Type 2 diabetes (DM2) could be reproduced in rats with alimentary obesity by using low doses of streptozotocin (LD-STZ) as well as STZ in high doses with preliminary nicotinamide (NA) administration. However, STZ could induce tubulotoxicity.Aim. To develop rat model of DN in NA-STZ-induced DM2 and compare it with LD-STZ-model in order to choose the most relevant approach for reproducing renal glomerular and tubular morphofunctional diabetic changes. Starting at 3 weeks after uninephrectomy, adult male Wistar rats were fed five-week high-fat diet and then received intraperitoneally either LD-STZ (40 mg/kg) or NA (230 mg/kg) followed by STZ (65 mg/kg). Control uninephrectomized vehicle-injected rats received normal chow. At weeks 10, 20, and 30 (the end of the study), metabolic parameters, creatinine clearance, albuminuria, and urinary tubular injury markers (NGAL, KIM-1) were evaluated as well as renal ultrastructural and light microscopic changes at weeks 20 and 30. NA-STZ-group showed higher reproducibility and stability of metabolic parameters. By week 10, in NA-STZ-group NGAL level was significantly lower compared to LD-STZ-group. By week 30, diabetic groups showed early features of DN. However, morphofunctional changes in NA-STZ-group appeared to be more pronounced than those in STZ-group despite lower levels of KIM-1 and NGAL. We proposed a new rat model of DM2 with DN characterized by stable metabolic disorders, typical renal lesions, and lower levels of tubular injury markers as compared to LD-STZ-induced diabetes.

Among existing genetic and non-genetic models of obesity, the most widely used are the models of diet-induced obesity in rodents due to their relatively easy reproducibility and similarities to human pathogenesis of obesity. Within this review, we provide the analysis of diet-induced obesity models in rats, highlight attractive strengths as well as disadvantages of high-fat diets, fat or sugar choice diets, “cafeteria diets”, and “western diet”. Potential obesogenic mechanisms of the discussed models are analyzed. The directions of further studies required for an increase in reproducibility of experimental diet-induced obesity are proposed.

Cardiovascular diseases and obesity are related medical and social problems. However, some obese people remain free of cardiovascular disease for long periods of time, and the concept of obesity phenotypes that differ in cardiovascular risk has been actively studied. Currently, there are no generally accepted diagnostic criteria for them, and the mechanisms underlying their formation remain unclear. The purpose of this article is to discuss the literature data on obesity phenotypes, their relationship with cardiovascular diseases and mortality, as well as the place of obesity in the domestic algorithm for diagnosing stable coronary heart disease.

Spina bifida is a developmental defect of the spinal cord and / or spine that results from abnormal closure of the embryonic neural tube. Many factors have been described to determine the risks of developing this pathology, but the incidence of the defect is still high. 61 % of patients with Spina bifida have neurogenic bladder dysfunction based on intravesical hypertension, which contributes to reverse urethral flow and bladder-uretero-renal reflux associated with chronic inflammatory and obstructive urinary tract disease. In 25–50 % of patients with Spina bifida, urological pathology is complicated by the development of chronic kidney disease, which significantly reduces the quality of life of these patients. In some types of Spina bifida, urological symptoms may be prominent or even isolated and may indicate the presence of the malformation. Therefore, early diagnosis of Spina bifida and timely prophylactic and therapeutic measures are of particular importance.

Anemia is a common complication of oncological diseases that has a strong negative influence not only on the quality of life, but also on the effectiveness of specific treatment and survival rate. In the present review, current data on the pathogenesis and clinical implications of anemia in patients with malignancies are summarized. General principles underlying management of this group of patients are outlined on the basis of the results of recent clinical trials and guidelines. The safety issues related to administration of erythropoiesis-stimulating agents and vitamin B12 are discussed.

The rapid spread of obesity and associated cardiovascular disease is of serious concern in the scientific and medical field. Despite diverse approaches to solving these problems, there is still no visible success in the fight against obesity at the population level, and cardiovascular pathology still remains one of the main causes of death and disability in the world. This leads to attempts aimed at finding new therapeutic options. Targeted pharmacological therapy for adipose tissue dysfunction represents one of the potential solutions. In the present article, we review the effects of adipocytokines such as adiponectin and leptin, as one of the most well-studied markers of disruption of the normal functioning of adipose tissue, as well as some modern approaches to pharmacological correction of their effects on the cardiovascular system. The analysis of the data shows that hypoadiponectinemia and hyperleptinemia in combination with leptin resistance are associated with cardiovascular disease and poor prognosis, and correction of pathologically altered levels of the above-mentioned adipocytokines to achieve their optimal ratio may represent a relevant therapeutic goal.