Arthropod toxins inhibiting Ca2+ and Na+ channels prevent AC-1001 H3 peptide-induced apoptosis

Peptide toxins of arthropods are one of the potential sources of bioactive substances. Toxins are able to bind to calcium channels and block them. Ca²⁺ ions play an important role in many cell processes, in particular, in apoptosis. In this work, we study the effect of some arthropod toxins on intracellular processes associated with the induction of apoptosis. Synthetic analogs of U₅ -scytotoxin-Sth1a, ω-hexatoxin-Hv1a, ω-theraphotoxin-Hhn2a, and μ-agatoxin-Aa1a toxins-inhibitors of calcium L, P, and Q channels and sodium channels were used in the study. Apoptosis was induced by AC-1001 H3 peptide. We study the effect of toxins on the level of apoptosis, ROS, mitochondrial potential, GSH, and ATP in CHO-K1 cells. We show that all the tested toxins are able to dose dependently block the induction of apoptosis triggered by AC-1001 H3 and reduce the level of natural apoptosis in CHO-K1 cells. Cell incubation with apoptosis inducer AC-1001 H3 in the presence and absence of toxins causes an increase in the intracellular concentrations of ROS, ATP, and mitochondrial potential and decreases the GSH concentration. The present study reveals the antiapoptotic effect of a number of arthropod peptide toxins. The toxins studied can represent a novel approach used in the treatment of pathologies associated with the activation of apoptotic mechanisms.

Studies of equation of state properties of high-energy-density matter generated by intense ion beams at the facility for antiprotons and ion research

The work presented in this paper shows with the help of two-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations that intense heavy-ion beams are a very efficient tool to induce high energy density (HED) states in solid matter. These simulations have been carried out using a computer code BIG2 that is based on a Godunov-type numerical algorithm. This code includes ion beam energy deposition using the cold stopping model, which is a valid approximation for the temperature range accessed in these simulations. Different phases of matter achieved due to the beam heating are treated using a semiempirical equation-of-state (EOS) model. To take care of the solid material properties, the Prandl-Reuss model is used. The high specific power deposited by the projectile particles in the target leads to phase transitions on a timescale of the order of tens of nanosecond, which means that the sample material achieves thermodynamic equilibrium during the heating process. In these calculations we use Pb as the sample material that is irradiated by an intense uranium beam. The beam parameters including particle energy, focal spot size, bunch length, and bunch intensity are considered to be the same as the design parameters of the ion beam to be generated by the SIS100 heavy-ion synchrotron at the Facility for Antiprotons and Ion Research (FAIR), at Darmstadt. The purpose of this work is to propose experiments to measure the EOS properties of HED matter including studies of the processes of phase transitions at the FAIR facility. Our simulations have shown that depending on the specific energy deposition, solid lead will undergo phase transitions leading to an expanded hot liquid state, two-phase liquid-gas state, or the critical parameter regime. In a similar manner, other materials can be studied in such experiments, which will be a very useful addition to the knowledge in this important field of research.

P1836 Common carotid artery intima-media thickness correlates with the epicardial fat thickness in patients with ischemic stroke

Purpose

The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between common carotid artery intima–media thickness (CCA-IMT), the resistance index (RI) in the vertebral and carotid arteries and epicardial fat thickness (EFT) in patients with ischemic stroke.

Methods

98 patients with ischemic stroke (31 females and 67 males, mean age was 68.2 ± 12.1 years) were studied. All patients had arterial hypertension (AH). Most of them (96.9%) had grade 3 hypertension according to ESH/ESC Guidelines for the management of arterial hypertension, 2018. Forty-two (43.1%) patients had coronary artery disease and 35 (35.4%) - atrial fibrillation (AF). The exclusion criteria was the presence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or other diseases associated with pulmonary hypertension. Patients were categorized according to National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) severity in mild NIHSS (≤8) - 54 (55.1%) patients, moderate NIHSS (9–15) - 23 (23.5%) patients, and severe stroke NIHSS (≥16) - 21 (21.4%) patients. Median NIHSS score was 11.2 ± 1.7. All patients underwent a transthoracic echocardiography and a carotid ultrasound examination.

Results

The common carotid artery intima–media thickness correlated with EFT (r =0.78, p < 0.001), the body mass index (r = 0.7, p < 0.001) and systolic blood pressure (r = 0.25, p = 0.045). The resistance index in the vertebral and carotid arteries correlated only with EFT (r = 0.7, p < 0.001 and r = 0.78, p < 0.001, respectively) and body mass index (r = 0.58, p < 0.001 and r = 0.68, p < 0.001, respectively).

A multiple regression analysis in which the CCA-IMT was a dependent variable and age, body mass index, systolic blood pressure, blood cholesterol level and epicardial fat thickness were independent variables, showed that CCA-IMT was independently correlated with blood cholesterol level (β=0.714, р<0.001) and EFT (β =0.255, р=0.002) in patients with ischemic stroke.

Conclusions

The common carotid artery intima–media thickness and parameters of the arterial stiffness of the extracranial vessels of the head are associated with the epicardial fat thickness and blood cholesterol level in patients with ischemic stroke. The common carotid artery intima–media thickness does not depend on age, gender, body mass index, systolic and diastolic blood pressure in patients with ischemic stroke.

P1837 The severity of acute ischemic stroke is associated with the right heart remodeling in patients with arterial hypertension

Purpose

The aim of this study was to determine the relationship of echocardiographic signs of the right heart remodeling and the stroke severity in patients with arterial hypertension and ischemic stroke.

Methods

98 patients with acute ischemic stroke (31 females and 67 males, mean age was 68.2 ± 12.1 years) were studied. All patients had arterial hypertension. Most of them (96.9%) had grade 3 hypertension according to ESH/ESC Guidelines for the management of arterial hypertension, 2018. Forty-two (43.1%) patients had coronary artery disease, 35 (35.4%) - atrial fibrillation (AF). The exclusion criteria was the presence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or other diseases associated with pulmonary hypertension. Patients were categorized according to National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) severity in mild NIHSS (≤8) - 54 (55.1%) patients, moderate NIHSS (9–15) - 23 (23.5%) patients, and severe stroke NIHSS (≥16) - 21 (21.4%) patients. Median NIHSS score was 11.2 ± 1.7. All patients underwent a transthoracic echocardiography. A comparative assessment of echocardiographic parameters was performed in patients of lower (NIHSS score ≤ 4.5) and upper (NIHSS score≥14.5) quartile according to the NIHSS score.

Results

Linear regression analysis revealed that stroke severity was significantly correlated with right atrium end-diastolic volume (EDV) (r = 0.48, p < 0.0001), right ventricular EDV (r = 0.62, p < 0.0001), left atrium EDV (r = 0.41, p = 0.002), left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) (r = 0.4, p = 0.003) and pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PASP) (r = 0.89, p < 0.0001). A multiple regression analysis showed that stroke severity was independently correlated with PASP (β=0.471, р=0.01), left atrium EDV (β=0.961, р=0.02) and LVEF (β=0.931, р=0.005) in patients with arterial hypertension and ischemic stroke.

In the group of patients with the upper quartile of NIHSS score, the right atrium EDV (64.7 ± 21.1 mm versus 47.6 ± 25.2 mm, р=0.04) and PASP (25.8 ± 9.3 mm versus 20.8 ± 8.0 mm, р=0.045) were higher. The left atrium EDV was higher in patients with LVEF below 50% ( 73.3 ± 36.9 mm vs 49.9 ± 18.5 mm, р=0.02) and in patients with AF (55.3 ± 19.8 vs 36.4 ± 14.6 mm, p < 0.0001). At the same time PASP did not depend on the LVEF (22.1 ± 10.7 mm vs 21.6 ± 8.1 mm, р=0.9) and the presence of AF (21.9 ± 9.0 mm vs 21.7 ± 8.1 mm, р=0.9).

Conclusions

In patients with arterial hypertension the severity of acute ischemic stroke is associated with increases in right atrium end-diastolic volume and in pulmonary artery systolic pressure. An increase in pulmonary artery systolic pressure in patients with arterial hypertension and ischemic stroke does not depend on the left ventricular ejection fraction and atrial fibrillation.

Adherence to Lifestyle Therapy in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure and Comorbidity

BackgroundInfluence of comorbidity on adherence to lifestyle therapy in patients  with  chronic heart failure (CHF) have not been studied yet.The aimThe aim of this study was to investigate awareness and  adherence to lifestyle therapy in patient with CHF and comorbidity.Мethods203 patients with CHF (130 males and 73 females, mean age was 61,8±9,6 years) were studied. CHF was defined according to ESC Guidelines for  the diagnosis and treatment of acute  and chronic heart failure, 2016. Charlson comorbidity index was calculated. Awareness of lifestyle modifications was determined using a questionnaire developed in our clinic and used in previous scientific studies. Quality of life, psychological state,  relation to disease were estimated. Follow-Up period was 1 year.ResultsThe awareness about lifestyle modifications in patients with CHF ranged from 38.9% (daily control of body weight) to 87.2% (reduced intake of dietary sodium). Adherence to lifestyle therapy was from 7.9% (daily weight control) to 37.9% (reduced intake of dietary sodium).      Charlson comorbidity index corrected by age  was 5.0±2.1 scores. Patients with high comorbidity (Charlson comorbidity index > 6 scores) had decreased of quality of life.  There were not differences in adherence to lifestyle therapy in patients with CHF, depending on the level of comorbidity. Nonadherence patients were characterized by sensitive type of relation to disease, emotional lability (p< 0,05).СonclusionNonadherence to lifestyle therapy in patients with CHF is associated with desadaptive type of relation to disease, which is more common in patients with high comorbidity.

The ESC ACCA EAPCI EORP acute coronary syndrome ST-elevation myocardial infarction registry

Aims 

The Acute Cardiac Care Association (ACCA)–European Association of Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (EAPCI) Registry on ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) of the EurObservational programme (EORP) of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) registry aimed to determine the current state of the use of reperfusion therapy in ESC member and ESC affiliated countries and the adherence to ESC STEMI guidelines in patients with STEMI.

Methods and results 

Between 1 January 2015 and 31 March 2018, a total of 11 462 patients admitted with an initial diagnosis of STEMI according to the 2012 ESC STEMI guidelines were enrolled. Individual patient data were collected across 196 centres and 29 countries. Among the centres, there were 136 percutaneous coronary intervention centres and 91 with cardiac surgery on-site. The majority of centres (129/196) were part of a STEMI network. The main objective of this study was to describe the demographic, clinical, and angiographic characteristics of patients with STEMI. Other objectives include to assess management patterns and in particular the current use of reperfusion therapies and to evaluate how recommendations of most recent STEMI European guidelines regarding reperfusion therapies and adjunctive pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments are adopted in clinical practice and how their application can impact on patients’ outcomes. Patients will be followed for 1 year after admission.

Conclusion 

The ESC ACCA-EAPCI EORP ACS STEMI registry is an international registry of care and outcomes of patients hospitalized with STEMI. It will provide insights into the contemporary patient profile, management patterns, and 1-year outcome of patients with STEMI.

Study of the GEM detector performance in BM@N experiment

BM@N is the fixed target experiment at the accelerator complex NICA-Nuclotron aimed to study nuclear matter in the relativistic heavy ion collisions. Triple-GEM detectors were identified as appropriate for the BM@N tracking system located inside the analyzing magnet. Seven GEM chambers are integrated into the BM@N experimental setup and data acquisition system. GEM construction, main characteristics and first obtained results of the GEM tracking system performance in the technical run with the deuteron beam are shortly reviewed.

Simulations of beam-matter interaction experiments at the CERN HiRadMat facility and prospects of high-energy-density physics research

In a recent publication [Schmidt et al., Phys. Plasmas 21, 080701 (2014)], we reported results on beam-target interaction experiments that have been carried out at the CERN HiRadMat (High Radiation to Materials) facility using extended solid copper cylindrical targets that were irradiated with a 440-GeV proton beam delivered by the Super Proton Synchrotron (SPS). On the one hand, these experiments confirmed the existence of hydrodynamic tunneling of the protons that leads to substantial increase in the range of the protons and the corresponding hadron shower in the target, a phenomenon predicted by our previous theoretical investigations [Tahir et al., Phys. Rev. ST Accel. Beams 25, 051003 (2012)]. On the other hand, these experiments demonstrated that the beam heated part of the target is severely damaged and is converted into different phases of high energy density (HED) matter, as suggested by our previous theoretical studies [Tahir et al., Phys. Rev. E 79, 046410 (2009)]. The latter confirms that the HiRadMat facility can be used to study HED physics. In the present paper, we give details of the numerical simulations carried out to understand the experimental measurements. These include the evolution of the physical parameters, for example, density, temperature, pressure, and the internal energy in the target, during and after the irradiation. This information is important in order to determine the region of the HED phase diagram that can be accessed in such experiments. These simulations have been done using the energy deposition code fluka and a two-dimensional hydrodynamic code, big2, iteratively.

Large Hadron Collider at CERN: Beams generating high-energy-density matter

This paper presents numerical simulations that have been carried out to study the thermodynamic and hydrodynamic responses of a solid copper cylindrical target that is facially irradiated along the axis by one of the two Large Hadron Collider (LHC) 7 TeV/ c proton beams. The energy deposition by protons in solid copper has been calculated using an established particle interaction and Monte Carlo code, FLUKA, which is capable of simulating all components of the particle cascades in matter, up to multi-TeV energies. These data have been used as input to a sophisticated two-dimensional hydrodynamic computer code BIG2 that has been employed to study this problem. The prime purpose of these investigations was to assess the damage caused to the equipment if the entire LHC beam is lost at a single place. The FLUKA calculations show that the energy of protons will be deposited in solid copper within about 1 m assuming constant material parameters. Nevertheless, our hydrodynamic simulations have shown that the energy deposition region will extend to a length of about 35 m over the beam duration. This is due to the fact that first few tens of bunches deposit sufficient energy that leads to high pressure that generates an outgoing radial shock wave. Shock propagation leads to continuous reduction in the density at the target center that allows the protons delivered in subsequent bunches to penetrate deeper and deeper into the target. This phenomenon has also been seen in case of heavy-ion heated targets [N. A. Tahir, A. Kozyreva, P. Spiller, D. H. H. Hoffmann, and A. Shutov, Phys. Rev. E 63, 036407 (2001)]. This effect needs to be considered in the design of a sacrificial beam stopper. These simulations have also shown that the target is severely damaged and is converted into a huge sample of high-energy density (HED) matter. In fact, the inner part of the target is transformed into a strongly coupled plasma with fairly uniform physical conditions. This work, therefore, has suggested an additional very important application of the LHC, namely, studies of HED states in matter.

Proposal for the study of thermophysical properties of high-energy-density matter using current and future heavy-ion accelerator facilities at GSI Darmstadt

The subject of high-energy-density (HED) states in matter is of considerable importance to numerous branches of basic as well as applied physics. Intense heavy-ion beams are an excellent tool to create large samples of HED matter in the laboratory with fairly uniform physical conditions. Gesellschaft für Schwerionenforschung, Darmstadt, is a unique worldwide laboratory that has a heavy-ion synchrotron, SIS18, that delivers intense beams of energetic heavy ions. Construction of a much more powerful synchrotron, SIS100, at the future international facility for antiprotons and ion research (FAIR) at Darmstadt will lead to an increase in beam intensity by 3 orders of magnitude compared to what is currently available. The purpose of this Letter is to investigate with the help of two-dimensional numerical simulations, the potential of the FAIR to carry out research in the field of HED states in matter.

The CERN Large Hadron Collider as a tool to study high-energy density matter

The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN will generate two extremely powerful 7 TeV proton beams. Each beam will consist of 2808 bunches with an intensity per bunch of 1.15x10(11) protons so that the total number of protons in one beam will be about 3x10(14) and the total energy will be 362 MJ. Each bunch will have a duration of 0.5 ns and two successive bunches will be separated by 25 ns, while the power distribution in the radial direction will be Gaussian with a standard deviation, sigma=0.2 mm. The total duration of the beam will be about 89 mus. Using a 2D hydrodynamic code, we have carried out numerical simulations of the thermodynamic and hydrodynamic response of a solid copper target that is irradiated with one of the LHC beams. These calculations show that only the first few hundred proton bunches will deposit a high specific energy of 400 kJ/g that will induce exotic states of high energy density in matter.

Necessity of bunch compression for heavy-ion-induced hydrodynamics and studies of beam fragmentation in solid targets at a proposed synchrotron facility

This paper presents two-dimensional numerical simulations of hydrodynamic response of a solid lead cylindrical target that is irradiated by an intense uranium beam having a particle energy of 1 GeV/u and that consists of 10(12) particles. Different time profiles have been considered for the beam power that include a case where the beam consists of five identical parabolic bunches with equal separation between neighboring bunches as well as a beam that consists of a single bunch. For the single bunch case we consider two different values for pulse length, namely, 1000 and 50 ns, respectively. Moreover we allow for two different values for the beam radius that is 0.5 and 1.0 mm, respectively. These calculations show that in order to achieve a high degree of beam-target coupling, it is absolutely essential to use a single bunched beam that has a reasonably short pulse length, which is 50 ns in this case. Such a large beam-target coupling efficiency is highly desirable for creating high-density strongly coupled plasmas as well as for studies that involve fragmentation of the projectile ions as the beam passes through solid matter. If the pulse length is assumed to be too long, substantial hydrodynamic expansion of the target material occurs during the early stages of irradiation that leads to significant reduction in the energy deposition by the ions that are delivered in the later part of the pulse. In case of the five-bunch configuration, heating caused by the first bunch is so strong that the target is completely distorted. As a result, the ions that are delivered in the later four bunches pass through the target without any interaction.

Metallization of hydrogen using heavy-ion-beam implosion of multilayered cylindrical targets

Employing a two-dimensional simulation model, this paper presents a suitable design for an experiment to study metallization of hydrogen in a heavy-ion beam imploded multilayered cylindrical target that contains a layer of frozen hydrogen. Such an experiment will be carried out at the upgraded heavy-ion synchrotron facility (SIS-18) at the Gesellschaft für Schwerionenforschung, Darmstadt by the end of the year 2001. In these calculations we consider a uranium beam that will be available at the upgraded SIS-18. Our calculations show that it may be possible to achieve theoretically predicted physical conditions necessary to create metallic hydrogen in such experiments. These include a density of about 1 g/cm(3), a pressure of 3-5 Mbar, and a temperature of a few 0.1 eV.

Equation-of-state properties of high-energy-density matter using intense heavy ion beams with an annular focal spot

This paper presents two-dimensional numerical simulations of the hydrodynamic response of solid as well as hollow cylindrical targets made of lead that are irradiated by an intense beam of uranium ions which has an annular focal spot. Using a particle tracking computer code, it has been shown that a plasma lens can generate such a beam with parameters used in the calculations presented in this paper. The total number of particles in the beam is 2x10(11) and the particle energy is about 200 MeV/u that means a total energy of approximately 1.5 kJ. This energy is delivered in a pulse that is 50 ns long. These beam parameters lead to a specific energy deposition of 50-100 kJ/g and a specific power deposition of 1-2 TW/g in solid matter. These calculations show that in case of the solid lead cylinder, it may be possible to achieve more than 4 times solid lead density along the cylinder axis at the time of maximum compression. The pressure in the compressed region is about 20 Mbar and the temperature is a few eV. In the case of a hollow cylinder, one also achieves the same degree of compression but now the temperature in the compressed region is much higher (over 10 eV). Such samples of highly compressed matter can be used to study the equation-of-state properties of high-energy-density matter. It is expected that by the end of the year 2001, after completion of the upgrade of the existing facilities, the above beam parameters will be available at the Gesellschaft fur Schwerionenforschung (GSI), Darmstadt. This will open up the possibility to carry out very interesting experiments on a number of important problems including the investigation of the EOS of high-energy-density matter.

The families of papain- and legumain-like cysteine proteinases from embryonic axes and cotyledons of Vicia seeds: developmental patterns, intracellular localization and functions in globulin proteolysis

Families of papain- and legumain-like cysteine proteinases (CPR) were found in Vicia seeds. cDNAs and antibodies were used to follow organ specificity and the developmental course of CPR-specific mRNAs and polypeptides. Four papain-like cysteine proteinases (CPR1, CPR2, proteinase A and CPR4) from vetch seeds (Vicia sativa L.) were analysed. CPR2 and its mRNA were already found in dry embryonic axes. CPR1 was only detected there during early germination. Both CPR1 and CPR2 strongly increased later during germination. In cotyledons, both CPR1 and CPR2 were only observed one to two days later than in the axis. Proteinase A was not found in axes. In cotyledons it could only be detected several days after seeds had germinated. CPR4 mRNA and polypeptide were already present in embryonic axes and cotyledons during seed maturation and decreased in both organs during germination. Purified CPR1, CPR2 and proteinase A exhibited partially different patterns of globulin degradation products in vitro. Although the cDNA-deduced amino acid sequence of the precursor of proteinase A has an N-terminal signal peptide, the enzyme was not found in vacuoles whereas the other papain-like CPRs showed vacuolar localization. Four different legumain-like cysteine proteinases (VsPB2, proteinase B, VnPB1 and VnPB2) of Vicia species were analysed. Proteinase B and VnPB1 mRNAs were detected in cotyledons and seedling organs after seeds had germinated. Proteinase B degraded globulins isolated from mature vetch seeds in vitro. VsPB2 and proteinase B are localized to protein bodies of maturing seeds and seedlings, respectively, of V. sativa. Like VsPB2 from V sativa, also VnPB2 of V. narbonensis corresponds to vacuolar processing enzymes (betaVPE). Based on these results different functions in molecular maturation and mobilization of storage proteins could be attributed to the various members of the CPR families.

Shock compression of condensed matter using intense beams of energetic heavy ions

In this paper is presented, with the help of sophisticated two-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations, a suitable design with optimized parameters for a heavy-ion beam-matter interaction experiment that will be carried out at the Gesellschaft fur Schwerionenforschung (GSI) Darmstadt by the end of the year 2001 when the upgrade of the existing accelerator facility will be completed. Our simulations show that this upgraded heavy-ion beam is capable of generating strong shocks in solid targets that compress the target material to supersolid densities and generate multi-mbar pressures. This will open up, at the GSI, the possibility of investigation of the equation-of-state properties of matter under such extreme conditions. Numerical simulations can predict the experimental results with reasonable accuracy, which is helpful in designing the diagnostic tools for the experiment.