Reconstruction of a critical-sized osseous defect is challenging in maxillofacial surgery. Despite novel treatments and advances in supportive therapies, severe complications including infection, nonunion, and malunion can still occur. Here, we aimed to assess the use of a beta-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) scaffold loaded with high mobility group box-1 protein (HMGB-1) as a novel critical-sized bone defect treatment in rabbits. The study was performed on 15 specific pathogen-free New Zealand rabbits divided into three groups: Group A had an osseous defect filled with a β-TCP scaffold loaded with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) (100 µL/scaffold), the defect in group B was filled with recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein 2 (rhBMP-2) (10 µg/100 µL), and the defect in group C was loaded with HMGB-1 (10 µg/100 µL). Micro-computed tomography (CT) examination demonstrated that group C (HMGB-1) showed the highest new bone volume ratio, with a mean value of 66.5%, followed by the group B (rhBMP-2) (31.0%), and group A (Control) (7.1%). Histological examination of the HMGB-1 treated group showed a vast area covered by lamellar and woven bone surrounding the β-TCP granule remnants. These results suggest that HMGB-1 could be an effective alternative molecule for bone regeneration in critical-sized mandibular bone defects.

Background lameness is a significant problem of the dairy industry worldwide. No previous studies have evaluated the prevalence of lameness or digital dermatitis (DD) in dairy cattle herds in Egypt. A total of 16,098 dairy cows from 55 dairy herds in 11 Egyptian Governorates underwent visual locomotion scoring using a 4-point scoring system. Cows that had a lameness score ≥ 2 were considered clinically lame. Following manure removal with water and using a flashlight, the cows’ hid feet were examined in the milking parlour to identify and M-score DD lesions. Furthermore, each cow was assigned a hock score (a 3-point scale) and a hygiene score (a 4-point scale). The cow-level, within-and between-herd prevalence of lameness and digital dermatitis and associated 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated. The prevalence of hock lesions and poor cow hygiene was also calculated. Results Of the examined cows, 6,883 cows were found to be clinical lame (42.8%, 95% CI = 42–43.5%). The average within-herd prevalence of lameness was 43.1% (95% CI = 35.9–50.3%). None of the dairy herds recruited into the study was found to be free from clinical lameness. The average within-herd prevalence of DD was 6.4% (95% CI = 4.9–8%). The herd-level prevalence of DD was 92.7% (95% CI = 85.9–99.6%). Active DD lesions (M1, M2, M4.1) were identified in 464 cows (2.9%) while inactive lesions (M3, M4) were identified in 559 cows (3.5%). The within-herd prevalence of hock lesions (score 2 or 3) was 12.6% (95% CI = 4.03–21.1%) while a severe hock lesion had within-herd prevalence of 0.31% (95% CI = 0.12–0.51%). Cow-level prevalence of hock lesions was 6.2% (n = 847, 95% CI = 5.8–6.2%). Majority of examined cows had a hygiene score 4 (n = 10,814, prevalence = 70.3%, 95% CI = 69.5–71%). Conclusions The prevalence of lameness was higher than reported prevalence estimates in other countries which could be due to differing management and/or environmental factors. DD was identified at lower prevalence in most herds. Poor cow hygiene was notable in most herds. There should be measures to reduce the prevalence of lameness and to improve cow hygiene in dairy cattle herds in Egypt.

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Osteoblast proliferation and migration are significantly involved in bone healing, regeneration and embryonic skeletal development. Recently, reports suggest anabolic properties of High Mobility Group Box Protein 1 (HMGB1) within the subsequent phase of tissue regeneration as well as HMGB1 has been shown to be highly expressed during bone fracture and regulates osteochondral ossification. In this study, the effect of various concentrations of Recombinant Human HMGB-1 (rhHMGB-1) (50, 100,150 and 200 µg/L) on the viability and proliferation of Pre-osteoblast cells MC3T3-E1 were examined over 24, 48 and 72 hours intervals in comparison with control, untreated cells. A cell count kit (CCk-8) was used to assess osteoblast viability and proliferation, results were quantified using a microplate reader and the viability %(survival rate) was calculated. All experiments were done in triplicate and outcomes were statistically analyzed. A direct positive impact of HMGB-1 on the viability and proliferation of osteoblast cells was in a dose dependent manner. Lower concentration of HMGB-1 (50 and 100 µg/L) showed a nonsignificance difference in the viability and proliferation of osteoblast cells over time, however, a higher concentration of HMGB-1 (150 and 200 µg/L) showed a significant increase in the proliferation and survival rate by 1.7 fold compared to control group in the 2 nd and 3 rd day of treatment. No significant difference was found between the 150 and 200 µg/L concentrations which suggested the appropriate dose will be 150 µg/L. Moreover, further in vivo and in vitro investigations will be required.