“Nanodentistry”- The Next Big Thing Is Small

Nanotechnology has revolutionized the field of dentistry with tremendous potential to provide the comprehensive oral health care using the nanomaterials, advanced clinical tools and devices. The new era of dentistry will encompass precisely regulated analgesia, tooth renaturalization, complete cure for hypersensitivity and rapid orthodontic treatment. Many novel nanotechnology products are on the way and new treatment modalities are also proposed. Nanotechnology has increased the hope for better oral health care delivery and improved maintenance through the ongoing research in diagnosis, cure and prevention of oral diseases. This review article provides an insight about the importance and possible applications of nanotechnology in the field of dentistry

Save cells before tooth replantation: A review

Avulsion is one of the most complex traumatic injury affecting both teeth and children. Avulsed teeth can be replanted. Treatment for avulsed teeth should include, pulp and periodontal ligament (PDL) cell management to increase the survival rate of these teeth. If immediate replantation is not possible, the clonicity and progenicity of the viable PDL cells can be maintained with the aid of suitable storage medium at the place of trauma. The incorrect use of a storage medium leads to PDL cell necrosis eventually resulting in ankylosis and replacement resorption of the tooth root. Due to the importance of the storage media in long-term prognosis of the avulsed teeth, an informed choice of a media is essential for a favorable outcome. This review discusses available storage media and their unique features along with pros and cons of each medium

Three-dimensional echocardiography with left ventricular strain analyses helps earlier prediction of right ventricular pacing-induced cardiomyopathy

Background and objectives: Right ventricular (RV) pacing can lead to progressive ventricular dysfunction over a certain period. This pacemaker-induced cardiomyopathy (PiCMP) may be more common than previously reported. Speckle tracking imaging is a recent development in echocardiography that can identify left ventricular (LV) dysfunction even before the LV ejection fraction (LVEF) value decreases. Three-dimensional (3D) echocardiography has made more accurate assessment of LVEF possible. The objectives of this study are to study the incidence of RV PiCMP using 3D echocardiography and LV strain analysis over a follow-up of 6 months, and to identify its predictors. Methods: This is an observational study of consecutive patients without structural heart disease and with a baseline EF of more than 45% who received a permanent pacemaker. They were observed over a 6-month period. PiCMP was defined as a decrease in LVEF by 10 percentage points or a decrease in LV strain by 15% from baseline in the absence of other known causes of cardiomyopathy. PiCMP incidence and its associations were analyzed over a 6-month period. Results: The incidence of PiCMP was not only significant over a period of 6 months but also at 24 hours. Significant drops in 3D EF were noted in one (2.8%) patient at 24 hours and in another four (11.1%) patients at 6 months. A significant decrease in LV global longitudinal strain was noted in 23 (63.9%) patients by 6 months. In seven of these patients, there was significant decrease in global longitudinal strain 24 hours after implantation. In analyzing longitudinal strain, the parameter significantly influencing a decrease was a pacing percentage of ≥20% (p = 0.023). Conclusions: PiCMP is not uncommon in patients undergoing pacemaker implantation and is associated with RV pacing. PiCMP was associated with a ventricular pacing percentage of ≥20%. 3D echocardiography with LV strain analysis plays a vital role in identifying LV dysfunction at an earlier stage compared to EF. PiCMP, if picked up and intervened upon early, can help impede its progression. Keywords: Ejection fraction, Incidence, Pacing induced cardiomyopathy, Predictors, Three-dimensional echocardiograph

Large-scale multiple sequence alignment and phylogeny estimation

With the advent of next generation sequencing technologies, alignment and phylogeny estimation of datasets with thousands of sequences is being attempted. To address these challenges, new algorithmic approaches have been developed that have been able to provide substantial improvements over standard methods. This paper focuses on new approaches for ultra-large tree estimation, including methods for co-estimation of alignments and trees, estimating trees without needing a full sequence alignment, and phylogenetic placement. While the main focus is on methods with empirical performance advantages, we also discuss the theoretical guarantees of methods under Markov models of evolution. Finally, we include a discussion of the future of large-scale phylogenetic analysis