Светское государство и гражданское общество: поиск точек соприкосновения

This article is devoted to the study of such complex phenomena as civil society and the secular state and their subsequent influence on each other. The study takes a close look at religious associations, which constitute a structural element of civil society. Freedom of action granted by the state within the framework of secularity allows them to play the role of a link between the individual, the state, and society and coordinates common and private interests, and thus contributes to strengthening relations between these entities. Thus, secularity acts as a fundamental legal value. Taking into consideration the essential features of the secular state, we trace peculiarities of the relationship of religious associations to authorities at the present stage. It is proved that their active citizenship helps the state solve many issues related to meeting diverse needs of the individual. At the same time, the study focuses on the imperfection of Russian legislation governing various aspects of secularity, specifically on the vagueness and inaccuracy of some formulations which lead to a clash of opinions and interests of people with different worldviews and groundless accusations of authorities of clerical tendencies. At the same time, clericalization is a negative factor destabilizing civil society, hindering its normal development. We express an opinion on the admissibility and even expediency of statechurch interaction, which, with strict legislative regulation, cannot be identified with the attempts to clericalize power and society. The study also defines the freedom of religion limits (freedom of conscience) in the formation of a secular state and civil societyСтатья посвящена изучению таких сложных феноменов, как гражданское общество и светское государство, их влиянию друг на друга. Важное место отводится религиозным объединениям, которые являются структурным элементом гражданского общества. Свобода действий, предоставленная государством в рамках светскости, позволяет им играть роль связующего звена между личностью, государством и обществом, а также согласовывать общие и частные интересы, а значит, способствовать укреплению связей между названными субъектами. Таким образом, светскость выступает в качестве одной из фундаментальных правовых ценностей. На основе анализа существенных признаков светского государства прослежены особенности взаимоотношений религиозных объединений с властью на современном этапе. Доказывается, что их активная гражданская позиция помогает государству решать многие вопросы, касающиеся удовлетворения разнообразных потребностей личности. Вместе с тем сделан акцент на несовершенство российского законодательства, регламентирующего различные аспекты светскости, на размытость и неточность некоторых формулировок, что приводит к столкновению мнений и интересов людей, имеющих разные мировоззренческие установки, к беспочвенным обвинениям власти в наличии клерикальных тенденций. При этом клерикализация рассматривается как негативный фактор, дестабилизирующий гражданское общество, мешающий его нормальному развитию. Обосновываются допустимости и даже целесообразности государственно-церковного взаимодействия, которое при строгой законодательной регламентации нельзя отождествлять с попытками клерикализации власти и общества. Выявлены пределы свободы религии (свободы совести) в условиях формирования светского государства и гражданского обществ

The political role of intellectuals

The article points out that the role of intellectuals in society and its relationship with the government amid the unfolding global financial crisis affected all spheres of social life. The authors proceed from the assumption that a change in the very nature of society, the increasing complexity and accelerating social dynamics, involves changing social community and "intelligentsia" in terms of structural and functional features. It is the rate of flow of social processes in the modern and continuously establishing society has led the authors to the treatment allocation of functional features, which constitute the social community of intellectuals. We believe that intelligentsia carries two major functions in society: stabilization of its social system and the function of its critical analysis. These features obviously have a different direction of its vector, hence, we base our reasoning on the ideas of Gramsci and distinguish its two types: conventional and organic

Study of the Effect of Squalene Epoxidase Activity on Squalene Biosynthesis by Yeast Saccharomyces Cerevisiae VGSh-2

The researchers of this study investigated the biosynthesis of squalene by the yeast S. cerevisiae VGSH-2 through the activity of squalene epoxidase, which is a key enzyme in the conversion of squalene to ergosterol. It has been established that under aerobic conditions the antimycotic drug terbinafine promotes the switching of ergosterol formation to squalene synthesis. This switch occurs through specific inhibition of the squalene epoxidase of the yeast S. cerevisiae VGSH-2, thus increasing the biosynthetic ability of the yeast towards squalene. According to the results of this study, the optimal concentration of terbinofine in the nutrient medium was 0.3 μmol / cm3 . This concentration led to a 5-fold decrease in squalene epoxidase activity and a 7-8 times increase in squalene synthesis. The results obtained can be used to develop a competitive technology for the industrial production of squalene by microbial synthesis. Keywords: squalene, yeast, biosynthesis, inhibition of activity, terbinafine, squalene epoxidase, Saccharomices cerevisiae VGSH-

Multiplex Lithographic SERS Aptasensor for Detection of Several Respiratory Viruses in One Pot

Rapid and reliable techniques for virus identification are required in light of recurring epidemics and pandemics throughout the world. Several techniques have been distributed for testing the flow of patients. Polymerase chain reaction with reverse transcription is a reliable and sensitive, though not rapid, tool. The antibody-based strip is a rapid, though not reliable, and sensitive tool. A set of alternative tools is being developed to meet all the needs of the customer. Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) provides the possibility of single molecule detection taking several minutes. Here, a multiplex lithographic SERS aptasensor was developed aiming at the detection of several respiratory viruses in one pot within 17 min. The four labeled aptamers were anchored onto the metal surface of four SERS zones; the caught viruses affect the SERS signals of the labels, providing changes in the analytical signals. The sensor was able to decode mixes of SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus two), influenza A virus, respiratory syncytial virus, and adenovirus within a single experiment through a one-stage recognition process

A Half-Century History of Applications of Antisense Oligonucleotides in Medicine, Agriculture and Forestry: We Should Continue the Journey

Antisense oligonucleotides (ASO), short single-stranded polymers based on DNA or RNA chemistries and synthesized in vitro, regulate gene expression by binding in a sequence-specific manner to an RNA target. The functional activity and selectivity in the action of ASOs largely depends on the combination of nitrogenous bases in a target sequence. This simple and natural property of nucleic acids provides an attractive route by which scientists can create different ASO-based techniques. Over the last 50 years, planned and realized applications in the field of antisense and nucleic acid nanotechnologies have produced astonishing results and posed new challenges for further developments, exemplifying the essence of the post-genomic era. Today the majority of ASOs are chemically modified and/or incorporated within nanoparticles to enhance their stability and cellular uptake. This review critically analyzes some successful cases using the antisense approach in medicine to address severe diseases, such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy and spinal muscular atrophy, and suggests some prospective directions for future research. We also examine in detail the elaboration of unmodified insect-specific DNA insecticides and RNA preparations in the areas of agriculture and forestry, a relatively new branch of ASO that allows circumvention of the use of non-selective chemical insecticides. When considering the variety of successful ASO modifications with an efficient signal-to-noise ratio of action, coupled with the affordability of in vitro oligonucleotide synthesis and post-synthesis procedures, we predict that the next half-century will produce a fruitful yield of tools created from effective ASO-based end products

Fasting metabolism modulates the interleukin-12/interleukin-10 cytokine axis

<div><p>A crucial role of cell metabolism in immune cell differentiation and function has been recently established. Growing evidence indicates that metabolic processes impact both, innate and adaptive immunity. Since a down-stream integrator of metabolic alterations, mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), is responsible for controlling the balance between pro-inflammatory interleukin (IL)-12 and anti-inflammatory IL-10, we investigated the effect of upstream interference using metabolic modulators on the production of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Cytokine release and protein expression in human and murine myeloid cells was assessed after <i>toll-like</i> receptor (TLR)-activation and glucose-deprivation or co-treatment with 5′-adenosine monophosphate (AMP)-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activators. Additionally, the impact of metabolic interference was analysed in an <i>in-vivo</i> mouse model. Glucose-deprivation by 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) increased the production of IL-12p40 and IL-23p19 in monocytes, but dose-dependently inhibited the release of anti-inflammatory IL-10. Similar effects have been observed using pharmacological AMPK activation. Consistently, an inhibition of the tuberous sclerosis complex-mTOR pathway was observed. In line with our <i>in vitro</i> observations, glycolysis inhibition with 2-DG showed significantly reduced bacterial burden in a Th2-prone <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i> mouse infection model. In conclusion, we showed that fasting metabolism modulates the IL-12/IL-10 cytokine balance, establishing novel targets for metabolism-based immune-modulation.</p></div