[About the past and present of the Department of General and Soil Microbiology and ... something else].

A historical essay of creative path of collective of the Department of General and Soil Microbiology, founded in 1928, is presented. Two research schools have been formed for the past years: ecophysiology of soil microflora and geochemical activity of microorganisms. L. I. Rubenchik stood at the sources of these schools. A problem of soil biology and microorganisms interrelations with higher plants occupies a considerable place in the Department research. Separate groups, microorganisms and microbe cenoses are studied as a whole as the complex self-regulated system. The investigations of microbe corrosion of metals initiated by a necessity to solve urgent problems of Kyiv metro have been formed as the priority trend. Agents and mechanisms of biological damages of the overground, underground and underwater structures are studied and the grounds of anticorrosion measures are developed within the framework of these trends.