Effect of Reinforcement on the Flexural Properties of Injection-Molded Thermoplastic Denture Base Resins.

To evaluate the effect of reinforcement on the flexural properties of injection-molded thermoplastic denture base resins.Three injection-molded thermoplastic denture base resins (polyamide, polyester, polycarbonate) were selected for this study, and a conventional heat-polymerized denture base resin (PMMA) was used as a control. Continuous unidirectional glass fiber-reinforced composite (FRC) and metal wire were used for reinforcement. Reinforced bar-shaped specimens (65 mm long, 10 mm wide, 3.3 mm high) were fabricated (n = 10). The flexural strength at the proportional limit (FS-PL) and the elastic modulus were measured using a three-point bending test.All the denture base material specimens reinforced with FRC possessed a significantly higher FS-PL compared to those without reinforcement. The FS-PL of the polycarbonate specimens reinforced with metal wire was significantly higher than that without reinforcement, and there was no significant difference in the FS-PL between the polycarbonate specimens reinforced with FRC and those with metal wire. The order of the elastic modulus according to the denture base material, arranged in terms of statistical significance, was as follows: PMMA (3.46 ± 0.53 GPa) > polycarbonate (2.69 ± 0.48 GPa) > polyester (2.00 ± 0.39 GPa) > polyamide (1.14 ± 0.35 GPa). The order of the elastic modulus according to the reinforcement, arranged in terms of statistical significance, was as follows: metal wire (2.74 ± 0.96 GPa) > FRC (2.40 ± 0.89 GPa) > no reinforcement (1.82 ± 0.83 GPa).Continuous unidirectional glass fiber-reinforced composite (FRC) reinforcement had a satisfactory reinforcing effect for the injection-molded thermoplastic denture base resins.福岡歯科大学2017年

Group cognitive behavioural therapy (GCBT) versus treatment as usual (TAU) in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS): A study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Background: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common disease that affects the quality of life (QOL) and social functioning of sufferers. Visceral anxiety is currently considered a key factor in the onset and exacerbation of IBS, and cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) targeting visceral anxiety is thought to be effective. However, access to CBT is limited due to the lack of trained therapists, the substantial time required for therapy and the associated costs. Group CBT (GCBT) may solve some of these problems. We have therefore planned this trial to examine the efficacy of GCBT for IBS. Methods: The trial is a two-armed, parallel group, open label, stratified block randomized superiority trial. The study group will consist of 112 participants (aged 18–75 years) with IBS (Rome-III or IV criteria). Participants will be randomly allocated 1:1 to (i) the intervention group: ten-week GCBT plus treatment as usual (TAU) or (ii) the control group: waiting list (WL) plus TAU. The co-primary outcomes are the change in IBS severity or disease-specific quality of life from baseline to week 13 which is 1 month after the end of treatment. The efficacy of GCBT for IBS will be examined through mixed-effects repeated-measures analysis. Discussion: GCBT, if found effective, can address the issues of the shortage of therapists as well as the time required and the costs associated with individual CBT. Clinically, the findings will help make effective CBT programmes accessible to a large number of distressed IBS patients at lower costs. Theoretically, the results will clarify the relationship between IBS and psychological stress and will help elucidate the underlying mechanisms of IBS. Trial registration: UMIN, CTR-UMIN000031710. Registered on March 13, 2018

TTC26/DYF13 is an intraflagellar transport protein required for transport of motility-related proteins into flagella

Cilia/flagella are assembled and maintained by the process of intraflagellar transport (IFT), a highly conserved mechanism involving more than 20 IFT proteins. However, the functions of individual IFT proteins are mostly unclear. To help address this issue, we focused on a putative IFT protein TTC26/DYF13. Using live imaging and biochemical approaches we show that TTC26/DYF13 is an IFT complex B protein in mammalian cells and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Knockdown of TTC26/DYF13 in zebrafish embryos or mutation of TTC26/DYF13 in C. reinhardtii, produced short cilia with abnormal motility. Surprisingly, IFT particle assembly and speed were normal in dyf13 mutant flagella, unlike in other IFT complex B mutants. Proteomic and biochemical analyses indicated a particular set of proteins involved in motility was specifically depleted in the dyf13 mutant. These results support the concept that different IFT proteins are responsible for different cargo subsets, providing a possible explanation for the complexity of the IFT machinery. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.01566.00

Use of the index of pulmonary vascular disease for predicting long-term outcome of pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with congenital heart disease

AimsLimited data exist on risk factors for the long-term outcome of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) associated with congenital heart disease (CHD-PAH). We focused on the index of pulmonary vascular disease (IPVD), an assessment system for pulmonary artery pathology specimens. The IPVD classifies pulmonary vascular lesions into four categories based on severity: (1) no intimal thickening, (2) cellular thickening of the intima, (3) fibrous thickening of the intima, and (4) destruction of the tunica media, with the overall grade expressed as an additive mean of these scores. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between IPVD and the long-term outcome of CHD-PAH.MethodsThis retrospective study examined lung pathology images of 764 patients with CHD-PAH aged <20 years whose lung specimens were submitted to the Japanese Research Institute of Pulmonary Vasculature for pulmonary pathological review between 2001 and 2020. Clinical information was collected retrospectively by each attending physician. The primary endpoint was cardiovascular death.ResultsThe 5-year, 10-year, 15-year, and 20-year cardiovascular death-free survival rates for all patients were 92.0%, 90.4%, 87.3%, and 86.1%, respectively. The group with an IPVD of ≥2.0 had significantly poorer survival than the group with an IPVD <2.0 (P = .037). The Cox proportional hazards model adjusted for the presence of congenital anomaly syndromes associated with pulmonary hypertension, and age at lung biopsy showed similar results (hazard ratio 4.46; 95% confidence interval: 1.45–13.73; P = .009).ConclusionsThe IPVD scoring system is useful for predicting the long-term outcome of CHD-PAH. For patients with an IPVD of ≥2.0, treatment strategies, including choosing palliative procedures such as pulmonary artery banding to restrict pulmonary blood flow and postponement of intracardiac repair, should be more carefully considered

Flexural strengths of reinforced denture base resins subjected to long-term water immersion

Objective This study evaluated the flexural strengths of reinforced denture base resins subjected to long-term water immersion. Materials and methods Acrylic denture base resin reinforced with metal wire or glass fiber-reinforced composite (FRC), and without reinforcement were tested. Bar-shaped specimens were fabricated. Half of the specimens were stored in 37 °C distilled water for 50 hours (h), the other half were stored in 37 °C distilled water for 180 days (d) before testing. Ten specimens were fabricated per group for each reinforcement/water immersion period combination. The ultimate flexural strength and flexural strength at the proportional limit of reinforced denture base resin were tested. Results The 180 d bulk specimen possessed significantly lower ultimate flexural strength compared with the 50 h bulk specimen (p  0.05). The 180 d bulk specimen had a significantly lower flexural strength at the proportional limit compared to the 50 h bulk specimen. The 180 d reinforced specimens of metal and FRC were not significantly different from each of the 50 h specimens. Conclusion The flexural strengths of a reinforced denture base resin did not change after long-term water immersion