## Materials and Methods  
### Description of the \"Zarnitsa-A\" Prototype  
In the presented research, a prototype of the \"Zarnitsa-A\" apparatus was used. Its functional diagram is shown in Figure 1.  
The apparatus consists of a service unit (power and control unit), an irradiator, and a backup power unit. The device's principle of operation is based on the pulsed irradiation of affected areas of up to 50 cm\({}^{2}\) (per one setting) with high-intensity optical radiation in a continuous spectrum generated by a pulsed xenon lamp. In the device's irradiator, we used a tubular xenon lamp with a quartz bulb with an inner diameter of 5 mm and an interelectrode gap length of 60 mm. The lamp operates in a repetitively pulsed mode with a pulse frequency of 5 Hz and an average electrical power of 100 W. The lamp is mounted along the axis of a conical diffuse reflector with an output quartz window with a light diameter of 50 mm. The design of the irradiator enables the installation of additional light filters and/or nozzles outside the exit window, limiting the irradiation area. A set of light filters allows one to cut out the necessary wavelength ranges to work in various therapeutic modes. The service unit (2) includes a capacitive storage unit (2) with stored electrical energy of 20 J, a charge initiation unit (2), a capacitive storage charging unit (3),  
Figure 1: Functional diagram of the “Zarnitsa-A” apparatus: 1—irradiator block; 1.1—replaceable light filter; 1.2—pulsed xenon lamp; 1.3—radiation fluxer; 2—service block; 2.1—capacitive storage; 2.2—discharge-initiating block; 2.3—capacitive storage charging unit; 2.4—control and monitoring scheme; 2.5—control panel; 3—backup power supply; 3.1—inverter; 3.2—battery; 4.1—battery charging unit; K—power mode toggle switch.  
a control circuit (4), and a control panel (5). The service unit is powered by alternating current with a voltage of 230 V directly from the external network or a backup power supply unit. The backup power supply unit (3) consists of an inverter (3.1) and a battery (3.2). The battery is charged using a charging unit (4.1). The backup power unit (3) forms an alternating current of 230 V by converting the voltage of the onboard network of the vehicle or battery cells through the inverter (3.1). The choice of power source (battery/onboard network) is made using the toggle switch (K) located on the front panel of the backup power unit. Service unit dimensions--192 \(\times\) 330 \(\times\) 142 mm; weight--6.5 kg. The dimensions and weight of the irradiator are 072 \(\times\) 298 mm and 0.8 kg, respectively.  
On the control panel of the device, the following are installed:  
* A key for supplying power to the device: when the key is turned clockwise to the end, operating voltages are applied to the power and control circuits;
* A \"Start\" button: when it is pressed, the apparatus starts working; the irradiator emits light flashes that follow at a frequency of 5 Hz for 20 s (100 flashes in total) for one irradiation cycle;
* A \"Stop\" button: when it is pressed, the irradiator stops emitting light flashes, but power continues to be supplied to the circuits of the apparatus. When one presses the \"Start\" button again, the operation of the device is resumed.