Study of microbiome changes in patients with ulcerative colitis in the Central European part of Russia.

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is an inflammatory disease that affects the colon and rectum. Recently, evidence has emerged about the influence of microbiota on the development of this disease. However, studies on the role of intestinal microbiota in the pathogenesis of UC have been incomplete. In addition, there are no comprehensive studies of the causes of ulcerative colitis and data on the microbiological composition of the intestines of patients with ulcerative colitis in Russia. We carried out a study of the microbiological composition of the intestines of patients with ulcerative colitis and healthy individuals. We found significant changes in the bacteria genera and species in patients with UC compared with the control group using sequencing on the IonTorrent PGM system and subsequent data analysis. In our study we observed a significant increase of the genus Haemophilus, Olsenella, Prevotella, Cedecea, Peptostreptococcus, Faecalibacterium, Lachnospira, Negativibacillus, Butyrivibrio, and the species Bacteroides coprocola, Phascolarctobacterium succinatutens, Dialister succinatiphilus, Sutterella wadsworthensis, Faecalibacterium prausnitzii in patients with ulcerative colitis. In addition, in patients with ulcerative colitis there was a significant decrease in the genus Fusicatenibacter, Butyricimonas, Lactococcus, Eisenbergiella, Coprobacter, Cutibacterium, Falsochrobactrum, Brevundimonas, Yersinia, Leuconostoc and in the species Fusicatenibacter saccharivorans. We found confirmation of our data with literary sources and studies of UC. In addition, we discovered a few taxa such as Negativibacillus spp. and Falsochrobactrum spp. that have not been previously found in human stool samples. Our data confirm that more research is needed to understand the role of microbiome changes in the development of UC in different people populations.

[Assisted blood circulation, efferent detoxication and hyperbaric oxygenation in the treatment of exotoxic shock]. / Vspomogatel'noe krovoobrashchenie, éfferentnaia detoksikatsiia i giperbaricheskaia oksigenatsiia pri lechenii ékzotoksicheskogo shoka.

Experimental and clinical data on the employment of assisted circulation with extracorporeal oxygenation of the blood, exchange replacement of the blood in high volumes, hemoperfusion, and hyperbaric therapy in the treatment of exotoxic shock caused by methemoglobin-forming and corrosive poisons demonstrate a high efficacy of assisted circulation in the normalization of central hemodynamics (which permits exchange replacement of the blood and hemoperfusion), of the hepatorenal function, hemostasis, and other parameters of the internal media in humans and animals. The method is recommended for wide use at large reanimation and toxicological centers.

[Analysis of reporter gene expression at different segments of the vaccinia virus genome]. / Analiz ékspressii reporternykh genov v razlichnykh uchastkakh genoma virusa ospovaktsiny.

Two reporter genes: the firefly Photinus pyralis luciferase gene and the Escherichia coli beta-galactosidase gene were used for construction and characterization of the five unique recombinant vaccinia strain LIVP viruses expressing these genes in three nonessential regions of the virus genome. We give comparative characteristics of beta-galactosidase and luciferase activities in experiments of transient expression and expression dynamics of reporter genes by different stable recombinant viruses. Both genes are expressed with high efficiency independent on the sites of virus genome localization. It is shown that the TK-, HA- and N-regions of vaccinia virus DNA may be used for inserting foreign genes.

Transient expression assay in a baculovirus system using firefly luciferase gene as a reporter.

Transient gene expression assays were developed to assess the function of the regulatory sequences of baculoviruses Bombyx mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus (BmNPV) and Autographa californica nuclear polyhedrosis virus (AcNPV) in insect cells of Bombyx mori and Spodoptera frugiperda, respectively. DNA sequences encoding luciferase (luc) of the firefly Photinus pyralis was successfully employed in the expression assay as a reporter gene. Recombinant plasmids were constructed containing the luc gene under control of baculovirus-specific or heterologous promoters. Cotransfection of Bombyx mori and Spodoptera frugiperda cells with recombinant plasmids carrying virus-specific promoter sequences and BmNPV and AcNPV DNA, respectively, gave rise to efficient synthesis of luciferase (Luc), while heterologous promoters induced a low level of luc expression. We found that flanking sequences of the AcNPV DNA in the transfer plasmid contained an unknown promoter conferring an efficient luc expression. The activity of this promoter was modulated by the polh promoter sequences. The assay allows one to conduct highly sensitive monitoring of the transient expression of foreign genes from the transfecting plasmids prior to construction of recombinant viruses.

[Polymerase and immunologic activity of reverse transcriptase of the HIV-1 virus, isolated from Escherichia coli]. / Polimeraznaia i immunologicheskaia aktivnost' rekombinantnoi obratnoi transkriptazy virusa HIV-1, vydelennoi iz Escherichia coli.

The recombinant reverse transcriptase of HIV-1 virus has been isolated from Escherichia coli cells transformed by the plasmid pRT40 DNA. The 103 Kd protein produced by these cells is shown to be processed to proteins with lower molecular masses by the reverse transcriptases own protease activity as well as Escherichia coli proteases. The resulting 103-66 Kd proteins possess the polymerase activity while 51 Kd and smaller proteins are lacking the activity. The 66 and 51 Kd reverse transcriptase fragments demonstrate the positive immunological reaction with the human blood serum from the people possessing antibodies to HIV-1 virus. The recombinant reverse transcriptase of HIV-1 produced by Escherichia coli cells is shown to be useful in AIDS diagnosis in humans.

[Expression of the glow worm luciferase gene in mammalian cells using vectors based on vaccinia viruses]. / Ekspressiia gena liutsiferazy svetliachka v kletkakh mlekopitaiushchikhs ispol'zovaniem vektorov na osnove virusa ospovaktsiny.

The transient expression of the two reporter genes, the genes for luciferase and bacterial beta-galactosidase, were used for comparative estimation of vaccinia viral promoters and for characterizing of the constructed plasmids. The recombinant clones of vaccinia virus expressing simultaneously and with high efficiency the luciferase and beta-galactosidase were used for studying the reproduction of vaccinia virus in mammalian cells. The advantages of the luciferase gene in using it as a reporter gene are discussed.

[Study of the stability of hybrid plasmids replicating in Saccharomyces cerevisiae due to DNA fragments from polyoma virus]. / Izuchenie stabil'nosti gibridnykh plazmid, replitsiruiushchikhsia v Saccharomyces cerevisiae za schet fragmentov DNK virusa poliomy.

Hybrid plasmid pSP97 carrying the entire genome of polyoma virus (PY), inserted into bacterial vector psV3, transforms yeast cells with the frequency 1 x 10(-2). Plasmid pSP97 is capable of autonomous replication in S. cerevisiae, while its structure remains unaltered, the stability of hybrid plasmid in transformants is 44%--100%. Plasmid pSP155 consisting of Ori-containing DNA segment from polyoma, pBR322 and yeast gene arg4, transforms yeast cells with the frequency 5 x 10(-3), the stability of plasmid in transformants is 23%--29%. Two types of plasmids were isolated from transformants: one was identical to SP155, while the another differed structurally and phenotypically from SP155. Plasmids pSP113 and pSP114, in addition to pBR322 and yeast gene arg4, contain a viral DNA segment that encodes genes from small and middle T-antigens. These plasmids transform yeast cells with low frequency (2 x 10(-4), 3 x 10(-5)), the stability of plasmids in yeast transformants is 100%. However, hybrid plasmids identical to pSP113 were isolated from transformants. Structural rearrangements have been observed in pSP114, which carries the arg4 gene in reversed orientation compared to pSP113.

Synthesis of proteins coded by plasmid vectors of pCV series (Apr, Tcr) and their recombinant derivatives (pDm) in E. coli minicells.

Polypeptide synthesis directed by vector plasmids of pCV series conferring ampicillin and tetracycline resistance (Apr, Tcr) and by recombinant plasmids (pDm) have been analyzed using the minicell system. It has been found that a polypeptide of 34 000 daltons is responsible for the Tcr phenotype and regulated from the promoter near the HindIII site. Cloning of DNA fragments into HindIII site allowed to conclude that DNA from Drosophila melanogaster contains nucleotide sequences which may act as promoters for a 34 000 dalton polypeptide gene. beta-Lactamase is expressed as five proteins of 24 000, 26 5000, 27 000, 28 500 and 29 500 daltons. Insertion of DNA fragments into PstI site prevents the synthesis of all five polypeptides. Recombinant clones Dm39 and Dm187 produce additional proteins of 19 000, 23 000, 24 000 and 27 000 daltons.

Effect of change in structure of cohesive ends on aggregating ability and biological activity of bacteriophage lambda DNA.

The effect of different types of buildup of the cohesive ends on the ability of phage lambda DNA molecules to form cyclic and concatemeric forms and on their biological activity in two infection systems--transfection and transformation--was investigated with the aid of E. coli DNA polymerase. A change in the structure of the cohesive ends leads to a change in the aggregating ability of the phage lambda DNA molecules up to an almost complete loss of this ability. The infectious activity of phage lambda DNA in the transfection system is very sensitive to a change in structure of the cohesive ends. It is suggested that phage development in this system requires retention of the ability to form cyclic or concatemeric forms. In the transformation system molecules with any of the modifications of the cohesive ends differ insignificantly from one another in infectivity. This can be attributed to the important role of recombination processes, which can save the defective DNA markers. DNAs with completely normal cohesive ends behave in the transformation system like phage lambda DNA fragments from internal parts of the molecule. No polarity of the cohesive ends is found when phage lambda develops in systems with or without a helper phage.

[Identification of partial hydrolysis products of lambda bacteriophage DNA by restriction endonuclease EcoRI]. / Identifikatsiia produktov nepolnogo gidroliza DNK bakteriofaga lambda endonukleazoi EcoR1.

The relationship between the electrophoretic mobility of double stranded DNA fragments electrophoresed in agarose gel and their molecular weights within the range from 1.10(6) to 8.10(7) daltons and agarose concentration 0.3--2.0% has been studied. Partial hydrolysis products of lambda phage DNA obtained by restriction endonuclease EcoRI have been separated. Partial hydrolysis products have been identified by determining the fragments of full cleavage as well as by genetic methods using a system of transformation of E. coli cells treated with CaCl2, which have been infected with different helper-phages containing definite gene mutations.