Initially found to be critically involved in inflammation and apoptosis, caspases have since then been implicated in the regulation of various signaling pathways in animals. How caspases and ...caspase-mediated processes evolved is a topic of great interest and hot debate. In fact, caspases are just the tip of the iceberg, representing a relatively small group of mostly animal-specific enzymes within a broad family of structurally related cysteine proteases (family C14 of CD clan) found in all kingdoms of life. Apart from caspases, this family encompasses para- and metacaspases, and all three groups of proteases exhibit significant variation in biochemistry and function in vivo. Notably, metacaspases are present in all eukaryotic lineages with a remarkable absence in animals. Thus, metacaspases and caspases must have adapted to operate under distinct cellular and physiological settings. Here we discuss biochemical properties and biological functions of metacaspases in comparison to caspases, with a major focus on the regulation of developmental aspects in plants versus animals.
The paper is devoted to the first stage in the development of seismic observations in Russia, covering the period from the late 19th century to the 1930s. The study aims to reconstruct the process of ...organisation of systematic instrumental seismic observations. The objectives of the study included identifying the main organisational forms of seismic observations, methods and equipment used in these observations, as well as analysing the main scientific results. It was established that the leading role in the emergence and development of seismic observations in Russia was played by a prominent physicist, academician B.B. Golitsyn. He had not only organised a network of I and II category seismic stations but also developed a seismograph with galvanometric recording of his own design for these stations. It is shown that a vast and full-rigged seismic network, the world's only, enabled tackling a number of important scientific problems. As a result of the organisational and scientific works conducted during this period, the basic principles for the well-rounded assessment of seismic hazard were developed that remain relevant to this day.
This article presents an overview of modern statements of the induced sputum method; detailed description of the methods and protocols for taking sputum in adults and children, methods for processing ...the obtained substance. The paper describes in detail the features of the cellular composition of induced sputum in healthy individuals and in patients with bronchial asthma, emphasizes the importance of the eosinophilia level as a prognostic and diagnostic criterion of asthma and also determines the functions of other induced sputum cells such as neutrophils, macrophages, basophils. The article is illustrated with photographs of sputum microscopy. In addition to sputum cytology, we give accent to the possibility of using other research methods such as an identification of viral and bacterial pathogens, genomics, proteomics, lipidomics, metabolomics, determination of the concentration of various mediators in the sputum supernatant. The paper presents the ideas on biochemical inflammatory markers and remodelling of the respiratory tract in asthma, which can be determined in sputum (C3a anaphylatoxin, clusterin, periostin, eosinophil-derived neurotoxin, folliculin). In addition, we summarize the information on inflammatory phenotypes of bronchial asthma, emphasize their variability and modification depending on the period of the disease, prescribed treatment, intercurrent respiratory infections, and smoking. The article also presents detailed characteristics of eosinophilic, neutrophilic, mixed and small granulocyte phenotypes of bronchial asthma, and describes the most frequent correlations of phenotypes with the severity and course of the disease, with lung function parameters and other indicators. The paper gives an account of the possibilities of using the induced sputum method for a comprehensive assessment of the course, asthma controllability and the effectiveness of drug therapy, as well as for a personalized selection of an antiinflammatory drug considering the inflammatory phenotype.
The development of the indicator of sown areas is significant in modern conditions of agricultural development, especially in those regions that have poor climatic conditions. The use and expansion ...of sown areas, which is one of the factors of food security not only in the region, but also in the country as a whole, is considered for the sustainable development of territories with a predominance of cold climate. The sown area, being the main production fund of the agrarian economy, contributes to the development of the entire agro-industrial complex of the country, providing crop products not only for the food industry, but also livestock, creating additional opportunities for agricultural production in the region. The article identifies trends, which is an important step for predicting the development of the agricultural sector and food security of the country. The use of trend analysis is an important tool for determining changes in crop development trends. The indicators of the Republics of Karelia and Komi, the Nenets Autonomous District, the Arkhangelsk and Murmansk regions are investigated. The sown areas of regions of different sizes were studied not only by absolute growth indicators, but also relative and average indicators were calculated to improve coverage of the state of the areas not only in the previous study period from 1990 to 2019, but also in the medium-term development perspective for 2020-2025. Polynomial and exponential development models were used for the study, which indicates the non-linearity of the change in the fundamental means of agricultural development, which indicates a significant non-uniformity of the indicator.
Agricultural development is a determining factor in ensuring food security in the territories in the context of the global pandemic and the winding up of globalization. A key factor in agricultural ...development, crop production, as well as related industries is the development of cultivated areas, especially in those regions that have poor climatic conditions. The use and expansion of sown areas is considered one of the factors of food security for the sustainable development of territories with a predominance of cold climate. The foundation is created for a stable agricultural market and less dependence on food products from other regions providing an increase in sown area. The development of this direction creates a certain control of the territories, the importance of which is significantly enhanced in the context of the ongoing processes of global warming and climate change. Sown area indicators, being the main production fund of the agrarian economy, contribute to the development of the entire agricultural sector of the country, providing crop products not only for the food industry, but also livestock, creating additional opportunities for agricultural growth in the region. The paper presents the results of the analysis of the Republic of Karelia, Komi and Murmansk region. The sown areas of regions of different sizes were studied not only by absolute growth indicators, but also relative and average indicators were calculated to improve coverage of the state of the areas. A forecast for the medium-term development perspective was proposed, recommendations were formulated to ensure sustained development for the medium-term prospect in order to ensure food security and economic development of relevant territories.
•We put forward a new model of microgels with magnetic nanoparticles.•Crosslinking affects the self-assembly of magnetic nanoparticles.•Magnetic susceptibility of a microgel grows with the number ...crosslinkers.
In this contribution we present a molecular dynamics study of a microgel colloidal particle filled with magnetic nanobeads. The microgel is constructed of crosslinked polymer chains, some beads of which are magnetic. We vary the concentration of magnetic particles and the degree of crosslinking in the microgel to analyse the influence of both factors on the radius of gyration, microstructure and the initial magnetic susceptibility of our soft magnetic colloid. We show that even for a loosely crosslinked microgel, the concentration of magnetic filler must be rather high in order for the magnetic dipolar interactions to affect the shape and the internal structure of the soft colloid.
We investigate the influence of dimensionality of a sample on the properties of magnetic dipolar soft spheres. Molecular dynamics simulations and diagram expansion are employed to analyze the ...pressure and microscopic structure of model monodisperse magnetic fluids in a bulk and in a monolayer. We found that, for a broad range of densities and dipolar interaction strengths, strong geometrical confinement weakens the influence of the dipole-dipole interaction on the pressure and, as a result, steric repulsion of dipolar particles provides the main contribution to the thermodynamic properties of ferrofluids in strong confinement.
•Magnetic nanogels self-assemble in zero field.•There are three length scales in magnetic nanogel structure factors.•Self-assembly of magnetic nanogels happens if magnetic interactions are strong.
...Magnetic nanogels represent a cutting edge of magnetic soft matter research due to their numerous potential applications. Here, using Langevin dynamics simulations, we analyse the influence of magnetic nanogel concentration and embedded magnetic particle interactions on the self-assembly of magnetic nanogels at zero field. For this, we calculated radial distribution functions and structure factors for nanogels and magnetic particles within them. We found that, in comparison to suspensions of free magnetic nanoparticles, where the self-assembly is already observed if the interparticle interaction strength exceeds the thermal fluctuations by approximately a factor of three, self-assembly of magnetic nanogels only takes place by increasing such ratio above six. This magnetic nanogel self-assembly is realised by means of favourable close contacts between magnetic nanoparticles from different nanogels. It turns out that for high values of interparticle interactions, corresponding to the formation of internal rings in isolated nanogels, in their suspensions larger magnetic particle clusters with lower elastic penalty can be formed by involving different nanogels. Finally, we show that when the self-assembly of these nanogels takes place, it has a drastic effect on the structural properties even if the volume fraction of magnetic nanoparticles is low.
The study of the optimal health-improving technologies with the physical factors usage, including odorant influence with the use of the essential oil both separately and in combination with the ...physical exercises, is a promising scientific area. A trustworthy change of the vegetative regulation mechanisms towards their optimization both under the impact of combining the physical load with a prolonged contact with the essential oils, and only of the essential oils usage, besides the more pronounced differences were registered in the first case. All the registered changes were of a relatively prolonged character. The decrease in the parasympathetic influence on the heart, based on the analysis of the heart rate variability according to R.M. Bayevsky, was accompanied with the decrease in the average value of skin’s EC. The combination of the physical load with the essential oils’ prolonged contact leads to a trustworthy decrease in the EC values in BHS of the heart meridian, characterizing myocardium and endocardium on the right. It can be applied to objectivize the integral changes of the vegetative innervation state and in the complex with other methods – to determine their primary sympathetic and parasympathetic orientation.
Modern teaching to young physicians has become increasingly limited because of rising clinical workload, due to the epidemiological situation, new requirements for medical documentation, the lack of ...a clear timetable of working hours and other educational features. Additionally, today’s residents expect that the training sessions will provide focused content integrated into their clinical workflow. One of the classical teaching methods that is ideally suited to meet these needs is a focused thematic training session, usually conducted with the help of simple but accessible visual aids and extensive audience participation. However, most listeners will benefit from structured content and guidance on the delivery of this content, also known as a learning scenario. A good learning scenario resident’s misconception, highlights a certain number of learning moments, uses strategies to engage students and provides a cognitive basis for teaching a topic that the teacher can improve over time. The proposed pedagogical concept of teaching sections of clinical hemostasiology for residents in the specialty "Therapy" orients the professional and cognitive interest of a young specialist against the background of constantly updated new knowledge in this field with the integration of scenarios of the content of training into clinical practice.
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