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We present the first record of Holocene fossil insect assemblages from Central Yakutia. A stratigraphic sequence in the locality within the Vilyuy River valley is a buried oxbow. The late Holocene water body inherited an impervious stratum from the late Pleistocene. The organic layer preserved rich fossil assemblages of macrofossils including insects and other invertebrates, plants, and charcoal. The ancient flora and fauna include species that are common in Yakutia as well as those that are rare and absent in the region. The most abundant finds are leech cocoons and bogbean seeds. The macrofossils of some insects were found along with remains of their host plants. Despite the absence of intensive human land use in the area, traces of fires were recorded. The oxbow represents the environment of a floodplain wetland that developed separately from the ecosystem of the adjacent sand dunes.

BACKGROUND: The search for biological markers for the differential diagnosis of recurrent depression and bipolar depression is an important undertaking in modern psychiatry. Electroencephalography (EEG) is one of the promising tools in addressing this challenge. AIM: To identify differences in the quantitative characteristics of the electroencephalographic alpha band activity in patients with a depressive episode within the framework of recurrent depression and bipolar depression. METHODS: Two groups of patients (all women) were formed: one consisting of subjects with recurrent depressive disorder and one with subjects experiencing a current mild/moderate episode (30 patients), and subjects with bipolar affective disorder or a current episode of mild or moderate depression (30 patients). The groups did not receive pharmacotherapy and did not differ in their socio-demographic parameters or total score on the Hamilton depression scale. A baseline electroencephalogram was recorded, and the quantitative characteristics of the alpha band activity were analyzed, including the absolute spectral power, interhemispheric coherence, and EEG activation. RESULTS: The patients with recurrent depressive disorder demonstrated statistically significantly lower values of the average absolute spectral power of the alpha band (z=2.481; p=0.042), as well as less alpha attenuation from eyes closed to eyes open (z=2.573; p=0.035), as compared with the patients with bipolar affective disorder. CONCLUSION: The presented quantitative characteristics of alpha activity are confirmation that patients with affective disorders of different origins also display distinctive electrophysiological features which can become promising biomarkers and could help separate bipolar depression from the recurrent type.

Crystalline cerium(III) phosphate (CePO4), cerium(IV) phosphates, and nanocrystalline ceria are considered to be promising components of sunscreen cosmetics. This paper reports on a study in which, for the first time, a quantitative comparative analysis was performed of the UV-shielding properties of CePO4, Ce(PO4)(HPO4)0.5(H2O)0.5, and CePO4/CeO2 composites. Both the sun protection factor and protection factor against UV-A radiation of the materials were determined. Ce(PO4)(HPO4)0.5(H2O)0.5 was shown to have a sun protection factor of 2.9, which is comparable with that of nanocrystalline ceria and three times higher than the sun protection factor of CePO4. Composites containing both cerium dioxide and CePO4 demonstrated higher sun protection factors (up to 1.8) than individual CePO4. When compared with the TiO2 Aeroxide P25 reference sample, cerium(III) and cerium(IV) phosphates demonstrated negligible photocatalytic activity. A cytotoxicity analysis performed using two mammalian cell lines, hMSc and NCTC L929, showed that CePO4, Ce(PO4)(HPO4)0.5(H2O)0.5, and nanocrystalline ceria were all non-toxic. The results of this comparative study indicate that cerium(IV) phosphate Ce(PO4)(HPO4)0.5(H2O)0.5 is more advantageous for use in sunscreens than either cerium(III) phosphate or CePO4/CeO2 composites, due to its improved UV-shielding properties and low photocatalytic activity.

Background. Russia is the world leader in the number of women who are members of management bodies in top achievements sports. At the same time, the professional motivation of women engaged in boxing activities and its connection with psychological well-being have not yet been object of a special study. However, targeted management of staff motivation could help to increase their professional efficiency, satisfaction with their performance in the professional sphere and, as a result, achieve sustainable psychological well-being. Objective. To study the peculiarities of professional motivation of women who are employees of the Russian Boxing Federation (RBF), and its connection with psychological well-being. Design. The survey involved 39 women aged 23 to 59 who hold positions in the FBF. The tools used were: the Questionnaire of professional motivation by E. Desi and R. Ryan (adapted by Osin E., Ivanovа T., and Gordeevа T.), and the Questionnaire of psychological well-being by K. Riff (adapted and modified by L.V. Zhukovskaya and E.G. Troshikhina). Results of the study made it possible to determine the attractiveness factors of activities in the FBF: the main ones are “interest in activities,” “opportunities for professional development”, and “team”. Internal professional motivation dominates, which is consistent with the data on the attractiveness of the activities performed in the RBF due to interest in it, the possibility of personal development, a sense of psychological well-being from the process and the results of activities. Positive correlation of autonomous professional motivation with psychological well-being has been established. Conclusion. The data obtained made it possible to describe the peculiarities of professional motivation of women-employees of the Russian Boxing Federation and its connection with psychological well-being.

The article examines the earliest translations of Montesquieuʼs Persian Letters in the Russian language. The first Russian versions of the novel are fragmentary amateur translations included in such anthologies as Reading for Children (1779) and Selected Reading (1786) addressed to young readers. While realized independently of each other by Kapiton Bocharnikov and Ivan Chashnikov, these translations are based on the same fragment — the fable of the Troglodytes fable which is crucial in Montesquieuʼs political theory because it explains the advantages of Republic government. Comparing the original text and its translations has allowed me to reveal that Bocharnikovʼs translation relies on Lectures pour les enfants by a French childrenʼs author Arnaud Berquin as a mediator text. Another conclusion to be drawn is that while both translations relatively adequately correspond to the original text, they are different in terms of their literary value. At the same time, both translators fulfil their principal aim: withdrawn from the philosophical literature for adults, the Troglodytes fable is adopted for children as a didactic tale by both Bocharnikov and Chashnikov. This allows us to relate both translations to the tradition of translating childrenʼs literature in the second half of the 18 th century.

CO2 production in soils responds strongly to changes in temperature and moisture, but the magnitude of such responses at different timescales remains difficult to predict. Knowledge of the mechanisms leading to the often observed interactions in the effects of these drivers on soil CO2 emissions is especially limited. Here we test the ability of different soil carbon models to simulate responses measured in soils incubated at a range of moisture levels and cycled through 5, 20, and 35 °C. We applied parameter optimization methods while modifying two structural components of models: (1) the reaction kinetics of decomposition and uptake and (2) the functions relating fluxes to soil moisture. We found that the observed interactive patterns were best simulated by a model using Michaelis–Menten decomposition kinetics combined with diffusion of dissolved carbon (C) and enzymes. In contrast, conventional empirical functions that scale decomposition rates directly were unable to properly simulate the main observed interactions. Our best model was able to explain 87 % of the variation in the data. Model simulations revealed a central role of Michaelis–Menten kinetics as a driver of temperature sensitivity variations as well as a decoupling of decomposition and respiration C fluxes in the short and mid-term, with general sensitivities to temperature and moisture being more pronounced for respiration. Sensitivity to different model parameters was highest for those affecting diffusion limitations, followed by activation energies, the Michaelis–Menten constant, and carbon use efficiency. Testing against independent data strongly validated the model (R2 = 0.99) and highlighted the importance of initial soil C pool conditions. Our results demonstrate the importance of model structure and the central role of diffusion and reaction kinetics for simulating and understanding complex dynamics in soil C.

The fate of The Spirit of Laws by Ch.-L. Montesquieu in Russia in the second half of the 18 th century is an example of ambiguous reception that the French enlightener and his ideas received at that time prompting both imitation and polemics. The origin of these controversies is in the unfavorable image of Russia that Montesquieu represented as a country of despotism and slavery. The ideas developed in the treatise incited various Russian authors to nourish their own thinking about the country, especially concerning such problems as liberty and equality. The article attempts to trace the emergence of this debate in political literature, including the works by F.-H. Strube de Piermont, Catherine II, and Prince M.M. Shcherbatov. Since the examined texts are interdependent, it allows me to speak of the literary polemics of a kind. It is argued that each author develops her own writing strategy in accordance with her specific position in society and intention. A comparative analysis shows the following tendencies. (1) The book by Strube de Piermont is a typical literary refutation intended to rehabilitate Russia’s reputation compromised by the author of The Spirit of Laws. (2) Prince Shcherbatov uses Montesquieu’s statements about Russia as a reference point for his own deep and original study of the phenomena and processes that existed in Russia. (3) The ambiguous position of Catherine II as both a private person and a monarch is the most vulnerable of the three and forces her to adapt her ideas to this peculiar role.

Objectives: Evaluation of the effect of low-frequency noise (LFN) on the frequency of chromosomal aberrations in the bone marrow cells and on the content of low-molecular-weight DNA (lmwDNA) in the blood plasma of rats. Materials and Methods: A total of 96 male Wistar rats were exposed to either single (17 min session) or multiple (17 min session repeated five times a week for 13 weeks) LFN, with the maximum range below 250 Hz and the sound pressure levels (SPLs) at 120 and 150 dB, respectively. The rats in the control groups were not subjected to any impact. The frequency of chromosomal aberrations in the bone marrow cells and the levels of lmwDNA in the blood plasma were measured afterwards. Results: It has been detected that a single LFN exposure with either corresponding SPLs had a significant increase in the frequency of chromosomal aberrations (more than 10-fold) compared to the controls (0.9 ± 0.3%) and resulted in the appearance of dicentric chromosomes in the aberration spectrum, both of which are evident for the occurrence of deoxyribonucleic acid double strand breaks triggered by the exposure. Furthermore, the lmwDNA levels in the blood plasma measured the following day after a single LFN exposure were significantly higher (7.7- and 7.6-fold, respectively) than that in the control group (11.0 ± 5.4 ng/ml), and such levels were maintained higher (4.8- and 2.1-fold, respectively) in the week after a single LFN exposure for the SPL of 120 and 150 dB, respectively, compared to the control group (18.8 ± 1.6 ng/ml). Similar results were obtained from the group with multiple LFN exposures (36.4- and 22.4-fold, respectively) compared to the control (17.7 ± 1.7 ng/ml) and suggest the enhancement of cellular apoptosis as a result of the LFN impact. Conclusion: Presumably, the LFN may have possible mutagenic effects and cause massive cell death.

The purpose of this work was to study changes in the level of cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in the blood of young and old rats in the normal state and with induced benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Male Wistar rats were divided into 4 groups—young (3 months), old (20 months), intact, or with testosterone-induced BPH. Groups with BPH were subjected to surgical castration and administration of testosterone esters at a dose of 25 mg/kg for a total of 7 injections for 20 days. In intact animals, the level of cfDNA in old rats (2.00±0.14 ng/μl) was significantly higher than that in the young (1.02±0.30 ng/μl). The body and the prostate weights of old rats were 1.6 and 1.4 times larger than those of the young, without an increase in the prostate index (PI). The testosterone level in the blood of young rats was 1.6 times higher than that of old (6.20±0.93 nmol/l vs. 3.77±0.55 nmol/l; NS). In animals with BPH, the level of cfDNA in old rats (3.14±0.76 ng/μl) was significantly higher than that in young rats (0.80±0.14 ng/μl). The body and the prostate weights in old rats were 1.8 and 2.3 times larger, than those in young rats, with an increase in the PI. The level of testosterone in the blood of young (15.76±0.51 nmol/l) and old (16.99±1.1 nmol/l) rats was not significantly different. Morphological signs of BPH were observed in the prostate of both young and old rats. During the induction of BPH in the experiment, according to the level of cfDNA, cell death processes have not changed significantly in young rats but significantly increased in old rats. A similar trend was observed in the group of intact animals. The obtained data indicate that apoptosis processes are enhanced during the development of BPH despite the growth of tissues in the prostate itself.

Active mechanical amplification of sound occurs in cochlear outer hair cells (OHCs) that change their length with oscillations of their membrane potential. Such length changes are the proposed cellular source of the cochlear amplifier, and prestin is the motor protein responsible for OHC electromotility. Previous findings have shown that mice lacking prestin displayed a loss of OHC electromotility, subsequent loss of distortion-product otoacoustic emissions, and a 40–60 dB increase in hearing thresholds. In this study we were interested in studying the functional consequences of the complete loss of cochlear amplification on neural coding of frequency selectivity, tuning, and temporal processing in the auditory midbrain. We recorded near-field auditory evoked potentials and multi-unit activity from the inferior colliculus (IC) of prestin (−/−) null and prestin (+/+) wild-type control mice and determined frequency response areas (FRAs), tuning sharpness, and gap detection to tone bursts and silent gaps embedded in broadband noise. We were interested in determining if the moderate to severe sensorineural hearing loss associated with the loss of motor protein prestin would also impair auditory midbrain temporal-processing measures, or if compensatory mechanisms within the brainstem could compensate for the loss of prestin. In prestin knockout mice we observed that there are severe impairments in midbrain tuning, thresholds, excitatory drive, and gap detection suggesting that brainstem and midbrain processing could not overcome the auditory processing deficits afforded by the loss of OHC electromotility mediated by the prestin protein.

Soil is the major terrestrial reservoir of carbon and a substantial part of this carbon is stored in deep layers, typically deeper than 50 cm below the surface. Several studies underlined the quantitative importance of this deep soil organic carbon (SOC) pool and models are needed to better understand this stock and its evolution under climate and land-uses changes. In this study, we tested and compared three simple theoretical models of vertical transport for SOC against SOC profiles measurements from a long-term bare fallow experiment carried out by the Central-Chernozem State Natural Biosphere Reserve in the Kursk Region of Russia. The transport schemes tested are diffusion, advection and both diffusion and advection. They are coupled to three different formulations of soil carbon decomposition kinetics. The first formulation is a first order kinetics widely used in global SOC decomposition models; the second one, so-called "priming" model, links SOC decomposition rate to the amount of fresh organic matter, representing the substrate interactions. The last one is also a first order kinetics, but SOC is split into two pools. Field data are from a set of three bare fallow plots where soil received no input during the past 20, 26 and 58 yr, respectively. Parameters of the models were optimised using a Bayesian method. The best results are obtained when SOC decomposition is assumed to be controlled by fresh organic matter (i.e., the priming model). In comparison to the first-order kinetic model, the priming model reduces the overestimation in the deep layers. We also observed that the transport scheme that improved the fit with the data depended on the soil carbon mineralisation formulation chosen. When soil carbon decomposition was modelled to depend on the fresh organic matter amount, the transport mechanism which improved best the fit to the SOC profile data was the model representing both advection and diffusion. Interestingly, the older the bare fallow is, the lesser the need for diffusion is, suggesting that stabilised carbon may not be transported within the profile by the same mechanisms than more labile carbon.

Soil moisture is of primary importance for predicting the evolution of soil carbon stocks and fluxes, both because it strongly controls organic matter decomposition and because it is predicted to change at global scales in the following decades. However, the soil functions used to model the heterotrophic respiration response to moisture have limited empirical support and introduce an uncertainty of at least 4% in global soil carbon stock predictions by 2100. The necessity of improving the representation of this relationship in models has been highlighted in recent studies. Here we present a data-driven analysis of soil moisture-respiration relations based on 90 soils. With the use of linear models we show how the relationship between soil heterotrophic respiration and different measures of soil moisture is consistently affected by soil properties. The empirical models derived include main effects and moisture interaction effects of soil texture, organic carbon content and bulk density. When compared to other functions currently used in different soil biogeochemical models, we observe that our results can correct biases and reconcile differences within and between such functions. Ultimately, accurate predictions of the response of soil carbon to future climate scenarios will require the integration of soil-dependent moisture-respiration functions coupled with realistic representations of soil water dynamics.

The work is devoted to the clinical refraction rating of 5-16 years old children. There have been got data about its aged changes in the period of preschool preparation and in the period of school studying. There has been revealed the fact that at the age of 10, 13, 16 the optic eye system has stronger tension that in other age periods.

Stocks of Atlantic cod, Gadus morhua, show diverse recovery responses when fishing pressure is relieved. The expected outcome of reduced fishing pressure is that the population regains its size. However, there are also cod stocks that seem to be locked in a state of low abundance from which population growth does not occur (or only slowly occurs). A plausible explanation for this phenomenon can be provided by the Allee effect, which takes place when recruitment per capita is positively related to population density or abundance. However, because of methodological limitations and data constraints, such a phenomenon is often perceived as being rare or non-existent in marine fish. In this study, we used time series of 17 Atlantic cod stocks to fit a family of population equations that consider the abundance of spawners, their body weight and sea water temperature as independent components of recruitment. The developed stock-recruitment function disentangles the effects of spawner abundance, spawner weight and temperature on recruitment dynamics and captures the diversity of density dependencies (compensation, Allee effect) of the recruitment production in Atlantic cod. The results show for 13 cod stocks an inherent spawner-abundance-related Allee effect. Allee effect strength, i.e., the relative change between maximum and minimum recruitment per capita at low abundance, was increased when recruitment production was suppressed by unfavorable changes in water temperature and/or in spawner weight. The latter can be a concomitant of heavy fishing or a result of temperature-related altered body growth. Allee effect strength was decreased when spawner weight and/or temperature elevated recruitment production. We show how anthropogenic stress can increase the risk of Allee effects in stocks where ocean temperature and/or spawner weight had been beneficial in the past but are likely to unmask and strengthen an inherent Allee effect under future conditions.

The aim of our study was to analyze the reproduction dynamics and fertility rates of the Ayrshire cattle population in Russia and to assess the level of influence of the AH1 haplotype on the incidence of stillbirth. For an overall fertility estimate, we used 390,769 records of 67 dairy herds in Russia from 2003 to 2018. Against the background of stable population growth, the average stillbirth rate was 3.33% and the abortion rate was 0.075%. A high percentage of stillbirth (5.13%) from heifers the first fertilization event, and there was a high rate of abortions in older cows (11 calving, 1.76%). An analysis of 62,534 records of bulls with the rs475678587C>T variant of UBE3B gene (AH1 haplotype) (n = 69, of which 51 bulls were free from and 18 were carriers of AH1) for the period 2002 to 2018 showed that the proportion of female offspring of AH1-C bulls completing at least one full period of lactation was about one-third of the total livestock. An analysis of the results of mating with AH-F and AH-C bulls for the broodstock as a whole (without taking into account the female genotype) did not reveal significant differences in the number of stillbirths and abortions. Linear regression analysis showed that the status of AH1 bulls did not significantly affect stillbirth rates. An analysis of the results of calving and the reproductive ability of the offspring of AH-C bulls showed an increase in the frequency of stillbirths, confirmed by the results of linear regression analysis, which revealed a significant effect of bull fathers carrying AH1on the proportion of stillbirths experienced by their daughters. Our studies confirm that the rs475678587C>T variant of the UBE3B gene (haplotype AH1) has a significant effect on the rate of stillbirth of a cow or heifer if their father is a carrier of this genetic defect.

The purpose of the article is to present a literary translation into English of P. Khuzangay’s poem «A Poet» and to make a comprehensive analysis of it. The object of the study is the text of P. Khuzangay’s poem «A Poet» and the literary translation of S. N. Vasilyeva «A Poet». The novelty of the work lies in the fact that a literary translation and a comprehensive analysis of this poem were carried out for the first time. Based on the methods of analytical reading, theoretical analysis of literature, search, contextual analysis, comparative analysis, the language of the work (morphology, syntax, vocabulary, style) is considered and the relationship between the ideological and artistic conception of the poem with its linguistic features is revealed. The methods used in the process of literary translation made it possible to preserve the idea of the poem, the features of the composition and to select the appropriate means of artistic expression. In the work of P. Khuzangay, the philosophical problem of the poet's destiny and his work is touched upon. The composition of the poem is three-part, the size is a three-foot trochee with cross-rhyming throughout the entire poem, the intonation is narrative. The translation was made using the technique of rhetorical exclamation. The temporal organization is interesting: throughout the poem, verbs are transmitted in the present tense. The translation is dominated by complex sentences. As a rule, a stanza corresponds to one sentence. Alliteration and assonance are used to enhance sound expressiveness and achieve speech imagery.