Radiation and genetic consequences of ionizing irradiation on population of Pinus sylvestris L. within the zone of the Chernobyl NPP

Main results of the nineteen year radiation-genetic monitoring of radiobiological, of cytogenetic, and of genetic parameters of Pinus sylvestris L. of forest plantation from the Chernobyl meltdown area are presented. The acute ionizing irradiation at doses >1 Gy induces the formation of morphoses and of depressed growth; at doses >2 Gy, the reproductive ability of the trees declined. The radiobiological parameters shown linear or close to it dose-dependence relationship. The acute irradiation at dose of 0.5 Gy induces cytogenetic and genetic effects that were significantly higher than the corresponding control values. The relationship between the cytogenetic effects and the absorbed dose was exponential. The dependence of mutation frequency at specific loci on the absorbed dose was described by a nonlinear curve. The results of the cytogenetic analysis of seedlings obtained from seeds annually collected in zones of slight, of moderate, and of strong damage of Pinus sylvestris L. are presented.     

The theory and practice of constructing calibration curves in biodozimetry

The methodical peculiarities of experimental construction of regression "dose-effect" relationships used for the dose reconstruction are discussed. The method of computer simulations is applied to study the efficiency of different statistical procedures for plotting regression curves as well as the dependence of errors in dose prediction on the volume of examined material and on the choice of doses for a calibration curve. The causes of essential variability of calibrations obtained by different teams of researchers are discussed. A number of methodical recommendations is given for statistical processing of cytogenetic data. The procedure of constructing calibration dose dependence of the frequency of dicentrics on the basis experiments with in vitro gamma-irradiation of lymphocytes from blood samples of 5 donors is considered in detail. The expressions for statistical errors occurring in the dose reconstruction made on the base of the frequency of aberrations were derived and checked by the computer experiment.     

Redefining the Critical Value of Significance Level (0.005 instead of 0.05): The Bayes Trace

Biology Bulletin - In 2017, a group of the leading mathematical statisticians published a paper-manifesto having an extremely simple sense: the common critical level of p-values should be decreased...     

Characteristics of the Morphofunctional Development of 7- to 14-Year-Old Boys with Different Types of Adaptive Response

The parameters of physical development, the cardiorespiratory system, and the physical working capacity were studied in 275 boys aged 7–14 years. The type of adaptive response—sprinter or stayer—was assessed from the adaptive response of the neuromuscular apparatus to physical exercise. The morphofunctional development of children and adolescents was shown to be correlated with the type of adaptive response. The significant differences in many anthropometric and functional indicators revealed between boys of different types provide a background for optimizing the physical and sporting activity of schoolchildren.