Histological modifications of the rat prostate following oral administration of silver nanoparticles

Background and aims: Recently, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have received much attention for their possible usage in various fields. This study examined the effect of AgNPs on the histopathological changes in the prostate of rats. Methods: In this study, 40 male adult Wistar rats were divided into five equal groups (n=8 in each group). AgNPs were given orally to the four experimental groups at doses of 30, 125, 300, and 700 mg/kg for 28 consecutive days. The control group received deionized water. After performing hematoxylin and eosin (H & E) staining and Masson’s trichrome staining, the histological changes in the prostate of rats were evaluated. Results: Histological evaluation showed that the acinar epithelial height and alveolar folds decreased, but vacuoles in the epithelial cells and accumulation of blood vessel increased in the groups treated with AgNPs at doses of 30 and 125 mg/kg. The collagen content also increased significantly in these groups (30 mg/kg: P=0.03 and 125 mg/kg: P=0.002). Furthermore, the groups treated with AgNPs at doses of 300 and 700 mg/kg showed relative normalization acini and epithelial lining and the amount of their content. Conclusion: According to the results of current study, oral administration of AgNPs for 28 days had effects on prostate, indicating the toxicity of AgNPs.

ОЦІНЮВАННЯ РИЗИКУ ВИКОРИСТАННЯ БАНКІВ З МЕТОЮ ЛЕГАЛІЗАЦІЇ КРИМІНАЛЬНИХ ДОХОДІВ НА ОСНОВІ ГРАВІТАЦІЙНОГО МОДЕЛЮВАННЯ

The article is stressed on a method for assessing the risk of using banks for money laundering based on gravity modeling. Stimulatory factors are reduced to a comparable form by applying relative normalization. The priority of factors is determined using the principal components method. It is determined an integration indicator of a quantitative assessment of a country's rating concerning the characteristics of determining the level of money laundering risk by using Minkowski's metrics. It is built an economic-mathematical model for estimating the risk of money laundering based on the equation of the law of gravitational gravity and gravitational force in social phenomena. It is proved the expediency of application of the developed methodology in the decision of actual questions connected with reduction of risks for the country from the side of money laundering which serves as a basis for perfection of economic policy standards of the state concerning the strengthening of national economic security.

Guns, identity, and nationhood

The article provides a theoretical perspective on the symbolic meaning of the right to bear arms in modern America, especially among its conservative movement. Neglecting this issue, scholarship on gun symbolism has commonly focused on guns possessed by offenders in inner-cities, such as juveniles or gang members. Offering a multidisciplinary and comparative outlook, the article explains how guns have become symbols of a worldview under which armed patriots must stand ready to defend America from “tyranny,” “big government,” “socialism,” and other existential threats. In particular, the U.S. conservative movement does not merely perceive the right to bear arms as a means of self-defense against criminals, but as a safeguard against an oppressive government that “patriots” may have to overthrow by force. The article examines the hypothesis that guns foster a sense of belonging in this conception of nationhood. This worldview is not solely limited to politicians, elites, or activists, as it can encompass rank-and-file conservatives. Group identification can rest on sharing radical beliefs that enhance cohesion, including rallying against perceived threats. This mindset helps explain resistance to elementary reforms to regulate firearms. If one believes that an unbridled right to bear arms is not only key to protecting the United States, but also key to what it means to be an American, concessions on gun control become difficult to envision. While conservatives in other Western democracies tend to support significant gun control, a key dimension of American exceptionalism is the relative normalization of a conservative identity in which firearms have acquired a peculiar symbolic value.

HISTOLOGICAL AND MORPHOMETRIC CHANGES OF THE RAT TESTES AFTER EXPERIMENTAL THERMAL INJURY AND APPLICATION OF XENODERMAL SUBSTRATE

The aim of this work was to establish the histological and morphometric changes of the structural components of the rat testes after experimental thermal trauma and under condition of correction. Object and methods. The study was performed on 48 sexually mature outbred white male rats following the rules of bioethics. The experimental animals were divided into three groups: intact; with severe thermal trauma; with burn injury and application of xenodermal substrate after early necrectomy of the damaged tissues. Results and discussion. Already on the 7th day after application of xenodermal substrate the processes of reparative regeneration of hemocapillaries is activated, the degree of vascular disorders and damages of the structural components of the testes are decreased, and regenerative processes are activated. The percentage of significantly altered seminiferous tubules is 1.90-fold lower than in animals without correction. In the later stages of the experiment, the usage of the xenodermal substrate contributes to an active flow of regenerative processes and a relative normalization of all the structural components of the testes. Morphometric indicators of mean values of diameter and area of convoluted tubes on the 21th day were significantly (p<0.001) higher by 1.39 times and 2.00 times relative to the indicators in the group of animals without correction. Areas with unchanged histostructure are dominated in the testes at this term. The percentage of significantly altered tubules was 10.58 times lower than the corresponding value in animals with burn injury without correction. Conclusions. Thus, the application of a xenodermal substrate on a wound formed after necrectomy of thermally damaged areas was found to contribute to a significant reduction of vascular disorders and destructive changes of spermatogenic cells. Better state of intracellular components and activation of regeneration contribute to a relative normalization of the testicular structure and morphometric indices in the later terms of the experiment.

21. Israeli–Egyptian (in)security

This chapter examines the Yom Kippur War of 1973 from a foreign policy perspective. It first provides a background on the Arab–Israeli Conflict that began in 1948 with the War of Independence, followed by the Suez Conflict in 1956 and the Six-Day War in 1967, and culminated in the Yom Kippur War. It then considers the Egyptian build-up to war in 1973 and why Egypt attacked Israel, as well as the peace process that eventually settled the conflict between the two countries via the Camp David Accords. It also analyses the relative normalization of the Egyptian–Israeli relations and the effective breaking of Egypt’s alliance with other Arab states opposed to the existence of Israel. It concludes with an assessment of the aftermath of the Yom Kippur War and the rapprochement between Egypt and Israel.

Autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplantation reduces abnormalities in the expression of immune genes in multiple sclerosis

This study shows that autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplantation applied for treatment of multiple sclerosis induces a relative normalization of the expression of immune genes in T-cells from the patients, suggesting a ‘reset’ of adaptive cellular immunity.

Motor Faults Detection Based on Vector Transformation and Amplitude Demodulation

A method to analyze and detect the features of rotor and stator asymmetric faults for AC motor is put forward in this paper. After modeling the damaged asynchronous motor, stator’s three-phase current signals of the motor at normal status, as well as that with stator and rotor bar asymmetric faults, are simulated and analyzed qualitatively. In view of the shortcomings of Park’s vector transformation in the analyzing motor current signature, a method is put forward by combining it with signal amplitude demodulation. Based on this new method, the asymmetric features are expected to be extracted completely through the amplitude relative normalization and spectrum analysis. Finally, the availability of this method is verified by detecting and diagnosing the faults in actual AC motors.