Studying Supply Chain and Tourism Cluster Development

Supply chain and tourism cluster are the two important ways to enhance the competitiveness of regions or industries. By discussing the differences and links between the two, this paper concludes that tourism cluster and supply chain carry features of compatibility and symbiosis. The importance of this research paper is determined by the fact that a significant number of tourism clusters established in the territory of the Russian Federation are not always successful as catalysts for the tourism sector development. This study aims to determine methods for conducting research on specialization as a factor in tourism cluster development, taking into consideration the existing research approaches and findings in this area. The systemic, structural, functional and analysis methods were used, along with a general theoretic approach to researching tourism cluster development. The selected methods made it possible to identify approaches to forming the relevant research methodologies. Based on the presented approaches, it is possible to choose research methods and the coherence of research activities in this area, with a view to identify key development indicators for tourism development and various tourism-related processes taking place within the territory of a tourism cluster. The research findings will provide necessary tools and mechanisms for developing tourism clusters based on the diversification of their specialization. The findings of the study are directed at increasing the effectiveness of decisions taken to assess and forecast tourism cluster development and can also be of use to all those interested in this field. The materials of the present study can be used by regional administrations to monitor and make effective management decisions aimed at improving regional tourism development programs. Experts and scholars could also benefit from the findings of this study to analyze and develop projections and to promote topic-related methodological approaches. The article will be of practical value for the specialists in tourism planning, tourism administration and tourism enterprise managers

Transformation of the concept of "power" as a basic cultural value in the media discourse of modern times in metagraphic representation

The relevance is due to the fact that new geopolitical realities cause the transformation of basic concepts, which include the concept of "power", which has an internal conflict of content, where there is power as self-possession and power as the management of others. At the same time, the concept of "power" itself is built in various linguistic and philosophical coordinate systems. The research is based on an ethnic-psycholinguistic scientific paradigm, within which the concept of "power" is analyzed from the point of view of structure and semantics as a separate element of linguistic consciousness, actively represented in the speech activity of representatives of various linguistic cultures (Kazakh, Russian, Anglo-American, Chinese). The appeal to this concept is predetermined by the acuteness of the experience of the problem of power itself as a constantly evolving socio-political institution. The aim of the study is to model the concept of "power" in the modern linguistic consciousness of modern times with the establishment of its structural and content specificity. The complexity of the claimed topic is predetermined by the initial ambiguity of power as a social phenomenon, which includes a binary of oppositions: "I" individual and "We" collective, the ability to control oneself and the ability to control others, legitimate power and illegitimate power, ethical power due to respect and authority and the power of oppression and pressure due to fear. The metagraph of the complex socio-political basic value "power" perfectly illustrates the representation of this complex concept, demonstrating qualitative transformations in the structure of the meaning of this concept at different levels of lexico-semantic, neurasthenic and symbolic-semiological hierarchy

Localized DNA Demethylation at Recombination Intermediates during Immunoglobulin Heavy Chain Gene Assembly

Multiple epigenetic marks have been proposed to contribute to the regulation of antigen receptor gene assembly via V(D)J recombination. Here we provide a comprehensive view of DNA methylation at the immunoglobulin heavy chain (IgH) gene locus prior to and during V(D)J recombination. DNA methylation did not correlate with the histone modification state on unrearranged alleles, indicating that these epigenetic marks were regulated independently. Instead, pockets of tissue-specific demethylation were restricted to DNase I hypersensitive sites within this locus. Though unrearranged diversity (DH) and joining (JH) gene segments were methylated, DJH junctions created after the first recombination step were largely demethylated in pro-, pre-, and mature B cells. Junctional demethylation was highly localized, B-lineage-specific, and required an intact tissue-specific enhancer, Eμ. We propose that demethylation occurs after the first recombination step and may mark the junction for secondary recombination

Yang-Mills instantons and dyons on homogeneous G_2-manifolds

We consider Lie G-valued Yang-Mills fields on the space R x G/H, where G/H is a compact nearly K"ahler six-dimensional homogeneous space, and the manifold R x G/H carries a G_2-structure. After imposing a general G-invariance condition, Yang-Mills theory with torsion on R x G/H is reduced to Newtonian mechanics of a particle moving in R^6, R^4 or R^2 under the influence of an inverted double-well-type potential for the cases G/H = SU(3)/U(1)xU(1), Sp(2)/Sp(1)xU(1) or G_2/SU(3), respectively. We analyze all critical points and present analytical and numerical kink- and bounce-type solutions, which yield G-invariant instanton configurations on those cosets. Periodic solutions on S^1 x G/H and dyons on iR x G/H are also given.Comment: 1+26 pages, 14 figures, 6 miniplot

CHEMICAL PROPERTIES AND APPLICATIONS OF NITROPYRIDINES

Background. Pyridines are one of the most common heterocycles, the derivatives of which are widely used in pharmaceuticals, agrochemistry, and also in the production of new materials. Therefore, a comprehensive study of the chemical behavior of various pyridine derivatives will continue to be an urgent task of organic chemistry. This literature review is devoted to the systematization and analysis of the chemical properties of pyridine nitro derivatives, starting from the first half of the 20th century and up to the present. The paper considers both reactions proceeding through the nitro group (reduction under the action of various chemical agents, substitution, condensation) and reactions through the pyridine cycle. The main areas of application of nitropyridines are also shown. Purpose. Generalize and systematize the main types of reactions characteristic of nitropyridines, show the features of their chemical properties associated with the transformation of the nitro group, its effect on the mobility of substituents in the pyridine ring, as well as on the activity of the heterocycle as a whole. Materials and methods. To achieve the goal of the study, a review of the scientific literature was made on the main types of chemical reactions characteristic of pyridine nitro derivatives and the most significant areas of their application. Results. This paper summarizes the results of experimental studies on the chemical properties and application of nitropyridines from the beginning of the last century to the present. Conclusion. Thus, as a result of the analysis of sources devoted to the chemical properties and application of nitropyridines, a brief literature review was compiled, including the main types of reactions characteristic of the compounds under study, and their main areas of application were identified

Cortisol and DHEAS Related to Metabolic Syndrome in Patients with Schizophrenia

Background: Both dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEAS) and cortisol are secreted by the adrenal glands and may modulate metabolic syndrome (MetS), which often affects the health of patients with schizophrenia. The relationship between the serum levels of these hormones and MetS has not been established. Purpose: In this pilot study, we investigated the serum levels in schizophrenia patients with and without MetS and compared them with those in healthy volunteers. Patients and Methods: After obtaining informed consent, 110 patients with acute paranoid schizophrenia were recruited directly after admission to the Mental Health Research Institute. The control group consisted of 51 persons reported on questioning to be mentally and somatically healthy. Blood samples to prepare serum were drawn after an 8-h overnight fast during one of the first days of admission. Serum cortisol and DHEAS concentrations were quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: A total of 42 patients had MetS and 68 patients were without MetS. The cortisol blood level was significantly (p = 0.012) higher in schizophrenia patients without MetS in comparison to healthy controls, while patients with schizophrenia and a MetS have significantly (p = 0.014) lower DHEAS levels than healthy volunteers. These differences could, however, exclusively be attributed to female participants. Analysis of covariance adjusted for gender and age demon-strated a significant relationship between age and DHEAS levels (F = 9.512, р =0.003). Conclusion: Lower DHEAS serum levels in relationship to MetS become evident in women, but not in men, and have age differences as a confounding factor

Biliary Microbiota, Gallstone Disease and Infection with Opisthorchis felineus.

BACKGROUND: There is increasing interest in the microbiome of the hepatobiliary system. This study investigated the influence of infection with the fish-borne liver fluke, Opisthorchis felineus on the biliary microbiome of residents of the Tomsk region of western Siberia. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Samples of bile were provided by 56 study participants, half of who were infected with O. felineus, and all of who were diagnosed with gallstone disease. The microbiota of the bile was investigated using high throughput, Illumina-based sequencing targeting the prokaryotic 16S rRNA gene. About 2,797, discrete phylotypes of prokaryotes were detected. At the level of phylum, bile from participants with opisthorchiasis showed greater numbers of Synergistetes, Spirochaetes, Planctomycetes, TM7 and Verrucomicrobia. Numbers of \u3e 20 phylotypes differed in bile of the O. felineus-infected compared to non-infected participants, including presence of species of the genera Mycoplana, Cellulosimicrobium, Microlunatus and Phycicoccus, and the Archaeans genus, Halogeometricum, and increased numbers of Selenomonas, Bacteroides, Rothia, Leptotrichia, Lactobacillus, Treponema and Klebsiella. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Overall, infection with the liver fluke O. felineus modified the biliary microbiome, increasing abundance of bacterial and archaeal phylotypes

Adipocytokines and Metabolic Syndrome in Patients with Schizophrenia

The adipokines leptin, adiponectin, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), and interleukin 6 (IL-6) might be associated with metabolic syndrome (MetS) in patients with schizophrenia. In the present study, we attempted to confirm the results of previous reports and assessed their MetS-related correlation with body fat composition and biochemical parameters. We measured in 46 patients with schizophrenia and MetS serum levels of adiponectin insulin, leptin, TNF-alpha and IL-6 and compared these levels to those of patients with schizophrenia without MetS. The MetS patients had significantly increased leptin levels and leptin/adiponectin ratios, as well as decreased adiponectin levels. Leptin levels correlated with several metabolic parameters, both in patients with and without MetS, including body fat percentage, total fat fold, and body mass index (BMI). Patients without abnormal MetS components had lower levels of leptin and leptin/adiponectin ratios compared with patients who had one or two MetS components. Leptin/adiponectin ratios were higher in patients who had four rather than three MetS components. Multiple regression analysis revealed multiple associations for leptin but only one for adiponectin, TNF-alpha, and IL-6. Our results support an important pathophysiological role for leptin more than adiponectin in patients with schizophrenia with MetS

Changes in Body Fat and Related Biochemical Parameters Associated With Atypical Antipsychotic Drug Treatment in Schizophrenia Patients With or Without Metabolic Syndrome

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a common problem in schizophrenia patients and associated with increased mortality due to cardiovascular disease. Second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs) play an important role in facilitating MetS. Objective: The study aimed to assess weight changes and alterations of indicators of body fat composition and lipid-glucose metabolism induced by reinitiating atypical antipsychotics in patients with schizophrenia when with or without MetS. Methods: After giving informed consent, newly admitted patients with a clinical diagnosis of schizophrenia (ICD-10: F20) and an age between 18 and 55 years were included. MetS was diagnosed according to International Diabetes Federation (IDF) criteria. At entry and after 6 weeks of treatment, anthropometry and biochemical analysis were carried out. Total and visceral fats were measured with the use of non-invasive bioimpedance analysis and subcutaneous fat with calculation of total adipose tissue with the use of caliperometry. Based on biochemical assessments low density (LDL) and very low-density lipoproteins (VLDL), atherogenic index and Homeostatic Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (IR-HOMA) were calculated. Statistical analysis was conducted using Wilcoxon signed-rank test, Mann-Whitney U-test, and chi-squared test. Differences were considered statistically significant at p < 0.05. Results: A total of 114 patients (59M/55F) with schizophrenia were examined; they were divided into two groups with (n = 43; 37.7%) and without (n = 71; 62.3%) MetS. After a 6-week SGA treatment, only the total fat fold, waist circumference, triglyceride level, and atherogenic index underwent statistically significant changes in patients with MetS. In those without MetS, statistically significant changes across all fat indicators were noted. Also, a significant increase in blood glucose and HOMA-IR parameters, triglyceride, and VLDL levels and atherogenic index was observed in this group. Discussion: The study illustrates the benefits of estimating both anthropometric and biochemical parameters shortly after (re)installing treatment of schizophrenia in order to minimize the risk of MetS development

Cytokine Level Changes in Schizophrenia Patients with and without Metabolic Syndrome Treated with Atypical Antipsychotics

The present study aims at comparing the change in cytokine levels in schizophrenia patients treated with atypical antipsychotics, with or without metabolic syndrome (MetS). The study included 101 patients with schizophrenia, 38 with and 63 without MetS, who received risperidone, quetiapine, olanzapine or aripiprazole for six weeks. We analyzed the concentration of 21 cytokines in the serum patients. The treatment with atypical antipsychotics changed some proinflammatory cytokine levels. It led to increased IFN-alpha 2 (p = 0.010), IL-1 alpha (p = 0.024) and IL-7 (p = 0.017) levels in patients with MetS, whereas the same treatment led to decreased levels of IFN-gamma (p = 0.011), IL-1 beta (p = 0.035), IL-12p40 (p = 0.011), IL-17A (p = 0.031), IL-6 (p = 0.043) and TNF-alpha (p = 0.012) in individuals without MetS. Our results demonstrated the effects of atypical antipsychotics on the immune-inflammatory parameters, depending on the metabolic disturbances in schizophrenia patients