If $x$ is a vertex of a digraph $D$, then we denote by $d^+(x)$ and $d^-(x)$ the outdegree and the indegree of $x$, respectively. A digraph $D$ is called regular, if there is a number $p \in \mathbb{N}$ such that $d^+(x) = d^-(x) = p$ for all vertices $x$ of $D$. A $c$-partite tournament is an orientation of a complete $c$-partite graph. There are many results about directed cycles of a given length or of directed cycles with vertices from a given number of partite sets. The idea is now to combine the two properties. In this article, we examine in particular, whether $c$-partite tournaments with $r$ vertices in each partite set contain a cycle with exactly $r-1$ vertices of every partite set. In 1982, Beineke and Little [2] solved this problem for the regular case if $c = 2$. If $c \ge 3$, then we will show that a regular $c$-partite tournament with $r \ge 2$ vertices in each partite set contains a cycle with exactly $r-1$ vertices from each partite set, with the exception of the case that $c = 4$ and $r = 2$.
At frog neuromuscular junction, noradrenaline (NA) shortens the release period for evoked quantal release acting on a b 1 receptor. To test the hypothesis that this action of NA is mediated by cAMP, we measured the latencies of focally recorded uni-quantal endplate currents (EPCs) after application of dibutyryl-cAMP (db-cAMP) and adenylyl cyclase activator, forskolin. The interval between the time when responses with minimal delay appeared and the point at which 90 % of all latencies had occurred (P90 parameter) was shortened in the presence of both 1x10-6 mol/l db-cAMP and 1x10-6 mol/l forskolin by about 30 %. The cAMP-induced shortening is equal to that found after application of NA and effects of both drugs are not additive., E. Bukcharaeva, D. Samigullin, E. E. Nikolsky, F. Vyskočil., and Obsahuje bibliografii
In this paper, we discuss the hypercyclicity, supercyclicity and cyclicity of the adjoint of a weighted composition operator on a Hilbert space of analytic functions.
Within the framework of our studies on hypertension in various rat strains, we have examined the effect of cyclosporin A (CsA) on intracellular calcium signaling under conditions of oxidative stress. For these preliminary experiments, we have chosen isolated hepatocytes of normotensive rats as a model system for the study of the role of intracellular calcium. We used tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BHP, 1 mmol.l-1) as an prooxidant agent. When compared to the controls, we found increased levels of cytosolic free calcium concentration (Ca2+i) during 120 min incubation. The preincubation of hepatocytes with CsA in the concentration of 0.5 m mol.l-1 did not change the physiological level of cytosolic calcium. However, a dual action of CsA on elevated Ca2+i was observed during oxidative injury of hepatocytes: while in the first period of incubation CsA increased Ca2+i, CsA reduced the effect of t-BHP on Ca2+i during the next period of incubation. This indicates the ability of CsA to modify oxidative stress, but further studies are necessary to explain these findings., E. Kmoníčková, L. Kameníková, S. Hynie, H. Farghali., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The aim of this study was to investigate the concentrations of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), leptin, tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-6, in cycles with a premature rise of serum progesterone. 25 intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles with (Group 1) and 25 ICSI cycles without a premature progesterone elevation (Group 2) were included. The cut-off value of serum progesterone on the day of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) administration was 0.9 ng/ml. The indication for ICSI was male factor infertility exclusively. On the day of hCG injection, serum IL-6, VEGF and bFGF were significantly higher in Group 1 (7.7±24.5 pg/ml, 290.2±161.4 pg/ml and 15.7±8.2 ng/ml respectively) than in Group 2 (1.7±0.7 pg/ml, 175.2±92.1 pg/ml, and 9±1.6 ng/ml respectively). On the day of follicular puncture, serum cytokine concentrations were similar in the two groups. IL-6 intrafollicular concentrations were higher in Group 1 (14.7±20.7 pg/ml) than in Group 2 (9±9.3 pg/ml, p=0.031). There were no differences regarding the ICSI outcome. Patients with serum progesterone above 0.9 ng/ml, have elevated serum concentrations of IL-6, VEGF, and bFGF, as well as elevated intrafollicular concentrations of IL-6. The outcome of ICSI cycles is not associated with premature elevation of progesterone when the cut-off value is set at 0.9 ng/ml., N. Nikolettos, B. Asimakopoulos, F. Köster, B. Schöpper, Ch. Schulz, G. S. Caglar, A. Efthimiadou, O. Pagonopoulou, K. Diedrich, S. Al-Hasani., and Obsahuje bibliografii a bibliografické odkazy
This study was designed to measure nitrite/nitrate and cytokine levels of serum obtained from septic shock patients and to describe potential depressant effects of human septic serum on rat cardiomyocytes. Serum was prepared from 10 non-septic patients and 10 patients with documented septic shock. Adult rat ventricular myocytes were exposed to 20 % serum in the medium. Cardiomyocyte contractility was assessed by measuring shortening fraction and shortening velocity. Serum levels of nitrite/nitrate, a marker of nitric oxide final metabolites, and cytokines (tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin (IL) 1β , 6, 10, 8 and 12p70) were measured. Compared with serum from non-septic patients, serum of septic shock patients induced rapid reduction of the extent and velocity of shortening in isolated cardiomyocytes. Nitrite/nitrate, TNF-α , IL-1β and IL-12p70 concentrations of tested serum for cardiomyocyte studies were not increased in septic serum compared with controls . In contrast, septic serum that induced a depression of in vitro contractility, had increased levels of IL-6, IL-8 and IL-10. We can conclude that the depression of in vitro contractility induced by septic serum is not directly dependent on elevated levels of nitric oxide metabolites, TNF-α or IL-1β. Our results support the view that other cytokines, including IL-6, IL-8 and IL-10, are potent circulating mediators of myocardial depression in cardiomyocytes., O. Joulin, P. Petillot, M. Labalette, S. Lancel, R. Neviere., and Obsahuje bibliografii a bibliografické odkazy
A rise in baseline cytosolic free Ca2+ in canine vascular endothelial-like cells (VEC) lining the luminal surface of the polyester arterial prosthesis is described. In one, three and six month implantation experiments we employed six adult mongrel dogs, polyester arterial prostheses Arteknit Ra K, fluorescent Ca2+ indicator Fura-2 and digital imaging microscopy to study cytosolic free Ca2+ in cultured VEC. The electron microscopy scanning of the luminal surface in different regions of the graft were also performed. A rise in cytosolic free Ca2+ in the VEC lining the luminal surface of the prosthesis is probably the result of the immunologic reaction and mechanical stress which stimulate the proliferation activity of the endothelial cells. It seems that the baseline cytosolic free Ca2+ reflects the course of the endothelization process on the polyester arterial prosthesis., P. Ondruš, R. Alberty, P. Pothier, V. Echavé, J. Poisson, G. Bkaily., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Cíl. Měření přesvědčení, která se vztahují ke zdraví, má u pacientů ve zdravotnictví velký význam. Cílem studie bylo ověřit faktorovou strukturu české verze dotazníku Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale (MHLCS, verze B) a její invarianci. Metoda. N = 549 dospělých respondentů vyplnilo MHLCS v online průzkumu. Pomocí konfirmační faktorové analýzy byly ověřovány tři modely založené na předchozích studiích a dále byla ověřována invariance měření v závislosti na pohlaví, věku a času (šest měsíců). Výsledky. Žádný z navržených modelů nevykazoval dostatečnou shodu s daty. Proto byl navržen modifikovaný třífaktorový model, který vykázal přijatelnou shodu s daty a byl striktně invariantní ve vztahu k pohlaví, věku i času. U faktorů Vlivní druzí a Náhoda byl nalezen slabý efekt věku. Závěr. Českou verzi MHLCS lze považovat za validní a reliabilní nástroj, s výjimkou faktoru Náhoda, který vykazoval nízkou reliabilitu. and Aim. Measuring patients’ health-related beliefs is of high importance in health care. The aim of the study was to test the factor structure of the Czech version of the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale (MHLCS) Form B and its measurement invariance. Method. N = 549 adults answered the MHLCS in an online survey. A confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to test three competing models based on previous studies and to assess measurement invariance of the MHLCS across gender, age, and time (six months). Results. None of the hypothesized models fit the data; therefore, a modified three-factor model was proposed that demonstrated an acceptable fit and was strictly invariant with respect to gender, age, and time. A small age effect was found on the Powerful Others and Chance factors. Conclusion. The Czech MHLCS can be considered a valid and reliable measure, except for the Chance factor, which had low reliability.
This study explores the collection of Czech books in the Strängnäs Cathedral Library. The books were taken to Sweden as war booty at the end of the Thirty Years’ War and are today the most compactly preserved collection of books of Czech provenance in Sweden. This so-called war library, which the Chapter received as a gift from Queen Christina I, was not seen by the new administrators as an integral part of the Church’s property. This paper aims to answer two questions: First, when and how the Chapter’s mental barrier broke down; second, what factors played a role in the reorganisation of Cathedral Library in 1764–1765 and the selection of books for the auction sale. To answer these questions, I analysed the manuscript catalogue of the Cathedral Library from the 1750s and the printed auction catalogue of 1764. In addition, I surveyed preserved copies, particularly those auctioned by the Cathedral Library. My findings reveal that it took more than a century for the looted books to integrate into the new cultural environment in Strängnäs. Their merger with the original Cathedral Library did not take place until the 1750s and 1760s as part of a reorganisation aimed at creating a modern historical collection. This reorganisation included massive disposal of books, a large amount of which came from the Czech book spoils. The research findings also indicate that the war origin played no significant role in their selection and sale. The fate of the Czech book spoils in Strängnäs represents a complex case of incorporating books from war booty into a new cultural environment. The study is one of the first contributions to the question of the so-called second life of Czech book spoils in Sweden.