Chemists from the "Signal" center have developed a rapid method to produce analogs of epibatidine, the substance used in the poisoning of Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny.
In 2015, an article describing a new one-step method for synthesizing epibatidine analogs was published in a special journal of the Academy of Sciences. This advancement allowed the substance to be produced in 16 hours instead of the previous 70 hours. The authors of the publication presented themselves as employees of the "High Technologies Laboratory."
The "Agentstvo" publication identified that six of the seven co-authors work at the "Signal" research center. Among them are chemists Igor Babkin, Sergey Galan, Georgy Nazarov, Alexey Aksyonov, Olga Yudina, and Alexey Lamanov. Yudina worked as a senior researcher in Laboratory No. 22 of the Science and Production Directorate, while Lamanov headed Laboratory No. 23. The seventh co-author was Colonel Mikhail Gutsalyuk, head of the research department of the Military Academy of Radiation, Chemistry, and Biological Defense.
Galan and Nazarov specialize in nanocapsulation — a technology for packaging the nanoparticles of a substance in a shell made from another material. According to "The Insider" and "Radio Liberty," the "Signal" center has been actively studying this technology. Nanocapsulation allows the concealment of toxic substances, masking their effects and complicating diagnosis. Both chemists have researched nanoparticles as a means of delivering drugs to various tissues of the body, particularly to nerve system cells.
It should be recalled that on February 14 this year, a joint report published by the governments of the United Kingdom, Sweden, France, Germany, and the Netherlands stated that Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny was poisoned with the neurotoxin epibatidine. The conclusion was based on the results of analyses of the politician's biomaterials conducted by several laboratories./Musavat.com