Licorice (Radix glycyrrhizae) is a plant root extract widely used in various applications, including cosmetics, food supplements, and traditional medicine. It has a long history of medicinal use in different cultures due to its diverse pharmacological properties. Licorice has traditionally been used for treating gastrointestinal problems, respiratory infections, cough, bronchitis, arthritis, and skin conditions. In recent years, the potential therapeutic benefits of licorice for oral health have gained significant interest. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive review of the effects of licorice extracts and their bioactive components on common oral diseases such as dental caries, periodontitis, halitosis, candidiasis, and recurrent aphthous ulcers. The chemical composition of licorice has shown the presence of several bioactive compounds such as glycyrrhizin, glabridin, isoliquiritigenin (ISL), and licochalcone exhibiting various pharmacological activities, including anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antioxidative, and immunomodulatory effects. Interestingly, in certain patients, licorice has shown a promising potential to inhibit the spread of viruses, prevent biofilm formation, reduce inflammation, boost immune responses, alleviate pain, and exert antioxidative effects. In this review, we provide a brief overview of the current understanding of licorice’s therapeutic benefits in the treatment of oral ailments, emphasising its potential as an alternative treatment option for oral diseases. Further research is warranted to explore its efficacy, safety, and clinical applications using placebo-controlled clinical trials.

Background: The use of artificial intelligence (AI), especially large language models (LLMs), is increasing in health care, including in dentistry. There has yet to be an assessment of the diagnostic performance of LLMs in oral medicine. Objective: We aimed to compare the effectiveness of ChatGPT (OpenAI) and Microsoft Copilot (integrated within the Microsoft 365 suite) with oral medicine consultants in formulating accurate differential and final diagnoses for oral lesions from written clinical scenarios. Methods: Fifty comprehensive clinical case scenarios including patient age, presenting complaint, history of the presenting complaint, medical history, allergies, intra- and extraoral findings, lesion description, and any additional information including laboratory investigations and specific clinical features were given to three oral medicine consultants, who were asked to formulate a differential diagnosis and a final diagnosis. Specific prompts for the same 50 cases were designed and input into ChatGPT and Copilot to formulate both differential and final diagnoses. The diagnostic accuracy was compared between the LLMs and oral medicine consultants. Results: ChatGPT exhibited the highest accuracy, providing the correct differential diagnoses in 37 of 50 cases (74%). There were no significant differences in the accuracy of providing the correct differential diagnoses between AI models and oral medicine consultants. ChatGPT was as accurate as consultants in making the final diagnoses, but Copilot was significantly less accurate than ChatGPT (P=.015) and one of the oral medicine consultants (P<.001) in providing the correct final diagnosis. Conclusions: ChatGPT and Copilot show promising performance for diagnosing oral medicine pathology in clinical case scenarios to assist dental practitioners. ChatGPT-4 and Copilot are still evolving, but even now, they might provide a significant advantage in the clinical setting as tools to help dental practitioners in their daily practice.

Vimentin, a type III intermediate filament protein, is found in most cells along with microfilaments and microtubules. It has been shown that the head domain folds back to associate with the rod domain and this association is essential for filament assembly. The N-terminally tagged vimentin has been widely used to label the cytoskeleton in live cell imaging. Although there is previous evidence that EGFP tagged vimentin fails to form filaments but is able to integrate into a pre-existing network, no study has systematically investigated or established a molecular basis for this observation. To determine whether a tag would affect de novo filament assembly, we used vimentin fused at the N-terminus with two different sized tags, AcGFP (239 residues, 27 kDa) and 3 × FLAG (22 residues; 2.4 kDa) to assemble into filaments in two vimentin-deficient epithelial cells, MCF-7 and A431. We showed that regardless of tag size, N-terminally tagged vimentin aggregated into globules with a significant proportion co-aligning with β-catenin at cell–cell junctions. However, the tagged vimentin aggregates could form filaments upon adding untagged vimentin at a ratio of 1:1 or when introduced into cells containing pre-existing filaments. The resultant filament network containing a mixture of tagged and untagged vimentin was less stable compared to that formed by only untagged vimentin. The data suggest that placing a tag at the N-terminus may create steric hinderance in case of a large tag (AcGFP) or electrostatic repulsion in case of highly charged tag (3 × FLAG) perhaps inducing a conformational change, which deleteriously affects the association between head and rod domains. Taken together our results shows that a free N-terminus is essential for filament assembly as N-terminally tagged vimentin is not only incapable of forming filaments, but it also destabilises when integrated into a pre-existing network.

Background: Oral-pigmented lesions have raised aesthetic concerns, leading to multiple depigmentation techniques. This systematic review and network meta-analysis aimed to assess the efficacy of different treatments for oral hyperpigmentation. Methods: A computerized search was conducted on Science Direct, Medline via PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science using the relevant keywords. English-language studies published between 2013 and 2023 that focused on patients with oral pigmented lesions subjected to different treatment modalities, such as laser or surgical intervention, were compared to determine their efficacy and safety profile. Data were analyzed using R software, applying frequentist models. Results: A total of 27 studies were included. In contrast to the CO₂ laser, Er: YAG laser was linked to a higher risk of bleeding (RR = 2.73, p < 0.01), whereas the diode laser had the most favorable score in minimizing bleeding index (P-score = 0.86). In terms of lower risk and postoperative pain score (RR = 0.01, p < 0.01), the Er,Cr:YSGG laser had the most favorable result (P-score = 1.00). The Er: YAG laser demonstrated the highest probability of preventing recurrence (RR = 0.28, p < 0.01), followed by the diode laser (RR = 0.42, p < 0.01). Conclusions: The choice of treatment for oral pigmentation should be based on individual patient needs and the desired outcomes. The Er: YAG laser seems highly effective in preventing pigment recurrence, the diode laser emerges as a top contender in managing bleeding risks, and the Er,Cr:YSGG laser is particularly efficacious in managing postoperative pain.

Purpose: Pharmacists may be an initial point-of-contact for patients with oral mucosal lesions. The purpose of this study was to investigate the proficiency of pharmacists in recognizing and managing oral mucosal lesions to help formulate educational recommendations for improvements in pharmacist-led patient care. Methods: Pharmacists in community pharmacies in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, completed structured interviews that included five images of oral mucosal lesions (Herpes labialis, Lichen planus, Traumatic lip ulcer, Candidiasis, and Squamous cell carcinoma) with short clinical scenarios. Pharmacists were asked how they would manage the patients and about their knowledge of oral cancer. Results: One hundred and forty pharmacists participated. Herpes labialis was correctly identified by 81.6% of pharmacists, followed by traumatic ulcers (65.2%). No pharmacist correctly identified lichen planus, while squamous cell carcinoma was correctly identified in 14.9% of cases. Lichen planus (51.8%) was most commonly referred to specialist services, followed by squamous cell carcinoma (45.4%). Most pharmacists prescribed over-the-counter medications to treat the lesions. Most pharmacists recommended appropriate antiviral treatment for herpes labialis (70.2%) and wound care for traumatic lip ulcers (71.6%). However, 68.1% referred patients to healthcare professionals. Around 75.2% of pharmacists opted to refer to healthcare providers in cancer patients. Conclusion: While pharmacists could play a significant role in providing accurate and timely medical or pharmacological advice to patients with oral mucosal lesions, further education and training are required to improve knowledge to inform decision-making.

Reasons for First Dental Visit (RFV) represent patients’ subjective motives for seeking dental care and often reflect their most urgent needs. These complaints, frequently related to pain, directly influence diagnosis and treatment planning. Addressing RFV is crucial for patient satisfaction and the delivery of quality oral health care. This systematic review aimed to identify the most commonly reported RFVs at initial dental visits in Saudi Arabia (SA) and to explore the underlying motivations for seeking dental care. Following a PRISMA-guided protocol, a systematic online search was conducted through PubMed, EMBASE, OVID and Web of Science databases, supplemented by manual searches in regional journals, to identify studies reporting dental RFVs in SA published between 2002 and June 2025. Eligible cross-sectional studies in English and Arabic were screened independently by two reviewers. Data were extracted on study characteristics, demographics, and RFV prevalence/types. Study quality was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Critical Appraisal Checklist for Analytical Cross-Sectional Studies. Ten cross-sectional studies met the inclusion criteria. The JBI appraisal revealed that 2(20%) were at low risk of bias, 7(70%) were at moderate risk (of which 3 were classified as low–to–moderate), and 1(10%) was high–to–moderate risk. First-visit attendance was largely symptom-driven—pain/emergency (19.8–71.5%) and caries (17.9–45.2%)—while preventive motives were less frequent (check-up 10.5–27.3%; one outlier 40.3%; fluoride/cleaning 3.2–20.5%). Other indications were infrequent (generally ≤10%; eg, trauma 0–9.2%, extraction 2.4–10.6%, malocclusion ~8.8%, discoloration ~5.1%, referral 0.8–0.9%), indicating predominance of restorative or endodontic demand over preventive care. Initial dental visits in SA are predominantly symptom-driven, led by pain and caries, while preventive and elective reasons remain limited. Strengthening public health and clinical initiatives that encourage early, routine attendance through education and recalls is vital to shift dental care utilization toward prevention.