OBJECTIVE: To develop an original-mirror alignment associated deep learning algorithm for intelligent registration of three-dimensional maxillofacial point cloud data, by utilizing a dynamic graph-based registration network model (maxillofacial dynamic graph registration network, MDGR-Net), and to provide a valuable reference for digital design and analysis in clinical dental applications. METHODS: Four hundred clinical patients without significant deformities were recruited from Peking University School of Stomatology from October 2018 to October 2022. Through data augmentation, a total of 2 000 three-dimensional maxillofacial datasets were generated for training and testing the MDGR-Net algorithm. These were divided into a training set (1 400 cases), a validation set (200 cases), and an internal test set (200 cases). The MDGR-Net model constructed feature vectors for key points in both original and mirror point clouds (X, Y), established correspondences between key points in the X and Y point clouds based on these feature vectors, and calculated rotation and translation matrices using singular value decomposition (SVD). Utilizing the MDGR-Net model, intelligent registration of the original and mirror point clouds were achieved, resulting in a combined point cloud. The principal component analysis (PCA) algorithm was applied to this combined point cloud to obtain the symmetry reference plane associated with the MDGR-Net methodology. Model evaluation for the translation and rotation matrices on the test set was performed using the coefficient of determination (R²). Angle error evaluations for the three-dimensional maxillofacial symmetry reference planes were constructed using the MDGR-Net-associated method and the "ground truth" iterative closest point (ICP)-associated method were conducted on 200 cases in the internal test set and 40 cases in an external test set. RESULTS: Based on testing with the three-dimensional maxillofacial data from the 200-case internal test set, the MDGR-Net model achieved an R² value of 0.91 for the rotation matrix and 0.98 for the translation matrix. The average angle error on the internal and external test sets were 0.84°±0.55° and 0.58°±0.43°, respectively. The construction of the three-dimensional maxillofacial symmetry reference plane for 40 clinical cases took only 3 seconds, with the model performing optimally in the patients with skeletal Class Ⅲ malocclusion, high angle cases, and Angle Class Ⅲ orthodontic patients. CONCLUSION This study proposed the MDGR-Net association method based on intelligent point cloud registration as a novel solution for constructing three-dimensional maxillofacial symmetry reference planes in clinical dental applications, which can significantly enhance diagnostic and therapeutic efficiency and outcomes, while reduce expert dependence.
Humans ; Deep Learning ; Algorithms ; Imaging, Three-Dimensional/methods* ; Male ; Female ; Maxilla/diagnostic imaging* ; Adult

Background Existing studies have confirmed that fine particulate matter (PM_2.5)is one of the important factors inducing pulmonary fibrosis. Pulmonary fibrosis is the terminal stage of a major category of lung diseases characterized by the destruction of tissue structure, and eventually leading lung ventilation and ventilation dysfunction. No effective pulmonary fibrosis treatment is available yet. Objective To investigate the protective effect of salidroside on pulmonary fibrosis induced by the exposure of PM_2.5 and its molecular mechanism. Methods Seventy 7-week-old male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into four groups: control group (intratracheal instillation of normal saline + saline by gavage, n=25), Sal group (intratracheal instillation of normal saline + Sal 60 mg·kg⁻¹ by gavage, n=10), PM_2.5 group (intratracheal instillation of PM_2.5 5 mg·kg⁻¹ + saline by gavage, n=10), and Sal + PM_2.5 group (intratracheal instillation of PM_2.5 5 mg·kg⁻¹ +Sal 60 mg·kg⁻¹ by gavage, n=10). The mice were administered by gavage once daily, intratracheal instillation once every 3 d, and every 3 d constituted an experimental cycle. At the end of the 26-30th cycles, 3 mice in the control group and 3 mice in the PM_2.5 group were randomly sacrificed, and the lung tissues were collected for Masson staining to verify whether the pulmonary fibrosis model was successfully established. After 30 cycles, the model was successfully constructed. After 1 week of continuous observation, the mice were sacrificed, and the blood and lung tissues of the mice were collected to make lung tissue sections. Assay kits were correspondingly employed to detect oxidative stress indicators such as serum malondialdehyde (MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD). Western blotting was used to detect the expression of fibrosis-related proteins (Collagen-III, α-SMA), mitochondrial dynamics-related proteins (MFN1, Drp1), and mitophagy-related proteins (PINK1, Parkin, and LC3). Results Compared with the control group, the weight gain rate of the PM_2.5 group was slowed down (P<0.05), which was alleviated by the Sal intervention (P<0.05). The lung coefficient increased after the PM_2.5 exposure (P<0.05), which was alleviated by Sal intervention. Compared with the control group, the PM_2.5 group showed severe alveolar structure damage, inflammatory cell infiltration, and blue collagen deposition, and significantly increased the lung injury score, collagen volume fraction (CVF), Szapiel score, and Ashcroft score (P<0.05), as well as serum oxidative stress levels (P<0.05). The protein expression levels of Collagen-III, α-SMA, Drp1, PINK1, Parkin, and LC3 II/I were increased (P<0.05), and the expression of MFN1 was decreased (P<0.05). Compared with the PM_2.5 group, the Sal intervention alleviated lung injury, reduced inflammatory cell infiltration and collagen deposition, showing decreased lung injury score, CVF, Szapiel score, and Ashcroft score (P<0.05), and decreased serum oxidative stress levels (P<0.05); the protein expression levels of Collagen-III, α-SMA, PINK1, Parkin, and LC3 II/I were decreased (P<0.05), the expression level of Drp1 was decreased, and the expression level of MFN1 was increased. Conclusion In the process of pulmonary fibrosis induced by PM_2.5 exposure in mice, Sal may affect mitochondrial autophagy through PINK1/Parkin pathway and play a protective role. The specific mechanism needs to be further verified.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the repeatability and reliability of a self-developed domestic wireless surface electromyography (sEMG) system (Oralmetry) in assessing the activity of the temporalis and masseter muscles to provide theoretical support for its clinical application. METHODS: Twenty-two volunteers were recruited. Through multiple repeated measurements, the sEMG signals of bilateral anterior temporalis and masseter muscles during maximum voluntary clenching were collected using the self-developed sEMG device, Oralmetry, and two commercial sEMG devices (Zebris and Teethan), filtered, screened, and standardized. Seven sEMG indicators for assessing masticatory muscle function were calculated. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was used to evaluate the repeatability of the measurements from the three sEMG devices, and statistical analysis was conducted to compare the consistency of the seven sEMG indicators obtained from the devices. RESULTS: Among the 22 participants, the ICC values of the repeated measurements from the three sEMG devices ranged from 0.88 to 0.99. The measurements of three sEMG indicators (antero-posterior coeffificient, percentage overlapping coeffificient_MM, and percentage overlapping coeffificient_TA) obtained by Zebris were significantly different from those obtained by Oralmetry and Teethan (P<0.05). No significant differences in the measurements of the seven sEMG indicators were found between Oralmetry and Teethan. CONCLUSIONS Oralmetry and the two commercial sEMG devices demonstrated good repeatability in capturing sEMG indicators for evaluating masticatory muscle function. In particular, Oralmetry showed the highest ICC values. All three devices also exhibited good consistency in measuring sEMG indicators, and a high agreement was observed between the two wireless sEMG devices (Oralmetry and Teethan). These findings provide theoretical support for the clinical application of Oralmetry.
Humans ; Electromyography/methods* ; Masseter Muscle/physiology* ; Masticatory Muscles/physiology* ; Wireless Technology ; Reproducibility of Results ; Temporal Muscle/physiology* ; Male ; Adult ; Female ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the accuracy of a self-developed extraoral scanning system based on four-camera stereophotogrammetric technology in the acquisition of three-dimensional positional information on dental implants and conduct a comparative study involving an intraoral scanning system. METHODS: With the use of an in vitro edentulous jaw model with implants, extraoral (experimental group) and intraoral (control group) scanning systems were employed to obtain STL (Standard Tessellation Language) datasets containing three-dimensional morphological and positional information on scan bodies. In addition, a dental model scanner was used to obtain reference data. The three-dimensional morphological, linear, and angular deviations between groups and reference data were analyzed using Geomagic Wrap 2021 software to compare trueness and precision. RESULTS: The extraoral scanning system demonstrated superior trueness in three-dimensional morphological, linear, and angular deviations compared with the intraoral scanning system, with statistically significant differences (P<0.001). The extraoral scanning system also showed a higher precision in three-dimensional morphological deviation (P<0.001). As the number of implants increased, the extraoral scanning system exhibited increased three-dimensional morphological and linear deviations (P<0.001) but maintained a stable angular deviation. The intraoral scanning system displayed significant increases in three-dimensional morphological, linear, and angular deviations with the increase in the number of implants (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS The stereophotogrammetry-based extraoral scanning system outperforms intraoral scanning system in terms of the accuracy for multi-unit implant positioning and provides a novel approach for attaining a fully digital workflow for implant rehabilitation in edentulous jaws.
Jaw, Edentulous ; Humans ; Dental Impression Technique ; Dental Implants ; Imaging, Three-Dimensional/methods* ; Photogrammetry/methods* ; Models, Dental

Background Salidroside (SAL) has a protective effect on multiple organ systems. Exposure to fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) in the atmosphere may lead to disruptions in gut microbiota and impact intestinal health. The regulatory effect of SAL on the gut microbiota of mice exposed to PM_2.5 requires further investigation. Objective To evaluate gut microbiota disruption in mice after being exposed to PM_2.5 and the potential effect of SAL. Methods Forty male C57BL/6 mice, aged 6 to 8 weeks, were randomly divided into four groups: a control group, an SAL group, a PM_2.5 group, and an SAL+PM_2.5 group, each containing 10 mice. In the SAL group and the SAL+PM_2.5 group, the mice were administered SAL (60 mg·kg⁻¹) by gavage, while in the control group and the PM_2.5 group, sterile saline (10 mL·kg⁻¹) was administered by gavage. In the PM_2.5 group and the SAL+PM_2.5 group, PM_2.5 suspension (8 mg·kg⁻¹) was intratracheally instilled, and in the control group and SAL group, sterile saline (1.5 mL·kg⁻¹) was intratracheally administered. Each experiment cycle spanned 2 d, with a total of 10 cycles conducted over 20 d. Histopathological changes in the ileum tissue of the mice were observed after HE staining. Colon contents were collected for gut microbiota sequencing and short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) measurements. Results The PM_2.5 group showed infiltration of inflammatory cells in the ileum tissue, while the SAL+PM_2.5 group exhibited only a small amount of inflammatory cell infiltration. Compared to the control group, the PM_2.5 group showed decreased Shannon index (P<0.05) and increased Simpson index (P<0.05), indicating that the diversity of gut microbiota in this group was decreased; the SAL+PM_2.5 group showed increased Shannon index compared to the PM_2.5 group (P<0.05) and decreased Simpson index (P<0.05), indicating that the diversity of gut microbiota in mice intervened with SAL was increased. The principal coordinates analysis (PCoA) revealed a significant separation between the PM_2.5 group and the control group, while the separation trend was less evident among the control group, the SAL group, and the SAL+PM_2.5 group. The unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic means (UPGMA) clustering tree results showed that the control group and the SAL group clustered together first, followed by clustering with the SAL+PM_2.5 group, and finally, the three groups clustered with the PM_2.5 group. The PCoA and UPGMA clustering results indicated that the uniformity and similarity of the microbiota in the PM_2.5 group were significantly decreased. Compared to the control group, the PM_2.5 group showed decreased abundance of phylum Bacteroidetes and Candidatus_Saccharimonas (P<0.05) and increased abundance of phylum Proteobacteria, genus Escherichia, genus Bacteroides, genus Prevotella, genus Enterococcus, and genus Proteus (P<0.05). Compared to the PM_2.5 group, the SAL+PM_2.5 group showed decreased abundance of phylum Proteobacteria, phylum Actinobacteria, genus Prevotella, and genus Proteus (P<0.05), and increased abundance of Candidatus_Saccharimonas (P<0.05). The PM_2.5 group showed reduced levels of propionic acid, valeric acid, and hexanoic acid compared to the control group (P<0.05), while the SAL+PM_2.5 group showed increased levels of propionic acid, isobutyric acid, butyric acid, valeric acid, and hexanoic acid compared to the PM_2.5 group (P<0.05). Conclusion Exposure to PM_2.5 can cause pathological alterations, microbial dysbiosis, and disturbing production of SCFAs in intestinal tissue in mice. However, SAL can provide a certain degree of protective effect against these changes.

Objective:To screen differentially expressed circular RNA (circRNA) in rat articular chondrocyte injury induced by T-2 toxin, and explore the mechanism of cartilage injury.Methods:Twenty-four SD rats (males, body weight 60 - 80 g) were randomly divided into T-2 toxin group (administrated T-2 toxin 100 ng·g -1·d -1 by gavage) and control group (administrated equal amounts of deionized water by gavage) using a random number table method, 12 rats in each group. After 4 weeks of intervention, the articular cartilage was collected for transcriptome sequencing. Deseq2 software [ P < 0.05 and |log 2(fold change)| > 1, fold change was the multiple of differential expression] was used to identify differentially expressed circRNA. Based on the competing endogenous RNAs (ceRNA) hypothesis, the miRanda software was used to predict the microRNA (miRNA, miR) binding sites of differentially expressed circRNA, and Cytoscape 3.10.0 software was used to plot the circRNA-miRNA interaction network. MiRWalk 3.0, MiRDB, and miRTarBase softwares were used to predict downstream target genes, and Cytoscape 3.10.0 software was used to map the circRNA-miRNA-mRNA interaction network. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) were used to analyze the biological functions and enrichment pathways of target genes. Results:A total of 19 differentially expressed circRNAs were screened (including 10 upregulated and 9 downregulated). A total of 1 320 miRNAs binding sites and 16 target genes were predicted. Target gene enrichment analysis revealed significant enrichment of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) signaling pathway ( P < 0.05). Tumour necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 6 (Traf6) and interleukin-1 receptor-associated kinase 1 (Irak1) were enriched in the MAPK and NF-κB signaling pathways, with corresponding miRNA and circRNA of miR-146a-5p and chr2: 94716330|94720889. Conclusion:Nineteen differentially expressed circRNAs in rat articular chondrocyte injury are successfully screened, and chr2: 94716330|94720889 may regulate the MAPK and NF-κB signaling pathways through the miR-146a-5p/Traf6/Irak1 axis, inducing articular chondrocyte injury.

Objective:To explore the method of obtaining the key parameters of the average value articulator in healthy people based on mandibular movement trajectory data, with a view to providing a reference for the clinical application of the average value articulator.Methods:One hundred healthy volunteers (42 males and 58 females) with individual normal occlusion, aged 18-55 years old, who met the inclusion criteria were recruited from Beijing, and their mandibular movement trajectory data were collected. The left and right sagittal condylar inclination(SCI) and transversal condylar inclination(TCI) were obtained from the values of the articulator parameters which were generated in the mandibular movement analysis system.The SCI and TCI were grouped by gender and calculated separately for the two groups and the overall sample; the gender differences in the two parameters and the differences between the mean values of the two parameters and the average value articulator empirical values (35° for SCI and 15° for TCI) for the overall sample were compared.Results:The differences between SCI (35.8°±7.4°) and TCI [11.2° (11.3°)] in males and the corresponding parameters [35.6°±8.3° and 10.8° (9.5°), respectively] in females were not statistically significant ( t=0.10, P=0.922; Z=-0.60, P=0.552); the overall sample SCI (35.7°±7.9°) did not differ statistically from the average value articulator empirical value ( t=1.23, P=0.221), and the overall sample TCI [10.9° (10.3°)] was significantly smaller than the average value articulator empirical value ( W=5 825.00, P<0.001). Conclusions:The mandibular movement trajectory data of 100 adults with individual normal occlusion in this study shows that the gender factor does not affect the setting of the key parameters of the average value articulator, the SCI of the average value articulator empirical values is appropriate, and the TCI has the possibility of being on the large side. In the clinical use of the articulator to assist in the design of restorations, the parameter values should be rationally adjusted according to the actual situation of the patient′s dentition and mandibular movement.

Objective:To explore the cognition and behavior of nurses in blood purification centers on the quality of death of patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis.Methods:The descriptive phenomenological research method was adopted. From August to October 2022, a total of 14 nurses from blood purification centers in three hospitals, namely Beijing Union Medical College Hospital, Beijing Hospital and Beijing Chaoyang Hospital were selected as interview subjects by the purposive sampling method. Semi-structured in-depth interview method was used to collect data, and Colaizzi 7-step analysis method was used to analyze data.Results:The cognition and behavior of nurses in the blood purification center towards the quality of death of maintenance hemodialysis patients were analyzed into four themes, namely factors affecting the quality of death of patients, convenient conditions for nurses to carry out quality of death improvement work, proactive measures taken by nurses to improve the quality of death and obstacles in the process of improving the quality of death of patients.Conclusions:The nurses in the blood purification centers have special characteristics in their feelings about the death of patients with maintenance hemodialysis, and they have certain cognition and judgment about the quality of death of patients. Managers need to pay attention to the relevant needs and suggestions of the nurses in the blood purification centers and provide help and guidance, so as to continuously improve the quality of patient death and achieve the goal of optimal death of patients.

Acute respiratory tract infection is the most common infectious disease in children, which seriously threatens children′s health.Rapid and accurate etiological diagnosis is of great significance for the clinical treatment and control of these diseases.Pathogen nucleic acid test was applied and became the main method of respiratory tract infection diagnosis for its high sensitivity and specificity.To regulate the application of pathogen nucleic acid amplification test in respiratory tract infection in children, improve the diagnosis level, expert consensus on nucleic acid amplification test of respiratory pathogens in children was prepared to guide the application and promote pathogens diagnosis ability.

Objective:To investigate the correlation of intratumoral fibrosis with the prognosis of clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC).Methods:The correlation of the transcriptional expression of the primary collagen with the prognosis in ccRCC was evaluated using the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, including 530 ccRCC patients with complete information. Of them, 344 cases were male, 186 cases were female. The age of 264 cases was ≤ 60 years, and the age of 266 cases was > 60 years. The pathology grade of 241 patients was G 1-2 grade, and the pathology of 281 cases were G 3-4 grade, 8 cases were undetermined grade. There were 322 cases with AJCC stage Ⅰ-Ⅱ and 205 cases with AJCC stage Ⅲ-Ⅳ, and 3 cases with undetermined stage. There were 420 cases in M 0 and 78 cases in M 1, and 32 cases without distant metastases information. Furthermore, the paraffin sections of 158 non-cystic ccRCC patients confirmed by pathology from November 2005 to November 2017 were further used to evaluate the level of collagen of ccRCC and the status of the pseudocapsule by the Masson staining, Sirius red staining and multicolor immunofluorescence staining of collagen Ⅰ and collagen Ⅲ. Of them, 112 cases were male, 46 cases were female. There were 100 cases with age ≤ 60 years, and 58 cases with age > 60 years. The pathology grade of 111 cases were G 1-2, and the pathology grade of 47 cases were G 3-4. There were 144 cases with AJCC stage Ⅰ-Ⅱ, 14 cases with AJCC stage Ⅲ-Ⅳ. Kaplan-Meier survival curve were used to analyze the relationship between tumor collagen parameters and the overall survival prognosis of patients with ccRCC. Results:The transcriptome results of the TCGA database indicated that the expression level of COL1A1 in ccRCC tissues was significantly higher than that in adjacent normal tissues ( P<0.001). The high expression of collagen suggested a worse overall survival prognosis ( HR=1.165, P=0.002). In addition, the high ratio of COL1A1/COL3A1 indicated a worse overall survival prognosis ( HR=1.901, P<0.001) compared with the low ratio. We further confirmed that the abundance of collagen in tumor was significantly increased compared with the normal adjacent tissues by the Masson staining [41.0 (14.0-75.0) vs.15.0 (3.0-57.0), P<0.001] and the Sirius red staining [42.5 (10.0-90.0) vs.10.0 (2.5-60.0), P<0.001] on 30 ccRCC tissues and adjacent normal tissues. Based on the Masson staining, we found that high collagen abundance in tumor tissue was associated with more G 3-4 grade of tumor compared with low collagen abundance (38.5% vs.21.3%, OR=2.316, 95% CI 1.146-4.681, P=0.023). Kaplan-Meier survival curve showed that higher collagen abundance was associated with a worse overall survival prognosis in ccRCC ( HR=2.630, P=0.007). However, incomplete fibrous pseudocapsule was associated with a worse overall survival prognosis ( HR=11.140, P<0.001). Conclusions:In ccRCC, intratumoral collagen fiber level was overexpressed. High intratumoral collagen level and incomplete fibrous pseudocapsule may indicate a poor overall survival prognosis.