We evaluated cellular responses to polymer-treated gold nanorods, which were synthesized using the standard wet-chemistry method that utilizes hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). The nanorod dispersions were coated with either polystyrene sulfonate (PSS) or polyethylene glycol (PEG). Two sizes of nanorods were tested, with optical responses peaking at 628 and 773 nm. The cells were from ...

B cell-activating factor (BAFF) has a key role in promoting B-lymphocyte activation and survival in primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS). The cellular origin of BAFF overexpression in salivary glands of patients with pSS is not fully known. We investigated whether salivary gland epithelial cells (SGECs), the main targets of autoimmunity in pSS, could produce and express BAFF. We used quantitative R...

BACKGROUND Reduced salivation is considered a major clinical feature of most but not all cases of primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS). Reduced saliva flow may lead to changes in the salivary microbiota. These changes have mainly been studied with culture that typically recovers only 65% of the bacteria present. OBJECTIVE This study was to use high throughput sequencing, covering both cultivated ...

Primary Sjogren's syndrome (pSS) is a chronic autoimmune disease with well-documented association of lymphoid malignancies during the progress of the disease. Although several types of malignancy and pseudomalignancy have been reported in pSS, low-grade non-Hodgkin's lymphomas are the most frequently observed. Reactive plasmacytosis mimicking myeloma is a very rare condition in association with...

While small dynamic firms propose PSS applications based on new technologies quite easily, large infrastructures are often required. SMEs don’t have the capacity to do this alone. For complex systems, different SMEs combine efforts to build an efficient infrastructure. Other SMEs can join and propose other PSS, creating a network. As networks grow the SMEs must understand their place within the...

Adjusting the inter-particle distances in ordered nanoparticle arrays can create new nano-devices and is of increasing importance to a number of applications such as nanoelectronics and optical devices. The assembly of negatively charged polystyrene (PS) nanoparticles (NPs) on Poly(2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate) (PDMAEMA) brushes, quaternized PDMAEMA brushes and Si/PEI/(PSS/PAH)2, was stu...

Objective: Stress perception depends on cultural and social aspects that vary from one country to another. One of the most widely disseminated methods of assessing psychological stress is the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-4). Therefore, in order to identify these factors and their impact on mental health, the present study compares the PSS-4 results among three European countries (Great Britain, ...

INTRODUCTION Recently, a great interest has arisen for salivary gland ultrasonography (SGUS) as a valuable tool for the assessment of major salivary gland involvement in primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS. The aims of this study were to test the accuracy of SGUS for the early detection of pSSand to compare the diagnostic performance of SGUS with minor salivary gland biopsy (MSGB) and unstimulated ...

INTRODUCTION In this study, we investigated possible aberrations of monocytes from patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS). We focused on B-cell-activating factor of the TNF family (BAFF) and IL-6 because they are both produced by monocytes and are known to be involved in the pathogenesis of pSS. METHODS Peripheral monocytes were prepared from both pSS patients and normal individuals. ...

BACKGROUND The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) is a representative instrument used to measure stress. The original PSS comprises 14 items (PSS-14) in two subscales, but 10- and 4-item versions are also available (PSS-10 and 4, respectively). The target populations of psychometric studies using the PSS have far mainly comprised college students, and the underlying constructs of the PSS versions are...