[Comparative assessment of different approaches for obtaining terminally differentiated muscle cells].

Relevant cell model is essential to study pathogenesis of muscle disorders. However, in the field of muscle research there is no ultimate cell line considered as a standard for studying muscular and neuromuscular diseases. Standard cell line claimed to be well differentiated in muscle lineage, be morphological and physiological similar to mature muscle cells and be easily genetically modified. Therefore, the goal of our study was to pick up available and fruitful cell model of muscle differentiation, that could be further applied for examination of muscular disorder pathogenesis in vitro. We characterized human mesenchymal stem cells (MSC), mature murine muscle fibers and primary murine satellite cells. It has been shown that MSC have very small capacity to myogenic differentiation; moreover, they were able to differentiate only in presence of C2C12 cells. Lentiviral transduction exhibited rather high toxic effect on primary myofibers, and positively transduced cells were not able to response to electrical stimulation, i. e. were functionally inactive. Satellite cells turned out to be the most fruitful cell model since they were easily transduced via lentiviruses and rapidly formed myotubes in differentiation media. Functional analysis of obtained myotubes has confirmed their ability to react to electrical and chemical stimulations; besides, potassium and calcium channels availability has been also demonstrated via patch-clump technique. Taken together, these results imply that satellite cells are the most promising cell line for further experiments aimed at exploring the molecular pathways of muscle pathologies.

[Regularities in the spread of hepatitis C virus and its genotypes in Russian and countries within the former USSR]. / Zakonomernosti rasprostraneniia virusa gepatita C i ego genotipov v Rossii i stranakh SNG.

The incidence of markers of hepatitis C virus (HCV in the blood of 4216 normal subjects living in the European Russia (Northern, North-Western, Central, Central Chernozem, Volga-Vyatka, Volga, and North Caucasian regions), in the Urals, in Siberia (Eastern Siberian region), in the Far East, and in Monogolia is assessed. The incidence of antibodies to HCV varied from 0.7% in the Central region to 3.8% in the Central Chernozem and 10.7% in Mongolia. HCV genotyping (identification of 1a, 1b, 2a, 2b, and 3a genotypes) was performed using 469 RNA of HCV-positive sera of donors and patients collected in Russia, Moldova, Turkmenistan, and Mongolia. The 1b genotype predominated everywhere (68.9%), its incidence being the highest in Moldova (96%). Unclassifiable variants of HCV were found in 28 (6%) of sera. The regularities of HCV genotypes circulation in the European Russia were the same as in other European countries, whereas their prevalence in Eastern Russia was rather like that in China or Japan. The prevalence of genotypes did not depend on the clinical manifestations of diseases caused by HCV.

[The use of personal computers by virologists specializing in viral hepatitis]. / Ispol'zovanie personal'nogo komp'iutera v prakticheskoi rabote vracha-virusologa po razdelu "virusnye gepatity".

Analysis of the tasks of a virological laboratory as regards viral hepatitis helped the authors validate the requirements to computer provision and develop a program "Hepatitis" which permits the creation of a reliable data bank on subjects screened for viral hepatitis, offers a comprehensive highly qualified analysis, and saves time needed for file registration and making reports. The program is addressed to virology laboratories of sanitary epidemiological, therapeutic, and research institutions.

[The immunological effectiveness of small doses of diphtheria and tetanus anatoxins in the revaccination of children with allergy-altered reactivity and adults]. / Immunologicheskaia éffektivnost' malykh doz difteriinogo i stolbniachnogo anatoksinov pri revaktsinatsii detei s allergicheski-izmenennoi reaktivnost'iu i vzroslykh.

The possibility of decreasing the content of antigens in adsorbed diphtheria-tetanus toxoid, used for the booster immunization of children with allergically altered responsiveness and adults, is shown. Diphtheria toxoid in doses of 1-2.5 Lf and tetanus toxoid in doses of 1-2.5 binding units possessed sufficiently high immunological effectiveness in combination with low reactogenicity and good tolerance. In 6-12 months after booster immunization with decreased doses of toxoids 100% of children with allergy of different character and, respectively, 86-94% and 95% of adults have developed protective levels of antibodies to diphtheria and tetanus.