[The regional monitoring of territorial differences in population morbidity of circulatory system diseases]

The actual problem of health care in many regions of Russia are cardiovascular diseases. The valuation and monitoring study of prevalence of this class of diseases was implemented in the Kamchatka Kray. The study was based on official statistic data of general morbidity of adult and children population with circulatory system diseases in 2010-2021. The application of GIS-technologies permitted to implement territorially differentiated evaluation and monitoring of prevalence of circulatory system diseases. The increase of indicators and percentage of circulatory system diseases in the structure of general morbidity of adults was established. The children population of the region is characterized by decreasing of indicators of morbidity of cardio-vascular diseases. The space-time discontinuity of prevalence of these diseases in territories of the Kamchatka Kray. The study results were visualized in series of cartograms. The situation with cardio-vascular morbidity in the Kamchatka Kray has territorial differences: increased level of morbidity in central and distant regions and decreased one south regions. The obtained information can be applied in implementation of regional project of struggle with cardio-vascular diseases.

Voyages of maintenance: Exploration, infrastructure, and modernity on the Krusenstern-Lisianskii circumnavigation between Russia and Japan from 1803 to 1806

Against the common association of voyages of exploration with discovery and the arrival of modernity, this essay argues that maintenance and repair were essential to the success of such voyages and that maintenance and innovation are best seen as fundamentally integrated. Using the Russian circumnavigatory voyage of Adam von Krusenstern and Urey Lisianskii in 1803-7 as a case study, the essay explores the diverse forms and roles of infrastructure and repair work in enabling a voyage of exploration, and reveals the tensions and debates that considerations of maintenance evoked among ships' officers, crews, and the peoples they encountered.

An Update on Eukaryotic Viruses Revived from Ancient Permafrost

One quarter of the Northern hemisphere is underlain by permanently frozen ground, referred to as permafrost. Due to climate warming, irreversibly thawing permafrost is releasing organic matter frozen for up to a million years, most of which decomposes into carbon dioxide and methane, further enhancing the greenhouse effect. Part of this organic matter also consists of revived cellular microbes (prokaryotes, unicellular eukaryotes) as well as viruses that have remained dormant since prehistorical times. While the literature abounds on descriptions of the rich and diverse prokaryotic microbiomes found in permafrost, no additional report about "live" viruses have been published since the two original studies describing pithovirus (in 2014) and mollivirus (in 2015). This wrongly suggests that such occurrences are rare and that "zombie viruses" are not a public health threat. To restore an appreciation closer to reality, we report the preliminary characterizations of 13 new viruses isolated from seven different ancient Siberian permafrost samples, one from the Lena river and one from Kamchatka cryosol. As expected from the host specificity imposed by our protocol, these viruses belong to five different clades infecting Acanthamoeba spp. but not previously revived from permafrost: Pandoravirus, Cedratvirus, Megavirus, and Pacmanvirus, in addition to a new Pithovirus strain.

Long-Term Changes in the Distribution and Abundance of Nine Deep-Water Skates (Arhynchobatidae: Rajiformes: Chondrichthyes) in the Northwestern Pacific

Based on the analysis of long-term data from bottom trawl surveys (1977-2021), changes in the spatial distribution, position of the boundaries of the ranges and the catch rates of the nine most common deep-sea skates of the genus Bathyraja in the Russian waters of the Northwestern Pacific (B. violacea, B. aleutica, B. matsubarai, B. maculata, B. bergi, B. taranetzi, B. minispinosa, B. interrupta, and B. isotrachys) are considered. During the surveyed period, significant changes in the spatial distribution were observed, which are probably due to both subjective reasons (changes in the number of trawling stations, surveyed depths, etc.) and climatic changes. No monotonous displacement of the northern or southern boundaries of the range or its center in one direction was observed in any area of any species during the entire observation period. At the same time, shifts in the boundaries of the ranges of different species in different areas occurred for different decades, i.e., the boundaries of the ranges slowly fluctuated or "pulsed" near some average annual position. In general, from the 1970s to the 1980s, the number of skates grew; from the 1980s to the 1990s, it decreased; from the 1990s to the 2000s, it fluctuated at the achieved level; from the 2000s to the 2010s, it grew again; and from the 2010s to the 2020s, it decreased again. These trends coincide with previously identified ecosystem rearrangements under the influence of climatic and oceanological changes. The identification of links between changes in spatial distribution, range boundaries and catch rates with climatic and oceanological factors require separate additional studies.

Metagenomic survey of the microbiome of ancient Siberian permafrost and modern Kamchatkan cryosols

In the context of global warming, the melting of Arctic permafrost raises the threat of a reemergence of microorganisms some of which were shown to remain viable in ancient frozen soils for up to half a million years. In order to evaluate this risk, it is of interest to acquire a better knowledge of the composition of the microbial communities found in this understudied environment. Here, we present a metagenomic analysis of 12 soil samples from Russian Arctic and subarctic pristine areas: Chukotka, Yakutia and Kamchatka, including nine permafrost samples collected at various depths. These large datasets (9.2 × 10¹¹ total bp) were assembled (525 313 contigs > 5 kb), their encoded protein contents predicted, and then used to perform taxonomical assignments of bacterial, archaeal and eukaryotic organisms, as well as DNA viruses. The various samples exhibited variable DNA contents and highly diverse taxonomic profiles showing no obvious relationship with their locations, depths or deposit ages. Bacteria represented the largely dominant DNA fraction (95%) in all samples, followed by archaea (3.2%), surprisingly little eukaryotes (0.5%), and viruses (0.4%). Although no common taxonomic pattern was identified, the samples shared unexpected high frequencies of β-lactamase genes, almost 0.9 copy/bacterial genome. In addition to known environmental threats, the particularly intense warming of the Arctic might thus enhance the spread of bacterial antibiotic resistances, today's major challenge in public health. β-Lactamases were also observed at high frequency in other types of soils, suggesting their general role in the regulation of bacterial populations.

Case of highly prevalent papilloma-like skin lesions in whitespotted char (Salvelinus leucomaenis) in Kamchatka (Russia)

In October 2014, a case of mass skin lesions was reported in whitespotted char (Salvelinus leucomaenis) caught in the Nalycheva River on the Kamchatka peninsula (Russia). The proportion of affected fish was approximately 50% of the catch. Lesions of varying severity were noted from small tubercles to large single and confluent formations and ulcers. Papilloma-like growths were found in the epidermal layer of the skin of the affected fish. Histopathological alterations included the following: submerged growth of epithelial cells, infiltration of inflammatory cells, oedema of scale pockets, resorption of scales, haemorrhages, local necrosis and an increased number of mucous cells. In the dermal layer of the skin, haemorrhages and extensive necrosis were recorded. Inflammation, necrosis and destruction of myocytes were found in the underlying musculature. This is the first documented case of papilloma-like skin lesions found in salmonids in Kamchatka. The affected whitespotted char were deemed unsuitable as a food product due to their unsatisfactory appearance and impermissible levels of bacterial contamination of the muscles.

nov., the first thermophilic planctomycete of the order Gemmatales from a Kamchatka hot spring

A novel aerobic moderately thermophilic bacterium, designated strain 2918^T, was isolated from a terrestrial hot spring of Kamchatka, Russian Federation. Gram-negative, motile, spherical cells were present singly, in pairs, or aggregates, and reproduced by budding. The strain grew at 25-60°C and within a pH range of 5.0-8.0 with an optimum at 54-60°C and pH 7.5. Strain 2918^T did not require sodium chloride or yeast extract for growth. It was a chemoorganoheterotroph, growing on mono-, di- and polysaccharides (starch, lichenan, galactan, arabinan, xanthan gum, beta-glucan). No growth was observed under anaerobic conditions neither in the presence of sulfur, nitrate, or thiosulfate nor without adding any electron acceptor. Major cellular fatty acids were C_18:0 and C_20:0. The respiratory quinone was MK-6. The size of the genome of strain 2918^T was 4.81 Mb. Genomic DNA G+C content was 60.4mol%. According to the 16S rRNA gene sequence and conserved protein sequences phylogenies, strain 2918^T represented a distinct lineage of the order Gemmatales within Planctomycetes. Based on phylogenetic analysis and phenotypic features, the novel isolate was assigned to a novel genus in the Gemmatales for which the name Thermogemmata gen. nov. is proposed. Strain 2918^T (=KCTC 72012^T =VKM B-3161^T) represents its first species Thermogemmata fonticola sp. nov.

First report of bacterial kidney disease in coho salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch in Russia

This paper describes the first case of bacterial kidney disease (BKD) to be identified in coho salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch in Russia. The fish in question was caught in Lake Bolshoi Vilyui on the Kamchatka Peninsula. The diseased fish had foci of granulomatous inflammation in the kidneys. The diagnosis was confirmed by isolating the bacterium Renibacterium salmoninarum from kidney tissue in pure culture, and by determining the partial 16S RNA gene sequence of the isolate. This is the first detection of this pathogen in the genus Oncorhynchus in Russia, and detection of BKD in coho salmon indicates that the pathogen is present in the natural fish populations of Kamchatka. Therefore, it will be necessary to conduct screening studies of mature salmon selected for artificial reproduction, for the presence of BKD signs and asymptomatic infection with R. salmoninarum, which will allow us to estimate the prevalence of the pathogen.

Characterization of Mollivirus kamchatka, the First Modern Representative of the Proposed Molliviridae Family of Giant Viruses

Microbes trapped in permanently frozen paleosoils (permafrost) are the focus of increasing research in the context of global warming. Our previous investigations led to the discovery and reactivation of two Acanthamoeba-infecting giant viruses, Mollivirus sibericum and Pithovirus sibericum, from a 30,000-year old permafrost layer. While several modern pithovirus strains have since been isolated, no contemporary mollivirus relative was found. We now describe Mollivirus kamchatka, a close relative to M. sibericum, isolated from surface soil sampled on the bank of the Kronotsky River in Kamchatka, Russian Federation. This discovery confirms that molliviruses have not gone extinct and are at least present in a distant subarctic continental location. This modern isolate exhibits a nucleocytoplasmic replication cycle identical to that of M. sibericum Its spherical particle (0.6 μm in diameter) encloses a 648-kb GC-rich double-stranded DNA genome coding for 480 proteins, of which 61% are unique to these two molliviruses. The 461 homologous proteins are highly conserved (92% identical residues, on average), despite the presumed stasis of M. sibericum for the last 30,000 years. Selection pressure analyses show that most of these proteins contribute to virus fitness. The comparison of these first two molliviruses clarify their evolutionary relationship with the pandoraviruses, supporting their provisional classification in a distinct family, the Molliviridae, pending the eventual discovery of intermediary missing links better demonstrating their common ancestry.IMPORTANCE Virology has long been viewed through the prism of human, cattle, or plant diseases, leading to a largely incomplete picture of the viral world. The serendipitous discovery of the first giant virus visible under a light microscope (i.e., >0.3 μm in diameter), mimivirus, opened a new era of environmental virology, now incorporating protozoan-infecting viruses. Planet-wide isolation studies and metagenome analyses have shown the presence of giant viruses in most terrestrial and aquatic environments, including upper Pleistocene frozen soils. Those systematic surveys have led authors to propose several new distinct families, including the Mimiviridae, Marseilleviridae, Faustoviridae, Pandoraviridae, and Pithoviridae We now propose to introduce one additional family, the Molliviridae, following the description of M. kamchatka, the first modern relative of M. sibericum, previously isolated from 30,000-year-old arctic permafrost.

Draft genome sequence of Anoxybacillus flavithermus KU2-6-11 isolated from hot-spring in Uzon caldera (Kamchatka, Russia)

The Anoxybacillus flavithermus KU2-6-11 was isolated from sediments of a nameless hot spring. The hot spring is located in Uzon caldera (Kamchatka, Russia). The sequenced and annotated genome is 2,646,305 bp and encodes 2787genes. The draft genome sequence of the Anoxybacillus flavithermus KU2-6-11 has been deposited at DDBJ/EMBL/GenBank under the accession PEDM01000000 and the sequences could be found at the site https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nuccore/PEDM01000000.

Distinguishing remobilized ash from erupted volcanic plumes using space-borne multi-angle imaging

Volcanic systems are comprised of a complex combination of ongoing eruptive activity and secondary hazards, such as remobilized ash plumes. Similarities in the visual characteristics of remobilized and erupted plumes, as imaged by satellite-based remote sensing, complicate the accurate classification of these events. The stereo imaging capabilities of the Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) were used to determine the altitude and distribution of suspended particles. Remobilized ash shows distinct dispersion, with particles distributed within ~1.5 km of the surface. Particle transport is consistently constrained by local topography, limiting dispersion pathways downwind. The MISR Research Aerosol (RA) retrieval algorithm was used to assess plume particle microphysical properties. Remobilized ash plumes displayed a dominance of large particles with consistent absorption and angularity properties, distinct from emitted plumes. The combination of vertical distribution, topographic control, and particle microphysical properties makes it possible to distinguish remobilized ash flows from eruptive plumes, globally.

Sea star Henricia spiculifera (Clark, 1901) in the northwestern Pacific: one species or three?

Three species of the sea stars are reported from the waters of the northwestern Pacific. These species were referred by earlier authors as Henricia spiculifera or H. leviuscula spiculifera. Two of them, H. lineata and H. uluudax, were recently described from the Aleutian Islands. These species are reported for the first time from the western Pacific (southeastern Kamchatka shore, Commander Islands, and the northern Kurile Islands). The third species, H. olga sp. n. is herein described from the northern Sea of Japan. It is very likely that similar sea stars recorded in Yellow Sea and the southern Kurile Islands belong to H. olga sp. n. These three species are a part of a phylogenetic clade within the subgenus Setihenricia, which also includes H. sanguinolenta, H. multispina, and several undescribed species occurring in the northeastern Pacific.

Do beaver dams reduce habitat connectivity and salmon productivity in expansive river floodplains?

Beaver have expanded in their native habitats throughout the northern hemisphere in recent decades following reductions in trapping and reintroduction efforts. Beaver have the potential to strongly influence salmon populations in the side channels of large alluvial rivers by building dams that create pond complexes. Pond habitat may improve salmon productivity or the presence of dams may reduce productivity if dams limit habitat connectivity and inhibit fish passage. Our intent in this paper is to contrast the habitat use and production of juvenile salmon on expansive floodplains of two geomorphically similar salmon rivers: the Kol River in Kamchatka, Russia (no beavers) and the Kwethluk River in Alaska (abundant beavers), and thereby provide a case study on how beavers may influence salmonids in large floodplain rivers. We examined important rearing habitats in each floodplain, including springbrooks, beaver ponds, beaver-influenced springbrooks, and shallow shorelines of the river channel. Juvenile coho salmon dominated fish assemblages in all habitats in both rivers but other species were present. Salmon density was similar in all habitat types in the Kol, but in the Kwethluk coho and Chinook densities were 3–12× lower in mid- and late-successional beaver ponds than in springbrook and main channel habitats. In the Kol, coho condition (length: weight ratios) was similar among habitats, but Chinook condition was highest in orthofluvial springbrooks. In the Kwethluk, Chinook condition was similar among habitats, but coho condition was lowest in main channel versus other habitats (0.89 vs. 0.99–1.10). Densities of juvenile salmon were extremely low in beaver ponds located behind numerous dams in the orthofluvial zone of the Kwethluk River floodplain, whereas juvenile salmon were abundant in habitats throughout the entire floodplain in the Kol River. If beavers were not present on the Kwethluk, floodplain habitats would be fully interconnected and theoretically could produce 2× the biomass (between June–August, 1,174 vs. 667 kg) and rear 3× the number of salmon (370,000 vs. 140,000) compared to the existing condition with dams present. The highly productive Kol river produces an order of magnitude more salmon biomass and rears 40× the individuals compared to the Kwethluk. If beavers were introduced to the Kol River, we estimate that off-channel habitats would produce half as much biomass (2,705 vs. 5,404 kg) and 3× fewer individuals (1,482,346 vs. 4,856,956) owing to conversion of inter-connected, productive springbrooks into inaccessible pond complexes. We concluded that beaver dams may limit the total amount of floodplain habitat available for salmon rearing in the Kwethluk river and that the introduction of beavers to the Kol river could be detrimental to salmon populations. The introduction of beavers to other large alluvial rivers like those found in Kamchatka could have negative consequences for salmon production.

Complete genome sequence of and proposal of Thermofilum uzonense sp. nov. a novel hyperthermophilic crenarchaeon and emended description of the genus Thermofilum

A strain of a hyperthermophilic filamentous archaeon was isolated from a sample of Kamchatka hot spring sediment. Isolate 1807-2 grew optimally at 85 °C, pH 6.0-6.5, the parameters being close to those at the sampling site. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis placed the novel isolate in the crenarchaeal genus Thermofilum; Thermofilum pendens was its closest valid relative (95.7 % of sequence identity). Strain 1807-2 grew organothrophically using polysaccharides (starch and glucomannan), yeast extract or peptone as substrates. The addition of other crenarchaea culture broth filtrates was obligatory required for growth and could not be replaced by the addition of these organisms' cell wall fractions, as it was described for T. pendens. The genome of strain 1807-2 was sequenced using Illumina and PGM technologies. The average nucleotide identities between genome of strain 1807-2 and T. pendens strain HRK 5(T) and "T. adornatus" strain 1910b were 85 and 82 %, respectively. On the basis of 16S rRNA gene sequence phylogeny, ANI calculations and phenotypic differences we propose a novel species Thermofilum uzonense with the type strain 1807-2(T) (= DSM 28062(T) = JCM 19810(T)). Project information and genome sequence was deposited in Genbank under IDs PRJNA262459 and CP009961, respectively.

Multilocus sequence analysis of Thermoanaerobacter isolates reveals recombining, but differentiated, populations from geothermal springs of the Uzon Caldera, Kamchatka, Russia

Thermal environments have island-like characteristics and provide a unique opportunity to study population structure and diversity patterns of microbial taxa inhabiting these sites. Strains having ≥98% 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity to the obligately anaerobic Firmicutes Thermoanaerobacter uzonensis were isolated from seven geothermal springs, separated by up to 1600 m, within the Uzon Caldera (Kamchatka, Russian Far East). The intraspecies variation and spatial patterns of diversity for this taxon were assessed by multilocus sequence analysis (MLSA) of 106 strains. Analysis of eight protein-coding loci (gyrB, lepA, leuS, pyrG, recA, recG, rplB, and rpoB) revealed that all loci were polymorphic and that nucleotide substitutions were mostly synonymous. There were 148 variable nucleotide sites across 8003 bp concatenates of the protein-coding loci. While pairwise F_ST values indicated a small but significant level of genetic differentiation between most subpopulations, there was a negligible relationship between genetic divergence and spatial separation. Strains with the same allelic profile were only isolated from the same hot spring, occasionally from consecutive years, and single locus variant (SLV) sequence types were usually derived from the same spring. While recombination occurred, there was an “epidemic” population structure in which a particular T. uzonensis sequence type rose in frequency relative to the rest of the population. These results demonstrate spatial diversity patterns for an anaerobic bacterial species in a relative small geographic location and reinforce the view that terrestrial geothermal springs are excellent places to look for biogeographic diversity patterns regardless of the involved distances.