Biological Flora of the British Isles: Sorbus torminalis

1.This account presents information on all aspects of the biology of Sorbus torminalis (L.) Crantz (Wild Service-tree) that are relevant to understanding its ecological characteristics and behaviour. The main topics are presented within the standard framework of the Biological Flora of the British Isles: distribution, habitat, communities, responses to biotic factors, responses to environment, structure and physiology, phenology, floral and seed characters, herbivores and disease, history, and conservation.2.Sorbus torminalis is an uncommon, mostly small tree (but can reach 33 m) native to lowland England and Wales, and temperate and Mediterranean regions of mainland Europe. It is the most shade-tolerant member of the genus in the British Isles and as a result it is more closely associated with woodland than any other British species. Like other British Sorbus species, however, it grows best where competition for space and sunlight is limited. Seedlings are shade tolerant but adults are only moderately so. This, combined with its low competitive ability, restricts the best growth to open areas. In shade, saplings and young adults form a sapling bank, showing reproduction and extensive growth only when released. Sorbus torminalis tolerates a wide range of soil reaction (pH 3.5-8.0) but grows best on calcareous clays and thin soils over limestone.3.Sorbus torminalis is a sexual, diploid, non-apomictic species that has hybridised with a number of other Sorbus species to form microspecies. The hermaphrodite flowers are primarily insect pollinated. Seed production is reliable only in warm years, especially at the edge of its range, although even then seed viability is low. The fruits are primarily dispersed by carnivorous mammals. Seeds display embryo dormancy but most will germinate the first spring after falling.4.This tree is very tolerant of short droughts but only moderately tolerant of frost, hence its southerly and lowland distribution. It faces no particular individual threats although the small size of most populations makes it susceptible to habitat loss and fragmentation, particularly through the loss of open coppiced areas. As a consequence it appears to be declining throughout Britain and Europe despite its wide range of historical uses and the high value of its timber. The extent to which these losses will be offset by increases due to climate change is unknown.This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

MODERN ACHIEVEMENTS IN EARLY NEONATAL FEEDING OF PRETERM INFANTS

The article focuses on the issue regarding the survival, preservation of life, health and neuropsychic development of infants with extremely low birth weight. 25 preterm infants aged 0 to 4 weeks were studied. The inclusion criteria were infants aged 28–34 weeks of gestation, with weights ranging from 1,000 to 1,850 g. Enteral feeding consisted of specialized formula with prebiotics (6 hours after birth through a drip feeding tube), increasing to 150 ml/kg a day by the age of 10–12 days. The study results demonstrated that the maximum weight loss was recorded on day 4,0 ± 1,5. The original body weight was restored, on average, on day 13. The average daily weight gain was 14,0 g/kg a day which evidenced good digestion of nutrients and high energy value of the formula. The results of lab tests showed a reduced level of nonesterified fatty acides, a slow waning of _-fetoprotein synthesis. Using a special formula with prebiotics on this category of infants, therefore, provides optimal rate of body weight growth and models protein lipid metabolism in blood serum after the anabolic pattern. Key words: preterm infants, infants with extremely low birth weight, feeding, special care. (Pediatric Pharmacology. – 2010; 7(5):78-81

MODERN ACHIEVEMENTS IN EARLY NEONATAL FEEDING OF PRETERM INFANTS

The article focuses on the issue regarding the survival, preservation of life, health and neuropsychic development of infants with extremely low birth weight. 25 preterm infants aged 0 to 4 weeks were studied. The inclusion criteria were infants aged 28–34 weeks of gestation, with weights ranging from 1,000 to 1,850 g. Enteral feeding consisted of specialized formula with prebiotics (6 hours after birth through a drip feeding tube), increasing to 150 ml/kg a day by the age of 10–12 days. The study results demonstrated that the maximum weight loss was recorded on day 4,0 ± 1,5. The original body weight was restored, on average, on day 13. The average daily weight gain was 14,0 g/kg a day which evidenced good digestion of nutrients and high energy value of the formula. The results of lab tests showed a reduced level of nonesterified fatty acides, a slow waning of _-fetoprotein synthesis. Using a special formula with prebiotics on this category of infants, therefore, provides optimal rate of body weight growth and models protein lipid metabolism in blood serum after the anabolic pattern. Key words: preterm infants, infants with extremely low birth weight, feeding, special care. (Pediatric Pharmacology. – 2010; 7(5):78-81

Dialogue of arts in the novel “The Artist is Unknown” by V. Kaverin

Prose about the artist is fairly popular in the world and Russian culture, but the novel &amp;ldquo;The Artist is Unknown&amp;rdquo; by V. Kaverin holds a special place within the Russian literature, and the title itself is precedent for the philologists &amp;ndash; it is mentioned each time when it comes to genre of the novel about artist. Kaverin not only creates a vivid image of the artist-painter, but also restores his manner via literary style. The pictorial beginning is prevalent in the text; however, orientation towards other types of art, namely sculpture and theatre, are also noticeable sculpture and theater, which is reflected in the character sphere and in the composition itself. In the novel &amp;ldquo;The Artist is Unknown&amp;rdquo;, theater and painting are deeply intertwined &amp;ndash; and not only scenes of the play engage painting, but also the authorial &amp;ldquo;painting&amp;rdquo; involves theatrical aesthetics. However, namely the art of painting, is in the center of Kaverin&amp;rsquo;s attention, while the ekphrasis technique becomes the fundamental principle for arranging artistic material. It should be noted that the focus of attention of the audience falls onto imaginary ekphrasis, description of the image that exists only in the author's imagination, which allows revealing the features of Kaverin's original idiostyle that correlates certain literary techniques with the painter's technique (the author thinks in the categories of color, painting, texture, and perspective). In such way, painting becomes a metalanguage, the way of understanding the laws of art as such, and thus, the laws of literature, including such categories as narrative perspective and composition. The boundary between genres of the novel about artist and the novel about the novel in Kaverin's text is quite lucid: the fate of the artist is inseparable from the fate of his creation, and the questions of skill, purpose and designation of works comprise the very essence of conflicts of the novel. </jats:p