Evaluation of therapeutic laser influences on the healing of third-degree burns in rats according to different wavelengths

Introduction: One of the most important innovative methods for tissue repair promotion is therapeutic lasers with photobiomodulution effects. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of four different wavelengths of therapeutic laser (405, 532, 660 and 810 nm) on healing of third-degree burns from both clinical and pathological standpoints in rats. Materials and methods: 60 male Wistar rats were used. Animals were anesthetized and dorsal hairs were shaved and third-degree skin burns were created by use of a 95°C copper stamp. Lesions were irradiated with 1.5 J/cm² energy densities and 200 mW/cm² power densities. Results: Statistical analyses of the “wound contraction” changes between five groups during the study showed more reduction in wound size in all laser groups in comparison with the control group; but these differences were not statistically significant except between red and blue lasers on the last day of experiment. Discussion: Results of our study showed that using therapeutic lasers with green, blue, red, and infrared wavelengths may accelerate healing process. This trend is more obvious in red and infrared groups especially after acute phase, however, this effect was neither statistically nor clinically significant.     

Prevalence of Candida spp., xerostomia,and hyposalivation in oral lichen planus – A controlled study

Objective

To determine the frequency of Candida spp., xerostomia, and salivary flow rate (SFR) in three different groups: patients with OLP (OLP group), patients with oral mucosal lesions other than OLP (non‐OLP group), and subjects without oral mucosal lesions (control group).

Material and methods

Xerostomia as well as SFR was investigated in the three groups. Samples for isolation of Candida spp. were collected from OLP lesions (38 patients), non‐OLP lesions (28 patients), and healthy subjects (32 subjects).

Results

There was no statistically significant difference regarding the frequency of xerostomia and hyposalivation among the three groups (P > 0.05). A higher prevalence for colonization by Candida spp. was found in the healthy subject as compared to that of patients with OLP (P = 0.03) and non‐OLP (P = 0.02) groups. Low SFR was not a factor for colonization by Candida spp.

Conclusions

Xerostomia and hyposalivation occur with similar frequency in subjects with and without oral lesions; also, the presence of oral lesions does not increase the susceptibility to colonization by Candida spp. It seems that any study implicating Candida spp. in the malignant transformation of oral lesions should be carried out mostly on a biochemical basis, that is, by testing the capability of Candida spp. to produce carcinogenic enzyme.     

Discoid lupus erythematosus

Discoid lupus erythematosus is a manifestation of chronic cutaneous lupus erythematosus with a small risk of systemic involvement. In this review article, the role of predisposing factors such as haplotype, hormones, antibodies and sunlight are discussed. The clinical features, including variants and associations, and management options are presented.     

4种支架构建复合式口腔黏膜的组织学特点

目的利用4种不同支架材料构建复合式口腔黏膜,并比较其组织结构特点。方法体外培养人口腔黏膜的成纤维细胞和角质形成细胞,在4种支架材料中加入成纤维细胞,培养7d后,在支架表面加入角质形成细胞,培养4d后,移至气-液界面继续培养7d。苏木精-伊红染色镜下观察构建的复合式口腔黏膜的组织形态学特点。结果 4种支架均可构建形成复层上皮。其中,上皮层与脱细胞真皮基质材料(de-epidermised dermis,DED)结合紧密,形成的人工黏膜有明显的上皮钉突。不同于以往报道,上皮层与Alloderm结合并不十分紧密。以胶原凝胶为基质形成的人工口腔黏膜最厚,有明显分层。以胶原海绵-胶原凝胶为基质形成的复层上皮在部分区域长入至胶原海绵的空隙中。结论以DED和胶原凝胶为支架构建的口腔黏膜更接近于天然结构,而后者脆性较大,限制了其临床应用的可能。     

Prospective evaluation of posttransfusion hepatitis

The incidence of posttransfusion hepatitis (PTH) was determined prospectively at our institution. An active surveillance program of transfused surgical patients was set up; alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels were determined before transfusion and at monthly intervals for 6 months after transfusion. Patients with confirmed ALT values greater than 2.5 times the upper reference values were referred to the out-patient clinics for diagnosis. Of 4051 surgical patients who underwent transfusion between January 1986 and December 1989, 2459 (60.7%) were enrolled in the surveillance program, and 1018 (25.1%) completed the follow-up; 238 patients received autologous blood only and were used as controls. No PTH was observed in the control patients, and the incidence of the disease in patients receiving homologous blood was 10.97 percent in 1986, 6.58 percent in 1987, 5.55 percent in 1988, and 4.29 percent in 1989; the decreasing trend is significant (p = 0.018).     

A founder mutation in BBS2 is responsible for Bardet‐Biedl syndrome in the Hutterite population: utility of SNP arrays in genetically heterogeneous disorders

Innes AM, Boycott KM, Puffenberger EG, Redl D, MacDonald IM, Chudley AE, Beaulieu C, Perrier R, Gillan T, Wade A, Parboosingh JS. A founder mutation in BBS2 is responsible for Bardet‐Biedl syndrome in the Hutterite population: utility of SNP arrays in genetically heterogeneous disorders. Bardet‐Biedl syndrome (BBS) is a multisystem genetically heterogeneous disorder, the clinical features of which are largely the consequence of ciliary dysfunction. BBS is typically inherited in an autosomal recessive fashion, and mutations in at least 14 genes have been identified. Here, we report the identification of a founder mutation in the BBS2 gene as the cause for the increased incidence of this developmental disorder in the Hutterite population. To ascertain the Hutterite BBS locus, we performed a genome‐wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis on a single patient and his three unaffected siblings from a Hutterite family. The analysis identified two large SNP blocks that were homozygous in the patient but not in his unaffected siblings, one of these regions contained the BBS2 gene. Sequence analysis and subsequent RNA studies identified and confirmed a novel splice site mutation, c.472‐2A>G, in BBS2. This mutation was also found in homozygous form in three subsequently studied Hutterite BBS patients from two different leuts, confirming that this is a founder mutation in the Hutterite population. Further studies are required to determine the frequency of this mutation and its role, if any, in the expression of other ciliopathies in this population.     

DFNB74, a novel autosomal recessive nonsyndromic hearing impairment locus on chromosome 12q14.2-q15

Autosomal recessive nonsyndromic hearing impairment (ARNSHI) segregating in three unrelated, large consanguineous Pakistani families (PKDF528, PKDF859 and PKDF326) is linked to markers on chromosome 12q14.2-q15. This novel locus is designated DFNB74 . Maximum two-point limit of detection (LOD) scores of 5.6, 5.7 and 2.6 were estimated for markers D 12 S 313, D 12 S 83 and D 12 S 75 at θ = 0 for recessive deafness segregating in these three families. Haplotype analyses identified a critical linkage interval of 5.35 cM (5.36 Mb) defined by D 12 S 329 at 74.58 cM and D 12 S 313 at 79.93 cM. DFNB74 is the second ARNSHI locus mapped to chromosome 12, but the physical intervals do not overlap with one another. A locus contributing to the early onset, rapidly progressing hearing loss of A/J mice ( ahl4 , age-related hearing loss 4) was reported to map to chromosome 10 in a region of conserved synteny to DFNB74 , suggesting that ahl4 and DFNB74 may be due to mutations of the same gene in these two species.     

VIM-1 Metallo-beta-lactamase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae strains in Greek hospitals

Seventeen Klebsiella pneumoniae clinical isolates carrying the bla(VIM-1) metallo-beta-lactamase gene were collected in the intensive care units of three hospitals in Athens, Greece, in 2002. They exhibited various carbapenem resistance levels (Etest MICs of imipenem ranged from 4 to 32 microg/ml). All isolates gave positive results by the imipenem-EDTA synergy Etest. The isolates were classified into four main types by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis; the majority of the isolates (5 and 10 isolates) belonged to two types. The bla(VIM-1) gene cassette was part of the variable region of a class 1 integron that also included aac6, dhfrI, and aadA. This structure was carried by transferable plasmids.