Reactive oxygen species can be generated by daily exposure of the skin to ultraviolet light and may cause some subchronic and chronic skin disorders. The aim of this study was to investigate a possible preventive role of a-tocopherol acetate (ATA) on ultraviolet B (UVB) induced peroxidation by assessing lipid peroxide (LPO) levels and activity of reactive oxygen scavenging enzymes including glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase (SOD) in guinea pigs. ATA was topically applied to the skin for three weeks before a single dose of 0.9 J/cm2 UVB irradiation on the skin and lipid peroxide levels and antioxidants in plasma, skin and liver and erythrocytes were determined after decapitation. Topical application of ATA prevented the UVB irradiation-induced reduction of scavenging enzyme activities in skin and erythrocytes. In conclusion, we suggest that topical applications of ATA before UVB irradiation is effective in protecting the skin from unwanted effects of UVB irradiation., Y. Saral, B. Uyar, A. Ayar, M. Naziroglu, S. Yilmaz., and Obsahuje bibliografii
a1_Cíle. Cílem této studie bylo: a) ověření diagnostické kvality jednotlivých položek Edinburgh Handedness Inventory (EHI) a b) určení vhodného počtu kategorií preference ruky v dětské populaci. Soubor. Celkem 366 účastníků (178 chlapců a 188 dívek) náhodně vybraných ze základních škol v Praze participovalo na této studii. Věk dětí se pohyboval od 8 do 12 roků a žádný z účastníků nevykazoval intelektové ani jazykové nedostatky. Statistická analýza. Rating scale model byl použit pro hodnocení diagnostické kvality jednotlivých položek v inventáři. Příslušný počet kategorií preference ruky na základě výsledků EHI byl stanoven pomocí analýzy latentních tříd. Chi-kvadrát testy a vnitrotřídní korelační koeficient byly použity pro další vyhodnocení získané kategorizace preference ruky., a2_Výsledky. Byly identifikovány dvě položky (zametání koštětem a otevírání krabice), které porušují Raschovy vlastnosti Rating scale modelu. Dále byly zjištěny dvě skupiny dětí, které jsou charakteristické konzistentním použitím buď pravé, nebo levé ruky (praváci a leváci) a skupina s nekonzistentní preferencí (nevyhranění). Výsledky studie naznačují, že hodnoty laterálního kvocientu LQ = 0 ± 60 a LQ = 0 ± 70 lze doporučit pro zařazení jedince do skupiny nevyhraněných. Omezení studie. Ve studii nebylo hodnoceno, zdali preference indikovaná v dotazníku odpovídá preferenci při reálně prováděných činnostech. Použití formátu odpovědí se třemi kategoriemi by mohlo být považováno za další omezení, jelikož původně navrhovaný nástroj využívá pět kategorií., b1_Objectives. The aim of this study was: a) to verify the diagnostic quality of the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory (EHI) items and b) to determine an appropriate number of hand preference categories in a children population. Sample and setting. A total of 366 participants (178 boys and 188 girls) randomly selected from elementary schools in Prague, Czech Republic participated in this study. Children’s age ranged from 8 to 12 years and none of the participants has reported any intellectual or language deficiencies. Statistical analysis. Polytomous item response theory model (Rating scale model) was used to evaluate the diagnostic quality of particular items in the inventory. Appropriate number of handedness categories based on the EHI results was determined using latent class analysis. Chisquare tests and intra-class correlation coefficient were used for further evaluation of the obtained handedness categorization., b2_Results. Two items (using a broom and opening a box) that violated the Rasch properties of the Rating scale model were identified. Two classes that were characterized by the predominant use of either right or left hand (right-handers and left-handers) and a class with inconsistent hand-preference (mixed-handers) were stated. Results of the study suggest that values of laterality quotient LQ=0±60 and LQ=0±70 could be recommended for assigning individuals into the mixed-handedness class. Study limitation. It was not assessed whether self-reported hand preference is in accordance with the real hand preference for the EHI items/ activities. Using a response format with three categories could be seen as another limitation since the originally proposed instrument utilized five categories., Martin Komarc, Ivana Harbichová, Jiří Tichý., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Ornithine carbamoyltransferase has been purified from the liver of the loggerhead turtle Caretta caretta by a single-step procedure using chromatography on an affinity column to which the transition-state analogue, d-N-(phosphonoacetyl)- L-ornithine (d-PALO), was covalently bound. The procedure employed yielded an enzyme which was purified 373-fold and was judged to be homogeneous by nondenaturing and sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The enzyme showed a specific activity of 224. The molar mass of the C. caretta enzyme was approximately 112 kDa, the single band obtained by SDS-PAGE indicated a subunit molar mass of 39.5 kDa; hence, the enzyme is a trimer of identical subunits. It catalyzes an ordered sequential mechanism in which carbamoyl phosphate binds first, followed by L-ornithine. The Michaelis constants were 0.858 mM for L-ornithine and 0.22 mM for carbamoyl phosphate, the dissociation constant of the enzyme-carbamoyl phosphate complex was 0.50 mM., E. Bellocco, C. Di Salvo, G. Lagan, U. Leuzzi, E. Tellone, A. Kotyk, A. Galtieri., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The aim of the study was to detect changes of both the QT dispersion and T-loop morphology resulting from the changed spatial position of the heart during pregnancy. Electrocardiographic and vectorcardiographic recordings were obtained from 37 healthy women 19-36 years old in the 36th to 40th week of physiological pregnancy and 2 to 6 days after delivery. The same recordings were obtained from 18 healthy women of the same age. The average QT dispersion (±S.D.) in normal subjects was significantly lower (34±12 ms) than in those in late pregnancy (73±18 ms) (P<0.001). The average amplitude of T-loop (Ta) in women in late pregnancy was significantly (P<0.001) smaller (532±98 mV) and the width of T-loop (Tw) was wider (21.24±11.48 deg) than in the control group (793±114 mV and 7.17±3.02 deg, respectively). The partial post-partum restoration of all parameters was not significant. In all groups, the QT dispersion was significantly correlated with Tw but not with Ta. According to these results we can conclude that the QT dispersion is an indirect reflection of the complete process of ventricular repolarization, reflected in the morphology of the T-loop., M. Lechmanová, O. Kittnar, M. Mlček, J. Slavíček, A. Dohnalová, Š. Havránek, J. Kolařík, A. Pařízek., and Obsahuje bibliografii
a1_In the present paper we describe five tests, 3 of which were designed to be similar to tasks used with rodents. Results obtained from control subjects, patients with selective thermo-coagulation lesions to the medial temporal lobe and results from non-human primates and rodents are discussed. The tests involve memory for spatial locations acquired by moving around in a room, memory for objects subjects interacted with, or memory for objects and their locations. Two of the spatial memory tasks were designed specifically as analogs of the Morris water task and the 8-arm radial-maze tasks used with rats. The Morris water task was modeled by hiding a sensor under the carpet of a room (Invisible Sensor Task). Subjects had to learn its location by using an array of visual cues available in the room. A path integration task was developed in order to study the non-visual acquisition of a cognitive representation of the spatial location of objects. In the non-visual spatial memory task, we blindfolded subjects and led them to a room where they had to find 3 objects and remember their locations. We designed an object location task by placing 4 objects in a room that subjects observed for later recall of their locations. A recognition task, and a novelty detection task were given subsequent to the recall task. An 8-arm radial-maze was recreated by placing stands at equal distance from each other around the room, and asking subjects to visit each stand once, from a central point. A non-spatial working memory task was designed to be the non-spatial equivalent of the radial maze. Search paths recorded on the first trial of the Invisible Sensor Task, when subjects search for the target by trial and error are reported., a2_An analysis of the search paths revealed that patients with lesions to the right or left hippocampus or parahippocampal cortex employed the same type of search strategies as normal controls did, showing similarities and differences to the search behavior recorded in rats. Interestingly, patients with lesions that included the right parahippocampal cortex were impaired relative to patients with lesions to the right hippocampus that spared the parahippocampal cortex, when recall of the sensor was tested after a 30 min delay (Bohbot et al. 1998). No differences were obtained between control subjects and patients with selective thermal lesions to the medial temporal lobe, when tested on the radial-maze, the non-spatial analogue to the radial-maze and the path integration tasks. Differences in methodological procedures, learning strategies and lesion location could account for some of the discrepant results between humans and non-human species. Patients with lesions to the right hippocampus, irrespective of whether the right parahippocampal cortex was spared or damaged, had difficulties remembering the particular configuration and identity of objects in the novelty detection of the object location task. This supports the role of the human right hippocampus for spatial memory, in this case, involving memory for the location of elements in the room; learning known to require the hippocampus in the rat., V.D. Bohbot, R. Jech, E. Růžička, L. Nadel, M. Kalina, K. Štěpánková , J. Bureš., and Obsahuje bibliografii
We tested the effects of epidermal growth factor (EGF) on Na+/H+ exchanger (NHE) activity using urogastrone for treatment of Wistar rats and rat kidney tissue slices. NHE activity was monitored in isolated kidney brush border membrane vesicles by following fluorescence quenching of acridine orange. A significant increase of NHE activity was detected as early as 5 min after addition of urogastrone to rat kidney slices in vitro. In Wistar rats treated with urogastrone we also found increased NHE activity (by about 12 %). Both changes of NHE activity were the result of a significant rise of Vmax value and an apparent decrease in Km value in in vitro experiments. The rise of NHE activity caused by urogastrone was sensitive to the inhibitors of transcription and translation. The presence of phosphatase inhibitor, NaF, elevated NHE activity of non-stimulated as well as of urogastrone-stimulated exchanger, suggesting that phosphorylation plays an important role in Na+/H+ exchange. Osmolarity of the medium seems to regulate NHE activity in such a manner that both hyper- and hypoosmolar conditions inhibited NHE activity. The absence of Ca2+ions produced a 60 % decrease of NHE activity. The chemical modification of histidine residues with diethyl pyrocarbonate or SH groups with N-ethylmaleimide inhibited NHE activity., K. Barišić, O. Karužić, J. Petrik, T. Ž. Grubišić., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Upon closer study, the brief three-voice compositions by Johannes Tourout preserved in Bohemian sources of 15th-century polyphony with Latin texts turn out to be problematic. By analyzing the musical component of these compositions, the author of the study has determined that the works are contrafacta of chansons. At the same time, he has attempted to find the French texts for which Tourouts music may have been originally composed. Although the reconstruction is purely hypothetical, the results are an important argument in the current discussions of the musical culture of Central Europe in the latter half of the fifteenth century., Jaap van Benthem., Rubrika: Studie, and České resumé na s. 238, anglický abstrakt na s. 221.
a1_Úvod. Štúdia sa zaoberá výskumom reziliencie ako črty u uchádzačov o štúdium psychológie na Katedre psychológie FF UK v Bratislave v roku 2012. Metódy. 609 uchádzačov vyplnilo okrem vedomostnej a výkonovej skúšky aj Škálu reziliencie (Wagnild, Young, 1993). O niekoľko mesiacov (v prvom roku ich štúdia) 52 z prijatých uchádzačov vyplnilo v sérii dvoch retestov výkonový variant prijímacej skúšky a taktiež ďalšie dotazníky – Škála reziliencie, Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, MOS Social support scale, Life Orientation Test-Revised a Rosenbergovu škálu sebaúcty. Hypotézy. Autori predpokladali, že úspešní uchádzači skórujú vyššie v Škále reziliencie a signifikantný vzťah medzi rezilienciou a výkonom v testoch. U prijatých uchádzačov očakávali stabilitu skóre v Škále reziliencie v čase a taktiež dobrú konvergentnú a obsahovú validitu. Štatistická analýza. Autori použili korelačnú a regresnú analýzu. Prostredníctvom konfirmačnej faktorovej analýzy analyzovali štruktúru Škály reziliencie., a2_Výsledky. Vyššia úroveň reziliencie nesúvisela s lepším skóre na prijímacích pohovoroch. Škála reziliencie vykazuje veľmi dobré psychometrické vlastnosti. Škála je dostatočne reliabilná α = 0,818. Skóre zároveň signifikantne koreluje s konštruktmi ako optimizmus, sebaúcta, sociálna opora a zároveň s Connor-Davidsonovej škálou reziliencie, čo poukazuje na jej dobrú konvergentnú validitu. Limity štúdie. Použitie Škály reziliencie je limitujúce v dôsledku formulácie položiek, nakoľko je veľmi ľahké odpovedať takým spôsobom, aby človek pôsobil veľmi rezilientne. Vo vysoko kompetitívnom prostredí, ako sú prijímacie pohovory, môže situačný kontext a motivácia významne ovplyvniť výsledky., b1_Objectives. The study focuses on resilience in candidates for study of psychology in Dpt. of Psychology, FF UK Bratislava in 2012. Sample and setting. 609 candidates filled in besides the series of knowledge and performance tasks also Resilience Scale (Wagnild, Young, 1993). 52 of successful candidates (several months later during the 1st year of the studies), in the series of two retests filled in performance part of original exam and also further questionnaires - Resilience Scale, Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, MOS Social Support Scale, Life Orientation Test-Revised and Rosenberg Selfesteem scale. Hypotheses. It was expected that successful candidates will have higher score on the Resilience Scale and the significant relationship between resilience and performance task. Good testretest reliability, content and concurrent validity of Resilience Scale in successful candidates was expected, too. Statistical analysis. The series of correlational and regression analyses were conducted using confirmatory factor analysis to assess factor structure of the Resilience Scale., b2_Results. Higher score on the Resilience Scale was not associated with performance on the tests. Resilience Scale shows good psychometric properties. Scale is reliable enough (α=0,818). Score on the Resilience Scale significantly correlates with optimism, self-esteem, social support and also with Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale which points on good concurrent validity of the Resilience Scale. Study limitation. The limitation of using examined Resilience Scales is formulation of items – it is too easy to answer in such a way, that you “look” very resilient. In highly competitive setting such as entrance exams are, the situational context and motivation significantly affect the results., Barbora Mesárošová, Michal Hajdúk, Anton Heretik ml., and Obsahuje seznam literatury