Vol 70, No 5 (2015)

Bronchial asthma is the most common chronic disease in children affecting 30% of the child population. The purpose of this review was to analyze and summarize the works of foreign and Russian authors who evaluated the impact of mental disorders on the course of asthma in children. The article presents the definition of asthma as a psychosomatic disease and relevance of the study against this background. The authors adduce the results of research studies which allow us to estimate the interaction between the degree of anxiety, accentuation of the nature, severity of asthma, and the duration of the disease. The existing publications demonstrate that the researchers' opinions are polarized regarding the cause-and-effect relationship between psychological disorders and controlled asthma. The authors came to a conclusion that early detection of psychopathological symptoms and appropriate psychotherapeutic administration would improve the efficacy of treatment in children with bronchial asthma and the social adaptation, adjust the system of family relations, and have a positive effect on the course of the disease.

Objective: The present study was aimed at the psychological characteristics of children with different chronic diseases of the digestive system and the identification of key factors influencing the formation of their personality.

Methods: The continuous prospective study of psychological peculiarities of 125 patients (7−17 y.o.) with diseases of the digestive system who have been monitored at Scientific Centre of Children’s Health (Moscow) was performed. As research methods were used: analysis of medical and pedagogical documentation, participant observation, educational experiment, interview, questionnaires and projective methods.

Results: The study involved 125 patients aged 7–17 years (12.4 averagely) with diseases of the digestive system including teens — 68 (54%), primary school pupil — 57 (46%). The number of boys significantly prevailed over the number of girls (2:1). The study confirmed the existence of a close relationship and mutual influence of three factors: the physical condition, social situation of development, and individual psychological characteristics of children. According to the psychological characteristics the children can be combined in three groups: Group I (47 of 125 people; 37.6%) ― children with bad psychological status. This is most typical for children with active form of chronic diseases requiring intensive medical assistance (37 of 47 people; 78.7%). Group II (59 of 125 people; 47.2%) ― children with instable psychological condition, with risk of neurotization. This group mainly comprises patients with chronic diseases at the stage of unstable clinical remission with preserved or compensated functions of organism bodies and systems or with incomplete compensation of functions requiring long term supportive treatment (45 of 59 people; 76.3%). Group III ― patients with rather stable psychological condition (19 of 125 people; 15.2%). It comprises patients with rather stable psychological condition, anyway, with expressed psychological vulnerability in stress situation. Most children suffer from chronic diseases of different etiology at the stage of clinical remission with rare aggravations, with preserved or compensated functions, provided there are no aggravations of the basic disease (17 of 19 people; 89.5%).

Conclusion: Most children with diseases of the digestive system have the psychological difficulties, while their identity is often formed in the distorted social conditions. Therefore, these children need psychological and pedagogical support, as well the special psychological and pedagogical conditions for the realization of their mental and cognitive capacities. To put together a program of psychological and educational assistance we should take into account the child’s age at the moment of occurrence of the disease, etiology, duration and severity of the illness, the nature and degree of non-compliance of social environmental.

Currently, a great number of research projects are focused on finding new treatment methods for cancer and carcinogenesis predictors, as well as the ways to dicrease cancer development risks. This article provides an overview of research on vitamin D as cancer prevention factor. The results of independent experiments and in vitro tests explaining the mechanisms of protective effect of vitamin D and its derivatives on cancer are illustrated. The review of epidemiological survey results obtained from different countries and various populations that were focused on the association of vitamin D use with various cancer pathologies incidence was performed.

This review describes the epigenetic regulation of osteoblastogenesis and osteoclastogenesis and its future implementation in the diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis. A considerable part of the review is dedicated to the microRNAs (miRNAs). miRNAs are small regulatory factors that regulate gene expression, by post-transcriptional regulation of genes playing an important role in numerous cellular processes, including cell differentiation and apoptosis. Recently, a number of studies have revealed that miRNAs participate in bone homeostasis and their role in the pathogenesis of osteoporosis is practically evident. In this review, we highlight the miRNAs involved in bone remodelling and their roles in osteoporosis. miRNAs are stable molecules which make them promising potential markers for bone remodeling and osteoporosis.

Background: Currently all tissue engineered trachea transplants had no ciliated epithelium until transplantation, and long-term temporary lack of mucociliary clearance leads to patients’ condition decline and reduced life quality in postoperative period. So, the need for a better cultivation method and studying ciliated epithelium growth characteristics in cell culture increased rapidly.

Objective: The aim of our study was to investigate cultivation of functionally complete passaged ciliated epithelium for trachea tissue engineering.

Methods: Human ciliated epithelium isolated from intraoperative bioptate was used for culturing in the special complex medium with morphological and functional characteristics evaluation.

Results: Ciliated epithelial cell-groups were obtained by culturing in the special complex medium. Generated cell-groups had ciliary activity and showed well-coordinated movement with functional characteristics similar to native epithelial tissue. The basic parameters of cell-activity were studied.

Conclusion: Thus our study provides a new insight for the problem of ciliated epithelium in vitro culturing as well as developing the optimal laboratory method.

Hepatitis C virus is an actual public health problem worldwide since its discovering in 1989. It is explained not only by the wide spreading and
frequent adverse outcomes of disease, the lack of effective preventive vaccine, but also by the high genetic variability of the virus. The current review summarizes the results of phylodynamic and phylogeographic studies of different HCV populations that allowed to characterize epidemic processes, to analyze the divergence of HCV into genotypes and subtypes, and to determine the geographic origin of the current HCV epidemic variants.

Background: In developed countries there are significant gender differences in lifetime expectancy that can be explained by behavioral risk factors (RF).

Objective: The aim of our study was to estimate gender features of behavioral RF in general population of Saint-Petersburg, Russia.

Methods: As a part of all-Russian epidemiology survey ESSE-RF a random sampling of 1600 Saint-Petersburg inhabitants (25-64 y.o.) stratified by age and sex was performed. All participants filled in the questionnaire. Anthropometry (weight, height, body-mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC)) and fasting blood-tests (lipids, glucose by Abbott Architect 8000 (USA)) were performed.

Results: There were examined 573 (36%) men and 1027 (64%) women. No gender differences in obesity were found according to BMI criteria — in 178 (31.2%) women and 352 (35.1%) men. Obesity was more often detected in females according to WC criteria: АТРIII — 44.1 vs 30.3%; IDF 51.2 vs 66.4% (p <0.001 for both). Linear regression analysis was performed and age was associated with BMI — 1.6 kg/m2/decade, WC in women — 5,2 cm/decade and WC in men — 2.8 cm/decade, р <0.001 for all anthropometric parameters. Optimal level of physical activity was equally documented in both genders — 540 (61.2%) women and 286 (58.9%) men. Daily intake of sweets was lower in men — 228 (39.8%) vs 539 (52.5%) in women (p <0.001). 810 (50,6%) of trial subjects were non-smokers, 395 (24,7%) were former smokers, and 395 (24,7%) were smokers at the moment of trial. The higher number of female smokers was observed — 194 (19.1%).

Conclusion: A high prevalence of obesity is observed in sample of Saint-Petersburg inhabitants — it is higher among women according to WC criteria regardless of menopause, possibly due to bigger sweets consumption. Males smoke more often and consume less fresh fruits and vegetables which is accompanied by a higher prevalence of hyperglycemia and hypertriglyceridemia.

Until now, there is no systematic information on the role of endothelial dysfunction in the mechanisms of disorders of blood coagulation potential and microcirculation in different organs and tissues in preeclampsia.

Objective: Our aim was to extend the existing principles of diagnosis of pre-eclampsia by establishing the role of endothelial dysfunction in the mechanisms of blood coagulation potential violations.

Methods: A prospective comparative study was performed. Condition of coagulation processes studied by conventional techniques, parameters of a functional endothelium (nitric oxide metabolites, endothelin 1, thrombospondin, thrombomodulin and intercellular adhesion molecules in blood plasma) — by ELISA.

Results: The study group included 55 patients with moderate preeclampsia and 49 pregnant women with severe pre-eclampsia, in the control group — 40 women with physiological pregnancy. In patients with pre-eclampsia moderate observed increase in plasma endothelin-1 (p <0.001), thrombospondin (p <0.001), intercellular adhesion molecules (p <0.001) while reducing the level of nitrogen oxide (p <0.001), increase in time of fibrinolysis (p <0.050) and decreased international normalized ratio (p <0.050) compared with the control group. With increasing severity of preeclampsia the researchers detected in blood plasma of patients a progressive increase in endothelin 1 (p1 <0.020), thrombospondin (p1 <0.001), intercellular adhesion molecules (p1 <0.001) and decrease of nitric oxide metabolites (p1 <0.001) and thrombomodulin (p1 <0.001); the last combined with the activation of procoagulant hemostasis.

Conclusion: There is a pathogenetic relationship between the development of endothelial dysfunction, impaired blood coagulation potential and the severity of clinical signs of preeclampsia. To widen the number of existing techniques to diagnose the severity of pre-eclampsia we recommende to mesure endothelin 1, thrombomodulin, thrombospondin, intercellular adhesion molecules and nitric oxide metabolites in the blood plasma, and use traditional indicators to assess the hemostatic system.

Objective: To conduct a comparative study of the structural organization of internuclear interneurons involved in the metabolism of nitrogen monoxide, hydrogen sulphide and carbon monoxide in the caudal brain stem humans.

Methods: The cross-sectional study was performed. We used histochemical and immunohistochemical methods to study the internuclear interneurons expressing neuronal nitric oxide synthase, cystathionine β-synthase and heme oxygenase-2 which are located between the giant and small cell reticular nuclei (cell group 1), small cell reticular nucleus and the nucleus of the solitary tract (cell group 2) or is surrounded by reticular lateral nucleus (cell group 3).

Results: The work was carried out on the corpses of 6 men 18–44 years old who died from causes unrelated to the damage of the central nervous system. We revealed the differences between internuclear organization and intranuclear interneurons and local structural features of internuclear interneurons that are more clearly 
visible between the cell group 1 including a relatively large number of large neurons and cell groups 2 and 3 (р <0,001). In the latter two groups small cells with high concentrations of the neuronal nitric oxide synthase and heme oxygenase-2 dominated.

Conclusion: Despite the fact that the number of internuclear interneurons significantly is less than the number of intranuclear cells, they have structural prerequisites to control integration processes in the brain. Internuclear interneurons produce gasotransmitters and classical mediators of nerve impulse, form a local chain of interneurons between vasomotor nuclei, share many links with the above and the lower parts of the brain.

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