Liva 1 – The First Medieval Sámi Site with Rectangular Hearths in Murmansk Oblast (Russia)

In 2017–2018, the Kola Archaeological Expedition of the Institute of the History of Material Culture (IHMC) RAS carried out excavations at the medieval site of Liva 1 (a hearth-row site)in the Kovdor District of Murmansk Oblast. Sites of this type are fairly well studied in the western part of Sapmi – the area inhabited by the Sámi – but until now they have not beenknown in Russia. The site was found by local residents in 2010. Some of the structures there were destroyed or damaged when searching for artefacts with a metal detector. A total ofnine archaeological structures have been discovered (7 rectangular stone hearths, 1 mound, 1 large pit). Four hearths were excavated. They are of rectangular shape, varying in size from 2.0 x 1.15 to 2.5 x 1.7 metres. The fireplaces are lined with large stone blocks in one course, and the central part is filled with small stones in 2–3 layers. Animal bones, occasionallyforming concentrations, were found near the hearths. Throughout the area of the settlement, numerous iron objects (tools or their fragments) and bronzes were collected includingornaments made in manufacturing centres of Old Rus’, Scandinavia and the Baltic countries. The settlement is dated with radiocarbon analysis and the typology of the ornaments to the11th – 14th centuries

Early Metal Age Dwellings in Eastern Lapland: Investigations of the Kola Archaeological Expedition (IHMC) in 2004–2014

After 10 years of field investigation by the Kola Archaeological Expedition (Institute for the History of Material Culture, Russian Academy of Sciences; IHMC RAS) it is now evident that a single archaeological culture (phase) prevailed on the Arctic coast from Tromsø (Norway) to Yokanga (Russia) during the Younger Stone Age and Early Metal Period. A close similarity between the assemblages of this culture is recognised in stone and bone artefacts, as well in dwelling constructions. This paper presents the results of the fieldwork in 2004–2014 and discusses the dwellings excavated at the Zavalishina 5 site

Kharlovka 1-6 on the Kola Peninsula: One of the Oldest Gressbakken House Sites in Northern Fennoscandia

The remains of a semi-subterranean house were discovered at the Kharlovka 1-6 site on the Barents Sea coast of the Kola Peninsula, Russia. Despite suffering from erosion, features such as a double stone-boarded hearth and chimney pipe together with diagnostic finds allow us to attribute the house to the so-called Gressbakken type. The artefact assemblage includes stone tools, bone and antler tools and adornments, asbestos-tempered pottery, an amber pendant and a copper tubular bead. Numerous faunal remains are primarily represented by marine species of mammals and birds. Radiocarbon dates on charcoal point to the period 2600–2300 calBC, which is also supported by the artefact types, elevation of the cultural layer and construction type of the house. When accounting for the early dates of Kharlovka 1-6 and several other dwellings, it can be assumed that the Gressbakken house tradition emerged around 2600–2300 calBC. This date is somewhat earlier than previously thought

Kola Oleneostrovskiy Grave Field: A Unique Burial Site in the European Arctic

The Kola Oleneostrovskiy grave field (KOG) is the main source of information for the physical and cultural anthropology of the Early Metal Period population of the Kola Peninsula and the whole northern Fennoscandia.1 Excavations were conducted here in 1925, 1928, 1947–1948, and 2001–2004 by A. Shmidt, N. Gurina, and V. Shumkin. Altogether 32 burials containing the remains of 43 individuals were investigated. During the excavations, also remains of wooden grave constructions were found. The site is exceptionally rich in burial goods, including numerous bone, antler, stone, ceramic, and bronze items. Grave goods differ slightly between male and female burials. There is some evidence of long-distance contacts between the local population and southern and western Scandinavia, most notably in the chemical composition of bronze items and in some types of bone tools. Anthropological data, including the analysis of paleoDNA, suggests that people from geographically more eastern areas took part in the genesis of the ancient population of the northern Kola Peninsula. These people belonged to a specific physical type associated with modern Siberian anthropological groups

Distinguishing between biological and technical replicates in hypertension research on isolated arteries

Perivascular adipose tissue (PVAT) is implicated in the pathophysiology of cardiovascular disease, especially in obese individuals in which the quantity of renal and visceral PVAT is markedly increased. The control of arterial tone by PVAT has emerged as a relatively new field of experimental hypertension research. The discovery of this prototype of vasoregulation has been mostly inferred from data obtained using wire myography. Currently, there is a major discussion on distinguishing between biological vs. technical replicates in biomedical studies, which resulted in numerous guidelines being published on planning studies and publishing data by societies, journals, and associations. Experimental study designs are determined depending on how the experimentator distinguishes between biological vs. technical replicates. These definitions determine the ultimate standards required for making submissions to certain journals. In this article, we examine possible outcomes of different experimental study designs on PVAT control of arterial tone using isolated arteries. Based on experimental data, we determine the sample size and power of statistical analyses for such experiments. We discuss whether n-values should correspond to the number of arterial rings and analyze the resulting effects if those numbers are averaged to provide a single N-value per animal, or whether the hierarchical statistical method represents an alternative for analyzing such kind of data. Our analyses show that that the data (logEC50) from (+) PVAT to (–) PVAT arteries are clustered. Intraclass correlation (ICC) was 31.4%. Moreover, it appeared that the hierarchical approach was better than regular statistical tests as the analyses revealed by a better goodness of fit (v2-2LL test). Based on our results, we propose to use at least three independent arterial rings from each from three animals or at least seven arterial rings from each from two animals for each group, i.e., (+) PVAT vs. (–) PVAT. Finally, we discuss a clinical situation where distinguishing between biological vs. technical replicates can lead to absurd situations in clinical decision makings. We conclude that discrimination between biological vs. technical replicates is helpful in experimental studies but is difficult to implement in everyday’s clinical practice

HIV-1 genotyping tropism profile in an HIV-positive population throughout the Russian Federation

<p>Most HIV-1 tropism studies have involved non-A subtypes. Our aim was to study the prevalence of R5- and non-R5-tropic HIV-1 variants and the tropism occurrence relative to the CD4 counts, treatment experiences, transmission routes and other features of infection in Russia, where subtype A is presumably predominant. In this multicenter, single-step, cross-sectional, epidemiologic study, 943 HIV-1-infected patients were enrolled at 12 AIDS centers throughout Russia. Viral tropism was determined using a genotype method-based kit. The V3 loop sequences were analyzed using the geno2pheno resource. The tropism was successfully predicted for 823 (87.3%) patients. Frequencies of R5-tropic and non-R5-tropic viruses in successfully analyzed samples were 70.2% (578) and 29.8% (245), respectively. Co-receptor usage correlated significantly only with the treatment experiences (<i>p</i> = 0.018) and CD4 counts (<i>p</i> = 0.004). But there was no dependence of R5/non-R5 co-receptor usage frequencies on presence/absence of a therapy change (<i>p</i> = 0.664) or HIV infection duration (<i>p</i> = 0.458). According to the env sequences, 457 (83.6%) of the samples in study were subtype A and 70 (12.8%) were subtype B. This indicates a stabilizing of immune system and thus little emergence of X4 viruses. We suggest that CCR5-antagonists could be used in both naïve and experienced patients in Russia after determination of HIV tropism.</p