Changes in coastal ecosystems affected by overburden dumping from amber open-cut mining on the Sambia Peninsula (Baltic Sea).

The Sambia Peninsula (Kaliningrad region) is historically well known for its amber mining. The 2019 year was the last year of direct overburden disposal into the Baltic Sea as a part of technological amber mining process. The extremely high-suspended particulate matter concentrations during that disposal were recorded immediately after the discharge of significant volumes of pulp and reached 200 mg/L. The impact of pulp discharge had sequentially suppressed plankton communities development due to the high content of suspended solids and afterwards stimulated plankton development due to the glauconite infusion. Cladocera were the most sensitive group to the effects of suspended matter. According to the preliminary forecast, when the pulp discharge stops, the restoration of plankton communities may take from 1 to 2 seasons to 1 year for different groups. This is due to the timing of the removal of fine suspended particulate matter from sediments and the possibility of secondary entry during resuspension.

[Femoral nerve repair with autografts for proximal retroperitoneal damage (case report and literature review)]. / Autoplastika bedrennogo nerva pri ego proksimal'nom zabryushinnom povrezhdenii (klinicheskoe nablyudenie i obzor literatury).

Femoral nerve damage, especially in proximal retroperitoneal space, is rare. Therefore, surgical strategy is still unclear for these patients. Various specialists discuss repair with autografts or neurotization by the obturator nerve or its muscular branch. OBJECTIVE: To demonstrate the diagnostic algorithm for proximal femoral nerve injury and favorable outcomes after repair with long autografts. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We assessed movements and sensitivity using a five-point scale, as well as ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging and electroneuromyography data in a patient with extended iatrogenic femoral nerve damage before and after repair with long autografts (10.5 cm). RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The patient had complete femoral nerve interruption in proximal retroperitoneal space with 10-cm defect that required repair with five autografts from two sural nerves. Postoperative ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging revealed signs of graft survival and no neuroma within the nerve suture lines. The first signs of motor recovery occurred after 10 months. After 14 months, strength of quadriceps femoris muscle comprised 4 points, and electroneuromyography confirmed re-innervation. CONCLUSION: Femoral nerve repair with autografts for complete proximal anatomical interruption can provide sufficient restoration of movements and sensitivity. Therefore, this surgical option should be preferred instead of neurotization. Ultrasound, MRI and ENMG are valuable to clarify the diagnosis and state of the autografts.

[Nanotechnologies in ophthalmology]. / Nanotekhnologii v oftal'mologii.

Application of new materials and methods in the diagnosis and treatment of eye diseases is one of the promising research areas in modern ophthalmology. Significant progress has been made in understanding the pathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment of eye diseases using nanotechnologies and nanomaterials. This paper presents the main achievements and results of original research on this issue. It has been shown that nanoparticles are able to overcome biological barriers, deliver drugs to the target site, and provide the required drug release rate. Modern nanotechnological approaches in tissue engineering are also being actively introduced into ophthalmology, making it possible to create nanoframeworks for growing three-dimensional cellular structures, including arrays of pigment epithelium cells and retinal ganglion cells for the treatment of retinal damage caused by degenerative diseases, injuries and infections.

Modeling the multifractal dynamics of COVID-19 pandemic.

To describe the COVID-19 pandemic, we propose to use a mathematical model of multifractal dynamics, which is alternative to other models and free of their shortcomings. It is based on the fractal properties of pandemics only and allows describing their time behavior using no hypotheses and assumptions about the structure of the disease process. The model is applied to describe the dynamics of the COVID-19 pandemic from day 1 to day 699 from the beginning of the pandemic. The calculated parameters of the model accurately determine the parameters of the trend and the large jump in daily diseases in this time interval. Within the framework of this model and finite-difference parametric nonlinear equations of the reduced SIR (Susceptible-Infected-Removed) model, the fractal dimensions of various segments of daily incidence in the world and variations in the main reproduction number of COVID-19 were calculated based on the data of COVID-19 world statistics.

[Treatment of neuropathy of inferior gluteal and pudendal nerves following periarticular synovial cyst of the hip joint. A case report and literature review]. / Rezul'tat lecheniya nevropatii nizhnego yagodichnogo i polovogo nervov, vyzvannoi periartikulyarnoi sinovial'noi kistoi tazobedrennogo sustava. Sluchai iz praktiki i obzor literatury.

The authors report a patient with neuropathy of inferior gluteal and pudendal nerves following periarticular synovial cyst of the hip joint. Effectiveness of treatment was analyzed. ENMG and MRI of pelvic soft tissues and hip joint were applied to confirm neuropathy of inferior gluteal and genital nerves. Periarticular synovial cyst of the hip joint followed by compression and ischemia of inferior gluteal and pudendal nerves was detected. In pre- and postoperative period, intensity of pain syndrome was assessed using visual-analogue scale. Neuropathic pain and quality of life were evaluated using the Leeds scale (LANSS) and NeuroQoL questionnaire, respectively. The patient underwent microsurgical neurolysis and decompression of inferior gluteal and pudendal nerves and resection of periarticular synovial cyst of the hip joint. Complete regression of pain syndrome and improvement in quality of life were observed after surgery. Compression of neurovascular structures with periarticular hip cysts followed by clinical and neurological disorders is an indication for microsurgical neurolysis and resection of cyst.

[Extravesical reimplantation of heavily-dilated ureters according to Bradi technique].

INTRODUCTION: Surgery of the ureterovesical anastomoses lesions in case of weakly-dilated ureters is well developed by the Cohen and Lich-Grgoire techniques. However, there are no generally accepted approaches for heavily-dilated ureters. The experience of creating ureterocystoneoanastomosis according to the Bradi technique (1975) for the first time in the literature is presented. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The authors modification of the Bradi technique was used in 12 patients of both sexes with a dilated ureters diameter of more than 10 mm. Two cases of refluxogenic and 10 cases of obstructive megaureter were operated on 2010-2019. The follow-up period was 1-10 years. All patients underwent resection of the ureter in width. RESULTS: No intraoperative complications were noted. One case of acute pyelonephritis with acute urinary retention was noted as postoperative complications. All patients showed a decrease in dilatation of the pyelocaliceal system and ureter according to multispiral computed tomography after 6 months of follow-up. Two patients had vesicoureteral reflux of the first degree. Glomerular filtration rates decreased in 41.7% of cases after 12 months of follow-up. No recurrence of urinary tract infection and stenosis of the anastomosis was detected for 1-10 years monitoring. CONCLUSION: The Bradi technique along with the Hodgsons ureter reconstruction provides superior results for heavily-dilated ureters in adults.

[Visceral debranching in hybrid surgery of thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms]. / Vistseral'nyi debranching v gibridnoi khirurgii torakoabdominal'nykh anevrizm aorty.

Presented herein is a review of the literature dedicated to the method of visceral debranching, i. e., switching of the visceral and renal branches of the abdominal aorta to its intact portion, using synthetic vascular prostheses as the first stage of hybrid surgical treatment of thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms prior to endovascular aortic aneurysm repair. This is accompanied and followed by describing the history of the problem, operative technique, results of studies, as well as the data from registries and meta-analyses. Also discussed are the main complications of the method and measures of their prevention. We conclude that hybrid surgery of the thoracoabdominal portion of the aorta is a promising method in a particular cohort of patients, especially those at high surgical risk of 'open' aortic surgery.

[Hibrid surgical treatment of an aortic arch aneurysm]. / Gibridnoe khirurgicheskoe lechenie anevrizmy dugi aorty.

Presented in the article is a clinical case report regarding hybrid surgical management of a saccular aneurysm of the aortic arch: simultaneous right-left-carotid-left-subclavian bypass grafting and endovascular isolation of the aneurysm. Taking into consideration the findings of multislice computed tomography-aortography (MSCT aortography) prior to surgery, the anatomical location of the aneurysm with the involvement of the ostium of the left subclavian artery, close location of the proximal branches of the aortic arch at an acute angle relative to each other required performing simultaneous debranching in order to enlarge the proximal zone of fixation of a stent graft at the level of the brachiocephalic trunk (BCT). The postoperative period proved uneventful, with as rapid rehabilitation as possible. From our own experience, with this one being not the first similar operation performed in the Centre, it may be supposed that carrying out simultaneous hybrid interventions in treatment of aneurysms of the aortic arch with the use of different variants of switching its branches may decrease the frequency of postoperative complications for patients of high surgical risk, reduce the length of hospital stay and, consequently, economic expenditures for treatment.

[Neutrophils as a source of factors that increase the length of the inflammatory phase of wound healing in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus]. / Neitrofily kak istochnik faktorov, uvelichivaiushchikh prodolzhitel'nost' fazy vospaleniia ranevogo protsessa u bol'nykh sakharnym diabetom 2-go tipa.

Oxidative stress and neutrophil activation leading to an increase in myeloperoxidase (MPO), elastase and neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) levels in blood are considered as pathogenic mechanisms responsible for the development of extremity damage in people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between factors, associated with neutrophil activation, and the length of the initial phase of wound healing (the inflammatory phase) in T2DM patients. Patients were divided retrospectively into three groups depending on the damage extent: group 1 (wound on toe) < group 2 (wound on foot) < group 3 (wound on lower leg). Compared to the control group (healthy volunteers), T2DM patients at admission to hospital had significantly (p<0.05) increased levels of blood glucose and glycated hemoglobin (groups 1-3), ESR (groups 1 and 3), blood neutrophil count (groups 2 and 3), plasma MPO concentration (groups 1-3) and blood NET concentration (group 3) and decreased levels of plasma thiols (groups 1-3) and erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase activity (groups 2 and 3). The length of hospital stay after surgical procedures corresponded to the length of the inflammatory phase of the wound healing process and correlated with the number of blood neutrophils in patients before surgery (r=0.72, p<0.05). Leukocytic intoxication index depended on wound area (r=0.59, p<0.05), and it was significantly higher for groups 2 and 3 compared to the control group and group 1. The neutrophil count before surgery in T2DM patients with damage in the lower extremities correlated with the length of the inflammatory phase of wound healing. The correlation found can be attributed to an increase in extracellular MPO and NETs, which, in its turn, results from the activation and degranulation of neutrophils and netosis. Thus, the duration of the inflammatory phase of wound healing depends on specific aspects of systemic inflammation increasing oxidative/halogenative stress and intoxication.

[Staged treatment of a multilevel lesion of brachiocephalic arteries in combination with coronary and valvular pathology of the heart]. / Étapnoe lechenie mnogourovnevogo porazheniia brakhiotsefal'nykh arterii v sochetanii s koronarnoi i klapannoi patologiei serdtsa.

Prevention of neurological complications in cardiosurgical and reconstructive vascular surgery is one of the priority tasks of preserving ability to work and decreasing invalidization of patients in the postoperative period. Presented in the article is a clinical case report regarding multiple-stage treatment of a female patient with a combined aortic defect, coronary pathology, and a multilevel bilateral lesion of the brachiocephalic arteries. The first stage consisted in performing a hybrid operation, i. e., carotid endarterectomy from the right internal carotid artery and stenting of the ostium of the right common carotid artery (CCA). The second stage involved balloon angioplasty with stenting of the left CCA, and the third stage was prosthetic repair of the aortic valve by a mechanical prosthesis with simultaneous coronary artery bypass grafting. The woman was discharged in a satisfactory condition. Described in details is the technique of performing the hybrid vascular operation, followed by substantiating the stagewise nature of surgical interventions. The policy chosen demonstrates effective and safe correction of haemodynamically significant tandem stenoses of brachiocephalic arteries, without neurological complications during treatment of patients with cardiological pathology.

Escaping the Ashby limit for mechanical damping/stiffness trade-off using a constrained high internal friction interfacial layer.

The development of new materials with reduced noise and vibration levels is an active area of research due to concerns in various aspects of environmental noise pollution and its effects on health. Excessive vibrations also reduce the service live of the structures and limit the fields of their utilization. In oscillations, the viscoelastic moduli of a material are complex and it is their loss part - the product of the stiffness part and loss tangent - that is commonly viewed as a figure of merit in noise and vibration damping applications. The stiffness modulus and loss tangent are usually mutually exclusive properties so it is a technological challenge to develop materials that simultaneously combine high stiffness and high loss. Here we achieve this rare balance of properties by filling a solid polymer matrix with rigid inorganic spheres coated by a sub-micron layer of a viscoelastic material with a high level of internal friction. We demonstrate that this combination can be experimentally realised and that the analytically predicted behaviour is closely reproduced, thereby escaping the often termed 'Ashby' limit for mechanical stiffness/damping trade-off and offering a new route for manufacturing advanced composite structures with markedly reduced noise and vibration levels.

Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubules Induce Pathological Changes in the Digestive Organs of Mice.

We studied the effects of regular long-term exposure to industrial nanomaterial based on multiwalled carbon nanotubules on the digestive system of mice. Nanomaterial in a concentration of 30 mg/kg was administered with drinking water over 30 days. Tissue specimens from the small intestine and liver were studied by light and electron microscopy. Multiwalled carbon nanotubules caused multiple necrotic foci in the small intestine and mixed parenchymatous degeneration in the liver. These findings suggested that multiwalled carbon nanotubules entering the digestive tract damaged intestinal villi, presumably via mechanical damage to enterocytes. It seems that multiwalled carbon nanotubules could cause degeneration indirectly, by triggering inflammatory reactions and ROS generation.

[Effect of organic and inorganic toxic compounds on luminescence of luminous fungi].

The possibility of the development of the solid phase bioluminescent biotest using aerial mycelium of the luminous fungi was investigated. Effect of organic and inorganic toxic compounds (TC) at concentrations from 10(-6) to 1 mg/ml on luminescence of aerial mycelia of four species of luminous fungi-Armillaria borealis (Culture Collection of the Institute of Forest, Siberian Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences), A. mellea, A. gallica, and Lampteromyces japonicus (Fungi Collection of the Botanical Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences)--has been studied. Culture of A. mellea was shown to be most sensitive to solutions of the model TC. It was demonstrated that the sensitivity of the luminous fungi is comparable with the sensitivity of the bacteria that are used for environmental monitoring. Use of the aerial mycelium of the luminous fungi on the solid support as a test object is a promising approach in biotesting for the development of continuous biosensors for air monitoring.

Multi-walled Сarbon Nanotubes Penetrate into Plant Cells and Affect the Growth of Onobrychis arenaria Seedlings.

Engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) are now being used in many sectors of industry; however, the impact of ENPs on the environment still requires further study, since their use, recycling, and accidental spill can result in the accumulation of nanoparticles in the atmosphere, soil, and water. Plants are an integral part of ecosystems; hence their interaction with ENPs is inevitable. It is important to understand the consequences of this interaction and assess its potential effects. The present research is focused on studying the effects of the industrial material Taunit, containing multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs), on plants, and testing of its ability to penetrate into plant cells and tissues. Taunit has been found to stimulate the growth of roots and stems and cause an increase in peroxidase activity inOnobrychis arenariaseedlings. Peroxidase activity increases with decreasing concentration of Taunit from 1,000 to 100 mg/l. MWNTs from Taunit were detected in the cells and tissues of seedling roots and leaves, implying the ability of MWNTs to penetrate into roots and accumulate there, as well as their ability to be transported into seedling leaves. Thus, the changes in the physiological parameters of plants are associated not only with MWNT adsorption on the root surface, as previously believed, but also with their penetration, uptake and accumulation in the plant cells and tissues.

[Quantitative criteria for the estimation of the effectiveness of bioluminescence expression in natural and transgenic luminescent bacteria].

Computation coefficients for estimating the effectiveness of bioluminescence expression in natural luminescent bacteria P. leiognathi 54 and transgenic strain E. coli Z905/pPHL7 bearing lux-operon in multicopy plasmid are suggested, and their use on the molecular, cell, and population levels was considered. It was shown that, on the population level, all transgenic variants got the better of natural variants of P. leiognathi 54 irrespective of the type of lux-operon regulation. On the cell level, in the bright and dim variants of the transgenic strain, the effectiveness of bioluminescence expression increases by several orders. On the level of one lux-operon, the effectiveness of expression of the bright variant of transgenic strain is substantially higher than in the natural bright variant; in dim variants, the efficiency values are similar, and the effectiveness of bioluminescence expression in the dark variant of E. coli Z905-2 /pPHL7 is by two orders lower than that in the dark variant of P. leiognathi 54.

Two-dimensional oscillator in time-dependent fields: comparison of some exact and approximate calculations.

Operator-difference multilayer schemes for solving the time-dependent Schrödinger equation up to sixth order of accuracy in the time step are presented. Reduced schemes for solving a set of coupled time-dependent Schrödinger equations with respect to the hyper-radial variable are devised using expansion of a wave packet over the set of appropriate basis angular functions. Further discretization of the resulting problem is realized by means of the finite-element method. The convergence of the expansion with respect to the number of basis functions and the efficiency of the numerical schemes are demonstrated in the exactly solvable model of an electric-field-driven two-dimensional oscillator (or a charged particle in a constant uniform magnetic field), in which we explicitly observed an effect of the periodical focusing and defocusing of the probability density flux.

Microscopic evidence of spin state order and spin state phase separation in layered cobaltites RBaCo2O5.5 with R=Y, Tb, Dy, and Ho.

We report muon-spin relaxation measurements on the magnetic structures of RBaCo2O(5.5) with R=Y, Tb, Dy, and Ho. Three different phases, one ferrimagnetic and two antiferromagnetic, are identified below 300 K. They consist of different ordered spin state arrangements of high-, intermediate-, and low-spin Co3+ of CoO6 octahedra. Phase separation into well separated regions with different spin state order is observed in the antiferromagnetic phases. The unusual strongly anisotropic magnetoresistance and its onset at the FM-AFM phase boundary is explained.

[Specific features of lactate dehydrogenase activity in blood and urine of males and females with renal carcinoma].

We studied activity of lactate dehydrogenase (LDG) in blood serum and urine of males and females with renal carcinoma as well as in healthy controls in various age groups for specification of LDG role for early diagnosis of the disease. We examined 101 patients with renal carcinoma (males 65.3%, females 34.7%, age 20-80 years, histological verification 98%) and 119 controls matched by gender, age and residence. LDG activity was determined by kinetic UV-test with a special kit. Statistic significance of the results was estimated using such indices as relative risk, confidence interval, two-sample t-test with various variances. Blood LDG was higher more often in 50--59 year old males and females, but differences with the control were not significant. Statistically significant elevation of LDG level in urine in males and insignificant one in females were observed. We believe that LDG activity test as an additional test for early diagnosis of renal carcinoma is justified both in males and females.

[Effects of infusion media on human red blood cell morphology].

The effect of various infusion media on the structure of human red blood cells was evaluated in vitro and in vivo. The in vitro experiments used 10% sodium chloride (NaCl) solution, 10% glucose solution, 20% albumin solution, Rheopolyglucin, HyperHAES solution (18 g of NaCl in combination with 60 g of hydroxyethylstarch (HES), 200/0.5), Voluven (HES 130/0.4/9:1), and a combination of hypertensive NaCl solution and Rheopolyglucin. The morphofunctional response of red blood cells was studied in the clinical setting when 6% Voluven solution (HES 130/0.4/ 9:1) and hypertensive NaCl and glucose solutions were used. It was established that 10% NaCl solution caused considerable changes in the morphology of red blood cells both in the experiment and in patients with severe brain injury. The magnitude of structural changes increased as blood NaCl concentrations became higher. 10% glucose solution, Voluven, Rheopolyglucin, and albumin did not virtually affect the structure of red blood cells. Infusion of Voluven (500 ml of 6% solution for 40 minutes) induced no changes in the morphology of red blood cells in the clinical setting. Among the test solutions used to correct intracranial hypertension (HyperHAES, 10% NaCl, a combination of rheopolyglucin and 10% NaCl), HyperHAES exerted the least effect on the morphology of red blood cells.

Trapped antiprotons produced by cosmic rays in the Earth's magnetosphere.

The existence of significant fluxes of antiparticles in the Earth magnetosphere has been predicted on theoretical considerations in this article. These antiparticles (positrons or antiprotons) at several hundred kilometers of altitudes, we believe are not of direct extraterrestrial origin, but are the natural products of nuclear reactions of the high energy primary cosmic rays (CR) and trapped protons (TP) confined in the terrestrial radiation belt, with the constituents of terrestrial atmosphere. Extraterrestrial positrons and antiprotons born in nuclear reactions of the same CR particles passing through only 5-7 g/cm2 of interstellar matter, exhibit lower fluxes compared to the antiprotons born at hundreds of g/cm2 in the atmosphere, which when confined in the magnetic field of the Earth (in any other planet), get accumulated. We present the results of the computations of the antiproton fluxes at 10 MeV to several GeV energies due to CR particle interactions with the matter in the interstellar space, and also with the residual atmosphere at altitudes of approximately 1000 km over the Earth's surface. The estimates show that the magnetospheric antiproton fluxes are greater by two orders of magnitude compared to the extraterrestrial fluxes measured at energies <1-2 GeV.