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Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a multifactorial and progressive neurodegenerative disease of unknown etiology. Due to ALS's unpredictable onset and progression rate, the search for biomarkers that allow the detection and tracking of its development and therapeutic efficacy would be of significant medical value. Considering that alterations of energy supply are one of ALS's main hallmarks and that a correlation has been established between gene expression in human brain tissue and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), the present work investigates whether changes in mitochondrial function could be used to monitor ALS. To achieve this goal, PBMCs from ALS patients and control subjects were used; blood sampling is a quite non-invasive method and is cost-effective. Different parameters were evaluated, namely cytosolic calcium levels, mitochondrial membrane potential, oxidative stress, and metabolic compounds levels, as well as mitochondrial dynamics and degradation. Altogether, we observed lower mitochondrial calcium uptake/retention, mitochondria depolarization, and redox homeostasis deregulation, in addition to a decrease in critical metabolic genes, a diminishment in mitochondrial biogenesis, and an augmentation in mitochondrial fission and autophagy-related gene expression. All of these changes can contribute to the decreased ATP and pyruvate levels observed in ALS PBMCs. Our data indicate that PBMCs from ALS patients show a significant mitochondrial dysfunction, resembling several findings from ALS' neural cells/models, which could be exploited as a powerful tool in ALS research. Our findings can also guide future studies on new pharmacological interventions for ALS since assessments of brain samples are challenging and represent a relevant limited strategy. Graphical abstract.

The aim of this study was to evaluate thickening of the Schneiderian membrane and to determine its association with periapical pathologies, using computerized cone beam tomography. An observational, analytical, cross-sectional retrospective study was conducted. A total 179 maxillary sinuses were evaluated using CBCT. The presence of sinus membrane thickening and its association with unhealthy teeth was analyzed. Results are shown as percentages with 95% confidence intervals (95%CI); Chi square test was used with a significance level of 5%.Sinus membrane thickening was detected in 70 cases (39%; 95%CI=32% to 46%) and no sinus membrane thickening was observed in 109 (61%; 95%CI = 54% to 68%) (p<0.05). The 70 cases showing sinus membrane thickening included 46 of odontogenic origin (66%; 95%CI = 54% to 76%) and 24 (34%; 95%CI = 24% to 46%) of non odontogenic origin (p<0.05). The frequency of odontogenic causes followed a heterogeneous distribution (p<0.05): penetrating caries, failing endodontic therapy, root remnants, deep restorations, implants, periodontal pathology. The main cause was caries (46%; 95%CI=32% to 60%) followed by failing endodontic therapy (26%, 95% CI=16% to 40%). The frequency distribution of involved teeth was uneven (p<0.05), with tooth 16 (33%; 95%CI=21% to 47%) being the most frequently involved, followed by tooth 26 (30%; 95%CI=19% to 45%).The high incidence of sinus pathology of odontogenic origin shows the need for interdisciplinary work involving dentists and ear-nose-throat specialists. Caries, inadequate restorations, periodontal lesions, implants, and the presence of root remnants are the main causes of Schneiderian membrane thickening. The use of CBCT for diagnosis and treatment planning allows detecting maxillary sinus membrane thickening and determining its association with an odontogenic etiology., (Sociedad Argentina de Investigación Odontológica.)