Virtual reality body swapping to improve self-assessment in job interview training

Swapping visual perspective in Virtual Reality pro vides a unique means for embodying different virtual bodies and for self-distancing. Moreover, this technology is a powerful tool for experiential learning and for simulating realistic scenarios, with broad potential in the training of soft skills. However, there is scarce knowledge on how perspective swapping in Virtual Reality might benefit the training of soft skills such as those required in a job interview. The present study investigates the impact of virtual body swapping on the self-assessment of verbal and non- verbal communication skills, emotional states, and embodiment in a simulated job interview context. Three main conditions were compared: a baseline condition in which the participants practiced a job interview from the first-person perspective of a virtual interviewee (No Swap condition); an external point of view condition where, first, the participants answered questions from the interviewee perspective, but then swap visual perspective to re-experience their responses from a non-embodied point of view (Out of Body condition); a condition in which, after answering questions from the interviewee perspective, the participants re-experienced their responses from the embodied perspective of the virtual recruiter (Recruiter condition). The experimental results indicated that the effectiveness of the Out of Body and Recruiter Conditions was superior to the No Swap Condition to self-assess the communication styles used during a job interview. Moreover, all the conditions led to a high level of embodiment towards the interviewee avatar when seen from the first-person perspective; in the case of the Recruiter Condition, the participants also felt embodied in the recruiter avatar. No differences in emotional states were found among conditions, with all sharing a positive valence

Advanced-Metastatic Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer EGFR-mutated in Italy: patient management costs and potential productivity losses:

Epidermal growth factor receptor-tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs) are established therapies for previously untreated advanced/metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) EGFR-mutated patients. Osimertinib, a third-generation TKI, has recently received the same first-line indication. This study aims at investigating management costs and potential productivity losses in Italy in this patient setting, given all the available therapeutic options. Two analyses were performed. The first evaluates first-line yearly management costs and potential productivity losses per patient, for each first-line treatment. The second, performed nationally and regionally, models all lines of treatments and costs over a five-year period, through different market-share scenarios – considering osimertinib adoption as new therapy in 60% of patients as the most probable one – and line-switch/mortality probabilities. Using this model, patients' total months of treatment and development/progression of brain metastases were also analyzed. The first analysis shows that first-line management costs and potential productivity losses are minimized by osimertinib (first-line yearly expenditure of €25.942, 8%-12% less than TKIs). The second analysis, based on a five-year horizon and on all therapy lines, shows that total management costs and potential productivity losses decrease by increasing the adoption of osimertinib as a first-line therapy (€7.4m cumulative lower cost with osimertinib at 60% compared to 0%). Considering the average month of therapy, where results are not affected by the length of the therapy, with osimertinib at 60% on naïve patients, monthly management costs and productivity losses are 10% lower than in the non-osimertinib scenario. In advanced, metastatic EGFR-mutated NSCLC, the use of osimertinib as the first-line treatment could reduce patient management costs and potential productivity losses

Mechanical properties of the most common European woods: a literature review

Wood is an orthotropic material used since ancient time. A literature research about the mechanical properties of density, fracture toughness, modulus of elasticity, and Poisson’s ratio has been done to have a broader view on the subject. The publications relating to the topic were found through the two search engines Scopus and Google Scholar that have yielded several papers, including articles and book sections. In general, there is no standardization on the method of analysis carried out on wood, underlining the great difficulty in studying this complex material. The parameter of density has a great variability and needs a deeper investigation; fracture toughness is not always available in literature, not even in the different directions of the wood sample. Interesting is the modulus of elasticity, which provides a correlation with density, especially in longitudinal section but, again, it needs to be studied in detail. The parameter of Poisson’s ratio is provided as single values in three different directions, but mainly for softwood. All the parameters require a more in-depth study for both softwood and hardwood. Furthermore, the type of analysis, whether experimental or modelling, needs to be standardized to have more comparable results

Tumor derived Microvesicles enhance cross-processing ability of clinical grade Dendritic Cells

Tumor cells release extracellular microvesicles (MVs) in the microenvironment to deliver biological signals to neighbouring cells as well as to cells in distant tissues. Tumor-derived MVs appear to play contradictory role promoting both immunosuppression and tumor growth and both evoking tumor specific immune response. Recent evidences indicate that tumor-derived MVs can positively impact Dendritic Cells (DCs) immunogenicity by reprogramming DC antigen processing machinery and intracellular signaling pathways, thus promoting anti-tumor response. DCs are considered pivot cells of the immune system due to their exclusive ability to coordinate the innate and acquired immune responses, cross-present exogenous antigens and prime naïve T cells. DCs are required for the induction and maintenance of long-lasting anti-tumor immunity and their exploitation has been extensively investigated for the design of anti-tumor vaccines. However, the clinical grade culture conditions that are required to generate DCs for therapeutic use can strongly affect their functions. Here, we investigated the immunomodulatory impact of MVs carrying the MUC1 tumor glycoantigen (MVsMUC1) as immunogen formulation on clinical grade DCs grown in X-VIVO 15 (X-DCs). Results indicated that X-DCs displayed reduced performance of the antigen processing machinery in term of diminished phagocytosis and acidification of the phagosomal compartment suggesting an altered immunogenicity of clinical grade DCs. Pulsing DCs with MVsMUC1 restored phagosomal alkalinization, triggering ROS increase. This was not observed when a soluble MUC1 protein was employed (rMUC1). Concurrently, MVsMUC1 internalization by X-DCs allowed MUC1 cross-processing. Most importantly, MVsMUC1 pulsed DCs activated IFNγ response mediated by MUC1 specific CD8+ T cells. These results strongly support the employment of tumor-derived MVs as immunogen platforms for the implementation of DC-based vaccine

Retrospective descriptive analysis of the physiological kinetics of prostate-specific antigen in men older than 75 years.

Several studies have compared prostate-specific antigen (PSA) kinetics in men with and without cancer, but there has been no adequate analysis of the longitudinal variation in PSA. The aim of this study was to assess the fluctuations in PSA in a cohort of elderly men in an attempt to define a physiological pattern of PSA kinetics. We searched a specific cohort of patients aged > 75 years and with PSA value < 2.0 ng mL(-1). A history of all PSA values over the past 10 years was compiled for each patient to create a database of patients fitting the following criteria: (1) minimum of five PSA measurements, (2) over at least 5 years. Exclusion criteria were: (1) PSA < 0.2 ng mL(-1) at each measurement and (2) having had more than one PSA test per year. In all, 1 327 patients (mean age: 78.52 years) fit the inclusion criteria. The mean variation from the first to the last PSA test was 0.05 +/- 0.43, with a mean follow-up of 6.79 +/- 1.71 years. Over the same period, the mean fluctuation from the lowest to the highest PSA value was 0.04 +/- 0.55 (P = 0.925). The mean annual PSA velocity (PSAV) was calculated by dividing the mean variation from the first to the last PSA test by the number of years of observation for each patient and was set at 0.0104 +/- 0.1050. Concluding, in a large-scale cohort of elderly individuals considered healthy and evaluated for a considerable follow-up, the average annual PSAV as well as the average fluctuation from the lowest to the highest PSA value are insignificant

Dysphagia as initial manifestation of Guillan-Barrè Syndrome in a child

The occurrence of dysphagia in a child may be a sign of various pathological conditions and mainly gastrointestinal disorders; neurological causes are not very frequent, but they should be taken in to considerations. Etiological diagnosis is important for minimizing related complications. Here we report the case of a 6-year-old girl who was admitted to our Clinic with sudden onset weakness of the limbs and dysphagia. Physical examination revealed hypo-areflexia of both legs and arms and multiple cranial nerve dysfunction. Based on typical clinical course, laboratory investigations and electrophysiological studies, a diagnosis of Guillain-Barrè Syndrome (GBS) was assessed. A treatment with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) was immediately started with a progressive recovery of motility and cranial nerve function. An electrophysiological evaluation, performed one month after therapy start, showed slight improvement of neurological symptoms, in particular of the sensitive component. On the basis of our experience we suggest that a GBS should be suspected when dysphagia is associated with pain and ascending flaccid paralysis of the limbs, in order to prevent a severe complications such as respiratory failure

Out of Place: Gallstone Ileus

PRESENTATION Infrequently, a gallstone can travel into the small intestine and lodge there, causing bowel blockage. This was the case for a 70-year-old man who was referred to us with abdominal pain, persistent nausea, and vomiting. He also reported dyspepsia of 3 months\u2019 duration. His medical history included hypertension, chronic ischemic heart disease, and type 2 diabetes mellitu

EGFR-TKI plus anti-angiogenic drugs in EGFR-mutated NSCLC: a meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials

Abstract Background Results of several RCTs testing the combination of an EGFR-TKI plus an anti-angiogenic drug in advanced EGFR-mutated NSCLC were reported. Methods We first report a systematic-review and meta-analysis of all RCTs, to estimate effectiveness and toxicity of such new therapeutic approach as compared with first-generation EGFR-TKIs monotherapy. Subsequently, we present a network meta-analysis (NMA) comparing the combination of an EGFR-TKI plus an anti-angiogenic drug with other two new treatment-options: combination of an EGFR-TKI plus chemotherapy or new EGFR-TKIs of second or third generation as monotherapy. Results Five RCTs were included in the first meta-analysis. The PFS was statistically significantly larger in patients treated with an EGFR-TKI plus an anti-angiogenic drug as compared with EGFR-TKI monotherapy: the pooled PFS-HR was 0.59 (95% CI = 0.51 to 0.69). The pooled median-PFS was 17.8 months (95% CI = 16.5 to 19.3) for the combination versus 11.7 months (95% CI = 11.1 to 12.7) for EGFR-TKI as monotherapy. No statistically significant differences between the two treatment-arms were observed in terms of both OS and ORR. The rate of grade equal or higher than 3 AEs was statistically significantly higher in patients treated with EGFR-TKI plus an anti-angiogenic drug: the pooled-Relative Risk was 1.72 (95% CI = 1.43 to 2.06). Ten RCTs were included in the NMA. All the three experimental treatments were associated with a statistically significant improvement of PFS as compared with first-generation EGFR-TKIs. When compared to each other, none of the three experimental treatments was statistically significantly associated with larger PFS or lower rate of grade ≥3AEs. Conclusion Patients with EGFR-mutated NSCLC derived clinically meaningful larger PFS-benefit from the addition of an anti-angiogenic drug to a first-generation EGFR-TKI, at the cost of an increase of toxicitie