Residual Lifetime of Lifting Instalation Established by Non-Destructive Methods

The paper present theoretical studies and practical determinations in machines operating in dynamic mode fatigue. After expiry of the normalized lifetime of lifting equipment (overhead cranes, cranes, etc.). arises determination of residual functioning so that under normal safety to function at a normal operating capacity or diminished but not more than 15-20%. For exemplification is considered the investigation of a high gantry crane, MPT 20/5 – 20/4/4 m. In conclusion, after our determinations, the machine can operate with kinematics parameters set initially, but with reduced nominal load of 133 kN, i.e. approx. 13 t, and the lifetime of approx. 7.5 years

H19-Promoter-Targeted Therapy Combined with Gemcitabine in the Treatment of Pancreatic Cancer

Pancreatic cancer is the eighth cancer leading cause of cancer-related death in the world and has a 5-year survival rate of 1–4% only. Gemcitabine is a first line agent for advanced pancreatic therapy; however, its efficacy is limited by its poor intracellular metabolism and chemoresistance. Studies have been conducted in an effort to improve gemcitabine treatment results by adding other chemotherapeutic agents, but none of them showed any significant advantage over gemcitabine monotherapy. We found that 85% of human pancreatic tumors analyzed by in situ hybridization analyses showed moderated to strong expression of the H19 gene. We designed a preclinical study combining gemcitabine treatment and a DNA-based therapy for pancreatic cancer using a non viral vector BC-819 (also known as DTA-H19), expressing the diphtheria toxin A chain under the control of the H19 gene regulatory sequences. The experiments conducted either in an orthotopic and heterotopic pancreatic carcinoma animal model showed better antitumor activity following the sequential administration of the vector BC-819 and gemcitabine as compared to the effect of each of them alone. The results presented in the current study indicate that treatment with BC-819 in combination with gemcitabine might be a viable new therapeutic option for patients with advanced pancreatic cancer

Malformaţiile arteriovenoase ale uterului: opţiuni de diagnostic și tratament (Caz clinic)

În articolul dat este prezentat un studiu de caz cu manifestarea clinică a malformaţiei arteriovenoase a uterului, dobândită după mola hidatiformă, completat cu revista literaturii de specialitate. Sunt abordate problemele de diagnostic și tratament ale malformaţiilor vasculare ale uterului. Este demonstrat rolul ultrasonografi ei, angio-CT (tomografi e computerizată) și RMN (rezonanţă magnetică nucleară) în diagnosticul acestei patologii. Sunt prezentate rezultatele tratamentului aplicat cu utilizarea metodelor performante de chirurgie endovasculară modernă

Endovascular management of arteriovenous malformations: a case report

Laboratorul de chirurgie endovasculară, Spitalul Clinic Republican, Chișinău, Republica Moldova, Catedra de chirurgie nr. 4, Universitatea de Stat de Medicină şi Farmacie „Nicolae Testemiţanu”, Chișinău, Republica MoldovaIntroducere. Malformația arteriovenoasă este o anomalie vasculară activă hemodinamic, de tip „fast flow”, caracterizată printr-un „nidus” ce constă din afluenți arteriali și vene dilatate de drenaj, interconectate în mod direct prin micro și macro fistule. Malformațiile arteriovenoase (MAV) nu involuează niciodată. În 70% din cazuri, se localizează în regiunea capului și gâtului. Conform unui studiu ce descrie 200 de cazuri consecutive, în 34% MAV erau detectate la naștere, în 21% – malformațiile au devenit vizibile în copilărie, în 8,5% din cazuri – în timpul pubertății și numai în 21,5% din cazuri aceste anomalii au fost depistate la vârsta adultă. Un factor declanșator al creșterii malformației este pubertatea și traumatismul. Metodele de bază de diagnostic sunt scanarea Duplex, RMN-angio și arteriografia. Metodele de tratament sunt embolizarea, rezecția chirurgicală sau combinarea acestora. Recidiva este foarte frecventă, ajungând peste 90%, fapt ce impune reintervenții episodice. Material şi metode. Pacientul S., bărbat de 30 de ani, acuză prezența unei formațiuni tumorale a regiunii nazo-labiale, senzație de pulsație permanentă, periodic – dureri și sângerări frecvente la periaj dentar. Diagnosticul de malformație arteriovenoasă a regiunii nazolabiale, stadiul III după Schobinger, a fost stabilit clinic, prin duplex arterial, angio-RMN și arteriografie. S-a efectuat embolizarea supraselectivă a malformației prin bazinul arterelor maxilare, bilateral, folosind microsfere, sub anestezie locală, din acces prin artera femurală comună dreaptă. Rezultate. Evoluția postoperatorie a decurs fără complicații. Formațiunea de volum a cedat în dimensiuni după embolizare, a dispărut senzația de pulsație și disconfort local. S-au diminuat hemoragiile gingivale. Pacientul a fost externat a doua zi după intervenție în stare satisfăcătoare. Concluzii. Tehnica endovasculară rămâne metoda de elecție în tratamentul malformațiilor arteriovenoase, fie ca metodă unică, sau în asociere cu o rezecție radicală, ulterioară, a malformației. Metoda endovasculară este sigură, miniminvazivă și cu traumatism intervențional foarte scăzut. Luând în considerație gradul înalt de recidivă, această metodă poate fi repetată de mai multe ori. Dintre avantaje, menționăm și durata scurtă de spitalizare.Introduction. Arteriovenous malformations are fast flow vascular anomalies, characterized by a so called “nidus”, which represents arterial feeders and dilated outflow veins that are interconnected through micro and macro fistulas. Arteriovenous malformations (AVM) never regress. In 70% of cases it affects the head and neck region. According to a study which analyzed 200 consecutive cases, 34% of all AVM were discovered at birth, 21% of cases became visible during childhood, in 8.5% of cases – during puberty, and in 21.5% cases these anomalies were discovered in adults. Puberty and trauma are considered to be triggering factors that determine the malformation to grow. Basic diagnostic tools are: Duplex scanning, MRA and angiography. Treatment modalities include endovascular embolization, surgical excision or the combination of these two. Relapse rate is higher than 90%, thus multiple re-interventions are frequently necessary. Material and methods. Patient S., male, 30 years old, on admission complains of presence of a pulsatile tumor in the nazo-labial region, periodical pain and bleeding at teeth brushing. The diagnosis of arteriovenous malformation of the nazo-labial region, Schobinger stage III, was set by clinical examination, arterial duplex scanning, MRA and angiography. Supra-selective embolization of the anomaly with microspheres was achieved through the maxillary arteries, bilaterally, under local anesthesia. The access site was the right common femoral artery. Results. Postoperative outcome was eventless. The tumor decreased in size after the intervention. The pulsatile sensation disappeared. There were no gingival bleedings at tooth brushing. The patient was discharged the second day after the intervention in a satisfactory state. Conclusions. The endovascular approach remains the method of choice in the treatment of arteriovenous malformations, in combination or not with surgical excision of the malformation. The endovascular method is safe, minimally invasive, and with minimal interventional trauma. Due to the high rate of relapse, this method can be applied repeatedly. Another advantage is the short term of hospital stay

BM@N and MPD experiments at NICA

The project NICA (Nuclotron-based Ion Collider fAcility) aims to study hot and baryon rich QCD matter in heavy ion collisions in the energy range SNN = 4 − 11 GeV. The rich heavy-ion physics program will be performed at two experiments, BM@N (Baryonic Matter at Nuclotron) at beams extracted from the Nuclotron, and at MPD (Multi-Purpose Detector) at the NICA collider. This program covers a variety of phenomena in strongly interacting matter of the highest baryonic density, which includes study of collective effects, production of hyperon and hypernuclei, in-medium modification of meson properties, and event-by-event fluctuations

Status of the NICA project at JINR

The NICA (Nuclotron-based Ion Collider fAcility) project is now under active realization at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR, Dubna). The main goal of the project is a study of hot and dense strongly interacting matter in heavy-ion (up to Au) collisions at the center-of-mass energies up to 11 GeV per nucleon. Two modes of operation are foreseen, collider mode and extracted beams, with two detectors: MPD and BM@N. The both experiments are in preparation stage. An average luminosity in the collider mode is expected to be 1027 cm−2 s−1 for Au (79+). Extracted beams of various nuclei with maximum momenta of 13 GeV/c (for protons) will be available. A study of spin physics with extracted and colliding beams of polarized deuterons and protons at energies up to 27 GeV (for protons) is foreseen with the NICA facility. The proposed program allows one to search for possible signs of phase transitions and critical phenomena as well as to shed light on the problem of the nucleon spin structure

Development of targeted therapy for ovarian cancer mediated by a plasmid expressing diphtheria toxin under the control of H19 regulatory sequences

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Ovarian cancer ascites fluid (OCAF), contains malignant cells, is usually present in women with an advanced stage disease and currently has no effective therapy. Hence, we developed a new therapy strategy to target the expression of diphtheria toxin gene under the control of H19 regulatory sequences in ovarian tumor cells. H19 RNA is present at high levels in human cancer tissues (including ovarian cancer), while existing at a nearly undetectable level in the surrounding normal tissue.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>H19 gene expression was tested in cells from OCAF by the in-situ hybridization technique (ISH) using an H19 RNA probe. The therapeutic potential of the toxin vector DTA-H19 was tested in ovarian carcinoma cell lines and in a heterotopic animal model for ovarian cancer.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>H19 RNA was detected in 90% of patients with OCAF as determined by ISH. Intratumoral injection of DTA-H19 into ectopically developed tumors caused 40% inhibition of tumor growth.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These observations may be the first step towards a major breakthrough in the treatment of human OCAF, while the effect in solid tumors required further investigation. It should enable us to identify likely non-responders in advance, and to treat patients who are resistant to all known therapies, thereby avoiding treatment failure.</p