Pathways of neuro-immune communication: past and present time, clinical application

Fundamental studies in neuroimmunophysiology are the keystone for development of new therapeutic approaches to the treatment of infectious, allergic, oncologic and autoimmune diseases. The achievements in this field allowed approving new treatment methods based on irritation of afferent and efferent fibers of autonomic nerves. That became possible due to numerous studies of pathways between the immune and nervous systems performed over last two decades. The milestones in the history of neuroimmune communication research are represented here. The immune system organs – bone marrow, thymus and spleen are coupled to central nervous system (CNS) via sympathetic nerves. Information about LPS and bacteria emergence in peritoneum, intestine and parenchymal organs reaches the brain via parasympathetic pathways. After vagotomy, the brain neurons do not respond to this kind of antigens. The pattern of brain responses to different applied antigens (the EEG changes and the quantity of c-Fos-positive neurons) is specific for definite antigen, like as algorithms of electroneurogram after exposure to different cytokines. Activation of parasympathetic nerves causes the inhibition of inflammation. The entry of any antigens into the body initiates production of cytokines (IL-1, TNFα, IL-6, IFNγ etc.), via specific receptors which are present on peripheral neurons and terminals of vagus nerve, i.e. the vagal afferent terminals and neurons respond to cytokine action, and these signals are transmitted to CNS neurons. The afferent vagal fibers end on the dorsal vagal complex neurons in the caudal part of medulla oblongata. The information about bacterial antigens, LPS and inflammation is transmitted to the brain via afferent autonomic neural pathways. The speed of this process is high and significantly depends on the rates of cytokine production that are transmitters of signals upon the antigen exposure. It is important to emphasize that this events occur within minutes, and the response to the received information proceeds by reflex mechanisms, i.e., within fraction of a second, as exemplified by inflammation (“inflammation reflex”). This is a fundamentally new and revolutionary discovery in the functional studies of immune system regulation. Clinical efficiency of n. vagus stimulation by pulsed ultrasound was shown, being used for the treatment of inflammatory, allergic and autoimmune diseases, e.g., multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, renal inflammatory diseases. Electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve reduces the death of animals in septic shock by 80%. The mentioned data have made a revolution in understanding the functional arrangement of immune system in the body. A hypothesis is represented, which suggests how the information on the antigen exposure is transmitted to the brain

The Valuable Bases of Business Ethics in Multicultural Environment

A causa de la creciente importancia de las normas éticas en la comunicación y las actividades el presente estudio identifica la base de valores subyacentes a la conducta empresarial en el entorno de la comunicación de negocios y sus estructuras globales. El estudio pretendió obtener datos empíricos acerca de los valores que condicionan el comportamiento de los empresarios de los países Alemania, Francia, EEUU, España, Rusia, etc. cuya interacción determina la situación en el mercado europeo y mundial. Se comprobó la hipótesis de que, junto al reducido número de valores culturales comunes, las bases de valores éticos de negocios difieren impidiendo la comunicación y la actividad empresarial multicultural efectiva y ponen en duda la transición masiva del Occidente al postmaterialismo, al menos para el importante grupo social, como lo es el empresario.Because of the increasing importance of ethical standards in business communication and activities the present research approach differs from methods traditionally applied in other studies in the same area, as it addresses profound ethical values underlying business conduct within the global interaction of business structures. The main study objective was gathering information on the true values which determine the entrepreneur’s behavior of the countries (Germany, France, USA, Spain, Russia, etc.) whose activities influence the general situation on the European and world market. The following hypothesis was to prove: European culture countries undoubtedly share a certain common values, but their market players show very different business ethics grounds, that is a serious obstacle for effective intercultural communication and makes doubtful the general Western shift to the postmaterialism at least regarding the business community

Phytoplankton of the delta of the Mekong River during the dry season

Human activity has disturbed the functioning of river ecosystems all around the globe. The current global climatic fluctuations and local anthropogenic impact lead to rearrangement in the structure and functioning of aquatic communities. One of the most important components of aquatic ecosystems is phytoplankton as the main primary producer of the organic matter, the basis for trophic relations and indicator of changes in the environment. This article presents the first results of a study concerning the peculiarities of quantitative distribution of biomass and species composition of phytoplankton in the delta of the Mekong River at the beginning of the dry season (December of 2018). Diatoms dominated according to biomass practically in all the stations of selection of samples. The total biomass of phytoplankton on average accounted for 0.049 ± 0.007 mg/L at the abundance of 40 ± 7 103 ind./L. In practically all the studied plots, according to biomass, the dominating diatoms were first of all Aulacoseira granulata, A. islandica, Cyclotella meneghiniana, Cyclotella spp., and Oxyneis binalis. Among Chlorophyta, most often we found Chlorella sp. and Scenedesmus quadricauda, but their biomass was insignificant. We determined statistically significant correlation relationships between biomass of phytoplankton and hydrological parameters. Based on the Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient, we determined negative relations between the total biomass of phytoplankton with salinity and pH. Positive correlation was seen between the biomass of diatoms and turbidity, and also between the temperature and the biomass of chlorophytes and Dinophyta. The biomass of golden algae (Chrysophyceae) and Dinophyta positively correlated with the mineralization. Quantitative regression analysis confirmed the close relationship between the total biomass of phytoplankton, hydrophysical and hydrochemical parameters. Besides the importance of scientific data on biological diversity and ecology of plankton algae, the results we obtained are necessary for organizing biological monitoring in the delta of the Mekong River in the future

“Insulting His Majesty with Insolent Words” as State Crime (St. Petersburg Archives)

The article is devoted to the responsibility for the verbal insult of the Russian Emperor, which belonged to the category of state crimes. For the commission of such criminal acts, according to Russian laws, responsibility was due. The documents of the two largest St. Petersburg archives: the Russian State Historical Archive and the Central State Historical Archive of St. Petersburg are analyzed in the article. The evolution of the concept of “insulting His Majesty” as a type of crime in Russian legislation is studied. The application of legal norms in the practical activities of Russian courts is considered. It is concluded that the Russian authorities paid great attention to this type of state crime. The degree of responsibility for its commission was very severe — up to a reference to hard labor. This was partly due to the sacralization of the person of the monarch, and therefore it was believed that the criminals encroached not only on him, but also on the very foundations of the state system. “Insulting His Majesty” remained one of the most common types of state crimes in the Russian Empire in the 19th and early 20th centuries

Responsibility for Sacrilege in Russian Empire of 19th — early 20th Centuries (Law and Enforcement)

The article deals with the history of relations between the Orthodox Church and the state and society. The importance of the religious component as a factor that played one of the key roles in the relationship between the state and society in Russia in the 19th — early 20th centuries is emphasized. The history of the development of responsibility for crimes against faith is traced. Particular attention is paid to this type of religious crime as sacrilege. The definition of “sacrilege” is given as a property encroachment directed at sacred or consecrated objects, as well as at church property. A detailed description of this type of crime is given and, using examples of judicial precedents of the law enforcement practice of the Russian Empire of the 19th century, its features are shown. The novelty of the study lies in the fact that it traces the evolution of the concept of “sacrilege” in Russian legislation of the 19th — early 20th centuries and determines the main trends in the field of law enforcement in relation to these crimes. It is proved that, despite the all-Russian tendency to gradually mitigate punishments for committing many religious crimes at the beginning of the 20th century, mitigation of responsibility in relation to sacrilege did not happen

Representation of Zadie Smith’s Individual Style in Original Text and Translation

Author’s individual style and its preservation in translation are a relevant issue of translation practices. This research is the first attempt in domestic linguistics to study Zadie Smith’s individual style and its manifestation in translation based on M. Yu. Mukhin’s analysis model. The methodology involved the methods of semantic interpretation, comparative analysis, content analysis, quantitative calculations, and linguistic analysis based on the conceptual profile model. The study featured Z. Smith's novel On Beauty and its translation performed by O. Kachanova and A. Vlasova. The analysis revealed the most frequent linguistic and stylistic means and denotative spheres and classes, e.g., such lexical means as simile, interjection, metaphor, allusion, and lexical repetition; various phonographic means, e.g., capitalization, graphic imagery, excessive punctuation, and graphon used to portray a wide variety of accents, etc. The official Russian edition conveyed the actual meaning and the lexical speech portraits by an effective use of various translation transformations, e.g., word order, lexical substitution, compensation, etc. In most cases, literal translation proved to be appropriate as it preserved the metagraphemic of the original text. However, the graphic fixation of the characters’ speech not always found its reflection in the translation text

RESPONSE OF LYMPHOID CELLS TO REGULATORY SIGNAL OF INTERLEUKIN 1 AS AN INDEX OF LYMPHOCYTE ACTIVITY

Intensivity of lymphocyte proliferative activity is an important and almost the only indicator of the level of functional activity of these cells, and the immune system in general. The aim of this study was to develop an adequate physiological test to determine the degree of functional activity of lymphoid cells. The choice of IL-1 as an activator of proliferation is justified by the presence of receptors to IL-1 on lymphoid cell membranes, the key role of this cytokine in the initiation of a wide range of biological effects of the immune system to antigen, including participation in intercellular cooperation and distant action on various cells. It was found that the ligand-receptor interaction of IL-1 by type I receptor activates neutral sphingomyelinase, and the sphingomyelin pathway of signal transduction in lymphocytes. The degree of activation of this enzyme depends on the type of stress and correlates with changes of the vector of humoral immune response and proliferative activity of lymphocytes. The level of IL-1 increases, but the activity of neutral sphingomyelinase and lymphoid cell proliferation is significantly reduced after applications of immunosuppressive stress in mice and rats. The change of the degree of lymphocyte proliferation has become a marker of the severity of the pathological process in clinic. A high degree of correlation between the low intensity of peripheral blood lymphocyte proliferation in response to IL-1 action and the unfavorable disease outcome in patients with severe combined trauma and children with purulent meningitis was established. Thus, the degree of lymphocyte proliferation in response to the action of the regulatory signal of IL-1 can be used both for the analysis of the effectiveness of immunomodulators, and as diagnostic and prognostic indicator in clinical practice

Omega phase formation in ti–3wt

It is well known that severe plastic deformation not only leads to strong grain refinement and material strengthening but also can drive phase transformations. A study of the fundamentals of α → ω phase transformations induced by high-pressure torsion (HPT) in Ti–Nb-based alloys is presented in the current work. Before HPT, a Ti–3wt.%Nb alloy was annealed at two different temperatures in order to obtain the α-phase state with different amounts of niobium. X-ray diffraction analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were applied for the characterisation of phase transitions and evolution of the microstructure. A small amount of the β-phase was found in the initial states, which completely transformed into the ω-phase during the HPT process. During HPT, strong grain refinement in the α-phase took place, as did partial transformation of the α- into the ω-phase. Therefore, two kinds of ω-phase, each with different chemical composition, were obtained after HPT. The first one was formed from the β-phase, enriched in Nb, and the second one from the α-phase. It was also found that the transformation of the α-phase into the ω-phase depended on the Nb concentration in the α-Ti phase. The less Nb there was in the α-phase, the more of the α-phase was transformed into the ω-phase