HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, TEACHER! TO THE 80TH ANNIVERSARY OF ACADEMICIAN V.Yo. KRESYUN

Valentyn Yosypovych Kresyun – Academician of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine, Professor of Pharmacology and Pharmacognosy ONMedU, an outstanding scientist in the field of basic and clinical pharmacology, author of numerous scientific papers, textbooks, manuals celebrated his anniversary on November 30, 2021.

Valentyn Yosypovich was born in the village of Shershentsi, Kodyma district, Odessa region, on November 30, 1941 to a peasant family. The first years of his childhood coincided with a terrible period of foreign occupation and the difficult post-war period of famine and devastation, which taught him from an early age to work hard. The severe post-war years forced him to grow up prematurely, but he hardened his will and shaped the character of a future scientist.

In 1962, the young man graduated with honors from a medical school in Bender, then served in the army, where for high professionalism and unique organizational skills he was awarded the military rank of lieutenant. The young man had great prospects for studying at a military academy and building a brilliant military career. However, Valentyn dreamed of becoming a doctor and after demobilization from the army in 1964 he entered the Odessa Medical Institute named after M.I. Pirogov ant brilliantly graduated from it with honors in 1970.

During his student years, Valentyn Kresyun studied well, took an active public position – he was the head of the course, public dean of the medical faculty. His fate brought him together with a prominent pharmacologist, then head of the Department of Pharmacology of Odessa Medical Institute named after M.I. Pirogov, Professor Yaroslav Borisovych Maksimovych – a recognized authority in pharmacological science in the former Soviet Union. This meeting determined the further choice of Valentyn Yosypovych in favor of pharmacology – a science that is at the crossroads of theoretical and practical medicine. It was at the Department of Pharmacology that he went from graduate student to professor, long-term head of the department, academician of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine. The world-famous pharmacologists – academicians V.V. Zakusov, A.V. Waldaman, S.V. Anichkov, M.D. Mashkovsky and many other famous scientists took part in the formation of the worldview and scientific interests of the young scientist.

Valentyn Yosypovych’s main research interests were in the field of psychopharmacology – the study of the psychotropic effects of lithium nicotinate derivatives and atypical tranquilizers, which was reflected in his PhD thesis defended in 1973 and his doctoral dissertation in 1984. He was the first to formulate the tactics of the drug correction with the help of metabolic drugs on the basis of studying the molecular and biochemical mechanisms of stress syndrome.

Valentyn Yosypovych developed and introduced into production the first atypical tranquilizer lithonite, patented in a number of countries with a strong pharmaceutical industry (USA, UK, Japan, etc.). Under his leadership, a new concept of purposeful synthesis of highly effective drugs based on natural metabolites of the human body was created. As a result, a number of drugs (nicomag, taftsin, polyenol and others) were developed, a new unique class of biologically active substances with membrane-protective activity based on coordination compounds of germanium and various bioligands of metabolic origin was created and comprehensively studied. Together with chemists of Odessa National University named after I.I. Mechnikov (under the leadership of Professor Seifullina I.Yo.) a new class of potential drugs – coordination compounds of germanium and other metals with bioligands of natural origin were synthesized. The established pharmacological properties of these compounds are of great interest to scientists both in our country and abroad. These developments are unique in the world.

In 1985, V.Yo. Kresyun headed the Department of Pharmacology and held this position for almost 35 years. Professor V.Yo.Kresyun became one of the founders of clinical pharmacology as an educational and scientific specialty. The cycle of clinical pharmacology, created for the first time in Ukraine, was included in the Department of Pharmacology. Professor V.Yo.Kresyun  became the head of the first in Ukraine Department of General and Clinical Pharmacology, which during its existence remained a mainstay in “clinical pharmacology” among all medical and pharmaceutical universities in the country. With his participation in 1989 for the first time in Ukraine a clinical residency in “Clinical Pharmacology” was opened and the first clinical resident in this specialty in the USSR was prepared, and clinical pharmacology was included in the List of scientific specialties for doctoral and master’s theses.

A specialized scientific council for the defense of dissertations, where in the last 25 years  more than 500 PhD and doctoral dissertations were defended was opened at Odessa Medical Institute with the participation of V.Yo. Kresyun. Now among the scientists who defended dissertations in the specialized scientific council of Odessa National Medical University are leading scientists, directors of research institutes, rectors, heads of departments, research and teaching staff of many medical universities of Ukraine, who continue to work hard and increase the achievements of domestic medical education and science.

In cooperation with his staff and research and teaching staff of the Department of Clinical Immunology, Genetics and Medical Biology of our University, Professor V.Yo. Kresyun was one of the pioneers of the modern field – clinical immunopharmacology, which was reflected in the publications “Clinical aspects of immunopharmacology” (1990; 1993), Clinical Immunology (2000); “Immunology and immunopathology of the digestive system” (2001); Clinical Allergology (2004); “Clinical Immunology and Allergology” (2006), etc.

At the same time, the attention of Professor V.Yo. Kresyun was focused on the introduction of new ways of rational pharmacotherapy, taking into account the pharmacogenetic features of man. Under his leadership, a research institute of clinical biophysics was established on the basis of the university in 1995, in which the issues of rapid diagnostics and genetically justified pharmacotherapy of a number of socially dangerous diseases, including pulmonary tuberculosis, viral hepatitis B and C are solved. These achievements are reflected in the unique monographs “Molecular genetic and biophysical methods of research in medicine” (1996), “Molecular genetic mechanisms of tuberculosis” (2005), “Pharmacogenetic bases of interaction of organism and drugs” (2007), “Genetic medicine” (2008), “Molecular epidemiology” (2010), “Factors and mechanisms of sanogenesis” (2014), etc. On the basis of these researches more than 35 doctoral and candidate dissertations were prepared and defended. He is the author of more than 900 scientific works, including 22 monographs, 54 textbooks, manuals, reference books, dictionaries, atlases, textbooks, 50 copyright certificates, patents of foreign countries and Ukraine, more than 130 educational and scientific-methodical works.

Since 1971, Valentyn Yosypovych  held various administrative positions, including Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Vice-Rector for International Relations, Vice-Rector for Research, and was the first Vice-Rector of the University for 15 years. Fifty years after the closure of the Pharmaceutical Institute in Odessa, on his initiative and under his leadership in 2001, the Faculty of Pharmacy was re-established at ONMedU – the only scientific forge in the south of Ukraine for the training of highly qualified pharmaceutical personnel. Academician V.Yo. Kresyun is the head of the Southern Research Center of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine, vice-president of the Association of Pharmacologists of Ukraine, heads Odessa regional branch of the State Expert Center of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine.

For numerous achievements V.Yo. Kresyun was awarded the Order of Ukraine – Prince Yaroslav the Wise V degree, “For Merit” I, II, III degrees, badges “Excellence in Health”, “Excellence in Education of Ukraine”, medals “Veteran of Labor”, “20 years of independence of Ukraine”, a gold medal of the Polish Academy of Medicine, a diploma of the World Federation of Ukrainian Medical Societies and other awards of foreign academies. In 2017, the scientist, together with co-authors, was awarded the State Prize of Ukraine in the field of science and technology by order of the President of Ukraine №101 / 217 for the creation of the national textbook “Pharmacology” for students of medical and dental faculties of higher medical educational institutions. In 2021, Professor V.Yo. Kresyun was elected an academician of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine.

Academician V.Yo. Kresyun now actively works at his native department, generates and leads new areas of research and continues to share his knowledge and experience with young colleagues.

The staff of the Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacognosy, the administration and staff of Odessa National Medical University sincerely congratulate the jubilee and wish dear Valentyn Yosypovych good health, inspiration, long life and further creative achievements for the prosperity of domestic medical science and development of native Odessa National Medical University.