Creation of Sexually Transmitted Diseases Education Program for Young Adults in Rural Cambodia

Introduction: Globally, adolescents and young adults aged from 15 to 24 years accounted for 25% of the sexually active population. They also took up almost 50% of all newly acquired sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) worldwide. In developing countries/ regions, there have been more unreported cases due to the limited resources and availability of data. This project aimed to enhance sexual health knowledge and encourage behavioral change in sexual practice in rural Cambodia by educational interventions.Methods: A multi-prong project used the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) as framework to guide the implementation, which involved carrying out educational talks, group discussion sessions. The educational health talks described the signs and symptoms of STDs and preventive measures including the Abstinence-Be faithful- Condom (ABC) strategy. Pre- and post-intervention assessments were conducted on 111 villagers aged between 18 and 30 years who lived in Peaksneng Thyme Village, Cambodia. Special materials were prepared that highlighted such information were also given to all participants. This was followed by discussion sessions that aimed to strengthen an appropriate attitude toward STDs. A pilot trial was done to prepare and build a constructive, realistic atmosphere and facilitated in-depth spread of main messages. A 20-item assessment of STD knowledge was used as pre- and post-intervention evaluation tool. Individual participant scores were compared to determine the effectiveness of interventions.Conclusion: This comprehensive program was effective in enhancing sexual knowledge in high-risk groups of both sexes as well as general public in rural Cambodia. With experiences gained, this could be replicated in nearby communities, possibly motivating community behavioral change in future. Alternatively, this approach could be further developed, or using other behavioral theories, and applied to other health issues in this country

Effects of Erxian decoction, a Chinese medicinal formulation, on serum lipid profile in a rat model of menopause

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The prevalence and risk of cardiovascular disease increase after menopause in correlation with the progression of abnormality in the serum lipid profile and the deprivation of estrogen. <it>Erxian </it>decoction (EXD), a Chinese medicinal formulation for treating menopausal syndrome, stimulates ovarian estrogen biosynthesis. This study investigates whether EXD improves the serum lipid profile in a menopausal rat model.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Twenty-month-old female Sprague Dawley rats were treated with EXD and its constituent fractions. Premarin was administered for comparison. After eight weeks of treatment, rats were sacrificed and the serum levels of total cholesterol, triglyceride, high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol and low-density-lipoprotein cholesterol were determined. The hepatic protein levels of 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA reductase and low-density-lipoprotein receptor were assessed with Western blot.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The serum levels of total cholesterol and low-density-lipoprotein cholesterol were significantly lower in the EXD-treated group than in the constituent fractions of EXD or premarin groups. However, the serum levels of triglyceride and high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol were not significantly different from the control groups. Results from Western blot suggest that EXD significantly down-regulated the protein level of 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA reductase and up-regulated low-density-lipoprotein receptor. <b>Conclusion </b>EXD improves serum lipid profile in a menopausal rat model through the suppression of the serum levels of total cholesterol and low-density-lipoprotein cholesterol, possibly through the down-regulation of the 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA and up-regulation of the low-density-lipoprotein receptor.</p

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals &lt;1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data

Chemical and biological characterization of a steroidogenic protein from Dioscorea opposita Thunb

Menopause is the period during which the level of estrogen secreted by the ovaries gradually declines and patients of menopausal syndrome may experience osteoporosis, cognitive decline, hot flush, mood disorder, night sweat, depression, nervous tension and insomnia. The report published by the World Health Organization in 1990 stated that the total population of postmenopausal women in the world was 476 million. By 2030, the predicted population will reach 1200 million. The current way to relieve menopausal syndrome is hormone replacement therapy (HRT) which restores the endogenous estrogen level by administration of supplementary exogenous estrogen or estrogen plus progestin. However, various studies showed that HRT might increase the incidence of breast cancer and ovarian cancer. There is a potential risk of using HRT for menopausal syndrome. The novel protein DO isolated in this study could be a potential alternative of HRT for the treatment of menopausal syndrome. DO isolated from Chinese yam Dioscorea opposite Thunb. had adistinctive N-terminal sequence Gly-Ile-Gly-Lys-Ile-Thr-Thr- Tyr-Trp-Gly-Gln-Tyr-Ser-Asp-Glu-Pro-Ser-Leu-Thr-Glu-Ala, indicating that DO might be a novel protein.DO was an acid stable and thermal stable protein. As determined by electro-chemiluminescence immunoassay (ECLIA) detection, DO could stimulate estradiol biosynthesis in rat granulosa cells in vitro as well as inducing both estradiol and progesterone secretion in female aging Sprague Darley (SD)-rat model in vivo. From the results of real-time PCR and Western blot, the possible mechanism might be through up-regulating the expression of ovarian follicle stimulating hormone receptor(FSHR)and aromatase. DO also exerted a beneficial effect on the cognitive function through elevating the translational level of brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF)and TrkB gp 145 receptor in the prefrontal cortex of female aging SD-rat model. Though further pharmacological studies are required, the results in this study suggested that DO could be a safer potential alternative for HRT in the treatment of menopausal syndrome with beneficial effects on hormone levels and cognitive function.published_or_final_versionChinese MedicineMasterMaster of Philosoph

Rocksalt MgS solar blind ultra-violet detectors

Studies using in-situ Auger electron spectroscopy and reflection high energy electron diffraction, and ex-situ high resolution X-ray diffraction and electron backscatter diffraction reveal that a MgS thin film grown directly on a GaAs (100) substrate by molecular beam epitaxy adopts its most stable phase, the rocksalt structure, with a lattice constant of 5.20 angstrom. A Au/MgS/n(+)-GaAs (100) Schottky-barrier photodiode was fabricated and its room temperature photoresponse was measured to have a sharp fall-off edge at 235 nm with rejection of more than three orders at 400 nm and higher than five orders at 500 nm, promising for various solar-blind UV detection applications. Copyright 2012 Author(s). This article is distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.3690124

Interprofessional team-based learning ::a qualitative study on the experiences of nursing and physiotherapy students

Traditional discipline-specific training has limitations in facilitating inter-professional communication and collaboration. To address this issue, two local universities in Hong Kong launched an interprofessional team-based learning program to allow the undergraduate healthcare students to formteams and experience collaborative problemsolving. This study aimed to evaluate the experiences of nursing and physiotherapy undergraduates following interprofessional learning activities. Twenty-seven 3rd-year nursing and physiotherapy undergraduates were recruited through purposive sampling. Semi-structured interviews were conducted, and written feedback was solicited until data saturation was achieved. An inductive thematic analysis was used for the data, and each theme was mutually exclusive. The findings revealed the positive experiences of the students with this interprofessional learning activity. Three main themes emerged: (1) the process of interprofessional learning; (2) profession-related outcomes of interprofessional learning; and (3) patient-related outcomes of interprofessional learning. The study indicated that interprofessional team-based learning activities enhanced learning experiences of the students through interactive learning with other healthcare students. Experiences of relationships that are trustful and complementary allow students to develop confidence in knowledge transfer and in interprofessional collaboration, as well as in providing a holistic patient-centered care. These findings substantiate the importance and value of interprofessional learning in healthcare education

Use of Information and Communications Technology in Family Services and Its Perceived Benefits amid the COVID-19 Pandemic in Hong Kong—Jockey Club SMART Family-Link Project

Introduction: We examined information and communications technology (ICT) use in family services and its perceived benefits and barriers amid the COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong. Methods: We invited all family service social workers of 12 NGOs to complete an anonymous online questionnaire in May 2020 (Part A) and a management representative from each NGO to provide written feedback on ICT use in January 2021 (Part B). Results: In Part A, of 255 respondents (response rate: 67.3%), perceived ICT use in conducting programmes, groups, casework and preventive family programmes showed net increases of 33.9–54.5%; perceived ICT use in different work processes showed net increases of 18.8–48.6%. The three most common perceived benefits were “providing another option to service users” (74.2%), “more convenient service” (60.2%) and “maintaining normal service” (59.7%). In Part B, 12 management representatives consistently reported positive impacts of ICT use on family services. They shared actionable strategies (e.g., ICT skill-related training) and concerns about data privacy and management. Conclusions: ICT use in family services markedly increased amid the COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong. It helped make the services more accessible especially when the pandemic restricted face-to-face services