61 research outputs found

    Reflections on Plagiarism Prevention Implementation

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    Presented at the Online Lifeline Conference, Valdosta State University, Valdosta, Georgia, February 16-17, 2012.This presentation will focus on best practices and lessons learned during plagiarism prevention implementation at an institutional level and within a collaborative setting. We will begin with a discussion of the importance of academic honesty and plagiarism prevention uses. Presenters will then discuss their roles during plagiarism prevention implementation efforts and will compare and contrast some of the similarities and differences which should be considered, based on the scope of the implementation (campus-level or collaborative environment). The session will end with an overview of future steps concerning plagiarism prevention

    Description of an Ultrasound-Guided Erector Spinae Plane Block and Comparison to a Blind Proximal Paravertebral Nerve Block in Cows: A Cadaveric Study

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    The proximal paravertebral nerve block is commonly used to provide anaesthesia to the flank during standing surgical procedures in adult cattle. It has been reported that additional anaesthetic infiltration may be necessary to provide complete anaesthesia. In humans as well as animal species, another technique—the ultrasound (US)-guided erector spinae plane block (ESPB)—has been described. The goal of the present study was to develop and investigate an US-guided ESPB in comparison to a blind proximal paravertebral nerve block (PPNB) in cow cadavers. In 10 cadaver specimens, injections of methylene blue-lidocaine (1:1) were performed at the level of T13, L1 and L2 vertebras, on one side doing an ESPB block and, on the other side, a PPNB. Five cadavers were injected with high (40 mL per injection for PPNB and 20 mL for ESPB) and five with low (20 and 15 mL, respectively) volumes of injectate. For the ESPB, the ultrasound probe was oriented craniocaudally, and the ventral-cranial aspect of the articular processes (T13, L1 and L2) was targeted for injection. The dye spreading was evaluated by dissection. The landmarks for US-guided injection were easily visualized; however, injections were accidentally performed at T12, T13 and L1. Nevertheless, L2 was stained in 60% of ESPBs. Epidural spreading was observed with both techniques and all volumes. Viscera puncture was reported in two PPNBs. The ESPB resulted in similar nerve staining compared to the PPNB while using a lower volume of injectate. Even better staining is expected with a T13-L2 instead of a T12-L1 ESPB approach. Further studies are warranted to evaluate the clinical efficacy

    MICRO-RNAs E CĂ‚NCER: ABORDAGENS E PERSPECTIVAS / MICRORNAs AND CANCER: APPROACHES AND PERSPECTIVES

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    Introdução: Diversos estudos foram realizados a fim de compreender a relação entre o micro-RNA e o câncer na última década. Os micro-RNAs possuem aproximadamente 22 nucleotídeos distribuídos em um filamento único que pode regular a expressão de genes em diversos tipos de células, exercendo papéis fundamentais na diferenciação tecidual, ciclo celular, proliferação e apoptose. Objetivo: Esta revisão tem por finalidade compreender o papel dos micro-RNAs no câncer. Alguns estudos vêm destacando a importância dos micro-RNAs, tanto na degradação de RNAs mensageiros, como na repressão da tradução e, constataram que a desregulação destes microRNAs pode estar relacionada à diversas patologias, particularmente o câncer. Situados em regiões com altas probabilidades de mutações, os microRNAs localizados em sítios frágeis estão mais propensos a sofrerem alterações. Estudos descreveram a respeito da expressão diferencial de microRNAs em diversos tipos de câncer, associando genes que codificam microRNAs com as regiões relacionadas ao câncer ou sítios frágeis. A desregulação de sua expressão pode ativar oncogenes e inativar genes supressores de tumor, contribuindo assim para o desenvolvimento do câncer. Desta forma, pode-se afirmar que os micro-RNAs atuam na gênese do câncer. Considerações finais: O avanço da tecnologia da biologia molecular permitiu a utilização dos micro-RNAs como potenciais biomarcadores para o diagnóstico precoce, contribuindo também para o prognóstico e terapêutica do câncer.Palavras-chave: Patologias. Câncer. Oncogene. Expressão gênica.AbstractIntroduction: In the last few years, several studies have been performed for a better understanding of the relationship between microRNA and cancer. MicroRNA has approximately 22 nucleotides distributed in a single filament, which regulate gene expression in many cell types, performing key roles in tissue differentiation, cell cycle, proliferation and apoptosis. Objective: To understand the key roles of microRNAs in cancer. Recently, some studies have reported the importance of microRNAs in messenger RNA degradation and in translation repression. In addition, it was found that microRNA deregulation may be related to many diseases, particularly cancer. Situated in regions with high probability of mutations, microRNAs located at fragile sites are more likely to change. Several studies have found differential expression of microRNAs in many types of cancers, associating genes that encode microRNAs with cancer-related regions or fragile sites. Expression deregulation of microRNAs can activate oncogenes and inactivate tumor suppressor genes, contributing to the development of cancer. Thus, it can be stated that microRNAs play an important role in cancer genesis. Conclusion: Technological advances in the molecular biology allow microRNAs to be potential biomarkers for early diagnosis, also contributing to cancer prognosis and therapy.Keywords: Pathologies. Cancer. Oncogene. Gene expression

    Patient Perspectives to Inform a Health Literacy Educational Program:A Systematic Review and Thematic Synthesis of Qualitative Studies

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    Patient-centred care is tailored to the needs of patients and is necessary for better health outcomes, especially for individuals with limited health literacy (LHL). However, its implementation remains challenging. The key to effectively address patient-centred care is to include perspectives of patients with LHL within the curricula of (future) healthcare providers (HCP). This systematic review aimed to explore and synthesize evidence on the needs, experiences and preferences of patients with LHL and to inform an existing educational framework. We searched three databases: PsychInfo, Medline and Cinahl, and extracted 798 articles. One-hundred and three articles met the inclusion criteria. After data extraction and thematic synthesis, key themes were identified. Patients with LHL and chronic diseases encounter multiple problems in the care process, which are often related to a lack of person-centeredness. Patient perspectives were categorized into four key themes: (1) Support system; (2) Patient self-management; (3) Capacities of HCPs; (4) Barriers in healthcare systems. “Cultural sensitivity” and “eHealth” were identified as recurring themes. A set of learning outcomes for (future) HCPs was developed based on our findings. The perspectives of patients with LHL provided valuable input for a comprehensive and person-centred educational framework that can enhance the relevance and quality of education for (future) HCPs, and contribute to better person-centred care for patients with LHL

    Branding and a child’s brain: an fMRI study of neural responses to logos

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    Branding and advertising have a powerful effect on both familiarity and preference for products, yet no neuroimaging studies have examined neural response to logos in children. Food advertising is particularly pervasive and effective in manipulating choices in children. The purpose of this study was to examine how healthy children’s brains respond to common food and other logos. A pilot validation study was first conducted with 32 children to select the most culturally familiar logos, and to match food and non-food logos on valence and intensity. A new sample of 17 healthy weight children were then scanned using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Food logos compared to baseline were associated with increased activation in orbitofrontal cortex and inferior prefrontal cortex. Compared to non-food logos, food logos elicited increased activation in posterior cingulate cortex. Results confirmed that food logos activate some brain regions in children known to be associated with motivation. This marks the first study in children to examine brain responses to culturally familiar logos. Considering the pervasiveness of advertising, research should further investigate how children respond at the neural level to marketing

    Changes in drug sensitivity and anti-malarial drug resistance mutations over time among Plasmodium falciparum parasites in Senegal

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    Background: Malaria treatment efforts are hindered by the rapid emergence and spread of drug resistant parasites. Simple assays to monitor parasite drug response in direct patient samples (ex vivo) can detect drug resistance before it becomes clinically apparent, and can inform changes in treatment policy to prevent the spread of resistance. Methods: Parasite drug responses to amodiaquine, artemisinin, chloroquine and mefloquine were tested in approximately 400 Plasmodium falciparum malaria infections in Thiès, Senegal between 2008 and 2011 using a DAPI-based ex vivo drug resistance assay. Drug resistance-associated mutations were also genotyped in pfcrt and pfmdr1. Results: Parasite drug responses changed between 2008 and 2011, as parasites became less sensitive to amodiaquine, artemisinin and chloroquine over time. The prevalence of known resistance-associated mutations also changed over time. Decreased amodiaquine sensitivity was associated with sustained, highly prevalent mutations in pfcrt, and one mutation in pfmdr1 – Y184F – was associated with decreased parasite sensitivity to artemisinin. Conclusions: Directly measuring ex vivo parasite drug response and resistance mutation genotyping over time are useful tools for monitoring parasite drug responses in field samples. Furthermore, these data suggest that the use of amodiaquine and artemisinin derivatives in combination therapies is selecting for increased drug tolerance within this population

    Acute kidney injury in patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors

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    Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitor-associated acute kidney injury (ICPi-AKI) has emerged as an important toxicity among patients with cancer. Methods: We collected data on 429 patients with ICPi-AKI and 429 control patients who received ICPis contemporaneously but who did not develop ICPi-AKI from 30 sites in 10 countries. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify predictors of ICPi-AKI and its recovery. A multivariable Cox model was used to estimate the effect of ICPi rechallenge versus no rechallenge on survival following ICPi-AKI. Results: ICPi-AKI occurred at a median of 16 weeks (IQR 8-32) following ICPi initiation. Lower baseline estimated glomerular filtration rate, proton pump inhibitor (PPI) use, and extrarenal immune-related adverse events (irAEs) were each associated with a higher risk of ICPi-AKI. Acute tubulointerstitial nephritis was the most common lesion on kidney biopsy (125/151 biopsied patients [82.7%]). Renal recovery occurred in 276 patients (64.3%) at a median of 7 weeks (IQR 3-10) following ICPi-AKI. Treatment with corticosteroids within 14 days following ICPi-AKI diagnosis was associated with higher odds of renal recovery (adjusted OR 2.64; 95% CI 1.58 to 4.41). Among patients treated with corticosteroids, early initiation of corticosteroids (within 3 days of ICPi-AKI) was associated with a higher odds of renal recovery compared with later initiation (more than 3 days following ICPi-AKI) (adjusted OR 2.09; 95% CI 1.16 to 3.79). Of 121 patients rechallenged, 20 (16.5%) developed recurrent ICPi-AKI. There was no difference in survival among patients rechallenged versus those not rechallenged following ICPi-AKI. Conclusions: Patients who developed ICPi-AKI were more likely to have impaired renal function at baseline, use a PPI, and have extrarenal irAEs. Two-thirds of patients had renal recovery following ICPi-AKI. Treatment with corticosteroids was associated with improved renal recovery

    The Forward Physics Facility at the High-Luminosity LHC

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