STRESS AND COPING STRATEGIES OF SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS IN TRA CU DISTRICT, TRA VINH PROVINCE, VIETNAM

By using a cross-sectional study, this study aimed to determine the ratio of occupational stress, stress levels and the relationship between stress status and social characteristics of the sample, factors at work, as well as how secondary school teachers respond to stress in Tra Cu District, Tra Vinh Province. The study conducted a survey to investigate 466 teachers currently teaching at 14 secondary schools in Tra Cu District, Tra Vinh Province, from May 2020 to June 2020. Research results showed that the percentage of teachers who suffered mild stress and severe stress was 18.9% and 8.1%, respectively. The signs of stress in teachers correlated with several factors such as job demand, work control and ways of coping at work. When the average score of the assessment “job demand” or “work control” increased by one point, the rate of stress on teachers was reduced by 23% (95% CI: 0.73 – 0.81) and 12% (95% CI: 0.84 – 0.93) respectively. By contrast, the average score of “confrontation” increased by one point  leading to 3.21 times higher (95% CI: 2.61 – 3.96) possibility of causing stress. As well as the average score of "avoidance" increased by one point, the possibility of causing stress in teachers increased 3.03 times (95% CI: 2.45 – 3.74). The findings showed that mental health problems in teachers at secondary schools, in general and in Tra Cu District, Tra Vinh Province in particular, had not received sufficient attention. Therefore, the problems should be taken seriously not only by teachers school administration

Lineage-specific mutation of Lmx1b provides new insights into distinct regulation of suture development in different areas of the calvaria

The calvaria (top part of the skull) is made of pieces of bone as well as multiple soft tissue joints called sutures. The latter is crucial to the growth and morphogenesis of the skull, and thus a loss of calvarial sutures can lead to severe congenital defects in humans. During embryogenesis, the calvaria develops from the cranial mesenchyme covering the brain, which contains cells originating from the neural crest and the mesoderm. While the mechanism that patterns the cranial mesenchyme into bone and sutures is not well understood, function of Lmx1b, a gene encoding a LIM-domain homeodomain transcription factor, plays a key role in this process. In the current study, we investigated a difference in the function of Lmx1b in different parts of the calvaria using neural crest-specific and mesoderm-specific Lmx1b mutants. We found that Lmx1b was obligatory for development of the interfrontal suture and the anterior fontanel along the dorsal midline of the skull, but not for the posterior fontanel over the midbrain. Also, Lmx1b mutation in the neural crest-derived mesenchyme, but not the mesoderm-derived mesenchyme, had a non-cell autonomous effect on coronal suture development. Furthermore, overexpression of Lmx1b in the neural crest lineage had different effects on the position of the coronal suture on the apical part and the basal part. Other unexpected phenotypes of Lmx1b mutants led to an additional finding that the coronal suture and the sagittal suture are of dual embryonic origin. Together, our data reveal a remarkable level of regional specificity in regulation of calvarial development

Spatiotemporal evolution of SARS-CoV-2 Alpha and Delta variants during large nationwide outbreak of COVID-19, Vietnam, 2021

We analyzed 1,303 SARS-CoV-2 whole-genome sequences from Vietnam, and found the Alpha and Delta variants were responsible for a large nationwide outbreak of COVID-19 in 2021. The Delta variant was confined to the AY.57 lineage and caused >1.7 million infections and >32,000 deaths. Viral transmission was strongly affected by nonpharmaceutical interventions

Safety and efficacy of fluoxetine on functional outcome after acute stroke (AFFINITY): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

Background Trials of fluoxetine for recovery after stroke report conflicting results. The Assessment oF FluoxetINe In sTroke recoverY (AFFINITY) trial aimed to show if daily oral fluoxetine for 6 months after stroke improves functional outcome in an ethnically diverse population. Methods AFFINITY was a randomised, parallel-group, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial done in 43 hospital stroke units in Australia (n=29), New Zealand (four), and Vietnam (ten). Eligible patients were adults (aged ≥18 years) with a clinical diagnosis of acute stroke in the previous 2–15 days, brain imaging consistent with ischaemic or haemorrhagic stroke, and a persisting neurological deficit that produced a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score of 1 or more. Patients were randomly assigned 1:1 via a web-based system using a minimisation algorithm to once daily, oral fluoxetine 20 mg capsules or matching placebo for 6 months. Patients, carers, investigators, and outcome assessors were masked to the treatment allocation. The primary outcome was functional status, measured by the mRS, at 6 months. The primary analysis was an ordinal logistic regression of the mRS at 6 months, adjusted for minimisation variables. Primary and safety analyses were done according to the patient's treatment allocation. The trial is registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, ACTRN12611000774921. Findings Between Jan 11, 2013, and June 30, 2019, 1280 patients were recruited in Australia (n=532), New Zealand (n=42), and Vietnam (n=706), of whom 642 were randomly assigned to fluoxetine and 638 were randomly assigned to placebo. Mean duration of trial treatment was 167 days (SD 48·1). At 6 months, mRS data were available in 624 (97%) patients in the fluoxetine group and 632 (99%) in the placebo group. The distribution of mRS categories was similar in the fluoxetine and placebo groups (adjusted common odds ratio 0·94, 95% CI 0·76–1·15; p=0·53). Compared with patients in the placebo group, patients in the fluoxetine group had more falls (20 [3%] vs seven [1%]; p=0·018), bone fractures (19 [3%] vs six [1%]; p=0·014), and epileptic seizures (ten [2%] vs two [<1%]; p=0·038) at 6 months. Interpretation Oral fluoxetine 20 mg daily for 6 months after acute stroke did not improve functional outcome and increased the risk of falls, bone fractures, and epileptic seizures. These results do not support the use of fluoxetine to improve functional outcome after stroke

Effects of various carbon/energy sources on Drosophila melanogaster growth and development

Myo-inositol is an essential metabolite that plays a role in many important biological functions. In eukaryotic cells, myo-inositol-3-phosphate synthase (MIPS) synthesizes myo -inositol from glucose-6-phosphate and myo-inositol oxygenase (MIOX) catabolizes myo-inositol to glucuronic acid. Myo-inositol metabolism has not been explored in the model organism Drosophila melanogaster. This study demonstrates that Drosophila melanogaster can grow on defined media with myo-inositol as the sole carbon/energy source, which suggests that flies can transport and catabolize a sufficient amount of myo-inositol to support growth and development. Proteomic experiments revealed that flies grown on defined media with various carbon/energy sources alter the expression of mitochondrial proteins and mitochondrial associated proteins. Computational results including the percent identity to experimentally established MIOX proteins, the similarity of protein domain and 3-D structures, and the presence of specific transcriptional regulatory elements suggest that the D. melanogaster gene, CG6910 probably encodes MIOX. In addition, the similarity between the patterns of expression of CG6910 in microarrays and MIOX in Western blots suggests that CG6910 encodes MIOX. The hypomorphic phenotype of a D. melanogaster mutant strain with a P-element inserted into CG6910 further indicates that CG6910 encodes MIOX

BMP-SHH Signaling Network Controls Epithelial Stem Cell Fate via Regulation of Its Niche in the Developing Tooth

SummaryDuring embryogenesis, ectodermal stem cells adopt different fates and form diverse ectodermal organs, such as teeth, hair follicles, mammary glands, and salivary glands. Interestingly, these ectodermal organs differ in their tissue homeostasis, which leads to differential abilities for continuous growth postnatally. Mouse molars lose the ability to grow continuously, whereas incisors retain this ability. In this study, we found that a BMP-Smad4-SHH-Gli1 signaling network may provide a niche supporting transient Sox2+ dental epithelial stem cells in mouse molars. This mechanism also plays a role in continuously growing mouse incisors. The differential fate of epithelial stem cells in mouse molars and incisors is controlled by this BMP/SHH signaling network, which partially accounts for the different postnatal growth potential of molars and incisors. Collectively, our study highlights the importance of crosstalk between two signaling pathways, BMP and SHH, in regulating the fate of epithelial stem cells during organogenesis

Smad4-irf6 genetic interaction and TGFβ-mediated IRF6 signaling cascade are crucial for palatal fusion in mice

Cleft palate is one of the most common human birth defects and is associated with multiple genetic and environmental risk factors. Although mutations in the genes encoding transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ) signaling molecules and interferon regulatory factor 6 (Irf6) have been identified as genetic risk factors for cleft palate, little is known about the relationship between TGFβ signaling and IRF6 activity during palate formation. Here, we show that TGFβ signaling regulates expression of Irf6 and the fate of the medial edge epithelium (MEE) during palatal fusion in mice. Haploinsufficiency of Irf6 in mice with basal epithelial-specific deletion of the TGFβ signaling mediator Smad4 (Smad4(fl/fl);K14-Cre;Irf6(+/R84C)) results in compromised p21 expression and MEE persistence, similar to observations in Tgfbr2(fl/fl);K14-Cre mice, although the secondary palate of Irf6(+/R84C) and Smad4(fl/fl);K14-Cre mice form normally. Furthermore, Smad4(fl/fl);K14-Cre;Irf6(+/R84C) mice show extra digits that are consistent with abnormal toe and nail phenotypes in individuals with Van der Woude and popliteal pterygium syndromes, suggesting that the TGFβ/SMAD4/IRF6 signaling cascade might be a well-conserved mechanism in regulating multiple organogenesis. Strikingly, overexpression of Irf6 rescued p21 expression and MEE degeneration in Tgfbr2(fl/fl);K14-Cre mice. Thus, IRF6 and SMAD4 synergistically regulate the fate of the MEE, and TGFβ-mediated Irf6 activity is responsible for MEE degeneration during palatal fusion in mice

Lhx6 regulates canonical Wnt signaling to control the fate of mesenchymal progenitor cells during mouse molar root patterning.

Mammalian tooth crown formation has long served as a model for investigating how patterning and morphogenesis are orchestrated during development. However, the mechanism underlying root patterning and morphogenesis remains poorly understood. In this study, we find that Lhx6 labels a subpopulation of root progenitor cells in the apical dental mesenchyme, which is closely associated with furcation development. Loss of Lhx6 leads to furcation and root number defects, indicating that Lhx6 is a key root patterning regulator. Among the multiple cellular events regulated by Lhx6 is the odontoblast fate commitment of progenitor cells, which it controls in a cell-autonomous manner. Specifically, Lhx6 loss leads to elevated expression of the Wnt antagonist Sfrp2 and down-regulation of Wnt signaling in the furcation region, while overactivation of Wnt signaling in Lhx6+ progenitor cells partially restore the furcation defects in Lhx6-/- mice. Collectively, our findings have important implications for understanding organ morphogenesis and future strategies for tooth root regeneration