Impact experiments in support of “Lithopanspermia”: The route from Mars to Earth

Shock recovery experiments on a Martian analogue rock (gabbro) loaded with three types of microorganisms reveal that these organisms survive the impact and ejection phase on Mars at shock pressures up to about 50 GPa with exponentially decreasing survival rates

Modern trends and challenges of development of global aluminum industry

This article overviews complex study into modern trends and challenges of development of global aluminum industry. Dynamics, structure, and segmentation of global aluminum market are discussed in terms of systematic analysis. On this basis strategic map of the industry has been plotted and five forces of competition on global aluminum market have been determined which will influence directly on functioning and development of aluminum producing companies

A large meteoritic event over Antarctica ca. 430 ka ago inferred from chondritic spherules from the Sør Rondane Mountains

Large airbursts, the most frequent hazardous impact events, are estimated to occur orders of magnitude more frequently than crater-forming impacts. However, finding traces of these events is impeded by the difficulty of identifying them in the recent geological record. Here, we describe condensation spherules found on top of Walnumfjellet in the Sør Rondane Mountains, Antarctica. Affinities with similar spherules found in EPICA Dome C and Dome Fuji ice cores suggest that these particles were produced during a single-asteroid impact ca. 430 thousand years (ka) ago. The lack of a confirmed crater on the Antarctic ice sheet and geochemical and 18O-poor oxygen isotope signatures allow us to hypothesize that the impact particles result from a touchdown event, in which a projectile vapor jet interacts with the Antarctic ice sheet. Numerical models support a touchdown scenario. This study has implications for the identification and inventory of large cosmic events on Earth

Nanоbiocomposite based on dihydroquercetin and arabinogalactan in the form of a gel for external use as a means for the treatment of chronic venous insufficiency in an experiment

Background. Due to the high prevalence of chronic venous insufficiency among the population, with a decrease in the quality of life of patients and their early disability, there is a need to develop modern effective and safe means for the prevention and treatment of this pathology. We have developed the optimal composition and technology of a gel for external use based on a nanobiocomposite of dihydroquercetin and arabinogalactan, which has a venoprotective effect. The article presents data on the results of a preclinical study of the safety and specific activity of the gel.The aim. To study the specific activity (decongestant, antitranssudative action) and safety of a gel for external use based on nanobiocomposite of dihydroquercetin and arabinogalactan used for the treatment of chronic venous insufficiency in the framework of preclinical studies.Materials and methods. The object of the study was a gel for external use based on dihydroquercetin and arabinogalactan nanobiocomposite. The study was conducted on 32 white male rats of the same age, for 15 days. The study of the pharmacological activity of a gel based on a nanobiocomposite of dihydroquercetin and arabinogalactan, was carried out on a model of acute venous stagnation in the tail of a rat (edema of non-inflammatory genesis), the dynamics of tail volume growth in the experimental and control group of animals was evaluated. The irritant effect of the gel on the skin of animals was also determined, the permeability of the capillaries of the skin was determined.Results. When studying the pharmacological activity of the gel on a model of acute venous stagnation in the tail, it was shown that a soft dosage form for external use developed on the basis of nanobiocomposite of dihydroquercetin and arabinogalactan has decongestant and antitranssudative activity. The presence of a locally irritating effect in the gel under study has not been established in the framework of the experiment.Conclusion. In the course of preclinical study of the gel of the nanobiocomposite dihydroquercetin and arabinogalactan on laboratory animals, its antitranssudative activity and safety have been proven

RESEARCH OF SOLID WASTE PYROLYSIS IN THE THERMAL REACTOR OF MINE TYPE

In this work was to investigate the process of pyrolysis of municipal solid waste morphological composition of medium, in order to determine the effective heat of pyrolysis.В работе был исследован процесс пиролиза твердых бытовых отходов среднего морфологического состава, с целью определения эффективной теплоты пиролиза

Lack of Response to Vemurafenib in Melanoma Carrying BRAF K601E Mutation

Vemurafenib has been developed to target common BRAF mutation V600E. It also exerts activity towards some but not all rare BRAF substitutions. Proper cataloguing of drug-sensitive and -insensitive rare mutations remains a challenge, due to low occurrence of these events and inability of commercial PCR-based diagnostic kits to detect the full spectrum of BRAF gene lesions. We considered the results of BRAF exon 15 testing in 1872 consecutive melanoma patients. BRAF mutation was identified in 1,090 (58.2%) cases. While drug-sensitive codon 600 substitutions constituted the majority of BRAF gene lesions (V600E: 962 [51.4%]; V600K: 86 [4.6%]; V600R: 17 [0.9%]), the fourth common BRAF allele was K601E accounting for 9 (0.5%) melanoma cases. The data on BRAF inhibitor sensitivity of tumors with K601E substitution are scarce. We administered single-agent vemurafenib to a melanoma patient carrying BRAF K601E mutation as the first-line treatment. Unfortunately, this therapy did not result in a tumor response. Taken together with already published data, this report indicates lack of benefit from conventional BRAF inhibitors in patients with BRAF K601E mutated melanoma

ИЗУЧЕНИЕ БИОРАЗНООБРАЗИЯ РЕДИСА В УСЛОВИЯХ ИНТЕНСИВНОЙ СВЕТОКУЛЬТУРЫ И ВЫЯВЛЕНИЕ ДОНОРОВ ХОЗЯЙСТВЕННО ЦЕННЫХ ПРИЗНАКОВ ДЛЯ СЕЛЕКЦИИ

Supply of the domestic fresh vegetables commodity to the population of Northern regions of Russia is one of the most priority tasks of the national economy. Lack of the local, high-quality and adopted breeding material is highly problematic for breeding programs. Generation of the new, highly productive vegetable cultivars for the glass-covered ground, including light culture, will promote to expand significantly the volume of local production of vegetables in protected ground, especially in regions with a cold climate. One of the most prospective crops for protected ground is small radish, an early ripening crop with a valuable biochemical composition. А strategy for creation of the new, highly productive forms of small radish, beard predictable complex of economically valuable characters for growing in conditions of intensive light culture, has been developed in the Agrophysical Research Institute (SaintPetersburg). At the first stage, represent interspecific set of 26 small radish cultivars from different regions, was investigated in controlled conditions (artificial light, climate cell) to reveal a complex of economically valuable properties (early maturity, productivity, morphological traits). The plants were grown in original plant grooving light equipment (lamps DNaZ-400, photoperiod 12 hours, irradiation 15-20 klk), in a small volume of substrate (peat with mineral additives). It was observed that the small radish varieties have significant diversity in precocity, productivity, resistance to bolting, also they vary in a number of morphological features of roots and leaves. Bov, Estella, Rocco (Netherlands), Nobo Chind Criollo (Peru) were the most productive cultivars. They can produce yield of commercial roots during 30 days of vegetation up to 3.5 kg/m2. In addition, cultivars – genetic resources of economically valuable properties (compact rosette, glabrous leaf, resistance to bolting) were revealed for a breeding. Parent pairs for crossing were selected. It is planned to obtain offspring small radish forms with a complex of economically valuable properties, more productive than the parents. In all matched hybrid combinations, F1 hybrids were obtained. They have a degree of hybrid superiority in roots weight from 110 to 230% over the best of the parent form. They will become the ancestors of the original forms of small radish, intended for cultivation in conditions of intense light culture.Обеспечение населения Северных регионов России свежей овощной продукцией собственного производства является одной из приоритетных народнохозяйственных задач. Отсутствие качественного отечественного селекционного материала, адаптированного к соответствующим условиям выращивания, является существенным препятствием для ее решения. Создание новых высокопродуктивных сортов овощных культур для защищенного грунта, в том числе для светокультуры, позволит значительно расширить объемы собственного производства овощей в защищенном грунте, особенно в регионах с холодным климатом. Одной из наиболее перспективных культур для защищенного грунта является редис – скороспелая культура с ценным биохимическим составом. В ФГБНУ Агрофизический научно-исследовательский институт (г. СанктПетербург) разработана стратегия создания новых высокопродуктивных форм редиса с прогнозируемым комплексом хозяйственно ценных свойств, предназначенных для выращивания в интенсивной светокультуре. На первом этапе ее реализации в условиях светокультуры проведено изучение внутривидового разнообразия редиса (26 сортов различного происхождения) по комплексу хозяйственно ценных признаков (скороспелость, продуктивность, морфологические характеристики). Растения выращивали в оригинальных светоустановках, оборудованных лампами ДНаЗ-400 (12 час. фотопериод, освещенность 15-20 клк), в малом объеме корнеобитаемой среды (торф с минеральными добавками). У исследуемых сортов выявлено значительное разнообразие по скороспелости, продуктивности, устойчивости к стеблеванию, ряду морфологических признаков корнеплода и листа. Выделены наиболее продуктивные сорта – Bov, Estella, Rocco (Нидерланды), Nobo Chind Criollo (Перу), способные за 30 суток вегетации давать урожай высокотоварных корнеплодов до 3,5 кг/м2, а также сорта – источники хозяйственно ценных признаков (компактная розетка, неопушенный лист, устойчивость к стеблеванию) для последующей селекции. На основе результатов проведенных сортоиспытаний подобраны комбинации скрещивания, в потомстве которых планируется получить формы редиса с комплексом хозяйственно ценных признаков, превосходящие по продуктивности родительские сорта. Они послужат родоначальниками для новых форм редиса, адаптированных к условиям светокультуры. Во всех подобранных комбинациях скрещивания уже получены гибриды F1, обладающие степенью гибридного превосходства по массе корнеплода от 110 до 230% над лучшими из родительских сортов

Bottom-Water Conditions in a Marine Basin after the Cretaceous–Paleogene Impact Event: Timing the Recovery of Oxygen Levels and Productivity

An ultra-high-resolution analysis of major and trace element contents from the Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary interval in the Caravaca section, southeast Spain, reveals a quick recovery of depositional conditions after the impact event. Enrichment/depletion profiles of redox sensitive elements indicate significant geochemical anomalies just within the boundary ejecta layer, supporting an instantaneous recovery –some 102 years– of pre-impact conditions in terms of oxygenation. Geochemical redox proxies point to oxygen levels comparable to those at the end of the Cretaceous shortly after impact, which is further evidenced by the contemporary macrobenthic colonization of opportunistic tracemakers. Recovery of the oxygen conditions was therefore several orders shorter than traditional proposals (104–105 years), suggesting a probable rapid recovery of deep-sea ecosystems at bottom and in intermediate waters.This research was supported by Projects CGL2009-07603, CGL2008-03007, CGL2012-33281 and CGL2012-32659 (Secretaría de Estado de I+D+I, Spain), Projects RNM-3715 and RNM 05212, and Research Groups RNM-178 and 0179 (Junta de Andalucía)

ТЕОРИЯ И ПРАКТИКА ОПРЕДЕЛЕНИЯ ЭНЕРГЕТИЧЕСКИХ ПОТРЕБНОСТЕЙ ПАЦИЕНТОВ ОТДЕЛЕНИЙ РЕАНИМАЦИИ И ИНТЕНСИВНОЙ ТЕРАПИИ

Nutritive support is the equally important component of the intensive care and it is impossible without the adequate evaluation of resting energy expenditures (REE) of a specific patient. This article describes the most common evaluation techniques of REE, among which the technique of the indirect calorimetry is the most informative. The review included calculation equations for REE evaluations studied the most. The most sensitive equation which informativeness is confirmed by prospective studies is Penn State formula, and the Harris-Benedict equation is not suitable for the use in the intensive care department. It is worth highlighting that the use of equations is acceptable only when the indirect calorimetry technique is not available. Нутритивная поддержка является равноправным компонентом интенсивной терапии и не возможна без адекватного определения энергетических потребностей (REE) конкретного пациента. В настоящей обзорной статье описаны наиболее распространенные методы определения REE, среди которых наиболее информативным является метод непрямой калориметрии. Проведен обзор наиболее изученных расчетных уравнений определения REE. Наиболее чувствительным уравнением, информативность которого подтверждена в проспективных исследованиях, в настоящее время является формула Penn State, а уравнение Харриса – Бенедикта не пригодно для использования в отделениях реанимации и интенсивной терапии. Следует подчеркнуть, что использование расчетных уравнений приемлемо только в условиях отсутствия метода непрямой калориметрии.

A large meteoritic event over Antarctica ca. 430 ka ago inferred from chondritic spherules from the Sør Rondane Mountains

Large airbursts, the most frequent hazardous impact events, are estimated to occur orders of magnitude more frequently than crater-forming impacts. However, finding traces of these events is impeded by the difficulty of identifying them in the recent geological record. Here, we describe condensation spherules found on top of Walnumfjellet in the Sør Rondane Mountains, Antarctica. Affinities with similar spherules found in EPICA Dome C and Dome Fuji ice cores suggest that these particles were produced during a single-asteroid impact ca. 430 thousand years (ka) ago. The lack of a confirmed crater on the Antarctic ice sheet and geochemical and 18O-poor oxygen isotope signatures allow us to hypothesize that the impact particles result from a touchdown event, in which a projectile vapor jet interacts with the Antarctic ice sheet. Numerical models support a touchdown scenario. This study has implications for the identification and inventory of large cosmic events on Earth