Evaluation of RIP1K and RIP3K expressions in the malignant and benign breast tumors

Tumor Biology - Receptor-interacting protein kinase 1 (RIP1K) and RIP3K belong to RIPK family, which regulate cell survival and cell death. In the present investigation, the expression levels of...     

Comparative effectiveness of hand and ultrasonic instrumentations in root surface planing in vitro

BACKGROUND/AIMS: A variety of techniques are employed for planing and scaling of the superficial root surfaces, of which hand and ultrasonic instrumentations have been preferentially used in routine periodontics clinics. This study was undertaken to compare the effectiveness of ultrasonic scalers and hand curettes in facilitating fibroblast attachment to the scaled root surfaces. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixteen patients with periodontally involved teeth and nine subjects without periodontal diseases (control subjects) were selected. Two single-rooted teeth were extracted from each subject. Mesial and distal surfaces of teeth were selected in treated and untreated groups, respectively. The mesial surface of each tooth was randomly chosen to be treated either by hand curettes or ultrasonic instrumentation. The degree of cell attachment on the root surfaces of treated and untreated groups from control subjects and patients was then determined by the use of a gingival fibroblast line established and employed at early passages. The attachment and proliferation of gingival fibroblasts on the root surfaces were evaluated using neutral red assay and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). RESULTS: Fibroblast survival and proliferation on the surfaces of untreated periodontally involved roots were found to be significantly lower compared with control untreated surfaces (p<0.0001) or treated surfaces from patients (p<0.0001). No significant difference, however, was observed between root surfaces treated either by hand curettes or ultrasonic scalers. CONCLUSION: These results indicate the beneficial effectiveness of both techniques in root treatment and planing.     

A comparative study of injection placentrex and conventional therapy in treatment of pelvic inflammatory disease

To compare the effect of placentrex injection given along with conventional therapy, with conventional treatment alone on the symptoms and signs of pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) ie, abdominal pain, dysmenorrhoea and adnexal tenderness, 50 out of 100 women with PID were randomly assigned to receive intramuscular placentrex injection along with two-week conventional therapy and 50 received conventional treatment only. Abdominal pain, dysmenorrhoea and adnexal tenderness were evaluated at the end of 2 months. There was marked reduction in the sign of adnexal tenderness in the placentrex group as compared to conventional treatment group (p < 0.001). Subjective symptoms of lower abdominal pain and dysmenorrhoea were also relieved better in placentrex group (p < 0.01 and 0.05 respectively). This study showed significant and persistent improvement of signs and symptoms of PID in women who received injection placentrex.     

Antibiofilm effect of green engineered silver nanoparticles fabricated from Artemisia scoporia extract on the expression of icaA and icaR genes against multidrug‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are at the forefront of the swiftly developing scope of nanotechnology. In the current study, we investigated the green synthesis of AgNPs using Artemisia scoporia as a reducing and capping agent. The biosynthesized AgNPs were characterized using ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy, X‐ray diffraction, Fourier‐Transform infrared spectroscopy, dispersive absorption spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The efficacy of the nanoparticle synthesis was assessed by comparing the antibiofilm activity with commercial AgNPs. The effect of sub‐minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of AgNPs on biofilm formation was determined by microtiter plate assay. The expression level of the icaA and icaR genes was assessed by real‐time polymerase chain reaction assay. The structural and functional aspects of AgNPs were confirmed. The expression levels of icaA and icaR in the isolates exposed to sub‐MIC of both commercial and biosynthetic AgNPs were lower and higher than in the control group, respectively. Our results also indicated that greater reduction and induction in icaA and icaR gene expression were noticed with the sub‐MIC doses of biosynthetic AgNP versus commercial AgNP, respectively. This study suggested the application of AgNPs as a significant therapeutic and clinical option in the future and usage for fabricating medical implants. Nevertheless, further investigation is required for examining the pharmaceutical and medicinal properties of AgNPs.     

Wheat anaphylaxis in children

Food anaphylaxis is now the leading known cause of anaphylactic reactions treated in emergency departments, and wheat is one of the most common causes of anaphylaxis. Wheat is an important source of food worldwide. Wheat anaphylaxis is increasingly observed in our clinic. The purpose of this study was to describe the clinical features of wheat-induced anaphylaxis in 19 children for better elucidation of this disease. Children with severe reactions after ingestion of small amounts of wheat were referred to our clinic during a 4-year period. A detailed clinical history was recorded for each of the patients and a skin prick test was performed with wheat allergen extracts. The wheat-specific IgE and total IgE were measured. Grading of anaphylaxis episodes was performed according to a specific grading system. We identified 36 episodes of wheat anaphylaxis in 19 patients. All of the first attacks of wheat anaphylaxis occurred in the first-time ingestion. The most frequent manifestations of the reactions were skin and respiratory symptoms. In this study 78.9% of reactions were moderate and 21.1% of them were severe. All of our patients had positive skin prick tests to wheat. Mean total IgE level was 853.4 ± 455.27 IU/ml, and mean wheat-specific IgE was 70 ± 14.61 Ucs/ml. We conclude that wheat-induced anaphylaxis is a disease that is sufficiently severe, and. prevention of first wheat-induced anaphylaxis episodes is almost impossible. It would, however, probably be good practice to educate physicians to recognize the common clinical manifestations of this disease for early management.