Invazivní metody léčby chronické formy ischemické choroby srdeční byly po dlouhou dobu považovány za kauzální terapii, která bezpochyby snižuje morbiditu a mortalitu nemocných. Na druhé straně životní styl a farmakologická terapie byla nahlížena jako spíše doplňující, ale nikoliv rozhodující léčba. V posledních letech je možno vidět změnu v pohledu na ischemickou chorobu srdeční. Je to mnohem difuznější proces v koronráním řečišti a není to tedy jen otázka kritických stenóz, ale stejně nemocného ohrožují i další úseky věnčitých tepen, kde se hovoří o vulnerabilních placích. Překvapením pro experty byly závěry řady studií potvrzujících neschopnost invazivch metod prodloužit život nemocným s chronickou formou ICHS. Na druhé straně přibývají důkazy o významném vlivu úpravy životního stylu a rozrůstajících se možnostech farmakolgoické terapie s pozitivním vlivem na morbiditu a mortalitu. Článek prezentuje současné názory na tyto otázky, které jsou nyní živě diskutovány., Invasive methods for treatment of coronary artery disease in chronic form were, for a long time, believed to be causal treatment that definitely diminish patient morbidity and mortality. By contrast, lifestyle and pharmacological therapy were seen as valuable but not lifesaving. In the last few years a change can be seen in the view on coronary artery disease. It is a much more diffusive and complicated process in the coronary tree. It is not merely a question of the critical stenotic areas; the new idea of vulnerable plaque, which presents the same danger of complication as critically stenotic areas, is also important. A great surprise for experts was the result of various studies confirming the inability of invasive procedures to prolong life in patients with chronic coronary disease. On the other hand, there has been more evidence that lifestyle changes and expanding pharmacological possibilities can have a significant positive effect on morbidity and mortality. This article aims to present the problem as it is currently being discussed., and Kotík L.
The feeding behaviour of specialist butterflies may be affected by the mechanical and chemical characteristics of the tissues of their host-plants. Larvae of the butterfly, Battus polydamas archidamas feed only on Aristolochia chilensis, which contains aristolochic acids. We studied the oviposition pattern of adults and the foraging of larvae of B. polydamas archidamas over time in relation to variations in hardness of the substrate and concentration of aristolochic acids in different plant tissues. We further tested the effect of two artificial diets containing different concentrations of aristolochic acids on larval performance. B. polydamas archidamas oviposited mostly on young leaves and the larvae fed on this tissue until the second instar. Third instar larvae fed also on mature leaves and fourth and higher instars fed also on stems. Young leaves are softer and contain higher concentrations of aristolochic acids than mature leaves, and stems are both harder and contain a high concentration of aristolochic acids. Larvae reared on artificial diets containing a high concentration of aristolochic acids suffered less mortality and were heavier than those reared on a diet with a lower concentration of aristolochic acids, which suggests they are phagostimulatory. A strategy of host use regulated by aristolochic acid content and tissue hardness is discussed.
In this paper we establish the distribution of prime numbers in a given arithmetic progression $p \equiv l \hspace{4.44443pt}(\@mod \; k)$ for which $ap + b$ is squarefree.
We consider positional numeration system with negative base −β, as introduced by Ito and Sadahiro. In particular, we focus on arithmetical properties of such systems when β is a quadratic Pisot number. We study a class of roots β>1 of polynomials x2−mx−n, m≥n≥1, and show that in this case the set Fin(−β) of finite (−β)-expansions is closed under addition, although it is not closed under subtraction. A particular example is β=τ=12(1+5–√), the golden ratio. For such β, we determine the exact bound on the number of fractional digits appearing in arithmetical operations. We also show that the set of (−τ)-integers coincides on the positive half-line with the set of (τ2)-integers.
Arrestiny jsou významné intracelulární proteiny regulující G-protein-spřaženou receptorovou (GPCR) signalizaci. Tvoří komplexy s většinou GPCRs (po jejich aktivaci navázáním agonisty a fosforylaci) a hrají klíčovou roli v procesech receptorové homologní desenzitizace, sekvestrace a downregulace, které vedou k terminaci aktivace G-proteinů. V lidském organismu je zastoupeno deset typů arrestinů náležících do dvou skupin: mezi zrakové/beta arrestiny a alfa arrestiny. Nedávno bylo zjištěno, že skupina zrakových/beta arrestinů (která je tvořena čtyřmi členy: rod arrestinem, ß-arrestinem 1, ß-arrestinem 2 a cone arrestinem) je odvozena od nově objevených alfa arrestinů. Označení „alfa“ je velmi výstižné, tato skupina arrestinů je fylogeneticky starší a název je komplementární k názvu skupiny beta. Rod a cone arrestiny se nacházejí v buňkách sítnice, kde regulují funkci fotoreceptorů. ß-arrestiny jsou ubikvitně vyjádřeny, jejich nejvyšší koncentrace byly zjištěny v mozku a ve slezině. Kromě tradiční role v desenzitizaci (a následujících procesech) podporují ß-arrestiny též tvorbu signalizačních komplexů s tyrozinkinázou Src a s mitogenem-aktivovanými proteinkinázami, které umožňují G-protein-spřaženým receptorům signalizovat nezávisle na G-proteinech. V těchto kaskádách slouží jako „scaffolding“ a adaptorové proteiny a regulují buněčné procesy jako např. chemotaxi, apoptózu a metastázování. ß-arrestiny se tak stávají lákavým terapeutickým cílem pro léčbu některých nádorových onemocnění (např. karcinomu prsu, plic, kolorekta), alergického astmatu, hypertenze a dalších nemocí., Arrestins are important intracellular proteins, multifunctional regulators of G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) signaling. They form complexes with most GPCRs (following agonist binding and phosphorylation of receptors) and play a central role in the processes of homologous desensitization, sequestration and downregulation of receptors, which lead to termination of G-protein activation. Humans have ten arrestin subtypes pertaining to two subfamilies, visual/beta arrestins and alpha arrestins. Visual/beta subfamily (which contains four members: rod arrestin, ß-arrestin 1, ß-arrestin 2 and cone arrestin) was branched from new fi nding alpha arrestins relatively recently. “Alpha“ fi ts because this subfamily is ancient/ancestral, and it complements the name of the beta class. The rod and the cone arrestins are expressed in the retina, where they regulate photoreceptor function. The ß-arrestins are ubiquitously expressed proteins whose highest levels of expression are in the brain and spleen. Besides their role in desensitization (and following processes), ß-arrestins promote the formation of signaling complexes with tyrosine kinase Src and mitogen-activated protein kinase cascades allowing G-protein-coupled receptors to signal independently from G-protein. They serve as scaffold and adaptor proteins in these cascades and regulate cellular processes such as chemotaxis, apoptosis, and metastasis. Thus, novel therapies focused on these proteins may prove useful in the treatment of some cancer disorders (for example breast, lung, and colorectal carcinomas), allergic asthma, hypertension, etc., Fořtová M., Průša R., Zima T., and Lit.: 35
In many insect species with a pupa covered by various "shells" (puparium, host remains, etc.) pupal-adult ecdysis and emergence to the open air represent two discrete steps. However, in Trichogramma, as well as in other insect parasitoids, these two processes have never been studied separately. We investigated the temporal pattern of pupal-adult ecdysis and of adult emergence from the host chorion in Trichogramma embryophagum Hartig (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) in laboratory conditions (12L : 12D, 20°C). Adult ecdysis was arrhythmic, while adult emergence showed a strong rhythmicity. The time lag between ecdysis and emergence varied from one to almost two days, depending on the circadian time of the ecdysis. The proportion of ecdysed adults that stayed in the host chorion ranged up to 60% (just before the highest peak of emergence). The cumulative percentage of ecdysed adults gradually increased with time, independently of whether the light was turned on in accordance with the entrained circadian rhythm or 4 h earlier. This arrhythmic ecdysis could be explained by the fact that the ecdysed adults get into a well protected space inside the host chorion and the timing of this event is adaptively neutral.