Reduced content of α-synuclein in peripheral blood leukocytes of patients with LRRK2-associated Parkinson's disease.

Measurement of α-synuclein level in the peripheral blood was proposed as a diagnostic test for Parkinson's disease. However, the results of these studies remain contradictory, probably because the examined samples included patients with different etiology of Parkinson's disease. To verify this assumption we studied the levels of α-synuclein in peripheral blood leukocytes of patients with Parkinson's disease associated with mutations in the gene of leucine-rich kinase 2 (LRRK2). The mean α-synuclein level was significantly lower in patients with LRRK2-associated Parkinson's disease (N=8) than in patients with sporadic form of the disease (N=33; p<0.02) and in controls (N=18; p<0.05). On the other hand, we found no differences in the level of α-synuclein level between patients with sporadic form of the disease and controls. We hypothesize that the level of α-synuclein in the peripheral blood largely depends on the etiology of the disease and cannot be used as a universal diagnostic test for Parkinson's disease.

[Chronic viral hepatitis--one of the most important problems of current medicine]. / Khronicheskii virusnyi gepatit--odna iz naibolee vazhnykh problem sovremennoi meditsiny.

Main aspects of the study of chronic virus infection now cover clinico-morphological characteristics, prognosis of chronic liver diseases (CLD) by HBV and HCV; characteristics of extrahepatic lesions produced by HBV and HCV; features of CLD of mixed etiology (viral and alcoholic); treatment of CLD of viral etiology. The hypothesis is suggested on the generalized character of HBV and HCV infection. Approach to the treatment of chronic viral hepatitis including extrahepatic manifestation is proposed.

[The clinico-morphological characteristics of interstitial lung diseases]. / Kliniko-morfologicheskaia kharakteristika interstitsial'nykh boleznei legkikh.

Electron microscopic and immunohistochemical methods were employed to study composition of collagens in extracellular matrix and quantify oncoproteins c-sis and c-fos. It was established that interstitial pulmonary diseases of various etiology are characterized at early stages by alveolitis with activation of alveolar macrophages, at late stages by interstitial fibrosis with accumulation of collagens type I, III, IV and V and epithelial dysplasia which is likely to initiate bronchioloalveolar cancer.

[Interstitial lung diseases--the clinical aspects of the problem]. / Interstitsial'nye bolezni legkogo--klinicheskie aspekty problemy.

Upon analysis of 550 cases of different chronic diffuse pulmonary diseases included in a group of interstitial diseases of the lungs (IDL) the authors came to the conclusion that IDL incorporate such variants as alveolitis, pulmonary vasculitis and pulmonary hemorrhages; granulomatosis covers exogenic allergic alveolitis, alveolitis in chronic active hepatitis; vasculitis group includes such rare diseases as necrotizing sarcoid granulomatosis vasculitis and lymphoid granulomatosis; fibrosing alveolitis--secondary alveolitis in sclerodermia systematica, rheumatoid arthritis, Sjogren's disease, chronic active hepatitis. Knowledge of IDL etiology (environmental, occupational, induced by radionuclides, drugs, viruses, fungi) with focus on drug affection of the lungs is thought of value. Biopsy and bronchial lavage findings are compared clinically and morphologically. Mechanisms of pulmonary fibrosis and approaches to inhibition of pulmonary fibrosis progression are outlined.

[Detection of hepatitis B virus DNA using local nucleic acid amplification (polymerase chain reaction) in fixed tissues in chronic viral liver diseases]. / Vyiavlenie DNK virusa gepatita v metodom lokal'noi amplifikatsii nukleinovykh kislot (polimeraznaia tsepnaia reaktsiia) v fiksirovannykh tkaniiakh pri khronicheskikh virusnykh zabolevaniiakh pecheni.

PCR is a highly sensitive, convenient and rapid method for detection of viral DNA in fixed tissue samples which allows one to analyse the material from the pathology files, mainly biopsies. PCR in a fixed material requires larger amounts of DNA-polymerase and longer duration of every stage of thermo-cycles compared to PCR in the purified DNA samples.

[Intrathoracic and generalized granulomatosis in chronic diffuse liver diseases caused by the hepatitis B virus]. / Vnutrigrudnoi i generalizovannyi granulematoz pri khronicheskikh diffuznykh zabolevaniiakh pecheni, obuslovlennykh virusom gepatita B.

In 7 patients suffering from chronic diffuse liver diseases, they were combined with intrathoracic (3 patients) and generalized (4 patients) granulomatosis. Acute viral hepatitis or risk factors of infecting hepatitis viruses revealed in the case reports of 5 patients preceded the appearance of the signs of both lung and pulmonary damage. In 2 patients (without any indications in the case report to acute viral hepatitis and risk factors of infecting by hepatitis viruses) both the processes were established at a time. HBV markers were detected in all the 7 patients: in the blood serum in 3 and in the blood serum and liver tissue in 4 patients. Besides, HBsAg was identified in the smears of the lavage fluid sediment in 3 patients examined for that purpose. The role of HBV in both etiology of chronic diffuse liver diseases and granulomatosis is under discussion.

[Necrotizing sarcoid-like granulomatous vasculitis of the lung in a female patient with liver cirrhosis]. / Nekrotiziruiushchii sarkoidopodobnyi granulematoznyi vaskulit legkogo u bol'noi tsirrozom pecheni.

A case of necrotizing sarcoid-like granulomatous vasculitis (NSGV) in a female with liver cirrhosis (probably of virus etiology) complicated with systemic manifestations (skin vasculitis, syndromes of Raynaud and Sjögren). NSGV was diagnosed on the basis of the autopsy findings. Giant cell, epithelioid and macrophagal granulomas that differed from those in sarcoidosis by the presence of central necrosis, were found histologically in the walls of lung vessels and bronchi of various caliber. Keeping in mind a possible immuno-complexed pathogenesis of vasculitis in liver cirrhosis and NSGV as well as a probable viral etiology of liver cirrhosis it is likely that NSGV resulted from the vascular damage by immune complexes containing hepatitis virus antigens. Another peculiar feature of this observation was development of pulmonary hypertension.