Stylohyoid Ligament Calcification and Its Association With Dental Diseases.

Objectives: This research aimed at investigating the relationship between calcification of the stylohyoid ligaments (SHLs) and odontogenic inflammatory events.

Methods: Cone-beam computed tomography scans of 175 patients were retrospectively assessed for presence of SHL calcifications. Frequencies of 4 types of odontogenic inflammatory events were assessed using the same scans, namely dental extractions, root canal treatments, furcation lesions, and periapical lesions.

Impact of Immediate and Delayed Photo-activation of Self-adhesive Resin Cements on Bonding Efficacy and Water Uptake Under Simulated Pulpal Pressure.

This study investigated the effect of immediate versus delayed photo-activation on the bonding performance and water uptake of self-adhesive (SA) resin cements under simulated pulpal pressure (SPP). The occlusal dentin surface was exposed in 66 extracted third molars. Resin composite cylinders were cemented to dentin under SPP, with either RelyX Unicem 2 (RU) (3M Oral Care, St Paul, MN, USA) or Maxcem Elite (MC) (Kerr, Orange, CA, USA).

Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), green alternatives to petroleum-based plastics: a review.

In spite of the fact that petroleum-based plastics are convenient in terms of fulfilling the performance requirements of many applications, they contribute significantly to a number of ecological and environmental problems. Recently, the public awareness of the negative effects of petroleum-based plastics on the environment has increased. The present utilization of natural resources cannot be sustained forever.

Aptamer-functionalized pH-sensitive liposomes for a selective delivery of echinomycin into cancer cells.

Echinomycin (quinomycin A) is a peptide antibiotic from the quinoxaline family, which has a DNA bifunctional intercalating activity and an inhibitor of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF1α). Echinomycin was discovered in 1957 as a potent antitumor agent; however, it was not successful in clinical use due to its low water solubility and short half-life. To revitalize this potent drug, it is important to increase its aqueous solubility and bioavailability.

The correlated expression of COX-2 and keratin 15 in radicular cysts.

Background: The expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and Keratin-15 (K15) in radicular cysts (RCs) is poorly understood. Identifying the expression of these two markers may modify the current treatment of RC. The objective of this study was to evaluate the expression of COX-2 and its relationship to K15 expression in the odontogenic epithelial cells of the RC.

FPGA Realizations of Chaotic Epidemic and Disease Models Including Covid-19.

The spread of epidemics and diseases is known to exhibit chaotic dynamics; a fact confirmed by many developed mathematical models. However, to the best of our knowledge, no attempt to realize any of these chaotic models in analog or digital electronic form has been reported in the literature. In this work, we report on the efficient FPGA implementations of three different virus spreading models and one disease progress model.

Review on COVID-19 diagnosis models based on machine learning and deep learning approaches.

COVID-19 is the disease evoked by a new breed of coronavirus called the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Recently, COVID-19 has become a pandemic by infecting more than 152 million people in over 216 countries and territories. The exponential increase in the number of infections has rendered traditional diagnosis techniques inefficient.

A remote healthcare monitoring framework for diabetes prediction using machine learning.

Diabetes is a metabolic disease that affects millions of people each year. It is associated with an increased likelihood of vital organ failures and decreased quality of life. Early detection and regular monitoring are crucial for managing diabetes.

The Role of Internet of Things to Control the Outbreak of COVID-19 Pandemic.

Currently, COVID-19 pandemic is the major cause of disease burden globally. So, there is a need for an urgent solution to fight against this pandemic. Internet of Things (IoT) has the ability of data transmission without human interaction.

Dispensing errors in community pharmacies in the United Arab Emirates: investigating incidence, types, severity, and causes.

Background: Medication dispensing is a fundamental function of community pharmacies, and errors that occur during the dispensing process are a major threat to patient safety. However, to date there has been no national study of medication dispensing errors in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Objective: The study aimed to investigate the incidence, types, clinical significance, causes and predictors of medication dispensing errors.

Chemically synthesized nanoparticles of iron and iron-carbides.

In this paper, we report a one-pot chemical synthesis technique for the preparation of iron and iron-carbide nanoparticles. Mössbauer spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and magnetometry were used as the main tools to identify the different phases of Fe-C present. The influence of experimental parameters on the structural and compositional properties of nanoparticles was investigated in detail.

A randomized control trial assessing the effect of a pharmaceutical care service on Syrian refugees' quality of life and anxiety.

Background: Syrian refugees residing in Jordan suffer from chronic illnesses, low quality of life (QoL) and anxiety. Pharmacists delivering the medication review service can have a role in improving this growing worldwide problem.

Objectives: To assess the effect of the medication review service on QoL and anxiety scores for Syrian refugees living with chronic medical conditions.

Erratum to: What drives using antibiotic without prescriptions? A qualitative interview study of university students in United Arab Emirates.

[This corrects the article on p. 1172 in vol. 16, PMID: 30023027.

Falls in the elderly: assessment of prevalence and risk factors.

Background: Falls in elderly people can lead to serious health problems. There is limited knowledge about the prevalence of falls, risk factors and causes of falls in the United Arab Emirates.

Objective: To assess the prevalence of falls among older adults aged 60 years and above and to determine the risk factors associated with falls.

What drives using antibiotic without prescriptions? A qualitative interview study of university students in United Arab Emirates.

Background: Bacterial resistance to antibiotics is considered as natural phenomenon that occurs over the time due to genetic changes. Bacterial resistance to antibiotics is significantly increasing in the UAE. Self-medication with antibiotics has been identified as a major factor for the development of antibiotic resistance, which is significantly increasing in the UAE.

The Efficacy of Immediate Implant Placement in Extraction Sockets for Alveolar Bone Preservation: A Clinical Evaluation Using Three-Dimensional Cone Beam Computerized Tomography and Resonance Frequency Analysis Value.

The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of immediate implant placement with alveolar bone augmentation on socket preservation following atraumatic tooth extraction and comparing it with a tooth alveolar socket that was allowed to heal in a conventional way.Twenty medically fit patients (8 males and 12 females aged between 18 and 40 years) who needed noncomplicated tooth extraction of mandibular premolar teeth were divided randomly and equally into 2 groups. In Group I, the empty extraction socket was left untreated and allowed to heal in a conventional way.

The Role of Eukaryotic and Prokaryotic ABC Transporter Family in Failure of Chemotherapy.

Over the years chemotherapy failure has been a vital research topic as researchers have been striving to discover reasons behind it. The extensive studies carried out on chemotherapeutic agents confirm that resistance to chemotherapy is a major reason for treatment failure. "Resistance to chemotherapy," however, is a comprehensive phrase that refers to a variety of different mechanisms in which ATP-binding cassette (ABC) mediated efflux dominates.

OSU-2S/Sorafenib Synergistic Antitumor Combination against Hepatocellular Carcinoma: The Role of PKCδ/p53.

Sorafenib (Nexavar) is an FDA-approved systemic therapy for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the low efficacy and adverse effects at high doses limit the clinical application of sorafenib and strongly recommend its combination with other agents aiming at ameliorating its drawbacks. OSU-2S, a PKCδ activator, was selected as a potential candidate anticancer agent to be combined with sorafenib to promote the anti-cancer activity through synergistic interaction.

EEG and Eye Tracking Demonstrate Vigilance Enhancement with Challenge Integration.

Maintaining vigilance is possibly the first requirement for surveillance tasks where personnel are faced with monotonous yet intensive monitoring tasks. Decrement in vigilance in such situations could result in dangerous consequences such as accidents, loss of life and system failure. In this paper, we investigate the possibility to enhance vigilance or sustained attention using "challenge integration," a strategy that integrates a primary task with challenging stimuli.

Potential Biotechnological Strategies for the Cleanup of Heavy Metals and Metalloids.

Global mechanization, urbanization, and various natural processes have led to the increased release of toxic compounds into the biosphere. These hazardous toxic pollutants include a variety of organic and inorganic compounds, which pose a serious threat to the ecosystem. The contamination of soil and water are the major environmental concerns in the present scenario.

Perception of community pharmacists towards the barriers to enhanced pharmacy services in the healthcare system of Dubai: a quantitative approach.

Background: In many developing countries, pharmacists are facing many challenges while they try to enhance the quality of services provided to patients approaching community pharmacies.

Objective: To explore perception of community pharmacists in Dubai regarding the obstacles to enhanced pharmacy services using a part of the results from a nation-wide quantitative survey.

Methods: A questionnaire was distributed to 281 full-time licensed community pharmacists in Dubai.

Perceptions of national wealth and skill influence pay expectations: replicating global hierarchy on a microscale.

In highly multicultural societies, the economic status hierarchy may come to mimic the hierarchy of global wealth, reinforcing social inequality by tying pay scales to national wealth. We investigated how nationality influences expectations of payment in the UAE. Participants reported how much they expected people to be paid and how much skill they were perceived to have by nationality.

Structure activity relationship of phenolic acid inhibitors of α-synuclein fibril formation and toxicity.

The aggregation of α-synuclein (α-syn) is considered the key pathogenic event in many neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease (PD), dementia with Lewy bodies and multiple system atrophy, giving rise to a whole category of neurodegenerative diseases known as synucleinopathies. Although the molecular basis of α-syn toxicity has not been precisely elucidated, a great deal of effort has been put into identifying compounds that could inhibit or even reverse the aggregation process. Previous reports indicated that many phenolic compounds are potent inhibitors of α-syn aggregation.

A qualitative study exploring public perceptions on the role of community pharmacists in Dubai.

Background: The role of community pharmacists is very important due to their access to primary care patients and expertise. For this reason, the interaction level between pharmacists and patients should be optimized to ensure enhanced delivery of pharmacy services.

Objective: To gauge perceptions and expectations of the public on the role of community pharmacists in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE).