Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Analysis of immediate student outcomes following a change in gross anatomy laboratory teaching methodology.

OBJECTIVE: To compare student performance following a change in laboratory teaching methodology from cadavers to models to virtual dissection table in a musculoskeletal gross anatomy course in a doctor of chiropractic program. METHODS: Three marking periods of laboratory and lecture examination scores from 3 consecutive academic calendar years were evaluated and compared using simple analysis as well as analysis of variance and post hoc t tests. The 1st cohort of students ( n = 352) utilized cadavers. The 2nd cohort of students ( n = 350) had anatomical models as their primary gross laboratory modality. The 3rd cohort of students ( n = 393) utilized virtual dissection tables. RESULTS: The midterm and final laboratory examination scores were evaluated and showed successive increase in aggregate averages between cohort 1 (mean = 76.1%), cohort 2 (mean = 81.4%), and cohort 3 (mean = 85.1%). Lecture examination scores remained consistent between the cohorts at 61.2%, 62.4%, and 61.1%, respectively. Significant improvements were seen in lab exam scores between cohorts ( F [2, 2113] = 58.6, p < .001), and no significant differences were seen in lecture exam scores. CONCLUSION: Students utilizing virtual dissection tables scored higher on laboratory examinations than students having models or cadavers. However, they displayed a similar testing competency in lecture examinations, suggesting a possible change in laboratory examination difficulty between the cohorts but a similar knowledge base. Further studies are warranted to evaluate the long-term retention of student knowledge.
Inferring Roles in Defense from Metabolic Allocation of Rice Diterpenoids[OPEN]

Metabolic allocation of diterpenoids in rice leads to the discovery of a novel physiological function for diterpenoids in plant disease resistance. Among their responses to microbial infection, plants deploy an arsenal of natural antibiotic products. Historically these have been identified on the basis of their antibiotic activity in vitro, which leaves open the question of their relevance to defense in planta. The vast majority of such natural products from the important crop plant rice (Oryza sativa) are diterpenoids whose biosynthesis proceeds via either ent- or syn-copalyl diphosphate (CPP) intermediates, which were isolated on the basis of their antibiotic activity against the fungal blast pathogen Magnaporthe oryzae. However, rice plants in which the gene for the syn-CPP synthase Os-CPS4 is knocked out do not exhibit increased susceptibility to M. oryzae. Here, we show that knocking out or knocking down Os-CPS4 actually decreases susceptibility to the bacterial leaf blight pathogen Xanthomonas oryzae. By contrast, genetic manipulation of the gene for the ent-CPP synthase Os-CPS2 alters susceptibility to both M. oryzae and X. oryzae. Despite the secretion of diterpenoids dependent on Os-CPS2 or Os-CPS4 from roots, neither knockout exhibited significant changes in the composition of their rhizosphere bacterial communities. Nevertheless, rice plants allocate substantial metabolic resources toward syn- as well as ent-CPP derived diterpenoids upon infection/induction. Further investigation revealed that Os-CPS4 plays a role in fungal non-host disease resistance. Thus, examination of metabolic allocation provides important clues into physiological function.
Therapy influences goal attainment following botulinum neurotoxin injection for focal spasticity in adults with neurological conditions

ABSTRACT Objective: To determine whether therapy influenced goal attainment following botulinum toxin (BoNT-A) injection for focal spasticity in adults with neurological conditions. Methods: A prospective observational cohort study conducted in a large metropolitan spasticity clinic on adults with focal spasticity of any origin. Participants were provided with a therapy programme, designed to maximise therapeutic outcome. The primary outcome measure was Goal Attainment Scaling. To measure adherence, participants completed a therapy-recording tool each day. Goal attainment, and the rate of adherence to the therapy programme, was evaluated after 10 weeks. Results: Active indications for BoNT-A treatment made up the majority of the goals (80.30%). Goals were achieved in 43/76 cases (56.60%; 95% CI = 42.40 to 69.80%). Therapy adherence was associated with significantly greater goal attainment (OR = 1.02, p = 0.03, 95% CI = 1.00 to 1.04). Greater adherence to therapy increased the odds of goal achievement for active indications but not for passive indications, suggesting a possible statistical interaction between the indication for injection and adherence to therapy (p < 0.01). Conclusion: Therapy adherence was associated with greater goal attainment. Active indications for BoNT-A were more reliant on adherence to prescribed therapy programmes than passive indications, although further investigation is required.
Intra-arterial high-dose chemotherapy with cisplatin as part of a palliative treatment concept in oral cancer.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Patients with cancer of the oral cavity often present with advanced tumor stages, distant metastasis, or severe comorbidities, which render radical surgery unfeasible. The purpose of this study was to investigate the response rate, technical feasibility, and safety of intra-arterial (IA) chemotherapy as palliative treatment in this situation. METHODS From November 1997 to December 2003, 64 patients with histologically proven oral squamous cell carcinoma, classified as inoperable, received IA high-dose chemotherapy with cisplatin as a palliative treatment at our institution. To minimize toxic side effects, sodium thiosulfate was given intravenously. Twenty-eight percent of the patients were female; average age was 61.5 years. Clinical staging of primary tumors was TNM (tumor, nodules, metastases) stage IV in 89%, stage III in 6.3% and stage II in 4.7%. After local chemotherapy, additional radiation of the tumor area or radiochemotherapy was performed in 33 patients. RESULTS There were no major catheter-related complications or severe side effects of IA chemotherapy. After the first cycle, 10% percent of the patients had complete remission (CR), 35% had partial response (PR), and 43.3% presented with stable disease. Mean follow-up interval was 11 +/- 12.9 months. Forty-five patients died after a mean period of 7.6 +/- 7.0 months (median, 5.1 months). The overall 1- and 2-year survival rates were 29.5% and 18%, respectively. There was a trend toward longer survival in patients who received subsequent radiation or radiochemotherapy after IA chemotherapy. CONCLUSION IA chemotherapy in patients with inoperable carcinoma of the oral cavity as palliative treatment was technically feasible and safe. The overall response rate after IA chemotherapy was 45% (CR 10%; PR 35%). Side effects could be minimized by neutralizing the cytotoxic agent by sodium thiosulfate.
Clinical Features and Management of Pseudoaneurysmal Bleeding after Pancreatoduodenectomy

A ruptured pseudoaneurysm is the most serious and life-threatening cause of post-pancreatoduodenectomy (PD) hemorrhages. We have evaluated the clinical course and management of pseudoaneurysms after PD. Of 586 patients who underwent PD for periampullary tumors in Asan Medical Center between March 2003 and March 2011, 27 experienced pseudoaneurysmal bleeding. Bleeding developed at a median of 21 days (range, 8 to 45 days) after surgery, including 9 patients who developed bleeding more than 4 weeks after surgery. Before development of bleeding, 26 patients showed pancreatic fistula. Bleeding was developed from the gastroduodenal artery stump in 12 patients, the common hepatic artery in eight, the proper hepatic artery in five, and the left hepatic artery in two. Of the angiographic group, 21 patients underwent with microcoil embolization, four underwent stent insertion, and one experienced technical failure. Only one patient required emergent laparotomy without angiography. Of 25 patients with angiographic procedures, all patients achieved hemostasis. The mortality rate was 22.2 per cent (6 patients). Delayed hemorrhage after PD is closely associated with pancreatic fistula and carried a significantly higher mortality rate. The patients with pancreatic fistula should be carefully monitored, even more than 4 weeks after surgery. Selective microcoil embolization or stent graft is effective for pseudoaneurysmal bleeding.
“Antimyeloangiogenic” Therapy for Cancer by Inhibiting PlGF

Inhibition of tumor angiogenesis emerged as valuable strategy to treat cancer and has revolutionized the face of clinical oncology by prolonging the life of numerous cancer patients. However, the duration of this response is rather short and tumors rapidly evade treatment, leaving antiangiogenic treatment thus far unable to cure cancer. Hence, novel targets are needed to diversify antiangiogenic treatments and to overcome resistance. Recent data support the concept that tumor infiltration by bone marrow-derived myeloid cells confers resistance to current antiangiogenic drugs targeting primarily vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). In this review, we will summarize (pre)clinical data on the role of PlGF and its receptor VEGFR-1 in promoting angiogenesis and inflammation, and the “antimyeloangiogenic” activity of an antibody against PlGF (αPlGF), which may help to overcome resistance against VEGF(R)Is. Because of these promising results, a humanized αPlGF antibody (TB403) is currently evaluated in different phase I clinical trials in cancer patients.
Regulation of the central glycolytic genes in Bacillus subtilis: binding of the repressor CggR to its single DNA target sequence is modulated by fructose‐1,6‐bisphosphate

Glycolysis is one of the best and widely conserved general metabolic pathways. Bacillus subtilis enzymes catalysing the central part of glycolysis, gathering the steps of interconversion of the triose phosphates from dihydroxyacetone‐phosphate to phosphoenolpyruvate, are encoded by five genes, gapA, pgk, tpi, pgm and eno. They are transcribed in a hexacistronic operon together with cggR, the first cistron, encoding the repressor of this gapA operon. Using deletion analysis, we have localized the CggR operator between the promoter and the first gene of the operon. CggR was purified and used in gel mobility shift assays and DNase I footprinting experiments to delimit its target sequence. Site‐directed mutagenesis and in vivo tests demonstrated that it consists of two direct‐repeats (CGGGACN6TGTCN4CGGGACN6TG TC). Sequence analysis and transcriptome comparison of a wild‐type and a cggR mutant strain strongly suggested that CggR regulates only the gapA operon. The presence of glycolytic carbon sources induces expression of the gapA operon. Genetic experiments allowed us to identify the metabolic steps required for the formation of the CggR effector. In vitro experiments with the suggested candidates allowed us to demonstrate that fructose‐1,6‐biphosphate (FBP) acts as an inhibitor of CggR DNA‐binding activity (10 mM for full inhibition). FBP is thus the major signal for both CcpA‐dependent catabolite repression (or activation) and activation of the central glycolytic genes. Genomic sequence comparisons suggest that these results can apply to numerous low‐G+C, Gram‐positive bacterial species.
Is Parkinson's Disease a Neurodevelopmental Disorder and Will Brain Organoids Help Us to Understand It?

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder after Alzheimer's disease. The incidence of PD cases increases with age, accordingly classically PD is considered to be an age-associated neurodegenerative disease. In this review, the hypothesis that PD is actually a neurodevelopmental disorder that is compensated for a long time will be discussed. However, patients who suffer from PD typically do not show symptoms early in their lives. This implies that, if the hypothesis that PD has a significant neurodevelopmental component is correct, the developmental defects are compensated for a long time. Furthermore, these developmental defects might not causally lead to the disease but increase the susceptibility for disease onset after a "second hit. " In this logic, deregulated developmental processes might represent the "first hit. " Even a minor developmental defect could lead to a reduced compensatory capacity or reduced fault tolerance of the entire system. In such a case of an already imbalanced system one or more additional hits could perturb the entire system sufficiently to bring it out of balance and lead to the pathology and symptoms which we classify as PD. However, if the developmental hypothesis and the "multiple hit" hypothesis are correct, an early diagnosis of these developmental defects might allow the start of a therapy for at-risk individuals before disease pathology becomes severe and before symptoms occur. Modern stem cell technologies, including the generation of personalized brain organoids, might play an important role in these strategies.
Alleviation of Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury in Liver Steatosis by Augmenter of Liver Regeneration Is Attributed to Antioxidation and Preservation of Mitochondria

Background Fatty liver is one of the major impediments to liver surgery and liver transplantation because steatotic hepatocytes are more susceptible to ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI). In this study, the effects of augmenter of liver regeneration (ALR) on hepatic IRI in steatotic mice were investigated. Methods In vivo, liver steatosis of mice was induced by feeding a methionine-choline–deficient diet for 2 weeks. Three days before hepatic partial warm IRI, mice were transfected with the ALR-containing adenovirus. In an in vitro study, the protective effect of ALR on steatotic HepG2 cells was analyzed after hypoxia/reoxygenation (HR) treatment. Results The transfection of the ALR gene into steatotic mice attenuated liver injury, inhibiting hepatic oxidative stress, increasing antioxidation capacities, promoting liver regeneration, and consequently suppressing cell apoptosis/death. Furthermore, resistance to HR injury was notably increased in ALR-transfected cells compared with the vector-transfected cells. The HR-induced rise in the mitochondrial reactive oxygen species was reduced, and cellular antioxidant activities were enhanced. The ALR transfection prevented cells from apoptosis, which can be attributed to the preservation of the mitochondrial membrane potential, enhancement of oxygen consumption rate and production of adenosine triphosphate. Conclusions ALR protects steatotic hepatocytes from IRI by attenuating oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction, as well as improving antioxidant effect. ALR may be used as a potential therapeutic agent when performing surgery and transplantation of steatotic liver.
Neural Response to Pleasant Pictures Moderates Prospective Relationship Between Stress and Depressive Symptoms in Adolescent Girls

Adolescent girls are at increased risk for depression, which is thought to result from the interaction of biological vulnerabilities and life stressors common to adolescent girls. A blunted late positive potential (LPP) to emotional stimuli (i.e., pleasant and unpleasant) has been associated with depressive symptoms and risk. The current study of adolescent girls examines the moderating effects of the LPP, a candidate biomarker of depression, of the link between life stress and increases in depressive symptoms over 1 year. We measured LPP to pleasant and unpleasant pictures from the International Affective Picture Set among 143 predominantly Caucasian adolescent girls ages 8 to 14, who also reported on the frequency of common life stressors. Self-reported depressive symptoms were assessed both at baseline and 1 year after the initial lab visit. The LPP to pleasant pictures moderated the relationship between baseline life stressors and the change in depressive symptoms. Specifically, life stress was associated with increases in depressive symptoms when the LPP to pleasant pictures was blunted, whereas life stress was associated with decreases in depressive symptoms when the LPP to pleasant pictures was potentiated. These effects showed some specificity to family and school-related stressors and to anhedonic and efficacy-related depressive symptoms. A similar pattern, though not statistically significant, was found for the LPP to unpleasant pictures. Together, these findings suggest that the LPP to pleasant pictures may represent a useful biomarker in identifying individuals at greatest risk of experiencing depressive symptoms following stress.
Health, coping and subjective well-being: results of a longitudinal study of elderly Israelis

ABSTRACT Objectives: The aim of this study was to test a conceptual model designed to promote the understanding of factors influencing subjective well-being (SWB) in old age. Within this framework, we evaluated the relative influences on elderly Israelis' SWB of health and/or function, personal resources, coping behaviors (reactive and proactive), and changes in all of these factors over time. Method: At baseline, 1216 randomly selected elderly persons (75+) were interviewed at home (T1) and 1019 one year later (T2). The conceptual model was evaluated by Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) analysis using AMOS 18. Results: After one year, a relatively high percentage of participants reported decline in health/function (DHF) and in personal resources. The effects of the study variables on T2-SWB were evaluated by a SEM analysis, resulting in a satisfying fit: χ2 = 279.5 (df = 102), p < . 001, CFI = . 970, NFI = . 954, TLI = . 955, RMSEA = . 046. In addition to significant direct effects of health/function on T2-SWB, health/function was found to indirectly influence T2-SWB. Our analysis showed that health/function had a negative influence on the positive effects of personal resources (function self-efficacy, social support) and the diverse effects of the coping patterns (goal-reengagement – positive; expectations for future care needs – negative; having concrete plans for future care – positive). Conclusion: Personal resources and use of appropriate coping behaviors enable elderly people to control their well-being even in the presence of DHF. Evidence-based interventions can help older people to acquire and/or strengthen effective personal resources and coping patterns, thus, promoting their SWB.
Iranian women's perceptions of family-planning services quality: A client-satisfaction survey

As Iran (IR) is included among the most successful developing countries in family planning, clarification and expression of the ideas and needs of women receiving the services not only have a great positive impact on national policies but also may be of interest to other nations. This research was conducted to clarify the client perceptions of the quality of family planning services in the capital cities of the two largest provinces of Iran. A representative sample of 909 women aged 15–50 referred to health centers were interviewed by skillful interviewers in a private area after obtaining informed consent. A questionnaire consisting of baseline data and 17 five-point Likert-scaled items measuring the satisfaction of clients and perceived importance of each item was developed by investigators. Half were aged 26–35 years, and most (84%) were housewives. The highest percentage of dissatisfaction was reported in relation to ‘privacy protection’ item. However, when the importance score was included, too, ‘provision of sufficient information regarding other contraceptive methods’ and ‘unavailability of all methods’ implicated the areas where priorities should be focused. The satisfaction levels obtained by the survey should be carefully heeded, and the supply chain and provision of information to the clients may be the first priorities in the process of improving the quality of care.
Understanding the needs and criteria of employees in the electronics industry for English e-learning website programmes

E-learning is common in business educational programmes worldwide. English e-learning can increase learners' motivation and reduce learning costs. This paper explores the perception of employees who work in Taiwanese electronics corporations and take English e-learning educational training courses to determine whether English e-learning websites provide customer satisfaction. We adopted the technology acceptance model (TAM) and the service quality model of Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry to investigate their satisfaction. This study was limited to Taiwan and used a literature review and a questionnaire survey to collect data. Two notable aspects of this study design were identified. First, five elements for intangible service quality in the SERVQUAL model (reliability, assurance, tangibles, empathy, and responsiveness) were used to establish indicators for perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEOU) in the TAM. Second, questionnaires were distributed to people in the electronics industry at the Hsinchu Science and Industrial Park in Taiwan to measure respondents' PU, PEOU, and behavioural intention to use in the TAM. The major findings were as follows: tangibles, responsiveness, and PEOU significantly affected users' PU; tangibles, reliability, and assurance significantly affected users' PEOU; PEOU significantly affected users' PU and behavioural intention to use; PU significantly affected users' behavioural intention to use and system usage; and behavioural intention to use significantly affected users' system usage. Of the 13 hypotheses proposed in this study, 10 were supported and three were rejected.
The Exercise-Induced Irisin Is Associated with Improved Levels of Glucose Homeostasis Markers in Pregnant Women Participating in 8-Week Prenatal Group Fitness Program: A Pilot Study

Background Both exercise and pregnancy influence serum irisin concentration. Aim To determine how the interaction of pregnancy and exercise affects irisin level and whether various patterns of exercise adherence had different effect on irisin concentration. Methods It was a one-group pretest-posttest study among 9 Caucasian nulliparous healthy women in normal pregnancy (age 23 ± 3 years, 21 ± 2 weeks of gestation; mean ± SD) who participated in 8-week group fitness program. Before and after exercise intervention, we determined serum concentrations of irisin and selected parameters of lipid profile and glucose homeostasis markers. Results In active women, irisin slightly decreased with the development of pregnancy. After 8 weeks of exercising, irisin correlated negatively with fasting glucose (R = −0.922; p = 0.001), glycated hemoglobin (R = −0.784; p = 0.012), and insulin concentrations (R = −0.845; p = 0.004). In women exercising below recommended level, we observed a significant drop in irisin concentration, whereas in women exercising at least three times a week this myokine slightly increased (31% difference; 90% confidence limits ±28; a large, clear effect). Conclusions Irisin stimulated by prenatal exercise may improve glucose homeostasis markers in healthy women and compensate for metabolic changes induced by pregnancy. Moreover, the frequency of exercise may regulate the changes in exercise-induced irisin concentration.