Bulletin of RSMU

ISSN Print 2500–1094 ISSN Online 2542–1204

Bulletin of RSMU

BIOMEDICAL JOURNAL OF PIROGOV UNIVERSITY (MOSCOW, RUSSIA)

Scopus

SCImago Journal & Country Rank

Log In Registration RU

Chechetkin AO, Moskalenko AN, Fedotova EYu, Illarioshkin SN

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative multisystem disorder characterized by pathologic α-synuclein aggregation affecting, among other things, vagal fibers. The aim of this study was to investigate the cross-sectional area (CSA) of the vagus nerve (VN) in patients with PD using ultrasound imaging. The study was conducted in 32 patients with PD (15 men and 17 women; mean age 58 ± 10 years) and 32 healthy controls comparable with the main group in terms of sex and age. All study participants underwent ultrasound examination of the VN using a high-resolution transducer. Left VN CSA was significantly smaller in patients with PD than in the control group (1.78 ± 0.52 mm2 vs 2.11 ± 0.41 mm2; р = 0.007). A similar result was obtained for right VN CSA at the trend level. ROC analysis demonstrated that the threshold CSA value of < 2.10 mm2 for the left VN has low diagnostic sensivity (59%) for VN atrophy in patients with PD. Right VN CSA was significantly larger than left VN CSA in both groups (p < 0.001). The analysis of the PD group did not reveal any associations between VN CSA and age, duration and stage of the disease, motor (UPDRS III) and non-motor (NMSQ) scores. Patients with akinetic-rigid form of PD had smaller left VN CSA than patients with the mixed form of the disease (р < 0.05). A moderate inverse correlation was established between left VN CSA and the area of substantia nigra hyperechogenicity on both sides (р < 0.04); for the right VN a similar correlation was established at the trend level. High-resolution ultrasound of patients with PD demonstrated atrophy of the VN and the association of VN CSA with the clinical form of the disease and the ultrasound features of the substantia nigra.

Received: 2021-10-25

Published online: 2021-11-24

DOI: 10.24075/brsmu.2021.054

Comments 0

VIEWS 3870

Tokareva AO, Chagovets VV, Rodionov VV, Kometova VV, Rodionova MV, Starodubtseva NL, Frankevich VE

Early diagnosis of metastasis makes it possible to select the optimal treatment protocol and improve patient survival. Noninvasive and minimally invasive diagnostic techniques help to make a diagnosis with minimal damage to the body. The study was aimed to find biomarkers, being the hallmarks of the metastatic process initiation, and to develop a diagnostic model based on the plasma lipid profile using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. We studied blood plasma of 55 patients, 28 of them were diagnosed with the regional lymph node metastasis; the control group comprised 27 patients. The levels of lipids, belonging to the groups, such as oxidized lipids and sphingomyelins, in patients with metastases were significantly higher and significantly lower, respectively. The lipid panels were created by multivariate analysis, and the models based on these panels showed sensitivity and specificity of 79 and 74% (positive ion mode), and of 50 and 85% (negative ion mode) in leave-one-out cross-validation.

Received: 2021-10-26

Published online: 2021-11-10

DOI: 10.24075/brsmu.2021.053

Comments 0

VIEWS 3080

Usman NYu, Rebrikov DV

Viral mechanisms for the delivery of genetic material are widely used in molecular medicine. Recombinant adeno-associated viruses (rAAV) represent a promising tool for in vivo gene delivery. The review considers nosological spectrum, molecular mechanisms, the choice of drug administration route depending on target structures, the choice of serotype, and the methods of active ingredient manufacturing for rAAV-mediated gene therapy.

Received: 2021-10-19

Published online: 2021-10-31

DOI: 10.24075/brsmu.2021.051

Comments 0

VIEWS 3228

Vishnyakova AYu, Rostovtseva TM, Kovrazhkina EA, Golovin DA, Gubsky IL, Lelyuk SE, Lelyuk VG

Moyamoya disease (MMD) is a rare progressive idiopathic arteriopathy that usually leads to ischemic stroke (IS) in young children, especially of East Asian origin. MMD can cause IS in the Caucasian race, too, but often remains unverified. The diagnosis of MMD relies on diagnostic radiology findings. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is widely used in Japan to identify asymptomatic individuals with hereditary predisposition to MMD. There are no official statistics on MMD in Russia. A patient experiencing an acute cerebrovascular accident (CVA) is hospitalized to a stroke unit, where they undergo a multislice computed tomography (MSCT) scan of the brain. Below, we report the results of a complex radiological examination, which included MRI (T2, FLAIR, SWI, 3D-TOF), cerebral MSCT perfusion imaging, CT angiography of intracranial arteries, duplex ultrasonography of brachiocephalic arteries and was conducted in 4 adult Caucasian patients (3 men and 1 woman aged 38, 39, 51, and 57 years, respectively) with a past IS caused by MMD. We hope that the findings of different imaging techniques may be helpful in establishing the timely diagnosis of MMD and optimizing the treatment strategies.

Received: 2021-09-29

Published online: 2021-10-31

DOI: 10.24075/brsmu.2021.052

Comments 0

VIEWS 3223

Voronkov DN, Stavrovskaya AV, Gushchina AS, Olshansky AS

It is assumed that dysfunction of tanycytes could be one of the components of pathogenesis of both Alzheimer disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus. The study was aimed to assess alterations in the tanycyte morphology in the Alzheimer disease model. The 3 mg/kg streptozotocin dose was injected in the lateral ventricles of Wistar rats in order to model the Alzheimer disease. Alterations in hypothalamic tanycytes were assessed 2 weeks, 4 weeks, 3 months and 6 months after administration of the toxin. Immunohistochemistry was used to identify the protein markers of tanycytes (vimentin, nestin), astrocytes (GFAP, glutamine synthetase) and neurons (HuC/D), as well as to assess cell proliferation (with the use of Ki67 protein) and mitochondrial alterations (mitochondrial complex IV, PGC1a). Administration of streptozotocin lead to β-amyloid accumulation in hypothalamus and ventricular enlargement (p < 0.001). Streptozotocin damaged both α1/α2 tanycytes and β1 tanycytes. The intensity of vimentin staining in α1/α2 tanycytes decreased by week 4 (p = 0.003), and in β1 tanycytes it decreased in three months (p < 0.001). The same trend was observed for nestin. The number of Ki67+ nuclei decreased (p < 0.05), and the expression of proteins associated with mitochondria changed. The density of hypothalamic tanycytes decreased by week 4 after administration of the toxin. Moreover, astrocyte activation was revealed. However, no prominent damage to both astrocytes and neurons was observed within four weeks after administration of streptozotocin. The revealed high tanycyte vulnerability to streptozotocin is in line with the hypothesis of the role of damage to hypothalamic structures in both local and systemic metabolic disorders occurring in the Alzheimer disease models.

Received: 2021-10-07

Published online: 2021-10-29

DOI: 10.24075/brsmu.2021.050

Comments 0

VIEWS 3233

Voroshilina ES, Zornikov DL, Ivanov AV, Pochernikov DG, Panacheva EA

The analysis of semen microbiota is difficult due to the lack of established criteria for interpretation of microbiological tests. The aim of the study was to determine the stable clusters of semen microbiota analyzed by real-time PCR in samples with normozoospermia. Semen samples of 227 men with normal spermiograms were included in the study. The quantity of total bacterial DNA and at least one group of microorganisms was more than 103 GE/ml in 107 (41.7%) samples. Four stable microbiota clusters with the prevalence of a specific microorganism group were distinguished in these samples: obligate anaerobes (OA) cluster (proportion in the centroid — 81.1%); Lactobacillus spp. cluster (proportion in the centroid — 64.3%); gram-positive facultative anaerobes (GPFA) cluster (proportion in the centroid — 92.5%); Enterobacteriaceae/Enterococcoccus (EE) cluster (proportion in the centroid — 80.8%). The clusters were ranked by frequency of occurrence: OA cluster was the most prevalent (43 (40.2%) of 107), second-most frequent were GPFA-cluster (27 (25.2%)) and Lactobacillus-cluster (22 (20.6%)). EE-dominated cluster was found in 15 (14.0%) cases.

Received: 2021-09-16

Published online: 2021-10-28

DOI: 10.24075/brsmu.2021.048

Comments 0

VIEWS 4266

Purtov KV, Petushkov VN, Rodionova NS, Chepurnykh TV, Kozhemyako VB, Zagitova RI, Shcheglov AS, Ziganshin RH, Tsarkova AS

The marine polychaete Chaetopterus variopedatus (Renier) (family Chaetopteridae) is a cosmopolitan species complex, consisting of distinct populations/ subspecies. The worms release glowing (460 nm) clouds of mucus when disturbed, and their parapodia often glow brightly. Currently, it is still unclear how exactly the bioluminescence system of these polychaetes functions. It has been previously assumed that the C. variopedatus luciferase may be used for detection of ferroptosis, the recently explored pathway of programmed cell death, resulting from accumulation of the ferrous ions. This study was aimed to extract and characterize the C. variopedatus luciferases, as well as to compare luciferases obtained from C. variopedatus of different populations. When extracting the enzyme responsible for bioluminescence from the frozen samples of Brazilian C. variopedatus using the improved method, two active luciferases, L1 and L2, were obtained. We assumed that one of the listed above luciferases was responsible for luminescence of the mucus and the other luciferase was responsible for luminescence in parapodia, and used the method for the distinct samples of mucus and parapodia of the living Far Eastern C. variopedatus. However, mucus of the latter turned out to be non-glowing. It is shown that luciferase L2 is responsible for luminescence in the parapodia of the C. variopedatus polychaete, since this luciferase has been found in the total biomass of Brazilian polychaetes and parapodia of Far Eastern polychaetes. Luminescence of the Brazilian C. variopedatus mucus is attributed to the functioning of luciferase L1, which is lacking in the mucus of the Far Eastern subspecies. The range of luciferase isoforms in polychaetes C. variopedatus depends on the place of origin.

Received: 2021-09-28

Published online: 2021-10-26

DOI: 10.24075/brsmu.2021.049

Comments 0

VIEWS 3409

Kiblitskaya AA, Goncharova AS, Anisimov AE, Snezhko AV, Dimitriadi SN, Maslov AA, Gevorkyan YA, Kolesnikov EN

As a rule, esophageal adenocarcinoma develops in the lower esophagus. Life expectancy and survival rates depend on the cancer stage and the general health of the patient. Chemoradiotherapy is the most successful treatment approach to this type of cancer. The choice of optimal radiation doses for achieving the best possible therapeutic effect is still a challenge. The aim of this paper was to study effective radiation doses and assess response of human esophageal adenocarcinoma to radiation using a PDX model. The study was conducted in female Balb/c nude mice (n = 25). Fragments of the donor tumor were implanted into the cervical esophagus of immunodeficient mice. Effects of radiation on the obtained orthotopic xenografts were studied after each of 3 irradiation sessions (4, 6, 8, and 10 Gy in each of the experimental groups, respectively). First-passage xenografts reproduced the morphology of the donor tumor. The mean tumor volume differed significantly between the control group and the experimental groups exposed to 6, 8 or 10 Gy (р ≤ 0.01) after each irradiation session. Tumor growth delay was significant after exposure to the total dose of 18 Gy. The further radiation dose increase was ineffective. The reduction of tumor volume in the xenografts was correlated to the increase in the one-time radiation dose. The total dose over 18 Gy produced a detrimental effect on the hematopoietic system and blood biochemistry of the experimental mice.

Received: 2021-09-16

Published online: 2021-10-20

DOI: 10.24075/brsmu.2021.047

Comments 0

VIEWS 3012