Treatment resistance after chemo-/immunotherapy occurs in patients with head and neck squamous cell cancers (HNSCs), including salivary gland cancers (SGCs). Interleukin-10 (IL-10), a cytokine with pro- and anti-cancer effects, has an unclear impact on HNSC/SGC cells. We show that HNSC patients exhibiting high expression of IL-10 and its receptor IL-10Rα experience have prolonged overall survival. Immunoreactive IL-10 was low in ductal cells of human SGC biopsies. Human (A253) and murine WR21-SGC cells expressed IL-10Rβ, but only A253 cells expressed IL-10 and IL-10Rα. The addition of recombinant IL-10 impaired SGC cell proliferation and induced apoptosis in vitro. N-acetylcysteine restored IL-10-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) production but did not prevent IL-10-mediated viability loss. Mechanistically, recIL-10 delayed cell cycle progression from G0/G1 to the S phase with cyclin D downregulation and upregulation of NF-kB. IL-10 increased tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in A253 and WR21 and FasL in WR21 cells. Neutralizing antibodies against TNF-α and NF-kB inhibition restored SGC proliferation after IL-10 treatment, emphasizing the critical role of TNF-α and NF-kB in IL-10-mediated anti-tumor effects. These findings underscore the potential of IL-10 to impede SGC cell growth through apoptosis induction, unraveling potential therapeutic targets for intervention in salivary gland carcinomas.

Aim: The aim of the study was to examine the association between periodontal health in young patients with various body mass indexes and psychological traits such as temperament, level of anxiety, and autonomic nervous system tone. Materials and methods: The study included 132 male and female subjects aged 18–22 years with different body mass indexes (BMI). They were allocated into four groups by their BMIs: normal weight, overweight, and first- and second-degree obesity. We completed periodontal charts for all patients and evaluated basic oral hygiene and periodontal indexes, such as the Green-Vermillion index (OHI), the approximal plaque index by Lange (API), and papilla bleeding index by Saxer & Mühlemann (PBI). Eysenck personality questionnaire, the state-trait anxiety inventory of Spielberger-Khanin, and Wayne questionnaire were used to determine the psychological characteristics. Results: Patients with the first and second degrees of obesity were found to have the highest prevalence and severity of generalized gingivitis (up to 90%). Patients with normal BMI had significantly lower levels of extraversion and higher levels of neuroticism than the obese individuals, while subjects with extra weight and normal BMI were more emotionally stable. We found no evidence that choleric or melancholic temperament had an impact on BMI or periodontal health. However, phlegmatic temperament was found to be linked to a normal BMI, good oral hygiene, and an intact periodontium, while sanguine temperament was linked to obesity and gingivitis in young adults. A significantly higher level of state and trait anxiety was observed in obese individuals. Fifty percent of the obese subjects had disturbances of the functional state of the cardiovascular system and the tone of the autonomic nervous system. Conclusions: Because obesity and periodontal pathology are multifactorial diseases linked to lifestyle, stress tolerance, and habits, personality temperament may play a causal role in their development.

Salivary gland cancers (SGCs) pose a therapeutic challenge due to their aggressive nature and limited treatment options. Ion transporters, particularly the sodium/iodide symporter (SLC5A5), which transport iodine in the form of iodide anion (I−) into cells, have emerged as potential therapeutic targets in tumors of glandular origin. Our research indicates that SLC5A5 is expressed predominantly in ductal cells of human and murine SGC cells. We assessed the effects of potassium iodide (KI), a source of iodide ions. KI treatment reduced SGC cell proliferation and viability without impacting migration. KI increased ROS levels and triggered caspase-dependent apoptosis, as indicated by the upregulation of the pro-apoptotic protein BAX, downregulation of the anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2, and induction of SGC cell shrinkage. KI did not affect NF-κB or TNF-α and SLC5A5 expression. Adding the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine reversed KI-induced growth inhibition, underscoring ROS-induced oxidative stress’s crucial role in growth inhibition. While KI administered in drinking water to mice increased epidermal growth factor (EGF) expression in non-malignant salivary gland tissues, KI decreased EGF receptor (EGFR) expression in malignant SGC cell cultures, where EGFR signaling is frequently dysregulated in SGCs but promoted AKT phosphorylation. Combining KI and anti-EGFR treatment did not yield synergistic anti-SGC cell effects. The study underscores the therapeutic potential of KI as a standalone treatment in vitro for SGC cells. However, the upregulation of EGF in non-malignant tissues and, therefore, the possibility to enhance EGFR-driven signals and AKT phosphorylation after KI treatment in cancer patients could indicate a risk of rendering SGC cells more drug resistant, warranting further investigation to optimize its clinical application.

Background: While acute coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infections of the oral cavity, with clinical signs such as taste loss, dry mouth, and mucosal lesions, are well-established health problems, involvement of the oral cavity as a sign of long COVID is poorly understood. One of the organs in the oral cavity that is prone to the virus is the salivary gland. Case presentation: We describe the case of an elderly patient with severe generalized xerostomia and left-sided facial swelling involving the submandibular gland, an uncommon presentation, as the parotid gland is typically involved COVID-19 infections. Ultrasound demonstrated marked ductal dilation without glandular tissue changes. The absence of other causes of sialodochitis, together with a history of repeated COVID-19 infections, led to the diagnosis of post-COVID sialodochitis. Management options were limited by the patient’s frailty and polypharmacy. Nevertheless, conservative symptomatic treatment led to clinical recovery, with no evidence of progression to bacterial or necrotizing sialadenitis. Conclusions: This case demonstrates that COVID-19 infection and its history should be included in the differential diagnosis of sialadenitis. Along with the clinical case presentation, a narrative review of similar studies on COVID-19-associated salivary gland disease was conducted, spanning molecular and post-mortem evidence, acute clinical cases, and post-COVID sequelae.

Background: Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia is a major cause of morbidity in hemodialysis patients, often leading to metastatic complications. Sternocleidomastoid muscle phlegmon and sternoclavicular septic arthritis are uncommon but serious infectious complications of S. aureus bacteremia described in immunocompromised patients but rarely described in patients with end-stage renal disease or an indwelling dialysis catheter. Case Presentation: We report a case of a 50-year-old Caucasian woman with end-stage renal disease on maintenance hemodialysis. Her dialysis catheter was removed because of fever and positive blood cultures for methicillin-susceptible S. aureus . Despite a ten-day outpatient course of ceftriaxone and azithromycin, she developed recurrent fever, right-sided neck swelling, trismus, severe lower neck pain, and swelling and tenderness over the sternocleidomastoid muscle. She also had restricted neck movement (torticollis) and a hemorrhagic petechial rash. Odontogenic (dental) or pharyngeal infectious sources were excluded. No internal jugular vein thrombosis was detected at the initial catheter site. Imaging showed a phlegmon in the fascial compartment of the right sternocleidomastoid muscle, septic arthritis of the sternoclavicular joint with erosion of the sternal end of the clavicle, and septic pulmonary emboli with cavitation. The patient underwent surgical incision and drainage of the sternocleidomastoid muscle phlegmon. This was combined with six weeks of targeted intravenous antibiotic therapy and continued hemodialysis. Clinical and radiological improvement was achieved, with complete resolution of the infection and cutaneous manifestations. Conclusion: This case shows an unusual pattern of metastatic dissemination in catheter-related S. aureus bacteremia. The complications included a sternocleidomastoid muscle phlegmon and sternoclavicular septic arthritis, both arising by contiguous spread from the infected catheter tunnel, together with septic pulmonary embolism and a hemorrhagic rash. The case underscores the need for early recognition, prompt source control, and aggressive, multidisciplinary management, including early surgical intervention, for high-risk hemodialysis patients.

Obesity and periodontal diseases are associated with oxidative stress activation. Periodontitis and gingivitis are inflammatory diseases that cause systemic and local production of reactive oxygen species, leading to tissue damage. Obesity exacerbates systemic free radical oxidation. The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of cerium oxide nanoparticles (CNPs) as potential pharmaceutical agents for targeting oxidative stress activation in patients with obesity and periodontal disease. Young patients with obesity and generalized gingivitis were randomly allocated into 2 groups. In the first group (n = 28), a professional oral hygiene procedure was performed, followed by the local application of the Nanosept solution (a formulation comprising CNPs and chlorhexidine digluconate (CHG)). Over the next 5 days, the subjects were instructed to administer the Nanosept solution twice a day on the gums using a cotton sponge for 5 min. The second group (n = 30) was additionally prescribed the antioxidant Cerera (CNPs) for 10 days. Following treatment in both groups, a complete resolution of gingivitis was registered. In both groups, a significant decrease in salivary mucopolysaccharides and total nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity was observed. However, a significant decrease in oxidative and nitrosative stress markers, as well as an increase in catalase activity were registered only after systemic administration of CNPs. Similarly, the normalization of colonization resistance (CR) was observed only in the second group. Systemic administration of CNPs in the treatment of obese patients with generalized gingivitis resulted in a decrease in oxidative and nitrosative stress activation in the oral cavity, enhanced antioxidant capacity of the saliva, and normalized the level of CR of the oral cavity.