Impaired Tertiary Dentin Secretion after Shallow Injury in Tgfbr2-Deficient Dental Pulp Cells Is Rescued by Extended CGRP Signaling.

The transforming growth factor ß (TGFß) superfamily is a master regulator of development, adult homeostasis, and wound repair. Dysregulated TGFß signaling can lead to cancer, fibrosis, and musculoskeletal malformations. We previously demonstrated that TGFß receptor 2 (Tgfbr2) signaling regulates odontoblast differentiation, dentin mineralization, root elongation, and sensory innervation during tooth development. Sensory innervation also modulates the homeostasis and repair response in adult teeth. We hypothesized that Tgfbr2 regulates the neuro-pulpal responses to dentin injury. To test this, we performed a shallow dentin injury with a timed deletion of Tgfbr2 in the dental pulp mesenchyme of mice and analyzed the levels of tertiary dentin and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) axon sprouting. Microcomputed tomography imaging and histology indicated lower dentin volume in Tgfbr2cko M1s compared to WT M1s 21 days post-injury, but the volume was comparable by day 56. Immunofluorescent imaging of peptidergic afferents demonstrated that the duration of axon sprouting was longer in injured Tgfbr2cko compared to WT M1s. Thus, CGRP+ sensory afferents may provide Tgfbr2-deficient odontoblasts with compensatory signals for healing. Harnessing these neuro-pulpal signals has the potential to guide the development of treatments for enhanced dental healing and to help patients with TGFß-related diseases.

A comparative study to evaluate microstrain of low-profile attachment associated with and without bar connection in implant assisted mandibular overdenture (in vitro study).

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to compare the microstrain transmitted to peri-implant tissues of implant-assisted mandibular overdentures using two different low-profile attachment designs; OT- Equator attachment with and without bar attachment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A completely edentulous epoxy resin mandibular model was used, in which two parallel dental implants were inserted at the canine region bilaterally and one in the middle. Sixteen identical complete edentulous mandibular overdentures were fabricated following conventional, standardized techniques and were divided equally between two groups according to the design and placement of the OT-Equator. Group A implants were kept solitary with an OT-Equator attachment, while group B implants were kept splinted with a bar associated with two mini-OT-Equator attachments in between. Sixteen identical mandibular complete overdentures were constructed, to which attachments were picked up. The difference in stress distribution was measured using strain gauges and compared between the two studied groups. A vertical load of 100 N using the universal testing machine was applied unilaterally on the left mesial fossae of the mandibular first molar and bilaterally on the bar attached to the mandibular premolar molar region of the overdentures. Statistical analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS version 28. Normality was checked by using the Shapiro-Wilk test and normality plots. The Mann-Whitney U test was then used to analogize the groups. RESULTS: There was a statistically significant difference between groups A and B upon application of vertical unilateral and bilateral loadings of 100 N, with mean microstrain values of P 0.05. Group A (OT-Equator attachment) showed lower strain values than Group B (OT-Equator bar attachment) upon application of vertical, unilateral, and bilateral loadings of 100 N. CONCLUSIONS: Implant-assisted mandibular overdenture with a solitary attachment is associated with lower microstrain values around the implants after application of unilateral and bilateral vertical loadings of 100 N.

Insights into lignin degradation and its potential industrial applications.

Lignocellulose is an abundant biomass that provides an alternative source for the production of renewable fuels and chemicals. The depolymerization of the carbohydrate polymers in lignocellulosic biomass is hindered by lignin, which is recalcitrant to chemical and biological degradation due to its complex chemical structure and linkage heterogeneity. The role of fungi in delignification due to the production of extracellular oxidative enzymes has been studied more extensively than that of bacteria. The two major groups of enzymes that are involved in lignin degradation are heme peroxidases and laccases. Lignin-degrading peroxidases include lignin peroxidase (LiP), manganese peroxidase (MnP), versatile peroxidase (VP), and dye-decolorizing peroxidase (DyP). LiP, MnP, and VP are class II extracellular fungal peroxidases that belong to the plant and microbial peroxidases superfamily. LiPs are strong oxidants with high-redox potential that oxidize the major non-phenolic structures of lignin. MnP is an Mn-dependent enzyme that catalyzes the oxidation of various phenolic substrates but is not capable of oxidizing the more recalcitrant non-phenolic lignin. VP enzymes combine the catalytic activities of both MnP and LiP and are able to oxidize Mn(2+) like MnP, and non-phenolic compounds like LiP. DyPs occur in both fungi and bacteria and are members of a new superfamily of heme peroxidases called DyPs. DyP enzymes oxidize high-redox potential anthraquinone dyes and were recently reported to oxidize lignin model compounds. The second major group of lignin-degrading enzymes, laccases, are found in plants, fungi, and bacteria and belong to the multicopper oxidase superfamily. They catalyze a one-electron oxidation with the concomitant four-electron reduction of molecular oxygen to water. Fungal laccases can oxidize phenolic lignin model compounds and have higher redox potential than bacterial laccases. In the presence of redox mediators, fungal laccases can oxidize non-phenolic lignin model compounds. In addition to the peroxidases and laccases, fungi produce other accessory oxidases such as aryl-alcohol oxidase and the glyoxal oxidase that generate the hydrogen peroxide required by the peroxidases. Lignin-degrading enzymes have attracted the attention for their valuable biotechnological applications especially in the pretreatment of recalcitrant lignocellulosic biomass for biofuel production. The use of lignin-degrading enzymes has been studied in various applications such as paper industry, textile industry, wastewater treatment and the degradation of herbicides.

Is dextrose prolotherapy beneficial in the management of temporomandibular joint internal derangement? A systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: To highlight the current knowledge of the efficacy of dextrose as a prolotherapy agent in managing temporomandibular joint internal derangement (TMJ-ID). METHODS: A "Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome" (PICO) strategy was executed using an electronic search through PubMed/MEDLINE, Cochrane databases, and Google Scholar from their inception to August 2022. Only randomized clinical trials investigating the treatment of TMJ-ID with hypertonic dextrose prolotherapy (HDPT) were included. Two independent reviewers assessed the eligibility of the studies with subsequent data extraction. RESULTS: The systematic search identified 392 studies, and only 8 articles were considered eligible for selection, with a total of 286 patients; 72% were females, and 28% were males. The extracted data showed positive effects of dextrose on joint pain and maximum mouth opening (MMO) with high patient satisfaction. CONCLUSION: HDPT can be effective in relieving TMD symptoms as it reduces pain, improves joint dysfunction, and increases MMO up to 12 months.

Carbohydrate-binding modules facilitate the enzymatic hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass: Releasing reducing sugars and dissociative lignin available for producing biofuels and chemicals.

The microbial decomposition and utilization of lignocellulosic biomass present in the plant tissues are driven by a series of carbohydrate active enzymes (CAZymes) acting in concert. As the non-catalytic domains widely found in the modular CAZymes, carbohydrate-binding modules (CBMs) are intimately associated with catalytic domains (CDs) that effect the diverse hydrolytic reactions. The CBMs function as auxiliary components for the recognition, adhesion, and depolymerization of the complex substrate mediated by the associated CDs. Therefore, CBMs are deemed as significant biotools available for enzyme engineering, especially to facilitate the enzymatic hydrolysis of dense and insoluble plant tissues to acquire more fermentable sugars. This review aims at presenting the taxonomies and biological properties of the CBMs currently curated in the CAZy database. The molecular mechanisms that CBMs use in assisting the enzymatic hydrolysis of plant polysaccharides and the regulatory factors of CBM-substrate interactions are outlined in detail. In addition, guidelines for the rational designs of CBM-fused CAZymes are proposed. Furthermore, the potential to harness CBMs for industrial applications, especially in enzymatic pretreatment of the recalcitrant lignocellulose, is evaluated. It is envisaged that the ideas outlined herein will aid in the engineering and production of novel CBM-fused enzymes to facilitate efficient degradation of lignocellulosic biomass to easily fermentable sugars for production of value-added products, including biofuels.

Gustatory Dysfunction among a Sample of Depressed Egyptian Adults under Antidepressants Therapy: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

It is quite clear that the ability to perceive taste sensations significantly affects food choice, which consequently affects health status in the long term. Gustatory dysfunction is a neglected symptom among the depressed patients and those under antidepressants therapy, although these patients are suspectable to oral problems, due to general self-negligence related to mental disease, fear of dental treatment, and side effects of varied medications utilized in psychiatry. This study is aimed at assessing gustatory thresholds (detection and recognition thresholds) among a sample of 30 depressed Egyptian adults under antidepressants therapy for at least 3 months or psychotherapy with age ranging from 20 to 50 years old, seeking the Psychiatric Clinic at the Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Egypt. These patients were distributed into three equal groups (tricyclic antidepressants (TCA), selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), and psychotherapy) and were assessed for gustatory detection and recognition thresholds using the filter paper disc method through a scoring system. The participants were also divided into normal taste group in which both the detection and recognition scores were 1, while the scores from 2 till 5 were considered as hypogeusia group and the score of 6 was considered as dysgeusia group. The TCA group was statistically significant from the other 2 groups in sweet detection thresholds (p = 0.043) and sweet recognition thresholds (p = 0.007). Hypogeusia for sweet was statistically significant (p = 0.041), where it was more common among TCA (70%) than both SSRIs and the psychotherapy group (20%). Gustatory dysfunction was found to be mostly associated with TCA followed by SSRIs particularly for sweet taste thresholds. More attention has to be given to taste changes among these patients as oral health affects general health by causing considerable pain and by changing what people eat, their speech, and their quality of life and wellbeing. Proper awareness and evaluation of this problem will improve the quality of life for the depressed patients and avoid unnecessary treatment. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT03599011.

Multiple cellobiohydrolases and cellobiose phosphorylases cooperate in the ruminal bacterium Ruminococcus albus 8 to degrade cellooligosaccharides.

Digestion of plant cell wall polysaccharides is important in energy capture in the gastrointestinal tract of many herbivorous and omnivorous mammals, including humans and ruminants. The members of the genus Ruminococcus are found in both the ruminant and human gastrointestinal tract, where they show versatility in degrading both hemicellulose and cellulose. The available genome sequence of Ruminococcus albus 8, a common inhabitant of the cow rumen, alludes to a bacterium well-endowed with genes that target degradation of various plant cell wall components. The mechanisms by which R. albus 8 employs to degrade these recalcitrant materials are, however, not clearly understood. In this report, we demonstrate that R. albus 8 elaborates multiple cellobiohydrolases with multi-modular architectures that overall enhance the catalytic activity and versatility of the enzymes. Furthermore, our analyses show that two cellobiose phosphorylases encoded by R. albus 8 can function synergistically with a cognate cellobiohydrolase and endoglucanase to completely release, from a cellulosic substrate, glucose which can then be fermented by the bacterium for production of energy and cellular building blocks. We further use transcriptomic analysis to confirm the over-expression of the biochemically characterized enzymes during growth of the bacterium on cellulosic substrates compared to cellobiose.