[Mechanisms of sound reception and conduction in a dolphin].

Morphology of a lower jaw, model and behavioral experiments are discussed with the aim of exploring the mechanisms of sound reception and conduction to the dolphin's lower jaw canals taking into account known concepts of acoustics and a theory of group antennas. It is shown that the left and right row of mental foramens with the respective mandibular canal and tissues of the canals are forming the new outer ear and the new external auditory canal by which the sound (in frequency band of 0.1-160 kHz) is transmitted into the middle ear, in contrast to the dolphin's non-functional outer ear. This new external ear is created by nature as a receiving array of the traveling wave antenna located in the throat of the acoustical horn (a corresponding mandibular canal). The results give reason to assume the presence of similar new outer ear in Odontoceti.

[The cerebral sodium uretric peptide (see text symbol) patients with chronic cardiac insufficiency under decreased and preserved ejection fraction].

The concentration of cerebral sodium uretic peptide was analyzed in patients with chronic cardiac insufficiency and in healthy volunteers. The study established that concentration of cerebral sodium uretic peptide was higher in patients with chronic cardiac insufficiency as compared control group and reflected severity of pathologic process. In patients with decreased ejection fraction the levels cerebral sodium uretic peptide were higher as compared with patients with preserved ejection fraction. According data of the present study the existing threshold of concentration of cerebral sodium uretic peptide has a lower diagnostic sensitivity to exclude chronic cardiac insufficiency (100 pg).

[Characterization of beam patterns of bottlenose dolphin in the transversal plane].

The characteristics of the absolute auditory sensitivity of the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus p.) in the transverse plane have been measured using short broad-band stimuli simulating dolphin clicks (with energy maximum at frequencies 8, 16, 30, 50 and 100 kHz). Experiments were performed using the method of conditioned reflexes with food reinforcement. It was shown that, in the frequency range of 8-30 kHz, the absolute sensitivity of dolphin hearing in any ventral and lateral directions of the transverse plane is only by 2-8 dB worse than in the nasal direction. Moreover, it is approximately by 25-30 dB better than at frequencies of 50-100 kHz. At frequencies of 8-30 kHz, a pronounced dorsoventral asymmetry has been observed. In this frequency range, it reaches approximately 15-18 dB whereas at frequencies of 50-100 kHz, this asymmetry decreases to 2-3 dB. In the dorsal direction, the auditory sensitivity is by 18 dB worse than in the nasal one at frequencies of around 8 kHz, and the difference rises smoothly to 33 dB at frequencies of about 100 kHz. At frequencies of 50-100 kHz, the acoustical thresholds of the cross-section plane in comparison with thresholds for the with nasal direction get worse almost uniformly in all directions by 25-33 dB. As a result, in the transversal plane, the beam patterns have a nearly circular form, unlike the patterns at frequencies of 8-30 kHz. The results are discussed in terms of the model of sound perception through the left and right mental foramens. The biological expediency of the asymmetry is emphasized.

Biofunctionalization of 3D-printed silicone implants with immunomodulatory hydrogels for controlling the innate immune response: An in vivo model of tracheal defect repair.

The recent advances in 3D-printed silicone (PDMS: polydimethylsiloxane) implants present prospects for personalized implants with highly accurate anatomical conformity. However, a potential adverse effect, such as granuloma formation due to immune reactions, still exists. One potential way to overcome this problem is to control the implant/host interface using immunomodulatory coatings. In this study, a new cytokine cocktail composed of interleukin-10 and prostaglandin-E2 was designed to decrease adverse immune reactions and promote tissue integration by fixing macrophages into M2 pro-healing phenotype for an extended period of time. In vitro, the cytokine cocktail maintained low levels of pro-inflammatory cytokine (TNF-α and IL-6) secretions and induced the secretion of IL-10 and the upregulation of multifunctional scavenging and sorting receptor stabilin-1, expressed by M2 macrophages. This cocktail was then loaded in a gelatine-based hydrogel to develop an immunomodulatory material that could be used as a coating for medical devices. The efficacy of this coating was demonstrated in an in vivo rat model during the reconstruction of a tracheal defect by 3D-printed silicone implants. The coating was stable on the silicone implants for over 2 weeks, and the controlled release of the cocktail components was achieved for at least 14 days. In vivo, only 33% of the animals with bare silicone implants survived, whereas 100% of the animals survived with the implant equipped with the immunomodulatory hydrogel. The presence of the hydrogel and the cytokine cocktail diminished the thickness of the inflammatory tissue, the intensity of both acute and chronic inflammation, the overall fibroblastic reaction, the presence of oedema and the formation of fibrinoid (assessed by histology) and led to a 100% survival rate. At the systemic level, the presence of immunomodulatory hydrogels significantly decreased pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-α, IFN-γ, CXCL1 and MCP-1 levels at day 7 and significantly decreased IL-1α, IL-1ß, CXCL1 and MCP-1 levels at day 21. The ability of this new immunomodulatory hydrogel to control the level of inflammation once applied to a 3D-printed silicone implant has been demonstrated. Such thin coatings can be applied to any implants or scaffolds used in tissue engineering to diminish the initial immune response, improve the integration and functionality of these materials and decrease potential complications related to their presence.

[Psychiatric disturbances in patients with acute myocardial infarction and other critical states in conditions of department of reanimation and intensive therapy].

In this review we present in short data of domestic and foreign studies on somatogenic delirium in patients with acute myocardial infarction and with other critical states. The review also contains definitions of basic conceptions, contemporary approaches to diagnosis and management of this complication.

[Determination of free fatty-acid carrier protein by enzyme immunoassay and non-instrumental method in acute coronary syndrome].

The purpose of the investigation was to study changes in and relationships with the clinical and echocardiographic parameters in the serum level of cardiac fatty-acid carrier protein (cFACP) with acute myocardial infarction (MI), as well as the efficiency of non-instrumental determination of the content of cFACP, by using the test systems "CardioFACP" in the diagnosis of acute MI. The investigation showed the high diagnostic value of cFACP as the earliest marker of acute MI during both its enzyme immunoassay and non-instrumental determination. The sensitivity of the test system "CardioFACP" was found to be greater than that of the troponin test within the first hours of acute MI. The findings support the specific features of the kinetics of cFACP and its sensitivity in detecting cardiomyocyte lesions, on the one hand, and determine perspectives for its use to diagnose MI and reocclusions of the infarction-related coronary artery after reperfusion therapy, on the other.

[Characteristics of the acoustic field of interfering reflections and the echolocation hearing of the dolphin].

A model of the acoustic field of interfering reflections from steel cylinders was developed. Analysis of the model showed the availability of great potential resources for a decrease of the influence of unwanted echoes and hence for increasing the signal-to-clatter ratio. The conformity of the available models of the echolocation hearing of the dolphin to the acoustic field of the clatter was considered. The participation of mandidle mental foramens in conducting the echo to the cochlea was considered. In this case the hearing aperture is determined by the dimensions of mental foramens, while the hearing base is determined by the distance between the mental foramens of the left and right mandible halves. There are good reasons to believe that the optimal dimensions of the aperture and the base of echolocation hearing of Odontoceti essentially increase the effectiveness of defense of their sonar from reverberation.

[Clinical experience of the use of autologous mononuclear bone marrow cells in patients with ischemic heart disease and dilated cardiomyopathy].

Between March 2003 and February 2005 cell therapy with mononuclear bone marrow cells (MBMC) was used in 38 and 4 patients with ischemic heart disease and dilated cardiomyopathy, respectively. Intracardiac administration of MBMC (87+/-12 millions) was carried out during coronary artery bypass surgery and/or left ventricular aneurysm resection (n=25) or in cardiac catheterization laboratory (n=17). For verification of cells fixation they were labeled with "Ceretec" 99mTc-HMPAO. Accumulation of labeled cells after 24 hours was 1.6+/-0.001%. After 6 months parameters of intracardiac hemodynamics and transitory myocardial perfusion defects improved significantly in all patients with ischemic heart disease.

[Cardiomyoplasty with autological mononuclear cells of the bone marrow in patients with acute myocardial infarction].

AIM: To study efficacy and safety of transplantation of bone marrow autologous mononuclear cells (BMAMC) in patients with acute myocardial infarction; to examine BMAMC distribution in the human body after intracoronary introduction. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The open controlled trial investigated 26 AMI patients (16 entered the study group and 10 were controls). Cell cardiomyoplasty with BMAMC was performed by intracoronary injection of the cells after stenting the coronary artery supplying blood to the infarction zone on AMI day 7-21. BMAMC were isolated by gradient centrifugation. Distribution of mononuclear cells was studied with radionuclear indication of the cells 99m-Tc-HMPAO. All the patients were examined with Tl-199 perfusion scintigraphy of the heart 2 weeks and 6 months after the treatment, echocardiography, 24-h ECG monitoring, 6-min walk test. RESULTS: All the patients were followed up for 6 months. Two patients (one in each group) developed recurrent myocardial infarction 3 months after the first. Radionuclide investigations revealed fixation of labelled mononuclear cells in the heart both in initial hours after the treatment and 24 hours after it. As shown by myocardial scintigraphy, intracoronary administration of the cells with short-term arterial occlusion was followed by much greater number of labeled cells. By follow-up month 6, in the study group, left ventricular ejection fraction increased more: 12.7 +/- 3.2% versus 10.4 +/- 2.5% in the control group (p = 0.09); moreover, a stable defect of myocardial perfusion reduced more (by 29 +/- 24% against 20 +/- 18%, respectively, p = 0.1). Malignant arrhythmia, complications during and after bone marrow aspiration, intracoronary administration of cell suspension were not registered. CONCLUSION: Intracoronary administration of BMAMC in AMI patients is safe and provides their transfer and fixation in the myocardium. BMAMC transplantation has a positive effect on recovery of perfusion and contractile function of left ventricular myocardium in AMI patients.

[The effects of intracoronary infusion of bone marrow mononuclears on myocardial contractility].

The effects of intracoronary infusion of bone marrow mononuclears (BMM) on myocardial contractility after myocardial infarction (MI) was studied in 16 post-infarction patients. The intracoronary infusion of autologic BMM during the subacute period of MI did not have a significant effect on myocardial contractility, the functional class of chronic heart failure, physical tolerance, and quality of life evaluated three and six months after the transplantation. Intracoronary BMM transplantation did not provoke ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation. BMM transplantation into an infarcted myocardium did not exacerbate coronary heart disease in post-infarction patients.

Anti-tumor effect of the alphavirus-based virus-like particle vector expressing prostate-specific antigen in a HLA-DR transgenic mouse model of prostate cancer.

The goal of this study was to determine if an alphavirus-based vaccine encoding human Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) could generate an effective anti-tumor immune response in a stringent mouse model of prostate cancer. DR2bxPSA F1 male mice expressing human PSA and HLA-DRB1(*)1501 transgenes were vaccinated with virus-like particle vector encoding PSA (VLPV-PSA) followed by the challenge with Transgenic Adenocarcinoma of Mouse Prostate cells engineered to express PSA (TRAMP-PSA). PSA-specific cellular and humoral immune responses were measured before and after tumor challenge. PSA and CD8 reactivity in the tumors was detected by immunohistochemistry. Tumor growth was compared in vaccinated and control groups. We found that VLPV-PSA could infect mouse dendritic cells in vitro and induce a robust PSA-specific immune response in vivo. A substantial proportion of splenic CD8 T cells (19.6 ± 7.4%) produced IFNγ in response to the immunodominant peptide PSA(65-73). In the blood of vaccinated mice, 18.4 ± 4.1% of CD8 T cells were PSA-specific as determined by the staining with H-2D(b)/PSA(65-73) dextramers. VLPV-PSA vaccination also strongly stimulated production of IgG2a/b anti-PSA antibodies. Tumors in vaccinated mice showed low levels of PSA expression and significant CD8+ T cell infiltration. Tumor growth in VLPV-PSA vaccinated mice was significantly delayed at early time points (p=0.002, Gehan-Breslow test). Our data suggest that TC-83-based VLPV-PSA vaccine can efficiently overcome immune tolerance to PSA, mediate rapid clearance of PSA-expressing tumor cells and delay tumor growth. The VLPV-PSA vaccine will undergo further testing for the immunotherapy of prostate cancer.

[Regeneration of myocardium]. / Regeneratsiia miokarda.

It has been systematized modern data on the myocardial regeneration and the regulation of cardiac cell proliferation in mammals and man. It has been performed an analysis published works which indicate that cardiomyocyte division and DNA synthesis in myocardial cells increase in many times during different pathological conditions. It has been generalized and analyzed results of experimental and clinical researches on the participation of stem cells in the regeneration of the heart. It has been present literature data on the telomeres and telomerase in cardiomyocytes.

[The functional activity of neutrophilic granulocytes in hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome]. / Funktsional'naia aktivnost' neitrofil'nykh granulotsitov pri gemorragicheskoi likhoradke s pochechnym sindromom.

In blood samples taken from 33 patients having hemorrhagic fever with the renal syndrome (HFRS) the capacity of neutrophil granulocytes for the ingestion of bacteria and for the reduction of tetrazolium nitro blue, as well as the content of cation protein in the cytoplasm of neutrophils and the concentration of lysozyme in the blood serum of patients, were studied. The study revealed an increase in the values of the above characteristics in comparison with similar data obtained in healthy subjects. Changes in the characteristics of the functional activity of neutrophils were found to depend on the period of the clinical course of HFRS.

[Intellectual characteristics of children with hemophilia]. / Osobennosti intellekta detei, bol'nykh gemofiliei.

Vechsler technique was applied to study 30 children with hemophilia aged 5 to 15 years. Tentative data showed no mental retardation in patients. Instead, their intellectual development was higher than that of control subjects (50 healthy adolescents). This issue should be further investigated and the data be used in education, choice of profession and occupation in these patients, i.e., their combined rehabilitation.

[Isolation and purification of specific proteins, forming during endometrium differentiation into decidual tissue]. / Vydelenie i ochistka spetsificheskikh belkov, obrazuiushchikhsia pri differentsirovke éndometriia v detsidual'nuiu tkan'.

Using analytical PAAG-electrophoresis two specific proteins, D1 and D2, were found in decidual tissue of pregnant women (6-12 weeks). These proteins were isolated and purified by means of ammonium sulfate saturation, chromatography on Sepharose 6B and ion exchange chromatography on DEAE 52 cellulose. The degree of purification of both D1 and D2 proteins was 100% and 81%, respectively. The both proteins were free of DNA, RNA and polysaccharides. The pI values of D1 and D2 proteins were at pH 5.6-6.0. According to gel electrophoresis on PAA-SDS-Na and gel filtration on Sepharose 6B, molecular weight of D1 protein was about 50,000-55,000 and of D2 protein--150,000-160,000 and 300,000-320,000, respectively. The specific decidual proteins D1 and D2 appear to be distinct from the so-called "pregnancy proteins" described previously.

[Paradigm of radiation-laser medical equipment and technology]. / Paradigma radiatsionno-lazernoi meditsinskoi tekhniki i tekhnologii.

Based on quantum chemistry and chemical kinetics, the paper formulates basically new concepts of the possibility of controlling biochemical reactions in biological tissues by simultaneously making abnormal human visceral foci, in cancer diseases in particular, exposed to two rays via radiation and optic laser radiations. The paper also presents experimental findings of the channeling of X-ray and fluxes of charged particles along the fiber wave guides. It considers the circuit engineering of a medical endoscopic device that concurrently transmits optic laser radiation and fluxes of penetrating radiation into the viscera.

[Comparative evaluation of the results of traditional and laser papillosphincterotomy]. / Sravnitel'naia otsenka rezul'tatov traditsionnoi i lazernoi papillosfinkterotomii.

The techniques of papillosphincterotomy were improved on the basis of CO2 laser and special laser tools. The results of 212 routine and 114 laser papillosphincterotomies were appraised. With the laser techniques, the incidence of postoperative complications reduced to 14% as compared to 23.6% with the routine method. The incidence of postoperative pancreatitis decreased from 7.5% to 4.3%, the destructive pancreatitis mortality, from 4.7% to 0.9%. The long-term results provide evidence for laser papillosphincterotomy.

[Use of YAG-neodymium and CO2 lasers for creating small-intestinal anastomoses]. / Ispol'zovanie AIG-neodimovogo i CO2-lazerov dlia formirovaniia tonkokishechnykh anastomozov.

A method for creating laser enteric anastomoses was developed in experiments with YAG-neodymium and CO2 lasers. The properties of such anastomoses were studied in detail in the early stages after the operation. The use of serial Soviet-produced laser devices and standard surgical instruments in the experiments makes it possible to introduce the results of the work into clinical practice in the near future.

[Psychosocial aspect and personality characteristics of patients with hemophilia]. / Psikhosotsia'lnyi aspekt i osobennosti lichnosti bo'lnykh gemofiliei.

The paper is concerned with the results of a study of the personality, of the intellectual development and psychosocial status in 137 patients aged 5 to 50 years suffering from hemophilia. As compared to the control group, insufficient social and labour adaptation of adult patients was established in spite of the positive characteristics of the personality and higher mentality in the patients at preschool and school ages. It is concluded that the problem requires further study with the use of the data obtained in psychosocial rehabilitation of this patients' group.

[Purulent complications of destructive pancreatitis]. / Gnoinye oslozheniia destruktivnogo pankreatita.

Pancreanecrosis was diagnozed in 492 of 2340 patients with acute pancreatitis. Suppurative complications were observed in 83 patients. In order to reduce the frequency of suppurative complications and mortality rate of acute suppurative pancreatitis the authors recommend an early beginning of complex infusive therapy.