Requirements for tele-health in children with obstetric brachial plexus palsy during Covid-19-like situations.

The purpose of the study was to investigate families' concerns and service requirements during the Covid-19 lockdown. In case of tele-consultation, we also aimed to assess the effects of this service on coping and the family's worries. At end of lockdown, we contacted the parents of 67 obstetric brachial plexus palsy patients (0-10 years age) by e-mail. During lockdown, 42 of the families had had a tele-consultation with our team, while 25 reported that not receiving any service. A questionnaire consisting of 6 questions was sent to the families, and data were analyzed according to 4 age-groups. Parents' concerns varied according to the children's age group (p = 0.001). All families replied that their children should receive remote services during Covid-19-like situations (p = 0.173). Parents of the 42 children who had tele-consultations reported that this had alleviated their worries, independently of age-group (p = 0.160). The usefulness of tele-consultation to manage the lockdown situation differed according to age-group (p = 0.002). The parents of under-3-year-olds experienced more worry during lockdown, but all respondents reported needing remote services. Although the tele-consultation alleviated the worries of almost all families, it was most useful in managing lockdown in families with under-3-year-olds.

Influence of age, gender, and educational background on tooth color.

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of age, gender, and educational background on the color coordinates of the maxillary central incisor. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The color of the maxillary central incisor teeth of 302 individuals was measured using a spectrophotometer. The L*, a*, and b* parameters were recorded. T-tests, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and the Scheffe's post-hoc tests were used to describe the relation of the L*, a*, and b* values between color with age, gender, and educational background. RESULTS: The results of this study showed that a significant difference among all three parameters of color and age was observed. There was a significant difference for the a* and b* parameters for gender, but no difference was found for the L* parameter. Finally, there was a significant difference in the L* and a* parameters, but no difference in the b* parameter in terms of educational background. CONCLUSIONS: As individuals age, their tooth color darkens. Women have lighter teeth than men. The tooth color of high school graduates was found to be lighter than that of the other groups.

SIRT6 expression and oxidative DNA damage in individuals with prediabetes and type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Sirtuins (SIRTs) is a family of NAD+ dependent histone deacetylases. SIRT6 takes play in glucose homeostasis, genomic stability and DNA repair. Although increased oxidative DNA damage and decreased DNA repair activity were determined in diabetes mellitus, the possible relation between level of oxidative DNA damage and SIRT6 expression has not been investigated so far. We determined SIRT6 expression and urinary 8-hydroxy deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) levels, marker of oxidative DNA damage, in cases with prediabetes (PreDM) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). SIRT6 gene expression was determined in peripheral blood leukocytes of 70 patients with type 2 diabetes, 50 cases in prediabetic stage and 40 healthy subjects. SIRT6 mRNA levels were determined by quantitive real time- polymerase chain reaction. SIRT6 protein was detected by immunocytochemical staining. Urinary 8-hydroxy deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) levels were measured by ELISA. There was no significant difference between groups for SIRT6 mRNA level. SIRT6 immunopositivity in T2DM group was lower when compared to those in preDM group (P<0.05). SIRT6 positive cell number in T2DM and preDM groups were lower in comparison to control group (P<0.01 for both), however, when study groups were subdivided into two groups according to their age, the difference between preDM and control groups disappeared in both mid-aged and old-aged groups. The urinary 8-OHdG level was found to be higher in the T2DM group in comparison to preDM group (P<0.05). When age is taken into consideration, urinary 8-OHdG level in the T2DM group was found to be higher than those in both preDM and control groups in the old-aged cases but no significant difference was determined between groups in the mid-aged cases. There was no relation between SIRT6 expression and urinary 8-OHDG excretion. It was concluded that SIRT6 may take play in development of T2DM but this effect seems to be independent from repair of oxidative DNA damage.

Effects of Lucilia sericata on wound healing in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats and analysis of its secretome at the proteome level.

The use of Lucilia sericata larvae on the healing of wounds in diabetics has been reported. However, the role of the excretion/secretion (ES) products of the larvae in treatment of diabetic wounds remains unknown. This study investigated whether application of the ES products of L. sericata on the wound surface could improve the impaired wound healing in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Additional analysis was performed to understand proteome content of L. sericata secretome to understand ES contribution at the molecular level. For this purpose, full-thickness skin wounds were created on the backs of diabetic and control rats. A study was conducted to assess the levels of the ES-induced collagen I/III expression and to assay nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) (p65) activity in wound biopsies and ES-treated wounds of diabetic rat skin in comparison to the controls. The expression levels of collagen I/III and NF-κB (p65) activity were determined at days 3, 7, and 14 after wounding using immunohistological analyses and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay technique. The results indicated that treatment with the ES extract increased collagen I expressions of the wound control and diabetic tissue. But the increase in collagen I expression in the controls was higher than the one in the diabetics. NF-κB (p65) activity was also increased in diabetic wounds compared to the controls, whereas it was decreased in third and seventh days upon ES treatment. The results indicated that ES products of L. sericata may enhance the process of wound healing by influencing phases such as inflammation, NF-κB (p65) activity, collagen synthesis, and wound contraction. These findings may provide new insights into understanding of therapeutic potential of ES in wound healing in diabetics.

Investigation of lipid peroxidation and antiapoptotic effects of zinc aganist liver damage in diabetic rats.

Several mechanisms for the pathogenesis of diabetic complications have been proposed, one of which is abnormal zinc (Zn) homeostasis. Zn is necessary for proper liver function since it has important antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antiapoptotic properties. We aimed to investigate whether or not Zn has morphologically protective effect on diabetes-induced liver damage in rats. In addition, we have investigated the role of Zn supplementation on apoptosis, lipid peroxidation levels, and the distribution of metallothionein (MT) in diabetic liver tissue. Wistar albino rats were divided into four groups: control, Zn, diabetic, and Zn-diabetic group. Experimental diabetes was induced by a single-dose streptozotocin intraperitoneally and Zn was administrated via gastric gavage tube for 6 weeks. MT expressions were showed with immunohistochemical staining and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling assay was used for apoptosis. Also, Zn, MT, and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were determined in liver of rats. MDA levels of the Zn-supplemented diabetic group was less than the diabetic group though MT levels were increased. The number of apoptotic cells per unit area was found to be significantly decreased in this group. In the Zn-supplemented diabetic group, fibrotic tissue density and the collagen tissue density were observed less than the diabetic group. MT immunoreactivity was observed less in Zn-supplemented diabetic group. In conculusion, the present study indicated that Zn has a potential in preventing or even repairing effect against diabetic damage of the liver cells by increasing expression of MT and by reducing the apoptotic cell death and the oxidative stress.

Bonding performance of two newly developed self-adhering materials between zirconium and dentin.

PURPOSE: This study evaluated the effect of four resin materials on the shear bond strength (SBS) of a ceramic core material to dentin. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty molar teeth were embedded in a self-curing acrylic resin. All specimens were randomly divided into four groups of teeth, each according to the resin cement used. Sixty cylinders were then luted with one of the four resin materials to dentin (GC EQUIA, Panavia F, Variolink II and Vertise). Then, specimens were stored in distilled water at 37 o C for one day. Shear bond strength of each specimen was measured using a universal testing machine at a crosshead speed of 0.5 mm/minute. The bond strength values were calculated in N, and the results were statistically analyzed using a Kruskal-Wallis and Bonferroni corrected Mann-Whitney U tests. RESULTS: The shear bond strength varied significantly depending on the resin materials used ( P < 0.05). The specimens luted with GC EQUIA showed the highest shear bond strength (25.19 ± 6.12), whereas, the specimens luted with Vertise flow (8.1 ± 2.75) and Panavia F (11.17 ± 3.89) showed the lowest. CONCLUSION: GC EQUIA material showed a higher shear bond strength value than other resin materials.

The effects of 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide riboside on the pancreas in neonatal streptozotocin-diabetic rats.

In this study, we aimed to determine the alterations of beta-cell ultrastructure, insulin mRNA and protein products of the same gene on the pancreas of rats following long-term treatment of 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide riboside (AICAR). A single dose of streptozotocin (STZ) 100 mg/kg was injected intraperitoneally (i.p.) to 2-day-old newborn (n2) rats. The rats were divided into three groups. The first group was the n2 STZ-diabetic rats. The second group consisted of n2 STZ-diabetic rats treated with AICAR 10 mg/kg/day for one month. The third group was non-diabetic control rats. Our findings demonstrate that AICAR treatment decreases the blood glucose level but increases the body weight in n2 STZ-diabetic rats. In the AICAR-treated group, numerous beta cells showed increased insulin gene expression. We also observed increased exocytosis in this group, in an ultrastructural manner. As a result, it is suggested that AICAR may induce insulin synthesis and betacell regeneration in n2 STZ-diabetic rats.

The effect of long-term use of progesterone therapy on proliferation and apoptosis in simple endometrial hyperplasia without atypia.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of long-term use of progesterone treatment on proliferation and apoptosis in simple endometrial hyperplasia without atypia. In this prospective control study, endometrial tissue samples of 19 patients with simple endometrial hyperplasia without atypia (group 1), posttreatment biopsy materials of the patients after 3 months of cyclic progesterone treatment with noretisterone for 10 days (group 2), and 18 endometrial biopsy materials of the control group (group 3) were examined for proliferative and apoptotic activities. There was a statistically significant difference between the median values of the proliferative index of the three groups (P = 0.000). The proliferative index was significantly higher in the endometrial hyperplasia group than in posttreatment group (P = 0.000). But there was no significant difference between posttreatment group and control group. The median value of apoptotic activity was significantly different between three groups (P = 0.000). Apoptotic index was highest in hyperplasia group. A significant decrease in apoptosis was observed after the progesterone treatment (P = 0.002). The lowest apoptotic activity was detected in the control group. In conclusion, 3 months of cyclic progesterone treatment reduces both proliferative and apoptotic activities in endometrial tissue with simple hyperplasia.

Effect of 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide riboside (AICA-r) on isolated thoracic aorta responses in streptozotocin-diabetic rats.

Diabetes mellitus alters the vascular responsiveness to several vasoconstrictors and vasodilators. 5-amino-4-imidazole-carboxamide riboside (AICA-r), a nucleoside corresponding to AICA-ribotide and an intermediate of the de novo pathway of purine biosynthesis, was recently proposed as a new insulinotropic tool in non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. The aim of the present study was to define whether AICA-r affects altered vascular responsiveness to vasoconstrictors and vasodilators in the thoracic aorta of neonatal streptozotocin (STZ)-diabetic rats. The results of this study indicate that a 1-month treatment with AICA-r significantly increases the body weight in diabetic rats; significantly decreases the blood glucose level of diabetic rats (from 302+/-47 to 135+/-11 mg/dL, p<0.001); does not significantly affect the fast, slow, and total components of responses to noradrenaline in all the experimental groups; reverses the increased Emax values of noradrenaline in diabetic rats to near-control values; reverses the completely abolished responses of acetylcholine (pD2 and percent relaxation) in diabetic rats to control values; and reverses the decreased pD2 values of sodium nitroprussiate in diabetic rats to control values. In conclusion, AICA-r treatment in neonatal STZ-diabetic rats improved increased blood glucose levels, accelerated weight gain, reversed endothelial dysfunction, and normalized vascular responses.