Vol 18, No 2 (2013)

The majority of HIV-1 infections in women transmit through vaginal intercourse, in which virus-containing semen is deposited on the cervico-vaginal mucosa. Semen is more than a mere carrier of HIV-1, since it contains many biological factors, in particular cytokines, that may affect HIV-1 transmission. The concentration of interleukin (IL)-7, one of the most prominent cytokines in semen of healthy individuals, is further increased in semen of HIV-1-infected men. Here, we investigated the potential role of IL-7 in HIV-1 vaginal transmission in an ex vivo system of human cervico-vaginal tissue. We simulated an in vivo situation by depositing HIV-1 on cervico-vaginal tissue in combination with IL-7 at concentrations comparable with those measured in semen of HIV-1-infected individuals. We found that IL-7 significantly enhanced virus replication in ex vivo infected cervico-vaginal tissue. Similarly, we observed an enhancement of HIV-1 replication in lymphoid tissue explants. Analysis of T cells isolated from infected tissues showed that IL-7 reduced CD4+ T cell depletion preventing apoptosis, as shown by the decrease in the number of cells expressing the apoptotic marker APO2.7 and the increase in the expression of the anti-apoptotic protein B-cell lymphoma (Bcl)-2. Also, IL-7 increased the fraction of cycling CD4+ T cells, as evidenced by staining for the nuclear factor Ki-67. High levels of seminal IL-7 in vivo may be relevant to the survival of the founder pool of HIV-1-infected cells in the cervico-vaginal mucosa at the initial stage of infection, promoting local expansion and dissemination of HIV infection.

The prognostic significance of characteristics of patients (gender, age, infectious dose, the presence of habitual intoxication) and of the virus (replicative activity, genotype, viral load, viral kinetics) in the natural course of HCV infection and the probability of achieving sustained virologic response (SVR) as a result of antiviral therapy (AVT ) were studied. The natural course of chronic hepatitis C (CHC) infection in 100 patients and the effectiveness of AVT in 68 CHC patients have been analyzed. The factors that determine the unfavorable course of CHC (male gender, age at the moment of infection older than 30 years, infection through a hemotransfusion or drug use, the presence of habitual intoxications, virus 3a genotype, and the presence of a/HCV NS3 and a/HCV NS5). The factors that determine a high probability of achieving SVR are detected. In this case the treatment by AVT, regardless of the prognosis of the natural course of HCV is recommended

In the given article the analysis of an epidemiological situation concerning chronic forms of HCV infections in adults in the Kirov region in 1995-2010 is presented. In the region during analyzed period stable trend to the elevation of incidence of chronic hepatitis C and a slight decrease in the number of "carriers" of HCV on the background of steadily low indices of the occurrence of acute hepatitis C have been fixed. There are also presented the results of genotyping of HCV-virus in 730 patients with chronic hepatitis C treated at the Kirov Region infectious hospital and polyclinics in Kirov with the dominance of HCV subtypes 1b and 3a .

Diseases caused by several species of arthropods are rare diseases in Europe. Very few cases of these diseases have been reported in the literature. It is widespread in the tropics and subtropics of Africa and the Americas, and occurs with significantly less frequency in most other areas of the world. They are defined by the development of parasitic, mostly tropical maggots and sand fleas in the human body. The infestation of body tissues by the larvae of flies, sand fleas and moth caterpillars, occurs infrequently in Russian tourists who return from areas where certain species are endemic. As travel to endemic regions becomes more common, physicians are increasingly confronted with cases of diseases caused by arthropods. They may be unfamiliar with this parasitic infection; thus, misdiagnosis and inappropriate treatment regimens are not infrequent. Greater awareness about clinical symptoms and relevant exposure histories would improve the expediency and efficacy of treatment for patients with diseases caused by arthropods. Cutaneous myiasis is a worthy differential diagnosis in patients presenting with furunculoid skin lesions after traveling to endemic areas. Treatment consists in the elimination of the larvae in the infected tissue and disinfection of the wound

В краевой патологии Республики Башкортостан геморрагическая лихорадка с почечным синдромом занимает ведущее место среди всех природно-очаговых заболеваний. В работе описан комплекс мер неспецифической профилактики, проводимый на территории Республики Башкортостан. Отмечено, что ведущее место в комплексе профилактических мер занимает истребление грызунов.