Mapping of multiple muscles with transcranial magnetic stimulation: Absolute and relative test-retest reliability

The spatial accuracy of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) may be as small as a few millimeters. Despite such great potential, navigated TMS (nTMS) mapping is still underused for the assessment of motor plasticity, particularly in clinical settings. Here, we investigate the within‐limb somatotopy gradient as well as absolute and relative reliability of three hand muscle cortical representations (MCRs) using a comprehensive grid‐based sulcus‐informed nTMS motor mapping. We enrolled 22 young healthy male volunteers. Two nTMS mapping sessions were separated by 5–10 days. Motor evoked potentials were obtained from abductor pollicis brevis (APB), abductor digiti minimi, and extensor digitorum communis. In addition to individual MRI‐based analysis, we studied normalized MNI MCRs. For the reliability assessment, we calculated intraclass correlation and the smallest detectable change. Our results revealed a somatotopy gradient reflected by APB MCR having the most lateral location. Reliability analysis showed that the commonly used metrics of MCRs, such as areas, volumes, centers of gravity (COGs), and hotspots had a high relative and low absolute reliability for all three muscles. For within‐limb TMS somatotopy, the most common metrics such as the shifts between MCR COGs and hotspots had poor relative reliability. However, overlaps between different muscle MCRs were highly reliable. We, thus, provide novel evidence that inter‐muscle MCR interaction can be reliably traced using MCR overlaps while shifts between the COGs and hotspots of different MCRs are not suitable for this purpose. Our results have implications for the interpretation of nTMS motor mapping results in healthy subjects and patients with neurological conditions

Chemical purification of meat industry wastewater

The way of fat and protein removal from meat industry wastewater is presented. The fine oil-water emulsions are degraded by solubilization with protein-reactant interpolymer complex. The lignosulfonic acid (LSA) is used as reactant. The correlation of LSA addition and protein content in water is revealed by photoelectrocolorimetry. The complexation of fat, protein, and LSA molecules is accompanied with the flotation and sedimentation of the reaction products. The LSA treatment of wastewater allows to decrease fat and protein contents down to maximum allowable concentrations

Sex differences of subpopulation composition of lymphocytes in the peripheral blood in experimental acute and chronic ulcerative colitis

We studied sex differences lymphocytes subpopulations of peripheral blood in adult C57Bl/6 mice during acute and chronic colitis, induced with 1% DSS. We measured subpopulations of lymphocytes with flow cytometry. We showed that in the control group the female mice had statistically significantly higher values of the relative number of regulatory and cytotoxic T lymphocytes comparing to the males. During acute colitis the females showed an increase in the relative number of Thelpers and a decrease of cytotoxic Tlymphocytes, which reflects the activation of immune response. The males had a decrease in the absolute number of leukocytes, lymphocytes and cytotoxic and regulatory T lymphocytes, probably because of an increase in migration of these cells to the inflammation locus and local lymph nodes. In chronic colitis the females had a decrease in the absolute number of leukocytes, lymphocytes, T helpers, cytotoxic T lymphocytes and B lymphocytes when comparing with acute colitis. During chronic colitis the males had a decrease in the absolute number of T helpers and B lymphocytes but an increase of regulatory T cells in comparison with the control group; in comparison with acute colitis the males with chronic colitis had higher relative and absolute number of regulatory T cells. The increase of T regulatory lymphocytes is due to an increase in their proliferation rate in the thymus and increase of their migration to the inflammatory locus – the colon. Future clinical studies may be based on these results, which show that the treatment of colitis, especially with immunotropic agents, must take sex differences into account

Regional Models on Managing the Public-Private Partnership Projects in Housing and Communal Complex

Due to the crisis in Russia and the lack of sufficient financial resources, the problem of interaction between the state and the subjects of housing and communal services in the regions is rather urgent and requires an elaboration of an effective management model of public-private partnerships. The purpose of this article is to develop a management model of public-private partnership in the housing and utilities sector. Using econometric analysis methods, authors of this paper have analyzed regional projects of public-private partnership in housing and communal complex. The basic models and mechanisms of interaction were identified, a new scheme of interaction between the subjects of public-private partnerships were developed. These developments can be applied in the territorial and sectoral planning scheme, as well as in regional development programs of various regions. The significance of this article is defined by the fact that applying the developed models of public-private partnerships the responsibilities and risks between the subjects of PPP projects can be divided. Increased interaction with the state will increase the number of social projects, enable to extend the implementation of existing projects, as well as give financial stability of the newly created infrastructural projects and provide them with the necessary governmental guarantees. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n3s5p5

К 75-ЛЕТИЮ ДОКТОРА ФИЗИКО-МАТЕМАТИЧЕСКИХ НАУК, ПРОФЕССОРА БЕЗВЕРХНЕГО ВЛАДИМИРА НИКОЛАЕВИЧА

The article is devoted to the 75th anniversary of Professor Vladimir N. Bezverkhnii. The authors made an attempt to describe the work of V. N. Bezverkhnii in the area of combinatorial group theory. Also some personal reminiscences are included. V. N. Bezverkhnii, who is a former student of Martin Greendlinger, plays major role in scientific school “Algorithmic problems in theory of groups and semigroups”. Seven his students received their PhD degrees under his supervision, and one of them became a Doctor of Science. Авторы статьи ставили перед собой две главные задачи: охарактеризовать основные этапы жизни профессора Тульского государственного педагогического университета им. Л. Н. Толстого Владимира Николаевича Безверхнего и дать краткий анализ его научной и педагогической деятельности, имеюшей значительное влияние на развитие комбинаторной теории групп. Особо отмечаются исследования профессора В. Н. Безверхнего и его учеников по алгоритмическим проблемам теории групп и полугрупп. В. Н. Безверхний, являясь учеником профессора М. Д. Гриндлингера, руководит научной школой и научным семинаром "Алгоритмические проблемы теории групп и полугрупп", семинаром "Основы теории групп" , аспирантурой по комбинаторной теории групп. Среди его учеников 7 человек защитили кандидатские диссертации, причём один из них впоследствии стал доктором физико-математических наук. Владимир Николаевич Безверхний имеет более 170 научных и методических работ. Реферирует статьи в Реферативном Журнале и Mathematical Review. Является членом редколлегии журнала "Чебышевский сборник" , постоянным членом программных комитетов Международных конференций по алгебре и теории чисел, проводимых Тульским государственным педагогическим университетом им. Л. Н. Толстого

XXVI ВСЕРОССИЙСКАЯ МОЛОДЕЖНАЯ КОНФЕРЕНЦИЯ «СТРОЕНИЕ ЛИТОСФЕРЫ И ГЕОДИНАМИКА», ИРКУТСК, РОССИЯ, 20–25 АПРЕЛЯ 2015 Г.

The report presents a chronicle of the XXVI All-Russia youth conference “Lithosphere structure and Geodynamics”, dedicated to the 85th anniversary of academician Nikolai A. Logachev – outstanding geologist, specialist on the continental rifting. The major events are highlighted and a thematic review of the conference papers is given.В сообщении представлена хроника проведения XXVI Всероссийской молодежной конференции «Строение литосферы и геодинамика», посвященной 85-летию со дня рождения академика Николая Алексеевича Логачева – выдающегося геолога, специалиста по континентальному рифтогенезу. Освещены основные события и дан тематический обзор докладов конференции

Regional Programs on Energy Saving and Energy Efficiency: The National Construction Sector

The research is aimed at identifying patterns of implementation of regional programs for energy saving and increasing energy efficiency in the context of innovative development of the construction industry. Authors held a critical analysis of the existing regional programs in the field of energy saving, the development of proposals for improvement of existing and development of new energy efficiency programs for the building complex, including low-rise housing construction. The study applies economic and statistical methods as to establish quantitative relationships and evaluation of existing programs for the development of new instruments of territorial-sectoral development. The conclusions are made on the overall inefficiency of the implementation of existing regional programs on energy saving and energy efficiency, as well as the need to change them in terms of the introduction of industrial components. Implementation of the results can lead to performance improvement of both the regional energy efficiency programs, and the development of the construction industry. Keywords: construction industry, regional development, energy conservation, energy efficiency. JEL Classifications: R63, R11, Q4