Yakutsk City Research Articles

Vsevolod I. Astafyev – the Man ahead of Time

The authors describe the life and activity of a famous scientist and qualified Russian surgeon, a great man with distinguished leadership ability in medicine and higher medical education, Professor Vsevolod Ivanovich Astafyev.As a student, Vsevolod I. Astafyev was keen about emergency surgery, and worked a lot in experimental laboratory. He graduated from the Kursk medical institute with honors, completing by the time his PhD thesis. However, he gave up postgraduate study and began working as a surgeon in a district hospital. After returning to the Kursk medical institute, Vsevolod I. Astafyev worked as an assistant at the hospital surgery department and successfully defended his PhD thesis. At the age of 35, he defended his doctorate thesis and competed for a post of the head of hospital surgery department at the Irkutsk medical institute. He had continued to be actively engaged in science, pedagogy and practical surgery, and organized the Siberian branch of the All-Soviet Union Scientific Center of Surgery of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences. The branch had a clinical base with 220 beds at the Irkutsk regional hospital. Vsevolod I. Astafyev created a school of polyvalent surgeons, lecturers, and scholars.In 1987, Vsevolod Astafyev accepted an offer to become the deputy head doctor of the Republican hospital of Yakutia. Shortly after coming to Yakutsk city, he was elected a deputy of the supreme council of the Yakut Republic. On his initiative, supported by the Republic’s governance, a modern equipped medical center was built and put into operation within a short time. The so-called “sanctuary of science” still successfully works as one of the leading clinics of Russia and abroad.

Yakutsk city self-government activities in the sphere of land relations during the First World War

Yakutsk city self-government activities in the sphere of land relations during the First World War

The calculation of solar energy used by hot water systems in permafrost region: An experimental case study for Yakutia

This paper presents a mathematical model for the collection and efficient use of solar energy in hot water systems at permafrost regions. A case study was presented for northern territories of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). Daily maximum diffuse solar radiation on a horizontal and inclined surface was predicted during the year taking into account cloud coverage. The cloud coverage data was taken from the results of five-year monitoring on the heliometric station of the Yakutsk city. The modelling of the hourly, daily, monthly, and annual amount of solar radiation was performed. The mathematical model was turned and finally proved by experimental data obtained from the testing rig. The modelling of the domestic hot water supply system of particular northern territories was performed using solar energy and energy storage. Both models were integrated and verified by experimental data accounting a seasonal fluctuation. The estimation of the solar energy potential for practical application in Yakutia was executed. The operating features of permafrost regions were analysed by the developed experimental unit. The application of solenoid valve reduces the heat losses during the night by 57% in June and by 69% in November. The case study provides the results of modelling and efficient use of solar energy for different daily water flow rates during January and June. The results of the case study show the possibility to use of solar energy in a hybrid energy system at permafrost regions, decarbonize the energy input and contribute regional sustainability of northern territories.

Microbiomes of the initial soils of mining areas of Yakutsk City (Eastern Siberia, Russia)

The microbiome of initial soils formed at the heaps and bottoms of surface sediment quarries in the surroundings of Yakutsk City(Eastern Siberia,Russia) has been characterized for the first time. In the initial Entisols, we detected Alphaproteobacteria (represented mainly by the family Rizobiales), Gammaproteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Acidobacteria, Bacteroidetes (mostly Chitinophagales), Deltaproteobacteria, and Chloroflexi. The lower soil horizons had a more homogenous species diversity taxonomy that was dominated by Gammaproteobacteria. The morphologically different horizons did not differ microbiologically. This is caused by the limited soil development and relatively slow rate of revegetation of the spoil banks and heaps of the quarries under the severe climatic conditions of the Eastern part of Russian Arctic zone. Based on our findings, we propose that the soil microbiomes in such recently abandoned quarries are characterized by low diversity, which is a characteristic feature of the polar soils surrounding Yakutsk. Data obtained can be used for elaboration of reclamation strategies with taking into account the information about key microbial drivers of soil processes.

Senatorial Revision of I. N. Tolstoy of Yakutsk Region in 1844

For the first time in historiography, an attempt is made to illuminate the activities of Senator I.N. Tolstoy in conducting an audit of the regional management system of the Yakutsk region. Particular attention is paid to the audit of office work of the Yakutsk regional administration and the Yakutsk city hall. The novelty of the study is in the fact that, based on an analysis of archival sources first introduced into scientific circulation, the specifics of the functioning of the regional administration in the second quarter of the 19th century is revealed, and the results of the audit are considered as prerequisites for expanding the rights of administrative independence of the Yakutsk region from the Irkutsk province. The relevance of the study is due to the fact that this was the only senatorial revision for all years in the territory of the vast and geographically remote Yakutsk region, which has not undergone extensive scientific study. In the course of the presentation of the substantive part, a review of the main directions of the audit activity in relation to the regional and district levels of government, as well as its inspection supervision of the activities of the lower administrative authorities, including the city hall, was performed. Based on the author’s development, it was proved that the senatorial audit, reflecting the attention of the imperial authorities to the periphery, was aimed primarily at increasing the efficiency of the Siberian suburbs management system on the example of the Yakutsk region through personnel shifts and elimination of identified office work disturbances. The study was based on documents first discovered in the archives of the Russian State Historical Archive and the National Archives of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia).

Kimberlitic Magmatism in the South-Western Flank of the Vilui Basin

We have analyzed 141 grains of pyrope from Neogene sediments in a quarry of construction materials, in the Kenkeme River catchment, along its left-side tributary (Chakiya River), about 60 km northwest of Yakutsk city. The mineral chemistry patterns of pyropes are typical of Jurassic–Cretaceous barren kimberlites, like the pipes of Obnazhennaya or Muza, but are uncommon to diamondiferous Middle Paleozoic kimberlites. The results allow identifying the magmatic event and placing time constraints on kimberlite magmatism in the southeastern flank of the Vilui basin, which was part of the Late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous tectonic-magmatic event in northeastern Asia.

Numerical modeling and forecast of channel changes on the river Lena near city Yakutsk

Abstract. STREAM_2D software package was applied to retrospective and predictive simulations of the Lena River near city Yakutsk hydraulic and channel changes during ice-free period. The modelling results indicate significant correspondence of simulated water discharges distribution and water levels with observed ones for the period 2001–2016. Model has captured main erosion and depositional zones observed in the 2009–2016 years. Combination of typical monthly average hydrographs of 1 %, 10 % and 50 % return intervals was used as an initial parameter for 10-year channel changes forecast. According to the simulation results, degradation of the Adamovskaya branch will be continued, which is the most negative impact for the Yakutsk city infrastructure maintenance. At the end of the forecast period the equal distribution between Adamovskaya and Buorylarskaya channels is possible, which is a positive trend from the point of view of the city water supply system.

The quality of life of young men from the far north

The SF-36 questionnaire and a specially designed survey were used to assess the quality of life and the prevalence of lifestyle factors that affect negatively the health of 570 young men who are 15, 16 and 17 years old living in Yakutsk city. It was found that the average quality of life for all eight scales of the SF 36 questionnaire was in the range of “satisfactory” and “good”. Yakutsk boys have lower quality of life indicators than in the population on most scales of the questionnaire, which is associated with living in extreme climatic conditions and social problems in the region. There are no significant differences in the way of life among young Yakuts and Russians, but young Yakut people have lower rates on the scales of the questionnaire PF, RP, SF and MH, which is obviously due to their ethnicity.

The Building of the Non-Classical Secondary School in Yakutsk City – the Architectural Monument of the Early 20th Century

This article considers of the problem of preservation of an architectural monument and a method of its restoration. The short characteristic of the stone constructions during the pre-revolutionary period in Yakutsk is provided. The description of the building of the non-classical secondary school was made on the basis of references, archival documents and on-site investigations. So features of its construction and the reasons of gradual destruction have been revealed. In 1917 the commission of YORGS (Yakut Office of the Russian Geographical Society) have been given results of inspection of building on permafrost, where the main reasons for deformations of the strip foundations on permafrost have been revealed. Results of inspection for 2007 with recommendations about restoration of the learning building of the non-classical secondary school have been stated. There also stated the offer on creation of the new sightseeing attraction in the city with the need of preservation of more than two collapsing of historical monuments.

Findings of <i>Boreoelona ehrmanni </i>Prozorova et Starobogatov, 1991 (Bithyniidae, Gastropoda, Mollusca) in the waterbodies of Yakutsk City

The findings of the freshwater snail endemic to the Far East from the waterbodies of Yakutsk City are described. It is shown on the basis of dissections of snails and morphometric study of their shells that there are no statistically significant differences between the males and females of .

Interannual variability in chemical composition of anthropogenic cryopegs within Yakutsk city.

Interannual variability in chemical composition of anthropogenic cryopegs within Yakutsk city.

Межгодовая изменчивость химического состава техногенных криопэгов на территории города Якутска

Межгодовая изменчивость химического состава техногенных криопэгов на территории города Якутска

БИОИНДИКАЦИОННАЯ ОЦЕНКА КАЧЕСТВА СРЕДЫ АДМИНИСТРАТИВНЫХ ОКРУГОВ Г. ЯКУТСКА ПО ПОКАЗАТЕЛЯМ ФЛУКТУИРУЮЩЕЙ АСИММЕТРИИ И КАЧЕСТВА СЕМЯН БЕРЁЗЫ ПОВИСЛОЙ BETULA PENDULA ROTH.

БИОИНДИКАЦИОННАЯ ОЦЕНКА КАЧЕСТВА СРЕДЫ АДМИНИСТРАТИВНЫХ ОКРУГОВ Г. ЯКУТСКА ПО ПОКАЗАТЕЛЯМ ФЛУКТУИРУЮЩЕЙ АСИММЕТРИИ И КАЧЕСТВА СЕМЯН БЕРЁЗЫ ПОВИСЛОЙ BETULA PENDULA ROTH.

Enzymopenic Congenital Methemoglobinemia in Children of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)

Type I congenital methemoglobinemia is an autosomal recessive disorder. A high frequency of congenital methemoglobinemia has been reported among Native Americans inhabiting the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. Other rare cases of congenital methemoglobinemia of types I and II have been reported in Japan and other countries. In Russia-namely, in Yakutia-a high frequency of type I congenital methemoglobinemia has been reported. In 2009, the Consultation Polyclinic of the Pediatric Center in Yakutsk city established a registry of children with congenital methemoglobinemia. In total, 43 patients were registered between 2005 and 2009. The median methemoglobin level was 13.5% (ranging between 4.2% and 33.9%) and physical examination revealed cyanosis of the skin and mucus membranes. There were significant positive relationships between percentage of methemoglobin and erythrocyte count, hemoglobin concentration, and hematocrit among male patients, consistent with an upregulation of the hypoxic response. The prevalence per 100,000 children ranged from 12.7 to 47.0 in 3 geographic regions of Yakutia. Further research is needed to clarify the clinical consequences of congenital methemoglobinemia in the children of Yakutia and the reasons for the high variability in the prevalence of the condition.

Groundwater chemistry in intrapermafrost taliks in Central Yakutia

An intrapermafrost aquifer system, which is widespread in the sand deposits of bestyakhskaya terrace of the Lena R. (Central Yakutia), is characterized by generalized data of many-year studies of its groundwater chemistry. The groundwater discharges onto land surface through high-yield springs. The largest such source forms the Ulakhan-Taryn Creek with a mean many-year yield of 20 740 m3/day. The results of generalization were used to show the chemistry of intrapermafrost water to be stable at both many-year and annual scales, to characterize the hydraulic interaction of intrapermafrost water with suprapermafrost and subpermafrost water, to assess the spatial variations of groundwater resources in the intrapermafrost aquifer from the head-formation to the discharge domain. The results of the study are of importance for solving the problem of centralized drinking water supply to large populated localities in the Central Yakutia, including Yakutsk City.

MORPHOLOGY, DEFORMATIONS AND TEMPORARY MODIFICATIONS OF THE LENA RIVER CHANNEL AND ITS INFLUENCE ON THE YAKUTSK ECONOMIC INFRASTRUCTURE

Reconfiguratings of the Lena river bed near Yakutsk city (one of the most complex part of the river concerning channel deformations) have directional character, and it caused gradual river drift away from the city. Development of the right-hand tributaries system mostly occurred near Yakutsk, meanwhile the left-handed ones (where the city is situated) grow shallow, and it leads to troubles in operation of municipal water intakes, water accesses to the city, complication of navigability etc. Nowadays the Lena river development is defined by: 1) transforming of the adjacent tributaries into parallel-channeled ones near Yakutsk, upfront not-forks in upper reaches and alternate one-sided forks in the lower reaches; 2) multidirectional river channel shift near Yakutsk – towards right with the right branch development, and towards left with development of shallow bend – on the adjacent section in upper reaches; 3) transgressive shift of the fl ood-plain island massives – its washaway from the heads and extension of the downstream ends, which lead to the shallowing of left branch (Adamovsky channel) near Yakutsk and development of the right-hand channel here. General regularities of the river bed reconfiguratings allowed to elaborate the trial scheme of recommendations to castigation of the present negative situation on the Lena river near Yakutsk city based on the river processes management and formation of conditions for its development in right direction, as well as to validate the program of detailed researches for the mathematic modelling of the river bed reconfigurations and engineering of hydrotechnical measures.

The statistical model of floods during spring tides and ice drift on the lena River Near Yakutsk

Presented is the application ofthe risk analysis method and geoinformation techniques for the statistical model development that enables predicting the risk of floods due to spring tides using the statistical data obtained for 50 years and the regression modeling. The proposed method enables obtaining the estimates of the water level at spring floods for the certain time period and constructing the models of the hazardous process under study (the trend and the harmonic and random components) with the sufficient accuracy; it is corroborated by the results of the forecasting of maximum water levels for Yakutsk city.

ETHNIC FEATURES OF BLOOD LIPID PROFILE IN SIBERIANS AGED 60–69 YEARS

Aim. To study potential specific features of blood lipid profile in elderly indigenous and non-indigenous Yakutsk City residents, as well as in elderly Caucasian residents of Novosibirsk City. Material and methods. The representative sample of the non-institu???tionalised Yakutsk City population aged 60–69 years (main group, MG) included 159 people (69 men and 90 women; 41% of indigenous (Yakut) ethnicity and 59% of Caucasian ethnicity). The comparison group (CG) included 3949 Novosibirsk City residents who were participating in the international HAPIEE study (1834 men and 2115 women; 96% of Caucasian ethnicity). Results. The age-standardised blood lipid levels were similar in indige???nous and non-indigenous Yakutsk City residents. The mean levels of total cholesterol (TCH) were 5,9 mmol/l in the whole sample, 5,8 mmol/l in men, and 6,1% mmol/l in women. In Yakut participants, these figures were 5,8, 5,7, and 5,9 mmol/l, respectively, while in Russian participants, they were slightly higher (6,0, 5,8, and 6,2 mmol/l, respectively). The levels of non-high density and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (non???HDL CH, LDL–CH) demonstrated similar gender and ethnic features. In non-indigenous Yakutsk City residents, the levels of TCH, LDL–CH, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL–CH) were significantly lower than those in Novosibirsk City residents: 6,0 vs. 6,44 mmol/l for TCH (p<0,01); 3,9 vs. 4,2 mmol/l (p<0,01) for LDL–CH; and 1,44 vs. 1,52 mmol/l (p<0,05) for HDL–CH, respectively. Conclusion. In elderly indigenous residents of Yakutsk City, the levels of TCH, LDL–CH, non-HDL–CH, and triglycerides were slightly lower than those in non-indigenous Yakutsk City residents. In non-indigenous Yakutsk City residents, aged 60–69, the levels of TCH, non-HDL–CH, LDL–CH, and HDL–CH were lower than in their peers from Novosibirsk City.

REGIONAL PECULIARITIES IN SEMEN QUALITY AND SERUM HORMONAL CONCENTRATIONS OF CITIZENS FROM EASTERN SIBERIA

The objective of the present study was to evaluate sperm quality and reproductive hormonal level in an unselected population of men who were permanent residents of the Yakutsk city and compare the semen and hormonal parameters with the World Health Organization (WHO, 2001) recommended normal values and the results from other countries. A total of 145 men (mean age 24,1 years) agreed to be included in the study. All the volunteers completed a questionnaire, received a general and reproductive health examination by an andrologist, gave semen and blood samples. We found that the means were 34,69 - 106 spermatozoa/mL for sperm concentration and 39,6% for total motile spermatozoa. Among all volunteers studied 4,3% had azoospermia, 27,0% reported oligozoospermia, 68,1% - asthenozoospermia. There are no differences between Yakut and Slavs in anthropometric, hormonal or sperm measures, but height and ejaculate volume were higher in Slavs than Yakut men. The data obtained indicated high frequency of suboptimal quality of sperm in males of both nations from this Siberian region in comparison with other Russian regions or European countries.

Yakutsk Water Agglomeration at the Lena River – Channel Processes Problems: History, Current State, Prospect, and Possibilities of Control

The paper presents results of the analysis of the Lena River channel deformations near the Yakutsk City over the period exceeding the past 100 years. The data presented enables to conclude that the main trend of the channel development over that period has been a transformation of the adjoint braids pattern into the parallel arms pattern accompanied with directed migration of the main flow line towards the right valley side along the entire studied reach. Such a tendency of channel evolution creates an unfavorable situation for operations of the Yakutsk water industry and transportation facilities. The paper also gives a predictive assessment of the future channel deformations and proposes a set of channel regulation measures aimed at improving the situation.