Accelarated Orthodontic Treatment Using Microosteoperforations: A Comparative Study.

Background: Accelerated orthodontic treatment has gained popularity in recent years as patients seek shorter treatment durations. Microosteoperforations (MOPs) have emerged as a minimally invasive technique to expedite tooth movement. This study aims to compare the effectiveness of MOPs in accelerating orthodontic treatment with conventional methods. Materials and Methods: A randomized controlled trial was conducted on 60 orthodontic patients requiring dental alignment. The participants were divided into two groups: Group A (MOPs) and Group B (conventional orthodontic treatment). In Group A, MOPs were performed at the beginning of the treatment. Both groups received monthly orthodontic adjustments. Treatment duration, rate of tooth movement, and patient discomfort were measured and compared between the two groups. Results: The study found that in Group A, the treatment duration was reduced by 30% compared to Group B (P < 0.05). The rate of tooth movement in the MOPs group was 1.5 times higher than the conventional group (P < 0.01). Additionally, patient-reported discomfort levels were similar between the two groups. No adverse events related to MOPs were observed during the study. Conclusion: MOPs significantly accelerate orthodontic treatment, reducing treatment duration by 30% and increasing the rate of tooth movement by 1.5 times compared to conventional methods. Importantly, MOPs are well-tolerated by patients, making them a valuable option for expediting orthodontic treatment with minimal discomfort. This study highlights the potential benefits of integrating MOPs into orthodontic practice to improve treatment efficiency and patient satisfaction.

From a Binary to a Quaternary Cocrystal: An Unusual Supramolecular Synthon.

Formation of a stoichiometric quaternary cocrystal consisting of resorcinol (RES), tetramethylpyrazine (TMP), phenazine (PHE) and pyrene (PYR) is described. A closed tetrameric resorcinol-heterocycle synthon, unusual in that it has two different linker bases rather than just one, is observed in this four-component solid. The tetrameric synthon is formed by two RES molecules and the two pyridine bases TMP and PHE. The stoichiometric quaternary cocrystal grows in an epitaxial fashion on the surfaces of a RES.PHE binary cocrystal which is initially obtained from the mother liquor. By indexing the common crystal faces of the binary and quaternary cocrystals, and noting that no ternary solid is obtained, a plausible mechanism has been proposed for the formation of this rare supramolecular architecture.

Six-Component Molecular Solids: ABC[D1-(x+y)ExFy]2.

A strategy has been developed to achieve six-component molecular solids. The first part of the protocol involves the design and development of a family of stoichiometric quaternary cocrystals. It relies on the idea that when a molecule is in two distinct crystallographic environments in a lower-order cocrystal it becomes susceptible to substitution by a new molecule at the site where it is more weakly bound, if it is enthalpically advantageous to do so. Accordingly, a binary cocrystal acts as a stepping stone to a ternary, and so on. However, the subject system ran into a synthetic dead end at the level of quaternary cocrystals, in that no further crystallographic inequivalences could be found. This necessitated the development of the second part of the protocol, which exploits the shape-size similarities of 2-chloro-, 2-bromo-, and 2-methylresorcinols (CRES, BRES, and MRES respectively) and circumvents this synthetic dead end to achieve several five-and six-component solids, wherein the fifth and sixth components are incorporated in a solid solution fashion at the site of the fourth component.

Supramolecular Chirality Issues in Unorthodox Naphthalene Diimide Gelators.

Herein, the self-assembly of a few 1,3-dihydroxyl functionalized naphthalene diimide (NDI) derivatives has been reported with particular emphasis on the impact of chirality on gelation and the effect of self-assembly on charge-carrier mobility. A nonconventional gelator (R)-NDI, devoid of any long alkyl chains, exhibited spontaneous gelation in tetra-chloroethylene (TCE). Based on X-ray crystallography and powder X-ray diffraction studies, it was established that a ladder-like hydrogen-bonded chain formation between the 1,3-dihydroxyl group leads to the fibrillar structures with preferential helicity. Likewise the (S)-isomer also exhibited identical gelation and mesoscopic structure but produced fibrils with the opposite handedness. Intriguingly, an equimolar mixture of the (R)- and (S)-isomers did not show any gelation ability, rather a macroscopic precipitation was observed and, in sharp contrast to the individual isomers, the morphology of the mixture showed ill-defined near spherical agglomerates. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) studies revealed an identical crystallization peak for the supramolecular polymer produced from the enantiopure gelators ((R)- or (S)-isomer), which was absent in their equimolar mixture. However, mixtures of the two isomers with enantiomeric excess retrieved the gelation ability and preferential helicity demonstrating that chiral amplification is operative in the present system through the so-called "majority rule" effect. Chirality induction was also realized by the "sergeant and soldier" principle in the supramolecular assembly of an achiral NDI gelator in the presence of either the (R)- or (S)-isomer as the chiral dopant. However, the strong helical bias induced by the chiral gelator was found to be opposite in nature compared to that found in the self-assembly of the pure chiral gelator that has been rarely reported in the literature. Flash-photolysis time-resolved microwave conductivity (FP-TRMC) measurements indicated the strong positive impact of the gelation on the electrical conductivity.

Hand-Ground Nanoscale ZnII -Based Coordination Polymers Derived from NSAIDs: Cell Migration Inhibition of Human Breast Cancer Cells.

Increased levels of intracellular prostaglandin E2 (PGE2 ) have been linked with the unregulated cancer cell migration that often leads to metastasis. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are known inhibitors of cyclooxygenase (COX) enzymes, which are responsible for the increased PGE2 concentration in inflamed as well as cancer cells. Here, we demonstrate that NSAID-derived ZnII -based coordination polymers are able to inhibit cell migration of human breast cancer cells. Various NSAIDs were anchored to a series of 1D ZnII coordination polymers through carboxylate-Zn coordination, and these structures were fully characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Hand grinding in a pestle and mortar resulted in the first reported example of nanoscale coordination polymers that were suitable for biological studies. Two such hand-ground nanoscale coordination polymers NCP1 a and NCP2 a, which contained naproxen (a well-studied NSAID), were successfully internalized by the human breast cancer cells MDA-MB-231, as was evident from cellular imaging by using a fluorescence microscope. They were able to kill the cancer cells (MTT assay) more efficiently than the corresponding mother drug naproxen, and most importantly, they significantly inhibited cancer cell migration thereby displaying anticancer activity.

Multifunctional single-layered vesicles derived from Cu(ii)-metal-organic-polyhedra.

Cu(ii) metal-organic-polyhedra (MOP) derived from a tris-pyridyl ligand gave stable single-layered vesicles capable of encapsulating an anti-cancer drug (doxorubicin - DOX) and its pH responsive release. While encapsulation of DOX was further confirmed by MTT assay and cellular imaging, α-chymotrypsin inhibition assay corroborated well with the single crystal structures of the MOP. The MOP derived vesicles reported herein not only represent the rare examples of such hierarchical architectures derived from MOP but also provide the first example of multifunctional organic-inorganic synthetic bio-membranes.

Coordination Polymers Derived from Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs for Cell Imaging and Drug Delivery.

A new series of Mn(II) coordination polymers, namely, [{Mn(L)(H2 O)2 }⋅2 Nap]∞ (CP1), [{Mn(L)(Ibu)2 (H2 O)2 }]∞ (CP2), [{Mn(L)(Flr)2 (H2 O)2 }]∞ (CP3), [{Mn(L)(Ind)2 (H2 O)2 }⋅H2 O]∞ (CP4), [{Mn2 (L)2 (µ-Flu)4 (H2 O)}⋅L]∞ (CP5), [{Mn2 (L)2 (µ-Tol)4 (H2 O)2 }]∞ (CP6) and [{Mn2 (L)2 (µ-Mef)4 (H2 O)2 }]∞ (CP7) (Nap=naproxen, Ibu=ibuprofen, Flr=flurbiprofen, Ind=indometacin, Flu=flufenamic acid, Tol=tolfenamic acid and Mef=mefenamic acid) derived from various non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and the organic linker 1,2-bis(4-pyridyl)ethylene (L) have been synthesized with the aim of being used for cell imaging and drug delivery. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction (SXRD) studies revealed that the NSAID molecules were part of the coordination polymeric network either through coordination to the metal center (in the majority of the cases) or through hydrogen bonding. Remarkably, all the Mn(II) coordination polymers were found to be soluble in DMSO, thereby making them particularly suitable for the desired biological applications. Two of the coordination polymers (namely, CP1 and CP3) reported herein, were found to be photoluminescent both in the solid as well as in the solution state. Subsequent experiments (namely, MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide), and PGE2 (prostaglandin E2 ) assays) established their biocompatibility and anti-inflammatory response. In vitro studies by using a macrophage cell line (i.e., RAW 264.7) revealed that both CP1 and CP3 were excellent cell imaging agents. Finally, biodegradability studies under simulated physiological conditions in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) at pH 7.6 showed that slow and sustained release of the corresponding NSAID was indeed possible from both CP1 and CP3.

Metallogels derived from silver coordination polymers of C3-symmetric tris(pyridylamide) tripodal ligands: synthesis of Ag nanoparticles and catalysis.

By applying a recently developed crystal engineering rationale, four C3 symmetric tris(pyridylamide) ligands namely 1,3,5-tris(nicotinamidomethyl)-2,4,6-triethylbenzene, 1,3,5-tris(isonicotinamidomethyl)-2,4,6-triethylbenzene, 1,3,5-tris(nicotinamidomethyl)-2,4,6-trimethylbenzene, and 1,3,5-tris(isonicotinamidomethyl)-2,4,6-trimethylbenzene, which contain potential hydrogen-bonding sites, were designed and synthesized for generating Ag(I) coordination polymers and coordination-polymer-based gels. The coordination polymers thus obtained were characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The silver metallogels were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and dynamic rheology. Upon exposure to visible light, these silver metallogels produced silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), which were characterized by TEM, powder X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive X-ray and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. These NPs were found to be effectively catalyzed the reduction of 4-nitrophenolate to 4-aminophenolate without the use of any exogenous reducing agent.