Periodontal Treatment Reduces Circulating Pro-Inflammatory Cytokine and Chemokine Levels in African American HIV+ Individuals with Virological Suppression.

Introduction: Periodontal Disease (PD), a chronic inflammatory disease, is highly prevalent among Persons Living With HIV (PLWH) and is characterized by microbial symbiosis and oxidative stress. Our hypothesis stipulates that periodontal therapy attenuates systemic inflammatory and bacterial burden while improving periodontal status in PLWH. Methods: Sixteen African Americans (AA) with suppressed HIV viremia on long-term Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) were recruited to this study. Participants were placed into two groups, based on their dental care status: group 1 (In-Care, IC) and group 2 (Out of Care, OC). Periodontal health was investigated at baseline, 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months. Cytokine/chemokines, microbial phyla, and Asymmetric Dimethylarginine (ADMA, a marker for endothelial cell dysfunction) levels were assessed in the serum. Statistical comparisons between groups and at different visits were performed using multiple comparison tests. Results: Across longitudinal visits, periodontal treatment significantly reduced the levels of several cytokines and chemokines. At baseline, the out of care group had significantly higher blood levels of ADMA and actinobacteria than the IC group. Periodontal treatment significantly altered the abundance of circulating genomic bacterial DNA for various phyla in out of care group. Conclusions: Periodontal treatment interventions effectively attenuated circulating pro-inflammatory cytokines and altered microbial translocation, both critical drivers of systemic inflammation in PLWH.

The virtual desktop: the remote access solution.

The increasing expectation for easy, yet full remote access to library materials necessitates innovative thinking on the part of libraries. Other traditional methods of providing access don't always meet the needs of the library or the patrons. This paper describes the project of one library to develop a Virtual Desktop, making access easy to grant or withhold, and also making available a wider array of resources.

Preparation and Properties of SiO Antireflection Coatings for GaAs Injection Lasers with External Resonators.

Improved techniques for the preparation of single-layer SiO antireflective coatings are discussed in detail. We infer from our results that the reflectivity of diode end surfaces is reduced to below 1% over a broad wavelength band using lambda/4 coatings. The use of lambda/4 rather than 3lambda/4 coatings minimizes losses in the coatings and maximizes the bandwidth over which the coating provides low reflectivity. The suppression of internal mode structure in external cavity GaAs laser spectra by the use of antireflection coatings is demonstrated for the first time. Coating degradation was not a serious problem in room temperature external cavity laser operation.