Talks with scientists

Brain: your efficient work

On 3 October, at 7:00 PM, at the JINR Cultural Centre "Mir", a lecture "Efficient brain work" will be delivered by Doctor of Biological Sciences, Professor of the Department of Human and Animal Physiology of the Faculty of Biology of Lomonosov Moscow State University, specialist in the fields of physiology, neurobiology and psychopharmacology V.A.DUBYNIN. On the eve of the lecture, Vyacheslav Albertovich gave an interview for our newspaper.

Vyacheslav Albertovich, have you ever been to our city and what audience will your lecture be intended for?

- Unfortunately, I have never been to Dubna, although of course, I know a lot about your city, yet I have been to a number of science cities, such as Pushchino and Sarov. Well, in fact, I count on an audience interested in the matter I will present, interested in fundamental knowledge about the brain work and in how this knowledge can be applied to your body, health and efficiency.

How did you get into science? Has it been a conscious path since childhood or a coincidence of circumstances?

- Both. That is, a conscious path since childhood is a strong word, but already in high school I understood that I wanted to be a biologist. But the fact that I wanted to study the brain became clear only after I had entered the Faculty of Biology of Moscow State University and when choosing a department, I realized that the physiology of the nervous system was most suitable for me.

Leadership qualities will be discussed in the lecture. Tell me, please, can one become a leader or is one born a leader? What are research results about it?

- Leadership qualities are based on innate programmes that are related to very specific structures of our brain, primarily, with the amygdala, with the work of mirror neurons, with a number of hormones. If we look at estimates of work with twins, we see that about 50 percent of this is determined by genes and 50 percent - by the personal fate of each person, starting from embryonic development and ending with the current moment. And as always in such areas, if you have a predisposition to this type of activity, it is easier for you to implement it, but if there is no obvious predisposition, you can still conquer high peaks through perseverance, education, coincidence and awareness. Always in such situations we talk about a combination of innate and acquired and in this acquired, openness to new things or such as, the desire to gain social approval and also of course, resistance to stress is very important.

Why does interest in neuroscience, to you, grow around the world?

- This interest is very stable. If you see what the Nobel Prizes in Physiology and Medicine are awarded for, about 50 percent is immunity, 40 percent is the brain and 10 percent, as they say, is everything else. Brain research is of interest to a huge number of people and specialists. It includes psychology, medicine, fundamental aspects and also the use of the principles of the brain to simulate neural networks, the structures of what today we call "artificial intelligence." Also, neuroeconomics and neuroaesthetics.

Knowledge from the field of brain physiology refers to the category of "knowing yourself." It is the processes concerned brain aging that currently turn out to be very, very important if we are talking about the duration of our extensive functioning.

What research is currently at the forefront of neuroscience?

- Well, actually, neurobiology remains focused primarily on solving medical problems. And there are very important works that are dedicated to embryogenesis and there are a lot of new discoveries related to genes and nerve growth factors. There are works related to subtle psychological and psychiatric disorders. And these are works on autism, attention deficit disorder, hyperreactivity and panic attacks, schizophrenia, depression. And they stand apart, but very significant, of course, are the works that relate to neurodegeneration, such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.

What books would you recommend to one interested in the brain work?

- In this case, I recommend popular science books. But choosing from books that are written by journalists and books that are written by scientists and popularizers, I would recommend the second category. Yes, it is more complicated, but you get verified expert knowledge.

I like books by Eric Kendall, a Nobel laureate in biology. Books by American neurologist of Indian origin Vileyanur Ramachandran. To begin with, I recommend the excellent books of the English doctor Oliver Sacks. Here you can start with them. They are almost artistic and consist of an item of optimism.

What should a person do to maintain brain health into old age?

- To widely use the brain, to solve creative problems and to do it against a positive emotional background. Well, and in fact, more new information, openness to novelty and it is very important that this information is not only input, but also output, so that you use it somehow. In addition, it is very important to move and load our motor sphere. Communication through positive emotions is very important - these are our friends, our family. Ability to control stress and stress resistance. Well, in general - a healthy mind in a healthy body!

Dubna is a student city. What would you wish to students and young scientists at the beginning of the academic year?

- Everything is the same - openness to new things, resistance to stress, focus on achieving success, obtaining social approval. Separately, I'd like to wish for good, involved mentors that are really ready to share their experience and engage in creativity with you.

It is very important that your future - profession, field of scientific activity and creativity really overlaps with your innate inclinations, your temperament, the desire for novelty, leadership and empathy.

Look for areas that you really enjoy. This background of positive emotions is very important, it gives a feeling of joy every day. So, I wish everyone health, optimism, creativity and I invite everyone to the lecture on 3 October, at 7:00 PM at the JINR Cultural Centre "Mir".

The talk was conducted by LRB researcher Yury SEVERYUKHIN
Photo from the personal archive of Vyacheslav Dubynin