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The study presents an analysis of steel I-beam warping. The calculations were made for hot-rolled IPE200 hinged beams with different lengths. After determining load-bearing capacity using the GMNIA method, the beams were strengthened with bimoment restraints at each end. The changes in critical moment and load-bearing capacity were then evaluated. The study presents the manner in which the material and geometric imperfections have been determined. The GMNIA calculations were conducted using the Finite Element Method in Abaqus software. The results were then compared to results obtained with traditional methods and acquired from LT Beam software.

Background So far, little is known about the properties of human epididymis protein 4 (HE4) in multiple sclerosis (MS). This type 4 glycoprotein belongs to a family of genes encoding proteins whose expression is associated with the process of spermatogenesis in the epididymis. The biological function of HE4 is not fully understood. Overexpression of HE4 has been found in several malignant tumors, particularly in ovarian cancer, as well as in mesothelioma, lung, endometrial, breast, and kidney cancers. Objectives To evaluate serum HE4 in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) as compared to healthy controls. Material and methods Fifty patients with RRMS undergoing first-line immunomodulatory treatment were enrolled in the prospective study. We analyzed correlations between serum HE4 levels and gender, age, disease duration, the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS), annualized relapse rate (ARR), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) lesions. Results The patients from the study group had higher concentrations of HE4 than the subjects from the control group. Patients with EDSS > 2 had significantly higher concentrations of HE4. Positive correlations were found between HE4 concentrations and age as well as between HE4 concentrations and disease duration. No significant correlations were found between HE4 concentrations and EDSS or between HE4 concentrations and ARR. Conclusions The results of the study indicate a novel aspect of the HE4 protein in the pathomechanisms of MS.

The article analyses the method of enhancing a steel beam by adding additional steel members like ribs. They are rigidly connected with both flanges in a plane parallel to the web. That plates reduces warping during in-plane bending of steel beam under lateral-torsional bucking. Different thicknesses of steel plates used as ribs and different cross-sections were taken into account. Calculations were conducted using FEM and ABAQUS CAE environment. The outcomes were compared with ones from previous studies which concerned an influence of endplates on load-bearing capacity of an I-beam.

Background It is suspected that patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) are at greater risk for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection due to disability and immunotherapy. The relationship between MS and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is uncertain. The aim of the study was to collect and analyze this relationship. Methods All MS patients of the Neurological Outpatient Clinic in Zabrze, Poland, were regularly questioned for the symptoms of COVID-19 and contact with an infected person. Patients that presented with COVID-19 symptoms or confirmed contact with an infected person were referred for the COVID-19 test. All patients with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection (n = 41) were included in the analysis. Medical records of the study group were analyzed. Patient condition was monitored in the outpatient clinic after recovery. In 26 subjects, additional examinations, including brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), electroneurography (ENG), electroencephalography (EEG), color duplex Doppler (CDD), visual evoked potentials (VEPs), brainstem auditory evoked potentials (BAEPs) and psychological assessment were performed following recovery. Results Only one patient required hospitalization during COVID-19 infection, whereas 87.80% of patients did not require treatment for COVID-19. In all patients, C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were below 10 mg/L. In 2.44% of patients, oxygen partial pressure was below 95%. In most MS patients, the results of further examinations after COVID-19 infection were similar to those prior to infection. Psychological assessment revealed that anxiety was found in 42.31% of patients. Conclusions A mild course of COVID-19 in MS patients seems common despite disease-modifying drug treatment and disability. Self-isolation is recommended to reduce the number of infected patients. COVID-19 infection did not worsen the course of MS in most subjects. Patients with MS may require additional psychological support during the pandemic due to their susceptibility to anxiety.

Type-2-diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a global problem of medical, social and economic consequences. Physical activity is a vital therapy in patients with T2DM, but some of them cannot exercise for various reasons. The purpose of our pilot study was to determine whether a combination of neuromuscular electrostimulation (NMES) and insulin therapy could improve the management of T2DM patients with hemiplegia caused by an ischemic stroke. Fifteen immobile patients with T2DM on insulin therapy were enrolled in the study. NMES was applied to their lower limbs for 60 min, 5 days a week, over a period of 12 weeks. The intervention caused statistically significant reductions in the blood concentrations of glycated hemoglobin, total cholesterol and low-density cholesterol in the participants. Furthermore, systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels were significantly lower. More randomized clinical trials are needed to accurately measure the effect of NMES on T2DM treatment and to determine whether it can be an alternative for physical activity for immobile patients with T2DM.

BACKGROUND Cytokines and chemokines are undoubtedly involved in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis (MS). There are many reports that suggest a significant role for Interleukin-33 (IL-33) in the course of MS development, but it is not clear whether negative or positive. We therefore investigated plasma IL-33 levels in patients with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS). METHODS The study consisted of RRMS patients (n = 73) and healthy subjects (n = 54). Blood samples were taken from all and plasma IL-33 levels were then determined using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. Patients also underwent laboratory and imaging tests and their disability status was assessed. RESULTS Plasma IL-33 levels were marginally significantly higher in patients with RRMS (p = 0.07). Higher IL-33 levels are significantly associated with higher age (p = 0.01). There was also a statistically significant negative correlation between plasma IL-33 levels and the number of high signal intensity lesions in T2-weighted MRI (p = 0.03). After dividing the number of lesions into groups

Introduction: The global pandemic of COVID-19 began in Wuhan, China in December 2019. Research into effective therapies has been conducted worldwide. Currently, there is no antiviral treatment and many patients develop a severe course of the disease, including severe respiratory failure. Due to similar pathomechanisms of inflammation in multiple sclerosis (MS) and COVID-19, immunomodulatory drugs that are registered for the treatment of MS are under study in the SARS-CoV-2 infection in clinical trials. Materials and methods: Using clinicaltrials.gov, we found information related to ongoing clinical studies on potential drugs for COVID-19 which are also used in MS therapy. The outcomes of several trials were published on pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. Results: There were 18 clinical trials evaluating the effectiveness and safety of interferon-β, fingolimod, or leflunomide in COVID-19. Some trial outcomes available at pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov suggested an association of these drug treatments with improvements in signs and symptoms, and the disease course. Conclusion: The administration of immunomodulatory drugs in COVID-19 may result in potential beneficial effects probably associated with their anti-inflammatory and antiviral properties. Further research is warranted to confirm the long-term effects of immunomodulatory therapies in patients with COVID-19.

Numerous experimental and clinical studies have proven that the new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) has a tropism for the nervous system. The infection of the nervous system by SARS‑CoV‑2 can occur via the nasal route through trans‑synaptic pathways. Coronaviruses can infect neurons and glial cells through angiotensin‑converting enzyme 2 receptors or by endocytosis. The infection of the central nervous system accompanied by coronavirus disease 2019-related systemic inflammation leads to the impairment of the blood-brain barrier and triggers a neuroinflammatory response with reactive astrogliosis and microglial activation. In addition, brain stem cells are being damaged, which results in respiratory distress. Apart from typical symptoms of COVID‑19 associated with the involvement of the respiratory system, neurological manifestations such as headache, dizziness, myalgia, anosmia, ageusia, encephalopathy, encephalitis, stroke, epileptic seizures, rhabdomyolysis, and Guillain-Barré syndrome are related to SARS‑CoV‑2 infection. In this review, we focused on the currently known neurological manifestations of COVID‑19, which could be considered mainly in asymptomatic patients with COVID‑19 and, if noted, may limit the transmission of coronavirus infection.

Many experimental and clinical studies have proven that the new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has tropism to the nervous system. The infection of the nervous system by SARS-CoV-2 can occur via the nasal route through trans-synaptic pathways. Coronaviruses can infect neurons and glial cells through angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptors or by endocytosis. The infection of the central nervous system (CNS) with the systemic inflammation associated with Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) leads to the impairment of the blood-brain barrier and triggers a neuroinflammatory response with reactive astrogliosis, and microglial activation. In addition, brain stem cells are damaged, which results in respiratory distress. Apart from typical symptoms of COVID-19 related to the involvement of the respiratory system, neurological manifestations such as headache, dizziness, myalgia, anosmia, ageusia, encephalopathy, encephalitis, stroke, epileptic seizures, rhabdomyolysis and the Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) are associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. In the study, attention was paid to the currently known neurological manifestations of COVID-19 so that they could be considered mainly in COVID-19 asymptomatic patients, which may limit the transmission of coronavirus infection.

In order to meet social needs and create new social relations, the EU Commission classified under the concept of social innovations, development and implementation of new ideas (products, services, models). In rural areas, this kind of social needs is represented among others by the need of solving the issue of domestic wastewater treatment. The paper describes the imple-mentation of sewerage development program in Poland, as well as problems derived from large value variation of factors encoun-tered characterising the domestic sewage contamination. In view of the current state, the environmental risks due to improper use of domestic wastewater treatment technologies were specified.

To be effective, probiotic bacteria must exhibit a number of functional characteristics, including the resistance to gastric acidity and the ability to adhere to the intestinal epithelium. In this study, we examined in vitro the viability of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) combination after exposure to low pH, and the adhesion of LAB to Caco-2 cells during coincubation of 9 bacterial strains. To test bacterial viability, 6 commercially available products were incubated in 0.1 N HCl at pH 1.2 for 60 min. The greatest growth inhibition was noted for the non-capsulated product containing the Lactobacillus rhamnosus strain (log reduction of CFU = 6.4), and the best survival observed for the product containing 9 bacterial strains, equipped with a modern capsule made according to the Multi-Resistant Encapsulation technology (log reduction of CFU = 0.1). In the adhesion experiment, the combination of 9 bacterial strains was added to 17-day-old Caco-2 cell culture for 90 min. The greatest efficiency of adhesion was observed for the inoculum containing 5.5x10(8) CFU/mL/9.6 cm(2) of Caco-2 and the dose of probiotic bacteria of 190 cells per one Caco-2 cell. As a result, approximately 157 bacterial cells adhered to one Caco-2 cell. The results indicate that the combination of 9 bacterial strains in the examined product is characterized as highly adhesive.

Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome (also called Wernicke's encephalopathy) is a potentially fatal, neuropsychiatric syndrome caused most frequently by thiamine deficiency. The three classic symptoms found together are confusion, ataxia and eyeball manifestations. Memory disturbances can also be symptoms. Wernicke's encephalopathy mainly results from alcohol abuse, but also from malnutrition, cancer, chronic dialysis, thyrotoxicosis and, in well-founded cases, encephalopathy associated with autoimmune thyroid disease (EAATD). The coexistence of many factors makes a proper diagnosis difficult, delays appropriate treatment and consequently reduces the chance of complete recovery. We present the case of a 53 year-old female with Wernicke's encephalopathy caused by chronic malnutrition, surgical operation, as well as thyrotoxicosis. She received treatment with intravenous thiamine administration and also anti-thyroid treatment which caused satisfactory regression of her neurological symptoms.