The sensing of hot and cold stimuli by dental neurons differs in several fundamental ways. These sensations have been characterized quantitatively through the measured time course of neural discharge signals that resu...The sensing of hot and cold stimuli by dental neurons differs in several fundamental ways. These sensations have been characterized quantitatively through the measured time course of neural discharge signals that result from hot or cold stimuli applied to the teeth of animal models. Although various hypotheses have been proposed to explain the underlying mechanism, the ability to test competing hypotheses against experimental recorded data using biophysical models has been hindered by limitations in our understanding of the specific ion channels involved in nociception of dental neurons. Here we apply recent advances in established biophysical models to test the competing hypotheses. We show that a sharp shooting pain sensation experienced shortly following cold stimulation cannot be attributed to the activation of thermosensitive ion channels, thereby falsifying the so-called neuronal hypothesis, which states that rapidly transduced sensations of coldness are related to thermosensitive ion channels. Our results support a central role of mechanosensitive ion channels and the associated hydrodynamic hypothesis. In addition to the hydrodynamic hypothesis, we also demonstrate that the long time delay of dental neuron responses after hot stimulation could be attributed to the neuronal hypothesis-that a relatively long time is required for the temperature around nociceptors to reach some threshold. The results are useful as a model of how multiphysical phenomena can be combined to provide mechanistic insight into different mechanisms underlying pain sensations.展开更多
Aim Cluster analysis was conducted on data from 5,169 United States （U.S.） Arizona children, age＇s 5-59-months with the goal of delineating patterns of caries in the primary dentition of pre-school children without...Aim Cluster analysis was conducted on data from 5,169 United States （U.S.） Arizona children, age＇s 5-59-months with the goal of delineating patterns of caries in the primary dentition of pre-school children without a priori pattern definitions. Methodology Cluster analyses were conducted using all data for children ages 0-4 years in aggregate： 1） for all subjects, and 2） for subjects without crowned restored teeth. Each of these two sets of analyses consisted of 8 differently specified cluster analyses as a validation procedure. Results The caries patterns identified from the clustering analysis are： 1） smooth surfaces （other than the maxillary incisor）, 2） maxillary incisor, 3） occlusal surfaces of first molars, and 4） pit and fissure surfaces of second molars. Conclusion The cluster analysis findings were consistent with results produced by multidimensional scaling. These cross-validated patterns may represent resulting disease conditions from different risks or the timing of various risk factor exposures. As such, the patterns may be useful case definitions for caries risk factor investigations in children under 60 months of age.展开更多
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grants 11372243, 11522219, 11532009, and 11402192)the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (Grants 2016qngz03, 2015qngz09)the Openning Project of Key Laboratory of Shaanxi Province for Craniofacial Precision Medicine Research,College of Stomatology, Xi’an Jiaotong University (Grant 2016LHM-KFKT007)
文摘The sensing of hot and cold stimuli by dental neurons differs in several fundamental ways. These sensations have been characterized quantitatively through the measured time course of neural discharge signals that result from hot or cold stimuli applied to the teeth of animal models. Although various hypotheses have been proposed to explain the underlying mechanism, the ability to test competing hypotheses against experimental recorded data using biophysical models has been hindered by limitations in our understanding of the specific ion channels involved in nociception of dental neurons. Here we apply recent advances in established biophysical models to test the competing hypotheses. We show that a sharp shooting pain sensation experienced shortly following cold stimulation cannot be attributed to the activation of thermosensitive ion channels, thereby falsifying the so-called neuronal hypothesis, which states that rapidly transduced sensations of coldness are related to thermosensitive ion channels. Our results support a central role of mechanosensitive ion channels and the associated hydrodynamic hypothesis. In addition to the hydrodynamic hypothesis, we also demonstrate that the long time delay of dental neuron responses after hot stimulation could be attributed to the neuronal hypothesis-that a relatively long time is required for the temperature around nociceptors to reach some threshold. The results are useful as a model of how multiphysical phenomena can be combined to provide mechanistic insight into different mechanisms underlying pain sensations.
基金Support for this work was through NIH NIDCR NRSA #T32-DE07255
文摘Aim Cluster analysis was conducted on data from 5,169 United States （U.S.） Arizona children, age＇s 5-59-months with the goal of delineating patterns of caries in the primary dentition of pre-school children without a priori pattern definitions. Methodology Cluster analyses were conducted using all data for children ages 0-4 years in aggregate： 1） for all subjects, and 2） for subjects without crowned restored teeth. Each of these two sets of analyses consisted of 8 differently specified cluster analyses as a validation procedure. Results The caries patterns identified from the clustering analysis are： 1） smooth surfaces （other than the maxillary incisor）, 2） maxillary incisor, 3） occlusal surfaces of first molars, and 4） pit and fissure surfaces of second molars. Conclusion The cluster analysis findings were consistent with results produced by multidimensional scaling. These cross-validated patterns may represent resulting disease conditions from different risks or the timing of various risk factor exposures. As such, the patterns may be useful case definitions for caries risk factor investigations in children under 60 months of age.
