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X-ray radiography is currently used in dentistry and can be divided into two categories: two-dimensional (2D) radiographic images (e.g., using periapical film, cephalometric film, and panoramic X-ray) and three-dimensional (3D) radiographic images (e.g., using dental cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT)). Among them, 2D periapical film images are most commonly used. However, 2D periapical film compresses 3D image information into a 2D image, which means that depth cannot be identified from the image. Such compressed images lose a considerable amount of information, reducing their clinical applicability. A 2.5D periapical radiography system prototype was developed by our research team. Our previous study indicated that this prototype could be used to capture images at different depths of an object. However, the prototype was limited by its commercially available intraoral periapical sensor, which had a low temporal resolution and could not capture multiple images in a short period of time. Therefore, the total time required for image capture was too long for practical clinical application. The present study developed a high-frame-rate intraoral periapical sensor with a sensor imaging speed of up to 15 Hz. The primary components of the developed intraoral periapical sensor include a scintillator, complementary metal oxide semiconductor chip, component circuit board, and video processing board. The external dimensions of the sensor are 41×26×6.6 mm3. The performance of the developed high-frame-rate intraoral periapical sensor was verified through qualified and quantified analyses using line pairs. The results showed that the resolution of the developed intraoral periapical sensor could reach 18 lp/mm. The sensor was further installed in our 2.5D periapical radiography system to conduct image capturing. The results indicated that the developed sensor could be used for high-frame-rate imaging to incorporate tomosynthesis to obtain reconstructed slice images of different depths. The developed sensor has the potential for clinical dentistry applications in the future.

Brucellosis is an important zoonotic disease worldwide, caused by Brucella spp., which are facultative intracellular bacteria with no classic virulence factors, as virulence is dependent on the ability to invade and replicate within host cells. In this study, we identified a novel gene bab_RS22045 that encodes a small highly conserved protein in Rhizobiales. To investigate the role of this gene, a deletion mutant and complement strain were constructed. Virulence testing showed that bab_RS22045 is necessary for Brucella virulence, and was designated as virulence‐related hypothetical protein, VhpA. The results of a cell infection experiment showed that vhpA was not associated with Brucella adherence to and invasion of HeLa cells, or further intracellular survival within RAW264.7 cells. The results of sensitivity testing showed the vhpA mutant had similar sensitivity to hydrogen peroxide, polymyxin B, and sodium nitroprusside as the wild‐type (WT) strain. Interestingly, RNA‐seq analysis showed that deletion of the vhpA gene affected the expression patterns of multiple Brucella genes, and the main four up‐regulated genes and five down‐regulated genes were further confirmed using quantitative real‐time PCR analysis. Subsequently, a series of over‐expression strains were constructed, and virulence testing showed that over‐expression of four up‐regulated genes (bab_RS17930, bab_RS17925, bab_RS26460, and bab_RS30050) significantly reduced virulence of the WT strain, and over‐expression of bab_RS18680 in the vhpA mutant partially restored virulence, suggesting that vhpA plays an important role in Brucella virulence by changing the expression patterns of multiple genes. Additionally, heterogeneous complementary analysis showed that the homologous vhpA genes of Sinorhizobium meliloti and Agrobacterium tumefaciens could not restore virulence of the vhpA mutant, although VhpA is a highly conserved protein in Rhizobiales. Overall, a novel, small, hypothetical gene was identified that is associated with B. abortus virulence, which highlights the roles of small encoding genes in Brucella virulence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Guilu Erxian Jiao (GEJ) is a widely used Chinese herbal remedy for knee osteoarthritis, but its clinical efficacy is unknown. Methods. We enrolled 42 elderly male patients with knee OA, including 21 patients who received the herbal drug GEJ as the case group and 21 patients who did not receive GEJ as the control group. The effects of 12 weeks of GEJ treatment on muscle strength of lower limbs were measured by a Biodex dynamometer, with disability evaluated on the Lequesne index and articular pain measured on the visual analog scale (VAS) between the two groups on the baseline and after treatment. Results. There were significant increases in the levels of muscle strength of TQ/BW-ext-dominant and TQ/BW-flex-dominant between the two groups after treatment (P < 0.05). There were also significant increases in muscle strength of knee extensor muscles in the GEJ-treated group (n = 21) self-controlled before and after 12 weeks of treatment (all P < 0.01). There were significant decreases in articular pain (P < 0.01) and Lequesne index scores (P < 0.01) in the GEJ-treated group when compared to the non-GEJ-treated group. Conclusions. Our results showed that GEJ is effective and is tolerated well in elderly men with knee OA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]