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Patients often ask oral health care practitioners to recommend the "best" mouthwash for their specific needs and desires. Considering the vast array of products available, the number of television, radio and printed media advertisements, and the promotional campaigns from dental representatives, selecting and recommending a single product can be daunting. As a result, advice and selection are often based on personal preferences, and may not identify a mouthwash most suitable for the specific needs of a particular patient. This study was undertaken to investigate the range, availability, advertised indications and ingredients of all the mouthwashes on offer in six large supermarket chains in Gauteng. After identifying all the available over-the-counter mouthwashes on sale, a descriptive cross sectional study was undertaken. The advertised indications for use, active ingredients, mode of action and cost of the collected samples were compared. The results may help clinicians have a better understanding of the range, nature and characteristics of a selection from each brand enabling a recommendation of the most suitable product to meet each individual need.

A gene called deleted in colon cancer (DCC) has been identified on a region of chromosome 18, which is deleted in 70% of colorectal cancers. The DCC gene encodes a protein belonging to the immunoglobulin superfamily with similarity to the N-CAM transmembrane proteins and is a putative tumor-suppressor gene. Alternative splicing of transcripts of transmembrane proteins, including N-CAM, is known to occur, resulting in different isoforms of the protein. Using five antibodies against the DCC gene product (three monoclonal antibodies raised in our laboratory, one commercially available antibody, and a rabbit polyclonal antibody), we have demonstrated by immunostaining a DCC protein isoform in reticuloendothelial cells in human thymus, tonsil, and lymph node. This can be distinguished from another isoform described in normal colonic epithelium, because this latter is not demonstrable with the antibodies we have used. It could not be detected in normal colonic epithelium, polyps or colorectal carcinomas. This restrictive distribution suggests that not all DCC gene products are important in colonic cancer.