Evaluation of anti-inflammatory and ulcerogenic potential of zinc-ibuprofen and zinc-naproxen complexes in rats

Because of numerous indications and high availability, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are among the most commonly prescribed and used medicines in the world. However, long-term therapy with and improper use of NSAIDs may lead to gastrointestinal damage. Therefore, improving the therapeutic index of the existing drugs has become a priority over the past decades. Considerable attention in the field has been concentrated on metal complexes of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of complexation with zinc on the anti-inflammatory and ulcerogenic effects of ibuprofen and naproxen after single and triple intragastric administration to rats. The anti-inflammatory effect was assessed in carrageenan-induced inflammatory edema in the hind paw of male albino Wistar rats. The mucosal lesions were inspected and evaluated for gross pathology. Single administration of both the investigated complexes, namely zinc-ibuprofen and zinc-naproxen (20 mg/kg equivalent to ibuprofen and naproxen, respectively) and their parent drugs and physical mixtures with zinc hydroaspartate (ZHA doses: 16.05 and 14.37 mg/kg), caused a significant reduction of the edema after the same time from the carrageenan injection in comparison to the control groups. However, no statistically significant differences between the investigated drugs were observed after their single administration. The mean ulceration score for the mixture of ibuprofen and ZHA was statistically lower than the mean score achieved in rats after treatment with ibuprofen alone. On the other hand, triple intragastric administration of the ZHA-ibuprofen and ZHA- naproxen combination showed substantial enhancement of the anti-inflammatory activity against control groups, as well as against the parent NSAIDs. The most potent anti-inflammatory activity was demonstrated after 2 h from the carrageenan injection in animals receiving ZHA together with naproxen. The edema growth was reduced in these animals by 80.9% as compared to the control group. This result was significantly higher than the results achieved in animals receiving zinc-naproxen (50.2%) or naproxen alone (47.9%). Both NSAID complexes with zinc and mixtures with ZHA alleviated ulcerations caused by parent NSAIDs; however, the mixtures of both ibuprofen and naproxen with ZHA after triple administration were the least damaging. In view of the above results, zinc supplementation during NSAID therapy may have a beneficial effect on ulcer prevention and healing by reducing the effective dose of the parent drug and increasing its potency

Senior’s Euro- Orphanhood and Quality of Life: New Challenges for Social Pedagogy

Taking on the issue of the quality of human life at a senior age requires the adoption of a particular perspective to recognizing the phenomenon of old age. It is in fact a phenomenon extremely diverse, multifaceted, involving closely related aspects of the biological, social and psychological, and its course is conditioned by the convolution of a variety of factors. One of them is the emigration of young people, who leave their parents alone in the home country and in fact make them Euroorphans. Job migration of adult children is a critical event in the lives of seniors and thus has a significant impact on their life quality. It is treated as a cognitive-emotional category associated with the environmental context of their daily activities. The phenomenon of Euro-orphanhood of seniors generates new lines of research in the field of social pedagogy. Contribution to them is mentioned in the article as a comparative research project.321351459Studia Edukacyjn

Impact of high temperatures on aluminoceladonite studied by Mössbauer, Raman, X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Mössbauer, Raman, X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopies were used to examine the effects of temperature on the structure of two aluminoceladonite samples. The process of oxidation of Fe2+ to Fe3+ ions started at about 350 °C for the sample richer in Al and at 300 °C for the sample somewhat lower Al-content. Mössbauer results show that this process may be associated with dehydroxylation or even initiate it. The first stage of dehydroxylation takes place at a temperature > 350 °C when the adjacent OH groups are replaced with a single residual oxygen atom. Up to ~500 °C, Fe ions do not migrate from cis-octahedra to trans-octahedra sites, but the coordination number of polyhedra changes from six to five. This temperature can be treated as the second stage of dehydroxylation. The temperature dependence on the integral intensity ratio between bands centered at ~590 and 705 cm−1 (I590/I705) clearly reflects the temperature at which six-coordinated polyhedra are transformed into five-coordinated polyhedra. X-ray photoelectron spectra obtained in the region of the Si2p, Al2p, Fe2p, K2p and O1s core levels, highlighted a route to identify the position of Si, Al, K and Fe cations in a structure of layered silicates with temperature. All the measurements show that the sample with a higher aluminum content and a lower iron content in octahedral sites starts to undergo a structural reorganization at a relatively higher temperature than the less aluminum-rich sample does. This suggests that iron may perform an important role in the initiation of the dehydroxylation of aluminoceladonites

Formation of Fe and Ni substituted LiMn2-XMXO4 nanopowders and their crystal and electronic structure and magnetic properties

The Pechini sol-gel method was applied to obtain LiMn2-xTxO4 (T = Ni, Fe; x = 0.1 to 0.5) nanopowders. Crystal and electronic structures, chemical composition and magnetic properties of the materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction, XPS, SEM/EDX microscopy, prompt gamma-ray activation analysis (PGAA), Mössbauer spectroscopy and magnetic susceptibility, respectively. XRD measurements showed that the LiMn2-xNixO4 were single phase for x = 0.1 and 0.2. Three samples with higher Ni content contained some addition of a second phase. Analysis of the oxidation state of the dopants by XPS revealed ionic Ni2+ and Fe3+. Mössbauer spectroscopy also confirmed 3+ oxidation state of iron and its location in octahedral sites, which excluded the inverse spinel configuration. XPS examinations showed that Mn3+ ions dominated in the iron substituted series whereas the Mn4+ was dominant in the nickel serie

Mitochondrial encephalomyopathy: Towards diagnosis. A case report

Mitochondrial diseases may cause a wide range of central and peripheral nervous system disorders, as well as muscle disorders. The diagnostic workup routinely includes electrophysiological, morphological, neuroimaging and genetic studies. In some cases, the diagnosis may be ascertained only when mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) examination in the muscle is performed. We report on a case of a 24-year-old woman, with a 7-year history of slowly progressive cerebellar syndrome and bilateral ptosis. Mitochondrial encephalomyopathy was suspected, based on the clinical picture and results of examinations, but the typical red ragged fibers were not found in the muscle biopsy. The results of molecular analysis of mtDNA showed a mtDNA deletion in the muscle and, on a level detectable only with polymerase chain reaction method, in blood leukocytes. This case emphasizes the important role of mtDNA studies in muscle in nonspecific multisystem mitochondrial disorders, even without clinical muscle involvement

Transport of dangerous biological materials

With the financial support of Internal Security Fund Police Programme European Commission Directorate General Home Affairs. This project has been founded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the authors, and European Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein

A Year 2011 Analysis of Employers’ Competence Requirements for Prospective Human Resources Branch Employees

Celem niniejszej pracy jest określenie panujących w roku 2011 wymagań kompetencyjnych pracodawców względem przyszłych pracowników branży HR.W pierwszym rozdziale przedstawiony został prawidłowy sposób realizacji procesu rekrutacji z uwzględnieniem etapów i narzędzi, których wykorzystanie jest istotne w kontekście pozyskiwania wykwalifikowanych kadr. W kolejnym rozdziale zaprezentowano definicyjne ujęcie kompetencji oraz ich rodzaje. Ponadto scharakteryzowane zostały tu kompetencje kluczowe.Trzeci rozdział obejmuje analizę zrealizowanych badań. Kompetencje tu wyszczególnione zostały zdefiniowane w kontekście branży HR. Pozyskane dane posłużyły do stworzenia statystyk pozwalających określić jakie kompetencje są oczekiwane przez pracodawców oraz z jaką częstotliwością poszukuje się ich wśród kandydatów.Rozdział czwarty to podsumowanie przeprowadzonych badań. Utworzone tu zostały zestawy kompetencyjne, których posiadanie stanowi warunek ubiegania się o stanowisko w branży HR pojmowanej w sposób ogólny, bądź na konkretnych stanowiskach: specjalistów, kierowników lub liderów zespołów.Badanie zrealizowane na potrzeby niniejszej pracy pozwoliło na ustalenie jakich kompetencji najczęściej poszukują pracodawcy chcący obsadzić stanowiska HR.The aim of this thesis is outlining competence requirements for prospective HR employees in the year 2011. The first chapter presents appropriately conducted recruitment process including stages and tools whose use is significant in regard of acquiring qualified human resources. In the second chapter there has been presented an expression of competences and their types by definition. Furthermore, key competences have been discussed there as well.The third chapter provides analysis of the conducted research. The competences enlisted there have been defined in regard of HR branch needs. The received data have been used to create statistics allowing us to outline what competences employers expect as well as how often employers seek for them in their prospective employees. The fourth chapter is a summary of the research conducted. It presents sets of competences conditioning HR branch job application as understood either in general, or for particular posts: specialists, managers or team leaders. The research conducted as the basis for this dissertation gives the opportunity to outline what competences are mostly wanted among those employers who need to fill posts in HR branch

Analysis of anatomical variability of skeletons from the time period of the Lusatian culture

Kultura łużycka jest jedną z kultur pól popielnicowych, co oznacza, iż zwyczajem pogrzebowym ludności tamtego okresu było ciałopalenie. Ze względu na wydarzenia związane z częstymi najazdami nieprzyjaciela, najprawdopodobniej Scytów, na obszary zajmowanie przez powyżej wspomniany lud, rozpoczęto budowę grodów obronnych, którego jednym z przykładów jest grodzisko w Koziegłowach. Ze względu na toczone walki na stanowisku w Koziegłowach, na które wskazują liczne spalone konstrukcje, a także porozrzucane szczątki, wyjątkowo zachowany został materiał szkieletowy w postaci jednoczasowego grobu zbiorowego. Materiał ten zbadano za pomocą szeregu metod, w celu określenia minimalnej liczby osobników, płci, wzrostu, a także wieku. Szczątki kostne nie zostały zachowane całkowicie, dlatego jedną z ważniejszych metod było określenie całkowitej długości kości długich na podstawie pomiarów ich fragmentów. W procesie dopasowywania poszczególnych kości do siebie, w celu wyodrębnienia pojedynczych osobników wykorzystano również ich cechy morfologiczne.The Lusatian culture is one of the cultures with the funeral practice of cremation. Due to frequent enemy, most probably Scythians, incursions of the areas occupied by Lusatian people, they started constructing defensive strongholds to be able to repel those attacks. One of those strongholds is the fortified settlement in Koziegłowy. Due to battles fought at the station in Koziegłowy, which are indicated by numerous burned structures, as well as scattered remains, the skeletal material in the form of a simultaneous mass grave has been exceptionally preserved. This material was examined using a number of methods to determine the minimum number of individuals, their sex, height, and age. Bone remains were not completely preserved, which is why one of the most important issues was to determine the total length of long bones based on measurements of their fragments. In the process of matching individual bones to each other to separate individuals, their morphological features were also used

PUBLIC CULTURAL INSTITUTION ON THE FREE MARKET. ART MARKETING AS A RECIPE OF SUCCESS OF THE OPERA KRAKOWSKA

Zarządzanie to sztuka osiągania celów. Sprawdzone mechanizmy zarządzania mogą przynieść kulturze wiele oszczędności i pożytku. Istotnym elementem w tym procesie jest komunikacja z ludźmi - zarówno na zewnątrz instytucji, jak również wewnątrz niej. Zmieniają się jednak czasy, procesy komunikacji międzyludzkiej, a także trendy technologiczne. Tylko nieliczni menadżerowie i nieliczne instytucje kultury, z reguły na czas krótki mogą owym przemianom sprostać. Stworzenie budżetu i struktury nie jest jedynym filarem funkcjonowania organizacji, istotą jest także stworzenie wizji, zadań, które za pomocą wiedzy, praktyki i intuicji należy realizować. Jednym z ważniejszych elementów tego procesu jest wykorzystywanie narzędzi marketingowych w komunikacji z potencjalnymi odbiorcami - również produktu kulturalnego. To one w istocie mogą przesądzić o sukcesie instytucji. Egzemplifikacją powyższych rozważań jest Oper Krakowska.Management is the art of achieving goals. Business management mechanisms and tools can bring savings and other benefits to cultural institution. A key point of this process is a communication with people. Communication is important both, outside as and inside the organization. On the other hand, times, interpersonal communication processes, and technology trends are rapidly changing. Few managers and few cultural institutions, can cope with these changes in such short time. Budget planning and organization structure are not the only ones pillars of the organization, the key to success is also creating a vision and tasks, which through knowledge, practice and intuition should be properly implemented. One of the most important elements of this process is the usage of marketing tools in communication with potential customers - including cultural product. They can in fact determine the success of the institution. Exemplification of the foregoing is Krakow Opera