Enhancement of c-Myc degradation by BLM helicase leads to delayed tumor initiation

The spectrum of tumors that arise owing to the overexpression of c-Myc and loss of BLM is very similar. Hence, it was hypothesized that the presence of BLM negatively regulates c-Myc functions. By using multiple isogenic cell lines, we observed that the decrease of endogenous c-Myc levels that occurs in the presence of BLM is reversed when the cells are treated with proteasome inhibitors, indicating that BLM enhances c-Myc turnover. Whereas the N-terminal region of BLM interacts with c-Myc, the rest of the helicase interacts with the c-Myc E3 ligase Fbw7. The two BLM domains act as ‘clamp and/or adaptor’, enhancing the binding of c-Myc to Fbw7. BLM promotes Fbw7-dependent K48-linked c-Myc ubiquitylation and its subsequent degradation in a helicase-independent manner. A subset of BLM-regulated genes that are also targets of c-Myc were determined and validated at both RNA and protein levels. To obtain an in vivo validation of the effect of BLM on c-Myc-mediated tumor initiation, isogenic cells from colon cancer cells that either do or do not express BLM had been manipulated to block c-Myc expression in a controlled manner. By using these cell lines, the metastatic potential and rate of initiation of tumors in nude mice were determined. The presence of BLM decreases c-Myc-mediated invasiveness and delays tumor initiation in a mouse xenograft model. Consequently, in tumors that express BLM but not c-Myc, we observed a decreased ratio of proliferation to apoptosis together with a suppressed expression of the angiogenesis marker CD31. Hence, partly owing to its regulation of c-Myc stability, BLM acts as a ‘caretaker tumor suppressor’

Assessment of Hand Hygiene Knowledge and Practices among Private Dental Clinics in Munshiganj, Bangladesh: A Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction: The study was performed to assess knowledge about infection control through hand-washing practices among dentists and paramedical professionals working at private dental clinics and provide help to identify and overcome obstruction towards proper hand hygiene pattern. Method: A questionnaire-based study was supervised at 15 different private dental clinics situated in the Munshiganj district of Bangladesh. Data on handwashing practices and other factors were collected from 60 samples during the months of November and December 2020. Site inspections of and washing facilities were also supervised. The data was analyzed on SPSS. Result: Majority (78.3%, 50.0% &amp; 35.0%) of the respondents strongly agreed that hand washing helps to prevent spread of infection to the patients. Less than half (48.3%) of the respondents washed their hands before wearing gloves. 31 doctors claimed that hand washing is done after termination of duty while 10 claims that they wash hands after each examination (p< 0.001). And most of the doctors use antibacterial soap (p=0.004). Conclusion: The study wraps up that most of the health care providers had the education about the advantage of handwashing, but proper technique was not followed. The reasons given for not adopting handwashing practices were shortage of time, being busy with a greater number of patients, a skin reaction, and an unsuitable atmosphere. Update Dent. Coll. j: 2023; 13(1): 23-2

Results from the centers for disease control and prevention's predict the 2013-2014 Influenza Season Challenge

Background: Early insights into the timing of the start, peak, and intensity of the influenza season could be useful in planning influenza prevention and control activities. To encourage development and innovation in influenza forecasting, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) organized a challenge to predict the 2013-14 Unites States influenza season. Methods: Challenge contestants were asked to forecast the start, peak, and intensity of the 2013-2014 influenza season at the national level and at any or all Health and Human Services (HHS) region level(s). The challenge ran from December 1, 2013-March 27, 2014; contestants were required to submit 9 biweekly forecasts at the national level to be eligible. The selection of the winner was based on expert evaluation of the methodology used to make the prediction and the accuracy of the prediction as judged against the U.S. Outpatient Influenza-like Illness Surveillance Network (ILINet). Results: Nine teams submitted 13 forecasts for all required milestones. The first forecast was due on December 2, 2013; 3/13 forecasts received correctly predicted the start of the influenza season within one week, 1/13 predicted the peak within 1 week, 3/13 predicted the peak ILINet percentage within 1 %, and 4/13 predicted the season duration within 1 week. For the prediction due on December 19, 2013, the number of forecasts that correctly forecasted the peak week increased to 2/13, the peak percentage to 6/13, and the duration of the season to 6/13. As the season progressed, the forecasts became more stable and were closer to the season milestones. Conclusion: Forecasting has become technically feasible, but further efforts are needed to improve forecast accuracy so that policy makers can reliably use these predictions. CDC and challenge contestants plan to build upon the methods developed during this contest to improve the accuracy of influenza forecasts. © 2016 The Author(s)

Global Exploration on Bibliometric Research Articles: A Bibliometric Analysis

Objective Bibliometric analysis is one of the profound instruments to measure the research output quantitatively based on geometrical and statistical evaluation. The objective of the current study is to provide structural overview of the voluminous research work done so far via bibliometric analysis to access the significance of this tool in academic research. Methods A bibliometric analysis is performed by extracting 842 documents from Scopus database in CSV form from 2000 till April 5, 2021. The retrieved data analyzed via Vos viewer reveals about the significantly contributing authors, countries, author keywords, cited references, total link strength, and co-occurrence of author keywords using bibliographic coupling and co-citation analysis. Results In year 2009, publication of bibliometric articles reached its apex with a publication count of 34 articles. China has published maximum number of bibliometric documents (37.76%) and has produced 114 collaborative documents with 38 countries with a citation count of 2018. Recent bibliometric articles included keywords such as Vos viewer, Covid 19, Co-authorship, and Co-occurrence analysis. Conclusion Data presented in the study can be useful for comparing the use of bibliometric analysis in diverse subject areas and also focusses on the subject areas that are not yet explored through bibliometric analysis

Hyperglycemia and liver glycogenolysis in histamine administered frogs

Histamine acid phosphate [51-​74-​1] (0.01 mg, i.m.) administration in frogs caused hyperglycemia, a decrease in the liver glycogen [9005-​79-​2] content, and an increase in the rate of glucose [50-​99-​7] absorption in isolated intestinal segments. Thus, besides acting as a local hormone, histamine also affects carbohydrate metab

Poikiloderma a varied presentation - Huriez syndrome

Huriez syndrome is a rare autosomal dominant genodermatosis characterized by the triad of congenital scleroatrophy of the distal extremities, palmoplantar keratoderma (PPK) and hypoplastic nails. We report the case of a 25 year old male, with nonfamilial Huriez syndrome

Assessing the improvement in cement effectiveness by the geometry of implant abutment surface

Aim: The present study was conducted to assess the effect of the topography or surface geometry of implant abutments for their effect on the retentive strength of the prosthesis cemented using zinc phosphate on grooved, sandblasted, and standard machined implant abutments and to compare them. Methods: 12 implant abutments of a similar shape were divided into 3 groups of 4 each having a 6-degree taper and 6mm height. The 3 groups were Group I included standard machined abutments without grooves, Group II included group I abutments sandblasted, and Group III included abutments having prefabricated circumferential grooves. In addition, among these 12 abutments, 4 each were taken to assess the retentive force of zinc phosphate cement. 12 similar cast copings were made to fill the 12 abutments, and were cemented with zinc phosphate. After 6 days of storage in the water bath and thermal cycling, using the tensile testing machine, a retention test was done. Results: Concerning zinc phosphate cement, among three study groups the statistically significant difference was seen with p&lt;0.05.&nbsp

Assessing the Improvement in Cement Effectiveness by the Geometry of Implant Abutment Surface

Aim: The present study was conducted to assess the effect of the topography or surface geometry of implant abutments for their effect on the retentive strength of the prosthesis cemented using zinc phosphate on grooved, sandblasted, and standard machined implant abutments and to compare them. Methods: 12 implant abutments of a similar shape were divided into 3 groups of 4 each having a 6-degree taper and 6mm height. The 3 groups were Group I included standard machined abutments without grooves, Group II included group I abutments sandblasted, and Group III included abutments having prefabricated circumferential grooves. In addition, among these 12 abutments, 4 each were taken to assess the retentive force of zinc phosphate cement. 12 similar cast copings were made to fill the 12 abutments, and were cemented with zinc phosphate. After 6 days of storage in the water bath and thermal cycling, using the tensile testing machine, a retention test was done. Results: Concerning zinc phosphate cement, among three study groups the statistically significant difference was seen with p&lt;0.05.&nbsp