Evaluation of a proposal for reliable low-cost grid power with 100% wind, water, and solar.

A number of analyses, meta-analyses, and assessments, including those performed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and the International Energy Agency, have concluded that deployment of a diverse portfolio of clean energy technologies makes a transition to a low-carbon-emission energy system both more feasible and less costly than other pathways. In contrast, Jacobson et al. [Jacobson MZ, Delucchi MA, Cameron MA, Frew BA (2015) Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 112(49):15060-15065] argue that it is feasible to provide "low-cost solutions to the grid reliability problem with 100% penetration of WWS [wind, water and solar power] across all energy sectors in the continental United States between 2050 and 2055", with only electricity and hydrogen as energy carriers.

[Benign mimics of prostatic adenocarcinoma].

Prostate cancer occupies 2nd place on the prevalence and 6th place on mortality among all cancers in men. That is not to deny the social importance of prostate cancer, but attention is drawn to significant advantage of newly detected cases above the cancer-specific mortality. "Gold standard" for diagnosis includes morphological study of tissue fragments after transrectal multifocal prostate biopsy.

[Radical retropubic prostatectomy accompanied with inguinal hernioplasty via preperitoneal approach].

Radical prostatectomy is now widely practiced in the treatment of prostatic cancer (PC). If PC patients have inguinal hernia, hernioplasty can be made simultaneously with radical prostatectomy without one more surgical approach. The article presents pathogenetic rationale of hernioplasty from preperitoneal approach and an original technique of the simultaneous operation.

[Protease activity of microflora in the oral cavity of patients with periodontitis].

Microbial spectrum and non-specific as well as specific IgA1 protease activity of isolated microorganisms were investigated in gingival liquid of patients with periodontitis. Microorganisms from the gingival liqud of these patients belonged to conditional-pathogenic obligate and facultatively anaerobic bacteria. 24 strains of microorganisms have been identified.

[Determination of protease activity in blood and in microorganisms].

For determination of protease activity it is possible to use immunoglobulins. Since proteolytic products apparently do not retain substrate antigenic determinants, it is possible to use ELISA methodsfor monitoring for enzymatic process. ELISA determination of functional activity of specific IgA1-protease has been applied not only for detection of this enzyme, but also for measurement of its inhibition constants.

[Anatomic characteristics of transobturative approach in application of a tension-free tape for treatment of women with stress urinary incontinence].

We studied safety and topographic characteristics of a transobturative approach in application of an "inside out" tension free tape (TFT) for management of stress urinary incontinence (SUI) in women. The anatomic sections were made on 6 fresh female cadavers (mean age of the deceased 78.5 +/- 4 years).

[Deficiencies in C4A and C4B isotypes of human complement revealed by isoelectrofocusing and chemical reactivity of activated forms].

An approach is proposed to detect deficiencies in isotypes A and B of the C4 component of human complement, based on the calculation of the ratio of their IEA activities and the ratio of their quantities determined by isoelectrofocusing of their desialated forms with chemiluminescent detection in an immunoblot. The ratios of the quantities and activities of C4A/C4B practically coincided when determined in blood serum of 20 patients, many of which had inherited deficiencies in the C4 component isotypes.

[The free synthetic loop in the treatment of urinary stress incontinence in women: comparative analysis of postoperative complications].

Operations with application of a free synthetic loop were made in 504 female patients with urinary stress incontinence (USI). The patients were divided into two groups. Patients after TVT operation, not operated with reconstruction of the pelvic fundus entered group 1 (n = 207).

[Influence of serum IgG antibodies to Chlamydia trachomatis on the functional activity of complement components].

The immunoenzyme analysis and the method for the determination of IgG-containing immune complexes, carrying C1q component of the complement, were developed. In human blood sera the functional activity of components C3, complex C1r2s2, the content of C1 inhibitor and complement-activating immune complexes were determined. The comparative analysis of the activity of components C3 and C1r2s2, as well as between the content of C1 inhibitor and the activity of complex C1r2s2 for seropositive and seronegative sera, was made.

[Determination of proteinase activity of complement system by immunoenzyme methods].

Modern ELISA for determination of functional activity of component C2 and factors B and D, proteinases of a complement system, and component C3, substrate C3-convertases, key complex enzymes of the complement, have been developed. Essential feature of C3-convertases classical (C4bC2a) and alternative (C3bBb) pathways of the complement activation is that their substrate C3 after proteolytic cleavage is converted into C3b, carrying on the surface thioester covalent bond linking C3b with nucleophilic acceptors that results in immobilization of this proteolytic product near the activating enzyme. Cascade character of an activation of complement system allows to create artificial deficit of separate components in the experimental system and to determine (by ELISA) covalently immobilized component C3 during activation, and also to determine functional activity of any of pre-exhausted components.

[Endothelial vascular grafts (Experimental research)].

The authors present herein their findings obtained in bench-test and experimental studies, which made it possible to work out an original technology of creating an endothelial covering of the inner surface of vascular grafts made of polytetrafluorethylene. The new technology includes the definite sequential processes which are as follows: 1) creation of vascular endotheliocytes; 2) stimulation of growth and reproduction of endotheliocytes; 3) preparation of the graft, including creation of stable positive potential on its inner surface in order to create optimal conditions for endothelization; 4) graft endothelization itself. In order to assess efficacy of endothelial vascular grafts, we carried out a total of 105 experiments on dogs.

[Determination of the functional activity, amount of C1 inhibitor, and autoantibodies as a tool for differential diagnosis of angioedema].

Aetiology of angioedema (and therefore the scheme of its treatment) can be different. Angioedema may be subdivided into four categories: hereditary and acquired angioedemas, allergies and vasculitis. To establish the reason of the hereditary and acquired form of angioedema analyses of functional activity of complement components, quantities and activity of C1 inhibitor, presence (or absence) autoantibodies to C1 inhibitor allow.

[Comparative effects of complement inhibitors in vitro and in vivo experiments: an immunoenzyme method in studying subcomponent C1q inhibition and complement inhibition in model animals].

Methods of analysis of inhibition of complement system in vitro and in vivo have been developed for study of effects of medical drugs on the complement. The first one, ELISA method, for determination of inhibition of the first stage of complement activation includes binding of C1q subcomponent to immunoglobulin. The second method is based on capacity of mink serum to kill mice at the intravenous administration due to the action of mink complement.

[The mechanism of inhibition of the activation of the complement first component by polyanions and polycations ].

Polyethyleneimine (PEI, 50 kDa) and polymethacrylic acid (PMA, 200 kDa) were shown to inhibit the lysis of sheep erythrocytes induced by the guinea pig complement. They twofold suppress the hemolysis at the concentrations of 0.47 and 0.

[Long-term use of ovestin by postmenopausal women with urinary incontinence].

The aim of the study was to improve diagnosis and treatment of women suffering from clinical manifestations of urogenital atrophy in menopause: stress and urgent urine incontinence, disturbances of urination, recurrent infections of the lower urinary tracts. A total of 237 menopausal women were treated for urogenital atrophy for four years. The age of the patients ranged from 51 to 78 years (mean age 64.

[A drop of mink complement kills a mouse].

The phenomenon of fast death of mice after parenteral administration of mink serum was explained by high activity of mink complement in particular by unusually high activity of its alternative pathway of activation. The presence of antibodies to mouse erythrocytes in mink serum was necessary precondition for their lysis under action of mink complement by classical and alternative pathways. However, removal of these antibodies resulting in cancellation of hemolysis did not effect toxicity of mink serum for nice in vivo.

[Ovestin in preparation for transvaginal surgeries].

The trial of the efficiency of the drug estriol-ovestin in preoperative preparation of patients to transvaginal operations included 118 patients (mean age 48.6 years). 82 patients received ovestin as a vaginal suppository and creams in a daily dose of 500 mu for 2-3 weeks before the operation.

[Experience in long term use of tamsulosin (Omnik) in patients with chronic prostatitis].

Tamsulosin (omnik), a selective adrenoreceptor blocker-alpha 1A/D, was used in a long-term regimen of chronic prostatitis (CP) treatment conducted in 39 patients. Tamsulosin was given in a standard dose of 0.4 mg once a day for 1 year.

[Inhibition of binding of activated compliment component C4b with its target].

The inhibition of covalent binding of the nascent C4b fragment of the human complement component to its natural target, immunoglobulin G, was studied. To this end, an immunoenzyme system was developed. In this ELISA method, the complement was activated on the sorbed IgG molecules and the resulting nascent C4b fragment acylated IgG or interacted with a competitive inhibitor added to the system.

[Transposition of the distal urethra in surgical treatment of recurrent lower urinary tract infection in women].

One of the procedures used in surgical treatment of recurrent infections of the lower urinary tracts is transposition of the distal urethra. This procedure was used in 27 females. Persistent clinical recovery was achieved in 81.

[Isotyping of human C4 complement using differences in the functional activity of C4A and C4B isotypes].

The difference in the functional activity of the isotypes A and B of component C4 of human complement was used to determine their ratio and to detect the inherited deficiency of the isotypes. ELISA methods were developed for the quantitative assay of component C4 (conventional sandwich method) and its functional activity. When determining the functional activity, the classic pathway of the complement and therefore of component C4 was activated by activators sorbed on ELISA microplates (immunoglobulin IgG3 or liposaccharide of the Shigella sonnei cell walls, which activates the complement by binding component C1).