Состоялось торжественное заседание Учёного совета института в честь академика И.Н. Блохиной

21  04.2026 April 21, 2026, marked the 105th anniversary of the birth of a unique individual, scientist, and academician Irina Nikolaevna Blokhina. For 44 years (1955–1999), until her untimely death, Irina Nikolaevna headed the Nizhny Novgorod Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology, which bears her name.

On this day, in memory of the great Teacher, a ceremonial meeting of the Academic Council was held at the Institute. The meeting's program was rich and engaging: Institute staff, colleagues, students, and followers shared reports and personal recollections about the life, successes, achievements, and innovative solutions of Academician I.N. Blokhina.

The opening remarks were given by the Institute's Director, Doctor of Medical Sciences, Associate Professor Natalya Nikolaevna Zaitseva, the last of the Institute's current employees, whom Irina Nikolaevna personally recruited. A video clip was shown featuring excerpts from interviews with I.N. Blokhina from various periods of her life.

The Chair of the Institute's Council of Medical Students, Junior Researcher of the Viral Hepatitis Epidemiology Laboratory, Anastasia Aleksandrovna Novoselova, delivered a presentation entitled "Stages in the Life and Scientific Path of I.N. Blokhina." As a guest, she presented a report on I.N. Kamilla Khairulina, a 10th-grade student at Lyceum No. 8 named after Academician E.K. Fedorov, where Irina Nikolaevna graduated, participated in the event.

On behalf of Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod, where one of the country's first molecular biology departments was established in 1976 at the initiative of I.N. Blokhina, Elena Vladimirovna Mitroshina, Head of the Molecular Biology and Immunology Department, Doctor of Biological Sciences, and Associate Professor, spoke. Irina Vladlenovna Solovieva, Head of the Microbiome and Means of Its Correction Laboratory, Doctor of Biological Sciences, and Associate Professor, a colleague and follower of Irina Nikolaevna, spoke about the role of Academician I.N. Blokhina in the development of the Soviet school of endomicroecology. Nadezhda Alekseevna Novikova, Head of the Laboratory of Molecular Epidemiology of Viral Infections, Doctor of Biological Sciences, and Professor, shared personal memories of working with the academician.

At the end of the event, Irina Nikolaevna Blokhina's granddaughter, Maria Nikolaevna Lundgren, PhD, spoke via videoconference. Maria Nikolaevna shared warm memories of interesting conversations with her grandmother and her wise advice with the participants of the ceremony. Maria Nikolaevna particularly noted Irina Nikolaevna's role in her own development as a specialist and scientist.