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Background and purpose: One of the most important mechanisms of tissue regeneration is the high functional activity of cells, including proliferation. Currently, there are practically no effective skin cell activators on the pharmaceutical market. The purpose of this work was to demonstrate the stimulating effect of spiroconjugated 1,2,3-triazolo[5,1-b]1,3,4-thiadiazine (STT) on the functional activity of fibroblasts. Experimental approach: STT containing ointment for dermal application was made. To assess in vivo effect of the STT a linear wound model in rats was tested. A combination of histological techniques and mechanical testing was employed to estimate the stimulating effect of STT on the functional activity of fibroblasts. Findings/Results: The STT significantly increased the number of fibroblasts as well as the density and order of produced collagen fibers in the dermis during the wound healing process. As a result, a tissue was formed at the site of damage with the structure corresponding to normal skin. In addition, skin functions were restored, in particular mechanically. Conclusion and implications: The results suggested the stimulating effect of the STT on fibroblast activity and demonstrated its potential for skin regeneration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prime editing is a rapidly developing method of CRISPR/Cas-based genome editing. The increasing number of novel PE applications and improved versions demands constant analysis and evaluation. The present review covers the mechanism of prime editing, the optimization of the method and the possible next step in the evolution of CRISPR/Cas9-associated genome editing. The basic components of a prime editing system are a prime editor fusion protein, consisting of nickase and reverse transcriptase, and prime editing guide RNA, consisting of a protospacer, scaffold, primer binding site and reverse transcription template. Some prime editing systems include other parts, such as additional RNA molecules. All of these components were optimized to achieve better efficiency for different target organisms and/or compactization for viral delivery. Insights into prime editing mechanisms allowed us to increase the efficiency by recruiting mismatch repair inhibitors. However, the next step in prime editing evolution requires the incorporation of new mechanisms. Prime editors combined with integrases allow us to combine the precision of prime editing with the target insertion of large, several-kilobase-long DNA fragments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The many recent crises in Belarus are often seen through the prism of democratization, post-communist transition, and nation- and identity-building. As a rule, it is put into the context of the 1989 democratization in Central and Eastern Europe and compared with similar societal mobilization in Georgia (2003), Ukraine (2004; 2014), and Kyrgyzstan (2005). This article, however, argues that while these theoretical approaches provide an important explanatory potential, they nevertheless fail to account for informal, hidden, and unstable processes presently unfolding in the Belarusian society, leading to profound change. We argue that, in the vulnerable, unpredictable, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) world of today, our knowledge and ability to plan and achieve desirable outcomes are limited in contrast to a largely positivist or interpretivist epistemology of the mainstream theories, which conceive of the world as a closed system. In this article, we offer an alternative explanation of the many crises in Belarus by drawing on the insights of complexity-thinking to suggest that (hidden) transformative change in the country is now irreversible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-throughput protein assays are crucial for modern diagnostics, drug discovery, proteomics, and other fields of biology and medicine. It allows simultaneous detection of hundreds of analytes and miniaturization of both fabrication and analytical procedures. Photonic crystal surface mode (PC SM) imaging is an effective alternative to surface plasmon resonance (SPR) imaging used in conventional gold-coated, label-free biosensors. PC SM imaging is advantageous as a quick, label-free, and reproducible technique for multiplexed analysis of biomolecular interactions. PC SM sensors are characterized by a longer signal propagation at the cost of a lower spatial resolution, which makes them more sensitive than classical SPR imaging sensors. We describe an approach for designing label-free protein biosensing assays employing PC SM imaging in the microfluidic mode. Label-free, real-time detection of PC SM imaging biosensors using two-dimensional imaging of binding events has been designed to study arrays of model proteins (antibodies, immunoglobulin G-binding proteins, serum proteins, and DNA repair proteins) at 96 points prepared by automated spotting. The data prove feasibility of simultaneous PC SM imaging of multiple protein interactions. The results pave the way to further develop PC SM imaging as an advanced label-free microfluidic assay for the multiplexed detection of protein interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This introduction to the Special Issue problematises the necessity to rethink governance through the lens of resilience and suggests a novel conceptualisation of resilience. Building the argument on complexity-thinking, this issue contends that in the context of change and complex life, challenges are most efficiently dealt with, at the source, 'locally', to make 'the global' more sustainable. Accordingly, the concept of resilience as self-governance is advanced in the introduction as an overriding framework to explore its constitutive elements—identity, 'good life', local coping strategies and support infrastructures—which, when mobilised, can turn community into 'peoplehood' in the face of adversity. This conceptualisation, we argue, explains what makes communities adapt and transform, and how they should be governed today. Central Eurasia, spanning from Belarus in the west, to Azerbaijan in the south and Tajikistan in the east, provides fertile grounds for exploring how resilience works in practice in times of complex change. By immersing into centuries-long traditions and philosophy, local experiences of survival, and visions for change, this introduction—along with the Special Issue—shows that governability at any level requires a substantive 'local' input to make 'the global' more enduring and resilient in a complex adaptive world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In January 2021, the single market of medicines of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) was launched. This article describes the current status of the transition to unified rules for the registration of medicinal products and the main regulatory documents for conducting clinical trials in the EAEU region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coupling between soil, vegetation and atmosphere is thought to be crucial in the development and intensification of weather extremes, especially meteorological droughts, heat waves and severe storms. Therefore, understanding the evolution of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) and the role of land–atmosphere feedbacks is necessary for earlier warnings, better climate projection and timely societal adaptation. However, this understanding is hampered by the difficulties of attributing cause–effect relationships from complex coupled models and the irregular space–time distribution of in situ observations of the land–atmosphere system. As such, there is a need for simple deterministic appraisals that systematically discriminate land–atmosphere interactions from observed weather phenomena over large domains and climatological time spans. Here, we present a new interactive data platform to study the behavior of the ABL and land–atmosphere interactions based on worldwide weather balloon soundings and an ABL model. This software tool – referred to as CLASS4GL (http://class4gl.eu , last access: 27 May 2018) – is developed with the objectives of (a) mining appropriate global observational data from ∼15 million weather balloon soundings since 1981 and combining them with satellite and reanalysis data and (b) constraining and initializing a numerical model of the daytime evolution of the ABL that serves as a tool to interpret these observations mechanistically and deterministically. As a result, it fully automizes extensive global model experiments to assess the effects of land and atmospheric conditions on the ABL evolution as observed in different climate regions around the world. The suitability of the set of observations, model formulations and global parameters employed by CLASS4GL is extensively validated. In most cases, the framework is able to realistically reproduce the observed daytime response of the mixed-layer height, potential temperature and specific humidity from the balloon soundings. In this extensive global validation exercise, a bias of 10.1 m h -1 , -0.036 K h -1 and 0.06 g kg -1 h -1 is found for the morning-to-afternoon evolution of the mixed-layer height, potential temperature and specific humidity. The virtual tool is in continuous development and aims to foster a better process understanding of the drivers of the ABL evolution and their global distribution, particularly during the onset and amplification of weather extremes. Finally, it can also be used to scrutinize the representation of land–atmosphere feedbacks and ABL dynamics in Earth system models, numerical weather prediction models, atmospheric reanalysis and satellite retrievals, with the ultimate goal of improving local climate projections, providing earlier warning of extreme weather and fostering a more effective development of climate adaptation strategies. The tool can be easily downloaded via http://class4gl.eu (last access: 27 May 2018) and is open source. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coupling between soil, vegetation and atmosphere is thought to be crucial in the development and intensification of weather extremes, especially meteorological droughts, heatwaves and severe storms. Therefore, understanding evolution of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) and the role of land-atmosphere feedbacks is necessary for earlier warnings, better climate projection and timely societal adaptation. However, this understanding is hampered by the difficulties to attribute cause-effect relationships from complex coupled models, and the irregular space-time distribution of in situ observations of the land-atmosphere system. As such, there is a need for simple deterministic appraisals that systematically discriminate land-atmosphere interactions from observed weather phenomena over large domains and climatological time spans. Here, we present a new interactive data platform to study the behaviour of the ABL and land-atmosphere interactions based on worldwide weather balloon soundings and an ABL model. This software tool - referred to as CLASS4GL (http://class4gl.eu) - is developed with the objectives to (a) mine appropriate global observational data from over 2 million weather balloon soundings since 1981 and combine them with satellite and reanalysis data, and (b) constrain and initialize a numerical model of the daytime evolution of the ABL that serves as a tool to interpret these observations mechanistically and deterministically. As a result, it fully automises extensive global model experiments to assess the effects of land and atmospheric conditions on the ABL evolution as observed in different climate regions around the world. The suitability of the set of observations, model formulations and global parameters employed by CLASS4GL is extensively validated. In most cases, the framework is able to realistically reproduce the observed daytime response of the ABL height, potential temperature and specific humidity from the balloon soundings. In this extensive global validation exercise, a bias of 0.2mh-1, -0.052Kh-1 and 0.07gkg-1h-1 is found for the morning-to-afternoon evolution of the ABL height, potential temperature and specific humidity. The virtual tool is in continuous development, and aims to foster a better process-understanding of the drivers of the ABL evolution and their global distribution, particularly during the onset and amplification of weather extremes. Finally, it can also be used to scrutinize the representation of land-atmosphere feedbacks and ABL dynamics in Earth system models, numerical weather prediction models, atmospheric reanalysis, and satellite retrievals, with the ultimate goal to improve local climate projections, provide earlier warning of extreme weather, and foster a more effective development of climate adaptation strategies. The tool can be easily downloaded via http://class4gl.eu and is open source. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several new comb-like stereoregular cyclolinear methylsiloxane copolymers exhibiting the self-assembling behaviour have been designed and studied. For the resulting macromolecular materials, the chiral mesogenic unit, namely (S)-(-)-4-[1-ethoxycarbonyl)ethoxycarbonyl]phenyl-4′-[11-tetramethyldisiloxyl)-undecenyloxy)-biphenyl-4′-carboxylate, has been used as a side group to assure the mesomorphic behaviour. The mesomorphic and structural properties were studied by the polarising optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry and small-/wide-angle X-ray diffraction techniques. The designed copolymers form the orthogonal smectic A* and the tilted smectic C* phases over relatively broad temperature range, down to room temperatures. The obtained results are discussed in order to contribute to better understanding of the molecular architecture-nano-organisation relationship for a specific type of macromolecular system based on the lactic acid derivatives used as a flexible side groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent changes in the European Union's (EU) regional and global environment triggered academic revision of the concept of the EU international actorness. A trend is emerging to analyse the EU through the prism of geopolitics, which is often presented as an opposition to the dominating Normative Power Europe approach. This article argues for a more nuanced and comprehensive approach to the EU's power. By applying Barnett and Duvall's (2005) taxonomy of power to EU foreign policy analysis, the study focuses on compulsory, institutional, structural and productive types of power employed by the EU towards Armenia. In a second step, it is contended that since power is a relational concept, it can be better accounted for when analysed from the point of view of policy receiver. To this end, two questions are addressed: how are the different types of power exercised by the EU in the Eastern Partnership region perceived in Armenia? And what explains these perceptions? The findings show that all four types of power are perceived as seriously limited in Armenia, institutional power being the most successful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research relevance stems from a need to improve the efficiency of independent work done by students through implementation of the principles of student-centered learning. The research purpose is to substantiate the method for organizing student-centered independent learning of students with the help of transformable academic course. The core idea is to design an academic course that can be easily transformed into a learning format comfortable for the student due to its modular content having multidimensional structure of educational material representation. The paper describes an example of building the transformable academic course for independent learning of Informatics discipline. Paper materials represent high practical value for teachers delivering student-centered academic course. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The regional inter-parliamentary cooperation assembly, Euronest, has been described in the context of the Eastern Partnership (EaP) policy, yet not conceptually analysed. This article therefore aims to focus on the identification of the driving forces behind multilateral parliamentary cooperation in the EaP region. Following a literature review, three conceptual interpretations of the drivers of inter-parliamentary cooperation can be pointed out: institutionalization, socialization and parliamentary diplomacy. The research shows that all the three possible explanations play a role in driving the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly. Parliamentary diplomacy, including both formal and informal tracks, is concluded to play the leading role in the development of Euronest. Institutions, such as secretariats and political party families, have a lot of potential but are still in their infancy. Socialization is seen as a goal of Euronest, but with serious limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eigen techniques such as empirical orthogonal function (EOF) or coupled pattern (CP)/maximum covariance analysis have been frequently used for detecting patterns in multivariate climatological data sets. Recently, statistical methods originating from the theory of complex networks have been employed for the very same purpose of spatio-temporal analysis. This climate network (CN) analysis is usually based on the same set of similarity matrices as is used in classical EOF or CP analysis, e.g., the correlation matrix of a single climatological field or the cross-correlation matrix between two distinct climatological fields. In this study, formal relationships as well as conceptual differences between both eigen and network approaches are derived and illustrated using global precipitation, evaporation and surface air temperature data sets. These results allow us to pinpoint that CN analysis can complement classical eigen techniques and provides additional information on the higher-order structure of statistical interrelationships in climatological data. Hence, CNs are a valuable supplement to the statistical toolbox of the climatologist, particularly for making sense out of very large data sets such as those generated by satellite observations and climate model intercomparison exercises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the goals of higher professional education is to develop generic student competencies across a variety of disciplines that play a crucial role in education and that provide wider opportunities for graduates in finding good jobs and more chance of promotion. In this article a list of generic competencies developed in Russian universities is compared with a similar list developed by a consortium of Russian and European universities (project TUNING-RUSSIA). Then there is a second comparison with a list of competencies taken from the CDIO Syllabus. This comparison indicates the degree of similarity among the lists and the possible convergence among universities all over the world. The results are taken from a survey carried out among Russian employers, academics, and graduates. The survey asked to rate each listed competence by its importance and the degree of achieving goals in the process of the education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polycondensation of four stereoisomers of (tetrahydroxy)(tetraphenyl)cyclotetrasiloxane in solution in the presence of layeredarchitecture compounds afforded polyphenylsilsesquioxanes with different conformational and configurational structures of the siloxane framework, determined by IR, 29 Si NMR spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffraction and MALDI analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rate of hydrolysis–condensation reaction of phenyltrichlorosilane in water-acetone solutions and the product yields were shown to significantly depend on the concentration of HCl (CHCl) in the solutions. The main product of the reaction was all-cis-(tetrahydroxy)(tetraphenyl)cyclotetrasiloxane. This was different from the earlier published results of analogous reactions of m-tolylSiCl3, m-ClPhSiCl3, and α-naphtylSiCl, in which some products of other types were formed. For example, trans-1,1,3,3-tetrahydroxy-1,3-di-α-naphtyldisiloxane was obtained in the case of α-naphtylSiCl3. All-cis-(tetrahydroxy)(tetraphenyl)cyclotetrasiloxane was treated in acetone with HCl to give the other three geometric isomers (cis-cis-trans-, cis-trans-, and all-trans-). The thermal self-condensation of these four isomers under "pseudo"-equilibrium conditions (under atmospheric pressure) was investigated in different solvents, in quartz or molybdenum glass flasks. The compositions of the products were monitored by APCI-MS and 29Si NMR spectroscopy. It was shown that all-cis- and cis-cis-trans-isomers in toluene or anisole mostly gave the cage-like Ph-T8,10,12,14 and uncompleted cage-like Ph-T10,12OSi(HO)Ph compounds. In contrast to these two isomers, the cis-trans–isomer in toluene mainly formed dimers with the loss of one or two molecules of water. However, in acetonitrile, significant amounts of Ph-T10,12 and Ph-T10,12OSi(HO)Ph species were formed along with the dimers. All-trans-isomer did not enter into the reaction at all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comb-shaped liquid crystalline (LC) stereoregular cyclolinear methylsiloxane copolymers with mesogenic chiral lactic side group were synthesized. X-ray study showed that tacticity of the main cyclolinear methylsiloxane chain influences intra- and intermolecular ordering in LC state. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The hydrolysis–condensation reactions of m-tolyl, m-chlorophenyl, and α-naphtyl-trichlorsilanes, (1, 2, and 3, respectively) in water-acetone solutions were examined for how they were influenced by the change in the concentration of HCl (CHCl). The composition of the products was monitored by 29Si NMR spectroscopy and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry (APCI-MS). The acidity of the medium was shown to affect the yields of the products, and so, what products were formed. For 3, e.g., APCI-MS showed peaks of α-naphtyl-T8 and α-naphtyl-T10 as the most abundant in the spectra taken after 48 and 240 h for the reaction conducted at CHCl = 0.037 mol L−1. Unlike this, at CHCl = 0.15 mol L−1, those peaks were of [α-naphtyl(HO)2SiO]2(α-naphtyl)(HO)Si and/or [α-naphtyl(HO)Si]3, [α-naphtyl(HO)Si]4,5, and α-naphtyl-T8 after 192 h. However, at both CHCl values, the main product (and an intermediate) after 24 h was trans-1,1,3,3-tetrahydroxy-1,3-di-α-naphtyldisiloxane. It was isolated and its structure established by 1H-, 29Si-NMR, and X-ray powder diffraction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circulating cancer markers are metabolic products found in body fluids of cancer patients, which are specific for a certain type of malignant tumors. Cancer marker detection plays a key role in cancer diagnosis, treatment, and disease monitoring. The growing need for early cancer diagnosis requires quick and sensitive analytical approaches to detection of cancer markers. The approach based on the photonic crystal surface mode (PC SM) detection has been developed as a label-free high-precision biosensing technique. It allows real-time monitoring of molecular and cellular interactions using independent recording of the total internal reflection angle and the excitation angle of the PC surface wave. We used the PC SM technique for simultaneous detection of the ovarian cancer marker cancer antigen 125 and two breast cancer markers, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 and cancer antigen 15-3. The new assay is based on the real-time flow detection of specific interaction between the antigens and capture antibodies. Its particular advantage is the possibility of multichannel recording with the same chip, which can be used for multiplexed detection of several cancer markers in a single experiment. The developed approach demonstrates high specificity and sensitivity for detection of all three biomarkers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coupling between soil, vegetation and atmosphere is thought to be crucial in the development and intensification of weather extremes, especially meteorological droughts, heat waves and severe storms. Therefore, understanding evolution of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) and the role of land–atmosphere feedbacks in that behaviour is necessary for earlier warnings, better climate projection and timely societal adaptation. However, this understanding is hampered by (a) the difficulties to attribute cause–effect relationships from complex coupled models, and (b) the irregular space-time distribution of in situ observations of the land–atmosphere system. As such, there is a need for simple deterministic appraisals that systematically discriminate land–atmosphere interactions from observed weather phenomena over large domains and climatological time spans. Here, we present a new interactive data platform to study the behaviour the ABL and land–atmosphere interactions based on global weather balloon soundings. This software tool, referred to as CLASS4GL, is developed with the objectives to (a) mine appropriate global observational data from over 2 million weather balloon soundings since 1981 together with satellite and reanalysis data into a single database, and (b) constrain and initialize a numerical model of the daytime evolution of the ABL that serves as a tool to interpret these observations mechanistically and deterministically. The suitability of the existing observations, model formulations, and surface parameter databases employed by CLASS4GL is extensively validated. In most cases, the framework is able to realistically reproduce the observed daytime response of the ABL height, potential temperature and specific humidity from the balloon soundings. The virtual tool is open-source and remains in continuous development. The software infrastructure allows the research community to easily employ extensive global sensitivity experiments for addressing the effect of land conditions and atmosphere dynamics on the ABL evolution. As such, it should foster a better process-understanding of the drivers of the ABL evolution and its global and climatological distribution, including the onset and amplification of weather extremes. Finally, it can be used to study the representation of land–atmosphere feedbacks and ABL dynamics in Earth System Models, reanalysis data and remote sensing products, with the ultimate goal to improve local climate projections, to provide earlier warnings of extreme weather, and to foster a more effective development of climate adaptation strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drought is arguably the climate and weather phenomenon that most strongly impacts societies worldwide, causing severe socioeconomic and ecologic damage. While models unanimously project an overall increase in aridity and drought occurrence in the future, observational evidence has so far been inconclusive. The discrepancies between the various drought definitions and drought indices has been a major factor contributing to our low confidence in observed global trends. In this study we investigate global trends in meteorological dry spells using a simple and intuitive diagnostic: the maximum annual number of consecutive dry days (CDDs). In contrast to popular drought indices, the number of CDDs is a direct measure of rainfall scarcity, easy to quantify based on rain data, free of parametrizations, and independent from other proxies. Previous analyses of trends in CDDs have been based on in situ rain gauges. While they may cover relatively long periods, they still suffer from spatial and temporal discontinuity, changes in accuracy in time, and various other quality-control issues. Because the time-span of available precipitation data records is constantly increasing, current satellite-based products are becoming an alternative to obtain spatially and temporally consistent global trends in CDDs. In particular, the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) has now been operational for over twenty years, thus offering a unique opportunity to analyze temporally-coherent single-platform precipitation data. Here, we use TRMM3B42 3-hourly data for 1998–2018, gap-filled with CMORPH-v1.0, to calculate and analyze the maximum annual number of CDDs worldwide. Preliminary results show that 30-–40% of the continental land monitored by TRMM experiences significant positive trends in the maximum annual number of CDDs. In depth analysis reveals that about 60% of this signal lies in regions that are affected by seasonal monsoons, and originates at most during the spring dry season. Further analyses relate the trends in CDDs to the intensity of monsoonal circulation and rainfall, and the role of land–atmospheric feedbacks. Our findings emphasize the vulnerability of global monsoon regions, where agriculture is mostly rainfed and population relies on rainfall availability and variability. An increasing length of dry spells as we progress into the future might lead to devastating socioeconomic and ecologic consequences in these regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent observational studies have demonstrated the relevance of soil moisture heterogeneity and the associated thermally-induced circulation on deep convection and rainfall triggering. However, whether this dynamical mechanism further influences rainfall properties—such as rain volume or timing—has yet to be confirmed by observational data. Here, we analyze 10 years of satellite-based sub-daily soil moisture and precipitation records and explore the potential of strong spatial gradients in morning soil moisture to influence the properties of afternoon rainfall in the North African region, at the 100-km scale. We find that the convective rain systems that form over locally drier soils and anomalously strong soil moisture gradients have a tendency to initiate earlier in the afternoon; they also yield lower volumes of rain, weaker intensity and lower spatial variability. The strongest sensitivity to antecedent soil conditions is identified for the timing of the rain onset; it is found to be correlated with the magnitude of the soil moisture gradient. Further analysis shows that the early initiation of rainfall over dry soils and strong surface gradients yet requires the presence of a very moist boundary layer on that day. Our findings agree well with the expected effects of thermally-induced circulation on rainfall properties suggested by theoretical studies and point to the potential of locally drier and heterogeneous soils to influence convective rainfall development. The systematic nature of the identified effect of soil moisture state on the onset time of rainstorms in the region is of particular relevance and may help foster research on rainfall predictability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the study was to 1) measure time-course alternations in the rate of protein synthesis (PS) and phosphorylation status of the key anabolic markers, and 2) find out the role of stretch-activated ion channels (SACs) in the activation of anabolic signaling in the rat soleus during an acute reloading following disuse atrophy. Wistar rats were subjected to 14-day hindlimb suspension (HS) followed by 6, 12, and 24 h of reloading. To examine the role of SAC in the reloading-induced activation of anabolic signaling, the rats were treated with gadolinium (Gd3+), a SAC blocker. The content of signaling proteins was determined by Western blot. c-Myc mRNA expression was assessed by RT-PCR. After 24-h reloading, the PS rate was elevated by 44% versus control. After 6-h reloading, the p-70-kDa ribosomal protein S6 kinase (p70S6k) and translation initiation factor 4E-binding protein 1 (4E-BP1) did not differ from control; however, 12-h reloading resulted in an upregulation of both p70s6k and 4E-BP1 phosphorylation versus control. The phosphorylation of AKT (Ser473) and glycogen synthase kinase-3β (Ser9) was reduced after HS and then completely restored by 12-h reloading. c-Myc was significantly upregulated during the entire reloading. Gd3+ treatment during reloading (12 h) prevented a full phosphorylation of p70S6k, rpS6, 4E-BP1, as well as PS activation. The results of the study suggest that 1) enhanced PS during the acute recovery from HS may be associated with the activation of ribosome biogenesis as well as mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1)-dependent signaling pathways, and 2) functional SACs are necessary for complete activation of mTORC1 signaling in rat soleus during acute recovery from HS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most critical problems throughout the world is air pollution, causing the death of millions of individuals annually, and it is reported that 90% of the global population breathes polluted air. Among the components of air pollution, the most harmful ones are the heavy metals, which can remain non-degraded in nature for a long time, bio-accumulate in living organisms, and be toxic or carcinogenic at low concentrations. Hence, monitoring and reducing heavy metal pollution in the air are high-priority research topics. Heavy metals can accumulate within various organs of plants grown in an environment with an increased level of heavy metal pollution. The metal analyses on these organs can provide insight into the heavy metal pollution in the air. In the present study, the concentrations of aluminum (Al), one of the most important heavy metals, were determined in the different organs of five plant species grown in regions with different traffic densities. Remarkable changes were observed in the Al concentrations in all the organs of species, which were examined here by organ and traffic density. The highest values were obtained from the organs of plants grown in no-traffic regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The DYSF gene encoding dysferlin protein is one of the largest and has many transcripts. Pathogenic variants in the gene can lead to various types of myopathies, which makes it a good object for studying the events occurring in it during genome editing by the CRISPR/Cas method. In this study, we evaluated the possibility of permanent skipping of exons 3–4, and 26–27 which deletion does not violate the reading frame and allows to eliminate truncated variants within exons. Editing was performed with simultaneous transfection of two sgRNA- and sa/spCas9-containing plasmids on HEK293T cell cultures and healthy donor myoblasts. Skipping of exons 3–4 was performed by destroying the splicing acceptor sites, and exons 26–27 by cuts in the flanking exons with the corresponding deletion in the DNA. Some unexpected results were obtained, when exons 26–27 were skipped, exon 30 was also absent in the transcript, although it is not alternatively spliced and is normally present in all transcripts. This event indicates that DNA changes near splicing sites can affect adjacent exons and the whole gene. However, this fact requires further study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oligo- and polycyclosiloxanes were obtained by the polycondensation of (tetrahydroxy)(tetraaryl)cyclotetrasiloxanes in equilibrium and non-equilibrium conditions in the presence and absence of montmorillonite (MMT). Their composition and the structures of their components were investigated by infrared (IR) spectroscopy, 29Si nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) mass spectrometry, powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), and gel-penetrating chromatography (GPC). Also, a comparison of polymers formed in the presence of MMT and via anionic polymerization was performed showing differences in their structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hard ticks are the vectors of many pathogens including tick-borne encephalitis virus and the Lyme disease agent Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato. In Eastern Siberia, Ixodes persulcatus, Dermacentor nuttalli, Dermacentor silvarum and Haemaphysalis concinna are regarded as aggressive to humans. Recently, significant changes in world tick fauna have been reported and this affects the spread of tick-borne pathogens. We studied the current species diversity, population structure and prevalence of tick-borne pathogens of hard ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) that attacked humans in Eastern Siberia (Irkutsk region, Russia). In total, 31,892 individual ticks were identified and analysed during the years 2007-2014. The majority (85.4 %) of victims was bitten by I. persulcatus, 14.55 % of attacks on humans were caused by D. nuttalli and D. silvarum, whereas H. concinna was documented only in 15 cases (0.05 %). The seasonal activity and the age/gender structure of the tick population were studied as well. Among all the studied ticks, three unconventional species, i.e. Rhipicephalus sanguineus, Dermacentor reticulatus and Amblyomma americanum, were identified. Analysis of tick bite histories indicates at least three events of invasion of non-endemic ticks into the ecosystems of northern Eurasia with harsh continental climates. Invading ticks are able to reach the adult life stage and are aggressive to the local human population. Phylogenetic analysis of mt 16S rRNA gene fragments suggests multiple independent routes of tick migration to Eastern Siberia. Possible implications to human health and epidemiology of tick-borne infections are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cyclolinear organocarbosiloxane polymers with varying content and location of (CH2)n groups in the monomer unit were synthesized by reactions of heterofunctional polycondensation and polyaddition of difunctional organocyclosiloxanes and organocyclocarbosiloxanes. Their bulk properties were studied by differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray structural analysis. It was shown that on introduction of CH2 groups into the methylcyclohexasiloxane unit, the polymer retains the ability to self-organize with formation of a mesomorphic state in a wide temperature range, while on introduction of (CH2)2 fragments in a cyclotetrasiloxane unit or in a bridge connecting two methylcyclotetra(hexa)siloxane units it does not. Comparison of the X-ray data of dihydroxy derivatives of decamethylcyclohexasiloxane and decamethyl-5-carbocyclohexasiloxane with packing of cyclolinear organosilicon polymers in bulk shows that the polymer inherits the layered type of crystalline structure typical for monomers. Langmuir films of cyclolinear polymethylcarbosiloxanes with different design of monomer units were studied as well. It was revealed that all polymers form monomolecular films at the air/water interface, excluding those having longer hydrophobic fragment than hydrophilic ones. The ability to form multilayers depends on the surroundings of Si atom in the bridge between the cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The polycondensation of the cis and cis-trans-cis stereoisomers of (tetrahydroxy)(tetraphenyl)cyclotetrasiloxane in different ratios in solution in the presence of montmorillonite affords polyphenylsilsesquioxanes with different unit conformations and cyclolinear siloxane framework configuration as confirmed by 29 Si NMR spectroscopy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]