Impact assessment of Eurasian beaver reintroduction on riparian phytocenosis of the Raifa forest in Volga-Kama Nature Reserve

Statistically significant changes in microclimatic environmental factors under the influence of the activity of the European beaver in the territory of the Raifa section of the Volga-Kama Nature Reserve were revealed. The influence of the beaver reintroduction factor on the change in the moisture and illumination regimes of habitats, the richness of soils with nitrogen, the acidity and salt regime of soils has been established. In the conditions of fodder and construction activities of the beaver, an increase in the proportion of groups of aquatic, wetland and boreal plant species was noted, as well as the expansive nature of the change in their activity. There was a decrease in the activity of the distribution of ruderal species in the conditions of beaver activity. Based on phytoindication analysis, it has been shown that the reintroduction of the beaver into the water bodies of the Raifa section of the Volga-Kama Reserve is responsible for maintaining the necessary microclimatic conditions to preserve the natural boreal communities

Caffeine affects the biological responses of human hematopoietic cells of myeloid lineage via downregulation of the mTOR pathway and xanthine oxidase activity

Correction of human myeloid cell function is crucial for the prevention of inflammatory and allergic reactions as well as leukaemia progression. Caffeine, a naturally occurring food component, is known to display anti-inflammatory effects which have previously been ascribed largely to its inhibitory actions on phosphodiesterase. However, more recent studies suggest an additional role in affecting the activity of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), a master regulator of myeloid cell translational pathways, although detailed molecular events underlying its mode of action have not been elucidated. Here, we report the cellular uptake of caffeine, without metabolisation, by healthy and malignant hematopoietic myeloid cells including monocytes, basophils and primary acute myeloid leukaemia mononuclear blasts. Unmodified caffeine downregulated mTOR signalling, which affected glycolysis and the release of pro-inflammatory/pro-angiogenic cytokines as well as other inflammatory mediators. In monocytes, the effects of caffeine were potentiated by its ability to inhibit xanthine oxidase, an enzyme which plays a central role in human purine catabolism by generating uric acid. In basophils, caffeine also increased intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) levels which further enhanced its inhibitory action on mTOR. These results demonstrate an important mode of pharmacological action of caffeine with potentially wide-ranging therapeutic impact for treating non-infectious disorders of the human immune system, where it could be applied directly to inflammatory cells

Isolation and characterization of a novel indigenous intestinal N4-related coliphage vB_EcoP_G7C

AbstractLytic coliphage vB_EcoP_G7C and several other highly related isolates were obtained repeatedly from the samples of horse feces held in the same stable thus representing a component of the normal indigenous intestinal communities in this population of animals. The genome of G7C consists of 71,759bp with terminal repeats of about 1160bp, yielding approximately 73 kbp packed DNA size. Seventy-eight potential open reading frames, most of them unique to N4-like viruses, were identified and annotated. The overall layout of functional gene groups was close to that of the original N4 phage, with some important changes in late gene area including new tail fiber proteins containing hydrolytic domains. Structural proteome analysis confirmed all the predicted subunits of the viral particle. Unlike N4 itself, phage G7C did not exhibit a lysis-inhibited phenotype

Применение позонного метода оптимизации и упрощенной численной модели для разработки эффективных схем сжигания твердого топлива с использованием прямоточных горелочных устройств и сопел

The article considers the application of two approaches to optimizing the direct-flow burners and nozzles location using numerical simulation. The study objects are two furnaces of the traditional and invert type with solid slag removal for boilers for supercritical and ultra-supercritical steam parameters, respectively. The lean hard Kuznetsk coal was used for both cases, somewhat different in characteristics in the cases under consideration. This coal type is currently burned mainly in furnaces with liquid slag removal. The use of the zone-by-zone optimization method implies a sequential each pre-selected zones optimization of the furnace in the direction of flue gas movement with modeling of the solid fuel combustion process with different burner and nozzle layouts. A dimensionless scheme for burning coal dust in a traditional furnace with an upward flue gases movement has been developed. The use of a simplified numerical model (SNM) due to certain settings made it possible to approximate the results of furnace aerodynamics modeling without taking into account the chemical reactions to the results with combustion simulation, which significantly reduced the conducting research time. As a result of modeling the invert furnace aerodynamics, the optimal arrangement of direct-flow burners and nozzles was selected. The article discusses the main features of each research method use, optimization criteria, research objects, initial combustion schemes, design parameters of combustion schemes that are changed during optimization, as well as the main results of the optimization. The solid fuel combustion schemes obtained using two approaches to conducting research using direct-flow burners and nozzles ensure the operation of the considered furnaces with better values of efficiency and environmental indicators than traditional combustion of similar fuel in furnaces with liquid slag removal. The obtained values are at a level acceptable for the Russian FederationВ статье рассмотрено применение двух подходов к оптимизации расположения прямоточных горелок и сопл с использованием численного моделирования. Первый способ – позонный метод, второй – с использованием упрощенной численной модели. Объектами исследования являются две топки традиционного и инвертного типа с твердым шлакоудалением для котлов на сверхкритические и ультрасверхкритические параметры пара соответственно. Для обоих случаев использовался тощий каменный кузнецкий уголь, несколько отличающийся по характеристикам в рассматриваемых случаях, который в настоящее время сжигается в основном в топках с жидким шлакоудалением. Использование позонного метода подразумевает проведение последовательной оптимизации каждой из заранее выделенных зон топочной камеры в направлении движения дымовых газов с моделированием процесса горения твердого топлива при различных компоновках горелок и сопл. Разработана безразмерная схема сжигания угольной пыли в традиционной топке с восходящим движением дымовых газов. Использование упрощенной численной модели за счет определенных настроек позволило приблизить результаты моделирования топочной аэродинамики без учета протекания химических реакций к результатам с горением, что дало возможность существенно сократить время на проведение исследований. В результате моделирования топочной аэродинамики инвертной топки был выбран оптимальный вариант расположения прямоточных горелок и сопл. В статье рассмотрены основные особенности использования каждого способа исследования, критерии оптимизации, объекты исследования, исходные схемы сжигания, конструктивные параметры схем сжигания, изменяемые в ходе оптимизации, а также основные результаты выполненных оптимизаций. Полученные с помощью двух подходов к проведению исследований схемы сжигания твердого топлива с применением прямоточных горелочных устройств и сопл обеспечивают работу рассматриваемых топочных камер с лучшими значениями показателей эффективности и экономичности, чем при традиционном сжигании аналогичного топлива в топках с жидким шлакоудалением, находящимся на допустимом для Российской Федерации уровн

EUNIS Habitat Classification: Expert system, characteristic species combinations and distribution maps of European habitats

Aim: The EUNIS Habitat Classification is a widely used reference framework for European habitat types (habitats), but it lacks formal definitions of individual habitats that would enable their unequivocal identification. Our goal was to develop a tool for assigning vegetation‐plot records to the habitats of the EUNIS system, use it to classify a European vegetation‐plot database, and compile statistically‐derived characteristic species combinations and distribution maps for these habitats. Location: Europe. Methods: We developed the classification expert system EUNIS‐ESy, which contains definitions of individual EUNIS habitats based on their species composition and geographic location. Each habitat was formally defined as a formula in a computer language combining algebraic and set‐theoretic concepts with formal logical operators. We applied this expert system to classify 1,261,373 vegetation plots from the European Vegetation Archive (EVA) and other databases. Then we determined diagnostic, constant and dominant species for each habitat by calculating species‐to‐habitat fidelity and constancy (occurrence frequency) in the classified data set. Finally, we mapped the plot locations for each habitat. Results: Formal definitions were developed for 199 habitats at Level 3 of the EUNIS hierarchy, including 25 coastal, 18 wetland, 55 grassland, 43 shrubland, 46 forest and 12 man‐made habitats. The expert system classified 1,125,121 vegetation plots to these habitat groups and 73,188 to other habitats, while 63,064 plots remained unclassified or were classified to more than one habitat. Data on each habitat were summarized in factsheets containing habitat description, distribution map, corresponding syntaxa and characteristic species combination. Conclusions: EUNIS habitats were characterized for the first time in terms of their species composition and distribution, based on a classification of a European database of vegetation plots using the newly developed electronic expert system EUNIS‐ESy. The data provided and the expert system have considerable potential for future use in European nature conservation planning, monitoring and assessment

Phenological shifts of abiotic events, producers and consumers across a continent

Ongoing climate change can shift organism phenology in ways that vary depending on species, habitats and climate factors studied. To probe for large-scale patterns in associated phenological change, we use 70,709 observations from six decades of systematic monitoring across the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Among 110 phenological events related to plants, birds, insects, amphibians and fungi, we find a mosaic of change, defying simple predictions of earlier springs, later autumns and stronger changes at higher latitudes and elevations. Site mean temperature emerged as a strong predictor of local phenology, but the magnitude and direction of change varied with trophic level and the relative timing of an event. Beyond temperature-associated variation, we uncover high variation among both sites and years, with some sites being characterized by disproportionately long seasons and others by short ones. Our findings emphasize concerns regarding ecosystem integrity and highlight the difficulty of predicting climate change outcomes. The authors use systematic monitoring across the former USSR to investigate phenological changes across taxa. The long-term mean temperature of a site emerged as a strong predictor of phenological change, with further imprints of trophic level, event timing, site, year and biotic interactions.Peer reviewe

Chronicles of nature calendar, a long-term and large-scale multitaxon database on phenology

We present an extensive, large-scale, long-term and multitaxon database on phenological and climatic variation, involving 506,186 observation dates acquired in 471 localities in Russian Federation, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Belarus and Kyrgyzstan. The data cover the period 1890-2018, with 96% of the data being from 1960 onwards. The database is rich in plants, birds and climatic events, but also includes insects, amphibians, reptiles and fungi. The database includes multiple events per species, such as the onset days of leaf unfolding and leaf fall for plants, and the days for first spring and last autumn occurrences for birds. The data were acquired using standardized methods by permanent staff of national parks and nature reserves (87% of the data) and members of a phenological observation network (13% of the data). The database is valuable for exploring how species respond in their phenology to climate change. Large-scale analyses of spatial variation in phenological response can help to better predict the consequences of species and community responses to climate change.Peer reviewe

<scp>ReSurveyEurope</scp>: A database of resurveyed vegetation plots in Europe

AbstractAimsWe introduce ReSurveyEurope — a new data source of resurveyed vegetation plots in Europe, compiled by a collaborative network of vegetation scientists. We describe the scope of this initiative, provide an overview of currently available data, governance, data contribution rules, and accessibility. In addition, we outline further steps, including potential research questions.ResultsReSurveyEurope includes resurveyed vegetation plots from all habitats. Version 1.0 of ReSurveyEurope contains 283,135 observations (i.e., individual surveys of each plot) from 79,190 plots sampled in 449 independent resurvey projects. Of these, 62,139 (78%) are permanent plots, that is, marked in situ, or located with GPS, which allow for high spatial accuracy in resurvey. The remaining 17,051 (22%) plots are from studies in which plots from the initial survey could not be exactly relocated. Four data sets, which together account for 28,470 (36%) plots, provide only presence/absence information on plant species, while the remaining 50,720 (64%) plots contain abundance information (e.g., percentage cover or cover–abundance classes such as variants of the Braun‐Blanquet scale). The oldest plots were sampled in 1911 in the Swiss Alps, while most plots were sampled between 1950 and 2020.ConclusionsReSurveyEurope is a new resource to address a wide range of research questions on fine‐scale changes in European vegetation. The initiative is devoted to an inclusive and transparent governance and data usage approach, based on slightly adapted rules of the well‐established European Vegetation Archive (EVA). ReSurveyEurope data are ready for use, and proposals for analyses of the data set can be submitted at any time to the coordinators. Still, further data contributions are highly welcome.</jats:sec

Syntaxonomy of the xero-mesophytic oak forests in the Republic of Tatarstan (Eastern Europe)

Aims: To develop a syntaxonomic classification of the xero-mesophytic broad-leaved oak forests of the Republic of Tatarstan with a preliminary analysis of their unique ecological features. Study area: The Republic of Tatarstan (European part of the Russian Federation). Methods: A total of 91 relevés were processed. Most of them (73.6%) were sampled in Tatarstan during 2016 and 2017, the remaining ones (26.4%) were historical published data. They were classified by means of a modified TWINSPAN algorithm using total inertia as a heterogeneity measure. Diagnostic, constant, and dominant species were identified using analytical tools in the JUICE 7.0 program. Results: The xero-mesophytic forests of the study area were assigned to four clusters. We describe two of them as new associations: Astragalo ciceri-Quercetum roboris ass. nova and Sanguisorbo officinalis-Quercetum roboris ass. nova. We classify them within the class Quercetea pubescentis. Conclusions: Our study is the first attempt to classify thermophilous and xero-mesophytic oak forests of the Republic of Tatarstan using the Braun-Blanquet system. Taxonomic reference: Czerepanov (1995). Syntaxonomic reference: Mucina et al. (2016) unless stated otherwise in the text. Abbreviations: GIVD = Global Index of Vegetation-Plot Databases; NMDS = Non-metric multidimensional scaling