Mechano-bactericidal anisotropic particles for oral biofilm treatment.

Bacterial biofilms play a major etiological role in dental diseases worldwide. Currently, toothpastes with bactericidal chemicals and abrasive materials are used as preventive care methods. However, chemicals can cause adverse side effects, with the use of antibiotics, fluorides, and antiseptics drastically reducing quality of life. At the same time, the rational design of bulk toothpaste materials has remained unexplored. In this work, we demonstrated a mechano-bactericidal strategy as an antibiotic-free and tooth-safe approach for dental biofilm elimination based on shape-anisotropy CaCO3 (cubic-, stick-, and urchin-shaped). As proof-of-concept, we demonstrated superior efficiency during biofilm eradication from ex vivo teeth using urchin- and stick-shaped microparticles involving both Escherichia coli K12 (227 ± 32.6% and 215 ± 33%, respectively) and Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 209P (210 ± 54.7% and 202 ± 55.5%, respectively) compared to the spherical particles that are employed in conventional toothpastes. These findings will potentially give rise to the development of novel and safer toothpastes with antibiotic-free bactericidal activity for the prevention of dental diseases.

HE ROLE OF REPETITIVE SEQUENCES IN THE EVOLUTION OF SEX CHROMOSOMES IN BIRDS.

In this paper, we analyzed the distribution and the transcriptional activity of different repetitive elements in the sex chromosomes of chicken at the lampbrush stage. Based on these results, we suggest participation of interspersed repeats in the maintenance evolutionarily significant level of variability of heteromorphic sex chromosomes in birds. Analysis of the organization peculiarities of chicken sex chromosome W specific repeats allowed us to hypothesize that the accumulation of tandem repeats enriched with homopurine tracks is significant for the evolution of sex chromosomes.

[A study on the taxonomy of soil amoebas from Caspian plague foci based on an analysis of ribosomal operon sequences].

The results of a study on the taxonomy and quantitative abundance of free-living amoebas in soil samples from the Russian plague foci of the northwestern Caspian steppe, the Caspian sand, and the Volga-Ural steppe are presented. Amoebas of the Willaertia and Hartmanella genera, as well as representatives of myxomycetes, were isolated from samples. From these, amoebas of the Acanthamoeba genus predominated and could be as abundantas 300000 cells per 1 g of soil. Sequencing of the 18S rRNA gene region showed that Acanthamoeba from the Volga-Ural steppe focus belonged to the A. castellanii species. Phylogenetic analysis confirmed that amoebas from two other Caspian foci belonged to the species of Acanthamoeba spp.

Phylogenetic analysis of entomoparasitic nematodes, potential control agents of flea populations in natural foci of plague.

Entomoparasitic nematodes are natural control agents for many insect pests, including fleas that transmit Yersinia pestis, a causative agent of plague, in the natural foci of this extremely dangerous zoonosis. We examined the flea samples from the Volga-Ural natural focus of plague for their infestation with nematodes. Among the six flea species feeding on different rodent hosts (Citellus pygmaeus, Microtus socialis, and Allactaga major), the rate of infestation varied from 0 to 21%. The propagation rate of parasitic nematodes in the haemocoel of infected fleas was very high; in some cases, we observed up to 1,000 juveniles per flea specimen. Our study of morphology, life cycle, and rDNA sequences of these parasites revealed that they belong to three distinct species differing in the host specificity. On SSU and LSU rRNA phylogenies, these species representing three genera (Rubzovinema, Psyllotylenchus, and Spilotylenchus), constitute a monophyletic group close to Allantonema and Parasitylenchus, the type genera of the families Allantonematidae and Parasitylenchidae (Nematoda: Tylenchida). We discuss the SSU-ITS1-5.8S-LSU rDNA phylogeny of the Tylenchida with a special emphasis on the suborder Hexatylina.