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Background & Objective: The high-throughput analysis of circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) is an active area of biomarker research. The oral cancer remains a common cancer among Pakistani males that continues to present at an advance stage, thus exhibiting poor survival. MiRNA 21 (miR-21) is the most consistently over-expressed miRNA in different types of tumor tissues. However, information regarding expression of miR-21 in plasma remains to be resolved. Therefore, present study was designed to investigate if miR-21 was expressed in plasma of patients with oral cancer, and further explore its diagnostic and prognostic potential. Methods: Present study was conducted at Ziauddin University and Karachi Institute of Radiotherapy and Nuclear Medicine (KIRAN). Histologically confirmed cases of oral squamous cell carcinoma were recruited from Oncology Department of Ziauddin Hospital between 2013 and 2017. Controls were carefully selected after considering age, gender and socioeconomic condition. MiRNA was extracted and immediately reverse transcribed to cDNA. MiR-21 expression was evaluated using probes specifically designed for Real time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Results: A significant over expression of miRNA 21 was observed in histologically confirmed cases as compared to controls. The increased expression of miRNA 21 was also reported to be associated with tumor size, metastasis and local invasion (p<0.05). Conclusion: The expression of circulating miR-21 in plasma samples of oral cancer patients makes it a promising diagnostic and prognostic marker. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To compare clinical retention of a low-shrinkage posterior resin composite by using incremental versus bulk placement technique in deep Class I cavities. Setting: Operative Dentistry Department, Altamash Institute of Dental Medicine, Karachi, Pakistan. Period: 6 months from 1st Oct 2017 - 30th March 2018. Study Design: Randomized control trial. Materials and Methods: This study was a randomized control trial study which consists of total of 94 teeth having class I cavity of 3mm minimum depth on occlusal surface. The restorative material evaluated in this study was Filtek Z250 (3M, ESPE) and the cavities were restored according to two different techniques. Patients in Group A were treated with bulk fill technique and patients in Group B were treated with incremental technique. The retention of the composite were clinically evaluated after 6 months (180 days) post-operatively. SPSS version 23 was used to analyze data. Results: The result of 6 months observation revealed retention of 43(91.4%) incremental fill composite and 39(85.4%) bulk fill composite resin restorations which was statistically insignificant. Conclusion: Outcomes of incremental fill composite resin in terms of retention is equal to bulk fill composite resin with Filtek Z250 (3M, ESPE) in class I restorations of permanent molar teeth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]