Effect of oral hygiene education and motivation on removable partial denture wearers: longitudinal study

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of two different preventive oral hygiene education and motivation programmes on the plaque and gingival index, as well as denture hygiene of patients provided with removable partial denture (RPD) during a 12‐month follow‐up. Material and methods: A total of 53 partially edentulous patients were recruited for this study. The presence or absence of plaque and gingival bleeding by gentle probing was scored on all tooth surfaces at the preliminary visit. The plaque and gingival indexes were measured using the Löe index. Following treatment, the patients were randomly divided into three groups. In Control Group I, subjects were instructed to continue their personal oral hygiene routine. In Group II, participants were given verbal instructions and a self‐educational manual on oral hygiene without illustrations. In Group III, oral hygiene guidance was delivered using a combination of verbal instructions and a self‐teaching manual. To evaluate the effect of the different modes of instruction, the presence or absence of plaque and gingival bleeding was scored on all tooth surfaces (day zero examination) and re‐examined 7, 15 and 30 days, 3, 6 and 12 months following RPD placement. The state of denture hygiene was evaluated 7, 15 and 30 days and 3, 6 and 12 months following rehabilitation. Parametric statistics was applied to dental plaque and gingival indexes. For accumulation of plaque and calculus on the RPD, non‐parametric statistic was applied. Results: The frequency of plaque found during the preliminary visit was higher than that found in the other periods. With regard to gingival index, significant difference was found between the preliminary visit examination and other periods. There was a significant difference in the plaque accumulation on the denture surface between groups I and III. Conclusion: The different methods of oral hygiene instruction used in this study indicate that the type of education was not of significant importance.     

Atypical B cells are part of an alternative lineage of B cells that participates in responses to vaccination and infection in humans

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Photosensitizing activity of water- and lipid-soluble phthalocyanines on prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbial cells.

The photosensitizing activity of lipophilic zinc-phthalocyanine (Zn-Pc) and its water-soluble sulphonated derivative (Zn-PcS) towards Streptococcus faecium and Candida albicans was studied and correlated with the amount of cell-bound photosensitizer. With both micro-organisms Zn-PcS was more tightly bound in larger amounts than Zn-Pc in the protoplasts of the cytoplasmic membrane. As a consequence, the photoinduced damage in S. faecium initially involved membrane proteins, while DNA was modified only upon prolonged irradiation. For C. albicans only Zn-PcS showed a preferential affinity for the spheroplasts and the decrease in cell survival was not accompanied by detectable modifications of the electrophoretic pattern of membrane proteins. The photoinduced ultrastructural alteration of both micro-organisms suggests damage at membrane level. This would indicate the involvement of different targets in bacteria and yeast for phthalocyanine photosensitization.     

Photosensitizing activity of water- and lipid-soluble phthalocyanines on Escherichia coli

Escherichia coli, as most Gram-negative bacteria, is insensitive to the photosensitizing action of both lipid-soluble Zinc-phthalocyanine (Zn-Pc) and water-soluble Zinc-mono/disulfonated phthalocyanine (Zn-PcS). Photosensitivity can be induced by alteration of the outer membrane, as obtained by either induction of competence or treatment with Tris-EDTA. Both phthalocyanines largely bind at the level of the cytoplasmic membrane; however, Zn-PcS shows a superior photosensitizing activity as compared with Zn-Pc. Biochemical analyses performed on irradiated cells suggest that the cytoplasmic membrane is an important target of the photoprocess, while DNA is not involved.     

Occurence of reiterated DNA sequences in strains of Streptomyces produced by an interspecific protoplast fusion

Summary DNA isolated from a Streptomyces strain produced by interspecific protoplast fusion of Streptomyces jumonjinensis and Streptomyces lipmanii contained a tandemly repeated six kilobase pair sequence which constituted 15%–18% of the total DNA. Examination of other strains produced by similar fusions showed that they also contained reiterated DNA sequences.     

Selective killing of cancer cells harboring mutant RAS by concomitant inhibition of NADPH oxidase and glutathione biosynthesis

Oncogenic RAS is a critical driver for the initiation and progression of several types of cancers. However, effective therapeutic strategies by targeting RAS, in particular RAS^G12D and RAS^G12V, and associated downstream pathways have been so far unsuccessful. Treatment of oncogenic RAS-ravaged cancer patients remains a currently unmet clinical need. Consistent with a major role in cancer metabolism, oncogenic RAS activation elevates both reactive oxygen species (ROS)-generating NADPH oxidase (NOX) activity and ROS-scavenging glutathione biosynthesis. At a certain threshold, the heightened oxidative stress and antioxidant capability achieve a higher level of redox balance, on which cancer cells depend to gain a selective advantage on survival and proliferation. However, this prominent metabolic feature may irrevocably render cancer cells vulnerable to concurrent inhibition of both NOX activity and glutathione biosynthesis, which may be exploited as a novel therapeutic strategy. In this report, we test this hypothesis by treating the HRAS^G12V-transformed ovarian epithelial cells, mutant KRAS-harboring pancreatic and colon cancer cells of mouse and human origins, as well as cancer xenografts, with diphenyleneiodonium (DPI) and buthionine sulfoximine (BSO) combination, which inhibit NOX activity and glutathione biosynthesis, respectively. Our results demonstrate that concomitant targeting of NOX and glutathione biosynthesis induces a highly potent lethality to cancer cells harboring oncogenic RAS. Therefore, our studies provide a novel strategy against RAS-bearing cancers that warrants further mechanistic and translational investigation.Subject terms: Chemotherapy, Oncogenes     

Some properties of a glucoamylase produced by the thermophilic fungus Humicola lanuginosa

The thermophilic fungus Humicola lanuginosa elaborates two glucoamylases. Some properties of one of these enzymes (glucoamylase II) were investigated. The enzyme was found to have a higher pH optimum than reported for other fungal glucoamylases, and to be very thermostable. In particular, it displayed unusual resistance to heat in the presence of its substrate. It appeared to be capable of completely degrading starch. However, the possibility that traces of contaminating alpha amylase assist in degradation could not be ruled out.     

Antidiabetic Medications for Type 2 Diabetics with Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: Evidence From a Network Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

ObjectiveType 2 diabetes mellitus and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are closely related, and antidiabetic medications have been shown to be potential therapeutics in NAFLD. Using a network meta-analysis, we sought to examine the effectiveness of antidiabetic agents for the treatment of NAFLD in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.MethodsMedline and Embase were searched for randomized controlled trials relating to the use of antidiabetic agents, including sodium-glucose transport protein 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors, glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) agonists, biguanides, sulfonylureas and insulin, on NAFLD in patients with diabetes. The p-score was used as a surrogate marker of effectiveness.ResultsA total of 14 articles were included in the analysis. PPARγ agonists were ranked as the best treatment in steatosis reduction, resulting in the greatest reduction of steatosis. There was statistical significance between PPARγ agonists [mean difference (MD): ?6.02%, confidence interval (CI): ?10.37% to ?1.67%] and SGLT2 inhibitors (MD: ?2.60%, CI: ?4.87% to ?0.33%) compared with standard of care for steatosis reduction. Compared with PPARγ agonists, SGLT2 inhibitors resulted in a statistical significant reduction in fibrosis (MD: ?0.06, CI: ?0.10 to ?0.02). Body mass index reduction was highest in SGLT2 inhibitors and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists. Additionally, SGLT2 inhibitors were ranked as the best treatment for increasing high-density lipoprotein and reducing low-density lipoprotein.ConclusionGlucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists and SGLT2 inhibitors were suitable alternatives for the treatment of NAFLD in those with type 2 diabetes mellitus with a reduction in body mass index, fibrosis, and steatosis. SGLT2 inhibitors also have the added benefit of lipid modulation.     

α-2,6-Difluorophenyl-N-Tert-Butylnitrone: A Spin Trap for Distinguishing Different Types of Alkyl Radicals Based on Long-Range Fluorine Hyperfine Splitting

-2.6-Difluorophenyl-N-tert-butylnitrone (F₂PBN) was synthesized and evaluated. A number of alkyl adducts of F₂PBN were studied by ESR/ENDOR. An additional hyperfine splitting (a triplet of doublets of doublets) is reported. The existence of two (one large, one small) F-hfsc's from the ortho-fluorine atoms in the phenyl ring of most alkyl adducts was confirmed by ENDOR spectroscopy.