Integer Programming Approach to HP Folding

One of the most widely studied protein structure prediction models is the hydrophobic-hydrophilic (HP) model, which explains the hydrophobic interaction and tries to maximize the number of contacts among hydrophobic amino-acids. In order to find a lower bound for the number of contacts, a number of heuristics have been proposed, but finding the optimal solution is still a challenge. In this research, we focus on creating a new integer programming model which is capable to provide tractable input for mixed-integer programming solvers, is general enough and allows relaxation with provable good upper bounds. Computational experiments using benchmark problems show that our formulation achieves these goals.This work was supported by NFSR of Bulgaria, projects DOO2-162/16.12.2008, DOO2-135/31.07.2009 and DO 02-35

Non-Motor Symptoms in Patients with Primary Dystonia

Isolated dystonia, previously referred to as primary, is the third most common movement disorder, characterized by involuntary muscle contractions causing abnormal movements and postures with or without the presence of tremor. No matter monogenic or sporadic, the form of dystonia is a growing evidence, suggesting the presence of non-motor components to the disorder. Dystonia patients suffer from reduced quality of life, which might be related not only to the dystonic movements itself but to different non-motor symptoms and signs, as well. Based on literature review, this chapter aims to focus on the association of different types of isolated/primary dystonia (forms of focal, segmental, and generalized dystonia) with some non-motor disorders, including sleep and psychiatric disorders, cognition, as though as pain and sensory symptoms, their pathophysiological and biochemical mechanisms, relations with the symptomatic treating strategies for the abnormal movements, and specific treatment for the non-motor signs

Control of the Respiratory Diseases in a Pig Herd Using Data of the Respiratory Organs Examination of Fattening Pigs at a Slaughterhouse

In everyday farming practice, assessment of economical impact of respiratory diseases at herd level relies on the following information: data records on the diseases within the herd, productivity and slaughterhouse records. The data available from the slaughterhouse encompass the number and percentage of low weight pigs, number of diseased animals, the severity of lesions observed at slaughter as well as the amount of discarded organs and carcasses. The aim of this investigation is to improve the assessment of health status of pigs at herd level and design programs for the control of respiratory syndrome in swine based on the analysis of the data collected at slaughter line. In the slaughterhouse, the thoracic cavity organs from 105 fatlings that have reached the slaughter body mass, 20 underweight fatlings and 20 underdeveloped piglets were examined. The weight of both half-carcasses was measured. Tissue samples of altered organs (lungs, mediastinal lympho nodes, tonsils) were collected and subjected to bacteriological analysis. The average weight of both half-carcasses was 81.54kg in fatteners with full slaughter body mass, and 58.29kg and 14.95kg in low-weight fatlings and piglets, respectively. Changes affecting 10% of lung tissue were established in 9 animals, 11-20% in 10 and 21-32% in 10 fatlings. Pathological process is characterized by hepatization of lung tissue, inflammation of the pleura or, even more frequently, adhesions between the visceral and parietal pleura and pericardium. In underweight fatlings, the rates of lung changes were 20% in 5, 11-30% in 3, 40% in 4, and 40% in 6 animals. Applying bacteriological testing, the following microorganisms were isolated: Haemophilus parasuis, Arcanobacterium pyogenes, and Pasteurella multocida. The examination performed at the slaughter line strongly suggested the necessity of designing a new, updated vaccination program taking into consideration the causative agents and vaccination schedule

Swine Dysentery: Practical Observations, Control And Diagnostics

Swine dysentery is a severe mucohemorrhagic enteric disease of pigs which has a large impact on pig production, with important losses caused by mortality and suboptimal performance. The causative agent is Brachyspirahyodysenteriae. The aim of the paper was to evaluate all the available data on B. hyodysenteriae presence on swine farms in Vojvodina region. The material for this research included five swine farms, where certain disorders and health problems in weaned, grower and fattening pigs were detected. Depending on the specificity of each evaluated case and available material, the applied research methods included: anamnestical and clinical evaluation, gross pathological examination, standard bacteriological testing for detection of the presence of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria in the tissue samples derived from diseased and/or died pigs. Besides this, in some cases the molecular diagnostic method (RT-PCR) was included. Swine dysentery is a common and important endemic problem in many swine farms in Vojvodina. On endemically infected swine farms transmission mainly occurs by ingestion of infected faeces. All the observed factors affecting disease persistence and transmission on the farm are thoroughly analysed and discussed. Finally, current prophylactic and therapeutic approaches to fight against disease are described

Effect of foliar products on the inflorescence yield of lavender and essential oil

Received: January 25th, 2022 ; Accepted: May 1st, 2022 ; Published: May 23rd, 2022 ; Correspondence: [email protected] topic of the effect of foliar fertilization on the productivity and oil content of lavender is relevant, but not sufficiently studied. The present study aims to establish the effect of foliar products on the growth, development and productivity of lavender. The field experiment was carried out at the Agricultural University - Plovdiv with lavender of ‘Jubileina’ variety during 2019–2020. The following variants were included in the study: 1. Untreated control; 2. Treatment with Fertileader Gold (FG) - 3 L ha-1; 3. Treatment with Fertiactyl Trium + Fertileader Vital (FT + FVital) - 1.5 + 1.5 L ha-1; 4. Treatment with Fertileader Viti (FViti) - 3 L ha-1; 5. Treatment with Fertileader Vital (FV) - 3 L ha-1; 6. Treatment with Fertileader Alpha (FA) - 3 L ha-1. Those preparations are bio stimulants for foliar application. The treatments were made in two consecutive lavender vegetation seasons. The first application was carried out in the second growing season (2019) and the second in the next, third growing season (2020). The foliar application of all tested products increased the photosynthetic activity, but it was better expressed when using the plant nutrition products FV, FViti and FT + FVital. A positive effect was also observed in the height and diameter of the bush, but during the third vegetation period. The number of flowering stems increased by 62.9%; 59.4%; 53.3% and 8.4%, respectively, when applying the fertilizers FG, FT + FVital, FViti and FV. The application of FG and FT + FVital increased the yield of fresh inflorescences by 6.1% and 3.7%. The application of the different products affected the oil yield in different ways; the application of FG, FT + FVital and FViti increased it, while FV and FA decreased it by 27 kg ha-1 and 16 kg ha-1, respectively, for the first vegetation and by 43.4 kg ha-1and 33.1 kg ha-1 for the second vegetation. The boron containing products FG, FT + FVital and FViti led to a significant increase in the essential oil yield, while the application of the foliar fertilizers FV and FA reduced it. Based on those results, the first three products are recommended

Национален консенсус за диагностика, лечение, проследяване и профилактика на хередитарната транстиретиновата амилоидоза

Амилоидозите са широк спектър от заболявания, дължащи се на промени в белтъчната структура, в резултат на което нормално разтворим тетрамерен белтък след дестабилизация на четвъртичната структура и последващ разпад до свободни мономери образува неразтворими извънклетъчни фибрилни депозити, което води до органна дисфункция. Всички видове амилоид съдържат един основен фибрилен протеин, който определя вида на амилоида, както и по-малки компоненти. Над 20 различни фибрилни протеина, асоциирани с амилоидози са описани при хора, всяка от които има различна клинична картина. Един такъв белтък, който формира човешки амилоидни фибрили, е транстиретина (Ando Y. и сътр. 2005). TTР действа като транспортен белтък за тироксин в плазма. TTР също транспортира ретинол (витамин А) чрез свързването му с ретинол-свързващия протеин. Той циркулира като тетрамер от четири идентични субединици. TTР може да бъде открит в плазмата и ликвора. Синтезира се главно в черния дроб и хориоидния плексус на мозъка и в по-малка степен - в ретината. Генът TTР е локализиран върху дългото рамо на хромозома 18 и съдържа 4 екзона и 3 интрона. Системните амилоидози се означават с главна буква А (за амилоид), следвана от съкращението за химическата същност на фибрилния протеин. Така например, TTР амилоидоза се съкращава ATTР, а амилоидоза при отлагане на леките вериги на имуноглобулините – AЛ (Saraiva M. и сътр., 1984; Connors L. и сътр., 2003; Ando Y. и сътр. 2005). Класифицирането на откритите генетични варианти е от изключително значение за молекулярно-генетичните тестове и тяхната интерпретация. Оценката на патогенността на даден генетичен вариант трябва да се извършва на базата на научни доказателства и според унифицирана номенклатура и правила. Във връзка с това, широко използваните до момента термини мутация и полиморфизъм са заменени с класификация на генетичните варианти, според която се обособяват 5 категории: патогенен, вероятно патогенен, вариант с неясно клинично значение, вероятно непатогенен и непатогенен (Richards S. и сътр., 2015; Nykamp K. И сътр., 2017)

F-Wave in the Upper Extremities of Patients with Primary Torsion Dystonia

We investigated characteristics of the F-waves in the upper limbs of patients suffering from primary torsion dystonia (PTD) by means of surface-electrode electromyography. Single electric stimulation was used to obtain optimum M-responses from the m. abductor pollicis brevis (median nerve) and m. abductor digiti minimi (ulnar nerve). Ten consecutive supramaximum electrical stimuli were applied to each nerve to obtain F-waves from the wrist. In general, the registered M-response latencies and amplitudes, as well as conduction velocities via all inspected nerves, demonstrated no significant deviations from the normal ranges. Nearly all investigated patients, except one, had normal F-wave minimal latencies. The mean amplitudes of F-waves from both median and ulnar nerves were higher than the average F-wave amplitudes described in the literature. The frequency of occurrence of F-waves in both median and ulnar nerves was greater than in the norm. According to our results, it can be concluded that the amplitude and, to some extent, frequency rather than the latency of F-waves are important in the studies of patients with PTD. Increased amplitudes and frequencies reveal changes in the excitability of alpha motoneurons, which could be accepted as a measure of a disturbed interneuronal balance probably caused by alterations in the suprasegmental control mechanisms related to PTD.Ми досліджували характеристики F-хвилі в нервах верхніх кінцівок пацієнтів, що страждали на первинну торсіонну дистонію (ПТД); використовували стандартну техніку електроміографії з відведенням поверхневими електродами. Застосовували поодинокі супрамаксимальні електричні стимули для отримання оптимальних М-відповідей m. abductor policis brevis (подразнення n. medianus) та m. abductor digiti minimi (подразнення n. ulnaris); F-хвилі відводили на рівні зап’ястка. В цілому зареєстровані латентні періоди та амплітуди М-відповідей, як і швидкості проведення по досліджених нервах, не демонстрували драматичних відхилень від нормальних діапазонів значень. Середні амплітуди F-хвиль y n. medianus та n. ulnaris були вищими, ніж описані в літературі. Частота реєстрації F-хвиль в обох нервах була вищою, ніж у нормі. Згідно з нашими результатами, амплітуда та (до деякої міри) частота реєстрації F-хвиль є параметрами, що заслуговують на увагу при обстеженні пацієнтів із ПТД. Вищі значення амплітуд та частоти виникнення F-хвиль вказують на зміни збудливості альфа-мотонейронів. Такі значення можуть розглядатись як показники дисбалансу в інтернейронних системах, вірогідно, пов’язані зі зрушеннями в механізмах супрасегментарного контролю при ПТД

Pitfals in recognition and management of trigeminal neuralgia

BACKGROUND: Trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is a severe, disabling form of painful cranial neuropathy. Even though TN has a typical clinical picture, diagnosis it is often missed or delayed in clinical practice. In order to investigate the occurrence of diagnostic and therapeutic errors in TN, we studied 102 patients suffering from TN recruited through a multicentric survey. METHODS: We performed a Pubmed database search on errors and pittfalls in TN diagnosis and management. Then, patients with TN were consecutively enrolled in the period from February 2017 to October 2019, by several European Headache Centers participating in the study, following a call of the Headache and Pain Scientific Panels of the European Academy of Neurology (EAN). Diagnosis of Classical Trigeminal Neuralgia (CTN) was made according to the International Headache Society (IHS) criteria (Tölle et al., Pain Pract 6:153-160, 2006). All the patients were evaluated using telephone/frontal interviews conducted by headache/pain specialists using an ad hoc questionnaire. RESULTS: A number of 102 patients were recruited, mostly females (F:M ratio 2.64:1). Eighty-six percent of the patients consulted a physician at the time they experienced the first pain attacks. Specialists consulted before TN diagnosis were: primary care physicians (PCP) (43.1%), dentists (in 30.4%), otorhinolaryngologists (3.9%), neurosurgeons (3.9%), neurologists or headache specialists (14.7%), others (8%). The final diagnosis was made mainly by a neurologist or headache specialist (85.3%), and the mean interval between the disease onset and the diagnosis made by a specialist was 10.8 ± 21.2 months. The "diagnostic delay" was 7.2 ± 12.5 months, and misdiagnoses at first consultation were found in 42.1% of cases. Instrumental and laboratory investigations were carried out in 93.1% of the patients before the final diagnosis of TN. CONCLUSION: While TN has typical features and it is well defined by the available international diagnostic criteria, it is still frequently misdiagnosed and mistreated. There is a need to improve the neurological knowledge in order to promptly recognize the clinical picture of TN and properly adhere to the specific guidelines. This may result in a favorable outcome for patients, whose quality of life is usually severely impaired