218 research outputs found
Development and laboratory production of virus-like immune-stimulating complexes based on saponins and evaluation of their adjuvant potential using mice immunisation with influenza antigens
The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the public’s need for effective vaccines. Consequently, significant financial support has been provided to developers of a number of innovative vaccines, including the vaccines with saponin-based adjuvants. In 2021, the World Health Organisation recommended Mosquirix, the first malaria vaccine, which contains a saponin adjuvant. An anti-covid vaccine by Novavax is in the approval phase. A promising approach to vaccine development is presented by the use of virus-like immune-stimulating complexes (ISCOMs) containing saponins and by the creation of combinations of ISCOMs with antigens. The aim of the study was to develop, produce and characterise virus-like immune-stimulating complexes based on saponins of Quillaja saponaria, as well as similar saponins of Russian-sourced Polemonium caeruleum. Materials and methods: The ISCOM adjuvants, Matrix-BQ and Matrix-BP, were produced using liquid chromatography and examined using electron microscopy. Balb/c mice were immunised intraperitoneally and intramuscularly with ISCOM-antigen preparations. Afterwards, the immunised animals were challenged with the influenza virus strain, A/California/4/2009(H1N1)pdm09, adapted and lethal to mice. The serum samples were examined using haemagglutination inhibition (HI) tests. Results: The authors produced the ISCOMs containing saponins of Quillaja saponaria and Polemonium caeruleum. After one intramuscular injection of either of the ISCOM-antigen preparations with 1 µg of each of A/Brisbane/02/2018 (H1N1) pdm09, A/Kansas/14/2017 (H3N2), and B/Phuket/3073/2013 haemagglutinin antigens (HAs), HI tests detected serum antibody titres to the corresponding antigens of ≥1:40. Two intramuscular injections of the ISCOM-antigen preparation containing 50 ng of each of the HAs and Matrix-BQ resulted in a protective response. In some animals, two intraperitoneal injections of ISCOM-antigen preparations resulted in the maximum antibody titre to the A/Kansas/14/2017 (H3N2) vaccine strain of 1:20,480. Two intramuscular injections of a test preparation containing 5 µg, 1 µg, 200 ng, or 50 ng of each of the HAs and Matrix-BQ or a control preparation containing 5 µg, 1 µg, or 200 ng of each of the HAs (commercially available vaccines) to the mice that were afterwards infected with the lethal influenza strain protected the experimental animals from death. Conclusions: The ISCOM-based preparations had high immunostimulatory activity in the mouse-model study. The presented results indicate the potential of further studies of ISCOM-based preparations in terms of both vaccine and immunotherapeutic development
Measurement of the isotopic composition of hydrogen and helium nuclei in cosmic rays with the PAMELA experiment
The satellite-borne experiment PAMELA has been used to make new measurements
of cosmic ray H and He isotopes. The isotopic composition was measured between
100 and 600 MeV/n for hydrogen and between 100 and 900 MeV/n for helium
isotopes over the 23rd solar minimum from July 2006 to December 2007. The
energy spectrum of these components carries fundamental information regarding
the propagation of cosmic rays in the galaxy which are competitive with those
obtained from other secondary to primary measurements such as B/C.Comment: 11 pages, 11 figures, 5 tables. To appear in Astrophysical Journa
ПРЕДПОСЫЛКИ И ОЖИДАНИЯ ВНЕДРЕНИЯ СИСТЕМЫ МЕНЕДЖМЕНТА КАЧЕСТВА В МУНИЦИПАЛЬНОМ БЮДЖЕТНОМ УЧРЕЖДЕНИИ ЗДРАВООХРАНЕНИЯ
Quality management system (QMS) is an effective instrument of medical care quality management. The article describes prerequisites and expectations of the system implementation in municipal budgetary health-care institution. The necessity of work under QMS is substantiated. The research goal is the analysis of prerequisites and expectations of quality management system introduction basing on international standards for controllability improvement of municipal health-care institution.Система менеджмента качества (СМК) – эффективный инструмент управления качеством медицинской помощи. В статье отражены предпосылки и ожидания внедрения системы в муниципальном бюджетном учреждении здравоохранения. Обоснована необходимость работы в рамках СМК. Цель исследования – анализ предпосылок и ожиданий внедрения системы менеджмента качества на основе международных стандартов для совершенствования управляемости муниципального учреждения здравоохранения
Measurement of boron and carbon fluxes in cosmic rays with the PAMELA experiment
The propagation of cosmic rays inside our galaxy plays a fundamental role in
shaping their injection spectra into those observed at Earth. One of the best
tools to investigate this issue is the ratio of fluxes for secondary and
primary species. The boron-to-carbon (B/C) ratio, in particular, is a sensitive
probe to investigate propagation mechanisms. This paper presents new
measurements of the absolute fluxes of boron and carbon nuclei, as well as the
B/C ratio, from the PAMELA space experiment. The results span the range 0.44 -
129 GeV/n in kinetic energy for data taken in the period July 2006 - March
2008
Trapped proton fluxes at low Earth orbits measured by the PAMELA experiment
We report an accurate measurement of the geomagnetically trapped proton
fluxes for kinetic energy above > 70 MeV performed by the PAMELA mission at low
Earth orbits (350-610 km). Data were analyzed in the frame of the adiabatic
theory of charged particle motion in the geomagnetic field. Flux properties
were investigated in detail, providing a full characterization of the particle
radiation in the South Atlantic Anomaly region, including locations, energy
spectra and pitch angle distributions. PAMELA results significantly improve the
description of the Earth's radiation environment at low altitudes placing
important constraints on the trapping and interaction processes, and can be
used to validate current trapped particle radiation models.Comment: 22 pages, 5 figure
The Lake Baikal neutrino experiment: selected results
We review the present status of the lake Baikal Neutrino Experiment and
present selected physical results gained with the consequetive stages of the
stepwise increasing detector: from NT-36 to NT-96. Results cover atmospheric
muons, neutrino events, very high energy neutrinos, search for neutrino events
from WIMP annihilation, search for magnetic monopoles and environmental
studies. We also describe an air Cherenkov array developed for the study of
angular resolution of NT-200.Comment: 25 pages, 12 figures. To appear in the Procrrdings of International
Conference on Non-Accelerator New Physics, June 28 - July 3, 1999, Dubna,
Russi
BAIKAL experiment: status report
We review the present status of the Baikal Neutrino Project and present the
results obtained with the deep underwater neutrino telescope NT-200.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures. Presented at TAUP 2001 (7th international
workshop on Topics in Astroparticle and Underground Physics), Sep. 2001,
Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso, Assergi, Ital
- …