Analysis of the trueness and precision of complete denture bases manufactured using digital and analog technologies

PURPOSE. Digital technology has enabled improvements in the fitting accuracy of denture bases via milling techniques. The aim of this study was to evaluate the trueness and precision of digital and analog techniques for manufacturing complete dentures (CDs). MATERIALS AND METHODS. Sixty identical CDs were manufactured using different production protocols. Digital and analog technologies were compared using the reference geometric approach, and the Delta-error values of eight areas of interest (AOI) were calculated. For each AOI, a precise number of measurement points was selected according to sensitivity analyses to compare the Delta-error of trueness and precision between the original model and manufactured prosthesis. Three types of statistical analysis were performed: to calculate the intergroup cumulative difference among the three protocols, the intergroup among the AOIs, and the intragroup difference among AOIs. RESULTS. There was a statistically significant difference between the dentures made using the oversize process and injection molding process (P < .001), but no significant difference between the other two manufacturing methods (P = .1227). There was also a statistically significant difference between the dentures made using the monolithic process and the other two processes for all AOIs (P = .0061), but there was no significant difference between the other two processes (P = 1). Within each group, significant differences among the AOIs were observed. CONCLUSION. The monolithic process yielded better results, in terms of accuracy (trueness and precision), than the other groups, although all three processes led to dentures with Delta-error values well within the clinical tolerance limit. [J Adv Prosthodont 2023;15:22-32

ELISA assay employing epitope-specific monoclonal antibodies to quantify circulating HER2 with potential application in monitoring cancer patients undergoing therapy with trastuzumab

Circulating HER2 extracellular domain (HER2 ECD) levels were proposed as a surrogate for HER2 tissue expression to monitor breast cancer patients for early relapse or responses to standard or HER2-targeted therapies, such as the monoclonal antibody (mAb) trastuzumab. Currently, available commercial ELISA assays for HER2 ECD rely on antibodies recognizing undisclosed or unknown epitopes. In this work, two ELISA assays employing MGR2 and MGR3 epitope-specific mAbs for HER2 ECD were developed and validated, showing good assay precision and linearity of the dose-response signal within the dynamic range of 0.19–12.50 ng mL−1 and detection limits of 0.76 and 0.75 ng mL−1 for the MGR2 and MGR3 assays, respectively. The developed assay showed a good agreement with two widely used commercial kits for HER2 ECD quantification in serum samples from breast cancer patients. A complete characterization of mAb-HER2 ECD interaction was performed by means of surface plasmon resonance using trastuzumab as control for both epitope mapping and kinetics analysis. The epitopes recognized by the two mAbs showed no overlap with trastuzumab, which was confirmed by trastuzumab interference analysis in serum samples. The method showed to be a practical approach to determine HER2 ECD with a high degree of sensitivity, reliability and recovery in samples containing mAbs-based therapies

White matter tract disconnection in Gerstmann's syndrome: Insights from a single case study

It has been suggested that Gerstmann's syndrome is the result of subcortical disconnection rather than emerging from damage of a multifunctional brain region within the parietal lobe. However, patterns of white matter tract disconnection following parietal damage have been barely investigated. This single case study allows characterising Gerstmann's syndrome in terms of disconnected networks. We report the case of a left parietal patient affected by Gerstmann's tetrad: agraphia, acalculia, left/right orientation problems, and finger agnosia. Lesion mapping, atlas-based estimation of probability of disconnection, and DTI-based tractography revealed that the lesion was mainly located in the superior parietal lobule, and it caused disruption of both intraparietal tracts passing through the inferior parietal lobule (e.g., tracts connecting the angular, supramarginal, postcentral gyri, and the superior parietal lobule) and fronto-parietal long tracts (e.g., the superior longitudinal fasciculus). The lesion site appears to be located more superiorly as compared to the cerebral regions shown active by other studies during tasks impaired in the syndrome, and it reached the subcortical area potentially critical in the emergence of the syndrome, as hypothesised in previous studies. Importantly, the reconstruction of tracts connecting regions within the parietal lobe indicates that this critical subcortical area is mainly crossed by white matter tracts connecting the angular gyrus and the superior parietal lobule. Taken together, these findings suggest that this case study might be considered as empirical evidence of Gerstmann's tetrad caused by disconnection of intraparietal white matter tracts

Armazenamento de sementes de sucupira-branca.

Objetivou-se avaliar a germinação de sementes de sucupira-branca, Pterodon pubescens, armazenadas em diferentes embalagens e ambientes

Germinação de sementes de quinoa submetidas a diferentes temperaturas.

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Favorable outcome of SARS-CoV-2 infection in pediatric hematology oncology patients during the second and third pandemic waves in Italy: a multicenter analysis from the Infectious Diseases Working Group of the Associazione Italiana di Ematologia e Oncologia Pediatrica (AIEOP)

COVID-19 has a mild clinical course with low mortality rate in general pediatric population, while variable outcomes have been described in children with cancer. Infectious diseases working party of the AIEOP collected data on the clinical characteristics and outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 infections in pediatric oncology/hematology patients from April 2020 to May 2021, including the second and the third waves of the pandemic in Italy. Factors potentially associated with moderate, severe, or critical COVID-19 were analyzed. Of the 153 SARS-Cov2 infections recorded, 100 were asymptomatic and 53 symptomatic. The course of COVID-19 was mild in 41, moderate in 2, severe in 5, and critical in 5 children. A total of 40.5% of patients were hospitalized, ten requiring oxygen support and 5 admitted to the intensive care unit. Antibiotics and steroids were the most used therapies. No patient died due to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Infections occurring early (< 60 days) after the diagnosis of the underlying disease or after SCT were associated to moderate, severe, and critical disease compared to infections occurring late (> 60 days) or during maintenance therapy. In the patients on active chemotherapy, 59% withdrew the treatment for a median of 15 days. SARS-CoV-2 presented a favorable outcome in children with cancer in Italy during the pandemic. Modification of therapy represents a major concern in this population. Our findings suggest considering regular chemotherapy continuation, particularly in patients on maintenance therapy or infected late after the diagnosis

Assessment of the genotoxic impact of pesticides on farming communities in the countryside of Santa Catarina State, Brazil

The aim of this study was to assess the use of pesticides on farms located in the Lambedor River watershed in Guatambu, State of Santa Catarina, as well as to determine, by micronucleus testing, the risk of genotoxic impact. Samples from locally collected Cyprinus carpio, Hypostomus punctatus, Rhamdia quelen and Oreochromis niloticus gave evidence of a mean increase in micronuclei frequency from 6.21 to 13.78 in 1,000 erythrocytes, a clear indication of the genotoxic potenciality of pesticide residues in regional dams, and their significant contribution to local environmental contamination