With the increasing popularity of water-pipe smoking (WPS), it is critical to comprehend how WPS may affect women’s health. The main goal of this study is to identify the potential outcome of WPS on human breast cancer progression. Two breast cancer cell lines, MCF7 and BT20, were used in this investigation. We explored the outcome of WPS on cell morphology and cell invasion using inverted microscope and Biocoat Matrigel invasion chambers. On the other hand, Western blot was employed to study the expression patterns of key control genes of cell adhesion and invasion. Our data reveal that WPS induces epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) of MCF7 and BT20 breast cancer cell lines; thus, WPS enhances cell invasion ability of both cell lines in comparison with their matched controls. More significantly, WPS provokes a down- and up-regulation of E-cadherin and focal adhesion kinase (FAK), respectively, which are important key regulators of cancer progression genes. Finally, our data point out that WPS incites the activation of Erk1/Erk2, which could be behind the stimulation of EMT and invasion as well as the deregulation of E-cadherin and FAK expression. Our data show, for the first time, that WPS initiates EMT and stimulates cell invasion of breast cancer cells, which could incite metastatic development in breast cancer patients. Thus, we believe that further studies, both in vitro and in vivo, are required to elucidate the pathogenic outcome of WPS on cancer progression of several human carcinomas including breast.

ABSTRACT It has now been more than two decades since the end of the 1992–95 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This may well be the proper time to provide the nephrology community with an appraisal of the care of patients with chronic kidney disease in the pre-war, war and post-war periods in the European transitional country. This report on nephrology in Bosnia and Herzegovina draws attention to the hurdles faced for three turbulent years on that burdensome path of providing quality care, and the chance it offered in developing a successful transplant programme while facing the dreadful chaos of war and a migrant crisis. The perception of war and natural disasters is quite different, from the victim’s point of view, from the standardized and well-arranged healthcare systems in the developed world. The guidelines, written in peace, are extremely useful, but are often hard to follow during natural disasters or barbarous wars. Each of the periods described had its specificities as well as its good and bad sides. Despite the unquestionable destructive nature of the war, it was a catalyst for nephrology in Bosnia and Herzegovina to move forward.

Each local, self-government unit which is planning to develop and later implement the project of landconsolidation is confronted with the problem of choosing the cadastral municipality for landmanagement via land consolidation. The appliance of multi-criteria decision method enables and helpsthe decision makers to act regularly and correctly when making a decision. Multi-criteria analysis,above all, enables decision making in conflict conditions. These conditions include multiple alternativesand criteria, from which some should be maximized, and others minimized. This paper deals with theproblematic of the ranking of cadastral municipalities in which land management should be performedwith the use of land consolidation, by applying COPRAS method. The paper also presents theevaluation of the defined model in the Municipality of Pećinci.

Conductive atomic force microscopy (CAFM) has been widely used for electrical characterization of thin dielectrics by applying a gentle contact force that ensures a good electrical contact without inducing additional high‐pressure related phenomena (e.g., flexoelectricity, local heat, scratching). Recently, the CAFM has been used to obtain 3D electrical images of thin dielectrics by etching their surface. However, the effect of the high contact forces/pressures applied during the etching on the electrical properties of the materials has never been considered. By collecting cross‐sectional transmission electron microscopy images at the etched regions, it is shown here that the etching process can modify the morphology of Al2O3 thin films (producing phase change, generation of defects, and metal penetration). It is also observed that this technique severely modifies the electrical properties of pSi and TiO2 wafers during the etching, and several behaviors ignored in previous studies, including i) observation of high currents in the absence of bias, ii) instabilities of etching rate, and iii) degradation of CAFM tips, are reported. Overall, this work should contribute to understand better the limitations of this technique and disseminate it among those applications in which it can be really useful.

Levels of SO2 in air samples from urban zone of Banja Luka were determined at locality Center inBanja Luka (administrative center of the Republic of Srpska, in Bosnia and Herzegovina) which ishighly populated area, with intensive traffic and industry. Through experimental measuring, daily andweekend variation of SO2 concentration was determined. Daily variations are directly connected toregime and intensity of traffic and using fossil fuels. The paper presents measured average values ofsulfur dioxide, together with max and min values and relationship between some parameters of airquality and meteorological parameters, i. e. for pollution modelling together with meteorologicalparameters.

Noise pollution may have negative impacts on human health and environmental. The primary aim ofthis study is was to determine and mapping the noise pollution in the urban part of the city Banja Lukain Bulevar Cara Dušana by evaluating noise levels in the boulevards. The aim of this investigation isalso compare measured noise levels in the boulevards with legislation. The measured values exceededthe level of noise allowed. Because they are at all measuring points at study area mixing two zones I(hospital, rehabilitation) and III (trading, business, housing and housing next to traffic corridors,warehouses excluding heavy transport) it can be concluded that the noise level values in this area arealarming.