Separation of ferromagnetic components by analyzing the hysteresis loops of remanent magnetization

© 2015, Pleiades Publishing, Ltd. The new method is suggested for separating ferromagnetic components in sediments through analyzing the coercivity spectra of the samples by the continuous wavelet transform with the Gaussian-based wavelet (MHAT). A total of 1056 samples of Lake Khuvsgul’s sediments (Mongolia) are studied. At least four groups of magnetic components are identified based on the analysis of their magnetization and remagnetization curves. Almost all samples are found to contain two components of bacterial origin which are represented by the assemblages of the interacting single-domain grains and differ by the grain compositions (magnetite and greigite). The applicability of the magnetic data for diagnosing magnetotactic bacteria in sediments and building paleoecological and paleoclimatic reconstructions is demonstrated

The collection of potato varieties as a reserve of source material for breeding for high yield, earliness, and resistance to diseases and pests

Background. Information is provided about the results obtained by screening the VIR collection of improved potato varieties for main commercial traits: earliness, high yield, high starch content, and resistance to late blight (Phytophthora infestans (Mont.) de Bary), viruses, and pests, such as cyst nematode (Globodera rostochiensis Woll. (Ro1)), and Colorado beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata Say).Materials and methods. Potato accessions representing domestic and foreign varieties from the VIR collection served as the material for this research. The screening was performed according to the techniques developed at the Potato Genetic Resources Department of VIR.Results and conclusion. Potato varieties with valuable commercial traits were identified as breeding sources promising for earliness: ‘Bashkirskiy’ (k-25338), ‘Charoit’ (k-25221), ‘Colleen’ (k-25224), ‘Lagun’ (k-25294), etc.; for high yield: ‘Ametist’ (k-25336), ‘Banba’ (k-25222), ‘Bastion’ (k-25198), ‘Nur-Alem’ (k-25253), ‘Senim’ (k-25306), etc.; for high starch content: ‘Charaўnik’ (k-25139), ‘Darnitsa’ (k-25179), ‘Lad’ (k-25180), ‘Maksimum’ (k-25136), etc.; for resistance to late blight: local variety (Georgia) (k-25298, k-25326), ‘Sunkar’ (k-25258), ‘Udovitskiy’ (k-25260), ‘Vektor’ (k-25200), ‘Zvezdochka’ (k-25209); for resistance to viruses: ‘Azart’ (k-25196), Gala (k-25270), ‘Nadezhda’ (k-25213), Utro (k-25219), ‘Volat’ (k-25263), etc. Varieties combining resistance to gold potato cyst nematode with other valuable commercial traits were selected. Varieties with relative resistance to Colorado potato beetle were isolated under favorable conditions for the pest’s development. As a result of the research, new source material was identified, with a potential to improve major commercial traits of potato: earliness, high yield, high starch content, resistance to late blight, viruses, and pests (cyst nematode and Colorado beetle)

Aluminum tolerance and micronutrient content in the grain of oat cultivars with different levels of breeding improvement from the VIR collection

Background. Soil toxicity of Al is associated with severe changes in plant root morphology that limit the uptake of water and mineral nutrients. Long-term exposure to Al results in deficiencies in some important nutrients, such as phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, potassium, and iron. Thus, the joint study of plant resistance to the effects of Al and the accumulation of micronutrients in the oat grain is relevant.Materials and methods. Thirty oat accessions of Russian and French origin from the VIR collection served as the research material. They were represented by cultivars with different levels of breeding improvement: landraces (early 1920s), cultivars developed by primitive breeding (1920–1930s), and modern improved cultivars.Results. Oat cultivars with different breeding improvement levels demonstrated significant differences in the content of micronutrients and aluminum tolerance. Among the studied accessions, landraces and modern improved cultivars showed a tendency towards medium or high Al tolerance, the group of primitive cultivars from Russia had the lowest Al tolerance, while primitive cultivars from France demonstrated the highest average resistance (0.5–1.9).Conclusion. The content of Fe and Zn was influenced by the geographic origin of genotypes. The concentrations of different micronutrients positively correlated with each other. Strong correlations were recorded between the contents of Zn and Fe (r = 0.81), and between Zn and Mg (r = 0.75). There was a positive correlation between the content of micronutrients and the resistance to crown rust (0.38 to 0.50). High content of the studied set of micronutrients was registered in such improved cultivars from France as the naked ‘Avoine Nue Renne’, ‘Chantilly’, ‘Negrita’ and ‘Noire de Michamps’, plus the Russian improved naked cultivar ‘Gavrosh’. Among them, ‘Chantilly’ was distinguished for its yield, and the naked ‘Gavrosh ‘for its high tolerance to aluminum

Possibilities of using branched-chain amino acids for the treatment and prevention of sarcopenia in elderly and old patients (literature review)

Due to the high prevalence of sarcopenia among elderly and old patients, early prevention and treatment of sarcopenia and its complications are relevant. Protein supplements can be used to maintain muscle strength and mass during aging. The possibility of using branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) in the treatment and prevention of sarcopenia in geriatric patients is of scientific interest. BCAAs promote the synthesis and inhibit the degradation of muscle tissue proteins, are involved in the regulation of tissue sensitivity to insulin, ammonia utilization, the tricarboxylic acid cycle, etc.Search strategy. The search for scientific articles for literature review was carried out in the PubMed and PubMed Central databases. The selection criterion was scientific articles published up to December 2022. We used the following search keywords: “branched-chain amino acids”, “BCAA”, “body composition”, “sarcopenia”, “aging”. The 2019 European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People 2 (EWGSOP2) Consensus was included in the list of articles.Conclusions. The possibility of using BCAAs in elderly and old patients for the prevention and treatment of sarcopenia is a relevant topic that continues to be actively studied. The effectiveness of BCAA supplementation in the diet is debatable as long as sufficient protein is consumed daily. On the other hand, BCAA supplementation may be justified in cases where it is not possible to consume enough high-quality protein in the diet. More research is needed on this topic

ORGANIZATION OF ANTI-EPIDEMIC MEASURES DURING THE ANTHRAX OUTBREAK IN THE YAMALO-NENETS AUTONOMOUS DISTRICT IN 2016

The organizational peculiarities of anti-epidemic measures during the anthrax outbreak in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District in 2016 are presented. Complex of these measures provided for anthrax patients active identification and hospitalization, preventive immunization and emergency antibiotic prophylaxis of risk groups, vaccination of reindeer, utilization of fallen animals. Disinfection, deratization and desinsection measures were performed. Native residents were evacuated from infection focus and sensitization campaign among the population was carried out. Organized were sanitary inspection stations and temporary accommodation points. Due to operational implementation of anti-epidemic measures in the interagency format the anthrax focus was localized within one incubation period

Ultrashort filaments of light in weakly-ionized, optically-transparent media

Modern laser sources nowadays deliver ultrashort light pulses reaching few cycles in duration, high energies beyond the Joule level and peak powers exceeding several terawatt (TW). When such pulses propagate through optically-transparent media, they first self-focus in space and grow in intensity, until they generate a tenuous plasma by photo-ionization. For free electron densities and beam intensities below their breakdown limits, these pulses evolve as self-guided objects, resulting from successive equilibria between the Kerr focusing process, the chromatic dispersion of the medium, and the defocusing action of the electron plasma. Discovered one decade ago, this self-channeling mechanism reveals a new physics, widely extending the frontiers of nonlinear optics. Implications include long-distance propagation of TW beams in the atmosphere, supercontinuum emission, pulse shortening as well as high-order harmonic generation. This review presents the landmarks of the 10-odd-year progress in this field. Particular emphasis is laid to the theoretical modeling of the propagation equations, whose physical ingredients are discussed from numerical simulations. Differences between femtosecond pulses propagating in gaseous or condensed materials are underlined. Attention is also paid to the multifilamentation instability of broad, powerful beams, breaking up the energy distribution into small-scale cells along the optical path. The robustness of the resulting filaments in adverse weathers, their large conical emission exploited for multipollutant remote sensing, nonlinear spectroscopy, and the possibility to guide electric discharges in air are finally addressed on the basis of experimental results.Comment: 50 pages, 38 figure

Formation of students' scientific thinking based on the learning of methods of the substance analysis

Introduction. In Federal State Standards of the Higher Education (FSS HE) of the natural-science and technical specialties and also in a number of the corresponding professional standards, the competence in the field of analytical chemistry is specified as one of the main qualification characteristics of an expert/university graduate. It is caused by interdisciplinarity of analytical chemistry and a wide range of application of analysis methods which are used today not only directly on chemical production, but also in power engineering, construction engineering, metallurgy, materials science, standardization, certification, and many other spheres. At the current time, however, there is a big gap between achievements of chemical science and content of high school discipline that reduces quality of staff training demanded in labour market. This discrepancy is caused both by preservation of traditional methodology of teaching chemistry and the reasons of the methodical plan. The aim of the publication is to search for more effective and productive ways of mastering the educational material that is relevant for acquiring the qualifications required from the university graduate. Methodology and research methods. Methodological framework of the article involves the concepts of chemical and natural-science education at the higher school; the principles of the system-based, cognitive, practice-focused and competence-based training. Results and scientific novelty. On the basis of the review and generalization of scientific and methodological resources on the theory and practice of application of the analysis methods of substances from didactic positions, a number of these methods have been singled out and compared; their role and features in determination of a molecule structure and other characteristics of an individual substance and its solutions have been shown. Despite the fact that the work is carried out using known methods of analysis, such a generalization makes it possible to more clearly understand the principles of the choice of a method and the method importance according to the purposes and specifics of the studied object that is essential for formation of research skills during training, as well as for formation of scientific thinking and the required qualification acquisition by graduates of the natural-science and technical specialties. In order to update the acquired knowledge, the examples illustrating applied use of various analysis methods in modern research and production practice have been collected. Tables have been made for a faster perception of the material by methods of analysis for the purpose of an informed choice of the method. Reliance on the principle of tabular collection of material makes it easier to understand the individuality of the method; allows teachers to reduce their workload; and on the part of students, to shorten the time and simplify the procedure of choosing the method of chemical, physicochemical and/or physical analysis. Practical significance. The work is compiled in accordance with the State General Educational Standards of Higher Professional Education, and can be recommended to practising and beginning teachers of higher education institutions, as well as graduate students of chemical specialties. The materials presented in the article can assist in designing the curricula of chemical disciplines or modules of educational programs. © 2018 Obrazovanie i Nauka. All rights reserved

ORGANIZATION OF LABORATORY RESEARCH OF CLINICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL SAMPLES DURING THE ANTHRAX OUTBREAK IN THE YAMALO-NENETS AUTONOMOUS DISTRICT IN 2016

Presented are the order and features of organization of operative diagnostic and monitoring studies of the material during the anthrax outbreak in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous District in 2016. Characterized are the main directions of the laboratory base work. Represented are the results of laboratory studies of various materials (clinical samples, material from animals, samples of environmental objects) for the presence of Bacillus anthracis

Optic chiasm in the species of order Clupeiformes, family Clupeidae: Optic chiasm of Spratelloides gracilis shows an opposite laterality to that of Etrumeus teres

In most teleost fishes, the optic nerves decussate completely as they project to the mesencephalic region. Examination of the decussation pattern of 25 species from 11 different orders in Pisces revealed that each species shows a specific chiasmic type. In 11 species out of the 25, laterality of the chiasmic pattern was not determined; in half of the individuals examined, the left optic nerve ran dorsally to the right optic nerve, while in the other half, the right optic nerve was dorsal. In eight other species the optic nerves from both eyes branched into several bundles at the chiasmic point, and intercalated to form a complicated decussation pattern. In the present study we report our findings that Spratelloides gracilis, of the order Clupeiformes, family Clupeidae, shows a particular laterality of decussation: the left optic nerve ran dorsally to the right (n = 200/202). In contrast, Etrumeus teres, of the same order and family, had a strong preference of the opposite (complementary) chiasmic pattern to that of S. gracilis (n = 59/59), revealing that these two species display opposite left–right optic chiasm patterning. As far as we investigated, other species of Clupeiformes have not shown left–right preference in the decussation pattern. We conclude that the opposite laterality of the optic chiasms of these two closely related species, S. gracilis and E. teres, enables investigation of species-specific laterality in fishes of symmetric shapes