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The article offers a perspective on principles and care pathways for caries management in children. Topics discussed include advances in the science of cariology, evidence-based care pathway for caries management, prevention and restorative strategies, caries risk/susceptibility assessment, shared decision-making in oral healthcare, and active surveillance as part of restorative dental care, advances in clinical caries management for children, improvements for oral health systems.

Microorganisms are the primary aetiological factor of apical periodontitis. The goal of endodontic treatment is to prevent and eliminate the infection by removing the microorganisms. However, microbial biofilms and the complex root canal anatomy impair the disinfection process. Effective and precise endodontic therapy could potentially be achieved using advanced multifunctional technologies that have the ability to access hard‐to‐reach surfaces and perform simultaneous biofilm killing, removal, and detection of microorganisms. Advances in microrobotics are providing novel therapeutic and diagnostic opportunities with high precision and efficacy to address current biofilm‐related challenges in biomedicine. Concurrently, multifunctional magnetic microrobots have been developed to overcome the disinfection challenges of current approaches to disrupt, kill, and retrieve biofilms with the goal of enhancing the efficacy and precision of endodontic therapy. This article reviews the recent advances of microrobotics in healthcare and particularly advances to overcome disinfection challenges in endodontics, and provides perspectives for future research in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While many researchers have focused on the interfacial Rashba effect, bulk Rashba materials have received considerable interest due to their potential to enhance spin–orbit torque (SOT). By utilizing GeTe as a bulk Rashba material in the role of a spin–orbit channel, GeTe/Ni81Fe19 and GeTe/Co40Fe40B20 bilayers are fabricated, and SOTs are investigated using the spin torque ferromagnetic (FM) resonance technique. In this method, damping‐like and field‐like SOTs are extracted individually, excluding thermal effects. Upon analyzing the data, a remarkable field‐like SOT efficiency of 0.40 is obtained from the GeTe/Ni81Fe19 system. This high efficiency is attributed to the enhancement of interfacial spin–orbit coupling through the bulk Rashba effect of the GeTe channel. Moreover, noticeable distinctions in SOTs are observed between the Co40Fe40B20 and Ni81Fe19 interfaces, underscoring the importance of selecting the appropriate FM layer for optimizing SOT efficiency. This study highlights the promising potential of bulk Rashba materials like GeTe in advancing SOT‐based devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nilaparvata lugens, the brown planthopper (BPH), is a serious pest species. BPHs cause significant damage to rice plants in Korea as well as other countries in East and Southeast Asia. As BPHs cannot survive winter in Korea, they annually migrate into Korea from foreign countries. The BPHs found in Korea are believed to originate from China, but most BPHs in China are also known to originate from Southeast Asia. To understand the origin of Korean BPHs, we conducted a genotyping‐by‐sequencing (GBS) study. We sampled BPHs from five locations in Korea and five countries in Southeast Asia and analyzed the GBS and sequencing results using various methods based on the f statistics and admixture graph analyses. We confirmed that the domestic BPHs shared a greater genetic drift than the BPHs from Southeast Asian populations over several years, implying that a continuous genetic substratum of Korea exists. This genetic substratum is genetically closer to BPHs from the southern part (Thailand and Cambodia) of Southeast Asia than to BPHs from the northern part (Bhutan, Myanmar and Laos) of Southeast Asia. In addition, direct gene flows from Southeast Asia seem possible, so Korea is considered a hotspot where diverse BPH populations mix. Therefore, the origin of Korean BPHs extends beyond China and as far as southern Southeast Asia. This result will help to understand and control the population dynamics of the Korean BPH population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Primary cardiac sarcomas are rare and their clinicopathologic features are heterogeneous. Among them, particularly intimal sarcoma is a diagnostic challenge due to nonspecific histologic features. Recently, MDM2 amplification reported to be a characteristic genetic event in the intimal sarcoma. In this study, we aimed to identify the types and incidence of primary cardiac sarcomas that occurred over 25 years in tertiary medical institutions, and to find clinicopatholgical significance through reclassification of diagnoses using additional immunohistochemistry (IHC). Methods: We reviewed the primary cardiac sarcoma cases between January 1993 and June 2018 at Asan Medical Center, South Korea, with their clinicopathologic findings, and reclassified the subtypes, especially using IHC for MDM2 and then, analyzed the significance of prognosis. Results: Forty‐eight (6.8%) cases of a primary cardiac sarcoma were retrieved. The tumors most frequently involved the right atrium (n = 25, 52.1%), and the most frequent tumor subtype was angiosarcoma (n = 23, 47.9%). Seven cases (53.8%) were newly reclassified as an intimal sarcoma by IHC for MDM2. Twenty‐nine (60.4%) patients died of disease (mean, 19.8 months). Four patients underwent a heart transplantation and had a median survival of 26.8 months. This transplantation group tended to show good clinical outcomes in the earlier stages, but this was not statistically significant (p = 0.318). MDM2 positive intimal sarcoma showed the better overall survival (p = 0.003) than undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma. Adjuvant treatment is beneficial for patient survival (p < 0.001), particularly in angiosarcoma (p < 0.001), but not in intimal sarcoma (p = 0.154). Conclusion: Our study supports the use of adjuvant treatment in primary cardiac sarcoma, as it was associated with a significantly better overall survival rate. Further consideration of tumor histology may be important in determining the optimal use of adjuvant treatment for different types of sarcomas. Therefore, accurate diagnosis by MDM2 test is important condsidering patient's prognosis and treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dental caries (tooth‐decay) is caused by biofilms harboring polymicrobial communities on teeth that leads to the onset of localized areas of enamel demineralization. Streptococcus mutans has been clinically associated with severe caries in childhood. Although commensal bacteria can combat S. mutans using self‐generated antimicrobials such as hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), constant sugar‐rich diet consumption disrupts microbial homeostasis shifting toward cariogenic community. Recently, Streptococcus oralis subsp. tigurinus strain J22, an oral isolate, was identified as a uniquely potent H2O2 producer. Here, we assess whether a high H2O2‐producing commensal streptococcus can modulate the spatial organization and virulence of S. mutans within biofilms. Using an experimental biofilm model, we find that the presence of S. oralis J22 can effectively inhibit the clustering, accumulation, and spatial organization of S. mutans on ex vivo human tooth surface, resulting in significant reduction of enamel demineralization. Notably, the generation of H2O2 via pyruvate oxidase (SpxB) from S. oralis J22 is not repressed by sugars (a common repressor in other mitis group streptococci), resulting in enhanced inhibition of S. mutans growth (vs. Streptococcus gordonii). We further investigate its impact on biofilm virulence using an in vivo rodent caries model under sugar‐rich diet. Coinfection of S. mutans with S. oralis results in reduced caries development compared to either species infected alone, whereas coinfection with S. gordonii has negligible effects, suggesting that the presence of an efficient, high H2O2‐producer can disrupt S. mutans virulence. This work demonstrates that oral isolates with unusual high H2O2 production may be capable of modulating biofilm cariogenicity in vivo. The findings also highlight the importance of bacterial antagonistic interactions within polymicrobial communities in health and in disease‐causing state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Streptococcus mutans and Candida albicans are frequently detected together in the plaque from patients with early childhood caries (ECC) and synergistically interact to form a cariogenic cross-kingdom biofilm. However, this biofilm is difficult to control. Thus, to achieve maximal efficacy within the complex biofilm microenvironment, nanoparticle carriers have shown increased interest in treating oral biofilms in recent years. Here, we assessed the anti-biofilm efficacy of farnesol (Far), a hydrophobic antibacterial drug and repressor of Candida filamentous forms, against cross-kingdom biofilms employing drug delivery via polymeric nanoparticle carriers (NPCs). We also evaluated the effect of the strategy on teeth enamel demineralization. The farnesol-loaded NPCs (NPC+Far) resulted in a 2-log CFU/mL reduction of S. mutans and C. albicans (hydroxyapatite disc biofilm model). High-resolution confocal images further confirmed a significant reduction in exopolysaccharides, smaller microcolonies of S. mutans, and no hyphal form of C. albicans after treatment with NPC+Far on human tooth enamel (HT) slabs, altering the biofilm 3D structure. Furthermore, NPC+Far treatment was highly effective in preventing enamel demineralization on HT, reducing lesion depth (79% reduction) and mineral loss (85% reduction) versus vehicle PBS-treated HT, while NPC or Far alone had no differences with the PBS. The drug delivery via polymeric NPCs has the potential for targeting bacterial-fungal biofilms associated with a prevalent and costly pediatric oral disease, such as ECC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Topological insulators with surface states are expected to possess perfect spin polarization. Despite the strong potential for spintronic devices, the exact value and gate tuning of spin polarization in topological insulators have not yet been clearly demonstrated. In this research, Ca is doped into the well‐established topological material Bi2Se3 to enhance the spin‐orbit interaction and gate tunability. From the anisotropic magnetoresistance of the Ca‐doped Bi2Se3 channel, an effective magnetic field of ≈10 T is extracted. Also, the carrier types, i.e., p‐ and n‐channels, as well as the spin polarization are modulated by applying an external gate voltage. This work not only suggests a measurement platform to quantitatively estimate the spin characteristics of a topological insulator but also opens a path to realize gate‐controlled pure spin current. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Current approaches for oral health care rely on procedures that are unaffordable to impoverished populations, whereas aerosolized droplets in the dental clinic and poor oral hygiene may contribute to spread of several infectious diseases including COVID‐19, requiring new solutions for dental biofilm/plaque treatment at home. Plant cells have been used to produce monoclonal antibodies or antimicrobial peptides for topical applications to decrease colonization of pathogenic microbes on dental surface. Therefore, we investigated an affordable method for dental biofilm disruption by expressing lipase, dextranase or mutanase in plant cells via the chloroplast genome. Antibiotic resistance gene used to engineer foreign genes into the chloroplast genome were subsequently removed using direct repeats flanking the aadA gene and enzymes were successfully expressed in marker‐free lettuce transplastomic lines. Equivalent enzyme units of plant‐derived lipase performed better than purified commercial enzymes against biofilms, specifically targeting fungal hyphae formation. Combination of lipase with dextranase and mutanase suppressed biofilm development by degrading the biofilm matrix, with concomitant reduction of bacterial and fungal accumulation. In chewing gum tablets formulated with freeze‐dried plant cells, expressed protein was stable up to 3 years at ambient temperature and was efficiently released in a time‐dependent manner using a mechanical chewing simulator device. Development of edible plant cells expressing enzymes eliminates the need for purification and cold‐chain transportation, providing a potential translatable therapeutic approach. Biofilm disruption through plant enzymes and chewing gum‐based delivery offers an effective and affordable dental biofilm control at home particularly for populations with minimal oral care access. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The efficiency of light emitting materials (dopants) is invariably compromised on moving to the red region of the spectra due to the increase of non‐radiative decay. In order to solve the above problem, we designed a new dopant, and realized organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) with excellent performance. We achieved extremely high quantum yield of red dopant, fabricated a device with 33% higher efficiency, and improved roll‐off compared to a device with a current state‐of‐the art emitter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A High‐performance top‐emitting green phosphorescent OLED with a long operational lifetime, an LT of 200% longer and with a high current efficiency, 118% higher than the devices with state‐of‐the art Ir complexes at the luminance of 15,000 cd m−2, was realized using a developed Pt complex and new hole transporting buffer and exciplex host materials. To the best of our knowledge, the current efficiency and lifetime of our achievements at this high luminance are more than 1.5 times higher and 100 times longer, respectively, than those of green phosphorescent OLEDs wit Pt complexes from literatures and materials companies in the world. This high current efficiency was achieved with higher horizontal transition dipole ratio, 86%, and short decay time, 2.4 μs, of our own developed Pt complex. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Esophageal bolus transit can be assessed using esophagogram or high‐resolution impedance manometry (HRIM). The three‐dimensional volume of inverted impedance (VII) has been developed to quantify the residual bolus between each swallow through spatiotemporal analysis. However, this novel metric has not been validated against simultaneous esophagogram. Methods: A total of nine healthy volunteers (Seven males, aged 19‐45 years) were prospectively evaluated with HRIM and barium esophagogram. In addition, 21 symptomatic patients (12 males, aged 20‐85 years) without major motility disorder were also included. The VII was estimated from HRIM data using MATLAB program and was compared with residual bolus volume in the esophagus estimated from simultaneous esophagogram. Key results: A total of 80 swallows (24 in controls and 56 in patients) were analyzed. Results from the VII method were concordant with the bolus transit pattern estimated from the esophagogram in 91.3% (73/80) of swallows. The correlation between quantitative data from VII and the volume of residual bolus estimated from esophagogram was strong in both groups with a Pearson's correlation coefficient of 0.805 for healthy volunteers and 0.730 for symptomatic patients. The intraclass correlation coefficient of VII between the three swallows within a subject was 0.901 in healthy subjects and 0.705 in patients, indicating a modest reliability of this method. Conclusions and inferences: The newly developed VII method is a reliable method in assessing residual bolus volume in the esophagus based on comparison with bolus volume estimated from simultaneous esophagogram. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A higher selectivity to C2−C4 hydrocarbons and clean fuels without significant deactivation during CO hydrogenation by a typical Fischer‐Tropsch synthesis (FTS) was observed on the ordered mesoporous 5wt %Al‐modified Co3O4‐Fe2O3 bimetal oxides (m‐CoFe) at a Co/Fe molar ratio of ∼1, which was prepared by a hard templating and co‐infiltration method. The active sites were related with the partially oxidized Co nanoparticles as well as iron carbides. The structurally stable and strongly interacted ordered Co3O4‐Fe2O3 mesoporous structures were preferentially transformed to more brittle iron carbides with a simultaneous reduction of Co3O4 to metallic Co under a reductive FTS reaction condition. The m‐CoFe(1) itself without using any solid acid component revealed a higher C2−C4 selectivity of 21.1 % and C5+ selectivity of 67.9 % at CO conversion of 88.5 % with the corresponding rate of 2.77 mmol/(gcat⋅s) by enhancing its structural stability due to the partial formations of thermally stable spinel‐type CoFe2O4. The enhanced structural stability of the m‐CoFe(1) was attributed to the preferential formations of the strongly interacted and partially oxidized Co nanoparticles with the formation of active iron carbides as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High‐spin Fe2+, Fe+ and Co2+ ions at linear two‐coordination sites exhibit uniaxial magnetism. In the one‐electron picture, the uniaxial magnetism of the Fe2+ ion is explained, while those of the Fe+ and Co2+ ions are not, if the d‐state split pattern is 1e < 2e < 1a. The opposite is true if the d‐state split pattern is 1a < 1e < 2e. We resolved this conceptual dilemma by evaluating the relative stabilities for the various L states of linear molecules (FeL2)0, (FeL2)–, and (CoL2)0 with L = C(SiH3)3 on the basis of first‐principles broken‐symmetry and configuration interaction calculations. In the first‐principles picture, the total energy of an electron configuration depends not only on the energy sequence of the occupied d‐states, as do the one‐electron picture, but also on the electron repulsion between occupied d‐states, which is neglected by the one‐electron picture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: In multiphase coronary CT angiography (CTA), a series of CT images are taken at different levels of radiation dose during the examination. Although this reduces the total radiation dose, the image quality during the low‐dose phases is significantly degraded. Recently, deep neural network approaches based on supervised learning technique have demonstrated impressive performance improvement over conventional model‐based iterative methods for low‐dose CT. However, matched low‐ and routine‐dose CT image pairs are difficult to obtain in multiphase CT. To address this problem, we aim at developing a new deep learning framework. Method: We propose an unsupervised learning technique that can remove the noise of the CT images in the low‐dose phases by learning from the CT images in the routine dose phases. Although a supervised learning approach is not applicable due to the differences in the underlying heart structure in two phases, the images are closely related in two phases, so we propose a cycle‐consistent adversarial denoising network to learn the mapping between the low‐ and high‐dose cardiac phases. Results: Experimental results showed that the proposed method effectively reduces the noise in the low‐dose CT image while preserving detailed texture and edge information. Moreover, thanks to the cyclic consistency and identity loss, the proposed network does not create any artificial features that are not present in the input images. Visual grading and quality evaluation also confirm that the proposed method provides significant improvement in diagnostic quality. Conclusions: The proposed network can learn the image distributions from the routine‐dose cardiac phases, which is a big advantage over the existing supervised learning networks that need exactly matched low‐ and routine‐dose CT images. Considering the effectiveness and practicability of the proposed method, we believe that the proposed can be applied for many other CT acquisition protocols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carboxylation reactions of diamines were found to proceed rapidly and non‐catalytically, producing corresponding cyclic ureas in excellent yields and selectivities when 2‐pyrrolidone (2‐PY) was used as a solvent. A similar promoting effect with 2‐PY was also observed for the carboxylation of monoamines by carbon dioxide (CO2). Most notably, the carboxylation reactions of mono‐ and diamines conducted in 2‐PY afforded 2–4 times higher yields of corresponding dialkyl ureas and cyclic ureas compared with those in N‐methyl‐2‐pyrrolidone (NMP). Such a dramatic promoting effect using 2‐PY is believed to be associated with the multiple hydrogen bonding interactions between 2‐PY and the CO2‐containing species of amines. Due to such favorable interactions, carboxylation reactions seem to be more facilitated in 2‐PY than in NMP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer, reputed as the king of medicinal herbs, has slow growth, long generation time, low seed production and complicated genome structure that hamper its study. Here, we unveil the genomic architecture of tetraploid P. ginseng by de novo genome assembly, representing 2.98 Gbp with 59 352 annotated genes. Resequencing data indicated that diploid Panax species diverged in association with global warming in Southern Asia, and two North American species evolved via two intercontinental migrations. Two whole genome duplications (WGD) occurred in the family Araliaceae (including Panax) after divergence with the Apiaceae, the more recent one contributing to the ability of P. ginseng to overwinter, enabling it to spread broadly through the Northern Hemisphere. Functional and evolutionary analyses suggest that production of pharmacologically important dammarane‐type ginsenosides originated in Panax and are produced largely in shoot tissues and transported to roots; that newly evolved P. ginseng fatty acid desaturases increase freezing tolerance; and that unprecedented retention of chlorophyll a/b binding protein genes enables efficient photosynthesis under low light. A genome‐scale metabolic network provides a holistic view of Panax ginsenoside biosynthesis. This study provides valuable resources for improving medicinal values of ginseng either through genomics‐assisted breeding or metabolic engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Fibroblast growth factor (FGF) signaling has been implicated in the pathogenesis of pulmonary fibrosis. Mice lacking FGF2 have increased mortality and impaired epithelial recovery after bleomycin exposure, supporting a protective or reparative function following lung injury. To determine whether FGF2 overexpression reduces bleomycin‐induced injury, we developed an inducible genetic system to express FGF2 in type II pneumocytes. Double‐transgenic (DTG) mice with doxycycline‐inducible overexpression of human FGF2 (SPC‐rtTA;TRE‐hFGF2) or single‐transgenic controls were administered intratracheal bleomycin and fed doxycycline chow, starting at either day 0 or day 7. In addition, wild‐type mice received intratracheal or intravenous recombinant FGF2, starting at the time of bleomycin treatment. Compared to controls, doxycycline‐induced DTG mice had decreased pulmonary fibrosis 21 days after bleomycin, as assessed by gene expression and histology. This beneficial effect was seen when FGF2 overexpression was induced at day 0 or day 7 after bleomycin. FGF2 overexpression did not alter epithelial gene expression, bronchoalveolar lavage cellularity or total protein. In vitro studies using primary mouse and human lung fibroblasts showed that FGF2 strongly inhibited baseline and TGFβ1‐induced expression of alpha smooth muscle actin (αSMA), collagen, and connective tissue growth factor. While FGF2 did not suppress phosphorylation of Smad2 or Smad‐dependent gene expression, FGF2 inhibited TGFβ1‐induced stress fiber formation and serum response factor‐dependent gene expression. FGF2 inhibition of stress fiber formation and αSMA requires FGF receptor 1 (FGFR1) and downstream MEK/ERK, but not AKT signaling. In summary, overexpression of FGF2 protects against bleomycin‐induced pulmonary fibrosis in vivo and reverses TGFβ1‐induced collagen and αSMA expression and stress fiber formation in lung fibroblasts in vitro, without affecting either inflammation or epithelial gene expression. Our results suggest that in the lung, FGF2 is antifibrotic in part through decreased collagen expression and fibroblast to myofibroblast differentiation. Copyright © 2018 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Streptococcus mutans strongly influences the development of pathogenic biofilms associated with dental caries. Our understanding of S. mutans behaviour in biofilms is based on a few well‐characterized laboratory strains; however, individual isolates vary widely in genome content and virulence‐associated phenotypes, such as biofilm formation and environmental stress sensitivity. Using an ecological biofilm model, we assessed the impact of co‐cultivation of several S. mutans isolates with Streptococcus oralis and Actinomyces naeslundii on biofilm composition following exposure to sucrose. The laboratory reference strain S. mutans UA159 and clinical isolates Smu44 (most aciduric), Smu56 (altered biofilm formation) and Smu81 (more sensitive to oxidative stress) were used. Our data revealed S. mutans isolates varied in their ability to compete and become dominant in the biofilm after the addition of sucrose, and this difference correlated with sensitivity to H2O2 produced by S. oralis. Smu81 was particularly sensitive to H2O2 and could not compete with S. oralis in mixed‐species biofilm, despite forming robust biofilms on its own. Thus, diminished oxidative stress tolerance in S. mutans isolates can impair their ability to compete in complex biofilms, even in the presence of sucrose, which could influence the progression of a healthy biofilm community to one capable of causing disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Little is known about the pathogenesis or molecular profiles of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis-associated lung cancer (IPF-LC). This study was performed to investigate the genomic profiles of IPF-LC and to explore the possibility of defining potential therapeutic targets in IPF-LC. We assessed genomic profiles of IPF-LC by using targeted exome sequencing (OncoPanel version 2) in 35 matched tumour/normal pairs surgically resected between 2004 and 2014. Germline and somatic variant calling was performed with GATK HaplotypeCaller and MuTect with GATK SomaticIndelocator, respectively. Copy number analysis was conducted with CNVkit, with focal events determined by Genomic Identification of Significant Targets in Cancer 2.0, and pathway analysis (KEGG) with DAVID. Germline mutations in TERT (rs2736100, n = 33) and CDKN1A (rs2395655, n = 27) associated with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis risk were detected in most samples. A total of 410 somatic mutations were identified, with an average of 11.7 per tumour, including 69 synonymous, 177 missense, 17 nonsense, 1 nonstop and 11 splice-site mutations, and 135 small coding indels. Spectra of the somatic mutations revealed predominant C > T transitions despite an extensive smoking history in most patients, suggesting a potential association between APOBEC-related mutagenesis and the development of IPF-LC. TP53 (22/35, 62.9%) and BRAF (6/35, 17.1%) were found to be significantly mutated in IPF-LC. Recurrent focal amplifications in three chromosomal loci (3q26.33, 7q31.2, and 12q14.3) and 9p21.3 deletion were identified, and genes associated with the JAK-STAT signalling pathway were significantly amplified in IPF-LC ( P = 0.012). This study demonstrates that IPF-LC is genetically characterized by the presence of somatic mutations reflecting a variety of environmental exposures on the background of specific germline mutations, and is associated with potentially targetable alterations such as BRAF mutations. Copyright © 2017 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oral microbiology has contributed with invaluable advances in the understanding of polymicrobial diseases. In our vision, although bold, oral microbiology can guide the way to new concepts for the treatment of human polymicrobial diseases and preventative measures to avoid disease development before manifestation. The concept of microbial dysbiosis, defined as an imbalance in microbial diversity leading to an increase in abundance of disease-associated species, is now unequivocally accepted for many biofilm-associated diseases that have both local and systemic implications. [Extracted from the article]

The diamondback moth ( Plutella xylostella) is a globally distributed and important economic pest, and it has developed resistance to all conventional insecticide classes used in the field. Chlorantraniliprole is a new chemical class of insecticide that acts as a conformation-sensitive activator of the insect ryanodine receptor (RyR). In the present study, a field strain (16.3-fold resistance to chlorantraniliprole) was collected in Korea and lab-selected with chlorantraniliprole for more than one year. The resulting strain presented 2,157-fold resistance to chlorantraniliprole. A point mutation (G4946E) in the RyR gene was observed at a high frequency in the resistant strain. Enzyme assays indicated that glutathione S-transferase (GST) and P450 activity in the resistant strain were 2.4- and 1.96-times higher than that of the susceptible strain, respectively. The expression of the RyR, GST (sigma, omega, and zeta) and CYP321E1 gene was higher in the resistant strain than in the susceptible strain. The F1 progeny resulting from reciprocal crosses did not reveal maternal effects or a diamide-susceptible phenotype, which suggests an autosomal nearly recessive mode of inheritance. In addition, we surveyed the susceptibility to 13 insecticides (3 diamides, 2 synthetic pyrethroids, 2 spinosyns, 1 organophosphate, 1 oxadiazine, 1 avermectin, and 3 others) in the chlorantraniliprole-resistant strain. The resistant strain exhibited high cross-resistance to flubendiamide (5,910 fold) and showed no cross-resistance to spinetoram, spinosad, indoxacarb, and metaflumizone. These results can serve as an important basis for guiding the use of insecticides in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The feasibility of a single-domain ferromagnet based on uniaxial magnetic ions was examined. For a noncentrosymmetric uniaxial magnetic ion of magnetic moment μ at a site of local electric dipole moment p, it is unknown to date whether μ prefers to be parallel or antiparallel to μ. The nature of this magnetoelectric interaction was probed in terms of analogical reasoning based on the Rashba effect and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. We show that μ and p prefer an antiparallel arrangement, predict that Fe-doped CaZnOS is a single-domain ferromagnet like a bar magnet, and find the probable cause for the ferromagnetism and weak magnetization hysteresis in Fe-doped hexagonal ZnO and ZnS at very low dopant concentrations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pseudococcus longispinus, a notorious cosmopolitan pest species of mealybugs, known to be distributed indoors in Korea since 2002, is found to be mixed with another species, Pseudococcus orchidicola. Finding P. orchidicola as a pest of tropical plants in Korea is rather unexpected because of their main distribution in the Pacific area and South Asia. However, all the available information from morphology, molecule and advice on identification from mealybug specialists indicates this is the best match for P. orchidicola. Morphological, molecular and some biological notes on P. orchidicola are provided with some adult and nymphal images, and compared with P. longispinus. A full discussion mainly on identity and distribution of P. orchidicola is given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we utilized picosecond pulses from an Nd:YAG laser to investigate the nonlinear optical characteristics of monolayer MoSe2. Two-step growth involving the selenization of pulsed-laser-deposited MoO3 film was employed to yield the MoSe2 monolayer on a SiO2/Si substrate. Raman scattering, photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy, and atomic force microscopy verified the high optical quality of the monolayer. The second-order susceptibility χ(2) was calculated to be ∼50 pm V−1 at the second harmonic wavelength [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seven genomic clones of tobacco ( N icotiana tabacum W38) cytosolic class I small heat shock proteins ( sHSPs), probably representing all members in the class, were isolated and found to have 66 to 92% homology between their nucleotide sequences. Even though all seven sHSP genes showed heat shock-responsive accumulation of their transcripts and proteins, each member showed discrepancies in abundance and timing of expression upon high-temperature stress. This was mainly the result of transcriptional regulation during mild stress conditions and transcriptional and translational regulation during strong stress conditions. Open reading frames ( ORFs) of these genomic clones were expressed in E scherichia coli and the sHSPs were purified from E . coli. The purified tobacco sHSPs rendered citrate synthase and luciferase soluble under high temperatures. At room temperature, non-denaturing pore exclusion polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis on three sHSPs demonstrated that the sHSPs spontaneously formed homo-oligomeric complexes of 200 ∼ 240 kDa. However, under elevated temperatures, hetero-oligomeric complexes between the sHSPs gradually prevailed. Atomic force microscopy showed that the hetero-oligomer of NtHSP18.2/ NtHSP18.3 formed a stable oligomeric particle similar to that of the NtHSP18.2 homo-oligomer. These hetero-oligomers positively influenced the revival of thermally inactivated luciferase. Amino acid residues mainly in the N-terminus are suggested for the exchange of the component sHSPs and the formation of dominant hetero-oligomers under high temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cotton aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover ( Hemiptera: Aphididae), is an important sap-sucking pest of many plants, including melons and peppers. This study was conducted to determine the effects of sublethal exposure to flonicamid and imidacloprid and the mechanisms by which these insecticides affect the feeding behavior of A. gossypii. The median lethal concentrations ( LC50) of flonicamid and imidacloprid for adult A. gossypii were 2.40 and 1.92 mg l−1, respectively. The lower lethal concentrations of flonicamid were 1.01 mg l−1 ( LC30) and 0.29 mg l−1 ( LC10), and those of imidacloprid were 0.82 mg l−1 ( LC30) and 0.24 mg l−1 ( LC10). The developmental period of A. gossypii nymphs at LC30 was 3.6 days for both insecticides, which was shorter than that of the untreated controls (4.2 days). Longevity and total fecundity of A. gossypii adults were decreased at the sublethal concentrations of both insecticides. The lowest net reproductive rate was observed in A. gossypii treated with the LC30 of flonicamid. Feeding behavior analyses using an electrical penetration graph showed that sublethal concentrations of flonicamid and imidacloprid had significant effects on the duration of phloem ingestion. Higher doses of flonicamid induced starvation by inhibiting phloem ingestion, whereas imidacloprid acted as a contact toxin rather than an inhibitor of feeding behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT The extracellular matrix (ECM) consists of a complex mixture of biochemical and physical stimuli that together regulate cell behavior. In this study, we engineer a model ECM consisting of fibrillar Type-1 collagen plus fibronectin that allows systematic examination of the effects of matrix composition and mechanics on cells. On this combined protein matrix, cells exhibit intermediate degrees of spreading and proliferation compared to their responses on collagen or fibronectin alone. Adhesion to the combination matrix could be blocked by peptides containing the sequence arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) and by antibodies against α1 integrin, suggesting cell-matrix engagement was mediated by a combination of integrin receptors that recognize fibronectin and collagen. Regardless of integrin engagement, cells were sensitive to the mechanical properties of the combination ECM, suggesting that cells could process biochemical and mechanical cues simultaneously and independently. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2013;110: 2731-2741. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Epithelial cells of developing embryonic organs, such as salivary glands, can display substantial motility during branching morphogenesis. Their dynamic movements and molecules involved in their migration are not fully characterized. Results: We generated transgenic mice expressing photo-convertible KikGR and tracked the movements of individual cells highlighted by red fluorescence in different regions of developing salivary glands. Motility was highest for outer bud epithelial cells adjacent to the basement membrane, lower in inner bud cells, and lowest in duct cells. The highly motile outer cells contacting the basement membrane were pleomorphic, whereas inner cells were rounded. Peripheral cell motility was disrupted by antibodies inhibiting α6+β1 integrins and the nonmuscle myosin II inhibitor blebbistatin. Inner bud cell migration was unaffected by these inhibitors, but their rate of migration was stimulated by inhibiting E-cadherin. Conclusions: Cell motility in developing salivary glands was highest in cells in contact with the basement membrane. The basement membrane-associated motility of these outer bud cells depended on integrins and myosin II, but not E-cadherin. In contrast, motility of inner bud cells was restrained by E-cadherin. These findings identify the importance of integrin-dependent basement membrane association for the morphology, tissue organization, and lateral motility of morphogenetic epithelial cells. Developmental Dynamics 242:1066-1077, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A suite of three tetraruthenium metallacycles have been obtained from [2+2] self-assemblies between N, N′-Di-(4-pyridyl)-1,4,5,8-naphthalenetetracarbo-xydiimide ( 4) and one of the three dinuclear arene ruthenium clips, (η6- p- iPrC6H4Me)2Ru2( OO∩OO)][OTf]2 ( OO∩OO=oxalate 1, 2,5-dioxydo-1,4-benzoquinonato (dobq) 2, 5,8-dihydroxy-1,4-naphthaquinonato (donq) 3; OTf=triflate). All complexes were isolated in good yield (>85 %) as triflate salts and were fully characterized by using 1H NMR and UV/Vis spectroscopies, and high-resolution electrospray mass spectrometry. A single crystal of the metallarectangle 5 was suitable for X-ray diffraction structural characterization. The biological activities of the metallacycles were determined by using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assays, establishing their in vitro anticancer properties. Our results show that for the AGC (gastric cancer) cell lines, the cytotoxicity of (donq)-containing SCC 7 exceeds that of cisplatin, which was used as a control. For HCT15 (colon cancer) cell lines, the cytotoxicity is comparable to both cisplatin and doxorubicin. An in vivo hollow fiber model was used to show growth-inhibitory activity against HCT15 and image-based cytometry experiments indicated that 7 induced apoptosis as the mode of cell death. Complex 7 also showed significant antitumor activity for multidrug-resistant HCT15/CLO2 cell lines, for which doxorubicin was ineffective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The synthesis of six new [2+2] metallarectangles through the coordination-driven self-assembly of octahedral RuII-based acceptors with ambidentate pyridyl-carboxylate donors is described. These molecular rectangles are fully characterized by 1H NMR spectroscopy, high-resolution electrospray mass spectrometry, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. In each case, despite the possible formation of multiple isomers, based on the relative orientation of the pyridyl and carboxylate groups (head-to-head versus head-to-tail), evidence for the formation of a single preferred ensemble (head-to-tail) was found in the 1H NMR spectra. Furthermore, the cytotoxicities of all of the rectangles were established against A549 (lung), AGS (gastric), HCT-15 (colon), and SK hep 1 (liver) human cancer cell lines. The cytotoxicities of rectangles that contained the 5,8-dihydroxy-1,4-naphthaquinonato bridging moiety between the Ru centers ( 9- 11) were particularly high against AGS cancer cells, with IC50 values that were comparable to that of reference drug cisplatin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Monochamus saltuarius is a vector for pine wilt disease that causes enormous damage to native pine trees in Korea. To develop a biological control method for this pine wilt disease vector, an entomopathogenic fungus was isolated from the cadaver of an adult M. saltuarius supporting fungal conidiation. This fungus was named MsW1 and identified as Beauveria bassiana by microscopic examination, PCR amplification using B. bassiana -specific primers and genetic sequencing of the ITS and EF1-α regions. Virulence tests against M. saltuarius were conducted with conidial suspensions (1 × 108 conidia/ml) of B. bassiana MsW1 in laboratory conditions. The median lethal times (LT50) of adults and larvae were 7.2 and 7 days, and 100% mortality was observed at 11 and 13 days after inoculation, respectively. This is the first characterization of B. bassiana from M. saltuarius. (© 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This investigational study assessed the suppressive effect of 10 percent povidone iodine (PI) coupled with elimination of active carious lesions on salivary mutans streptococci (MS) populations in children with severe early childhood caries (S-ECC). 77 children (38 females, 39 males) were treated for S- ECC in one session; a 0.2 ml PI solution was applied to the dentition after dental surgery was completed and immediately wiped off. The subjects aged from 2 to 5 years (mean = 3.78 years) at baseline. Whole nonstimulated saliva samples were obtained at baseline, 30 days, 60 days, and 90 days post dental surgery. Samples were placed on ice and processed within 2 hours. The MS level in each sample was expressed as colony forming units (CFUs) per ml of saliva. Approximately 50 percent of subjects had a >95 percent reduction in CFU/ml of saliva at each time point after baseline. The percentages of subjects with a >50 percent reduction in MS level were 85 percent at 30 days, 83 percent at 60 days, 84 percent at 90 days. The median (25, 75 percentiles) CFUs/ml of saliva counts were 8.40 × 10 (1.49 × 10, 5.00 × 10) at baseline (n = 77), 4.12 × 10 (8.40 × 10, 1.89 × 10) at 30 days (n = 74), 4.62 × 10 (7.00 × 10, 1.36 × 10) at 60 days (n = 70), and 5.09 × 10 (1.16 × 10, 1.00 × 10) at 90 days (n = 70). The changes from baseline to 30 days, 60 days, and 90 days were statistically significant (P < 0.0001). PI coupled with dental surgery has a significant suppressive effect on salivary MS levels in the setting of S-ECC for at least 90 days. These data strongly suggest that treatment with PI may be an important adjunct to dental surgery for S-ECC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the pattern of salivary and serum proteins present in pellicles formed on titanium (Ti) and zirconia ceramic (ZrO2) surfaces, and the ability of bacterial cells to adhere to the experimental pellicles. In addition, the protein profiles and bacterial binding properties of pellicles on Ti and ZrO2 were compared to those formed on hydroxyapatite (HA) surface. Methods: The pellicles were formed in vitro by incubating the materials with whole saliva, serum or saliva+serum. Protein composition in each of the pellicles was investigated by SDS-PAGE and immunodetection. The adherence of radiolabeled Streptococcus mutans and Actinomyces naeslundii to uncoated surfaces and experimental pellicles was determined by means of scintillation counting. Statistical analyses were done using ANOVA and Tukey's test at significance level at P<0.05. In general, the electrophoretic analysis of the pellicles formed on HA, Ti and ZrO2 revealed few qualitative differences of the composition of proteins of the pellicles formed on HA, Ti and ZrO2 surfaces. Pellicle components identified included amylase, IgA, IgG, albumin, fibronectin and fibrinogen. The number of S. mutans cells adhered to uncoated Ti and ZrO2 was significantly higher than those adhered to HA ( P<0.05). In contrast, lower number of A. naeslundii cells adhered to uncoated Ti and ZrO2 than to HA ( P<0.05). However, the presence of saliva and saliva+serum pellicles greatly reduced the number of S. mutans cells bound to each of the surfaces. The data showed that Ti and ZrO2 display similar pellicle protein composition and bacterial binding properties; however, significant differences were observed when both materials were compared to HA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]