Geographical and temporal distribution of SARS-CoV-2 clades in the WHO European Region, January to June 2020

We show the distribution of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) genetic clades over time and between countries and outline potential genomic surveillance objectives. We applied three genomic nomenclature systems to all sequence data from the World Health Organization European Region available until 10 July 2020. We highlight the importance of real-time sequencing and data dissemination in a pandemic situation, compare the nomenclatures and lay a foundation for future European genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2

Designing lightspace in contemporary architecture

Daylight has a significant impact on the perception of the building space. The term “lightspace” is introduced to determine phenomena of sensorial perception of architectural object’s indoor space and four different components of lightspace, such as functional, architectural and artistic, light-technical and visual, are considered. Further, three groups of architectural and artistic design techniques were estimated: based on space modeling (organisation of lightspaces in the building structure, organization of multi-light spaces, plasticity organization of lightspace, methods of natural light penetration through the shell of the building), light modeling (the distribution of light in space and its spectral composition), and time modeling (light dynamic, transformation of the building parts, movement of people in the place). Attention is drawn to relationship between diverse lightspace design techniques and architectural practice

Interaction between space and color: a comparative analysis of spatial organization concepts in the architecture of Mies van der Rohe and in the paintings of Kazimir Malevich

The article reviews two concepts of space organization - three-dimensional in the architecture of Mies van der Rohe and two-dimensional in the paintings of Kazimir Malevich. Common spatial features were identified between the two concepts, which formed the basis of a competition project on interaction between space and color: Mies van der Rohe: Color Discourse. The key characteristics of architecture and painting thus combined resulted in a spatial experiment on interaction between color and space with reference to the synthesis of K. Malevich’s suprematism and Mies van der Rohe’s architecture. This experimental project became not only a response to utilitarian demands, i.e. provision for emergency evacuation requirements, functional filling, vital needs, etc., but also a presentation of a way to form a ‘colorspace’ as a specific type of substance and to explore some aspects of its formation. The project illustrates the process of their interaction with each other and the creation of new spatial properties and perceptions of the architectural object’s internal space

Detection of the Omicron SARS-CoV-2 Lineage and Its BA.1 Variant with Multiplex RT-qPCR

Whole genome sequencing (WGS) is considered the best instrument to track both virus evolution and the spread of new, emerging variants. However, WGS still does not allow the analysis of as many samples as qPCR does. Epidemiological and clinical research needs to develop advanced qPCR methods to identify emerging variants of SARS-CoV-2 while collecting data on their spreading in a faster and cheaper way, which is critical for introducing public health measures. This study aimed at designing a one-step RT-qPCR assay for multiplex detection of the Omicron lineage and providing additional data on its subvariants in clinical samples. The RT-qPCR assay demonstrated high sensitivity and specificity on multiple SARS-CoV-2 variants and was cross-validated by WGS

Respiratory Syncytial Virus G Protein Sequence Variability among Isolates from St. Petersburg, Russia, during the 2013–2014 Epidemic Season

Human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the most common cause of upper and lower respiratory tract infections in infants and young children. It is actively evolving under environmental and herd immunity influences. This work presents, for the first time, sequence variability analysis of RSV G gene and G protein using St. Petersburg (Russia) isolates. Viruses were isolated in a cell culture from the clinical samples of 61 children hospitalized (January–April 2014) with laboratory-confirmed RSV infection. Real-time RT-PCR data showed that 56 isolates (91.8%) belonged to RSV-A and 5 isolates (8.2%) belonged to RSV-B. The G genes were sequenced for 27 RSV-A isolates and all of them belonged to genotype ON1/GA2. Of these RSV-A, 77.8% belonged to the ON1(1.1) genetic sub-cluster, and 14.8% belonged to the ON1(1.2) sub-cluster. The ON1(1.3) sub-cluster constituted a minor group (3.7%). Many single-amino acid substitutions were identified in the G proteins of St. Petersburg isolates, compared with the Canadian ON1/GA2 reference virus (ON67-1210A). Most of the amino acid replacements were found in immunodominant B- and T-cell antigenic determinants of G protein. These may affect the antigenic characteristics of RSV and influence the host antiviral immune response to currently circulating viruses

Study of Magnetic Properties of Fe_100-xNi_x Nanostructures Using the Mössbauer Spectroscopy Method

Hyperfine interactions of 57Fe nuclei in Fe100-xNix nanostructures synthesized in polymer ion-track membranes were studied by Mössbauer spectroscopy. The main part of obtained nanostructures was Fe100-xNix nanotubes with bcc structure for 0 ≤ x ≤ 40, and with fcc structure for 50 ≤ x ≤ 90. The length, outside diameter and wall thickness of nanotubes were 12 μm, 400 ± 10 nm and 120 ± 5 nm respectively. For the studied nanotubes a magnetic texture is observedalong their axis. The average value of the angle between the direction of the Fe atom magnetic moment and the nanotubes axis decreases with increasing of Ni concentration for nanotubes with bcc structure from ~50° to ~40°, and with fcc structure from ~55° to ~46°. The concentration dependences of the hyperfine parameters of nanotubes Mössbauer spectra are qualitatively consistent with the data for bulk polycrystalline samples. With Ni concentration increasing the average value of the hyperfine magnetic field increases from ~328 kOe to ~335 kOe for the bcc structure and drops to ~303 kOe in the transition to the fcc structure and then decreases to ~290 kOe at x = 90. Replacing the Fe atom with the Ni atom in the nearest environment of Fe atom within nanotubes with bcc structure lead to an increase in the hyperfine magnetic field by “6−9 kOe”, and in tubes with fcc structure—to a decrease in the hyperfine magnetic field by “11−16 kOe”. The changes of the quadrupole shift and hyperfine magnetic field are linearly correlated with the coefficient −(15 ± 5)·10−4 mm/s/kOe

ONC201-Induced Mitochondrial Dysfunction, Senescence-like Phenotype, and Sensitization of Cultured BT474 Human Breast Cancer Cells to TRAIL

ONC201, the anticancer drug, targets and activates mitochondrial ATP-dependent caseinolytic peptidase P (ClpP), a serine protease located in the mitochondrial matrix. Given the promise of ONC201 in cancer treatment, we evaluated its effects on the breast ductal carcinoma cell line (BT474). We showed that the transient single-dose treatment of BT474 cells by 10 µM ONC201 for a period of less than 48 h induced a reversible growth arrest and a transient activation of an integrated stress response indicated by an increased expression of CHOP, ATF4, and GDF-15, and a reduced number of mtDNA nucleoids. A prolonged exposure to the drug (>48 h), however, initiated an irreversible loss of mtDNA, persistent activation of integrated stress response proteins, as well as cell cycle arrest, inhibition of proliferation, and suppression of the intrinsic apoptosis pathway. Since Natural Killer (NK) cells are quickly gaining momentum in cellular anti-cancer therapies, we evaluated the effect of ONC201 on the activity of the peripheral blood derived NK cells. We showed that following the ONC 201 exposure BT474 cells demonstrated enhanced sensitivity toward human NK cells that mediated killing. Together our data revealed that the effects of a single dose of ONC201 are dependent on the duration of exposure, specifically, while short-term exposure led to reversible changes; long-term exposure resulted in irreversible transformation of cells associated with the senescent phenotype. Our data further demonstrated that when used in combination with NK cells, ONC201 created a synergistic anti-cancer effect, thus suggesting its possible benefit in NK-cell based cellular immunotherapies for cancer treatment

Study of Phase Transformations and Hyperfine Interactions in Fe3O4 and Fe3O4@Au Nanoparticles

The paper presents the results of a study of iron oxide nanoparticles obtained by chemical coprecipitation, coated (Fe3O4@Au) and not coated (Fe3O4) with gold, which were subjected to thermal annealing. To characterize the nanoparticles under study, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and Mössbauer spectroscopy on 57Fe nuclei were used, the combination of which made it possible to establish a sequence of phase transformations, changes in morphological and structural characteristics, as well as parameters of hyperfine interactions. During the studies, it was found that thermal annealing of nanoparticles leads to phase transformation processes in the following sequence: nonstoichiometric magnetite (Fe3−γO4) → maghemite (γ-Fe2O3) → hematite (α-Fe2O3), followed by structural ordering and coarsening of nanoparticles. It is shown that nanoparticles of nonstoichiometric magnetite with and without gold coating are in the superparamagnetic state with a slow relaxation rate. The magnetic anisotropy energy of nonstoichiometric magnetite is determined as a function of the annealing temperature. An estimate was made of the average size of the region of magnetic ordering of Fe atoms in nonstoichiometric magnetite, which is in good agreement with the data on the average sizes of nanoparticles determined by scanning electron microscopy

Resurgence of Influenza Circulation in the Russian Federation during the Delta and Omicron COVID-19 Era

Influenza circulation was substantially reduced after March 2020 in the European region and globally due to the wide introduction of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) against COVID-19. The virus, however, has been actively circulating in natural reservoirs. In summer 2021, NPIs were loosened in Russia, and influenza activity resumed shortly thereafter. Here, we summarize the epidemiological and virological data on the influenza epidemic in Russia in 2021–2022 obtained by the two National Influenza Centers. We demonstrate that the commonly used baseline for acute respiratory infection (ARI) is no longer sufficiently sensitive and BL for ILI incidence was more specific for early recognition of the epidemic. We also present the results of PCR detection of influenza, SARS-CoV-2 and other respiratory viruses as well as antigenic and genetic analysis of influenza viruses. Influenza A(H3N2) prevailed this season with influenza B being detected at low levels at the end of the epidemic. The majority of A(H3N2) viruses were antigenically and genetically homogenous and belonged to the clade 3C.2a1b.2a.2 of the vaccine strain A/Darwin/9/2021 for the season 2022–2023. All influenza B viruses belonged to the Victoria lineage and were similar to the influenza B/Austria/1359417/2021 virus. No influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 and influenza B/Yamagata lineage was isolated last season

Study of the Applicability of Magnetic Iron-Containing Nanoparticles in Hyperthermia and Determination of Their Resistance to Degradation Processes

The article presents the results of evaluating the applicability of various types of iron-containing nanoparticles in magnetic hyperthermia, as well as determining the degradation resistance of nanoparticles. The objects of study were iron-containing nanoparticles obtained by chemical precipitation and subsequent modification with gold, gadolinium, and neodymium. The main methods for studying the properties of the synthesized nanoparticles were transmission electron microscopy, X-ray phase analysis, and Mössbauer spectroscopy. Evaluation of the efficiency of the use of the synthesized nanoparticles in magnetic hyperthermia showed that Fe3O4@GdFeO3 nanoparticles, for which the specific absorption rate was more than 120 W/g, have the highest efficiency. An assessment of the resistance of the synthesized nanoparticles to corrosion in water at different temperatures showed that Fe2O3@NdFeO3 and Fe3O4@GdFeO3 nanoparticles have the highest resistance to degradation. It has been established that in the case of the initial Fe3O4 nanoparticles, the degradation processes are accompanied by partial destruction of the particles, followed by amorphization and destruction, while for Fe2O3@NdFeO3 and Fe3O4@GdFeO3 nanoparticles, the degradation processes proceed much more slowly, due to the presence of interfacial boundaries, which slow down the corrosion processes. The obtained results of corrosion tests in aqueous media make it possible to predict the area and time frame of applicability of iron-containing nanoparticles when using them in the biomedical direction, as well as to determine storage conditions