PRODUCTIVE AND BIOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF RUSSIAN MEAT MERINOS SHEEP WITH DIFFERENT LINEAR SELECTION

Line breeding is a difficult but effective zootechnical process in purebred sheep husbandry. Linear sheep consistently transmit their characteristics to offspring in order to increase and identify the most promising genotypes, characterized by high productivity and breeding efficiency, by detecting interline selection. The main purpose of the work was to identify the most suitable options for intra- and interline selection of the Russian meat merino breed. The article studies the early development of animals’ growth and physique, the high rates of animals, live weight in different age periods, slaughter and meat qualities. We established that young animals obtained by mating between the animal lines VK-40 and ME-50 were characterized by more proportional body shapes, better slaughter and meat qualities. The increase in live weight of lambs obtained by mating queens of the VK-40 line and rams of the ME-50 line (group III) was more intense than their peers from the intraline selection of the VK-40 line (I group) and of queens of the line AC- 30 with ME-50 rams (group II). The heaviest carcasses were in lambs obtained from the mating of queens of the VK-40 line and rams of the ME-50 line (13.26 kg), the weight of the carcass was greater, compared with the same indicator of the peers of groups I and II, respectively, by 7.7% and 4.0%, by internal fat mass – by 21.8% and 9.8%, by slaughter weight – by 8.3% and 4.3%

WOOL PRODUCTIVITY AND QUALITY OF RUSSIAN MEAT MERINO SHEEP FROM INTRA- AND INTERLINE SELECTION

Line breeding is often used in purebred animal husbandry, although the combination of lines may affect undesirable result. Therefore, it is very important for animal breeders to know which lines of animals can be combined to produce highly productive offspring with high meat and wool properties. This article studies the influence of interline selection of Russian meat merino breed on wool productivity, quality and skin histostructure. We found that the highest clipping was in the animals of group III obtained from ME-50 line rams and AS-30 line ewes. Ewes exceeded their peers of group II from the intraline AC-30 selection and peers of group IV from AS-30 line rams and ME-50 line queens. At the same time, ewes of group III insignificantly exceeded peers of group I from intraline selection of ME-50 line animals by 2.0% (P>0.05). Animals of group III had rather high fleece indices in terms of the wool condition due to the influence of ME-50 rams. Moreover, they had the highest ratio of “fat:sweat” (0.84), which confirms the high technological wool properties of this genotype. The quality of sheepskins depends on the nature of the connection of collagen fibers in the reticular layer. In terms of the thickness of the skin reticular layer young ewes of the group III exceeded their peers in groups I, II and IV by 5.3% (P> 0.05), 21.9% ( P<0.01) and 12.0% (P<0.05) respectively

Epidemiology of the vestibular schwannomas in Ukraine and our experience of surgical and radiosurgical treatment

Aim: Figuring out the occurrence of vestibular schwannomas (VS) and their management tendencies in Ukraine.Materials and methods: Data about VS detection and treatment were collected among all Ukrainian neurosurgical and radiological facilities which are enrolled in providing care for these patients. Together with those who were treated overseas the total number in 2016-2018 was 903 people. There were 665 cases (73.6  %) treated surgically, 124 cases (13.8  %) irradiated and 114 (12.6  %) observed via serial imaging.Results: The prevalence of VS in Ukraine is about 7.27 per 1 million people which corresponds to data around the world (CBTRUS trial suggested VS incidence 10-20 people per 1 million during 2004-2009).Most of verified VSs were treated surgically (73.6  %), lesser part was irradiated (13.8  %) and 12.7 % were followed-up by wait-and-scan strategy. Our data regarding surgical management was higher than worldwide. At the same time, the volume of detected tumors was much larger in comparison to published data. Seventy-three per cent of all cases were Koos T4 tumors as a possible result of poor diagnosis and lack of alertness making surgical interventions more common and difficult.Total and subtotal resection rate was 79  % as the result of combined microsurgical and endoscopic techniques under intraoperative electrophysiological neuromonitoring guidance. The facial nerve was preserved in 94.2  % of cases, cochlear — in 8.5  % of cases. The average mortality rate during 2016-2018 in Ukraine was 3.1  % with 1.3  % in Subtentorial Neurooncology Department of the Romodanov Neurosurgery Institute.Conclusions: For further improvements and development of optimal management strategies for patients with VS, it is necessary to improve earlier diagnosis and reasonable to provide neurosurgical care in high-volume centers based on the profound expertise with further advances in technologies for functionally favorable outcomes

Ichthyo-parasitological Characteristic of Lake Vokhtozero Roach

The article presents the results of ichthyo-parasitological studies of roach Lake Vokhtozero in the area of economic activity of the cage farm OOO Raduzhnaya forel (rainbow trout). It is shown that the age structure of the roach population is represented by fish aged 3+ to 10+ years. It is based on sexually mature individuals of middle age: 4+ (25%), 5+ (31%) and 6+ (21%). Of these, 61% are females and 39% are males. Roach is infected with parasites of 14 species belonging to five systematic groups: Myxosporea - 5 species, Trematoda - 5, Ciliophora - 2, Nematoda - 1 and Monogenea - 1. The most common ones are mixosporidia and trematodes. The parasitofauna of roach corresponds to a wide spectrum of nutrition of this species with a predominance of benthic herbivorous type in older individuals

Vaccine Prophylaxis of Pneumococcal Infections in Children under Conditions of Severe Flood in the Amur River Basin

Background. Pneumococcal infection being one of the dominant causes of acute respiratory diseases and exacerbation of chronic ones is a serious problem for human health and society. The flood in the Amur river basin in the summer of 2013 created a special zone and risk conditions for the formation of respiratory pathology in the Far-Eastern region of Russia. We aimed to give clinical and epidemiological assessment of the effectiveness of vaccination programs of respiratory viral and pneumococcal infections and generalization of regional experience in the organization of a set of measures aimed at their prevention in the postflood period in the Far-Eastern region. Methods. The monitoring program includes children aged 2 to 5 years in the amount of 4988 with risk factors for pneumococcal infection. The pneumococcal conjugate vaccine Prevenar-13 was used for immunization. Data on the incidence of ARVI and pneumonia in children in pre- and postvaccination periods were to be recorded. The indicators and special criteria were used to assess the effectiveness of vaccination. To study the circulation of serovariants of pneumococcus in inflammatory diseases of the respiratory tract and nasopharyngeal carrier, bacteriological and molecular genetic methods (RT-PCR in the mode of multiprime detection) were used. Results. Differences in the frequency and range of serovariants of circulating isolates of pneumococcus in the postvaccinal period and in unvaccinated children, elimination of a number of serotypes, and appearance of circulation of nonvaccinated strains were revealed. The incidence of acute respiratory diseases and pneumonia among the vaccinated population for 2 years in the region decreased by 2.5 times. The coefficient of effectiveness of vaccination according to the indicator of morbidity of children with pneumonia reaches 75-100% with direct dependence on the age of children (r=0.98). Conclusion. Comparative statistical analysis revealed a high degree of effectiveness of regional programs with the methods of immunoprophylaxis of pneumococcal infections

Protein Corona Attenuates the Targeting of Antitumor Sialyl Lewis X-Decorated Liposomes to Vascular Endothelial Cells under Flow Conditions

Previously, we showed in the human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) model that a liposome formulation of melphalan lipophilic prodrug (MlphDG) decorated with selectin ligand tetrasaccharide Sialyl Lewis X (SiaLeX) undergoes specific uptake by activated cells and in an in vivo tumor model causes a severe antivascular effect. Here, we cultured HUVECs in a microfluidic chip and then applied the liposome formulations to study their interactions with the cells in situ under hydrodynamic conditions close to capillary blood flow using confocal fluorescent microscopy. The incorporation of 5 to 10% SiaLeX conjugate in the bilayer of MlphDG liposomes increased their consumption exclusively by activated endotheliocytes. The increase of serum concentration from 20 to 100% in the flow resulted in lower liposome uptake by the cells. To elucidate the possible roles of plasma proteins in the liposome–cell interactions, liposome protein coronas were isolated and analyzed by shotgun proteomics and immunoblotting of selected proteins. Proteomic analysis showed that a gradual increase in SiaLeX content correlated with the overall enrichment of the liposome-associated proteins with several apolipoproteins, including the most positively charged one, ApoC1, and serum amyloid A4, associated with inflammation, on the one hand, and a decrease in the content of bound immunoglobulins, on the other. The article discusses the potential interference of the proteins in the binding of liposomes to selectins of endothelial cells

The impact of climate change on the expansion of Ixodes persulcatus habitat and the incidence of tick-borne encephalitis in the north of European Russia

The increase in tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) incidence is observed in recent decades in a number of subarctic countries. The reasons of it are widely discussed in scientific publications. The objective of this study was to understand if the climate change in Arkhangelsk Oblast (AO) situated in the north of European subarctic zone of Russia has real impact on the northward expansion of Ixodid ticks and stipulates the increase in TBE incidence. This study analyzes: TBE incidence in AO and throughout Russia, the results of Ixodid ticks collecting in a number of sites in AO, and TBE virus prevalence in those ticks, the data on tick bite incidence in AO, and meteorological data on AO mean annual air temperatures and precipitations.It is established that in recent years TBE incidence in AO tended to increase contrary to its apparent decrease nationwide. In last 10 years, there was nearly 50-fold rise in TBE incidence in AO when compared with 1980&#x2013;1989. Probably, the increase both in mean annual air temperatures and temperatures during tick active season resulted in the northward expansion of Ixodes Persulcatus, main TBE virus vector. The Ixodid ticks expansion is confirmed both by the results of ticks flagging from the surface vegetation and by the tick bite incidence in the population of AO locations earlier free from ticks. Our mathematical (correlation and regression) analysis of available data revealed a distinct correlation between TBE incidence and the growth of mean annual air temperatures in AO in 1990&#x2013;2009.Not ruling out other factors, we conclude that climate change contributed much to the TBE incidence increase in AO