Improvement of protective oxide layers formed by high-frequency plasma electrolytic oxidation on Mg-RE alloy with LPSO-phase

Oxide layers on Mg97Y2Zn1 magnesium alloy with strengthening LPSO-phase were formed by plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO) in bipolar mode with frequency variation of forming current pulses (50 and 500 Hz) and addition of sodium aluminate or sodium silicate to alkali phosphate fluoride electrolyte. Microstructure, chemical and phase composition, corrosion and mechanical properties of the oxide layers formed were investigated. With increasing current frequency for both electrolytes, an increase in homogeneity of the oxide layers structure and a decrease in their porosity and fracturing at constant thickness were recorded. The oxide layers formed at 500 Hz even with some decrease in hardness have better adhesive strength and 2 orders of magnitude higher short-term corrosion resistance values. PEO of Mg-alloy with LPSO-phase in the electrolyte with addition of sodium aluminate in combination with increased pulse frequency (500 Hz) allows forming the best-quality uniform oxide layer with high hardness, adhesive strength and corrosion resistance properties. The use of electrolyte with addition of sodium silicate reduced the adhesive strength by 1.5 times and brought down the long-term corrosion resistance of oxide layers by an order of magnitude, as compared with the electrolyte with sodium aluminate. The reason for a significant improvement in the complex of protective properties of the oxide layers with an increase in the current pulse frequency is supposed to be a decrease in the power and duration of individual microarc discharges with simultaneous increase in their number per unit oxidized area

Sharing and community curation of mass spectrometry data with Global Natural Products Social Molecular Networking

The potential of the diverse chemistries present in natural products (NP) for biotechnology and medicine remains untapped because NP databases are not searchable with raw data and the NP community has no way to share data other than in published papers. Although mass spectrometry techniques are well-suited to high-throughput characterization of natural products, there is a pressing need for an infrastructure to enable sharing and curation of data. We present Global Natural Products Social molecular networking (GNPS, http://gnps.ucsd.edu), an open-access knowledge base for community wide organization and sharing of raw, processed or identified tandem mass (MS/MS) spectrometry data. In GNPS crowdsourced curation of freely available community-wide reference MS libraries will underpin improved annotations. Data-driven social-networking should facilitate identification of spectra and foster collaborations. We also introduce the concept of ‘living data’ through continuous reanalysis of deposited data

Data Literacy as a meta-skill: options for Data Science curriculum implementation

Data science is affecting an increasingly wide area of everyday life but general education in Russia has not yet reacted to the new challenges associated with this aspect of digitalization. The changes in technologies, the economy, and society over the last two decades have formed a new agenda for teaching mathematics and information technologies, as well as media education and social sciences. Education in all these fields requires a reconsideration of the content and methods of teaching due to the increasing importance of data science and artificial intelligence in the context of fundamental changes in the economy and the labor market. As many areas of human life are changing, there is a need to formulate new types and kinds of educational results, at which modern pedagogy should be aimed. A modern way of meeting such challenges is to distinguish new literacies (media literacy, environmental literacy, functional literacy, etc.). The article deals with the concept of data literacy, examines its content and composition, and substantiates its relevance as an educational result consistent with digitalization trends that one can observe in modern society. A distinction is made between approaches to in-depth and general studies of data science. A description is given of various types of tasks aimed at developing data literacy among students in the context of their setting on different educational material. The authors consider possible ways of deploying programs aimed at mastering data science by students without the need to formalize it into a separate discipline or school subject

“Geography of Human Perspectives” Program as an Educational and Methodological Complex for Spatial Self-determination

The relevance of the issue. Today, special attention is paid to new literacy and skills of the 21st century as those define individual and activity-based acquisition of knowledge. Within the framework of new types of outcomes it is necessary to change not only the techniques and methods of teaching, but also to update the content, forms of learners’ work, to change the types and nature of tasks that are stated in the syllabus of educational disciplines. The example of implementation of the program "Geography of Human Perspectives" as an elective course demonstrates the experience of a comprehensive revision of approaches to teaching economic geography. This paper presents some results of approbation of this program, which highlight the pros and cons of this kind of modernization of the educational process. The purpose of the study: to identify the structural and content elements of the elective educational program "Geography of Human Perspectives", which can be used to support the self-determination and development of high school students’ interests. The dominant methodology / approach: ascertaining experiment accompanied by specially organized diagnostic procedures. Results: identification of successful methods of organizing educational activities, which are based on the individual interests of students; establishment of a mechanism for presenting the subject "geography" as a means of self-determination for high school students. Practical significance: this paper will serve as basis for elaboration of recommendations for the development of elective courses and programs of supplementary education for children

Data Literacy as a meta-skill: options for Data Science curriculum implementation

Data science is affecting an increasingly wide area of everyday life but general education in Russia has not yet reacted to the new challenges associated with this aspect of digitalization. The changes in technologies, the economy, and society over the last two decades have formed a new agenda for teaching mathematics and information technologies, as well as media education and social sciences. Education in all these fields requires a reconsideration of the content and methods of teaching due to the increasing importance of data science and artificial intelligence in the context of fundamental changes in the economy and the labor market. As many areas of human life are changing, there is a need to formulate new types and kinds of educational results, at which modern pedagogy should be aimed. A modern way of meeting such challenges is to distinguish new literacies (media literacy, environmental literacy, functional literacy, etc.). The article deals with the concept of data literacy, examines its content and composition, and substantiates its relevance as an educational result consistent with digitalization trends that one can observe in modern society. A distinction is made between approaches to in-depth and general studies of data science. A description is given of various types of tasks aimed at developing data literacy among students in the context of their setting on different educational material. The authors consider possible ways of deploying programs aimed at mastering data science by students without the need to formalize it into a separate discipline or school subject

Severe Plastic Deformation of Mg–Zn–Zr–Ce Alloys: Advancing Corrosion Resistance and Mechanical Strength for Medical Applications

Magnesium-based alloys hold potential for medical applications, but face challenges like rapid bioresorption and limited mechanical strength during early bone healing. In our study, we present a novel Mg–Zn–Zr–Ce alloy with low cerium content (up to 0.1 wt.% Ce) processed using two severe plastic deformation (SPD) techniques. Through an innovative combination of multiaxial forging and multipass rolling, we have achieved a fine-grained structure with an average grain size of the primary α-Mg phase of 1.0 μm. This refined microstructure exhibits improved mechanical properties, including a substantial increase in yield strength (σYS) from 130 to 240 MPa, while preserving ductility. The alloy’s composition includes α-Mg grains, cerium and zinc hydrides, and intermetallic phases with cerium and zinc elements. Tensile testing of the fine-grained alloy demonstrates an enhancement in yield strength (σYS) to 250 MPa, marking a 2.8-fold improvement over the conventional state (σYS = 90 MPa), with a modest 2-fold reduction in ductility. Crucially, electrochemical tests conducted in physiological solutions highlight substantial advancements in corrosion resistance. The corrosion current was reduced from 14 to 2 μA/cm2, while polarization resistance decreased from 3.1 to 8.1 kΩ∙cm2, underlining the alloy’s enhanced resistance to biodegradation. Our results show that the novel Mg–Zn–Zr–Ce alloy, after combined SPD, demonstrates mitigated bioresorption and enhanced mechanical properties. Our findings highlight the fact that the introduction of this innovative alloy and the application of SPD represent significant steps towards addressing the limitations of magnesium-based alloys for medical implants, offering potential improvements in safety and effectiveness

Key role of piRNAs in telomeric chromatin maintenance and telomere nuclear positioning in Drosophila germline

Abstract Background Telomeric small RNAs related to PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) have been described in various eukaryotes; however, their role in germline-specific telomere function remains poorly understood. Using a Drosophila model, we performed an in-depth study of the biogenesis of telomeric piRNAs and their function in telomere homeostasis in the germline. Results To fully characterize telomeric piRNA clusters, we integrated the data obtained from analysis of endogenous telomeric repeats, as well as transgenes inserted into different telomeric and subtelomeric regions. The small RNA-seq data from strains carrying telomeric transgenes demonstrated that all transgenes belong to a class of dual-strand piRNA clusters; however, their capacity to produce piRNAs varies significantly. Rhino, a paralog of heterochromatic protein 1 (HP1) expressed exclusively in the germline, is associated with all telomeric transgenes, but its enrichment correlates with the abundance of transgenic piRNAs. It is likely that this heterogeneity is determined by the sequence peculiarities of telomeric retrotransposons. In contrast to the heterochromatic non-telomeric germline piRNA clusters, piRNA loss leads to a dramatic decrease in HP1, Rhino, and trimethylated histone H3 lysine 9 in telomeric regions. Therefore, the presence of piRNAs is required for the maintenance of telomere chromatin in the germline. Moreover, piRNA loss causes telomere translocation from the nuclear periphery toward the nuclear interior but does not affect telomere end capping. Analysis of the telomere-associated sequences (TASs) chromatin revealed strong tissue specificity. In the germline, TASs are enriched with HP1 and Rhino, in contrast to somatic tissues, where they are repressed by Polycomb group proteins. Conclusions piRNAs play an essential role in the assembly of telomeric chromatin, as well as in nuclear telomere positioning in the germline. Telomeric arrays and TASs belong to a unique type of Rhino-dependent piRNA clusters with transcripts that serve simultaneously as piRNA precursors and as their only targets. Telomeric chromatin is highly sensitive to piRNA loss, implying the existence of a novel developmental checkpoint that depends on telomere integrity in the germline

MOESM1 of Key role of piRNAs in telomeric chromatin maintenance and telomere nuclear positioning in Drosophila germline

Additional file 1: Figure S1. Localization of telomeric transgenes. Figure S2. Profiles of telomeric retroelement small RNAs (related to Fig. 1a). Figure S3. Generation of small RNAs by telomeric transgenes (related to Fig. 1c). Figure S4. Quantification of Northern blots of small RNAs in transgenic strains (related to Fig. 1f). Figure S5. Rhi and HP1 occupancy at telomeric transgenes (related to Fig. 2). Figure S6. Expression of EY08176 telomeric transgene is increased in ovaries of the spnE mutants. Figure S7. Nuclear localization of telomeres. Figure S8. Subtelomeric chromatin in the germline (related to Fig. 5b)

A Multi-Omics Characterization of the Natural Product Potential of Tropical Filamentous Marine Cyanobacteria.

Microbial natural products are important for the understanding of microbial interactions, chemical defense and communication, and have also served as an inspirational source for numerous pharmaceutical drugs. Tropical marine cyanobacteria have been highlighted as a great source of new natural products, however, few reports have appeared wherein a multi-omics approach has been used to study their natural products potential (i.e., reports are often focused on an individual natural product and its biosynthesis). This study focuses on describing the natural product genetic potential as well as the expressed natural product molecules in benthic tropical cyanobacteria. We collected from several sites around the world and sequenced the genomes of 24 tropical filamentous marine cyanobacteria. The informatics program antiSMASH was used to annotate the major classes of gene clusters. BiG-SCAPE phylum-wide analysis revealed the most promising strains for natural product discovery among these cyanobacteria. LCMS/MS-based metabolomics highlighted the most abundant molecules and molecular classes among 10 of these marine cyanobacterial samples. We observed that despite many genes encoding for peptidic natural products, peptides were not as abundant as lipids and lipopeptides in the chemical extracts. Our results highlight a number of highly interesting biosynthetic gene clusters for genome mining among these cyanobacterial samples