Infinite permutations vs. infinite words

I am going to compare well-known properties of infinite words with those of infinite permutations, a new object studied since middle 2000s. Basically, it was Sergey Avgustinovich who invented this notion, although in an early study by Davis et al. permutations appear in a very similar framework as early as in 1977. I am going to tell about periodicity of permutations, their complexity according to several definitions and their automatic properties, that is, about usual parameters of words, now extended to permutations and behaving sometimes similarly to those for words, sometimes not. Another series of results concerns permutations generated by infinite words and their properties. Although this direction of research is young, many people, including two other speakers of this meeting, have participated in it, and I believe that several more topics for further study are really promising.Comment: In Proceedings WORDS 2011, arXiv:1108.341

Studyng the effects of Cantharellus cibarius fungi on Opisthorchis felineus trematode and on parasite host - C57BL/6 inbred mice

Opisthorchiasis is a dangerous parasitic disease caused by trematodes in the family Opisthorchiidae. One of the causes of this infection is the species Opisthorchis felineus, which is common in the Russian Federation and Western Europe. The disease has a large number of complications and relatively few effective treatments, so nowadays it is relevant to look for new drugs for the treatment of opisthorchiasis, with the maximum antiparasitic and minimal side effect. In this work, a potentially anthelmintic effect of the methanol extract of the golden chanterelle mushroom (Cantharellus cibarius) was investigated. In in vitro experiments, the significantly reduced mobility and survival rates of juvenile O. felineus specimens with increasing concentrations (10-1000 pg/ml) of the C. cibarius extract were shown. In in vivo studies, administration of the C. cibarius extract on the first day after parasitic infection of inbred C57BL/6 mice resulted in a decrease of the number of helminths in the bile ducts of the liver, evaluated 6 weeks after infection. In another series of experiments, administration of the C. cibarius extract for 7 days to mice infected with O. felineus for five weeks had no anthelmintic effect. In both cases, the state of the infected hosts, evaluated by a number of physiological and biochemical parameters (relative weight of organs, blood indices), did not deteriorate, indicating that there was no adverse effect of the C. cibarius extract. The results obtained suggest that the C. cibarius extract might have anthelmintic properties if applied as parasite larvae excyst

Experimental opisthorchiasis: a study of blood cells, hematopoiesis and startle reflex in laboratory animals

One of the species of the family Opisthorchiidae, Opisthorchis felineus (O. felineus), causes severe disturbances in humans and animals, and so it is the subject of important research studies. Two weeks after infection we compared the impact of O. felineus invasion on the changes in blood cells composition, bone marrow hematopoiesis and behavioral startlereflex in inbred C57BL/6 male mice and Syrian hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus). Considerable interspecies differences were revealed for many parameters estimated. It was found that the relative weight of the main organ of the peripheral immune system – spleen, is significantly larger in mice than in hamsters. Moreover, the infection with O. felineus caused a significant enlargement of the spleen only in mice. More pronounced changes in the blood cells composition, which was accompanied by activation of hematopoietic stem cells of myeloid and erythroid set, were determined in hamsters. Blood changes in the response to infection in mice were less severe and were not accompanied by the changes in colony formation. Mouse acoustic startle reaction differed from hamster one too. The expression of the startle reaction and the value of pre-pulse inhibition were discriminated in animals of two species. Infected hamsters had no reaction of habituation  to the sound stimulus. In addition, the maturation of O. felineus worms was faster in hamsters than in mice. Data obtained suggest a greater resistance of mice to O. felineus infection, but do not exclude the availability of mice as a model in the study of processes taking place in the host during the development of experimental opisthorchiasis

Эффекты одно- и семикратного введения комплекса альбендазола с динатриевой солью глицирризиновой кислоты хомячкам, инвазированным Opisthorchis felineus

The purpose of the research is to evaluate the effect of albendazole as part of the supramolecular complex with disodium salt of glycyrrhizic acid obtained by solid-phase mechanical treatment.Materials and methods. The anthelmintic activity of the complex and its effect on the host organism was assessed on hamsters infected with Opisthorchis felineus by single and 7-fold administration at 45 days after infection. After 21 days, we counted the number of helminthes in the liver, and conducted a morphometric analysis of the liver and spleen, and detected biochemically the activity of alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase in the animals’ blood serum.Results and discussion. The number of O. felineus significantly decreased after 7-fold, but not a single, administration of albendazole (ABZ) and ABZ-Na2GA complex (1 : 10). The administrated substances had no effect on the weight gain of the animals and the daily consumption of the pellets. At the same time, ABZ only as part of the complex normalized the weight of the liver and spleen in hamsters infected with O. felineus and reduced the alanine aminotransferase activity. Consequently, a longer administration of ABZ as part of the complex with disodium glycyrrhizinate has not only a pronounced anthelmintic effect, but also improves some of the physiological parameters of hamsters to a greater extent than a pure substance.Цель исследований – оценить действие альбендазола в составе супрамолекулярного комплекса с динатриевой солью глизирризиновой кислоты, полученного методом твердофазной механической обработки.Материалы и методы. Оценку антигельминтного действия комплекса и его влияния на организм хозяина проводили на хомячках, инвазированных Opisthorchis felineus, при одно- и семикратном введении через 45 сут после заражения. Через 21 сутки после этого подсчитывали число гельминтов в печени; проводили морфометрический анализ печени и селезенки, а также биохимическое определение активности ферментов аланинаминотрансферазы и аспартатаминотрансферазы в сыворотке крови животных.Результаты и обсуждение. Число O. felineus существенно снижалось после семикратного, но не однократного, введения альбендазола (АБЗ) и комплекса АБЗ-Na2ГК (1 : 10). Вводимые вещества не оказывали влияния на прирост массы тела животных и суточное потребление гранул. При этом только в составе комплекса АБЗ нормализовал массу печени и селезенки у инвазированных O. felineus хомячков и снижал активность фермента аланинаминотрансферазы. Следовательно, более длительное введение АБЗ в составе комплекса с динатрия глицирризинатом оказывает не только выраженный антигельминтный эффект, но и в большей степени, чем чистое вещество, улучшает некоторые физиологические показатели хомячков

Relevance of Stress and Female Sex Hormones for Emotion and Cognition

There are clear sex differences in incidence and onset of stress-related and other psychiatric disorders in humans. Yet, rodent models for psychiatric disorders are predominantly based on male animals. The strongest argument for not using female rodents is their estrous cycle and the fluctuating sex hormones per phase which multiplies the number of animals to be tested. Here, we will discuss studies focused on sex differences in emotionality and cognitive abilities in experimental conditions with and without stress. First, female sex hormones such as estrogens and progesterone affect emotions and cognition, contributing to sex differences in behavior. Second, females respond differently to stress than males which might be related to the phase of the estrous cycle. For example, female rats and mice express less anxiety than males in a novel environment. Proestrus females are less anxious than females in the other estrous phases. Third, males perform in spatial tasks superior to females. However, while stress impairs spatial memory in males, females improve their spatial abilities, depending on the task and kind of stressor. We conclude that the differences in emotion, cognition and responses to stress between males and females over the different phases of the estrous cycle should be used in animal models for stress-related psychiatric disorders

ПРИМЕНЕНИЕ ПЭТ/КТ В ДИАГНОСТИКЕ, СТАДИРОВАНИИ И МОНИТОРИНГЕ КОЛОРЕКТАЛЬНОГО РАКА

The purpose of the study was to provide up-to-date data on the efficacy of positron emission computed tomography (PET) for the diagnosis, assessment of tumor extension and monitoring of colorectal cancer.Material and Methods. The Medline and Pubmed databases were used for searching for publications devoted to clinical trials of diagnostic value of PET with 18F-Ftordesoxyglucose (PET with 18F-FDG).Results. Data on the value of PET with 18F-FDG in visualization of the primary tumor, detection of lymph node and distant metastases and assessment of the treatment response in patients with colorectal cancer were presented.Conclusion. PET with 18F-FDG was shown to be a promising imaging method for colorectal cancer. It is the most sensitive method in the detection of liver metastases. 18F-FDG PET is particularly superior to CT and MET in the ability to assess tumor response to treatment and predict early tumor response to therapy. The development of new radiopharmaceuticals for the diagnosis, staging, monitoring and prediction of colorectal cancer is of great importance. Цель исследования – представить современные данные об эффективности применения позитронной эмиссионной компьютерной томографии (ПЭТ) для диагностики, оценки распространенности и мониторинга колоректального рака (КРР).Материал и методы. Проведён поиск литературных источников, опубликованных в базах данных Medline, Pubmed и др. по данной проблеме. Было найдено 70 источников, посвященных изучению результатов клинических исследований диагностических возможностей ПЭТ с 18F-фтордезоксиглюкозой (ПЭТ с 18F-ФДГ).Результаты. Представлены данные о возможности ПЭТ с 18F-ФДГ в визуализации первичного опухолевого очага, диагностике лимфогенных и отдаленных метастазов, при оценке эффективности противоопухолевого лечения при КРР.Заключение. Данный обзор литературы показал, что 18F-ФДГ ПЭТ является перспективным методом обследования пациентов с КРР и может быть рекомендован в качестве дополнительного исследования в тех случаях, когда другие методы лучевой диагностики не дают однозначного ответа. Кроме того, 18F-ФДГ ПЭТ является наиболее чувствительным методом в выявлении метастазов КРР в печень, дающим возможность оценивать эффективность терапевтических и хирургических вмешательств, а также прогнозировать течение опухолевого процесса на ранних сроках после начала лечения. Актуальной остается разработка новых РФП, которые позволят повысить доступность использования методов ядерной медицины для диагностики, стадирования, мониторинга и прогноза лечения КРР