Comparison between single-muscle evaluation and cross-sectional area muscle evaluation for predicting the prognosis in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma: a retrospective cohort study.

Introduction: The most effective method of assessing sarcopenia has yet to be determined, whether by single muscle or by whole muscle segmentation. The purpose of this study was to compare the prognostic value of these two methods using computed tomography (CT) images in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Materials and methods: Sex- and age-adjusted Cox proportional hazards models were employed for each parameter of sarcopenia related to overall survival, disease-free survival, and disease-specific survival. Harrell's concordance index was calculated for each model to assess discriminatory power. Results: In this study including 165 patients, a significant correlation was found between the CT-based assessment of individual muscles and their cross-sectional area. Single muscle assessments showed slightly higher discriminatory power in survival outcomes compared to whole muscle assessments, but the difference was not statistically significant, as indicated by overlapping confidence intervals for the C-index between assessments. To further validate our measurements, we classified patients into two groups based on intramuscular adipose tissue content (P-IMAC) of the spinous process muscle. Analysis showed that the higher the P-IMAC value, the poorer the survival outcome. Conclusion: Our findings indicate a slight advantage of single-muscle over whole-muscle assessment in prognostic evaluation, but the difference between the two methods is not conclusive. Both assessment methods provide valuable prognostic information for patients with OSCC, and further studies involving larger, independent cohorts are needed to clarify the potential advantage of one method over the other in the prognostic assessment of sarcopenia in OSCC.

Exercise Suppresses Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma Growth via Oncostatin M.

Major advances have been made in cancer treatment, but the prognosis for elderly cancer patients with sarcopenia and frailty remains poor. Myokines, which are thought to exert preventive effects against sarcopenia, have been reported to be associated with the prognosis of various cancers, but their effect on head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is unknown. The aim of this study was to clarify the influence of exercise on the control of HNSCC and to examine the underlying mechanism involved. Mice were injected with HSC-3-M3 cells, a human cell line of highly metastatic and poorly differentiated tongue cancer, at the beginning of the study. Just prior to transplantation, blood was collected from the mice, and the levels of myokines were measured by ELISA. Oncostatin M (OSM), a selected myokine, was added to HSC-3-M3 cells, after which the cell proliferation ability, cell cycle, and protein expression were analyzed in vitro. Tumor cell viability was lower (control: 100%, exercise: 75%), tumors were smaller (control: 26.2 mm3, exercise: 6.4 mm3), and survival was longer in the exercise group than in the control group in vivo. OSM inhibited HSC-3-M3 cell proliferation in a concentration-dependent manner in vitro. The addition of OSM increased the proportion of cells in the G0/G1 phase, decreased the proportion of cells in the G2/M phase, and increased the expression of the CDK inhibitors p21 and p27. These results indicate that exercise may directly inhibit the proliferation of HNSCC cell lines via OSM.

Evaluation of Eruption of Permanent Teeth in Beagle Dog Extraction Sites Filled with Carbonate Apatite.

Autologous bone grafting is the primary method for treating alveolar clefts. However, bone grafting materials are desired as alternatives to autogenous bone to reduce surgical invasiveness. Here, we present an animal study evaluating the effect of carbonate apatite (CA) on the spontaneous eruption of permanent teeth. The bone grafting materials included CA, natural bovine bone (BB), and hydroxyapatite (HA). In 15 8-week-old male beagle dogs, the left mandibular deciduous premolars (DP) two and three were extracted and subsequently filled with CA, BB, and HA. The animals were euthanized after a predetermined number of days, and samples were collected for microcomputed tomography and histological evaluation. Spontaneous eruption of the succeeding permanent teeth (P3 and P4) was observed in the CA group at 14 weeks. Delayed eruption of the succeeding permanent teeth was observed in the BB and HA groups. CA could serve as a viable alternative to autogenous bone for treating alveolar clefts.

Early induction of Hes1 by bone morphogenetic protein 9 plays a regulatory role in osteoblastic differentiation of a mesenchymal stem cell line.

Bone morphogenic protein 9 (BMP9) is one of the most potent inducers of osteogenic differentiation among the 14 BMP members, but its mechanism of action has not been fully demonstrated. Hes1 is a transcriptional regulator with basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) domain and is a well-known Notch effector. In this study, we investigated the functional roles of early induction of Hes1 by BMP9 in a mouse mesenchymal stem cell line, ST2. Hes1 mRNA was transiently and periodically induced by BMP9 in ST2, which was inhibited by BMP signal inhibitors but not by Notch inhibitor. Interestingly, Hes1 knockdown in ST2 by siRNA increased the expression of osteogenic differentiation markers such as Sp7 and Ibsp and matrix mineralization in comparison with control siRNA transfected ST2. In contrast, forced expression of Hes1 by using the Tet-On system suppressed the expression of osteogenic markers and matrix mineralization by BMP9. We also found that the early induction of Hes1 by BMP9 suppressed the expression of Alk1, an essential receptor for BMP9. In conclusion, BMP9 rapidly induces the expression of Hes1 via the SMAD pathway in ST2 cells, which plays a negative regulatory role in osteogenic differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells induced by BMP9.

Prognostic value of inflammatory biomarkers in aged patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Background: Better prognostic biomarkers for oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) must be developed, particularly within the realm of clinically and frequently administered tests, to advise appropriate clinical therapy and follow-up. In this study, we retrospectively investigated which of the several inflammation-nutrition indicators might predict the prognosis of patients with OSCC. Methods: The preoperative neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), lymphocyte-monocyte ratio (LMR), platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), CRP-albumin ratio (CAR), Glasgow prognostic score (GPS), modified GPS (mGPS), prognostic nutritional index (PNI), controlling nutrition status (CONUT), and modified CONUT (mCONUT) were retrospectively evaluated using blood samples collected 1-5 days before surgery. To estimate the effect on the prognosis of tumor progression, the mean values of the markers between stages I/II and III/IV were used for subgroup analysis. The multivariate Cox proportional hazards model included all independent variables significantly associated with survival in the univariate analysis to determine the independent variables. Results: A total of 112 patients (69 males and 43 females) with primary OSCC who underwent surgical treatment at our hospital were included. There were statistically significant differences in the mean values of monocytes, platelets, and albumin between stages I/II and III/IV. According to the multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression, a low PNI was associated with shorter overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS); women were associated with shorter DFS. Conclusion: The pretreatment PNI had excellent predictive value for the 5-year OS and DFS of patients with OSCC. Future large-scale prospective studies with a high sample size are needed to verify our findings in OSCC patients.

Lipoteichoic Acid and Lipopolysaccharides Are Affected by p38 and Inflammatory Markers and Modulate Their Promoting and Inhibitory Effects on Osteogenic Differentiation.

Lipoteichoic acid (LTA) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) are cell wall components of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, respectively. Notably, oral microflora consists of a variety of bacterial species, and osteomyelitis of the jaw caused by dental infection presents with symptoms of bone resorption and osteosclerosis. However, the effects of LTA and LPS on osteogenic differentiation have not yet been clarified. We examined the effects of LTA and LPS on osteoblasts and found that LTA alone promoted alizarin red staining at low concentrations and inhibited it at high concentrations. Additionally, gene expression of osteogenic markers (ALP, OCN, and OPG) were enhanced at low concentrations of LTA. High concentrations of LPS suppressed calcification potential, and the addition of low concentrations of LTA inhibited calcification suppression, restoring the gene expression levels of suppressed bone differentiation markers (ALP, BSP, and OCN). Moreover, the suppression of p38, a signaling pathway associated with bone differentiation, had opposing effects on gene-level expression of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6), suggesting that mixed LTA and LPS infections have opposite effects on bone differentiation through concentration gradients, involving inflammatory markers (TNF-α and IL-6) and the p38 pathway.

Three-Dimensional Quantification of Postoperative Facial Asymmetry in Patients With Unilateral Cleft lip and Palate Using Facial Symmetry Plane.

OBJECTIVE: To quantitatively assess three-dimensional (3D) soft tissue facial asymmetry in patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP) who have undergone primary lip repair. DESIGN: Clinical, retrospective, comparative, methodological study. PATIENTS/PARTICIPANTS: Twenty patients with UCLP were selected after a review of the records. INCLUSION CRITERIA: Complete UCLP; surgically treated without secondary repair. An age-matched and sex-matched Control group was employed. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: A 3D facial symmetry plane (FSP) was obtained by superimposing the point clouds of the original 3D facial image excluding the surgical site and including lip and nose areas and those of a mirrored facial image using the iterative closest point (ICP) adjustment method. The discrepancies in the depth and angle of the normal vector of the facial surface of each point cloud between right and left sides (cleft and non-cleft sides in the UCLP group, respectively) based on FSP were calculated. RESULTS: Facial asymmetry in the UCLP group was significantly greater than in the Control group regarding both the discrepancies in the depth (1.34 ± 0.62, 0.73 ± 0.32 pixels, respectively) (P = .0004) and surface angle (18.0 ± 5.88, 12.8 ± 4.0°, respectively) (P = .0024). Biaxial assessment of the discrepancies in the depth and surface angle allowed us to visually extract UCLP patients with greater facial asymmetry. CONCLUSIONS: Facial asymmetry analysis based on 3D FSP effectively facilitates the facial asymmetry quantification and soft tissue surgical outcome evaluation in patients with UCLP.

Effectiveness of fibreoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing and dietary intervention during home-visit dental care in older individuals.

BACKGROUND: Currently, patients with dysphagia are receiving dietary management that deviates from their original swallowing function. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical significance of fibreoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) and dietary intervention (DI) by multi-professional collaboration during visit care for determining the actual oral intake status in patients with dysphagia. METHODS: Five hundred and eighteen patients with dysphagia underwent FEES, focusing on the penetration-aspiration scale, and DI. Oral intake status was categorised using the functional oral intake scale (FOIS). FOIS scores at the first visit, after FEES, and at the reassessment were compared. RESULTS: At the first visit, 34.7% of the patients had an FOIS score of level 1 (no oral intake) and 65.3% had a score of level 2 or higher (capable of oral intake). Following FEES, 7.1% of patients had an FOIS score of level 1, and 44.4% had a score of level 2 with resumption of oral intake. At the reassessment, 489 patients (94.4%) were capable of oral ingestion (FOIS level 2 or higher). There were significant differences between the distributions of FOIS scores at the first visit and following FEES (P < .01) and between those at the first visit and at the reassessment (P < .01). Regarding tube feeding, 17 (5.9%) of 289 patients, who had received tube feeding at the first visit, were completely capable of oral intake following FEES and at the reassessment. CONCLUSION: Appropriate evaluation of swallowing function using FEES and DI helps to understand the definite swallowing function in patients with dysphagia.

Comparison of recurrence rate and speech outcome between two different techniques for cleft palatal fistula closure: A retrospective cohort study.

The aim of this retrospective cohort study was to compare the recurrence rate and speech outcomes between two techniques for palatal fistula closure of cleft palate (CP). Patients with CP who underwent secondary palatal fistula closure using the single hinge-flap method with double-breasted mattress suture (hinge-flap group) and those who were treated with the conventional sliding palatal flap method (sliding-flap group) were retrospectively evaluated for demographic and perioperative variables. Recurrence rate of palatal fistula, perceptual speech outcomes, and nasalance scores were further reviewed in patients who met the inclusion criteria. A total of 31 patients, 21 in the hinge-flap group and 10 in the sliding-flap group, were included in this study. The fistula recurrence rate in the hinge-flap group (0%) was significantly lower than that in the sliding-flap group (30.0%) (P = 0.027). In the speech assessment, hypernasality and nasalance scores decreased post-operatively in both groups and significance was observed in the hinge-flap group (P = 0.013, P < 0.001, respectively). Articulation disorders were significantly improved in the hinge-flap group (P = 0.001). Within the limitations of the study it seems that the single hinge-flap method with double-breasted mattress suture should be preferred whenever appropriate.

Prognostic Role of Preoperative Sarcopenia Evaluation of Cervical Muscles with Long-Term Outcomes of Patients with Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Accumulating evidence has shown that sarcopenia in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is at a risk of poor prognosis. There is no universal consensus on how to assess sarcopenia in patients with OSCC in daily practice. It is important to validate the usefulness of sarcopenia assessment from cervical muscles, which are frequently used in routine clinical practice in patients with OSCC. In this study, we investigated whether preoperative lumbar (L3) skeletal muscle mass and adiposity in OSCC patients were associated with cervical (C3) skeletal muscle mass and adiposity from CT measurements. We also investigated whether skeletal muscle mass and adiposity in the C3 muscles were associated with survival rates in patients with OSCC. We demonstrated that both the quality and quantity of muscle between the C3 and L3 levels were positively correlated with each other. We also demonstrated that the survival rates in patients with low sternocleidomastoid muscle mass index, high processus spinosus muscle-intramuscular adipose tissue content, and the combination of both were significantly lower than those in the controls. These results suggest that the assessment of sarcopenia from multiple neck muscles by preoperative CT measurements may be useful in predicting the prognosis of patients with OSCC.

Impact of Preoperative Low Prognostic Nutritional Index and High Intramuscular Adipose Tissue Content on Outcomes of Patients with Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

The impact of preoperative malnutrition and sarcopenia on survival in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) patients remains controversial. We investigated the effects of the preoperative nutritional status and abnormalities in body composition on the mortality of OSCC patients. A retrospective study involving 103 patients with OSCC was conducted. Disease-specific survival (DSS) according to the preoperative psoas muscle mass index (PMI) and intramuscular adipose tissue content (IMAC) was evaluated. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to determine the predictive performance of the covariates with respect to DSS. The DSS rate in patients with high IMAC and low PMI was significantly lower than that in controls. Multivariate analysis revealed that a low preoperative Prognostic Nutritional Index (PNI) and high IMAC were independent risk factors. We demonstrated that preoperative malnutrition and abnormal body composition, such as preoperative skeletal muscle quality, are associated with DSS in OSCC patients. Our study suggests that the evaluation of preoperative malnutrition and skeletal muscle quality would be useful for predicting mortality in patients with OSCC.

Using three-dimensional nasal forms to compare definitive unilateral cleft lip nose correction with/without a cross-lap joint cartilage graft technique.

To compare three-dimensional (3D) nasal forms after definitive correction of unilateral cleft lip (UCL)-nose using an extended spreader cartilage graft with/without a cross-lap joint cartilage graft technique. Twenty-four patients with UCL who underwent definitive nose correction using an extended spreader cartilage graft with a cross-lap joint technique (CLJ group) and fifteen patients with UCL who underwent nose correction without a cross-lap joint technique (non-CLJ group) were enrolled in this study. Pre- and postoperative 3D nasal forms were compared between the two groups. The CLJ group demonstrated more successful recovery of the nasal tip and anterior nasal ridge in the center of the face (P < 0.01), and the higher nasal tip was maintained for more than 1 year (P = 0.008). The differences in the cephalo-caudal heights of the nasal alar groove and curvatures of the alar groove arch were successfully improved in both CLJ and non-CLJ groups. The nasal angles on lateral profiles did not change in either group. An extended spreader cartilage graft with a cross-lap joint technique facilitates satisfactory recovery of the nasal tip in the center of the face and a higher nasal tip, avoiding over-projection in the definitive correction of UCL-nose.

Reliability of Americleft Yardstick Nasolabial Appearance Assessment With/Without Basal View for Japanese Children With Unilateral Complete Cleft Lip and Palate.

OBJECTIVE: There is debate on the reliability of the Americleft Yardstick (AY) global nasolabial appearance assessment method. The objective was to analyze the effect of the additional basal view (BV) feature on the reliability of the AY method for Japanese children with complete cleft lip and palate (CUCLP). DESIGN: Blind retrospective analysis of clinical records on 43 patients (5- to 7-year-old) with nonsyndromic CUCLP who underwent primary lip repair from 2005 to 2011. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Color pictures published in AY and Rubin's studies were used as reference pictures. Patients' photographs were cropped and rated on a 5-point scale for the vermilion border (VB), nasolabial frontal (NLF), and nasolabial profile (NLP) according to AY with/without BV assessment by Rubin's methods. Rating was performed twice by 3 oral surgeons. Intra- and inter-rater reliabilities were analyzed using weighted κ, and correlations between BV and other features were analyzed. RESULTS: Overall average assessment scores were 2.742 (0.573) with AY and 2.702 (0.489) with AY+BV methods (P = .728). Average intra-rater reliabilities were 0.605 and 0.611 and average inter-rater reliabilities were 0.525 and 0.48 with AY and AY+BV, respectively. Inter-rater reliability was the lowest for NLP. ρ scores between BV versus VB, NLF, and NLP were 0.025, 0.659, and 0.092, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Present study demonstrates moderate intra- and inter-rater reliabilities obtained with the AY assessment method for Japanese children with CUCLP. Nasolabial profile standard ambiguity may lead to the poor reliability of AY assessment. Addition of the BV feature does not improve overall reliability.

Three-dimensional analyses of nasolabial forms and upper lip surface symmetry after primary lip repair in patients with complete unilateral cleft lip and palate.

PURPOSE: To analyze three-dimensional (3D) nasolabial forms and upper lip surface symmetry after primary lip repair in children with unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP). METHODS: Subjects were 22 Japanese children with complete UCLP who underwent primary lip repair and were followed-up for 4-6 years. The 3D coordinates of facial landmarks and the angle and radius of the approximate nasal alar circle were calculated. Upper lip surface symmetry was analyzed using histogram intersection. RESULTS: The nasal tip and columella base were slightly dislocated to the cleft side, and the midpoint of Cupid's bow shifted to the non-cleft side. The nasal alar and the top of Cupid's bow were reconstructed at the same height, while the approximate nasal alar circle was smaller on the cleft side. The mean value of similarity for upper lip surface symmetry was 0.82; a subject with a higher value had more symmetrical contour lines in the visualized surface image. CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative nasolabial forms were almost restored to symmetrical levels, while retaining a small nasal alar. Histogram intersection is applicable as a method for the quantitative evaluation of upper lip surface symmetry in UCLP.

Pilot Study of Visual and Quantitative Image Analysis of Facial Surface Asymmetry in Unilateral Complete Cleft Lip and Palate.

OBJECTIVE: To visualize and quantitatively analyze facial surface asymmetry following primary cleft lip repair in patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP) and to compare this with noncleft controls. DESIGN: Retrospective comparative study. PATIENTS: Twenty-two patients with complete UCLP who underwent primary lip repair from 2009 to 2013 were enrolled in this study. The preserved 3-dimensional (3D) data of 23 healthy Japanese participants with the same age were used as controls. INTERVENTIONS: All patients had received primary labioplasty in accordance with Cronin triangular flap method with orbicular oris muscle reconstruction. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Shadow and zebra images established from moiré images, which were reconstructed from 3D facial data using stereophotogrammetry, were bisected and reversed by the symmetry axes (the middle line of the face). The discrepancies of the gravity and density between cleft and noncleft sides in 2 regions of interest, facial and lip areas, were then calculated and compared with those of healthy participants. RESULTS: In the UCLP group, the mean discrepancies of gravity on shadow and zebra images were 1.76 ± 0.70 and 2.63 ± 1.72 pixels, respectively, in the facial area and 1.31 ± 0.36 and 3.83 ± 2.08 pixels, respectively, in the lip area. There was a significant difference in the mean discrepancies of gravity and density on zebra images in the lip area between the UCLP and control groups. CONCLUSIONS: Our image analysis of digital facial surface asymmetry in patients with UCLP provides visual and quantitative information, and it may contribute to improvements in muscle reconstruction on cleft lip repair.

Assessment of postoperative complications using E-PASS and APACHE II in patients undergoing oral and maxillofacial surgery.

BACKGROUND: The prediction of postoperative complications is important for oral and maxillofacial surgeons. We herein aimed to evaluate the efficacy of the Estimation of Physiologic Ability and Surgical Stress (E-PASS) and Acute Physiology, Age, and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II scoring systems to predict postoperative complications in patients undergoing oral and maxillofacial surgery. METHODS: Thirty patients (22 males, 8 females; mean age: 65.1 ± 12.9 years) who underwent major oral surgeries and stayed in the intensive care unit for postoperative management were enrolled in this study. Postoperative complications were discriminated according to the necessity of the therapeutic intervention by the Medical Department, i.e. according to the Clavien-Dingo classification. E-PASS and APACHE II scores as well as laboratory test values were compared between patients with/without postoperative complications. RESULTS: Postoperative complications were developed in seven patients. The comprehensive risk score (CRS: 1.13 ± 0.24) and APACHE II score (13.0 ± 2.58) were significantly higher in patients with postoperative complications than in those without ones (p < 0.01, p < 0.05, respectively). The CRS showed an appropriate discriminatory power for predicting postoperative complications (area under the curve: 0.814). Furthermore, a correlation was detected between APACHE II scores and postoperative data until C-reactive protein levels decreased to < 1.0 mg/L (r = 0.43, p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The E-PASS and APACHE II scoring systems were both shown to be useful to predict postoperative complications after oral and maxillofacial surgery.

Topographic analysis of the maxillary premolars relative to the maxillary sinus and the alveolar bone using cone beam computed tomography.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the present study was to elucidate the anatomic characteristics of the maxillary premolars for the planning of dental treatment using cone beam computed tomography (CBCT). STUDY DESIGN: CBCT images were obtained for 150 maxillary premolars in 68 patients. The internal angle formed by the long axis of the maxillary premolars and the long axis of the alveolar bone was evaluated on the cross-sectional images. The vertical relationships between the maxillary premolars and the maxillary sinus were classified into 5 categories. The bone width and internal angle were compared among the images classified into the 5 categories. RESULTS: The internal angle was 25.5 ± 6.9° at the maxillary first premolars. The incidence of Type I in the maxillary first premolars was 46.7%. In the maxillary second premolars, the incidence of Type I (14.7%) was significantly lower than the total incidence of Types II, III, IV, and V (85.3%). Type I had the significantly largest internal angle (28.0 ± 7.7°) among all types for the maxillary first premolars. CONCLUSION: When considering dental treatment in the maxillary premolars, one should observe the inclination of the maxillary premolars to the alveolar bone as well as the position of the inferior wall of the maxillary sinus.

Vascular endothelial growth factor-C induces osteogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells through the ERK and RUNX2 pathway.

Vascular endothelial cell growth factor C (VEGF-C) is a member of the VEGF family and plays a role in a variety of biological activities including lymphangiogenesis, angiogenesis, and neurogenesis through VEGF receptor 2 (VEGFR2) and 3 (VEGFR3). However, it has not been elucidated whether VEGF-C promotes osteogenic differentiation. Herein, we investigated the effects of VEGF-C on osteogenic differentiation in human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and evaluated the underlying molecular mechanisms. VEGF-C treatment significantly increased RUNX2 expression, and led to the promotion of osteogenic marker gene expression and mineralization of MSCs. VEGF-C treatment induced the phosphorylation of VEGFR2 and VEGFR3 in MSCs. Treatment with the VEGFR3-specific ligand VEGF-C156S also promoted MSC mineralization. Furthermore, co-treatment with VEGFR2 and VEGFR3 kinase inhibitors blocked VEGF-C-induced MSC mineralization. VEGF-C treatment activated ERK signaling in MSCs, and inhibition of ERK signaling effectively suppressed VEGF-C-induced RUNX2 expression and mineralization. These results indicate that VEGF-C-induced MSC osteogenesis is mediated through VEGFR2 and VEGFR3, and followed the activation of the ERK/RUNX2 signaling pathway.

Preliminary Analysis of the 3-Dimensional Morphology of the Upper Lip Configuration at the Completion of Facial Expressions in Healthy Japanese Young Adults and Patients With Cleft Lip.

PURPOSE: To develop criteria for the analysis of upper lip configuration of patients with cleft lip while they produce various facial expressions by comparing the 3-dimensional (3D) facial morphology of healthy Japanese adults and patients with cleft lip. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Twenty healthy adult Japanese volunteers (10 men, 10 women, controls) without any observed facial abnormalities and 8 patients (4 men, 4 women) with unilateral cleft lip and palate who had undergone secondary lip and nose repair were recruited for this study. Facial expressions (resting, smiling, and blowing out a candle) were recorded with 2 Artec MHT 3D scanners, and images were superimposed by aligning the T-zone of the faces. The positions of 14 specific points were set on each face, and the positional changes of specific points and symmetry of the upper lip cross-section were analyzed. Furthermore, the configuration observed in healthy controls was compared with that in patients with cleft lip before and after surgery. RESULTS: The mean absolute values for T-zone overlap ranged from 0.04 to 0.15 mm. Positional changes of specific points in the controls showed that the nose and lip moved backward and laterally upward when smiling and the lips moved forward and downward medially when blowing out a candle; these movements were bilaterally symmetrical in men and women. In patients with cleft lip, the positional changes of the specific points were minor compared with those of the controls while smiling and blowing out a candle. The left-versus-right symmetry of the upper lip cross-section exceeded 1.0 mm in patients with cleft lip, which was markedly higher than that in the controls (0.17 to 0.91 mm). These left-versus-right differences during facial expressions were decreased after surgery. CONCLUSION: By comparing healthy individuals with patients with cleft lip, this study has laid the basis for determining control values for facial expressions.

Snail1 expression in human colon cancer DLD-1 cells confers invasive properties without N-cadherin expression.

The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a fundamental characteristic of carcinoma cells. EMT is generally associated with a change in cellular morphology from cobblestone to spindle shape, reduced expression of epithelial markers such as E-cadherin, and enhanced expression of mesenchymal markers such as N-cadherin. This EMT-associated reciprocal expression of E-cadherin and N-cadherin has been called the "cadherin switch". Downregulation of E-cadherin enables cells to dissociate from colonies while upregulation of N-cadherin is associated with increased invasiveness. The transcription factor Snail1 induces these changes in various epithelial cell lines, including canine MDCK cells and human A431 cells. In the present study, we introduced a Snail1 expression vector into human DLD-1 cells and isolated stable transfectants. These cells showed changes in morphology, reduced expression of epithelial marker E-cadherin and occludin, and elevated invasion and migration. However, neither expression of N-cadherin protein nor its corresponding mRNA was detected. Therefore, elevated N-cadherin expression is not required for invasiveness of the cells.