The revision of the validity of genus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Huso</Emphasis> (Acipenseridae) based on recent morphological and genetic data with particular reference to the Kaluga <Emphasis Type="Italic">H. dauricus</Emphasis>

The comparative morphological study in different Acipenseriform species demonstrates that there are only two morphological features combining the kaluga and the great sturgeon and separating them from other sturgeons, namely the shape of a mouth and the manner attaching of gill membranes to isthmus in adult specimens; whereas many morphological characters are different in these species. The relations of morphological similarity/distinction among different sturgeon species and polyphyletic origin of genus Huso revealed by both molecular and cytogenetic studies presume the restoration of initial taxonomic states for the great sturgeon and kaluga as members of the same genus Acipenser, namely A. huso and A. dauricus.     

The role of the tuftsin and Selank peptides in the regulation of primary and plasma homeostasis

Experimental data on the effect of the natural immunopeptide tuftsin and its synthetic counterpart on hemostasis parameters in vitro and in vivo when administered intranasally to animals (white laboratory rats) are given. It has been shown that in vitro both preparations induced a fibrin-depolymerization effect on fibrin that is not stabilized by factor XIIIa. For each preparation, it was noted that, when administered to rats, simultaneous antiplatelet, anticoagulant, and fibrin-depolymerization effects were observed in the blood plasma, with Selank having a more pronounced effect.     

Chronic cold stress modulates the function of peritoneal macrophages in vivo

On day 7 of chronic cold stress, concentration of corticosterone in plasma was established to increase, zymosan-induced production of reactive oxygen species was activated, and IL-10 synthesis by macrophages was enhanced regardless of the opiate receptor blockade. Increase in the concentration of corticosterone was independent of the blockade of opioid receptors, whereas the zymosan-induced increase in the production of oxygen radicals and activation of the spontaneous production of IL-10 was blocked in mice by naloxone. Chronic cold stress had no effect on the production of IL-1β and TNF-α.     

Leaching of copper ore of the Udokanskoe deposit at low temperatures by an association of acidophilic chemolithotrophic microorganisms

Pure cultures of indigenous microorganisms Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans strain TFUd, Leptospirillum ferrooxidans strain LUd, and Sulfobacillus thermotolerans strain SUd have been isolated from the oxidation zone of sulfide copper ore of the Udokanskoe deposit. Regimes of bacterial-chemical leaching of ore have been studied over a temperature range from −10 to +20°C. Effects of pH, temperature, and the presence of microorganisms on the extraction of copper have been shown. Bacterial leaching has been detected only at positive values of temperature, and has been much more active at +20 than at +4°C. The process of leaching was more active when the ore contained more hydrophilic and oxidized minerals. The possibility of copper ore leaching of the Udokanskoe deposit using sulfuric acid with pH 0.4 at negative values of temperature and applying acidophilic chemolithotrophic microorganisms at positive values of temperature and low pH values was shown.     

Marine invertebrates of the Sea of Okhotsk as a new source of lypopolysaccharide-binding proteins

Invertebrates from the Sea of Okhotsk were studied as a source of proteins that are capable of binding to lipopolysaccharides (LPSs) of gram-negative bacteria. A DOT analysis using dansyl-labeled LPS that we developed revealed LPS-binding proteins in blood-cell lysates of 21 out of 33 investigated species of invertebrates. Most of the investigated species with positive LPS-binding activity were decapod crustaceans (class Malacostraca, phylum Arthropoda). Hemocyte lysates from the red king crab Paralithodes camtschaticus and the sculptured shrimp Sclerocrangon boreas contained several LPS-binding proteins with different molecular weights. LPS-binding proteins were found for the first time in echinoderms (classes Holothuroidea, Asteroidea, and Echinoidea), sipunculans, and brachiopods.     

Localization of disulfide bonds in α1-acid glycoprotein and their effect on the ability of the protein to interact with ethidium bromide

α1-Acid glycoprotein (orosomucoid) was purified from the human and murine blood sera using phenol deproteinization. As opposed to the murine protein, the human orosomucoid bound the fluorescent dye ethidium bromide but lost this ability after treatment with β-mercaptoethanol, which breaks disulfide bonds. Disulfide bonds between the Cys²³ and Cys¹⁶⁵ residues of the human orosomucoid and between the Cys⁹¹ and Cys¹⁸⁴ residues of the murine orosomucoid were identified.     

Oxidative processes at initial stages of interaction of nodule bacteria (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Rhizobium leguminosarum</Emphasis>) and pea (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Pisum sativum</Emphasis> L.): A review

A possible physiological mechanism of legume-Rhizobium symbiosis, consisting in regulation of the intensity of oxidative processes by the macrosymbiont in response to infection with Rhizobium, was analyzed using our own and published data. The results used in the analysis included data on the content of reactive oxygen species (O ₂ ^·? and H₂O₂), activity of antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase, catalase, and peroxidase), and intensity of lipid peroxidation proceeding with the involvement of lipophilic phenolic compounds of the microsymbiont.     

Influence of gold nanoparticles on activation of human blood neutrophils

Activation of neutrophils in the presence of gold nanoparticles is accompanied by formation of free-radical peroxidation products, recorded as a flash of chemiluminescence. The basis for the activation mechanism has its origins most likely in the influence of the gold particles on the membrane surface potential of neutrophils. Assessment of changes in the fluorescence intensity of the negatively charged ANS probe on the surface of model membranes upon adding different concentrations of gold nanoparticles indicates a change in the membrane surface charge density, which can cause cell activation.     

Campylaspis vassilenkoae sp. n., a new cumacean species (Cumacea: Nannastacidae) from the Bathyal zone of the Sea of Japan

This paper describes a new cumacean species, Campylaspis vassilenkoae sp. n., which was found in the northwestern Sea of Japan at 250–1550 m. C. vassilenkoae sp. n. is most similar to C. aperta Lomakina, 1958, but it differs from the latter species in the shape and size of the depression on the carapace, the absence of eye lenses, and a smaller ratio of the uropod peduncle length to the endopod.