Traumatic stress causes post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). PTSD is associated with cardiovascular diseases and risk of sudden cardiac death in some subjects. We compared effects of predator stress (PS, cat urine scent, 10 days) on mechanisms of cardiac injury and protection in experimental PTSD-vulnerable (PTSD) and -resistant (PTSDr) rats. 14-days post-stress, rats were evaluated with an elevated plus-maze test, and assigned to PTSD and PTSDr groups according to an anxiety index calculated from the test results. Cardiac injury was evaluated by: 1) Exercise tolerance; 2) ECG; 3) Myocardial histomorphology; 4) Oxidative stress; 5) Pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Myocardial heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) was also measured. Experimental PTSD developed in 40% of rats exposed to PS. Exercise tolerance of PTSD rats was 25% less than control rats and 21% less than PTSDr rats. ECG QRS, QT, and OTc intervals were longer in PTSD rats than in control and PTSDr rats. Only cardiomyocytes of PTSD rats had histomorphological signs of metabolic and hypoxic injury and impaired contractility. Oxidative stress markers were higher in PTSD than PTSDr rats. Pro-inflammatory IL-6 was higher in PTSD rats than in control and PTSDr rats, and anti-inflammatory IL-4 was lower in PTSD than in control and PTSDr rats. Myocardial HSP70 was lower in PTSD rats than PTSDr and control rats. Conclusion: Rats with PTSD developed multiple signs of cardiac injury. PTSDr rats were resistant also to cardiac injury. Factors that limit cardiac damage in PS rats include reduced inflammation and oxidative stress and increased protective HSP70.

The influence of hen layer density on the variability of the number of red blood cells, heterophiles and lymphocytes in the blood, the secretory activity of adrenal glands, estimated by the level of corti-costerone and cortisol, as well as the presence of interrelations between hormones and blood cells by calculating complex indices, were studied. Chickens, as the research object, were kept in cages, under conditions of standard layer density and increased by 1.5 and 2.0 times. We found that chickens adapt to an increase in layer density by one and a half times, pro-vided that egg production decreases to 33.33%; two times exceed of the regulatory requirements for laying does not correspond to the adaptive abilities of birds. Depending on the level of layer density excess (stress factor) in chicken blood, the concentration of corticosterone and cortisol increases, determining a decrease in the number of lymphocytes and an in-crease in heterophiles against the background of the preservation of red blood cells, reflecting the “energy price” of adaptation. Corticosterone af-fects the relationship of red blood cells with lymphocytes and heterophiles, determining the variability of the values of the indices reflecting the ratio of red blood cells and lymphocytes (ISEL), red blood cells and hetero-philes (ISEG), red blood cells, lymphocytes and corticosterone (ISELC), red blood cells, heterophiles and corticosterone (ISEGC) and the integral index of red blood cells-heterophiles-lymphocytes and corticosterone (IIEGLC).

The purpose of this study was to determine the contents of iodine and selenium in the thyroid, pituitary, adrenal glands and ovaries of female rats under the influence of propylthiouracil (PTU) and the effects of a single dose of potassium iodide (KI) administered two days after the administration of PTU. For the analyses, electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), wavelengthdispersive spectrometry (WDs) and point analysis were used in this study. Ninety-six hours after the first PTU administration the thyroid gland iodine level decreased three-fold in iodide positive points (I-PPs) and the percentage of positive points (%I-PPs) fell by one half. Administration of a single dose of potassium iodide slightly increased the iodine level in I-PPs and restored %I-PPs to the control level. After PTU administration the selenium positive points (Se-PPs) in the thyroid gland decreased by one half, but KI did not help to level these changes. In ovaries, pituitary and adrenal glands PTU administration did not significantly alter the average levels of iodine and selenium, but the Se-PPs and % I-PPs varied over a wide range. Administration of KI restored the levels of iodine and selenium in the pituitary and adrenal glands, but worsened the changes of iodine in ovaries.

Maximum physical exercise has a negative effect on physiological and morphological processes in the body. However, in some cases, the body responds with adaptive properties, which leads to smoothing out the negative effects of exercise. Establishing causes and factors that positively affect the processes of adaptation to increased activity and identifying the mechanisms of this process is one of the urgent problems of adaptation. Adaptation processes have a certain structure, and therefore, the goal of our research was to study the physiological processes and morphogenesis of individual organs and systems of the animal organism. One of the first to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the histological changes in experimental animals when giving adaptogens against the background of maximum activity. As adaptogens, the components of the military nature were used, tincture of safflower-like leuzea and ovesol, which were administered for 28 days at a dose of 2 to 6 μl according to the developed scheme. In this case, ovesol was used only at the final stage of the experiment from 22 to 26 days. It was found that ultra-high physical exercise leads to histological and physiological changes in the body of experimental animals.

When performing maximum physical activity, the main role for maintaining motor activity and homeostasis of the animal body is given to the kidneys. In this regard, the purpose of our research is to study morphological changes in the body of laboratory animals during physical exertion and the use of biologically active substances. One of the first to carry out a comprehensive assessment of the histological changes in experimental animals when given adaptogens (tincture of moral root, pantocrine and a combination of the same drugs with oats) against the background of maximum loads. The dosage of adaptogens was calculated according to the method proposed by Clark, based on the live weight of the animals. Which was 2 μl at the beginning of the experiment, subsequently the dosage was increased to 6 μl for all experimental groups. The first group was given distilled water, and the experimental group received leuzea tincture and oatsol. Ovesol was poured in a dose of 4 μl from 22 to 26 days. The total duration of the experiment was 28 days. It was also found that the use of tincture of moral root (safflower leuzea) and pantocrine prior to physical exertion makes it possible to correct histological changes.