Hematology and serum biochemistry of European mouflon (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ovis orientalis musimon</Emphasis>) in Croatia

The aim of the present study was to determine the reference intervals for the most commonly used hematological and biochemical parameters of European mouflon from a closed hunting ground in the eastern part of the Republic of Croatia. Blood samples were collected from 39 live, physically restrained, clinically normal European mouflon, as well as from 50 domestic sheep. The distribution of values within each parameter was determined and statistical differences in values between sexes were also determined. For each sample, 14 hematological and 18 biochemical parameters were analyzed. Hematology and biochemistry values of the European mouflon were also compared with the values of domestic sheep. In further studies, the established values might be useful for the health assessment of mouflon.     

Immunogenicity of a vaccine made from soluble Proteus antigens

Hemagglutinins with different specificity were determined in 270 subjects: of these, 101 were examined in the time course before and after immunization with Proteus vaccine prepared from soluble antigens. The preparation possessed pronounced immunological potency and stimulated the formation of antibodies to the vaccine strain, to heterologous Proteus strains and to the common antigens of Gram-negative bacteria. The combined scheme of the subcutaneous and local administration of the above-mentioned Proteus vaccine ensured an increase in the synthesis of IgM and IgA in patients with Proteus wound infection. Active immunization ensured an essential rise in the level of hemagglutinins to Re-glycolipid in donors and oncological patients not infected with Proteus, but did not ensure the statistically significant shifts in the antibody level to Re-glycolipids in patients with chronic Proteus infection.     

Immunostimulating activity of combined antigens of Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus, Proteus and Escherichia coli and separate components in cross infection

Experiments on mice have revealed that the combined preparation of K. pneumoniae, Staphylococcus, Proteus and E. coli antigens possesses pronounced immunostimulating activity against the microorganisms whose antigens make up this combined preparation, as well as against Haemophilus influenzae, type b. Cross protection between the antigens making up the preparation was observed, as well as of each of its components with respect to H. influenzae, type b. The activity of the combined antigenic preparation has been shown to exceed that of its monocomponents, as manifested under the conditions of cross infection. These experimental data may serve as a prerequisite for the development of an immunostimulant for the treatment of patients with chronic pyoinflammatory diseases.     

Synthesis of polypeptides of various length in isolated mitochondria of rat liver

The [35S]methionine labeled mitochondrial translation products were separated by SDS-PAGE electrophoresis in the presence of 8 M urea. The time of the major polypeptide synthesis was determined after fluorography and scanning. It was found that the changes in the time of polypeptide synthesis are not correlated with their lengths. These data are consistent with the hypothesis on the unsteady rate of protein synthesis with a sharp deceleration (pause) of translation during the reading of middle portions of mRNA.     

Experimental study of the immunogenicity of a monopreparation of Klebsiella pneumoniae antigen complex and its association with Staphylococcus, Proteus and Escherichia coli antigens

The study carried out in mice with experimental Klebsiella sepsis has revealed that Staphylococcus, Proteus and E. coli antigenic complexes used as monovaccines ensure the protection of a definite percentage of the animals from K. pneumoniae infection. The mixture of these 3 preparations possesses a higher protective potency. The immunogenic potency of K. pneumoniae antigenic complex used as a component of combined vaccines with 2 or 4 components has proved to be sufficiently high and not inferior to the potency of K. pneumoniae monovaccine.     

Encoding certainty in bump attractors

Persistent activity in neuronal populations has been shown to represent the spatial position of remembered stimuli. Networks that support bump attractors are often used to model such persistent activity. Such models usually exhibit translational symmetry. Thus activity bumps are neutrally stable, and perturbations in position do not decay away. We extend previous work on bump attractors by constructing model networks capable of encoding the certainty or salience of a stimulus stored in memory. Such networks support bumps that are not only neutrally stable to perturbations in position, but also perturbations in amplitude. Possible bump solutions then lie on a two-dimensional attractor, determined by a continuum of positions and amplitudes. Such an attractor requires precisely balancing the strength of recurrent synaptic connections. The amplitude of activity bumps represents certainty, and is determined by the initial input to the system. Moreover, bumps with larger amplitudes are more robust to noise, and over time provide a more faithful representation of the stored stimulus. In networks with separate excitatory and inhibitory populations, generating bumps with a continuum of possible amplitudes, requires tuning the strength of inhibition to precisely cancel background excitation.     

Dynamics of changes in the functional activity of blood polymorphonuclear leukocytes in reversible myocardial ischemia in dogs

Changes in peripheral blood polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PNL) functional activity in dogs during pre- and post-ischemic periods was investigated using the model of dogs venous circulation reversible disturbances in the chronic experiment and luminol-dependent chemiluminescence method. It was demonstrated that single transitory myocardial ischemia (MI) (5 min.) causes positive increase in PNLs functional activity by the 12th-14th hour of post-ischemic period. Repeated short-term MI (5 min.) was accompanied by the increase in phagocytes activity occurring 6-8 hours following the beginning of post-ischemic period, i.e. two times faster than in the case of primary ischemia. The results obtained allow the conclusion that the accumulative effect of multiple MI and the increase in PNLs functional activity as one of the reasons of cardiomyocytes injury in ischemic region cause pronounced inflammatory and necrotic myocardial changes.