Application of Laser Correlation Spectroscopy for Measuring Virus Size.

Dynamic light scattering method or laser correlation spectroscopy was applied to evaluation of the size of viruses. We measured correlation functions of the light scattered by human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) and hepatitis A viruses (HAV) and found that size of HIV-1 (subtype A and B) and HAV virions were 104 nm and 28 nm, respectively. Comparison of these findings with electron microscopy data for fixed samples of the same viruses showed good agreement of the results.

Natural radionuclides and toxic elements in transboundary rivers of Kazakhstan.

The paper reports on the study of radionuclide and elemental composition of water, bottom sediment and soil samples collected at the border areas of the following transboundary rivers in Kazakhstan: Chagan, Ural, Ilek, Tobol, Ayat, Irtysh, Emel, Ili, Tekes, Shu, Karabalta, Talas and Syrdarya. The employed analyses include the following methods: instrumental gamma-ray spectrometry, radiochemical analysis, neutron activation analysis, XRF and the inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Evidence of water environment contamination with radionuclides and toxic elements has been revealed in many of the studied rivers both in Kazakhstan and in adjacent countries.

Isolation, characterization, and sequence analysis of a novel HIV type 1 subtype A1 strain from Russia.

A new syncytia-inducing human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) strain designated PokA79 was first isolated from a peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) pool from 24 HIV-1-infected patients from Russia and adapted to growth in MT2, MT4, and U937 cell cultures. The full-length genome of this isolate was amplified by RT-two-round PCR and sequenced. The obtained sequence belongs to the A1 subtype and clustered with other A1 former Soviet Union (FSU) strains.

[Prospects for using combined three-dimensional injection of gel transplants with autologous and allogenic cell cultures in reproductive medicine].

A combined cellular transplant for injection has been designed, by using lowly differentiated stromal fat tissue cells obtained from Wistar rats and it preserved biological and physical properties after passing through a small-diameter injection needle (an insulin syringe). A morphological study of the results of its transplantation into paraurethral tissues in 28 female rats showed that the transplant cells, autologous ones in particular, activated the proliferation of local connective tissue cell populations and retained their viability and proliferative and synthetic activities up 20 days or more. At the end of the experiment (on days 27-35), marked focal connective tissue enlargement at the site of injection of both allo- and autografts results in the narrowing of the urethral lumen.

[Polymorphism of heterochromatin C-blocks of rye genome chromosomes in rye-wheat amphidiploids and their chromosome substitution lines].

Polymorphism of heterochromatin C-blocks in chromosomes of rye genome has been studied in the F1BC1 hybrids and the D/A substitution lines of rye-wheat amphidiploids (Verasen x L374, Novosibirskaya x x L246)--secalotriticum for revealing cytogenetic markers of rye chromosomes. An increase in polymorphism for the presence and value of heterochromatin blocks in chromosomes of rye genome was shown in the F1BC1 hybrids ((Verasen x L374) x L145 x L145) and unstable genotypes of the F6BC1 chromosome substitution lines (line 118 (Novosibirskaya x L246) x Reso x Reso), line 104 ((Verasen x x L374) x Garmoniya x Garmoniya) that was related to activation of mobile genetic elements present in cereals. Heterochromatin markers of all seven chromosomes in rye genome were revealed.