Use of porcine collagen matrix (Mucograft®) to promote the wound healing in the oral cavity

The aim of this study was to evaluate the use of a new collagen matrix (Mucograft®; Geistlich Pharma AG, Wol- husen, Switzerland) in the soft tissue reconstruction after excisional biopsy. The healing of soft tissues after bioptical excision tends to heal by secondary intention. To avoid this, the soft tissue grafts can be harvested from the palate, retromolar pad, or (if available) edentulous site. Disadvantages of harvesting the graft from the retromolar pad and edentulous site are minimal amount of tissue availability and thinner grafts are obtained. The use of collagen matrix is also reported in literature and could represent an optimal solution in the future. Mucograft® is a pure collagen type I and III matrix of porcine origin without further cross-linking. Mucograft® consists of pure porcine collagen obtained by standardized, controlled manufacturing processes. The product made up of porcine collagen has a bilayer structure. The compact layer consists of compact collagen fibers which has cell occlusive properties and allows tis- sue adherence as a prerequisite for favourable wound healing. This layer protects against bacterial infiltration in open healing situations and has appropriate elastic properties to accommodate suturing. A second layer consists of a thick, porous collagen spongious structure. In this paper, we report about a case of surgical site healing after biopti- cal excision proliferative verrucous leukoplakia of the hard palate

Painful oral aphthous-like lesions in patient with kidney cancer after target therapy and bisphosphonate administration: a case report of adverse drug reaction.

Aim. Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) targeting tu- mor angiogenesis and mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitors (mTOR) are indicated for the management of several cancer types, as for renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Oral ulcerations are reported as common adverse drug reactions of mTOR inhibitors and are currently classified as mTOR inhibitor associated stomatitis (mIAS). Interestingly, these lesions appear as aphthous-like stoma- titis rather than the mucositis seen with chemotherapy agent. Case report. A 49 years old male patient underwent to the left radical nephrectomy in May 2014 for clear RCC. From July to October 2014 he was treated with Pazopanib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor. In December 2014 the patient started the treatment with Zoledronic acid and Everolimus, an amino-bisphosphonates and an mTOR inhibitor, respectively. Everolimus administration was suspended on the 1st of January 2015 and resumed on the 4th of February. In February 2015, the patient referred to our department for acute pain of mouth floor and tongue; the onset of these symptoms was subse- quent to mTOR therapy. This pain compromised his oral functions (chewing, swallowing, phonetic) and quality of life. Intraoral examination showed aphthous-like lesions on both borders of the tongue and on the right side of the mouth floor. Local antiseptic (0.2% chlorhexidine rinse, twice daily for 1 week), 0.050 g clobetasol propionate cream (twice a day for 4 week, and one times a day for the following 4 weeks) and a wound-healing promoter (Mucosamin Spray®, twice a day for 2 weeks) were administered. Since the oncologist decided to not discontinue the target therapy, the patient continued local therapy until the end of the treatment with everolimus. After two weeks from the first visit, a complete healing of the oral mucosa was observed and the patient complained no pain. Conclusion. This case report confirms the recent view that target therapy with everolimus may induce the onset of aphthous-like stomatitis as adverse drug reaction. Therefore, diagnostic algorithms for stomatitis should include a careful drug history, emphasizing the focus also on oral adverse effects the new target cancer therapies

Osteonecrosis of the jaw after long-term oral bisphosphonates, followed by short-term denosumab treatment for osteoporosis: a case report

Bisphosphonates and denosumab are antiresoptive agents and are mainly used for management of metastatic bone cancer, osteoporosis and other diseases. Bisphosphonates (BP) can reduce skeletal related events (SRE) by 30–50%1; denosumab (D) has been found even more effective than BP2. BP and D have been both associated to osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ). We report a case of an osteoporotic woman (62 yrs), complaining maxillary intense pain after a recent tooth molar extraction, observed in July 2013 at our centre. She mentioned previous treatments with monthly ibandronate (Bonviva ® 150 mg) per os (from January 2003 to April 2010), risedronate (35 mg weekly, from May 2010 to May 2012) and two administrations (in August 2012 and in January 2013) of denosumab (Prolia ®, 60 mg sc every 6 months). Of note, she also reported a previous incisor extraction that was performed in July 2012 (before denosumab) without ONJ onset. No further systemic or local risk factors were referred. Intraorally, bone exposure of right emimaxilla was present; osteolysis area was observed in in CT scans. According to Bedogni et al.3, the ONJ case was classified as stage II B. Medical therapy (ampicillin/sulbactam im 2 times/die, metronidazole per os 3 times/die, chlorhexidine 0.2% mouth rinses) was administered. One week later, the patient was asymptomatic but within the same stage (IIA); she was referred to Oral and Maxillofacial surgery for surgical management

A semi-automated fluorescent (SAF) assay using viable, whole cells for screening hybridoma supernatants

In the production of monoclonal antibodies, a rapid, sensitive, accurate assay is needed for the critical step of screening. We report the modification of an assay using viable whole cells for screening hybridoma supernatants. The modified assay uses fluorescent second antibodies for detection and has been adapted to an instrument capable of automating a number of assay steps. The modified assay is compared to a dot radioimmunoassay developed and used in our laboratory. The fluorescence assay is highly sensitive but shows more background effect, especially in samples with high protein content, such as ascites. The automated fluorescence assay is very rapid, capable of completing an assay in less than 90 min, and can be performed with minimal operator involvement. The assay was performed successfully with several different antibodies and cell types. This screening procedure should be especially useful for laboratories with large numbers of fusions to evaluate.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/26678/1/0000222.pd

Ode to the Sea: Art from Guantanamo

Exhibition catalogue for “Ode to the Sea: Art from Guantánamo” (October 16, 2017-January 26, 2018, President\u27s Gallery, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, New York). Detainees at the United States military prison camp known as Guantánamo Bay have made art from the time they arrived. The exhibit displays some of these evocative works, made by eight men: four who have since been cleared and released from Guantánamo, and four who remain there. They paint the sea again and again although they cannot reach it. The catalog includes contributions by Trevor Paglen, Solmaz Sharif, Natasha Trethewey, Jericho Brown, and current and former detainees

The role of bone anabolic drugs in the management of periodontitis: a scoping review

The aim of this scoping review was to summarise current knowledge about the effects of bone anabolic drugs on periodontitis, in order to identify new therapeutic strategies for preventing disease progression and reducing tooth loss. A technical expert panel (TEP) was established of 11 medical specialists, including periodontists and bone specialists that followed the PRISMA-ScR model to perform the scoping review and considered for eligibility both pre-clinical and clinical studies published in the English language up to September 2020. 716 items were initially found. After duplicate removal and screening of articles for eligibility criteria, 25 articles published between 2001 and 2019 were selected. Only studies concerning teriparatide, strontium ranelate, sclerostin antibodies and DKK1 antibodies met the eligibility criteria. In particular, only for teriparatide were there both clinical studies and experimental studies available, while for other bone anabolic drugs only animal studies were found. Available evidence about the use of bone anabolic drugs in periodontology demonstrates beneficial effects of these agents on biological pathways and histological parameters involved in periodontal tissue regeneration that suggest relevant clinical implications for the management of periodontitis

Proteomic peptide scan of porphyromonas gingivalis fima type II for searching potential B-cell epitopes

Purpose. To identify potential antigenic targets for Porphyromonas gingivalis vaccine development. Materials and methods. In the present study, we analyzed the Porphyromonas gingivalis, fimA type II primary amino acid sequence and characterized the similarity to the human proteome at the pentapeptide level. Results. We found that exact peptide-peptide profiling of the fimbrial antigen versus the human proteome shows that only 19 out of 344 fimA type II pentapeptides are uniquely owned by the bacterial protein. Conclusions. The concept that protein immunogenicity is allocated in rare peptide sequences and the search the Porphyromonas gingivalis fimA type II sequence for peptides unique to the bacterial protein and absent in the human host, might be used in new therapeutical approaches as a significant adjunct to current periodontal therapies

Human mandible bone defect repair by the grafting of dental pulp stem/progenitor cells and collagen sponge biocomplexes

In this study we used a biocomplex constructed from dental pulp stem/progenitor cells (DPCs) and a collagen sponge scaffold for oro-maxillo-facial (OMF) bone tissue repair in patients requiring extraction of their third molars. The experiments were carried out according to our Internal Ethical Committee Guidelines and written informed consent was obtained from the patients. The patients presented with bilateral bone reabsorption of the alveolar ridge distal to the second molar secondary to impaction of the third molar on the cortical alveolar lamina, producing a defect without walls, of at least 1.5 cm in height. This clinical condition does not permit spontaneous bone repair after extraction of the third molar, and eventually leads to loss also of the adjacent second molar. Maxillary third molars were extracted first for DPC isolation and expansion. The cells were then seeded onto a collagen sponge scaffold and the obtained biocomplex was used to fill in the injury site left by extraction of the mandibular third molars. Three months after autologous DPC grafting, alveolar bone of patients had optimal vertical repair and complete restoration of periodontal tissue back to the second molars, as assessed by clinical probing and X-rays. Histological observations clearly demonstrated the complete regeneration of bone at the injury site. Optimal bone regeneration was evident one year after grafting. This clinical study demonstrates that a DPC/collagen sponge biocomplex can completely restore human mandible bone defects and indicates that this cell population could be used for the repair and/or regeneration of tissues and organs

Identification of a variant hotspot in MYBPC3 and of a novel CSRP3 autosomal recessive alteration in a cohort of Polish patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

INTRODUCTION Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a heart disorder caused by autosomal dominant alterations affecting both sarcomeric genes and other nonsarcomeric loci in a minority of cases. However, in some patients, the occurrence of the causal pathogenic variant or variants in homozygosity, compound heterozygosity, or double heterozygosity has also been described. Most of the HCM pathogenic variants are missense and unique, but truncating mutations of the MYBPC3 gene have been reported as founder pathogenic variants in populations from Finland, France, Japan, Iceland, Italy, and the Netherlands. OBJECTIVES This study aimed to assess the genetic background of HCM in a cohort of Polish patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS Twenty–nine Polish patients were analyzed by a next–generation sequencing panel including 404 cardiovascular genes. RESULTS Pathogenic variants were found in 41% of the patients, with ultra–rare MYBPC3 c.2541C>G (p.Tyr847Ter) mutation standing for a variant hotspot and correlating with a lower age at HCM diagnosis. Among the nonsarcomeric genes, the CSRP3 mutation was found in a single case carrying the novel c.364C>T (p.Arg122Ter) variant in homozygosity. With this finding, the total number of known HCM cases with human CSRP3 knockout cases has reached 3

Human Dental Pulp Stem Cells Hook into Biocoral Scaffold Forming an Engineered Biocomplex

The aim of this study was to evaluate the behavior of human Dental Pulp Stem Cells (DPSCs), as well as human osteoblasts, when challenged on a Biocoral scaffold, which is a porous natural hydroxyapatite. For this purpose, human DPSCs were seeded onto a three-dimensional (3D) Biocoral scaffold or on flask surface (control). Either normal or rotative (3D) cultures were performed. Scanning electron microscopic analyses, at 8, 24 and 48 h of culture showed that cells did not adhere on the external surface, but moved into the cavities inside the Biocoral structure. After 7, 15 and 30 days of culture, morphological and molecular analyses suggested that the Biocoral scaffold leads DPSCs to hook into the cavities where these cells quickly start to secrete the extra cellular matrix (ECM) and differentiate into osteoblasts. Control human osteoblasts also moved into the internal cavities where they secreted the ECM. Histological sections revealed a diffuse bone formation inside the Biocoral samples seeded with DPSCs or human osteoblasts, where the original scaffold and the new secreted biomaterial were completely integrated and cells were found within the remaining cavities. In addition, RT-PCR analyses showed a significant increase of osteoblast-related gene expression and, above all, of those genes highly expressed in mineralized tissues, including osteocalcin, OPN and BSP. Furthermore, the effects on the interaction between osteogenesis and angiogenesis were observed and substantiated by ELISA assays. Taken together, our results provide clear evidence that DPSCs differentiated into osteoblasts, forming a biocomplex made of Biocoral, ECM and differentiated cells