificial intelligence advancements, and the commercialization of scientific developments. A key highlight is the exhibition, serving as a platform for dialogue between innovators and developers, alongside the scientific conference where the top young scientists—selected from 400 applicants—will present their research to esteemed scientists and industry professionals.
Plenary Report by Sergey Netesov “Human Respiratory Infections: Current State of Affairs”
The forum opened with a presentation by Dr. Sci. (Bio.), Professor, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Sergey Netesov, dedicated to human respiratory infections, which drew a full lecture hall.
According to Sergey Netesov’s estimate, the current incidence of respiratory diseases in Russia is about 50-60 million cases annually, which significantly exceeds official data. The scientist analyzed the dynamics of respiratory diseases caused by various pathogens, both viral and bacterial infections, including those previously considered rare, such as legionellosis.
Sergey Netesov emphasized that for the most rational and pragmatic development and application of diagnostic methods for acute respiratory diseases, it is essential to conduct monitoring studies on pathogen prevalence, their molecular and genetic diversity, and molecular evolution, including the emergence of drug resistance.
According to him, Russia has already established the instrumental and material/reagent base, including launching its own high-tech production of modern vaccines and diagnostic tools. But for significant results in the fight against respiratory diseases, Netesov emphasized, “a much broader implementation into compulsory health insurance (CHI) practice” is necessary. It is also necessary to develop new vaccines—against a number of viral and bacterial pathogens. Netesov pointed out that Russia lacks vaccines against modified forms of SARS-CoC-2. Also, according to him, the country needs vaccines against the respiratory syncytial virus and a greater number of serotypes of meningococcal infection: “They need to be developed, tested, and implemented.” Bacterial infection, Netesov emphasized, sometimes progresses rapidly, and treatment with antibiotics is not always effective.
Virology and Bioinformatics Sections
In the Bioinformatics section, Dmitry Afonnikov, Dr. Sci. (Biology), Associate Professor, Deputy Director for Research at the Institute of Cytology and Genetics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, presented the results of an analysis of the pangenomes of agricultural plants—the research has great potential for ensuring the country’s food security.
“The analysis of pangenomes in agricultural plants, such as rice, corn, and soybeans, involves creating a complete set of all unique genes and sequences within a species, not just based on one reference genome,” Afonnikov explained. “By understanding the genomic architecture of agronomic traits, a more complete map of genetic diversity can be created and used for crop improvement. That is, improving crop characteristics through genetic engineering is much safer and more attractive to the public than using GMOs or fertilizers. We work only with the natural material of the plant itself, crossing or modifying plants from different regions that possess different properties.”
Andrey Vasin, professor of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Director of the Institute of Biomedical Systems and Biotechnology at Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, reported on the role of extracellular vesicles in the pathogenesis of viral infections and spoke about research on a vaccine against the respiratory syncytial virus.
“The vaccine has been in development for a significant period, with extensive preclinical trials conducted, and is currently undergoing clinical trials. I am confident that it will provide good results,” Vasin said.
According to him, the Research Institute of Influenza has completed Phase 1 and 2 clinical trials of the respiratory syncytial virus vaccine, but the problem is that there is no manufacturer in Russia capable of producing the vaccine at scale.
“Any drug that reaches Phase 3 must be produced somewhere. Production is likely the key challenge for this vaccine at the moment, as there is currently no industrial partner with the necessary facilities to manufacture it,” he stated.
Evaluating the reports presented by young scientists, Andrey Vasin observed a growing interest among youth. He noted that this year, even a third-year student delivered a report. Although the young scientist still lacks experience, his enthusiasm was evident. Vasin also mentioned that the forum featured several promising applied studies, many of which show significant potential for the future.
Reports by Young Scientists
The work of the Bioinformatics section was highly intensive. The research conducted by young scientists focused on the nature of viruses, their origins, and classification, as well as the prediction of oncological diseases. Additionally, they worked on developing and training effective neural networks for processing big biological data.
The panel for the section included scientists, research institutes officials, as well as representatives of the biotechnology company Novel Software Systems.
For example, Nikita Voloshin, a postgraduate student at the Faculty of Fundamental Medicine of Lomonosov Moscow State University, spoke about the development of a method called NuclePhaser, which allows for the detection of cell nuclei in phase-contrast images and their counting. NuclePhaser is based on machine learning and computer vision. The development allows not only assessing the growth rate of a cell colony but also tracking individual cells. NuclePhaser is available as an open-access tool and does not require any programming skills to use.
“Imagine you are faced with the following task: you have two populations of cells in vitro, a control population and an experimental one. You need to assess the growth rate of these populations, to build growth curves. We offer a new solution for this, which we called NuclePhaser. It is a method that does not require additional reagents, only a microscope with a camera and a computer. And it does not require cell fixation or staining,” said Nikita Voloshin.
Polina Karitskaya, a master student at Novosibirsk State University (NSU), dedicated her research to developing a method that would help predict chromothripsis in the human genome.
“Despite advances in diagnosis and treatment, malignant neoplasms continue to pose a serious threat. The complexity of diagnosis and treatment is associated with the great diversity of forms of cancer, as well as with the biological process known as oncogenesis. A key factor contributing to the development of oncogenesis is genomic instability. With the development of high-throughput sequencing technology, a new phenomenon of genomic instability was discovered, called chromothripsis,” said Polina Karitskaya.
As Polina explained, chromothripsis results in multiple chromosomal rearrangements that occur in one or several regions of the genome. Existing tools for detecting chromothripsis are imperfect, according to Karitskaya. To develop her own method, the student used as a basis a database that recorded chromosomal rearrangements in the genomes of more than 2,000 patients with 37 different types of cancer. Using machine learning and deep learning algorithms, Polina’s team developed a model that can predict gene rearrangements.
“This is a significant and original research effort, as existing tools for predicting chromothripsis events have typically been tested on very limited datasets—either solely on hematological cancers or on a specific type of solid tumor,” stated Polina Karitskaya.
Young scientist Nikita Radchenko from the Vector State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology of Rospotrebnadzor created an annotation of the non-structural proteins of the Haseki virus, discovered in 2020. The virus is transmitted through a tick bite, its symptoms are fever and headache. As Nikita explained, the virus is currently unclassified and is presumed to belong to the flavivirus family. The scientists were able to create high-precision models of Haseki virus proteins, which are similar to those of orthoflaviviruses. The research will not only help to better understand the place of the virus in the taxonomy but also subsequently improve its diagnosis and treatment.
Lyubov Kutyreva from Novosibirsk State University spoke about the search and analysis of serpins as potential immunoregulators in the transcriptomes of tapeworms. Nikita Sheludyakov investigated the prediction of transcription factor binding sites from amino acid sequences of proteins using artificial intelligence methods. Scientist Alexey Skudnov from the Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University showed how obligate aerobes demonstrate a higher frequency of A>G mutations compared to anaerobes.
Speaking about the works of young scientists in the Bioinformatics section, panelist Dmitry Afonnikov noted, first, the diversity in the participants’ geography. Second, the high quality and focus on researching current trends in modern biology.
In the Virology section, Albina Glushchenko from the Central Research Institute of Epidemiology of Rospotrebnadzor demonstrated a full-genome analysis of the genetic variability of the hepatitis C virus in the Russian population. Scientists from the Gamaleya National Research Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology of the Russian Ministry of Health presented the results of their studies: Alena Nikonova showed how a single immunization with a vector vaccine induces long-term anti-rabies protection in rhesus macaques, and Anna Ilyukhina reported on the development of a lethal model of West Nile fever to study the protective efficacy of various drugs.
Employees of the Vector State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology of Rospotrebnadzor from the science town of Koltsovo traditionally presented their results. Daria Alkhireenko reported on the development of a new approach to studying the structure of non-translated regions of viruses with a segmented genome using the Kindia tick virus as an example. Elena Tigeeva spoke about the immunogenic and protective properties of two-component DNA vaccines encoding a T-cell polyepitope immunogen and the prM-E polyprotein of the tick-borne encephalitis virus.
Maxim Apanasevich from the Novosibirsk Federal Research Center for Fundamental and Translational Medicine reported the detection of a new variant of the Yezo virus in three species of Ixodes ticks in the Tomsk region, using metagenomic sequencing. Additionally, at the ‘Virology’ session, Yulia Aleshina from the E.I. Martsinovsky Institute of Medical Parasitology, Tropical and Vector-Borne Diseases at Sechenov University presented a report titled: ‘New species criteria for mammalian astroviruses: descriptive—genome differences, and functional—reproductive barrier.’
Round Table “Foundations, Universities, and Biotech: Cooperation in Training Leaders for the Technology Business”
The focus of the round table “Foundations, Universities, and Biotech: Cooperation in Training Leaders for the Technology Business” was an attempt by the participants to comprehend what specific talents and leaders are needed today by biotech and universities; they discussed practices for identifying, engaging, and motivating talents for the technology (science-intensive) business and the assistance of funds in preparing leaders for science-intensive businesses and universities. The discussion was moderated by Vyacheslav Nekrasov, Candidate of Sciences (History), Deputy General Director for Science of the Foundation for Scientific and Technological Development of Yugra.
The business forum includes panel discussions on issues of commercialization of developments, patent law, and personnel training for science-intensive businesses, as well as discussions on the influence of the microbiome on human health and the challenges of digital medicine. Throughout the forum, an industry exhibition is operating, where companies present the latest Russian developments.
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OpenBio has been held in the science town of Koltsovo (Novosibirsk Region) since 2014. It is an open platform for communication among innovators, scientists, businesses, and the state. The goal of the forum is to make a breakthrough in the biotechnology industry, creating prerequisites for the accelerated implementation of innovative developments. OpenBio pays special attention to supporting young talents; one of its traditions is the active participation of young researchers in the scientific conference and the holding of a forum for young researchers—a full-fledged program for schoolchildren.
