Changes in testicular tissue in obstructive azoospermia with an increase in the duration of the disease

To understand the infertility development it is important to study how individual components of the connective complexes of Sertoli’s cells are formed and developed in order to allow not only individual cells, but also entire syncytia of germ cells to migrate from the basal to the adluminal compartment of the spermatic epithelium, without causing loss of permeability. Testicular tissue changes in azoospermia  with an increase in the duration of the disease and the prognosis of the possibility of conception are of particular interest. The aim. To reveal changes in the testicular tissue on azoospermia with an increase in the duration of the disease. Materials and methods: to achieve the aim, a pathomorphological study was carried out. The material for the study was testicular biopsies of patients aged 26-45 years with a diagnosis of obstructive azoospermia (OA). The material was divided into three groups: group 1, control: healthy fertile men; group 2 (study group): men of mature age (26–45 y. o.) with a clinical diagnosis of OA up to 5 years of duration. Group 3 (study group): men of mature age (30–45 y. o.) with a clinical diagnosis of OA up to 10 years of duration. The preparations were studied macroscopically, microscopically, morphometrically and immunohistochemically. Results and discussion. Healthy spermatogenesis was typical for all control group samples.  In group 2 (disease up to 5 years from the previous conception) there were three spermatogenesis samples out of eight. There were focal processes of fibrosis and hyalinosis, with focal proliferation of interstitial tissue. In the the group of men with OA lasting up to ten years from the previous conception, the absence of healthy spermatogenesis in all cases was noted. Conclusions.1. In the group of men with OA lasting up to five years from the previous conception there were violations of spermatogenesis, a decrease in the transport of biologically active substances through the blood-testicular barrier. The latter leads to degenerative processes in the germ cells.2. In the group of men with OA lasting up to ten years from the previous conception, there was a pronounced deterioration in spermatogenesis, the transition of OA to NOA with increased duration of the pathological process. The latter significantly worsens the prognosis of the disease course and significantly reduces the possibility of conception

INFLUENCE OF SECONDARY HYPERPARATHYROIDISM ON THE CALCIFICATION OF HEART VALVES IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE VD STAGE

The aim of this work was to study the relationship of elevated levels of parathyroid hormone (PTH) with cardiovascular changes (calcification of the heart valves) and to identify possible risk factors of calcification in the group of patients receiving renal replacement therapy. Materials and methods. The study included 96 patients with ESRD: 1-st group receives the treatment of peritoneal dialysis (PD) (45 patients), 2-nd group haemodialysis (HD) (51 patients). In serum determined concentration of calcium, phosphorus, PTH. All patients underwent echocardiographic examination. Results. The prevalence of secondary hyperparathyroidism in PD-patients reached 72%, in HD-patients 83%. Calcification of heart valves in both groups occurred in patients with high PTH level (greater than 400 PG/ml). Patients in both groups were significantly more frequent in the combined mitrale-aortic calcification. Isolated mitral calcification was detected more often aortic. Predictors of progression of calcification of heart valves in patients on PD is the age, in patients on HD - level average BP and the duration of dialysis therapy. Conclusions. Echocardiological data and clinical and laboratory examination of patients with ESRD allowed us to estimate the prevalence and structure of mitrale-aortic calcification and its relationship with secondary hyperparathyroidism

The multifrequency Siberian Radioheliograph

The 10-antenna prototype of the multifrequency Siberian radioheliograph is described. The prototype consists of four parts: antennas with broadband front-ends, analog back-ends, digital receivers and a correlator. The prototype antennas are mounted on the outermost stations of the Siberian Solar Radio Telescope (SSRT) array. A signal from each antenna is transmitted to a workroom by an analog fiber optical link, laid in an underground tunnel. After mixing, all signals are digitized and processed by digital receivers before the data are transmitted to the correlator. The digital receivers and the correlator are accessible by the LAN. The frequency range of the prototype is from 4 to 8 GHz. Currently the frequency switching observing mode is used. The prototype data include both circular polarizations at a number of frequencies given by a list. This prototype is the first stage of the multifrequency Siberian radioheliograph development. It is assumed that the radioheliograph will consist of 96 antennas and will occupy stations of the West-East-South subarray of the SSRT. The radioheliograph will be fully constructed in autumn of 2012. We plan to reach the brightness temperature sensitivity about 100 K for the snapshot image, a spatial resolution up to 13 arcseconds at 8 GHz and polarization measurement accuracy about a few percent. First results with the 10-antenna prototype are presented of observations of solar microwave bursts. The prototype abilities to estimate source size and locations at different frequencies are discussed

ЛИЧНОСТЬ ЗАСЛУЖЕННОГО ПРОФЕССОРА Н. С. БОКАРИУСА В ОТЗЫВАХ ЕГО ЗАРУБЕЖНЫХ СОВРЕМЕННИКОВ

The article is dedicated to the 85th anniversary of the death of outstanding scientist Nikolai Sergeevich Bokarius. Emphasis is placed on given references of contemporaries, pupils, and followers about N. S. Bokarius, in which they appreciated his outstanding scientific, pedagogical and organizational talents. The article contains original texts of obituaries placed in foreign specialized scientific journals in memory of the unique personality of N. S. Bokarius.Присвячено 85-річчю від дня смерті видатного вченого Миколи Сергійовича Бокариуса. Наведено відгуки сучасників, учнів, послідовників про М. С. Бокариуса, які гідно оцінили його видатний науковий, педагогічний і організаторський таланти. Подано оригінальні тексти некрологів у пам’ять унікальної особистості М. С. Бокаріуса в зарубіжних профільних наукових журналах

DYSLIPIDEMIA AS A FACTOR FOR PROGRESSION OF RENAL OSTEODYSTROPHY AND CORONARY HEART DISEASE IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE ON PERITONEAL DIALYSIS

Numerous studies of the last years focused on various links of pathogenesis and factors for progression of coronary heart disease (CHD) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) allowed to find intersection, such as progression of atherosclerosis or phosphorus and calcium and lipid imbalance, which lead to vascular calcareous infiltration, development of renal osteodystrophy and rising of cardiac risks. Purpose of the research: To define indicators of lipid exchange in patients on peritoneal dialysis which can be factors for progression of renal osteodystrophy and ischemic heart disease. Materials and methods. Indicators of lipid exchange, various types of renal osteodystrophy and clinical types of ischemic heart disease in 114 patients receiving peritoneal dialysis therapy in the Regional Clinical Center of Urology and Nephrology of V.I.Shapoval were analysed. Results. Having analysed changes in blood lipid profile of patients on peritoneal dialysis (PD), we found out a reliable growth of high-density lipoproteins (HDL) in a group of patients without signs of ischemic heart disease and in a group of patients having stable angina, whose primary types of renal osteodystrophy were osteoporosis and fibrous ostitis. Reliable differences had also very-low-density lipoproteins (VLDL) which also were the highest in a group of patients having stable angina without signs of cardiac decompensation. The average duration of PD treatment of patients of this group was 12,3 months. Conclusion. The results of the research confirmed that calcareous infiltration of vessels and heart valves on early stages of PD therapy is mainly caused by dyslipidemia and atherosclerotic changes and less by phosphorus and calcium imbalance which importance increases with duration of PD treatment

MODERN VISION OF DEVELOPMENT FACTORS OF PROTEIN-ENERGY MALNUTRITION SYNDROME IN PATIENTS, RECEIVING PERITONEAL DIALYSIS

Patients who have end-stage chronic kidney disease (СKD) and who receive substitutive peritoneal dialysis (PD) therapy, often have complication such as protein-energy malnutrition syndrome (PEMS). Important prognostic value is given to nutritional disorders as they increase prior disease development, complicate its correction, influence survival rate of patients of this category. Purpose: to explore prevalence of protein-energy malnutrition syndrome in PD patients and define factors of its development. Materials and methods: 67 PD patients were examined. Evaluation of nutritional status in patients under investigation was made using development of complex methodology that includes 5 specifications – body mass index (BMI), triceps skinfold, arm circumference – biceps, floating albumin and seraalbumin, absolute number of lymphocyte. Results. PEMS was found in 35,8% of patients, 29,8% had mild case and 6% had moderate case with mixed form domination. 26,8% of PD patients had average high or high transport characteristics of abdominal membrane that provided increased protein loss through abdominal membrane on PD. It was determined that with the growth of С-reactive protein (CRP) level nutritional disorders increased. In our research chronic inflammation syndrome was found in 16,3% of cases. Besides, protein loss was growing fast after another dialysis peritonitis. Expressed deficit of daily consumption of protein was registered in 29,2% of patients. Conclusion. Our researches analysis allowed us to define that risk factors of formation of protein metabolism disorders in PD patients are low protein consumption, connection with nutritional deficiency syndrome, system inflammatory reaction, protein loss with dialysis fluid having high transport characteristics of abdominal membrane and repeated dialysis peritonitis

Xenoestrogenic activity in blood of European and Inuit populations.

Human exposure to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) is ubiquitous and found in all individuals. Studies have documented endocrine disrupting effects and impact on reproduction. The aim of the present study was to compare the level of xenoestrogenic activity in serum of groups with varying POP exposure, and to evaluate correlations to the POP biomarkers, 2,2',4,4',5,5'-hexachlorobiphenyl (CB-153) and 1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis (p-chlorophenyl)-ethylene (p,p'-DDE). No strong consistent association between xenoestrogenic net activity and the two POP markers was found. The results showed that the selected POP markers alone can not predict the integrated xenoestrogenic serum activity. Correlations to the POP markers were found at the extreme edge; the Inuit's and Warsaw study groups eliciting high frequency of samples with ER antagonistic and agonistic activity, respectively. We suggest that the variation in xenoestrogenic serum activity reflects differences in POP exposure mixture, genetic factors and/or life style factors

Impact of PCB and p,p'-DDE contaminants on human sperm Y : X chromosome ratio: Studies in three European populations and the inuit population in Greenland

Recent studies indicate that persistent organohalogen pollutants (POPs) may contribute to sex ratio changes in offspring of exposed populations. Our aim in the present study was to investigate whether exposure to 2,2',4,4',5,5'-hexachlorobiphenyl (PCB-153) and dichlorodiphenyldichloroethene (pp'-DDE) affects sperm Y:X chromosome distribution. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: We obtained semen and blood for analysis of PCB-153 and pp'-DDE levels from 547 men from Sweden, Greenland, Poland (Warsaw), and Ukraine (Kharkiv), with regionally different levels of POP exposure. The proportion of Y- and X-chromosome-bearing sperm in the semen samples was determined by two-color fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis. RESULTS: Swedish and Greenlandic men had on average significantly higher proportions of Y sperm (in both cohorts, 51.2%) and correspondingly higher lipid-adjusted concentrations of PCB-153 (260 ng/g and 350 ng/g, respectively) compared with men from Warsaw (50.3% and 22 ng/g) and Kharkiv (50.7% and 54 ng/g). In the Swedish cohort, log-transformed PCB- 153 and log-transformed pp'-DDE variables were significantly positively associated with Y-chromosome fractions (p-values 0.04 and < 0.001, respectively). On the contrary, in the Polish cohort PCB-153 correlated negatively with the proportion of Y-bearing fraction of spermatozoa (p = 0.008). CONCLUSIONS: The present study indicates that POP exposure might be involved in changing the proportion of ejaculated Y-bearing spermatozoa in human populations. Intercountry differences, with different exposure situations and doses, may contribute to varying Y:X chromosome ratios

Semen Quality in Relation to Xenohormone and Dioxin-like Serum Activity Among Inuits and Three European Populations

BACKGROUND: Semen quality in humans may be influenced by exposure to endocrine-disrupting compounds. OBJECTIVES: We analyzed associations between semen characteristics and serum xenoestrogen receptor (XER), xenoandrogen receptor (XAR), and aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) transactivity. XER and XAR activity were measured in serum samples cleared for endogenous steroid hormones and AhR activity in raw lipophilic serum extracts free of proteins. RESULTS: All together, 319 men from Warsaw (Poland), Greenland, Kharkiv (Ukraine), and Sweden provided semen and blood samples. No strong and consistent associations between xenobiotic activity and semen quality measures were observed in the four populations. However, when the data were combined across populations sperm concentration increased 40% per unit increase in XER activity [95% confidence interval (CI), 1-79%] in the subgroup with XER activity below the reference level. Among subjects with XER activity above the reference level an increase of 14% (95% CI, 2-28%) was found. Furthermore, an increase of 10% motile sperm per unit increase in XER activity below reference level (95% CI, 0.2-20) was found. We are unable to exclude that the associations are chance findings. CONCLUSION: Alteration of XER, XAR, or AhR transactivity within the range found in serum from the general European and Inuit population seems not to markedly deteriorate sperm cell concentration, motility, or morphology in adult men