[Combined method of treatment of synechiae of the nasal cavity]. / Kombinirovannaya metodika lecheniya sinekhii polosti nosa.

Diseases of the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses lead to the development of clinical symptoms, among which difficulty in nasal breathing is among the most common complaints of patients in the practice of otorhinolaryngologists. To prevent the development of synechiae of the nasal cavity in surgery, the following principles are defined: 1) to reduce tissue injury, which is achieved by using modern equipment (endoscopic, laser, radio frequency, etc.); 2) to create a barrier between nearby areas of the nasal mucosa by introducing various intranasal splints; 3) to improve the process of tissue regeneration with the help of medicines (regenerants, reparants, etc.). Currently, there is no single approach to the surgical treatment of synechiae of the nasal cavity. The high frequency of postoperative relapses indicates the need to develop effective methods for the prevention of synechiae of the nasal cavity. The choice of surgical tactics is usually carried out taking into account the localization and extent of synechiae of the nasal cavity. All known methods of surgical treatment, depending on the instruments used for excision of synechiae of the nasal cavity, can be conditionally divided into cold and hot. The Sverzhevsky Research Clinical Institute of Otorhinolaryngology has developed a method of complex treatment and prevention of synechiae of the nasal cavity using laser technologies, silicone splints and a hydrogel material based on sodium alginate with derinate.

[Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (Rendu-Osler syndrome)]. / Nasledstvennaya gemorragicheskaya teleangiektaziya (sindrom Randyu­Oslera).

The analysis of publications is carried out and current data concerning the etiology, pathogenesis, diagnosis, and principles of treatment of hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia are presented.

[Effectiveness of fillings and stainless-steel pediatric crowns for primary molars restoration: the results of prospective randomized split mouth study]. / Éffektivnost' plomb i standartnykh pediatricheskikh koronok dlia vosstanovleniia vremennykh moliarov: dannye prospektivnogo randomizirovannogo issledovaniia s ispol'zovaniem modeli 'razdelennoi zubnoi dugi'.

The paper presents the results of randomized split moth study on effectiveness of fillings and stainless-steel pediatric crowns (SSC) for primary teeth restoration. The study involved 68 children aged 1.5 to 6 years having at least two symmetrical primary molars diagnosed with chronic pulpitis (a total of 166 primary molars). After pulpotomy the teeth were randomly divided in two groups according to restoration type and restored with SCC (3MEspe) or compomer filling (Dyract XP, Dentsply). The children were examined at 3, 6, 12, 18 and 24 months after the procedure both clinically and radiologically. SCCs showed significantly better results at 24 months examination. Extraction rate in teeth restored with SCCs and fillings was 2 and 31%, correspondingly (p=0.0001). The results were much more favorable in second primary molars than in first ones: only 2 from 56 second molars and 16 from 110 first molars were extracted (p=0.02). The study results prove SCCs to be restoration of choice especially for the first primary molars in children with severe early childhood caries.

Epigenetic repression of E-cadherin expression by hepatitis B virus x antigen in liver cancer.

Loss of E-cadherin is associated with acquisition of metastatic capacity. Numerous studies suggest that histone deacetylation and/or hypermethylation of CpG islands in E-cadherin gene (CDH1) are major mechanisms responsible for E-cadherin silencing in different tumors and cancer cell lines. The hepatitis B virus (HBV)-encoded X antigen, HBx, contributes importantly to the development of hepatocellular carcinoma using multiple mechanisms. Experiments were designed to test if in addition to CDH1 hypermethylation HBx promotes epigenetic modulation of E-cadherin transcriptional activity through histone deacetylation and miR-373. The relationships between HBx, E-cadherin, mSin3A, Snail-1 and miR-373 were evaluated in HBx expressing (HepG2X) and control (HepG2CAT) cells by western blotting, immunoprecipitation (IP), chromatin IP as well as by immunohistochemical staining of liver and tumor tissue sections from HBV-infected patients. In HepG2X cells, decreased levels of E-cadherin and elevated levels of mSin3A and Snail-1 were detected. Reciprocal IP with anti-HBx and anti-mSin3A demonstrated mutual binding. Furthermore, HBx-mSin3A colocalization was detected by immunofluorescent staining. HBx downregulated E-cadherin expression by the recruitment of the mSin3A/histone deacetylase complex to the Snail-binding sites in human CDH1. Histone deacetylation inhibition by Trichostatin-A treatment restored E-cadherin expression. Mir-373, a positive regulator of E-cadherin expression, was downregulated by HBx in HepG2X cells and tissue sections from HBV-infected patients. Thus, histone deacetylation of CDH1 and downregulation of miR-373, together with the previously demonstrated hypermethylation of CDH1 by HBx, may be important for the understanding of HBV-related carcinogenesis.

p27(SJ), a novel protein in St John's Wort, that suppresses expression of HIV-1 genome.

Transcription of the HIV-1 genome is controlled by the cooperation of viral regulatory proteins and several host factors which bind to specific DNA sequences within the viral promoter spanning the long terminal repeat, (LTR). Here, we describe the identification of a novel protein, p27(SJ), present in a laboratory callus culture of Hypericum perforatum (St John's Wort) that suppresses transcription of the HIV-1 genome in several human cell types including primary culture of microglia and astrocytes. p27(SJ) associates with C/EBPbeta, a transcription factor that regulates expression of the HIV-1 genome in macrophages and monocytic cells, and the viral transactivator, Tat. The association of p27(SJ) with C/EBPbeta and Tat alters their subcellular localization, causing their accumulation in the perinuclear cytoplasmic compartment of the cells. Fusion of a nuclear localization signal to p27(SJ) forces its entry into the nucleus and diminishes the capacity of p27(SJ) to suppress Tat activity, but does not alter its ability to suppress C/EBPbeta activation of the LTR. Results from binding assays showed the inhibitory effect of p27(SJ) on C/EBPbeta interaction with DNA. Finally, our results demonstrate that expression of p27(SJ) decreases the level of viral replication in HIV-1-infected cells. These observations suggest the potential for the development of a therapeutic advance based on p27(SJ) protein to control HIV-1 transcription and replication in cells associated with HIV-1 infection in the brain.

Cystatins from bovine brain: purification, some properties, and action on substance P degrading activity.

Two cystatins were purified from tissue extract of bovine brain by alkaline treatment, acetone fractionation, gel chromatography on Sephadex G-75, and affinity chromatography on S-carboxymethyl-papain-Sepharose. One of the inhibitors had a relatively high molecular mass, 25 kDa (HMM-cystatin) with pI 4.7, and the other, 11 kDa (LMM-cystatin) with pI 5.23. Both inhibitors showed considerable stability at pH 2 and 80 degrees C. The cystatins inhibited papain, ficin, and cathepsins B and H, but not trypsin, chymotrypsin, thermolysin, nagarse, and cathepsin D. Ki values for the complexes of papain and the inhibitors were estimated to be 2.8 x 10(-10) M for HMM-cystatin and 1.3 x 10(-9) M for LMM-cystatin. Both purified cystatins prevented degradation of substance P by soluble fraction and lysosomal extract obtained from synaptosomes, but did not suppress the cleavage of the peptide by synaptosomal plasma membranes.

Pyridoxal-5'-phosphate derivatives of substance P: preparation, spasmogenic activity, and degradation by human plasma.

Two fluorescent derivatives of substance P (SP) (Arg-Pro-Lys-Pro-Gln-Gln-Phe-Phe-Gly-Leu-Met-NH2) were prepared by chemical modification of the native peptide by pyridoxal-5'-phosphate (pyridoxal-P). The formation of both pyridoxal-P-derivatives of SP is the result of one modification procedure. The determination of the amino acid composition showed that in one of the derivatives the epsilon-amino group of the Lys residue [epsilon-(P-pxy)-SP] and in the other the epsilon-amino group of the Lys residue and also the N-terminal amino group [alpha, epsilon-di-(P-pxy)-SP] of SP had been substituted by pyridoxal-P. epsilon-(P-pxy)-SP and alpha, epsilon-di-(P-pxy)-SP have spasmogenic activity with ED50 of 1.8 X 10(-9) and 4 X 10(-9) M, respectively, tested on isolated guinea pig ileum. The fluorescence of P-pxy residues permits detection of as little as 1 pmol/ml of epsilon-(P-pxy)-SP and 0.5 pmol/ml of alpha, epsilon-di-(P-pxy)-SP. Both analogues of SP obtained are degraded by human plasma more slowly than the native peptide.

Synaptosomal degradation of substance P and some other neuropeptides.

Synaptosomes purified from spinal cord and from different rat brain areas exhibit peptide hydrolase activity, cleaving substance P (SP), bradykinin, THRH, LHRH, and neurotensin. The lowest activity for all the peptides tested was found in spinal cord, while the region with the highest degrading activity depended on the substrate: for substance P, it was striatum and cortex; for bradykinin, hypothalamus, and medulla oblongata; for THRH, striatum; for LHRH, midbrain; and for neurotensin, hippocampus. Degradation of substance P takes place at the plasma membrane of synaptosomes. Synaptosome ghosts cleave substance P (pH optimum 7-9, Km-2.5 X 10(-5) M, Vmax-130 nmol . hr-1 . mg protein-1) and also a number of its C-terminal fragments. Effects of the inhibitors show that several different classes of peptidases and proteases are involved in the degradation process. Peptide cleavage represents the probable pathway of synaptosomal inactivation of substance P.