On November 28, at the Institute of Molecular Biology Public Legal Entity of the Ministry of Science and Education of the Republic of Azerbaijan, an initial discussion was held on the dissertation submitted by Mehriban Sakit Shabanova for obtaining the PhD degree in Biology, specialty 2406.02 – Biochemistry, titled "Investigation of the inhibitory mechanism of the newly synthesized [CUL2]BR2 metal–organic complex on photosystem II". The scientific supervisor of the dissertation is Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Suleyman Allakhverdiyev. The official reviewers of the dissertation are PhD in Biology Pavel Pashkovskiy, and Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Professor Ahmad Hajiyev. The applicant presented the main theses of the dissertation and provided detailed information about the relevance, purpose, and obtained results of the research. Mehriban Shabanova noted that the metal–organic complex based on divalent copper ions was first synthesized and characterized by scientists at Gazi University in Ankara. In the presented dissertation, for the first time, a comprehensive study was conducted to determine the inhibitory effect of this complex on the photosynthetic activity of photosystem II. The practical significance of the research lies in the potential use of the studied copper complex as a prototype for new herbicidal agents that specifically target photosystem II. The obtained experimental data can serve as a basis for the development of selective and environmentally safe photosynthesis inhibitors that could provide an alternative to existing synthetic herbicides.”

Extensive discussions were held regarding the dissertation. The applicant answered the questions posed and expressed her position on the comments and suggestions. At the end of the meeting, a decision was made to allow the dissertation to proceed to the next stage of defense.