Candida species, particularly Candida albicans, are major contributors to denture-induced stomatitis because of their ability to form biofilms on removable dental prostheses. Although chemical cleansers are effective, concerns regarding material degradation and mucosal irritation have spurred interest in non-chemical alternatives. This review aims to systematically compare the efficacy of chemical and non-chemical denture cleansers in reducing Candida spp. on removable dental prostheses.

A systematic review was conducted according to the PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Comprehensive searches of PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science (2003–2025) yielded 624 records. After duplicate removal and screening, 20 studies (10 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and 10 in vitro studies) were included. The risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias 2.0 for RCTs and QUIN/SYRCLE tools for in vitro studies.

Chemical cleansers such as sodium hypochlorite (0.25–2.5%), chlorhexidine (0.2–2%), and effervescent peroxide tablets achieved 80–100% colony-forming unit reduction in most studies, with some reporting complete biofilm eradication. In contrast, non-chemical agents showed a 40–85% colony-forming unit reduction rate. Chemical cleansers caused increased surface roughness and discoloration in six of the ten studies included. Non-chemical agents preserved material integrity and were preferred by patients for their taste and ease of use. The risk of bias was low to moderate in 80% of the RCTs and low in 10 of the 13 in vitro studies.

Chemical denture cleansers are more potent antifungal agents, but they may damage prosthetic materials. Non-chemical cleansers offer safe and moderately effective alternatives to chemical cleansers. A personalized, evidence-based oral hygiene regimen is recommended for patients.

Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) frequently coexists with extrahepatic autoimmune diseases (EADs), but their prevalence, characteristics, progression, and treatment effect in the Han Chinese population remain unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence and spectrum of EADs and to assess their clinical features, disease course, and treatment outcomes in Han Chinese patients with AIH.

Medical records of 371 Han Chinese patients with AIH (diagnosed from March 2016 to October 2023) were retrospectively analyzed.

Among the 371 AIH patients, 304 (81.94%) were female, with a median age of 52.5 years (interquartile range, 46.0–61.0). A total of 23.98% (89/371) had at least one EAD, including 27.06% (82/303) in type 1 AIH, 11.11% (7/63) in antibody-negative AIH, and none in type 2. A single EAD was the most common (20.21%, 75/371). The most frequent EADs were Sjogren’s syndrome (8.63%) and autoimmune thyroid disease (8.36%). Compared with patients without EADs, those with EADs had lower alanine aminotransferase, red blood cell, and hemoglobin levels, but higher aspartate aminotransferase/alanine aminotransferase ratio and antinuclear antibody (ANA) positivity (all P < 0.05). ANA positivity was independently associated with EADs (odds ratio = 2.209, 95% confidence interval = 1.242–3.927, P = 0.007). After three months of treatment, the complete biochemical response rate was lower in the EADs group than in the non-EADs group (40.0% vs. 55.3%, P = 0.024), whereas no significant differences were observed at 6, 12, 24, or 36 months (all P > 0.05).

In the Han Chinese population, 23.98% of AIH patients had EADs, with Sjogren’s syndrome and autoimmune thyroid disease being the most common. ANA positivity was a significant risk factor for EADs. EAD patients had a poorer initial treatment response at three months, but comparable long-term biochemical response from six months.

Cervical cancer, driven mainly by persistent high-risk human papillomavirus infection, remains a major public health problem in Bangladesh, with 9,640 new cases and 5,826 deaths in 2022. Early detection of pre-cancerous cervical lesions (PCL) is essential, yet limited evidence exists on factors associated with PCL among Bangladeshi women. This study aimed to identify factors associated with PCL among women attending cervical cancer screening centers at selected tertiary hospitals.

An age-matched (±5 years) case-control study was conducted in two tertiary hospitals. Cases were women who tested colposcopy-positive for PCL, and controls were visual inspection with acetic acid-negative women attending the same screening centers. A total of 38 cases and 76 controls were included. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews using a structured questionnaire. Multivariable logistic regression identified factors associated with PCL, with significance set at p < 0.05.

A history of sexually transmitted infections (adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 36.73; 95% confidence interval (CI): 3.25–414.83), pelvic infections (AOR = 6.48; 95% CI: 1.24–33.85), not living with a husband (AOR = 4.48; 95% CI: 1.06–18.90), and overweight/obesity (AOR = 3.58; 95% CI: 1.14–11.22) were significantly associated with higher odds of PCL. Menstrual irregularity, genital ulcer history, and number of lifetime sexual partners showed no significant association.

Sexually transmitted infections, pelvic infections, overweight/obesity, and not living with husband were identified as factors associated with PCL. Strengthened infection prevention, lifestyle counseling, and targeted health education may support ongoing cervical cancer prevention efforts in Bangladesh.

Infections are frequent and lethal complications of acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF). Reliable biomarkers to distinguish fungal from bacterial infections remain limited. Given the central role of immune dysfunction in ACLF, we aimed to evaluate the diagnostic value of serum cytokines in differentiating invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) from bacterial pneumonia (BP) in HBV-associated ACLF.

This retrospective case-control study enrolled ACLF patients admitted to the Tongji Hospital, between 2018 and 2022. Patients were categorized into IPA, BP, and non-infection groups. The BP and non-infection groups were propensity score-matched to the IPA cases. Serum cytokines levels (IL-1β, sIL-2R, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-α) and clinical data were collected, with the diagnostic performance of these cytokines as biomarkers assessed via ROC curves.

A total of 32 IPA, 96 BP, and 96 non-infection patients were enrolled, with balanced baseline characteristics. Compared with the non-infection group, the IPA group had higher sIL-2R (1,606.00 vs. 1,211.50 U/mL, P = 0.019) and IL-6 (69.03 vs. 15.98 pg/mL, P < 0.001) levels, but lower IL-8 levels (62.20 vs. 132.00 pg/mL, P = 0.025). The BP group showed elevated sIL-2R (1,792.00 U/mL), IL-6 (49.42 pg/mL), IL-10 (13.40 pg/mL) levels compared to the non-infection group (all P < 0.001). Also, IL-8 was lower in the IPA group than in the BP group (62.20 vs. 176.00 pg/mL, P < 0.001) and its assessment could best distinguish IPA from BP (AUC = 0.743, cut-off = 76.60 pg/mL; sensitivity = 66.7%, specificity = 82.1%).

Serum IL-8 exhibited superior diagnostic value for IPA in patients with HBV-ACLF and could effectively discriminate Aspergillus infections from bacterial infections.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a double-stranded circular DNA virus with a genome of approximately 7–8 kb. This study aimed to establish an overlapping extension polymerase chain reaction method for the amplification of the entire genome of HPV16.

The HPV16 genome was divided into two larger fragments (with lengths of 3.9 kilobases and 5.3 kilobases, respectively), each of which had overlapping regions of more than 500 base pairs. A nested primer (outer primer: Fout/Rout; inner primer: Fin/Rin) was used to amplify each fragment. The key reaction parameters were optimized, including the selection of two highly accurate DNA polymerases; and a series of diluted samples (initial concentration of 2,000 copies/microliter, diluted to 2, 20, 200, and 2,000 copies/microliter) were used for amplification tests to evaluate the sensitivity of this method.

This study demonstrated high sensitivity for HPV16 detection, with effective amplification of samples as low as 2 copies/µL. For low-concentration samples (<200 copies/µL), the Thermo Fisher enzyme showed 50% and 75% effective amplification success rates at 2 copies/µL and 20 copies/µL, respectively, while the Vazyme enzyme achieved 0% success at both concentrations. Both enzymes enabled stable amplification of high-concentration samples (≥200 copies/µL). The amplified products matched the theoretical size, and Illumina sequencing confirmed Q30 ≥ 96% and >98% identity with the HPV16 reference sequence (K02718.1).

This study provides a highly sensitive and specific method for the full-genome sequence analysis of HPV16, which is applicable to HPV16 full-genome sequencing, variation analysis, and other research.

5-methylcytosine RNA modification is a key regulator of neuroblastoma oncogenesis and differentiation. NSUN6, a 5-methylcytosine-specific messenger RNA methyltransferase, modulates messenger RNA methyltransferase activity and translation termination. Yet, its potential link to neuroblastoma risk has not been previously reported. The present study aimed to reveal the relationship between NSUN6 gene polymorphisms and the risk of neuroblastoma in children from Jiangsu province.

In this case-control study, we investigated three NSUN6 gene polymorphisms (rs3740102 A>C, rs12780826 T>A, and rs61842187 G>C) in 402 neuroblastoma cases and 473 controls, all of whom were children from Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province, China. DNA from these subjects was assessed using the TaqMan method. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was employed to examine the association between NSUN6 gene polymorphisms and neuroblastoma risk. Additionally, the Genotype-Tissue Expression database was utilized to elucidate the impact of these polymorphisms on NSUN6 and nearby gene expression. Kaplan-Meier analysis and the non-parametric test were conducted on the R2 platform to assess the relationship between gene expression, prognosis, and neuroblastoma risk.

Carriage of two to three protective genotypes (rs3740102 AA/AC, rs12780826 TT/TA, rs61842187 CC) was significantly associated with a lower risk of neuroblastoma (adjusted odds ratio = 0.41, 95% confidence interval = 0.23–0.73, P = 0.002), with consistent results across all subgroups. Expression quantitative trait locus analysis showed these single-nucleotide polymorphisms may upregulate the expression of NSUN6 and CACNB2. Furthermore, higher NSUN6 and CACNB2 expression was correlated with a potentially lower risk of neuroblastoma, improved overall survival (NSUN6: P = 2.54e-03; CACNB2: P = 6.35e-06) and event-free survival (NSUN6: P = 7.90e-04; CACNB2: P = 4.64e-06), as well as a lower likelihood of MYCN amplification.

NSUN6 rs3740102 AA/AC, rs12780826 TT/TA, and rs61842187 CC genotypes may be associated with a better prognosis of neuroblastoma. This association may be related to the potential upregulation of NSUN6 gene expression and a lower likelihood of MYCN amplification.