The prevalence of serological markers of viral hepatitis among labor migrants arriving in the Russian Federation

Aim. To determine of the prevalence of viral hepatitis A, E, B, C and D markers in migrant workers.Materials and methods. Blood serum samples from 1,333 migrant workers recently arrived in Russia from Uzbekistan (n = 464), Tajikistan (n = 415), Ukraine (n = 308) and Moldova (n = 146) were analyzed. Anti-HAV IgG, anti-HEV IgM and IgG, HBsAg, anti-HBV and anti-HCV were tested using commercial ELISA tests.Results. The frequency of HBsAg detection was significantly higher among migrants from Tajikistan and Uzbekistan (5,3% and 5,2%, respectively) compared to migrants from Ukraine (1,0%) and Moldova (3,4%). No anti-HDV was detected in any positive HBsAg sample. The rate of anti-HCV detection was high regardless of the country of origin: 4,5% (Uzbekistan), 4.8% (Tajikistan), 3,9% (Ukraine), 4,8% (Moldova). Anti-HEV IgG was significantly higher in migrants from Uzbekistan and Tajikistan compared to those from Ukraine and Moldova (25,4% and 43,1%, vs. 7,8% and 12,3%, respectively, p <0,05). Anti-HEV IgM, indicative of current or recent infection, was detected in migrants from Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Moldova with similar frequency – 3,9%, 7,8%, 5,8% and 6,8%, respectively. AntiHAV IgG positivity rate was significantly lower in migrants from Ukraine compared to those from Moldova, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan (70,1% versus 91,8%, 98,7%, 99,8%, respectively, p <0,05).Conclusion. The high prevalence of hepatitis B and C serologic markers in labor migrants, as well as anti-HEV IgM, suggests a high probability of the importation of HCV, HBV and HEV in the Russian Federation. Thus, inclusion of hepatitis B, C and E testing into routine screening of labor migrants might be beneficial

Methods to reduce medication errors in a clinical trial of an investigational parenteral medication

AbstractThere are few evidence-based guidelines to inform optimal design of complex clinical trials, such as those assessing the safety and efficacy of intravenous drugs administered daily with infusion times over many hours per day and treatment durations that may span years. This study is a retrospective review of inpatient administration deviation reports for an investigational drug that is administered daily with infusion times of 8–24 h, and variable treatment durations for each patient. We report study design modifications made in 2007–2008 aimed at minimizing deviations from an investigational drug infusion protocol approved by an institutional review board and the United States Food and Drug Administration. Modifications were specifically aimed at minimizing errors of infusion rate, incorrect dose, incorrect patient, or wrong drug administered. We found that the rate of these types of administration errors of the study drug was significantly decreased following adoption of the specific study design changes. This report provides guidance in the design of clinical trials testing the safety and efficacy of study drugs administered via intravenous infusion in an inpatient setting so as to minimize drug administration protocol deviations and optimize patient safety

Modeling Elasticity in Crystal Growth

A new model of crystal growth is presented that describes the phenomena on atomic length and diffusive time scales. The former incorporates elastic and plastic deformation in a natural manner, and the latter enables access to times scales much larger than conventional atomic methods. The model is shown to be consistent with the predictions of Read and Shockley for grain boundary energy, and Matthews and Blakeslee for misfit dislocations in epitaxial growth.Comment: 4 pages, 10 figure

Detection of antibodies to the hepatitis E virus in domestic reindeer (<i>Rangifer tarandus</i>) in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)

Introduction. Although domestic pigs and wild boars are the main reservoir of zoonotic hepatitis E virus (HEV) genotypes in temperate countries, the presence of antibodies to HEV (anti-HEV) in the indigenous population of circumpolar territories, i.e. outside the habitat of wild and domestic pigs, indicates the presence of an alternative reservoir of the virus. Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) may be a potential reservoir for HEV in the polar regions. The purpose of the study was to determine the prevalence of anti-HEV among domestic reindeer in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). Materials and methods. Sera from 497 domestic reindeer from the Oymyakon (n = 425) and Ust-Yansky districts (n = 72) of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) were tested for anti-HEV. A commercial ELISA kit DS-ELISA-ANTI-HEV-G (Diagnostic Systems-Stolitsa LLC, Russia) was used for detection of anti-HEV IgG, but a rabbit polyclonal antibody against deer IgG labeled with horseradish peroxidase (KPL, USA) at a dilution of 1 : 100 in phosphate-buffered saline were used instead of the human specific conjugate from the kit. Results. The average detection rate of anti-HEV in reindeer sera was 15.5% (95% CI: 12.6–19.0%). The detection rate of anti-HEV significantly increased with age, from 3.5% (95% CI: 1.1–9.0%) in calves aged 3–6 months to 25.0% (95% CI: 1.6 –36.5%) in deer aged 2–4 years (p 0.0001). From this age group, anti-HEV detection rates reached a plateau, not differing significantly between older age groups (p 0.05). The average anti-HEV detection rate among reindeer 2 years of age and older was 19.0% (95% CI: 15.3–23.4%). There were no statistically significant differences in the frequency of anti-HEV detection between female and male reindeer, both among adult animals and among calves. Conclusion. The observed anti-HEV detection rates among domestic reindeer in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) indicate that infection caused by HEV or an antigenically similar virus is common in these animals. The dynamics of antibody accumulation in the reindeer population indicates that infection apparently occurs during the first two years of life

РАСПРОСТРАНЕННОСТЬ СЕРОЛОГИЧЕСКИХ МАРКЕРОВ ВИРУСНЫХ ГЕПАТИТОВ СРЕДИ ТРУДОВЫХ МИГРАНТОВ, ПРИБЫВАЮщИХ В РОССИйСКУЮ ФЕДЕРАЦИЮ

Aim. To determine of the prevalence of viral hepatitis A, E, B, C and D markers in migrant workers.Materials and methods. Blood serum samples from 1,333 migrant workers recently arrived in Russia from Uzbekistan (n = 464), Tajikistan (n = 415), Ukraine (n = 308) and Moldova (n = 146) were analyzed. Anti-HAV IgG, anti-HEV IgM and IgG, HBsAg, anti-HBV and anti-HCV were tested using commercial ELISA tests.Results. The frequency of HBsAg detection was significantly higher among migrants from Tajikistan and Uzbekistan (5,3% and 5,2%, respectively) compared to migrants from Ukraine (1,0%) and Moldova (3,4%). No anti-HDV was detected in any positive HBsAg sample. The rate of anti-HCV detection was high regardless of the country of origin: 4,5% (Uzbekistan), 4.8% (Tajikistan), 3,9% (Ukraine), 4,8% (Moldova). Anti-HEV IgG was significantly higher in migrants from Uzbekistan and Tajikistan compared to those from Ukraine and Moldova (25,4% and 43,1%, vs. 7,8% and 12,3%, respectively, p &lt;0,05). Anti-HEV IgM, indicative of current or recent infection, was detected in migrants from Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Moldova with similar frequency – 3,9%, 7,8%, 5,8% and 6,8%, respectively. AntiHAV IgG positivity rate was significantly lower in migrants from Ukraine compared to those from Moldova, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan (70,1% versus 91,8%, 98,7%, 99,8%, respectively, p &lt;0,05).Conclusion. The high prevalence of hepatitis B and C serologic markers in labor migrants, as well as anti-HEV IgM, suggests a high probability of the importation of HCV, HBV and HEV in the Russian Federation. Thus, inclusion of hepatitis B, C and E testing into routine screening of labor migrants might be beneficial. Цель. Определение распространенности маркеров вирусных гепатитов А, Е, В, С и D среди рабочих мигрантов, недавно прибывших в Российскую Федерацию.Материалы и методы. Исследованы образцы сыворотки крови от 1333 трудовых мигрантов, недавно прибывших в РФ из Узбекистана (n=464), Таджикистана (n=415), Украины (n=308) и Молдовы (n=146). Анти-ВГА IgG, анти-ВГЕ IgM и IgG, HBsAg, анти-ВГD и анти-ВГС определяли с помощью коммерческих ИФА-тестов.Результаты. Частота выявления HBsAg была достоверно выше среди мигрантов из Таджикистана и Узбекистана (5,3% и 5,2% соответственно) по сравнению с мигрантами из Украины (1,0%) и Молдовы (3,4%). Ни в одном позитивном по HBsAg образце не были выявлены анти-ВГD. Частота выявления анти-ВГС среди трудовых мигрантов была высокой, независимо от страны происхождения: 4,5% (Узбекистан), 4,8% (Таджикистан), 3,9% (Украина), 4,8% (Молдова). Анти-ВГЕ IgG достоверно чаще выявляли среди мигрантов из Узбекистана и Таджикистана по сравнению с мигрантами из Украины и Молдовы (25,4% и 43,1% против 7,8% и 12,3% соответственно, p&lt;0,05). Анти-ВГЕ IgM, свидетельствующие о текущей или недавно перенесенной инфекции, выявляли среди мигрантов из Узбекистана, Таджикистана, Украины и Молдовы с примерно одинаковой частотой – 3,9%, 7,8%, 5,8% и 6,8% соответственно. Серопозитивные по анти-ВГА IgG лица достоверно реже встречались среди мигрантов из Украины по сравнению с лицами, прибывшими из Молдовы, Узбекистана и Таджикистана (70,1% против 91,8%, 98,7%, 99,8% соответственно, p&lt;0,05).Заключение. Высокая частота выявления маркеров гепатитов В и С у трудовых мигрантов, а также анти-ВГЕ IgM, позволяет предполагать высокую вероятность завоза ВГС, ВГВ и ВГЕ в РФ, что делает необходимым включение в алгоритм обследования трудовых мигрантов маркеров гепатитов В, С и Е.

Investigation of blood microcirculation parameters in patients with rheumatic diseases by videocapillaroscopy and laser Doppler flowmetry during cold pressor test

Videocapillaroscopy (VCS) and laser Doppler flowmetry (LDF) are non-invasive methods for evaluating microcirculation parameters. The VCS method is based on a high-speed video recording of capillaries in the nailfold. The recorded video frames are processed using a specialized algorithm to determine the red blood cells velocity. The LDF technique is based on the analysis of the Doppler shift of back-scattered laser radiation from moving red blood cells. In this work, simultaneous measurements of VCS and LDF have been performed in healthy volunteers and rheumatic patient. The study was conducted using a cold pressor test. Changes were recorded in response to cold exposure in rheumatic diseases

ИЗУЧЕНИЕ ПОВРЕЖДЕННОСТИ ДНК КЛЕТОК КУЛЬТУРЫ HeLa МЕТОДОМ ДНК-КОМЕТ ПРИ КОМБИНИРОВАННОМ ВОЗДЕЙСТВИИ УЛЬТРАЗВУКОМ И 5-ФТОРУРАЦИЛОМ

To understand the mechanism of the effect of 5 % 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) gel used simultaneously with ultrasound (US ) on a tumor in patients with cervical cancer, the level of DNA damage was studied in vitro. We used cervical adenocarcinoma HeLa CC L-2 cells cultured under standard conditions in RPMI-1640 medium with 10 % fetal bovine serum and 50 μg / ml gentamicin. Ultrasound exposure lasted 10 min. (frequency of 0.88 MHz and intensity of 0.2 W / cm2). The 5-FU dose was 0.7 мкМ, with the time of exposure of 24 hours. In 24 hours after starting exposure, the level of DNA damage to the cells of the culture was studied using the comet assay in the alkaline version and evaluated by the % DNA parameter in the comet tail (% TDNA). The statistical significance of the differences was evaluated using the Mann-Whitney U test and Fisher’s exact test. The combined exposure to ultrasound / 5-FU led to a 5.2-fold increase in % TDNA compared to the control culture, % TDNA was 1.9 times higher after exposure to 5-FU alone and 3.0 times higher after exposure to ultrasound alone. In 24 hours after the combined exposure, less than 50 % of the culture cells had a low level of DNA damage (&lt;10 % TDNA), i.e. completed the repair process and could continue to proliferate, and more than 30 % of the culture cells still had a high level of damage (&gt;30 % TDNA) and were probably in the process of apoptosis. Thus, the results of the study showed that the combined effect of ultrasound / 5-FU on the HeLa culture helped to overcome resistance to chemotherapy, having a synergistic effect.Для понимания механизма эффективности локального применения 5 % геля 5-фторурацила (5-ФУ) с одновременным контактным ультразвуковым (УЗ) воздействием на опухоль у больных раком шейки матки в модельных условиях был изучен уровень поврежденности ДНК. Использована культура аденокарциномы шейки матки HeLa CC L-2, культивированная в стандартных условиях в среде RPMI-1640 с добавлением 10 % фетальной сыворотки теленка и 50 мкг/мл гентамицина. Воздействие ультразвуком осуществляли с помощью аппарата УЗТ-1.03У (Россия) в течение 10 мин с частотой 0,88 МГц и интенсивностью 0,2 Вт/см2. Доза 5-ФУ составила 0,7 мкМ, время воздействия 24 ч. Через 24 ч после начала воздействия уровень поврежденности ДНК клеток культуры исследовали методом ДНК-комет (Comet Assay) в щелочном варианте и оценивали по параметру % ДНК в хвосте кометы (% TDNA). Комбинированное воздействие УЗ/5-ФУ приводило к статистически значимому увеличению % TDNA – в 5,2 раза по сравнению с контрольной культурой, при этом % TDNA был в 1,9 раза выше показателя после воздействия только 5-ФУ и в 3,0 раза выше показателя после воздействия УЗ. Через 24 ч после комбинированного воздействия менее 50 % клеток культуры имели низкий уровень поврежденности ДНК (&lt;10 % TDNA), то есть закончили процесс репарации и могли продолжить пролиферацию, а более 30 % клеток культуры все еще имели высокий уровень поврежденности (&gt;30 % TDNA) и, вероятно, находились в процессе апоптоза. Таким образом, комбинированное воздействие УЗ/5-ФУ на культуру HeLa способствовало преодолению резистентности к химиопрепарату, оказывая синергический эффект

ВЛИЯНИЕ ИМПУЛЬСНЫХ МАГНИТНЫХ ПОЛЕЙ НА ЭКСПРЕССИЮ ГЕНОВ ОНКОСУПРЕССОРОВ В ЭКСПЕРИМЕНТЕ НА КУЛЬТУРЕ КЛЕТОК ГЛИОБЛАСТОМЫ ЧЕЛОВЕКА T98G

Aim: to study the effect of a pulsed magnetic field (PMF) on the expression of key tumor suppressor genes, such as aPc, MLH, and MGMt in human t98G glioblastoma cell line. material and methods. the PMF with the intensity of 15 and 300 mt was used alone and in combination with ionizing radiation at a single dose of 10 Gy. to perform ionizing radiation, theratron Equinox 60co unit Best theratronics Ltd., Ottawa, canada) was used. the source of the pulsed magnetic field was Neuro-Ms / D therapeutic advanced device of the Neurosoft company. Live and dead cells were determined in NanoEntekJuliFl cell counter (Korea) using a 0.4 % trypan blue solution to stain dead cells. total RNa was extracted according to the protocol of the manufacturer trizol with changes: the aqueous phase was separated with trizol reagent twice. the quantitative measurement of the isolated RNa was carried out on a Qubit 2.0 fluorimeter using a kit of reagents with the Quant-it RNa assayKit RNa intercalating dye (Life technologies, usa). the expression of MLH, aPc, and MGMt genes was evaluated by Rt-PcR using a cFx96 amplifier (BioRad, usa). Data were analyzed using the cycle threshold (ct) method with normalization for tBP gene expression in each sample. Relative expression of the genetic locus (Exp) was calculated by the 2-Δct method. statistical analysis of the results was carried out using the statictica v10 software package. Results. One day after exposure to PMF, significant differences in the MGMt expression level compared to the control were found (p&lt;0.05). a significant decrease in the transcriptional activity of the MGMt gene in glioblastoma cells was observed with PMF intensity of 15 mt, and correlated with the cell mortality rate. No changes in the mortality rate were observed after radiation exposure combined with 15 mt PMF. However, the mortality rate decreased from 18.7 % to 15 % after radiation exposure combined with 300 mt PMF. Conclusion. the effect of reduction in the transcriptional activity of MGMt in t98G glioblastoma cells and the effect of PMF as a monofactor on their viability characterize the magnetic susceptibility of tumor cell mechanisms. Given the multidirectional nature of the combined interaction of ionizing radiation and PMF, it is necessary to emphasize the importance of choosing and justifying the role of biotropic parameters of PMF in order to exclude a negative effect on the treatment.Цель исследования – изучить влияние импульсного магнитного поля (ИМП) на экспрессию ключевых генов онкосупрессоров aPc, MLH, MGMt клеточной линии глиобластомы человека t98G. Материал и методы. На культуре клеток t98G проведено воздействие ИМП с параметрами индукции 15 и 300 mt как самостоятельно, так и в сочетании с воздействием ионизирующего излучения (РОД 10 Гр). Ионизирующее излучение проводилось на аппарате theratronEquinox фирмы Besttheratronics, где в качестве источника излучения использовался 60Со. Источником импульсного магнитного поля служил аппарат «Нейро-МС/Д терапевтический расширенный» компании «Нейрософт». Определение живых/мертвых клеток проводили в счетчике клеток NanoEntekJuliFl (Корея) с использованием 0,4 % раствора трипанового синего для окраски мертвых клеток. Экстракцию тотальной РНК проводили по протоколу изготовителя trizol с изменениями: водную фазу сепарировали с реагентом trizol дважды. Количественное измерение выделенной РНК проводили на флюориметре Qubit 2.0 с использованием набора реактивов с РНК-интеркалирующим красителем Quant-it RNa assayKit (Lifetechnologies, США). Оценку экспрессии генов MLH, aPc, MGMt проводили методом Rt-PcR на амплификаторе cFx96 (BioRad, США). Данные анализировали с использованием метода порогового значения цикла (ct) с нормализацией по экспрессии гена tBP в каждом образце. Относительную экспрессию генетического локуса (Еxp) рассчитывали по методу 2-Δct. Статистический анализ результатов осуществляли с помощью пакета программ statictica v10. Результаты. Установлено, что через сутки после воздействия ИМП индукцией 15 mt и 300 mt отношение уровня экспрессии MGMt к контролю имело значимые различия (p&lt;0,05). Наиболее выраженное снижение транскрипционной активности гена MGMt в клетках глиобластомы отмечалось при ИМП 15 mt и коррелировало с показателем летальности клеток. Уровень летальности, достигнутый после лучевого воздействия и ИМП 15 mt, не изменялся, а при сочетании с ИМП 300 mt снижался с 18,7 до 15 %. Заключение. Эффекты снижения транскрипционной активности MGMt в клетках глиобластомы t98G и способность влияния ИМП как монофактора на их жизнеспособность характеризуют магнитовосприимчивость клеточных механизмов опухоли. При сочетании ИМП с ионизирующим излучением характер их взаимовлияния меняется от индифферентного до антагонистического, что указывает на необходимость подбора и обоснования ключевых биотропных параметров