Local Labour System After the Turn of the Millennium in Hungary

The current research puts the issue of functional urban regions (or districts) into the focus delimited by the commuting network of employees. The local labour system (LLS) provided a specific dimension of this complex approach however it is one of the most adequate possibilities to delineate these areas of commuting. The delimitation process consisted of two steps with the separation of employment centres and with the assignment of settlements to these cores. The alteration of the LLS pattern was also analysed as the investigation was carried out by the census data from 2001 and 2011. The results provided a comprehensive overview about the process of territorial concentration and the instability of peripheral areas. Significant regional disparities of commuting came to light as the consequence of the body of settlement network. The territorial division of the country provided by LLS pattern is fitting to the new and integrated European approach of cities and their hinterlands but it is not alternative against other administrative or statistical divisions of Hungary. However this territorial point of view is in closer relation to the issues of analysing the local labour market processes or the developments targeting the increase in employment

Local Labour System After the Turn of the Millennium in Hungary

The current research puts the issue of functional urban regions (or districts) into the focus delimited by the commuting network of employees. The local labour system (LLS) provided a specific dimension of this complex approach however it is one of the most adequate possibilities to delineate these areas of commuting. The delimitation process consisted of two steps with the separation of employment centres and with the assignment of settlements to these cores. The alteration of the LLS pattern was also analysed as the investigation was carried out by the census data from 2001 and 2011. The results provided a comprehensive overview about the process of territorial concentration and the instability of peripheral areas. Significant regional disparities of commuting came to light as the consequence of the body of settlement network. The territorial division of the country provided by LLS pattern is fitting to the new and integrated European approach of cities and their hinterlands but it is not alternative against other administrative or statistical divisions of Hungary. However this territorial point of view is in closer relation to the issues of analysing the local labour market processes or the developments targeting the increase in employment

Protection by the NO-Donor SNAP and BNP against Hypoxia/Reoxygenation in Rat Engineered Heart Tissue

In vitro assays could replace animal experiments in drug screening and disease modeling, but have shortcomings in terms of functional readout. Force-generating engineered heart tissues (EHT) provide simple automated measurements of contractile function. Here we evaluated the response of EHTs to hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) and the effect of known cardiocytoprotective molecules. EHTs from neonatal rat heart cells were incubated for 24 h in EHT medium. Then they were subjected to 180 min hypoxia (93% N2, 7% CO2) and 120 min reoxygenation (40% O2, 53% N2, 7% CO2), change of medium and additional follow-up of 48 h. Time-matched controls (40% O2, 53% N2, 7% CO2) were run for comparison. The following conditions were applied during H/R: fresh EHT medium (positive control), the NO-donor S-nitroso-N-acetyl-D,L-penicillamine (SNAP, 10-7, 10-6, 10-5 M) or the guanylate cyclase activator brain type natriuretic peptide (BNP, 10-9, 10-8, 10-7 M). Frequency and force of contraction were repeatedly monitored over the entire experiment, pH, troponin I (cTnI), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and glucose concentrations measured in EHT medium. Beating activity of EHTs in 24 h-medium ceased during hypoxia, partially recovered during reoxygenation and reached time-control values during follow-up. H/R was accompanied by a small increase in LDH and non-significant increase in cTnI. In fresh medium, some EHTs continued beating during hypoxia and all EHTs recovered faster during reoxygenation. SNAP and BNP showed small but significant protective effects during reoxygenation. EHTs are applicable to test potential cardioprotective compounds in vitro, monitoring functional and biochemical endpoints, which otherwise could be only measured by using in vivo or ex vivo heart preparations. The sensitivity of the model needs improvement

Etnikai besorolási gyakorlatok

L

Attempts to delineate functional regions in Hungary based on commuting data

The issue of defining functional regions in Hungary is presented in this paper, which contains detailed methodological description with the help of relevant studies from the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The use of Smart’s measure together with the CURDS algorithm and the relatively new concept of trade-off constraint function with four different sets of parameter values provided four optional solutions for this issue, based on the analysis of daily travel-to-work flows from the 2011 census. The resulting regions correspond to the micro-regional level and give valuable additions to the discussion about regionalization. The paper provides basic descriptive statistics for each of the four variants of functional region systems, which enables their overall evaluation (seeing advantages and disadvantages) and mutual comparison (seeing similarities and differences), and thus facilitates an informed debate on future work in functional regionalisation in Hungary carried out with respect to different purposes

Attempts to delineate functional regions in Hungary based on commuting data

The issue of defining functional regions in Hungary is presented in this paper, which contains detailed methodological description with the help of relevant studies from the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The use of Smart’s measure together with the CURDS algorithm and the relatively new concept of trade-off constraint function with four different sets of parameter values provided four optional solutions for this issue, based on the analysis of daily travel-to-work flows from the 2011 census. The resulting regions correspond to the micro-regional level and give valuable additions to the discussion about regionalization. The paper provides basic descriptive statistics for each of the four variants of functional region systems, which enables their overall evaluation (seeing advantages and disadvantages) and mutual comparison (seeing similarities and differences), and thus facilitates an informed debate on future work in functional regionalisation in Hungary carried out with respect to different purposes

Preconditioning protects the heart in a prolonged uremic condition

Metabolic diseases such as hyperlipidemia and diabetes attenuate the cardioprotective effect of ischemic preconditioning. In the present study, we examined whether another metabolic disease, prolonged uremia, affects ischemia/reperfusion injury and cardioprotection by ischemic preconditioning. Uremia was induced by partial nephrectomy in male Wistar rats. The development of uremia was verified 29 wk after surgery. Transthoracic echocardiography was performed to monitor cardiac function. At week 30, hearts of nephrectomized and sham-operated rats were isolated and subjected to a 30-min coronary occlusion followed by 120 min reperfusion with or without preceding preconditioning induced by three intermittent cycles of brief ischemia and reperfusion. In nephrectomized rats, plasma uric acid, carbamide, and creatinine as well as urine protein levels were increased as compared with sham-operated controls. Systolic anterior and septal wall thicknesses were increased in nephrectomized rats, suggesting the development of a minimal cardiac hypertrophy. Ejection fraction was decreased and isovolumic relaxation time was shortened in nephrectomized rats demonstrating a mild systolic and diastolic dysfunction. Infarct size was not affected significantly by nephrectomy itself. Ischemic preconditioning significantly decreased infarct size from 24.8 ± 5.2% to 6.6 ± 1.3% in the sham-operated group and also in the uremic group from 35.4 ± 9.5% to 11.9 ± 3.1% of the area at risk. Plasma ANG II and nitrotyrosine were significantly increased in the uremic rats. We conclude that although prolonged experimental uremia leads to severe metabolic changes and the development of a mild myocardial dysfunction, the cardioprotective effect of ischemic preconditioning is still preserved

MMP Activity Detection in Zymograms

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) belong to a distinguished class of zinc-dependent endopeptidases. Zymography is a semi-quantitative tool for determining the activity of different MMP isoenzymes in a variety of biological samples. In substrate gel zymography, protein samples of different origin (tissue, cell lysates, plasma/serum, perfusates, other liquids) are separated in sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) polyacrylamide gels containing copolymerized substrate (gelatin, casein, elastin, etc.), and after incubation-enabling substrate cleavage by MMPs, MMP activities are detected after the gel staining as transparent bands against a dark-blue background. In situ zymography is a histological modification of substrate zymography in frozen sections, allowing detection of the localization of the MMP activities within the tissue. Here, we describe detailed experimental protocols of all abovementioned techniques and provide examples for several sample measurements

Adverse Effects on beta-Adrenergic Receptor Coupling: Ischemic Postconditioning Failed to Preserve Long-Term Cardiac Function

BACKGROUND: Ischemic preconditioning (IPC) and ischemic postconditioning (IPoC) are currently among the most efficient strategies protecting the heart against ischemia/reperfusion injury. However, the effect of IPC and IPoC on functional recovery following ischemia/reperfusion is less clear, particularly with regard to the specific receptor-mediated signaling of the postischemic heart. The current article examines the effect of IPC or IPoC on the regulation and coupling of beta-adrenergic receptors and their effects on postischemic left ventricular function. METHODS AND RESULTS: The beta-adrenergic signal transduction was analyzed in 3-month-old Wistar rats for each of the intervention strategies (Sham, ischemia/reperfusion, IPC, IPoC) immediately and 7 days after myocardial infarction. Directly after the infarction a cardioprotective potential was demonstrated for both IPC and IPoC: the infarct size was reduced, apoptosis and production of reactive oxygen species were lowered, and the myocardial tissue was preserved. Seven days after myocardial ischemia, only IPC hearts showed significant functional improvement. Along with a deterioration in fractional shortening, IPoC hearts no longer responded adequately to beta-adrenergic stimulation. The stabilization of beta-adrenergic receptor kinase-2 via increased phosphorylation of Mdm2 (an E3-ubiquitin ligase) was responsible for desensitization of beta-adrenergic receptors and identified as a characteristic specific to IPoC hearts. CONCLUSIONS: Immediately after myocardial infarction, rapid and transient activation of beta-adrenergic receptor kinase-2 may be an appropriate means to protect the injured heart from excessive stress. In the long term, however, induction and stabilization of beta-adrenergic receptor kinase-2, with the resultant loss of positive inotropic function, leads to the functional picture of heart failure