Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has broke out in 29 countries and regions in the world in a short period since December 2019. Various measures of prevention and control have been taken all over China. At present, the epidemic situation shows a positive trend, however, there are still a few new comfirmed cases in some area of China. So the job and thinking of epidemic prevention still cannot be relaxed. As an important specialty of stomatology, the risk of cross infection is high in oral medicine. Establishing an effective system of pre-inspection and triage and adopting strict measures of prevention and control are essential. According to the prevention and control situation of COVID-19, the characteristics of hospital infection, pre examination, protective measures, the home management strategies of oral mucosal diseases during the epidemic period and the differential diagnosis between COVID-19 and common oral mucosal diseases with fever were summarized and recommended in this paper.

Driven by oral pathogenic microorganisms, periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease, leading to progressive destruction of periodontal supporting tissues. Conventional therapies can alleviate symptoms, but are limited in their ability to eradicate pathogens, regenerate functional tissues, and prevent antibiotic resistance. Recent years have seen bioactive peptides and proteins (BAPPs) emerge as promising candidates for periodontitis treatment, owing to their multifunctional nature, excellent specificity, high biocompatibility, and favorable biodegradability. However, the enzymatic degradation of BAPPs leads to their short half-life in vivo. Therefore, rationally designed delivery strategies are indispensable to enhance the stability of BAPPs and improve targeting efficacy. This review summarizes the therapeutic mechanisms of BAPPs in periodontitis, including their antibacterial, immunomodulatory, antioxidant, and tissue-regenerating activities. It further explores advanced delivery strategies, such as nanoparticles, scaffold- or hydrogel-based platforms, and stimuli-responsive systems activated by pH, reactive oxygen species (ROS), enzymes, light, or magnetic fields, to achieve the precise spatiotemporal control of BAPPs delivery. Additionally, the discussion further encompasses the clinical translational potential of BAPPs, alongside extant barriers and future outlook, thereby paving the way for more effective and safe periodontitis treatment strategies.

Reconstruction of irregular oral-maxillofacial bone defects with an inflammatory microenvironment remains a challenge, as chronic local inflammation can largely impair bone healing. Here, we used magnesium silicate nanospheres (MSNs) to load microRNA-146a-5p (miR-146a) to fabricate a nanobiomaterial, MSN+miR-146a, which showed synergistic promoting effects on the osteogenic differentiation of human dental pulp stem cells (hDPSCs). In addition, miR-146a exhibited an anti-inflammatory effect on mouse bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMMs) under lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation by inhibiting the NF-κB pathway via targeting tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 6 (TRAF6), and MSNs could simultaneously promote M2 polarization of BMMs. MiR-146a was also found to inhibit osteoclast formation. Finally, the dual osteogenic-promoting and immunoregulatory effects of MSN+miR-146a were further validated in a stimulated infected mouse mandibular bone defect model via delivery by a photocuring hydrogel. Collectively, the MSN+miR-146a complex revealed good potential in treating inflammatory irregular oral-maxillofacial bone defects.