The role of the <i>Drosophila</i> genetic collection in the formation of modern scientific research directions and in the educational process at the Department of Genetics and Biotechnology of Saint Petersburg State University

Genetic analysis, as a fundamental method of genetics, is possible under the obligatory condition of presence of hereditarily different variants of the same features. Success of the analysis depends on the breadth of diversity of hereditary forms available to the researcher. In this regard, creation and maintenance of genetic collections is the first stage of genetic analysis. At present, genetic collections, including Drosophila, have not lost their primary importance even despite the obvious superiority of molecular methods in genetics and shift of research to the level of features characterizing the peculiarities of individual molecules. In many ways, it is the collection material that serves as a starting point in the development of new research directions in modern genetics. In addition, it should be noted that the task of the educational process at the university is to develop the student’s ability to analyze, critically evaluate the results of the experiment, and understand the logic of the experiment. In this regard, the use of genetic collections is an integral part of the educational process, allowing to stimulate the development of the required qualities.