Adhesive fragment reattachment after orthodontic extrusion: a case report

Abstract –  In the treatment of crown fractures, adhesive fragment reattachment provides a good alternative to other restorative techniques, offering several advantages. The present paper reports a case in which the treatment of a cervical crown fracture was accomplished by reattaching the tooth fragment with a flowable resin composite. Orthodontic root extrusion was performed with a modified Hawley appliance prior to fragment reattachment. The clinical and radiographic results after 2.5 years were successful.     

Effect of dietary selenium and vitamin E on the biomechanical properties of rabbit bones

Summary It is generally agreed that combined deficiency of selenium and vitamin E leads to several abnormalities including Kashin-Beck disease which is an endemic and chronic degenerative osteoarthrosis. The abnormalities can be reversed by the administration of various forms of selenium and vitamin E.The present study was designed to investigate the effects of dietary selenium and vitamin E on bone tissue and on the biomechanical properties of bone. Young rabbits of both sexes were fed with either a selenium- and vitamin E-adequate diet (control group), or a selenium- and vitamin E-deficient diet or a selenium-excess diet. The selenium-deficient diet resulted in a significant decrease in plasma selenium level and the selenium-excess diet resulted in a significant increase in the plasma selenium level with respect to the corresponding control values (p<0.05). The diets did not affect the blood cell counts considerably but erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase activity increased (decreased) relatively when the plasma selenium level increased (decreased) (p<0.05). The light microscopic investigations of the bone tissues of the two experimental groups indicate that the findings of the present work are compatible with osteomalacia. The biomechanical properties of the bones from the three groups were determined experimentally with bending tests. Both the Se-and vitamin E-deficient diet and the Se-excess diet decreased the biomechanical strength of the bones significantly while the bones belonging to the control group always had the largest modulus of elasticity (p<0.05).     

Speech-associated attitudes of stuttering and nonstuttering children

A Dutch version of the Communication Attitude Test (Brutten, 1985) was used to assess the speech-associated attitudes of 70 stuttering and 271 nonstuttering Belgian children of elementary and middle school age. The results showed that the stuttering children evidenced significantly more negative attitudes toward speech than did their nonstuttering peers. This difference was present from age 7, the youngest age group studied, on up. Moreover, a significant group x age interaction revealed that the speech-related attitudes of the stuttering children became more negative with increasing age. In contrast, those of the nonstuttering children became less negative after age 9. These findings suggest that, in the course of fluency therapy for youngsters who stutter, negative attitudes toward speech should be addressed. This is especially true if, as with adults who stutter, negative attitudes are predictive of therapeutic failure.     

Selenium improves cardiac function by attenuating the activation of NF-kappaB due to ischemia-reperfusion injury

Although selenium, an essential trace element and a component of glutathione peroxidase, is known to protect the heart from ischemia-reperfusion (I/R)-induced injury, the mechanisms of this protection are not fully understood. For this purpose, isolated rat hearts were subjected to 30 min of global ischemia followed by 30 min of reperfusion; sodium selenite (25-1,000 nM) was added in the perfusion medium 10 min prior to ischemia, as well as during reperfusion. Selenium caused a dose-dependent improvement in cardiac performance and attenuated the decrease in the ratio of reduced glutathione to oxidized glutathione, as well as the increased level of malondialdehyde in I/R heart. Elevated ratios of nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) in particulate and cytosolic fraction and of phosphorylated NF-kappaB and total NF-kappaB in I/R hearts were reduced by selenium. Cardiac dysfunction in hearts perfused with xanthine plus xanthine oxidase mixture, as well as hydrogen peroxide, or subjected to Ca2+ paradox was also attenuated by selenium. These data suggest that selenium protects the heart against I/R injury due to its action on the redox state and deactivation of NF-kappaB in I/R hearts.     

Prevalence of hepatitis B virus infection in pregnant Turkish women and their families

A total of 5,366 pregnant Turkish women were screened for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and 225 (4.2%) of them were found to be positive. Hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) was detected in 6.2% of HBsAg-positive pregnant women. The overall prevalence of HBsAg and antibody to HBsAg (anti-HBs) among the spouses, previous children, mothers and first degree relatives of the HBsAg-positive pregnant women was 56%, 49%, 79% and 74% respectively. The prevalence of HBsAg is thus high in pregnant Turkish women with familial clustering of hepatitis B virus infection.     

Elevated amyloid beta protein (Abeta42) and late onset Alzheimer's disease are associated with single nucleotide polymorphisms in the urokinase-type plasminogen activator gene

Plasma amyloid beta protein (Abeta42) levels and late onset Alzheimer's disease (LOAD) have been linked to the same region on chromosome 10q. The PLAU gene within this region encodes urokinase-type plasminogen activator, which converts plasminogen to plasmin. Abeta aggregates induce PLAU expression thereby increasing plasmin, which degrades both aggregated and non-aggregated forms of Abeta. We evaluated single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in PLAU for association with Abeta42 and LOAD. PLAU SNP compound genotypes composed of haplotype pairs showed significant association with AD in three independent case-control series. PLAU SNP haplotypes associated significantly with plasma Abeta42 in 10 extended LOAD families. One of the SNPs analyzed was a missense C/T polymorphism in exon 6 of PLAU (PLAU_1=rs2227564), which causes a proline to leucine change (P141L). We analyzed PLAU_1 for association with AD in six case-control series and 24 extended LOAD families. The CT and TT PLAU_1 genotypes showed association (P=0.05) with an overall estimated odds ratio of 1.2 (1.0-1.5). The CT and TT genotypes of PLAU_1 were also associated with significant age-dependent elevation of plasma Abeta42 in 24 extended LOAD families (P=0.0006). In knockout mice lacking the PLAU gene, plasma--but not brain--Abeta42 as well as Abeta40 was significantly elevated, also in an age-dependent manner. The PLAU_1 associations were independent of the associations we found among plasma Abeta42, LOAD and variants in the IDE or VR22 region. These results provide strong evidence that PLAU or a nearby gene is involved in the development of LOAD. PLAU_1 is a plausible pathogenic mutation that could act by increasing Abeta42, but additional biological experiments are required to show this definitively.     

Genetic variants in a haplotype block spanning IDE are significantly associated with plasma Abeta42 levels and risk for Alzheimer disease

Risk for late onset Alzheimer disease (LOAD) and plasma amyloid beta levels (Abeta42; encoded by APP), an intermediate phenotype for LOAD, show linkage to chromosome 10q. Several strong candidate genes (VR22, PLAU, IDE) lie within the 1-lod support interval for linkage. Others have independently identified haplotypes in the chromosome 10q region harboring IDE that show highly significant association with intermediate AD phenotypes and with risk for AD. To pursue these associations, we analyzed the same haplotypes for association with plasma Abeta42 in 24 extended LOAD families and for association with LOAD in two independent case-control series. One series (MCR, 188 age-matched case-control pairs) did not show association (p=0.64) with the six haplotypes in the 276-kb region spanning three genes (IDE, KNSL1, and HHEX) previously shown to associate with LOAD. The other series (MCJ, 109 age-matched case-control pairs) showed significant (p=0.003) association with these haplotypes. In the MCJ series, the H4 (odds ratio [OR]=5.1, p=0.003) and H2(H7) haplotypes (OR=0.60, p=0.04) had the same effects previously reported. In this series, the H8 haplotype (OR=2.7, p=0.098) also had an effect similar as in one previous case control series but not in others. In the extended families, the H8 haplotype was associated with significantly elevated plasma Abeta42 (p=0.02). In addition, the H5(H10) haplotype, which is associated with reduced risk for AD in the other study is associated with reduced plasma Abeta42 (p=0.007) in our family series. These results provide strong evidence for pathogenic variant(s) in the 276-kb region harboring IDE that influence intermediate AD phenotypes and risk for AD.     

Cardiac Intervention Before Liver Transplantation

BackgroundCardiovascular complication is one of the leading causes of mortality after liver transplantation (LT). Thus, a thorough cardiac evaluation is a must before proceeding to a liver transplant surgery. Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with stent and to a lesser extent coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) are both valuable treatment options for patients with coronary artery disease.MethodsA retrospective, single-center study that included patients who underwent cardiac intervention and subsequent LT for end-stage liver disease. All patients who had PCI or CABG were included in the study.ResultsTwenty-nine adult patients out of 51 had a cardiac intervention before liver transplantation. Twenty-four patients had a diagnostic PCI, 3 patients had therapeutic PCI with stent, and 2 had failed PCI and proceeded to CABG before liver transplant. The mean age of the patients was 60.5 years. There were 24 men. All patients had cirrhosis. The 2 CABG cases were done during the same admission with a 13- and 18-day interval between the CABG and the transplantation. Both cases were live-related liver transplantation. No mortality was reported.ConclusionIn case of PCI failure, CABG may be a valuable and safe treatment option for cirrhotic patients as a preparation for liver transplantation. Live donor liver transplantation may be a good back-up for those patients in case they develop hepatic decompensation.     

Central Nervous System Effects of Ginkgo Biloba, a Plant Extract

Extracts of Ginkgo biloba (EGb) are among the most prescribed drugs in France and Germany. EGb is claimed to be effective in peripheral arterial disorders and in "cerebral insufficiency." The mechanism of action is not yet well understood. Three of the ingredients of the extract have been isolated and found to be pharmacologically active, but which one alone or in combination is responsible for clinical effects is unknown. The recommended daily dose (3 x 40 mg extract) is based more on empirical data than on clinical dose-findings studies. However, despite these, according to double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trials, EGb has therapeutic effects, at least, on the diagnostic entity of "cerebral insufficiency," which is used in Europe as synonymous with early dementia. To determine whether EGb has significant pharmacological effects on the human brain, a pharmacodynamic study was conducted using the Quantitative Pharmacoelectroencephalogram (QPEEG(R)) method. It was established that the pharmacological effects (based on a predetermined 7.5--13.0-Hz alpha frequency band in a computer-analyzed electroencephalogram = CEEG(R)) of EGb on the central nervous system (CNS) are significantly different than placebo, and the high and low doses could be discriminated from each other. The 120-mg, but particularly the 240-mg, single doses showed the most consistent CNS effects with an earlier onset (1 h) and longer duration (7 h). Furthermore, it was established that the electrophysiological effects of EGb in CNS are similar to those of well-known cognitive activators such as "nootropics" as well as tacrine, the only marketed "antidementia" drug currently available in the United States.