Herbal compounds including those already well-established in traditional Chinese medicine have been increasingly tested in the treatment of various diseases. Recent studies have shown that herbal compounds can be of benefit also for pulmonary silicosis as they can diminish changes associated with silica-induced inflammation, fibrosis, and oxidative stress. Due to a lack of effective therapeutic strategies, development of novel approaches which may be introduced particularly in the early stage of the disease, is urgently needed. This review summarizes positive effects of several alternative plant-based drugs in the models of experimental silicosis with a potential for subsequent clinical investigation and use in future.
Increased plasma total cysteine (tCys) has been associated with obesity and metabolic syndrome in human and some animal studies but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. In this study, we aimed at evaluating the effects of high cysteine diet administered to SHR-CRP transgenic rats, a model of metabolic syndrome and inflammation. SHR-CRP rats were fed either standard (3.2 g cystine/kg diet) or high cysteine diet (HCD, enriched with additional 4 g L-cysteine/kg diet). After 4 weeks, urine, plasma and tissue samples were collected and parameters of metabolic syndrome, sulfur metabolites and hepatic gene expression were evaluated. Rats on HCD exhibited similar body weights and weights of fat depots, reduced levels of serum insulin, and reduced oxidative stress in the liver. The HCD did not change concentrations of tCys in tissues and body fluids while taurine in tissues and body fluids, and urinary sulfate were significantly increased. In contrast, betaine levels were significantly reduced possibly compensating for taurine elevation. In summary, increased Cys intake did not induce obesity while it ameliorated insulin resistance in the SHR-CRP rats, possibly due to beneficial effects of accumulating taurine., Jakub Krijt, Jitka Sokolová, Jan Šilhavý, Petr Mlejnek, Jan Kubovčiak, František Liška, Hana Malínská, Martina Hüttl, Irena Marková, Michaela Křížková, Martha H. Stipanuk, Tomáš Křížek, Tamas Ditroi, Peter Nagy, Viktor Kožich, Michal Pravenec., and Obsahuje bibliografii
This study was conducted to assess whether silicon (Si) supply can alleviate the harmful effects of severe salinity in barley (Hordeum vulgare). Plants were grown on non-saline (0 mM NaCl) or saline (200 mM NaCl) nutrient media supplemented or not with 0.5 mM Si. Salinity impacted plant morphology and induced sodium and chloride accumulation within plant tissues. It significantly affected almost all measured parameters. Interestingly, Si supply alleviated salt stress effects on plant morphology, growth (up to +59%), water status (up to +74%), membrane integrity (up to +35%), pigment contents (up to +121%), and the activity of the two photosystems (PSI and PSII) by improving their yields, and by reducing their energy dissipation. Si beneficial effect was more pronounced on PSI as compared to PSII. As a whole, data inferred from the present study further confirmed that silicon application is an effective approach to cope with salinity.
A proper understanding of tissue and cell structure is of great importance for correct biological inferences, and particularly so in organisms used as research models. Nothobranchius spp. are short-lived freshwater fish species which are promising model organisms for toxicology, evolutionary ecology, aging and regeneration research. Nevertheless, studies examining Nothobranchius histology have focused exclusively on a few specific organs and associated functional impairments, and there is a lack of reference material on the natural state and appearance of tissue structure. Here we present a detailed histological map of the major body organ systems, which was built from 300 Nothobranchius spp. specimens. This overview offers baseline material for comparative histological studies and provides insights into functional and anatomical aspects of organs related to the unique life cycle of Nothobranchius spp.
Cieľom výskumu bolo porovnať hodnoty a sebahodnotenie u dospievajúcich vyrastajúcich v centrách pre deti a rodinu (CDR) a u dospievajúcich vyrastajúcich v úplných rodinách. Výskumný súbor pozostával zo 63 dospievajúcich z centier pre deti a rodinu a 94 dospievajúcich z úplných rodín vo veku 15 – 20 rokov (M = 16,9; SD = 1,32). Na zistenie sebahodnotenia bola použitá Rosenbergova škála sebahodnotenia [RSES – Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Rosenberg, 1965] a na zistenie hodnôt bol použitý Schwartzov dotazník hodnôt [PVQ – Portrait Value Questionnaire, Schwartz et al., 2001]. Zistili sme, že existuje štatisticky významný rozdiel medzi výskumnými skupinami v hodnotách univerzalizmus (p < 0,001; d = 0,95), sebariadenie (p < 0,001; d = 0,8), konformita (p < 0,05; d = 0,34), bezpečnosť (p < 0,01; d = 0,5) a benevolencia (p < 0,001; d = 0,587), zatiaľ čo pri hodnotách moc, úspech, stimulácia, hedonizmus a tradícia sme signifikantný rozdiel nezaznamenali. Adolescenti vyrastajúci v rodinách dosahovali vyššie skóre ako adolescenti vyrastajúci v centrách pre deti a rodinu v hodnotách univerzalizmus, sebariadenie, konformita, bezpečnosť a benevolencia. Pri sebahodnotení u dospievajúcich z centier pre deti a rodinu a u dospievajúcich vyrastajúcich v úplných rodinách bol zaznamenaný štatisticky významný rozdiel (p < 0,01; d = 0,461), pričom adolescenti vyrastajúci v centrách pre deti a rodiny dosahovali vyššie skóre. and The goal of this research was to compare values and self-esteem between adolescents growing up in the centres for children and families and adolescents growing up in complete families. The sample consisted of 63 adolescents from the centres for children and families and 94 adolescents from complete families, all of them aged from 15 to 20 (M = 16,9; SD = 1,32). To identify self-esteem, RSES – Rosenberg SelfEsteem scale (1965) was used and to identify values, PVQ – Portrait Value Questionnaire by Schwartz et al. (2001) was used. We discovered that there are significant differences between research groups in values universalism (p < 0,001; d = 0,95), self-direction (p < 0,001; d = 0,8), conformity (p < 0,05; d = 0,34), security (p < 0,01; d = 0,5) and benevolence (p < 0,001; d = 0,587), while we did not find statistically significant (p > 0,05) difference between groups in values: power, success, stimulation, hedonism and tradition. Adolescents growing up in families scored higher than adolescents growing up in centres for children and families in values universalism, self-direction, conformity, security and benevolence. We find a significant difference in self-esteem (p < 0,01; d = 0,461) between adolescents growing up in centres for children and family and those from complete families, whereas adolescents growing up scored higher.
We deployed branch traps in an ash (Fraxinus) plantation to investigate how Agrilus planipennis behavior is associated with Fraxinus pennsylvanica condition and dispersal patterns. Data were collected from traps with or without the presence of beetle visual decoys, and from a yearly survey of exit holes. The traps were placed on trees that were either clearly declining, with most foliage arising from epicormic sprouting, or on apparently healthy trees, with little evidence of damage or decline. We calculated correlations of exit holes among neighboring tree rings and also between exit holes and male trap captures. The damaged trees the traps were hung upon had more cumulative exit holes observed than the corresponding healthy trees. However, there was otherwise no evidence that the experiment was biased by differences in exit hole patterns of the surrounding trees. Male captures were greater on decoy-baited traps than controls and this decoy effect was most clearly apparent late in the season when traps were placed on healthy trees. There were also patterns of correlations between male captures and exit hole numbers that may be indicative of short-range mate finding-and dispersal behaviors. Female captures were sparser, but were positively affected by decoys on healthy and declining trees early in the season. Thus, the results suggest that the placement of such traps on healthier trees will maximize detection, and the branch traps also show promise for further use in dispersal studies., Michael J. Domingue, Jennifer Berkebile, Kim Steiner, Loyal P. Hall, Kevin R. Cloonan, David Lance, Thomas C. Baker., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Aphis fabae and Myzus persicae (Hemiptera: Aphididae) are insect pests that damage sugar beet and bean crops. Both are responsible for losses in yield and transmission of viral diseases, and may be present on the same host at the same time. Three parasitoid species, Aphidius colemani, Lysiphlebus testaceipes and Lysiphlebus fabarum (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Aphidiinae) have the potential to be used as biological control agents against at least one of these species of aphids. As a first step prior to the implementation of a biological control program, our aim was to understand the host selection behaviour of the parasitoids, particularly when both aphids are present. We recorded the host acceptance (number of insertions of the ovipositor / number of antennal contacts), suitability (number of mummies / the number of insertions of the ovipositor) and emergence (number of adults emerging from mummies) of these three aphid parasitoids when parasitizing the two aphids. We also analyzed the effect of the host plant on the host preference of the parasitoid. Females of each parasitoid species (n = 15) were exposed to 20 aphids of A. fabae or M. persicae, or a mixture of these two species of aphids, for 15 min, on a leaf disc of each of the two host plants, sugar beet and bean. Higher host acceptance and suitability were recorded for A. colemani attacking both species of aphid: A. fabae (43 and 46%) and M. persicae (43 and 46%) on beet and bean plants respectively, compared to L. testaceipes and L. fabarum. L. testaceipes and L. fabarum showed a clear preference for A. fabae. L. fabarum accepted M. persicae on both plants only when it was mixed with A. fabae, probably due to a confusion effect. We found that the host plant played a significant role in host acceptance, host suitability. We conclude that A. colemani is the better of the three parasitoids studied for the biological control in bean, and particularly, sugar beet crops. and Loulou Albittar, Mohannad Ismail, Claude Bragard, Thierry Hance.
This special issue expands on the existing research on foreign-currency lending and the forex loan crisis in Eastern Europe by investigating other forms of housing-related finance and post-crisis developments. Bringing together hitherto disparate strands of research, our issue traces the linkages between macroeconomic developments, state measures, class dynamics, and social movements in the aftermath of the forex loan crises in Latvia, Romania, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Hungary as part of their long-term trajectories of housing finance. We find that despite different political-institutional articulations, these trajectories all feature a new expansion of lending based on a bifurcation of the credit market into more secure, often subsidised mortgage lending aimed at better-off debtors and more risky non-mortgage loans used for housing purposes by more precarious households.
The adoption of innovative building technologies (IBTs) and social welfare policies in South Africa has facilitated an increase in decent homeownership among low-income groups, thus improving their quality of life. However, due to the escalating costs of building materials, the capital and lifecycle costs of implementing these technologies may no longer be affordable. This research aims to provide a comparative evaluation of the affordability of some readily available IBTs in the South African construction industry, relative to existing homeownership subsidy grants. The method used involved the use of secondary data for these IBTs and the income constraint methods. The results showed that, apart from the technologies suitable for the provision of temporary structures, most of the other technologies were not affordable for the complete subsidisation of the top structure when both capital and lifecycle costs were used, except the Moladi and Robust structure IBTs under some low-income homeownership programmes. Further analysis using credit-linked subsidies revealed that the minimum household income required to achieve affordable homeownership (and their rankings) depends both on the evaluation technique (lifecycle or capital costs) and technology used. To improve affordability, any implementing government can either raise the amount of the top structure subsidy grant, promote the use of cheaper but durable IBTs, or promote the use in incremental building methods, such as the Enhanced People’s Housing Process (EPHP) for the case of South Africa.
This article explores the nexus between the financialisation of housing and socio-economic inequality in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). In this context, since the post-war economic reforms, driven by deindustrialisation, the precarisation of labour, and dependent financialisation, housing loans have become a ‘privilege’ for a restricted group of people with high and stable incomes. Instead, the housing aspirations of Bosnians are generally met with the aid of consumer loans and the ostensibly cheaper FX loans that were introduced in the mid-2000s. Drawing on quantitative and qualitative data, this paper highlights the enduring features of the polarised credit market in BiH. It particularly focuses on the period after the 2008 crisis when lending policies were only mildly re-regulated. FX loans never became the object of an ad hoc law to convert them to Bosnian convertible marks. This institutional approach has been unable to challenge the extreme class segmentation of housing finance and is still fostering indebtedness and precarious housing conditions among the lower-income segments of Bosnian society even after the pandemic.