Publications by authors named "Veronika I. Skvortsova"

COVID-19 is characterized by systemic pro-inflammatory shifts with the development of serious alterations in the functioning of the immune system. Investigations of the gene expression changes accompanying the infection state provide insight into the molecular and cellular processes depending on the sickness severity and virus variants. Severe Delta COVID-19 has been characterized by the appearance of a monocyte subset enriched for proinflammatory gene expression signatures and a shift in ligand-receptor interactions.

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Article Synopsis
  • Repetitive elements in the genome, especially in the RCCX locus, contribute to genetic variability and can lead to congenital disorders when inherited non-functionally.
  • The lack of standardized diagnostic methods for identifying these repetitive fragments complicates understanding of the RCCX locus, which is crucial for accurate disease diagnosis.
  • The review evaluates existing strategies for studying the RCCX locus and recommends optimal methods for diagnosing congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) linked to defects in this region.
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: The goal of this study was to compare the results of CNV detection by three different methods using 13 paired carcinoma samples, as well as to perform a statistical analysis of the agreement. : CNV was studied using NanoString nCounter v2 Cancer CN Assay (Nanostring), Illumina Infinium CoreExome microarrays (CoreExome microarrays) and digital droplet PCR (ddPCR). : There was a good level of agreement (PABAK score > 0.

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Background: Despite the success of first-generation COVID-19 vaccines targeting the spike (S) protein, emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants have led to immune escape, reducing the efficacy of these vaccines. Additionally, some individuals are unable to mount an effective immune response to S protein-based vaccines. This has created a need for alternative vaccine strategies that are less susceptible to mutations and capable of providing broad and durable protection.

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Autoimmunity is intrinsically driven by memory T and B cell clones inappropriately targeted at self-antigens. Selective depletion or suppression of self-reactive T cells remains a holy grail of autoimmune therapy, but disease-associated T cell receptors (TCRs) and cognate antigenic epitopes remained elusive. A TRBV9-containing CD8 TCR motif was recently associated with the pathogenesis of ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis and acute anterior uveitis, and cognate HLA-B*27-presented epitopes were identified.

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In 2020, SARS-CoV-2 has spread rapidly across the globe, with most nations failing to prevent or substantially delay its introduction. While many countries have imposed some limitations on trans-border passenger traffic, the effect of these measures on the global spread of COVID-19 strains remains unclear. Here, we report an analysis of 3206 whole-genome sequences of SARS-CoV-2 samples from 78 regions of Russia covering the period before the spread of variants of concern (between March and November 2020).

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  • * The vaccine was tested on various animals, including mice, rabbits, and marmoset monkeys, and showed safety and strong immune responses, including N-specific IgG and T cell responses.
  • * In infected Syrian hamsters, the vaccine reduced lung damage and virus levels, demonstrating its effectiveness and potential to complement current COVID-19 vaccines.
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The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is accompanied by a cytokine storm with the release of many proinflammatory factors and development of respiratory syndrome. Several SARS-CoV-2 lineages have been identified, and the Delta variant (B.1.

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COVID-19 is a respiratory infection caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus that can rapidly escalate to life-threatening pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Recently, extracellular high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) has been identified as an essential component of cytokine storms that occur with COVID-19; HMGB1 levels correlate significantly with disease severity. Thus, the modulation of HMGB1 release may be vital for treating COVID-19.

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Recent progress in understanding the pathological changes in the nervous system and in certain other body systems (e.g., immune system) that lead to the development and progression of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) revealed a number of molecular and cellular processes that can potentially be used as therapeutic targets.

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Cohorts of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients and control individuals of Caucasian origin from the Central European Russia (Moscow city and region) were analyzed for the presence of hexanucleotide repeat GGGGCC expansion within the first intron of the C9ORF72 gene. The presence of a large (>40) repeat expansion was found in 15% of familial ALS cases (3 of 20 unrelated familial cases) and 2.5% of sporadic ALS cases (6 of 238) but in none of control cases.

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Background: The nootropic neuroprotective peptide Semax (Met-Glu-His-Phe-Pro-Gly-Pro) has proved efficient in the therapy of brain stroke; however, the molecular mechanisms underlying its action remain obscure. Our genome-wide study was designed to investigate the response of the transcriptome of ischemized rat brain cortex tissues to the action of Semax in vivo.

Results: The gene-expression alteration caused by the action of the peptide Semax was compared with the gene expression of the "ischemia" group animals at 3 and 24 h after permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion (pMCAO).

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The synthetic peptide Semax (Met-Glu-His-Phe-Pro-Gly-Pro) is used successfully in acute stroke therapy. In spite of numerous studies on the subject, many aspects of the neuroprotective effects of the peptide remain unknown. We studied the action of Semax and its C-terminal tripeptide Pro-Gly-Pro on the expression of the VEGF gene family (Vegf-a, Vegf-b, Vegf-c, Vegf-d, and Plgf) and their receptors (Vegfr-1, Vegfr-2, and Vegfr-3) in the frontoparietal cortex region of the rat brain at 3, 24, and 72 h after permanent left middle cerebral artery occlusion (pMCAO).

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The neuropeptide preparation Semax (Met-Glu-His-Phe-Pro-Gly-Pro) has been employed successfully in clinical practice for treating patients with severe brain blood circulation disorders. In spite of numerous studies, many aspects of the therapeutic effects of this preparation remain unknown. In this context, the effects of Semax and its C-end tripeptide PGP on the functional morphology of nervous tissue cells were studied in the normal rat brain and in a model of incomplete global rat brain ischemia.

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Consisting of a fragment of ACTH(4-7) and C-terminal PGP tripeptide, the polypeptide Semax is successfully used for acute stroke therapy. Previous experiments showed rapid induction of Bdnf, Ngf, and TrkB expression in intact rat hippocampus following Semax treatment. To investigate the mRNA expression of neurotrophins and their receptors after treatment with either Semax or PGP, the rat brains were analyzed at three time points following a permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion (pMCAO).

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This report discusses the newest approaches to rehabilitation of post-stroke patients. Recent studies have clinical implications for the treatment of stroke at all stages, and chronic aphasia.

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Metabolites of the sphingomyelin cycle are reported to play an important role in neuronal death after ischemia. To elucidate the involvement of the key enzyme of this cycle, sphingomyelin synthase (SMS), in the mechanism underlying cerebral ischemia, we, for the first time, investigated changes in the mRNA expression of the SMS1 gene in rats after focal cerebral ischemia. According to our histological analysis, the damaged area is localized only in the ipsilateral cortex.

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Six patients with an evident multiple sclerosis (MS) were observed in dynamics of long term immune therapy based on administration of rIFN preparations. One half of them received the therapy with rIFN-alpha. Three other patients received rIFN-beta administration that was interrupted, when sensitivity of blood cells to in vitro IFN-beta action was decreased; the trial was continued by rIFN-alpha courses.

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Three patients with an evident multiple sclerosis (MS) were observed in a dynamics of long-term immune therapy based on administration of rIFN-alpha preparation. Production of IFN-alpha and IFN-gamma by induced peripheral blood leukocytes (PBL) of the patients was tested simultaneously with detection of a response of PBL to in vitro IFN-alpha and IFN-beta priming action every 10th day of observation. It has been shown that positive clinical effect of rIFN-alpha therapy was associated with a partial restoration of initially decreased IFN-alpha and IFN-gamma production by PBL, and paralleled by increasing the cell IFN-alpha sensitivity.

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Three patients with obvious multiple sclerosis (MS) were observed in a dynamics of immune therapy based on administration of rIFN-beta preparation. The ability to produce IFN-alpha and IFN-gamma by stimulated peripheral blood leukocytes (PBL) of the patients was tested simultaneously with detection of PBL response to the in vitro IFN-beta priming action on the every 10th day of observation. It has been shown that positive clinical effect of recombinant IFN-beta therapy was associated with a partial restoration of initially decreased IFN-beta and IFN-beta production by PBL, and paralleled by reducing the cell IFN-beta sensitivity.

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