GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE CHANGE: DEVELOPING A COLLABORATIVE LEARNING AND REFLECTION STRATEGY IN EXECUTIVE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

The shortage of globally focused strategic thinkers and business professionals, who can understand and adapt to multiple thinking perspectives in the globalized markets, limit China's engagement in global business opportunities. To cope with this challenge, Chinese business schools initiated the international executive professional development (IEPD) programs, which attempts a complex transformation process with interactions between the learner and the field learning experiences. With the focus on professional development through experience, the literature review shows that the interactions between concrete experiences (environment) and meaning construction process (function) in an experiential learning cycle are essential to the personal changes in mindsets and behaviors (Kolb & Kolb, 2005). Based on Lewin’s (1947) field experience framework, a needs assessment on a 2014 IEPD-U.S. program, organized by Peking University, revealed two key issues in the learning experiences and collaborative reflection in the IEPD program. The assessment findings inform the direction of enhancing the meaning construction process with the emphasis on collaborative learning and reflection in the student learning community. Drawing on the multidisciplinary theories and needs assessment findings, the intervention strategy research defines the global perspective change with the critical reflection model and the developmental model for managing paradox (Holt & Seki, 2012; Kember, McKay, Sinclair, & Wong, 2008). A three-stage reflective learning strategy is framed, meaning self-reflection before the learning program, collaborative sharing and reflection with technology innovation during the program, and the follow-up reflective practice after the program. As an examination of the reflection learning strategy, the intervention was conducted in a 2015 IEPD-U.S. program. The program evaluation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the blended reflection learning strategy in improving the IEPD program design and accelerating business executives’ global perspective development. The findings indicate that overseas field learning experiences cannot turn into solid value until the learners internalize the experiences with personal meaning construction through continuous reflective learning before, during, and after the IEPD program

Psychological support for public-funded normal students engaged in teaching profession

Among primary and secondary school teachers in China, 70% of teachers believe that they are facing greater occupational pressure. 63.8% of teachers clearly stated that occupational pressure has caused a great or great impact on themselves. And this has had negative effects on them such as mental, physical and personal development. This article studies the group of public-funded normal students from the perspective of psychological support. This article uses the SCL-90 form to investigate the professional psychology of teachers for the psychological support of public-funded normal students engaged in the teaching profession. And it conducts a survey on the curriculum setting and satisfaction of the public-funded normal students during their study stage. The experimental results of this article show that only 11.9% of public-funded normal students are very willing to take root and serve township education. Moreover, the psychological pressure of teachers at different educational stages is quite different

TCF12 Activates TGFB2 Expression to Promote the Malignant Progression of Melanoma

As one of the most common malignant tumors, melanoma is a serious threat to human health. More than half of melanoma patients have a BRAF mutation, and 90% of them have a BRAF(V600E) mutation. There is a targeted therapy for patients using a BRAF(V600E) inhibitor. However, no response to treatment is generally inevitable due to the heterogeneity of melanoma. Coupled with its high metastatic character, melanoma ultimately leads to poor overall survival. This study aimed to explore the possible mechanisms of melanoma metastasis and identify a more effective method for the treatment of melanoma. In this paper, we report that TCF12 expression is higher in melanoma, especially in metastatic tumors, through analyzing data from TCGA. Then, cell proliferation, colony formation, and transwell assays show that the upregulated expression of TCF12 can promote proliferation and metastasis of melanoma cells in vitro. The same result is confirmed in the subcutaneous tumor formation assay. Moreover, TGFB2 is identified as a direct downstream target of TCF12 by RNA-seq, qPCR, immunoblotting, ChIP, and a dual luciferase reporting assay. Interestingly, depletion of TCF12 can sensitize melanoma to BRAF inhibition both in vitro and in vivo. Overall, our results demonstrate that TCF12 promotes melanoma progression and can be a potential tumor therapeutic target

3D Printing of a Vascularized Mini‐Liver Based on the Size‐Dependent Functional Enhancements of Cell Spheroids for Rescue of Liver Failure

Abstract The emerging stem cell‐derived hepatocyte‐like cells (HLCs) are the alternative cell sources of hepatocytes for treatment of highly lethal acute liver failure (ALF). However, the hostile local environment and the immature cell differentiation may compromise their therapeutic efficacy. To this end, human adipose‐derived mesenchymal stromal/stem cells (hASCs) are engineered into different‐sized multicellular spheroids and co‐cultured with 3D coaxially and hexagonally patterned human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) in a liver lobule‐like manner to enhance their hepatic differentiation efficiency. It is found that small‐sized hASC spheroids, with a diameter of ≈50 µm, show superior pro‐angiogenic effects and hepatic differentiation compared to the other counterparts. The size‐dependent functional enhancements are mediated by the Wnt signaling pathway. Meanwhile, co‐culture of hASCs with HUVECs, at a HUVECs/hASCs seeding density ratio of 2:1, distinctly promotes hepatic differentiation and vascularization both in vitro and in vivo, especially when endothelial cells are patterned into hollow hexagons. After subcutaneous implantation, the mini‐liver, consisting of HLC spheroids and 3D‐printed interconnected vasculatures, can effectively improve liver regeneration in two ALF animal models through amelioration of local oxidative stress and inflammation, reduction of liver necrosis, as well as increase of cell proliferation, thereby showing great promise for clinical translation

Field‐Free Spin‐Orbit Torque Driven Perpendicular Magnetization Switching of Ferrimagnetic Layer Based on Noncollinear Antiferromagnetic Spin Source

Abstract The utilization of novel noncollinear antiferromagnetic materials holds great promise for the development of energy‐efficient spintronic devices. However, only a few studies have reported on the all‐electrical control of perpendicular magnetization switching using noncollinear antiferromagnets as the spin source, and the underlying mechanism behind the unconventional spin‐orbit torque (SOT) is still a topic of debate. In this work, deterministic perpendicular magnetization switching in Mn3Sn/CoTb bilayers is successfully achieved. Compared to the control samples with heavy metal as the spin source, the critical switching current density is over one order of magnitude reduced, indicating an enhanced efficiency of the out‐of‐plane charge‐to‐spin conversion in the textured Mn3Sn films. The influence of film thickness and growth temperature on the efficiency of different spin polarizations suggests potential roles of crystal quality and spin texture in spin diffusion with different spin polarization directions. These findings provide valuable insights into the crystal structure, spin‐orbit torque effects, and charge‐to‐spin conversion in Mn3Sn films, highlighting the importance of understanding interface and bulk contributions in antiferromagnetic spin transport phenomena

Saturated fatty acids synergizes cadmium to induce macrophages M1 polarization and hepatic inflammation

Exposure to the toxic metal cadmium (Cd) is a well-established risk factor for hepatic inflammation, but it remains unclear how metabolic components, such as different fatty acids (FAs), interact with Cd to influence this process. Understanding these interactions is essential for identifying potential preventative and therapeutic targets for this disorder. To address this question, we conducted in vitro and in vivo studies to investigate the combinatorial effect of Cd and saturated FAs on hepatic inflammation. Specifically, we assessed the cytotoxicity of Cd on macrophages and their polarization and inflammatory activation upon co-exposure to Cd and saturated FAs. Our results showed that while saturated FAs had minimal impact on the cytotoxicity of Cd on macrophages, they significantly collaborated with Cd in predisposing macrophages towards a pro-inflammatory M1 polarization, thereby promoting inflammatory activation. This joint effect of Cd and saturated FAs resulted in persistent inflammation and hepatic steatohepatitis in vivo. In summary, our study identified macrophage polarization as a novel mechanism by which co-exposure to Cd and saturated lipids induces hepatic inflammation. Our findings suggest that intervening in macrophage polarization may be a potential approach for mitigating the adverse hepatic effects of Cd