2,434 research outputs found

    Successful Management of a Typical Class 3 Invasive Cervical Root Resorption with Modified Pulpotomy: A Case Report

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    Invasive cervical root resorption (ICRR) is a rare and clinically complex condition marked by the progressive loss of dental hard tissues below the junctional epithelium. This case report outlines the management of a 32-year-old female patient presenting with ICRR class 3 affecting a maxillary incisor. Despite the absence of symptoms, the expansive nature of the defect warranted conservative surgical intervention. The procedure involved the surgical removal of inflamed tissues, followed by an ultraconservative modified pulpotomy utilizing calcium-enriched mixture (CEM) cement through a surgical window. The selected intervention is substantiated by its potential benefits, such as minimal removal of tooth structure and the inherent biocompatibility and sealing capabilities of CEM cement. A one-year follow-up revealed arrested resorption, re-establishment of periodontal attachment, and successful esthetic restoration, affirming the efficacy of vital pulp therapy in surgically addressing advanced ICRR. Accurate diagnosis, strategic treatment planning, and a patient-centered approach proved critical in achieving favorable outcomes

    Invasive Cervical Root Resorption: A Comprehensive Review on Pathogenesis, Diagnosis, and Treatment

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    Invasive cervical root resorption (ICRR) is a dental pathology, marked by unexpected destruction originating in the cervical region of the tooth. This comprehensive literature review provides a holistic view into the pathogenesis, clinical manifestation, and precise management of ICRR, aiming to guide endodontists and enhance patient care and treatment outcomes. The review delves into the potential etiology of ICRR, covering contributing factors such as trauma, orthodontic treatment, and other pertinent conditions. It outlines the clinical and radiographic indicators, underscoring the crucial role of early detection and precise diagnosis in effectively managing and halting ICRR progression. The exploration of treatment approaches is thorough, ranging from non-surgical methods like vital pulp therapy or root canal treatment to surgical interventions. This review accentuates the essential role of interdisciplinary collaboration among diverse dental specialties in enhancing ICRR management. It highlights the importance of a consolidated strategy in enhancing treatment outcomes and preserving tooth structure and function. Moreover, it investigates prevention methods, risk evaluation, and identifies prospective research pathways to address the existing knowledge gaps

    Stigma in payday borrowing: a service ecosystems approach

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    PurposeThis study aims to explore stigma in payday borrowing by investigating how the stigma associated with using such a service may spill over and affect other people, entities and relationships beyond the user within a service ecosystem.Design/methodology/approachIn-depth interviews exploring consumers’ lived experiences and stigma were combined with publicly available reports from key stakeholders within the payday loan (PDL) industry to create a qualitative, text-based data set. The transcripts and reports were then analysed following thematic protocols.FindingsAnalysis reveals that the stigma associated with using a stigmatised service spills over, affecting not only the borrower but other actors within the service ecosystem. The analysis uncovers three important interactions that spilled over between the actors within the stigmatised service ecosystem (SSE), which can be damaging, enabling or concealed.Research limitations/implicationsThis study introduces and explores the concept of “SSEs” and investigates the impact of stigma beyond the dyadic relationships between service providers and users to consider the actors within the wider ecosystem. The findings reframe existing understandings about stigma, as this study finds that stigmatised services can play both a positive (enabling) and a negative (damaging) role within an ecosystem, and this study uncovers the role of stigma concealments and how they can affect relationships and value co-creation among different actors.Practical implicationsThis study provides evidence for more robust policies for addressing stigma in different SSEs by mapping the effects of stigma spillover and its effects on the borrower and other actors.Originality/valueThis study contributes to reframing marketing priorities by extending existing work on consumer stigma by showing how the stigma of a PDL may spill over and affect other actors within a service ecosystem. Significantly, the interactions between the actors may have positive as well as negative outcomes

    Enhancement of Charging Resource Utilization of Electric Vehicle Fast Charging Station with Heterogeneous EV Users

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    This thesis presents innovative charging resource allocation and coordination strategies that maximize the limited charging resources at FCS with heterogeneous EV users. It allows opportunistic EV users (OEVs) to exploit available charging resources with dynamic event-driven charging resource allocation and coordination strategies apart from primary EV users (PEVs) (registered or scheduled EV users). Moreover, developed strategies focus on the limited charging resources that are allocated for primary/ registered EV users (PEVs) of the FCS who access the FCS with specific privileges according to prior agreements. But the available resources are not optimally utilized due to various uncertainties associated with the EV charging process such as EV mobility-related uncertainties, EVSE failures, energy price uncertainties, etc. Developed strategies consider that idle chargers and vacant space for EVs at the FCS is an opportunity for further utilizing them with OEVs using innovative charging resource coordination strategies. This thesis develops an FCS-centric performance assessment framework that evaluates the performance of developed strategies in terms of charging resource utilization, charging completion and the quality of service (QoS) aspects of EV users. To evaluate QoS of EV charging process, various parameters such as EV blockage, charging process preemptage, mean waiting time, mean charging time, availability of FCS, charging reliability, etc are derived and analyzed. In addition, the developed innovative charging resource allocation and coordination strategies with resource aggregation and demand elasticity further enhance the charging resource utilization while providing a high QoS in EV charging for both PEVs and OEVs.publishedVersio

    The role of AD protective variant PLCγ2P522R in modulating microglia mediated clearance and synaptic pruning

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    PLCG2-P522R, a rare coding variant in the Phospholipase C gamma-2 (PLCG2) gene, has been found to be protective against late onset Alzheimer's disease (AD). Within the central nervous system, PLCγ2 is most abundantly expressed in microglia, and microglial mediated neuroinflammatory system has emerged as a major contributor to the molecular and phenotypic changes observed in the AD brain. However, the mechanism by which the P522R variant of PLCγ2 reduces AD pathology is still unknown. BV2 (mouse microglia) cells and human induced pluripotent stem-cells (hiPSC) derived microglia were used in this thesis work to evaluate the role of PLCγ2 in modifying various disease-relevant microglia functions. PLCγ2WT and PLCγ2P522R expression constructs were transfected into BV2 cells to examine the effects of PLCγ2 overexpression on various microglia functions including amyloid beta (Aβ) clearance and synaptic targeting, and various transcriptional changes linked to AD. hiPSCs were genome edited using CRISPR/Cas9 to generate both heterozygous and homozygous forms of the PLCG2_P522R variant in healthy controls. These hiPSC derived microglia were used to explore the effects of the PLCγ2P522R basal level on disease-relevant processes, such as microglial capacity to uptake Aβ and synapses. Microglia transcriptional changes were examined using targeted qPCR analysis to investigate changes in expression of key microglial genes. Mitochondrial function and calcium level changes were also investigated in these microglia cells to determine their metabolic fitness. In addition, the microglia were subjected to acute and chronic treatment of oligomeric Aβ to examine the impact of PLCγ2P522R on microglia's ability to respond to acute and chronic stress. As a result, the effects of Aβ oligomers on lysosomal biogenesis and phagocytic capacities of these microglia were examined further. As a result of PLCγ2 overexpression, Aβ uptake and other immune- provoking cargoes like zymosan were significantly increased. In contrast, the uptake of synaptosomes in BV2 cells overexpressing PLCγ2 was considerably reduced. Similarly, microglia generated from hiPSCs also showed enhanced clearance of Aβ and preservation of synapses by PLCγ2P522R variants. In the PLCγ2P522R microglia variants, the expression of multiple genes, including IL-10 and CX3CR1, as well as mitochondrial function, cytoplasmic calcium flux, and cellular motility were all increased. It was found that the protective effect of PLCγ2P522R was vitally dependent on 'allelic-dose', as homozygous cells displayed a lower preservation of synapse and a distinct gene expression profile compared to heterozygous cells. Similarly, microglia with the protective mutation PLCγ2P522R displayed higher inflammatory cytokine IL-1β level, and better response to acute treatment with Aβ oligomers. PLCγ2P522R appeared to resist the quiescence that was seen in WT microglia variants, by increasing cytokine production and lysosomal biogenesis. My findings suggest that the P522R variant in PLCγ2 increases microglia capacity to clear toxic aggregates such as Aβ while preserving synapses. Furthermore, my findings suggests that PLCγ2P522R contributes to greater microglial surveillance, as well as microglia priming towards a pro-inflammatory state, along with an increased capacity to adapt to growing energy demands. This, however, also shows the delicate balance of this system, as increasing the 'dosage' of PLCγ2P522R may result in diminished favourable benefits

    Investigating the susceptibility of foreskin myeloid cells to ex vivo HIV infection

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    Background: HIV/AIDS remains a global concern that, although manageable using anti-retroviral therapy (ART), is still eluded by a cure with paucity of knowledge regarding its acquisition and spread especially through the male genital tract (MGT)1–4. Several authors have shown the human foreskin to be an effective mucosal effector site with heterogenous populations of innate and adaptive immune cells, that are permissive to HIV infection5–8. In support of this, medical male circumcision (MMC), has been reported to confer up to 60 % risk reduction in HIV acquisition9–17. Most studies have focused on investigating blood lymphoid immune cells and their interaction with HIV-1, this study sought to elucidate the myeloid cell composition of the inner and outer foreskin, and to investigate the susceptibility of these cells to ex vivo HIV infection by (i) Isolating migratory and non-migratory Langerhans cells (LCs) and “macrophage-like” cells from the foreskin epidermis (ii) Immunophenotyping and characterising foreskin LCs and “macrophage-like” cells using CD4+CCR5+ as proxy for HIV susceptibility, HLA-DR+CD80/86+ for maturation, and the mannose receptor, DC-SIGN and Siglec-1 as HIV attachment factors and (iii) Investigating the HIV susceptibility of foreskin epidermal cells using an optimised ex vivo pluricellular foreskin infection model of suspension cells. Methodology: Foreskin specimen were obtained from 60 seronegative adult South African men (aged 18-35 years) undergoing voluntary medical male circumcision (vMMC). Migratory and non-migratory foreskin cells were isolated from the inner and outer foreskin using spontaneous migration and enzymatic digestion of remnant epidermal tissue respectively, and subsequently immunophenotyped using multiparameter flow cytometry (n=31). The optimal HIV infection model was determined through assessment of different infection models inclusive of i) epidermal sheets, ii) foreskin explants and iii) pluricellular suspension cells (n=5). Using the ex vivo pluricellular foreskin infection model of suspension cells (n=17), Subtype C transmitted founder (T/F) and chronic infection derived (CC) infectious molecular clones (IMCs) were used alongside Subtype B NL4-3 IMCs with CCR5, CXCR4 and BaL envelopes. The extent of HIV infection was quantified by measurement of p24 in different immune cell subsets over a time-course. The different HIV infected cell subsets were characterized using CD45, CD207, CD1a, CD11c, CD14, CD3, HLA-DR, CD80/86, CD209, CD206, CD169, CD4 and CCR5. Results: Foreskin myeloid cells contained a rare population of LCs (1.11 % ± 1.02 %;) that was predominantly migratory (p = 0.0084) and “macrophage-like” cells (9.87 % ± 9.64 %) that, in addition to being 8-fold more abundant (

    The ethics and politics of deportation in Europe

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    Defence date: 19 February 2019Examining Board: Professor Rainer Bauböck, European University Institute (Supervisor); Professor Matthew Gibney, University of Oxford; Professor Iseult Honohan, University College Dublin; Professor Jennifer Welsh, McGill University (formerly European University Institute)This thesis explores key empirical and normative questions prompted by deportation policies and practices in the contemporary European context. The core empirical research question the thesis seeks to address is: what explains the shape of deportation regimes in European liberal democracies? The core normative research question is: how should we evaluate these deportation regimes morally? The two parts of the thesis address each of these questions in turn. To explain contemporary European deportation regimes, the four chapters of the first part of the thesis investigate them from a historical and multilevel perspective. (“Expulsion Old and New”) starts by comparing contemporary deportation practices to earlier forms of forced removal such as criminal banishment, political exile, poor law expulsion, and collective expulsions on a religious or ethnic basis, highlighting how contemporary deportation echoes some of the purposes of these earlier forms of expulsion. (“Divergences in Deportation”) looks at some major differences between European countries in how, and how much, deportation is used as a policy instrument today, concluding that they can be roughly grouped into four regime types, namely lenient, selective, symbolically strict and coercively strict. The next two chapters investigate how non-national levels of government are involved in shaping deportation in the European context. (“Europeanising Expulsion”) traces how the institutions of the European Union have come to both restrain and facilitate or incentivise member states’ deportation practices in fundamental ways. (“Localities of Belonging”) describes how provincial and municipal governments are increasingly assertive in frustrating deportations, effectively shielding individuals or entire categories of people from the reach of national deportation efforts, while in other cases local governments pressure the national level into instigating deportation proceedings against unwanted residents. The chapters argue that such efforts on both the supranational and local levels must be explained with reference to supranational and local conceptions of membership that are part of a multilevel citizenship structure yet can, and often do, come apart from the national conception of belonging. The second part of the thesis addresses the second research question by discussing the normative issues deportation gives rise to. (“Deportability, Domicile and the Human Right to Stay”) argues that a moral and legal status of non-deportability should be extended beyond citizenship to all those who have established effective domicile, or long-term and permanent residence, in the national territory. (“Deportation without Domination?”) argues that deportation can and should be applied in a way that does not dominate those it subjects by ensuring its non-arbitrary application through a limiting of executive discretion and by establishing proportionality testing in deportation procedures. (“Resisting Unjust Deportation”) investigates what can and should be done in the face of unjust national deportation regimes, proposing that a normative framework for morally justified antideportation resistance must start by differentiating between the various individual and institutional agents of resistance before specifying how their right or duty to resist a particular deportation depends on motivational, epistemic and relational conditions

    To the Field of Stars : Stable isotope analysis of Medieval pilgrims and populations along the Camino de Santiago in Navarre and Aragon, Spain

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    The Camino de Santiago emerged in the first half of the 9th century CE following the reported discovery of the remains of the Apostle St James by the bishop of Iria-Flavia, Teodomiro. Since then, hundreds of thousands of pilgrims have walked from different parts of the Iberian Peninsula, Europe, and further afield to Santiago de Compostela's Cathedral. This route was particularly important to the populations of Navarre and Aragon, two kingdoms in northern Spain that rose to prominence with the resurgence of Christianity from the 11th century onwards. Here, we present multidisciplinary analysis of medieval individuals buried in Navarre and Aragon at a time when the Camino de Santiago was reaching its peak of popularity (11th-15th centuries CE). We use stable isotope analysis (δ15N, δ13C, δ18O, and δ13Cap) and radiocarbon dating to investigate a total of 82 human individuals together with 42 fauna samples from 8 different archaeological sites located in the northeast of the Iberian Peninsula. Twenty of these individuals were buried with a scallop shell, a symbol of a pilgrim who had completed the Camino de Santiago. Our data corroborate the use of the pilgrim's shell since at least the 11th century CE. Moreover, our results suggest that the pilgrimage was mainly an urban phenomenon for populations from the northern Iberian Peninsula, conducted equally by women and men, although with indications that female pilgrims may have had greater access to animal protein than their male counterparts. Our results represent the largest isotopic dataset of medieval individuals linked to the Camino de Santiago, allowing us to further investigate the origins and diets of potential pilgrims and, more generally, other sampled portions of northeastern Iberian society

    Live fast, die young : Romanian coalitions in time of crisis

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    Published online: 01 December 2023Romania managed to resist the far end of elite attempts to alter democratic institutions along the lines of Hungary or Poland. Although the country has struggled to improve its democratic track record in the last years, it is still a laggard in securing an independent judiciary, fighting corruption, and upholding human rights compared to other EU member states. This is reflected in how elites manage governance in times of crisis. Disruptive events created the window of opportunity for incumbents to deploy discretionary leadership, including in the formation and termination of cabinets. Such interventions weakened constitutional checks and balances. As a result, Romanian democracy remains a work in progress, while politicians' preferred patterns of coalition governance are a source of stagnation
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