Increased risks of maxillary sinus mucosal thickening in Chinese patients with periapical lesions.

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of factors related to periapical lesions (PALs) on sinus membrane thickening (SMT) in the Chinese population using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT). Methods: In this retrospective study, CBCT images (n = 512) of maxillary sinuses of 446 patients were evaluated by two examiners for SMT and PALs, PAL size, and the distance between the maxillary sinus floor (MSF), and the PAL's edge/root apex. The data were analyzed using analysis of variance, the Kruskal-Wallis test, χ2-test, and logistic regression. Results: A binary logistic regression model showed that the prevalence and severity of SMT > 2 mm were significantly associated with older age (>60 years) (odds ratio [OR]: 4.03, 95% confidence interval [CI]): 2.24-7.72, P < 0.001], male sex (OR: 2.08, 95% CI: 1.21-3.56, P < 0.006), and PALs (OR: 6.89, 95% CI: 3.93-12.08, P < 0.001). The type of contact and penetration between the MSF and PALs or root apex showed a more significant relation with SMT > 2 mm than did distance after adjusting for confounding factors, including age and sex (PALs: OR = 10.17 and 14.57, P < 0.001; root apex: OR = 3.49 and 5.86, P < 0.001). Conclusions: The prevalence and severity of SMT were significantly associated with older age, male sex, PALs, PAL size, and the distance between the MSF and PALs/root apex. Therefore, communication between dental surgeons and an otolaryngology specialist is important for the timely diagnosis and treatment of SMT of dental origin.

Glycan-selective in-situ growth of thermoresponsive polymers for thermoprecipitation and enrichment of N-glycoprotein/glycopeptides.

In view of the biological significance and micro-heterogeneity of protein glycosylation for human health, specific enrichment of N-glycosylated proteins/peptides from complex biological samples is a prerequisite for the discovery of disease biomarkers and clinical diagnosis. In this work, we propose a "grafting-from" N-glycoprotein enriching method based on the in-situ growth of thermoresponsive polymer brushes from the N-glycosylated site of proteins. The initiator was first attached to the pre-oxidized glycan moieties by hydrazide chemistry, from which the thermoresponsive polymers can be grown to form giant protein-polymer conjugates (PPC). The thermosensitive PPC can be precipitated and separated by raising the temperature to above its lower critical solubility temperature (LCST). Mass spectrometry verified 210 N-glycopeptides corresponding to 136 N-glycoproteins in the rabbit serum. These results demonstrate the capability of the tandem thermoprecipitation strategy to enrich and separate N-glycoprotein/glycopeptide. Due to its simplicity and efficiency specifically, this method holds the potential for identifying biomarkers from biological samples in N-glycoproteome analysis.

Argpyrimidine bonded to RAGE regulates autophagy and cell cycle to cause periodontal destruction.

Argpyrimidine (APMD), a methylglyoxal-arginine-derived product, is one of the main products of diabetes mellitus. We aimed to systematically investigate the role of APMD in regulating autophagy activity, with a specific focus on the finding of APDM binding molecule, matching amino acid residues, autophagy flux and proteins, cell cycle arrest, cell skeleton and migration, PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathways, inflammatory signals, alveolar bone destruction, and inhibition verification. In this study, binding to 59/94/121 amino acid residues of advanced glycosylation end product receptor (RAGE), APMD suppressed PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway to attenuate cell survival of periodontal ligament cells (PDLCs). Simultaneously, autophagy proteins ATG5, Beclin1, and LC3-II/I expression ratio were upregulated while P62/SQSTM was downregulated. Cell cycle arrested at G0/G1 with enhancing Cyclin D1/CDK4 and decreasing Cyclin A/CDK2 expression. Inhibition of autophagy abrogated APMD-induced cell cycle arrest. Furthermore, the inflammation regulation network of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2, MMP-9, MAPKs and NF-κB pathways were activated by APMD. Rat periodontal models confirmed that APMD induced alveolar bone resorption, increased inflammatory infiltrates, and degraded collagen fibers through RAGE and PI3K. APMD-induced autophagy, G0/G1 arrest, pro-inflammatory signals activating and periodontal destruction were reversed by RAGE knockdown while aggravated by PI3K inhibitor. This study provides the first evidence that APMD bind to RAGE to regulate autophagy and cell cycle of PDLCs through the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway, thereby promoting periodontal destruction.

A new subgingival sling suture technique for periodontally accelerated osteogenic orthodontics.

This study aimed to design a modified subgingival sling suture for periodontally accelerated osteogenic orthodontics (PAOO) as well as evaluate postoperative effects including gingival recession (GR), alveolar bone crest resorption, dental plague accumulation on sutures and alveolar bone augmentation. Twelve patients with bone defects in the anterior alveolar region of the mandible were included in this study. Subgingival sling suture, developed from traditional sling suture, was applied in modified PAOO operation. Probing depth, bleeding index, and GR were assessed, and cone-beam computerized tomography and laser microscope for thread surface were evaluated at baseline, postoperative 1 and 3 months to analyze the effects. Alveolar bone thickness on the labial side at the midpoint of the middle third of the root increased from 0.96 ±â€…0.28 mm to 3.38 ±â€…0.61 mm (P < .01), and that of the apical third advanced from 1.26 ±â€…0.33 mm to 3.61 ±â€…1.02 mm (P < .01), both exhibiting significant increase. No significant alveolar bone crest loss, probing depth increase, GR, and attachment loss was observed. This modified PAOO operation, associated with novel subgingival sling suture, productively augments alveolar bone volume and addresses problems in terms of GR and vertical loss of alveolar bone.

A robust Zn(ii)/Na(i)-MOF decorated with [(OAc)2(H2O)2]n2n- anions for the luminescence sensing of copper ions based on the inner filter effect.

Based on the inner filter effect, a luminescent Zn(ii)/Na(i) metal-organic framework (MOF) {[Zn2Na(L)(HL)2(H2O)2][OAc]·2H2O}n (1, H2L = 5-methyl-1,3-benzenedicarboxylic acid) with excellent stability was constructed for the fluorescence detection of Cu2+ ions. MOF 1 holds a 3D cationic framework in which [(OAc)2(H2O)2]n2n- anions are embedded into its 1D channels. Abundant hydrogen-bonding and π-π interactions in the MOF facilitate electron transfer from ligand-to-metal, resulting in a good luminescence peak at 412 nm and an efficient fluorescence quenching of MOF 1 in the presence of Cu2+ ions, due to the inner filter effect. The interactions between the Cu2+ ions and the OAc- anion in the channel endowed the Cu2+ ions with facile access to be adsorbed, and afforded the selective quenching of fluorescence. The MOF particles are well dispersed in water and the Cu2+ ions are pre-concentrated by adsorption, thus facilitating the determination of Cu2+ ions with a detection limit down to 0.65 µM. Our work thus paves a way for developing MOFs as an appealing platform to construct materials for environmental applications.