Development and verification of new solid dental filling temporary materials containing zinc : formula development stage

Caries is the most popular problem affecting teeth and this is the reason why so many temporary dental filling materials are being developed. An example of such filling is zinc oxide paste mixed with eugenol, Thymodentin and Coltosol FÆ. Zinc-oxide eugenol is used in dentistry because of its multiplied values: it improves heeling of the pulp by dentine bridge formation; has antiseptic properties; is hygroscopic. Because of these advantages compouds of zinc oxide are used as temporary fillings, especially in deep caries lesions when treatment is oriented on support of vital pulp. Temporary dental fillings based on zinc oxide are prepared ex tempore by simple mixing powder (Thymodentin) and eugenol liqiud together or a ready to use paste Coltosol FÆ. Quantitative composition depends mainly on experience of person who is preparing it, therefore, exact qualitative composition of dental fillings is not replicable. The main goal of the study was to develop appropriate dental fillings in solid form containing set amount of zinc oxide. Within the study, the influence of preparation method on solid dental fillings properties like mechanical properties and zinc ions release were examined

METHOD OF MEASUREMENT OF NITRATE REDUCTASE ACTIVITY IN FIELD CONDITIONS

For the last three decades the interest in biomonitoring and ecological studies has been rapidly growing. Therefore, it was necessary develop of new methods of analysis for biochemical parameters which allow to quantify biological response of investigated organisms for environmental factors. The main goal of this paper demonstrates opti-mal conditions for enzyme kinetics analysis conducted in the fieldin situ.Nitrate reductase activity is typically assayed in vivo by measuring nitrite production in tissue which has been vacuum infiltratedwith buffered nitrate solution. For this study a nitrate reductase assay was adapted from a number of studies with own modi-ficationsof authors. Leaves of examined plants were collected from the investigated plots and immediately placed into test tubes with buffer solution (potassium phos-phate dibasic containing 0.6% propanol-1) and evacuated in 0.33 atm. for 10 minutes. Then, known amount of potassium nitrate was added, and the solution sample was analyzed in order to obtain a background level of nitrite. The foliage samples were incubated for 2 hours at 20 °C in darkness. Following this procedure, they were given the most optimal conditions for reaction stability.After incubation the amount of synthesized nitrite was determined colorimetrically using sulfanilamide and N-(1-naphthyl)ethylenediamine dihydrochloride, measured at 540 nm. The foliage samples were oven-dried to obtain dry mass. The level of ni-trate reductase activity was calculated as the amount of nitrite produced in nmol per gram of dry mass of foliage tissue per hour. The result obtained during the research demonstrate the changes of nitrate reductase dynamics according to change of incuba-tion parameters. Dynamics of enzyme activity with changes of solution pH and incubation temperature was presented. Installation for conducting infiltrationprocess and construction of in-cubation chamber is also described in this paper

THE DISCHARGE OF SPRINGS IN THE BUKOWY STREAM CATCHMENT IN THE SILESIAN BESKIDS

The Bukowy stream is the right-bank tributary of the Brennica river, and the river catchment is situated within the administrative borders of Brenna commune. In the stream’s 2.76 square kilometer catchment 15 springs have been identified, in which several series of discharge measurements were made in 2014. The results allowed the springs to be classified according to their discharge capacity in relation to the values existing in scientific literature. Moreover, thanks to the results, it was possible to define numerous parameters such as: variability of spring discharge, degree of springs occurrence in a given area, capacity of springs according to Meinzer’s classification; and basing on the monitoring of the water discharge in the cross-section closing the catchment its draining rate was determined. The simultaneous measurements of electrical conductivity and temperature of water allowed to separate maintenance tanks for given springs

MEASUREMENT OF NITRATE REDUCTASE ACTIVITY IN A FIELD CONDITIONS – METHODOLOGY

During recent three decades interest for biomonitoring and ecological studies was rapidly growing. Therefore was necessary develop of new methods of analysis biochemical parameters whose allow quantify biological response of investigated organisms for environmental factors. The main goal of this paper demonstrates optimal conditions for enzyme kinetics analysis conducted in the field in situ. Nitrate reductase activity is typically assayed in vivo by measuring nitrite production in tissue which has been vacuum infiltrated with buffered nitrate solution. For this study a nitrate reductase assay was adapted from a number of studies with own modifications of authors. Leaves of examined plants were collected on investigated plots and immediately placed into test tubes with buffer solution (potassium phosphate dibasic containing 0.6% propanol-1) and evacuated in 0.33 atm. for 10 minutes. Then known amount of potassium nitrate was added, and the solution sample was analyzed in order to obtain a background level of nitrite. The foliage samples were incubated for 2 hours at 20 °C in darkness. Follow this procedure have given the most optimal conditions for reaction stability. After incubation the amount of synthesized nitrite was determined colorimetrically using sulfanilamide and N-(1-naphthyl)ethylenediamine dihydrochloride, measured at 540 nm. The foliage samples were oven-dried to obtain their dry mass. Level of nitrate reductase activity was calculated as the amount of nitrite produced in nmol per gram of dry mass of foliage tissue per hour. The result obtained during these research demonstrate the changes of nitrate reductase dynamics according to change of incubation parameters. Dynamics of enzyme activity with changes of solution pH and incubation temperature was presented. Installation for conducting infiltration process and construction of incubation chamber is also described in this paper

Nitrate reductase activity (NRA) in the invasive alien Fallopia japonica: seasonal variation, differences among habitats types, and comparison with native species

Nitrate reductase activity (NRA) was studied in the invasive alien plant F. japonica (Japanese knotweed) during the vegetation season and among natural, semi-natural, and human-made habitats and compared with NRA in selected native species. NRA was measured directly in the field from the beginning of May until the beginning of October. NRA was much higher than in the plant’s native range, i.e., East Asia, and showed a high degree of variation over time with the highest values being reached at the stage of fast vegetative growth and at the beginning of fruiting. NRA was highest on dumping sites probably due to the high nitrogen input into soils and near traffic and the emission of NOx by vehicles. A comparison of the enzyme activity in four selected native plant species indicated that NRA in F. japonica was the highest with the exception of Urtica dioica, which exhibited a similar activity of the enzyme. A detailed comparison with this species showed that differences between these species on particular dates were influenced by differences in the phenology of both plants. The initial results that were obtained suggest that nitrogen pollution in an environment can contribute to habitat invasibility and a high level of NRA, which in addition to the many plant traits that are commonly accepted as characteristic of invasiveness features, may be an important factor that enhances invasion success

Heart rate control in selected cardiac diseases

Spoczynkowa częstotliwość rytmu serca, jak wykazano w wielu badaniach, wpływa na zachorowalność i śmiertelność u pacjentów z chorobami układu sercowo-naczyniowego oraz w populacji ogólnej. Rytm serca jest modyfikowalnym czynnikiem ryzyka zgonu i wpływa na występowanie objawów podmiotowych u osób z chorobą wieńcową, niewydolnością serca i migotaniem przedsionków. Europejskie Towarzystwo Kardiologiczne (ESC) w wytycznych dotyczących postępowania w niewydolności serca i w stabilnej chorobie wieńcowej zaleca utrzymanie docelowych wartości rytmu serca, odpowiednio poniżej 70/min i poniżej 60/min. W obecnie obowiązujących wytycznych ESC nie podano optymalnych, docelowych wartości rytmu serca dla pacjentów z migotaniem przedsionków, jednak wiadomo, że szybki rytm serca wiąże się z występowaniem objawów w przebiegu migotania przedsionków. Mimo powszechnego stosowania leków zmniejszających częstość rytmu serca jest ona wciąż często niedostatecznie kontrolowana, co wpływa niekorzystnie jakość życia pacjentów z chorobami układu sercowo-naczyniowego. Pojawiają się zatem pytania, czy potrzebne są nowe leki zmniejszające częstość rytmu serca lub nowe metody jej kontroli.A value of heart rate at rest influences morbidity and mortality in patients with cardiovascular diseases, as well as in general population, as it was observed in many studies. The heart rate is a modifiable risk factor which affects the occurrences of symptoms of coronary artery disease, atrial fibrillation and heart failure. Therefore, The European Society of Cardiology recommends relatively low heart rate values in guidelines for the management of stable coronary artery disease and heart failure. Optimal heart rate values for patients with atrial fibrillation are still unknown, but elevated heart rate is connected with more frequent occurrences of atrial fibrillation symptoms. Latest studies have shown that the heart rate is still insufficiently controlled, despite of a widespread use of heart rate — lowering drugs. That raises an important question: is there a need for new HR-lowering drugs? Or should a path of less strict HR control in cardiac diseases be pursued in the future

Ecophysiological responses of subarctic scots pine to ultraviolet (UV) radiation

Abstract: The focus of our fi eld studies in the subarctic of Finnish Lapland from 1997 onwards has been to investigate the effect of solar UV radiation on the ecophysiology of Scots pine. Our studies have indicated that solar UV-BBE exclusion during 1997−2002 caused transient effects on the growth of both Scots pine seedlings and saplings, which may not be related to changes in Photosystem II effi ciency, however. Studies of the phylloplane fungi of Scots pine needles showed that Aureobasidium pullulans (de Bary) Arnaud and Cladosporium sp. populations were found to decrease, and Phoma sp. to increase, with UV exposure, but there was no UV effect found for total populations. It was also shown that both UV-B radiation and increasing temperature enhance the nitrate reductase (NR) activity of Scots pine needles. On the other hand, our earlier studies have shown that the defence mechanisms (increase in the concentration of soluble phenolics, thickening of the epi- and hypodermal cell layers) of the Scots pine were functioning against ambient solar UV radiation. The daily UV dose rates during 1997−2002 were not very high and in our experiments, the exposure periods of three growing seasons were probably not long enough to cause greater effects that may be cumulative in nature and occur only after longer experimental periods

New international long-term ecological research on air pollution effects on the Carpathian Mountain forests, Central Europe

An international cooperative project on distribution of ozone in the Carpathian Mountains, Central Europe was conducted from 1997 to 1999. Results of that project indicated that in large parts of the Carpathian Mountains, concentrations of ozone were elevated and potentially phytotoxic to forest vegetation. That study led to the establishment of new long-term studies on ecological changes in forests and other ecosystems caused by air pollution in the Retezat Mountains, Southern Carpathians, Romania and in the Tatra Mountains, Western Carpathians on the Polish-Slovak border. Both of these important mountain ranges have the status of national parks and are Man & the Biosphere Reserves. In the Retezat Mountains, the primary research objective was to evaluate how air pollution may affect forest health and biodiversity. The main research objective in the Tatra Mountains was to evaluate responses of natural and managed Norway spruce forests to air pollution and other stresses. Ambient concentrations of ozone (O3), sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx) as well as forest health and biodiversity changes were monitored on densely distributed research sites. Initial monitoring of pollutants indicated low levels Of O3, SO2, and NOx in the Retezat Mountains, while elevated levels of O3 and high deposition of atmospheric sulfur (S) and nitrogen (N) have characterized the Tatra Mountains. In the Retezat Mountains, air pollution seems to have little effect on forest health; however, there was concern that over a long time, even low levels of pollution may affect biodiversity of this important ecosystem. In contrast, severe decline of Norway spruce has been observed in the Tatra Mountains. Although bark beetle seems to be the immediate cause of that decline, long-term elevated levels of atmospheric N and S depositions and elevated O3 could predispose trees to insect attacks and other stresses. European and US scientists studied pollution deposition, soil and plant chemistry, O3-sensitive plant species, forest insects, and genetic changes in the Retezat and Tatra Mountains. Results of these investigations are presented in a GIS format to allow for a better understanding of the changes and the recommendations for effective management in these two areas