UDC: 61:612.4:615.9.616.4:616-09

Snakebite envenoming is a common but neglected public health problem worldwide, especially in tropical countries. Annual mortality as a result of snakebites exceeds 138,000. It is believed that this problem is underestimated, and in many countries, individual cases of bites are not subject to proper fixation. The purpose of the study is the analytical and quantitative assessment of the structural components of the rats' adrenal glands under exposure to the venom of Vipers Vipera berus berus and Vipera berus nikolskii. Experimental studies were carried out on white, non-linear male rats. Vipera berus berus and Vipera berus nikolskii viper venom were obtained from V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University. The freeze-dried native venom was stored at
-20 °C and dissolved in saline immediately before the experiment. The animals were divided into three groups (control and 2 experimental groups) of 10 individuals each. Experimental rats were injected intraperitoneally in a physiological solution with a semi-lethal dose (LD50) (1.576 mg/g-1) of Vipera berus berus and Vipera berus nikolskii venoms. Animals of the control group were injected intraperitoneally with only a physiological solution. Rats were removed from the experiment 24 hours after exposure to the poison and anesthetised by cervical dislocation. Statistical analysis of the area
of the microcirculatory channel and the nuclear-cytoplasmic index was performed using Fiji: ImageJ program and processed in Excel. Administration of the venom of the vipers Vipera berus berus and Vipera berus nikolskii to rats was accompanied by a significant increase in the area of the microcirculatory bed relative to the control group (2.9 times for Vipera berus berus and 6.5 times for Vipera berus nikolskii). Exposure to Vipera berus berus viper venom was associated with a significant decrease in the nuclearcytoplasmic index in rats of the experimental group compared to the control group (13 % and 42 %, respectively), which is evidence of a decrease in the area of the nuclei of endocrinocytes of the adrenal cortex. This indicator in rats under the administration of Vipera berus nikolskii venom was even lower and amounted to 12 %. According to the statistical analysis of the quantitative assessment of the state of the cortical substance of the adrenal glands, it is worth noting the similar effect of the poisons of both types of snakes at the cellular level. At the same time, at the tissue level, the effect of Vipera berus nikolskii venom is more pronounced than that of Vipera berus berus - this is evidenced by the higher degree of disruption of the structure of the hemomicrocirculatory channel in the adrenal cortex of animals from the group that was affected by this venom. It led to an increase in the area of vessels due to their expansion and ruptures of their walls and haemorrhages into the surrounding parenchyma and stroma.

Over the last decade, there has been an increase in illegal drug use and uncontrolled opioid abuse in patients with chronic pain, which is associated with unintentional trauma and is a major risk factor for tolerance and withdrawal, leading to overdose and death [1-5]. The attention of scientists in various fields of medicine is focused on the study of changes in organs and systems under the influence of drugs, in particular, both in clinical and experimental
areas [6-9]. In clinical studies it is indicated that when exposed to opioids there are signs of immunosuppression, which cause an increased risk of infectious diseases and the development of inflammation [5, 10, 11]. Toxic effects of drugs are manifested in all organs and systems, which
may have an indirect or direct effect on the organs of the oral cavity [6, 12-15]. The question of the role of bacterial flora in the etiology and initiation of periodontal disease is certainly actively studied as the improvement of microbiological methods and the accumulation of research results [16-19]. Today,
one of the main hypotheses remains that dental plaque microorganisms are a determining factor in the development and progression of the inflammatory process in the periodontium, which provoke the inflammatory process and directly affect the microbial status of the oral cavity [20- 23].There is also evidence that the role of microorganisms in the development of periodontitis is unclear, although some bacterial pathogens alone or as part of microbial groups may be particularly important [24]. Therefore, in order to prevent the development of periodontal disease and the occurrence of infectious foci in the oral cavity caused by bacterial biopellicle, it is important to determine the etiology and pathogenesis of this pathology in experimental animal models in order to further extrapolate these data to the clinic [25]. However, the relationship between the species and quantitative composition of the microbiota of tooth surface in the gingival margin and the development and progression of inflammation in the gingival mucosa under action of the opioid are controversial and needs further study using modern methods of microbiological research in the experiment.

З початком агресивної російсько-української війни в Україні зросли негативні чинники, що призводять до загострення паразитарної ситуації. Антропогенний вплив багатофакторний і пов’язаний з масивним забрудненням навколишнього середовища, зміною клімату, соціально-економічними процесами – урбанізацією, міграцією населення, погіршенням санітарних умов проживання людей, утримання тварин.
Мета: проаналізувати характер і структуру паразитарних інвазій за 2022, 2023 роки у Львівській області за даними результатів лабораторних досліджень приватного підприємства «МОТАЛАБ».

UDC 618.11-007.1

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), an endocrine and metabolic disorder in women of reproductive age, is characterized by high androgen levels, irregular periods, and small cysts in the ovaries. PCOS affects approximately 10 % of reproductive age women of all races and ethnicities. PCOS has been recognized to affect women of reproductive age since antiquity and in the 21st century, it emerges as the most widespread and serious reproductive metabolic disorder in the world. PCOS is a multifactorial disorder that affects both the reproductive and metabolic health of women. In addition, PCOS is a leading symptom of infertility in women. Nevertheless, women with PCOS who become pregnant unfortunately have an increased risk of complications, such as gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), preterm birth. Many people believe GDM disappears after childbirth, despite the fact that GDM is a warning symptom of type 2 diabetes mellitus, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease. According to growing evidence, GDM complicates 40 % of PCOS pregnancies, suggesting that PCOS is a risk factor for GDM. Hence, PCOS is a lifelong disorder that can eventually lead to various long-term health complications, including chronic menstrual irregularity, infertility, endometrial hyperplasia, and endometrial cancer. Thus, it’s a scientific fact that both PCOS and GDM are significantly associated with each other. However, most studies on the risk of GDM in PCOS patients are retrospective. Therefore, there is no strong evidence whether PCOS is a risk factor for GDM or any other related factor. PCOS, a polygenic endocrinopathy, is in a true sense a set of diseases that worsen the state of the body. Reproductive and metabolic disorders associated with PCOS cause several clinical symptoms, such as irregular and painful periods, hirsutism, acanthosis nigricans, acne, psoriasis, anxiety, mood swings, patterned baldness, cardiovascular problems, type 2 diabetes, infertility, pelvic pain, low libido, low self-esteem, etc. Further studies are needed to understand the genetic and epigenetic contributions of PCOS, PCOS-related comorbidities, the role of placenta in nutrient availability, and influence of medications that may affect the long-term offspring health.

UDC: 616.311.2+616.314.17):615.212.7]-019-076

Opioid addiction has acquired the characteristics of an epidemic in recent years and is a serious problem in modern medicine. In users of narcotic substances, a significant prevalence of diseases of the oral cavity and periodontal tissues is noted in comparison with the general population. The aim of the work was to investigate the ultrastructural organization of the periodontal tissues of rats at the end of the fourteenth week of the experimental opioid effect. The animals were administered intramuscularly, daily, once, the opioid analgesic nalbuphine (pharmacotherapeutic group: analgesics, opioids, morphinan derivatives) in increasing doses for 14 weeks: 1-2 weeks - 0.212 mg/kg, 3-4 weeks - 0.225 mg/kg, 5-6 weeks - 0.252 mg/kg, 7-8 weeks - 0.260 mg/kg, 9-10 weeks - 0.283 mg/kg; 11-12 - 0.300 mg/kg, 13-14 weeks - 0.450 mg/kg. At the end of the fourteenth week of opioid exposure, ultrastructural changes in the epithelium of the mucous membrane of the gums, periodontium, and hemomicrovessels with the development of decompensation and pronounced dystrophic-destructive changes were established. With the long-term effect of an opioid analgesic, signs of karyorrhexis, segregation of nucleoli, spongiosis, apoptosis, violation of the integrity of intercellular contacts, as well as vacuole-like formations, which were a manifestation of focal necrosis of epitheliocytes, were revealed. The development of necrotic changes was caused by significant damage and destruction of organelles, as well as fragmentation or lysis of bundles of tonofilaments. The intercellular spaces were mostly expanded and uneven, which was caused by edematous phenomena. Fragmentation and destruction of periodontal collagen fibers, destructive changes in fibrocytes and fibroblasts were found in the periodontium. The translucency of the amorphous component of the intercellular substance of the connective tissue was determined. The ultrastructural reorganization of the cellular components of the periodontium was caused by vascular disorders of a systemic nature, which were manifested by the phenomena of dilatation, hemoptysis, sludge phenomenon, dystrophic changes in the endotheliocytes of hemocapillaries and venules, and the progression of sclerotic changes, which significantly disturbed the trophism of the periodontal tissues of rats.