Feeding and oral hygiene habits of preschool children in Hong Kong and their caregivers' dental knowledge and attitudes

Objectives. This study was designed to gather data on infant feeding habits and oral hygiene practices of Hong Kong preschool children, on the dental knowledge and attitudes of their caregivers and on the oral health status of the same group of children. Design. Cross-sectional study. Sample and methods. Data was gathered for a total of 369 boys and 297 girls (207 1-year-olds, 269 2-year-olds and 190 3-year-olds) with a mean age of 20-19 (± 0.38) months. Information related to children attending six randomly selected Maternity and Child Health Centres. It was obtained by examining the children and by interviewing the attending caregivers and completing a questionnaire. Each child was given an oral examination using a torch, disposable mirror and wooden tongue spatula. Results. Only 7% of the children were exclusively breast-fed. More than 98% (656/666) of infants used a nursing bottle for at least some drinks. Over 62% (411/656) had used a nursing bottle to take fluids other than water and infant formula. At bedtime, 56% (361/656) were given a nursing bottle prior to sleep and 96% (340/361) of these bottles contained formula milk. Of these children, only 37% (131/361) finished the contents of the bottle before falling asleep. Over 73% (139/190) of the children continued to use a feeding bottle after 2 years of age. Non-nutritive sucking habits were practised by 35.6% (237/666) of the children. Visible plaque, on the labial surface of at least two maxillary incisors, was found in 19.5% (120/615) of the children. Oral cleansing habits were practised for 66.2% (441/666) of the children. Toothbrushing habits were reported for 42.3% (260/615) of the dentate children, of whom 19% (49/260) had their teeth brushed twice daily. Toothpaste was used by 49.23% (128/260) of the children and 57.3% (149/260) brushed their own teeth. Caries was seen in 7.6% of the infants (47/615). Of the caregivers, 67.7% said they did not think carious primary teeth needed to be restored. Among the mothers, 12.6% (43/342) did not know the oral condition of their child. Reportedly, 82% (417/510) and 87.5% (446/510) of the mothers had not received any oral health care information during the ante- or postnatal periods. Nearly all, 97%, of the respondents said that they would like to receive more information on oral health care.postprin

Morphological and numerical characteristics of the southern Chinese dentitions. Part II: traits in the permanent dentition

Aim: To investigate the prevalence of four major dental traits in the southern Chinese permanent dentition and to compare these with studies from different populations. Materials and Methods: The material used in the study consisted of high quality study models collected from 725 randomly selected 12-year-old children in Hong Kong (358 males and 367 females). The various traits were assessed using standard diagnostic criteria. Literature and data related to dental traits in the permanent dentition were sourced using PubMed and hand searches. Results: The mouth prevalence of shovelling, lingual tubercle, Carabelli’s trait, and protostylid were 80.4%, 38.9%, 50.5% and 37.5% respectively. The prevalence figure for the cusp type of Carabelli’s trait in this study (23.7%) was higher than for other Mongoloids. The prevalence figures for semi-shovel shaped maxillary incisors (42.6% to 48.6%) and the cusp type of protostylid trait in mandibular molars (10.1%) were higher than for any other populations. Conclusion: The higher prevalences of semi-shovel shaped maxillary incisors, and protostylid cusp on the mandibular molars can be considered to be characteristics of the southern Chinese permanent dentition.published_or_final_versio

Morphological and numerical characteristics of the southern Chinese dentitions. Part I: anomalies in the permanent dentition

Aim: To investigate the prevalence of eight morphological and numerical anomalies in the southern Chinese permanent dentition and to compare these with studies from different populations. Materials and Methods: The material used in the study consisted of study models and panoramic radiographs collected from 725 randomly selected 12-year-old children (358 males and 367 females). The anomalies were assessed using diagnostic criteria that have been most often cited in the published literature. Results: Of the eight dental anomalies studied, the prevalence of hyperdontia (2.6%) was higher than reported for Caucasians, and double tooth (0.8%) and dens evaginatus (4.7%) were the highest amongst all of the populations. Although the prevalence of hypodontia (7.3%) is comparable to that of other populations, mandibular incisors were the most frequently missing teeth in southern Chinese (5.6%) and this finding contradicted those from studies of other ethnic groups. Conclusion: Higher prevalences of double tooth, dens evaginatus and missing mandibular incisors can be considered to be characteristics of the southern Chinese permanent dentition.published_or_final_versio

Bonding of some self-etch adhesives to unground enamel

Abstract no. 0027published_or_final_versio

Microbial fuel cells: a green and alternative source for bioenergy production

Microbial fuel cell (MFC) represents one of the green technologies for the production of bioenergy. MFCs using microalgae produce bioenergy by converting solar energy into electrical energy as a function of metabolic and anabolic pathways of the cells. In the MFCs with bacteria, bioenergy is generated as a result of the organic substrate oxidation. MFCs have received high attention from researchers in the last years due to the simplicity of the process, the absence in toxic by-products, and low requirements for the algae growth. Many studies have been conducted on MFC and investigated the factors affecting the MFC performance. In the current chapter, the performance of MFC in producing bioenergy as well as the factors which influence the efficacy of MFCs is discussed. It appears that the main factors affecting MFC’s performance include bacterial and algae species, pH, temperature, salinity, substrate, mechanism of electron transfer in an anodic chamber, electrodes materials, surface area, and electron acceptor in a cathodic chamber. These factors are becoming more influential and might lead to overproduction of bioenergy when they are optimized using response surface methodology (RSM)

Associations between fruit and vegetable intake, leisure-time physical activity, sitting time and self-rated health among older adults : cross-sectional data from the WELL study

BackgroundLifestyle behaviours, such as healthy diet, physical activity and sedentary behaviour, are key elements of healthy ageing and important modifiable risk factors in the prevention of chronic diseases. Little is known about the relationship between these behaviours in older adults. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between fruit and vegetable (F&V) intake, leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) and sitting time (ST), and their association with self-rated health in older adults.MethodsThis cross-sectional study comprised 3,644 older adults (48% men) aged 55-65 years, who participated in the Wellbeing, Eating and Exercise for a Long Life ("WELL") study. Respondents completed a postal survey about their health and their eating and physical activity behaviours in 2010 (38% response rate). Spearman\u27s coefficient (rho) was used to evaluate the relationship between F&V intake, LTPA and ST. Their individual and shared associations with self-rated health were examined using ordinal logistic regression models, stratified by sex and adjusted for confounders (BMI, smoking, long-term illness and socio-demographic characteristics).ResultsThe correlations between F&V intake, LTPA and ST were low. F&V intake and LTPA were positively associated with self-rated health. Each additional serving of F&V or MET-hour of LTPA were associated with approximately 10% higher likelihood of reporting health as good or better among women and men. The association between ST and self-rated health was not significant in the multivariate analysis. A significant interaction was found (ST*F&V intake). The effect of F&V intake on self-rated health increased with increasing ST in women, whereas the effect decreased with increasing ST in men.ConclusionThis study contributes to the scarce literature related to lifestyle behaviours and their association with health indicators among older adults. The findings suggest that a modest increase in F&V intake, or LTPA could have a marked effect on the health of older adults. Further research is needed to fully understand the correlates and determinants of lifestyle behaviours, particularly sitting time, in this age group

The Mechanism of Ubiquitination in the Cullin-RING E3 Ligase Machinery: Conformational Control of Substrate Orientation

In cullin-RING E3 ubiquitin ligases, substrate binding proteins, such as VHL-box, SOCS-box or the F-box proteins, recruit substrates for ubiquitination, accurately positioning and orienting the substrates for ubiquitin transfer. Yet, how the E3 machinery precisely positions the substrate is unknown. Here, we simulated nine substrate binding proteins: Skp2, Fbw7, β-TrCP1, Cdc4, Fbs1, TIR1, pVHL, SOCS2, and SOCS4, in the unbound form and bound to Skp1, ASK1 or Elongin C. All nine proteins have two domains: one binds to the substrate; the other to E3 ligase modules Skp1/ASK1/Elongin C. We discovered that in all cases the flexible inter-domain linker serves as a hinge, rotating the substrate binding domain, optimally and accurately positioning it for ubiquitin transfer. We observed a conserved proline in the linker of all nine proteins. In all cases, the prolines pucker substantially and the pucker is associated with the backbone rotation toward the E2/ubiquitin. We further observed that the linker flexibility could be regulated allosterically by binding events associated with either domain. We conclude that the flexible linker in the substrate binding proteins orients the substrate for the ubiquitin transfer. Our findings provide a mechanism for ubiquitination and polyubiquitination, illustrating that these processes are under conformational control

The Dog Mite, Demodex canis: Prevalence, Fungal Co-Infection, Reactions to Light, and Hair Follicle Apoptosis

Infection rate, reaction to light, and hair follicle apoptosis are examined in the dogmite, Demodex canis Leydig (Prostigmata: Demodicidae), in dogs from the northern area of Taiwan. An analysis of relevant samples revealed 7.2% (73/1013) prevalence of D. canis infection. Infection during the investigation peaked each winter, with an average prevalence of 12.5% (32/255). The infection rates significantly varied in accordance with month, sex, age, and breed (p < 0.05). Most of the lesions were discovered on the backs of the infected animals, where the infection rate was 52.1% (38/73) (P < 0.05). The epidemiologic analysis of infection based on landscape area factor, found that employing a map-overlapping method showed a higher infection rate in the eastern distribution of Taiwan's northern area than other areas. Isolation tests for Microsporum canis Bodin (Onygenales: Arthrodermataceae) and Trichophyton mentagrophyte Robin (Blanchard) on the D. canis infected dogs revealed prevalence rates of 4.4% (2/45) and 2.2% (1/45), respectively. Observations demonstrated that D. canis slowly moved from a light area to a dark area. Skin samples were examined for cellular apoptosis by activated caspase3 immunohistochemical staining. Cells that surrounded the infected hair follicles were activated caspase3-positive, revealing cell apoptosis in infected follicles via the activation of caspase3

Induction of Apoptosis Coupled to Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress in Human Prostate Cancer Cells by n-butylidenephthalide

BACKGROUND: N-butylidenephthalide (BP) exhibits antitumor effect in a variety of cancer cell lines. The objective of this study was to obtain additional insights into the mechanisms involved in BP induced cell death in human prostate cancer cells. METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Two human prostate cancer cell lines, PC-3 and LNCaP, were treated with BP, and subsequently evaluated for their viability and cell cycle profiles. BP caused cell cycle arrest and cell death in both cell lines. The G0/G1 phase arrest was correlated with increase levels of CDK inhibitors (p16, p21 and p27) and decrease of the checkpoint proteins. To determine the mechanisms of BP-induced growth arrest and cell death in prostate cancer cell lines, we performed a microarray study to identify alterations in gene expression induced by BP in the LNCaP cells. Several BP-induced genes, including the GADD153/CHOP, an endoplasmic reticulum stress (ER stress)-regulated gene, were identified. BP-induced ER stress was evidenced by increased expression of the downstream molecules GRP78/BiP, IRE1-α and GADD153/CHOP in both cell lines. Blockage of IRE1-α or GADD153/CHOP expression by siRNA significantly reduced BP-induced cell death in LNCaP cells. Furthermore, blockage of JNK1/2 signaling by JNK siRNA resulted in decreased expression of IRE1-α and GADD153/CHOP genes, implicating that BP-induced ER stress may be elicited via JNK1/2 signaling in prostate cancer cells. BP also suppressed LNCaP xenograft tumor growth in NOD-SCID mice. It caused 68% reduction in tumor volume after 18 days of treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that BP can cause G0/G1 phase arrest in prostate cancer cells and its cytotoxicity is mediated by ER stress induction. Thus, BP may serve as an anticancer agent by inducing ER stress in prostate cancer

Can We Really Prevent Suicide?

Every year, suicide is among the top 20 leading causes of death globally for all ages. Unfortunately, suicide is difficult to prevent, in large part because the prevalence of risk factors is high among the general population. In this review, clinical and psychological risk factors are examined and methods for suicide prevention are discussed. Prevention strategies found to be effective in suicide prevention include means restriction, responsible media coverage, and general public education, as well identification methods such as screening, gatekeeper training, and primary care physician education. Although the treatment for preventing suicide is difficult, follow-up that includes pharmacotherapy, psychotherapy, or both may be useful. However, prevention methods cannot be restricted to the individual. Community, social, and policy interventions will also be essentia