Effect of Hypoxia on the Signal Transduction of Apoptosis in Osteoblasts / 대한치과교정학회지

Mammalian cell is critically dependent on a continuous supply of oxygen. Even brief periods of oxygen deprivation can result in profound cellular damage. The aim of this study was to examine the possible mechanism of apoptosis in response to hypoxia in MC3T3E1 osteoblasts. MC3T3E1 osteoblasts under hypoxic conditions (2% oxygen) resulted in apoptosis in a time-dependent manner, determined by DNA fragmentation assay and nuclear morphology, stained with fluorescent dye (Hoechst 33258) Pretreatment with Z-VAD-FMK, a pan-caspase inhibitor, or Z-DEVD-CHO, a specific caspase-3 inhibitor, suppressed the DNA ladder in response to hypoxia in a concentration-dependent manner. An increase in caspase-3-like protease (DEVDase) activity was observed during apoptosis, but no caspase-1 activity (YVADase) was detected. To confirm what caspases were involved in apoptosis, western blot analysis was performed using an anti-caspase-3 or 6 antibody. The 17-kDa protein, that corresponds to the active products of caspase-3 and the 20-kDa protein of the active protein of caspase-6 were generated in hypoxia-challenged lysates, in which the full length forms of caspase-3 and 6 were evident. With a time course similar to caspase-3 and 6 activation, hypoxic stress also caused the cleavage of Lamin A, typical of caspase-6 activity. In addition, the hypoxic stress elicited the release of cytochrome c into the cytosol during apoptosis. These findings suggested that the activation of caspases accompanied by a cytochrome c release in response to hypoxia was involved in apoptotic cell death in MC3T3E1 osteoblasts.

A study on the release of nickel and chromium from simulated orthodontic appliances / 대한치과교정학회지

Nickel and chromium are two major metals used in the alloys of most orthodontic appliances. But these metals are known to cause hypersensitivity, dermatitis, and asthma. In addition, a significant carcinogenic and mutagenic potential has been demonstrated for compounds containing these metals. The purpose of this study was to find out how much nickel and chromium was released from orthodontic appliances, and which factors would influence the release. The simulated orthodontic appliances were constructed for a half of a mandibular arch and incubated in 0.05% NaCl solution at 37degrees C. Nickel and chromium release was quantified with an Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) spectroanalyzer. The results were as follows : 1. From simulated orthodontic appliances, nickel was released 9.83-70.0microgram/day but the release of chromium was not detectable in limit of 10ppb. 2. The amount of nickel release was significantly different between the types of appliances. 3. The galvanic condition increased the amount of nickel release, which was not statistically significant. 4. The sand blasting increased the amount of nickel release, which was also not statistically significant.