The bonding of glass ionomer cements to caries-affected primary tooth dentin

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to evaluate the bonding of glass ionomer cements (GICs) to sound and caries-affected dentin by microtensile bond strength (μTBS) and nanoleakage (NL) tests. METHODS Occlusal cavity preparations were made in 36 sound primary molars. Half of the specimens were submitted to a pH-cycling model to create simulated caries-affected dentin. Teeth were randomly restored with one of the three materials: (1) resin-modified GIC with nanoparticles (Ketac N100; KN); (2) resin-modified GIC (Vitremer; VI); and (3) high-viscosity GIC (Ketac Molar Easy Mix; KM). Specimens were tested using a microtensile test (1 mm/minute). One specimen from each tooth was immersed in ammoniacal silver nitrate for 24 hours and revealed after eight hours to assess interfacial NL. The μTBS means were analyzed by 2-way analysis of variance and Tukey's post hoc test. For NL, Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests were used (P<.05). RESULTS No difference was found between sound and caries-affected dentin (P>.05). KM showed the lowest GIC-dentin μTBS values, while VI and KN showed higher values. Infiltration of ammoniacal silver nitrate into the adhesive interface was not affected by sound or caries-affected dentin. CONCLUSION Caries-affected dentin does not jeopardize the bonding of glass ionomer cements to primary tooth dentin.

Prediction of outcome in patients with low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions by fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis of human papillomavirus, TERC, and MYC

BACKGROUND Cytology is an excellent method with which to diagnose preinvasive lesions of the uterine cervix, but it suffers from limited specificity for clinically significant lesions. Supplementary methods might predict the natural course of the detected lesions. The objective of the current study was to test whether a multicolor fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) assay might help to stratify abnormal results of Papanicolaou tests. METHODS A total of 219 liquid-based cytology specimens of low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (LSIL), 49 atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASCUS) specimens, 52 high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL) specimens, and 50 normal samples were assessed by FISH with probes for the human papillomavirus (HPV), MYC, and telomerase RNA component (TERC). Subtyping of HPV by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was performed in a subset of cases (n=206). RESULTS There was a significant correlation found between HPV detection by FISH and PCR (P<.0001). In patients with LSILs, the presence of HPV detected by FISH was significantly associated with disease progression (P<.0001). An increased MYC and/or TERC gene copy number (>2 signals in>10% of cells) prevailed in 43% of ASCUS specimens and was more frequent in HSIL (85%) than in LSIL (33%) (HSIL vs LSIL: P<.0001). Increased TERC gene copy number was significantly correlated with progression of LSIL (P<.01; odds ratio, 7.44; area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, 0.73; positive predictive value, 0.30; negative predictive value, 0.94) CONCLUSIONS: The detection of HPV by FISH analysis is feasible in liquid-based cytology and is significantly correlated with HPV analysis by PCR. The analysis of TERC gene copy number may be useful for risk stratification in patients with LSIL.

CÂNCER DE COLO UTERINO: CONHECIMENTO E COMPORTAMENTO DE MULHERES PARA PREVENÇÃO

Objetivo: Analisar o conhecimento das mulheres em relação à prevenção do câncer de colo de útero e os fatores dificultadores acerca da realização da prática do exame preventivo. Métodos: Trata-se de um estudo do tipo observacional, de corte transversal e descritivo, com 110 mulheres entre 25 e 64 anos, atendidas em uma unidade de saúde, entre os meses de janeiro e março de 2014. Coletaram-se dados sociodemográficos e econômicos, aspectos ginecológicos e comportamento sobre o exame. Analisaram-se os dados através da estatística descritiva, apresentando valores absolutos e relativos. Resultados: Dados referentes ao significado do câncer uterino mostraram que 65 (59,1%) desconheciam seu significado, 69 (62,7%) sabiam como preveni-lo, 104 (94,5%) já realizaram o Papanicolau, 59 (53,6%) realizaram o Papanicolau há 1 ano, 62 (56,4%) realizam o exame preventivo anualmente e 88 (80%) sabiam a importância dessa realização. Quanto aos fatores encontrados referentes à dificuldade na realização do exame preventivo, 49 (44,5%) relataram ser a vergonha o fator mais impactante. Conclusão: Apesar de a maioria das mulheres realizar o exame periodicamente, muitas desconhecem a sua verdadeira finalidade, sentindo-se envergonhadas e constrangidas durante a realização do exame.

Hypothalamic-pituitary axis and peripheral tissue responses to TRH stimulation and Liothyronine suppression tests in normal subjects evaluated by current methods

Objective: To reevaluate the responses of thyrotropin-releasing hormone ( TRH) stimulation test in baseline condition as well as after the administration of graded supraphysiological doses of liothyronine ( L- T-3) in normal subjects. Design: To assess various parameters related to the hypothalamic-pituitary axis and peripheral tissue responses to L- T-3 in 22 normal individuals ( median age: 30.5 years). Subjects were submitted to an intravenous TRH test at baseline condition and also to the oral administration of sequential and graded doses of L- T-3 ( 50, 100, and 200 mu g/day), each given over 3 days, at an outpatient clinic. Blood samples were obtained for thyrotropin (TSH) and prolactin (PRL) at basal and then 15, 30, and 60 minutes after the TRH injection. Effects of L- T3 administration on cholesterol, creatine kinase, retinol, ferritin, and sex hormone-binding globulin ( SHBG) were also measured at basal and after the oral administration of L- T-3. Main outcome: TRH administration resulted in an increase of 4-to 14-fold rise in serum TSH ( 8.3 +/- 2.5-fold), and in a slight rise in serum PRL concentrations ( 3.8 +/- 1.5-fold). Administration of graded doses of triiodothyronine ( T-3) resulted in a dose-dependent suppression of TSH and PRL. Basal thyroxine- binding globulin (TBG) and cholesterol levels decreased, and ferritin and SHBG increased after L- T-3 administration, while creatine kinase and retinol did not change throughout the study. There was a positive correlation between basal TSH and TSH peak response to TRH at basal condition and after each sequential L- T-3 doses. On the other hand, TSH peak response to the TRH test did not predict cholesterol, TBG, ferritin, or SHBG values. Conclusion: Using the current methods on hormone and biochemical analysis, we standardized the response of many parameters to TRH stimulation test after sequential and graded T-3 suppression test in normal subjects. Our data suggest that the evaluation of the responses of the hypothalamus-pituitary axis to TRH test as well as the impact of L- T-3 on peripheral tissues were not modified by the current methods.

Non-immunologic methods of diagnosis of babesiosis

The diagnosis of tick-borne diseases such as babesiosis still depends on observing the parasite in the infected erythrocyte. Microscopic observation is tedious and often problematic in both early and carrier infections. Better diagnostic methods are needed to prevent clinical disease, especially when susceptible cattle are being moved into disease enzootic areas. This study evaluates two techniques for early diagnosis of Babesia bovis infections in cattle, DNA probes specific for the organism and fluorescent probes specific nucleic acid. The radioisotopically labeled DNA probes are used in slot blot hybridizations whith lysed blood samples, not purified DNA. Thusfar, the probe is specific for B. bovis and can detect as few as 1000 B. bovis parasites in 10µl of blood. The specificity of the fluorescent probe depends on the characteristic morphology of the babesia in whole blood samples, as determined microscopically. The fluorescent probe detects as afew as 10,000 B. bovis parasites in 10*l as blood. The application of each method for alboratory and field use is discussed.

Immunologic evaluation and validation of methods using synthetic peptides derived from Mycobacterium tuberculosis for the diagnosis of tuberculosis infection

The goal of this study was to demonstrate the usefulness of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the serodiagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) and extrapulmonary TB (EPTB). This assay used 20 amino acid-long, non-overlapped synthetic peptides that spanned the complete Mycobacterium tuberculosis ESAT-6 and Ag85A sequences. The validation cohort consisted of 1,102 individuals who were grouped into the following five diagnostic groups: 455 patients with PTB, 60 patients with EPTB, 40 individuals with non-EPTB, 33 individuals with leprosy and 514 healthy controls. For the PTB group, two ESAT-6 peptides (12033 and 12034) had the highest sensitivity levels of 96.9% and 96.2%, respectively, and an Ag85A-peptide (29878) was the most specific (97.4%) in the PTB groups. For the EPTB group, two Ag85A peptides (11005 and 11006) were observed to have a sensitivity of 98.3% and an Ag85A-peptide (29878) was also the most specific (96.4%). When combinations of peptides were used, such as 12033 and 12034 or 11005 and 11006, 99.5% and 100% sensitivities in the PTB and EPTB groups were observed, respectively. In conclusion, for a cohort that consists entirely of individuals from Venezuela, a multi-antigen immunoassay using highly sensitive ESAT-6 and Ag85A peptides alone and in combination could be used to more rapidly diagnose PTB and EPTB infection.

Portmanteau model diagnostics and tests for nonlinearity: a comparative Monte Carlo study of two alternative methods

This paper employs an extensive Monte Carlo study to test the size and power of the BDS and close return methods of testing for departures from independent and identical distribution. It is found that the finite sample properties of the BDS test are far superior and that the close return method cannot be recommended as a model diagnostic. Neither test can be reliably used for very small samples, while the close return test has low power even at large sample sizes

Research on Candida dubliniensis in a Brazilian yeast collection obtained from cardiac transplant, tuberculosis, and HIV-positive patients, and evaluation of phenotypic tests using agar screening methods

The aim of this study was to research Candida dubliniensis among isolates present in a Brazilian yeast collection and to evaluate the main phenotypic methods for discrimination between C. albicans and C. dubliniensis from oral cavity. A total of 200 isolates, presumptively identified as C. albicans or C. dubliniensis obtained from heart transplant patients under immunosuppressive therapy, tuberculosis patients under antibiotic therapy, HIV-positive patients under antiretroviral therapy, and healthy subjects, were analyzed using the following phenotypic tests: formation and structural arrangement of chlamydospores on corn meal agar, casein agar, tobacco agar, and sunflower seed agar; growth at 45 degrees C; and germ tube formation. All strains were analyzed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). In a preliminary screen for C. dubliniensis, 48 of the 200 isolates on corn meal agar, 30 of the 200 on casein agar, 16 of the 200 on tobacco agar, and 15 of the 200 on sunflower seed agar produced chlamydoconidia; 27 of the 200 isolates showed no or poor growth at 45 degrees C. All isolates were positive for germ tube formation. These isolates were considered suggestive of C. dubliniensis. All of them were subjected to PCR analysis using C. dubliniensis-specific primers. C. dubliniensis isolates were not found. C. dubliniensis isolates were not recovered in this study done with immunocompromised patients. Sunflower seed agar was the medium with the smallest number of isolates of C. albicans suggestive of C. dubliniensis. None of the phenotypic methods was 100% effective for discrimination between C. albicans and C. dubliniensis. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

CHARACTERIZATION of RALSTONIA SOLANACEARUM STRAINS FROM BRAZIL USING MOLECULAR METHODS and PATHOGENICITY TESTS

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)