Existing methods of combating pathogenic species of Fusarium fungi are not effective enough due to the high variability and specificity of the biology of these phytopathogenic microorganisms. The aim of our work was to reconstruct the kinetic mechanisms that determine the biomass of Fusarium species in the agroecosystem to minimize the risk of the spread of Fusarium. Using dynamic modeling, a system consisting of three components was studied: soil fungieating nematodes, Fusarium fungi and winter wheat seedlings. Based on the results of the parameter estimation and global sensitivity analysis, scientists identified three model parameters that have the strongest impact on the biomass of Fusarium species: (1) the rate of reproduction of mushroom-eating nematodes due to feeding on Fusarium fungi, (2) the rate of natural death of fungi-eating nematodes, and (3) tank size media for Fusarium fungi. According to the results of stochastic modeling, the internal variability of the dynamics of the biomass of Fusarium species was two orders of magnitude higher than the internal variability of the dynamics of the abundance of fungi-eating nematodes. The developed model made it possible to obtain fundamentally new information about the main mechanisms of interaction between Fusarium species, fungi-eating nematodes, and winter wheat plants, as well as to identify the most promising mechanisms that can reduce the biomass of Fusarium species in the soil. The study was carried out with the financial support of the Russian Foundation for Basic Research and the Tyumen Region under project No. 20–41–720005. Goncharov A.A., Gorbatova A.S., Sidorova A.S., Tiunov A.V., Bocharov G.A. (2022) Mathematical modeling of the interaction of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) and Fusarium species (Fusarium spp.). Ecological Modeling, 465: 109856. DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2021.109856. Link to article: https://authors.elsevier.com/a/1eKF-_6wxcJOYg

On June 2, 2022, a meeting of the section of experts on the Persian leopard was held at the Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia. The issue of releasing young leopards that were born in the Sochi "Leopard Recovery Center in the Caucasus" in 2020, which is fundamentally important for the restoration of this species in the Caucasus, was discussed. In the Central Caucasus, in the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania and the adjacent territories of Kabardino-Balkaria, through the efforts of the participants in the Program for the restoration of the Caucasian leopard in the Caucasus, a small, but stable group of this rare species has already been created, which is beginning to attract leopards from neighboring regions of Transcaucasia. In places where leopards were released on camera traps, not only released, but also wild leopards began to be recorded. An increase in this group due to the release of two-year-old leopards Leo, Khosta and Laura into these places in 2022, whose readiness for life in nature was confirmed by a group of experts from the IEE RAS, IEGT RAS, the Moscow Zoo and WWF-Russia, would increase the viability of the created group of leopards. Despite the problems with the delivery of Canadian satellite collars to Russia, the IEE RAS staff prepared domestic transmitters for leopards, which have proven themselves well when working with other species of predatory mammals. They are not inferior to Canadian ones in their characteristics and do not interfere with animals’ hunting. Considering that Leo, Khosta and Laura have reached the age at which they leave their mothers, wild leopards settle and master their hunting grounds in nature (usually this happens at the age of one and a half years), the best feline specialists from the IEE RAS, the Institute of Ecology of Mountain Territories RAS, the Caspian Institute biological resources of the Dagestan FRC RAS, as well as the Caucasian and North Ossetian reserves, providing scientific support for the Program, expressed a unanimous opinion on the need and expediency of releasing young leopards this year. Against this background, the strange position of the Sochi Center employees who oppose the release of animals sounds dissonant: "… despite the high level of training of individuals, the excellent ability to independently hunt large ungulates, the persistent reaction of avoiding humans and domestic animals, at this stage, the Center's specialists believe inappropriate release of kittens due to their age”. Scientists are looking forward to what decision the Ministry of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Russian Federation will make about the fate of young leopards and, in fact, about the future of the Program for the restoration of the Caucasian leopard in the Caucasus.

In the specially protected water area of ​​the Olga Bay of Kronotsky Bay, scientists from the A.N. Severtsov Institute for Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences have begun the next stage of research on the most ancient baleen whales listed in the Red Books of all levels. Olga Bay in the Kronotsky Reserve has been serving gray whales native to the waters of California and Mexico for many years as a kind of summer restaurant. Here, after wintering off the coast of North America and the birth of offspring, they “halt” during a long migration to feed in shallow water off benthos - organisms that live at the bottom of the coastal zone or above its surface. These are bottom fish species, crustaceans and various mollusks. In the Kronotsky Nature Reserve, where fishing is not carried out and there is no intensive navigation, the whales feel completely safe. Gray whales are one of the main objects of observation for participants in sea excursions and scientific expeditions in the protected bay. In July, here you can see about fifty individuals in one day, watch their fountains. IEE RAS expedition to study gray whales started in early June. Marine biologists conduct photo-ID of animals. This is necessary in order to trace the migration path of "old acquaintances" and to add new encountered individuals to the existing catalogs of gray whales. The data will allow us to learn more about the migration routes and lifestyle of ancient marine mammals and develop recommendations for the conservation of the population. The expedition members shared their first results. "So far, according to photo-identification data, we have 40 whales. And about 10 of them were seen in the summer on Sakhalin in previous years. Many of these whales will also go to Sakhalin. We try to photograph the left and right sides, we also capture the upper back from the drone. Photos allow not only to count all the whales encountered, but also to assess their fatness and the condition of the skin. This work will take a lot of time. If we evaluate the current state of the animals, we see a lot of thin whales. Which, in fact, is normal after a long migration, "said Matvey Mamaev , leader of the expedition, leading engineer of IEE RAS. The researchers noted that while the unpredictable weather in Kamchatka allows them to observe the sea for several hours almost every day, the work is proceeding according to plan. Additional Information: The gray whale is the only species of the gray whale family. Listed in the Red Books of the IUCN, the Russian Federation and the Kamchatka Territory. Gray whales are indigenous to the eastern Pacific. Animals winter in warm lagoons off the coast of the southern United States (California) and Mexico, and possibly Japan and Korea, where mating takes place and offspring are born. In early spring, they go on a long journey to summer feeding grounds - the cold territorial waters of Alaska, Chukotka, Kamchatka, Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands, where they feed on benthos in shallow water (organisms living in the bottom part of the sea or burrowing into the ground). At the end of autumn, they go in the opposite direction alone or in small groups. Thus, gray whales cover from 12 to 19 thousand kilometers per year. Every year, scientists study marine mammals in the waters of the Kronotsky Reserve and the South Kamchatka Reserve. The largest accumulation of animals there is observed from the beginning of June to the end of July and in November on the way back.

An increase in temperature in water bodies can lead to a noticeable change in the life cycle of parasites, according to the research of scientists from the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution RAS. Due to global warming, it is possible to change the “parasite-host” chains, which will lead to a restructuring of the entire appearance of freshwater ecosystems. In recent years, there has been growing interest among scientists in how temperature affects the risk of transmission of infections in ecosystems, or, in other words, the interaction of parasites and their hosts. To find out, scientists from the IEE RAS studied how temperature affects the separation of the dispersal stages (larvae/cercariae) of two closely related species of parasitic flatworms (trematodes): Rhipidocotyle campanula and R. fennica. The first intermediate host in these species of trematodes is the mollusk - common toothless (Anodonta anatina), the second roach. And only the final owners - predatory fish - differ. To conduct the experiment, scientists collected mollusks from rivers and distributed them in flow tanks with three temperature regimes. The average temperature in these tanks was 18°C ​​(range 7-24°C), 15°C (7-20°C) and 13°C (6-18°C). The design of the experiment did not assume a constant temperature of the molluscs. On the contrary, it had to fluctuate in accordance with seasonal changes, as in natural ecosystems, to emulate the real world in terms of global warming. The experiment lasted five months. Every two weeks, the scientists checked whether the molluscs secreted parasitic larvae (cercariae) and, if so, how many. “We were interested in how temperature affects the duration of the emission of cercariae by molluscs, the time of its start and end, the total number of isolated cercariae and other indicators. It turned out that these closely related species of trematodes are very different in their temperature preferences. Cercariae of R. campanula began to be released at 9-10°C, and a further increase in temperature only modestly increased their production by the mollusk. At the same time, the proportion of mollusks secreting cercariae was approximately the same in all temperature regimes. R. fennica turned out to be much more thermophilic. The temperature optimum for the isolation of cercariae for this trematode was above 15°C, and the dependence of the number of produced cercariae on temperature was much stronger. Moreover, the proportion of mollusks producing cercariae of this parasite increased with temperature”, says Mikhail Gopko, one of the authors of the study. The scientists came to the conclusion that at typical northern latitude summer temperatures, many individuals of R. fennica do not have time to accumulate enough degree-days to continue their life cycle. In this case, it turns out that an increase in average annual temperatures can bring much more benefit to R. fennica than to R. campanula. At high temperatures, the beginning and end of the production period of cercariae is shifted closer to the beginning of the season. At similar temperatures, mollusks produced fewer cercariae in autumn than in winter. “In other words, temperature is temperature, and “fatigue” of the host organism imposes natural restrictions on the ability of the parasite to force its reproduction,” adds Ekaterina Mironova, co-author of the article. Scientists came to the conclusion that due to global warming, the balance in the R. fennica - roach - R. campanula system may shift towards the predominance of a more heat-loving parasite species. Thus, an increase in temperature in water bodies can lead to a noticeable change in the periodization of the life cycle of parasites. Ultimately, given the incredible abundance of host-parasite systems, this has the potential to change the entire face of freshwater ecosystems. In their next study, the scientists plan to explore how these changes will be synchronized with changes in the life cycle of the parasite's next host, the fish. What will happen with changes in the "parasite-host" systems? Answered by Mikhail Gopko There are at least two realistic scenarios for the development of relationships between parasites and their hosts under global warming. According to the first of them, with an increase in temperature, parasites will gain an advantage over their hosts. Parasites have a faster rate of evolution, which is important in changing conditions, and they also have higher productivity at moderately elevated ambient temperatures. For aquatic organisms, such as fish, the situation is further complicated by the fact that at high temperatures their immune system begins to fail, making it easier for infections to enter the host organism. It is possible that all the benefits that parasites get from warming will be only temporary - most experiments on the effects of warming on parasites are short-lived. In addition, parasites may even benefit from the desynchronization of the life cycles of the parasite and the host. Let's say that warming will lead to the fact that the parasites will be ready to infect the host earlier in the season, but no one guarantees that the host will be already “ready” for this, say, not yet migrating to a suitable part of the reservoir. The second scenario can lead to very strong changes in ecosystems. The fact is that parasites play an unusually important and specific role in communities. This is a kind of glue that unites various trophic levels. When a cheetah rushes across the savannah, chasing a Thompson's gazelle, or a gluttonous gull tries to grab a gaping fry from the surface of the water, the false impression can be created that everything that happens is solely the work of a predator and its prey. In fact, the parasites that weaken each side sometimes play an even more significant role. The desynchronization of the life cycles of parasites and their hosts can lead to a "domino effect", disrupting trophic interactions between predators and their prey. A new study by scientists supports the second point of view. However, the applicability of its results to all "parasite-host" systems is out of the question. In addition, there is no information about how quickly changes in ecosystems will occur and whether nature will be able to adapt to them. As Mikhail Gopko notes, the impact of global warming on host- parasite systems and ecosystems will be generally stronger as we approach the poles and the equator, but in temperate latitudes, everything will likely be more moderate. The article “Contrasting temperature responses in seasonal timing of cercariae shedding by Rhipidocotyle trematodes” was published in the journal Parasitology. Dependence of the average (for all mollusks that produced cercariae on the day ofobservation) number of cercariae produced on temperature for R. fennica (A, B) and R.campanula (C, D). On the right, partial regression plots (added variable plot) taking intoaccount seasonality. Note the outliers in the "underbelly" of graph A. This is the production ofcercariae during the autumn months, when the emission volume was lower at the sametemperatures. Adding a seasonality factor (the number of days since the start of theexperiment) “corrects” the dependence, and the points fit very neatly on the regression line(plot C). For R. campanula (bottom row), the situation is similar. The work was published in the journal Parasitology Related materials: МетеоВести: "Climate change could disrupt freshwater food chains" ТАСС Наука: "Climate change may disrupt food chains in fresh waters"

The A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution RAS became the winner of the competition "State support for scientific research conducted under the guidance of leading scientists in Russian educational institutions of higher education, scientific institutions and state scientific centers of the Russian Federation" (9th stage). The application was supported by the leading international scientist Enric Gisbert Casas, whose main place of work is the Institut de Recerca i Tecnologia Agroalimentaries (IRTA), Spain. From the Russian side, the main executors of the grant included researchers from the IEE RAS Mikhail Gopko, Eduard Galoyan, Anna Vasilyeva, Evgeny Esin. From the Institute of Systematics and Ecology of Animals of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, researchers Evgeny Simonov, Elena Kashinskaya, Pavel Vlasenko and Mikhail Solovyov take part in the work. The project "Evolution of the functioning of the digestive system of ectothermic vertebrates as a mechanism for mastering a contrasting habitat" is aimed at solving one of the fundamental problems of biology - determining the patterns of evolutionary transformations of the digestive tract of animals for the successful transformation of matter and energy in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. In the course of this project, a modern laboratory of evolutionary trophology will be created on the basis of the IEE RAS. The laboratory will study specialized groups of fish, amphibians and reptiles, characterized by contrasting food adaptations and living in various natural conditions from the Arctic to the tropics. In addition to the tasks of a fundamental nature, approaches will be found to the development of specialized feeds and additives that will improve the efficiency of raising animals in aquaculture. Related materials: News: "В ИПЭЭ РАН будет создана лаборатория эволюционной трофологии"

On June 22, 2022 Konstantin Bronislavovich Gongalsky, Deputy Director of the IEE RAS, Doctor of Biological Sciences, Head of the Laboratory for the Study of Ecological Soil Functions, received the diploma of a Professor of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The award ceremony took place in the Presidential Hall of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Congratulations to Konstantin Bronislavovich on a well-deserved title! Author of the photo: Andrey Luft, "Scientific Russia".

For the first time in Russia, a skin mite Promyialges italicus from the Epidermoptidae family was discovered by researchers. This will enable a deeper study of its distribution and faunal composition. The study is conducted by the staff of the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution RAS. Feather mites of the Epdermoptidae family are persistent ectoparasites whose developmental stages are entirely on the skin of host birds. Some of their representatives, belonging to the subfamily Epidermoptinae and all genera of the subfamily Myialginae, have biological connections with bloodsucking flies Hippoboscidae, which parasitize birds, and less often with the lice Phthiraptera. Fertilized female ticks use flies and lice to disperse and infect other hosts. Attaching to these parasitic insects, female ticks either use them only for transfer to a new host individual, laying eggs on the cuticle around the attachment site in the process of moving, or additionally feed on the hemolymph (blood) of insects, biting through the cuticle of the abdomen. The species Promyialges italicus was first described only in 2019 in Italy, and so far little has been studied. Now it was first discovered in our country on the wings of a fly from a domestic pigeon that died from psittacosis. “The faunistic composition of ticks from this group in Russia is poorly understood, despite their veterinary significance. Neither is the exact species composition nor the distribution of representatives of this family. This article is only part of the preparatory stage for other studies of both ticks and flies with which these ticks are associated,” said Alexandra Yatsuk, junior researcher at the Laboratory of Soil Zoology and General Entomology, IEE RAS. The article published in the journal Acarologia. Photo: skin mite Promyialges italicus Materials: МК: "В Москве найден новый вид клещей, живущих на голубях" Вести Московского региона: "В Москве нашли новый вид клещей, живущих на голубях"

High school students, focused on profile education in biology, visited the laboratories at the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution RAS and listened to the speeches of researchers. The history of our Institute and the main directions of research were relayed by Doctor of Biological Sciences, Deputy Director for Research, prof. RAS Konstantin Gongalsky. After that, Senior Researcher Daniil Korobushkin, Ph.D., gave a lecture “Science and travel, or how to travel while doing science”. He told the students about how to properly pack for the expedition. The future biologists had the opportunity not only to listen to the scientists, but also to observe their work. They visited the Aquarium of the Institute, where researcher Sergey Simanovsky, Ph.D., demonstrated the fish being kept there and described what scientific experiments their data was used for. Sergey also demonstrated the experiment with disposable masks and napkins being put into the water to test the rate of their biodegradation. After a period, fish are put into this water to see how microplastics will affect them. In another laboratory, Yuri Kaverkin and Oleg Nikolaev showed the children lizards and geckos. They talked about the incredible ability of geckos to stay on smooth surfaces, the unusual sounds they make, and the fact that these animals eat their skin after shedding it off. The scientists showed some individuals and explained to the children what scientific work is currently taking place in this laboratory. The employees of the Institute are happy to share their experience with novice biologists and inspire them for a great scientific future.

Russian scientists as part of an international team studied the effect of serotonin on the formation of adrenal glands in rodents. It turned out that with an increase in its level during a certain period of pregnancy, fewer cells that produce adrenaline and norepinephrine are formed in the adrenal glands of the young. This change makes rodents less aggressive and anxious, but more friendly and inquisitive - it is these individuals that provide range expansion and migration in the wild. A similar mechanism for regulating the size of the adrenal glands has also been identified in human development. The results of the study, supported by a grant from the Russian Science Foundation (RSF), were published in the journal Nature Communications. The behavior of vertebrates, including humans, is determined not only by brain activity: for quick decision-making in critical situations, the work of the endocrine system is also of great importance. One of its glands are the adrenal glands - paired organs above the upper part of the kidneys. In response to stressful factors, such as danger or physical exertion, the cells of their internal so-called brain substances release adrenaline and noradrenaline into the blood. It is on the activity of the chromaffin cells of the adrenal medulla that the body's ability to quickly navigate the situation and implement the "fight or flight" defense strategy depends. In the process of differentiation from their precursors, chromaffin cells form receptor proteins on the surface for the “happiness hormone” serotonin, but it still remained a mystery what follows the activation of these receptors. The international team, which included Russian scientists, unveiled this pattern. The researchers injected pregnant rodents with a precursor of serotonin, which is converted to serotonin in the mother's body and in the placenta. They did this at the stage of embryo development, when the differentiation of chromaffin cells occurs. The authors then studied the tissues of the adrenal glands of the offspring. In this they were helped by the most modern methods of transcriptomics of individual cells, that is, studies of the activity (expression) of genes, and various biochemical and histological approaches. The researchers also conducted experiments with genetically modified lines of animals that were unable to produce serotonin, and with the help of pharmacological preparations they changed the activity of the corresponding receptors. Finally, the authors studied the behavior of the young of females with an increased content of the “hormone of happiness” in the body and examined samples of the adrenal glands of wild Siberian voles, which are characterized by waves of migration. It turned out that an increase in the level of serotonin during the critical period of pregnancy and activation of receptors in the precursors of chromaffin cells leads to a decrease in the size of the entire adrenal medulla. Normally, such a negative feedback mechanism does not allow young cells to divide excessively, and protects the body from the occurrence of a number of malignant tumors. The size of the adrenal medulla, which is laid during the development of the embryo, remains in the rodent for the rest of its life, and fewer cells secrete fewer hormones, which significantly affects behavior. Animals with less brain matter are less aggressive and anxious, but more inquisitive and friendly. Studies have shown that in wild populations of voles, it is these animals that ensure the migration of the species, the change of its range and the development of new territories. The level of serotonin in the placenta is very variable and sensitive to the external conditions in which the pregnant mother is. Physical activity, moderate stress caused by social contacts or lack of food lead to its increase, thus “signaling” to the unborn descendant about the conditions that they will meet after birth: there are many relatives around, competition is great and already his generation will have to master new places. “The serotonin-mediated mechanism we have discovered that regulates the number of adrenal chromaffin cells reveals one of the possible ways of epigenetic, that is, due to external factors, transmission of information from mother to the young. It provides a kind of prenatal programming of long-term changes in the behavior of offspring, which explains the emergence of various types of response to stress during development,” says one of the co-authors of the study, Victoria Melnikova. “Further studies will establish how the contribution of the epigenetic effect of serotonin to the variability of chromaffin organs in wild and domesticated animals is compared to genetic factors. The detection of serotonin receptors on progenitor cells will allow in the future to develop new drug therapy strategies for certain types of malignant tumors”, says Elena Voronezhskaya, one of the authors of the article and head of the project on a grant from the Russian Science Foundation. The study was conducted by the staff of the N.K. Koltsov Institute of Developmental Biology RAS (Moscow), together with colleagues from the National Medical Research Center for Endocrinology of the Ministry of Health of Russia (Moscow), the V.V. Zakusov Research Institute of Pharmacology (Moscow), Institute of Cytology RAS (St. Petersburg), Institute of Translational Biomedicine (St. Petersburg), I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University (Moscow), A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution RAS (Moscow), Karolinska Institute (Sweden), Medical University of Vienna (Austria) and international research institutes in Germany, the Czech Republic, Italy and France.

1st year undergraduates of the Institute of Animal Science and Biology, studying under the program "Resources of Vertebrate Animals (Protection, Reproduction, Rational Use)", completed an internship at the scientific and experimental base "Chernogolovka" of the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution RAS. Future biologists acquired practical experience of field zoological research and were introduced to the fauna of the Moscow region. Practical training was preceded by theoretical training - undergraduates were presented with a series of lectures on the behavior and behavioral ecology of mammals, biology of reproduction of vertebrates, methods and technologies for keeping and breeding rare species of mammals. The lectures were conducted by experienced staff of the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution RAS. Under the guidance of teachers of the K.A. Timiryazev RGAU-MSHA the students conducted daily route counts of animals in the vicinity of the scientific and experimental base and on its territory. In practice, undergraduates studied representatives of the fauna of amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. They learned the main methods of taking morphometric indicators on the example of amphibians of 4 families. The students were given the opportunity to study a unique collection of vertebrates, which includes more than 2,000 individuals. Among them are predatory, insectivorous, rodents, lagomorphs and bats. As Professor of the Department of Zoology Lyubov Malovichko noted, the students did an excellent job with all the tasks set, and the acquired the necessary skills for their further scientific and labor activities.