Psoriasis is a common, chronic, hyperproliferative, inflammatory skin disease occurring in most ethnic groups in the world. The disease is hereditary but the process of its inheritance is complex and still not fully understood. At the same time, it has been observed that psoriatic lesions may be triggered by certain prooxidative external factors: using narcotics, smoking, drinking alcohol, physical and mental stress, as well as bacterial infections and injury. Since the main physiological marker of psoriasis relates to disorders in the organism’s antioxidative system, it is necessary to develop a well-balanced combination of pharmaceuticals and dietary antioxidants to facilitate the effective treatment and/or prevention of the disease. The dietary sources of antioxidants must be adequate for chronic use regardless of the patient’s age and be easily available, e.g., as ingredients of regular food or dietary supplements. Diet manipulation is a promising therapeutic approach in the context of modulating the incidence of chronic diseases. Another potentially viable method entails the use of nutrigenomics, which guarantees a multiaspectual approach to the problem, including, in particular, analyses of the genetic profiles of psoriasis patients with the view to more accurately targeting key problems. The present paper pertains to the significance of redox equilibrium in the context of psoriasis. Based on information published in worldwide literature over the last decade, the impact of dietary exogenous antioxidants on the course of this chronic disease was analysed.

The testate amoebae communities living among different species of mosses in Sphagnum peatlands in eastern Poland were studied. Sampling was done on a monthly basis from April to November 2005-2007. To assess the importance of the vertical distribution of testate amoebae within the mosses, each sample was cut into two parts: the upper living part (1-5 cm) and the lower dead part (5-10 cm). The highest species richness occurred in hollows dominated by Sphagnum angustifolium, Sphagnum flexuosum and Sphagnum palustre. Lower numbers of taxa were observed in hummocks dominated by Sphagnum magellanicum, Polytrichum strictum and Polytrichum commune. There was a distinct horizontal micro-zonation of the abundance of testate amoebae occurring among Sphagnum mosses, but only a small difference ascertained among Polytrichum. The number of testate amoebae was significantly greater in the deeper samples. The results demonstrated that depth to water table, pH and total organic carbon can strongly regulate the abundance and taxonomic composition of testate amoebae.

There are hardly any data concerning the vertical micro−distribution of protozoa in water column in cryoconite holes on the glacier surface. Such comparisons can provide in− sights into the ecology of protozoa. The present research wasmade on Ecology Glacier (South Shetland Islands, Antarctic); vertical microzonation of ciliates in relation to physical and chemical parameters in cryoconite holes was studied. The density and biomass of protozoans significantly differed between the studied stations (cryoconite holes), with the lowest num− bers in the surface water and the highest in the bottom water. The surface waters were domi− nated by mixotrophic and omnivorous taxa,whereas the deepest sampling level has shown the increase of the proportion of bacterivore species. Ordination analysis indicated that TN and P−PO4 can strongly regulate the abundance and species composition of protozoa. The redun− dancy analyses (RDA) showed that the ciliate communities can be separated into two groups. The first group included species associated with surface water: Halteria grandinella and Codonella sp. The second group included species that are associated with bottom water: Prorodon sp., Holosticha pullaster, Stylonychia mytilus−complex and small scuticociliates.

Microbial communities living in mosses are known to constitute early indicators of ecosystem disturbances, but little is known about their response to environmental factors in the Antarctic area. This paper presents the first major study on testate amoebae from different species of mosses occurring on King George Island (Antarctica). The objective of the study was to investigate the structure and spatial distribution of moss-dwelling testate amoebae communities and to identify the environmental factors determining the structure of their assemblages. Additionally, we compared moss-dwelling testate amoebae communities on King George Island with other isolated islands of the Antarctic. Samples were collected from different species of mosses (Polytrichastrum alpinum, Sanionia georgico-uncinata, Sanionia uncinata, and Brachythecium austrosalebrosum). Sampling was carried out three times from 17 January to 24 February 2012. The species richness and abundance of protozoa differed significantly between the stations studied with the lowest count found in Polytrichastrum and the highest in Sanionia. The total population of testate amoebae was dominated by small taxa recognised as cosmopolitan, also recorded on other islands of the maritime Antarctic. The RDA analysis showed that all variables together accounted for 84.5 % of the total variance. However, variables that significantly explained the variance in testate amoebae communities were moisture, temperature, pH, and dissolved oxygen. Further research is required to explain the impact of biotic factors influencing the presence of testate amoebae, including the abundance of bacteria, microalgae, and small metazoa.