[Compensatory potentials of the central nervous system in premature newborn infants].

Compensatory potentials of the central nervous system (CNS) in preterm infants with a history of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy have been discussed with an emphasis on a need for revision of traditional perceptions. The use of new methods of evaluation of the developing brain indicates the phenomenon of its neurologic adaptability. It is suggested by a high incidence of CNS functional recovery in surviving preterm infants.

[Value of echoencephalography in the diagnosis of periventricular leukomalacia in children and the prognosis of their development].

The investigation was conducted to reveal reliable echographic features of early (necrotic) stages of periventricular leukomalacia (PVL) on the basis of retrospective analysis of echograms of decreased children (with postmortem diagnosis of PVL) and survived newborns with pronounced cystic changes in the periventricular areas (advanced PVL stage), which were revealed during dynamic echoencephalography. Altogether 268 echograms of 78 children with a birth-weight from 700 to 2400 g were analysed. All children but one were born preterm.

[New findings on the mechanism of action of blocking toxins on electrically excitable sodium channels].

The paper summarizes the results obtained from the 10-12 years studies on the mechanism of action of blocking toxins--tetrodotoxin (TTX) and saxitoxin (STX)--on voltage-operated sodium channels. Experimental data can be interpreted on the basis of two models of blocking action of toxins: channel blockade, when guanidine group of toxins penetrates into the channel and causes its blockade and allosteric action on sodium conductance. Special attention is devoted to peculiarities of cooperative interaction between the blockers and channels.