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Purpose: To evaluate with microCT dentin and enamel abrasion depth caused by toothpaste tablets when compared to conventional toothpastes., Methods: Dentin (N= 64) and enamel blocks (N=64) were randomized into four experimental groups of 16 specimens each for dentin and enamel. CP: Colgate Cavity Protection, served as the low abrasive toothpaste; AW: Colgate Total Advanced Whitening was used to represent a highly abrasive toothpaste. Two different types of toothpaste tablets were used. DT: Denttabs and BT: Bite tabs. To prepare the slurries, 40 mL of water was added to 25 g of each toothpaste and 4.4 g of each toothpaste tab. Blocks were brushed for a total of 10,000 and 40,000 strokes for dentin and enamel, respectively following ISO standard 11609. On completion of brushing, specimens were scanned with a microCT system. Tomographic 3D reconstruction followed by abrasion depths measurements were performed. Kruskal-Wallis procedure tested abrasion depths among the different groups. Tests of hypotheses were two-sided with an alpha level at 0.05., Results: There was a statistically significant difference in dentin abrasion depth among the groups (P< 0.001). The mean dentin/enamel abrasion depths in microns were 25.3/4.4, 36.8/4.4, 66.8/3.0, and 230.3/15.5 for DT, BT, CP, and AW respectively. Dentin and enamel abrasion depth of AW was the highest and was different from all other groups after multiple comparisons (P< 0.05)., Clinical Significance: Dentin abrasivity of toothpaste tabs is negligible as determined with microCT., Competing Interests: The authors declared no conflict of interest., (Copyright©American Journal of Dentistry.)

Background: Calcific aortic valve disease is characterized by an abnormal mineralization of the aortic valve. Osteogenic activity in the aortic valve is under the control of NOTCH1, which regulates the expression of key pro-osteogenic genes such as RUNX2 and BMP2. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) may reprogram cells by altering the gene expression pattern., Methods: Multidimensional genomic profiling was performed in human aortic valves to document the expression of lncRNAs and the DNA methylation pattern in calcific aortic valve disease. In-depth functional assays were carried out to document the impact of lncRNA on the mineralization of the aortic valve., Results: We documented that lncRNA H19 (H19) was increased in calcific aortic valve disease. Hypomethylation of the promoter region was observed in mineralized aortic valves and was inversely associated with H19 expression. Knockdown and overexpression experiments showed that H19 induces a strong osteogenic phenotype by altering the NOTCH1 pathway. Gene promoter analyses showed that H19 silenced NOTCH1 by preventing the recruitment of p53 to its promoter. A knockdown of H19 in valve interstitial cells (VICs) increased the expression of NOTCH1 and decreased the level of RUNX2 and BMP2, 2 downstream targets repressed by NOTCH1. In rescue experiments, the transfection of a vector encoding for the active Notch intracellular domain prevented H19-induced mineralization of valve interstitial cells., Conclusions: These findings indicate that a dysregulation of DNA methylation in the promoter of H19 during calcific aortic valve disease is associated with a higher expression of this lncRNA, which promotes an osteogenic program by interfering with the expression of NOTCH1., (© 2016 American Heart Association, Inc.)

Mediterranean pine forests display high resilience after extreme climatic events such as severe droughts. However, recent dry spells causing growth decline and triggering forest dieback challenge the capacity of some forests to recover following major disturbances. To describe how resilient the responses of forests to drought can be, we quantified growth dynamics in plantations of two pine species (Scots pine, black pine) located in south-eastern Spain and showing drought-triggered dieback. Radial growth was characterized at inter- (tree-ring width) and intra-annual (xylogenesis) scales in three defoliation levels. It was assumed that the higher defoliation the more negative the impact of drought on tree growth. Tree-ring width chronologies were built and xylogenesis was characterized 3 years after the last severe drought occurred. Annual growth data and the number of tracheids produced in different stages of xylem formation were related to climate data at several time scales. Drought negatively impacted growth of the most defoliated trees in both pine species. In Scots pine, xylem formation started earlier in the non-defoliated than in the most defoliated trees. Defoliated trees presented the shortest duration of the radial-enlargement phase in both species. On average the most defoliated trees formed 60% of the number of mature tracheids formed by the non-defoliated trees in both species. Since radial enlargement is the xylogenesis phase most tightly related to final growth, this explains why the most defoliated trees grew the least due to their altered xylogenesis phases. Our findings indicate a very limited resilience capacity of drought-defoliated Scots and black pines. Moreover, droughts produce legacy effects on xylogenesis of highly defoliated trees which could not recover previous growth rates and are thus more prone to die.

Rituximab is a B-cell depleting monoclonal antibody targeting CD20. Data concerning the behavior of psoriatic disease following rituximab therapy are extremely limited. In this report, the clinical course of a patient with established psoriasis who received rituximab therapy for vasculitis associated with mixed cryoglobulinemia (MC) type II is described. In addition to marked improvement in MC manifestations, modest improvement in psoriatic lesions also was observed following therapy. The literature concerning B-cell depletion in the setting of psoriatic disease is briefly reviewed.

The association of inflammatory myopathies with malignancy and interstitial lung disease has been well accepted. Polymyositis can be associated with interstitial lung disease or malignancy, although it is rare for all three entities to occur simultaneously at the initial presentation. We report a patient who was found to have concurrent polymyositis, interstitial lung disease, with anti-Jo-1 antibody, and renal cell carcinoma.

Background: Photodynamic therapy (PDT) involves the activation of a photosensitizing agent by light to produce oxygen intermediates that destroy target tissues. Topical 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) is converted to protoporphyrin IX, a very potent photosensitizer, which accumulates in human skin, particularly in the epidermis and its appendages., Objective: To study the effect of PDT in acne vulgaris using topical ALA and intense pulsed light (IPL)., Methods: Thirteen individuals with varying degrees of acne were treated after a 3-week washout period. Twenty percent ALA hydrochloride (DUSA Pharmaceuticals, Wilmington, MA, USA) was applied to half of the face, and after 3 hours, the whole face was exposed to intense pulsed light (Quantum SR, Lumenis, Santa Clara, CA, USA) using a 560 nm cutoff filter starting at a fluence of 26 J/cm. The procedure was done twice at 2-week intervals, and the patients were clinically evaluated on the second, fourth, and eighth weeks., Results: All patients had no apparent improvement on the second week on both facial halves. In fact, some of the patients developed acute acneiform eruptions on the side treated with ALA. By the fourth week, however, most of the patients had visible improvement of facial acne that was more significant on the ALA-treated side of the face. This persisted until the eighth week post-treatment. On the other hand, the facial half treated with intense pulsed light only showed a return to baseline of their facial acne., Conclusion: ALA-IPL are beneficial in the management of acne vulgaris and may be used in combination with other forms of acne treatment or may be an alternative treatment for patients who do not want to take systemic retinoids.

Reaction of the hexahydride complex OsH(6)(P(i)Pr(3))(2) (1) with pyridine-2-thiol leads to the trihydride derivative OsH(3){kappa-N,kappa-S-(2-Spy)}(P(i)Pr(3))(2) (2). The structure of 2 has been determined by X-ray diffraction. The geometry around the osmium atom can be described as a distorted pentagonal bipyramid with the phosphine ligands occupying axial positions. The equatorial plane contains the pyridine-2-thiolato group, attached through a bite angle of 65.7(1) degrees, and the three hydride ligands. The theoretical structure determination of the model complex OsH(3){kappa-N,kappa-S-(2-Spy)}(PH(3))(2) (2a) reveals that the hydride ligands form a triangle with sides of 1.623, 1.714, and 2.873 Å, respectively. A topological analysis of the electron density of 2a indicates that there is no significant electron density connecting the hydrogen atoms of the OsH(3) unit. In solution, the hydride ligands of 2 undergo two different thermally activated site exchange processes, which involve the central hydride with each hydride ligand situated close to the donor atoms of the chelate group. The activation barriers of both processes are similar. Theoretical calculations suggest that the transition states have a cis-hydride-dihydrogen nature. In addition to the thermally activated exchange processes, complex 2 shows quantum exchange coupling between the central hydride and the one situated close to the sulfur atom of the pyridine-2-thiolato group. The reactions of 1 with L-valine and 2-hydroxypyridine afford OsH(3){kappa-N,kappa-O-OC(O)CH[CH(CH(3))(2)]NH(2)}(P(i)Pr(3))(2) (3) and OsH(3){kappa-N,kappa-O-(2-Opy)}(P(i)Pr(3))(2) (4) respectively, which according to their spectroscopic data have a similar structure to that of 2. In solution, the hydride ligands of 3 and 4 also undergo two different thermally activated site exchange processes. However, they do not show quantum exchange coupling. The tetranuclear complexes [(P(i)Pr(3))(2)H(3)Os(&mgr;-biim)M(TFB)](2) [M = Rh (5), Ir (6); H(2)biim = 2, 2'-biimidazole; TFB = tetrafluorobenzobarrelene] have been prepared by reaction of OsH(3)(Hbiim)(P(i)Pr(3))(2) with the dimers [M(&mgr;-OMe)(TFB)](2) (M = Rh, Ir). In solution the hydride ligands of these complexes, which form two chemically equivalent unsymmetrical OsH(3) units, undergo two thermally activated site exchanges and show two different quantum exchange coupling processes.

A theoretical study including full geometry optimizations is carried out at the IMOMM(MP2:MM3) (IMOMM = integrated molecular orbital molecular mechanics) computational level on the [ReH(5)(PPh(i)()Pr(2))(2)(SiHPh(2))(2)] and [ReH(5)(PCyp(3))(2)(SiH(2)Ph)(2)] systems, the results being compared with available experimental diffraction data, as well as with MP2 results on the model system [ReH(5)(PH(3))(2)(SiH(3))(2)]. A simple scheme for the analysis of the relative weight of different contributions to the "steric" distortion is also proposed and applied to the same [ReH(5)(PPh(i)()Pr(2))(2)(SiHPh(2))(2)] and [ReH(5)(PCyp(3))(2)(SiH(2)Ph)(2)] species.