Unjustified use of amber necklaces for teething symptoms alleviation: Succinic acid release underperforms compared with natural skin bacteria production.

BACKGROUND: There is limited evidence of succinic acid release from amber necklace that justifies its biological plausibility. AIM: This study aimed to evaluate the release of succinic acid from Baltic amber beads in the presence of Staphylococcus epidermidis. DESIGN: The Baltic amber beads from the necklace were stratified according to their weight (average 0.05 g ± 0.067). Subsequently, the beads (n = 8) were submerged in 0.9% buffered saline (Control) or brain-heart infusion culture medium in the presence of a commercial strain of S. epidermidis, a resident skin bacterium incubated at 37°C for 24 h or 7 days. The samples were centrifuged, and the supernatants were analyzed by 1H Nuclear Magnetic Resonance. Multivariate analyses were adopted using the sparse partial least squares discriminant analysis method (p < .05). RESULTS: The group incubated with saline solution showed small release of succinic acid only after 7 days. In the groups with S. epidermidis, the release of succinic acid was observed in the both presence and absence of amber beads, indicating that succinic acid is a product released by bacteria. CONCLUSIONS: It was found that amber beads do not exhibit the ability to release expressive succinic acid, especially in a short period of time, which does not justify their use in infants. The most production of succinic acid is tributed to S. epidermidis.

Metabolic Adaptations Correlated with Antibody Response after Immunization with Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 in Brazilian Subjects.

The adsorbed vaccine SARS-CoV-2 (inactivated) produced by Sinovac (SV) was the first vaccine against COVID-19 to be used in Brazil. To understand the metabolic effects of SV in Brazilian subjects, NMR-based metabolomics was used, and the immune response was studied in Brazilian subjects. Forty adults without (group-, n = 23) and with previous COVID-19 infection (group+, n = 17) were followed-up for 90 days postcompletion of the vaccine regimen. After 90 days, our results showed that subjects had increased levels of lipoproteins, lipids, and N-acetylation of glycoproteins (NAG) as well as decreased levels of amino acids, lactate, citrate, and 3-hydroxypropionate. NAG and threonine were the highest correlated metabolites with N and S proteins, and neutralizing Ab levels. This study sheds light on the immunometabolism associated with the use of SV in Brazilian subjects from Rio de Janeiro and identifies potential metabolic markers associated with the immune status.

Saliva NMR-Based Metabolomics in the War Against COVID-19.

COVID-19 is an emergent, worldwide public health concern. Joint efforts have been made by scientific communities of various fields to better understand the mechanisms of action of SARS-CoV-2. The need to understand the pathophysiological fingerprint and pathways of this disease make metabolomics-related approaches an indispensable tool for properly answering concerns relating to disease course. Determination of the metabolomic profile may help to explain the heterogeneous spectra of COVID-19 clinical phenotypes and be useful in monitoring disease progression as well as therapeutic treatments. In this sense, saliva has proven to be a strategic biofluid, owing not only to its appeal as a noninvasive sampling method but also due to the capacity of the virus to invade epithelial cells of the oral mucosa and salivary gland ducts via ACE2 receptors. Accordingly, important changes in metabolism have been described relating to COVID-19, indicating that metabolomics may open new avenues for understanding the pathophysiology of this disease, especially via longitudinal study designs. Thus, we discuss the importance of comprehending the SARS-CoV-2 salivary metabolomic fingerprint and also highlight the situation of Brazil on the frontlines of the war against COVID-19.

Efficacy of viscosupplementation with hyaluronic acid in temporomandibular disorders: A systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: To perform a systematic review of the viscosupplementation effectiveness with hyaluronic acid (HA) in the articular Temporomandibular Dysfunctions (TMDs) clinical management. METHOD: Electronic searches were performed in the following databases: MEDLINE (via PubMed), Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, LILACS, BBO, SIGLE (System for Information on Grey Literature in Europe), ClinicalTrials.gov, and the Brazilian Clinical Trials Registry (ReBec). Only randomized clinical trials that evaluated the intra-articular administration of HA or its derivatives in osteoarthritis and/or anterior displacement of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disc were included. The primary outcomes evaluated were patients' self-report of pain and/or discomfort in the TMJ. Each study was assessed for the risk of bias, using the Cochrane collaboration's risk of bias tool. RESULTS: A total of 640 studies were obtained in the electronic search. After the application of the eligibility criteria, manual search, and duplicate removal, 21 articles were included. Five articles classified their volunteers with internal derangements of the TMJ, in 4 articles the treatment was directed to participants with disc displacement with reduction and the other articles evaluated HA therapy in osteoarthritis. The protocols presented heterogeneity, varying in the form of application, associated or not with arthrocentesis, number of applications, molecular weight, dose and concentration. Nine studies presented high risk of bias. CONCLUSION: Due to the heterogeneity and methodological inconsistencies of the studies evaluated, it was not possible to establish the efficacy of HA in articular TMDs.