Department of International Cooperation

The international activities of the Research Institute of Virology are aimed at enhancing the position of the institute in the global educational and scientific community. This work is carried out within the framework of cooperation with foreign universities, organizations and associations for the implementation of international educational programs and projects, joint research activities, organization of scientific and practical seminars and conferences, and personnel exchange.

The main goal of the International Cooperation Department is to solve the complex problem of creating and maintaining strong international ties with foreign organizations and implementing activities aimed at strengthening the research and educational potential of the Research Institute of Virology

The main tasks of the department:

• development of proposals and coordination of the work of the structural divisions of the Research Institute of Virology on concluding international agreements, coordination of work on the implementation of international cooperation programs;
• development of long-term plans for the development of international relations of the Institute;
• development and organization of events for the development of international relations;
• expansion of the Institute's activities in international organizations, projects, programs;
• preparation and implementation of international educational and research projects;
• preparation and holding of receptions of foreign delegations arriving at the institute on official, working, unofficial (private) visits;
• involving foreign teachers in lecturing
• support of communications with representative offices of European and international organizations located in Uzbekistan;
• organization of meetings and protocol support of delegations;
• search for promising partners, development of agreements and programs of international cooperation;
• organization of international events, including conferences and round tables.
• periodic submission of statistical reports to the management of the institute.

From February 24 to 27 2024, Institute employee, Ismailova Z., took part in an international workshop on “Genomic Epidemiology of Viral Pathogens”, organized by the Outbreak Prevention Center at Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore. The workshop brought together participants from different countries to exchange knowledge and experience in the field of molecular epidemiology. The program included lectures, practical classes and discussion of approaches to monitoring. viral diseases.

From April 22 to May 6, 2024, Institute of Virology employees Brigida K. S. and Abdurakhimova D. R. took part in an international training program on hepatology and liver transplantation at Fortis Hospital Noida (India)

The training program included practical work with patients before and after liver transplantation, participation in outpatient consultations and discussion of clinical cases. The main modules covered indications for transplantation, pre-transplantation examination, use of immunosuppressants and management of patients with transplant rejection.

Special attention was paid to a multidisciplinary approach to the treatment of complex patients and modern methods of diagnosing complications. On May 4, the results were summed up and certificates were presented to the participants of the program.

In May 2024, L.M. Akhmedova, an employee of the Research Institute of Virology of the Russian Scientific and Practical Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology, completed an internship at the University of Hiroshima (Japan) on the development of modern methods for diagnosing the human papillomavirus (HPV). During the trip, meetings were held with leading Japanese professors, experimental studies were discussed, and the purchase of the necessary reagents and consumables for laboratory work was organized. In laboratory conditions, methods for express extraction of HPV DNA using various reagents were developed, and samples were tested for HPV genotypes using the PCR method.

As a result of the internship, a new non-extraction method for detecting DNA of human papillomavirus types 16 and 18 was developed and tested, which allows to simplify and speed up the process of PCR diagnostics, reduce time and consumable costs, and increase the efficiency of laboratory research.

From June 23 to August 14, 2024, employees of the Research Institute of Virology of the RSNPMCEMIPZ N.G. Kan and D.T. Suyarkulova took part in an international training program in Seoul (Republic of Korea), organized by the Korea Foundation for International Health (KOFIH). The training took place at leading universities and clinics, including Yonsei University and Myongji Hospital. The internship covered modern methods of diagnosing and preventing infectious diseases, automating laboratory processes, managing outbreaks, and biosafety when working with pathogens. The program included lectures by leading specialists, practical classes in laboratories, visits to national centers for disease control and prevention, and an exchange of experience with colleagues from different countries. Particular attention was paid to issues of global medical security, vaccination strategy, modern approaches to laboratory diagnostics, the use of artificial intelligence in clinical research and biological risk management.

Shokhida Rakhimova, an ultrasound diagnostics doctor at the Republican Specialized Scientific and Practical Medical Center for Epidemiology, Microbiology, Infectious and Parasitic Diseases, completed an internship at the Hannover Medical School (Germany) from October 7 to November 7, 2024, with the support of the GIZ organization. During the internship, the specialist took part in daily morning conferences, mastered modern methods of contrast ultrasound examination, fine-needle liver biopsy under ultrasound control, and studied practical aspects of Doppler sonography of abdominal organs. Particular attention was paid to working with patients, performing abdominal drainage and ascitic fluid puncture, as well as analyzing complex clinical cases on a simulator.

From July 2 to 10, 2024, the head of the Department of Viral and Human Genome Sequencing of the Research Institute of Virology, PhD - Evgeniya Ivanovna Kazakova took part in the international training course “Genomic Surveillance of Arboviruses in the Context of Climate Change”, organized by the Asian Pathogen Genomics Initiative at the National University of Singapore and Duke Medical School.

The training included theoretical and practical modules on the following key topics:

• features of molecular surveillance of arboviruses in the context of climate change;
• primer development, library preparation and sequencing on Illumina and Oxford Nanopore (ONT) platforms;
• sequencing data processing, including sequence assembly, read quality assessment, phylogenetic and phylodynamic analysis;
• working in a Linux environment and using the command line to analyze genomic data.

As part of the training, laboratory work was carried out with samples of Dengue-3 virus obtained from humans and mosquito. Participants independently prepared libraries, performed sequencing, assembled consensus sequences, and constructed phylogenetic trees.

Based on the results of the final testing, Evgeniya Kazakova successfully completed the training and received a certificate of completion of the program.

The acquired knowledge and practical skills will be used for the further development of genomic surveillance of vector-borne viruses in Uzbekistan and the expansion of laboratory sequencing capabilities within the framework of national programs for epidemiological surveillance and prevention infectious diseases.

From January 6 to January 26, 2025, an employee of the Research Institute of Virology, N.G. Kan, completed an internship at the Hannover Medical School (Germany). The training took place at the laboratory of the Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Endocrinology, where the main focus was on modern methods for studying viral hepatitis D.

As part of the internship, N.G. Kan mastered the methods of extracting RNA of the hepatitis D virus, carried out DNA amplification and sequencing, and independently processed the obtained molecular genetic data. In addition, the specialist familiarized herself with the principles of the biobanking system and underwent training in preparing blood samples for storage in a biobank.

From May 19 to June 3, 2025, an employee of the institute, Ismailova Z., completed an internship at the Hannover Medical School in the laboratory of transfusion medicine.

During the internship, I worked with molecular biological methods, including DNA extraction, amplification, sequencing, and HLA typing using FACS and PCR methods.

PCR was performed in a closed Inno-Train system. The main focus was on the study of the hepatitis B virus.

On January 2, 2025, the Research Institute of Virology of Uzbekistan received a delegation of specialists from South Korea, including representatives of GS Labs, Kyung Hee Hospital and the Korea Foundation for International Health (KOFIH), to strengthen international cooperation in the field of diagnostics and prevention of viral diseases.

During the meeting, significant successes of the institute in the diagnosis of cervical cancer were noted - during the first year of the implementation of the screening project for the human papillomavirus within the framework of insurance medicine, 22,000 women were examined. The parties discussed plans to introduce a national electronic database within the framework of the HPV project and the accession of the Center for Maternal and Child Health to the screening program with the participation of specialists from the Research Institute in the creation of a reference laboratory. KOFIH representatives noted the receipt of international accreditation by the laboratory of the Research Institute of Virology and the key role of the institute in the development of state regulations on screening of socially significant diseases. The readiness of the institute to train specialists at the republican level was confirmed, including organizing training for doctors in PCR diagnostics methods and conducting postgraduate education programs. At the end of the meeting, the delegation visited the PCR Diagnostics Laboratory, the Liquid Cytology Laboratory and the Training Center for the Determination of Cervical Cancer, which confirmed the high level of technical equipment and readiness for international cooperation in the field of validation of test systems.

From May 26 to June 2, 2025, within the framework of the Decree of the Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan No. 243 dated May 16, 2022, specialists from the Hannover Medical School (Germany) visited the Research Institute of Virology of the Specialized Scientific and Practical Medical Center for Epidemiology, Microbiology, Infections and Parasitic Diseases in Tashkent. The visit was dedicated to conducting a training course on organizing screening for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in liver diseases.

The purpose of the course was to exchange scientific and practical experience, as well as improve the skills of Uzbek specialists in the field of ultrasound diagnostics of HCC. The course was led by Professor Dr. Michael Gebel and Dr. med. Lisa Sandmann (Hannover Medical School).

During the week, participants were introduced to the ultrasound simulator, improved their skills in working with modern ultrasound diagnostic methods, including B-mode, Doppler, elastography and contrast enhancement. Particular attention was paid to practical exercises, patient examination and interpretation of results. The course concluded with seminars on elastography and contrast-enhanced ultrasonography, as well as a discussion of the results and next steps.

The training is expected to improve the level of expertise of doctors and the quality of liver disease diagnostics in Uzbekistan. The project is implemented within the framework of the "Train the Trainer" concept and contributes to the introduction of modern HCC screening standards, which is important for the country's healthcare system.