Morphology and Genetics of the Ciscoes (Actinopterygii: Salmoniformes: Salmonidae: Coregoninae: Coregonus) from the Solovetsky Archipelago (White Sea) as a Key to Determination of the Taxonomic Position of Ciscoes in Northeastern Europe

Background: The characteristic feature of the genus <i>Coregonus</i> is the multitude of nominal species of obscure identity. The northeastern Europe is inhabited by, inter alia—the vendace, <i>Coregonus albula</i> (Linnaeus, 1758)—considered the European cisco—and the least cisco, <i>C. sardinella</i> Valenciennes, 1848—often referred to as the Siberian species. There is a large area in where the ranges of both species overlap. Using morphological- as well as genetic tools we attempted to test the working hypothesis that the <i>Coregonus</i> fish (ciscoes) inhabiting the above-mentioned transitional zone represent a single species. Materials and methods: Within 1995–2009 we collected 344 ciscoes from five lakes in Bolshoy Solovetsky Island and determined diagnostic morphological traits for the two species. For some samples, the polymorphism of the creatine kinase isoloci (<i>CK-A1,2</i>*) and the fragment of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) encoding the subunit 1 of NADH-dehydrogenize complex (<i>ND-1</i> fragment) was also studied. Results: According to one of the main taxonomical characteristics—the number of vertebrae—the cisco of Solovetsky Island occupies an intermediate position between <i>C. albula</i> and <i>C. sardinella</i>. The molecular markers,however, did not reveal any differences between the ciscoes of Bolshoy Solovetsky Island and the vendace found elsewhere. All specimens had the type allele of creatine kinase <i>(CK-A*100)</i> which was considered to be typical for C. albula at other locations as well as the haplotype E of mtDNA widespread in vendace populations. Conclusion: The cisco from Solovetsky Island is more similar to typical vendace. Differences in some morphological traits between Solovetsky Island populations and the vendace from elsewhere are likely to reflect adaptation to environmental conditions. Thus it appears that morphological criteria do not allow reliable differentiation between two forms of ciscoes as well as between least cisco and vendace because they are influenced by environmental conditions. We believe that the presence of populations with intermediate features is a strong argument for combining <i>C. albula</i> and <i>C. sardinella</i> into a single species (<i>C. albula</i>)

The efficacy of the combination of eribulin and trastuzumab in advanced HER2-positive breast cancer: the results of Russian observational study

The article presents the experience of 19 Russian medical institutions on the use of eribulin in combination with trastuzumab in various treatment lines of metastatic HER2+ breast cancer in routine clinical practice. Aim. The main objective of this retrospective observational study was to evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of eribulin and trastuzumab combo in HER2+ breast cancer patients pretreated with anthracyclines and taxanes. The analysis included 60 patients who received at least 2 cycles of eribulin in combination with trastuzumab. 2 patients (3.3%) received treatment as the 1st line, as the 2nd 14 (23.3%), as the 3rd 16 (26.7%), and as the 4th and more 28 (46.7%). Materials and methods. Complete response was achieved in 2 (3.3%) patients, partial response in 9 (15%), stable disease in 33 (55%), stabilization for more than 6 months in 11 (18.3%), disease progression was detected in 16 (26.7%) patients. The objective response rate was 18.3% in the whole group, the clinical benefit rate 36.7%. Results. The objective response rate in the group of the luminal subtype (ER/PR+HER2+) was 26.9%, in HER2-overexpressed subtype (ER-PR-HER2+) 8.8% and 64.7%, respectively, disease progression was recorded 2.3 times more often 35.3% versus 15.5% in the luminal subtype group. The median progression-free survival in patients with HER2+ breast cancer was 4.95 months (95% confidence interval CI 3.048.29 months), in luminal subtype 6.38 months (95% CI 3.338.54 months), in non-luminal 4.44 months (95% CI 2.47.96 months); p=0.306. The treatment was well tolerated, the spectrum of adverse events corresponded to the eribulin toxicity profile. Conclusions. The uniqueness of this study lies in the fact that on a large clinical material from the standpoint of real clinical practice, a very promising treatment regimen that is not used routinely in a number of countries has been studied, its effectiveness and satisfactory tolerance have been confirmed

Non-canonical mechanism for translational control in bacteria: synthesis of ribosomal protein S1

Translation initiation region (TIR) of the rpsA mRNA encoding ribosomal protein S1 is one of the most efficient in Escherichia coli despite the absence of a canonical Shine–Dalgarno-element. Its high efficiency is under strong negative autogenous control, a puzzling phenomenon as S1 has no strict sequence specificity. To define sequence and structural elements responsible for translational efficiency and autoregulation of the rpsA mRNA, a series of rpsA′–′lacZ chromosomal fusions bearing various mutations in the rpsA TIR was created and tested for β-galactosidase activity in the absence and presence of excess S1. These in vivo results, as well as data obtained by in vitro techniques and phylogenetic comparison, allow us to propose a model for the structural and functional organization of the rpsA TIR specific for proteobacteria related to E.coli. According to the model, the high efficiency of translation initiation is provided by a specific fold of the rpsA leader forming a non-contiguous ribosome entry site, which is destroyed upon binding of free S1 when it acts as an autogenous repressor

Религиозная миграция: к вопросу об истории миссионерства в Сибири

The article analyses missionary work as a form of religious migration. The settlement of Siberia by Russians was the most important geopolitical and economic task of the Russian government. In this process Christianization of the native population of Siberia was very important. From the 17th to the 20th century the state policy towards Siberia was changing, as well as the forms and methods of dissemination of Orthodoxy among the native Siberian people. The article describes in details six stages in the state policy of Christianization, from the first acquaintance with the Orthodoxy to the transition to the policy of Russification. Each Siberian region in Russia has passed several stages: actual annexation, gradual incorporation, assimilation. These processes had regional features and occurred asynchronously. Within two centuries of missionaries’ activity in Siberia, violent Christianization methods have been replaced by tactics of tolerance and enlightenment while preserving the monopoly of the Russian Orthodox Church. Unfortunately, the modern concept of the activity of the diocesan mission department shows that the Russian Orthodox Church has not taken into account the historical experience of the missionaries of the pastВ статье представлен анализ миссионерства как одной из форм религиозной миграции. Заселение Сибири русскими было важнейшей геополитической и экономической задачей российского правительства, в этом процессе христианизация коренных народов приобрела особое значение. С XVII до XX века менялась государственная политика в отношении Сибири, а вместе с ней формы и методы распространения православия среди народов, населявших ее. Авторы выделяют шесть этапов в государственной политике христианизации, от первичного знакомства с православной верой до перехода к политике русификации. Каждый сибирский регион в составе России проходил несколько этапов: собственно присоединение, постепенная инкорпорация, ассимиляция. Эти процессы имели региональные особенности и проходили асинхронно. За два века деятельности миссионеров в Сибири насильственные методы христианизации сменились тактикой толерантно- сти и просвещения при сохранении монополии русской православной церкви. К сожалению, современная концепция деятельности епархиального миссионерского отдела показывает, что русская православная церковь не учла исторический опыт миссионеров прошлог

Религиозная миграция: к вопросу об истории миссионерства в Сибири

The article analyses missionary work as a form of religious migration. The settlement of Siberia by Russians was the most important geopolitical and economic task of the Russian government. In this process Christianization of the native population of Siberia was very important. From the 17th to the 20th century the state policy towards Siberia was changing, as well as the forms and methods of dissemination of Orthodoxy among the native Siberian people. The article describes in details six stages in the state policy of Christianization, from the first acquaintance with the Orthodoxy to the transition to the policy of Russification. Each Siberian region in Russia has passed several stages: actual annexation, gradual incorporation, assimilation. These processes had regional features and occurred asynchronously. Within two centuries of missionaries’ activity in Siberia, violent Christianization methods have been replaced by tactics of tolerance and enlightenment while preserving the monopoly of the Russian Orthodox Church. Unfortunately, the modern concept of the activity of the diocesan mission department shows that the Russian Orthodox Church has not taken into account the historical experience of the missionaries of the pastВ статье представлен анализ миссионерства как одной из форм религиозной миграции. Заселение Сибири русскими было важнейшей геополитической и экономической задачей российского правительства, в этом процессе христианизация коренных народов приобрела особое значение. С XVII до XX века менялась государственная политика в отношении Сибири, а вместе с ней формы и методы распространения православия среди народов, населявших ее. Авторы выделяют шесть этапов в государственной политике христианизации, от первичного знакомства с православной верой до перехода к политике русификации. Каждый сибирский регион в составе России проходил несколько этапов: собственно присоединение, постепенная инкорпорация, ассимиляция. Эти процессы имели региональные особенности и проходили асинхронно. За два века деятельности миссионеров в Сибири насильственные методы христианизации сменились тактикой толерантно- сти и просвещения при сохранении монополии русской православной церкви. К сожалению, современная концепция деятельности епархиального миссионерского отдела показывает, что русская православная церковь не учла исторический опыт миссионеров прошлог

Round-the-World Voyage of the Threespine Stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus): Phylogeographic Data Covering the Entire Species Range

A total of 205 COI sequences and 310 cyt b sequences of the threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) from basins of all seas throughout the vast range of this species were analyzed. Median networks of haplotypes constructed in this study, combined with the results of reconstruction of paleogeographic conditions, led to the conclusion that the threespine stickleback emerged as a species in the Pacific Ocean basin and spread to Europe from the south, populating the system of water bodies that existed in the Oligocene. The main water body was the Paratethys Ocean (Sea), which existed 5&ndash;34 Mya. In the area of the modern North Sea, stickleback populations, part of which later migrated to the eastern and western coasts of North America, gave rise to the group of haplotypes that has the widest distribution in northern Europe. The stickleback populations belonging to the lineage that dispersed along the Arctic and western coasts of North America displaced the carriers of the haplotypes of the ancient phylogenetic lineage that inhabited the Pacific coast. The ancestors of G. wheatlandi dispersed from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean via the Arctic to meet G. aculeatus, which circled the globe from east to west

Round-the-World Voyage of the Threespine Stickleback (<i>Gasterosteus aculeatus</i>): Phylogeographic Data Covering the Entire Species Range

A total of 205 COI sequences and 310 cyt b sequences of the threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) from basins of all seas throughout the vast range of this species were analyzed. Median networks of haplotypes constructed in this study, combined with the results of reconstruction of paleogeographic conditions, led to the conclusion that the threespine stickleback emerged as a species in the Pacific Ocean basin and spread to Europe from the south, populating the system of water bodies that existed in the Oligocene. The main water body was the Paratethys Ocean (Sea), which existed 5–34 Mya. In the area of the modern North Sea, stickleback populations, part of which later migrated to the eastern and western coasts of North America, gave rise to the group of haplotypes that has the widest distribution in northern Europe. The stickleback populations belonging to the lineage that dispersed along the Arctic and western coasts of North America displaced the carriers of the haplotypes of the ancient phylogenetic lineage that inhabited the Pacific coast. The ancestors of G. wheatlandi dispersed from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean via the Arctic to meet G. aculeatus, which circled the globe from east to west