High-Density Geometric Morphometric Analysis of Intraspecific Cranial Integration in the Barred Grass Snake (Natrix helvetica) and Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis).

How do phenotypic associations intrinsic to an organism, such as developmental and mechanical processes, direct morphological evolution? Comparisons of intraspecific and clade-wide patterns of phenotypic covariation could inform how population-level trends ultimately dictate macroevolutionary changes. However, most studies have focused on analyzing integration and modularity either at macroevolutionary or intraspecific levels, without a shared analytical framework unifying these temporal scales. In this study, we investigate the intraspecific patterns of cranial integration in two squamate species: Natrix helvetica and Anolis carolinensis. We analyze their cranial integration patterns using the same high-density three-dimensional geometric morphometric approach used in a prior squamate-wide evolutionary study. Our results indicate that Natrix and Anolis exhibit shared intraspecific cranial integration patterns, with some differences, including a more integrated rostrum in the latter. Notably, these differences in intraspecific patterns correspond to their respective interspecific patterns in snakes and lizards, with few exceptions. These results suggest that interspecific patterns of cranial integration reflect intraspecific patterns. Hence, our study suggests that the phenotypic associations that direct morphological variation within species extend across micro- and macroevolutionary levels, bridging these two scales.

Ospemifene plus fractional CO2 laser: a powerful strategy to treat postmenopausal vulvar pain.

This study is a single-center, retrospective analysis of postmenopausal women presenting with dyspareunia and vulvar pain, aiming to evaluate relative effectiveness of vestibular CO2 laser therapy as a treatment. Three monthly sessions of laser were performed to each patient and thereafter a three-months follow-up was stablished. A total number of 72 patients undergoing vestibular laser treatment were recruited from patient files in the period between 2016 and 2018. Among these, 39 women also received a concomitant treatment with ospemifene (60 mg/day) during the study period. There was a statistically significant reduction of all the symptoms in both groups up to the three month follow-up. Regarding dryness and dyspareunia, the relief tent to be more prominent in the ospemifene + laser group at all follow-ups and remained statistically significant at three-month follow-up. Specifically, vestibular dryness was significantly lower in the ospemifene + laser group compared with the laser treatment group (-87% vs - 34%, respectively), and the vestibular health score started declining faster in the ospemifene + laser group. Although, additional research is needed to understand the mechanism of action, our data shows that a combination regimen of laser and ospemifene may improve clinical effectiveness for long-term treatment of symptoms associated with the under-recognized genitourinary syndrome of menopause.

A Practical Guide to Sliding and Surface Semilandmarks in Morphometric Analyses.

Advances in imaging technologies, such as computed tomography (CT) and surface scanning, have facilitated the rapid generation of large datasets of high-resolution three-dimensional (3D) specimen reconstructions in recent years. The wealth of phenotypic information available from these datasets has the potential to inform our understanding of morphological variation and evolution. However, the ever-increasing ease of compiling 3D datasets has created an urgent need for sophisticated methods of capturing high-density shape data that reflect the biological complexity in form. Landmarks often do not take full advantage of the rich shape information available from high-resolution 3D specimen reconstructions, as they are typically restricted to sutures or processes that can be reliably identified across specimens and exclude most of the surface morphology. The development of sliding and surface semilandmark techniques has greatly enhanced the quantification of shape, but their application to diverse datasets can be challenging, especially when dealing with the variable absence of some regions within a structure. Using comprehensive 3D datasets of crania that span the entire clades of birds, squamates and caecilians, we demonstrate methods for capturing morphology across incredibly diverse shapes. We detail many of the difficulties associated with applying semilandmarks to comparable regions across highly disparate structures, and provide solutions to some of these challenges, while considering the consequences of decisions one makes in applying these approaches. Finally, we analyze the benefits of high-density sliding semilandmark approaches over landmark-only studies for capturing shape across diverse organisms and discuss the promise of these approaches for the study of organismal form.

Um guia prático para demarcação de semi pontos de referência de superfície e de deslizamento em análises morfométricas Os avanços nas tecnologias de imagem, como a tomografia computadorizada (CT) e a varredura de superfície, facilitaram a rápida geração de grandes conjuntos de dados de reconstruções de espécimes 3D de alta resolução nos últimos anos. A riqueza de informações fenotípicas disponíveis nesses conjuntos de dados tem o potencial de informar nossa compreensão da variação e evolução morfológica. No entanto, a facilidade cada vez maior de compilar conjuntos de dados 3D criou uma necessidade urgente de métodos sofisticados para a captura de dados de alta densidade que reflitam a complexidade biológica na forma. Os pontos de referência morfológicos geralmente não capturam o máximo das informações sobre a morfologia disponíveis nas reconstruções de espécimes 3D em alta resolução, pois normalmente são restritas a suturas ou processos que podem ser identificados de forma confiável em diferentes espécimes, excluindo a maior parte da morfologia de superfície. O desenvolvimento de técnicas de deslizamento e de semi pontos de referência de superfíce melhorou muito a quantificação da forma, mas sua aplicação a diversos conjuntos de dados pode ser um desafio, especialmente quando algumas regiões dentro de uma estrutura são ausentes. Usando conjuntos de dados tridimensionais abrangentes do crânio, abrangendo todos os clados de pássaros, lagartos Squamata e cecílias, nós demonstramos métodos para captura da morfologia em formas incrivelmente diversas. Nós detalhamos muitas das dificuldades associadas à aplicação de semi pontos de referência em regiões comparáveis de estruturas altamente díspares, e fornecemos soluções para alguns desses desafios, enquanto consideramos as consequências das decisões tomadas na aplicação dessas abordagens. Finalmente, analisamos os benefícios das abordagens de deslizamento do semi pontos de referência em alta densidade para capturar a forma em diversos organismos e discutir a promessa dessas abordagens para o estudo da forma do organismo. Translated to Portuguese by Diego Vaz (dbistonvaz@vims.edu).

Effects of critical thermal cycling on the flexural strength of resin composites.

We compared flexural strength (FS) in four resin composites before and after three protocols for thermal cycling aging. Four resin composites were evaluated: Enamel Plus Hri, Gradia Direct Posterior, Grandioso, and Grandioso Flow. Sixty specimens (2 × 2 × 25 mm) were fabricated using a split metallic mold and light-cured for 30 s. The specimens were then randomly divided into four groups and tested using one of the following thermal cycling procedures: (1) storage in deionized water for 24 h (control group), (2) 15,000 cycles, 3) 30,000 cycles, and 4) 45,000 cycles. Each thermal cycling procedure was conducted between 5 °C and 55 °C, with a dwell time of 30 s. All specimens were subjected to a three-point bending test, to determine FS (0.5 mm/min). "Material" and "thermal aging" were significantly associated with FS (P < 0.001). A statistically significant interaction between the two factors was also detected (P < 0.001). In the non-aged groups, nanohybrid composites had the highest FS. FS significantly decreased after thermal cycling protocols in all composites tested. Gradia composite exhibited decrease in FS only after 45,000 cycles. In contrast, FS significantly decreased in the Grandioso Flow composite at 15,000 cycles. The trend in the decrease varied among composites, and the decrement in FS was not proportional to baseline values.

Self-assembly of mono- and bidentate oligoarylene thiols onto polycrystalline Au.

Four thiolated oligoarylene molecules (i) 4-methoxy-terphenyl-4″-methanethiol (MTM), (ii) 4-methoxy-terphenyl-3″,5″-dimethanethiol (MTD), (iii) 4-nitro-terphenyl-4″-methanethiol (NTM), and (iv) 4-nitro-terphenyl-3″,5″-dimethanethiol (NTD) were synthesized and self-assembled as monolayers (SAMs) on polycrystalline Au electrodes of organic field-effect transistors (OFETs). SAMs were characterized by contact angle and AC/DC electrochemical measurements, whereas atomic force microscopy was used for imaging the pentacene films grown on the coated electrodes. The electrical properties of functionalized OFETs, the electrochemical SAMs features and the morphology of pentacene films were correlated to the molecular organization of the thiolated oligoarylenes on Au, as calculated by means of the density functional theory. This multi-methodological approach allows us to associate the systematic replacement of the SAM anchoring head group (viz. methanethiol and dimethanethiol) and/or terminal tail group (viz. nitro-, -NO2, and methoxy, -OCH3) with the change of the electrical features. The dimethanethiol head group endows SAMs with higher resistive features along with higher surface tensions compared with methanethiol. Furthermore, the different number of thiolated heads affects the kinetics of Au passivation as well as the pentacene morphology. On the other hand, the nitro group confers further distinctive properties, such as the positive shift of both threshold and critical voltages of OFETs with respect to the methoxy one. The latter experimental evidence arise from its electron-withdrawing capability, which has been verified by both DFT calculations and DC electrochemical measurements.

Effect of different irrigating solutions and endodontic sealers on bond strength of the dentin-post interface with and without defects.

AIMS: To investigate how the interfacial shear strength of the dentin-post interface with and without defects changes for different combinations irrigant/sealer. METHODS: In forty human decoronated and instrumented teeth, fibreglass posts were inserted. The obtained root segments were randomly assigned to four different groups according to the irrigant adopted and the cement used to seal the root canal. The root segments were processed for metyl-methacrylate embedding. Serial sections were obtained and submitted to histomorphometric analyses in order to observe any defect of adhesion at the dentin-post interface and to measure the defects' dimension. The serial sections were also submitted to micro-push-out test. The measured shear strength values were subjected to statistical analysis by one-way ANOVA. The values of bond strength determined for the defective samples were correlated with the dimension of the defects. Finite element models were built to interpret and corroborate the experimental findings. RESULTS: ANOVA showed that the generic combination irrigant/sealer does not affect the interfacial shear strength values. The bond strength of the samples without defects was averagely twice as large as that of the defective samples. The defects occupying more than 12% of the total transverse section area of the endodontic cement layer led to a reduction of the bond strength of about 70%. The predictions of the finite element models were in agreement with the experimental results. CONCLUSION: Defects occupying less than 2% of the total transverse section area of the cement layer were shown to be acceptable as they have rather negligible effects on the shear strength values. Technologies/protocols should be developed to minimize the number and the size of the defects.

Fibre-reinforced composite crowns luted to implant abutments via electroformed primary copings: an in vitro retention study.

AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate the retention values and mode of failure of metal crowns and fibre-reinforced composite crowns. METHODS: Seventy-five implants and the corresponding abutments were used. After the galvanic copings were fabricated, the specimens were distributed into three groups: in group A traditional metal crowns were realized, whereas in groups B and C fibre-reinforced composite crowns were made. In group B the same resin based cement used in group A was employed for luting the fibre-reinforced composite crowns to the galvanic copings, while in group C a dedicated self-adhesive composite cement was used. All galvanic coping/crown assemblies were cemented onto abutments with Panavia 21 cement. Specimens were subjected to a pull-out test; median retentive values and standard deviations were calculated. RESULTS: All samples in the group A showed separation at the abutment-galvanic cap interface. All samples in the group B showed decementation at galvanic cap-crown interface. In 13 samples of the group C the decementation occurred at the abutment-galvanic cap interface and in 12 samples of this group the decementation occurred at the galvanic cap-crown interface. The mean retention value was 659.1 N±162.9 for group A, 304.7 N±101.4 for B and 635.4 N±155.9 for C. Differences between groups A/B and B/C are statistically significant (t-student test, P<0.01), while is not statistically different between groups A/C. CONCLUSION: When a self-adhesive composite cement is used, fibre-reinforced composite single crowns and conventional metal crowns show similar retentive performance.

Osteogenic differentiation of dental follicle stem cells.

BACKGROUND: Stem cells are defined as clonogenic cells capable of self-renewal and multi-lineage differentiation. A population of these cells has been identified in human Dental Follicle (DF). Dental Follicle Stem Cells (DFSCs) were found in pediatric unerupted wisdom teeth and have been shown to differentiate, under particular conditions, into various cell types of the mesenchymal tissues. AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate if cells isolated from DF show stem features, differentiate toward osteoblastic phenotype and express osteoblastic markers. METHODS: We studied the immunophenotype of DFSCs by flow cytometric analysis, the osteoblastic markers of differentiated DFSCs were assayed by histochemical methods and real-time PCR. RESULTS: We demonstrated that DFSCs expressed a heterogeneous assortment of makers associated with stemness. Moreover DFSCs differentiated into osteoblast-like cells, producing mineralized matrix nodules and expressed the typical osteoblastic markers, Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP) and Collagen I (Coll I). CONCLUSION: This study suggests that DFSCs may provide a cell source for tissue engineering of bone.

Probing charge transport in oxidatively damaged DNA sequences under the influence of structural fluctuations.

We present a detailed study of the charge transport characteristics of double-stranded DNA oligomers including the oxidative damage 7,8-dihydro-8-oxoguanine (8-oxoG). The problem is treated by a hybrid methodology combining classical molecular dynamics simulations and semiempirical electronic structure calculations to formulate a coarse-grained charge transport model. The influence of solvent- and DNA-mediated structural fluctuations is encoded in the obtained time series of the electronic charge transfer parameters. Within the Landauer approach to charge transport, we perform a detailed analysis of the conductance and current time series obtained by sampling the electronic structure along the molecular dynamics trajectory, and find that the inclusion of 8-oxoG damages into the DNA sequence can induce a change in the electrical response of the system. However, solvent-induced fluctuations tend to mask the effect, so that a detection of such sequence modifications via electrical transport measurements in a liquid environment seems to be difficult to achieve.

[Short-course treatment of vulvovaginal candidiasis: comparative study of fluconazole and intra-vaginal fenticonazole]. / Il trattamento "short course" della candidosi vulvovaginale acuta: studio comparativo tra il fluconazolo ed il fenticonazolo intravaginale.

AIM: The aim of this paper was to compare the efficacy of fluconazole 150 mg and intra-vaginal fenticonazole 600mg in short-course treatment of the acute episode of vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC). METHODS: In a prospective study, 80 patients with clinical and mycological (SavvyCheck™ test) confirmed VVC were enrolled and divided randomly in two groups. Forty patients received oral fluconazole (150 mg), whereas 40 patients received intra-vaginal tablet fenticonazole (600 mg). Two sequential doses of azole agents were given 3 days apart (short-course treatment). Second and third visits were done for all patients seven and 30±5 days after treatment. RESULTS: At the second visit, 31 patients (77.5%) were cured clinically (Sobel score <4) in fluconazole group and 32 patients (80%) in fenticonazole group (P=0.876). The vulvovaginal pruritus was reduced in lower time in fenticonazole patients than in fluconazole group (mean 2.3 days versus 4.5 days, P=0.047). At the third visit, three patients in fluconazole group and two patients in fenticonazole group had clinical sign of VVC. CONCLUSION: Fluconazole and intravaginal fenticonazole are both effective to cure symptoms of VVC but fenticonazole appears to reduce the pruritus in less time.

[Lactobacillus delbrueckii: probable agent of urinary tract infections in very old women]. / Lactobacillus delbrueckii : probable cause d'infections urinaires chez la femme très âgée.

Lactobacillus urinary tract infection (UTI) seems exceptionally reported. Nevertheless, with the introduction of a chromogenic medium UriSelect 4, eight cases of UTI in old women (mean of 81.2 years) mediated by Lactobacillus delbrueckii identified by DNA sequencing were reported between 2007 and 2009.

The recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis: proposal of a personalized therapeutic protocol.

Background. Recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis (RVC) is an increasing challenge in clinical practice. Objective. The purpose of this study was to reduce the episodes of RVC through the intake of fluconazole 200 mg/dose with a personalized regimen at growing administration intervals with a probiotic. Method. 55 patients received a 200 mg fluconazole as an induction dose for 3 alternate days. Symptoms resolution after 10-14 days made the patients eligible to continue with a maintenance therapy of fluconazole weekly for one month, followed by 200 mg after 10, 15, 20 and 30 days. Patients were allowed to move on to the next level of maintenance therapy only if they were symptom free. Patients were also given a probiotic with Beta Glucan and Echinacea Purpurea. Results. Among the 55 patients enrolled, four (7%) have withdrawn after the induction phase. 51 patients completed the whole therapeutic maintenance period, and eight (15,6%) experienced a recurrence before the end of the therapy. Five women (9,8%) relapsed (two after 2 months and three after 6 months). Conclusion. The positive results of our study prove the effectiveness of an individualized protocol for a rather short period, with a slowly decreasing administration of fluconazole + probiotic.

GolP: an atomistic force-field to describe the interaction of proteins with Au(111) surfaces in water.

A classical atomistic force field to describe the interaction of proteins with gold (111) surfaces in explicit water has been devised. The force field is specifically designed to be easily usable in most common bio-oriented molecular dynamics codes, such as GROMACS and NAMD. Its parametrization is based on quantum mechanical (density functional theory [DFT] and second order Möller-Plesset perturbation theory [MP2]) calculations and experimental data on the adsorption of small molecules on gold. In particular, a systematic DFT survey of the interaction between Au(111) and the natural amino acid side chains has been performed to single out chemisorption effects. Van der Waals parameters have been instead fitted to experimental desorption energy data of linear alkanes and were also studied via MP2 calculations. Finally, gold polarization (image charge effects) is taken into account by a recently proposed procedure (Iori, F.; Corni, S. J Comp Chem 2008, 29, 1656). Preliminary validation results of GolP on an independent test set of small molecules show the good performances of the force field.

Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation to treat vestibulodynia: a randomised controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the efficacy of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) in the treatment of vestibulodynia. DESIGN: Double-arm randomised placebo-controlled trial. SETTING: An outpatient department for vulval disease. POPULATION: Forty women with vestibulodynia, a vestibular discomfort mostly reported as a burning pain, occurring in the absence of relevant visible findings or a specific, clinically identifiable, neurological disorder. METHODS: Twice a week active TENS or sham treatment were delivered through a vaginal probe via a calibrated dual channel YSY-EST device. Women of both groups underwent 20 treatment sessions. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Visual analogue scale (VAS), the short form of the McGill-Melzack Pain Questionnaire (SF-MPQ), the Marinoff Scale for dyspareunia and the Female Sexual Function Index questionnaire (FSFI) were assessed at baseline, at the end of treatment and at follow up 3 months after the end of treatment. RESULTS: The VAS and SF-MPQ scores (6.2 +/- 1.9 and 19.5 +/- 11.9 before treatment, respectively) improved significantly in the active TENS group (2.1 +/- 2.7, P= 0.004 and 8.5 +/- 10.7, P= 0.001, respectively), but not in the placebo group. The Marinoff dyspareunia scale and the FSFI also showed a significant improvement. CONCLUSIONS: TENS is a simple, effective and safe short-term (3 months) treatment for the management of vestibulodynia.

In vitro retentive strength of metal superstructures cemented to solid abutments.

AIM: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of sandblasting on the retentive strength of metal single crowns luted with a resin cement to Straumann implant/abutment assemblies. METHODS: Fifty 4.1 mm-wide Straumann solid screw implants were mounted in self-polymerizing soft resin. Standard 5.5 mm-high, 8 degree tapered solid abutments were placed on each implant and torqued to 35 Ncm. Fifty metal castings were made using prefabricated burn-out caps. Each implant/abutment assembly and its corresponding metal casting was numbered and they were divided into two groups of 25. In the test group, the external surface of the abutments and the cavosurface of the corresponding metal casting were sandblasted. In the control group, neither the implant abutment nor the metal casting underwent sandblasting. Each metal casting was cemented onto its respective implant/abutment assembly using Panavia 21 (Kuraray Europe GmbH, Dusseldorf, Ger-many) resin cement. Specimens were then subjected to a pull-out test using a universal Instron testing machine. The load required to dislodge each crown was recorded and mean values were calculated for each group. Retention values were analyzed using the ANOVA test. RESULTS: The test group showed a higher mean retention value (83.78 kgf+/-19.61) than the control group (44.03 kgf+/-9.45) and the difference was statistically significant. CONCLUSION: Within the limitations of this in vitro study, the results suggest that sandblasting treatment significantly increases mechanical retention of crowns cemented using a resin cement. It is at the clinician's discretion to evaluate whether additional retention is desired in cementing an implant-supported fixed partial denture.

TRAIL is involved in human osteoclast apoptosis.

Control of osteoclast (OC) apoptosis has been recognized as a critical regulatory factor in bone remodeling. TRAIL, a member of the TNF superfamily, induces apoptosis in neoplastic and normal cells. However, few data are available on the effects of TRAIL on bone cells, thus in the present study we investigated TRAIL role on the apoptosis of human mature OCs. We show that TRAIL treatment causes reduced cell viability, loss of nuclei integrity, and derangement of the actin microfilament in OCs. We also demonstrated that the death receptor DR5, upregulated by TRAIL, could be the mediator of TRAIL-induced OC apoptosis.

Multilayered epithelium may be found in patients with Barrett's epithelium and dysplasia or adenocarcinoma.

To determine if multilayered epithelium (MLE) is a useful prognostic indicator for a benign natural history of Barrett's epithelium, we evaluated endoscopic biopsies from patients with Barrett's epithelium without and with dysplasia and/or adenocarcinoma and from non-Barrett's controls for the presence of MLE. MLE was found in 6% of non-Barrett's controls, 30% of Barrett's patients with no dysplasia, and 14% of Barrett's patients with dysplasia and/or adenocarcinoma. MLE was significantly associated with shorter lengths of Barrett's epithelium in both Barrett's groups. Three of 5 photodynamic therapy patients were noted to develop MLE after therapy. MLE may be found in patients with dysplasia and/or adenocarcinoma and after photodynamic therapy; its presence is not useful as a prognostic indicator for a more benign course of Barrett's. This study confirms that MLE is significantly associated with shorter lengths of Barrett's epithelium.

First-principles density-functional theory calculations of electron-transfer rates in azurin dimers.

We have conceived and implemented a new method to calculate transfer integrals between molecular sites, which exploits few quantities derived from density-functional theory electronic structure computations and does not require the knowledge of the exact transition state coordinate. The method uses a complete multielectron scheme, thus including electronic relaxation effects. Moreover, it makes no use of empirical parameters. The computed electronic couplings can then be combined with estimates of the reorganization energy to evaluate electron-transfer rates that are measured in kinetic experiments: the latter are the basis to interpret electron-transfer mechanisms. We have applied our approach to the study of the electron self-exchange reaction of azurin, an electron-transfer protein belonging to the family of cupredoxins. The transfer integral estimates provided by the proposed method have been compared with those resulting from other computational techniques, from empirical models, and with available experimental data.

Hydrogen-induced surface metallization of beta-SiC(100)-(3x2) revisited by density functional theory calculations.

Recent experiments on the silicon terminated (3 x 2)-SiC(100) surface indicated an unexpected metallic character upon hydrogen adsorption. This effect was attributed to the bonding of hydrogen to a row of Si atoms and to the stabilization of a neighboring dangling bond row. Here, on the basis of density-functional calculations, we show that multiple-layer adsorption of H at the reconstructed surface is compatible with a different geometry: in addition to saturating the topmost Si dangling bonds, H atoms are adsorbed at rather unusual sites, i.e., stable bridge positions above third-layer Si dimers. The results thus suggest an alternative interpretation for the electronic structure of the metallic surface.

First-principles theory of correlated transport through nanojunctions.

We report the inclusion of electron-electron correlation in the calculation of transport properties within an ab initio scheme. A key step is the reformulation of Landauer's approach in terms of an effective transmittance for the interacting electron system. We apply this framework to analyze the effect of short-range interactions on Pt atomic wires and discuss the coherent and incoherent correction to the mean-field approach.