[Quality of Life of Patients With Ischemic Heart Disease and Pronounced Dysfunction of Left Ventricular Myocardium With Medical and Surgical Treatments].

We assessed quality of life in 80 patients with ischemic heart disease and pronounced dysfunction of left ventricular myocardium. Forty patients underwent coronary bypass surgery and 40 patients received only medical therapy. Duration of follow-up was 7 years. Baseline quality of life was low in both groups. Degree of its lowering was positively related to functional class of angina and heart failure and negatively - to exercise tolerance. Incessant drug treatment was associated with moderate improvement of quality of life both in groups of patients subjected and not subjected to surgery.

[Treatment of a patient with a ruptured infectious aneurysm of the aortic arch].

Described in the article is a clinical case report concerning surgical treatment of a 65-year-old male patient presenting with a ruptured infectious aortic arch aneurysm. He was subjected to an operation consisting in prosthetic repair of the ascending portion of the aorta and aortic arch with a homograft under conditions of artificial circulation, deep hypothermia, and antegrade cerebral perfusion.

Human beta-defensin-2 controls cell cycle in malignant epithelial cells: in vitro study.

AIM: In the present research we analyze the mechanism of human beta-defensin-2 (hBD-2) influence on cultured malignant epithelial cell growth. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The analysis of a concentration-dependent effect of recombinant hBD-2 (rec-hBD-2) on cell growth patterns and cell cycle distribution has been performed in vitro with 2 cell lines (human lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells and human epidermoid carcinoma A431 cells) using MTT test, flow cytometry and direct cell counting. To study intracellular localization of hBD-2 immunocytofluorescent and immunocytochemical analyses were applied, and effect of hBD-2 on signal cascades involved in cell cycle regulation has been studied by Western blotting. RESULTS: According to our data, rec-hBD-2 exerts a concentration-dependent effect on the viability of cultured A549 and A431 cells. It causes proproliferative effect at concentrations below 1 nM, significant suppression of cell proliferation at concentration range from 10 nM to 1 µM (p<0.05), and cell death at higher concentrations. Using flow cytometry we have demonstrated that hBD-2 dependent growth suppression is realized via cell cycle arrest at G1/S phase (p<0.05). Also, we have registered significant activation of pRB and decreased expression of Cyclin D1 in cells treated with the defensin compared to untreated control cells, while the expression of p53 remains unaffected. The study of intracellular localization of hBD-2 in these cells has revealed that exogeneously added defensin molecules enter the cells, are distributed throughout the cytoplasm and could be detected in cell nuclei. The model study using A549 cells treated with 1,25-(OH)(2)D(3) has shown similar cell growth suppression effect of native endogenously produced hBD-2. CONCLUSION: The results of our study suggest that in malignant epithelial cells hBD-2 may control cell growth via arrest of G1/S transition and activation of pRB.

Administration of vitamin D3 improves antimetastatic efficacy of cancer vaccine therapy of Lewis lung carcinoma.

AIM: To analyze antitumor efficacy of experimental cancer vaccine therapy combined with introduction of vitamin D3 (VD3) for treatment of Lewis lung carcinoma (3LL). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cancer vaccines composed from recombinant murine beta-defensin-2 (mBD-2) and 3LL cell lysate, or DNA, coding for mBD-2-Muc1 fusion construct cloned in pcDNA3+ vector, were prepared and used for intradermal vaccination. Experimental cancer vaccines introduced i. d. at therapeutic and prophylactic regimens to 3LL-bearing C57Bl mice, were applied alone or in combination with VD3 (administered per os) and/or low-dose cyclophosphamide (CP, administered intraperitoneal). Efficacy of treatments was analyzed by primary tumor growth dynamics indexes and by metastasis rate in vaccinated animals. RESULTS: As it has been shown, administration of the protein-based vaccine composed from mBD-2 and 3LL cell lysate in combination with VD3 and CP, but not in VD3 free setting, led to significant suppression of primary tumor growth (p < 0.005) and had significant antimetastatic effect. Introduction of VD3 with or without CP in the scheme of treatment with mBD- 2-Muc1-DNA vaccine at therapeutic regimen has led to significant suppression of primary tumor (p < 0.05) and metastasis volumes (p < 0.005), while in the groups of animals treated with DNA-vaccine + VD3 with or without CP at prophylactic regimen, significant antimetastatic effect (p < 0.05) and elevation of average life-span (p < 0.05) have been registered. CONCLUSION: The results of this pilot study have shown promising clinical effects of VD3 administration in combination with cancer vaccinotherapy in vivo.

Immunohistochemical analysis of beta-defensin-2 expression in human lung tumors.

AIM: The present research was directed on analysis of the expression patterns of human beta-defensin-2 (hBD-2) in human lung tumors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Specimens of surgically resected human lung tumors (n = 31) of different histological type (1 case of small cell lung cancer, and 30 cases of non-small cell lung cancer (1 case of clear cell carcinoma, 9 cases of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), and 20 cases of adenocarcinoma (AC)) were analyzed for expression of hBD-2 with the use of immunohistochemical analysis. RESULTS: Immunohistochemical analysis has revealed that all lung tumor samples independently on their histological type express hBD-2 peptide, however at different levels (from < 5% to 100% cells). According to our observations, low-differentiated AC differs from moderately differentiated AC by significantly lower hBD-2 expression levels (p < 0.05). No correlation between hBD-2 expression patterns and PCNA or Bcl-2 expression has been found. CONCLUSION: Human beta-defensin-2 expression levels may depend on differentiation grade of lung adenocarcinoma.

[Radical removal of carotid chemodectoma followed by prosthetic repair of the internal carotid artery].

Presented herein is a case report of successful surgical management of a 34-year-old female patient diagnosed with carotid chemodectoma, a relatively rare pathology vascular surgeons come across and have to deal with. A comprehensive examination (including duplex scanning of cervical arteries, multispiral CT angiography) revealed a 7 x 8 cm cervical tumour completely invading the walls of both the external and internal carotid arteries, thus requiring their resection, followed by prosthetic replacement of the internal carotid artery with a synthetic graft. The postoperative period turned out uneventful. On the 7th postoperative day, the patient was discharged home from hospital in a satisfactory condition with good laboratory and haemodynamic values.