Treatment of interproximal angular defects by guided tissue regeneration: 1 year follow-up

SUMMARY The periodontal regeneration of interproximal bone defects of the posterior teeth produced by guided tissue regeneration (GTR), with expanded Polytetrafluoroethylene barrier membranes and conventional therapy, was clinically evaluated in 20 intrabony periodontal defects in 10 patients. The material included the presence of at least two proximal angular lesions for the same patient, probing pocket depth ≥ 6 mm, bone defect depth ≥ 3 mm, and 2-wall defects with crestal involvement relative to the tooth circumference ranging from 90 to 270°. Healing was clinically evaluated by surgical re-entry of GTR-treated sites (10 sites) and debridement only sites (10 sites) 1 year after initial surgery following a strict plaque control regimen. A significant correlation was observed between probing depth reduction, attachment gain and defect depth (test sites); there was increased bone fill in GTR-treated lesions of 2.95 ± 1.3 mm corresponding to a 69.4% improvement compared to control sites, and 1–3 ± 1.0 mm corresponding to a 32% improvement ( P < 0.0039). The results demonstrated that bone regeneration is highly reliable, as compared to conventional therapy, in cases of severe periodontal bone loss from posterior teeth provided that the principles of GTR are applied.     

Evaluation of Different Drugs in Two Models of Immediate Hypersensitivity

Abstract— The effect of the calcium antagonists, verapamil, nicardipine and diltiazem, the two cromones, disodium cromoglycate and SM-857 (11-oxo-11 H-pyrido[2,1-b]quinazoline-2-carboxylic acid), and the anthelmintic, diethylcarbamazine citrate, have been compared on the ovalbumin (OA)-induced contraction of the isolated trachea and longitudinal muscle-myenteric plexus (LM-MP) from sensitized guinea-pigs. The calcium antagonists prevented the OA-induced contractions in LM-MP and to a lesser degree the OA-induced contractions in trachea. Similar doses of SM-857 protected both tissues but neither cromoglycate (10^?5M) nor diethylcarbamazine (10^?5M) affected these contractions. The OA-induced contraction in trachea had a tonic phase that was not present in the LM-MP response. Only the calcium antagonists succeeded in relaxing this OA tonic component, diltiazem being the more potent. These results unmask different mechanisms of drug action on immediate hypersensitivity and specific sensibilities, depending on the kind of tissue.     

Molecular analysis of HLA DR4-/β1 gene in malaria vaccinees. Typing and subtyping by PCR technique and oligonucleotides

The combination of the PCR technique and the synthetic oligonucleotides has proved to be a useful tool in the molecular analysis of HLA class II genes, allowing recognition of as little as a single nucleotide modification in the sequence of the gene. The molecules encoded by these genes have been associated with genetic control of the immune response and with susceptibility to certain diseases. Studies carried out in our laboratory have shown three patterns of humoral immune response in the human volunteers vaccinated with the synthetic protein SPf 66; high, intermediate and low responders. Approximately 73.3% of the low responders were serologically typed as HLA DR4 and 42% as DQw6. These results moved us to look for a subtype (Dw) correlation between the DR4 positive individuals and the different humoral immune response patterns. Using oligo-typing methods after previous amplification of the DR4 B1 exon, we subtyped 20 DR4 volunteers, classified as high, intermediate and low responders. We did not find any direct association between the HLA DR4 Dw special subtype in the high or low responders immunized with the SPf 66 vaccine.     

The effect of endogenous oestradiol levels on protein S concentration during a menstrual cycle and after GnRH analogues and gonadotropin therapy

Summary. We studied two groups of females to investigate the effect of endogenous oestradiol levels on total and free protein S (tPS, fPS) plasma concentrations. One group (group I) consisted of 12 healthy volunteers who were studied throughout one menstrual cycle; the other group (group II) consisted of 16 young women who were treated with GnRH analogues and gonadotropins before undergoing in vitro fertilization. Neither tPS nor fPS varied significantly with respect to the physiological changes of oestradiol or to the very low and high levels of oestradiol, achieved after GnRH analogues suppression and gonadotropin stimulation. These results indicate that endogenous oestradiol does not affect PS concentration.     

Genetic contribution of the HLA region to the familial clustering of coeliac disease

In order to assess the effect of the HLA region on familiality of coeliac disease (CD), we carried out a study on 121 CD index cases and 325 first degree relatives. The transmission disequilibrium test confirmed the importance of the HLA-DR3 haplotype in CD susceptibility. However, the different distortion found in affected children inheriting maternal or paternal DR3 alleles suggested that the sex of the parent might influence the risk conferred by this haplotype. The increase in risk to siblings of affected individuals relative to the risk in the general population (λ_s) and the contribution of the HLA genes to this clustering (λ_sHLA) have also been estimated. Non-overlapping data from the literature have been collected and combined with our sample to extend such analysis. Then, the percentage contribution of the HLA region to the development of CD among siblings was 36·2%. This result confirms that the HLA genotypes are an important genetic background to CD development but shows that additional susceptibility factors remain to be identified.