The flyways of many different wild waterfowl pass through the Caspian Sea region. The western coast of the middle Caspian Sea is an area with many wetlands, where wintering grounds with large concentrations of birds are located. It is known that wild waterfowl are a natural reservoir of the influenza A virus. In the mid-2000s, in the north of this region, the mass deaths of swans, gulls, and pelicans from high pathogenicity avian influenza virus (HPAIV) were noted. At present, there is still little known about the presence of avian influenza virus (AIVs) and different avian paramyxoviruses (APMVs) in the region’s waterfowl bird populations. Here, we report the results of monitoring these viruses in the wild waterfowl of the western coast of the middle Caspian Sea from 2017 to 2020. Samples from 1438 individuals of 26 bird species of 7 orders were collected, from which 21 strains of AIV were isolated, amounting to a 1.46% isolation rate of the total number of samples analyzed (none of these birds exhibited external signs of disease). The following subtypes were determined and whole-genome nucleotide sequences of the isolated strains were obtained: H1N1 (n = 2), H3N8 (n = 8), H4N6 (n = 2), H7N3 (n = 2), H8N4 (n = 1), H10N5 (n = 1), and H12N5 (n = 1). No high pathogenicity influenza virus H5 subtype was detected. Phylogenetic analysis of AIV genomes did not reveal any specific pattern for viruses in the Caspian Sea region, showing that all segments belong to the Eurasian clades of classic avian-like influenza viruses. We also did not find the amino acid substitutions in the polymerase complex (PA, PB1, and PB2) that are critical for the increase in virulence or adaptation to mammals. In total, 23 hemagglutinating viruses not related to influenza A virus were also isolated, of which 15 belonged to avian paramyxoviruses. We were able to sequence 12 avian paramyxoviruses of three species, as follows: Newcastle disease virus (n = 4); Avian paramyxovirus 4 (n = 5); and Avian paramyxovirus 6 (n = 3). In the Russian Federation, the Newcastle disease virus of the VII.1.1 sub-genotype was first isolated from a wild bird (common pheasant) in the Caspian Sea region. The five avian paramyxovirus 4 isolates obtained belonged to the common clade in Genotype I, whereas phylogenetic analysis of three isolates of Avian paramyxovirus 6 showed that two isolates, isolated in 2017, belonged to Genotype I and that an isolate identified in 2020 belonged to Genotype II. The continued regular monitoring of AIVs and APMVs, the obtaining of data on the biological properties of isolated strains, and the accumulation of information on virus host species will allow for the adequate planning of epidemiological measures, suggest the most likely routes of spread of the virus, and assist in the prediction of the introduction of the viruses in the western coastal region of the middle Caspian Sea.

Aim. Analysis of the first data regarding the arrival of the predatory ctenophore Beroe cf. ovata in the Caspian Sea and assessment of possible effects of its introduction for the Caspian ecosystem.Material and Methods. The material was obtained in the deep-water region of the western shelf of the middle Caspian Sea in the first ten days of October 2020. Zooplankton samples were collected using a Juday plankton net (0.1 m² opening, 180 μm mesh size). Large ctenophores were collected using a big cone plankton net (CB) with a 0.5 m² opening, 500 μm mesh size. Samples were taken at five stations in the 0-40 m layer. Combs larger than 5 mm were counted and measured on board the ship. The number and size of small ctenophores, larvae and eggs were determined in zooplankton samples fixed with formalin to a final concentration of 4%.Results. The presence of a new alien Beroe cf. ovata was recorded in the Dagestan shelf waters of the Caspian Sea in the beginning of October 2020. The average number of Beroe cf. ovata for five stations was 22 ind/m² and the biomass was 6.15 g/m². Larvae and small individuals from 5 to 20 mm in size predominated. Mnemiopsis leidyi was absent in the area investigated. The structure of mesozooplankton was dominated by the small copepod Acartia tonsa, which accounted for 92% of the zooplankton community and 78% of its biomass.Conclusion. The size structure of the B. ovata population with a predominance of larvae and small individuals indicates a recently completed breeding cycle and adaptation of the ctenophore to the conditions of the Caspian Sea. The first impacts of the new invasive ctenophore on the population of M. leidyi were demonstrated. This event may be the beginning of a new stage in the evolution of the Caspian Sea ecosystem and the restoration of its bio resources affected by the invasion of Mnemiopsis leidyi. The structure of mesozooplankton with total dominance, in abundance and biomass, of the small copepod Acartia tonsa did not differ from that in the previous period, indicating that the Caspian zoocenosis did not respond to the short-term reduction of the impact of M. leidyi. A brief analysis of the history of the introduction of ctenophores to the Black and Caspian Seas is presented and their impact on ecosystems and biological resources of these seas is studied. Based on longterm observations of the invasive ctenophores' interactions in the Black Sea, the possible outcomes of the penetration of Beroe cf. ovata in the Caspian Sea are discussed.

The paper presents the test experiment to investigate one of UNESCO’s (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) world heritage objects, an archaeological site in the Naryn-Kala citadel (Derbent, Republic of Dagestan, Russian Federation) hidden under the ground’s surface. The function of the site could be revealed by the muon radiography studies. Several nuclear emulsion detectors were exposed for two months inside the site at a depth about 10 m from the modern surface. The use of nuclear emulsions as probing radiation detectors combined with the potential of modern image analysis methods provides for a uniquely high resolution capacity of recording instrumentation and 3D reconstruction of the internal structure of the investigated object. Here we present the experiment and data analysis details and the first results.

Биоразнообразие и эпидемический потенциал коронавирусов ( Nidovirales: Coronaviridae ) рукокрылых

Seasonal and long-term variability of phytoplankton in the Middle Caspian was studied based on remote sensing data of the sea by SeaWiFS and MODIS-Aqua scanners in 1998–2021 and the results of field observations in 2004–2021. The seasonal variability of chlorophyll “a” (CHL) calculated from satellite data using a regional algorithm indicated that the autumn and winter seasons were the main phytoplankton production periods of the year. In summer, a period of stagnation was observed in phytoplankton growth in the surface layer. However, according to satellite data in the first months of each year, winter blooms were observed recurrently in the Middle Caspian Sea, as confirmed by the results of field observations in 2004–2021. The phytoplankton biomass during the winter vegetation period reached 4.5–5.0 g/m³. In the first decade of the century (2004–2006), winter blooms were almost entirely (as much as 96%) formed through the mass growth of the alien diatom Cerataulina pelagica. In the modern period (2021), the winter bloom was formed both by three endemic diatom species Thalassionema nitzschioides, Cyclotella comta and Dactyliosolen fragilissimus and by two alien species Pseudo-nitzschia seriata and Cerataulina pelagica. In spring, the diatom Cyclotella caspia and the dinoflagellate Prorocentrum micans, both endemics, dominated. In summer, the phytoplankton biomass was composed of the mass growth of small flagellates and dinoflagellates in the seasonal thermocline layer, which current remote sensing methods cannot record. The diatoms’ contribution to the community’s total biomass in summer did not exceed 3%. In the autumn phytoplankton, the main role was played by a diatom component represented by alien species, mainly Chaetoceros peruvianus.

Wild waterfowl birds are known to be the main reservoir for a variety of avian influenza viruses of different subtypes. Some subtypes, such as H2Nx, H8Nx, H12Nx, and H14Nx, occur relatively rarely in nature. During 10-year long-term surveillance, we isolated five rare H12N5 and one H12N2 viruses in three different distinct geographic regions of Northern Eurasia and studied their characteristics. H12N2 from the Far East region was a double reassortant containing hemagglutinin (HA), non-structural (NS) and nucleoprotein (NP) segments of the American lineage and others from the classical Eurasian avian-like lineage. H12N5 viruses contain Eurasian lineage segments. We suggest a phylogeographical scheme for reassortment events associated with geographical groups of aquatic birds and their migration flyways. The H12N2 virus is of particular interest as this subtype has been found in common teal in the Russian Far East region, and it has a strong relation to North American avian influenza virus lineages, clearly showing that viral exchange of segments between the two continents does occur. Our results emphasize the importance of Avian Influenza Virus (AIV) surveillance in Northern Eurasia for the annual screening of virus characteristics, including the genetic constellation of rare virus subtypes, to understand the evolutionary ecology of AIV.