Vol 103, No 9 (2024)

Introduction. On the territory of the Russian Federation, as well as worldwide, a large amount of space is allocated for burials. The soils found in the burial areas have their own characteristics. In the scientific literature there is a few works devoted to the problem of hygienic assessment of cemeteries from the point of view of their impact on the environment, as well as on the population living next to necrosols or working on them. Depending on the chemical and biological effects, the microbial composition of the soil changes. This process is influenced by many factors, including humidity, the initial content of organic and mineral substances, level of acidity, structure of the soil and peculiarities of the course of intra-soil gas-phase reactions. The key participants in the decomposition of organic material are bacteria and fungi, the diversity and dynamics of which directly depend on the degree of soil contamination with pollutants.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the microbiota of cemetery soil in its various layers.

Materials and methods. The cemeteries of Moscow (NikoloKhovanskoye, Nikolo-Arkhangelskoye, Perepechenskoye), Moscow (Mytishchenskoye, Domodedovo), Tula (Municipal Cemetery No. 1 of the Municipal State Enterprise of the Municipal Formation of the City of Tula Combine of Specialized Services), Kursk (old city cemetery Kurchatov), Krasnoyarsk (Zheleznogorsk) regions and Altai (Yarovoye) Krais were selected as research objects for assessing the microbiome of soils.

Results. The most common bacterial pathogens were found to be Enterococcus spp. (81%), Bacillus spp. (75%) and E. coli (45.1%). Mushrooms of Penicillium spp.. were isolated from 61% of the samples. The revealed microbiota profiles of the samples of the studied cemetery soils reflect the microbial composition of humans, which allows substantiating the main methods and algorithm for identifying decomposition processes depending on the time frame of burials.

Limitations. The limitation of the study is due to the risk of contact with cemetery soil was not assessed, since not all genera of isolated microorganisms could be identified by their biochemical properties.

Conclusion. Studies conducted in cemetery areas have shown how diverse the soil microbiome is in burial sites and varies depending on the depth of sampling. The microbiota profiles of cemetery soil samples identified during the study reflect the lifetime microbial composition of the human body, which makes it possible to substantiate approaches to identifying decomposition processes depending on the time frame of burials.

Compliance with ethical standards. The approval of the local ethics committee is not required for this study.

Contribution:
Ushakova O.V. — the concept and design of the study, writing the text, collecting material and processing data, editing, approving the final version of the article;
Rakhmanin Yu.A. — the concept and design of the study, editing, approving the final version of the article;
Evseeva I.S. — collecting material and processing data.
All authors are responsible for the integrity of all parts of the manuscript and approval of the manuscript final version

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgement. Acknowledgment. The research was carried out within the framework of the state task on the topic “Monitoring” at the Center for Strategic Planning and Management of Biomedical Health Risks of the FMBA of Russia.

Received: April 19, 2024 / Revised: June 3, 2024 / Accepted: June 19, 2024 / Published: October 16, 2024

Introduction. The long-term operation of the chemical enterprise has led to the formation of an area of accumulated harm to public health.

The purpose of the study is to investigate the trend in newly identified morbidity in various population groups living in areas of accumulated chemical pollution of the environment.

Materials and methods. The primary morbidity rate of the population of Usolye-Sibirskoye was assessed retrospectively according to official statistical reporting — during 1985–1995. and 2016–2022. Relative rates of incidence among children and adults (per 1000 population) were calculated. The trend in the incidence of malignant neoplasms was studied using regression analysis and growth (decrease) rates.

Results. Over 2016–2022 there was a gain in the incidence in the population: in 0–14 years children by classes: certain conditions in the perinatal period, blood diseases, neoplasms; in 15–17 years adolescents: by class of disease of the circulatory system, blood, endocrine and genitourinary systems, congenital malformations, neoplasms; in the adult population by classes of diseases including congenital malformations, diseases of the endocrine system, circulatory system, musculoskeletal system and blood diseases, neoplasms.

Limitations are due to changes in the structure of statistical reporting forms and various etiological factors for diseases included in one class of diseases.

Conclusion. During the post-operation period of the city-forming enterprise, an increase in incidence in children and adults was revealed. Undoubtedly, the formation of pathology was influenced not only by the unfavourable environmental situation in the city, but also by socio-economic conditions. To optimize medical and preventive measures to improve and preserve public health, it is necessary to conduct further studies of the health status in the population in the area of accumulated chemical pollution.

Compliance with ethical standards. The study requires not the presentation of the conclusion of the biomedical ethics committee or other documents.

Contribution:
Mylnikova I.V. — literature review, text writing, editing;
Ushakova O.V. — collection and processing of the material, writing and editing of the article;
Efimova N.V. — research concept, design, text writing and editing;
Katamanova E.V. — research concept, design and editing.
All authors are responsible for the integrity of all parts of the manuscript and approval of the manuscript final version.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgement. The study was carried out within the framework of the Scientific Research Program “Development of technologies for a comprehensive assessment of the health in the population living in areas of accumulated damage from previous economic activity in single-industry towns in Siberia.”

Received: May 23, 2024 / Revised: June 26, 2024 / Accepted: July 31, 2024 / Published: October 16, 2024

Introduction. According to the results of medical examinations of metallurgists, in the structure of newly identified somatic morbidity, circulatory system diseases (CSD) are one of the leading pathologies. To assess the prevalence of CSD in workers in harmful working conditions, it is possible to use various mathematical solutions as a tool.

The objective of the study was to substantiate the possibility of using variance analysis and classification tree (CT) methods to assess the prevalence of circulatory diseases in industrial workers.

Materials and methods. Data of medical examinations and a questionnaire-based survey of three hundred eight workers of steel production were input into a database. The interrelationship between CSD and individual and occupational risk factors was examined using a one- and two-way ANOVA. The classification tree method was used for a multivariate analysis.

Results. The one- and two-way ANOVA revealed a statistically significant correlation between the CSD family history (p=0.001) and age, years of occupational exposure, overweight, blood glucose level, total cholesterol (p<0.05) and the CSD prevalence in the steel workers. We applied the classification tree method to make decisions on referring the subjects to potentially “healthy” and “sick” workers by determining the CSD prevalence in relation to various combinations of risk factors.

Limitations. This study is limited to the results of medical examinations of the workers collected over a one-year period.

Conclusions. Our experience in using the analysis of variance and classification tree to evaluate the CSD prevalence in ferrous industry employees allows recommending them for use in assessing the prevalence of various diseases in workers exposed to occupational hazards.

Compliance with ethical standards. The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Yekaterinburg Medical Research Center for Prophylaxis and Health Protection in Industrial Workers (protocol No. 6 of December 11, 2023).

Contributions:
Gazimova V.G. — study conception and design, data collection and processing, collection and processing of the material, writing the text;
Shastin A.S. — collection and processing of the material, writing the text;
Chaurina D.V. — data collection and processing;
Konstantinova E.D., Maslakova T.A., Ogorodnikova S.Yu., Varaksin A.N. — statistical data analysis, writing the text;
Bortsov S.M. — data collection.
All co-authors — approval of the final version of the article, responsibility for the integrity of all parts of the article.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgement. The study had no sponsorship.

Received: April 19, 2024 / Revised: May 5, 2024 / Accepted: July 31, 2024 / Published: October 16, 2024

Introduction. A few neurophysiologic studies have shown that changes of the bioelectrical brain activity are observed in hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS) patients. There is practically no information about the state of bioelectrical brain activity in the hand-arm vibration.

The purpose is to study the dynamics of the formation of neurophysiologic changes in workers exposed to hand-arm vibration.

Materials and methods. Electroencephalography (EEG) and registration of evoked potentials (EP) was carried out in workers exposed to hand-arm vibration (practically healthy workers, HAVS individuals who continue to work in their occupation), twice in a connected sample. The results are presented as median, upper and lower quartiles, and extensive indicators. The significance of differences was assessed using Pearson’s χ² test, Fisher’s angular transformation, and Wilcoxon T-test.

Results. In dynamics, there is a change in the EEG pattern from disorganized with a predominance of alpha activity to disorganized with a predominance of delta, and theta activity; a decrease in the spectral power of the main EEG rhythms in all main functional leads in both examined groups. Diffuse changes in the EEG indicate a multisystem nature of bioelectrical brain activity disorders with involvement of the cerebral cortex, stem, and diencephalic structures of the brain. Changes in the amplitude-temporal parameters of EP manifested by an excess of the latency of the main peaks and a decrease in amplitude, indicate an imbalance in the central nervous system, general modulating influences on the cerebral cortex of the thalamocortical systems of the brain.

Limitations. One occupational group with different levels of health status — practically healthy workers, HAVS individuals who continue to work in their occupation — was enrolled in the study.

Conclusion. The one-direction and progressive development of changes in the bioelectrical brain activity has been established, manifested by a restructuring of the electrical activity of the brain, desynchronization of neuronal activity, an increase in the level of functional activity of the brain, and an imbalance of general modulating influences on the cerebral cortex. The identified changes are a manifestation of the nonspecific part of the pathogenesis of HAVS.

Compliance with ethical standards. The study was performed in accordance with ethical standards and approved by the Local Ethics Committee of the East-Siberian Institute of Medical and Ecological Research (conclusion No. 6 dated November 15, 2012, conclusion No. 5 dated March 21, 2023).

Contribution:
Kuleshova M.V. — concept and design of the study, collection and processing of material, statistical processing, writing text, editing, responsibility for the integrity of all parts of the article;
Pankov V.A. — concept and design of the study, editing, approval of the final version of the article, responsibility for the integrity of all parts of the article;
Katamanova E.V. — editing;
Kuptsova N.G. — collection of material, editing.

Acknowledgment. The work was performed within the funds allocated for the implementation of the State task for the East-Siberian Institute of Medical and Ecological Research.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Received: June 21, 2024 / Revised: August 14, 2024 / Accepted: September 23, 2024 / Published: October 16, 2024

Introduction. In patients with chronic mercury intoxication, insomnia disorders are much more common than in the general population. Persistent emotional disorders in combination with severe sleep disturbances may contribute to the progression of cognitive dysfunction in patients in the late post-exposure period of chronic mercury intoxication.

The purpose of the study was to analyze the trend in electroencephalography indices and study cognitive evoked potentials in patients with occupational chronic mercury intoxication to optimize the treatment of insomnia.

Materials and methods. Two groups of 30 patients with occupational chronic mercury intoxication, who worked at the enterprises of Usolyekhimprom LLC and Sayanskhimplast OJSC, were examined. In the first group of patients received the first treatment option, the average age was 56±0.71 years, in the second group, cases received the second treatment regimen, were of 57.1±3 years. Before and after treatment, there were carried out neurophysiological studies including polysomnography, electroencephalography, and a study of cognitive evoked potentials P300.

Results. After the implementation of the treatment regimen in the first group, positive changes in the main indices of polysomnography were revealed as follows: decrease in the time of falling asleep and time of wakefulness in the bed, increase in total sleep time and the representation of delta sleep, increase in the sleep efficiency index, etc., electroencephalography (decrease in the delta index – rhythm and an increase in the alpha rhythm index), and cognitive evoked potentials (decreased latency and increased P300 amplitude). In the second group, there were registered positive alterations only in three neurophysiological indices: a decrease in the latent period of the 1^st stage of sleep, a decline in the delta rhythm index and a fall in P300 latency.

Limitations. The results cannot be generalized to workers as the group included only men.

Conclusion. According to neurophysiological studies, improvement in polysomnography parameters during the treatment of insomnia in patients in the late post-contact period of chronic mercury intoxication was accompanied by an improvement in concentration and an increase in the rate of psychomotor response.

Compliance with ethical standards. The work does not both infringe on the rights and endanger the well-being of the examined workers in accordance with the requirements of biomedical ethics imposed by the Helsinki Declaration of the World Medical Association (2000) and Order of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation No. 266 (dated June 19, 2003). The studies were carried out with the informed consent of the subjects, approved in accordance with the established procedure by the Committee on Biomedical Ethics (protocol No.19 dated 03.04.2018).

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgment. This work was carried out within the framework of state assignment.

Received: May 16, 2024 / Accepted: June 19, 2024 / Published: October 16, 2024

Introduction. The data on the association between GSTs gene variants and the risk of developing carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) determine the feasibility of studying the relationship with changes in the nerve structure of the upper limbs identified by ultrasound examination in patients with vibration disease (VD).

The aim of the study was to investigate the association of polymorphic variants of the GSTP1 and GSTM1 genes with signs of tunnel syndromes in VD patients.

Materials and methods. Polymorphic variants of the GSTP1 (rs1695 and rs1138272) and GSTM1 genes in one hundred forty male VD patients were studied using PCR-RT method. High-resolution ultrasonography parameters were used to evaluate the morphological structure of the peripheral nerves of the upper limbs in patients, including the cross-sectional area (CSA) of the peripheral nerves.

Results. A significant gain in CSA maximum of the median nerve was found in carriers of the GSTM1–/– genotype relative to those in the GSTM1+ polymorphic variant of the GSTM1 gene (p=0.014). At the same time, AG-GSTP1 (Ile105Val) heterozygote carriers were less resistant to vibration exposure compared to the AA homozygote ones. The AG carriers had a shorter period of vibration exposure (p=0.017), which was observed against the background of a pronounced tendency to a decrease in the period of vibration exposure at the time of VD diagnosis (p=0.034).

Limitations. Limitations include the small number of examined patients and the analysis of associations of polymorphic variants of GSTs genes only with CSA values without taking into account the clinical and functional status of patients.

Conclusion. The results obtained indicate that GSTs genes involved in protection against oxidative stress, may be associated with the development of CTS in VD patients. Further investigations are needed involving a larger number of VD patients with simultaneous analysis of the morphological structure of peripheral nerves, as well as of electrophysiological and clinical studies.

Compliance with ethical standards. The study was approved by the Biomedical Ethics Committee of the East Siberian Institute of Medical and Ecological Research (Protocol No. 5 of 21.03.2023). The voluntary informed consent was signed by all study participants.

Contribution:
Chernyak Yu.I. — concept and study design, sample collection, implementation of methods and data analysis, final statistical data analysis, text writing and editing;
Zueva Ya.I. — implementation of methods and data analysis, text writing and editing.
All authors are responsible for the integrity of all parts of the manuscript and approval of the manuscript final version.

Acknowledgment. The study was supported within a framework of State Assignment for East Siberian Institute of Medical and Ecological Research (No. 123032000007-8). The authors are grateful to project leader, Prof. Oleg L. Lakhman for useful comments in the process of the manuscript discussion.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Received: May 3, 2024 / Revised: September 12, 2024 / Accepted: September 19, 2024 / Published: October 16, 2024

Introduction. Children’s health is of particular value, being a medical, biological and social and labour potential for any state. Objective and informative health indices include parameters of the physical development.

The aim of the study is to assess length-weight somatometric indices in children studying in general educational institutions of Ulan-Ude.

Materials and methods. The sample of respondents included nine hundred thirty two school-age children. Variables were sampled for length and weight, body mass index was calculated and compared with WHO criteria. Descriptive statistics are expressed as mean and standard deviation, Student’s t-test was used to compare means.

Results. Among children of the industrial center, persons with harmonious physical development predominate (51.9±2.6%). Among the variants of disharmonious physical development in boys and girls, excessive body weight (27.3±2.3% and 22.9±1.9) and high height (12.6±1.7% and 14±1.6%, respectively) prevailed. The proportion of other variants of disharmony (low length, body weight deficit and their combination) is small. The phenomena of sexual dimorphism are quite pronounced in children — acceleration of growth differed from the general patterns earlier by 2–3 years.

Limitations. The results of the study have limitations in relation to children with various health disorders. Given the small number of age groups, as well as the fact that children of one industrial center were examined, the diagnostic significance of the data obtained may be less objective.

Conclusion. Regional features of growth-weight somatometric indices are important to timely identify children with disharmonious development as early as possible to prevent long-term consequences.

Compliance with ethical standards. The study was approved by the local ethics committee of the East-Siberian Institute of Medical and Ecological Research (conclusion of the LEC No. 1 of January 27, 2022), conducted in accordance with the generally accepted scientific principles of the Declaration of Helsinki of the World Medical Association (as amended 2013)

Contribution:
Bogdanova O.G. — concept and design of the study, collection of material, text writing;
Mylnikova I.V. — statistical data processing, text writing;
Urbanova E.Z. — organization of research, collection of material, statistical data processing;
Tarmaeva I.Yu. — study organization, study concept and design.
All co-authors — approval of the final version of the article, responsibility for the integrity of all parts of the article.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Acknowledgment. The work was carried out within the framework of the funds allocated for the fulfillment of the state task of East-Siberian Institute of Medical and Ecological Research.

Received: May 29, 2024 / Accepted: June 19, 2024 / Published: October 16, 2024

Introduction. Over recent decades, toxicogenetic studies have focused on the issues of genome instability under the action of genotoxicants, taking into account biomarkers of sensitivity. The question about the genotoxic potential of chlorpyrifos remains open, since both positive and negative effects have been revealed in various tests.

The aim of the study is the investigation of sensitivity of donor peripheral blood lymphocytes to chlorpyrifos in vitro and evaluation of the contribution of polymorphism of antioxidant defense system genes (CAT (rs1001179), SOD2 (rs4880)) to the response of human cells to the action of genotoxicant.

Materials and methods. The DNA damaging effect of chlorpyrifos was assessed on lymphocytes from fifty two donors using DNA-comet assay with metabolic activation (+S9) and without it (–S9). The study of cytotoxic effects of chlorpyrifos on human lymphocytes was carried out using an automatic fluorescent cell analyzer ADAMII LS.

Results. Chlorpyrifos had a pronounced cytotoxic effect on lymphocytes in most donors in the absence of metabolic activation system. With increasing concentration of the pesticide in the medium and time of cultivation, the viability of lymphocytes decreased, and the proportion of cells in late apoptosis and necrosis increased. Positive genotoxic effects were found on the cells of 33 donors (-S9). In the presence of the S9, mild but statistically significant effects were detected only on cells from 2 donors. % DNA values in the comet tail after exposure to the pesticide varied for cells from different donors. In the absence of metabolic activation, a statistically significant increase in the level of DNA damage was found in cells of individuals with genotype AA (homozygote for the minor allele) for the CAT G262A catalase gene (rs1001179), compared with homozygote for the dominant GG allele.

Limitations. The genotoxicity of chlorpyryfos was studied in vitro.

Conclusion. The results of the study shown cytotoxic and genotoxic effects of chlorpyrifos. The sensitivity of lymphocytes from different donors to the pesticide was found to be significantly different. The association of the level of DNA damage under exposure of chlorpyrifos in vitro with the G262A polymorphism of the catalase gene was found. The research also confirms the possibility of using a model test-system with peripheral blood lymphocytes to assess the potential genetic risk for humans and to study the contribution of gene polymorphism to individual sensitivity to the action of genotoxicants.

Compliance with ethical standards. The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Federal Scientific Center of Hygiene named after F.F. Erisman of the Federal Service for Supervision in Protection of the Rights of Consumer and Man Wellbeing, (Protocol No. 1, September 29, 2020).

Contribution:
Rakitskii V.N. — academic supervision;
Ilyushina N.A. — concept and design of the study, processing of material, analysis of the results; writing the text;
Egorova O.V. — concept and design of the study, collecting and processing of material, analysis of the results; writing the text;
Averianova N.S., Kotnova A.P., Gorenskaya O.V. — the collection of material;
Ignatyev S.D. — processing of material.
All authors are responsible for the integrity of all parts of the manuscript and approval of the manuscript final version.

Conflict of interests. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgements. The authors thank to Bioline LLC and personally to Eduard Mingazov for the opportunity to conduct the study on the assessment of cytotoxic effects using the ADAMII LS, Nano Entek automated fluorescent cell analyzer obtained under a gratuitous lease agreement.

Received: June 21, 2024 / Revised: August 14, 2024 / Accepted:  September 23, 2024 / Published: October 16, 2024

Introduction. The study of nanoparticles for potential cardiotoxic effects is a comprehensive multi-stage process based on an integrated approach. Along with generally accepted research methods, molecular biology techniques using modern highly sensitive equipment are being actively introduced into toxicology testing.

The aim of the study was to describe a novel approach to assessing cardiotoxic effects of nanoparticles, from the molecular level to the functional response of the whole organism.

Materials and methods. Our new approach to assessing cardiotoxic effects of nanoparticles in rats included the examination of changes at the molecular (e.g., the ratio of myosin heavy chains), subcellular (by electron microscopy), cellular and tissue (by histological testing), system and organ (by non-invasive recording of electrocardiogram and blood pressure parameters and biochemical testing of blood serum) levels. We have tested the proposed approach by evaluating lead (PBO) and cadmium oxide (CdO) nanoparticles in rats.

Results. Hypotension observed after PbO and/or CdO nanoparticle exposure indicates to the damage to the vascular bed due to penetration and accumulation of the nanoparticles in vascular cells, as well as direct damage to the endothelium, increased oxidative stress, and inflammation. In accordance with the system for assessing nanoparticle-induced cardiotoxicity developed on the basis of toxicology test results, lead and cadmium oxides, both separately and combined, have a pronounced cardiotoxic effect.

Limitations. Our work was limited to examining the main indicators of the cardiotoxic effects of nanoparticles in a toxicological experiment on one animal species (rats).

Conclusion. The data analysis revealed varying degrees of manifestation of nanoparticle cardiotoxicity, both at the molecular level and at the intracellular, cellular, tissue, organ, and body levels. The use of this approach will allow a better in-depth assessing effects of nano-sized particles on the heart and blood vessels for identification of risks for cardiovascular disease.

Compliance with ethical standards. The study was carried out in accordance with the ethical standards for the treatment of animals adopted by the European Convention for the Protection of Vertebrate Animals used Experimental and other Scientific Purposes. The study design was approved by the institutional Ethics Committee of the Yekaterinburg Medical Research Center for Prophylaxis and Health Protection in Industrial Workers (protocol No. 2 of April 20, 2021).

Contribution:
Klinova S.V. — study design, conducting the experiment, data collection and analysis, writing text, figure preparation;
Minigalieva I.A., Sutunkova M.P., Nikitina L.V. — study conception and design, scientific editing;
Valamina I.E., Shelomentsev I.G. — data collection and analysis, draft manuscript and figure preparation;
Gerzen O.P. — conducting the experiment, data collection and analysis;
Ryabova Yu.V., Shaikhova D.R. — conducting the experiment, data collection and analysis;
Mustafina I.Z., Orlov M.S. — scientific editing.
All authors are responsible for the integrity of all parts of the manuscript and approval of its final version.

Conflict of interests. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgement. The study of changes in the ratio of myosin heavy chains was carried out within the framework of the state. program No. 122022200089-4 (Institute of Immunology and Physiology Ural Branch RAS).

Received: April 19, 2024 / Accepted: September 23, 2024 / Published: October 16, 2024

Introduction. Long-term use of deicing materials (DM) is one of the significant factors causing the active distribution of various chemical compounds that are part of multicomponent deicing mixtures in the environment. In this regard, the expansion of methodological approaches to assessing their biological hazard remains important.

Materials and methods. The DM used for research based on a mixture of urea with magnesium and ammonium nitrates. The DM was tested in the form of an aqueous solution and added to the soil to obtain an aqueous extract. The analysis includes test for induced dominant lethal mutations in Drosophila male germ cells.

Results. All samples tested significantly reduced the fertility of Drosophila males. The frequencies of early dominant lethal mutations (EDLM) significantly exceeded the levels of the controls, and the effects of the soil extract appeared at the lowest concentration — 5 g/L and of the DM solution — 10 g/L. The trend in the rate of late dominant lethal mutations (LDLM) indicates to the death of sperm or a decrease in mating potency.

Limitations. The method of inducing dominant lethal mutations in Drosophila melanogaster and the genotoxic effects assessment of DM in the germ cells of male flies within the study has no restrictions.

Conclusion. The conducted test is so far the only one in the field of research into the genetic safety of multicomponent DMs using a method for induced dominant lethal mutations in Drosophila male germ cells. The results prove the high informative rate of the methodological approach which involves analyzing soil extracts to identify and assess a genotoxicity of DM component composition when it enters the soil which can become as a transit layer for migration of DM components and their products transformation into groundwater.

Compliance with ethical standards. The study requires no the submission of a biomedical ethics committee opinion or other documents.

Contribution:
Sbitnev A.V. — concept and design of the study, collecting and processing material, writing text;
Yurtceva N.A. — the experimental part of the study, data collection;
Nikitina T.A. — execution of the experimental part of the study, data collection;
Vodyanova M.A. — idea of the study, discussion and editing of the text.
All authors are responsible for the integrity of all parts of the manuscript and approval of the manuscript final version.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgment. The work was completed within the framework of a scientific and practical project in the field of environmental hygiene of the Centre for Strategic Planning of FMBA of Russia, (Reg. No. NIOKTR AAAA-A20-120101690057-8).

Received: May 23, 2024 / Revised: June 17, 2024 / Accepted: June 19, 2024 / Published: October 16, 2024

Introduction. In connection with the growing number and scale of wildfires, the problem of the toxic effect of biomass combustion products is relevant both in Russia and abroad. Data on the consequences of wildfire smoke exposure at various stages of ontogenesis are extremely scarce. The presence in smoke substances that, in addition to general toxic effects, have reprotoxic, gonadotoxic, and genotoxic effects, determines the need to study its effect on the reproductive potential and health of offspring.

The purpose of the study was to assess the postnatal development of the offspring, the parent generation of which was exposed to peat smoke during puberty.

Materials and methods. Exposure to peat smoke was carried out once for four hours on the 35^th day of life for female and on the 45^th day for male rats. The average concentrations of carbon monoxide in the exposure chambers were 29.3±11.1 mg/m³, and ultrafine PM_2.5 particles — 0.39±0.61 mg/m³. At puberty, peat smoke exposed rats were mated with intact partners. In rat pups from the offspring there was studied the trend in body weight gain, physical development, and sensory-motor reflexes were assessed.

Results. Acute exposure to peat smoke during puberty in white rats adversely affects the development of their offspring. A significant lag in the physical and sensory-motor development of rat pups from the offspring of animals exposed to smoke was revealed in comparison with rat pups from the control group.

Limitations. The study was limited to the study of postnatal development of offspring obtained from rats exposed to peat smoke during puberty.

Conclusion. Exposure to peat smoke during puberty leads to a delay in the physical and somatosensory development of the offspring during early postnatal ontogenesis.

Compliance with ethical standards. The conclusion of the local ethics committee (No. 32 dated January 10, 2023) was received for conducting experimental studies. All manipulations with animals were carried out in accordance with the European Convention for the Protection of Vertebrate Animals Used for Experimental or Other Scientific Purposes (ETS 123).

Contribution:
Pankova A.A. — experiment, writing, statistical processing, conducting a survey, structuring the article;
Vokina V.A. — concept and design of the study, literature search, experiment, statistical processing, writing text, editing;
Sosedova L.M. — concept and design of the study, writing text, editing;
Rukavishnikov V.S. — leadership, analytical work.
All authors are responsible for the integrity of all parts of the manuscript and approval of the manuscript final version.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgment. The work was carried out according to the research plan within the framework of the state assignment, as well as within the framework of grant No. 075-15-2020-787 of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation for the implementation of a major scientific project in priority areas of scientific and technological development.

Received: June 5, 2024 / Accepted: July 31, 2024 / Published: October 16, 2024

The review represents the current principles of assessment of chemicals genotoxicity. The main attention is paid to alternative research methods. The international experience of the application of alternative approaches and prospects of their use for regulatory purposes are discussed.

The data for this review were collected from the Russian and foreign literature, as well as Internet resources, concerning the development of the new alternative methods for testing chemicals for genotoxicity. The OECD database, Scopus, Medline, Google Scholar, RISC, CyberLeninka were used for the information retrieval.

Although the evaluation of genotoxicity of chemical substances is the well-established and based on the battery of validated methods, the studies for improving the existing tests and developing new technologies, including the alternative approaches, continue unabated up to now.

In general, three trends of development of genetic toxicology can be outlined, including creating of new methods based on the whole-genome sequencing and the application of genome editing technologies; implementation of quantitative system of effects assessment in addition to the existing qualitative approach (mutagenic/non-mutagenic) and testing of various combinations of genotoxicity evaluation methods to identify a battery of tests with a greater predictive activity regarding carcinogenic effects.

To use the developed alternative models for regulatory purposes, it is necessary to provide convincing evidence that the data obtained are good predictors of the organism’s actual response to the effects of toxicants/genotoxicants, validation of methods, standardization, and harmonization of research protocols, and changes to the existing regulatory framework are required.

Contribution:
Egorova O.V. — concept and design of the study, collection and analysis of literary data, writing the text;
Ilyushina N.A. — concept and design of the study, writing the text.
All authors are responsible for the integrity of all parts of the manuscript and approval of the manuscript final version

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgement. The study had no sponsorship.

Received: May 3, 2024 / Revised: May 30, 2024 / Accepted: June 19, 2024 / Published: October 16, 2024

Introduction. Trifluralin is a systemic herbicide of the chemical class of dinitroaniline derivatives. During monitoring studies, trifluralin was detected in carrots produced in the Russian Federation. Since trifluralin-based pesticides are not approved for the use in the Russian Federation, residual amounts of the substance are not typical for this crop. To check the contamination of carrots with a pesticide not typical for this crop, confirmatory qualitative and quantitative studies were carried out.

Purpose of the work. Increasing the efficiency of identification and reliability of quantitative results when monitoring food products for safety when performing confirmatory analytical studies using the example of determining trifluralin in carrots to assess the safety of food products intended for the consumer.

Materials and methods. Gas chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) was used to identify and quantify trifluralin. Samples were prepared for analysis using the QuEChERS method. Identification was carried out by multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) using a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer using two to four MRM transitions (m/z): 306,1→264,0; 264,0→206,0; 264,0→188,0; 264,0→160,1. Matrix-matched calibration was used for quantitation.

Results. The effectiveness of screening studies when monitoring food products using the GC-MS/MS method can be significantly elevated by increasing the number of MRM transitions (at least 3), controlling the reference retention time of the substance, and maintaining the ratio of confirmatory ions. To obtain a reliable quantification of trifluralin content in carrots, the use of a matrix-matched calibration is recommended.

Limitation. In the study, only carrots were considered as food products.

Conclusion. Confirmation of test results is especially important when determining pesticide residues that are not normally found in a given matrix, or when it is suspected that the maximum permissible level may be exceeded. When conducting a screening study and detecting a food contaminant, contamination of the product can only be reported in advance. Next, a confirmatory analysis is required using a validated quantitative method, including an appropriate calibration procedure. In quantitative analysis, the presence of matrix sample components can cause problems due to sample suppression/enhancement phenomena. Matrix-aware calibration has been shown to be effective in compensating for matrix effects.

Compliance with ethical standards. The study does not require a biomedical ethics committee opinion.

Contribution:
Fedorova N.E. — the concept and design of the study, writing the text, editing;
Dobreva N.I. — the concept and design of the study, collection and processing of the material, statistical analysis, writing the text, editing;
Kozak D.I. — the concept and design of the study;
Ivanov A.I., Sobolev D.N., Panchenko M.N. — collection and processing of the material.
All authors are responsible for the integrity of all parts of the manuscript and approval of the manuscript final version.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgement. The study had no sponsorship.

Received: May 8, 2024 / Accepted: June 19, 2024 / Published: October 16, 2024

Методология анализа рисков для здоровья является одним из наиболее востребованных универсальных инструментов информационно-аналитического обеспечения управленческих решений в сфере санитарно-эпидемиологического благополучия.

Северо-Западный научный центр гигиены и общественного здоровья (СЗНЦ), почти ровесник государственной санитарно-эпидемиологической службы, был учреждён в 1924 г. как Ленинградский институт по изучению профессиональных болезней. За сто лет сотрудниками института была создана авторитетная отечественная школа гигиенического регламентирования вредных производственно-экологических факторов, методов диагностики, профилактики и лечения наиболее распространённых профессиональных патологий.