Blood pressure 24-hour rhythms and variability in adolescents with hypertension

Twenty-four hour blood pressure (BP) monitoring was used for the study of BP 24-hour rhythms and variability in adolescents with hypertension and their normotensive counterparts. The data obtained evidenced for active participation of sympatho-adrenal system in genesis of juvenile hypertension: hypertension was predominantly systolic, BP elevation as a rule was associated with increased heart rate and pulse pressure. Episodes of BP elevation were registered mostly during day time. Desynchronization of 24-hour rhythms due to pronounced BP lowering during sleep characteristic for this age group found its reflection in values of nocturnal BP dipping. More than 1/3 of adolescents with episodes of elevated BP had 'white coat' hypertension.     

Comparison of the specific binding of 17β-estradiol with receptor proteins in the cytosol fraction of uteruses of CBA and C57Bl/6 mice in the course of 1,2-dimethylhydrazine-induced carcinogenesis

The level of specific binding and affinity of 17β-estradiol for receptors in the cytosol fraction of uteruses of CBA and C57Bl/6 mice exposed to 1,2-dimethylhydrazine for a long time was studied. Estrogen receptors were studied by separating free and receptor-bound hormone with dextran-coated carbon. The theoretical number of sites of ligand binding with receptor protein and the level of free binding sites were shown to be higher in CBA mice sensitive to carcinogenesis induction in comparison with C57Bl/6 mice resistant to the carcinogen effect in both the experimental and control groups over the course of the experiment. The ligand affinity for receptor protein was more or less the same in all the groups. Translated fromByulleten' Eksperimental'noi Biologii i Meditsiny, Vol. 119, N ^o 1, pp. 58–62, January, 1995 Presented by N. N. Trapeznikov, Member of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences     

Antioxidant function of a novel selenoprotein in Drosophila melanogaster

BACKGROUND: Insects appear to have diverged from both higher and lower organisms in their defense mechanisms against oxidative damage. They do not encode glutathione peroxidases or glutathione reductases, and their thioredoxin reductases exhibit distinct properties from those of higher and lower species. Nonetheless, appropriate balance of anti-oxidants and pro-oxidants, and protection from damaging reactive oxygen species are clearly crucial in insects for viability, normal functioning of signalling pathways and morphogenesis, and have been implicated in studies on longevity in flies and other organisms. RESULTS: Two novel selenoproteins, dselH and dselK, were recently identified in Drosophila melanogaster. We have used RNAi in D. melanogaster embryos and in Schneider S2 cells to inhibit expression of these proteins. We report that inhibition of either dselH or dselK expression significantly reduces viability in embryos. We further show that dselH silencing decreases total anti-oxidant capacity in embryos and Schneider cells, and increases lipid peroxidation in cells. Conversely, transient expression of dselH in the cell line decreases lipid peroxidation, and reverses the toxic effects of a glutathione-depleting drug. The latter correlates with sparing of glutathione levels. CONCLUSIONS: These studies suggest that the well-known role of selenoproteins in vertebrate anti-oxidant defenses also extends to include invertebrates.     

PCR detection of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato,tick-borne encephalitis virus,and the human granulocytic ehrlichiosis agent in Ixodes persulcatus ticks from Western Siberia,Russia

PCR assays were used to test adult Ixodes persulcatus ticks from Western Siberia, Russia, for Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato, tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV), and the human granulocytic ehrlichiosis (HGE) agent. Of the 150 ticks that were studied, 38% were infected with B. burgdorferi, 46% were infected with TBEV, and 8% were infected with the HGE agent. These three pathogens were distributed in the ticks independently of one another.     

Action potentials of respiratory musculature in patients having respiratory deficiency

Summary Normal action potentials in respiratory muscles were studied. Then these were compared with action potentials observed in patients, chiefly those ill with bronchial asthma and pulmonary emphysema. It was noted that the muscles of the patients registered a marked rise in activity even when the usual external indicators such as rate, depth and pulmonary ventilation appeared to be near normal. This was taken to indicate that the respiratory center was belrg subjected to compensatory stimulation.Presented by Active Member Acad. Med. Sci. USSR V. N. Chernigovsky     

An unexpected mode of cationic oligomerization of 1-vinyl-4,5,6,7-tetrahydroindole

1-Vinyl-4,5,6,7-tetrahydroindole in the presence of Brønsted acids (HCl, H₂SO₄, HOAc) and Lewis acids (BF₃ · OEt₂, FeCl₃, TiCl₃, SnCl₄, SiCl₄, Et₃SiCl, Me₂, PhMeSiCl₂) undergoes an alternative oligomerization involving both the double bond and the α-position of the pyrrole ring to form the dimer 1-vinyl-2-[1-(4,5,6,7-tetrahydro-1-indolyl)ethyl]-4,5,6,7-tetrahydroindole in a yield up to 68% and oligomers of the same backbone, soluble (major product) and insoluble (minor product) in hot hexane, the latter being enriched by oxidized and hydrolyzed tetrahydroindole units. The molecular weights of the former oligomers were assessed from ¹H NMR spectra to range from 1000 to 2000.     

Pleiotropic consequences of metabolic stress for the major histocompatibility complex class II molecule antigen processing and presentation machinery

1. Download : Download high-res image (191KB)
2. Download : Download full-size image