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This article is devoted to solving problems with known theoretical solutions in the Fidesys software package. Within the framework of the work, modeling of a biaxial shear test of the ground and simulating a draft of a flexible foundation was done. The solutions obtained were correlated with the solutions of such problems in the Plaxis software package. According to the results of the study, it can be concluded that the Fidesys software complex allows solving problems in the field of geomechanics. At the same time, it is not inferior to recognized solutions in terms of functionality.

The elastic properties of two carbon-containing materials are investigated. Shungite rock is a natural nanocomposite; isotropic pyrolytic graphite is an artificial material. Precision measurement of the local velocities of longitudinal and shear waves propagating in shungite and isotropic pyrographite samples was performed by laser ultrasonic techniques. Young's modulus, the shear modulus and Poisson's ratio are calculated, and the chemical composition of the samples is given.

Loss of expression or activity of the tumor suppressor PTEN acts similarly to an activating mutation in the oncogene PIK3CA in elevating intracellular levels of phosphatidylinositol (3,4,5)-trisphosphate (PIP3), inducing signaling by AKT and other pro-tumorigenic signaling proteins. Here, we analyze sequence data for 34,129 colorectal cancer (CRC) patients, capturing 3,434 PTEN mutations. We identify specific patterns of PTEN mutation associated with microsatellite stability/instability (MSS/MSI), tumor mutational burden (TMB), patient age, and tumor location. Within groups separated by MSS/MSI status, this identifies distinct profiles of nucleotide hotspots, and suggests differing profiles of protein-damaging effects of mutations. Moreover, discrete categories of PTEN mutations display non-identical patterns of co-occurrence with mutations in other genes important in CRC pathogenesis, including KRAS , APC , TP53 , and PIK3CA . These data provide context for clinical targeting of proteins upstream and downstream of PTEN in distinct CRC cohorts. Loss of the tumour suppressor gene PTEN leads to the activation of pro-tumourigenic signalling pathways. Here, the authors analyse sequencing data from a large cohort of colorectal cancer patients harbouring PTEN mutations and identify distinct patterns of associations with genomic and clinical features.

Inhibitory analysis is a useful tool for studying cytochrome b6f complex in the photosynthetic electron transport chain. Here, we examine the inhibitory efficiency of two widely used inhibitors of the plastoquinol oxidation in the cytochrome b6f complex, namely 2,4-dinitrophenyl ether of 2-iodo-4-nitrothymol (DNP-INT) and 2,5-dibromo-3-methyl-6-isopropylbenzoquinone (DBMIB). Using isolated thylakoids from pea and arabidopsis, we demonstrate that inhibitory activity of DNP-INT and DBMIB is enhanced by increasing irradiance, and this effect is due to the increase in the rate of electron transport. However, the accumulation of protons in the thylakoid lumen at low light intensity has opposite effects on the inhibitory activity of DNP-INT and DBMIB, namely increasing the activity of DNP-INT and restricting the activity of DBMIB. These results allow for the refinement of the conditions under which the use of these inhibitors leads to the complete inhibition of plastoquinol oxidation in the cytochrome b6f complex, thereby broadening our understanding of the operation of the cytochrome b6f complex under conditions of steady-state electron transport.

Background Breast cancer neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) allows for assessing tumor sensitivity to systemic treatment, planning adjuvant treatment and follow-up. However, a sufficiently large number of patients fail to achieve the desired level of pathological tumor response while optimal early response assessment methods have not been established now. In our study, we simultaneously assessed the early chemotherapy-induced changes in the tumor volume by ultrasound (US), the tumor oxygenation by diffuse optical spectroscopy imaging (DOSI), and the state of the tumor vascular bed by Doppler US to elaborate the predictive criteria of breast tumor response to treatment. Methods A total of 133 patients with a confirmed diagnosis of invasive breast cancer stage II to III admitted to NACT following definitive breast surgery were enrolled, of those 103 were included in the final analysis. Tumor oxygenation by DOSI, tumor volume by US, and tumor vascularization by Doppler US were determined before the first and second cycle of NACT. After NACT completion, patients underwent surgery followed by pathological examination and assessment of the pathological tumor response. On the basis of these, data regression predictive models were created. Results We observed changes in all three parameters 3 weeks after the start of the treatment. However, a high predictive potential for early assessment of tumor sensitivity to NACT demonstrated only the level of oxygenation, ΔStO 2 , ( ρ  = 0.802, p  ≤ 0.01). The regression model predicts the tumor response with a high probability of a correct conclusion (89.3%). The “Tumor volume” model and the “Vascularization index” model did not accurately predict the absence of a pathological tumor response to treatment (60.9% and 58.7%, respectively), while predicting a positive response to treatment was relatively better (78.9% and 75.4%, respectively). Conclusions Diffuse optical spectroscopy imaging appeared to be a robust tool for early predicting breast cancer response to chemotherapy. It may help identify patients who need additional molecular genetic study of the tumor in order to find the source of resistance to treatment, as well as to correct the treatment regimen.

For decades, GNSS code measurements were much noisier than phase ones, limiting their applicability to ionospheric total electron content (TEC) studies. Ultra-wideband AltBOC signals changed the situation. This study revisits the Galileo E5 and BeiDou B2 AltBOC signals and their potential applications in TEC estimation. We found that TEC noises are comparable for the single-frequency AltBOC phase-code combination and those of the dual-frequency legacy BPSK/QPSK phase combination, while single-frequency BPSK/QPSK TEC noises are much higher. A two-week high-rate measurement campaign at the ACRG receiver revealed a mean 100 sec TEC RMS (used as the noise proxy) of 0.26 TECU, 0.15 TECU, and 0.09 TECU for the BeiDou B2(a+b) AltBOC signal and satellite elevations 0–30°, 30–60°, and 60–90°, correspondingly, and 0.22 TECU, 0.14 TECU, and 0.09 TECU for the legacy B1/B3 dual-frequency phase combination. The Galileo E5(a+b) AltBOC signal corresponding values were 0.25 TECU, 0.14 TECU, and 0.09 TECU; for the legacy signals’ phase combination, the values were 0.19 TECU, 0.13 TECU, and 0.08 TECU. The AltBOC (for both BeiDou and Galileo) SNR exceeds those of BPSK/QPSK by 7.5 dB-Hz in undisturbed conditions. Radio frequency interference (the 28 August 2022 and 9 May 2024 Solar Radio Burst events in our study) decreased the AltBOC SNR 5 dB-Hz more against QPSK SNR, but, due to the higher initial SNR, the threshold for the loss of the lock was never broken. Today, we have enough BeiDou and Galileo satellites that transmit AltBOC signals for a reliable single-frequency vTEC estimation. This study provides new insights and evidence for using Galileo and BeiDou AltBOC signals in high-precision ionospheric monitoring.

There are several well-studied examples of protective symbiosis between insect host and symbiotic actinobacteria, producing antimicrobial metabolites to inhibit host pathogens. These mutualistic relationships are best described for some wasps and leaf-cutting ants, while a huge variety of insect species still remain poorly explored. For the first time, we isolated actinobacteria from the harvester ant Messor structor and evaluated the isolates’ potential as antimicrobial producers. All isolates could be divided into two morphotypes of single and mycelial cells. We found that the most common mycelial morphotype was observed among soldiers and least common among larvae in the studied laboratory colony. The representative of this morphotype was identified as Streptomyces globisporus subsp. globisporus 4-3 by a polyphasic approach. It was established using a E. coli JW5503 pDualRep2 system that crude broths of mycelial isolates inhibited protein synthesis in reporter strains, but it did not disrupt the in vitro synthesis of proteins in cell-free extracts. An active compound was extracted, purified and identified as albomycin δ2. The pronounced ability of albomycin to inhibit the growth of entomopathogens suggests that Streptomyces globisporus subsp. globisporus may be involved in defensive symbiosis with the Messor structor ant against infections.

Somatic PTEN mutations are common and have driver function in some cancer types. However, in colorectal cancers (CRCs), somatic PTEN-inactivating mutations occur at a low frequency (~8–9%), and whether these mutations are actively selected and promote tumor aggressiveness has been controversial. Analysis of genomic data from ~53,000 CRCs indicates that hotspot mutation patterns in PTEN partially reflect DNA-dependent selection pressures, but also suggests a strong selection pressure based on protein function. In microsatellite stable (MSS) tumors, PTEN alterations co-occur with mutations activating BRAF or PI3K, or with TP53 deletions, but not in CRC with microsatellite instability (MSI). Unexpectedly, PTEN deletions are associated with poor survival in MSS CRC, whereas PTEN mutations are associated with improved survival in MSI CRC. These and other data suggest use of PTEN as a prognostic marker is valid in CRC, but such use must consider driver mutation landscape, tumor subtype, and category of PTEN alteration.

In this article, we report on experimental studies of the influence of several laser radiation parameters, such as the duration of the laser pulse, the radiation wavelength, and the pulse energy, on the efficiency of the destruction of urinary calculi. The study used a laser lithotripter based on a fiber Tm laser generating at a wavelength of 1940 nm with pulses with a duration of about 1800 μs and pulse energy of up to 6 J, as well as a femtosecond solid-state Yb laser generating at a wavelength of 1032 nm with a pulse duration of about 250 fs and pulse energy of up to 400 μJ. A comparative analysis was carried out according to such criteria as the productivity of lasers when removing a unit mass of images and the amount of sample displacement resulting from the retropulsion effect. The results obtained in this work demonstrated that the femtosecond laser loses approximately two times its efficiency in terms of sample material removal. However, this shows the absolute advantage of the photoionization mechanism of femtosecond laser ablation in the study of retropulsion and thermal heating, which were completely absent in this case.