Very high mutation rate in offspring of Chernobyl accident liquidators.

Exposure to ionizing radiation has long been suspected to increase mutation load in humans. Nevertheless, such events as atomic bombing seem not to have yielded significant genetic defects. The Chernobyl accident created a different, long-term exposure to radiation. Clean-up teams (or 'liquidators') of the Chernobyl reactor are among those who received the highest doses, presumably in some combination of acute and chronic forms. In this study, children born to liquidator families (currently either in the Ukraine or Israel) conceived after (CA) parental exposure to radiation were screened for the appearance of new fragments using multi-site DNA fingerprinting. Their sibs conceived before (CB) exposure served as critical internal controls, in addition to external controls (non-exposed families). An unexpectedly high (sevenfold) increase in the number of new bands in CA individuals compared with the level seen in controls was recorded. A strong tendency for the number of new bands to decrease with elapsed time between exposure and offspring conception was established for the Ukrainian families. These results indicate that low doses of radiation can induce multiple changes in human germline DNA.

[The role of segmental analgesic mechanisms in the development of silent myocardial ischemia in patients with initial coronary atherosclerosis]. / Rol' segmentarnykh protivobolevykh mekhanizmov v razvitii bezbolevoi ishemii miokarda u bol'nykh s nachal'nym koronarnym aterosklerozom.

In patients with ischemic heart disease (IHD) with early coronary atherosclerosis the ratio of the myocardial ischemia pain episodes (MIPE) to myocardial ischemia pain-free episodes (MIPFE) is 1:4. In IHD patients, an important role to play in the development of MIPFE has the first segmental link in the analgetic system leading to a segmental rise of the electropain sensitivity threshold. Blockade of alpha 1-adrenoreceptors with prazosinum decreases the activity of analgesic mechanisms and favours transition from MIPFE to MIPE. In patients with the initial stages of coronary atherosclerosis, prazosinum promotes a significant alleviation of both MIPFE and MIPE.

The influence of adrenoreactive preparations on clinical and haemodynamic parameters in patients with ischaemic heart disease.

The influence of anaprilin, oxprenolol, nonachlazine, prazosin and levodopa on the clinical course and haemodynamics was investigated in 138 patients with ischaemic heart disease in whom selective coronary angiography had revealed an up to 50 percent stenosis of one of coronary arteries. The clinical picture of IHD patients with a high tolerance of physical exercise was characterized by a preponderance of spontaneous angina pectoris accompanied by painless myocardial ischaemia. A certain role in the genesis of these disturbances is played by the relative increase in the activity of alpha 1-adrenoreceptors and decrease in beta-adrenoreceptor activity. Prazosin and nonachlazine in monotherapy reduced the number of anginal attacks and episodes of painless myocardial ischaemia.

[Cardiohemodynamics and microcirculation in patients with ischemic heart disease undergoing beta-adrenergic receptor stimulation and blockade]. / Kardiogemodinamika i mikrotsirkuliatsiia u bol'nykh ishemicheskoi bolezn'iu serdtsa pri stimuliatsii i blokade beta-adrenergicheskikh retseptorov.

A study of 76 patients with ischemic heart disease is presented who revealed during coronography stenosis of one-three coronary arteries equalling 50-75% of the vessel lumen. Analysis of the effect of anaprilin and nonachlazin on the clinical course and hemodynamics revealed that in patients with initial coronary atherosclerosis of middle age beta-adrenodependent vasodilation of the coronary arteries decreased. In these patients anaprilin may increase the frequency of attacks of spontaneous stenocardia. On the contrary, nonachlazin reduces manifestations of stenocardia but it may be used only in patients with a high tolerance to physical load.