Southern Urals Research Articles

Speleo objects of the Idrisovo village surroundings (Southern Urals)

The village of Idrisovo is located in the Salavat region in the north-east of the Republic of Bashkortostan, now it is part of the UNESCO Yangan-Tau Geopark. The territory is composed of meridionally extending Devonian and Carboniferous carbonate rocks that come to the surface in the cliffs of the Yuryuzan River and its tributaries. Caves, grottoes, arches have formed in carbonate rocks, which have long attracted the attention of people. In connection with the increase in the tourist flow in the territory (rafting on the Yuryuzan River and visiting the archaeological site of the Idrisovo Cave and other natural objects), there was a need for a speleological survey of the territory in order to inform the population about the presence and significance of speleological objects. The article describes all the speleological objects identified as a result of the study of stock materials and field surveys in the vicinity of the village of Idrisovo, within the Salavat region of the Republic of Bashkortostan, from the Bolshoy Limonovsky Ridge to the Stupenchatyy Ridge along the left bank of the Yuryuzan River. The recreational capacities of speleological objects are determined by their morphology. The use of their entrance parts is possible as display objects as part of comprehensive routes, without visiting the internal parts of the speleological objects.

The trail «Along the Yuryuzan River» — objects and routes in the UNESCO Yangan-Tau Geopark (from Yeltsovsky Riverside cliff to the mouth of the Ust-Kanda River)

The valley of the Yuryuzan River from the Yeltsovsky Greben to the mouth of the Ust-Kanda River runs аcross the western slope of the Southern Urals, composed of Upper Riphean, Devonian and Carboniferous rocks, which are exposed in vertical Riverside cliffs. Carbonate rocks are associated with caves, including the famous Idrisovskaya Cave, grottoes, niches and arches. The well-known geological section Bolshaya Luka, which is described in the riverside cliff opposite the village of Verkhnyaya Luka, is a reference (stratotype) for the Bashkir Stage of the Carboniferous System.
 This paper is aimed at systematizing information about the natural objects of the territory, which can be used to create organized geological and ecological trails – a kind of education of the population to focus attention on the significance of natural objects and their protection.

Carbon stocks in the topsoil of broad-leaved forests in the Southern Urals

Carbon stocks in the topsoil of broad-leaved forests in the Southern Urals

About the Settlement of the City of Ufa-II: To the 70th Anniversary of Scientific Research

Purpose. The settlement of Ufa-II is a reference monument of the early Middle Ages of the Southern Urals. The work introduces the latest materials from the site into academic discourse.Results. The obtained materials complement the picture of the development of the immediate surroundings of the Ufa-II settlement. The thickness of the cultural layer in the study area was more than 1 m, which suggests that the site had been in operation for quite a long time. Data on the archaeozoological collection and the results of a morphological and chemical-analytical study of the soil cover are presented. The osteological material is highly fragmented, it bears traces of cuts and appears to be kitchen remains. The species composition is represented by 4 domestic animal species. The cultural layer in its chemical composition is characterized by an increased content of gross phosphorus, and the content of humus, total nitrogen, mobile forms of phosphorus and potassium corresponds to background natural soils. The total thickness of the cultural layer of the monument in this profile is an average of 110 cm. The overlying layers were formed at a later time.Conclusion. The studies made it possible to establish the presence and thickness of the cultural layer. The obtained materials indicate that in the early Middle Ages, the area around the citadel of the settlement was actively developed by the tribes of the Bakhmutin and Turbaslin archaeological culture in the period of the 5th – 7th / 8th centuries.

Hematological and biochemical indicators of steers of Hereford breed during the application of a growth stimulator

Modern livestock farming is actively applying the trend of accelerating the rate of milk and beef production through the use of various feed additives. In this regard, there was a need to study the adaptive abilities of the animal body against the background of the use of these additives. The purpose of the research was to study the hematological and biochemical indicators, of steers of Hereford bbreed against the background of the use of a growth stimulator. The experiment was carried out on steers of Hereford breed starting from 6 months of age, which were divided into 2 groups (control and experimental) of 10 animals in each group. The test animals of both groups were housed in free-ranging pens. The feeding rations were identical, except that the experimental group of steers was fed a growth stimulator, and the housing conditions were also the same throughout the experiment. The article contains information about the impact of stress-limiting environmental factors on the body of steers. The following indicators have been studied in depth: catalase activity, malondialdehyde, ceruloplasmin, and lipid peroxidation. The conducted studies allowed us to fully study the eff ect of a growth stimulant on lipid peroxidation in steers of Hereford breed under environmentally unfavorable conditions. This growth stimulator showed a positive effect on the animal body, as evidenced by the data obtained. In addition, we were able to reduce the concentration of lipid peroxidation by an average of 21 %. The studies conducted and the results obtained indicate the eff ectiveness of using a growth stimulator to increase the development and growth of steers. The study confirmed that the growth stimulator can reduce lipid peroxidation in the technology of rearing and fattening cattle in environmentally unfavorable areas of the Southern Urals, which confirms its antioxidant properties.

Revision of the plesiosaur Polycotylus sopozkoi from the Southern Urals (Russia) confirms the wide distribution of Polycotylus in the Late Cretaceous of the Northern Hemisphere

Polycotylids are among the most common plesiosaurians of the Late Cretaceous, however, in Eurasia their findings are rare and fragmentary. In 2016, a partial polycotylid skeleton from the Upper Cretaceous of the Izhberda quarry in the Southern Urals region was described by Efimov et al. as a new species, Polycotylus sopozkoi. Here we revise this holotype specimen and show that many features initially proposed to distinguish the species are the result of misinterpretations. However, P. sopozkoi is indeed referable to Polycotylus and is highly similar to its type species, P. latipinnis. Although only one distinctive trait of the species noted by Efimov et al., the protruding basioccipital tubera with deep carotid canals on their anterodorsal surface, is confirmed here, new observations revealed additional features that allow us to substantiate the validity of P. sopozkoi. The presence of Polycotylus in the Upper Cretaceous of North America and Eastern Europe highlights a wide distribution of some plesiosaurian genera and suggests caution in assumptions of ‘endemic’ plesiosaurian taxa in particular regions of the world.

Snow Contamination by Metals and Metalloids in a Polar Town: A Case Study of Nadym, Russia.

Snow composition depends on the long-range transport of pollutants. This article examines aspects of snow composition in the town of Nadym in Western Siberia. During fieldwork conducted in 2021 and 2022, we determined dust load, concentrations and ratio of dissolved and suspended forms of metals and metalloids (MMs). Moreover, we analyzed air mass trajectories using the HYSPLIT model, and the results showed that industrial regions of the southern Urals, southeastern Siberia, and Kazakhstan were the sources of MMs. Content of the insoluble fraction was increased by 23-fold in Nadym. The dust load in Nadym was higher than that in urban communities situated in the temperate zone, even though this town is relatively small in population and has little industrial infrastructure. This significant increase in dust load led to a ten- to 100-fold increase in the content MMs. Local soils (Fe, Al), vehicles (W), building dust (Mg, Ca), and anti-icing agents (Na) were found to be the sources of pollution. We found that the high dust load is caused by meteorological factors, such as temperature inversion and a large number of calm days, which reduce the dispersion of pollution. This case study demonstrates that winter air quality in polar settlements can be worse than that in urban areas in the temperate zone, even with few local sources of pollution. Furthermore, the trend toward an increase in the number of windless days, such as observed in Siberia as a result of global climate change, increases the risk of anthropogenic pollution of the atmosphere of polar cities.

Lithological features of Lake Bannoe sediments (Southern Urals) as an indicator of environmental and climate changes in the Holocene

Research subject. Bottom sediments of Lake Bannoe (Southern Urals). Aim. Identification of lithologic features of Lake Bannoe sediments, which could reflect sedimentation conditions in the Holocene. Materials and methods. The detailed complex analysis included radiocarbon dating, grain-size analysis, X-ray diffraction analysis, electron microscopy, X-ray fluorescence and isotope analysis, coercive spectrometry and pollen analysis. Results. Radiocarbon dating showed that sedimentation in Lake Bannoe began no later than ~13 thousand years ago. Combination of data from various laboratory studies unraveled four lithological zones and the corresponding stages in the sedimentation history. The grain size, allothigenic particles, carbonate minerals, organic matter and isotopic composition of carbon and oxygen are the most informative indicators. Grain size variations and the ratio between allothigenic and carbonate components reflect changes in the Lake’s depth and clastic material supply, which, in turn, is associated with humidity. Organic matter parameters (TOC, δ13Corg, C/N ratio) can be considered as indicators of climate-sensitive changes in bioproductivity of the sedimentation basin. They also reflect the ratio of exogenous and endogenous organic matter in the sedimentary environment. The isotopic composition of carbon and oxygen (δ13Ccarb, δ18Ocarb) in sedimentary carbonates is an informative indicator of lithological zones and climatic events of the Holocene due to its sensitivity to changes in biomass, temperature fluctuations, and fresh water inflow. The paramagnetic component k_para was used as an indicator of the allothigenic material input into the lake basin for the first time in this region. Conclusions. The granulometric, mineral, and chemical composition, as well as the magnetic properties of Lake Bannoe sediments reflect the history of Lake sedimentation in the Southern Urals, which agrees mainly with the climate stages of the Holocene.

Set Belts from the Catacomb No. 31 of the Early-Medieval Burial Ground near Verkhnii Saltiv Village

The materials of the catacomb burial no. 31 investigated in 1985 by the expedition of the Kharkiv Historical Museum under the leadership of V. H. Borodulina on the main site of the Early-Medieval burial ground in Verknii Saltiv village (VSM1) are introduced into the scientific circulation. The burial chamber, transverse to the dromos, contained the remains of two people (a man and a woman) with the traces of deliberate destruction committed in ancient times (fig. 1: 1). Inventory found with the buried people (fig. 2) allows dating this complex to the second — third quarters of the 9th century. The elements of the belt set found in the burial, represented by cast bronze plaques and a fragment of a bronze belt buckle (fig. 1: 2—6) are of interest. Two belt plaques with a fixed loop in the lower part of the shield are decorated with a lotus ornament (fig. 1: 6) typical for the 3rd chronological horizon of the Saltiv antiquities. Two square-shaped plaques with a rectangular hole that has a pointed top in the lower part of the shield (fig. 1: 3, 4) are distinctive among the Turkic antiquities of the 8th—10th centuries. Similar plaques of the Saltiv period are found in the assemblages of the Volga River middle region and the Southern Urals (Volga Bulgarians, Magyars, Mordovians, Mari), where they are part of the decorations of the Turk-Ural circle. Five more round plaques are decorated with floral ornament (fig. 1: 5), which finds analogies in the monuments of the “Magyar” circle of the 9th—10th centuries (Elizavetino-Mikhailovka, Kriukovo-Kuzhnovskii burial grounds in the Volga region, burial in the village of Nova Mykolaivka in the Dnipro Oblast). This belt set consists of three types of plaques that correspond to different traditions. Appearance of the set reflects existence of certain military fashion in the Saltiv society associated with the role played by the Magyars in the 830–890s, being in allied relations with the top of the Khazar Khaganate.

Some lithogeochemical and isotope-geochemical features of clay rocks and hiatuses in the Riphean stratotype

Research subject. Clay rocks of the Lower, Middle, and Upper Riphean (respectively, the Burzyan, Yurmatau, and Karatau groups) of the Western slope of the Southern Urals. Changes in their characteristic values of a number of ratios of oxides and some trace elements that are indicators of rock composition in provenances are considered, taking into account the breaks of different duration present in the Riphean stratotype. Methods. Calculation of t he average values of TiO2/Al2O3, Th/Sc, La/Co and (La/Yb)N, typical for shales, fine-grained clay siltstones, and mudstones of the main lithostratigraphic units of the Riphean stratotype (formation and, in some cases, subformation) and analysis of their changes taking into account the hiatuses known in the Riphean stratotype (Pre-Mashak/Pre-Zigalga, Pre- Zilmerdak, Pre-Minyar, Pred-Uk). Results. It was established that throughout the entire Riphean, regardless of breaks in sedimentation, presumably associated with certain transformations in the areas of erosion and sedimentation, a number of lithogeochemical characteristics of fine-grained clastic rocks of the Burzyan, Yurmatau, and Karatau groups (such as TiO2/Al2O3, Th/Sc, La/Co, and, to a significant extent, (La/Yb)N) practically did not experience significant changes. Conclusions. The data obtained give reason to think that there were no fundamental changes in the composition of the sources of fine-grained aluminosiliciclastics for the Riphean sedimentary sequences for more than 1 Ga, and contradict the rather active scenario of tectonic processes at the end of the Early Precambrian and the entire Late Precambrian. Conversely, the data on the values of tNd(DM) and eNd(t) in 37 samples of clay rocks of the Riphean stratotype nevertheless reflect a change in the composition of the rocks of the feeding provinces and, one way or another, fit into the outline of subglobal events established by conventional geological methods in the stratotype area of the Riphean. In accordance with them, in the Ai and Mashak times, an increase in the proportion of juvenile material took place in the areas of erosion. Apparently, the Pre-Zilmerdak hiatus also led to the appearance of a significant proportion of basic igneous rocks among the rocks of the provenances.

Relation of individual and social characteristics of behavior in the context of achieving successful adaptation on the example of a bachelor group of a semi-wild population of Przewalski’s horse of the Orenburg Reserve

The article deals with the relationship between the degree of behavioral synchronization and the index of behavioral diversity and morphofunctional features of Przewalski’s horse in the context of their adaptive significance. It is noted that the indicated behavioral characteristics determine the ability of animals to form cohesive social groups, which underlies the defensive behavior of some species of social animals, especially ungulates of open spaces, as well as their resistance to various environmental factors (e.g., insects, temperature effects, etc.). The index of behavioral diversity reflects the animal’s desire to display motivated behavior, i.e. to satisfy the dominant need from the position of the theory of functional systems. Consideration of these indicators is important for successful reintroduction programs of different animal species. In this study, the adaptation of horses to the steppe ecosystems of the Southern Urals was assessed using the example of a bachelor group of a semi-voluntary population of the studied species living on the territory of the site «Pre-Ural Steppe» of the Federal State Budgetary Institution «Orenburg Region Reserves» due to a set of ethological observations. A high level of behavioral synchronization and low values of the behavioral diversity index were recorded in the studied community, explained by morphophysiological adaptation of the species to a long period of feed consumption. A relationship between the above behavioral characteristics and the proportion of different behavioral forms in the studied group of wild horses was noted, indicating effective integration of animals into the ecological niche natural to the species.

НАЧАЛО АКАДЕМИЧЕСКОЙ АРХЕОЛОГИИ В БАШКОРТОСТАНЕ

During the post-war period, archaeological research was rapidly advancing in the Soviet Union. After the All-Union Archaeological Conference in 1945, the Moscow Branch of the Institute for the History of Material Culture (henceforth IHMC) became the main center for archaeological research and organizer of field studies throughout the USSR. At a meeting of the Department of History and Philosophy in 1951, together with a plenum of IHMC and the USSR Academy of Sciences, a decision was made to expand archaeological research across all regions of the country. An archaeological team is forming at the Bashkir Scientific Research Institute of History, Language, and Literature, which was part of the USSR Academy of Sciences since 1951. In 1953, a sector of history, archaeology, and ethnography was created, and archaeological expeditions were launched. Initially, field research was conducted as part of the Bashkir Archaeological Expedition under the leadership of IHMC. Since 1957, independent archaeological units have been formed. In 1959, a department of archeology and ethnography became part of the IHLL. The same year, a collection of articles dedicated to archaeological studies in Bashkortostan were published for the first time. In 1978, an independent sector of archaeology appeared, the successor of which is the Department of Archaeological Research currently operating as part of the IHLL. Thus, in 2023–2024 it will be 70 years since the beginning of archaeological research in the IHLL. It is also the anniversary of the beginning of systematic academic research of the territory of the Southern Urals and the design of Ufa as the center of archaeological research in the region. In addition to documentary evidence of the formation of the archaeological structure in the IHLL, the article provides statistics on archaeological expeditions in the territory of Bashkortostan. An analysis of these data shows that, between 1955 and 1963, units organized by academic institutions of the IHMC (Institute of History of Material Culture) and IHLL dominated among them. Due to active fieldwork, by 1970, information had been obtained on 2,059 archaeological sites located within the BASSR and data on these sites had been systematized into the academic catalog “Archaeological Map of Bashkiria.” In general, the mid-1950s to 1960s can be characterized as the period when a systematic archaeological survey was being formed on the territory of Bashkortostan. The main focus of this process was the IHLL

Этнокультурная история и современное измерение Ордена знак почета института истории, языка и литературы УФИЦ РАН: от башкирского академцентра к федеральному институту

The Institute of History, Language and Literature of the Ufa Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences is a federal academic institution with a humanitarian profile, the key research area of which is comprehensive Bashkir studies. The Institute, which celebrated its centenary in 2022, has gone a long way from the Society for the Study of Bashkiria at the Academic Center of the People’s Commissariat of Education of Bashkiria, which united ascetic researchers, to the authoritative scientific center of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The institution has made and continues to make an invaluable contribution to the study of the archaeology, ancient and modern history, and material and spiritual culture of the multinational region. The Bashkir people, one of the many ethnic groups in the Russian Federation, are the focus of this work. The team’s contributions, which have been recognized in the scientific community of Russia and beyond, not only have a scientific value but also have applied and practical significance. These contributions demonstrate the researchers’ ability to solve problems that face modern humanitarian science, in a qualitative manner. His century-old scientific biography and ethnocultural history include significant archaeological discoveries, fundamental monographic and collective research, scientific collections, multi-volume collections of the Bashkir folk art, anthologies of the Bashkir literature, numerous linguistic and encyclopedic dictionaries that incorporated creative ideas, thoughts, achievements of several generations of scientists (M.A. Burangulov, T.H. Akhmadiev, N.V. Bikbulatov, I.M. Gvozdikova, R.G. Kuzeev, H.F. Usmanov, M.V. Murzabulatov, S.N. Shitova, N.A. Mazhitov, A.H. Pshenichnyuk, N.H. Maksyutova, S.F. Mirzhanova, Z.G. Uraksin, F.G. Khisamitdinova, A.I. Kharisov, G.B. Khusainov, N.T. Zaripov, A.M. Suleymanov, F.A. Nadrshina, etc.). From the study of archaeology in the Southern Urals region and its ancient history and culture, to understanding modern socio-cultural processes and modern history in Bashkiria, anthropology, ethnography, and the Bashkir language research, computational linguistics, dialectology, folk art, literary studies, archeography, and the study of written and printed materials – these are the main research areas of the Institute’s scientists.

Features of the formation of yield and quality of durum spring wheat in the conditions of the Chuvash Republic

Relevance. The main areas of durum wheat cultivation are located in the regions of the Lower and Middle Volga region, the southern Urals and the southern regions of Siberia. The Chuvash Republic is not a traditional region for the cultivation of spring durum wheat. The development of varietal technologies that take into account the adaptive potential of the crop, taking into account the soil and climatic conditions of the region, is especially relevant for expanding the area of cultivation of this crop.Methods. To conduct research in the conditions of the Chuvash Republic, a single-factor experiment was carried out in six repetitions with five varieties of spring durum wheat: Bezenchukskaya 139, Bezenchukskaya zolotistaya, Luch 25, Kargala 223, Annushka. Records and observations were carried out according to the methods of state variety testing.Results. The highest tillering indicators were noted in the standard variety, where the indicators of general and productive tillering were 1.8 and 1.7, respectively, and in the Luch 25 variety — 1.9 and 1.6 respectively. The largest number of productive stems for harvesting was formed by varieties of the Bezenchuk selection, the lowest indicator — 458 pcs. per 1 sq. m was shown by the Kargal variety 223. The best indicators of the yield structure on average for two years should be noted in the varieties Bezenchukskaya 139 and Bezenchukskaya zolotistaya. The lowest indicators on the structure of the crop are noted in the varieties Kargala 223 and Annushka. The most full-weight grain on average for two years was formed by the varieties Luch 25, where the mass of 1000 grains was 42.9 g, Annushka — 42.4 g, Bezenchukskaya zolotistaya — 40.9 g. The highest yield was provided by the varieties Bezenchukskaya (139–3.41 t/ha) and Bezenchukskaya zolotistaya (3.19 t/ha).

Lithological features of the uryuk formation in the tolparovo section of the vendian (Southern Urals)

New results of lithological structural and textural observations and petrographic study of rocks of the Uryuk formation exposed in the basin of the Maly Tolpar River in the Bashkir meganticlinory are presented. For the first time, a wide development of consedimentary underwater landslide folds in the Uryuk deposits has been established, the sizes of which vary from the first tens of centimeters to the first meters. In sandstones, the presence of oblique, wavy, flasery and horizontal, with a dual character of thin clay layers, layering, as well as structureless layers with a massive texture, is recorded. Signs of shallow wave ripples have been established. Mechanoglyphs and textures similar to Arumberia banksi have been found, which presumably represent the lithified structures of bacterial mats that existed under certain conditions – shallow-sea environments and conditions of sandy-clay sedimentation. It is concluded that the Uryuk deposits, despite the absence of direct lithological signs of diamictites in them, form a single sedimentary sequence with the underlying Tolparov-Suirovsky marine glacial deposits, in which a shallow-sea sedimentation regime is established by the end of the Uryuk time. It is shown that the presence of ferruginous minerals in sandstone cement is secondary in nature and is associated with their epigenetic transformations. It is concluded that the red-colored color of the rocks of the Uryuk formation cannot be used for stratification of its sections and reconstruction of sedimentation conditions in the Uryuk time.

Rare-earth mineralization in terrigenous deposits of the Shatak complex (Southern Urals): species diversity and features of chemical composition

As a result of the study of terrigenous rocks of the Shatak complex, which includes deposits of the Kuz’elga and Karan subformations, rare earth minerals were found: allanite-(Ce), monazite-(Se), monazite-(Nd), xenotime-(Y), REE-bearing epidote, and unidentified connections. It has been established that during the metamorphism of terrigenous rocks of detrital zircon, it is a selective concentrator and thorium, a popular group of rare earth elements and thorium. The comparative analysis showed that, in terms of chemical composition, rare-earth minerals (monazite-(Ce) and xenotime-(Y)) from the Shatak rock are significantly important from heavy ones from other complexes observed on the western slope of the Southern Urals by the presence of gadolinium in monazite, and in xenotime – consecutive REE group represented by Ce, Nd and Sm. When calculating the thermal bar, characterizing changes in the composition of structural-material complexes of western origin, slopes from the main factors that determine the characteristics of the chemical composition of rare earth chemical elements, which are the chemical composition of mineral formation.

Rare-Earth Mineralization in Terrigenous Rocks of the Shatak Complex (Southern Urals): Species Diversity and Features of Chemical Composition

Rare-Earth Mineralization in Terrigenous Rocks of the Shatak Complex (Southern Urals): Species Diversity and Features of Chemical Composition

Meta-Ultramafic Rocks of the Maksyutov Complex, Southern Urals: High-Pressure Si–Al Metasomatism and Carbonatization at the Crust–Mantle Interface in the Subduction Zone

Meta-Ultramafic Rocks of the Maksyutov Complex, Southern Urals: High-Pressure Si–Al Metasomatism and Carbonatization at the Crust–Mantle Interface in the Subduction Zone

ИССЛЕДОВАНИЕ МИКРОРАСПРЕДЕЛЕНИЯ PU-239 В ПЕЧЕНИ РАБОТНИКОВ ПО «МАЯК» С ИСПОЛЬЗОВАНИЕМ НЕЙТРОННО-ИНДУЦИРОВАННОГО МЕТОДА ИЗМЕРЕНИЯ

Purpose: Conducted research was aimed at studying of microdistribution of 239Pu particles in liver tissues of former MAYAK PA workers. Current research is a continuation of studies of microdistribution of 239Pu particles in lung tissues of former MAYAK PA workers that were conducted earlier and published. Material and methods: Neutron-induced track method was utilized for studying the distribution of sizes of 239Pu nanoparticles. At Southern Urals Biophysics Institute this method was improved, optimized and adapted for studying of plutonium microdistribution in biological tissues. Liver samples studying started in 2020. Samples were chosen from Radiobiology Human Tissue Repository SUBI. Liver samples from Voronezh regional pathology and anatomical bureau and Tobolsk regional hospital #3 were obtained within the search of contemporary liver tissues. Application of liver samples on track detectors and their assembling into plastic box for following irradiation in nuclear reactor at Joint stock company “Institute of Nuclear Materials” was provided similarly to lung samples. Standart pathohistological techniqes were applied. The thickness of liver slides was 5 micrometers. Basic track count was conducted on the results of 36-minute etching. Single tracks and stars were counted. Stars with high density of tracks that exceeded counting abilities were counted on the results of 9-minute etching either directly (if all tracks were distinct) or in accordance with patent for invention RU 2733491 C2 that enables to calculate the number of tracks in a star by distinct peripheral tracks. Results: This study quantitatively compares 239Pu microdistribution in liver of three deceased former Mayak PA workers who were exposed to 239Pu by inhalation and three deceased subjects who had been never employed at Mayak PA (from Ozyorsk, Voronezh, Tobolsk). The comparison is made utilizing neutron-activation method of measurement. The results are compared to the results of less-sensitive autoradiographic method. The study demonstrated that the most of 239Pu activity in liver is concentrated in liver lobules. 239PuO2 nanoparticles found didn’t exceed the size of 20 nm. Track density for three liver samples of subjects who had been never employed at Mayak PA differed for less than two times.

Cu and Au Mineralization of the Tolparovo Ore Occurrence: Evidence for the Formation of Redbed Copper Occurrences in Neoproterozoic Deposits of the Southern Urals

The mineralization and geochemical features of the Tolparovo ore occurrence are studied to reveal the contribution of diagenetic and epigenetic processes in the formation of copper mineralization in redbed deposits. The methods of electron microscopy, ICP MS, X-ray fluorescence, X-ray phase, atomic absorption, thermogravimetric analyses, and C and O isotopic composition were used. The ore is confined to the fault zone and feathering dolomite–calcite veins, having formed at temperatures of ~330–200 °C and pressures of 0.8–0.2 kbar. Similar to other copper redbed occurrences of the Bashkirian uplift, the Tolparovo copper ore occurrence is confined to basal Neoproterozoic deposits. Siliciclastic and carbonate deposits of this level were accumulated at low paleoequator latitudes in arid climates of continental and coastal–marine environments close to evaporite ones. Rocks of this stratigraphic interval demonstrate increased background concentrations of copper (~2–5 times exceeding the clark), which explains the stratification of redbed copper ore occurrences, indicating a predominantly sedimentary copper source. However, most of the redbed copper ore occurrences of the Bashkirian uplift are located in tectonic zones and are associated with the dikes of the Inzer gabbrodolerite complex. This connects the generation of ore occurrences with the formation of the Southern Urals Arsha Large Igneous Province (707–732 Ma) and the activity of postmagmatic fluids. Magmatic processes were presumably activated due to the collapse of the Rodinia supercontinent. It is shown that copper mineralization in stratiform deposits may result from a joint manifestation of dia- and epigenesis processes.