Immunohistochemical evaluation of neuroreceptors in healthy and pathological temporo-mandibular joint

Aim: A study was performed on the articular disk and periarticular tissues of the temporo- mandibular joint (TMJ) with immunohistochemical techniques to give evidence to the presence of neuroreceptors (NRec) in these sites. Methods: The study was carried out on tissue samples obtained from 10 subjects without TMJ disease and from 7 patients with severe TMJ arthritis and arthrosis. We use antibodies directed against following antigens: Gliofibrillary Acidic Protein (GFAP), Leu-7, Myelin Basic Protein (MBP), Neurofilaments 68 kD (NF), Neuron Specific Enolase (NSE), S-100 protein (S-100) and Synaptophysin (SYN). Results: This study revealed that Ruffini's-like, Pacini's-like and Golgi's-like receptors can be demonstrated in TMJ periarticular tissues and that free nervous endings are present in the subsynovial tissues but not within the articular disk. We observed elongated cytoplamic processes of chondrocytes that demonstrated strong S-100 immunoreactivity but they were unreactive with all other antibodies. These cytoplamic processes were more abundant and thicker in the samples obtained from patients with disease TMJ. Conclusion: The results of this study confirm that different Nrec are detectable in TMJ periarticular tissues but they are absent within the articular disk. In the latter site, only condrocytic processes are evident, especially in diseased TMJ, and they might have been confused with nervous endings in previous morphological studies. Nevertheless the absence of immunoreactivity for NF, NSE and SYN proves that they are not of neural origin. © Ivyspring International Publisher

A Case of Osteonecrosis of the Jaw in a Patient with Crohn's Disease Treated with Infliximab

Background: Medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (MRONJ) is a severe adverse drug reaction, occurring in patients undergoing treatments with antiresorptive or antiangiogenic agents, such as bisphosphonates, denosumab, or bevacizumab, for different oncologic and non-oncologic diseases. The aim of this study was to report a case of MRONJ in a patient taking infliximab, an anti-TNF-alpha antibody used to treat Crohn's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, ulcerative colitis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, and plaque psoriasis. Case Report: A 49-year-old female patient affected by Crohn's disease, who had been undergoing 250 mg intravenous infliximab every six weeks for 12 years, with no history of antiresorptive or antiangiogenic agent administration, came to our attention for post-surgical MRONJ, associated with a wide cutaneous necrotic area of her anterior mandible. Following antibiotic cycles, the patient underwent surgical treatment with wide bone resection and debridement of necrotic tissues; after prolonged follow-up (16 months), the patient completely healed without signs of recurrence. Conclusions: Prevention of MRONJ by dental check-up before and during treatments with antiresorptive treatments (bisphosphonates or denosumab) is a well-established procedure. Although further studies are required to confirm the role of infliximab in MRONJ, based on the results of this study, we propose that patients who are going to be treated with infliximab should also undergo dental check-up before starting therapy, to possibly avoid MRONJ onset

Dietary supplementation of garlic and rosemary: effects on colour stability and lipid oxidation in lamb meat

The colour of fresh meat is an important criterion consumers take into consideration when purchasing meat. Meat colour depends on the occurrence of chemical and microbial deterioration processes. The role of vitamin E and other antioxidants on ruminant meat colour stability and prevention of lipid oxidation has been widely investigated (Macit et al., 2003; Realini et al., 2004). Many natural herbs and plant extracts exert antioxidant effects such as garlic (Yin and Cheng, 2003) and rosemary (Sánchez-Escalante et al., 2001). Their use as additives for animal feeding may be a valid alternative to synthetic antioxidants since they show beneficial effects also on animal welfare and other physiological functions (Tedesco, 2001). The aim of this study was to evaluate whether garlic and rosemary dietary supplementation as compared with vitamin E affects lamb meat colour and lipid stability during storage

Expression of salivary biomarkers in patients with oral mucositis: evaluation by SELDI-TOF/MS

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to evaluate changes in proteomic salivary profile of patients with oral mucositis after adjuvant cancer treatments. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Samples were collected from patients after adjuvant cancer therapies, and were analyzed by means of SELDI/TOF. Patients were sepa- rated in two groups: patients affected by mucositis (MUCOSITIS) and patient without mucositis (NO MUCOSITIS). All patients were divided in function of the anticancer treatment: patients who had radiother- apy (MUCOSITIS RADIO), had not radiotherapy (MUCOSITIS NO RADIO), had chemotherapy (MUCO- SITIS CHEMO), and those who had not chemotherapy (MUCOSITIS NO CHEMO). Statistical evaluation PCA (Principal Component Analysis) was conducted with the software BIO-RAD Data ManagerTM (Version 3.5). RESULTS: We found the increased peaks of 3443, 3487, and 4135 m/z in MUCOSITIS group, while 6237 m/z was reduced. These same peaks would the same modifica- tions in MUCOSITIS RADIO, while in MUCOSITIS CHEMIO are increased 3443 and 6237 m/z but 3487, 4135 m/z are reduced. These data were confirmed by the PCA. CONCLUSION: Anticancer therapy influenced the level expression of many salivary biomarkers in mucositis with a good significance. Therefore, 3443, 3487, 4135, and 6237 m/z are good biomarker candidates of oral mucositis

The Role of Randomly Distributed Well Widths in Disordered GaAs/AlGaAs Superlattices

Numerical and experimental results on the effect of randomness in GaAs/Al0.3Ga0.7As superlattices having a small number of randomly distributed well widths are reported. The numerical results indicate the splitting of the extended state miniband into sub-minibands of localized states having a disorder-induced fine structure. The comparison between the experimental results for low-temperature absorption spectra and the computed joint density of states of the investigated samples confirms the predicted features. The high-temperature photoluminescence intensity of random superlattices is observed to be enhanced with respect to the ordered case

Intra-instar larval cannibalism in Anopheles gambiae (s.s.) and Anopheles stephensi (Diptera: Culicidae)

BACKGROUND: Cannibalism has been observed in a wide range of animal taxa and its importance in persistence and stability of populations has been documented. In anopheline malaria vectors the inter-instar cannibalism between fourth- and first-instar larvae (L4-L1) has been shown in several species, while intra-instar cannibalism remains poorly investigated. In this study we tested the occurrence of intra-instar cannibalism within larvae of second-, third- and fourth-instar (L2, L3 and L4) of Anopheles gambiae (s.s.) and An. stephensi. Experiments were set up under laboratory conditions and the effects of larval density, duration of the contact period among larvae and the presence of an older larva (i.e. a potential cannibal of bigger size) on cannibalism rate were analysed. Cannibalism was assessed by computing the number of missing larvae after 24 and 48 h from the beginning of the experiments and further documented by records with a GoPro videocamera. RESULTS: Intra-instar cannibalism was observed in all larval instars of both species with higher frequency in An. gambiae (s.s.) than in An. stephensi. In both species the total number of cannibalistic events increased from 0-24 to 0-48 h. The density affected the cannibalism rate, but its effect was related to the larval instar and to the presence of older larvae. Interestingly, the lower cannibalism rate between L4 larvae was observed at the highest density and the cannibalism rate between L3 larvae decreased when one L4 was added. CONCLUSIONS: The present study provides experimental evidence of intra-instar cannibalism in the malaria vectors An. gambiae (s.s.) and An. stephensi and highlights the possible occurrence of complex interactions between all larval instars potentially present in the breeding sites. We hypothesize that the high density and the presence of a potential cannibal of bigger size could affect the readiness to attack conspecifics, resulting into low risk larval behavior and lower cannibalism rate. The understanding of cannibalistic behavior and the factors affecting it is of utmost importance for malaria vectors, as nutrition during larval development can strongly affect the fitness of adult female mosquitoes and ultimately their vector ability

Osteonecrosis of the jaws in patients assuming oral bisphosphonates for osteoporosis: A retrospective multi-hospital-based study of 87 Italian cases

BACKGROUND: Bisphosphonates (BPs) are currently the chief drugs for the prevention/treatment of osteoporosis; one of their adverse effects is the osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ). The primary endpoints of this multi-center cross-sectional study are: i) an observation of the clinical features of BRONJ in 87 osteoporotic, non-cancer patients; and ii) an evaluation of their demographic variables and comorbidities. METHODS: 87 BRONJ patients in therapy for osteoporosis with BPs from 8 participating clinical Italian centers were consecutively identified and studied. After BRONJ diagnosis and staging, comorbidities and data relating to local and drug-related risk factors for BRONJ were collected. RESULTS: 77/87 (88.5%) patients in our sample used alendronate as a BP type; the duration of bisphosphonate therapy ranged from 2 to 200 months, and 51.7% of patients were in treatment for ≤ 38 months (median value). No comorbidities or local risk factors were observed in 17 (19.5%) patients, indicating the absence of cases belonging to BRONJ forms triggered by surgery. BRONJ localization was significantly associated with age: an increased risk of mandible localization (p=0.002; OR=6.36, 95%CI=[1.89; 21.54]) was observed for those over 72 yrs. At multivariate analysis, the increased risk of BRONJ in the mandible for people over 72 yrs (OR'=6.87, 95%CI=[2.13; 2.21]) was confirmed for a BP administration >56 months (OR'=4.82, 95%CI=[2.13; 22.21]). CONCLUSION: Our study confirms the fundamental necessity of applying protocols of prevention in order to reduce the incidence of BRONJ in osteoporotic, non-cancer patients in the presence of comorbidities and/or local risk factor as well as, less frequently, in their absence

Food-dependent Cushing's syndrome: from molecular characterization to therapeutical results

ObjectiveCortisol secretion in ACTH-independent macronodular adrenal hyperplasia (AIMAH) may be regulated by the aberrant expression of several G-protein-coupled receptors. Bilateral adrenalectomy is the treatment of choice in most cases. We searched for aberrant receptor expression in a patient with AIMAH and evaluated the response to medical and surgical treatment.PatientA 35-year-old woman with amenorrhea, hirsutism, and hypertension presented ACTH-independent cortisol secretion with high androgen levels. Abdominal computed tomography showed bilateral adrenal macronodules (4.5 cm right and 1.0 cm left). Scintigraphy with I131-norcholesterol showed bilateral uptake, prevalent on the right side. Several in vivo stimulation tests were assessed before and after treatment and in vitro studies were performed after unilateral adrenalectomy.ResultsPlasma cortisol increased after a standard meal test (60%) and oral glucose loading (147%), and the response was blunted by pretreatment with 100 μg s.c. octreotide. The therapy with long-acting release octreotide (octreotide-LAR) showed an improvement in urinary free cortisol (UFC) levels. Unilateral adrenalectomy was performed and histopathology revealed macronodular AIMAH. Cortisol and androgens increased after perifusion of tumoral tissue with glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP), and GIP and LH-receptor overexpression was found in both the adrenal nodules and the adjacent cortex. After surgery, UFC and androgen levels normalized followed by clinical improvement.ConclusionsGIP and LH-receptor expression may coexist in AIMAH, influencing the functional and morphological phenotype. Aberrant hormone receptor expression enables specific pharmacological treatment, but long-term studies are needed to evaluate its real efficacy. Unilateral adrenalectomy may be a safe initial option, particularly for asymmetric bilateral adrenal enlargements

Hematopoietic Stem/Progenitor Cells Express Functional Mitochondrial Energy-Dependent Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator

Bone marrow-derived hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells (HSPCs) encompass a wide array of cell subsets with different capacities of engraftment and injured tissue-regenerating potential. The characterization/isolation of the stem cell subpopulations represents a major challenge to improve the efficacy of transplantation protocols used in regenerative medicine. Cystic fibrosis (CF) is one of the diseases whose hope of cure relies on the successful application of cell-based gene therapy. This study was aimed at characterizing murine HSPCs on the basis of their bioenergetic competence and CF transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) expression. Positively immunoselected Sca-1(+) HSPCs encompassed 2 populations distinguished by their different size, Sca-1 expression and mitochondrial content. The smaller were the cells, the higher was Sca-1 expression and the lower was the intracellular density of functional mitochondria. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and western blotting revealed that HSPCs expressed CFTR mRNA and protein, which was also functional, as assessed by spectrofluorimetric and patch-clamp techniques. Inhibition of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation by oligomycin resulted in a 70% decrease of both the intracelluar adenosine triphosphate content and CFTR-mediated channel activity. Finally, HSPCs with lower Sca-1 expression and higher mitochondrial content displayed higher CFTR levels. Our findings identify 2 subpopulations in HSPCs and unveil a so-far unappreciated relationship between bioenergetic metabolism and CFTR in HSPC biology