Fatty acid synthesis promotes inflammasome activation through NLRP3 palmitoylation.

Despite its significance, the role of lipid metabolism in NLRP3 inflammasome remains elusive. Here, we reveal a critical role for fatty acid synthase (FASN) in NLRP3 inflammasome activation. We demonstrate that pharmacological or genetic depletion of FASN dampens NLRP3 activation in primary mouse and human macrophages and in mice.

qPCR assay optimisation for a clinical study comparing oral health risk in Rett syndrome.

Purpose: This study aimed to validate qPCR assays for specific microbiota, for use on dental plaque samples stored on Whatman FTA cards to compare relative oral health risk in Rett syndrome.

Methods: Supragingival dental plaque samples were collected, using a sterile swab, (COPAN FLOQswab™) swabbed onto Whatman FTA™ cards. DNA extraction was performed using a modified Powersoil™ protocol.

Protocol for a semi-quantitative approach to identify protein S-palmitoylation in cultured cells by acyl biotin exchange assay.

Palmitoylation is a post-translational lipid modification in which palmitic acid is conjugated predominantly to cysteine residues of target proteins, allowing them to tether to cell membranes. Here, we describe a protocol to perform a stepwise acyl biotin exchange assay to identify protein S-palmitoylation. We describe steps for initial blocking of free thiols in protein lysates, subsequent replacement of thioester-linked palmitate groups with a biotin tag for affinity enrichment, and identification of palmitoylated proteins by SDS-PAGE.

Relationship between early infant motor repertoire and neurodevelopment on the hammersmith infant neurological examination in a developmentally vulnerable First Nations cohort.

Aim: To implement a culturally-adapted screening program aimed to determine the ability of infant motor repertoire to predict early neurodevelopment on the Hammersmith Infant Neurological Examination (HINE) and improve Australian First Nations families' engagement with neonatal screening.

Methods: A prospective cohort of 156 infants (55 % male, mean (standard deviation [SD]) gestational age 33.8 (4.

andomised to early neuroprotection and neurorehabilitation: protocol for a follow-up study of participants from four randomised clinical trials.

Introduction: School readiness includes cognitive, socio-emotional, language and physical growth and development domains which share strong associations with life-course opportunities. Children with cerebral palsy (CP) are at increased risk of poor school readiness compared with their typically developing peers. Recently, earlier diagnosis of CP has allowed interventions to commence sooner, harnessing neuroplasticity.

The NLRP3 inflammasome: regulation by metabolic signals.

Macrophages undergo profound metabolic reprogramming upon sensing infectious and sterile stimuli. This metabolic shift supports and regulates essential innate immune functions, including activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome. Within distinct metabolic networks, key enzymes play pivotal roles to control flux restraining detrimental inflammasome signaling.

NLRP3 Inflammasome Priming and Activation Are Regulated by a Phosphatidylinositol-Dependent Mechanism.

Imbalance in lipid homeostasis is associated with discrepancies in immune signaling and is tightly linked to metabolic disorders. The diverse ways in which lipids impact immune signaling, however, remain ambiguous. The phospholipid phosphatidylinositol (PI), which is implicated in numerous immune disorders, is chiefly defined by its phosphorylation status.

The Queensland Birth Cohort Study for Early Childhood Caries: Results at 7 Years.

Aims: This study investigated caries predictors in 378 children remaining from a birth cohort of 1,052 at 7 y and compared the efficacy of home visits (HVs) and telephone contacts (TCs) for early childhood caries (ECC) prevention.

Methods: The HVs or TCs were made at ages 6, 12, 18, 30, and 42 mo with annual dental clinic examinations at ages 2 to 7 y. At every visit, the parents completed validated questionnaires regarding the children's family, medical, dental, and dietary histories.

Growth Inhibitory Effects of Antimicrobial Natural Products against Cariogenic and Health-Associated Oral Bacterial Species.

Purpose: This study investigated whether selected natural products could specifically target the growth of a caries-associated bacterial species (Streptococcus mutans) without affecting the viability of a health-associated oral commensal bacterial species (Streptococcus sanguinis).

Materials And Methods: Agar diffusion assays were used to screen the natural products for bacterial-growth inhibitory effects and the diameters of the inhibitory zones for the two bacterial species compared. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of the natural products that showed growth inhibitory effects were determined using the broth microdilution method.

Prediction of childhood brain outcomes in infants born preterm using neonatal MRI and concurrent clinical biomarkers (PREBO-6): study protocol for a prospective cohort study.

Introduction: Infants born very preterm are at risk of adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes, including cognitive deficits, motor impairments and cerebral palsy. Earlier identification enables targeted early interventions to be implemented with the aim of improving outcomes.

Methods And Analysis: Protocol for 6-year follow-up of two cohorts of infants born <31 weeks gestational age (PPREMO: Prediction of Preterm Motor Outcomes; PREBO: Prediction of Preterm Brain Outcomes) and a small term-born reference sample in Brisbane, Australia.

Randomized Controlled Study to Evaluate Microbial Ecological Effects of CPP-ACP and Cranberry on Dental Plaque.

Introduction: Ecological approaches to dental caries prevention play a key role in attaining long-term control over the disease and maintaining a symbiotic oral microbiome.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the microbial ecological effects of 2 interventional dentifrices: a casein phosphopeptide-amorphous calcium phosphate (CPP-ACP) dentifrice and the same dentifrice supplemented with a polyphenol-rich cranberry extract.

Methods: The interventional toothpastes were compared with each other and with an active control fluoride dentifrice in a double-blinded randomized controlled trial.

Potential Role for Natural Products in Dental Caries Control.

Purpose: This paper discusses the cariostatic mechanisms of some of the most promising natural products and explores the research directions that are needed to translate the potential of natural products into commercial oral care products for dental caries control.

Materials And Methods: The search strategy for this narrative review involved performing a comprehensive literature search to capture all published studies (up to December 2017) specifically related to natural products with anticaries effects. The databases searched were Medline (via PubMed), Embase and Web of Science, using a combination of controlled vocabulary and text words.

Casein Phosphopeptide-Amorphous Calcium Phosphate Attenuates Virulence and Modulates Microbial Ecology of Saliva-Derived Polymicrobial Biofilms.

Background: Casein phosphopeptide-amorphous calcium phosphate (CPP-ACP) acts as a salivary biomimetic that provides bioavailable calcium and phosphate ions to augment fluoride-mediated remineralisation of early caries lesions. However, there are indications that it may also have beneficial ecological effects on the oral microbiome.

Objective: This in vitro study investigated whether CPP-ACP could influence microbial counts, acidogenicity, and the relative abundance of specific caries- and health-associated bacterial -species in polymicrobial biofilms.

Effect of polyphenol-rich cranberry extracts on cariogenic biofilm properties and microbial composition of polymicrobial biofilms.

Objective: To investigate the effect of cranberry extracts on saliva-derived polymicrobial biofilms with regards to biofilm biomass, acidogenicity, exopolysaccharide (EPS)/microbial biovolumes, colony forming unit (CFU) counts, and the relative abundance of specific caries- and health-associated bacteria.

Methods: Saliva-derived polymicrobial biofilms were grown for 96 h in a cariogenic environment and treated for 2 min every 12 h over the entire biofilm growth period with 500 μg/mL cranberry extract or vehicle control. The effect of the cranberry extract on biofilm behaviour was evaluated using different assays and its influence on key cariogenic and health-associated bacterial populations was assessed with a microarray real-time quantitative PCR method.

Polyphenol-Rich Cranberry Extracts Modulate Virulence of Biofilms Implicated in the Pathogenesis of Early Childhood Caries.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of polyphenol-rich cranberry extracts on dual-species biofilms implicated in contributing to the severity of early childhood caries. biofilms were grown on saliva-coated hydroxyapatite discs (s-HA) mounted on the high-throughput Amsterdam Active Attachment model. The s-HA discs were treated with the cranberry extracts/vehicle control for five minutes just before biofilm growth and subsequently, for similar exposure times, after 12 hours and 24 hours of biofilm growth.

Inhibitory effects of fruit berry extracts on Streptococcus mutans biofilms.

Dark-colored fruit berries are a rich source of polyphenols that could provide innovative bioactive molecules as natural weapons against dental caries. High-quality extracts of cranberry, blueberry, and strawberry, and a combination of the three berry extracts (Orophenol), were used to treat 24-h-old Streptococcus mutans biofilms. The grown biofilms were treated with the berry extracts at concentrations ranging from 62.

Porphyromonas gingivalis antibody levels and diagnosis of coronary artery disease in HIV-positive individuals.

Background And Objective: Periodontal disease has been associated with cardiovascular disease in the general population. It is unknown whether IgG antibody levels for periodontal pathogens are associated with the diagnosis of coronary artery disease (CAD) in HIV-positive individuals.

Material And Methods: Twenty-four HIV-positive individuals (cases) with stored plasma available in the 12 months before CAD diagnosis were age- and sex-matched 1:2 with 46 HIV-positive individuals without CAD (controls).

A Longitudinal Observational Study of Developmental Defects of Enamel from Birth to 6 Years of Age.

Developmental defects of the enamel (DDE) commonly occur in the primary dentition. Although several cross-sectional studies have shown the association of DDE with caries, there is a paucity of longitudinal studies demonstrating that teeth with DDE are at greater risk of caries than are normal teeth. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to longitudinally track a total of 14,220 primary teeth in 725 children from a large birth cohort study, who were interviewed by telephone or home visits at 6-mo intervals.

Influence of a triclosan toothpaste on periodontopathic bacteria and periodontitis progression in cardiovascular patients: a randomized controlled trial.

Background And Objective: Triclosan/copolymer toothpaste is effective in controlling plaque and gingivitis and in slowing the progression of periodontitis. This study describes its influence on microbiological and clinical outcomes, over a 5-year period, in patients with established cardiovascular disease (CVD).

Material And Methods: Four-hundred and thirty-eight patients were recruited from the Cardiovascular Unit at The Prince Charles Hospital, Brisbane, Australia, and randomized to triclosan or placebo groups.

Interference of Antimicrobial Activity of Combinations of Oral Antiseptics Against Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus sanguinis, and Lactobacillus acidophilus.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of combinations of sodium fluoride and antiseptic compounds on the growth of Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus sanguinis, and Lactobacillus acidophilus.

Methods: The agar diffusion assay was used to determine bacterial growth inhibition.

Results: Of the combinations tested, 0.

Inhibitory effects of antiseptic mouthrinses on Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus sanguinis and Lactobacillus acidophilus.

Background: Oral antiseptics are valuable in controlling oral infections caused by cariogenic bacteria. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of mouthrinses and pure antiseptic compounds on Streptococcus mutans and non-mutans bacteria (Streptococcus sanguinis and Lactobacillus acidophilus).

Methods: The agar diffusion assay was employed to determine bacterial growth inhibition.

Inhibitory effects of children's toothpastes on Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus sanguinis and Lactobacillus acidophilus.

Aim: As suppression of Streptococcus mutans in young children may prevent or delay colonisation of the oral cavity, toothbrushing with dentifrices containing anti-S. mutans activity may aid in preventing caries. The aims of this study were to compare the effects of children's dentifrices on the growth of S.

Association of erosion with timing of detection and selected risk factors in primary dentition: a longitudinal study.

Objective: The aims of this study were to determine the prevalence of erosion in a birth cohort at 24, 36, and 48 months and to investigate risk factors for erosion.

Methods: One hundred and fifty-four children from a birth cohort were followed at 24, 36, and 48 months of age.

Results: Of the 154 children examined, 0% (0/154), 7% (11/154), and 28% (40/154) had erosion detected for the first time at 24, 36, and 48 months, respectively (P < 0.

Local and systemic inflammatory responses to experimentally induced gingivitis.

This study profiled the local and systemic inflammatory responses to experimentally induced gingivitis. Eight females participated in a 21-day experimental gingivitis model followed by a 14-day resolution phase. Bleeding on probing and plaque index scores were assessed before, during, and after resolution of gingival inflammation, and samples of saliva, GCF, and plasma were collected.