Methods of fighting against scale build-up at the Tuymazy deposit

During the oil production continuous scale build-up takes place by using any operation modes. Increases the pump wear on the working faces, presence of non-organic salts and results in seize of the shaft of electrical centrifugal pump (ECP) and plunger of the subsurface pump, impeller damage

Choice among Different Job Search Channels. The Evidence from Russian Labor Market

This paper employs the Russian Longitudinal Monitoring Survey to carry out the empirical analysis of the job search channels choice on the Russian labor market from 1994 till 2001. The econometric estimations of the job search channels choice are based on the modified model of job search with build-in budget and time constraints as model parameters. In this paper the typology of search strategies is represented. Within the framework of the research it has been also investigated how different socio-demographic and economic parameters influence the search strategy choice. We also studied the search intensity, i.e. the choice of the number of the job search channels. Our results confirm that occupation, budget constraints, demographic and ethnic characteristics, period of non-employment and local labor market characteristics influence significantly the choice of search channels. Dependence of job search efficiency on the selected search strategy is also represented in the paper. Our conclusion is that the most efficient strategies employ social networks and large number of channels.Russia, job search, job search channels, job search strategies, job search intensity, and efficiency of the job search

Methods of fighting against scale build-up at the Tuymazy deposit

During the oil production continuous scale build-up takes place by using any operation modes. Increases the pump wear on the working faces, presence of non-organic salts and results in seize of the shaft of electrical centrifugal pump (ECP) and plunger of the subsurface pump, impeller damage

Analysis of Association of Genetic Markers in the LUZP2 and FBXO40 Genes with the Normal Variability in Cognitive Performance in the Elderly

Cognitive performance is an important endophenotype for various neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric traits. In the present study two genetic variants in the leucine-zipper protein (LUZP2) and the F-box 40 protein (FBXO40) genes, previously reported to be genome-wide significant for Alzheimer’s diseases and schizophrenia, were examined for an association with cognitive abilities in normal elderly from the Russian population. Rs1021261 in the LUZP2 and rs3772130 in the FBXO40 were genotyped by multiplex PCR and MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry in a sample of 708 normal elderly subjects tested for cognitive performance using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). Association of genetic variability with the MoCA scores was estimated by parametric and nonparametric analysis of variance and by the frequency comparison between upper and lower quartiles of MoCA distribution. Significantly higher frequency of “TT” genotype of rs1021261 in the LUZP2 gene as well as “A” allele and “AA” genotype of rs3772130 in the FBXO40 gene was found in a subsample of individuals with the MoCA score less than 20 comparing to the fourth quartile’s subsample (MoCA > 25). The data of the present study suggests that genetic variability in the LUZP2 and FBXO40 loci associated with neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric diseases is also contributed to the normal variability in cognitive performance in the elderly

NATURAL KILLER CELL EFFECTS UPON ANGIOGENESIS UNDER CONDITIONS OF CONTACT-DEPENDENT AND DISTANT CO-CULTURING WITH ENDOTHELIAL AND TROPHOBLAST CELLS

Regulation of angiogenesis in the utero-placental bed determines adequate trophoblast invasion, placenta formation and development, as well as successful course of pregnancy. Natural killer (NK) cells, macrophages and trophoblast have the most significant effect on angiogenesis. To date, the functions of cells participating in placenta formation have been described in detail, both individually (in vitrо) and in tissues (in situ). However, no models have yet been created that reflect the interactions of NK cells, trophoblast and endothelium during angiogenesis. It remains unclear, how each cell population contributes to placental angiogenesis regulation, and to the cross-regulation of participating cell functions. Therefore, the aim of this research was to study contact and distant effects of NK cells upon formation of tube-like structures through co-culture of endothelial and trophoblast cells influenced by various cytokines (bFGF, VEGF, PlGF, TGFβ, IL-8, IFNγ and IL-1β). Introduction of NK cells to the co-culture of endothelial and trophoblast cells under conditions of both contact and distance-dependent culturing did not change the length of tube-like structures formed by endothelial cells. During contact-dependent culturing of NK cells with co-culture of endothelial and trophoblast cells in presence of IL-1β, the length of tubule-like structures remained unchanged, compared with the length of tube-like structures formed under the same culturing conditions, but without the cytokine added. During distant culturing of NK cells with co-culture of endothelial and trophoblast cells in the presence of IL-1β, the length of tube-like structures increased as compared with those formed under the same culturing conditions but without the cytokine. During contact-dependent (but not distant) culturing of NK cells with the co-culture of endothelial and trophoblast cells in the presence of VEGF, the length of tube-like structures was greater than those formed under the same culturing conditions but without the cytokine. When used in a three-component cell system, the pro-inflammatory cytokine IFNγ had no effect upon angiogenesis. During distant (but not contact-dependent) culturing of NK cells with co-culture of endothelial and trophoblast cells in the presence of TGFβ, the length of tube-like structures was less than the length of tube-like structures formed under the same culturing conditions but without the cytokine. Under conditions of distant culturing, TGFβ triggered a signal in NK cells that inhibited angiogenesis. Decreased length of tube-like structures under conditions of a three-component cell co-culture in the presence of the following pro-angiogenic factors was revealed: IL-8, PlGF (during contact-dependent culturing only) and bFGF (during both contact-dependent and distant culturing). Thus, the effects of cytokines upon angiogenesis in a three-component co-culture (NK cells, trophoblast and endothelium) differed from those revealed previously in single-component (endothelium only) and two-component (co-culture of endothelium and trophoblast) cell models. The results of these experiments indicated that regulation of placental cell interactions involved both cellular contacts and effects produced by cytokines

Natural Killer Cell Derived Microvesicles Affect the Function of Trophoblast Cells

The interaction of natural killer (NK) and trophoblast cells underlies the formation of immune tolerance in the mother–fetus system and the maintenance of the physiological course of pregnancy. In addition, NK cells affect the function of trophoblast cells, interacting with them via the receptor apparatus and through the production of cytokines. Microvesicles (MVs) derived from NK cells are able to change the function of target cells. However, in the overall pattern of interactions between NK cells and trophoblasts, the possibility that both can transmit signals to each other via MVs has not been taken into account. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the effect of NK cell-derived MVs on the phenotype, proliferation, and migration of trophoblast cells and their expression of intracellular messengers. We carried out assays for the detection of content transferred from MV to trophoblasts. We found that NK cell-derived MVs did not affect the expression of CD54, CD105, CD126, CD130, CD181, CD119, and CD120a receptors in trophoblast cells or lead to the appearance of CD45 and CD56 receptors in the trophoblast membrane. Further, the MVs reduced the proliferation but increased the migration of trophoblasts with no changes to their viability. Incubation of trophoblast cells in the presence of MVs resulted in the activation of STAT3 via pSTAT3(Ser727) but not via pSTAT3(Tyr705). The treatment of trophoblasts with MVs did not result in the phosphorylation of STAT1 and ERK1/2. The obtained data indicate that NK cell-derived MVs influence the function of trophoblast cells, which is accompanied by the activation of STAT3 signaling

Development of Postoperative Pain in Patients with End-Stage Knee Osteoarthritis Is Associated with Upregulation of Genes Related to Extracellular Matrix Degradation, Inflammation, and Apoptosis Measured in the Peripheral Blood before Knee Surgery

Osteoarthritis (OA) pain implies an indication for joint replacement in patients with end-stage OA. However, chronic postoperative pain is observed in 10–40% of patients with OA. Here, we identified genes whose expression in the peripheral blood before surgery could denote the risk of postoperative pain development. We examined the peripheral blood of 26 healthy subjects and 50 patients with end-stage OA prior to joint replacement surgery. Pain was evaluated before surgery using the visual analog scale (VAS) index and neuropathic pain questionnaires, Douleur Neuropathique 4 Questions (DN4) and PainDETECT questionnaires. Functional activity was assessed using the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities osteoarthritis index (WOMAC). Three and six months after surgery, pain indices according to VAS of 30% and higher were considered. Metalloproteinase (MMP)-9 and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP)1 protein levels were measured using ELISA in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Total RNA isolated from whole blood was analysed using quantitative real-time RT-PCR for caspase-3, MMP-9, TIMP1, cathepsins K and S, tumour necrosis factor (TNF)α, interleukin (IL)-1β, and cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 gene expression. Seventeen patients reported post-surgical pain. Expression of cathepsins K and S, caspase-3, TIMP1, IL-1β, and TNFα genes before surgery was significantly higher in these patients compared to pain-free patients with OA. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses confirmed significant associations between these gene expressions and the likelihood of pain development after arthroplasty. High baseline expression of genes associated with extracellular matrix destruction (cathepsins S and K, TIMP1), inflammation (IL-1β, TNFα), and apoptosis (caspase-3) measured in the peripheral blood of patients with end-stage OA before knee arthroplasty might serve as an important biomarker of postoperative pain development