The origin of a jury in ancient Greece and England

© 2016 Tumanov et al.The purpose of the study is to analyze the implementation of the democratic principles in the court and judicial process in the trial by jury by the example of the history and development of this institution in Russia. The authors used different methods and approaches, in particular, historical, systemic and Aristotelian method, concrete historical approach and rather-legal analysis. The paper assessed significance of the historical experience related to the organization and activities of the jury as a guarantor of successful implementation of democratic principles in the criminal trial, with regard to the international experience. The authors conclude that jury trial has its ancient roots, however, this modern phenomenon is taken from England. The research findings may be useful for future explorations on the origin of a jury by historians, philosophers and lawyers etc

Characterisation of indeterminate focal breast lesions on grey-scale ultrasound: role of ultrasound elastography.

PURPOSE: This study was undertaken to evaluate the role of ultrasound (US) elastography in characterising focal breast lesions classified as indeterminate on B-mode US. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eighty-four focal breast lesions, 64 benign and 20 malignant (mean diameter, 15.1 mm), detected but not characterised on B-mode US in 72 women, Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) US category 3 (n=56) or category 4 (n=28), were studied with US elastography and classified in consensus by two radiologists according to a five-point colour scale. Sensitivity, specificity and positive and negative predictive values (PPV and NPV) of US elastography compared with conventional US were calculated in relation to microhistology (n=67) and cytology (n=17), which were used as the reference standard. RESULTS: A total of 65/84 (77.4%) lesions were correctly classified as benign or malignant using US elastography, whereas the remaining 19/84 (22.6%) were incorrectly assessed. There were no statistically significant differences between US elastography and B-mode US with regard to sensitivity (70% vs. 68.4%), specificity (79.6% vs. 78.5%), PPV (51.8% vs. 48.1%) and NPV 89% vs. 89.5% (p>0.5). By contrast, a statistically significant difference was noted in the evaluation of BI-RADS 3 lesions, in which US elastography had 50% sensitivity, 86% specificity, 30% PPV and 93.5% NPV compared with BI-RADS 4 lesions (78.6%, 57.1%, 64.7% and 72.7%) (p<0.5). CONCLUSIONS: The high NPV of US elastography may help reduce the use of biopsy in BI-RADS 3 lesions, but its low PPV in BI-RADS 4 lesions does not allow avoidance of biopsy on the basis of the US elastographic score alone in this group of lesions

Dietary studies in birds: testing a non-invasive method using digital photography in seabirds

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from the publisher via the DOI in this record.Dietary studies give vital insights into foraging behaviour, with implications for understanding changing environmental conditions and the anthropogenic impacts on natural resources. Traditional diet sampling methods may be invasive or subject to biases, so developing non-invasive and unbiased methods applicable to a diversity of species is essential. We used digital photography to investigate the diet fed to chicks of a prey-carrying seabird and compared our approach (photo-sampling) to a traditional method (regurgitations) for the greater crested tern Thalasseus bergii. Over three breeding seasons, we identified >24 000 prey items of at least 48 different species, more than doubling the known diversity of prey taken by this population of terns. We present a method to estimate the length of the main prey species (anchovy Engraulis encrasicolus) from photographs, with an accuracy <1 mm and precision ~ 0·5 mm. Compared to regurgitations at two colonies, photo-sampling produced similar estimates of prey composition and size, at a faster species accumulation rate. The prey compositions collected by two researchers photo-sampling concurrently were also similar. Photo-sampling offers a non-invasive tool to accurately and efficiently investigate the diet composition and prey size of prey-carrying birds. It reduces biases associated with observer-based studies and is simple to use. This methodology provides a novel tool to aid conservation and management decision-making in the light of the growing need to assess environmental and anthropogenic change in natural ecosystems.Department of Science and Technology, South Afric

Physical parameters and dynamical properties of the multiple star o and

An analysis of the physical characteristics, orbital parameters, and dynamical stability of the multiple Be star HD 217675 (o And) is presented. Observations on the 6-m SAO and 1.5-m RTT telescopes are used to refine the orbital parameters of the subsystems. The spectral types, absolute magnitudes, and masses of the components are estimated. The total mass of the system is 18 ± 2 M⊙. It is shown that the configuration of the system is 2 + 2, where one of the subsystems is a spectral binary with a period of 33 d and the outer pair has a period of 117 yr. The parameters of the second inner subsystem are uncertain, making it difficult to draw firm conclusions about the stability of this multiple star. © 2010 Pleiades Publishing, Ltd

A randomized phase II study of lapatinib + pazopanib versus lapatinib in patients with HER2+ inflammatory breast cancer

This multi-center Phase II study evaluated lapatinib, pazopanib, and the combination in patients with relapsed HER2+ inflammatory breast cancer. In Cohort 1, 76 patients were randomized 1:1 to receive lapatinib 1,500 mg + placebo or lapatinib 1,500 mg + pazopanib 800 mg (double-blind) once daily until disease progression, unacceptable toxicity, or death. Due to high-grade diarrhea observed with this dose combination in another study (VEG20007), Cohort 1 was closed. The protocol was amended such that an additional 88 patients (Cohort 2) were randomized in a 5:5:2 ratio to receive daily monotherapy lapatinib 1,500 mg, lapatinib 1,000 mg + pazopanib 400 mg, or monotherapy pazopanib 800 mg, respectively. The primary endpoint was overall response rate (ORR). Secondary endpoints included duration of response, progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival, and safety. In Cohort 1, ORR for the lapatinib (n = 38) and combination (n = 38) arms was 29 and 45 %, respectively; median PFS was 16.1 and 14.3 weeks, respectively. Grade ≥3 adverse events (AEs) were more frequent in the combination arm (71 %) than in the lapatinib arm (24 %). Dose reductions and interruptions due to AEs were also more frequent in the combination arm (45 and 53 %, respectively) than in the lapatinib monotherapy arm (0 and 11 %, respectively). In Cohort 2, ORR for patients treated with lapatinib (n = 36), lapatinib + pazopanib (n = 38), and pazopanib (n = 13) was 47, 58, and 31 %, respectively; median PFS was 16.0, 16.0, and 11.4 weeks, respectively. In the lapatinib, combination, and pazopanib therapy arms, grade ≥3 AEs were reported for 17, 50, and 46 % of patients, respectively, and the incidence of discontinuations due to AEs was 0, 24, and 23 %, respectively. The lapatinib–pazopanib combination was associated with a numerically higher ORR but no increase in PFS compared to lapatinib alone. The combination also had increased toxicity resulting in more dose reductions, modifications, and treatment delays. Activity with single-agent lapatinib was confirmed in this population

Manifestations of the syndrome of connective tissue dysplasia in children with kidney pathology

The purpose of the study is to study the signs of connective tissue dysplasia syndrome in children with pyelonephritis at an early age.Цель исследования - изучить признаки синдрома дисплазии соединительной ткани у детей с пиелонефритами в периоде раннего возраста

СЕЛЕКТИВНОЕ ИНГИБИРОВАНИЕ KRAS-СИГНАЛЬНОГО КАСКАДА ПРИ КОМБИНИРОВАННОМ ВОЗДЕЙСТВИИ НИЗКИХ ДОЗ РАПАМИЦИНА И ПАКЛИТАКСЕЛА IN VIVO

Background. Therapy with compounds potentially capable to block KRAS oncogene signaling pathway is perspective direction in modern oncopharmacology. The aim of current study was to investigate effects of the combined treatment with rapamycin (RAP) and paclitaxel (PAC) in transgenic zebrafish (Danio rerio) with constant expression of mutant KRASV12 oncogene conjugated to green fluorescent protein (GFP) in epidermal cells. This strain has a modified phenotype due to epidermal hyperplasia and expression of GFP reporter at skin of embryos and adult fish.Materials and methods. Fish embryos 6 hpf were exposed to 0.1 % DMSO solution (control) and various doses of the drugs or combinations thereof. GFP expression in epidermal cells was morphometrically measured at 72 hpf.Results. Dose-related decrease in phenotypic changes up to complete epidermal normalization under RAP 50–400 nM treatment was observed. Treatment with nontoxic for embryos doses of PAC 50–250 nM increased fluorescence level in a dose-dependent manner, indicating an activation of KRAS signaling. Using of lower doses of RAP (10 and 25 nM) or PAC (10 nM) had no statistically significant effect on expression of transformed phenotype. Whereas combined treatment (RAP 10–25 nM and PAC 10–50 nM) dramatically decreased level of epidermal fluorescence and completely normalized phenotype of transgenic fish.Conclusions. Thus, mutual potentiating effect of RAP and PAC in low doses which leads to selective inhibition of the KRAS signaling pathway was revealed, indicating the prospect of further studies of these drugs combination for targeted cancer therapy.Введение. Применение соединений, потенциально способных блокировать функционирование сигнального каскада онкогена KRAS, является одним из перспективных направлений современной онкофармакологии.Цель исследования – изучить эффекты комбинированного действия рапамицина (RAP) и паклитаксела (РАС) на трансгенной линии зебрафиш (Danio rerio), характеризующейся постоянной экспрессией в клетках эпидермиса онкогена KRASV12, конъюгированного c зеленым флуоресцентным белком (green fluorescent protein, GFP). Эта линия имеет измененный фенотип, обусловленный гиперплазией кератиноцитов и флуоресценцией в них GFP-репортера.Материалы и методы. Эмбрионы рыб в возрасте 6 ч помещали в среду с добавлением 0,1 % раствора диметилсульфоксида (контроль) и различных доз исследуемых препаратов или их комбинаций. Время инкубации составило 72 ч, после чего проводили количественную оценку интенсивности флуоресценции GFP-репортера в клетках эпидермиса с помощью компьютерной морфометрии.Результаты. При воздействии RAP выраженность фенотипических изменений уменьшалась вплоть до полной нормализации фенотипа в дозе 50–400 нмоль. РАС в дозе 50–250 нмоль не оказывал токсического влияния на развитие эмбрионов, однако дозозависимо повышал уровень флуоресценции репортера, что свидетельствует об усилении экспрессии онкогена KRAS. Воздействие низких доз RAP (10–25 нмоль), а также PAC (10 нмоль) по отдельности не оказывало статистически значимого влияния на выраженность трансформированного фенотипа. В то же время использование различных комбинаций низких доз этих препаратов (RAP в дозе 10–25 нмоль в сочетании с PAC в дозе 10–50 нмоль) существенно снижало регистрируемый уровень флуоресценции, полностью нормализуя фенотип трансгенных рыб.Заключение. Выявлено взаимное потенцирующее действие низких доз RAP и PAC, приводящее к избирательному ингибированию сигнального каскада онкогена KRAS, что свидетельствует о перспективности дальнейших исследований комбинации этих препаратов для таргетной терапии опухолей

Gut Microbiome Shotgun Sequencing in Assessment of Microbial Community Changes Associated with H. pylori Eradication Therapy

© 2016, Springer Science+Business Media New York.Disturbance of intestinal microbiota content and functions often results in different pathological conditions. Pharmacotherapy including antibiotics use is one of the factors leading to dysbiosis. To evaluate the influence of antibiotics use on intestinal microbiota metagenomic profiles of stool, samples of 74 patients before and after Helicobacter pylori—eradication therapy—were analyzed. Evaluation of taxonomic diversity changes based on Shannon index and Bray-Curtis metrics allows to range patients according to mild, moderate, and severe risk of disturbance of intestinal microbiota pathological conditions

The Real maccoyii: Identifying Tuna Sushi with DNA Barcodes – Contrasting Characteristic Attributes and Genetic Distances

BACKGROUND:The use of DNA barcodes for the identification of described species is one of the least controversial and most promising applications of barcoding. There is no consensus, however, as to what constitutes an appropriate identification standard and most barcoding efforts simply attempt to pair a query sequence with reference sequences and deem identification successful if it falls within the bounds of some pre-established cutoffs using genetic distance. Since the Renaissance, however, most biological classification schemes have relied on the use of diagnostic characters to identify and place species. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:Here we developed a cytochrome c oxidase subunit I character-based key for the identification of all tuna species of the genus Thunnus, and compared its performance with distance-based measures for identification of 68 samples of tuna sushi purchased from 31 restaurants in Manhattan (New York City) and Denver, Colorado. Both the character-based key and GenBank BLAST successfully identified 100% of the tuna samples, while the Barcode of Life Database (BOLD) as well as genetic distance thresholds, and neighbor-joining phylogenetic tree building performed poorly in terms of species identification. A piece of tuna sushi has the potential to be an endangered species, a fraud, or a health hazard. All three of these cases were uncovered in this study. Nineteen restaurant establishments were unable to clarify or misrepresented what species they sold. Five out of nine samples sold as a variant of "white tuna" were not albacore (T. alalunga), but escolar (Lepidocybium flavorunneum), a gempylid species banned for sale in Italy and Japan due to health concerns. Nineteen samples were northern bluefin tuna (T. thynnus) or the critically endangered southern bluefin tuna (T. maccoyii), though nine restaurants that sold these species did not state these species on their menus. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE:The Convention on International Trade Endangered Species (CITES) requires that listed species must be identifiable in trade. This research fulfills this requirement for tuna, and supports the nomination of northern bluefin tuna for CITES listing in 2010

Serum cytokine signature that discriminates Helicobacter pylori positive and negative juvenile gastroduodenitis

© 2016 Khaiboullina, Abdulkhakov, Khalikova, Safina, Martynova, Davidyuk, Khuzin, Faizullina, Lombardi, Cherepnev and Rizvanov.Gastroduodenitis caused by H. pylori, often acquired in early childhood, is found in about 50% of the adult population. Although H. pylori infections can remain asymptomatic, its virulence factors usually trigger epithelial vacuolization and degeneration, loss of microvilli, disintegration of cytoplasm, and leukocyte accumulation. It is believed that leukocyte infiltration is driven by cytokines produced locally in infected tissue. However, so far little is known about changes in serum cytokines in juvenile patients infected with H. pylori. Serum cytokine profiles were analyzed in 62 juvenile patients diagnosed with gastroduodenitis using the Bio-Plex multiplex assay. H. pylori infection was confirmed in 32 patients, while 30 patients were H. pylori-free. Cytokines CXCL5 and CXCL6, potent neutrophil chemoattractants, were upregulated in all patients diagnosed with gastroduodenitis. Serum levels of IL8, a prototype neutrophil attractant, remained unchanged in subjects with gastroduodenitis relative to controls. Therefore, our data suggest that CXCL5 and CXCL6 play a role in directing neutrophil trafficking into inflamed gastroduodenal tissue. In addition, the CCL25/GM-CSF ratio differed significantly between H. pylori-positive and -negative juveniles. Further, study is needed to evaluate the role of CCL25 and GM-CSF in the pathogenesis of the different etiologies of gastroduodenitis