Three-dimensional assessment of the pharyngeal airway in Japanese preschoolers with orofacial clefts.

Objectives/hypothesis: Individuals with orofacial clefts often experience respiratory problems because of nasopharyngeal abnormalities. Pharyngeal airway morphology is thought to differ among the various cleft types. We measured three-dimensional (3D) airway volume using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) analysis to evaluate and compare pharyngeal airways in Japanese preschoolers with and without orofacial clefts.

Cdc42 regulates cranial suture morphogenesis and ossification.

Cdc42 (cell division cycle 42) is ubiquitously expressed small GTPases belonging to the Rho family of proteins. Previously, we generated limb bud mesenchyme-specific Cdc42 inactivated mice (Cdc42 conditional knockout mice; Cdc42; Prx1-Cre), which showed short limbs and cranial bone deformities, though the mechanism related to the cranium phenotype was unclear. In the present study, we investigated the role of Cdc42 in cranial bone development.

Exploration of genetic factors determining cleft side in a pair of monozygotic twins with mirror-image cleft lip and palate using whole-genome sequencing and comparison of craniofacial morphology.

Objective: The aim of the present study is to explore genetic factors determining difference of cleft side using whole-genome sequencing and evaluation of craniofacial morphology using cephalometric analysis between Japanese monozygotic (MZ) twins with mirror-image cleft lip and palate (CLP).

Design: We selected a Japanese MZ twin pair (MZ-A and MZ-B) affected with unilateral CLP who are discordant for cleft side (left/right) and conducted whole-genome sequencing to identify genetic factors determining cleft side. Moreover, we compared their craniofacial morphologies using cephalograms.

Whole-genome sequencing in a pair of monozygotic twins with discordant cleft lip and palate subtypes.

Objective: Orofacial clefts (OFCs) are common and etiologically complex birth defects. This study explored potential genetic differences in a pair of Japanese monozygotic (MZ) twins with different forms of OFC using whole-genome sequencing.

Subjects And Methods: One co-twin (MZ-1) presented with nonsyndromic bilateral cleft lip and palate; the other co-twin (MZ-2) had nonsyndromic bilateral cleft lip and unilateral left-sided cleft alveolus.

Orthodontic Treatment and Maxillary Anterior Segmental Distraction Osteogenesis of a Subject with Williams-Beuren Syndrome and Isolated Cleft Palate: A Long-Term Follow-Up from the Age of 5 to 24 Years.

Williams-Beuren syndrome (WBS) is a rare multisystem disorder caused by a hemizygous deletion of the elastin gene on chromosome 7q11.23. WBS patients have characteristic skeletal features and dental anomalies accompanied by mental retardation, a friendly outgoing personality, and mild to moderate intellectual disability or learning problems.

Expression of nephronectin is enhanced by 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3.

The extracellular matrix protein nephronectin (Npnt), also called POEM, is considered to play critical roles as an adhesion molecule in development and functions of various tissues, such as the kidneys, liver, and bone. In the present study, we examined the molecular mechanism of Npnt gene expression and found that vitamin D3 (1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3,VD 3) strongly enhanced Npnt mRNA expression in MC3T3-E1 cells from a mouse osteoblastic cell line. The VD 3-induced increase in Npnt expression is both time- and dose-dependent and is mediated by the vitamin D receptor (VDR).

Rho GTPase protein Cdc42 is critical for postnatal cartilage development.

Cdc42, a small Rho GTPase family member, has been shown to regulate multiple cellular functions in vitro, including actin cytoskeletal reorganization, cell migration, proliferation, and gene expression. However, its tissue-specific roles in vivo remain largely unknown, especially in postnatal cartilage development, as cartilage-specific Cdc42 inactivated mice die within a few days after birth. In this study, we investigated the physiological functions of Cdc42 during cartilage development after birth using tamoxifen-induced cartilage-specific inactivated Cdc42 conditional knockout (Cdc42 (fl/fl); Col2-CreERT) mice, which were generated by crossing Cdc42 flox mice (Cdc42 (fl/fl)) with tamoxifen-induced type II collagen (Col2) Cre transgenic mice using a Cre/loxP system.

Association of aging with gene expression profiling in mouse submandibular glands.

Aging, also called senescence, is thought to be a physiological phenomenon that commonly occurs in various organs and tissues (Enoki et al., 2007 [1]). Many older adults experience dysfunction in their salivary glands, for example xerostomia, which is defined as dry mouth resulting from reduced or absent saliva flow (Nagler et al.

Cdc42 is critical for cartilage development during endochondral ossification.

Cdc42 is a widely expressed protein that belongs to the family of Rho GTPases and controls a broad variety of signal transduction pathways in a variety of cell types. To investigate the physiological functions of Cdc42 during cartilage development, we generated chondrocyte-specific inactivated Cdc42 mutant mice (Cdc42(fl/fl); Col2-Cre). The gross morphology of mutant neonates showed shorter limbs and body as compared with the control mice (Cdc42(fl/fl)).

Temperature-sensitive nonionic vesicles prepared from Span 80 (sorbitan monooleate).

Different types of nonionic vesicles were prepared from commercial Span 80 (also called sorbitan monooleate), as an inexpensive, biocompatible alternative to conventional phospholipid-based vesicles (liposomes). The vesicles were characterized by different techniques and comparison was made with vesicles formed from POPC (1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl- sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine) or DOPC (1,2-dioleoyl- sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine). Dynamic light scattering measurements, electron microscopy analyses, and two types of fusion assays indicate that Span 80 vesicles are stable for at least 7 days at 4 or 25 degrees C, while storage at 42 degrees C causes irreversible vesicle fusion.