Сентябрь 2025 г.

Российская наука и мир (по материалам зарубежной электронной прессы)

CONTENTS / ОГЛАВЛЕНИЕ


• Oldest known bacterial DNA found in a mammoth that lived more than a million years ago
• Researchers demonstrate light transmission control through zero-mode waveguides containing single atoms
• Silicon-vacancy charge dynamics boosted sixfold in nanodiamonds with tailored nitrogen concentrations
• The Siberian tundra is exploding. New research helps explain why.
• One of largest asteroids in 2025 passes by Earth
• Russian "Noah's Ark" satellite carrying 75 mice and 1,500 flies lands back on Earth
• Rosatom unveils next-gen reactor fuel
• Study identifies distinctive molecular footprints of depression and schizophrenia in blood
• This creature found off the coast of Antarctica looks like something straight out of "Stranger Things." It's a new species

Международный коллектив ученых (Швеция, Россия, Дания, Франция, Великобритания, Канада, США, Испания) выделил из останков 483 мамонтов более 300 ДНК бактерий, в том числе тех, которые обитали на живых мамонтах. Самой старой из них оказалась Erysipelothrix, обнаруженная в костях степного мамонта возрастом более миллиона лет.

A year ago, a team of scientists uncovered an unusual discovery. Just 4,000 years ago, when the first human civilizations had established themselves in Mesopotamia and Egypt, mammoths were still alive on Wrangel, a remote Arctic island. This Tuesday, the same team published an exhaustive analysis of hundreds of mammoth remains spanning a million years, with a new surprise: they were able to isolate DNA from the bacteria that lived inside these animals from their teeth and other tissues. This discovery opens up a unique opportunity to understand the co-evolution of mammoths and their microbiome, and perhaps shed light on the causes of their extinction.
Some of the scientists behind the study work for the U.S. company Colossal, which aims to de-extinct the mammoth by 2027. However, many experts believe this project will never truly bring these animals back, but rather create strange, reddish-haired elephants. This new study could also make it possible to recover the bacteria that coexisted with the pachyderms - and may have caused them deadly infections.
The researchers analyzed 483 mammoth remains, mostly molars but also tusks and bones. The oldest samples are 1.1 million years old and belonged to a steppe mammoth - a species that later gave rise to the woolly mammoths of Europe and the Columbian mammoths of the Americas - that lived in Adycha, in the Arctic region of present-day Russia.
The researchers recovered genetic material from six groups of bacteria, some capable of causing severe infections. The bacterial groups identified in mammoths are related to modern microbes that either live peacefully with their hosts or cause health problems, such as streptococci linked to dental cavities. Among them are Pasteurella, related to present-day microbes capable of killing African elephants - the mammoths’ closest living relatives, alongside Asian elephants - through septicemia. The study was published Tuesday in the journal Cell.
The oldest sample preserves remains of the genome of Erysipelothrix bacteria. Today, these microbes are found in the mouths of pigs or dogs. They can enter the bloodstream and cause serious infections such as endocarditis, which inflames the tissue lining the heart. In the mammoth remains, these bacteria appear in the bones. This could mean that there were infections that caused health problems in these animals, although it could also represent a benign colonization. For now, it is impossible to know.
Bioinformatician David Díez del Molino, co-author of the study, explains the difficulties posed by some of the samples. Some of the molars studied - including the oldest one - were discovered in the permafrost in the 1970s. Some contain so little mammoth DNA that nothing had been published from 440 of them until now.
"We’ve been sequencing mammoths for more than 10 years," explains this scientist, which in part has helped reveal the DNA of the bacteria associated with many of those remains.
The results push the study of microbial DNA back one million years, says biologist Benjamin Guinet of the Centre for Palaeogenetics at Stockholm University and the Swedish Museum of Natural History. These are by far the oldest known. The finding "opening up new possibilities to explore how host-associated microbes evolved in parallel with their hosts" over thousands of years, the researcher stressed in a press release from his university.
The lead author of the study is geneticist Love Dalén, one of the world’s foremost experts on mammoth genetics. The researcher has worked on recovering the mammoth DNA, which was so well preserved by Siberian cold, it retained its three-dimensional structure. This is a key finding for understanding which genes were active in these creatures, especially those related to their physical traits and their extraordinary adaptation to icy environments. With such data, it would theoretically be possible to reproduce them in the genome of modern elephants in order to bring the mammoth back.
"This work opens a new chapter in understanding the biology of extinct species," Dalén explains in the statement. "Not only can we study the genomes of mammoths themselves, but we can now begin to explore the microbial communities that lived inside them."
Dalén is a scientific advisor for Colossal, the U.S. company that recently created woolly mice with striking reddish fur and other traits by inserting mammoth genes into their genetic code. Four months ago, the company announced it had de-extincted an animal for the first time: the dire wolf (Canis dirus), which disappeared more than 10,000 years ago.
The scientists started from a reconstruction of the extinct animal’s genome and then edited gray wolf cells to match that of the vanished canid. The announcement was controversial, since many experts believe this does not amount to truly de-extincting an animal, but rather creating a new variant of present-day wolves that resemble dire wolves through genetic editing.
The U.S. company was co-founded by charismatic biologist George Church of Harvard University, a pioneer of human genome sequencing and a champion of genetic editing’s potential to prevent diseases and even enhance the abilities of animals and humans. Colossal has raised hundreds of millions of dollars from backers such as Thomas Tull, producer of the film Jurassic World, and the famous heiress Paris Hilton. Another co-author of the new study is U.S. molecular biologist Beth Shapiro, the company’s chief science officer.
Argentine geneticist Nicolás Rascován, a researcher at the Pasteur Institute in Paris, was one of the study’s international reviewers. "This work is important because it shows how far we can go with ancient DNA; even to better understand the interactions between microbes and large extinct mammals, and to study how the microbiota may have influenced their adaptation or decline," he says.
The specialist, who recently isolated plague bacteria from human remains to reconstruct their evolution in Europe and America, cautions that the data presented are not enough to know to what extent the mammoth bacteria were "commensals" that caused no health problems, or whether they were involved in the death of some animals. In any case, he adds: "The main value of the study is that it opens the door to exploring the microbiota of extinct species and asking ourselves what their microbial ecology was like."
Could these bacteria be de-extincted using present-day microbes? "These types of ancient microbial genomes are highly fragmented," with only a small percentage of their complete genome preserved, explains Rascován. This means that "they are nowhere near being de-extinct, nor is it feasible to reintroduce them, nor does it even make biological sense; since many related strains of these species exist today, and there is no evidence to suggest that those from the mammoth would be better adapted to this animal or confer any particular advantage or disadvantage," he explains.
Rascován adds: "The study does raise interesting questions about what would happen if ancient bacteria with pathogenic potential were one day recovered, but we are still very far from that scenario."

В Физическом институте им. П.Н.Лебедева РАН разработали комплексную теорию пропускания света через волновод нулевой моды для одного атома. Эксперименты показали, что присутствие этого атома может значительно усиливать или подавлять пропускание света в зависимости от его частоты.

The ability to control light at the nanoscale holds immense promise for both fundamental science and technological innovation, and researchers are now exploring how even a single atom can dramatically influence light transmission. Vasily Klimov from the P. N. Lebedev Physical Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, and colleagues demonstrate that positioning a single atom within a zero-mode waveguide, a structure that normally confines light to an extremely small volume, creates extraordinary effects on light passing through it. The team’s work reveals that this single atom can either significantly enhance or suppress light transmission, depending on the precise frequency of the light used, offering a new method for studying atomic behaviour in tiny spaces. This discovery paves the way for novel nano-devices and provides a powerful tool for investigating the dynamics of atoms within complex environments.
Nanostructures are central to advancements in nano-optics, nanophotonics, and quantum information science. This work develops a comprehensive theory of light transmission through a Zero-Mode Waveguide (ZMW) containing a single atom, providing a means to understand and predict these interactions. The results demonstrate that a single atom within the ZMW can either significantly enhance or suppress light transmission, depending on the frequency of the light and its relationship to the atom’s natural resonance. This extraordinary control of light offers potential for novel applications in quantum optics and nanoscale sensing.
Single-Molecule Detection Using Confined Light Waves
This research details a comprehensive investigation into the interaction of light with nanoscale structures, specifically focusing on zero-mode waveguides (ZMWs) and their application in single-molecule detection. The core concept revolves around ZMWs, which are nanoscale apertures that confine light to an extremely small volume, dramatically enhancing the signal from single molecules located within the waveguide. Building upon previous work, this study focuses on optimizing ZMW design and operation for maximizing the signal-to-noise ratio in single-molecule fluorescence detection. The research utilizes rigorous electromagnetic theory to model light propagation and interaction with the ZMW structure, and employs quantum electrodynamics to describe the interaction of light with single molecules.
Fano resonances play a key role in enhancing light transmission and improving signal detection. The findings identify optimal ZMW parameters for maximizing light confinement and signal enhancement, demonstrating a significant enhancement of fluorescence from single molecules. The study also shows that ZMWs can modify the radiative decay rate of single molecules, influencing their fluorescence lifetime and quantum yield. Researchers explored the possibility of blocking light transmission through ZMWs, which can be used for controlling the detection of single molecules. This research provides a comprehensive theoretical and computational framework for understanding and optimizing ZMWs for single-molecule detection, paving the way for advancements in various fields of science and technology.
Single-Atom Control of Zero-Mode Waveguide Transmission
Researchers have demonstrated a remarkable ability to control light transmission through Zero-Mode Waveguides (ZMWs) by strategically positioning a single atom within the structure. Experiments reveal that the presence of this atom can either significantly enhance or suppress light transmission, depending on the precise frequency of the light used. This effect arises because the atom interacts with the light confined within the ZMW, creating a resonance that alters how light propagates. Notably, researchers observed a substantial blocking of transmission, by a factor of over 100, just below a specific resonant frequency, while shifting the frequency slightly higher reverses the effect, enabling extraordinary transmission.
Visualizations of the flow of electromagnetic energy demonstrate that the atom effectively captures energy from a larger area, transferring it to the detector and minimizing absorption within the ZMW walls. The team proposes that placing an atom within a ZMW alters the waveguide’s topology, transforming it into a coaxial structure without a cutoff frequency, allowing light to propagate without exponential decay. This preliminary analysis suggests that the observed effect stems from the atom’s ability to draw energy into the ZMW, significantly increasing light transmission. While the current work focuses on atoms positioned on the ZMW axis, the researchers acknowledge that off-axis placement introduces anisotropy, opening avenues for further investigation.
Atom Location via Waveguide Light Interaction
This work develops a theoretical understanding of how light travels through a Zero-Mode Waveguide (ZMW) when a single atom is present within it. The research demonstrates that the atom’s presence can either significantly enhance or suppress light transmission, depending on the precise frequency of the light used and its relationship to the atom’s natural resonance. This effect arises from the strong interaction between the confined light within the ZMW and the atom itself, leading to both characteristic Fano resonances and splitting of the light transmission lines. The findings offer a pathway to not only detect the presence of an atom within a ZMW, but also to determine its location, opening possibilities for studying atomic dynamics in complex nanoscale environments. The calculated scattering cross-section of the atom within the ZMW is comparable to that of an atom in free space, suggesting the effect is robust. This research provides a foundation for new technologies focused on light-matter interactions at the nanoscale and the development of advanced quantum devices.

Российские физики представили способ значительного увеличения светового потока в центрах вакансии кремня (оптически активный дефект в алмазе, называемый также центром окраски) в наноалмазах, синтезированных при высоком давлении и высокой температуре с различной концентрацией замещающего азота.

Silicon-vacancy centres within diamond are promising candidates for quantum technologies, but achieving bright, stable emission remains a significant challenge. A. A. Zhivopistsev, A. M. Romshin, and A. V. Gritsienko, along with colleagues at various institutions, now demonstrate a method for dramatically boosting the light output from these centres. The team achieves a sixfold enhancement of luminescence by simultaneously illuminating the diamond with both red and green light. This technique appears to suppress an inactive state within the silicon-vacancy centre. This research provides a crucial step towards creating practical, scalable quantum emitters based on nanodiamonds, potentially enabling advances in sensing, imaging, and quantum communication.
Technology (MIPT), Dolgoprudny, Russia, and the P. N. Lebedev Physical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia, with contributions from the Russian Quantum Center and the Ioffe Institute, St. The team investigated the charge dynamics of silicon-vacancy (SiV) centers within high-pressure, high-temperature nanodiamonds (NDs) containing varying concentrations of substitutional nitrogen (NS).
This research addresses a critical need for understanding and controlling the properties of these defects, which are promising candidates for quantum technologies. The study demonstrates a controlled enhancement of SiV photoluminescence, a key metric for their performance in quantum applications. By systematically varying the concentration of NS, researchers sought to understand how these impurities influence the charge state and optical properties of SiV centers within the nanodiamond lattice. Nanodiamonds were synthesized via a high-pressure, high-temperature (HPHT) method from a mixture of adamantane and detonation nanodiamonds (DND), with varying ratios used to control nitrogen concentration.
Ratios tested included 2:1, 10:1, 100:1, 300:1, 1000:1, and 10000:1, resulting in estimated concentrations of 500 ppm, 150 ppm, 20 ppm, 4 ppm, 1. 5 ppm, and 0. 2 ppm respectively. The NDs were characterized using a range of techniques including electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), confocal microscopy, photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy, time-resolved PL spectroscopy, and second-order correlation function (g2(τ)) measurements. PL spectra revealed characteristic peaks of H3 centers, NV0, NV-, and SiV centers, with the SiV zero-phonon line exhibiting a full width at half maximum of approximately 5 nm. This supplementary information provides a detailed account of the materials, methods, and experimental setup, allowing for reproducibility and a deeper understanding of the results.
Green Light Boosts Silicon-Vacancy Luminescence Sixfold
Scientists have achieved a sixfold enhancement of luminescence from silicon-vacancy (SiV) centers within nanodiamonds, demonstrating precise control over their optical properties. This breakthrough stems from a dual-color excitation technique, combining strong red illumination at 660 nm with weak green light at 530 nm, and unlocks new possibilities for quantum photonic devices. Experiments reveal that the addition of green light effectively suppresses an inactive SiV state, significantly boosting the brightness of these quantum emitters. The team systematically investigated nanodiamonds synthesized with varying concentrations of substitutional nitrogen, ranging from 500 ppm to 0.
15 ppm, to understand the role of this impurity in SiV emission dynamics. Detailed analysis of luminescence intensity and lifetime dependencies on excitation wavelength confirms the involvement of donor nitrogen in the charge state of SiV centers. Researchers observed that luminescence intensity under green excitation consistently exceeded that under red excitation, averaging a 2. 1-fold increase. Further investigation revealed a saturation behavior in SiV luminescence, where the saturation power under red excitation was approximately two times lower than under green excitation. These findings demonstrate that the green light actively controls the charge state of the SiV centers, preventing them from entering an optically dark state. By precisely manipulating the charge environment, scientists have not only enhanced luminescence but also paved the way for engineering scalable and optically-controlled quantum emitters based on SiV-luminescent diamond nanoparticles, promising advancements in quantum computing, sensing, and imaging technologies.
Nitrogen Impurities Boost Silicon-Vacancy Luminescence
This research details a significant enhancement in the luminescence of silicon-vacancy (SiV) centres within nanodiamonds, achieved through a specific dual-colour light excitation. Scientists observed a sixfold increase in light emission by combining strong red illumination with weaker green light, demonstrating a controlled manipulation of the SiV centre’s behaviour. The findings strongly suggest that the presence of nitrogen impurities within the nanodiamonds plays a crucial role in this process, actively participating in the emission dynamics of the SiV centre. The team’s measurements of fluorescence lifetime and intensity, coupled with the observed dependence on nitrogen concentration, provide clear evidence that nitrogen atoms donate charge to the SiV centre, suppressing an inactive state and boosting light output. This controlled charge transfer unlocks a pathway towards creating brighter and more reliable light emitters based on nanodiamonds, with potential applications in quantum technologies. The authors highlight future research directions, including investigating charge transport in magnetic fields and exploring the possibility of creating hybrid quantum systems where nitrogen acts as a spin register and the SiV centre facilitates optical control and readout, potentially leading to the development of scalable quantum memories and multi-addressable quantum nodes.

Кратеры на полуострове Ямал впервые были обнаружены в 2014 г. Ученые установили, что причиной их появления являются взрывы метана, скопившегося в подземных пустотах из-за потепления климата и таяния вечной мерзлоты. Но почему они появляются только на Ямале и Гыданском полуострове, хотя вечная мерзлота занимает гораздо более обширные территории? Международный коллектив ученых выдвинул предположение, что свою роль сыграла тектоническая активность, приведшая к образованию разломов.

The first crater was found in 2014 in the far north of western Siberia, the result of a spontaneous underground explosion that sent earth flying in all directions. More discoveries followed, with some of the holes more than 150 feet deep.
The cause was a mystery at first, but scientists eventually linked the exploding land to climate change and rising temperatures. As the permafrost thaws, they determined, pockets of methane can form below the surface.
But questions remained: Why were the explosions happening only in Siberia, when the Arctic as a whole is warming even faster than the rest of the planet? And will the blasts become more frequent if the planet continues to heat up?
Now, a new study in the journal Science of the Total Environment is offering answers.
Helge Hellevang, an environmental geoscientist at the University of Oslo and lead author on the new study, said he first got interested in the craters, on the Yamal and Gyda peninsulas, after watching a short BBC documentary about them. "We immediately wanted to understand how these could form," Dr. Hellevang said.
His team examined the literature, he said, but none of the published research on the craters gave a satisfactory explanation of why the craters formed on the two northern peninsulas and not in the "vast areas of permafrost elsewhere in the Arctic."
So Dr. Hellevang and his colleagues decided to take a closer look at the data. They started with a review of published observations in English and Russian. Based on that review, the team created its own computer models for the origin of the explosions.
This part of Siberia is known for its large deposits of natural gas. But Dr. Hellevang and his colleagues noticed that the Yamal and Gyda peninsulas also had signs of permafrost thinning related to faulting, essentially splits in the underlying rock caused by tectonic activity in the area. He suspected that the faults played a role in the formation of the gas craters.
According to the team’s computer models, the conditions for an explosion start to form when gas moves up through faults into a cavity under the permafrost that’s solid enough to prevent most of the gas from leaking into the atmosphere. When higher temperatures thaw that permafrost, forming shallow lakes at ground level, the seal is weakened.
At the same time, pressure inside the cavity increases as higher temperatures release gas trapped under the ice, which combines with over-pressurized gas coming from faults deep below. If the pressure in the cavity gets too strong, according to the models, the whole thing can go off in a giant blast. And sometimes, it does.
Since that first discovery in 2014, anywhere from eight to at least 17 gas craters, depending on how you define them, have been discovered on the two peninsulas. And the phenomenon could become more common, according to Dr. Hellevang.
"As atmospheric heating and weakening of the surface permafrost continuous, it is likely that more explosions will occur," he said.
Evgeny Chuvilin, a geologist with the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology in Moscow who has studied the gas craters but was not involved in Dr. Hellevang’s work, said the new study brought earlier research together very well. But while the models used are good, Dr. Chuvilin said, the geology of the area is "poorly studied" and nobody has bored deep into the craters to see their full depth.
"The available individual geophysical data are indirect and remain unvalidated," Dr. Chuvilin said. One limitation of the models proposed by Dr. Hellevang’s team, he said, is that it does not explain how cavities form below the surface in the first place.
It’s possible that such explosions have occurred in the past, but they might have been missed because satellite observations of the area were less frequent and the local population is sparse. Because some debris probably fall back into fill these craters after an explosion, it’s also very likely they were even deeper initially.
"These craters degrade quickly into lakes as they melt or fill with water, so it is possible that we have not noticed all of them forming before they degraded," said Lauren Schurmeier, a researcher at the University of Hawaii who published a separate study on the gas craters in 2023. "There are many more lake-like structures in this area than craters."
Dr. Hellevang said he would like to observe how these gas craters begin to evolve into lakes over the years, and whether they begin to look like other lakes in the region. Conditions were similar or warmer in the area about 9,000 to 10,000 years ago, and it’s possible such craters occurred then, as well.
If so, some water bodies may have had a violent beginning. "Many of these lakes could have been emissions craters," Dr. Hellevang said.

Лаборатория солнечной астрономии Института космических исследований РАН сообщила, что 18 сентября мимо Земли благополучно пролетел крупный астероид 2025 FA22, входящий в список потенциально опасных объектов.

Asteroid 2025 FA22, one of the largest of its kind to approach Earth this year, passed by safely on Thursday, according to Russian scientists.
The asteroid is listed among potentially hazardous celestial bodies, TASS news agency reported, citing the solar astronomy laboratory of the Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
At 10:41 a.m. local time (0741 GMT), the asteroid passed Earth and the Moon at a minimum calculated distance of about 800,000 km - roughly twice the distance to the Moon - before continuing on its path away from the planet.
Scientists noted that the asteroid poses no immediate threat. Its next approach is expected in August 2036, at a distance 25 times greater than this flyby. Closer encounters, which scientists consider worthy of special monitoring, are projected for 2089 and 2173.

Российский биоспутник «БИОН-М2», запущенный 20 августа с космодрома Байконур, вернулся на Землю после месяца пребывания на полярной орбите.

They came from outer space: 75 mice, over 1,500 flies, cell cultures, microorganisms, plant seeds and more.
A Russian biological research satellite toting more than 30 experiments landed on Sept. 19 in the steppes of the Orenburg region after spending 30 days in Earth orbit. The Bion-M No. 2 descent module has been called a "Noah's Ark" due to the mini-menagerie of specimens flown; it was lofted from the Baikonur cosmodrome on Aug. 20 atop a Soyuz-2.1b rocket. After launch, the craft was placed into a polar orbit roughly 230 to 236 miles (370 to 380 kilometers) in altitude at an inclination of roughly 97 degrees. Bion-M No. 2's payload of select biological specimens were thereafter exposed to a high level of cosmic radiation.
Initial examination
Photos taken of the recovered craft suggest the landing spurred a small brush fire. This fire was apparently extinguished quickly, allowing recovery crews to approach the descent module. A trio of search helicopters carrying technical specialists touched down near the descent module to extract the living specimens as rapidly as possible to start an initial examination. For example, on-site specialists were slated to assess the flies' motor activity to detect any nervous system problems.
Medical tent
The Bion-M No. 2 mission was a joint effort of Roscosmos, the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Biomedical Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IBMP). According to the IBMP in Moscow - the lead organization for the mission - the first post-flight studies were done in a deployed medical tent at the landing site. The biological objects were expected to return to IBMP laboratories around midnight on Sept. 20.
Influence of spaceflight
Bion-M No. 2's scientific program of experiments and research consists of 10 "sections." According to the IBMP, the first and second sections are devoted to experimental studies of gravitational physiology on animals. The goal here is to help create new technologies for ensuring human life support during flights under the combined effects of weightlessness and cosmic radiation. A third, fourth and fifth section are devoted to studies of the influence of space flight and outer space factors on the biology of plants and microorganisms as well as their communities. This can be thought of as understanding the general patterns of life in the universe. The sixth, eighth and ninth sections include biotechnological, technological, physical and technical experiments, while a seventh section is a complex of radiobiological and dosimetric experiments necessary to help ensure the radiation safety of new crewed spacecraft. A tenth section involves experiments prepared by students from various schools of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus.
Panspermia experiment
Reportedly, one experiment, called "Meteorite," was carried out during the reentry of the lander. This investigation focused on the prospect that life on Earth may have been introduced from outer space - a theory called panspermia.
Within the Bion capsule's hull, basalt rocks containing microbial strains were embedded to assess whether bacteria could survive the enormous thermal stress of reentry through the Earth's atmosphere.

В «Росатоме» создали новое, более эффективное реакторное топливо. Уникальная тепловыделяющая сборка ОС-5 на базе нитридного уран-плутониевого СНУП-топлива с жидкометаллическим подслоем позволит улучшить характеристики твэлов с нитридным топливом для реакторов IV поколения на быстрых нейтронах.

Rosatom’s Fuel Division, TVEL, has produced a unique fuel assembly, OS-5, based on uranium-plutonium nitride (SNUP - Smeshannoe Nitridnoi Uran-Plutonievoe) fuel with a liquid metal sublayer. Sodium metal was placed under the steel shell enveloping the uranium-plutonium fuel pellets.
Research and calculations by Russian scientists show that the use of a liquid metal sublayer will improve the characteristics of fuel rods with nitride fuel for fast neutron reactors. It is expected that the temperature of such fuel will be lower while maintaining the coolant parameters. Also, the uranium-plutonium pellet will swell less, provoking possible depressurisation. This will improve both economic efficiency and operational reliability of the fuel.
The production of OS-5 is part of a large-scale programme of work to improve the efficiency of SNUP fuel for the BREST-OD-300 lead-cooled fast neutron reactor, which is being built in Seversk as part of the pilot demonstration power complex being developed under the Breakthrough (Proryv) project intended to demonstrate closed fuel cycle technology.
Since 2014, Rosatom scientists and engineers have been carrying out pilot operation of SNUP fuel in the BN-600 reactor at the Beloyarsk NPP and undertaking post-reactor studies of irradiated fuel rods. As a result, increasingly higher burnup of SNUP fuel is being experimentally confirmed and gradually substantiated.
"The first generation of SNUP fuel for the launch load BREST-OD-300 was justified with burnup at the level of 6% of heavy atoms. Our goal is to stepwise increase the burnup to an average of 12%, said Mikhail Skupov, Deputy Director of the A.A. Bochvar Research Institute of Inorganic Materials (VNIINM). "To test SNUP fuel to maximum limit parameters in the BN-600 reactor, our scientists have already used a number of non-standard innovative solutions, for example, special removable containers in irradiation assemblies. Fuel rods with a liquid metal sublayer, OS-5, are a revolutionary technological solution and another important step in the development of nitride fuel for fast reactors. With this assembly we expect to achieve the design targets for fuel for fast reactors of the future."
The OS-5 irradiation assembly was manufactured at the Siberian Chemical Combine (SKhK - Sibirskovo Khimicheskovo Kombinata) in Seversk, in cooperation with colleagues from the Fuel, Scientific and Mechanical Engineering Divisions of Rosatom. After approval from regulator Rostechnadzor, the innovative fuel will undergo pilot operation in the BN-600 reactor at the Beloyarsk NPP in the Sverdlovsk region.
"The work of our scientists to develop SNUP fuel technologies is of strategic importance for the nuclear energy sector of the future," said Alexander Ugryumov, Senior Vice President for Scientific & Technical Activities at TVEL. "We have experience in operating a fast BN-800 reactor with a full load of mixed oxide (MOX) fuel. Nitride fuel is denser, and therefore potentially more cost-effective. Initially, it was created for reactors with lead coolant - the BREST-OD-300 and subsequent BR-1200. But potentially it can also be used in fast sodium reactors such as the BN-1200M, which also provides an option to use a nitride core. Experience will show which technology is more viable. Our ultimate goal is not only to take advantage of the nuclear fuel cycle closure in fast neutron reactors but also to make these installations as competitive as possible in the electricity and capacity market compared with other types of generation."
SNUP fuel is a type of nuclear fuel in which fissile material (a mixture of uranium and plutonium) is presented in the form of a nitrogen compound - mononitride - instead of standard uranium dioxide. Such fuel is not yet used in industry. It is being developed for promising fast neutron reactors with sodium and lead coolant. The high density ensures a high fuel consumption and fuel reproduction rate, allowing reactors to be made more compact. High thermal conductivity ensures reliability and temperature resistance of the fuel. During reactor operation, the isotopic composition of the fuel is equalised, which simplifies fuel refabrication.

Исследования показали, что липидный профиль крови пациентов с психическими расстройствами заметно отличается от такового у здоровых людей. Однако специфичность этих изменений при конкретных заболеваниях оставалась неясной. Российские ученые создали алгоритм машинного обучения, позволяющий на основе анализа уровня липидов в крови не только диагностировать, но и различать две распространённые психиатрические группы - психотические (шизофренические) и аффективные (депрессивные) расстройства.

Skoltech scientists and their colleagues from other Russian medical research centers and mental health institutions have confirmed they can reliably distinguish patients with psychiatric disorders from healthy individuals based on nothing more than a blood sample.
Moreover, the team's latest findings indicate that the blood plasma levels of certain molecules called lipids can help differentiate patients with a major depressive disorder from those with schizophrenia. The study was published in the journal Biomolecules.
"We know that serious psychiatric disorders leave molecular traces in the body, yet to this day all mental health diagnoses are made based on symptoms and the evaluation of a patient's condition by a qualified physician," says study co-author Research Scientist Anna Tkachev from Skoltech Neuro.
"As soon as objective biological markers of diseases are introduced, mental health professionals will have an entirely new set of tools to bolster their subjective assessments. Besides that, biomarkers can make a difference for patient screening or differential diagnosis early on, at a point when symptoms are either absent or ambiguous."
The team investigated blood plasma samples from 416 patients with common psychotic and affective disorders and 272 healthy individuals from two different cohorts, which came from a psychiatric hospital in Ufa, Russia, and from a Moscow-based mental health clinic.
Using a sophisticated analytic tool called a mass spectrometer, the researchers profiled the levels of a large number of lipids in the samples. They found 107 lipids that exhibited significant changes common to patients with schizophrenia and major depressive disorder. The variations of a further 37 lipids proved specific to either of the two diseases.
These findings enabled the team to train a machine learning algorithm that could distinguish schizophrenia from MDD with a success rate of 83%. Technically, the relevant performance metric is known as ROC AUC.
The lead author of the study, Anastasia Golubova - a Skoltech Ph.D. student and a research intern at Skoltech Neuro - commented, "Previous studies have shown that the blood lipid composition of psychiatric patients differs significantly from that of healthy people. However, the specificity of these lipidomic alterations for particular disorders has remained uncertain.
"Our research demonstrates that lipid profiles can not only indicate the presence of a disease but also distinguish between two common psychiatric groups: psychotic (or schizophrenic) and mood (or depressive) disorders. This finding can facilitate the use of blood lipid tests as a helpful tool for accurate diagnostics of mental disorders, especially for disputable cases, and contribute to the development of precision medicine."

Сотрудник Зоологического института РАН Михаил Назаркин открыл новый вид рыб, изучая коллекции, собранные в ходе исследовательской экспедиции 1989 года у берегов Восточной Антарктиды. Две необычные рыбы оказались представителями семейства бельдюговых и получили название Ophthalmolycus kosmonautis.

Mikhail V. Nazarkin is an ichthyologist, or fish specialist, at the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Recently, the senior researcher - who has contributed to over 150 scientific publications - was poring over the academy’s archive collections in St. Petersburg, Russia, when he stumbled across his latest discovery. Nazarkin was looking at collections from a 1989 research expedition off the coast of Eastern Antarctica when "two unusual" fish prompted him to take a closer look. Through radiography, he was able to conclude that the specimens belonged to a new species of eelpout - a coldwater ray-finned fish. And now, the peculiar fish, which sat in St. Petersburg’s for nearly four decades, has finally been added to the scientific record.
"The new species has low number of vertebrae [less than 100] and can be distinguished from other congeners by the ventrolateral configuration of its lateral line," Nazarkin wrote in the new study, which was published in the scientific journal Polar Biology on September 6.
"This character is rare among eelpouts and inherent only for few species of another genus, Lycodes. The new species is the sixth representative of Ophthalmolycus found in the Antarctic."
Inspired by the location where it was discovered, Nazarkin named the new species Ophthalmolycus kosmonautis, or Cosmonauts Sea eelpout.
According to the International Institute for Law of the Sea Studies, the section of the Southern Ocean near Antarctica has been recognized as the "Cosmonauts Sea" since 1962 under the Soviet Union and Russian Federation, but it is still unnamed in the eyes of "leading geographic authorities and atlases." That section of the Southern Ocean - which extends 270,000 square miles - was named after a Soviet Antarctic Expedition in honor of "the world’s first cosmonauts and the beginning of crewed space exploration era."
Cosmonauts Sea eelpouts, which are roughly 7 inches in length, have "large" eyes, "thin" upper lips, and a row of several "large" sensory pores on the underside of their throat.
"All the pores on the head of these, and many other fishes, are connected to canals inside the bones of the head," Nazarkin told the Miami Herald via email. "These canals contain receptors sensitive to mechanical vibrations of water. This system helps fish navigate in space and perceive the movements of other objects."
"Due to their rarity, little is known about lifestyle features of these fishes," Nazarkin said. "They are bottom dwellers which feed on small benthic invertebrates."
Benthic invertebrates are spineless aquatic animals, including worms, snails, clams, and crustaceans. By eating these organisms, bottom dwellers like the Cosmonauts Sea eelpouts can sequester carbon and keep it off the ocean floor.
In his study, Nazarkin encouraged further research into the genus as a whole.
"Little is known about the biology of these fishes," the ichthyologist wrote, noting that the unique brown fish occupies a wide range of depths - from 73 meters to over 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) - along the bottom of the freezing arctic waters.

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