The mission of the conference is to foster scientific, technological, innovative potential and presentation of projects and scientific developments of young scientists, as well as exchange of experience and opinions on a wide range of scientific issues. The organizer is the Council of Young Scientists of NAS Belarus.
Leading Biologists at the Laboratory of Animal Ecological Physiology of the Institute of Biology KarRC RAS Elina Panova and Irina Zaitseva took an active part in the session “Conservation of biological diversity and use of animal resources”.
Irina Zaitseva spoke about the age-specific content of important substances - retinol and alpha-tocopherol - in the organism of wild boars and moose living in Northwest Russia.The results of the study were published in the Journal of Evolutionary Biochemistry and Physiology. The work is done within Russian Science Foundation project 23-24-10001 “Content of essential and toxic elements in tissues of game ungulates in the Republic of Karelia and assessment of human health risks in consuming meat and offal” (Leader – Head of Laboratory Svetlana Kalinina).
– The project aims to study the content of essential and toxic elements in the organs of game species inhabiting the territory of Karelia. This information is needed for assessing the elemental status of valuable mammal species in our region, as well as for calculating the potential health risk for people consuming game meat and offal, - said Irina Zaitseva, a project participant.
Presentation by Leading Biologist at the Laboratory of Animal Ecological Physiology IB KarRC RAS Irina Zaitseva
The study objects are two ungulate species – moose Alces alces L. and wild boar Sus scrofa L. Animals can serve as biological indicators of environmental pollution. So far, data on the elemental status - the content of chemical elements in the organism - of ungulates in North European Russia have been fragmentary and scanty. Factual material can provide a basis for decision-making regarding ecological monitoring of populations of resource animal species, as well as health protection measures to prevent the negative effect of toxicants on humans.
– It was great to meet colleagues at the conference and to find out that we have a common study object. For example, one of the research topics for employees of the Scientific and Practical Center of the Belarus National Academy of Sciences for Bioresources is the distribution and maintaining the abundance of deer. Colleagues from Minsk showed great interest in our research, and we have plans for further cooperation, - said Irina Zaitseva.
Elina Panova gave a talk on the "Activity of digestive enzymes in sections of the gastrointestinal tract of aggressive and tame American mink Neogale vison". This study is a component part of a long-term experiment for investigating the biochemical and physiological characteristics of American mink in selection based on defensive response to humans.
– Simply put, we explore how and why aggressive and tame minks differ from each other. This study is a continuation and a ramification of the unique and widely known experiment on domesticating foxes, which was launched in 1959 by Academician D.K. Belyaev and Doctor of Biology L.N. Trut. As well as in the case of foxes, there are animals with different degrees of aggressiveness towards humans in the mink population. The behavior-based artificial selection that has been going on for many generations has led to the emergence of animals of absolutely different qualities: aggressive and tame, - Elina Panova explained.
The study is done in collaboration with the Institute of Cytology and Genetics of the Siberian Branch RAS (Project Leader – Doctor of Biology Oleg Trapezov).
Elina Panova and her colleagues study the reasons for differences between aggressive and tame mink
– The conference left a positive impression: smooth organization, assistance in coordination, interesting presentations, responsive colleagues. We would like to specifically thank Alexandra Larchenko for helping to navigate around the city and for her responsiveness. We look forward to further cooperation with scientists from Belarus. In particular, we were offered to have articles published in journals of the organizing country, - the scientist shared.
Summarizing the results of the sessions, the best papers were awarded diplomas, including the work of Elina Panova.
In addition to scientific activity, the conference participants were offered excursions, including a tour of the laboratories and a visit to the Minsk Zoo. Next year, conferences with similar themes are scheduled to be held in Minsk and Hrodna.
Photos from archives of the conference participants
