Erythrocyte deformability in acute and chronic kidney failure patients

The authors presented some data on the platelet deforming ability in patients with acute and chronic renal failure treated with hemodialysis. Platelet deformity was studied by means of a proposed method of the filtration of platelet suspension through glass filtering funnels with a porous plate (GOST 9775-69). The deterioration of platelet deformity in patients with uremia and its direct correlation with a degree of nitremia were established. It was assumed that the deterioration of platelet deformity resulted in premature cell destruction and anemia development. Platelet deformity can be used as a test to characterize platelet function in patients with renal failure. The problem of the appropriateness of trental therapy was discussed.     

Experimental verification of a model describing the occupied volume by polymers in solution

A relation is proposed which yields the occupied volume by macromolecular chains in solution. The experimental verification of the model is carried out by a viscometric study of the ternary system polymer A/polymer B/solvent. More precisely the viscometric study permits the determination of the critical concentration c^** corresponding to the incipient overlap of spherical coils.     

Effect of antipyretics on the formation of leukocytic pyrogen by granulocytes

The effect of sodium salicylate, acetylsalicyclic acid, aminopyrine, and phenazone on the ability of granulocytes to produce endogenous pyrogen was studied. Experiments in vitro with verification of the viability of the leukocytes showed that of these antipyretics only sodium salicylate inhibited pyrogen formation.Department of General Pathology, Scientific-Research Institute of Experimental Medicine, Academy of MedicalSciences of the USSR, Leningrad. (Presented by Academician of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the USSR P. N. Veselkin.) Translated from Byulleten' Éksperimental'noi Biologii i Meditsiny, Vol. 88, No. 8, pp. 166–168, August, 1979.     

Influence of neonatal short-term reduction in brainstem alpha2A-adrenergic receptors on receptor ontogenesis, acoustic startle reflex, and prepulse inhibition in rats

Neonatal treatments can disrupt prepulse inhibition (PPI) of startle response later in life. Alpha2A-adrenergic receptors (alpha2A-ARs) regulate the release of brain neurotransmitters that may influence PPI. The authors examined the effects of short-term reduction in the neonatal brainstem alpha2A-ARs on subsequent development of this receptor system and acoustic startle reflex in rats. Administration of antisense oligodeoxynucleotide complementary to the alpha2A-ARs on Days 2-4 of life reduced receptor expression in the brainstem by Day 5. The treatment increased alpha2-AR numbers in the cortex, hippocampus, and amygdala at 40 days of age, and in cortex and hypothalamus at 90 days of age. Transient increases in hippocampal and amygdalar alpha2-ARs were accompanied by attenuation of acoustic startle response and impairment of PPI.     

Comparison of hepatitis C viral loads in patients with or without coinfection with different genotypes

Hepatitis C virus genotyping was assessed for 257 chronic hepatitis C patients with viral loads above 1,000 IU/ml. Twelve patients were coinfected with more than one genotype. Their median viral loads did not differ significantly from those observed for monoinfected patients, which in turn did not vary significantly among different genotypes.     

NAG infection in tadpoles of Rana temporaria

In a series of experiments 2250 tadpoles were infected with three strains of NAG vibrios. It can be concluded from the results of bacteriological and pathomorphological electron-microscopic and light-optical investigations that during the first 2 days the animals develop and recover from an acute infection, but the vibrios later persist for a long time in the body of the tadpoles and are excreted with the feces into the surrounding medium.Translated from Byulleten' Éksperimental'noi Biologii i Meditsiny, Vol. 82, No. 7, pp. 841–843, July, 1976.     

Distribution of <Superscript>3</Superscript>H-Dopamine and <Superscript>3</Superscript>H-DAGO Binding Sites in the Central Part of Rat Sinoatrial Node

Distribution of ³H-dopamine and ³H-DAGO binding sites was studied by autoradiography on semithin sections of total preparations of rat sinoatrial node. The relative density of ³H-dopamine and ³H-DAGO binding sites in the functional nucleus of the sinoatrial node was minimum and increased in the cranial and caudal directions. The level of ³H-dopamine binding in the perinodal atrial myocardium was appreciably lower (22±6%), while binding of ³H-DAGO was similar (76±16%) to that in the periarterial zone of the sinoatrial node. __________ Translated from Byulleten' Eksperimental'noi Biologii i Meditsiny, Vol. 140, No. 8, pp. 210–214, August, 2005     

Association of sleep duration and quality with immunological response after vaccination against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 infection

Growing evidence suggests that sleep could affect the immunological response after vaccination. The aim of this prospective study was to investigate possible associations between regular sleep disruption and immunity response after vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In total, 592 healthcare workers, with no previous history of COVID-19, from eight major Greek hospitals were enrolled in this study. All subjects underwent two Pfizer–BioNTech messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) COVID-19 vaccine BNT162b2 inoculations with an interval of 21 days between the doses. Furthermore, a questionnaire was completed 2 days after each vaccination and clinical characteristics, demographics, sleep duration, and habits were recorded. Blood samples were collected and anti-spike immunoglobulin G antibodies were measured at 20 ± 1 days after the first dose and 21 ± 2 days after the second dose. A total of 544 subjects (30% males), with median (interquartile range [IQR]) age of 46 (38–54) years and body mass index of 24·84 (22.6–28.51) kg/m² were eligible for the study. The median (IQR) habitual duration of sleep was 6 (6–7) h/night. In all, 283 participants (52%) had a short daytime nap. In 214 (39.3%) participants the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index score was >5, with a higher percentage in women (74·3%, p < 0.05). Antibody levels were associated with age (r = −0.178, p < 0.001), poor sleep quality (r = −0.094, p < 0.05), insomnia (r = −0.098, p < 0.05), and nap frequency per week (r = −0.098, p < 0.05), but after adjusting for confounders, only insomnia, gender, and age were independent determinants of antibody levels. It is important to emphasise that insomnia is associated with lower antibody levels against COVID-19 after vaccination.     

Thrombopoietin receptor agonist switch in children with persistent and chronic severe immune thrombocytopenia: A retrospective analysis in a large tertiary center

We retrospectively analyzed sequential therapy with romiplostim and eltrombopag in 23 children with immune thrombocytopenia: switching from romiplostim to eltrombopag (10 patients) or vice versa (13 patients). The median age of patients at enrollment in the study was 5.6 years (2‐15 years). Switching from romiplostim to eltrombopag was effective in eight (80%) patients, whereas switching from eltrombopag to romiplostim was effective in eight (62%) patients. The response rate was similar in patients failing the first thrombopoietin receptor agonist and those who had previous response. To date, all responders continue to maintain platelets over 50 × 10⁹/L at 13‐39 months after switching.     

Modified CLSI Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamase (ESBL) Confirmatory Test for Phenotypic Detection of ESBLs among Enterobacteriaceae Producing Various β-Lactamases

The worldwide dissemination of Enterobacteriaceae producing AmpC β-lactamases and carbapenemases makes difficult the phenotypic detection of extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs), as they may be masked by these additional enzymes. A modification of the CLSI ESBL confirmatory test was developed and evaluated in a comparative study for its ability to successfully detect ESBLs among Enterobacteriaceae producing various carbapenemases (Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase [KPC], VIM, NDM, and OXA-48) and plasmidic or derepressed AmpCs. The modified CLSI ESBL confirmatory test was performed with cefotaxime and ceftazidime disks with and without clavulanate, on which both boronic acid (BA) and EDTA were dispensed. A total of 162 genotypically confirmed ESBL-positive Enterobacteriaceae isolates (83 carbapenemase/ESBL producers, 25 AmpC/ESBL producers, and 54 ESBL-only producers) were examined. For comparison, 139 genotypically confirmed ESBL-negative Enterobacteriaceae isolates (94 of them possessed carbapenemases and 20 possessed AmpCs) were also tested. The standard CLSI ESBL confirmatory test was positive for 106 of the 162 ESBL producers (sensitivity, 65.4%) and showed false-positive results for 4 of the 139 non-ESBL producers (specificity, 97.1%). The modified CLSI ESBL confirmatory test detected 158 of 162 ESBL producers (sensitivity, 97.5%) and showed no false-positive results for non-ESBL producers (specificity, 100%). The findings of the study demonstrate that the modified CLSI ESBL confirmatory test using antibiotic disks containing both BA and EDTA accurately detects ESBLs in Enterobacteriaceae regardless of the coexistence of additional β-lactam resistance mechanisms.