Modulation
of one of the most important blood cells involved in the human immune
response may effectively treat and prevent the symptoms of type 2
diabetes and periodontitis simultaneously, scientists say.
Researchers have found that B cells, blood cells involved in the
human immune response, promote inflammation and bone loss in type 2
diabetes-associated periodontal disease. These findings support the
idea that treatments that manipulate the responses of B cells may
treat or prevent this complication. "Our study identified common
inflammatory mechanisms shared by type 2 diabetes and periodontal
disease. It paves the way for the development of novel therapeutics
which aim to simultaneously treat both type 2 diabetes and its
complications," said Min Zhu, a researcher involved in the work
from the department of microbiology at Boston University School of
Medicine in Boston, Massachusetts. To make this discovery, scientists
used an experimental model (mouse model) of periodontal disease and
applied it to two groups. The first group had a genetic alteration
that knocked out all B cells. The second group had normal B cell
levels. When fed a low-fat diet, without development of obesity and
type 2 diabetes, both groups demonstrated a similar extent of oral
bone loss and inflammation. However, when they were fed a high-fat
diet, became obese and developed type 2 diabetes, oral bone loss and
inflammation occurred in the normal group with B cells, but did not
develop in the group with the altered gene to knock out the B cells.
This suggests that the B cell-response might be a viable target for
pharmacological intervention in both type 2 diabetes and periodontal
disease, as well as potentially in other type 2 diabetes
complications. The research was published in the Journal of Leukocyte
Biology.
Difficulty or inability to write a coherent text message, even in people who have no problem speaking, may become a "vital" tool in diagnosing a type of crippling stroke, according to a new research. Scientists at Henry Ford Hospital focused on a 40-year-old man visiting the metro Detroit area on business who showed signs of "dystextia," a recently coined term for incoherent text messaging that can sometimes be confused with autocorrect garble. But in his case, the man saw nothing wrong with the garble. The patient had no problem with a routine bedside test of his language abilities - including fluency of speech, reading, writing, comprehension and other factors. However, when asked to type a simple text message, he not only produced garble, but he was unable to see it as such. Despite showing only slight facial asymmetry and no other symptoms, doctors determined the man had suffered an acute ischemic stroke, in which a clot or other blockage cuts off blood supply t...
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