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Copyright of Advancements of Microbiology is the property of Sciendo and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Medycyna Doswiadczalna i Mikrobiologia is the property of National Institute of Public Health - National Institute of Hygiene and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Pain is one of the most frequently reported symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS). It affects the daily functioning of patients, limits the ability to work and reduces the joy of life. Aim. The aim of the study was to analyze the impact of pain on quality of life as well as symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients with MS. Material and methods. The study included 144 patients with diagnosed MS (mean age 41±12 years, mean illness duration 10.3±8.6 years). The study was carried out on the basis of the author's survey on current and previous pain - the Quality of Life Self-esteem Questionnaire (EuroQol5D) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Results. Among all respondents, 117 (81.3%) reported current pain, and 120 (83.3%) declared the occurrence of pain in the past. Currently, patients have reported: pain in one or more extremities - 79 people (54.9%), headache and facial pain - 72 (50%), back pain - 72 (50%), painful muscle spasms - 54 (38.6%), ocular pain - 37 (25.7%), Lhermitte's sign - 32 (22.2%). Patients reporting pain experienced significantly more severe symptoms of anxiety and depression (HADS-L: 8.0±4.3 vs. 5.1±4.3; p< 0.01; HADS-D: 6.0±4.2 vs. 3.4±3.7; p< 0.01), and had significantly worse quality of life (EQ 5D: 8.1±1.9 vs. 6.3±1.4; p< 0.0001). An association between presence of pain and gender (p< 0.01), age (p< 0.05), the degree of disability (p< 0.05), education (p< 0.001), and the professional activity (p< 0.01) was found. Conclusions. Pain in MS is associated with more severe symptoms of anxiety and depression, and worse quality of life. Female sex, older age, lower level of education, greater disability, and lack of occupational work predispose to the occurrence of pain in MS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Giardia duodenalis is one of the six Giardia species and it is the most common, cosmopolitan flagellate that infects humans and many species of animals. This species exhibits considerable genetic diversity; to date, eight assemblages (A-H) have been defined. These assemblages differ in host specificity: assemblages A and B have been found in both humans and in many animal species. Mixed infections with Giardia (A and B) assemblages have been reported in humans and in animals. Many molecular techniques are effective and rapid for the detection of G. duodenalis and also for the determination of genetic variability of isolates in clinical and environmental samples. In this context, the aim of this study was to design new assemblage-specific primers for rapid detection and identification of G. duodenalis assemblages A and B and both of these assemblages simultaneously using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Fragments of glutamate dehydrogenase and triose phosphate isomerase were used as targets in the design of primers. In conclusion, the use of G. duodenalis assemblage-specific primers designed in this study allows quick identification of human infectious G. duodenalis assemblages A and B as well as mixed AB assemblages in a sample without further sequencing of the amplification products, which reduces the cost of study and the waiting time for the results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess if 65 dB and 4000 Hz stimuli affect postural stability of young normally hearing people. Methods: Posturography examinations belong to clinical tests which evaluate the motor skills. Posturography can be divided into static posturography and dynamic posturography. In both static and dynamic posturography patient stays on the platform with opened and closed eyes, but in the case of dynamic one, platform is unstable. In this study the Multitest Equilibre platform produced by FRAMIRAL was used. Patients took part in tests with opened and closed eyes, on stable and unstable platform. Additionally, patients were exposed to 65 dB and 4000 Hz acoustic stimuli. The sound pressure level, and frequency was belonging to the best audibly frequency range. Results: Parameters such as velocity and surface were examined. The difference between velocity measured with acoustic stimuli and without acoustic stimuli was observed. On the other hand there was no difference in surface results. Conclusions: The statistically significant difference between velocity of patients center of gravity movements, measured on unstable platform, in the presence of 4000 Hz, 65 dB acoustic stimulus and without additional disturbances was observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In comparison to highly productive cows, cows that have lower milk yield (including cows belonging to the so-called local breeds) are usually characterized by higher longevity. However in practice, exploiting the genetic potential for longevity can be easily limited by environmental and economic factors, regardless of the level of milk productivity. The aim of the present study was to analyse longevity of 616 cows with a high percentage of Polish local breed (LB) genes in their genotype. LB cows were most frequently culled at the age of 8-9 years and their lifetime energy-corrected milk yield (LECM) amounted to 17,500-27,600 kg. Average feeding level allowed for average daily energycorrected milk yield of 11-15 kg during their productive life. However, feeding intensity was higher in larger herds (p<0.01). Moreover, cows culled due to old age in relation to cows culled for other reasons (13.1 and 4.3-8.8 yr old, respectively) showed the greatest differences in LECM (40,857 kg LECM and 9,212-26,223 kg LECM, respectively). In conclusion we pointed out that despite a great genetic potential in terms of functional traits, in practice the productive life of LB cows is relatively too short. It may result both from deliberate excessive herd replacement, and from environmental and economic conditions, especially too low profits from milk sale. Therefore the key importance of a greater number of calves born by LB cows should be more appreciated in practice. As a result breeding of LB cattle might be more efficient in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Melanocortins are an important group of proteins controlling food intake and body weight. The most important hormone involved in the regulation of appetite, body weight and systemic energy expenditure is a-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (a-MSH). These effects are caused by a-MSH interacting with its specific membrane receptors: MC1R, MC2R, MC3R, MC4R, and MC5R. In fur animals, growth-related features are particularly important as body weight is associated with the quantity of harvested skin/fur, which directly translates into its value. The objective of the study was to determine the nucleotide sequence of the MC4R gene in American mink (Neovison vison Schreb., 1777), as well as to detect the genetic polymorphisms within the coding sequence, as well as in 5'-and 3'-UTR fragments of that gene in different color ariations of minks bred at a mink farm. Gene sequencing facilitated the determination of the complete sequence and genomic variations of the MC4R gene in American mink, as well as the identification of two synonymic mutations at positions 291 and 330 within the coding sequence of the gene. The MC4R gene polymorphism was detected by means of the ACRS-PCR-RFLP technique. The obtained PCR products were digested by the following enzymes: NcoI (291), and BamHI (330). Statistically significant differences were observed in the frequency of genotype CC between specimens of different color variations with regard to the single-nucleotide polymorphisms at positions 291 and 330. Also demonstrated was a disturbance of genetic equilibrium estimated according to the Hardy-Weinberg formula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past two decades there has been intense study of compounds from vertebrates, microorganisms, plants, mushrooms, marine sponges, worms, etc. as well as insects in terms of their antiviral activity. Insects produce a variety of biologically active peptides. One of them is alloferon. The in vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrate that synthetic alloferon has an immunomodulatory properties. It was reported that alloferon and its analogues (alloferon I and II) have antimicrobial properties, as well. The aim of this study was to evaluate in vitro the effect of alloferon I and II, either alone or in combination with human lymphocytes, on human herpesvirus type 1 (HHV-1) McIntyre strain replication. On the base of results we can conclude that alloferon I and II inhibit the replication of HHV-1 McIntyre strain in HEp-2 cells. Enhanced antiviral activity was observed when infected cells were treated with alloferons and unstimulated or phytohemagglutinin PHA-stimulated lymphocytes simultaneously. After application of alloferons and PHA-stimulated lymphocytes to the HHV-1 infected HEp-2 culture, the mean HHV-1 titer reduction for alloferon and II, when used at the highest dose-400 µg/mL, were 3.69 and 3.27 log/TCID, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]