Soil Alveolata diversity in the undisturbed steppe and wheat agrocenoses under different tillage.

Microeukaryotes are vital for maintaining soil quality and ecosystem functioning, however, their communities are less studied than bacterial and fungal ones, especially by high throughput sequencing techniques. Alveolates are important members of soil microbial communities, being consumers and/or prey for other microorganisms. We studied alveolate diversity in soil under the undisturbed steppe (US) and cropped for wheat using two tillage practices (conventional, CT, and no-till, NT) by amplifying the ITS2 marker with ITS3_KYO2/ITS4 primers and sequencing amplicons using Illumina MiSeq. A total of 198 Alveolata OTUs were identified, with 158 OTUs attributed to the Ciliophora phylum, containing five classes: Litostomatea, Spirotrichea and Oligohymenophorea, Nassophorea and Phyllopharyngea. Litostomatea and Phyllopharyngea were more abundant in US as compared with CT and NT. The observed OTU richness was higher in US than in CT and NT. The ß-biodiversity of soil ciliates also very distinctly differentiated the US field from CT and NT. In the US, Nassophorea and Spirotrichea correlated positively with sand and negatively with clay, silt and SOM contents. This is the first report about soil ciliates diversity in Siberia as assessed by metabarcoding technique. The revealed clear effect of land use on the relative abundance of some taxa and a lack of tillage effect suggest the importance of the quantity and quality of plant material input for shaping the prey for ciliates. The ITS-metabarcoding technique was used for the first time in the research of ciliates diversity; further studies, embracing diverse aspects of soil ciliates by combining -omics methodology with the traditional one, are needed to get a better insight on the ecological roles of the main ciliate taxa in the complex soil system.

About the Biodiversity of the Air Microbiome.

This brief review focuses on the properties of bioaerosols, presenting some recent results of metagenomic studies of the air microbiome performed using next-generation sequencing. The taxonomic composition and structure of the bioaerosol microbiome may display diurnal and seasonal dynamics and be dependent on meteorological events such as dust storms, showers, fogs, etc., as well as air pollution. The Proteobacteria and Ascomycota members are common dominants in bioaerosols in different troposphere layers. The microbiological composition of the lower troposphere air affects the composition and diversity of the indoor bioaerosol microbiome, and information about the latter is very important, especially during exacerbated epidemiological situations. Few studies focusing on the bioaerosol microbiome of the air above Russia urge intensification of such research.

[Usage evaluation of the biofeedback and electrical impulse stimulation of the pelvic floor muscles in patients after surgical correction of genital prolapse by the method of multi-parametric ultrasound]. / Otsenka primeneniya biologicheskoi obratnoi svyazi i elektroimpul'snoi stimulyatsii myshts tazovogo dna u patsientok posle khirurgicheskoi korrektsii genital'nogo prolapsa metodom mul'tiparametricheskogo ul'trazvukovogo issledovaniya.

Pelvic floor surgery is currently recognized as the only effective method for treating genital prolapse but it is not able to restore fully the qualitative characteristics of perineal tissues. The risk of recurrence of the pathological process in the long-term period remains a serious negative aspect. Optimization of pelvic floor rehabilitation after surgical correction of perineal ptosis remains an urgent problem in the female population. The validated method of questioning is a priority in assessing the dynamics of clinical manifestations of failure of the anatomical and functional structures of the pelvic floor, their impact on the life quality of patients before and after the biofeedback method (BFB therapy) and electrical impulse stimulation (EIS) of muscles. Multi-parametric ultrasound diagnostics of perineal tissues can confirm the improvement of the echo-structure of the anatomical and functional elements of the pelvic floor after the complex application of physiotherapeutic effects using modern high-tech hardware systems through an external feedback channel by means of acoustic, visual and tactile perception. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of biofeedback therapy and EIS of the neuromuscular apparatus of the pelvic floor in patients operated on for stage III, IV of genital prolapse using mesh implants by means of validated questionnaire survey and measuring the parameters of perineal tissues by the method of multi-parametric ultrasound. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study included 187 women after surgical correction of stage III and IV genital prolapse according to POP-Q using mesh technologies. The 149 women underwent the observation program; 36 patients of the control group were recommended to modify their lifestyle; 113 patients of the main group - biofeedback therapy and EIS. The indicators of validated questionnaires (determination of the of perineal structures failure influence index on the life quality, ILQ) and ultrasound multi-parametric examination were assessed at baseline, 6 months and 1 year after the program of observation and rehabilitation. RESULTS: The clinical effectiveness of biofeedback therapy and EIS was confirmed by validated questionnaire: after 1 year, the ILQ in the control group decreased by 7.7%, in the main group - by 43.3% (p<0.05). Multi-parametric ultrasound assessment of perineal tissues after surgical correction of stages III and IV of genital prolapse showed a positive effect of conservative rehabilitation on the anatomical and functional structures of the pelvic floor. The diagnostic advantage of endo-anal sonography in the analysis of the echo-structure of the pelvic floor elements, detection of pathologies that cannot be scanned endo-vaginally and trans-perineally has been established. There were 2 (5.5%) cases of recurrence of genital prolapse in the control group; there were no relapsesamong the patients of the main group. CONCLUSION: The validated questioning for the ILQ and ultrasound multi-parametric study by measuring the parameters of perineal tissues confirmed the effectiveness of biofeedback therapy and EIS after surgical correction of stage III and IV genital prolapse using mesh technologies. Endo-anal sonography is essential in the examination of gynecological patients. The adherence to the monitoring and rehabilitation program was 79.6%.

[The antioxidant activity of the products of processing of red grape of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Saperavi].

Experimental data on the antioxidant activity of grape juice, grape concentrates and wine from grapes of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Saperavi from Crimea and Krasnodar regions was presented. Flavonoids are presented in the form of glycosides of such anthocyanins as delphinidin, malvidin, cyanidin, petunidin, peonidin and also by quercetin and its glycoside, (+)-D-catechin and (-)-epicatechin. Oligomeric procyanidins, which are condensed catechol units (2-6) soluble in water, are presented in significant amounts, and polymeric procyanidins with the amount catechin units greater than 7, insoluble in water, constituted the bulk of polyphenols od wine and concentrates from red grapes (no juice). Among non-flavonoid polyphenols hydroxybenzoic (gallic, syringic) and hydroxycinnamic (caftaric, cautaric) acids are identified, the relative content of which in the amount of polyphenols in the juice is maximum, and minimum is in concentrates. It was found that antioxidant activity for all products in standard Trolox method can be estimated by the equation: Y = 0.53627+0.1395X+0.080439X2-0.00064708X3, with a correlation coefficient r = 0.9952; where: Y--antioxidant activity, g/dm3 by Trolox method; X--mass concentration of phenolic substances on the Folin-Ciocalteu, g/dm3. The equation is valid for Y = 0.76-196.22; X = 1.0-82.67. The results of biological testing of wines Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Saperavi and polyphenol concentrates from grape on the biological model of bioluminescent bacteria Photobacterium leiognathi Sh1 demonstrated the applicability of bioassay to assess the antioxidant activity, which correlates well with the polyphenols content and antioxidant activity by trolox method.

Mapping of cis-regulatory sites in the promoter of testis-specific stellate genes of Drosophila melanogaster.

Tandem Stellate genes organized into two clusters in heterochromatin and euchromatin of the X-chromosome are part of the Ste-Su(Ste) genetic system required for maintenance of male fertility and reproduction of Drosophila melanogaster. Stellate genes encode a regulatory subunit of protein kinase CK2 and are the main targets of germline-specific piRNA-silencing; their derepression leads to appearance of protein crystals in spermatocytes, meiotic disturbances, and male sterility. A short promoter region of 134 bp appears to be sufficient for testis-specific transcription of Stellate, and it contains three closely located cis-regulatory elements called E-boxes. By using reporter analysis, we confirmed a strong functionality of the E-boxes in the Stellate promoter for in vivo transcription. Using selective mutagenesis, we have shown that the presence of the central E-box 2 is preferable to maintain a high-level testis-specific transcription of the reporter gene under the Stellate promoter. The Stellate promoter provides transcription even in heterochromatin, and corresponding mRNAs are translated with the generation of full-size protein products in case of disturbances in the piRNA-silencing process. We have also shown for the first time that the activity of the Stellate promoter is determined by chromatin context of the X-chromosome in male germinal cells, and it increases at about twofold when relocating in autosomes.

[Food behavior of consumers (for example, Chelyabinsk)].

Sociological poll of inhabitants of Chelyabinsk concerning a balanced diet was conducted. Every second chelyabinets needs change of the food, but thus has for this purpose no sufficient money resources. Deficiency in a food of animal protein, the majority of vitamins, macro- and microelements and saturation of a diet by carbohydrates and fats was shown. It was established that the products of mass consumption: bakery, dairy, meat,fat-and-oil products and sweets can be considered as potential products for enrichment, oriented for low-and middle-income countries primarily.

Hole boring in a DT Pellet and Fast-Ion Ignition with Ultraintense Laser Pulses.

Recently achieved high intensities of short laser pulses open new prospects in their application to hole boring in inhomogeneous overdense plasmas and for ignition in precompressed DT fusion targets. A simple analytical model and numerical simulations demonstrate that pulses with intensities exceeding 10;{22} W/cm;{2} may penetrate deeply into the plasma as a result of efficient ponderomotive acceleration of ions in the forward direction. The penetration depth as big as hundreds of microns depends on the laser fluence, which has to exceed a few tens of GJ/cm;{2}. The fast ions, accelerated at the bottom of the channel with an efficiency of more than 20%, show a high directionality and may heat the precompressed target core to fusion conditions.

[Changes of mitochondria membrane potential of the uterine smooth muscle under Mg2+ and Ca2+ influence].

Using the method of flow cytometry and potential-sensitive fluorescent dye TMRM the effect of divalent cations on the membrane potential of isolated myometrium mitochondria was studied. It was shown, that Mg2+ (7 mM) addition to the incubation medium induced mitochondrial membrane hyperpolarization. In the case of protonophore CCCP (1 microM) preliminary presence in the incubation medium, Mg2+ addition did not lead to membrane potential hyperpolarization. Addition of Ca24+ leads to membrane potential dissipation. Ca2+ -induced mitochondrial depolarization is the same as NaN3 (10 mM)-induced depolarization. It also was shown that Mg2+ (7 mM) preliminary presence in the incubation medium did not protect mitochondria from Ca2+ -induced depolarization.

[Use of flow cytometry to determine Ca2+ content in mitochondria and influence of calmodulin antagonists on it].

Ca ions accumulation in isolated myometrium mitochondria was investigated using flow cytometry and fluorescent probe fluo 3-AM. The addition of 1 mM of Ca2+ and 5 microM of A23187 to the incubation medium resulted in the shift to the right of geometrical peak position of fluorescence probe intensity compared with that registered in the absence of Ca ions. The increase of Ca concentration in the medium resulted in the increase of fluorescence intensity. In the conditions of Ca(2+)-uniporter functioning modelling the probe fluorescence intensity also increased depending on an increase of Ca concentration and did not change at primary presence of the 1 microM CCCP. Ca2+ accumulation in mitochondria was completely inhibited by 10 microM calmidazolium or 100 microM trifluoperazine, known as calmodulin antagonists. It was also shown that these calmodulin antagonists caused mitochondria membrane depolarization. The membrane potential was measured using fluorescent probe TMRM. It is supposed that the inhibitory action of calmodulin antagonists on Ca ions accumulation in myometrium mitochondria can occur due to direct inhibition of Ca(2+)-uniporter and/or due to membrane potential dissipation.

[Investigation of Ca2+ -induced changes of membrane potential of smooth muscle mitochondria using flow cytometric analysis].

Using flow cytometric analysis and potential-sensitive fluorescent dye TMRM Ca2+ -induced changes of membrane potential of isolated smooth muscle mitochondria were studied. It was shown, that Ca2+ (100 microM) addition to the incubation medium induced mitochondrial membrane depolarization that probably could be explained by Ca2+/H+ -exchanger activation which functioning lead to membrane potential dissipation. In the case of ruthenium red (10 microM) preliminary presence in incubation medium, Ca2+ (100 microM) addition did not lead to membrane potential dissipation. Hence, membrane potential dissipation was caused by an increase of matrix Ca2+ concentration. In the presence of Mg2+ (3 mM) and ATP (3 mM), Ca2+ addition did not cause depolarization. It was supposed that in this case ATP synthase acted in the opposite direction as H+ -pump and prevented from mitochondrial membrane potential dissipation. Thus, the flow cytometry method allows to register membrane potential of isolated smooth muscle mitochondria and also to test the effectors, capable to modulate this parameter.

Attosecond electron bunches.

Electron bunches of attosecond duration may coherently interact with laser beams. We show how p-polarized ultraintense laser pulses interacting with sharp boundaries of overdense plasmas can produce such bunches. Particle-in-cell simulations demonstrate attosecond bunch generation during pulse propagation through a thin channel or in the course of grazing incidence on a plasma layer. In the plasma, due to the self-intersection of electron trajectories, electron concentration is abruptly peaked. A group of counterstream electrons is pushed away from the plasma through nulls in the electromagnetic field, having inherited a peaked electron density distribution and forming relativistic ultrashort bunches in vacuum.

Relativistic generation of isolated attosecond pulses in a lambda 3 focal volume.

Lasers that provide an energy encompassed in a focal volume of a few cubic wavelengths (lambda(3)) can create relativistic intensity with maximal gradients, using minimal energy. With particle-in-cell simulations we found, that single 200 attosecond pulses could be produced efficiently in a lambda(3) laser pulse reflection, via deflection and compression from the relativistic plasma mirror created by the pulse itself. An analytical model of coherent radiation from a charged layer confirms the pulse compression and is in good agreement with simulations. The novel technique is efficient (approximately 10%) and can produce single attosecond pulses from the millijoule to the joule level.

[Inactivation of reporter genes by cloned heterochromatic repeats of Drosophila melanogaster is accompanied by chromatin compaction]. / Inaktivatsiia reporternykh genov klonirovannymi geterokhromatinovymi povtorami Drosophila melanogaster soprovozhdaetsia kompaktizatsiei khromatina.

Cloned Stellate heterochromatic repeats caused unstable mosaic inactivation (position effect variegation; PEV) of the reporter gene mini-white. A number of known protein modifiers of the classical position effect induced by large heterochromatin blocks do not affect the expression of mini-white. This raises the question as to the specificity of chromatin compaction around the reporter gene. The inactivation of the mini-white gene has been found to be accompanied by a decrease in its methylation catalyzed by Escherichia coli dam-methyltransferase expressed in the genome of Drosophila. However, no changes in the nucleosome organization of mini-white have been found.

High-order harmonics from an ultraintense laser pulse propagating inside a fiber.

A strong effect of high harmonic radiation during the propagation of a high intensity short laser pulse in a thin wall hollow channel ("fiber") is found and studied via relativistic particle-in-cell simulations. The fiber has finite width walls comprised of an overdense plasma. Only the harmonic radiation with the harmonic number above critical value, for which the fiber walls are transparent, propagates outwards in the form of a coherent ultrashort pulse with very short wavelength.

[The phenomenon of RNA interference and development of organism]. / Iavlenie RNK-interferentsii i razvitie organizma.

RNA interference consists in specific mRNA degradation in response to introduction of a double-stranded RNA, homologous in nucleotide sequence. RNA interference was found in eukaryotes and is used in genomics as a powerful method to determine the functions of genes with known nucleotide sequences. RNA interference is considered as a tool of protection against viruses and harmful consequences of mobile elements' transposals. The involvement of the components of RNA interference is considered in spermatogenesis of Drosophila melanogaster and regulation of the expression of genes in Caenorhabditis elegans responsible for temporal patterns of development. The role of RNQA interference in stem cell formation and functioning is also considered.

Polarization effects and anisotropy in three-dimensional relativistic self-focusing.

The relativistic self-focusing of high-intensity laser pulses in underdense plasmas is investigated with three-dimensional particle in cell simulations. The different behavior of a linearly polarized pulse in the two transverse directions is interpreted as a combination of two two-dimensional responses with different polarizations. In the polarization plane a high density sheet is formed, which separates the two regions of oppositely directed quasistatic magnetic field.

Macroscopic evidence of soliton formation in multiterawatt laser-plasma interaction.

A novel physical phenomenon has been observed following the interaction of an intense (10(19) W/cm(2)) laser pulse with an underdense plasma. Long-lived, macroscopic bubblelike structures have been detected through the deflection that the associated electric charge separation causes in a proton probe beam. These structures are interpreted as the remnants of a cloud of relativistic solitons generated in the plasma by the ultraintense laser pulse. This interpretation is supported by an analytical study of the soliton cloud evolution, by particle-in-cell simulations, and by a reconstruction of the proton-beam deflection.

Double-stranded RNA-mediated silencing of genomic tandem repeats and transposable elements in the D. melanogaster germline.

BACKGROUND: The injection of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) has been shown to induce a potent sequence-specific inhibition of gene function in diverse invertebrate and vertebrate species. The homology-dependent posttranscriptional gene silencing (PTGS) caused by the introduction of transgenes in plants may be mediated by dsRNA. The analysis of Caenorhabditis elegans mutants impaired with dsRNA-mediated silencing and studies in plants implicate a biological role of dsRNA-mediated silencing as a transposon-repression and antiviral mechanism. RESULTS: We investigated the silencing of testis-expressed Stellate genes by paralogous Su(Ste) tandem repeats, which are known to be involved in the maintenance of male fertility in Drosophila melanogaster. We found that both strands of repressor Su(Ste) repeats are transcribed, producing sense and antisense RNA. The Stellate silencing is associated with the presence of short Su(Ste) RNAs. Cotransfection experiments revealed that Su(Ste) dsRNA can target and eliminate Stellate transcripts in Drosophila cell culture. The short fragment of Stellate gene that is homologous to Su(Ste) was shown to be sufficient to confer Su(Ste)-dependent silencing of a reporter construct in testes. We demonstrated that Su(Ste) dsRNA-mediated silencing affects not only Stellate expression but also the level of sense Su(Ste) RNA providing a negative autogenous regulation of Su(Ste) expression. Mutation in the spindle-E gene relieving Stellate silencing also leads to a derepression of the other genomic tandem repeats and retrotransposons in the germline. CONCLUSIONS: Homology-dependent gene silencing was shown to be used to inhibit Stellate gene expression in the D. melanogaster germline, ensuring male fertility. dsRNA-mediated silencing may provide a basis for negative autogenous control of gene expression. The related surveillance system is implicated to control expression of retrotransposons in the germline.