Influence of centrifugation treatment on the lubricating properties of human whole saliva

AbstractAn important function of human saliva is to serve as oral lubricant during mastication process and then effectively reduce tooth wear. Thus, centrifuged human whole saliva has been used as a substitute for human whole saliva for many in vitro studies on dental tribology. However, the difference in lubricating properties between human whole saliva and centrifuged saliva remains unclear. The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of centrifugation on the lubricating properties of human whole saliva. In this paper, the lubrication of both human whole saliva and centrifuged saliva on human tooth enamel were comparatively studied in vitro using a nano-scratch tester. The structure, composition, and mechanical properties of salivary pellicle were characterized. Result showed that food debris and high molecular weight proteins in human whole saliva were removed by centrifugation. However, the low molecular weight proteins were still in saliva. Under the lubrication of human whole saliva, the salivary pellicle formed on the enamel surface was uneven, and its mechanical properties were inhomogeneous. But a smooth and homogeneous salivary pellicle was obtained upon the enamel surface under lubrication of centrifuged saliva. Moreover, there were no significant deference in friction coefficient and wear volume of tooth enamel between human whole saliva and centrifuged saliva lubricating conditions. In summary, centrifuged saliva exhibited similar lubrication to human whole saliva. Centrifugation treatment does not impair the lubricating properties of human saliva. On the contrary centrifugation can help minimize the effect of cell and food debris

Trans-ancestry genome-wide association study identifies 12 genetic loci influencing blood pressure and implicates a role for DNA methylation

We carried out a trans-ancestry genome-wide association and replication study of blood pressure phenotypes among up to 320,251 individuals of East Asian, European and South Asian ancestry. We find genetic variants at 12 new loci to be associated with blood pressure (P = 3.9 × 10-11 to 5.0 × 10-21). The sentinel blood pressure SNPs are enriched for association with DNA methylation at multiple nearby CpG sites, suggesting that, at some of the loci identified, DNA methylation may lie on the regulatory pathway linking sequence variation to blood pressure. The sentinel SNPs at the 12 new loci point to genes involved in vascular smooth muscle (IGFBP3, KCNK3, PDE3A and PRDM6) and renal (ARHGAP24, OSR1, SLC22A7 and TBX2) function. The new and known genetic variants predict increased left ventricular mass, circulating levels of NT-proBNP, and cardiovascular and all-cause mortality (P = 0.04 to 8.6 × 10-6). Our results provide new evidence for the role of DNA methylation in blood pressure regulation

MAGIC and H.E.S.S. detect VHE gamma rays from the blazar OT081 for the first time: a deep multiwavelength study

https://pos.sissa.it/395/815/pdfPublished versio

PEARLS: Program for energetic analysis of receptor - Ligand system

10.1021/ci0502146Journal of Chemical Information and Modeling461445-45

Dental development and microstructure of bamboo rat incisors

Bone adapts to habitual loads by remodeling to resist stresses that would otherwise break it. The question of whether the same holds for teeth, however, remains unanswered. We might expect species with ever-growing dentitions to alter enamel histology in response to diet. In this study we fed bamboo rats (Rhizomys sinensis) different foods to assess effects on enamel microstructure. Results indicate that gnawing fracture-resistant items (i.e., bamboo) produces substantively different dental microstructures than does eating less mechanically-challenging ones (i.e., potato). Bamboo induces a structured, anisotropic pattern of rods that strengthens incisor enamel, whereas potato produces less structured, weaker enamel. Blood tests suggest that these differences are not related to nutrient variation. Rather, these ever-growing teeth evidently require a specific mechanical environment to develop normal dental microstructure

Prediction of compounds with specific pharmacodynamic, pharmacokinetic or toxicological property by statistical learning methods

10.2174/138955706776361501Mini-Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry64449-459MMCI