Nature, life and mind. An essay on the essence.

BACKGROUND: Our long-standing scientific work and love to the fine art and nature for many years succeeded in making a unifying description of the three domains, at a time when a high specialisation in science, and even in art, has neglected the necessary entirety. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Some neurons of a rat cerebral cortex were labelled with true blue and photographed under a fluorescent microscope. A monkey brain was sectioned in the axial plane. Several slices of the human motor cortex were stained with cresyl violet. A cerebral hemisphere image was modified, and another image was created in Adobe Photoshop. RESULTS: Some 10 billion years after the Big Bang life appeared on the Earth, reaching its peak with development of the brain. The humans started exploration of the local nature to survive, and the universe for psychological support. The antique philosophers Leucippes, Democritus and Heraclitus were the first to create a unifying atomic theory and to suggest the eternal movement of the matter. Newton and Kepler explained the movement of the celestial objects, whereas Einstein, Planck, Bohr, Hubbel, Howking and many others connected the quantum physics and elementary forces with the essence of the universe. Leonardo da Vinci, and later many others as well, united science and art. Philosophers and mathematicians created the phenomena which do not exist in nature. CONCLUSIONS: Nature designed the human brain, more complex than the universe itself, which in turn created millions of the artworks and scientific discoveries. The might of the mind in some domains overcomes the power of nature.

Experimental study of a sleeve microanastomotic technique.

Sleeve anastomosis is an end-to-end variant (i.e., end in end) that makes it possible to suture two vessels quickly and with few stitches. Various methods have been described in the literature concerning experimental surgery (microsurgery and transplantation) and clinical microsurgery. The authors tested for a method that would eliminate narrowing of the inserted vessel segment and that would improve efficiency and feasibility of the technique. The experimental study was performed in 60 rats weighing 200 to 400 g. Telescoping microanastomosis consists of hemi-invagination of a 2-mm-caliber artery at high pressure (subrenal aorta), sidecut of the distal wall of the external arterial segment, and suture with three endoluminal stitches. A total of 61 anastomoses were subdivided in three groups: (1) one-sleeve anastomosis, (2) double-sleeve anastomosis with interposition of an arterial graft, and (3) a control series of conventional end-to-end anastomoses. Patency rates of 95% to 100% at 1 week and 1 month demonstrated no differences among groups.

[IL-1, TNF and IL-6 production by alveolar mononuclear cells in patients with sarcoidosis]. / Stvaranje interleukina-jedan, faktora nekroze tumora i interleukina-sest od strane alveolnih mononuklearnih celija kod bolesnika sa sarkoidozom pluca.

Cytokines produced by locally activated T cells and macrophages have central role in lymphocyte alveolitis and granuloma formation, and it is beleived that they regulate activity and further progression of sarcoidosis. The aim of our study was to evaluate the levels of interleukin-1 (IL-1), tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) production by bronchoalveolar mononuclear cells in 6 patients With sarcoidosis. The obtained results showed increased IL-6 levels in patients with active disease, IL-1 activity did not follow clinical changes, while TNF was detectible only in one patients.