Future Drug Targets in Periodontal Personalised Medicine-A Narrative Review.

Periodontal disease is an infection-driven inflammatory disease characterized by the destruction of tooth-supporting tissues. The establishment of chronic inflammation will result in progressive destruction of bone and soft tissue changes. Severe periodontitis can lead to tooth loss. The disease has complex pathogenesis with an interplay between genetic, environmental, and host factors and pathogens. Effective management consists of plaque control and non-surgical interventions, along with adjuvant strategies to control inflammation and disrupt the pathogenic subgingival biofilms. Recent studies have examined novel approaches for managing periodontal diseases such as modulating microbial signaling mechanisms, tissue engineering, and molecular targeting of host inflammatory substances. Mounting evidence suggests the need to integrate omics-based approaches with traditional therapy to address the disease. This article discusses the various evolving and future drug targets, including proteomics, gene therapeutics, vaccines, and nanotechnology in personalized periodontal medicine for the effective management of periodontal diseases.

S Gene Target Failure (SGTF) in Commercial Multiplex RT-PCR assay as indicator to detect SARS-CoV-2 VOC B.1.1.7 lineage in Tamil Nadu, India

Emergence of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Corona Virus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) Variants of Concern (VOC) possessing improved virulence, transmissibility and/or immune-escape capabilities has raised significant public health concerns. In order to identify VOCs, WHO recommends Whole-Genome Sequencing approach, which is costly and involves longer completion time. Hence, potential role of commercial multiplex RT-PCR kit to screen variants rapidly is being attempted in this study. A total of 1200 suspected COVID samples from different districts of Tamil Nadu State (India) were screened with Thermo TaqPath RT-PCR kit and Altonas Realstar RT-PCR Assay kit. Among 1200 screened, S-gene target failure (SGTF) phenomenon were identified in 112 samples while testing with TaqPath RT-PCR Kit. 100% concordant results were observed between SGTF phenomenon and whole-genome sequencing (WGS) results in detecting SARS-CoV-2 VOC B.1.1.7. TaqPath RT-PCR assay testing can be utilized by laboratories to screen rapidly the VOC B.1.1.7 variants, thus enabling early detection of B.1.1.7 variant infection and transmission in population. This in turn will pave way to implement suitable preventive measures by appropriate authorities to control the transmission of the viral variant.

Delayed hydrolysis of Raffinose Family Oligosaccharides (RFO) affects critical germination of chickpeas.

Seed raffinose family oligosaccharides (RFOs) are converted into sucrose and galactose by α-galactosidase during germination. Seed osmopriming with a low concentration of potassium nitrate (KNO3) induces early and synchronized germination by activating hydrolases. Here, we report the effect of osmopriming on the germination indices of chickpea, its effects on α-galactosidase, and the fate of total RFOs. Chickpea seeds primed with 100 µM KNO3 show early and synchronized germination but with reduced vigour after 48 h after imbibition (HAI) due to excess sucrose accumulation. The KNO3 suppressed the activity of α-galactosidase during the imbibition stage that was later derepressed after 24 HAI, hence decreased the RFO levels accumulating high levels of sucrose after 48 HAI. The accumulated sucrose imposed a negative effect on the germination characteristics, particularly on seed vigour. Our results suggested that the sugar release and utilization were highly regulated and crucial during imbibition and germination; the enzyme α-galactosidase regulates sugar release from seed RFO reserve.

Pulmonary Infection by Chrysosporium Species in a Preexisting Tuberculous Cavity.

We report a case of pulmonary disease due to Chrysosporium species in a preexisting tuberculous cavity in an immunocompromised male patient. The fungus was isolated from broncheoalveolar lavage fluid. The fungus was repeatedly isolated in culture, and the patient recovered with anti-tuberculosis treatment. Although the members of the genus Chrysosporium are common soil saprobes, they can occasionally cause systemic infections.

An innovative technique for the fabrication of fixed removable guide flange prosthesis for lateral mandibular resection.

Rehabilitation of patients with a severe mandibular defect is challenging to prosthodontists. The esthetic and functional rehabilitation of patients with lateral mandibular resection is difficult due to the lack of supporting tissues for the prosthesis. The mandibular deviation furthermore results in facial asymmetry and unstable occlusion. This case report describes an innovative technique to rehabilitate a patient with lateral mandibular resection using customized access post attachment system to retain guide flange prosthesis for reducing mandibular deviation.

Is endothelin gene polymorphism associated with postoperative atrial fibrillation in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting?

BACKGROUND: The mechanism of development of atrial fibrillation (AF) in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) has not been clearly defined, and the involvement of multiple factors such as advanced age, withdrawal of ß-blockers, inadequate atrial protection, and electrolyte imbalance, particularly hypomagnesemia has been documented by several authors. Despite all the available pharmacologic prophylaxis, incidence of AF still remains high in this group of patients. This unexplained cause could be genetic inheritance of endothelin-1 (ET-1) gene which is thought to have a pro-arrhythmogenic effect. AIM: This study aims to investigate the relationship between plasma ET-1 concentrations, ET-1 gene polymorphisms in loci -1370 T/G, -134 (3A/4A) Ins/del, Lys198Asn (G/T), and occurrence of AF in patients undergoing CABG. METHODOLOGY: Ninety-eight nonrelated, nondiabetic patients over a period of 4 years undergoing routine CABG were selected for the present study. All patients were genotyped for three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in loci -1370 T/G, -134 (3A/4A) Ins/del, and Lys198Asn (G/T) in the ET-1 gene by gene sequencing. The plasma ET-1 concentrations were measured using an ET immunoassay. RESULTS: Plasma ET-1 concentrations were higher in AF+ group (P = 0.001) as compared to AF- group. The allele frequencies between AF+ and AF- group were significantly different only with respect to the Lys198Asn (G/T) SNP of the ET-1 gene. CONCLUSION: The study described the possible correlation of polymorphism of ET gene in CABG population from India. The ET-1 gene might play a disease-modifying role in atrial fibrillation.

Estimation of Serum Triglycerides, Serum Cholesterol, Total Protein, IgG Levels in Chronic Periodontitis Affected Elderly Patients: A Cross-Sectional Study.

AIM: The present study was conducted to evaluate the serum triglycerides, serum cholesterol, total protein, and IgG levels in elderly patients who were affected by periodontal disease. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was conducted at the Rajah Muthiah Dental College and Hospital in the periodontics division. The study was conducted for a period of 3 months. This study is a prospective analytical study. Sixty individuals who were systemically healthy in the age group of 50 and above were included in this study. Control and experimental groups of 30 participants each were included. Plaque index, gingival index, probing pocket depth, and clinical attachment loss were recorded. Biochemical parameters such as serum cholesterol, serum triglycerides, total protein, and IgG levels were also evaluated and correlated with the periodontal parameters. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 16.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY). The relationship between periodontal status and the biochemical parameters such as serum cholesterol, serum triglycerides, total protein, and IgG levels were evaluated by Student's t-test. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the plaque and gingival scores between the experimental and control group. It was observed that serum cholesterol level and total protein level was lower in participants suffering from chronic periodontitis. Triglycerides level was significantly elevated in the experimental group. IgG, a level which is not significant, concluded that there is no difference in control and experimental group. CONCLUSION: It was concluded from the results obtained from the study that there is an association between serum triglycerides, serum cholesterol, total protein, and periodontal disease. However, further longitudinal and well-controlled studies are required to evaluate the relationship between these biochemical parameters and periodontal disease.

Plasma anti-α-galactoside antibody binds to serine- and threonine-rich peptide sequence of apo(a) subunit in Lp(a).

Lipoprotein(a) immune complexes [Lp(a) IC] of varying particle density obtained by ultracentrifugation of plasma from normal healthy donors were markedly dominated by IgG. Lp(a) and immunoglobulins were liberated from plasma Lp(a) IC by treatment with melibiose, a sugar specific for circulating anti-α-galactoside antibody (anti-Gal). Upon incubation with plasma lipoprotein fraction anti-Gal but not the α-glucoside-specific antibody from human plasma formed de novo IC with Lp(a). Binding of Lp(a) sugar-reversibly enhanced the fluorescence of FITC-labeled anti-Gal as did binding of α-galactoside-containing glycoproteins. This effect apparently due to conformational shift in the Fc region of the antibody was also produced by apo(a) subunit separated from Lp(a) and de-O-glycosylated apo(a) but not by any other plasma lipoproteins or by Lp(a) pre-incubated with the O-glycan-specific lectin jacalin. O-Glycans and their terminal sialic acid moieties in apo(a) of circulating Lp(a)-anti-Gal IC, in contrast to those in pure Lp(a), were inaccessible to jacalin and anion exchange resin, respectively. Unlike other plasma lipoproteins, Lp(a) inhibited Griffonia simplicifolia isolectin B4 which also accommodates serine- and threonine-rich peptide sequence (STPS) as surrogate ligand to α-galactosides at its binding site. Results suggest that anti-Gal recognizes STPS in the O-glycan-rich regions of apo(a) subunit in Lp(a) which contains no α-linked galactose.