Latest Articles

This study investigates the effects of omaveloxolone, a Keap1 inhibitor, on mitochondrial network (MN) dynamics and cell survival under oxidative stress in control fibroblasts and fibroblasts from a Parkinson's disease patient with a PINK1 mutation. The PINK1-mutant fibroblasts showed increased sensitivity to hydrogen peroxide-induced stress. Omaveloxolone pre-treatment improved cell viability under stress conditions in both cell types. Under normal conditions, PINK1-mutant fibroblasts exhibited lower MN connectivity compared to control cells. Oxidative stress reduced MN density in both cell types, while omaveloxolone treatment normalized MN connectivity in PINK1-mutant cells and maintained higher MN connectivity under stress. Similar effects were observed for mitochondrial branch length. Omaveloxolone (50 nM) also increased mitophagy in both cell types under normal conditions. Our findings demonstrate that omaveloxolone exerts protective effects by maintaining mitochondrial dynamics and activating mitophagy. It enhances mitophagy under normal conditions and supports MN structure under oxidative stress, improving cell viability in both control and PINK1-mutant fibroblasts. These results highlight omaveloxolone's potential as a therapeutic agent for protecting cells in diseases associated with impaired mitochondrial dynamics, particularly Parkinson's disease linked to PINK1 mutations.

Introduction. Acute limb ischemia is a critical condition requiring immediate revascularization. The risk of complications is affected by age, coronary heart disease, chronic kidney disease, respiratory failure, diabetes mellitus, thrombosis etiology, urgency and duration of surgery. The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of the presented risk factors on the results of open revascularization for acute thrombosis in patients with acute COVID-19. Materials and methods. The results of open surgical treatment of acute limb ischemia of Rutherford class II in patients with acute COVID-19 (86 patients, group I) and 50 patients without COVID-19 (group II) were analyzed. Results. In-hospital mortality was 73.2% in group I and 12% in group II. Most deaths in group I were due to early rethrombosis. Risk factors - coronary heart disease, chronic kidney disease, diabetes mellitus, age >75 years had a greater negative impact in group I against the background of coronavirus infection. Conclusion. In patients in the acute stage of COVID-19, open revascularization is associated with a higher risk of complications and mortality in the early postoperative period relative to patients who underwent surgery without coronavirus infection. The impact of all the identified risk factors increases against the background of COVID-19, a statistically significant increase in the odds ratio of developing postoperative complications was found for such perioperative risk factors as: coronary heart disease, respiratory failure, polyvalent etiology of thrombosis and age over 75 years, among the intraoperative factors, the emergency nature of the operation and the duration of the surgical intervention are significant.

Сholelithiasis is a multifactorial process that is influenced by both environmental and genetic factors. Some evidence suggests that total plasma homocysteine correlates with the presence of gallstones, suggesting that hyperhomocysteinemia is a risk factor for cholelithiasis. The aim of this work was to analyze the association of polymorphic variants of the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase MTHFR (rs1801133 (677C > T), rs1801131 (1298A > C)) and methionine synthase reductase MTRR (rs1801394 (66A > G)) genes with the development of gallstone disease in individuals from the Republic of Bashkortostan. DNA samples from 196 patients with cholelithiasis and 274 healthy individuals aged 23-87 years living in the Republic of Bashkortostan were used as research material. Genotyping was performed using the real-time PCR method. It has been established that the rs1801133*T allele and the rs1801133*TT genotype of the MTHFR gene are markers of an increased risk of developing cholelithiasis. An association was established between the rs1801133*TT genotype of the rs1801133 polymorphic variant of the MTHFR gene and the moderate severity of cholelithiasis and hereditary burden in patients with cholelithiasis. A study of the polymorphic variant of the MTRR gene revealed that the rs1801394*G allele increases the risk of cholelithiasis. Analysis of associations of the polymorphism rs1801131 of the MTHFR gene with the development of cholelithiasis did not reveal statistically significant differences between the compared groups of patients and controls. Determination of homocysteine levels and genetic testing of MTHFR and MTRR polymorphisms in patients with cholelithiasis may be useful in clinical practice.

The study of the severity and consequences of infectious diseases is a relevant subject of research throughout the world, which was directly demonstrated by the situation with the 2020-2023 coronavirus pandemic. In our study, we analyzed a distribution of genotypes and alleles frequency of polymorphic variants of the IL6 rs1800795, TNFA rs1800629 and LZTFL1 rs10490770 gene polymorphisms, which were previously linked to the pathogenesis of COVID-19, in populations of Burzyan Bashkirs, Sterlibashevsky Bashkirs, Permsky Bashkirs, Kazan Tatars, Chuvash, Udmurts, Mari, Komi and Mordvins. Statistically significant differences were identified in the IL6 rs1800795 between the populations of the Burzyan Bashkirs and the Mari and Komi (p < 0.05). The Sterlibashevsky Bashkirs, Permsky Bashkirs and Udmurts also statistically significantly differed from the Komi population (p < 0.05). When studying the TNFA rs1800629, statistically significant differences were identified between the populations of Sterlibashevsky and Permsky Bashkirs and the Udmurts population (p < 0.05). Analysis of the LZTFL1 rs10490770 revealed statistically significant differences only between the Udmurt and Mari populations (p < 0.05). The data indicate that despite the geographic proximity of the examined populations of the Volga-Ural region, they were able to preserve the uniqueness of their gene pool.