CONSUMPTION OF PSYCHOTROPIC DRUGS IN THE VARNA DISTRICT AND IN BULGARIA DURING THE PERIOD 1985-1990

The aim of the present study was to analyze and compare the consumption of psychotropic drugs in the Varna district and in Bulgaria during the period 1985-1990 and to obtain data to be used for the marketing and planning of psychotropic drugs utilization in the new situation of free market and trading. The utilization of tranquilizers, neuroleptics, antidepressants, lithium salts, nootropic drugs and phenylethylamine psychostimulants was studied. The measurement of drug consumption was based on the total sales data obtained from the Bulgarian National Organization for Drug Supply. The unit of measurement were the Defined Daily Doses /1000 inhabitants/ day. The total consumption of psychotropic drugs both in the Varna district and in Bulgaria was 22 DDD/ 1000 inhabitants/ day in 1985 and increased by about 35 % during the period under study. The proportional share among the different drug groups in the Varna district was similar to that in Bulgaria. Benzodiazepine tranquilizers were the most used psychotropic drugs, followed by nootropic drugs, antidepressants and neuroleptics. The total consumption in Bulgaria shows certain similarities with other European countries in the profile and the trends but differs significantly in DDD values

EFFECT OF THE CALCIUM CHANNEL BLOCKERS CINNARIZINE AND FLUNARIZINE ON GUT PASSAGE IN RATS

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PHARMACOGENETIC STUDY OF THE ACETYLATION PHENOTYPE IN A BULGARIAN POPULATION

N-acetyltransferase, an enzyme involved in the metabolic inactivation of drugs like isoniazide, some sulfonamides and others is well-known to he under polymorphic genetic control. The acetylation phenotype of the patients may serve as an important guide in foretelling the therapeutic efficacy or tolerahility of a particular drug. In the present study we investigated the distribution of the acetylaiion phenotypes in a group of 100 healthy volunteers of both sexes using sulfadimidine as a substrate. The distribution was found to follow a bimodal pattern, as aspected, with a slight predominance of the "slow" acetylators - in 58 % of the cases, a finding similar to literature data from neighbouring and other European countries. In the men's group the distribution was approximately the same as that in the whole group whilst in the women's one the "rapid" inactivators prevailed. This work represents the first modest attempt in Bulgaria for phenotyping the population according to the individual acetylaiion status

In-beam fast-timing measurements in 103,105,107Cd

Fast-timing measurements were performed recently in the region of the medium-mass 103,105,107Cd isotopes, produced in fusion evaporation reactions. Emitted gamma-rays were detected by eight HPGe and five LaBr3:Ce detectors working in coincidence. Results on new and re-evaluated half-lives are discussed within a systematic of transition rates. The $7/2_1^+$ states in 103,105,107Cd are interpreted as arising from a single-particle excitation. The half-life analysis of the $11/2_1^-$ states in 103,105,107Cd shows no change in the single-particle transition strength as a function of the neutron number

First g(2+) measurement on neutron-rich 72 Zn, and the high-velocity transient field technique for radioactive heavy-ion beams

The high-velocity transient-field (HVTF) technique was used to measure the g factor of the 2+ state of 72Zn produced as a radioactive beam. The transient-field strength was probed at high velocity in ferromagnetic iron and gadolinium hosts using 76Ge beams. The potential of the HVTF method is demonstrated and the difficulties that need to be overcome for a reliable use of the TF technique with high-Z, high-velocity radioactive beams are revealed. The polarization of K-shell vacancies at high velocity, which shows more than an order of magnitude difference between Z = 20 and Z = 30 is discussed. The g-factor measurement hints at the theoretically predicted transition in the structure of the Zn isotopes near N = 40

Role of Sleep Disturbance in Chronic Hepatitis C Infection

Chronic infection with the hepatitis C virus (CHC) is associated with physical and mental symptoms including fatigue and depression that adversely affect quality of life. A related complaint, sleep disturbance, has received little attention in the literature, with the exception of sleep changes noted in cirrhosis and end-stage liver disease. We present an overview of studies indicating sleep problems in patients with CHC, with about 60% to 65% of individuals reporting such complaints. Evidence suggests that impairments in sleep quality exist independent of antiviral therapy with interferon-α and prior to advanced stages of liver disease. Further investigation of sleep disturbance in CHC patients with a mild stage of liver disease may provide important information on disease course as well as allow additional opportunities for patient support

Anomalies in the Charge Yields of Fission Fragments from the U(n,f)238 Reaction

Fast-neutron-induced fission of 238U at an energy just above the fission threshold is studied with a novel technique which involves the coupling of a high-efficiency γ-ray spectrometer (MINIBALL) to an inverse-kinematics neutron source (LICORNE) to extract charge yields of fission fragments via γ−γ coincidence spectroscopy. Experimental data and fission models are compared and found to be in reasonable agreement for many nuclei; however, significant discrepancies of up to 600% are observed, particularly for isotopes of Sn and Mo. This indicates that these models significantly overestimate the standard 1 fission mode and suggests that spherical shell effects in the nascent fission fragments are less important for low-energy fast-neutron-induced fission than for thermal neutron-induced fission. This has consequences for understanding and modeling the fission process, for experimental nuclear structure studies of the most neutron-rich nuclei, for future energy applications (e.g., Generation IV reactors which use fast-neutron spectra), and for the reactor antineutrino anomaly

Beta-delayed neutron spectroscopy of 133^{133}In

The decay properties of $^{133}$In were studied in detail at the ISOLDE Decay Station (IDS). The implementation of the Resonance Ionization Laser Ion Source (RILIS) allowed separate measurements of its $9/2^+$ ground state ($^{133g}$In) and $1/2^-$ isomer ($^{133m}$In). With the use of $\beta$-delayed neutron and $\gamma$ spectroscopy, the decay strengths above the neutron separation energy were quantified in this neutron-rich nucleus for the first time. The allowed Gamow-Teller transition $9/2^+\rightarrow7/2^+$ was located at 5.92 MeV in the $^{133g}$In decay with a logft = 4.7(1). In addition, several neutron-unbound states were populated at lower excitation energies by the First-Forbidden decays of $^{133g,m}$In. We assigned spins and parities to those neutron-unbound states based on the $\beta$-decay selection rules, the logft values, and systematics

Shell structure of the neutron-rich isotopes Co 69,71,73

The structures of the neutron-rich Co69,71,73 isotopes were investigated via (p,2p) knockout reactions at the Radioactive Isotope Beam Factory, RIKEN. Isotopes of interest were studied using the DALI2 γ-ray detector array combined with the MINOS target and tracker system. Level schemes were reconstructed using the γ-γ coincidence technique, with tentative spin-parity assignments based on the measured inclusive and exclusive cross sections. Comparison with shell-model calculations using the Lenzi-Nowacki-Poves-Sieja LNPS and PFSDG-U interactions suggests coexistence of spherical and deformed shapes at low excitation energies in the Co69,71,73 isotopes. The distorted-wave impulse approximation (DWIA) framework was used to calculate the single-particle cross sections. These values were compared with the experimental findings