[Age-related features of expression of melatonin and its receptors in myocardial tissues in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy.]

In recent years, more and more attention of researchers has been paid to the study of dilated cardiomyopathy (DCMP). The prevalence of this disease in older age groups is higher than previously thought, and the course of the disease is associated with a worse prognosis and treatment difficulties. Researchers are considering various signaling molecules whose expression changes are associated with myocardial damage and the development of DCMP; evaluation of changes in the expression of melatonin and its receptors in DCMP requires further study. The aim of the study was to study the age-related features of the expression of melatonin and its receptors (MT1, MT2) in the myocardium and their changes depending on the presence of dilated cardiomyopathy. Immunocytochemical and immunohistochemical methods were used to evaluate the expression of melatonin and its MT1, MT2 receptors in myocardial autopsy material and cardiomyocyte cultures of people of different ages with and without cardiovascular pathology. The study revealed age-associated changes in the form of a decrease in the expression of melatonin and its MT1 and MT2 receptors in the myocardium. In individuals with DCMP of all age groups, a more significant decrease in expression was noted: melatonin by 1,6-1,7 times in old age and 3,2 times in old age; MT1 by 1,8 and 2 times, respectively; MT2 by 1,4 and 4 times, respectively. The relationship between the decrease in the expression of melatonin and its receptors in myocardial tissues with age and the presence of DCMP was revealed. The data obtained allow us to clarify age-dependent changes in melatonin and its receptors, as well as to assume their important role in the development of DCMP, which requires further study.

[The role of endothelial dysfunction for assessment of a rehab potential in the patients with acute stroke]. / Rol' endotelial'noi disfunktsii dlya otsenki reabilitatsionnogo potentsiala u patsientov v ostrom periode ishemicheskogo insul'ta.

OBJECTIVE: The analysis of the endothelial reactivity in the acute stroke by it severity and determination of rehab potential. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-three patients with ischemic stroke, aged 50 to 80 years, who were treated in the regional vascular center of Omsk region, were studied. The severity of stroke and stroke outcome was assessed by NIHSS and the modified Rankin scale. The test with reactive hyperemia was performed for all patients with measurement of the diameter of the brachial artery by ultrasonic diagnostics. RESULTS: Endothelial reaction that was investigated in the postischemic vasodilatation test depends on the severity of stroke and neurological deficiency. Moreover, endothelial dysfunction with bad outcome appears on the 7th day after stroke. CONCLUSION: The method can be used for evaluation of rehab potential.

A dusty veil shading Betelgeuse during its Great Dimming.

Red supergiants are the most common final evolutionary stage of stars that have initial masses between 8 and 35 times that of the Sun1. During this stage, which lasts roughly 100,000 years1, red supergiants experience substantial mass loss. However, the mechanism for this mass loss is unknown2. Mass loss may affect the evolutionary path, collapse and future supernova light curve3 of a red supergiant, and its ultimate fate as either a neutron star or a black hole4. From November 2019 to March 2020, Betelgeuse-the second-closest red supergiant to Earth (roughly 220 parsecs, or 724 light years, away)5,6-experienced a historic dimming of its visible brightness. Usually having an apparent magnitude between 0.1 and 1.0, its visual brightness decreased to 1.614 ± 0.008 magnitudes around 7-13 February 20207-an event referred to as Betelgeuse's Great Dimming. Here we report high-angular-resolution observations showing that the southern hemisphere of Betelgeuse was ten times darker than usual in the visible spectrum during its Great Dimming. Observations and modelling support a scenario in which a dust clump formed recently in the vicinity of the star, owing to a local temperature decrease in a cool patch that appeared on the photosphere. The directly imaged brightness variations of Betelgeuse evolved on a timescale of weeks. Our findings suggest that a component of mass loss from red supergiants8 is inhomogeneous, linked to a very contrasted and rapidly changing photosphere.

[Age-associated features of the expression level of apoptosis markers in cardiomyocytes of patients with dilated cardiomyopathy.]

To understand the pathogenesis of dilated cardiomyopathy (DCMP), it is necessary to establish the molecular-cellular mechanisms of myocardial aging, including those associated with programmed cell death, the molecular mechanisms of which have not been practically studied. The aim of this work is to study markers of apoptosis in cardiomyocytes of patients with DCMP in vitro. We used the method of primary dissociated cell cultures and the method of immunofluorescence confocal laser microscopy. Cells of the 3rd and 14th passages, corresponding to «young¼ and «old¼ cultures, were used to simulate cellular senescence. Results. At the molecular level, aging of cardiomyocyte cells was accompanied by a twofold increase in the expression of p16INK4a compared to «young cultures¼ both in the control group and in the group with DCMP. It was also found that the expression of p16INK4a in cultures taken from patients with pathology was 2 times higher than in similar cultures from healthy patients. The expression of p21 was increased in the group with DCMP compared to the control; however, with aging of the culture, the expression of p21 did not change, remaining at a significant level. The most significant differences were obtained when comparing the expression of Bax in the cell culture of cardiomyocytes from the group with DCMP in a «young¼ culture compared with the norm, 3,2 times. Aging of myocardial cells at the molecular level was manifested in an increase in the expression of the Bax protein, which is the triggering mechanism of the mitochondrial apoptosis pathway. It is possible that this pathway of cell death is prevalent in DCMP.

Generational shift in the migratory common noctule bat: first-year males lead the way to hibernacula at higher latitudes.

Many migratory species have shifted their geographic distribution in response to climate change, yet the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood, particularly for mammals. We hypothesized that generational shifts are underlying the observed colonization of hibernation sites further north in a migratory bat, the common noctule (Nyctalus noctula). To evaluate our hypothesis, we collected long-term data on the migratory status and demography of common noctules in a recently colonized hibernation area. Based on isotopic data of 413 individuals, we observed a significant decline in the proportion of long-distance migrants from 2004 to 2015 for both sexes and across all age groups. Demographic data collected between 2007 and 2016 from 3394 individuals demonstrated that subadult males were more abundant during the early colonization stage, followed by a gradual shift to a more balanced age and sex composition. Our results suggest that the colonization of hibernacula at higher latitudes is promoted by generational shifts, involving mostly first-year males. Generational shifts seem to be a likely mechanism for distribution changes in other bats and potentially also in other mammals.

Large granulation cells on the surface of the giant star π1 Gruis.

Convection plays a major part in many astrophysical processes, including energy transport, pulsation, dynamos and winds on evolved stars, in dust clouds and on brown dwarfs. Most of our knowledge about stellar convection has come from studying the Sun: about two million convective cells with typical sizes of around 2,000 kilometres across are present on the surface of the Sun-a phenomenon known as granulation. But on the surfaces of giant and supergiant stars there should be only a few large (several tens of thousands of times larger than those on the Sun) convective cells, owing to low surface gravity. Deriving the characteristic properties of convection (such as granule size and contrast) for the most evolved giant and supergiant stars is challenging because their photospheres are obscured by dust, which partially masks the convective patterns. These properties can be inferred from geometric model fitting, but this indirect method does not provide information about the physical origin of the convective cells. Here we report interferometric images of the surface of the evolved giant star π1 Gruis, of spectral type S5,7. Our images show a nearly circular, dust-free atmosphere, which is very compact and only weakly affected by molecular opacity. We find that the stellar surface has a complex convective pattern with an average intensity contrast of 12 per cent, which increases towards shorter wavelengths. We derive a characteristic horizontal granule size of about 1.2 × 1011 metres, which corresponds to 27 per cent of the diameter of the star. Our measurements fall along the scaling relations between granule size, effective temperature and surface gravity that are predicted by simulations of stellar surface convection.

[VACUUM-THERAPY OF DIFFUSE PERITONITIS].

The experience of treatment of 37 patients, suffering diffuse peritonitis, in 18 of them in complex with vacuum-therapy, is adduced. In a comparison group a sanation relaparotomy was applied only. International classifications SOFA, APACHE II, Manheim's Index of the Peritonitis Severity were used for estimation of the patients' state severity. The vacuum-therapy application have promoted significant reduction of the abdominal cavity microbial soiling, permitted to escape the compartment syndrome occurrence, and to reduce the sanation relaparotomy performance rate.

[The symptoms and surgical tactics for complicated forms of the abdominal cavity tuberculosis].

The results of treatment of 12 patients, suffering complicated forms of abdominal tuberculosis and external intestinal fistulas, were presented. Late diagnosis of abdominal tuberculosis in the patients, suffering the complications phase of the disease, is caused by unclear symptoms presence in early stages of the disease. Clinical and laboratory indices in peritonitis of a phthisis origin are nonspeciphic. In 91% of patients, admitted to the hospital for complicated forms of abdominal tuberculosis and external intestinal fistulas, the operative treatment was indicated. Surgical intervention (more frequently right-sided hemicolectomy, enterostomy, the abscesses opening, the caseously-changed lymph nodes excision, formation of anastomosis) was performed in 11 patients for peritonitis and external intestinal fistulas. The method of a secure invagination anastomoses formation was elaborated, permitting to perform primary restoration operations. An early diagnosis, early effective therapy and radical surgical intervention conduction for complicated abdominal tuberculosis promote the patients to survive.

[Treatment of purulent wounds using vacuum-therapy].

The results of treatment of complex wounds in 115 patients, in 56 of whom vacuum-therapy was conducted, were analyzed. The duration of a bandage holding constitutes 1 - 3 days at average. The peculiarities of clinical course, the dynamics of the wounds microbic spillage, cellular content in the wounding prints, phagocytic activity and phagocytic number, the phagocytosis completeness index were estimated and calculated. Application of vacuum-therapy have promoted the earlier cleansing and epithelization of the wounds as well as the tissues reparation occurrence and the laboratory indices normalization.

[The splenic abscess: alternative surgery].

The experience of treatment of patients for splenic abscess, using the abscess cavity puncture and drainage under ultrasonographic guidance, was summarized. The authors consider the method applied as a perspective one, noting, yet, its risks and a need for further studying.

[Correlation between the sizes of Drosophila populations and parameters of solar activity].

The relationship between the time series of the dynamics of the numbers of experimental populations of Drosophila melanogaster at the preimaginal stage and three heliogeophysical indices: Wolf numbers, the intensity of the 10.7-cm radio flux, and the Kp-index of geomagnetic activity was analyzed. Statistically significant data were obtained indicating that the dynamics of the number of the populations is related to the heliogeophysical factors, and this relationship depends on the phase of the 11-year cycle of solar activity. It was shown that the fertility of females and the survival of eggs is stimulated by factors associated with solar activity.

[Fluctuations in numbers in box populations of Drosophila and selective genetic mechanism of their regulation]. / Kolebaniia chislennosti iashchichnykh populiatsii drozofily i selektsionno-geneticheskii mekhanizm ikh reguliatsii.

Box populations of Drosophila melanogaster are characterized by two types of periodical fluctuations of numbers: with low and high frequency. High frequency fluctuations are determined by existence of preimago and imago stages and subsequent delay in density-dependent limitation of imago reproduction, duration of which is determined by time of preimago stage. The period of these fluctuations should be limited within two generation, that is confirmed by experimental data. Low frequency fluctuations with the period of 13-15 generations are the result of ecological density-dependent effect. In this case during pick density one can observe continuous degradation of population (i.e. decrease in fecundity and life time of imago) and following decrease in numbers. Temporary changes in fecundity of females and their offspring of the second generation are positively correlated with low frequency fluctuations in numbers. Such relationships show the possibility of density-dependent, cyclic, genetic changes in fecundity connected with fluctuations in numbers. It means that at the phase of growth in numbers when the density is still low, the selection is directed to the individuals with high fecundity sensible to overpopulation. The phase of decline in numbers is connected with high density and selection directed to the individuals with low fecundity in low density populations. The changes in genetic structure of fluctuating population lead to the weakening of this fluctuations and to the maintaining of population under such conditions.

[Non-clostridial epi-fascia phlegmon]. / Neklostridial'naia épifastsial'naia flegmona.

Complex method of surgical treatment of epifascial phlegmon is elaborated. The flaps tailoring and dividing in accordance to anatomic site and its blood supply permits to do radical cleansing and sanitation of focus with mixture of hydrogen peroxide and spirituous solution of iodine preserving the viable skin maximally. In contrast to conventional "stripe" incisions, application of the proposed method permits to preserve the wound from significant lympho--and plasma losses, causing the wound exhaustion, secures the possibility of visual control of the necrotic process course. The wound coverage with cutaneo-subcutaneous flap of the full value assists reducing of the pain intensity. The flap fixation prevents its shortening, that's why good cosmetic effect is noted after the wound healing concludes. Complex program of the necrotic fascitis treatment proposed had permitted to reduce the hospitalization duration of patients twice and to lower the mortality rate more than in 3 times.