A simplified method of counting microorganisms in studying human autoflora

Formulae for the calculation of the count of microorganisms isolated from natural bacterial biocenoses of a child's body have been derived. The authors suggest a variant of simplified drip method for the computation of microorganism colonies in solid media. The described method helps cut down the nutrient media consumption at least 3-fold and is time-saving.     

The emerging role of induced hypothermia in the management of acute stroke.

Current treatment of acute stroke remains unsatisfactory. This review presents experimental and clinical data which suggest that mild induced hypothermia could be a potent and practicable neuroprotective treatment of acute ischaemic stroke and intracerebral haemorrhage. Hypothermia, if proven to be safe, effective and widely practicable in patients with acute stroke, could have an enormous positive impact on reducing the burden of stroke worldwide. Critical issues that will need to be considered in a well designed randomised controlled trial of induced hypothermia in acute stroke patients are discussed.     

Metabolic and hormonal blood flow modeling in patients with coronary heart disease: In vitro and clinical study

The blood flow pattern investigations are of great importance in coronary blood flow destabilization pathogenesis understanding, and consequently in acute coronary event (ACE) risk stratification in patients with coronary heart disease. The aim of the study was to research the principal hormonal and metabolic blood flow regulative aspects and its structure in patients with ischemic heart disease and the contribution to cumulative ACE risk.A total of 182 patients with stable angina pectoris were included in the prospective study (2000–2006). Complex clinical examination, biochemical tests and blood tests were performed. Whole-blood (WB) viscosity, erythrocyte aggregation and deformation ability, WB suspension stability, and initial erythrocytes disaggregation parameter were studied. Dynamic characteristics of blood flow were obtained in the experiment.Received results allow marking the principle components of blood flow pattern with proven high prognostic value of ACE in patients with ischemic heart disease. ACE risk stratification program was developed.     

Integrated photothermal flow cytometry in vivo

The capability of integrated flow cytometry to detect, in real time, moving cells in their natural states in vivo is demonstrated in a study of circulating red and white blood cells in lymph and blood flow of rat mesentery. This system combines dual pump-probe photothermal (PT) techniques, such as PT imaging, the PT thermolens method, and PT velocimetry, with high-resolution (up to 0.3 microm), high-speed (up to 1000 fps) transmission digital microscopy (TDM) and fluorescence imaging. All PT techniques are based on irradiation of cells in rat mesenteric microvessels with a spectrally tunable laser pulse (420 to 570 nm, 8 ns, 0.1 to 300 microJ) and on detection of temperature-dependent variations of the refractive index with a second continuous probe laser beam (633 nm, 1.4 mW). We focus on intravital monitoring of the integral PT response from single, moving, unlabeled cells (from 100 to 500 cells in one measurement). Potential in vivo applications of this new optical tool, called PT flow cytometry (PTFC), are discussed, including identification of selected cells with differences in natural absorptive properties and sizes, determination of laser-induced cell damage, estimation of flow velocity, and monitoring of circulating cells labeled with PT probes.     

Thermotropic liquid crystalline polymers, 4. Study of crystalline and liquid-crystalline comb-like polymers with mesogenic side groups by IR spectroscopy

The IR spectra (in the region of 400–3600 cm^?1) of comb-like polymers in crystalline, liquid-crystalline, and fluid isotropic phases were studied, and the effect of the chemical structure of the long side chains on the crystalline and liquid-crystalline states were examined. The spectroscopic criteria of phase transitions in comb-like polymers were established and the fragments of the side chains involved in the formation of the liquid-crystalline phase, were determined.     

Autoantibodies directed against the amino-terminal domain I of human calpastatin (ACAST-DI Ab) in connective tissue diseases. High levels of ACAST-DI Ab are associated with vasculitis in lupus

To identify new autoantibody populations in patients with rheumatic diseases, a cDNA expression library was immunoscreened with a rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patient's serum which contains autoantibodies binding to uncharacterized polypeptides by Western-blotting. One clone encoding the amino-terminal region (Nt) [domain L and half of domain I] of human calpastatin was selected. Different fragments of the selected cDNA were prepared and the corresponding recombinant polypeptides were produced by in vitro translation and analysed by Western blotting. Most RA sera bound to recombinant amino-terminal region and domain I but not to domain L. This prompted us to use a recombinant polypeptide corresponding to the domain I of calpastatin as the antigen in a solid-phase ELISA to test sera from patients with various systemic rheumatic diseases and healthy controls.Anti-calpastatin domain I antibodies (ACAST-DI Ab), were detected by ELISA in RA, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), Sj?gren's syndrome and control sera at respective frequencies of 10, 9, 0 and 1%. These Ab did not have prognostic value in early RA; high levels were significantly associated with vasculitis in SLE. Antibodies reacting with the calpastatin amino-terminal region are produced during systemic rheumatic diseases and are predominantly directed against domain I. High levels of these Ab may constitute a marker of vasculitis in SLE.     

Gene therapy of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Two-year experiments were performed to evaluate the neurotrophic effect of hypoxia-inducible factors (vascular endothelial growth factor and angiogenin) expressed in recombinant human adenoviruses in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Randomized placebo-controlled trial demonstrated safety and good tolerability of the recombinant antiviral drugs. The life span of patients under conditions of hypoxia increased after treatment with the test drug, which was probably related to improved resistance of motoneurons. The presence of virus-neutralizing antibodies decreases the effectiveness of adenoviral vectors, which necessitates differential approach to the selection of patients and continuous monitoring of gene therapy. __________ Translated from Byulleten’ Eksperimental’noi Biologii i Meditsiny, Vol. 145, No. 4, pp. 467–470, April, 2008