[A comparative analysis of intravesical sodium hyaluronate monotherapy and its combination with oral chondroitin sulfate in patietns with bladder pain syndrome/intersticial cystitis].

AIM: It is established that intravesical sodium hyaluronate and chondroitin sulfate has high efficacy in patients with bladder pain syndrome/interstitial cystitis (BPS/IC). Currently, an oral form of chondroitin sulfate is also available. The aim of study was to compare the efficacy of intravesical hyaluronic acid monotherapy and long-term oral chondroitin sulfate in combination with intravesical therapy in patients with BPS/IC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 59 patients with BPS/IC were randomized in two groups. In Group 1, 30 women (mean age 57.1 years) received viscoelastic solution of sodium hyaluronate 50 ml 1 time per week for 12 weeks as intravesical monotherapy. In Group 2 (n=29), patients were prescribed to complex therapy, which included the similar intravesical therapy combined with chondroitin sulfate in a dose 0.39 g, 2 capsules 3 times a day, also for 12 weeks. All patients completed visual analogue scale (VAS), interstitial cystitis symptom index (ISCI), interstitial cystitis problems index (ICPI) and voiding diary before and 1 week after the start of therapy. In all cases a cystoscopy and urodynamic study were performed in order to exclude other bladder pathologies. RESULTS: At baseline, a mean VAS score in both groups was 7 points, a mean ISCI score was 17 points in Group 1 and 18 points in Group 2 (p>0.1). The mean ICPI score in both groups was 15 points. A frequency of urination in Group 1 and 2 was 11.4 and 11.6 per day, respectively (p>0,1). A mean volume of urination was 138+/-24.6 and 131+/-18.6 , respectively. After 12 weeks of therapy there was significant improvement of VAS, ICSI and ICPI scores in both groups, as well as frequency and volume of urination, but in Group 2 an improvement in almost all parameters studied, except for the volume of urination, was more pronounced. CONCLUSION: The combined therapy of BPS/IC with intravesical hyaluronic acid and oral chondroitin sulfate provides significantly better results in comparison with intravesical hyaluronic acid as monotherapy.

Effects of carbon surface topography on the electrode/electrolyte interface structure and relevance to Li-air batteries.

This work is focused on the effect of the electrode/electrolyte interface restructuring under the variation of carbon surface topography, as one of the possible factors determining the electrochemical activity of different carbon materials in Li-air batteries. Molecular dynamics simulation was used to investigate an acetonitrile-based electrolyte in contact with the following carbon surfaces: graphene plane, single-layer graphene edge, and multi-layer graphene edge. It was shown that the surface topography strongly influences the electrolyte structure at the interface. Acetonitrile has a layered structure at the plane and the edge of graphene nanoribbons and a qualitatively different chessboard structure at the multi-layer graphene edge. It was found from the potentials of mean force that the variation of the surface topography induces the redistribution of the reactants Li+ and O2 near the surface and influences their adsorption rate. This should affect the kinetics of the oxygen reduction reaction and may explain massive deposition of discharge products on graphene edges in Li-air batteries.

[The Influence of Long-Term Meditation Practice on Early Emotional Processing in the Brain: an ERP Study].

The main aim was to study effects of long-term meditation practice on event-related brain potentials (ERPs) during affective picture viewing. The meditators' (N = 20), contrary to control (N = 20), did not demonstrate arousal-related increases in the mid-latency (200-400 ms) ERP positivity over the right hemisphere. We also found in the same time window stronger ERP negativity for meditators over central regions, regardless of picture valence. We assume that long-term meditation practice enhances frontal top-down control over fast automatic detection of stimulus salience.

[Influence of the practice of meditation on the cardiovascular response in the perception and cognitive reassessment emotiogenic stimulus].

This study examines the effects of meditation on cardiovascular activity during affective image processing. 22 meditators and 20 controls were shown affective images and were asked either to attend to the images or to down-regulate negative affect (for negative images) or to up-regulate positive affect (for positive images) while continuous cardiovascular activity were recorded. During natural viewing meditators manifested identical pre-stimulus total peripheral resistance (TPR) for all images, whereas controls exhibited greatest,pre-stimulus TPR for negative images and reduced it only in the emotion regulation condition. No between-group differences were revealed for natural viewing of positive images, whereas up-regulation was associated with greater cardiac activation in meditators. The results provide a contribution to the understanding of the mechanisms responsible for the beneficial influence of meditation on cardiovascular risk factors.

[The regulation of negative and positive emotions during picture viewing: an ERP study].

The study examines the effects of cognitive reappraisal on the event-related potentials (ERPs) to affective stimuli. Participants (n = 53) were asked either to attend affective images, or to down-regulate negative affect, or to up-regulate positive affect. Reappraisal of negative images was associated with attenuation of the P300 and late positive potential (LPP) over parietal regions, whereas reappraisal of positive images had no significant effect on ERP components. The weak P300 reduction correlated with high personality scores of negative affectivity. We assume that only down-regulation of negative emotions is associated with the changes in primary appraisals, and so far reflected in ERP modulation.

[Role of functional state of neuronal mitochondria of cerebral cortex in mechanisms of nootropic activity of neuroprotectors in rats with alloxan hyperglycemia].

The influence of citicoline, phenylpiracetam, pentoxifylline and N-phenylacetyl-L-prolylglycine on cognitive processes and functional state of mitochondria in the neocortex of alloxan-diabetic rats has been studied. The drug effects on cognitive processes were assessed using passive avoidance tests in the dark-light camera. Latent period and the number of animals with amnesia skill on 6th and 20th days of drug administration were recorded. Functional status of mitochondria was assessed by mitochondrial pore opening and mitochondrial transmembrane potential (Y) on 20th day. It has been established that course administration of phenylpiracetam, citicoline and to a lesser extent N-phenylacetyl-L-prolylglycine, but not pentoxifylline, improves the processes of learning and storing conditional skill. At the same time, the nootropic activity of studied drugs was comparable to their effect on the functional state of mitochondria in neocortical neurons in rats with chronic hyperglycemia. According to mitoprotective activity (prevention of opening of mitochondrial cyclosporin-A-sensitive pores and restoration of mitochondrial transmembrane potential), the maximum potential was observed for citicoline and phenylpiracetam, and the minimum--for pentoxifylline. The results point out the importance of mitoprotective properties in nootropic effects of studied drugs.

Effects of long-term meditation practice on attentional biases towards emotional faces: An eye-tracking study.

Attentional biases towards affective stimuli reflect an individual balance of appetitive and aversive motivational systems. Vigilance in relation to threatening information reflects emotional imbalance, associated with affective and somatic problems. It is known that meditation practice significantly improves control of attention, which is considered to be a tool for adaptive emotional regulation. In this regard, the main aim of the present study was to evaluate the influence of meditation on attentional bias towards neutral and emotional facial expressions. Eyes were tracked while 21 healthy controls and 23 experienced meditators (all males) viewed displays consisting of four facial expressions (neutral, angry, fearful and happy) for 10 s. Measures of biases in initial orienting and maintenance of attention were assessed. No effects were found for initial orienting biases. Meditators spent significantly less time viewing angry and fearful faces than control subjects. Furthermore, meditators selectively attended to happy faces whereas control subjects showed attentional biases towards both angry and happy faces. In sum we can conclude that long-term meditation practice adaptively affects attentional biases towards motivationally significant stimuli and that these biases reflect positive mood and predominance of appetitive motivation.

[Coupling of brain oscillatory systems with cognitive (experience and valence) and physiological (cardiovascular reactivity) components of emotion].

We investigated the coupling of EEG oscillators with cognitive (experience and valence) and physiological (cardiovascular reactivity) components of emotion. Emotions of anger and joy were evoked in healthy males (n = 49) using a guided imagery method, multichannel EEG and cardiovascular reactivity (Finometer) were simultaneously recorded. Correlational analysis revealed that specially distributed EEG oscillators seem to be selectively involved into cognitive (experience and valence) and physiological (cardiovascular reactivity) components of emotional responding. We showed that low theta (4-6 Hz) activity from medial and lateral frontal cortex of the right hemisphere predominantly correlated with the anger experience, high alpha (10-12 and 12-14 Hz) and gamma (30-45 Hz) activity from central-parieto-occipital regions of the left hemisphere--with cardiovascular reactivity to anger and joy, gamma-activity (30-45 Hz) from the left hemisphere in parietal areas--with cardiovascular reactivity to joy. The findings suggest that specially distributed neuronal networks oscillating at different frequencies may be regarded as a putative neurobiological mechanism coordination dynamical balance between cognitive and physiological components of emotion as well as psycho-neuro-somatic relationships within the mind-brain-body system.

[Features of brain oscillatory activity and cardiac defense in treatment arterial hypertensives].

Stress reactivity of the motivational system of defense can be assessed with the aid the cardiac defense response (CDR) - the reaction of the cardiovascular system to unexpected aversive unconditioned stimulus. The main objective of the study was revealing putative contribution of oscillatory systems of the brain into central pathogenic mechanisms of enhanced blood pressure (BP) stress-reactivity in naive patients with arterial hypertension (AH) of the 1st-2nd degrees (n = 17) and healthy control (n = 19) subjects. Using dynamic registration "beat-by-beat" arterial pressure, and oscillatory activity related EEG (64 channels) is estimated using the event-related synchronization/desynchronization (ERD/ERS). Along with abnormally high blood pressure in patients with hypertension background set significantly lower concentrations of serotonin blood platelets and increased tonic activation of the left hemisphere, reflected in the asymmetric reduction of delta- (2-4 Hz) and theta-1 (4-6 Hz) power in the central and parietal cortex in the hemisphere CDR of the patients are characterized by hyperactivity both short- and long-latency components of blood pressure. According to the dynamic analysis of the concomitant EEG, long-latency BP components may be accounted by, among other mechanisms, weakening of the descending ("top-down") inhibitory control, hypothetically implemented with the high-frequency EEG alpha (10-12 Hz) oscillations from the medial central-parietal cortex of both hemispheres of the brain.

Influence of long-term Sahaja Yoga meditation practice on emotional processing in the brain: An ERP study.

Despite growing interest in meditation as a tool for alternative therapy of stress-related and psychosomatic diseases, brain mechanisms of beneficial influences of meditation practice on health and quality of life are still unclear. We propose that the key point is a persistent change in emotional functioning, specifically the modulation of the early appraisal of motivational significance of events. The main aim was to study the effects of long-term meditation practice on event-related brain potentials (ERPs) during affective picture viewing. ERPs were recorded in 20 long-term Sahaja Yoga meditators and 20 control subjects without prior experience in meditation. The meditators' mid-latency (140-400ms) ERPs were attenuated for both positive and negative pictures (i.e. there were no arousal-related increases in ERP positivity) and this effect was more prominent over the right hemisphere. However, we found no differences in the long latency (400-800ms) responses to emotional images, associated with meditation practice. In addition we found stronger ERP negativity in the time window 200-300ms for meditators compared to the controls, regardless of picture valence. We assume that long-term meditation practice enhances frontal top-down control over fast automatic salience detection, based on amygdala functions.

Hypoactivation of reward motivational system in patients with newly diagnosed hypertension grade I-II.

In patients with newly diagnosed untreated grade I-II hypertension, EEG oscillations were recorded under conditions activation of the two basic motivational systems, defensive motivational system and positive reinforcement system, evoked by recall of personally meaningful emotional events. The 64-channel EEG and cardiovascular reactivity (beat-by-beat technology) were simultaneously recorded. At rest, hypertensive patients had significantly reduced platelet serotonin concentrations in comparison with healthy individuals. The patients experiencing emotional activation were characterized by significantly lower intensity of positive emotions associated with more pronounced suppression of EEG activity in the delta (2-4 Hz) and theta (ranges of frequency 4-6 and 6-8 Hz) oscillators in the parieto-occipital cortex (zones P and PO) in both hemispheres of the brain. The findings attest to insufficient function of the brain serotonin system and hypoactivation of the reward/reinforcement system in patients with primary hypertension.

[Influence of ademol on NO metabolism indices in rats with modeling myocardial infarction].

It was established in experiments on the rats in the acute period of modeling pituitrin-isadrin myocardial infarction the formation of nitrogen monoxide decreases along with its accelerated transformation into peroxynitrite. It was evidenced by more than double inhibition of NO synthase activity in the myocardium and by decreasing the amount of nitrates on the background of the increasing level of peroxynitrites' marker--nitrotyrosine by 246.6% at an average. Experimental therapy of rats by ademol which is a derivate of adamantan (1-adamantiloxy-3-morpholino-2 propanol hydrochloride) better than by corvitin normalizes the processes of synthesis of nitric oxide. At the same time ademol probably exceeded the reference drug in ability to increase NO synthase activity and amount of nitrate, and promoted a decrease of the level of nitrotyrosine in the myocardium on the average by 36.3; 50.6 and 12.7%, respectively. Corrective influence of ademol on indicators of metabolism in NO system under the conditions of acute cardiac ischemia indicates to promicing development of domestic cardioprotector on its base.

[Individual preconscious affective biases to threatening and appetitive facial stimulus and cardiovascular stress-reactivity].

AIM: To investigate cardiovascular stress-reactivity in association with individual preconscious affective biases to threatening and appetitive facial stimuli. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Preconscious affective biases were assessed in healthy individuals (n = 38, mean age 28, 10 years, 1SD = 8.64) using a modified (masked) version of a pictorial emotional Stroop task (backward masking of the angry, fearful and joyful faces). RESULTS: It was revealed that individual preconscious bias to speeded up perception of angry faces correlates significantly with heightened anxiety, lowered platelet serotonin (5-HT) levels, sustained central overactivation of at rest (as indexed by lowered delta, theta, and beta-1 EEG power over frontal, central and posterior cortical areas) and exaggerated arterial blood pressure stress-reactivity during re-experiencing of personally relevant anger. CONCLUSIONS: considering uncovered associations, individuals with preconscious bias to speeded up perception of angry faces may be regarded as having enhanced risk to fall sick with essential hypertension, yet this perceptive bias could be seen as a putative neurobehavioral predictor of the risk.

[Antioxidant and cerebroprotective action of N-,S-chinazolone derivative under rat brain ischemia].

Under modelling of brain ischemia in rats the antioxidant and cerebroprotective action of new N-,S-chinazolone derivative--compound NC-224 has been established. The compensation of pathobiochemical abnormalities in the system "LPO-antioxidant protection" is observed, indicators of carbohydrate metabolism and energy-supply, and morpho-functional status of brain cells are improved under administration of the compound NC-224. Administration of the compound NC-224 to rats promoted a decrease of the lethality index and signs of neurological deficiency.

[Improvement of quality of life of patients with internal stents by changing the shape of the stents].

Transurethral stenting of the ureter was made in 130 patients (51 males and 79 females, aged 19-81, mean age 51.3 years) after contact ureterolithotripsy (n=86), endoureterotomy (n=13) and endopyelotomy (n=31). All the patients received internal polyuretanic stents (size N 6 F) made by one company. The patients were randomized into two groups by the shape of the stent. Group 1 (n=65) received a modified mono-pigtail stent made of the standard polyuretanic double-pigtail stent by cutting off 2-4 cm of the distal end and distal (vesical) curl. In group 2 (n=65) stenting was made with standard double-pigtail stent. Questionnaire survey was made 2 weeks after stenting, 1 month before stent removal and 1.5 months after stent removal. In the postoperative period 12 patients of group 2 (18.5%) developed acute pyelonephritis resultant from vesicorenal reflux. In other cases pyelonephritis was managed by draining bladder with urethral catheter. In group 1 vesicoureteral reflux was absent, but in 3 cases (4.6%) there was an attack of acute pyelonephritis because of obstruction of the intramural (not intubated by the stent) part of the ureter with fragments of the crushed concrement. This attack required urgent ureterolithoextraction and removal of the stent in 2 cases, transcutaneous nephrostomy in 1 case. Mean postoperative stay in the hospital was 3.1 +/- 0.6 in group 1 and 6.7 +/- 1.2 (p = 0.001) days in group 2. The comparison of the stent-related symptoms 2 weeks after stenting and before stent removal showed that severity of the symptoms was significantly greater in group 2 vs group 1 (21.3 and 9.6, respectively). Thus, the proposed mono-pigtail stent reduces severity of stent-related symptoms 2.5 times and improves quality of life. Further prospective studies are planned for final assessment of efficacy of the modified stents and their influence on quality of life.

Glycidipine, a promising hypotensive and cardioprotective agent.

Toxicological pharmacological study of the molecular complex of nifedipine and glycyrrhizic acid 1:10 (glycidipine) obtained using mechanochemical technique was carried out. High hypotensive and cardioprotective effects of the agent were demonstrated. Chronic administration (45 days) produced no toxic effects in vital organs and systems of Wistar rats and ISIAH rats.

[Neuroprotective effect of cerebrocurin in a model of acute cerebral stroke].

Chronic administration of cerebrocurin and cerebrolysin to Mongolian jirds with acute cerebral stroke model led to a decrease in the mitochondrial dysfunction on the 4th day, which was manifested by their ability to inhibit the mitochondrial permeability transition pore opening, normalize the energy metabolism, and enhance c-fos gene expression. In addition, cerebrocurin restored the morphofunctional state of neurons and favored the cell loss mechanism switching from necrosis to apoptosis. With respect to all characteristics under consideration, the effect of cerebrocurin exceeded with statistical confidence that of cerebrolysin.

[Endoscopic sling in the treatment of urine incontinence in males].

Using an original algorithm of examination, we have selected 26 of 74 patients suffering from urine incontinence after prostatic surgery for sling operation. Endoscopic sling was performed in group 1 (n = 17) patients, standard retropubic bulbourethral sling--in group 2 (n = 9) patients. Injuries of large vessels, prostatic gland or urinary bladder were not observed in group 1 while intraoperative injury of the paraprostatic venous plexus (1 case) and perforation of the bladder wall with a needle-perforator (1 case) took place in group 2. One year after surgery in group 1 there were 9 (53%) good outcomes, 4 (23.5%) satisfactory and 4 (23.5%) unsatisfactory results; in group 2--5 (56%), 1 (11%) and 3 (33%) patients, respectively. Our method of videocontrol over movement of the needles in the retropubic space proved to be a reliable technique of reducing the number of intraoperative complications and blood loss. However, the procedure can be used only in patients subjected to transurethral resection of the prostate and not subjected to open surgical interventions on the lesser pelvic organs.

Activity of the positive and negative reinforcement motivation systems and baseline arterial blood pressure in humans.

The aim of the present work was to identify possible associations between individual balances in the activity of the positive and negative reinforcement motivation systems using a method based on emotional modulation of the startle reaction (EMSR) by motivationally significant emotionally positive and negative contextual visual stimuli and measures of cardiovascular system activity. Studies were performed using healthy males (mean age 30.29 +/- 9.8 years) with normal and first-episode excessive increases in arterial blood pressure (systolic blood pressure to greater than 140 mmHg, diastolic to greater than 90 mmHg). Cluster analysis of EMSR data identified groups of individuals with different activity profiles for the positive and negative reinforcement systems. Groups of subjects with changes in the balance of activity towards a lower level of positive reinforcement system activity (smaller startle reflexes to positive contextual stimuli) or a higher level of negative reinforcement system activity (larger startle reactions to threatening contextual stimuli) showed significantly greater baseline SBP and DBP. The possible mechanisms of the modulatory influences of the balance of system activities on autonomic vascular regulatory processes are discussed.

[Nongonococcal urethritis treatment in men with avelox (moxifloxacin)].

The role of urogenical infection in males in present-day urology is demonstrated with a focus on fluoroquinolones efficacy in combined treatment of urogenital infection. The mechanism of action, pharmacokinetics, the spectrum of antimicrobial activity of a novel fluoroquinolone drug avelox are detailed. Avelox use in combined therapy of mono- and mixed infections caused by ureaplasmas, chlamidias, mycoplasms is illustrated by original experience of the authors. Avelox is well tolerated and safe.