[The effect of vitamin D deficiency on the content of some soluble signaling molecules in the oral fluid in individuals with dental caries]. / Vliyanie nedostatka vitamina D v organizme na soderzhanie nekotorykh rastvorimykh signal'nykh molekul v rotovoi zhidkosti pri kariese zubov.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the sthudy is to sthudy the level of soluble Immune Checkpoint Molecules (B7.2, CTLA-4, Tim-3, Lag-3, PD-1) in the oral fluid during dental caries with the background of a lack and/or deficiency of 25-hydroxy-vitamin D in body. MATERIALS AND METHODS: During the research 3 groups of people were formed, each one of them included 17 people aged from 20 to 24 years. The first group included students with high-intensity caries (above 9 DMFt index) and 25-hydroxy-vitamin D levels in blood serum >30 ng/ml, the second included students with high caries intensity and 25-hydroxy-vitamin D levels <30 ng/ml. The control group consisted of students with an average DMFt index of 1.5 (from 0 to 3) and a level of 25(OH)D in the blood more than 30 ng/ml. To determine the content of B7.2 (CD86), CTLA-4, Tim-3, Lag-3, PD-1, the Human Vascular Inflammation Panel 1 multiplex analysis kit from Biolegend (USA) was used. RESULTS: The results of the research showed that during dental caries with a normal level of 25-hydroxy-vitamin D there are no significant changes in the content of Immune Checkpoint Molecules. With the background of deficiency and lack of 25-hydroxy-vitamin D there is a decrease in the amount of B7.2, LAG-3, Tim-3 and PD-1. These changes are being aggravated with an increase of the caries intensity. CONCLUSION: Vitamin D deficiency leads to a decrease in mucosal immunity of the oral cavity, the multiplication of pathogenic microorganisms, which in turn, releasing various metabolites, including cytokine-like substances, aggravate the pathological process and intensify carious lesions.

Social cognition in autism is associated with the neurodevelopment of the posterior superior temporal sulcus.

OBJECTIVE: The posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS) plays a critical role in the 'social brain'. Its neurodevelopment and relationship with the social impairment in autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are not well understood. We explored the relationship between social cognition and the neurodevelopment of the pSTS in ASD. METHOD: We included 44 adults with high-functioning ASD and 36 controls. We assessed their performances on the 'Reading the mind in the eyes' test (for 34 of 44 subjects with ASD and 30 of 36 controls), their fixation time on the eyes with eye tracking (for 35 of 44 subjects with ASD and 30 of 36 controls) and the morphology of the caudal branches of the pSTS (length and depth), markers of the neurodevelopment, with structural MRI. RESULTS: The right anterior caudal ramus of the pSTS was significantly longer in patients with ASD compared with controls (52.6 mm vs. 38.3 mm; P = 1.4 × 10-3 ; Cohen's d = 0.76). Its length negatively correlated with fixation time on the eyes (P = 0.03) in the ASD group and with the 'Reading the mind in the eyes' test scores in both groups (P = 0.03). CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that the neurodevelopment of the pSTS is related to the ASD social impairments.

[Evolution of diagnostic methods for cicatrical tracheal stenosis and tracheomalacia].

AIM: To analyze the role of ray functional computerized diagnostic technologies in assessment of the state of tracheal wall in cicatricial stenosis. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We examined 45 patients with cicatricial tracheal stenosis during August 2013 -- March 2015. Fibrobronchoscopy, multislice computerized tomography, magnetic resonance imaging and lungs function examination were performed. For the first time dynamic (functional) CT and MRI were included in research algorithm. These techniques have not been used for cicatricial stenosis and tracheomalacia in our country until this moment. Circular resection with anastomosis was made in 38 patients and stage reconstructions were preferred in 7 cases. Last ones had advanced tracheomalacia on the background of cicatrical stenosis that forced to abandon from tracheal resection. So time to treatment and incidence of complications and recurrences were reduced and the results were improved. CONCLUSION: Endoscopy remains the main method of diagnosis of tracheal stenosis despite its invasiveness. Data of cicatrical transformation of tracheal wall per se can be obtained non-invasively using dynamic CT and MRI. These techniques help to identify or exclude tracheomalacia. They potentially complement fibrobronchoscopy and may be preferable to assess perioperative intramural pathological changes of the trachea.

[Rehabilitation of the patients suffering from chronic calculous pyelonephritis].

The objective of the present study was to develop a new technology for the balneotherapeutic treatment of the patients with urolithiasis by means of combined application of mineral water, mineral baths (1 therapeutic complex), sinusoidal modulated current (SMC-phoresis of nicotinamide), and preparations inhibiting urine concrement formation. The overall efficacy of this combined balneo-, physio-, radio-, and pharmacotherapy of the patients presenting with secondary calculous pyelonephritis amounted to 94% compared with 73.4% using balneotherapy alone (p1-2 < 0.05). Summation of positive effects of balneo-, physio-, radio-, and pharmacotherapies promoted normalization of the functional state of the kidneys and the upper urinary tracts which in its turn contributed to the improvement of the patient's quality of life.

[A simple and highly sensitive high-performance liquid chromatography assay of salivary putrescine and cadaverine].

A simple and highly sensitive high-performance liquid chromatography assay is proposed to test salivary diamines (putrescine and cadaverine). Derivation was carried out with the orthophthalic aldehyde 2-mercaptoethanol. A rapid purification procedure for derivatives on the cartridges packed with 10 mg of hypercrosslinked polystyrene (Purosep-200) was first developed. Separation was made on a Chromolith (Merck), 100 x 4.6 mm in size, with monolithic reverse-phase silica gel (RP-18e) in the isocratic mode with ultraviolet (UV) detection at 230 nm. The eluent contained 55% acetonitrile and 45% 0.01 M phosphate buffer pH 6.8, added by 1% of isopropanol; flow rate was 1400 pl/min; pressure was 28 bars. Complete separation of diamine derivatives lasted at least 5 min. The sensitivity of the assay with UV detection (230 nm) was about 0.1 ngfor diamines and about 0.5 ng for the internal standard (IS) at a signal/noise ratio of 3.0, which enabled diamines to be determined in I pl (0.001 ml) of saliva. The simplicity, reproducibility, and high sensitivity of the assay along with the feasibility of its application on standard chromatographic equipment (an isocratic pump and an UV detector) make it suitable for routine clinical application.

Perspectives in Intraoperative Diagnostics of Human Gliomas.

Amongst large a variety of oncological diseases, malignant gliomas represent one of the most severe types of tumors. They are also the most common type of the brain tumors and account for over half of the astrocytic tumors. According to different sources, the average life expectancy of patients with various glioblastomas varies between 10 and 12 months and that of patients with anaplastic astrocytic tumors between 20 and 24 months. Therefore, studies of the physiology of transformed glial cells are critical for the development of treatment methods. Modern medical approaches offer complex procedures, including the microsurgical tumor removal, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy, supplemented with photodynamic therapy and immunotherapy. The most radical of them is surgical resection, which allows removing the largest part of the tumor, reduces the intracranial hypertension, and minimizes the degree of neurological deficit. However, complete removal of the tumor remains impossible. The main limitations are insufficient visualization of glioma boundaries, due to its infiltrative growth, and the necessity to preserve healthy tissue. This review is devoted to the description of advantages and disadvantages of modern intraoperative diagnostics of human gliomas and highlights potential perspectives for development of their treatment.

[The application of regional lymphatic stimulation in the comprehensive treatment of purulent wounds]. / Primenenie regionarnoi limfostimuliatsii v komplekse lecheniia gnoinoi rany.

There were examined 72 patients with phlegmon, abscess and infected wound of the upper and lower extremities soft tissues. The efficacy of dalargin application for improvement of processes of the purulent wound clearance and reparation was shown using rheologic, biochemical, cytological and planimetric methods of control of the wound process course.

Light scattering by size-shape distributions of randomly oriented axially symmetric particles of a size comparable to a wavelength.

The ? matrix method, as extended recently to randomly oriented scatterers [J. Opt. Soc. Am. A 8, 871 (1991)], is used to calculate rigorously light scattering by size-shape distributions of randomly oriented axially symmetric particles. The computational scheme is described in detail along with a newly developed convergence procedure that enables one to substantially reduce computer time and storage requirements. It is demonstrated that the elements of the Stokes scattering matrix for a power law size distribution of randomly oriented moderately aspherical spheroids are much smoother than and differ substantially from those of equivalent monodisperse spheroids, and thus averaging over orientations does not eliminate the necessity of averaging over particle sizes. Numerical calculations are reported for volume-equivalent polydispersions of spheres and size-shape distributions of moderately aspherical spheroids with the index of refraction 1.5 + 0.02 i, which is typical of some maritime aero ls. The angular-scattering behavior of the ensembles of nonspherical particles is found to be greatly different from that of the equivalent polydisperse spheres. The size-shape distributions of spheroids exhibit stronger side scattering near 120° and weaker backscattering, the ratio F(22)/F(11), of the elements of the scattering matrix substantially deviates from unity, and the element F(33) is greatly different from F(44). For size distributions of oblate and prolate spheroids of the same aspect ratio, the ratios F(22) /F(11), F(33) /F(11), and F(34)/F(11), can differ substantially and, thus, are indicators of particle shape, whereas the angular patterns of the intensity (F(11)) and linear polarization (-F(12)/F11) are similar. For the size-shape distributions of moderately aspherical spheroids, the optical cross sections, the single-scattering albedo, and the asymmetry parameter of the phase function do not differ substantially from those of equivalent spheres. In general, the elements of the scattering matrix and optical cross sections are more shape dependent for larger particles.

Coherent backscattering by two-sphere clusters.

Rigorous numerical solutions of Maxwell's equations are used to show, for what is believed to be the first time, that simple scattering systems composed of two interacting wavelength-sized spheres exhibit a coherent backscattering effect analogous to that observed previously for optically thick discrete random media comprising large numbers of scatterers.

Calculation of the amplitude matrix for a nonspherical particle in a fixed orientation.

General equations are derived for computing the amplitude matrix for a nonspherical particle in an arbitrary orientation and for arbitrary illumination and scattering directions with respect to the laboratory reference frame, provided that the scattering problem can be solved with respect to the particle reference frame. These equations are used along with the T-matrix method to provide benchmark results for homogeneous, dielectric, rotationally symmetric particles. The computer code is publicly available on the World-Wide Web at http://www.giss.nasa.gov/~crmim.

Depolarization of light backscattered by randomly oriented nonspherical particles.

We derive theoretically and validate numerically general relationships for the elements of the backscattering matrix and for the linear, delta(L), and circular, delta(C), backscattering depolarization ratios for nonspherical particles in random orientation. For the practically important case of randomly oriented particles with a plane of symmetry or particles and their mirror particles occurring in equal numbers and in random orientation, delta(C) = 2delta(L)/(1 - delta(L)). Extensive T-matrix computations for randomly oriented spheroids demonstrate that, although both delta(L) and delta(C) are indicators of particle nonsphericity, they cannot be considered a universal measure of the departure of particle shape from that of a sphere and have no simple dependence on particle size and refractive index.

Light scattering by randomly oriented bispheres.

We describe how the T-matrix approach can be used to compute analytically the Stokes scattering matrix for randomly oriented bispheres with touching or separated components. Computations for randomly oriented bispheres with touching components are compared with those for volume-equivalent randomly oriented prolate spheroids with an aspect ratio of 2 and for a single volume-equivalent sphere. We show that cooperative (multiple-scattering) effects can make bispheres more efficient depolarizers than spheroids in the back-scattering direction.

Light scattering by polydispersions of randomly oriented spheroids with sizes comparable to wavelengths of observation.

We report the results of an extensive study of the scattering of light by size and size-shape distributions of randomly oriented prolate and oblate spheroids with the index of refraction 1.5 + 0.02i typical of some mineral terrestrial aerosols. The scattering calculations have been carried out with Waterman's T-matrix approach, as developed recently by Mishchenko [J. Opt. Soc. Am. A 8, 871 (1991); Appl. Opt. 32, 4562 (1993)]. Our main interest is in light scattering by polydisperse models of nonspherical particles because averaging over sizes provides more realistic modeling of natural ensembles of scattering particles and washes out the interference structure and ripple typical of monodisperse scattering patterns, thus enabling us to derive meaningful conclusions about the effects of particle nonsphericity on light scattering. Following Hansen and Travis [Space Sci. Rev. 16, 527 (1974)], we show that scattering properties of most physically plausible size distributions of randomly orientednonspherical part cles depend primarily on the effective equivalent-sphere radius and effective variance of the distribution, the actual shape of the distribution having a minor influence. To minimize the computational burden, we have adopted a computationally convenient power law distribution of particle equivalent-sphere radii n(r) α r(-3),r(1) ≤ r≤r(2). The effective variance of the size distribution is fixed at 0.1, and the effective size parameter continuously varies from 0 to 15. We present results of computer calculations for 24 prolate and oblate spheroidal shapes with aspect ratios from 1.1 to 2.2. The elements of the scattering matrix for the whole range of size parameters and scattering angles are displayed in the form of contour plots. Computational results are compared with analogous calculations for surface-equivalent spheres, and the effects of particle shape on light scattering are discussed in detail.

Applicability of regular particle shapes in light scattering calculations for atmospheric ice particles.

We ascertain the usefulness of simple ice particle geometries for modeling the intensity distribution of light scattering by atmospheric ice particles. To this end, similarities and differences in light scattering by axis-equivalent, regular and distorted hexagonal cylindric, ellipsoidal, and circular cylindric ice particles are reported. All the results pertain to particles with sizes much larger than a wavelength and are based on a geometrical optics approximation. At a nonabsorbing wavelength of 0.55 µm, ellipsoids (circular cylinders) have a much (slightly) larger asymmetry parameter g than regular hexagonal cylinders. However, our computations show that only random distortion of the crystal shape leads to a closer agreement with g values as small as 0.7 as derived from some remote-sensing data analysis. This may suggest that scattering by regular particle shapes is not necessarily representative of real atmospheric ice crystals at nonabsorbing wavelengths. On the other hand, if real ice particles happen to be hexagonal, they may be approximated by circular cylinders at absorbing wavelengths.

How big should hexagonal ice crystals be to produce halos?

It has been hypothesized that the frequent lack of halos in observations of cirrus and contrails and laboratory measurements is caused by small ice crystal sizes that put the particles outside the geometrical optics domain of size parameters. We test this hypothesis by exploiting a strong similarity of ray tracing phase functions for finite hexagonal and circular ice cylinders and using T-matrix computations of electromagnetic scattering by circular cylinders with size parameters up to 180 in the visible. We conclude that well-defined halos should be observable for ice crystal size parameters of the order of 100 and larger and discuss remote-sensing implications of this result.

Scattering properties of needlelike and platelike ice spheroids with moderate size parameters.

We use the current advanced version of the T-matrix method to compute the optical cross sections, the asymmetry parameter of the phase function, and the scattering matrix elements of ice spheroids with aspect ratios up to 20 and surface-equivalent-sphere size parameters up to 12. We demonstrate that platelike and needlelike particles with moderate size parameters possess unique scattering properties: their asymmetry parameters and phase functions are similar to those of surface-equivalent spheres, whereas all other elements of the scattering matrix are typical of particles much smaller than the wavelength (Rayleigh scatterers). This result may have important implications for optical particle sizing and remote sensing of the terrestrial and planetary atmospheres.

Scattering of light by bispheres with touching and separated components.

We use the T-matrix method as described by Mishchenko and Mackowski [Opt. Lett. 19, 1604 (1994)] to compute light scattering by bispheres in fixed and random orientations extensively. For all our computations the index of refraction is fixed at a value 1.5 + 0.005i, which is close to the refractive index of mineral tropospheric aerosols and was used in previous extensive studies of light scattering by spheroids and Chebyshev particles. For monodisperse bispheres with touching components in a fixed orientation, electromagnetic interactions between the constituent spheres result in a considerably more complicated interference structure in the scattering patterns than that for single monodisperse spheres. However, this increased structure is largely washed out by orientational averaging and results in scattering patterns for randomly oriented bispheres that are close to those for single spheres with size equal to the size of the bisphere components. Unlike other nonspherical particles such as cubes and spheroids, randomly oriented bispheres do not exhibit pronounced enhancement of side scattering and reduction of backscattering and positive polarization at side-scattering angles. Thus the dominant feature of light scattering by randomly oriented bispheres is the single scattering from the component spheres, whereas the effects of cooperative scattering and concavity of the bisphere shape play a minor role. The only distinct manifestations of nonsphericity and cooperative scattering effects for randomly oriented bispheres are the departure of the ratio F(22)/F(11) of the elements of the scattering matrix from unity, the inequality of the ratios F(33)/F(11) and F(44)/F(11), and nonzero linear and circular backscattering depolarization ratios. Our computations for randomly oriented bispheres with separated wavelengthsized components show that the component spheres become essentially independent scatterers at as small a distance between their centers as 4 times their radii.

Scattering of light by polydisperse, randomly oriented, finite circular cylinders.

We use the T-matrix method, as described by Mishchenko [Appl. Opt. 32, 4652 (1993)], to compute rigorously light scattering by finite circular cylinders in random orientation. First we discuss numerical aspects of T -matrix computations specific for finite cylinders and present results of benchmark computations for a simple cylinder model. Then we report results of extensive computations for polydisperse, randomly oriented cylinders with a refractive index of 1.53 + 0.008i, diameter-to-length ratios of 1/2, 1/1.4, 1, 1.4, and 2, and effective size parameters ranging from 0 to 25. These computations parallel our recent study of light scattering by polydisperse, randomly oriented spheroids and are used to compare scattering properties of the two classes of simple convex particles. Despite the significant difference in shape between the two particle types (entirely smooth surface for spheroids and sharp rectangular edges for cylinders), the comparison shows rather small differences in the integral photometric characteristics (total optical cross sections, single-scattering albedo, and asymmetry parameter of the phase function) and the phase function. The general patterns of the other elements of the scattering matrix for cylinders and aspect-ratio-equivalent spheroids are also qualitatively similar, although noticeable quantitative differences can be found in some particular cases. In general, cylinders demonstrate much less shape dependence of the elements of the scattering matrix than do spheroids. Our computations show that, like spheroids and bispheres, cylinders with surface-equivalent radii smaller than a wavelength can strongly depolarize backscattered light, thus suggesting that backscattering depolarization for nonspherical particles cannot be universally explained by using only geometric-optics considerations.

Scattering of light by large nonspherical particles: ray-tracing approximation versus T-matrix method.

We report, for the f irst time to our knowledge, comparisons of light-scattering computations for large, randomly oriented, moderately absorbing spheroids based on the geometric-optics approximation and the exact T-matrix method. We show that in most cases the geometric-optics approximation is (much) more accurate for spheroids than for surface-equivalent spheres and can be used in phase function computations (but not in polarization computations) for nonspherical particles with size parameters as small as 60. Differences in the single-scattering albedo between geometric-optics and T-matrix results are surprisingly small, even for small size parameters.