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Objectives: Investigate the relationship between bone mineral density (BMD) at various body sites and dental caries. Materials and methods: Based on the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) database from 2011 to 2016, the correlation between BMD at various body sites and the DMFS index among 7044 adults aged 20–59 years was analyzed. Multiple linear regression, restricted cubic splines (RCS), piecewise linear regression, logistic regression, weighted quantile sum regression (WQS) and mediation effects analysis were integrated to explore the relationship between BMD and dental caries. Results: Under the linear assumption, except for arm BMD, the BMDs of all other sites are negatively correlated with the DMFS index of dental caries. RCS analysis indicates a U-shaped relationship between head BMD and the DMFS index (p for nonlinear < 0.0001). WQS analysis indicates that mixed BMD is significantly negatively correlated with the DMFS index for dental caries (estimate, − 0.023; 95% CI, − 0.025 ~ − 0.020), and head BMD has the most significant impact on the DMFS index (weight = 91.4%). Simple mediation analysis of the effect of dental caries on BMD levels mediated by inflammation levels showed negative results, suggesting that dental caries may not influence BMD through inflammation levels. Conclusion: Monitoring BMD should be combined with appropriate oral healthcare and caries management strategies to effectively address these interconnected health issues, and particular attention should be paid to the monitoring of head BMD.

The aim of this systematic review was to provide an update on caries prevalence in older adults aged 60 years or above around the globe. Two independent reviewers performed a systematic literature search of English publications from January 2016 to December 2020 using Pubmed, Scopus, Embase/Ovid and Web of Science. The MeSH terms used were “dental caries”, “root caries”, “DMF index”, “aged” and “aged 80 and over”. Further searches in Google Scholar retrieved eight additional publications. The epidemiological surveys reporting the prevalence of dental caries or root caries or caries experience using DMFT (decayed, missing and filled teeth) and DFR (decayed and filled root) in older adults aged 60 years or above were included. Quality of the publications was assessed using the JBI Critical Appraisal Checklist for Studies Reporting Prevalence Data. Among the 5271 identified publications, 39 articles of moderate or good quality were included. Twenty studies were conducted in Asia (China, India, Vietnam, Singapore and Turkey), ten in Europe (Ireland, Norway, Finland, Germany, Portugal, Poland, Romania and Kosovo), three in North America (USA and Mexico), one in South America (Brazil), two in Oceania (Australia) and three in Africa (Malawi, Egypt and South Africa). The prevalence of dental caries ranged from 25% (Australia) to 99% (South Africa), while the prevalence of root caries ranged from 8% (Finland) to 74% (Brazil) in community dwellers. The situation was even worse in institutionalised older adults of which the mean DMFT score varied from 6.9 (Malawi) to 29.7 (South Africa). Based on the included studies published in the last 5 years, caries is still prevalent in older adults worldwide and their prevalence varies across countries.

A Ni/Lewis acid dual-catalytic system has been developed for the -selective semihydrogenation of alkynes. Utilizing DMF as both the hydrogen donor and reaction medium, this method affords -alkenes in high yield with excellent stereoselectivity under mild conditions. The protocol employs cost-effective and readily available catalysts, and demonstrates broad applicability across a wide range of substrates.

Background The filamentous fungus Trichoderma reesei is one of the best producers of cellulase and has been widely studied for the production of cellulosic ethanol and bio-based products. We previously reported that Mn2+ and N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) can stimulate cellulase overexpression via Ca2+ bursts and calcium signalling in T. reesei under cellulase-inducing conditions. To further understand the regulatory networks involved in cellulase overexpression in T. reesei, we characterised the Mn2+/DMF-induced calcium signalling pathway involved in the stimulation of cellulase overexpression. Results We found that Mn2+/DMF stimulation significantly increased the intracellular levels of cAMP in an adenylate cyclase (ACY1)-dependent manner. Deletion of acy1 confirmed that cAMP is crucial for the Mn2+/DMF-stimulated cellulase overexpression in T. reesei. We further revealed that cAMP elevation induces a cytosolic Ca2+ burst, thereby initiating the Ca2+ signal transduction pathway in T. reesei, and that cAMP signalling causes the Ca2+ signalling pathway to regulate cellulase production in T. reesei. Furthermore, using a phospholipase C encoding gene plc-e deletion strain, we showed that the plc-e gene is vital for cellulase overexpression in response to stimulation by both Mn2+ and DMF, and that cAMP induces a Ca2+ burst through PLC-E. Conclusions The findings of this study reveal the presence of a signal transduction pathway in which Mn2+/DMF stimulation produces cAMP. Increase in the levels of cAMP activates the calcium signalling pathway via phospholipase C to regulate cellulase overexpression under cellulase-inducing conditions. These findings provide insights into the molecular mechanism of the cAMP–PLC–calcium signalling pathway underlying cellulase expression in T. reesei and highlight the potential applications of signal transduction in the regulation of gene expression in fungi.

Electrospray, introduced to the coating process, enables the fabrication of porous electrodes, and electrosprayed cathodes exhibit improved cycle performance. Further, the solvent used in the cathode slurry of the electrospray coating plays a crucial role. This study investigated the effects of various solvents on the electrospray of Ni‐rich layered materials for electrode fabrication as an alternative to conventional slurry coating using the doctor‐blade method. The electrode performance of a typical doctor blade method using the N‐methyl‐2‐pyrrolidone (NMP) solvent, which has various disadvantages (boiling and autoignition temperature), was compared with that of electrosprayed cathodes using NMP; N,N‐dimethylformamide (DMF); and DMF/acetone solvents. The volatility difference between the three solvents resulted in the creation of individual cathodes with different porosities. For the DMF/acetone solvent, which had the highest volatility, the coated cathode showed 75.97% capacity retention after 100 cycles at 1C, which was significantly higher than those of the NMP (62.91%) and DMF (66.25%) solvents. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) showed a stable peak retention during cycling and a low increase in individual resistance for the DMF/acetone solvent cathode. To conclude, optimizing solvent selection in electrosprayed cathodes is highly critical for enhancing the cathode cycling performance, contributing to high‐performance lithium‐ion batteries.

Dental caries is a biofilm-mediated, sugar-driven, multifactorial, dynamic disease that results in the phasic demineralization and remineralization of dental hard tissues. Caries can occur throughout life, both in primary and permanent dentitions, and can damage the tooth crown and, in later life, exposed root surfaces. The balance between pathological and protective factors influences the initiation and progression of caries. This interplay between factors underpins the classification of individuals and groups into caries risk categories, allowing an increasingly tailored approach to care. Dental caries is an unevenly distributed, preventable disease with considerable economic and quality-of-life burdens. The daily use of fluoride toothpaste is seen as the main reason for the overall decline of caries worldwide over recent decades. This Primer aims to provide a global overview of caries, acknowledging the historical era dominated by restoration of tooth decay by surgical means, but focuses on current, progressive and more holistic long-term, patient-centred, tooth-preserving preventive care. The formation of dental caries involves the interaction between the tooth, the microbial biofilm at the tooth surface and dietary sugars. This Primer by Pitts et al. aims to provide a global overview of caries, focusing on current, patient-centred, tooth-preserving preventive care.

NLRP3 inflammasome activation contributes to several pathogenic conditions, including lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced sickness behavior characterized by reduced mobility and depressive behaviors. Dimethyl fumarate (DMF) is an immunomodulatory and anti-oxidative molecule commonly used for the symptomatic treatment of multiple sclerosis and psoriasis. In this study, we investigated the potential use of DMF against microglial NLRP3 inflammasome activation both in vitro and in vivo . For in vitro studies, LPS- and ATP-stimulated N9 microglial cells were used to induce NLRP3 inflammasome activation. DMF’s effects on inflammasome markers, pyroptotic cell death, ROS formation, and Nrf2/NF-κB pathways were assessed. For in vivo studies, 12–14 weeks-old male BALB/c mice were treated with LPS, DMF + LPS and ML385 + DMF + LPS. Behavioral tests including open field, forced swim test, and tail suspension test were carried out to see changes in lipopolysaccharide-induced sickness behavior. Furthermore, NLRP3 and Caspase-1 expression in isolated microglia were determined by immunostaining. Here we demonstrated that DMF ameliorated LPS and ATP-induced NLRP3 inflammasome activation by reducing IL-1β, IL-18, caspase-1, and NLRP3 levels, reactive oxygen species formation and damage, and inhibiting pyroptotic cell death in N9 murine microglia via Nrf2/NF-κB pathways. DMF also improved LPS-induced sickness behavior in male mice and decreased caspase-1/NLRP3 levels via Nrf2 activation. Additionally, we showed that DMF pretreatment decreased miR-146a and miR-155 both in vivo and in vitro . Our results proved the effectiveness of DMF on the amelioration of microglial NLRP3 inflammasome activation. We anticipate that this study will provide the foundation consideration for further studies aiming to suppress NLRP3 inflammasome activation associated with in many diseases and a better understanding of its underlying mechanisms.

Homogeneous Kolbe-Schmitt carboxylation of phenoxides offers a mild and effective alternative to the classical high-temperature solid-phase Kolbe-Schmitt reaction. To develop this into a practical synthetic approach, we investigated several fundamental dependencies, particularly the impact of cations (Na, K, Li, Cs, and Rb), phenoxide concentration, and solvents (DMSO or DMF) on the yield and regioisomeric ratio of hydroxyaromatic carboxylic acids (HACAs). We identified optimal conditions for the effective carboxylation of different phenoxides, including a chiral Ellman’s sulfinamide derived from ortho-vanillin. Both solvents and cations were found to be crucial in the carboxylation of phenoxides. Due to solvation effects, DMSO directs CO2 attack to the para-position of phenoxide, while DMF, although less selective, generally affords higher HACA yields. The addition of equiv. amounts of mesitolate salt to phenoxide in either DMSO or DMF solution often drives the reaction to completion, resulting in yields of up to 98%. Phenoxides containing several EWG groups, such as halogens or alkyl groups, adjacent to the reaction center show considerably lower reactivity in carboxylation; however, by carefully adjusting parameters, acceptable conversions (>70%) can be achieved. Using the gasometry, we assessed the stability of phenoxide and mesitolate carbonate complexes in DMSO. These experiments revealed distinct stages for the onset of decomposition and carboxylation at atmospheric pressure, indicating a lower energy barrier in the homogeneous process. Further insight into carbonate complex behavior was obtained through DOSY and 13C NMR experiments, which support increased molecular association in solution and correlate with enhanced reactivity.

Electrowetting on dielectric-based digital microfluidic platforms (EWOD-DMF) have a potential to impact point-of-care diagnostics. Conventionally, EWOD-DMF platforms are manufactured in cleanrooms by expert technicians using costly and time consuming micro-nanofabrication processes such as optical lithography, depositions and etching. However, such high-end microfabrication facilities are extremely challenging to establish in resource-poor and low-income countries, due to their high capital investment and operating costs. This makes the fabrication of EWOD-DMF platforms extremely challenging in low-income countries, where such platforms are most needed for many applications such as point-of-care testing applications. To address this challenge, we present a low-cost and simple fabrication procedure for EWOD-DMF electrode arrays, which can be performed anywhere with a commercial office inkjet printer without the need of expensive cleanroom facilities. We demonstrate the utility of our platform to move and mix droplets of different reagents and physiologically conductive buffers, thereby showing its capability to potentially perform a variety of biochemical assays. By combining our low-cost, inkjet-printed EWOD-DMF platform with smartphone imaging technology and a compact control system for droplet manipulation, we also demonstrate a portable and hand-held device which can be programmed to potentially perform a variety of biochemical assays.

This study examines the impact of Dimethylformamide, DMF/Acetone ratio (60/40, 70/30 and 100/0) and stirring time (16 hours and 24 hours) on Polyvinylidene Fluoride electrospun fibers. Total of six samples were prepared at 12% solution concentration were electrospun at 20 kV, 10 cm tip-to-collector distance, and 1 mL/h flow rate. Morphological analysis showed that a 70/30 ratio produced finer fibers with fewer beads than 60/40 ratio, while prolonged stirring increased fiber diameter. Electrical analysis confirmed the lowest resistance and highest conductivity for these fibers. The 70/30 ratio and 16-hour stirring time technique optimized fiber structure and electrical performance for advanced applications.