Determination of Dental Adhesive Composition throughout Solvent Drying and Polymerization Using ATR–FTIR Spectroscopy

The of this study aim was to develop a rapid method to determine the chemical composition, solvent evaporation rates, and polymerization kinetics of dental adhesives. Single-component, acetone-containing adhesives One-Step (OS; Bisco, USA), Optibond Universal (OU; Kerr, USA), and G-Bond (GB; GC, Japan) were studied. Filler levels were determined gravimetrically. Monomers and solvents were quantified by comparing their pure Attenuated Total Reflectance-Fourier Transform Infra-Red (ATR–FTIR) spectra, summed in different ratios, with those of the adhesives. Spectral changes at 37 °C, throughout passive evaporation for 5 min, then polymerisation initiated by 20 s, and blue light emitting diode (LED) (600 mW/cm2) exposure (n = 3) were determined. Evaporation and polymerisation extent versus time and final changes were calculated using acetone (1360 cm−1) and methacrylate (1320 cm−1) peaks. OS, OU, and GB filler contents were 0, 9.6, and 5.3%. FTIR suggested OS and OU were Bis-GMA based, GB was urethane dimethacrylate (UDMA) based, and that each had a different diluent and acidic monomers and possible UDMA/acetone interactions. Furthermore, initial acetone percentages were all 40−50%. After 5 min drying, they were 0% for OS and OU but 10% for GB. Whilst OS had no water, that in OU declined from 18 to 10% and in GB from 25 to 20% upon drying. Evaporation extents were 50% of final levels at 23, 25, and 113 s for OS, OU, and GB, respectively. Polymerisation extents were all 50 and 80% of final levels before 10 and at 20 s of light exposure, respectively. Final monomer polymerisation levels were 68, 69, and 88% for OS, OU, and GB, respectively. An appreciation of initial and final adhesive chemistry is important for understanding the properties. The rates of evaporation and polymerisation provide indications of relative required drying and light cure times. UDMA/acetone interactions might explain the considerably greater drying time of GB

Clonal hematopoiesis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Peer reviewe

Intramuscular tendon injury is not associated with an increased hamstring reinjury rate within 12 months after return to play

Background Acute hamstring injury that includes intramuscular tendon injury has been suggested to be associated with increased reinjury risk. These observations were based on a relatively small number of retrospectively analysed cases. Objective To determine whether intramuscular tendon injury is associated with higher reinjury rates in acute hamstring injury. Methods MRIs of 165 athletes with an acute hamstring injury were obtained within 5 days of injury. Treatment consisted of a standardised criteria-based rehabilitation programme. Standardised MRI parameters and intramuscular tendon injury, the latter subdivided into tendon disruption and waviness, were scored. We prospectively recorded reinjuries, defined as acute onset of posterior thigh pain in the same leg within 12 months after return to play. Results Participants were predominantly football players (72%). Sixty-four of 165 (39%) participants had an index injury with intramuscular hamstring tendon disruption, and waviness was present in 37 (22%). In total, there were 32 (19%) reinjuries. There was no significant difference (HR: 1.05, 95% CI 0.52 to 2.12, P=0.898) in reinjury rate between index injuries with intramuscular tendon disruption (n=13, 20%) and without tendon disruption (n=19, 20%). There was no significant difference in reinjury rate (X&(1)=0.031, P=0.861) between index injuries with presence of waviness (n=7, 19%) and without presence of waviness (n=25, 20%). Conclusion In athletes with an acute hamstring injury, intramuscular tendon injury was not associated with an increased reinjury rate within 12 months after return to play

Classifying radiographic changes of the pubic symphysis in male athletes: Development and reproducibility of a new scoring protocol

Purpose: To develop a specified radiographic scoring system for the pubic symphysis and adjacent bones, and to examine the intra- and inter-rater reproducibility of this system. Method: Development of the scoring protocol was performed in three stages using AP pelvis radiographs of 102 male adult athlet

MRI observations at return to play of clinically recovered hamstring injuries

Background: Previous studies have shown that MRI of fresh hamstring injuries have diagnostic and prognostic value. The clinical relevance of MRI at return to play (RTP) has not been clarified yet. The aim of this study is to describe MRI findings of clinically recovered hamstring injuries in amateur, elite and professional athletes that were cleared for RTP. Methods: We obtained MRI of 53 consecutive athletes with hamstring injuries within 5 days of injury and within 3 days of RTP. We assessed the following parameters: injured muscle, grading of injury, presence and extent of intramuscular signal abnormality. We recorded reinjuries within 2 months of RTP. Results: MRIs of the initial injury showed 27 (51%) grade 1 and 26 (49%) grade 2 injuries. Median time to RTP was 28 days (range 12-76). On MRI at RTP 47 athletes (89%) had intramuscular increased signal intensity on fluid-sensitive sequences with a mean longitudinal length of 77 mm (±53) and a median cross-sectional area of 8% (range 0-90%) of the total muscle area. In 22 athletes (42%) there was abnormal intramuscular low-signal intensity. We recorded five reinjuries. Conclusions: 89% of the clinically recovered hamstring injuries showed intramuscular increased signal intensity on fluid-sensitive sequences on MRI. Normalisation of this increased signal intensity seems not required for a successful RTP. Low-signal intensity suggestive of newly developed fibrous tissues is observed in one-third of the clinically recovered hamstring injuries on MRI at RTP, but its clinical relevance and possible association with increased reinjury risk has to be determined

Towards a greater dialogue on disability between Muslims and Christians

Attitudes to disability and disabled people by Muslims – focusing on attitudes in the Middle East and North Africa - and Christians – focusing on the West (here taken to mean Europe, North America and Australasia) - were examined through a grounded theory literature search, with the study being divided into three phases of reading and analysis. The aims of study were to develop a dialogue on disability between the two cultures, to inform an understanding of the attitudes to disability in the two cultures, and to inform cultural practice in promoting support and equality in both cultures. The study finds that Islam and Christianity have much in common and are a force for good in promoting and developing disability equality in both Muslim and Christian cultures

Reconstruction and Validation of RefRec: A Global Model for the Yeast Molecular Interaction Network

Molecular interaction networks establish all cell biological processes. The networks are under intensive research that is facilitated by new high-throughput measurement techniques for the detection, quantification, and characterization of molecules and their physical interactions. For the common model organism yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, public databases store a significant part of the accumulated information and, on the way to better understanding of the cellular processes, there is a need to integrate this information into a consistent reconstruction of the molecular interaction network. This work presents and validates RefRec, the most comprehensive molecular interaction network reconstruction currently available for yeast. The reconstruction integrates protein synthesis pathways, a metabolic network, and a protein-protein interaction network from major biological databases. The core of the reconstruction is based on a reference object approach in which genes, transcripts, and proteins are identified using their primary sequences. This enables their unambiguous identification and non-redundant integration. The obtained total number of different molecular species and their connecting interactions is ∼67,000. In order to demonstrate the capacity of RefRec for functional predictions, it was used for simulating the gene knockout damage propagation in the molecular interaction network in ∼590,000 experimentally validated mutant strains. Based on the simulation results, a statistical classifier was subsequently able to correctly predict the viability of most of the strains. The results also showed that the usage of different types of molecular species in the reconstruction is important for accurate phenotype prediction. In general, the findings demonstrate the benefits of global reconstructions of molecular interaction networks. With all the molecular species and their physical interactions explicitly modeled, our reconstruction is able to serve as a valuable resource in additional analyses involving objects from multiple molecular -omes. For that purpose, RefRec is freely available in the Systems Biology Markup Language format

Enrichment of rare variants in population isolates : single AICDA mutation responsible for hyper-IgM syndrome type 2 in Finland

Antibody class-switch recombination and somatic hypermutation critically depend on the function of activation-induced cytidine deaminase (AID). Rare variants in its gene AICDA have been reported to cause autosomal recessive AID deficiency (autosomal recessive hyper-IgM syndrome type 2 (HIGM2)). Exome sequencing of a multicase Finnish family with an HIGM2 phenotype identified a rare, homozygous, variant (c.416T > C, p.(Met139Thr)) in the AICDA gene, found to be significantly enriched in the Finnish population compared with other populations of European origin (38.56-fold, P <0.001). The population history of Finland, characterized by a restricted number of founders, isolation and several population bottlenecks, has caused enrichment of certain rare disease-causing variants and losses of others, as part of a phenomenon called the Finnish Disease Heritage. Accordingly, rare founder mutations cause the majority of observed Finnish cases in these mostly autosomal recessive disorders that consequently are more frequent in Finland than elsewhere. Screening of all currently known Finnish patients with an HIGM2 phenotype showed them to be homozygous for p.(Met139Thr). All the Finnish p.(Met139Thr) carriers with available data on their geographic descent originated from the eastern and northeastern parts of Finland. They were observed to share more of their genome identity by descent (IBD) than Finns in general (P <0.001), and they all carried a 207.5-kb ancestral haplotype containing the variant. In conclusion, the identified p.(Met139Thr) variant is significantly enriched in Finns and explains all thus far found AID deficiencies in Finland.Peer reviewe

Suggested Educational Criteria for Selecting Creative Leaders

The study aims to define the educational criteria for choosing creative leaders: their challenges, and their futuristic impact; to create proposals and procedures that help in selecting creative leaders. The current study differs from previous studies in the methodology of the study, as the current study is through the analytical method in terms of analysis and reviewing of previous research, studies, and educational literature. In light of the results of previous studies, the current study proposes educational criteria for selecting creative leaders based: namely skills, personal characteristics, academic qualifications, work experience, ethics, evaluation, and competencies. The study has recommended to staying up to date and holding continuous rehabilitation and training programs for educational leaders in order to keep pace with global developments and changes: leadership ethics, modern management skills, leadership, creativity, and innovatio

No Association Between Fibrosis on Magnetic Resonance Imaging at Return to Play and Hamstring Reinjury Risk

Background: Connective tissue scar (fibrosis) is a common finding on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) after recovery from acute hamstring injuries. Fibrosis has been suggested as a predisposing factor for reinjury, but evidence from clinical studies is lacking. Purpose/Hypothesis: The aim of this study was to examine the association between the presence of fibrosis on MRI at return to play after an acute hamstring injury and the risk of reinjury. The hypothesis was that fibrous tissue on MRI was associated with an increased reinjury risk. Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: Magnetic resonance images were obtained from 108 consecutive athletes with modified Peetrons classification grade 1 or 2 hamstring injuries within 5 days of injury and within 7 days of return to play. The presence and extent of abnormally low signal intensity in the intramuscular tissue on MRI, suggestive of fibrosis, were assessed on both T1- and T2-weighted images. Reinjuries were recorded over a 1-year follow-up period. The association between fibrosis and reinjury risk was analyzed with a Cox proportional hazards model. Results: The MRIs of the initial injury showed 45 (43%) grade 1 and 63 (57%) grade 2 injuries. Median time of return to play was 30 days (interquartile range [IQR], 22-42 days). At return to play, 41 athletes (38%) had fibrosis on MRI with a median longitudinal length of 5.8 cm (IQR, 3.3-12.5 cm) and a median volume of 1.5 cm(3) (IQR, 1.5-3.9 cm(3)). In athletes with fibrosis, 24% (10/41) sustained a reinjury, and in the subjects without fibrosis, 24% (16/67) had a reinjury, resulting in a hazard ratio of 0.95 (95% CI, 0.43-2.1; P = .898). Conclusion: Fibrosis is commonly seen on MRI at return to play after grade 1 or 2 hamstring injuries but is not associated with reinjury ris