Effect of Streptococcus mutans on the autofluorescence of pathogens causing aspiration pneumonia.

Background: This study aimed to determine the autofluorescence characteristics influenced by interactions between Streptococcus mutans (SM) and pneumonia-related microorganisms using a quantitative light-induced fluorescence (QLF) technology.

Methods: The microbial strains used were Acinetobacter baumannii (AB), Staphylococcus aureus (SA), Escherichia coli (EC), Candida albicans (CA), and SM. Fluorescence was captured using QLF technology.

Assessment of oral hypofunction and its association with age among Korean community-dwelling older adults.

Background: Due to the increasing proportion of older adults in Korea and growing interest in aging, the concepts of oral aging and oral hypofunction have recently been introduced. Thus, it is necessary to investigate the age-specific oral function levels of Korean older adults and develop expert intervention methods for healthy aging.

Methods: Dysphagia, independence of daily living, and oral hypofunction were assessed in 206 older adults living in Wonju, Gangwon State, South Korea.

Validation of the Korean Academy of Geriatric Dentistry screening questionnaire and oral frailty diagnostic criteria in community-dwelling older adults.

Objectives: This study aimed to establish the validity-specifically, the sensitivity and specificity-of the screening questionnaire and diagnostic criteria for oral frailty proposed by the Korean Academy of Geriatric Dentistry (KAGD) among community-dwelling older adults.

Methods: This study enrolled 100 participants. Among various definitions of oral frailty, this study used the criteria proposed by Tanaka as the reference test.

Discovery of benzimidazole-indazole derivatives as potent FLT3-tyrosine kinase domain mutant kinase inhibitors for acute myeloid leukemia.

The FMS-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) gene encodes a class III receptor tyrosine kinase that is expressed in hematopoietic stem cells. The mutations of FLT3 gene found in 30% of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), leads to an abnormal constitutive activation of FLT3 kinase of the receptor and results in immature myeloblast cell proliferation. Although small molecule drugs targeting the FLT3 kinase have been approved, new FLT3 inhibitors are needed owing to the side effects and drug resistances arising from kinase domain mutations, such as D835Y and F691L.

Development and evaluation of simulation-based scenario education program for professional oral hygiene care in intubated patient.

Purpose: This study was conducted to develop a professional oral hygiene care (POHC) simulation education program for intubated patients and to evaluate the suitability of education by evaluating the performance confidence (PC), critical thinking disposition (CT), and learning satisfaction (LS) of dental hygiene students.

Methods: This study developed a POHC simulation education program (theory, skill training, scenario education, and debriefing) for intubated patients through expert validation and consisted of a single-group pre- and postexperiment design. The subjects were 3rd and 4th year students at the Department of Dental Hygiene in Wonju City, and a total of 30 people were enrolled.

COVID-19 spike polypeptide vaccine reduces the pathogenesis and viral infection in a mouse model of SARS-CoV-2.

The SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, which causes a respiratory disease called COVID-19, has been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) and is still ongoing. Vaccination is the most important strategy to end the pandemic. Several vaccines have been approved, as evidenced by the ongoing global pandemic, but the pandemic is far from over and no fully effective vaccine is yet available.

Caspase Cleavage of Receptor Tyrosine Kinases in the Dependence Receptor Family.

Dependence receptors are a group of receptor proteins with shared characteristics of transducing two different signals within cells. They can transduce a positive signal of survival and differentiation in the presence of ligands. On the other hand, dependence receptors can transduce an apoptosis signal in the absence of ligands.

Occupational hazards among dental hygienists: Risk level assessment of scaling work.

Objectives: This study aimed to classify occupational hazards of ultrasonic scaling by factor and to identify the distribution of occupational risk levels of the study participants according to occupational hazards. In addition, the relationship between the general characteristics of dental hygienists and the occupational risk level of scaling was investigated.

Methods: This study was conducted on 237 dental hygienists.

Learning outcomes of a mobile application for dental infection control education.

Purpose/objectives: This study aimed to apply and verify the effectiveness of a mobile-based dental infection control education application to enable students majoring in dental hygiene to learning dental infection control education without time and space constraints.

Methods: This study used a nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design to examine differences in learning outcomes between an experimental group that learned through the mobile application and a control group that learned with handouts. The Infection Prevention and Control Mobile Application (IPC App) and handouts were developed by referring to the Center for Disease Control's (CDC) guidelines for Infection Prevention and Control in Dental Settings.

Evaluation of antimicrobial activity of chlorhexidine-containing oral gels against aspiration pneumonia-inducing bacteria: An study.

Aim: Hospitalised patients have a high risk of developing aspiration pneumonia because of poor oral care and oral microbial flora changes. Chlorhexidine (CHX) solution has been used to reduce inflammation and prevent infections in oral cavity, but it is difficult to use in inpatients. Gel-type antimicrobial agents rather than the liquid form may be effective for the oral management of hospitalised patients.

Differences in Korean adult inpatients' oral care behaviour in daily life and hospitals.

Objectives: The objectives of the study were to identify the differences in oral care methods between current and past hospitalizations and to investigate the need for inpatient oral care education for South Korean adults who have been hospitalized for more than 24 h.

Methods: This study employed a cross-sectional design. Between 23 December 2019 and 4 May 2020, a questionnaire was administered to 200 adult inpatients awaiting treatment and their guardians at university hospitals or clinics.

The Effect of Professional Oral Care on the Oral Health Status of Critical Trauma Patients Using Ventilators.

Background: Oral care reduces the incidence of ventilator-associated pneumonia. In addition, it is important that critically ill patients to maintain their oral health in order to restore their quality of life and to receive adequate nutrition after recovery.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of professional oral hygiene care (POHC) on the oral health status of patients using a ventilator.

Discovery of indirubin-3'-aminooxy-acetamide derivatives as potent and selective FLT3/D835Y mutant kinase inhibitors for acute myeloid leukemia.

Mutations in Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) have been implicated in the pathogenesis of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) by affecting the proliferation and differentiation of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. Although several FLT3 inhibitors have been developed, the occurrence of secondary TKD mutations of FLT3 such FLT3/D835Y and FLT3/F691L lead to drug resistance and has become a key area of unmet medical needs. To overcome the obstacle of secondary TKD mutations, a new series of indirubin-3'-aminooxy-acetamide derivatives was discovered as potent and selective FLT3 and FLT3/D835Y inhibitors that were predicted to bind at the DFG-in active conformation of FLT3 in molecular docking studies.

Small Molecule Induced FLT3 Degradation.

Target protein degrader is a new paradigm in the small molecule drug discovery field and relates to the term 'event-driven pharmacology'. Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) is a significant target for treating acute myeloid leukemia (AML). A few FLT3 kinase inhibitors are currently used in the clinic for AML patients.

Differences in Determinants Influencing Self-Rated Oral Health in Korean and American Adults.

This study aims to identify the differences in the determinants that influence self-rated oral health (SROH) among Korean and American adults aged 20 years or older and the differences in objective oral health status between Korea and the United States. It included 13,068 Koreans and 5569 Americans who participated in the seventh Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and the 2017-2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. All analyses were conducted using the SPSS 25 program.

Chemotherapy Resistance: Role of Mitochondrial and Autophagic Components.

Cancer chemotherapy resistance is one of the most critical obstacles in cancer therapy. One of the well-known mechanisms of chemotherapy resistance is the change in the mitochondrial death pathways which occur when cells are under stressful situations, such as chemotherapy. Mitophagy, or mitochondrial selective autophagy, is critical for cell quality control because it can efficiently break down, remove, and recycle defective or damaged mitochondria.

The influence of professional oral hygiene care on reducing ventilator-associated pneumonia in trauma intensive care unit patients.

Aim This study aimed to examine the effects of professional oral hygiene care for the prevention of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) and the improvement of oral hygiene among patients in the trauma intensive care unit (TICU).Materials and methods TICU patients who underwent intubation were randomly assigned to either the experimental group (n = 29) or control group (n = 28). The developed professional oral hygiene care protocol was administered to patients in the experimental group every 24 hours.

Detection of nosocomial pneumonia pathogens using a fluorescence-based device.

Background: Early detection of nosocomial pneumonia pathogens is a significant factor in hospital-acquired pneumonia care. This study aimed to determine the autofluorescence properties of five nosocomial pneumonia pathogens using a fluorescence-based device and to establish evidence for clinical guidelines.

Methods: The following bacterial strains were assessed: Acinetobacter baumannii (AB), Escherichia coli (EC), Enterococcus faecalis (EF), Klebsiella pneumoniae (KP), and Staphylococcus aureus (SA).

Oral health status of inpatients with varying physical activity limitations in rehabilitation wards: A cross-sectional study.

Poor oral hygiene can be potentially life-threatening in inpatients. However, no basic protocol on oral hygiene customized for inpatients exists, and lack of oral care related knowledge, attitude, and skills among caregivers could be detrimental to the general health of patients. This study sought to identify the oral care practices and oral health status of inpatients with varying physical activity limitations in a rehabilitation ward.

TRK Inhibitors: Tissue-Agnostic Anti-Cancer Drugs.

Recently, two tropomycin receptor kinase (Trk) inhibitors, larotrectinib and entrectinib, have been approved for Trk fusion-positive cancer patients. Clinical trials for larotrectinib and entrectinib were performed with patients selected based on the presence of Trk fusion, regardless of cancer type. This unique approach, called tissue-agnostic development, expedited the process of Trk inhibitor development.

Measuring workplace violence for clinical dental hygienists.

Objective: This study aimed to develop and assess a tool for measuring violence experienced by clinical dental hygienists in the workplace.

Methods: The basic questionnaire used in this study was created by referring to previous studies, the Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised (NAQ-R) and the Workplace Bullying in Nursing-Type Inventory (WPBN-TI). The content feasibility was verified by ten experts in the field, and irrelevant questions were deleted, based on a content validity index value of 0.

Characterization of LDD-2633 as a Novel RET Kinase Inhibitor with Anti-Tumor Effects in Thyroid Cancer.

Rearranged during transfection (RET), a receptor tyrosine kinase, is activated by glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor family ligands. Chromosomal rearrangement or point mutations in are observed in patients with papillary thyroid and medullary thyroid carcinomas. Oncogenic alteration of results in constitutive activation of RET activity.

Discovery of orally active indirubin-3'-oxime derivatives as potent type 1 FLT3 inhibitors for acute myeloid leukemia.

FMS-like receptor tyrosine kinase-3 (FLT3) is expressed on acute leukemia cells and is implicated in the survival, proliferation and differentiation of hematopoietic cells in most acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients. Despite recent achievements in the development of FLT3-targeted small-molecule drugs, there are still unmet medical needs related to kinase selectivity and the progression of some mutant forms of FLT3. Herein, we describe the discovery of novel orally available type 1 FLT3 inhibitors from structure-activity relationship (SAR) studies for the optimization of indirubin derivatives with biological and pharmacokinetic profiles as potential therapeutic agents for AML.