Magnetic structure and phase diagram of TmB4

Magnetic structure of single crystalline TmB4 has been studied by magnetization, magnetoresistivity and specific heat measurements. A complex phase diagram with different antiferromagnetic (AF) phases was observed below TN1 = 11.7 K. Besides the plateau at half-saturated magnetization (1/2 MS), also plateaus at 1/9, 1/8 and 1/7 of MS were observed as function of applied magnetic field B//c. From additional neutron scattering experiments on TmB4, we suppose that those plateaus arise from a stripe structure which appears to be coherent domain boundaries between AF ordered blocks of 7 or 9 lattice constants. The received results suggest that the frustration among the Tm3+ magnetic ions, which maps to a geometrically frustrated Shastry-Sutherland lattice lead to strong competition between AF and ferromagnetic (FM) order. Thus, stripe structures in intermediate field appear to be the best way to minimize the magnetostatic energy against other magnetic interactions between the Tm ions combined with very strong Ising anisotropy.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, conference contribution - CSMAG 0

Planning algorithm for efficient and sustainable crop production

The process of agricultural production is associated with a complex of factors of a different nature: systemic, technological, biological, socio-economic, climatic, reproductive, environmental. All of them influence the size and stability of economic and financial results. There is a threshold level of enterprise management complexity, the excess of which motivates agribusiness to switch to computerized methods. Management of an agricultural enterprise should be based on planning results, updated in a rolling mode. When developing the annual plan, it is necessary to take into account a lot of heterogeneous information and tend to the optimal solution – the achievement of the target indicators with the minimum expenditure of resources. As the basis of the optimal annual planning system, the article proposes an economic-mathematical model for optimizing the production and industry structure of an agricultural enterprise, which includes the following modules: assessment of the parameters of the yield production functions based on field history, the formation of a fertilizer application plan with justification of economically feasible yield levels, solving the problem of optimizing the sectoral structure of crop production, taking into account the forecrop influence in the crop rotation. The algorithm for finding an effective and stable production structure under various combinations of environmental conditions implements the following sequence of procedures: generation of parameter combinations of the economic-mathematical model; obtaining the optimal solution for each combination of these parameters; assessment of the mathematical expectation of the efficiency criterion and variance for each optimal solution on a variety of parameter combinations; choice of a highly effective solution with a low dispersion of this efficiency. To implement this algorithm, the method of simulation experiments in the space of system parameters is used. The optimal solution is chosen by minimizing the distance to the “ideal point” (maximum efficiency, minimum dispersion).El proceso de producción agrícola está asociado con un complejo de factores de diferente naturaleza: sistémicos, tecnológicos, biológicos, socioeconómicos, climáticos, reproductivos, ambientales. Todos ellos influyen en el tamaño y la estabilidad de los resultados económicos y financieros. Existe un nivel umbral de complejidad de gestión empresarial, cuyo exceso motiva a los agronegocios a cambiar a métodos computarizados. La gestión de una empresa agrícola debe basarse en resultados de planificación, actualizados en un modo continuo. Al desarrollar el plan anual, es necesario tener en cuenta mucha información heterogénea y tender a la solución óptima: el logro de los indicadores objetivo con el gasto mínimo de recursos. Como base del sistema óptimo de planificación anual, el artículo propone un modelo económico-matemático para optimizar la producción y la estructura industrial de una empresa agrícola, que incluye los siguientes módulos: evaluación de los parámetros de las funciones de producción de rendimiento en función del historial de campo, la formación de un plan de aplicación de fertilizantes con justificación de niveles de rendimiento económicamente factibles, resolviendo el problema de optimizar la estructura sectorial de la producción de cultivos, teniendo en cuenta la influencia de la cosecha en la rotación de cultivos. El algoritmo para encontrar una estructura de producción efectiva y estable bajo diversas combinaciones de condiciones ambientales implementa la siguiente secuencia de procedimientos: generación de combinaciones de parámetros del modelo económico-matemático; obtener la solución óptima para cada combinación de estos parámetros; evaluación de la expectativa matemática del criterio de eficiencia y la varianza para cada solución óptima en una variedad de combinaciones de parámetros; elección de una solución altamente efectiva con una baja dispersión de esta eficiencia. Para implementar este algoritmo, se utiliza el método de experimentos de simulación en el espacio de los parámetros del sistema. La solución óptima se elige minimizando la distancia al "punto ideal" (máxima eficiencia, mínima dispersión)

«Ten Questions a Hundred Famous Russian People» as Format Student Television Broadcasting

The article is devoted to the problems of designing television broadcasting for students NWIM RANEPA by example implementation of the television project «Ten questions a hundred famous Russian people». This media product has its own unique. It is created from beginning to the end by the students themselves, studying in the field of training “Journalism” NWIM RANEPA. The authors of the article comprehensively analyzed all technological and creative aspects of this project. In their opinion, the project «Ten questions a hundred famous Russian people» became an experimental platform where the most brave decisions and approaches in studying autobiographies of famous people were tested, where students can engage in self-directed practice activities and mastering of various television specialties: cameraman, producer, TV presenter, editor, sound engineer, screenwriter, correspondent, editor. Therefore the project harmonically joined in the educational process to carry out educational and enlightening functions

Development of a New Dosage Form of Herbal Medicinal Products

The «cut-and-pressed granules» dosage form was developed to improve the technological properties of cut and powdered herbal substances in order to compensate for their insufficient flowability, as well as to facilitate dosing, reduce the contamination of the production equipment with dust and contamination of water extracts with dietary fibers. Based on the results of the information research the authors chose an optimal technology for the production of cut-and-pressed granules from some types of herbal substances (Rose hips, Bearberry leaf, Thyme herb, Melissa herb, Oregano herb, Motherwort grass, Matricaria flower). The authors standardised the new dosage form, developed the list of test parameters, test methods, and regulatory requirements for the quality of medicinal products based on the technological features of the new dosage form. Cut-and-pressed granules should not be produced from herbal substances that contain essential oils and coumarins, as it was demonstrated that the content of these compounds may decrease in the process of wet granulation. To determine whether it is possible to produce cut-and-pressed granules from a particular type of raw material, it is necessary to conduct comparative experimental studies confirming that the quality of aqueous extracts obtained from powdered herbal substances in sachets is comparable to that of tinctures or decoctions obtained from cut-and-pressed granules packed in sachets. The materials of the study were used to draft the general chapter OFS.1.4.1.0022.15 «Cut-and-pressed granules». This dosage form is not described in any foreign pharmacopoeias

Statin-induced rhabdomyolysis in a 60-year-old woman with decompensated type 2 diabetes: a case report

Rhabdomyolysis is a very rare and most severe form of statin-induced muscle adverse event characterized by muscle pain, muscle necrosis with myoglobinemia and/or myoglobinuria with a very high risk of acute kidney injury and death. The article presents a case report of developing rhabdomyolysis in a middleaged female patient with hypertension, decompensated type 2 diabetes and albuminuria. A 60-year-old woman was admitted to the hospital for emergency indications with complaints of severe muscle weakness that began in the neck, which spread over several days to the upper and lower extremities, with a symptoms progression up to paresis. According to the appointment of a primary care physician, three months before hospitalization, the patient was switched from therapy with European generic brand-name rosuvastatin 20 mg to the Russian generic unbranded atorvastatin in the same dose (20 mg), which is not comparable in lipid-lowering effect. In a laboratory study, an increase in creatine phosphokinase level by 348 times (50462 U/L) of upper normal limit in combination with severe hypokalemia 1б7 mmol/L in the absence of renal dysfunction was recorded. Cancellation of statin, metformin and empagliflozin, intensive infusion therapy and treating electrolyte imbalance made it possible to prevent the development of acute renal damage, life-threatening arrhythmias and completely stop muscle complaints within a few days. The patient was discharged from the hospital on the 23rd day with reference clinical and laboratory values, including creatine phosphokinase.This case emphasizes the importance of maintaining clinical suspicion regarding rhabdomyolysis in patients receiving statin therapy in the presence of risk factors (in this case, female sex, hyperglycemia, chronic kidney disease, concomitant therapy), as well as the relevance of timely diagnosis and treatment of this condition

Associations of changes in lipid metabolism parameters and the severity of COVID-19 infection in Novosibirsk residents

Aim. To study the associations of changes in lipid metabolism parameters and the severity of a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).Material and methods. This cross-sectional study included 270 patients aged 26-84 years (mean age, 53,09±13,22 years) who had COVID-19 within prior two months, which were divided into 3 groups: mild (1, n=128), moderate (2, n=128) and severe (3, n=14) COVID-19. Patients were assessed for body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), hip circumference (HC), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), total cholesterol, triglycerides (TG), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C). In addition, atherogenic index of plasma (AIP) was calculated. Statistical processing was performed using the SPSS software package (version 13.0).Results. Patients with severe COVID-19 had significantly higher levels of TG and AIP compared with patients with moderate and mild course. BMI and WC were significantly higher in patients in groups 2 and 3 compared with patients in group 1. In women, BMI and AIP levels were significantly higher in the severe COVID-19 group compared to groups 1 and 2. HDL-C levels were lower in patients with severe COVID-19 compared to those with moderate disease. WHR was higher among men in group 3 compared with group 1.Conclusion. Patients with severe COVID-19 have higher BMI, WC, AIP, TG levels, and lower HD-C levels. The relative odds for severe COVID-19 are associated with increased WC, AIP, TG, and lower HDL-C

Insulin resistance and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction. Pathogenetic and therapeutic crossroads

Insulin resistance, which is a fundamental pathogenetic factor of prediabetes, is closely associated with abdominal obesity on the one hand and the development of cardiovascular diseases, heart failure (HF), on the other. The pathogenetic role of insulin resistance is multifaceted and consists in the acceleration of atherosclerosis, the formation of left ventricular myocardial hypertrophy, including through mechanisms that do not depend on blood pressure, as well as the development of its diastolic dysfunction. The latter is the starting point for starting HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF).Compared with patients with HF with reduced ejection fraction, the presence of HFpEF determines a higher frequency of hospitalizations not due to decompensation of heart failure, but due to concomitant diseases, such as destabilization of the course of arterial hypertension, decompensation of type 2 diabetes mellitus, curation of which, in general, has a greater impact in terms of improving prognosis. Thus, in patients with prediabetes and HFpEF, the correction of insulin resistance as the underlying cause and trigger of cardiometabolic disorders can potentially improve not only insulin-glucose homeostasis, but also the parameters of myocardial diastolic function. This literature review is devoted to the accumulated experience of using metformin as a «strategic» antidiabetic drug in HFpEF and considering potential new points of its application as a protector of the cardiovascular system

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and metabolic liver dysfunction in the new coronavirus infection COVID-19

Our study aimed to explore associated non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and metabolic liver dysfunction influence on the severity of the new coronavirus infection COVID-19. Material and methods. The study design was a cross-sectional study. The research included 215 patients (39.50 % of men) aged 26–60 years who had undergone a new coronavirus infection COVID-19 at least two months ago. Participants were divided into three groups by severity of infection: mild (n = 99), moderate and severe (n = 116) by anamnesis. Hepatic steatosis index (HIS), body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, alanine aminotransferase and gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase activity, glucose and triglyceride content, systolic and diastolic pressure were calculated and abdominal ultrasound examination was done. Results. In the group with moderate and severe course of COVID-19, the proportion of patients diagnosed with NAFLDaccording to the HSI index was significantly higher compared to patients with mild coronavirus infection. Patients with mild COVID-19, who were diagnosed with NAFLD, had higher alanine aminotransferase and gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase activity, glucose and triglyceride content, BMI, systolic and diastolic pressure, waist circumference compared to patients without NAFLD. Similar differences persisted for patients with moderate and severe course. With the step-by-step exclusion of cardiometabolic parameters from the logistic regression model, the triglyceride content and BMI retained association with steatohepatosis according to ultrasound data, regardless of severity. When creating a similar model for the HSI index, significant correlation was shown for alanine aminotransferase activity in patients with mild COVID-19, for alanine aminotransferase activity and BMI – in patients with moderate and severe COVID-19. Conclusions. Patients with NAFLD have a more severe course of COVID-19. In addition, associations of the severity of COVID-19 with a combination of NAFLD and other cardiometabolic changes in the body, such as arterial hypertension, obesity, dyslipidemia, were revealed

Expansion of anti-AFP Th1 and Tc1 responses in hepatocellular carcinoma occur in different stages of disease

Copyright @ 2010 Cancer Research UK. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/.Background: α-Fetoprotein (AFP) is a tumour-associated antigen in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and is a target for immunotherapy. However, there is little information on the pattern of CD4 (Th1) and CD8 (Tc1) T-cell response to AFP in patients with HCC and their association with the clinical characteristics of patients. Methods: We therefore analysed CD4 and CD8 T-cell responses to a panel of AFP-derived peptides in a total of 31 HCC patients and 14 controls, using an intracellular cytokine assay for IFN-γ. Results: Anti-AFP Tc1 responses were detected in 28.5% of controls, as well as in 25% of HCC patients with Okuda I (early tumour stage) and in 31.6% of HCC patients with stage II or III (late tumour stages). An anti-AFP Th1 response was detected only in HCC patients (58.3% with Okuda stage I tumours and 15.8% with Okuda stage II or III tumours). Anti-AFP Th1 response was mainly detected in HCC patients who had normal or mildly elevated serum AFP concentrations (P=0.00188), whereas there was no significant difference between serum AFP concentrations in these patients and the presence of an anti-AFP Tc1 response. A Th1 response was detected in 44% of HCC patients with a Child–Pugh A score (early stage of cirrhosis), whereas this was detected in only 15% with a B or C score (late-stage cirrhosis). In contrast, a Tc1 response was detected in 17% of HCC patients with a Child–Pugh A score and in 46% with a B or C score. Conclusion: These results suggest that anti-AFP Th1 responses are more likely to be present in patients who are in an early stage of disease (for both tumour stage and liver cirrhosis), whereas anti-AFP Tc1 responses are more likely to be present in patients with late-stage liver cirrhosis. Therefore, these data provide valuable information for the design of vaccination strategies against HCC.Association for International Cancer Research and Polkemmet Fund, London Clinic