On February 20 of this year, 70 years passed since the death of the traveller, writer, photographer, collectioner and adventurer in the best sense of the word - Enrique Stanko Vráz. His origin and youth have been up to now covered with doubts. The first documents relate only to the first journey of Vráz outside Europe. Since 1880, Vráz lived in Africa - in Marocco, Gambia and on the Gold Coast (modern Ghana), where he started to photograph. After a short stay on the Canary Islands he headed for South America and decided to transverse it in the equatorian part. This goal he completed successfully. After this, he travelled between America and Europe, he visited Japan, New Guinea, Thailand, China, Korea, Siberia. Then he again started for South America and for Mexico. During all his trips Vráz made photos. Some of his photographs, preserved today in the Náprstek Museum, are absolutely unique. Vráz perceived photography as a natural media for documentation, he placed its informative value above the emotional. The most frequent topics of his photographs were architecture and its details, nature, landscape and especialy the recordings of the everyday life. These photos have a high documentary value because of the place and the time of origin and also because of the fact that Enrique Stanko Vráz was a sensitive observer that wanted to utilize the photography to informe about the life in the distant, strange lands.
Année scolaire 1920/21, tableaux dressés par l'office de statistique de la République tchécoslovaque, partie textuelle par František Čvančara, and Francouzský text, tabulková část pouze česky
We determined the surface-associated proteolytic activity in three Entamoeba histolytica Schaudinn, 1903 strains (monoxenic HM1, axenic HM1, and HK9) of known virulence and its relationship with collagenase activity. Both activities were also determined in axenic HM1 amoebae trophozoites which were sensitive and resistant to complement-mediated lysis. Surface proteolytic activity was determined in glutaraldehyde-fixcd E. histolytica trophozoites, which degraded the insoluble substrate, hide powder azure, and cleaved the human immunoglobulin G heavy chain in a time-dependent fashion, at neutral pH, in presence of 2-mercaptoethanol as cysteine protcase activator. Surface proteolytic activity was strain dependent: monoxenic HM1 > axenic IIM1 > axenic HK9. This activity correlated with collagenolytic activity (p < 0.05). Acquisition of resistance to complement-mediated lysis by axenic HM1 strain did not modify either surface proteases or collagenase expression. Our results suggest that this surface proteolytic activity could be used as an in vitro virulence marker for E. histolytica.
Enteral nutrition (EN) is a preferred way of feeding in critically ill patients unless obvious contraindications such as ileus or active gastrointestinal bleeding are present. Early enteral nutrition as compared to delayed EN or total parenteral nutrition decreases morbidity in postsurgical and trauma patients. The hepatosplanchnic region plays a pivotal role in the pathophysiology of sepsis and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome. The beneficial effects of EN on splanchnic perfusion and energy metabolism have been documented both in healthy volunteers and animal models of sepsis, hemorrhagic shock and burns. By contrast, EN may increase splanchnic metabolic demands, which in turn may lead to oxygen and/or energy demand/supply mismatch, especially when hyperemic response to EN is not preserved. Therefore, the timing of initiation and the dose of EN in patients with circulatory failure requiring vasoactive drugs are a matter of controversy. Interestingly, the results of recent clinical studies suggest that early enteral nutrition may not be harmful even in patients with circulatory compromise. Nevertheless, possible onset of serious complications, the non-occlusive bowel necrosis in particular, have to be kept in mind. Unfortunately, there is only a limited number of clinically applicable monitoring tools for the effects of enteral nutrition in critically ill patients., R. Rokyta Jr., M. Matějovič, A. Kroužecký, I. Novák., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Entomopathogenic nematodes from families Steinernematidae and Heterorhabdi - tidae and the molluscoparasitic nematode Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita are enigmatic soil creatures. These lethal pathogens of invertebrates can also be used as effective and safe biocontrol agents. In this article, we review the biology, ecology and distribution of these organisms and we de - pict their current use in biological control. and Jiří Nermuť, Vladimír Půža, Zdeněk Mráček.