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Objective: This study aimed to evaluate and compare the clinical effectiveness of chemomechanical caries removal (CMCR) using Carie‐Care™ versus conventional caries removal for atraumatic restorative treatment (ART). Methods: The study included 32 children aged 6–15 years with one or more one‐surface cavitated carious lesions on the occlusal surface of permanent dentition. A total of 82 restorations were placed in permanent molars. The teeth were randomly assigned to two groups and monitored for 18 months after the intervention. For Group 1, Carie‐Care™ gel was applied directly to the carious lesion, followed by cavity washing and gentle excavation using hand instruments. For Group 2, caries was removed using the mechanical method only. The success rate of the restorations, as well as the time taken and pain reactions measured by the sound eye motor (SEM) scale, were assessed between the two groups. Results: The SEM scores were significantly higher ( p < 0.05) in the conventional ART group than in the Carie‐Care™ group. The mean time taken for caries removal in the Carie‐Care™ group (731.15 ± 197.48 s) was significantly higher than in the ART group (596.66 ± 158.96 s) ( p < 0.001). However, there was no significant difference in the clinical performance of Type IX restoration between the groups ( p = 0.69). Conclusions: The success rates of the restorations were similar between the two methods. However, the added advantage of less trauma associated with using a chemomechanical agent such as Carie‐Care™ makes it an attractive option for community health and school dental programs.

The human race has survived many epidemics and pandemics that have emerged and reemerged throughout history. The novel coronavirus Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 is the latest pandemic and this has caused major health and socioeconomic problems in almost all communities of the world. The origin of the virus is still in dispute but most likely, the virus emerged from the bats and also may involve an intermediate host before affecting humans. Several other factors also may have affected the emergence and outcome of the infection but in this review, we make a case for a possible role of climate change. The rise in industrialization-related human activities has created a marked imbalance in the homeostasis of environmental factors such as temperature and other weather and these might even have imposed conditions for the emergence of future coronavirus cycles. An attempt is made in this review to explore the effect of ongoing climate changes and discuss if these changes had a role in facilitating the emergence, transmission, and even the expression of the COVID-19 pandemic. We surmise that pandemics will be more frequent in the future and more severely impactful unless climate changes are mitigated.

Laryngeal dystonia (LD) is a neurological voice disorder marked by strained voice quality, pitch instability, and sudden voice breaks, yet the mechanisms underlying impaired vocal control are poorly understood. One key process, known as pitch centering, reflects the central nervous system's ability to correct early pitch deviations during an utterance by converging toward an intended target. While pitch centering provides a sensitive window into the neural control of spontaneous speech, it remains unexamined in patients with LD and is presumed to contribute to disordered regulation of voice production. Here, we examined pitch centering in 24 individuals with LD [adductor LD ( = 20), abductor LD ( = 3), or both ( = 1)] compared to 29 healthy controls. The primary outcome measures were: (1) and (2) . was defined as the difference in the absolute values of initial (0-50 ms) and mid-trial (150-200 ms) pitch. Positive values (centering > 0) indicated a shift toward the median pitch defined as centering trials. was defined as the difference between mid-trial and initial pitch. In a subset of trials, we observed negative values of centering reflecting movement away from intended pitch targets, which we defined as trials. An additional subset of trials was defined as , instances where the normalized pitch movement crosses the median pitch at mid-trial. Initial pitch deviation ( < 0.0001) and pitch movement magnitude ( < 0.0001) were significantly greater in individuals with LD compared to controls across all trials. Importantly, individuals with LD exhibited more pronounced centering responses compared to controls, with greater centering magnitude observed by a significant group-by-tercile interaction ( = 0.028). Individuals with LD and controls showed similar distributions of centering and anticentering trial types. However, LD patients exhibited significantly greater centering magnitude compared to controls across each trial type. These findings offer valuable insights into speech motor and predictive control processes in LD, with potential implications for clinical assessment and treatment strategies aimed at improving patient quality of life.

Background Sex differences have been described in several corneal diseases such as Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy and keratoconus, with estrogens implicated in the induction of these differences. Here, we report the identification of sex differences in a cohort of 177 individuals with Corneal Hereditary Endothelial Dystrophy (CHED), a rare corneal endothelial dystrophy associated with biallelic SLC4A11 gene mutations, and in a Slc4a11 −/− mouse model of CHED. Methods Central corneal thickness (CCT) was measured in individuals with CHED and in Slc4a11 −/− and Slc4a11 +/+ mice to identify a correlation between sex and the degree of corneal edema. To investigate potential causes of such a correlation, RNAseq analysis and mitochondrial superoxide measurement were performed on corneal endothelium from male and female Slc4a11 −/− and Slc4a11 +/+ mice, for which body composition analysis was also performed. Gonadectomy or sham surgery was performed in Slc4a11 −/− and Slc4a11 +/+ mice at 4 weeks of age with subsequent longitudinal CCT and body weight monitoring, followed by an analysis of the interaction effect of surgery type, sex and genotype on CCT. Results Male sex is associated with increased CCT, and thus more severe corneal edema, the characteristic clinical feature of CHED, in affected individuals and Slc4a11 −/− mice. The corneal endothelium in male Slc4a11 −/− mice demonstrates increased levels of oxidative stress compared to Slc4a11 −/− female mice, as evidenced by higher levels of glucose- and glutamine-derived mitochondrial superoxide, controlling for age. Removal of gonadal hormones in Slc4a11 −/− mice increases corneal edema in female mice, suggesting a protective role for ovarian hormones. Transcriptomic analysis of corneal endothelium and body composition analysis in Slc4a11 +/+ and Slc4a11 −/− mice suggest that estrogens play a role in promoting corneal endothelial utilization of lipids via β-oxidation as an alternative energy source in the absence of SLC4A11-mediated NH 3 :H transport function, thereby reducing oxidative stress from glucose and glutamine metabolism. Conclusions Male sex is associated with a more severe corneal phenotype in individuals with CHED and a Slc4a11 −/− mouse model of the disease. Increased corneal edema in female Slc4a11 −/− mice following gonadectomy suggests ovarian hormones play a protective role in maintaining corneal deturgescence in the setting of loss of SLC4A11 function. Plain english summary Corneal Hereditary Endothelial Dystrophy (CHED) is a rare inherited eye disease that is associated with blurred vision that develops in newborns, infants and children due to swelling and clouding of the normally clear corneas. To be able to study the disease and identify potential treatments for it, a mouse model of the disease has been created that closely resembles the disease seen in affected individuals. We identified a sex difference in disease severity in both affected individuals and mice, with males demonstrating more severe corneal swelling than females. A possible explanation for this difference was the discovery that the corneas of affected male mice had higher levels of oxidative stress, which can lead to damage of the cells of the cornea. To determine the potential role of hormones in the observed sex differences between the male and female individuals and mice, the organs that produce hormones (gonads) were removed at a young age in the affected mice. Removal of the ovaries in the female mice, leading to a loss of the female hormones, led to a worsening of the corneal swelling. This suggests that the female hormones, which include estrogen, prevent swelling of the corneas in affected mice, and possibly in affected female newborns, infants and children. Highlights This study is the first to identify sex-based differences in the severity of corneal edema in individuals with CHED, made possible by analyzing the largest patient cohort ever reported, and in a Slc4a11 -/- mouse model of CHED. Male newborns, infants and children with CHED and male Slc4a11 -/- mice have significantly worse corneal edema than affected female newborns, infants and children and Slc4a11 -/- mice. Sex differences between male and female mice were identified at the phenotypic (corneal edema), functional (oxidative stress) and transcriptomic (corneal endothelial gene expression) levels. Removal of gonadal sex hormones by gonadectomy in female Slc4a11 -/- mice worsens corneal edema, suggesting ovarian hormones protect against progressive loss of corneal endothelial cell function in the setting of loss of SLC4A11.

Here we report the synthesis of ultrasmall (2 nm in diameter) ATP-coated gold nanoparticles, ATP-NPs. ATP-NPs can be enlarged in a predictable manner by the surface-catalyzed reduction of gold ions with ascorbate, yielding uniform gold nanoparticles ranging in size from 2 to 5 nm in diameter. Using atomic force microscopy (AFM), we demonstrate that ATP-NPs can efficiently and selectively bind to a short non-hybridized 5A/5A region (composed of a 5A-nucleotide on each strand of the double helix) inserted into a circular double-stranded plasmid, Puc19. Neither small (1.4 nm in diameter) commercially available nanoparticles nor 5 nm citrate-protected ones are capable of binding to the plasmid. The unique ability to specifically target DNA regions characterized by local structural alterations of the double helix can pave the way for applications of the particles in the detection of genomic DNA regions containing mismatches and mutations that are common for cancer cells.

The current study utilized Box–Behnken design of the response surface methodology, aimed at identifying the best levels of particular variables. An experimental design was performed on Chlorella sp. considering initial nitrogen, phosphorus and iron concentration as independent variables. Lipid, biomass, chlorophyll, carbohydrate and protein contents were analysed as response variables. Various physio-biochemical attributes were studied under varied concentration of nutrients in BG11 media, nitrate (NaNO3, 10–750 mg mL−1), phosphate (K2HPO4, 40–120 mg mL−1), iron (ferric ammonium citrate, 3–9 mg mL−1) with an objective to establish the actual potential of Chlorella pyrenoidosa under phototrophic nutrient stress conditions were obtained lipid percentage (35.4 dcw%) and biomass yield (1.89 g L−1). A Prob > F value of < 0.05 and > 0.05 indicated model terms which were significant and non-significant, respectively. The fit of model yielded R2 values up to 96.25% for lipids and 94.12% for biomass; similar values were obtained for proteins, carbohydrate and chlorophyll. FAME profile of Chlorella pyrenoidosa contained palmitic (C16:0, stearic acid), (C18:0) oleic (C18:1), linoleic C18:2 and linolenic (C18:3) which showed that Chlorella pyrenoidosa possessed a favourable fatty acids profile that can be successfully utilized for biodiesel production.

Today, there is a large consumer concern for sustainability and hence, plant-based foods are popular. Dairy and meat alternatives are in high demand. The objective of this study was to identify a sensory language to identify and quantify the sensory attributes of oat milks and to apply the language with external preference mapping with consumers to understand the drivers of like and dislike. Twenty-eight commercial oat milks were collected in duplicate lots. A highly experienced panel (n=7) identified attributes and definitions for the lexicon. Products were then evaluated monadically in triplicate by each panelist. Six to seven products were evaluated per session over the course of fourteen sessions. Ten representative oat milks were selected for consumer acceptance testing with oat milk consumers (n=157). Each consumer evaluated the 10 oat milks across two days with a partial presentation of 5 samples per day. Consumers answered liking and check-all-that-apply (CATA) questions for each oat milk. External preference mapping and penalty lift analyses were then applied to identify drivers of like and dislike. Twelve aromatics and five basics tastes were identified in the oat milk lexicon. Two visual attributes and five texture/mouthfeel attributes were also documented. Nineteen of the 24 attributes were documented in all of the oat milks. By external preference mapping, opacity, sweet aromatic and cooked cereal flavors, viscosity, and residual mouthcoating were drivers of liking for oat milk consumers while thin/watery texture, cardboard flavor was a driver of dislike. Similarly, smooth, creamy texture and mild cereal flavor were terms consumers used to describe liked oat milks (CATA) and watery texture was disliked. Two clusters of oat milk consumers were identified which differed primarily by degree of liking for oat milks. The determination of a sensory lexicon specific for oat milk can be used by product developers for development and formulating the ideal oat milk and current product improvement.

The current framework uses a theoretical and computational model based on both second-order momentum and temperature slips to simulate momentum, angular momentum, heat transport, nanoparticle volume fraction transport, and the density of microorganism transport phenomena past a cone located in a Darcy porous medium. These types of flows happen in typical nanodevice components such as nanocapillaries, nanovalves, nanorotors, and nanobearings and in low-pressure environments. With this in mind, the governing highly partial differential equations were converted to similarity ordinary differential equations via invariant transformations developed through Lie symmetry analysis before being simulated using the efficient finite element method. Tables and graphs illustrate the impact of emerging parameters on flow characteristics as well as heat, mass, and microorganism transfer rates. It is found that friction increases, while heat, mass, and microorganism transfer decrease with the micropolar parameter for both isothermal and non-isothermal cones. Friction decreases with the first-order thermal slip parameter in the absence of second-order slip, but it follows reverse behavior in the presence of second-order slip. Heat transfer rate decreases, while mass and microorganism transfer rates increase with the first-order thermal slip parameter when considering the second-order slip parameter. The decrement of 20% in maximum stream function is noticed if micropolar nanofluid ( Δ = 1 ) is used instead of Newtonian nanofluid, which further regulates heat transfer significantly.