ASSESSING THE SATISFACTION OF DOMESTIC TOURISTS WITH ECO-TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN MANG DEN TOWN, KON PLONG DISTRICT, KON TUM PROVINCE, VIETNAM

Mang Den town, Kon Plong District, the Central Province of Kon Tum is one of the destinations of recent interest. With the advantage of the climate and unique high mountain ecosystem, eco-tourism development is one of the notable trends in Mang Den. Based on a survey of 130 domestic tourists to Mang Den, the study used SPSS software 20 to analyze domestic tourists' satisfaction with eco-tourism development in Mang Den. The findings of this research demonstrated the potential of ecotourism Mang Den Town as a destination for Vietnamese tourists seeking natural beauty, cultural experiences, and adventure activities. The positive satisfaction levels indicated that efforts have been made to provide a quality tourism experience. However, there is still room for improvement, particularly in infrastructure development and providing more interpretive and accommodation options. These results can guide tourism stakeholders in developing strategies to enhance ecotourism in Mang Den Town, as a Good Practice and ensure sustainable tourism growth in the Kon Plong District, Kon Tum Province.  Article visualizations

RESEARCH TRENDS ON COMMUNITY-BASED TOURISM IN THE PERIOD 2013 - 2023

Community-based tourism (CBT) has been around since the 1970s and so far, has grown in popularity in most continents. This study systematically evaluates and generalizes theoretical and practical issues on CBT based on 87 related articles published in scientific journals under the Scopus system from 2013 to 2023 through the application of content analysis methods. The results also show that research in this area has different research areas and mainly uses qualitative methods. The literature review identified a number of key themes including: (1) benefits of CBT development, (2) community and stakeholder engagement, (3) advantages and barriers in CBT development, (4) community perceptions about CBT, and (5) sustainable CBT development. The article has analyzed research trends on CBT: theory and application.  Article visualizations

ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN MANG DEN TOWN, KON PLONG DISTRICT, KON TUM PROVINCE, VIETNAM

This study surveyed 120 domestic tourists in Mang Den Town, using the convenience sampling method. The method used to analyze primary data was descriptive statistics. The research results have proposed six factors to evaluate the current situation of tourism development in Mang Den Town, Kon Plong District, Kon Tum Province, Vietnam including: (1) Quality of tourism services and tourism resources; (2) Perceived prices; (3) Human resources; (4) Security, order, and safety; (5) Quality of tourism services and tourism infrastructure; (6) and Tourism resources and perceived prices, in which "Human resources" is the factor that has the strongest impact on the current situations of tourism development in Mang Den Town. Through research results, the article has proposed some solutions to develop tourism in Mang Den Town more effectively in the future.  Article visualizations

Ex vivo Induction of Apoptotic Mesenchymal Stem Cell by High Hydrostatic Pressure

Among promising solutions for tissue repair and wound healing, mesenchymal stem (or stromal) cells (MSCs) have been a focus of attention and have become the most clinically studied experimental cell therapy. Recent studies reported the importance of apoptosis in MSC-mediated immunomodulation, in which apoptotic MSCs (apoMSCs) were shown to be superior to living MSCs. Nowadays, high hydrostatic pressure (HHP), a physical technique that uses only fluid pressure, has been developed and applied in various bioscience fields, including biotechnology, biomaterials, and regenerative medicine, as its safe and simply operation. In the current study, we investigated the impact of HHP treatment on human bone marrow-MSC survival and proliferation. Based on the detection of executioner caspase activation, phosphatidylserine exposure, DNA fragmentation (TUNEL) and irrefutable ultrastructural morphological changes on transmission electron microscopy (TEM), our data revealed that HHP treatment induced complete apoptosis in MSCs. Notably, this technique might provide manipulated products for use in cell-based therapies as manufacturing capability expands. We hope that our findings will contribute to the improvement of MSCs or EVs in translational research development. Graphical Abstract

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

An Autoethnography of an EFL Teacher Stages of Development in Choices of the Best ELT Methodology

This paper attempted to share lived experiences in the teaching career of an EFL teacher in her choices of the best pedagogical methods to be applied in her class. The paper was done under the lens of autoethnography, which was believed to be the most appropriate measure to deal with writing genres such as experiences and narratives in one’s life. The result presented three important stages that an average EFL teacher might undergo. It is hoped that the paper could provide more insights into the teaching life and experiences of the typical EFL teacher and thus be beneficial to novice colleagues in perfecting their profession. Keywords: autoethnography, ETL methodology, EFL teachers, professional development DOI: 10.7176/JEP/14-21-01 Publication date:July 31st 202

Hydrostatic pressure can induce apoptosis of the skin

Abstract We previously showed that high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) treatment at 200 MPa for 10 min induced complete cell death in skin and skin tumors via necrosis. We used this technique to treat a giant congenital melanocytic nevus and reused the inactivated nevus tissue as a dermis autograft. However, skin inactivated by HHP promoted inflammation in a preclinical study using a porcine model. Therefore, in the present study, we explored the pressurization conditions that induce apoptosis of the skin, as apoptotic cells are not believed to promote inflammation, so the engraftment of inactivated skin should be improved. Using a human dermal fibroblast cell line in suspension culture, we found that HHP at 50 MPa for ≥ 36 h completely induced fibroblast cell death via apoptosis based on the morphological changes in transmission electron microscopy, reactive oxygen species elevation, caspase activation and phosphatidylserine membrane translocation. Furthermore, immunohistochemistry with terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick-end labeling and cleaved caspase-3 showed most cells in the skin inactivated by pressurization to be apoptotic. Consequently, in vivo grafting of apoptosis-induced inactivated skin resulted in successful engraftment and greater dermal cellular density and macrophage infiltration than our existing method. Our finding supports an alternative approach to hydrostatic pressure application

Gratitude, parental support, professional help-seeking attitudes for mental health problems among adolescents

ABSTRACTThe current study aims to examine the relationship between gratitude and parental support through the mediation of perceived stress and the influence of parental support on adolescent professional help-seeking for mental health problems. 1987 participants completed the survey, including 41.4% boys and 58.6% girls aged 11–15 years. The findings indicated that (i) parental support mediated the relationship between perceived stress and professional psychological help-seeking attitudes; (ii) perceived stress mediated the effect of gratitude on parental support; (iii) gratitude predicted professional psychological help-seeking attitudes through perceived stress and parental support; and (iv) gratitude predicted positively adolescents’ academic achievement. The study highlights the potential influence of parental support on adolescents’ professional help-seeking attitudes. Mental health services should be developed to be more accessible to adolescents to facilitate more independent help-seeking. Prevention and intervention programmes for adolescents may be more effective at decreasing stress symptoms by combining gratitude interventions