Том 7, № 4 (2017)

The main extracellular matrix (EM) components in Arctic residents were studied. Northerners had increased levels of total glycosaminoglycans, hyaluronan, and collagen IV in plasma and both general and peptide-bound hydroxyproline in urine, which indicates an accelerated metabolism of the main extracellular matrix components as compared with residents of Western Siberia. Age-related remodeling of the extracellular matrix in northerners manifested in the changed ratio and quantity of its main components. Levels of total glycosaminoglycans, hyaluronan, fibronectin, and hydroxyproline and its fractions increased with age while the level of collagen IV changed insignificantly. The average positive correlation between extracellular matrix components and biological age indicators is suggestive of a relationship between these two processes: aging, which is accelerated on the European North, and pathological remodeling of the extracellular matrix, as it is associated with accelerated aging. Changes in local regulation system, including those related to matrix metalloproteinases and their tissue inhibitors, may be one of the reasons for pathological remodeling of extracellular matrix.

The neurochemical composition of the metasympathetic nervous system is characterized by large variation. The majority of ganglionic neurons in metasympathetic system is cholinergic. Along with cholinergic neurons, there are neurons detected in the intramural ganglia containing serotonin, histamine, GABA, and several peptides: cholecystokinin, dynorphin, enkephalins, galanin, gastrin-releasing peptide (bombesin in mammals), neuropeptide Y, neurotensin, somatostatin, tachykinins, neurokinin A, vasoactive intestinal polypeptide, and calcitonin gene-related peptide. Gas molecules such as NO, CO, and H₂S also act as neurotransmitters. Separate groups of neurons differ in the content of neuronal calcium-binding proteins, such as calbindin, calretinin and parvalbumin, and of neurofilaments: those of low, medium, and high molecular weight. Neurons of the gastrointestinal ganglia are the most diverse in their neurochemistry. There is species specificity: there are more combinations of chemical mediators in the ganglia of large animals and humans. The synthesis of main neurotransmitters takes place already in embryonic period, and most neurons contain acetylcholine by the time of birth. In postnatal ontogenesis in intramural gastrointestinal and cardiac ganglia, the fraction of neurons expressing NO-synthase decreases. The functional meaning of such changes remains unclear.

The goal of this research was to study the content of lamin B receptors in human dermal fibroblasts during different age periods (from a 20-week pregnancy to the age of 85) in correlation with their proliferative activity. Lamin B receptors and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) were identified in skin sections by indirect immunohistochemistry. Our results have shown that an increase in the share of fibroblasts with positive staining for the lamin B receptors and an increase in the expression level of lamin B receptors in fibroblast nuclei are observed during the period from age zero to 20 years of age as compared with other age periods. The total fibroblast count, including positively PCNA-stained dermal fibroblasts, decreased most significantly from the age of 20. The increase in the content of lamin B receptors in dermal fibroblasts, which is observed from birth until the age of 20, can be considered one of the triggering moments leading to the agedependent decrease in counts of human dermal fibroblasts.

A comparative examination of 100 patients of different ages suffering from disorders of micturition, erectile function, and pelvic pain identified age-related peculiarities of these pathological manifestations. Irritative disorders of urination were detected significantly more frequently among persons of young and middle age than the elderly, and obstructive-related disorders were more frequent in the elderly. In elderly and senile ages, a reduced contractility of the detrusor was more prevalent, and an increased tone of striated sphincter of the urethra and bladder hyperactivity was more prevalent at a younger age. A long-existing spasm of some muscle formations of the lumbar, pelvic, and femoral regions has been shown to participate in the genesis of urinary symptoms, erectile dysfunction, and pelvic pain. A high effectiveness against disorders of micturition, erectile function, and pelvic pain was achieved, regardless of the age of the patients, with manual therapy, physiotherapy, and botulinum therapy. It is recommended for the diagnosis of urological pathology to involve specialists in the field of neurology and manual therapy. In cases of diagnosis of muscular-tonic disorders not etiologically associated with pathological processes in the organs of the urogenital system, it is recommended to include methods such as manual therapy, physiotherapy, and botulinum therapy in the complex of therapeutic measures.

The effect of a pineal gland polypeptide complex, Pineamin, on urine excretion of 6-sulfatoxymelatonin (6-SOMT) was investigated by immunoenzyme assay in 55 elderly patients with decreased melatonin formation. Pineamin at a dose of 100 mg increased the level of 6-SOMT excretion in overnight urine by 1.9 times in comparison with the respective indicator before the treatment. A similar effect was previously obtained upon the administration of Epitalamin, which also facilitated the restoration of melatonin synthesis in human and animal pineal glands affected by aging. Hence, Pineamin and Epitalamin exhibit a one-directional stimulating property with respect to the melatonin-forming function of the pineal gland in elderly people.

The present study analyzes the frequency (prevalence rates) of vertebral pain syndrome (VPS) in 2844 women aged 40–89 years divided into groups based on the reproductive, perimenopausal and postmenopausal (PMP) stages of life and evaluates the relationship between the VPS rates and scores of bone mineral density (BMD). The overall VPS rates range from 84.1 to 94.4% throughout the different physiological stages of woman’s life, with a statistically significant increase in the PMP stage of 20 years duration or longer when compared with the reproductive and early postmenopausal stages. Significant growth of the VPS rates in the thoracic and lumbar regions of spine begins in the first to third years of PMP period (stage); the frequency remains high throughout all subsequent periods of PMP. Postmenopausal women are found to demonstrate a significant increase in the relative risk of developing VPS in the thoracic (1.3- to 1.4-fold) and lumbar (1.2- to 1.3-fold that) regions of the spine. Patients with osteoporosis in 1–3 years of PMP duration display significantly higher rates of VPS in the thoracic spine than women with osteopenia, while patients with 7–9 years of PMP duration have significantly increased rates as compared with groups that include osteopenia and norms. In patients with osteoporosis and no history of vertebral fractures, the VPS prevalence rates in the thoracic spine significantly increase in PMP periods of 4–6 and 7–9 years duration as compared with women in the reproductive stage, as well as in women with normal BMD scores. The identified VPS patterns can be of value in the planning of therapeutic interventions in women of senior age groups.