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Despite advanced diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, endometrial cancer (EC) is still responsible for high morbidity and mortality of women. The genetic variability in RAD51 may contribute to the appearance and progression of various cancers including EC.We investigated the association of polymorphisms in the DNA repair genes RAD51 135GC and 172GT with endometrial cancer risk.The genotypes of RAD51 135GC and 172GT polymorphism were determined by PCR-RFLP methods in endometrial tissue of 240 cancer subjects and 240 healthy subjects who served as controls.In the present work we demonstrated a significant positive association between the RAD51 C/C genotype and endometrial carcinoma, with an adjusted odds ratio (OR) of 13.0 (p0.0001). The distribution of genotypes for 135GC SNP in endometrial cancer patients vs. controls was: 10% vs. 27% for GG, 13% vs. 58% for GC and 77% vs. 15% for CC genotype, respectively. Variant 135C allele of RAD51 increased the cancer risk (OR = 1.81; 95% CI 0.11-2.93, p = 0.022). The higher risk of EC occurrence was associated with the combined C135C-G172T genotype (OR = 7.69; 95% CI 3.45-17.12).The results indicated that the polymorphism 135GC of the RAD51 gene may be positively associated with endometrial carcinoma in the Polish population. Further studies, conducted on a larger group, are required to clarify this point.

The essential element of the functioning of patients is the assessment of quality of life and its determinants. Taking into account the depression process and its specific nature this seems to be of special importance.The aim of this paper was the assessment of importance of psychological determinants of quality of life in women with depressive disorders.The tests were carried out on the basis of the analysis of medical documentation, including the psychiatric records. The following criteria were measured: depression level (Beck Hopelessness Scale), quality of life (The Life Satisfaction Questionnaire FLZ according to Fahrenberg), personality model (NEO Five-Factor Inventory), optimism (The Life Orientation Test-Revised LOT-R by M. Scheier, ChS. Carver and M. Bridges adapted by R. Poprawa and Z. Juczyński), purpose in life (The Purpose-in-Life Test developed by Crumbaugh and Maholick according to the authorised translation by Z. Płuzek), social support (The Social Support Questionnaire by Sommer G, Fydrich T, 1989 adapted by Z. Juczyński), health satisfaction (General Health Questionnaire GHQ 28 by David Goldberg). Women diagnosed with depressive disorders were qualified for testing. The tested group of women included 80 patients in the age bracket of 40 to 60 years from the Outpatient Department of Mental Health, Regional Specialised Hospital in Zgierz. The reference group consisted of 30 women showing no symptoms of depressive disorders.The statistical analysis of variables taken into account in the tests showed essential statistical differences between the compared groups with regard to almost all parameters. Significant differences were found in respect of life satisfaction, personality variables, social support, health satisfaction and purpose in life.The obtained results showed significant differences regarding the assessment of quality of life between the group of women with depressive disorders and the group of women without any symptoms of such disorders in respect of the tested psychological determinants. The only exception was the "parent-child relationship satisfaction" where no differences were found.

Ten-day-old Senecio macrophyllus M. Bieb. seedlings were the experimental material. The seeds were obtained from the Botanical Garden of Maria Curie- Sklodowska University (Lublin, Poland). They were surface-sterilized with 70% (v/v) ethanol for 30 s and then in 20% (v/v) solution of NaOCl (Domestos This is the first protocol for in vitro micropropagation of Senecio macrophyllus. Shoot tips and fragments of the cotyledon, hypocotyls and roots were isolated from 10-day-old sterile seedlings. The morphological response was tested on MS medium supplemented with different types of cytokinins: BA (2.2 μM, 4.4 μM or 13.3 μM), KN (4.7 μM or 13.9 μM) and ZEA (4.6 μM or 13,7 μM) in combination with 0.54 μM NAA or 0.27 μM NAA (with 2.2 μM BA only), but only shoot tips were capable of shoot organogenesis. Shoot proliferation was highest for explants cultured on MS medium supplemented with 4.4 μM BA in combination with 0.54 μM NAA. The shoots formed were then multiplied on the same medium. Rooting was achieved on full- and half-strength MS medium without auxin, but shoots cultured on medium BA-supplemented began inducing roots a week later than shoots obtained on media with other types of cytokinins. Well-rooted plantlets were transferred to ex vitro conditions. The survival rate of rooted plants was 100% for plants cultured in a mixture of vermiculite and sand, and 92% for those plant- ed in soil after 4 weeks of acclimatization. In the first year the plants grew intensively under field conditions and were able to develop a leaf rosette. In the second year the plants were able to flower and produce viable seeds.