RECIPROCAL CLICKING LOCATION ANALYSIS IN THE INTRAARTICULAR TEMPOROMANDIBULAR DISORDERS AFTER AXIOGRAPHY INVESTIGATION.

OBJECTIVE: The aim: To investigate the peculiarities of hinge axis trajectories in patients with condyle-disc complex intraarticular Temporomandibular Disorders (TMD) and determine the average coordinates of the reciprocal clicking location by axiography. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Materials and methods: The results of axiographic examination of 151 patients (108 females and 43 males) with TMD confirmed by MRI were analyzed. This population included 44 persons with disc displacement with reduction (DDR), 45 persons with disc displacement with reduction and intermittent locking (DDRI), 62 persons with disc displacement without reduction (DDWR). Axiographic examination was carried out using CADIAX diagnostic device. Analysis of hinge axis movements was performed and the coordinates of articular disc reduction were determined. RESULTS: Results: The quality of hinge axis trajectories in persons with DDR, DDRI was defined mainly as average and in patients with DDWR as poor. Quantitative indicators of trajectories during protrusion-retrusion movements were not beyond the average level. The length of the mouth opening-closing trajectory in patients with DDRI and DDWR has shown a tendency to decrease. We found that on average the reciprocal closing clicking (disc reduction) occurs at a distance of 0-1.4 mm on the X-axis, 0.1-2.9 mm on the Z-axis, and 0-0.85 mm on the Y-axis. CONCLUSION: Conclusions: The obtained wide range of reciprocal clicking location parameters indicates the priority of a personalized approach when planning preliminary treatment in order to restore the disc-condylar complex of TMJ.

Sex differences in the phylum-level human gut microbiota composition.

BACKGROUND: Evidence was previously provided for sex-related differences in the human gut microbiota composition, and sex-specific discrepancy in hormonal profiles was proposed as a main determinant of these differences. On the basis of these findings, the assumption was made on the role of microbiota in the sexual dimorphism of human diseases. To date, sex differences in fecal microbiota were demonstrated primarily at lower taxonomic levels, whereas phylum-level differences between sexes were reported in few studies only. In the present population-based cross-sectional research, sex differences in the phylum-level human gut microbiota composition were identified in a large (total n = 2301) sample of relatively healthy individuals from Ukraine. RESULTS: Relative abundances of Firmicutes and Actinobacteria, as determined by qRT-PCR, were found to be significantly increased, while that of Bacteroidetes was significantly decreased in females compared to males. The Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes (F/B) ratio was significantly increased in females compared to males. Females had 31 % higher odds of having F/B ratio more than 1 than males. This trend was evident in all age groups. The difference between sexes was even more pronounced in the elder individuals (50+): in this age group, female participants had 56 % higher odds of having F/B ratio > 1 than the male ones. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, sex-specific differences in the phylum-level intestinal microbiota composition were observed in the Ukraine population. The F/B ratio was significantly increased in females compared to males. Further investigation is needed to draw strong conclusions regarding the mechanistic basis for sex-specific differences in the gut microbiota composition and regarding the role of these differences in the initiation and progression of human chronic diseases.

Differences in the gut Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes ratio across age groups in healthy Ukrainian population.

BACKGROUND: Gut microbiota plays an important role in physiological and pathological processes of the host organism, including aging. Microbiota composition was shown to vary significantly throughout the life course. Age-related changes in the composition of microbiota were reported in several human studies. In present study, age-related dynamics of phylogenetic profile of gut microbiota was investigated in 1550 healthy participants from Ukrainian population. RESULTS: Significant changes in the microbiota composition determined by qRT-PCR at the level of major microbial phyla across age groups have been observed. The relative abundance of Actinobacteria and Firmicutes phyla increased, while that of Bacteroidetes decreased from childhood to elderly age. Accordingly, the Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes (F/B) ratio was shown to significantly increase until elder age. In both sexes, odds to have F/B > 1 tended to increase with age, reaching maximum values in elder age groups [OR = 2.7 (95% CI, 1.2-6.0) and OR = 3.7 (95% CI, 1.4-9.6) for female and male 60-69-year age groups, respectively, compared to same-sex reference (0-9-year) age groups]. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, data from our study indicate that composition of the human intestinal microbiota at the level of major microbial phyla significantly differs across age groups. In both sexes, the F/B ratio tends to increase with age from 0-9-year to 60-69-year age groups. Further studies are needed for a better understanding of mechanisms underlying age-related dynamics of human microbiota composition.

Seasonal variation in gut microbiota composition: cross-sectional evidence from Ukrainian population.

BACKGROUND: Gut microbiota composition is known to depend on environmental (diet, day length, infections, xenobiotic exposure) and lifestyle (alcohol/drug intake, physical activity) factors. All these factors fluctuate seasonally, especially in areas with highly variable climatic conditions between seasons. Seasonal microbiota changes were reported in several previous studies. The purpose of our study was to investigate whether there is a seasonal variability in the gut microbiota composition in Ukrainian population. In contrast to previous studies performed on small-size samples using a longitudinal design, we used cross-sectional design with a large sample size (n = 769). Determination of microbial composition at the level of major microbial phyla was performed by qRT-PCR. RESULTS: The relative abundance of major taxonomic groups of gut microbiota was found to be affected by month of sampling. Actinobacteria were more abundant and Bacteroidetes were less abundant in summer-derived samples compared to those obtained during other seasons, whereas Firmicutes content was seasonally independent. The Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes (F/B) ratio was significantly higher in summer-derived samples than in winter-derived ones. Odds to have F/B > 1 were 3.3 times higher in summer samples and 1.9 times higher in autumn samples than in winter ones; neither age, nor sex were significant confounding factors. CONCLUSIONS: Seasonality of sampling could influence results of human microbiome research, thereby potentially biasing estimates. This factor must be taken into consideration in further microbiome research.

Additional Impact of Glucose Tolerance on Telomere Length in Persons With and Without Metabolic Syndrome in the Elderly Ukraine Population.

Rationale: Association between different components of metabolic syndrome and the rate of age-related telomere shortening was reported repeatedly, although some findings are inconsistent across studies, suggesting the need for further research on the topic. In the present study, we examined relationships between different components of metabolic syndrome (MetS); glucose tolerance reflected in 2-h post-load plasma glucose (2hPG) levels and age on the leukocyte telomere length (LTL) in Ukraine population. Methods: The study was conducted on the 115 adult individuals residing in the Kyiv region (Ukraine). Among them, 79 were diagnosed with MetS according to the International Diabetes Federation definition. LTL were determined by a qPCR-based method. Multivariate logistic regression (MLR) and artificial neural networks (ANN) modeling were used for the analysis of the results. ROC-analysis was also performed to compare the predictively values of this models. Results: MetS was associated with a high (OR = 3.0 CI 1.3-6.7; p = 0.01) risk of having shorter telomeres that remained significant after adjusting for age, gender and 2hPG levels. Fasting plasma glucose (FPG) levels and other MetS components did not affect the magnitude of the relationship and did not reveal the independent influence of these factors. The level of 2hPG in turn, demonstrated a significant relationship (OR = 1.3 CI 1.0-1.6 per 1 mmol/l; p = 0.04) with LTL regardless of the presence of MetS. The non-linearity of the interactions between age, gender and 2hPG level was revealed by neural network modeling (AUC = 0.76 CI 0.68-0.84). Conclusion: Our study found that impaired glucose tolerance, but not FPG levels, affected the association between LTL and MetS, which may be also indicative for pathophysiological differences in these hyperglycemia categories. 2hPG levels can provide an opportunity for a more accurate diagnostics of MetS and for evaluating the rate of aging in patients with MetS. Further research, however, is needed to verify this assumption.

Hyperglycemia attenuates the association between telomere length and age in Ukrainian population.

Diabetes-related conditions such as chronic hyperglycemia and related oxidative stress and inflammation were repeatedly associated with accelerated telomere shortening in epidemiological studies, although some findings are inconsistent. In present study, we aimed to assess the impact of disturbances in glucose metabolism on association between age and leukocyte telomere length (LTL) in the Ukrainian population. The study was conducted on the 119 adult subjects aged between 43 and 87 years residing in the Kyiv region, Ukraine. LTL was determined by a quantitative PCR-based method. LTL was negatively correlated with the measure of abdominal obesity such as waist-hip ratio, as well as with both fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and two-hour post-load glucose (2hPG) levels. Consistently with previous studies, a significant negative association between LTL and age was observed in individuals with normal (<5.6 mmol/L) FPG levels. Unexpectedly, however, no association was found in subjects with impaired glucose metabolism assessed by abnormal FPG or/and 2hPG levels. No association between LTL and age was observed in a logistic regression model; the association between LTL and age became significant after adjusting for FPG level. In the FPG-adjusted model, 1.6-time lower odds to have long telomere length were indicated for each 10 years increase in age. We hypothesize that the attenuation of association between LTL and age in hyperglycemic persons can likely be attributed to the interaction of multidirectional processes determining this relationship.