Vitamin D is pivotal to the maintenance of human health and preventing diseases 1 . Being highly studied vitamin, vitamin D is required for the functioning of almost all the cells of the human body. Recognized for its ability to support musculoskeletal health, the function of vitamin D extends to neurological and cognitive junctions, gastrointestinal functions, blood pressure regulation, glucose metabolism, physiological cellular functions, besides its hormonal actions to maintain calcium and phosphorous homeostasis 2,3,4 . Recently, scientific interest is riveted towards the immune regulatory functions of vitamin D. Nearly all the immune cells express vitamin D receptor (VDR), hence pointing to its ability to modulate innate and adaptive immune mechanisms 5,6 . This editorial presents the current knowledge of the functional influence of vitamin D on health and disease, with emphasis on the immunoregulatory mechanisms. It also discusses the possible benefits of vitamin D as therapeutics for degenerative, autoimmune, allergic, and infectious disorders.

Objectives: The aim of the present study is to evaluate and compare healing outcomes, probing pocket depth reduction, clinical attachment and alveolar bone level following Modified Widman Flap (MWF) with and without 4x prismatic loupe in infrabony pockets. Methods: Patients having at least one infrabony pocket with Probing pocket depth (PPD) ≥5 mm, Angular bone loss ≥3 mm bilaterally were randomly assigned to microsurgical (test) group with MWF using 4x magnifying loupes and conventional (control) group by MWF only. At baseline, 3 and 6 months plaque index, bleeding index, PPD, relative clinical attachment level were taken. Healing outcome was evaluated with healing index by Landry. Pain Score was assessed with Visual Analogue Scale. Percentage of defect depth reduction was assessed by Cone Beam Computed Tomography & Periapical Radiograph. Continuous data between groups was analyzed using unpaired ‘t’ test. Within group comparison was done using Repeated Measures ANOVA followed by multiple pairwise comparison and paired ‘t’ test. Results: There was statistically significant (P = 0.004) reduction in intrabony defect depth in each group evaluated through CBCT. The mean VAS scores after one week of surgical procedure was 3.67 at conventional site compared to 2.9 at microsurgical site which was statistically significant (P = 0.004).   Statistically significant (P ≤0.05) healing scores observed for microsurgery group (84.6% after 1 week) compared to control group (15.4% after 1 week). Conclusion: Though blinding of patients and surgeon was difficult and healing indices used are subjective, it can be concluded that microsurgery under 4x magnifying loupe is as effective as conventional MWF in treatment of infrabony pockets but clinical parameters are greatly enhanced by microsurgery with improved healing and less patient discomfort.

Objective: Dasatinib-(DAS) is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor usually used to treat leukemia. But, DAS is a poorly water-soluble drug. Therefore, oil-in-water emulsions were used for DAS to enhance its solubility and cancer treatment efficacy. This study aims to develop an appropriate DAS nanoemulsion (NE) that can overcome the issue of DAS solubility and provide an effective anti-cancer effect. Methods: Spherical particles dispersed in an aqueous media approach within an oily phase (oleic acid, Kolliphor RH40, and dipropylene glycol) were used to formulate DAS-NE, using high-energy methods. Different formulas were developed and an appropriate formula was analyzed to identify its physicochemical properties. Raw DAS and nano-formula cytotoxicity were evaluated via MTT assay against three cancer cell lines, MCF7 (human breast adenocarcinoma), HT29, and SW480 (human colorectal carcinomas), in addition to MRC5 (Normal human fetal lung fibroblast). Results: Different DAS-NEs (1-7) have been developed successfully. Formulas had a droplet size of a diameter ranging from 84.167±10.178nm to 273.433±45.267nm. The drug content of the appropriate formula (DAS-NE 3 ) was found to be 83.2%.The drug release result of DAS-NE 3 when compared to raw DAS was about 58%, falling to 13% after 24-hours.The DAS-NE 3 showed cytotoxicity against the three cancer cells below 26.11μM but showed 30-fold significantly increased selectivity against MRC5 normal cells compared to that of raw DAS. Conclusion: This study shows that the DAS-NE 3 formula may provide a potentially effective and sustained drug delivery for cancer treatment. This provides valuable information to the scientific community and pharmaceutical industry.

Objective: Hypoxia is one of the principal causes of renal diseases. This study aimed to evaluate effects of Nigella sativa (N. sativa) on dinitrophenol (DNP) - induced hypoxia renal damage in rats. Methods: Forty adult male rats were incorporated in this study. The rats were divided into 4 groups: Control group, N. sativa group, DNP hypoxic group and DNP+N. sativa group receiving N. sativa (400 mg/kg body weight). Serum and renal tissue erythropoietin (EPO) hormone, hypoxia inducible factor-2α (HIF-2α) levels were measured. Renal oxidative stress biomarkers, inflammatory biomarkers, renal hemodynamics and histopathological examination were evaluated. Results: Administration of N. sativa highly significantly normalize serum EPO level, hypoxia inducible factor-2α (P<0.001 for each) in DNP+N. sativa treated rats as compared to DNP hypoxic rats. Also, it highly significantly improved renal oxidative stress evident by decreased renal tissues MDA and increased SOD, total thiol, and CAT activity (P<0.001 for each). Also, highly significantly decline of renal ICAM-1, MPO, IL-6 was observed in DNP+N. sativa rats (P<0.001 for each). Improvement of renal hemodynamics and kidney functions were also found after N. sativa administration (with P value < 0.001 for all parameters). In addition, N. sativa treatment reduced renal histopathological changes of DNP+N. sativa group.  Our results were statistically analyzed using the Prism software package (graph pad version 8.0). Conclusions: N. sativa has an alleviating effect on DNP-induced hypoxia renal damage and can restore kidney functions in rats’ animal model. These effects were via anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and hemodynamic mechanisms.

Objective: The development of COVID-19 vaccines was a crucial preventative measure toward controlling the pandemic. Several side effects have been reported. This study investigated the long-term side effects reported by the Saudi population. post-COVID-19 vaccination. Method: The cross-sectional study involved Saudi participants of both genders, aged ≥16 years, and had received at least one dose of any of the available vaccines in Saudi Arabia. They were asked to fill out an online questionnaire divided into three sections: demographics, medical history, and side effects that appeared post-COVID-19 vaccines. Results: The findings indicated that the undesirable effects were reported by 82% of the participants. These side effects involve three categories: the most common, additional or reported, and persistent side effects. The most common side effects were pain at the site of injection (88.16%), bone pain /joint pain (68.7%), and fatigue (68.46%). Menstrual disorders (n=46), hair loss (n= 34), and memory problems (n= 19) were reported by participants as additional side effects. Among all side effects, fatigue, joint pain, hair loss, and menstrual disorders were the most persistent side effects. Moreover, 190 participants reported that they were diagnosed with diseases soon after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine including COVID-19, thyroid gland disorder, and irritable bowel disease. The quality of life of some of the participants was affected by post-COVID-19 vaccines, as 25.28% had anxiety, 21.22% had depression and 33.16% had discomfort.  Conclusion: These findings may contribute to understanding the effect of COVID-19 vaccines on the Saudi population's health and public opinion about these vaccines.

Objective: Due to Covid-19 pandemic, many countries around the world experienced an unprecedented increase in stress in the general population. Even after normal life has been reestablished, the new normal is punctuated by severely impacted vulnerable groups. Stress-associated symptoms display an intricate relationship with biochemical modulations, which coordinate the stress response. Identifying these biochemical factors are inherent to deciphering the mode of treatment needed to diminish the healthcare gap resulting from the pandemic. Methods: We applied psychological measures using the perceived stress (PS) andCovid-19 anxiety (CA) scales and preventive health behavior (PHB) to evaluate stress in the general population. Biochemical markers of stress, i.e., total antioxidant capacity (TAC), thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), Cortisol, and C-reactive protein (CRP) were tested in the serum samples of the participants. Statistical analysis was carried out using SPSS version 22.0. Results: Stress scores for PS, CA and PHB indicate prevalence of moderate to high stress among participants, and a correlation between psychological stress and biochemical correlates, TCA, TBARS, Cortisol, and CRP. Serum concentrations of TBARS, Cortisol, and CRP were found to be significantly increased, while the TAC was decreased across all stress types and levels. Our findings demonstrate a positive correlation between PS, CA, PHB and TBARS, Cortisol, and CRP and a strong negative correlation with TAC. Conclusion: The results of this study will help in tailoring targeted interventions and preventive regimes to mitigate Covid-19 associated anxiety and stress disorders prevailing even after the actual pandemic has subsided.

Objective: Dental implant procedures are crucial for replacing missing teeth, with various surgical techniques impacting the outcome. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the effects of flapped and flapless surgical techniques on implant survival and marginal bone loss. Methods: We included clinical studies with at least ten subjects, excluding review articles, editorials, and conference abstracts. Studies were sourced from PubMed, Medline, ERIC, and Wiley, published between 2000 and 2022. Data were analyzed using random effects models to compare implant survival and marginal bone loss between flapped and flapless techniques. Results: The review identified twenty one studies meeting inclusion criteria. Flapless techniques showed a higher implant survival rate with an approximate survival rate of 98.6% in prospective cohort studies and 95.9% in retrospective studies. Marginal bone loss was consistently lower in the flapless group, averaging 0.6 to 2.1 mm, compared to 1.5 to 3 mm in the flapped group. Low-risk studies demonstrated more consistent and reliable results, supporting the efficacy of flapless procedures. Conclusions: Flapless implant surgery offers a viable alternative to traditional flapped surgery, showing higher rates of implant survival and less marginal bone loss. However, successful outcomes depend on advanced imaging, precise surgical techniques, and adequate training. Further high-quality studies are needed to confirm these findings and refine clinical recommendations.

Chromosomal structural variations (S.Vs.) are associated with various phenotypes. This occurs during DNA replication and disturbs genes within the S.V. region, contributing to specific phenotypes. In this case report, the patient was diagnosed with neurodevelopmental delay (NDD), which was further investigated using array comparative genomic hybridization (CGH), which revealed that two S.V. strains are pathogenic to chromosome 1 and are associated with 1p36 microdeletion. The other was a microduplication in 2p35.3, identified as a variant of unknown significance. The patient’s phenotype matched that of 1p36 deletion syndrome. Two terminal rearrangements could result from the derivative of an unbalanced translocation between the short arms of chromosomes one and two.