The steppe elephant Mammuthus trogontherii (Pohlig) from the Irtysh region near Omsk

A Pleistocene elephant skeleton was found in 1989 in the alluvial beds of the Tobolsk age on the Om River near the village of Ust’-Tarka (Ust’-Tarkskii District, Novosibirsk Region). The forelimbs and some thoracic and caudal vertebrae are not preserved. Judging from the heavy wear of M3/m3, this animal was about 50–60 years of individual age. The skeleton is about 3.5 m high at the withers. The geological age of the beds enclosing the skeleton and its morphological features suggest that it should be assigned to Mammuthus trogontherii

Multiple effects of bariatric surgery on human biochemical status

Beneficial effect of bariatric surgery is expressed not only in reducing body weight, but also in improving the functioning of the body as a whole. On the one hand, numerous studies devoted to the investigations of specific mechanisms of the influence of bariatric surgery on the general condition of an organism testify to the enormous interest of scientists in this problem. On the other hand, the range of changes is so vast that it covers almost all physiological and biochemical processes. The most noticeable response to bariatric surgery is from the digestive (including the composition of the microbiota), immune (reducing the level of systemic and local inflammation), cardiovascular (reducing the risks of atherosclerosis and other diseases) systems. Partial or complete compensation of type 2 diabetes mellitus and metabolic syndrome also occurs. Among the variety of data, there is insufficient research on only standard biomarkers: leptin, C-reactive protein, interleukin 6, etc. A detailed study of the profiles of both circulating biomarkers and local ones is necessary. At the same time, it is obligate to continue to accumulate evidence on the positive effect of bariatric surgery, since this type of surgical intervention has come into practice relatively recently. Unfortunately, at the present time in Russia bariatric surgery is not an affordable and popular treatment for morbid obesity (MO). Nevertheless, it is extremely important to change the current situation, since bariatric treatment is an optimal and effective solution to socially significant diseases such as MO or type 2 diabetes mellitus

Human APP Gene Expression Alters Active Zone Distribution and Spontaneous Neurotransmitter Release at the Drosophila Larval Neuromuscular Junction

This study provides further insight into the molecular mechanisms that control neurotransmitter release. Experiments were performed on larval neuromuscular junctions of transgenic Drosophila melanogaster lines with different levels of human amyloid precursor protein (APP) production. To express human genes in motor neurons of Drosophila, the UAS-GAL4 system was used. Human APP gene expression increased the number of synaptic boutons per neuromuscular junction. The total number of active zones, detected by Bruchpilot protein puncta distribution, remained unchanged; however, the average number of active zones per bouton decreased. These disturbances were accompanied by a decrease in frequency of miniature excitatory junction potentials without alteration in random nature of spontaneous quantal release. Similar structural and functional changes were observed with co-overexpression of human APP and β-secretase genes. In Drosophila line with expression of human amyloid-β42 peptide itself, parameters analyzed did not differ from controls, suggesting the specificity of APP effects.These results confirm the involvement of APP in synaptogenesis and provide evidence to suggest that human APP overexpression specifically disturbs the structural and functional organization of active zone and results in altered Bruchpilot distribution and lowered probability of spontaneous neurotransmitter release

Identification of Novel Candidate Markers of Type 2 Diabetes and Obesity in Russia by Exome Sequencing with a Limited Sample Size

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) and obesity are common chronic disorders with multifactorial etiology. In our study, we performed an exome sequencing analysis of 110 patients of Russian ethnicity together with a multi-perspective approach based on biologically meaningful filtering criteria to detect novel candidate variants and loci for T2D and obesity. We have identified several known single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) as markers for obesity (rs11960429), T2D (rs9379084, rs1126930), and body mass index (BMI) (rs11553746, rs1956549 and rs7195386) (p < 0.05). We show that a method based on scoring of case-specific variants together with selection of protein-altering variants can allow for the interrogation of novel and known candidate markers of T2D and obesity in small samples. Using this method, we identified rs328 in LPL (p = 0.023), rs11863726 in HBQ1 (p = 8 × 10−5), rs112984085 in VAV3 (p = 4.8 × 10−4) for T2D and obesity, rs6271 in DBH (p = 0.043), rs62618693 in QSER1 (p = 0.021), rs61758785 in RAD51B (p = 1.7 × 10−4), rs34042554 in PCDHA1 (p = 1 × 10−4), and rs144183813 in PLEKHA5 (p = 1.7 × 10−4) for obesity; and rs9379084 in RREB1 (p = 0.042), rs2233984 in C6orf15 (p = 0.030), rs61737764 in ITGB6 (p = 0.035), rs17801742 in COL2A1 (p = 8.5 × 10−5), and rs685523 in ADAMTS13 (p = 1 × 10−6) for T2D as important susceptibility loci in Russian population. Our results demonstrate the effectiveness of whole exome sequencing (WES) technologies for searching for novel markers of multifactorial diseases in cohorts of limited size in poorly studied populations

БИФИДОГЕННЫЕ СВОЙСТВА БИОТЕХНОЛОГИЧЕСКОГО АНАЛОГА ЛАКТОФЕРРИНА ЧЕЛОВЕКА

Background:  Recent research shows that the growth and development of the gastrointestinal  tract of children fed by breast milk is more intense than that of the formula fed, since the human lactoferrin contained in the breast milk is a factor that stimulates cell growth. Therefore, the possibility of using exogenous lactoferrin will be of great importance in the nutrition of infants.Objektive: To study the bifidogenic properties of the biotechnological analogue of human lactoferrin. Methods: Kinetics of growth and CFU titer of bifidobacterial culture in the presence of a biotechnological analogue of human lactoferrin (0,05–5 mg /ml) was determined.Results: It has been shown that different concentrations of the protein can have both a stimulating (for B. bifidum and B. infantis) and inhibitory (for B. longum) effect on the growth of bifidobacteria, which is due to the affinity of lactoferrin binding to them. It seems important to further study the stimulating effect of this protein on the growth of lactobacilli in the intestine of the child.Conclusion:  Due to bifidogenic and high bactericidal action, lactoferrin can be effective in feeding newborns.Обоснование.   Новейшие исследования  показывают,  что  рост  и развитие  желудочно-кишечного  тракта  детей, вскармливаемых  материнским молоком,  происходит  интенсивнее,  чем у вскармливаемых  молочными смесями, поскольку содержащийся в нем лактоферрин человека является фактором, стимулирующим клеточный рост. Именно поэтому возможность  использования экзогенного лактоферрина  будет иметь большую значимость в питании грудных детей.Цель  исследования — изучить бифидогенные  свойства биотехнологического аналога  лактоферрина человека.Методы. Определялась кинетика роста и КОЕ-титр культивирования бифидобактерий в присутствии биотехнологического  аналога лактоферрина человека.Результаты. Показано, что различные концентрации данного белка (0,05–5 мг/мл) могут оказывать как стимулирующее (для Bifidobacterium bifidum и Bifidobacterium infantis), так и ингибирующее (для Bifidobacterium longum) действие в отношении роста бифидобактерий,  что обусловлено аффинностью  связывания с ними лактоферрина. Представляется  важным дальнейшее изучение стимулирующего эффекта  этого белка на рост лактобацилл в кишечнике ребенка.Заключение. Благодаря  бифидогенному и выраженному бактерицидному действию лактоферрин может быть использован в лечебном питании новорожденных