The importance of taste on swallowing function.

The world's population is aging. Pneumonia is the leading cause of death among the older adults, with aspiration pneumonia being particularly common. Aspiration pneumonia is caused by a decline in swallowing function.

Vitamin D Promotes Not Motor Coordination but Motor Skill Learning without Influence on Muscle Function.

Although motor coordination or motor skill learning are improved by taking vitamin D in the animal experiment, muscle function have not been estimated. Here we examined the effect of vitamin D administration on motor coordination and motor skill learning, muscle strength, and muscle volume in mice fed a vitamin D deficient diet. In mice fed a vitamin D deficient diet, serum calcium and 25(OH)D concentrations were measured.

Weaning from Tube Feeding Post Stroke by Eating, Swallowing, and Nutritional Support In-Home: A Case Report.

In many cases, enteral tube feeding is begun after stroke without adequate assessment of feeding ability, swallowing function, and nutritional status. A 72-year-old man was recovering at home after a stroke and consulted us because he wanted to resume taking food by mouth. He had tube feeding for 13 months after the stroke.

Nutritional Management in a 101-Year-Old Woman with Physical Inactivity and General Weakness: A Case Report.

Japan has the world's highest life longevity, and centenarian patients are no longer rare. However, sufficient information related to centenarians is not available. Herein, we report the case of a 101-year-old centenarian woman who recovered from extreme inactivity and general weakness, mainly through nutritional management at home, to understand instances of nutritional management in centenarians.

Effects of Carbonated Thickened Drinks on Pharyngeal Swallowing with a Flexible Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallowing in Older Patients with Oropharyngeal Dysphagia.

This study aimed to determine the efficacy of carbonated and sweetened drinks added to thickened liquids, which are routinely used for patients with dysphagia to improve dysphagia. Patients swallowed thin liquid (Thin), thickened liquid (Thick), carbonated thin drink (C-Thin), and carbonated thickened drink (C-Thick) in random order. Penetration and/or aspiration were scored using the Penetration−Aspiration Scale (PAS).

A Case of Necrotizing Periodontitis in a Care-Requiring Elderly Person Treated and Managed by Interprofessional Collaboration.

Background: Necrotizing periodontitis (NP) is a reactive and destructive inflammatory process that occurs in response to bacterial infection. Predisposing factors such as compromised host immune responses contribute significantly to NP pathogenesis. NP occasionally progresses to a more advanced and life-threatening state.

A Case of Drastic Reduction of Membranous Substances in the Pharynx by Interprofessional Cooperative Oral Care.

Membranous substances in the pharynx are occasionally observed in tube feeding patients during the fiberoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing. Although the mechanism of the formation of these deposits sometimes causes problems, such as dysphagia, asphyxia, or aspiration pneumonia, a 91-year-old male complained about difficulty of swallowing. He had a history of cerebral infarction and aspiration pneumonitis.

A Case of Myxoma Arising in the Buccal Mucosa.

Myxomas arising in the oral and maxillofacial areas are extremely rare. This study reports a case of myxoma arising in the soft tissue beneath the buccal mucosa of an 86-year-old man.

Donepezil prevents RANK-induced bone loss via inhibition of osteoclast differentiation by downregulating acetylcholinesterase.

Objective: Donepezil, an inhibitor of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) targeting the brain, is a common medication for Alzheimer's disease. Interestingly, a recent clinical study found that administration of this agent is associated with lower risk of hip fracture independently of falling, suggesting its direct effect on bone tissues as well. AChE has been reported to be involved in osteoblast function, but the role of AChE on osteoclastogenesis still remains unclear.

Semaphorin 3A Promotes Dendrite Elongation of Osteocytes in Association with Down-regulation of CDK6.

Background: Osteocytes, which comprise over 90% of all bone cells, communicate with osteoblasts and osteoclasts to regulate each other's physiological function via dendrites, suggesting that dendrite elongation plays a vital role for bone regeneration. We examined the effect of semaphorin 3A (SEMA3A) on dendritic processes of an osteocyte cell line, since in previous work we found it to be essential for promoting osteoblast differentiation.

Materials And Methods: Dendrite length was analyzed by Cellomics Array Scan VTI quantitatively in osteocyte-like cell line, MLO-Y4 cells.

Muscle regulatory factors regulate T1R3 taste receptor expression.

T1R3 is a T1R class of G protein-coupled receptors, composing subunit of the umami taste receptor when complexed with T1R1. T1R3 was originally discovered in gustatory tissue but is now known to be expressed in a wide variety of tissues and cell types such the intestine, pancreatic β-cells, skeletal muscle, and heart. In addition to taste recognition, the T1R1/T1R3 complex functions as an amino acid sensor and has been proposed to be a control mechanism for the secretion of hormones, such as cholecystokinin, insulin, and duodenal HCO3(-) and activates the mammalian rapamycin complex 1 (MTORC1) to inhibit autophagy.

Usability of surgical treatment in cases of bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaw stage 2 with sequestrum.

Objective: This retrospective study was conducted to reveal usability of surgical treatment in the cases of bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ) stage 2 with sequestrum.

Patients And Methods: Study subjects included 18 patients having BRONJ stage 2 with sequestrum and 12 non-BRONJ patients with nearly equal clinical states of BRONJ stage 2. Patient characteristics, frequency of inciting factors of osteonecrosis, and treatment results were compared between BRONJ group and non-BRONJ groups.

Limited mouth opening with a square mandible configuration: a case of masticatory muscle tendon-aponeurosis hyperplasia.

Most clinicians throughout the world are probably unaware of the existence of masticatory muscle tendon-aponeurosis hyperplasia (MMTAH), potentially leading to misdiagnoses such as temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD). Here, we introduce this disease from the viewpoint of education. In February 2013, a 39-year-old woman presented with limited mouth opening.

Netrin-4 derived from murine vascular endothelial cells inhibits osteoclast differentiation in vitro and prevents bone loss in vivo.

Bone is a highly vascularized organ, thus angiogenesis is a vital process during bone remodeling. However, the role of vascular systems in bone remodeling is not well recognized. Here we show that netrin-4 inhibits osteoclast differentiation in vitro and in vivo.

Reduced expression of p63 has prognostic implications for patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.

The p63 gene is a member of the p53 family that plays a role in cell differentiation, development and carcinogenesis. The relationship between p63 expression and the prognosis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remains unknown. The present study examines the clinical impact of p63 in patients with ESCC.