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Specific features of diffusion in the cerebral corticospinal tract of patients with early stages of schizophrenia were studied using methods of diffusion tensor magnetic-resonance imaging and magnetic resonance spectroscopy. A decrease in the coefficient of fractional anisotropy in the posterior limb of the internal capsule and an increase in diffusion coefficient in the radiate crown and motor cortex were observed. The results reflect different mechanisms of changes in water diffusion in various areas of the corticospinal tract: changes in nerve fiber microstructure in the internal capsule of the left hemisphere and a decrease in their density in the motor cortex and radiate crown.

Diffusion in the cerebral corpus callosum in patients with early schizophrenia was studied by diffusion tensor MRT and magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The fraction anisotropy coefficient in the corpus callosum knee was low as a result of high radial diffusion. Spectroscopy detected a decrease of N-acetylaspartate level in the corpus callosum knee indicating axonal lesion during the early stage of schizophrenia.

Introduction31P MRS is a unique way of in vivo energy metabolism research. This method allowed revealing schizophrenia-induced disturbances of energy exchange in resting state [1]. We use 31P MRS in presence of visual stimulation that allows neuronal energy-consuming processes studying.ObjectiveRevealing of stimulation effects on high-energy phosphates (PCr, ATP) in early-stage schizophrenia.AimDiscovery of energy processes contribution in schizophrenia pathogenesis.MethodsTwelve right-handed 18–26 years old male patients with early-staged schizophrenia (F20, ICD-10) and 20 age-matched healthy right-handed controls. Spectra were acquired on Philips Achieva 3.0 T using Rapid Biomed 31P/1H birdcage coil and 2D ISIS pulse sequence. fMRI was used for accurate 2D slice positioning, spectroscopy voxels containing primary visual cortex (V1) were averaged (see Fig. 1). Two 31P spectra of V1 were obtained: firstly in resting state and then during 6 minutes of continuous stimulation by 6 Hz flashing checkerboard. Spectra were processed in jMRUI.ResultsExcitation reduced PCr in the norm and had no effect on schizophrenia (see Fig. 2). No excitation-induced ATP changes in both groups were revealed.ConclusionAlteration in PCr behavior in this study witnesses for deviations in energy-consuming processes in schizophrenia. A new scheme of neuronal response to stimulation in schizophrenia is offered.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

The therapeutic dynamics of neuropsychological and neurophysiological markers of impairments to cognitive functions were studied in groups of patients with first episodes of juvenile endogenous psychosis (90 patients). At the initial stage of remission, subjects were found to show improvements in processes associated with voluntary regulation of cognitive functions (due to the activity of extensive networks of cortical and subcortical structures), while more automatic processes (associated mainly with the temporal areas of the brain) remained abnormal. Changes in neurocognitive anomalies during the onset of remission were also identified in groups of patients in whom episodes had different syndromal structures - catatonic, hallucinatory-delusional, and affective-delusional.

We studied the relationship between genes of serotonin transporter and brain-derived neurotrophic factor and parameters of AEP N100 wave to a non-significant stimulus in patients with endogenous mental diseases. In patients with endogenous psychoses, a significant effect of BDNF Val66Met marker on N100 wave amplitude was revealed: the mean N100 amplitude was higher in carriers of Val/Val genotype compared to Val/Met genotype carriers. The effect of the 5-HTTLPR marker on the wave amplitude was less pronounced (tendency): the SS genotype was associated with higher N100 amplitude.

Comparative investigations of somatotropin and prolactin contents in the fluid of antral follicles and blood serum of cows in different phases of the oestrous cycle were performed. The somatotropin concentration in the fluid was shown to rise with increasing the follicle diameters from 3-5 to 6-10 mm in the follicular phase and to decrease in follicles of diameter 11-20 mm in the luteal phase. The prolactin concentration was higher in the fluid of follicles 11-20 mm in diameter than in those of 3-5 mm in diameter in the follicular phase and did not depend on the follicle size in the luteal phase. Concurrently, the prolactin content in follicles 3-5 mm in diameter was higher in the luteal than follicular phase of the cycle. As compared to the follicular phase, an increase in the prolactin concentration in the bovine blood serum during the luteal phase was also found. The data obtained indicate that changes in the somatotropin and prolactin contents in the follicular fluid are related to processes regulating growth and development of antral follicles depending on the phase of oestrous cycle and to changes in the blood hormone concentrations as well.

L’article retrace l’histoire du catalogage des collections d’ouvrages imprimés et manuscrits, cartes, plans, dessins et gravures ayant appartenu à Pierre le Grand et conservées aujourd’hui pour la plupart à la bibliothèque de l’Académie des sciences (BAN) à Saint-Pétersbourg. Transmise à la bibliothèque en 1725-1728, la collection d’ouvrages fut cataloguée une première fois par Bogdanov en 1742-1744. Depuis le milieu du xxe siècle, une recherche conduite par M. N. Murzanova, E. I. Bobrova et V. A. Petrov permit de retrouver les inventaires de 1725-1728. Parallèlement, ils entreprirent de rechercher systématiquement les ouvrages portant des marques de Pierre le Grand. Ce travail aboutit, entre autres, à un premier catalogue de la « bibliothèque de Pierre le Grand » en 1978. Les recherches actuelles visent à affiner et à préciser cette première approche en procédant à des recherches, dans les archives, sur l’histoire de chaque ouvrage. Une équipe de la BAN conduite par Irina Lebedeva, a procédé ainsi à une description systématique, publiée en 2003, des livres manuscrits ayant appartenu au tsar. L’étape ultérieure sera une description des ouvrages imprimés. The history of Peter the Great’s library and its catalogs. – The article traces the history of the cataloging process of the collection of books, manuscripts, maps, plans, drawings, and engravings that belonged to Peter the Great and are for the most part housed in the Russian Academy of Sciences Library (BAN) in St. Petersburg. The collection was transferred to the library in 1725-1728 and was first cataloged by Bogdanov in 1724-1744. In the mid twentieth century, M. N. Murzanova, E. I. Bobrova, and V. A. Petrov initiated a research that led to the retrieval of the 1725-1728 inventories. They simultaneously launched a systematic search of volumes with marks indicating Peter the Great’s ownership which led to the creation of a first catalog of “Peter the Great’s library” in 1978. A finer investigation is presently going on consisting in archival research on the history of each volume. Thus, under the leadership of Irina Lebedeva, a BAN research team completed and published in 2003 a systematic description of the manuscripts that belonged to the tsar. Their next step is a description of his printed books.

A number of studies have reported an association between catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) gene Val158Met polymorphism and neuropsychological traits in patients with schizophrenia, their relatives and healthy controls, with the Met allele carriers performing better on neurocognitive tasks than those with the Val allele. But the association was not confirmed in all studies. The present paper was aimed at further investigation of the COMT gene relationship with some neurocognitive traits, assessing mainly working and verbal memory, and to P300 event-related potentials (auditory oddball). A total sample of 319 individuals, including schizophrenic patients, their relatives and controls, was studied. No significant differences in performance of neurocognitive tasks were found by Val158Met genotypes. An association was observed between the Met/Met genotype and higher amplitude in centro-parietal area in relatives. Factors that could explain the non-replication of previous studies on the COMT gene polymorphism and neurocognitive traits are discussed. We suggest here that (1) Val158Met polymorphism rather exerts a modifying influence on brain activation in general than impacts directly on performance of the particular neurocognitive test, and (2) P300 amplitude seems to be a correlate of this activation reflecting, along with information processing, the subject's affective and personality features.

An influence of somatotropin, prolactin and insulin on destructive processes in bovine granulosa cells from small antral follicles following atresia in vivo was studied in vitro. As compared to control, the addition of the studied hormones to serum-free suspension system was shown to result in increase in number of cells without signs of chromosome degeneration after 24 and 48 hrs of incubation. The revealed inhibitory action of somatotropin, prolactin and insulin on chromatin degeneration in granulosa cells was not due to the hormonal influence on proliferative activity of the cells. The stimulatory action of insulin on the viability and estrogen-secretory activity of granulosa cells cultured for 1 day was also found. At the same time, somatotropin and prolactin did not affect the estradiol and progesterone production by the cells. The data obtained suggest that the inhibitory action of somatotropin and prolactin on destructive processes in cultured granulosa cells is not related to the hormonal regulation of the steroidogenic activity of the cells, whereas the similar action of insulin may be partially due to its stimulatory influence on the estradiol secretion.

Specific binding of bovine prolactin and somatotropin by granulosa cells from the antral follicles of various diameters was studied in cows at different reproductive states, prepubertal, pubertal, and early gestation. The ability of granulosa cells to bind prolactin did not depend on the reproductive state of an animal. At the same time, the dynamics of somatotropin specific binding by granulosa cells during maturation of the antral follicles differed at dissimilar reproductive states of the cows. When the diameter of follicles increased from 3-5 to 6-10 mm, specific binding of 125I-somatotropin decreased in pubertal animals, but remained unchanged in the prepubertal and pregnant animals. The results of Scatchard analysis of the binding data suggest that sexual maturation of cows did not affect the binding of prolactin and somatotropin by granulosa cells from follicles of 1-2 mm in diameter. The data obtained suggest that the decreased sensitivity of granulosa cells to somatotropin at the terminal stages of maturation of the antral follicles is essential for their development and acquisition of the ability for ovulation.

Functional and structural brain abnormalities in people at high risk for psychosis is a subject of intensive studies in biological psychiatry over the last decades. We studied correlations between neurophysiological and neuroimaging parameters in ultra-high risk patients.Fifty-six patients, aged 17-25 years, with nonpsychotic mental disorders were examined. The control group included 30 age- and sex-matched healthy people. Neurophysiological study measured sensory gating. Proton MR-spectroscopy was used to study metabolic processes in the brain (index for glutamate/glutamine, N-acetylaspartate and choline containing compounds in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and thalamus of both hemispheres as well as in the genu and splenium of the corpus callosum).We found the abnormality of sensory gating in patients at ultra-high risk for endogenous psychosis that was not correlated with the metabolic parameters. The latter were normal or were normalized during treatment.Цель исследования. В последние десятилетия в биологической психиатрии большое внимание уделяется особенностям функциональных и структурных аномалий головного мозга в группах высокого риска по развитию эндогенных психозов. Изучали сопряженность нейрофизиологических и нейровизуализационных показателей в случаях наличия ультравысокого риска по развитию эндогенных психозов. Настоящее сообщение представляет некоторые результаты начального этапа подобного исследования. Материал и методы. Обследовали 56 больных 17-25 лет с непсихотическими психическими расстройствами. Контрольная группа состояла из 30 подобранных по возрасту и полу психически здоровых. Нейрофизиологические исследования были направлены на получение показателей, характеризующих способность головного мозга 'регулировать' объем поступающей информации (sensory gating). Одновременно методом локализационной протонной МР-спектроскопии определялись некоторые характеристики обменных процессов в головном мозге (величины индекса глутамат/глутамин, N-ацетиласпартата и холинсодержащих веществ в дорсолатеральной префронтальной коре и таламусе левого и правого полушария, а также колене и валике мозолистого тела). Результаты и заключение. Получены данные, позволяющие предположить нарушение 'сенсорного фильтра' у больных из группы ультравысокого риска по развитию эндогенных психозов, которые не коррелируют с изучавшимися метаболическими показателями. Последние были в норме или нормализовались в процессе лечения.

We investigated antisense inhibition of anti-apoptotic bcl-xL and bcl-2 proteins to increase chemosensitization in the T24 and 5637 bladder carcinoma cell lines.A T24 bladder carcinoma cell line stably over expressing bcl-xL protein was constructed. Apoptosis by cytotoxic agents was estimated by cell cycle analysis and Annexin V binding. To eliminate bcl-xL expression T24 and 5637 cells were treated with C5-propynylated and 2'-O-methylribo-oligonucleotides. Levels of protein and messenger RNA were measured by Western and Northern blot analysis. Cell viability after combined treatment with oligonucleotides and various cytotoxic agents was measured by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay and evaluated statistically by Student's 2-sample t test.Forced over expression of bcl-xL protein desensitized the T24 bladder carcinoma cell line to cytotoxic agents. C5-propynylated and 2'-O-methylribo-oligonucleotides down-regulated bcl-xL protein expression in the T24 and 5637 cell lines, and increased their sensitivity to cytotoxic agents. The efficiency of antisense down-regulation of bcl-xL protein expression depended on the type of delivery agent.Antisense down-regulation of bcl-xL protein sensitizes bladder carcinoma cells to cytotoxic agents. However, it is possible that cellular chemosensitization results from a combination of effects, including nonsequence specificity, irrelevant cleavage and effects of the carriers combined with the specific antisense effects.

Somatotropin level was shown to rise in follicular fluid from bovine ovaries during the follicular growth stage with increasing of the follicular diameter from 3-5 to 6-10 mm. Follicles with the diameter of 10-20 mm containing over 40% of pycnotic granulosa cells revealed lower levels of somatotropin in their fluid as compared with those containing 20% or lesser amount of pycnotic cells. The data obtained suggest a direct involvement of somatotropin in regulation of the growth and atretic processes in antral bovine ovarian follicles.

The influence of bovine prolactin (BPL) on DNA synthesis in cultured cow granulosa cells in various media has been studied. BPL exerted a mitogenic effect on granulosa cells of follicles 3-5 mm in diameter, with the effect depending on hormone concentration in the cultural medium. In the medium with bovine growth hormone the maximum effective concentration of BPL was 100 times more than in other used media. The degree of BPL influence on granulosa cell proliferation depended on the degree of cell differentiation. In cultures of granulosa cells taken from follicles 1-2 and 3-5 mm in diameter, while the BPL concentration increased from 500 ng/ml to 5 micrograms/ml in the serum free medium, and from 50 ng/ml to 500 ng/ml in the medium with 5% fetal bovine serum, the stimulation of DNA synthesis in cells decreased. The growth-promoting influence of BPL on granulosa cells of follicles 6-10 mm in diameter did not depend on its concentration in the cultural medium. The maximum mitogenic hormonal effect decreased with the growth of a follicle. This fact is in accord with the recent notions of a progressive reduction of granulosa cell proliferative activity during follicular maturation. The results obtained are discussed in terms of a hypothesis that prolactin can influence granulosa cell secretion of a regulator of meiosis and folliculogenesis, i.e. an inhibitor of oocyte maturation.