The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a central technique in biotechnology. Its ability to amplify a specific target region of a DNA sequence has led to prominent applications, including virus tests, DNA sequencing, genotyping, and genome cloning. These applications rely on the specificity of the primer hybridization and therefore require effective suppression of hybridization errors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAims: Protein disulfide isomerase (PDI) is an essential enzyme involved in oxidative protein folding. PDI is S-nitrosylated in the brains of Alzheimer's disease patients, and S-nitrosylated PDI is considered one of main causes of Alzheimer's disease. However, the mechanisms underlying PDI S-nitrosylation have not yet been elucidated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis paper evaluates a one-year treatment outcome after full or reduced photodynamic therapy (PDT) and anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) combination therapy for pachychoroid neovasculopathy (PNV). After the initial combination therapy, a total of 29 eyes from 29 patients (16 for full treatment and 13 for reduced treatment), exhibited reduced, central retinal thickness and central choroidal thickness, and the improvements were maintained for 1 year after the initial combination therapy. Twenty-two eyes (75.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFImmunoglobulin (Ig)G4-related disease (IgG4-RD) is a systemic condition associated with fibroinflammatory lesions and is characterized by elevated serum IgG4 levels and IgG4-positive cell infiltration into the affected tissues. It has been reported that IgG4-RD affects a variety of organs but uncommonly affects the gastrointestinal tract. In particular, there are few cases of lesions in the small intestine, except for sclerosing mesenteritis, which were mostly diagnosed from surgical specimens.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDental implants with tapered conical connections are often combined with zirconia abutments for esthetics; however, the effect of the titanium base on the implant components remains unclear. This study evaluated the effects of a titanium base on the fracture resistance of zirconia abutments and damage to the tapered conical connection implants. Zirconia (Z) and titanium base zirconia (ZT) abutments were fastened to Nobel Biocare (NB) implants and Straumann (ST) implants and subjected to static load testing according to ISO 14801:2016.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTo evaluate choroidal volume and thickness changes after photodynamic therapy (PDT) for chronic central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC). Chronic CSC eyes with a history of PDT were selected. Average choroidal volume, average choroidal thickness, the maximum and minimum choroidal thickness of the macula irradiated area and peripheral non-irradiated areas before and after one and three months of treatment were examined.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBiochim Biophys Acta Gen Subj
November 2021
Background: Dementia places a significant burden on both patients and caregivers. Since diabetes is a risk factor for dementia, it is imperative to identify the relationship between diabetes and cognitive disorders. Protein disulfide isomerase (PDI) is an enzyme for oxidative protein folding.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Immediate implant placement with simultaneous contour augmentation such as guided bone regeneration (GBR) or connective tissue grafting (CTG) has been widely performed. However, few prospective studies have evaluated both peri-implant bone and soft tissue changes between the preoperative and postoperative periods. The purpose of this study is to quantify the horizontal dimensional changes of the facial bone and soft tissue following immediate implant placement with contour augmentation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe attainment of a good aesthetic outcome in dental implant treatment requires inter-implant papilla reconstruction, which is very difficult to perform. Maintenance of the inter-implant bone is essential for maintenance of the inter-implant papilla. The aim of this study was to investigate the mechanical influences of the implant-abutment connection type and inter-implant distance on the inter-implant bone by using three-dimensional finite element analysis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: In dental implant treatment, the placement position of the implant body is important. The hypothesis is that there are factors that have a greater impact than the factors that have been studied so far.
Material And Methods: The deviation between planned and actually placed implants was measured three-dimensionally by modified treatment evaluation method in 110 patients who underwent implant placement with guided surgery for partial edentulism.
Purpose: To assess the influence of liquid attached on the tooth surfaces on the accuracy (trueness and precision) of intraoral scanners and the effectiveness of the drying method (using compression air) to exclude the influence of liquid on the scanning results.
Materials And Methods: A mandibular jaw model was scanned using an industrial computed tomography scanner to obtain a reference model. A scanning platform was designed to simulate three specific tooth surface states (dry, wet, blow-dry).
Genetic and epidemiological evidence has suggested that genetic factors are important in schizophrenia, although its pathophysiology is poorly understood. This study used whole-exome sequencing to investigate potential novel schizophrenia-causing genes in a Japanese family containing several members affected by severe or treatment-resistant schizophrenia. A missense variant, chr12:132064747C>T (rs200626129, P2805L), in the E1A-binding protein P400 (EP400) gene completely segregated with schizophrenia in this family.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: This study investigated the relationship between peri-implant tissue health and the presence of keratinized mucosa (≥ 2 mm) using multivariate analysis.
Methods: A total of 334 dental implants placed in 111 partially edentulous patients (34 males, 77 females) and restored with fixed prostheses were included in this study. The patients were recalled 12-146 months after completion of the prosthodontic treatment.
Sjögren's syndrome (SS) is a chronic autoimmune disease targeting salivary and lacrimal glands. C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 10 (CXCL10) expression is upregulated in lip salivary glands (LSGs) of primary SS (pSS) patients, and CXCL10 involved in SS pathogenesis via immune-cell accumulation. Moreover, interferon (IFN)-γ enhances CXCL10 production via the Janus kinase (JAK)/signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) pathway.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Neural Transm (Vienna)
November 2020
Panic disorder (PD) is a common and debilitating neuropsychiatric disorder characterized by panic attacks coupled with excessive anxiety. Both genetic factors and environmental factors play an important role in PD pathogenesis and response to treatment. However, PD is clinically heterogeneous and genetically complex, and the exact genetic or environmental causes of this disorder remain unclear.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTwin studies of psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and autism spectrum disorder have employed epidemiological approaches that determine heritability by comparing the concordance rate between monozygotic twins (MZs) and dizygotic twins. The basis for these studies is that MZs share 100% of their genetic information. Recently, biological studies based on molecular methods are now being increasingly applied to examine the differences between MZs discordance for psychiatric disorders to unravel their possible causes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: In the treatment of anterior implants, few studies have quantitatively evaluated the effects of connective tissue grafts on labial bone resorption and soft tissue recession.
Purpose: To evaluate the influence of connective tissue grafting (CTG) on the peri-implant tissue morphology by quantitatively measuring change over time the tissue surrounding the implant in the anterior esthetic zone.
Material And Methods: Twenty-six patients who received implants with platform shifting in the anterior esthetic region were included in this follow-up study.
Many patients with positive margins following breast-conserving surgery (BCS) undergo re-excisions that aim to remove residual disease from the breast, which brings a tremendous emotional burden in addition to financial consequences. We sought to determine whether re-excisions could be safely avoided without compromising local control and survival by using whole-breast radiation therapy (WBRT) with a tumor bed boost in patients with early-stage breast cancer with focally positive, tumor-exposed margins after BCS. All patients with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) and/or invasive breast cancer (IBC) who had pathologically tumor-exposed margins following BCS, without re-excision and treated with WBRT with tumor bed boost between March 2005 and December 2011, were included.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAim: When using short implants, fracture of the implant body and bone resorption are a concern because stress concentrates on and around a short implant. The purpose of this research is to investigate the differences in stress distribution between tissue level (TL) and bone level (BL) implant body designs, and between commercially pure titanium (cpTi) and the newer titanium-zirconium (TiZr) alloy in using short implants.
Materials And Methods: Models of TL and BL implants were prepared for three-dimensional finite element analysis.
Gene expression profiling of lip salivary gland (LSG) has shown that C-X-C motif chemokine 10 (CXCL10) and matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) expression is upregulated in primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) patients. Although CXCL10 and MMP-9 are both associated with pSS pathogenesis, the potential relationship between these two factors has not been investigated. In this study, we used LSG sections from pSS patients and human salivary gland cell lines to investigate the relationship between CXCL10 and MMP-9.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: To identify genes related to normal-pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) in one Japanese family with several members with NPH.
Methods: We performed whole-exome sequencing (WES) on a Japanese family with multiple individuals with NPH and identified a candidate gene. Then we generated knockout mouse using CRISPR/Cas9 to confirm the effect of the candidate gene on the pathogenesis of hydrocephalus.
Purpose: Thrombin, a serine protease, causes organ-specific responses to vessels. However, the mechanism by which thrombin affects the retinal microcirculation remains unclear. We examined the effects of thrombin on the retinal microvasculature and signaling mechanisms.
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