Lipid Fatty Acids from the Pericarp of Cydonia oblonga Mill. and Mespilus germanica L. are Involved in Plant Adaptation to Altitudinal Zonality.

The composition of fatty acids of total lipids of the outer and parenchymal parts of the pericarp in Cydonia oblonga Mill. and Mespilus germanica L. (Maloideae, Rosaceae), growing in the Northern Caucasian mountains at altitudes of 300, 500, 700, and 1200 m above sea level in various natural zones from experimental sites, was studied for the first time.

Tannosomes in the Pericarp Cells of Maloideae (Rosaceae).

Data on the presence of structural units termed tannosomes in the pericarp cells of Maloideae has been obtained for the first time. Tannosomes merge in the vacuoles to form "tannoglobules."

[Ecologic safety problems on industrial enterprises of Kolsky Transpolar area].

The authors presented results of ecologic and hygienic studies conducted in Kolsky nuclear power station area (Murmansk region). The studies found a trend to accumulation of summarized specific radioactivity and radionuclides of various origin in natural objects (woody plants, snow). Threshold concentrations of radionuclides in the studied objects appeared to be within the limits of normal radiation background.

Metalated diblock and triblock poly(ethylene oxide)-block-poly(4-vinylpyridine) copolymers: understanding of micelle and bulk structure.

The paper provides new insights into the structure of Pt-containing diblock and triblock copolymers based on poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and poly(4-vinylpyridine) (P4VP), using a combination of atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and anomalous small-angle X-ray scattering (ASAXS). Parallel studies using methods contributing supplemental structural information allowed us to comprehensively characterize sophisticated polymer systems during metalation and to exclude possible ambiguity of the data interpretation of each of the methods. AFM and TEM make available the determination of sizes of the micelles and of the Pt-containing micelle cores, respectively, while a combination of XRD, TEM, and ASAXS reveals Pt-nanoparticle size distributions and locations along with the structural information about the polymer matrix.

Micellization in pH-sensitive amphiphilic block copolymers in aqueous media and the formation of metal nanoparticles.

Dynamic light scattering, potentiometric titration, transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy have been used to investigate the micellar behaviour and metal-nanoparticle formation in poly(ethylene oxide)-block-poly(2-vinylpyridine), PEO-b-P2VP, poly(hexa(ethylene glycol) methacrylate)-block-poly(2-(diethylamino)ethyl methacrylate), PHEGMA-b-PDEAEMA, and PEO-b-PDEAEMA amphiphilic diblock copolymers in water. The hydrophobic block of these copolymers (P2VP or PDEAEMA) is pH-sensitive: at low pH it can be protonated and becomes partially or completely hydrophilic leading to molecular solubility whereas at higher pH micelles are formed. These micelles consist of a P2VP or PDEAEMA core and a PEO or PHEGMA corona, respectively, where the core forming amine units can incorporate metal compounds due to coordination.

Extremely rapid effects of polyunsaturated fatty acids and N-acetylglucosamine on free-radical metabolism in cultured potato plant cells.

The effects of arachidonic and linoleic acids, separately and in co-operation with N-acetylglucosamine oligomers, on Solanum tuberosum plant suspension cell cultures were investigated in terms of the fluorescent oxygen-activated-species-sensitive dye 2',7'-dichlorofluorescin diacetate. The inductors used triggered extremely rapid (within 2-10 min) generation of H(2)O(2) in the cells; the majority was expressed in cultures treated with combined polyunsaturated fatty acid and N-acetylglucosamine oligomers. The stimulation of free-radical generation may be related to defensive mechanisms modulating a plant-pathogenic-micro-organism interaction.

[The use of sodium chloride baths in the combined treatment of trophic ulcers of the lower extremities].

The use of sodium chloride baths for preoperative treatment of lower-limb trophic ulcers in 60 patients relieved the pain of the ulcer, enhanced repair processes. Epithelialization occurred in 9 patients. The duration of the hospital stay and the number of postoperative complications reduced.