Effects of condensates from volcanic fumaroles and cigarette smoke extracts on airway epithelial cells.

The impact of volcanic airborne products on airway epithelium homeostasis is largely unknown. This study assessed the effects of volcanic Fumarole Condensates (FC) alone or combined with Cigarette Smoke Extracts (CSE) on airway epithelial cells (16HBE and A549). Chemical composition of FC was analyzed by gas chromatography and HPLC. Cells were exposed to FC and IL-33 and IL-8 were assessed. The effects of FC and CSE on cell injury were evaluated assessing cell metabolism/cell viability, mitochondrial stress, cell apoptosis/cell necrosis, and cell proliferation. FC contained: water vapor (70-97%), CO2 (3-30%), acid gases (H2S, SO2, HCl, HF) around 1%. FC increased the intracellular IL-33 but differently modulated IL-33 and IL-8 gene expression and IL-8 release in the tested cell lines. FC without/with CSE: (a) increased cell metabolism/cell viability in 16HBE, while decreased it in A549; (b) increased mitochondrial stress in both cell types. FC with CSE increased cell necrosis in A549 in comparison to CSE alone. CSE reduced cell proliferation in 16HB,E while increased it in A549 and FC counteracted these effects in both cell types. Overall, FC induce a pro-inflammatory profile associated to a metabolic reprogramming without a relevant toxicity also in presence of CSE in airway epithelial cells.

A case of personalized and precision medicine: Pharmacometabolomic applications to rare cancer, microbiological investigation, and therapy.

RATIONALE: Advances in metabolomics, together with consolidated genetic approaches, have opened the way for investigating the health of patients using a large number of molecules simultaneously, thus providing firm scientific evidence for personalized medicine and consequent interventions. Metabolomics is an ideal approach for investigating specific biochemical alterations occurring in rare clinical situations, such as those caused by rare associations between comorbidities and immunosuppression. METHODS: Metabolomic database matching enables clear identification of molecular factors associated with a metabolic disorder and can provide a rationale for elaborating personalized therapeutic protocols. Mass spectrometry (MS) forms the basis of metabolomics and uses mass-to-charge ratios for metabolite identification. Here, we used an MS-based approach to diagnose and develop treatment options in the clinical case of a patient afflicted with a rare disease further complicated by immunosuppression. The patient's data were analyzed using proprietary databases, and a personalized and efficient therapeutic protocol was consequently elaborated. RESULTS: The patient exhibited significant alterations in homocysteine:methionine and homocysteine:thiodiglycol acid plasma concentration ratios, and these were associated with low immune system function. This led to cysteine concentration deficiency causing extreme oxidative stress. Plasmatic thioglycolic acid concentrations were initially altered and were used for therapeutic follow-up and to evaluate cysteine levels. CONCLUSIONS: An MS-based pharmacometabolomics approach was used to define a personalized protocol in a clinical case of rare peritoneal carcinosis with confounding immunosuppression. This personalized protocol reduced both oxidative stress and resistance to antibiotics and antiviral drugs.

Experimental study on strength evaluation applied for teeth extraction: an in vivo study.

PURPOSE: The aim of this work was to analyse all the applied movements when extracting healthy upper and lower jaw premolars for orthodontic purposes. The authors wanted to demonstrate that the different bone densities of the mandible and maxilla are not a significant parameter when related to the extraction force applied. The buccal and palatal rocking movements, plus the twisting movements were also measured in this in-vivo study during premolar extraction for orthodontic purposes. METHODS: THE PHYSICAL STRAINS OR FORCES TRANSFERRED ONTO THE TEETH DURING EXTRACTION ARE THE FOLLOWING THREE MOVEMENTS: gripping, twisting, and traction. A strain measurement gauge was attached onto an ordinary dentistry plier. The strain measurement gauge was constituted with an extensimetric washer with three 45º grids. The system operation was correlated to the variation of electrical resistance. RESULTS: The variations of resistance (∆R) and all the different forces applied to the teeth (∆V) were recorded by a computerized system. Data results were processed through Microsoft Excel. The results underlined the stress distribution on the extracted teeth during gripping, twisting and flexion. CONCLUSIONS: The obtained data showed that the strength required to effect teeth extraction is not influenced by the quality of the bone but is instead influenced by the shape of the tooth's root.

Strategies used to inhibit postoperative swelling following removal of impacted lower third molar.

Postoperative swelling following different surgical strategies is an area of great interest. The main part of literature on the topic deals with swelling after extraction of low impacted third molar. In this review, we have analyzed publications of the last 20 years with a pubmed search using the following key words: impacted third molar, swelling third molar, wisdom tooth, edema jaw, corticosteroids and extraction third molar, antibiotic prophylaxis and tooth extraction. Attention has often been focused on corticosteroid therapy administered by diverse routes (orally, IV, IM, topically) and at different time schedules (before or after surgery or both). This investigation revealed how the use of different molecules and dosages makes the obtained results hardly comparable. Similar conclusions can be drawn from studies aimed at evaluating the efficacy of antibiotic therapy administered either before or after surgery. A complete review has also to take into account different surgical strategies used including various flaps, no traumatic osteothomy, and primary or secondary closure. The use of pharmacological therapy and application of an ice pack is critical in the postoperative period and has always provided positive results. However, even if it is difficult to come to definite conclusions, due to the variability of the design of studies analyzed, the postoperative discomfort identified with edema, pain and trismus following wisdom tooth removal is influenced by various factors such as the difficulty of the surgical procedure involved, age and gender of the patient, and experience of the surgeon. The pharmacological therapy when performed with corticosteroids seems to improve control of the postoperative swelling related with this kind of surgeries.

The piezoelectric and rotatory osteotomy technique in impacted third molar surgery: comparison of postoperative recovery.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was the comparison of postoperative outcome in mandibular impacted third molars treated by piezoelectric surgery or by rotatory osteotomy technique. PATIENTS AND METHODS: One hundred patients with impacted mandibular third molars were included in the study. Fifty patients were treated by rotatory osteotomy technique (group A) and 50 patients were treated by piezoelectric osteotomy technique (group B). Therapeutic protocol was the same for both groups. Twenty-four hours after surgery, 2 different parameters, facial swelling and trismus, were evaluated in both groups. A pair of compasses were used for the evaluation of facial swelling and trismus was evaluated. RESULTS: The average surgery time was 17 minutes in group A, 23 minutes in group B; the mean facial swelling was 7.04 mm in group A, 4.22 mm in group B; trismus was 16.76 mm in group A, 12.52 mm in group B. Statistical analysis showed a significant reduction (P < .05) of postoperative facial swelling and trismus in group B; however, in this group, a statistically significant increased (P < .05 vs group A) surgery time was required. CONCLUSION: The piezoelectric osteotomy technique produced a reduced amount of facial swelling and trismus 24 hours after surgery, but a longer surgery time was required when compared with the rotatory osteotomy technique.

Silk and polyglycolic acid in oral surgery: a comparative study.

The inflammatory reaction caused by 2 different suture materials, black silk and polyglycolic acid, was evaluated 8 days after application and permanence in the oral environment. A randomized sample of 55 patients, aged 9 to 76, who had undergone oral urgery was examined. The suture materials (30 black silk and 25 polyglycolic acid), soon after removal, were placed in sterile containers and transferred to the laboratory. A bacterial count was carried out and the sutures were observed under light microscope (x100 magnification) to indirectly evaluate the inflammatory reaction. All patients were recommended to properly disinfect the wound with a 0.2% chlorhexidine solution. The inflammatory reaction of gingival tissues was lower for polyglycolic acid compared to silk sutures. However, the wound conditions, evaluated 8 days after surgery, were acceptable in patients treated with both silk and polyglycolic acid sutures. The use of chlorhexidine solution did not significantly affect the presence and type of microorganisms in either kind of suture.