Prevalence of Toscana Virus Antibodies in Residents of Bulgaria: A Nationwide Study Following the Pandemic of COVID-19.

Toscana virus (TOSV) is an arthropod-borne virus transmitted by sandflies and is mainly found in countries around the Mediterranean basin. In this article, we present the findings of a seroprevalence study on TOSV in Bulgaria. We aim to assess the current epidemiological situation regarding TOSV in the country and raise clinical awareness.

Clinical performance of the infant nutrition early warning score in routine practice across four international clinical settings in Europe: A study by the ESPGHAN special interest group in clinical malnutrition.

There is a scarcity of nutritional screening tools for use in infants (<1 year). The infant Nutrition Early Warning Score (iNEWS) has been developed to identify infants who need further dietetic review. We introduced the iNEWS into clinical practice and evaluated its performance in Scotland, Belgium, Athens and Bulgaria.

Berberine: Pharmacological Features in Health, Disease and Aging.

Background: Berberine is the main active compound of different herbs and is defined as an isoquinoline quaternary botanical alkaloid found in barks and roots of numerous plants. It exhibits a wide range of pharmacological effects, such as anti-obesity and antidiabetic effects. Berberine has antibacterial activity against a variety of microbiota, including many bacterial species, protozoa, plasmodia, fungi, and trypanosomes.

Low physical activity is associated with two hypokinetic motor abnormalities in psychosis.

Individuals with schizophrenia engage in more sedentary behavior than healthy controls, which is thought to contribute to multiple health adversities. Age, medication side effects and environment are critical determinants of physical activity in psychosis. While motor abnormalities are frequently observed in psychosis, their association with low physical activity has received little interest.

PREVENTION OF ASTHENIC SYNDROME AS CONCOMITANT CIRCUMSTАINS IN POST-COVID-19 PATIENTS.

Objective: The aim: Is research into development of asthenic syndrome and its effect on the productivity in post-COVID-19 patients.

Patients And Methods: Materials and methods: All patients underwent neuropsychological testing immediately after the COVID-19 treatment and one month after a comprehensive rehabilitation program.

Results: Results: The research proved that of all post-COVID-19 patients, who showed signs of asthenic syndrome from predominantly moderate to extreme severity, the patients who followed the complete comprehensive rehabilitation intervention significantly reduced verifiable severity of asthenic syndrome as well as the disability duration.

Single Session Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Ameliorates Hand Gesture Deficits in Schizophrenia.

Social interaction is impaired in schizophrenia, including the use of hand gestures, which is linked to poor social perception and outcome. Brain imaging suggests reduced neural activity in a left-lateralized frontoparietal network during gesture preparation; therefore, gesturing might be improved through facilitation of left hemispheric brain areas or via disruption of interhemispheric inhibition from the right homolog. This study tested whether repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) protocols would improve gesture performance in schizophrenia.

Impairment of cholinergic bladder contractility in rat model of type I diabetes complicated by cystitis: Contribution of neurotransmitter-degrading ectoenzymes.

Parasympathetic regulation of urinary bladder contractions primarily involves acetylcholine release and activation of detrusor smooth muscle (DSM) muscarinic acetylcholine (mACh) receptors. Co-release of ATP and activation of DSM purinergic P2X1-receptors may participate as well in some species. Both types of neuromuscular transmission (NMT) are impaired in diabetes, however, which factors may contribute to such impairment remains poorly understood.

Frequency dependence of excitation-contraction of multicellular smooth muscle preparations: the relevance to bipolar electrosurgery.

Background: Bipolar electrosurgical tissue welding uses forceps-like electrodes for grasping the tissues and delivering high-frequency electric current (HFEC) to produce local heat, desiccation, and protein denaturation, resulting in the fusion of the contacting tissues. Although in this technique no electric current is flowing through the whole body to cause electric injury, depending on the frequency of applied energy, it may produce local excitation of intramural nerves, which can propagate beyond the surgical site potentially causing harmful effects.

Materials And Methods: The effects of varying frequency of HFEC on tissue excitability in bipolar electrosurgical modality were studied in vitro using electric field stimulation (EFS) method on multicellular smooth muscle strips of rat vas deferens.

[Dynamics of body mass and oxygen consumption in the ontogeny of the Spanish ribbed newt (Pleurodeles waltl): 2. Larval stage].

The correlation between characteristics of growth and energy metabolism during the larval stage of development of the Spanish ribbed newt (Pleurodeles waltl) has been studied. During this period, its body mass is found to increase 140 times and the oxygen consumption rate, 77 times. The highest rate of specific body mass increase and oxygen consumption rate are noted in the early larval stage.

[Dynamics of body mass and oxygen consumption in the Iberian ribbed newt Pleurodeles waltl ontogenesis: 1. Endotrophic development].

The correlation between parameters of growth and energy metabolism in the example of embryonic and larval development of the Iberian ribbed newt Pleurodeles waltl has been studied. The wet body mass increases five times during this period due to water absorption by developing tissues and the yolk, and the dry mass decreases 1.18 times.

[Effect of hypoxia on amnion rhythmic contractions and heart rate in the embryonic European pond turtle Emys orbicularis (Reptilia: Emydidae)].

The effect of acute hypoxia (10% O2 for 30 min) on the rate of amnion rhythmic contractions and heart rate (HR) was studied in two age groups of European pond turtle (Emys orbicularis) embryos, on days 19-27 and 37-43 of incubation (30-40 and 60-70% of the period until hatching). Under the control conditions, the two age groups of embryos did not differ from each other in either parameter. Hypoxia did not affect significantly the amnion contraction rate but decreased the HR.

Evidence for the participation of calcium in non-genomic relaxations induced by androgenic steroids in rat vas deferens.

Background And Purpose: Androgens cause non-genomic relaxation in several smooth muscle preparations. However, such an effect has not been investigated in rat vas deferens yet. Our purpose was to study the effect of testosterone and derivatives in this tissue.

Oxygen consumption as related to the development of the extraembryonic membranes and cardiovascular system in the European pond turtle (Emys orbicularis) embryogenesis.

The rate of oxygen consumption (V(O2)), embryo mass, distribution and mass of the chorioallantoic membrane (CAM), heart rate (HR), heart mass, and amnion rhythmic contractions (ARC) were studied in eggs of the European pond turtle (Emys orbicularis) incubated at 28 degrees C for 62.5+/-0.3 days.

Aging-induced decrease of cholinergic response and calcium sensitivity on rat jejunum contractions.

The role of aging on contraction or relaxation through muscarinic or alpha-adrenergic receptors, respectively, was studied in isolated rat jejunum. Furthermore, the influence of extracellular calcium was analyzed, through functional and radioligand binding assays. The rank order of potency for selective muscarinic antagonists for M(1), M(2), and M(3) receptor subtypes, measured from affinity (pA(2)) values, was p-fluorohexahydrosiladifenidol (pFHHSiD) (M(3)) > pirenzepine (M(1)) > methoctramine (M(2)), indicating a predominance of M(3) subtype.

Aging-related changes of intracellular Ca2+ stores and contractile response of intestinal smooth muscle.

In this study, we investigated the effect of aging on intracellular Ca2+ stores, as sarcoendoplasmic reticulum (SR) and mitochondria, and the influence of these compartments on contraction of rat colon smooth muscle [Bitar, K.N., 2003.

[Effect of temperature on the rate of oxygen consumption during the second half of embryonic and early postembryonic development of European pond turtle Emys orbicularis (Reptilia: Emydidae)].

Oxygen consumption by eggs of European pond turtle was determined at two constant incubation temperatures of 25 and 28 degrees C during the second half of embryogenesis. During development at both temperatures, the rate of oxygen consumption initially increased to remain constant during the last quarter of embryogenesis. The difference between the rates of oxygen consumption at these temperatures decreased during the studied period.

Ag-PIE: a GIS-based screening model for assessing agricultural pressures and impacts on water quality on a European scale.

Diffuse pollution of water resources from agricultural sources is a major environmental issue in the European Union, and has been dealt with by specific legislation: the Nitrate Directive of 1991 and the Water Framework Directive of 2000. These attempts to provide a coordinated approach to solving environmental problems require methods and tools for spatial analysis and modelling on a continental scale, with river basins being used as spatial units. This paper presents a screening model (Ag-PIE), developed in a GIS environment, for the assessment of pressures from agricultural land use and the consequent impacts on surface and groundwater.

[Growth and oxygen consumption in embryonic and early postembryonic development of European pond turtle Emys orbicularis (Reptilia: Emydidae)].

Experiments on developing eggs of European pond turtle (Emys orbicularis) demonstrated S-shaped changes in the rate of oxygen consumption and body weight during embryonic development. The rate of oxygen consumption and weight progressively increased within 70 days after hatching. During embryogenesis, the rate of oxygen consumption decreased.

[Specific growth rate and the rate of energy metabolism in the ontogenesis of axolotl, Ambystoma mexicanum (Amphibia: Ambystomatidae)].

Concordant changes in the rate of energy metabolism and specific growth rate of axolotls have been revealed. Several periods of ontogeny are distinguished, which differ in the ratio of energy metabolism to body weight and, therefore, are described by different allometric equations. It is suggested that the specific growth rate of an animal determines the type of dependence of energy metabolism on body weight.

[Change in intensity of respiration in development of some invertebrates].

We studied the dynamic of respiration intensity during ontogenesis of flat worms (Dugesia tigrina), molluscs (Anodonta piscinalis and Viviparus viviparus, and insects (Leptinotarsa decemlineata). In planarians that reproduce vegetatively, the intensity of respiration increases just after fission and decreases at the subsequent phases of growth. In A.

[Energy metabolism and body mass ratio in bivalves mollusca (Mollusca: Bivalvia)].

On the basis of experimental and published data, the interspecific and intraspecific (ontogenetic) dependence of energy metabolism on body weight in bivalves was calculated. Changes in the parameters of intraspecific allometric dependence under the effect of environmental factors were analyzed. The rate of comparable standard metabolism (coefficient a at k = 0.

Nantenine blocks muscle contraction and Ca2+ transient induced by noradrenaline and K+ in rat vas deferens.

The effect of nantenine, an aporphine alkaloid isolated from Ocotea macrophylla H.B.K.