Mesenchymal condensation in tooth development and regeneration: a focus on translational aspects of organogenesis.

The teeth are vertebrate-specific, highly specialized organs performing fundamental functions of mastication and speech, the maintenance of which is crucial for orofacial homeostasis and is further linked to systemic health and human psychosocial well-being. However, with limited ability for self-repair, the teeth can often be impaired by traumatic, inflammatory, and progressive insults, leading to high prevalence of tooth loss and defects worldwide. Regenerative medicine holds the promise to achieve physiological restoration of lost or damaged organs, and in particular an evolving framework of developmental engineering has pioneered functional tooth regeneration by harnessing the odontogenic program. As a key event of tooth morphogenesis, mesenchymal condensation dictates dental tissue formation and patterning through cellular self-organization and signaling interaction with the epithelium, which provides a representative to decipher organogenetic mechanisms and can be leveraged for regenerative purposes. In this review, we summarize how mesenchymal condensation spatiotemporally assembles from dental stem cells (DSCs) and sequentially mediates tooth development. We highlight condensation-mimetic engineering efforts and mechanisms based on ex vivo aggregation of DSCs, which have achieved functionally robust and physiologically relevant tooth regeneration after implantation in animals and in humans. The discussion of this aspect will add to the knowledge of development-inspired tissue engineering strategies and will offer benefits to propel clinical organ regeneration.

Odontogenesis-Empowered Extracellular Vesicles Safeguard Donor-Recipient Stem Cell Interplay to Support Tooth Regeneration.

Harnessing the developmental events of mesenchymal condensation to direct postnatal dental stem cell aggregation represents a cutting-edge and promising approach to tooth regeneration. Tooth avulsion is among the most prevalent and serious dental injuries, and odontogenic aggregates assembled by stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth (SHED) have proven effective in revitalizing avulsed teeth after replantation in the clinical trial. However, whether and how SHED aggregates (SA) communicate with recipient components and promote synergistic tissue regeneration to support replanted teeth remains elusive. Here, it is shown that SA-mediated avulsed tooth regeneration involves periodontal restoration and recovery of recipient Gli1+ stem cells, which are mobilized and necessarily contribute to the reestablishment of the tooth-periodontal ligament-bone interface. Mechanistically, the release of extracellular vesicles (EVs) is revealed indispensable for the implanted SA to mobilize recipient Gli1+ cells and regenerate avulsed teeth. Furthermore, SHED aggregates-released EVs (SA-EVs) are featured with odontogenic properties linked to tissue regeneration, which enhance migration, proliferation, and differentiation of Gli1+ cells. Importantly, local application of SA-EVs per se empowers recipient Gli1+ cells and safeguards regeneration of avulsed teeth. Collectively, the findings establish a paradigm in which odontogenesis-featured EVs govern donor-recipient stem cell interplay to achieve tooth regeneration, inspiring cell-free translational regenerative strategies.

Hepatitis B antibody levels after different doses of hepatitis B vaccination: a retrospective study based on hospitalized children.

Many studies have investigated the positivity rate of hepatitis B surface antibody (HBsAb) after hepatitis B vaccine (HepB) immunization. However, the antibody level, assessed monthly or at more frequent intervals after each of the three doses, particularly within the first year after birth, has not been previously reported. To elucidate the level of antibody formation at various times after vaccination, the current study used the available detection data of HBsAb in hospitalized children to analyze the HBsAb level after immunization combined with their vaccination history. Both the positivity rate and geometric mean concentration (GMC) increased sequentially with immunization doses, reaching their peaks earlier after the third dose than after the first two doses, and the rate of HBsAb positivity was able to reach 100% between 11 and 90 days after completing the three doses of HepB. Within one year after receiving the three doses, the antibody positivity rate and GMC were maintained above 90% and 100 mIU/mL, respectively, and subsequently steadily declined, reaching the lowest value in the 9th and 10th years. The current findings reveal, in more detail, the level of antibody formation at different times following each dose of HepB in hospitalized children, particularly in the age group up to one year after vaccination. For the subjects of this study, we prefer to believe that the proportion of HBsAb non-response should be less than 5% after full immunization with HepB, provided that the appropriate time for blood collection is chosen.

Apoptotic vesicles activate autophagy in recipient cells to induce angiogenesis and dental pulp regeneration.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) derived from living cells play important roles in donor cell-induced recipient tissue regeneration. Although numerous studies have found that cells undergo apoptosis after implantation in an ischemic-hypoxic environment, the roles played by the EVs released by apoptotic cells are largely unknown. In this study, we obtained apoptotic vesicles (apoVs) derived from human deciduous pulp stem cells and explored their effects on the dental pulp regeneration process. Our work showed that apoVs were ingested by endothelial cells (ECs) and elevated the expression of angiogenesis-related genes, leading to pulp revascularization and tissue regeneration. Furthermore, we found that, at the molecular level, apoV-carried mitochondrial Tu translation elongation factor was transported and regulated the angiogenic activation of ECs via the transcription factor EB-autophagy pathway. In a beagle model of dental pulp regeneration in situ, apoVs recruited endogenous ECs and facilitated the formation of dental-pulp-like tissue rich in blood vessels. These findings revealed the significance of apoptosis in tissue regeneration and demonstrated the potential of using apoVs to promote angiogenesis in clinical applications.

The association between family function and sleep disturbances of preschool children in rural areas of China: a cross-sectional study.

This study aimed to explore the association between family function and sleep disturbances in preschool children in rural areas of China. Caregivers of preschool children completed sociodemographic questionnaires, the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ), the Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and the Family APGAR scale. Using sleep disturbances in children as the dependent variable, family function and other related factors as independent variables, binary logistic regression analyses were performed to examine associations between family function and sleep disturbances in children. A total of 3,636 caregivers of preschool children were enrolled in our study, and the prevalence of sleep disturbances among their preschool children was 89.4%. In our study, lower family function was associated with higher risk of sleep disturbances among preschool children. After adjusting for age (years), education level of mother, discipline attitudes of father and mother, only child status and caregivers' anxiety, the associations were statistically significant both in families of which caregivers of children are their parents or other relatives. (AOR for parents = 1.487, 95% CI:1.152-1.919, P = 0.002; AOR for other relatives = 1.963, 95% CI:1.302-2.958, P = 0.001). Our study results indicated that family function was associated with sleep disturbances in preschool children, and future high-quality cohort studies are needed to explore this topic in more detail.

The relationship between psychological resilience and emotion regulation among preschool left-behind children in rural China.

To evaluate the relationship between resilience and emotion regulation among preschool left-behind children (LBC) in rural China. A total of 620 preschool LBC were enrolled from rural areas in Anhui province, China. Multivariate logistic regression was used to evaluate the associations between resilience and variables. The results showed that 20.2% of LBC had higher resilience. Emotion regulation was correlated with resilience among preschool LBC. Children with higher cognitive reconstruction (adjusted OR (AOR) = 0.349,95%CI:0.249-0.489), passive dealing (AOR = 0.577, 95%CI:0.411-0.810), alternative action (AOR = 0.369, 95%CI:0.267-0.510) and self-comforting (AOR = 0.441, 95%CI:0.315-0.619) would have lower risk of low resilience. Our findings suggest that strengthening emotion regulation could promote psychological resilience and prevent adverse developments in LBC.

Is periodontal disease associated with increased risk of colorectal cancer? A meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a commonly diagnosed cancer. Previous studies investigating the relationship between periodontal disease (PD) and CRC showed controversial conclusions. This meta-analysis is to explore the association between PD and CRC. METHODS: Observational studies that explore the association between CRC and PD were included in this meta-analysis. A comprehensive literature search in 7 electronic databases to identify all relevant studies published prior to February 2020. The Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale was used to evaluate the quality each study. The pooled relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used to estimate the association between the PD and CRC risk. RESULTS: A total of 838 articles were obtained from database searching and 4 articles were obtained from other sources, and 13 articles with 14 studies involving 634,744 participants were included. An association between PD and increased CRC incidence was found, periodontal disease patients were 21% (95%CI, [1.06, 1.38], I2 =83.9%) more likely to develop colorectal cancer than people with healthy oral cavity. But there is no significant association between PD and CRC mortality. The heterogeneity of this meta-analysis was relatively high, I2 was 83.9% (95%CI, [72.7%, 90.5%]), chi-squared of Q test was 62.18, but sensitivity analysis confirmed the stability of the result. Funnel plot, Egger's test and Begg's test found no publication bias of analysis. CONCLUSION: The current meta-analysis demonstrates an association between PD and CRC, indicating that early CRC screening is necessary for people with poor oral health, and oral health improvement might be beneficial for reducing CRC risk.

SHED promote angiogenesis in stem cell-mediated dental pulp regeneration.

Dental pulp, plays an indispensable role in maintaining homeostasis of the tooth. Pulp necrosis always causes tooth nutrition deficiency and abnormal root development, which leads to tooth discoloration, fracture or even loss. Our previous study showed implantation of autologous SHED could regenerate functional dental pulp. However, the detailed mechanism of the implanted SHED participating in dental pulp regeneration remains unknown. In this study, we implanted SHED in a porcine dental pulp regeneration model to evaluate the regenerative effect and identify whether SHED promoted angiogenesis in regenerated dental pulp. Firstly we verified that xenogenous SHED had the ability to regenerated pulp tissue of host in vivo. Then we found the vasculature in regenerated pulp originated from implanted SHED. In addition, stem cells were isolated from regenerated dental pulp, which exhibited good multi-differentiation properties and promoted angiogenesis in pulp regeneration process and these results demonstrated that SHED promoted angiogenesis in stem cell-mediated dental pulp regeneration.

The efficacy of statins in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a common type of dementia, which has caused heavy global economic and health burden, and the using of statins to treat AD has caused widely debated. The purpose of this meta-analysis is to explore the effect of statins in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. METHODS: Studies were retrieved by searching PubMed, Embase, Cochrane library, OvisdSP, Web of Science, Chinese Nation Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) and Chinese Biomedical Database (CBM) databases before March 31, 2019. We extracted the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale-cognitive (ADAS-Cog), Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI), Activities of Daily Living (ADL) scale score, and other information. The pooled Weighted Mean Difference (WMD) and their 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were calculated with random effect model or fixed random effect model. RESULTS: A total of nine randomized controlled trials were included that contained 1489 patients; of them, 742 patients in the statins group, 747 patients in the control group. There were nine studies used the MMSE scale, five studies used the ADAS-Cog scale, four studies used the NPI scale, and six studies used the ADL scale. Meta-analysis of the nine studies that reported the MMSE scale scores indicated that there is no significant effect of statins as compared with control group (the pooled WMD = 1.09, 95% CI, - 0.00, 2.18, p = 0.05, I2 = 87.9%). Meta-analysis of the five studies that reported the ADAS-Cog scale scores also indicated that there is no significant effect of statins as compared with control group (the pooled WMD = - 0.16, 95% CI, - 2.67, 2.36, p = 0.90, I2 = 80.1%). Meta-analysis of the four studies that reported the NPI scale scores indicated that treatment with statins could slow the rise in the NPI scale scores (the pooled WMD = - 1.16, 95% CI, - 1.88, - 0.44, p = 0.002, I2 = 45.4%). Meta-analysis of the six studies that reported the ADL scale scores indicated that treatment with statins could improve patients' daily living ability (the pooled WMD = - 4.06, 95% CI, - 6.88, - 1.24, p = 0.005, I2 = 86.7%). Results of subgroup analysis indicated that the use of statins in the short term (≤ 12 months) associated with the change of the MMSE scale scores (the pooled WMD = 1.78, 95% CI, 0.53, 3.04, p = 0.005, I2 = 79.6%). Sensitivity analysis and publication bias test were both negative, and the results were relatively reliable and stable. CONCLUSION: Statins used in AD patients had beneficial effects on the scores of MMSE scale in the short term (≤ 12 months), and statins could slow the deterioration of neuropsychiatric status and significantly improve activities of daily living ability in AD patients, but statins did not show an advantage in the change of the ADAS-Cog scale scores.

Status of dental caries and associated factors in Tibetan adults: findings from the fourth China National Oral Health Survey.

BACKGROUND: Tibet, a region where average elevation is above 3500 m and socio-economic development is relatively lower, was not included in National Oral Health Survey over decades. The cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the status of dental caries and associated factors in Tibetan adults. METHODS: Participants aged 35-44, 55-64 and 65-74 years were selected. Decayed, missing, and filled tooth (DMFT), decayed and filled root (DF-Root) and root canal index (RCI) were used to evaluate dental caries. Questionnaire survey on demographic information, socioeconomic status, dietary habits, and oral health knowledge and behavior was conducted. Mann-Whitney U test, logistic regression were used for the statistical analyses. RESULTS: A total of 446 participants were enrolled in the survey. Of these: 222 (49.8%) were females, 224 (50.2%) were males; 149 (33.4%), 151 (33.9%), 146 (32.7%) were aged 35-44, 55-64 and 65-74 years respectively. The mean DMFT (SD) was 7.62 (4.84), 12.46 (8.16), and 21.38 (8.93). The filling rate was very low in all age groups (1.77%, 0.98%, 0.45%). The mean DF-Root (SD) was 0.50 (1.04), 1.04 (2.02), 1.32 (2.14), respectively. Root caries index was 42.27, 44.78 and 57.60%. Older age (65-74 age group) was positively associated with crown caries (odds ratio = 31.20, 95% confidence interval: 10.70-90.96). College degree and above and brushing teeth at least once a day were negatively associated with crown caries (odds ratio = 0.28, 95% confidence interval: 0.09-0.89; odds ratio = 0.39, 95% confidence interval: 0.21-0.72, respectively). Rural area, high income level and brushing teeth at least once a day were negatively and tooth with attachment loss was positively associated with root caries. CONCLUSIONS: The status of dental caries in the adults in Tibet is severe and the treatment rate is very low. The study suggests a correlation between crown caries and the variables age, level of education and frequency of tooth brushing; correlation between root caries and residence, income level, frequency of tooth brushing and exposed root surfaces. These findings could be as reference to develop community based interventions to reduce the prevalence of caries in Tibet.

Contributions of Bioactive Molecules in Stem Cell-Based Periodontal Regeneration.

Periodontal disease is a widespread disease, which without proper treatment, may lead to tooth loss in adults. Because stem cells from the inflammatory microenvironment created by periodontal disease exhibit impaired regeneration potential even under favorable conditions, it is difficult to obtain satisfactory therapeutic outcomes using traditional treatments, which only focus on the control of inflammation. Therefore, a new stem cell-based therapy known as cell aggregates/cell sheets technology has emerged. This approach provides sufficient numbers of stem cells with high viability for treating the defective site and offers new hope in the field of periodontal regeneration. However, it is not sufficient for regenerating periodontal tissues by delivering cell aggregates/cell sheets to the impaired microenvironment in order to suppress the function of resident cells. In the present review, we summarize some promising bioactive molecules that act as cellular signals, which recreate a favorable microenvironment for tissue regeneration, recruit endogenous cells into the defective site and enhance the viability of exogenous cells.

The prognostic value of ERCC1 expression in gastric cancer patients treated with platinum-based chemotherapy: a meta-analysis.

Numerous studies examined the association between excision repair complementation group 1 (ERCC1) expression and the prognosis of gastric cancer patients receiving platinum-based chemotherapy but yielded controversial results. We thus conducted a meta-analysis to quantitatively evaluate the prognostic value of ERCC1 expression in gastric cancer patients receiving platinum-based chemotherapy. A systematic literature search was performed to identify relevant studies in PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, and WanFang Database up to December 17, 2013. Pooled hazard ratios (HRs) or odds ratios (ORs) with 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated. Moreover, meta-regression analysis and subgroup analysis were conducted according to ethnicity, HR extraction, detection methods, survival analysis, and quality score. A total of 1,409 patients from 21 studies were subjected to final analysis. Positive/high ERCC1 expression was significantly associated with poorer overall survival (HR, 1.58; 95 % CI, 1.09-2.28), especially in Asians (HR, 1.81; 95 % CI, 1.20-2.73), and lower response rate (OR, 0.26; 95 % CI, 0.18-0.36), but not with clinicopathological features, such as gender (OR, 1.01; 95 % CI, 0.68-1.51), grade (OR, 0.66; 95 % CI, 0.43-1.01), and stage (OR, 1.05; 95 % CI, 0.58-1.90). This meta-analysis suggested that ERCC1 expression might be a useful biomarker to predict response and survival for gastric cancer patients receiving platinum-based chemotherapy, particularly in Asians.

Epidemiological Characteristics of Varicella in Anhui Province, China, 2012-2021: Surveillance Study.

BACKGROUND: Varicella is a mild, self-limited disease caused by varicella-zoster virus (VZV) infection. Recently, the disease burden of varicella has been gradually increasing in China; however, the epidemiological characteristics of varicella have not been reported for Anhui Province. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to analyze the epidemiology of varicella in Anhui from 2012 to 2021, which can provide a basis for the future study and formulation of varicella prevention and control policies in the province. METHODS: Surveillance data were used to characterize the epidemiology of varicella in Anhui from 2012 to 2021 in terms of population, time, and space. Spatial autocorrelation of varicella was explored using the Moran index (Moran I). The Kulldorff space-time scan statistic was used to analyze the spatiotemporal aggregation of varicella. RESULTS: A total of 276,115 cases of varicella were reported from 2012 to 2021 in Anhui, with an average annual incidence of 44.8 per 100,000, and the highest incidence was 81.2 per 100,000 in 2019. The male-to-female ratio of cases was approximately 1.26, which has been gradually decreasing in recent years. The population aged 5-14 years comprised the high-incidence group, although the incidence in the population 30 years and older has gradually increased. Students accounted for the majority of cases, and the proportion of cases in both home-reared children (aged 0-7 years who are not sent to nurseries, daycare centers, or school) and kindergarten children (aged 3-6 years) has changed slightly in recent years. There were two peaks of varicella incidence annually, except for 2020, and the incidence was typically higher in the winter peak than in summer. The incidence of varicella in southern Anhui was higher than that in northern Anhui. The average annual incidence at the county level ranged from 6.61 to 152.14 per 100,000, and the varicella epidemics in 2018-2021 were relatively severe. The spatial and temporal distribution of varicella in Anhui was not random, with a positive spatial autocorrelation found at the county level (Moran I=0.412). There were 11 districts or counties with high-high clusters, mainly distributed in the south of Anhui, and 3 districts or counties with high-low or low-high clusters. Space-time scan analysis identified five possible clusters of areas, and the most likely cluster was distributed in the southeastern region of Anhui. CONCLUSIONS: This study comprehensively describes the epidemiology and changing trend of varicella in Anhui from 2012 to 2021. In the future, preventive and control measures should be strengthened for the key populations and regions of varicella.

Albumin-bilirubin grade as a predictor of survival in hepatocellular carcinoma patients with thrombocytopenia.

BACKGROUND: The models for assessing liver function, mainly the Child-Pugh (CP), albuminbilirubin (ALBI), and platelet-ALBI (PALBI) classifications, have been validated for use in estimating the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. However, thrombocytopenia is a common finding and may influence the prognostic value of the three models in HCC. AIM: To investigate and compare the prognostic performance of the above three models in thrombocytopenic HCC patients. METHODS: A total of 135 patients with thrombocytopenic HCC who underwent radical surgery were retrospectively analyzed. Preoperative scores on the CP, ALBI and PALBI classifications were estimated accordingly. Kaplan-Meier curves with log-rank tests and Cox regression models were used to explore the significant factors associated with overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS). RESULTS: The preoperative platelet counts were significantly different among the CP, ALBI and PALBI groups. After a median follow-up of 28 mo, 39.3% (53/135) of the patients experienced postoperative recurrence, and 36.3% (49/135) died. Univariate analysis suggested that α-fetoprotein levels, tumor size, vascular invasion, and ALBI grade were significant predictors of OS and RFS. According to the multivariate Cox regression model, ALBI was identified as an independent prognostic factor. However, CP and PALBI grades were not statistically significant prognostic indicators. CONCLUSION: The ALBI grade, rather than CP or PALBI grade, is a significant prognostic indicator for thrombocytopenic HCC patients.

Lactobacillus Reuteri Vesicles Regulate Mitochondrial Function of Macrophages to Promote Mucosal and Cutaneous Wound Healing.

The interplay between bacteria and their host influences the homeostasis of the human immune microenvironment, and this reciprocal interaction also affects the process of tissue damage repair. A variety of immunomodulatory commensal bacteria reside in the body, capable of delivering membrane vesicles (MVs) to host cells to regulate the local immune microenvironment. This research revealed, for the initial time, the significant enhancement of mucosal and cutaneous wound healing by MVs secreted by the human commensal Lactobacillus reuteri (RMVs) through modulation of the inflammatory environment in wound tissue. Local administration of RMVs reduces the proportion of pro-inflammatory macrophages in inflamed tissues and mitigates the level of local inflammation, thereby facilitating the healing of oral mucosa and cutaneous wounds. The elevated oxidative stress levels in activated pro-inflammatory macrophages can be modulated by RMVs, resulting in phenotypic transformation of macrophages. Furthermore, 3-hydroxypropionaldehyde present in RMVs can decrease the mitochondrial permeability of macrophages and stabilize the mitochondrial membrane potential, thereby promoting the conversion of macrophages to an anti-inflammatory phenotype. This study pioneers the significance of commensal bacterial MVs in tissue injury repair and presents a novel concept for the repair of tissue damage.

Immunogenicity of Tetravalent Protein Vaccine SCTV01E-2 against SARS-CoV-2 EG.5 Subvaraint: A Phase 2 Trial.

The Omicron EG.5 lineage of SARS-CoV-2 is currently on a trajectory to become the dominant strain. This phase 2 study aims to evaluate the immunogenicity of SCTV01E-2, a tetravalent protein vaccine, with a specific emphasis on its immunogenicity against Omicron EG.5, comparing it with its progenitor vaccine, SCTV01E (NCT05933512). As of 12 September 2023, 429 participants aged ≥18 years were randomized into the groups SCTV01E (N = 215) and SCTV01E-2 (N = 214). Both vaccines showed increases in neutralizing antibody (nAb) against Omicron EG.5, with a 5.7-fold increase and a 9.0-fold increase in the SCTV01E and SCTV01E-2 groups 14 days post-vaccination, respectively. The predetermined statistical endpoints were achieved, showing that the geometric mean titer (GMT) of nAb and the seroresponse rate (SRR) against Omicron EG.5 were significantly higher in the SCTV01E-2 group than in the SCTV01E group. Additionally, SCTV01E and SCTV01E-2 induced a 5.5-fold and a 5.9-fold increase in nAb against XBB.1, respectively. Reactogenicity was generally mild and transient. No vaccine-related serious adverse events (SAEs), adverse events of special interest (AESIs), or deaths were reported. In summary, SCTV01E-2 elicited robust neutralizing responses against Omicron EG.5 and XBB.1 without raising safety concerns, highlighting its potential as a versatile COVID-19 vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 variants.

High-efficiency reinforcement learning with hybrid architecture photonic integrated circuit.

Reinforcement learning (RL) stands as one of the three fundamental paradigms within machine learning and has made a substantial leap to build general-purpose learning systems. However, using traditional electrical computers to simulate agent-environment interactions in RL models consumes tremendous computing resources, posing a significant challenge to the efficiency of RL. Here, we propose a universal framework that utilizes a photonic integrated circuit (PIC) to simulate the interactions in RL for improving the algorithm efficiency. High parallelism and precision on-chip optical interaction calculations are implemented with the assistance of link calibration in the hybrid architecture PIC. By introducing similarity information into the reward function of the RL model, PIC-RL successfully accomplishes perovskite materials synthesis task within a 3472-dimensional state space, resulting in a notable 56% improvement in efficiency. Our results validate the effectiveness of simulating RL algorithm interactions on the PIC platform, highlighting its potential to boost computing power in large-scale and sophisticated RL tasks.