Decreased renal expression of PAQR5 is associated with the absence of a nephroprotective effect of progesterone in a rat UUO model

Fibrosis is a severe complication of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Progesterone, like other sex hormones, plays an important role in renal physiology, but its role in CKD is poorly understood. We investigated progesterone effect on renal fibrosis progression in the rat model of unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO). Female rats were exposed to UUO, ovariectomy and progesterone administration after UUO with ovariectomy. Expression of key fibrosis markers, proinflammatory cytokines, levels of membrane-bound (PAQR5) and nuclear (PGR) progesterone receptors, and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) activity were analyzed in the obstructed and intact rat kidney. In all groups exposed to UUO, decreased PAQR5 expression was observed in the obstructed kidney while in the contralateral kidney, it remained unaffected. We found increased mRNA levels for profibrotic COL1A1, FN1, MMP2, TIMP1, TIMP2, proinflammatory IL1α, IL1β, and IL18, as well as elevated α-SMA and MMP9 proteins, collagen deposition, and MMP2 activity in all UUO kidneys. Progesterone had slight or no effect on the change in these markers. Thus, we demonstrate for the first time diminished sensitivity of the kidney to progesterone associated with renal fibrosis due to a severe decrease in PAQR5 expression that was accompanied by the lack of nephroprotection in a rat UUO model.

Topical Issues of Strategic Planning and Audit in Modern Russia

The article analyzes the state of strategic planning and audit in the Russian Federation. There is a low level of implementation of the country's main strategic documents, which is due to the insufficient realism of their goals. In turn, the shortcomings of strategic documents are largely a consequence of the lack of regulatory rulemaking and the closed nature of the procedure for their development. Strategic audit in Russia is still not effective enough, since the practical significance of the recommendations of the Accounts Chamber is not great-the problems it reveals cannot be eliminated at the stage of implementation of strategic documents, and it is actually excluded from participation in their development. Based on the results of the analysis, the authors formulate proposals on the areas of improving the procedures for strategic planning and audit.

How to Ensure Fiscal Sustainability in Russia

The COVID-19 pandemic and global economic crisis aggravated risks to long-term fiscal stability in Russia. The article analyzes why compliance with the fiscal rule prevents us from curbing these risks, and the way in which construction of this rule should be modified to improve its efficiency. It makes a strong case for system-based fiscal consolidation to enhance fiscal stability and presents options for optimization of spending and tax increases.

Non-steady-state photo-EMF interferometer for detection of mechanical oscillations in transparent scattering objects

The operation of an adaptive non-steady-state photo-electromagnetic field (EMF) sensor is studied in an interferometric arrangement including a diffuse scattering object-fiber optic plate. The mechanical oscillations of this plate induce the strains and stresses of the medium, which modulates the phase of the propagating light wave across the plate. The resonant frequencies of the mechanical system and the distribution of the phase modulation amplitude across the plate's surface are measured. The minimal detectable stress amplitude is estimated.

Visualization of oscillatory stresses in transparent media using a β-Ga2O3 adaptive detector

The phase-modulated optical signal produced by light propagation through stressed transparent media is detected using the non-steady-state photoelectromotive force technique. The mechanical system, including the glass plate and piezoelectric transducer, demonstrates resonant behavior in the vicinity of 100 kHz. The measured distribution of the optical phase is a bell-shaped surface for these frequencies. The simulation of the piezo-optic response shows qualitative coincidence with the experimental data and provides maps of the stress field. The characterization of the β-Ga₂O₃ adaptive detector is performed for the light wavelength λ=532  nm.

Detection of optical signals with high-amplitude phase modulation by adaptive photodetectors

Results of a detailed theoretical analysis on the detection of phase-modulated optical signals with an arbitrary modulation index (Delta >< 1) and modulation frequency (omega/omega(0) >< 1, where omega(0) is the characteristic cutoff frequency) by adaptive photodetectors that are based on photorefractive crystals and the nonsteady- state photo-electromotive force are presented. Besides general analytical results, numerical calculations of the output signal form and the amplitude and the phase of its first and second harmonics are given. The main predictions of the theoretical analysis are illustrated by the experimental data obtained for a high-sensitivity cubic photorefractive Bi(12)SiO(20) crystal at the wavelength (lambda = 488 nm) of an argon-ion laser.

Measuring vibration amplitudes in the picometer range using moving light gratings in photoconductive GaAs:Cr

We report the measurements of picometer vibration amplitudes produced by a piezo mirror in an interferometric setup, using a GaAs:Cr photoconductive device. The moving light fringes (gratings) induce in this new detector periodic photocurrents characterized by efficient suppression of the low-frequency drifts of the working point and low sensitivity to the amplitude laser noise. The optimum operation conditions of this system are also shown.