Women’s genius according to St. John Paul II

The original term the ‘woman’s genius’ by St. John Paul II, contained in the letter Mulieris dignitatem and his other documents, accurately defines spirituality and the proper role of women in the Church and society. It can be a hermeneutical key when studying the figures of saints and outstanding women, including the Servant of God, Jadwiga Zamoyska. As the participation of women in the triple mission of Christ: priestly, prophetic and kingly, the ‘woman’s genius’ manifests itself in various ways. We find its fullness in Mary.Geniusz kobiety według Świętego Jana Pawła II Oryginalne określenie „geniusz kobiety” autorstwa św. Jana Pawła II, zawarte w liście Mulieris dignitatem i innych jego dokumentach, trafnie określa duchowość oraz właściwą rolę kobiety w Kościele i społeczeństwie. Może ono stanowić klucz hermeneutyczny przy badaniu postaci świętych i wybitnych kobiet, także Służebnicy Bożej Jadwigi Zamoyskiej. Jako udział w potrójnym posłannictwie Chrystusa: kapłańskim, prorockim i królewskim, „geniusz kobiety” przejawia się na różne sposoby. Jego pełnię odkrywamy w Maryi

Niepokalane Poczęcie a duchowość katolicka

According to the pope John Paul II the dogma of the Immaculate Conception is a marvelous doctrinal synthesis of the Christian faith (Angelus, 8.12.1988). In the light of this dogma the essential issues concerning the spiritual life are demonstrated fully and exactly.The author of this article, analyzing the truth about the Immaculate Conception as an opus of the Holy Trynity in the Mary’s person, shows in rough how that main mariological question impacts and inspires the catholic spirituality.Therefore at this angle the author looks into the christological dimension of the Immaculate Conception, as well the action of the Holy Spirit, ecclesiastical, anthropological and personalistic aspect of this mystery.Według papieża Jana Pawła II „dogmat Niepokalanego Poczęcia stanowi wspaniałą doktrynalną syntezę wiary chrześcijańskiej” (Anioł Pański, 8.12.1988). W świetle tego dogmatu pełniej i wyraźniej ukazują się fundamentalne prawdy dotyczące życia duchowego.Autor artykułu, analizując prawdę o niepokalanym poczęciu jako dziełu Przenajświętszej Trójcy w osobie Maryi, przedstawia w zarysie, w jaki sposób ta jedna z zasadniczych prawd mariologicznych inspiruje duchowość katolicką. Pod tym kątem rozpatruje więc chrystocentryzm niepokalanego poczęcia, rolę Ducha Świętego, eklezjalny oraz antropologiczno-personalistyczny wymiar tej tajemnicy

"Wyobraźnia" i "balsam" miłosierdzia

Two metaphors: “creativity of mercy” and “balm of mercy” represent two popes who are keenly interested in the Divine and human mercy – St John Paul II and Francis. John Paul II used his characteristic expression “creativity of mercy” for the first time in his letter Novo millennio ineunte. Then, Pope Francis, proclaiming the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy as a special time for the Church, expressed his desire: “May the balm of mercy reach everyone, both believers and those far away, as a sign that the Kingdom of God is already present in our midst!” (Misericordiae vultus, n. 5).Two metaphors: “creativity of mercy” and “balm of mercy” represent two popes who are keenly interested in the Divine and human mercy – St John Paul II and Francis. John Paul II used his characteristic expression “creativity of mercy” for the first time in his letter Novo millennio ineunte. Then, Pope Francis, proclaiming the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy as a special time for the Church, expressed his desire: “May the balm of mercy reach everyone, both believers and those far away, as a sign that the Kingdom of God is already present in our midst!” (Misericordiae vultus, n. 5)

Symbolika malżeńska w mistyce św. Teresy z Avila

The Bible describing the story of salvation uses a lot of symbols. Many of them are taken from married life. The same symbolic language is used by mystics. St Teresa of Ávila stands out among all of them. She employs numerous images of marriage and comparisons to explain the sanctifying action of God in the human soul. They can especially be seen on the mystical level of spiritual life. The Carmelite Doctor of the Church compares the peak of spiritual development to engagement and marriage. In the sixth mansion of The Interior Castle by St Teresa, the human soul is the Bride of Christ, the Betrothed. It hopes to move quickly – in the seventh mansion – to get closer to Christ, which is compared to marriage. The biblical and mystical marriage symbolism shows the role of marriage in God’s salvation plan. The mystical experience based on God’s love is available not only to the religious and priests but also to every Christian who lives a married life. Each of them, thanks to the grace of Baptism and the Sacrament of Matrimony, obtains full access to the mystic life which is understood as a real inner experience of God’s presence. This life is also attainable for married couples.The Bible describing the story of salvation uses a lot of symbols. Many of them are taken from married life. The same symbolic language is used by mystics. St Teresa of Ávila stands out among all of them. She employs numerous images of marriage and comparisons to explain the sanctifying action of God in the human soul. They can especially be seen on the mystical level of spiritual life. The Carmelite Doctor of the Church compares the peak of spiritual development to engagement and marriage. In the sixth mansion of The Interior Castle by St Teresa, the human soul is the Bride of Christ, the Betrothed. It hopes to move quickly – in the seventh mansion – to get closer to Christ, which is compared to marriage. The biblical and mystical marriage symbolism shows the role of marriage in God’s salvation plan. The mystical experience based on God’s love is available not only to the religious and priests but also to every Christian who lives a married life. Each of them, thanks to the grace of Baptism and the Sacrament of Matrimony, obtains full access to the mystic life which is understood as a real inner experience of God’s presence. This life is also attainable for married couples

John Paul II – the Pope of Holiness

Among many titles, John Paul II fully deserves to be called the “Pope of Holiness” due to a record number of beatifications and canonizations that he made and an original doctrine on holiness. He wanted to put into practice the conciliar teaching on the universal call of Christians to holiness. In the Pope’s theology of holiness, the emphasis is placed on the Holy Trinity as the source of all holiness. In addition, he speaks of the manifestations, models and means leading to holiness, and thus of a specific “pedagogy of holiness”. John Paul II’s doctrine of holiness is closely related to his lifestyle, which was confirmed by the Church with his beatification (1 May 2011) and canonization (27 April 2014). Considering his doctrine, life and concern for the Christian shape of Europe, it is a legitimate expectation that he will soon be proclaimed a Doctor of the Church and Patron of Europe

Increased sensitivity of prolonged P-wave during exercise stress test in detection of angiographically documented coronary artery disease

Background: A retrospective study was designed to investigate P-wave duration changes in exercise stress test (EST) for the prediction of angiographically documented substantial coronary artery disease (CAD). Methods: We analyzed 265 cases of patients, who underwent EST and subsequently coronary angiography. Analysis of P-wave duration was performed in leads II, V5 at rest, and in the recovery period. Results: The sensitivity and specificity for the isolated ST-segment depression were only 31% and 76%, respectively. The combination of ST-depression with other exercise-induced clinical and electrocardio­graphic abnormalities (chest pain, ventricular arrhythmia, hypotension, left bundle branch block) was characterized by 41% sensitivity and 69% specificity. The combination of abnormal recovery P-wave duration (≥ 120 ms) with ST-depression and other exercise-induced abnormalities had 83% sensitivity but only 20% specificity. Combined analysis of increased delta P-wave duration, ST-depression and other exercise-induced abnormalities had 69% sensitivity and 42% specificity. Sensitivity and specificity of the increase in delta P-wave duration for left CAD was 69% and 47%, respectively, and for 3-vessel CAD 70% and 50%, respectively. The presence of arterial hypertension negatively influenced the prog­nostic value of P-wave changes in the stress test. Conclusions: The results of the study show that an addition of P-wave duration changes assessment to ST-depression analysis and other exercise-induced abnormalities increase sensitivity of EST, especially for left CAD and 3-vessel coronary disease. We have also provided evidence for the negative influence of the presence of arterial hypertension on the predictive value of P-wave changes in the stress test. (Cardiol J 2017; 24, 2: 159–166

Hypotensive efficacy and safety of eprosartan treatment - an open-label, multi-center clinical study

Wstęp Skuteczne leczenie nadciśnienia tętniczego pozostaje jednym z głównych problemów współczesnej kardiologii. Mimo stałego postępu w farmakoterapii, nadal trwają poszukiwania leków, które łączyłyby skuteczność hipotensyjną z wysokim profilem bezpieczeństwa i dobrą tolerancją leczenia przez chorych. Jedną z grup leków spełniających te założenia są antagoniści receptora AT1 dla angiotensyny. Celem badania była ocena skuteczności oraz bezpieczeństwa i tolerancji leczenia eprosartanem u pacjentów z łagodnym lub umiarkowanym nadciśnieniem tętniczym. Materiał i metody Do badania włączono 564 chorych ze świeżo rozpoznanym lub nieskutecznie leczonym nadciśnieniem tętniczym. Chorzy otrzymali eprosartan w dawce 600 mg/d. Skuteczność i bezpieczeństwo terapii oceniano po 4 i 12 tygodniach leczenia. Wyniki Dwunasto-tygodniowe leczenie eprosartanem spowodowało obniżenie skurczowego i rozkurczowego ciśnienia tętniczego krwi, odpowiednio o 26,1 mm Hg i 12,6 mm Hg (p < 0,001). Obserwowano również istotne zwolnienie spoczynkowej czynności serca. Trzy-miesięczne leczenie eprosartanem nie wpłynęło na stężenia elektrolitów, glikemii i parametrów wydolności nerek. Stwierdzono natomiast poprawę w zakresie parametrów lipidowych. Działania niepożądane występowały rzadko i miały charakter łagodny (8,7%). Do najczęściej stwierdzanych objawów ubocznych należały bóle i zawroty głowy, nudności i osłabienie. Po 12 tygodniach leczenia u 91,5% leczonych tolerancję leczenia oceniono jako bardzo dobrą lub dobrą. Wnioski Eprosartan jest skutecznym lekiem hipotensyjnym, a uzyskane średnie wartości redukcji skurczowego i rozkurczowego ciśnienia tętniczego plasują go w grupie silnych leków hipotensyjnych. Eprosartan wpływa korzystnie na obniżenie średniej, spoczynkowej częstości rytmu serca. Eprosartan jest lekiem bezpiecznym metabolicznie (korzystny wpływ na profil lipidowy, neutralność wobec glikemii, wydalania potasu i wydolności nerek). Działania niepożądane związane z leczeniem eprosartanem w dawce 600 mg/d. występują względnie rzadko i w większości przypadków są łagodne. Nie obserwowano poważnych zdarzeń niepożądanych związanych ze stosowanym leczeniem hipotensyjnym.Background Effective treatment of hypertension remains a major problem in modern cardiology. Despite constant advances in pharmacotherapy there is an urgent need for pharmacological agents combining hypotensive efficacy with high safety profile and good tolerance. Angiotensin II receptor antagonists fulfill these criteria. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the efficacy, safety and tolerance of eprosartan treatment in patients with mild or moderate arterial hypertension. Material and methods 564 patients with newly diagnosed or not effectively treated hypertension were enrolled into the study. The patients received eprosartan 600 mg/daily. The efficacy and safety of the treatment was assessed after 4 and 12 weeks of therapy. Results Twelve weeks of eprosartan treatment resulted in the reduction of both systolic and diastolic blood pressure by 26.1 mm Hg and 12.6 mm Hg respectively (p < 0.001). Significant decrease of the resting heart rate was also observed. During 3 months of eprosartan treatment there were no significant changes of electrolyte and glucose concentrations and renal function parameters. Improvement of lipid profile was observed. Adverse events were rare and of mild (8.7%). The most common side effects included headache, dizziness, nausea and weakness. After 12 weeks of treatment in 91.5% of patients the treatment tolerance was assessed as very good or good. Conclusions Eprosartan is an effective hypotensive agent; achieved blood pressure values confirm that it is a potent hypotensive agent. Eprosartan reduces mean resting heart rate. Eprosartan is metabolically safe (favourably influences blood lipids, no effect on glucose concentration, kaliuresis and renal parameters was observed). Adverse events associated with eprosartan treatment in the dose of 600 mg/day are relatively rare and most commonly mild. No serious adverse events associated with the study drug were observed

The comparative analysis of magnetic resonance imaging and arthroscopy of the temporomandibular joints

Background: The aim of the study was to correlate arthroscopic and MRI image of temporomandibular joints (TMJ) dysfunction on the clinical basis. Material/Methods: The study sample comprised 44 patients. All subjects underwent bilateral MRI and unilateral arthroscopy of TMJ to evaluate disc structure, position and function, bone structure abnormalities, joint effusion localization and entity according to Wilkes classification. Results: In 31 patients (70,5%) MRI allowed diagnosing the morphological and functional changes with the arthroscopic confidence. In 13 (29,5%) cases the differences between both images were noted. The stage of the disease was over- or underestimated at one grade level. Conclusions: The present study contributes to an improved understanding of TMJ changes in MRI. The MRI analysis of craniomandibular disorders is extremely helpful as the primary imaging preceding arthroscopy

Prenyl Ammonium Salts – New Carriers for Gene Delivery: A B16-F10 Mouse Melanoma Model

Purpose Prenyl ammonium iodides (Amino-Prenols, APs), semi-synthetic polyprenol derivatives were studied as prospective novel gene transfer agents. Methods AP-7, -8, -11 and -15 (aminoprenols composed of 7, 8, 11 or 15 isoprene units, respectively)were examined for their capacity to form complexes with pDNA, for cytotoxicity and ability to transfect genes to cells. Results All the carriers were able to complex DNA. The highest, comparable to commercial reagents, transfection efficiency was observed for AP-15. Simultaneously, AP-15 exhibited the lowest negative impact on cell viability and proliferation—considerably lower than that of commercial agents. AP-15/DOPE complexes were also efficient to introduce pDNA to cells, without much effect on cell viability. Transfection with AP-15/DOPE complexes influenced the expression of a very few among 44 tested genes involved in cellular lipid metabolism. Furthermore, complexes containing AP-15 and therapeutic plasmid, encoding the TIMP metallopeptidase inhibitor 2 (TIMP2), introduced the TIMP2 gene with high efficiency to B16-F10 melanoma cells but not to B16-F10 melanoma tumors in C57BL/6 mice, as confirmed by TIMP2 protein level determination. Conclusion Obtained results indicate that APs have a potential as non-viral vectors for cell transfection