Recently we derived a new star catalog EOC-4 that contains not only the mean positions and linear proper motions, but also periodic changes, due to orbital motions, for double and multiple star systems. The catalog contains 4418 stars that were observed in programs monitoring Earth orientation by optical astrometry during the 20th century. 599 stars of the catalog have significant periodic components. This catalog is now used, as a basic celestial frame, to obtain the Earth orientation parameters from optical astrometric observations of latitude/universal time/altitude in the interval 1899.7-1992.0. Polar motion is determined in 5-day steps for the whole interval studied, Universal time covers the interval 1956.0-1992.0 (i.e., after the invention of atomic clocks) also in 5-day steps, and celestial pole offsets (with respect to recent IAU2000 and IAU2006 models of nutation and precession) are modeled by second-order polynomials of time. In addition to these, a combination of Love and Shida numbers for each observing site is computed., Jan Vondrák, Cyril Ron and Vojtěch Štefka., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Na nedávném kongresu Evropské urologické asociace (EAU) ve švédském Stockholmu byla prezentována data, která jednoznačně ukazují na to, že se lékaři při léčbě příznaků syndromu dolních cest močových u mužů až příliš soustřeďují na evakuační (obstrukční) symptomy a opomíjejí příznaky jímací (iritační), které zřejmě ještě negativněji ovlivňují kvalitu života jejich pacientů. Výsledky studie NEPTUNE II naopak demonstrují, že kombinovaná léčba tohoto onemocnění je účinná a dobře tolerovaná při krátkodobém i dlouhodobém použití., At recent EAU meeting in Stockholm (Sweden) new data were presented, clearly demonstrating that urologists treating symptoms associated with lower urinary tract syndrome focus too much on voiding (obstructive) symptoms while neglecting filling (irritating) symptoms, which might have substantially larger negative impact on patient quality of life. Results of NEPTUNE II Study show, that combination therapy of this condition is effective and well tolerated when used both short- and long-term., and Pacík D., Varga G.
a1_Diabetes mellitus is a risk factor of cardiovascular diseases. ECG of patients with diabetes mellitus type 1 (DM 1) shows tachycardia (block of parasympathetic innervation) and abnormal repolarization (increased QT interval and QT dispersion (QTd)) indicating a risk of ventricular tachycardia and sudden death in young people with DM 1. The aim of the present report was to measure 145 parameters of the heart electric field in 22 patients (14 men, 8 women) with DM 1 without complications (mean age 32.8±11.4 years) and in 22 controls (11 men, 11 women, mean age 30.1±3.4 years). The duration of diabetes was 13.9 ±7.8 years. The parameters were regist ered by the diagnostic system Cardiag 112.2 and statistically evaluated by the Student and Mann-Whitney test. Tachycardia (86.3±2.7 beats.min-1), shortening of both QRS (79.9±1.6 ms) and QT (349.0±5.9 ms) and increased QT dispersion (115±36 ms) were observed in DM 1 when compared with the controls (75.0±2.1 beats. min -1, QRS 89.9±2.7 ms, QT 374.0±4.4 ms, QTd 34.0±12.0 ms, p<0.01). The QTc was 415.2±4.1 ms in DM 1 and 401.4±6.6 ms in controls (NS)., a2_Other significant findings in DM 1 were: higher maximum of depolarization isopotential maps (DIPMmax) in the initial phase of QRS and less positive in the terminal phase, more negative minimum (DIPMmin) during QRS similarly as the minimum in depolarization isointegral maps (DIIMmin) and the minimum in isointegral map of the Q wave (Q-IIMmin), lower maximum in repolarization isopotential maps (RIPMmax) and less negative minimum (RIPMmin), more negative amplitude of Q wave (Q-IPMAM) and more pronounced spread of depolarization (activation time). Our results confirmed a decreased parasympathetic to sympathetic tone ratio (tachycardia, shortening of the activation time) and revealed different depolarization and repolarization patterns in DM 1. The differences in heart electric field parameters measured by the BSPM method in DM 1 and in the controls indicate the importance of ECG examination of diabetic patients type 1 in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases., D. Žďárská, P. Pelíšková, J. Charvát, J. Slavíček, M. Mlček, E. Medová, O. Kittnar., and Obsahuje bibiografii a bibliografické odkazy
ECG body surface mapping (BSM) parameters in patients with diabetes mellitus Type 1 (DM1) are significantly different comparing to healthy non-diabetic subjects. Hypothesis that these changes are more pronounced in DM1 patients with autonomic neuropathy (AN) was tested. The parameters of BSM were registered by diagnostic system Cardiag 112.2 in 54 DM1 patients including 25 with AN and 30 control subjects. AN was diagnosed according to Ewing criteria when two or more Ewing tests were abnormal. In classic 12-lead ECG the heart rate was increased, QRS and QT shortened (p<0.01) and QTC prolonged in DM1 patients. The VCG measurement of QRS-STT angles and spatial QRS-STT angle showed non-significant differences. The absolute values of maximum and minimum in depolarization and repolarization isopotential, isointegral, isoarea maps were significantly different in DM1 patients in comparison with controls (p<0.01). The changes were more pronounced in DM1 patients with AN than in DM patients without AN (p<0.05). The QT duration measured in 82 leads of thorax was significantly shortened in 68 leads of both groups of DM 1 patients (p<0.01) when compared with controls. In 34 of them this shortening was more pronounced in DM1 patients with AN than in DM1 patients without AN (p<0.05). The results showed that the method of ECG BSM is capable to confirm the presence of autonomic neuropathy in diabetic patients., S. Palová ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje bibliografii a bibliografické odkazy
Women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) are at increased risk for cardiovascular diseases (CVD) events compared with women without GDM. The aim of the present study was to evaluate 200 parameters of the heart electric field in 35 women with GDM under optimal glycemic compensation compared to 32 healthy pregnant women. All examinations were performed in the 36th week of gestation. The parameters in ECG body surface mapping (BSM) were registered by the diagnostic system Cardiag 112.2. The absolute values of maximum and minimum in depolarization and repolarization isopotential, isointegral and isoarea maps were not significantly different between the groups. These findings correspond to the result of heart rate variability examination. However BSM revealed the significant prolongation of QRS complex (p=0.05), shortening of ventricular myocardial activation time (ICHVAT) (p=0.01), prolongation of mean QT duration (p=0.01) and increase of QT interval dispersion (p=0.01) in women with GDM. Duration of QRS and ICHVAT significantly correlated with interventricular septum and posterior wall thickness in GDM group, QTd interval correlated significantly with HbA1C level. We conclude that despite of optimal metabolic control several significant abnormalities detected by ECG BSM are still present in patients with GDM., E. Žákovičová, O. Kittnar, J. Slavíček, E. Medová, P. Šváb, J. Charvát., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Alveolar echinococcosis is a severe chronic helminthic disease that mimics slow-growing liver cancer. The immune evasion strategy of Echinococcus multilocularis Leuckart, 1863 remains poorly understood. The aim of this study was to investigate in vitro the impact of E. multilocularis vesicular fluid (Em-VF) on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and on natural killer (NK) cells. PBMC and NK cells were exposed to Em-VF (1 µg/ml) during six days. The effect of Em-VF was assessed on CD69, viability and proliferation, and on and transforming growth factor β (TGF-β), interferon γ (IFN-γ), interleukin 17 (IL-17) and interleukin 10, using flow cytometry and ELISA, respectively. Exposure to Em-VF had no bearing on PBMC's viability, proliferation and expression of CD69. In contrast, higher levels of IL-17 at day three and of TGF-β at day six were observed in PBMC supernatant after exposure to Em-VF (p < 0.05, Wilcoxon signed-rank test). Exposure to Em-VF induced a significant decrease of CD69 expression of NK cells at day three and a significant decrease of proliferation of NK cells at day six (p < 0.05, Wilcoxon signed-rank test). In contrast, NK cells viability and levels of cytokines did not vary significantly over Em-VF stimulation. Exposure to Em-VF had a significant bearing on activation and proliferation of NK cells. NK cells may play an important role in the immune response of the host against E. multilocularis., Anne-Pauline Bellanger, Valentine Mougey, Jean-René Pallandre, Houssein Gbaguidi-Haore, Yann Godet, Laurence Millon., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Rove beetles (Staphylinidae) are used to explore the forces that shaped the terrestrial fauna on Læsø, a young ca. 3000 year old Danish oceanic island located in the Kattegat strait between mainland Denmark and Sweden. We compile a detailed list of species of rove beetles for Læsø (328 species) and the surrounding Danish and Swedish regions (altogether 1075 species), which includes a standardized inventory of their body sizes, and the habitat and microhabitat preference of each species. The composition of the fauna on Læsø and adjacent mainland regions points to North-Eastern Jutland as the main source of the rove beetles on Læsø. Although large beetles are more active and likely to disperse than small beetles, there is no bias towards large species on the island indicating that the sea separating Læsø from the mainland has not been a barrier for rove beetle dispersal. The statistical analysis of the habitat and microhabitat preferences of the species of the entire system studied has shown that Læsø, compared to the mainland areas, is distinctly more dominated by ecological generalists, especially by species adapted to ephemeral, temporary humid microhabitats. Presumably, the mosaic of mostly dry open habitats available on Læsø filters for species, that are able to populate these suboptimal habitats via patches of humid but ephemeral microhabitats. A comprehensive eco-faunistic dataset for the Staphylinidae compiled for this study is the first modern account of the rove beetle fauna on the Danish island of Læsø., Aslak K. Hansen, Mathias J. Justesen, Sebastian Kepfer-Rojas, David B. Byriel, Jan Pedersen, Alexey Solodovnikov., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Enzymes that hydrolyze extracellular ATP, i.e. ecto-ATPase and ecto-ATP diphosphohydrolase (ATPDase), can be differentiated by ability of the latter to hydrolyze ADP and by slightly different kinetic properties of the two enzymes. Synaptic plasma membrane fractions isolated from rat hippocampus and caudate nucleus exhibit ADP-hydrolyzing activity, as revealed by the enzyme assay, and the presence of ecto-ATPase protein, as revealed by immunological identification on Western blot. These findings indicate that both enzymes are co-expressed in the synaptic membrane compartment of hippocampal and caudate nucleus neurons. Kinetic analysis was performed to determine the relative contribution of each enzyme to the total ATP-hydrolyzing activity, while an inhibition study was carried out in order to exclude the interference of other nonspecific ATPase and phosphatase activities. Based on the kinetic properties, sensitivity to inhibitors and VATP/VADP ratio of about 2, we concluded that a substantial portion of ATP-hydrolyzing activity in both synaptic membrane preparations can be ascribed to the catalytic action of ATPDase. On the other hand, the highest catalytic efficacy when ATP is the substrate and the greater abundance of ecto-ATPase protein in caudate nucleus preparation suggest that the relative contribution of ecto-ATPase to the total ATP-hydrolyzing activity in the caudate nucleus is higher than in the hippocampus., N. Nedeljkovic, A. Banjac, A. Horvat, M. Stojiljkovic, G. Nikezic., and Obsahuje bibliografii