Development of a Test System to Detect the Omicron Variant of SARS-CoV-2 and the Frequency of Its Detection in Patients.

We developed a new test system to detect the omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 using allele-specific reverse transcription PCR and estimated the frequency of its detection in patients living in the Novosibirsk Region. Clinical samples were divided into 3 groups: samples collected from December 1 to December 30, 2021 (group 1; n=66), from December 30, 2021 to January 10, 2022 (group 2; n=20), and from January 11 to January 22, 2022 (group 3; n=101). Based on the identification of 5 mutations specific to SARS-CoV-2 (B.1.1.529), two systems of oligonucleotide primers and probes were developed for detecting this coronavirus genotype in clinical samples. Limit of detection (LOD95) was 4×103 genome equivalents per 1 ml of clinical sample for the first test system and 2×103 for the for the second test system. The omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 was absent in group 1 of studied samples, but was detected in 20% (4/20) of group 2 samples and 88% of group 2 samples collected within less than 2 weeks of January 2022. Using developed test system, we showed that in less than 2 weeks the omicron variant has become dominant in patients, which confirms previously published data on its exceptional contagiousness.

Controlled nanostructures formation on stainless steel by short laser pulses for products protection against falsification.

The coloration of stainless steel surface due to the formation of spatially periodic structures induced by laser pulses of nanosecond duration is demonstrated. The period of microstructures corresponds to the laser wavelength, and their orientation angle depends on the adjustment of laser polarization. The marking algorithm for the development of authentication patterns is presented. Such patterns provide several levels of protection against falsification (visual, colorimetric and structural) along with high recording speed and capability of automated reading.

Interference of phase-shifted chirped laser pulses for secure free-space optical communications.

A new method concerning secure free-space communications by means of chirped laser pulse interference is proposed. Physical-layer security of the link is ensured by encoding the data in a relative phase difference between two spatially separated beams. The possible architecture of the dual-node link is discussed based on acousto-optic elements for signal modulation and detection.

[Increased serum concentrations of inflammatory cytokines in type 2 diabetic patients with chronic kidney disease].

AIM: To study the relationship between serum inflammatory cytokine levels in chronic kidney disease patients with type 2 diabetes. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Sixty-four patients aged 43 to 70 years with a glomerular filtration rate (GFR) of > 30 ml/min/1.73 m2 were examined. A control group consisted of 15 healthy individuals. The serum concentration of macrophage colony-stimulating factor (M-CSF), macrophage inflammatory protein 1α (MIP-1α), macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF), interleukin 6 (IL-6), as well as the urinary excretion of albumin and type IV collagen was determined by enzyme immunoassay. RESULTS: In patients with a GFR of > 60 ml/min/1.73 m2, M-CSF and MIF concentrations proved to be significantly higher than those in the control group (p = 0.0003 and p = 0.001, respectively). In those with a GFR of 30-59 ml/min/1.73 m2, there was an increase in the levels of M-CSF (p < 0.0001), MIP-1α (p = 0.002), MIF (p = 0.02), and IL-6 (p = 0.02). The decline in GFR was associated with the higher levels of M-CSF (p = 0.02) and MIP-1α (p = 0.02) and with the higher urinary excretion of type IV collagen (p = 0.01). M-CSF, MIP-1α, and IL-6 correlated positively with the urinary excretion of albumin (r = 0.34, r = 0.28, and r = 0.28, respectively; all p < 0.05) and type IV collagen (r = 0.31, r = 0.4, and r = 0.43, respectively; all p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The findings confirm the concept that chronic inflammation is involved in the development of diabetic kidney disease.

[The medical and sanitary passport of chemically hazardous facility and the surrounding area as the register of indicators of sanitary and epidemiologic safety of a state of health and habitat areas].

Basic provisions of the medical and sanitary passport of chemically dangerous object and the territory adjoining to it are presented in article. Need of development of the medical and sanitary passport for systematization of sanitary and epidemiologic data with the purpose of a complex assessment of health of the population and the personnel working at chemically dangerous objects, harmful factors production and environment taking into account emissions of polluting substances of chemically dangerous objects is shown.

[Urinary excretion of fibrogenic and antifibrotic growth factors in type 1 diabetic patients: the interrelationship with diabetic nephropathy].

AIM: To assess the relation between urinary excretion of profibrotic and antifibrotic growth factors, albuminuria and glomerular fibrosis in type 1 diabetic patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 64 patients with diabetes were examined, including 25 ones with normal albumin excretion rate (AER), 30 microalbuminuric and 9 macroalbuminuric patients. Urinary excretion of type IV collagen, transforming growth factor-beta 1] (TGF-beta 1), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2), hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and bone morphogenetic protein-7 (BMP-7) was determined by ELISA and compared to control (10 healthy subjects). Renal biopsy specimens were assessed in 7 patients with normal AER and in 14 microalbuminuric patients. RESULTS: Type IV collagen, TGF-beta1 and TNF-alpha excretion was increased significantly in patients with micro- and macroalbuminuria as compared to control (all p<0.05). Excretion of FGF-2 was increased in macroalbuminuric patients only (p=0.003). No marked changes in excretion of antifibrotic growth factors (HGF and BMP-7) were observed. TNF-alpha and FGF-2 correlated positively with urinary type IV collagen (r=0.37 and r=0.31, respectively). The presence of glomerular fibrosis in renal biopsy specimens was associated with higher excretion of TGF-beta1, TNF-alpha and FGF-2 (all p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The results suggest that unbalance between profibrotic and antifibrotic growth factors in the kidneys plays an important role in pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy. Urinary TGF-beta1, TNF-alpha and FGF-2 may offer new possibilities for detection of renal fibrosis in diabetic patients.

[Comparison of systemic manifestations of inflammation in torpid pulmonary tuberculosis and respiratory sarcoidosis].

The authors determined acute-phase protein spectrum, monocytic and neutrophilic functions by the values of spontaneous and stimulated HCT-tests, platelet function under basal conditions and their varying stimulation, the state of the hemostatic system, and the parameters of intravascular blood coagulation in 66 patients with torpid pulmonary tuberculosis and 84 patients with respiratory sarcoidosis (RS). The changes found in both diseases were fundamentally unilateral; however, they were more frequently detected in RS and they were more pronounced. In tuberculosis, all detected changes may give the impression that they are secondary to tuberculous infection and, in RS, act as primary triggers in the development ofgranulomatous inflammation.

[Experience with bronchomunal used in the combined treatment of patients with bronchial asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease].

The paper presents the results of treatment in 30 patients aged 16-59 years who have bronchial asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, by using a bacterial vaccine (bronchomunal) containing antigens of opportunistic bacteria: Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus viridans, Streptococcus piogenes, Moraxella catarrhalis. Immunotherapy with the vaccine had good and excellent effects in 73.33 of cases; the mean duration of acute respiratory viral infection decreased from 16 to 9 days after vaccination and a need for antibiotics. In the comparison group, a good effect was noted in 40% of the patients during one-year follow-up; the difference was statistically significant. The vaccine's tolerance was good; only 3 (9.9%) patients were observed to have vaccination-induced complications: exacerbations of chronic maxillary sinusitis and chronic bronchitis in 2 and 1 patients, respectively. The positive effect of bronchomunal was associated with the better values of cellular immunity, stabilized phagocytosis, and lower IgE levels.

[An association of the reduction in the count of T1 cells in the peripheral blood of patients with pulmonary tuberculosis with the lower monocytic expression of costimulatory CD80 molecules].

The percentage of T1 lymphocytes in the presence of the unchanged content of T2 cells were shown to be decreased in the peripheral blood of patients with pulmonary tuberculosis as compared with apparently healthy donors. In addition, the patients were found to have a significantly reduced quantity of CD80-expressing monocytes, the relative quantities of Th1 and Tc1 cells were directly related to the count of CD80+ monocytes. It is suggested that decreased CD80+ cells is a cause of ineffective antigen presentation that results in a systemic reduction in the count of CD4+ and CD8+ cells producing T1 cytokines and in impairment of an effective specific T1 response.

[Supervision over selection and exploitation of individual protective skin devices on objects and territories serviced by Federal Medical Biologic Agency].

The article covers main principles underlying sanitary epidemiologic supervision over selection and exploitation of individual protective skin devices on objects of Federal Agency on Nuclear Energy. The authors consider radiation hazards influencing humans; provide specific medical and technical requirements to individual protective skin devices, which are monitored during preventive and current sanitary epide miologic supervision and determining peculiarities of use of individual protective skin devices by personnel working in radiation-hazardous conditions.

[Implication of tuberculosis antibodies in the determination of tuberculous infection].

The summary serum pool of specific tuberculosis IgG, IgA, IgM antibodies to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MBT) antigens was studied in children aged under 7 years who had tuberculosis or latent tuberculous infection. The test system "AT-Tub-Best-strip" (ZAO "Vector-Best", Novosibirsk) was applied. The determination of the total level of antibodies to MBT antigens makes it possible to establish the latent activity of tuberculous infection in children, to form high tuberculosis-risk groups, and to select patients for preventive medicine. It is also of value in diagnosing the minor forms of tuberculosis of intrathoracic lymph nodes in children.

[Systemic manifestations of sarcoidosis].

The paper describes the diversity of manifestations of sarcoidosis, which determines the extent of this process. The present study revealed skin and joint lesions in most cases and identified the involvement of peripheral lymph nodes, eyes, heart, thyroid, kidney, spleen, liver, and pancreas. Sarcoidosis of the pleura, pericardium, subcutaneous fat, and ovaries was most common. The systemic manifestations of sarcoidosis were found only in half of the examinees, which is most likely to suggest the complexity of diagnosis, the poor awareness of the most accessible and most used study methods, and the frequency of spontaneous remissions.

[Differential diagnosis of systemic vasculitis and tuberculosis].

Microbiology, X-ray study, and bronchoscopy, including the examination of bronchoalveolar lavage and histology of thransbronchial lung biopsy specimens have proven to be of the greatest informative value in the differential diagnosis of different forms of systemic vasculitis and tuberculosis in 52 patients. Focal pulmonary tuberculosis was detected in the phase of S(II) infiltration on the right in a patient with rheumatic arthritis; Mycobacterium tuberculosis was bacterioscopically detected. The patient underwent specific antituberculous therapy that provided beneficial effects.

[Change in the protein kinase activity of glandular stomach mucosa in rats during malignant transformation]. / Izmeneniia aktivnosti proteinkinaz slizistoi obolochki zhelezistogo zheludka krysy pri zlokachestvennoi transformatsii.

Changes in the activity of protein kinases in the glandular stomach mucosa of rat were studied in the case of carcinogenesis induced by N-methyl-N'-nitro-N'-nitrosoguanidine. No essential changes in the activity of cAMP-dependent protein kinase (histone kinase) were found in the mucosa as well as in tissues of the developed tumours of the rat glandular stomach. The activity of cAMP-independent protein kinase (casein kinase) increased significantly 3 months after the beginning of the carcinogen administration and at the late stages (after 12-15 months) it was decreased considerably both in the glandular stomach tumours and in the stomach mucosa without the characters of the malignant growth. It is supposed that changes in the activity of casein kinase in the stomach mucosa at the late carcinogenesis stages are associated with the neoplastic transformation and precede the appearance of morphological characters of the malignization.

[HLA antigens in lung diseases]. / Antigeny HLA pri bolezniakh legkikh.

Altogether 337 patients with tuberculosis, 63 patients with sarcoidosis, 41 with exogenous allergic alveolitis, and 36 with chronic bronchitis were examined. Four hundred and 30 healthy persons comprised the control group. It was established that HLA genes play an important part as factors which control the level of susceptibility to some pulmonary diseases (tuberculosis, sarcoidosis, exogenous allergic alveolitis). Hypersusceptibility to different pulmonary diseases is associated with different HLA genes, namely with HLA-B14 in tuberculosis, HLA-B7 in sarcoidosis, and with HLA-B8 in exogenous allergic alveolitis. The susceptibility to pulmonary diseases may be under polygenic control; in particular during tuberculosis, both HLA-B14 gene and HLA-B15 gene play a role in the resistance control. The development of a disseminated chronic process coupled with disintegration may be associated with the latter gene, which may be due to a lower resistance. It stands to reason that in addition to HLA genes, other genetic systems are likely to determine the character of susceptibility to tuberculosis.

[Protein kinase activity and phosphorylation of endogenous proteins in the rat colonic mucosa during chemical carcinogenesis]. / Aktivnost' proteinkinaz i fosforilirovaniia éndogennykh belkov v slizistoi obolochke tolstoi kishki krysy pri khimicheskom kantserogeneze.

Treatment with a single dose of 21 mg/kg, of 1,2-dimethylhydrazine was followed by a significant decrease in the level of cAMP-dependent protein kinase (histone kinase) in rats' large bowel mucosa after 72 hrs. However, its level returned to basal value after 2 weeks, with casein kinase level remaining unchanged. Both carcinogen--induced tumors of the large bowel and adjacent mucosa showed a drop in protein (mol. wt.-50 kdalton) was enhanced in tumor considerably.

[Specific features of the course of pulmonary tuberculosis concurrent with liver pathology]. / Osobennosti techeniia tuberkuleza legkikh u bol'nykh s patologiei pecheni.

The study was undertaken to reveal clinical, biochemical, morphological, and immunological features of pulmonary tuberculosis concurrent with liver pathology. Patients with pulmonary tuberculosis who suffered from liver diseases were found to have more marked clinical signs, such as subfebrile temperature, weight loss, elevated levels of aminotransferases and gamma-glutamyltransferase. Morphological studies of liver biopsy specimens indicated that the rates of necrosis and inflammatory infiltration were higher in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) and chronic hepatitis B (CHB) and CHC and substantially lower in CHB and alcoholism. Impaired immunity involved primarily the phagocytic link.

[Planning and implementation of protective measures in emergencies during railway transportation of radioactive cargo]. / Planirovanie i provedenie zashchitnykh meropriiatii v avariinykh situatsiiakh pri zheleznodorozhnykh perevozkakh radioaktivnykh gruzov.

Protective measures in emergencies during railway transportation of radioactive cargoes must be planned in advance, by obligatorily taking into account many factors that influence the scope, nature, specific features and consequences of radiation transport accidents. Of great importance are radiation monitoring, protective regimens, and requirements for decontamination of various objects in liquidating the consequences of a radiation transport accident.

[Improving the efficacy of tuberculosis immunodiagnosis using anti-human IgG monoclonal antibodies]. / Povyshenie éffektivnosti immunodiagnostiki tuberkuleza putem primeneniia monoklonal'nykh antitel protiv IgG cheloveka.

Monoclonal antibodies (MAb) F5 to human IgG were used for creating immunoperoxidase conjugate. MAb dissociation constant was 10(-9)M-1 and the number of binding sites 1. Enzyme immunoassay (EIA) and immunoblotting showed that MAb F5 specifically recognize conformation epitope on intact human IgG molecule but not on other human immunoglobulins or denatured IgG. The resultant peroxidase conjugate with MAb F5 was used for EIA titration of antibacterial antibodies in sera from 30 patients with pulmonary tuberculosis, 28 patients with nonspecific pulmonary diseases (bronchitis and/or asthma, pneumonia), and 12 donors. For comparison similar studies were carried out with reference commercial immunoperoxidase conjugate to human IgG(H + L) manufactured at N. F. Gamaleya Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology. Mycobacterium tuberculosis monoantigen (mol. weight 15-18 kD), affinity isolated by antibacterial MAb S4C1G4 (alpha S4C1G4), and PPD (Batch RT 45, Stattens Seruminstitut, Denmark) were used. Sensitivity and specificity of serum antibacterial antibodies were compared. The specificity of conjugate based on MAb F5 with monoantigen alpha S4C1G4 was 78.21%, sensitivity 94.50%, while those of conjugate to human IgG(H + L) were 53.30 and 76.89%, respectively (p < 0.001). For PPD the specificity and sensitivity were 56.75 and 72.33%, respectively (conjugate with MAb F5) versus 47.67 and 62.38% for conjugate against IgG(H + L), p < 0.001. Similar values were obtained in assessment of the concentrations of antibodies to alpha S4C1G4 for MAb F5 conjugate: specificity and sensitivity 47.16 and 71.56%, respectively, versus 23.67 and 95.16% for PPD (p < 0.05). No statistically significant differences between the experimental groups were detected with IgG(H + L) conjugate. We believe that specific MAb-based conjugate to human IgG will improve the efficacy of EIA as a method for the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis.