I am a Leading Researcher at the Shirshov Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Moscow, Russia). My research focuses mainly on the taxonomy, biogeography and biology of Anthozoa: tube anemones (Ceriantharia), black corals (Antipatharia) and also deep-sea soft mushroom corals of the subfamily Anthomastidae. I am involved in studies of the fauna of seamounts and oceanic ridges and host/symbiont interactions in deep-sea corals. I have participated in 13 deep-ocean cruises in Atlantic, Pacific and Southern Oceans and as a scientist on-shore have contributed in series of telepresence-cruises organized by NOAA Okeanos Explorer, OET, Schmidt Institute, and Ifremer. I collaborated in a number of international biodiversity projects including those of Census of Marine Life (Census of Diversity of Abyssal Marine Life and Global Census of Marine Life on Seamounts). Since 2012 I have been serving as a subject editor in Actiniaria and Octocorals in Marine Biology Research journal. I do participate in several Deep-Ocean Stewardship Initiative (https://www.dosi-project.org/) WGs. As part of DOSI Minerals WG I am involved in ecological studies of potential sites for deep-sea mining, detecting risks from the mining operations and development of Regional Environmental Management plans for these sites. Since 2009 I am a responsible in WoRMS for two groups of anthozoans: Antipatharia (together with Dennis Opresko) and Ceriantharia. Within WoRMS I served as member of WoRMS Achievement Award committee in 2017-2021 and have been elected as a member of SC in 2020-2022. In WoRMS SC I participated in Distribution and Image WGs and also did an analysis of current status and necessary updates to WoRMS on-line manual

Taxonomic terms: Antipatharia [WoRMS]; Ceriantharia [WoRMS]