Identifying and tracking key climate adaptation actors in the UK

To understand how climate adaptation planning and decision-making will progress, a better understanding is needed as to which organisations are expected to take on key responsibilities. Methodological challenges have impeded efforts to identify and track adaptation actors beyond the coarse scale of nation states. Yet, for effective adaptation to succeed, who do national governments need to engage, support and encourage? Using the UK as a case study, we conducted a systematic review of official government documents on climate adaptation, between 2006 and 2015, to understand which organisations are identified as key to future adaptation efforts and tracked the extent to which these organisations changed over time. Our unique longitudinal dataset found a very large number of organisations (n = 568). These organisations varied in size (small-medium enterprises to large multinationals), type (public, private and not-for-profit), sector (e.g. water, energy, transport and health), scale (local, national and international), and roles and responsibilities (policymaking, decision-making, knowledge production, retail). Importantly, our findings reveal a mismatch between official government policies that repeatedly call on private organisations to drive adaptation, on the one hand, and a clear dominance of the public sector on the other hand. Yet, the capacity of organisations to fulfil the roles and responsibilities assigned to them, particularly in the public sector, is diminishing. Unless addressed, climate adaptation actions could be assigned to those either unable, or unwilling, to implement them

Outcomes and Stability of Anterior Open Bite Treatment with Skeletal Anchorage in Non-Growing Patients and Adults Compared to the Results of Orthognathic Surgery Procedures: A Systematic Review

The objective of this review is to evaluate, on the basis of the available literature, if anterior open bite (AOB) can be successfully treated with the intrusion of molar teeth using skeletal anchorage in non-growing patients and adults and if this treatment modality provides comparable results to those obtained by orthognathic surgery procedures. Methods: A systematic review of published data in major databases from 2000 to 2021 was performed. Results: In total, 92 articles were included in title and abstract screening, and only 16 articles (11 concerning AOB correction by molar intrusion with skeletal anchorage, and five considering AOB treatment by orthognathic surgical intervention) qualified for thorough data extraction and analysis. Conclusions: On the basis of this review, it seems to be possible to obtain successful results for AOB treatment in non-growing patients and adults by means of the intrusion of molar teeth with skeletal anchorage. However, due to the different methods of assessing treatment outcomes used by different authors, it is not possible to state conclusively whether the treatment of AOB by means of molar intrusion with skeletal anchorage provides long-term results that are comparable to orthognathic surgery procedures

Collagen Type I Prevents Glyoxal-Induced Apoptosis in Osteoblastic Cells Cultured on Titanium Alloy

Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) irreversibly cross-link proteins with sugars and accumulate at a higher age and in diabetes, processes which can interfere with the integration of implants into the tissue. Glyoxal is a highly reactive glycating agent involved in the formation of AGEs and is known to induce apoptosis, as revealed by the upregulation of caspase-3 and fractin (caspase-3 being a key enzyme activated during the late stage of apoptosis and fractin being a caspase-cleaved actin fragment). In this study, we investigated the influence of collagen type I coating on the cytotoxic effect of glyoxal on rat calvarial osteoblastic cells and on human osteosarcoma cells (Saos-2) grown on titanium alloy, Ti6Al4V. Activation of caspase-3 and fractin was measured by counting immunohistochemically stained cells and by flow cytometry with propidium iodide (detection of the apoptosis indicating a sub-G1 peak). Our results showed an increased number of apoptotic osteoblasts after incubation with glyoxal on Ti6Al4V discs. However, the number of apoptotic cells on collagen-coated titanium was significantly smaller than on uncoated titanium after the same treatment. The present findings demonstrate that osteoblasts treated with glyoxal undergo apoptosis, whereas collagen type I coating of titanium alloys (used for implants) has an antiapoptotic function.Dieser Beitrag ist mit Zustimmung des Rechteinhabers aufgrund einer (DFG-geförderten) Allianz- bzw. Nationallizenz frei zugänglich

A systematic review on the effect of inorganic surface coatings in large animal models and meta-analysis on tricalcium phosphate and hydroxyapatite on periimplant bone formation

The aim of the present systematic review was to analyse studies using inorganic implant coatings and, in a meta-analysis, the effect of specifically tricalcium phosphate (TCP) and hydroxyapatite (HA) implant surface coatings on bone formation according to the PRISMA criteria. Inclusion criteria were the comparison to rough surfaced titanium implants in large animal studies at different time points of healing. Forty studies met the inclusion criteria for the systematic review. Fifteen of these analyzed the bone-to-implant contact (BIC) around the most investigated inorganic titanium implant coatings, namely TCP and HA, and were included in the meta-analysis. The results of the TCP group show after 14 days a BIC being 3.48% points lower compared with the reference surface. This difference in BIC decreases to 0.85% points after 21-28 days. After 42-84 days, the difference in BIC of 13.79% points is in favor of the TCP-coatings. However, the results are not statistically significant, in part due to the fact that the variability between the studies increased over time. The results of the HA group show a significant difference in mean BIC of 6.94% points after 14 days in favor of the reference surface. After 21-28 days and 42-84 days the difference in BIC is slightly in favor of the test group with 1.53% points and 1.57% points, respectively, lacking significance. In large animals, there does not seem to be much effect of TCP-coated or HA-coated implants over uncoated rough titanium implants in the short term

Polymorphisms and Haplotypes of Acid Mammalian Chitinase Are Associated with Bronchial Asthma

Rationale: Chitinases are enzymes that cleave chitin, a polysaccharide contained in many parasites of humans. Recent studies in mouse models of bronchial asthma have shown that acid mammalian chitinase (AMCase) is involved in the pathophysiology of asthma. It acts downstream of interleukin-13; inhibition of AMCase leads to an abrogated T-helper cell 2 inflammation, less bronchial hyperreactivity, and fewer eosinophils

Biological functionalization of dental implants with collagen and glycosaminoglycans-A comparative study

Biological implant surface coatings are an emerging technology to increase bone formation. Such an approach is of special interest in anatomical regions like the maxilla. In the present study, we hypothesized that the coating of titanium implants with components of the organic extracellular matrix increases bone formation and implant stability compared to an uncoated reference. The implants were coated using collagen-I with either two different concentrations of chondroitin sulfate (CS) or two differentially sulfated hyaluronans. Implant coatings were characterized biochemically and with atomic force microscopy. Histomorphometry was used to assess bone-implant contact (BIC) and bone-volume density (BVD) after 4 and 8 weeks of submerged healing in the maxilla of 20 minipigs. Further, implant stability was measured by resonance frequency analysis (RFA). Implants containing the lower CS concentration had significantly more BIC, compared to the uncoated reference at both times of interest. No significant increase was measured from week 4 to 8. Differences in BVD and RFA were statistically not significant. A higher concentration of CS and the application of sulfated hyaluronans showed no comparable increase in BIC. This study demonstrates a positive effect of a specific collagen-glycosaminoglycan combination on early bone formation in vivo. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 2011

Biomechanical comparison of different surface modifications for dental implants

Purpose: A satisfactory clinical outcome in dental implant treatment relies on primary stability for immediate load bearing. While the geometric design of an implant contributes to mechanical stability, the nature of the implant surface itself is also critically important. Biomechanical and microcomputerized tomographic evaluation of implant osseointegration was performed to compare alternative structural, chemical and biochemical, and/or pharmaceutical surface treatments applied to an identical established implant design. Materials and Methods: Dental implants with the same geometry but with 6 different surface treatments were tested in vivo in a sheep model (pelvis). Peri-implant bone density and removal torque were compared at 2, 4, and 8 weeks after implantation. Implant surfaces tested were: sandblasted and acid-etched titanium (Ti), sandblasted and etched zirconia, Ti coated with calcium phosphate (CaP), Ti modified via anodic plasma-chemical treatment (APC), bisphosphonate-coated Ti (Ti + Bisphos), and Ti coated with collagen containing chondroitin sulfate (CS). Results: All dental implants were well integrated at the time of sacrifice. There were no significant differences observed in peri-implant bone density between implant groups. After 8 weeks of healing, removal torque values for Ti, Ti + CaP, Ti + Bisphos, and Ti + collagen + CS were significantly higher than those for zirconia and Ti + APC. Conclusions: Whereas the sandblasted/acid-etched Ti implant can still be considered the reference standard surface for dental implants, functional surface modifications such as bisphosphonate or collagen coating seem to enhance early peri-implant bone formation and should be studied further