The effect of socioeconomic status on the prevalence of biliary tract diseases in the Evens and Evenki

An epidemiological survey demonstrated that biliary disease detection in aborigines of the Far North is more frequent in subjects with nontraditional way of life. Chief biliary disease factors different in importance for Evens and Evenks are as follows: prior viral hepatitis, obesity, alcohol abuse. Incidence rate for different biliary diseases is not uniform in Far North native population. This may be explained by specificity of biliary functions.     

Monoclonal antibodies to the beta-chain of the LFA-1 molecule promote an increase in the cytotoxic index of effector lymphocytes and stimulate their proliferation

The influence of monoclonal antibodies (mAb) to LFA-1 molecule beta-chain on the functional activities of immune splenocyte fractions which were eluted from donor, third party and recipient macrophage monolayers was studied. The splenocyte fractions were treated with the mAb and tested for cytotoxicity and proliferation. MAb to LFA-1 molecule beta-chain (without co-stimulation by other antibodies) were found to stimulate the immune response of the splenocyte fractions in both functional tests. The observed effect might be non-specific. The relationship between the stimulation of proliferative and cytotoxic responses of the immune splenocyte fractions and the treatment with mAb of LFA-I molecule beta-chain remains obscure.     

Effect of growth environment on the stability of a recombinant shuttle plasmid, pCPPS-31, in Escherichia coli

The effect of environmental growth conditions on the segregational stability of a recombinant Escherichia coli-Bacillus subtilis shuttle plasmid pCPPS-31 which expresses carboxymethyl cellulase (CMCase) and contains the neomycin resistance gene (Ner), was studied in E. coli DH5 alpha. The stability increased with the decrease in medium complexity. Lowering culture temperatures had a negative effect on stability. Stability was maximum at 100 rpm and a medium/flask volume ratio of 1:10. A pH range of 5-8 had no significant effect on stability. The recombination (rec) and gyrase (gyr) backgrounds of E. coli hosts had no apparent effect on plasmid stability. The plasmid was structurally stable under all circumstances.     

Thermostability of a nuclear-targeted luciferase expressed in mammalian cells. Destabilizing influence of the intranuclear microenvironment

Protein denaturation and aggregation are most likely the cause for the noxious effects of heat shock. There are some indications that the nucleus is one of the most sensitive cellular compartments. To test the possibility that the intranuclear microenvironment might be detrimental to the heat stability of proteins, we compared the in situ thermal stability of a reporter protein localized in the nucleus or in the cytoplasm. A recombinant firefly (Photynus pyralis) luciferase carrying a point mutation in the C-terminal domain remains in the cytoplasm (cyt-luciferase). A nuclear localization sequence was fused to the N-terminal domain of cyt-luciferase; the resulting nuc-luciferase was efficiently targeted to the cell nucleus. In both cases, decreased luciferase activity and solubility were found in lysates from heat-shocked cells. These characteristics were taken as an indication of thermal denaturation in situ. The heat-inactivated luciferases were partially reactivated during recovery after stress, indicating the capacity of both the cytoplasmic and nuclear compartments to reassemble proteins from an aggregated state. Although both the nuc- and the cyt-luciferases were heat inactivated at similar rates in vitro, nuc-luciferase was more susceptible to thermal denaturation in situ compared to cyt-luciferase. This observation suggests that the microenvironment of an intracellular compartment may modulate the thermal stability of proteins. The local concentration might be one element of this microenvironment affecting the heat-stability of proteins. In cells made thermotolerant by a priming shock, the thermal inactivation of the recombinant luciferases occurred at a slower rate during a second challenging stress. However, this decreased thermal sensitivity was less pronounced for the nuc-luciferase (threefold) than for the cyt-luciferase (sevenfold). The nuclear luciferase might become a useful tool to investigate the action of molecular chaperones in the nucleus.     

The efficacy of electrotherapy with pulsed currents of different frequencies in combined forms of cerebrovascular and vertebrogenic pathology

Sinusoidal modulated currents, fluctuorisation and interference therapy were compared for efficacy when applied according to segment-oriented technique to cervical and thoracic spine. A total of 150 patients with combined cerebrospinal and vertebrogenic lesions were treated in sanatorium on the Black sea shore (Yalta). These techniques demonstrated both similarity and difference in their effects. Mechanisms of action of the above variants of medium-frequency electrotherapy are considered.     

Die Notwendigkeit der Materialprüfung im Bereich der kosmetischen Fabrikation

Need of Material Testing in the Production of Cosmetics Several methods for testing plastic materials are described in the present communication. Especially, a possible method for detection of brittleness by the use of polarized light is outlined. The economic significance of material testing is discussed.