Effect of melatonin-rich night-time milk on sleep and activity in elderly institutionalized subjects.

Melatonin production decreases with advancing age, leading to insomnia and changes in circadian rhythmicity. Administration of melatonin in variable doses resulting in supraphysiological or physiological night-time blood levels of melatonin has been shown to improve sleep quality in the elderly. To study the effect of low doses of melatonin, which do not affect daytime blood melatonin concentrations, night-time milk containing 10-40 ng/l melatonin was used as a drink with meals.

Effect of temporin A modifications on its cytotoxicity and antimicrobial activity.

Temporin A (TA), a short alpha-helical antimicrobial peptide isolated from the skin of the frog Rana temporaria, is effective against a broad spectrum of Gram-positive bacteria, including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium strains. TA interacts directly with the cell membrane of the microorganism and it has been reported to be non-toxic to erythrocytes at concentrations that are antimicrobial. Less is known about the effects on the viability and growth of nucleated eukaryotic cells.

Beta-amyloid (1-42) affects MTT reduction in astrocytes: implications for vesicular trafficking and cell functionality.

Beta-amyloid (Abeta) peptide deposition in the brains of Alzheimer's disease patients results in reactive astrogliosis which may enhance neuronal cell death. Abeta has also been reported to impair important supportive astrocyte functions, such as glutamate uptake in vitro. We studied the effect of amyloid beta-peptide (Abeta) on 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) reduction, cellular ATP content, lactate release, and proliferation using neonatal rat astrocyte cultures.

Expression of transcription factor AP-2alpha predicts survival in epithelial ovarian cancer.

The 52-kDa activator protein (AP)-2 is a DNA-binding transcription factor which has been reported to have growth inhibitory effects in cancer cell lines and in human tumours. In this study the expression of AP-2alpha was analysed in 303 epithelial ovarian carcinomas by immunohistochemistry (IHC) with a polyclonal AP-2alpha antibody and its mRNA status was determined by in situ hybridization (ISH) and reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The immunohistochemical expression of AP-2alpha was correlated with clinicopathological variables, p21/WAF1 protein expression and survival.

Associations among different orofacial dysfunctions in 9-11-year-olds.

This study is the second part of a longitudinal investigation on different orofacial dysfunctions in growing individuals. The aim of the present report was to determine, in 219 children with and without articulatory speech disorders, whether certain associations among misarticulations of speech, craniomandibular disorders (CMD), and problems in oral motor skills still were found at the age of 9-11 years, as they had been in these children at the age of 6-8 years. Multiple logistic regression models showed that certain aspects of dental malocclusion such as large overjet, anterior open bite and lateral cross-bite, and certain signs of CMD such as palpatory tenderness of the TMJ, jaw deviation on opening and bruxism were related to misarticulations of speech.

Oral and dental manifestations in gastroesophageal reflux disease.

One hundred seventeen patients with reflux disease were examined with respect to the severity of their disease and oral, dental, and salivary findings. Twenty-eight patients had dental erosion, whereas the remaining 89 patients did not. No mucosal changes could be observed to be linked with the reflux disease.