[ABCG1 transporter gene expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of patients with atherosclerosis].

Accumulation of cholesterol in arterial wall macrophages is a main hallmark of atherosclerosis. The ABCG1 transporter mediates cholesterol efflux to high density lipoproteins (HDL) and plays an important role in macrophage foam cell formation. The goal of our study was to investigate the potential role of ABCG1 in atherosclerosis development in humans. ABCG1 gene expression has been examined in leukocytes, monocytes and monocyte-derived macrophages of patients with atherosclerosis and in the control group. Real time PCR and Western blotting were used to determine ABCG1 mRNA and ABCG1 protein levels. Monocyte ABCG1 mRNA level was inversely correlated with the rate of artery occlusion (r = -0.45, P = 0.016). Patients with 100% artery occlusions had decreased monocyte ABCG1 mRNA levels compared to patients who had smaller plaques and controls (P < 0.05). ABCG1 mRNA (P < 0.001) and ABCG1 protein (P < 0.05) levels in macrophages of patients with coronary artery stenosis were significantly reduced compared to the control group. No significant correlation between the ABCG1 gene expression in mononuclear cells and HDL cholesterol concentration has been found. Our study suggests that decrease in the ABCG1 gene expression in macrophages is associated with atherosclerosis.

[Individual approach to choosing the exposure time during myocardial perfusion single-photon emission computed tomography].

OBJECTIVE: To assess whether the quality of the results of myocardial perfusion single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) may be improved by applying an individual approach to choosing the exposure time of a study. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The results of myocardial perfusion SPECT with the radiotracer (RT) Technetril upon 25-sec (short) and 60-sec (long) exposures in 22 patients with valvular heart disease (VHD) and coronary heart disease (CHD) were retrospectively analyzed. The basis for the comparative assessment of the study results was the number of myocardial impulses (NMI). The reference informative value was taken as a NMI equal to 21,000-77,000. All the patients were divided into two groups: 1) those with a NMI of below 21,000 and 2) those with a NMI of above 21,000. The raw counts of RT and lesion extent were compared in each group during two exposure modes. RESULTS: No statistically significant differences were found between the raw counts of RT in the left ventricular segments upon short and long exposure regardless of NMI. Evaluation of lesion extent revealed differences in sizes and/or location in 14 (63,6%) patient upon various exposures, most (10 patients) of them were from Group I and only 4 patients were from Group 2, these patients having marked myocardial hypertrophy. CONCLUSION: To enhance the informative value of myocardial perfusion SPECT, it is expedient to individually choose exposure time for each patient, being oriented to the time taken to achieve a NMI of at least 21,000, which can be determined by making one planar scintigram in the left anterior oblique projection (LAO 45 degrees).

[ABCA1 mRNA and protein levels in M-CSF-activated macrophages from patients with arterial stenosis].

ABCA1 transporter is one of the key factors defining the level of antiatherogenic HDL in plasma. It is actively involved in the removal of cholesterol from peripheral tissues by reverse cholesterol transport. However, the influence of the level of ABCA1 mRNA and the level of ABCA1 protein 1 in macrophages in atherosclerosis remains unexplored. Using real time PCR we determined ABCA1 mRNA level in macrophages cultured for 5 days with macrophage colony-stimulating factor (M-CSF). ABCA1 mRNA levels in macrophages from patients with arterial stenosis were increased when compared with the control group, P = 0.04. According to a Western blot analysis ABCA1 protein level in macrophages from patients was significantly lower than in the control group, P = 0.01. Our results suggest that the level of ABCA1 mRNA and level of ABCA1 protein in macrophages may be important factors in the development of atherosclerosis.

[Long-term results of using mononuclear fraction of autologous bone marrow cells in complex surgical treatment of patients with heart valve failure].

The article is devoted to long-term results of pilot clinical investigation of using mononuclear fraction of autologous bone marrow cells as an additional procedure to standard surgical treatment of heart valve failure in order to improve local perfusion and contractive ability of the myocardium. The article presents results of an analysis of findings of the examination of 7 living patients within 6 years or 7 years after operation as also data of pathologicoanatomical investigation of three dead patients. The data obtained show the safety and effectiveness of this method of cell therapy in patients with heart valve failure.

[The APUD-system function of the intestines and the morphological changes in the internal organs of adult rabbits infected with toxigenic Vibrio cholerae]. / Sostoianie APUD-sistemy kishechnika i morfologicheskie izmeneniia vo vnutrennikh organakh vzroslykh krolikov, zarazhennykh toksigennymi kholernymi vibrionami.

V. cholerae infection with clearly pronounced diarrhea was reproduced in adult rabbits with the use of the RITARD system. The state of the APUD system of the intestine of the animals and morphological changes in internal organs in experimental cholera were described. As noted in this study, the manifestation of changes in the intestine and other organs, as well as the reaction of apudocytes to V. cholerae infection, were linked with the intensity of diarrhea and the time of the death of the animals.