10/07/2024


Periodontal disease is an inflammatory, dysbiotic condition. Studies have shown that in the elderly, periodontal disease was associated with cognitive dysfunction and Alzheimer's disease.

To investigate whether young healthy subjects with periodontal disease have lower cognition compared to those without periodontal disease. The salivary cytokines (IL-1β, TNF-α) levels in relation to cognition were also tested.

In a monocenter, cross-sectional study, forty subjects [mean age (SD) = 34 (5) and 48% female] from western Romania were classified into periodontal disease conditions using radiographic assessment 10 subjects had aggressive periodontitis (AGG_P), 20 chronic mild-moderate periodontitis (CR_P), and 10 no periodontitis (NL_P). Neuropsychological assessment performed by standardized neurologists and psychologist included Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT), Montreal Cognitive Assessment test (MOCA), Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and Prague tests. Salivary cytokines levels were determined by ELISA.

RAVLT and MOCA delayed recall scores were lower in AGG_P group compared to NL_P and CR_P. The learning curve was also different with subjects with AGG_P showing reduced learning performance. Contrary to our hypothesis, salivary IL-1β associated with immediate but not delayed cognitive scores.

These results showed for the first time that subjects with AGG_P had cognitive dysfunction and IL-1β may play a role in this process.
These results showed for the first time that subjects with AGG_P had cognitive dysfunction and IL-1β may play a role in this process.Adolescent sleep research has focused heavily on duration and quality with less work examining chronotype, defined as individual differences in sleep-wake timings driven by the circadian rhythm. This study filled a gap in the literature by utilizing actigraphy-based sleep estimates in an accelerated longitudinal design in order to better understand the developmental trajectory and individual stability of chronotype during adolescence, as well as the associations between chronotype with risky behaviors, substance use, and depressive symptoms. A total of 329 adolescents (57% female; 21% Asian American, 31% European American, 41% Latino, 7% other ethnicity) provided actigraphy-based estimates of sleep and completed questionnaires at up to three time points, two years apart, beginning at 14-17 years of age. Multilevel modeling revealed a non-linear developmental trend in chronotype whereby eveningness increased from 14 to 19 years of age followed by a trend toward morningness. Individual differences in chronotype exhibited modest stability during adolescent development. Furthermore, greater evening chronotype was associated with more risky behaviors and substance use among males, and more substance use among older adolescents, whereas depressive symptoms were not associated with chronotype. The findings from this study may have practical implications for adolescent behavioral health interventions targeted at reducing risky behaviors and substance use among youth.Strong school engagement is crucial for school success among adolescents and particularly important for reducing recidivism. Yet, little is known about school engagement among youth serving probation while attending community schools. This study tested the multivariate associations between risk and promotive factors with three components of school engagement (behavioral, cognitive, and emotional). The study's sample was derived from 5,378 intake assessments (23.6% female) of youth entering juvenile probation in a Pacific Northwest county who were assessed as either moderate or high risk for recidivism. The racial composition of the sample was predominantly White or European American (56.0%) and Black or African American (24.2%) and ranged in age from 10 to 19 years old (M = 15.5, SD = 1.46). The results suggest that dimensions of school engagement can be strengthened by increased relational and skill-building supports throughout youth's social ecologies. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/danirixin.html The promotive factors of prosocial attitudes and prosocial community connections were significantly associated with increased school engagement. The implications of these findings are discussed regarding opportunities and strategies that promote school engagement for youth on probation.Limited research has investigated factors that shape White youth's civic action aimed at social change. Investigating the relation between Whiteness and civic action is an essential step toward identifying and cultivating environments that encourage White youth to use their racial privilege to combat inequality through civic engagement. To address this gap in the literature, across two distinct samples, this study investigates the role of White guilt in motivating civic action and the moderating role of civic beliefs. Participants included all young adults who self-identified as White from two online survey studies (Study 1, N = 219 college students, 71.9% Women, 28.1% Men, mean age = 19.6; Study 2, N = 185, 50% current college students, 54.6% Women, 45.4% Men, mean age = 23.9). In Study 1, White guilt related to more civic action. In the context of high social responsibility, White guilt related to more civic action; in the context of low social responsibility, White guilt corresponded with less civic action. In Study 2, White guilt also related to more civic action, and civic efficacy emerged as a potential moderator. Collectively, these results highlight the potential for White guilt to be turned into meaningful civic action, particularly when coupled with civic beliefs.Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a blinding eye disease affecting nearly two million people worldwide. Dogs are affected with a similar illness termed progressive retinal atrophy (PRA). Lapponian herders (LHs) are affected with several types of inherited retinal dystrophies, and variants in PRCD and BEST1 genes have been associated with generalized PRA and canine multifocal retinopathy 3 (cmr3), respectively. However, all retinal dystrophy cases in LHs are not explained by these variants, indicating additional genetic causes of disease in the breed. We collected DNA samples from 10 PRA affected LHs, with known PRCD and BEST1 variants excluded, and 34 unaffected LHs. A genome-wide association study identified a locus on CFA20 (praw = 2.4 × 10-7, pBonf = 0.035), and subsequent whole-genome sequencing of an affected LH revealed a missense variant, c.3176G>A, in the intraflagellar transport 122 (IFT122) gene. The variant was also found in Finnish Lapphunds, in which its clinical relevancy needs to be studied further.