Analysis of student behavioural patterns in the use of a virtual laboratory: A comparison of cohorts from two different disciplines

Background: Virtual laboratories are learning tools that are used to prepare students for a downstream “live” laboratory tasks. They are intended to provide students with computer-simulated experimental experiences to support and enrich the learning experience in the corresponding real-life situations. However, prior research in this area in regard to student learning styles using virtual labs and between different cohorts is limited. Aims: To analyse online data retrieved from a virtual pharmacology laboratory module used by science and pharmacy student cohorts in order to determine how students engage with the module. Description of intervention: We collected detailed information regarding student interactions with the virtual lab experience, which was analysed and then compared across the two cohorts. Design and methods: The virtual pharmacology laboratory was based on experiments that tested the effects of increasing drug concentrations on muscle tissue contraction to determine drug potency. Students worked in groups of three, with pharmacy students in first semester (53 groups) and science students in second semester (55 groups). Students completed the task within practical class time but without instruction by the academics or tutors present in the session. In addition to recording the time taken to complete the module, the online computer server also recorded all mouse-click events that occurred in real-time, such as selection and use of equipment, preparing drug solutions and constructing graphical plots. The two cohorts were compared on the time taken to complete the module (one-way ANOVA), and on the frequencies of errors committed by students during the module (two-way Fisher’s exact test). Results: Science students completed the overall task within a significantly shorter duration than pharmacy students. However, pharmacy students acquired individual key objectives using the correct experimental approach, while science students tended to exploit shortcuts to achieve these objectives. Errors committed by students included incorrect use of laboratory equipment (pipettors, organ baths), inappropriate preparation of materials needed to generate expected outcomes (drug solutions and diluents), and failure to adhere to the standard protocol that should be utilised to obtain plots and pharmacological data. These errors were generally significantly more frequent in the science cohort as compared to their pharmacy counterpart. Conclusions: Science students are willing to take shortcuts to complete virtual laboratory tasks, whereas pharmacy students are more methodical and less likely to take risks in their approach. In the coming semesters, we aim to show these data to the science students as an informed teaching practice guide, in order to enhance our teaching of practical-based material

Age and sex‐related variability in the presentation of generalized anxiety and depression symptoms

Background: Generalized anxiety and depression are extremely prevalent and debilitating. There is evidence for age and sex variability in symptoms of depression, but despite comorbidity it is unclear whether this extends to anxiety symptomatology. Studies using questionnaire sum scores typically fail to address this phenotypic complexity. Method: We conducted exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses on Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD‐7) and Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ‐9) items to identify latent factors of anxiety and depression in participants from the Genetic Links to Anxiety and Depression Study (N = 35,637; 16–93 years). We assessed age‐ and sex‐related variability in latent factors and individual symptoms using multiple logistic regression. Results: Four factors of mood, worry, motor, and somatic symptoms were identified (comparative fit index [CFI] = 0.99, Tucker–Lewis Index [TLI] = 0.99, root mean square error of approximation [RMSEA] = 0.07, standardized root mean square residuals [SRMR] = 0.04). Symptoms of irritability (odds ratio [OR] = 0.81) were most strongly associated with younger age, and sleep change (OR = 1.14) with older age. Males were more likely to report mood and motor symptoms (p < .001) and females to report somatic symptoms (p < .001). Conclusion: Significant age and sex variability suggest that classic diagnostic criteria reflect the presentation most commonly seen in younger males. This study provides avenues for diagnostic adaptation and factor‐specific interventions

Outreach:Impact on Skills and Future Careers of Postgraduate Practitioners Working with the Bristol ChemLabS Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning

Postgraduate engagement in delivering outreach activities is more commonplace than it once was. However, the impact on postgraduate students (typically studying for a Ph.D. degree) of participating in the delivery of these outreach activities has rarely, if ever, been recorded. The Bristol ChemLabS Outreach program has been running for ca. 17 years, and in that time, many postgraduate students have been involved (approximately 500), with around 250 typically for up to 3 years. We sought to investigate the impact of outreach engagement on postgraduate alumni who were involved in the program for over 3 years (32) and how the experiences and training of the outreach program had impacted on their careers postgraduation. Thirty of the 32 postgraduates engaged and ∼70% reported that their outreach experience had influenced their decision making on future careers. Many respondents reported that the skills and experiences gained through outreach participation had contributed to success in applying for and interviewing at their future employers. All respondents reported that outreach had helped them to develop key skills that were valued in the workplace, specifically, communication, teamwork, organizational skills, time planning, event planning, and event management. Rather than a pleasant distraction or an opportunity to supplement income, all participants noted that they felt there were many additional benefits and that this was time well spent. Outreach should not be viewed as a distraction to science research but rather an important enhancement to it provided that the program is well constructed and seeks to develop those delivering the outreach activities

Within-sibship genome-wide association analyses decrease bias in estimates of direct genetic effects

Estimates from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of unrelated individuals capture effects of inherited variation (direct effects), demography (population stratification, assortative mating) and relatives (indirect genetic effects). Family-based GWAS designs can control for demographic and indirect genetic effects, but large-scale family datasets have been lacking. We combined data from 178,086 siblings from 19 cohorts to generate population (between-family) and within-sibship (within-family) GWAS estimates for 25 phenotypes. Within-sibship GWAS estimates were smaller than population estimates for height, educational attainment, age at first birth, number of children, cognitive ability, depressive symptoms and smoking. Some differences were observed in downstream SNP heritability, genetic correlations and Mendelian randomization analyses. For example, the within-sibship genetic correlation between educational attainment and body mass index attenuated towards zero. In contrast, analyses of most molecular phenotypes (for example, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol) were generally consistent. We also found within-sibship evidence of polygenic adaptation on taller height. Here, we illustrate the importance of family-based GWAS data for phenotypes influenced by demographic and indirect genetic effects

Termite sensitivity to temperature affects global wood decay rates.

Deadwood is a large global carbon store with its store size partially determined by biotic decay. Microbial wood decay rates are known to respond to changing temperature and precipitation. Termites are also important decomposers in the tropics but are less well studied. An understanding of their climate sensitivities is needed to estimate climate change effects on wood carbon pools. Using data from 133 sites spanning six continents, we found that termite wood discovery and consumption were highly sensitive to temperature (with decay increasing >6.8 times per 10°C increase in temperature)-even more so than microbes. Termite decay effects were greatest in tropical seasonal forests, tropical savannas, and subtropical deserts. With tropicalization (i.e., warming shifts to tropical climates), termite wood decay will likely increase as termites access more of Earth's surface

Oceania: antidepressant medicinal plants

Despite having the smallest land mass of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF)-declared ecozones, Oceania is amongst the most diverse floral regions of the world. Geographically, the region consists of Australia and New Guinea as the largest land masses, as well as the islands of Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia. Due to the island nature of the region, the flora has developed in isolation in various climatic conditions within the region, resulting in an extremely high degree of endemism. Furthermore, the harsh climatic conditions in some regions have resulted in a wealth of unique phytochemicals not found in plants from other regions globally. Coupled with possibly the world’s oldest continuous human inhabitation on the Australian mainland and a diversity of cultures in other Oceania regions, this has led to complex and sophisticated ethnopharmacological systems. Medicinal plants with unique properties have long been recognised by indigenous Oceania populations, and this lore has been passed from generation to generation. Whilst often not well recorded, there is a wealth of knowledge of the medicinal value of the regions’ floral species for all types of therapeutic purposes. This chapter focuses on the plants of the region with known antidepressant uses and/or those plants which have phytochemistry consistent with antidepressant properties. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but instead serves to highlight some of the best known examples (e.g. kava-kava) and discuss examples of plants with established antidepressant mechanisms. For example, whilst we discuss the calmative properties of the Australian plant Backhousia citriodora, many other aromatic plants with similar essential oil components and thus similar therapeutic properties exist in the region and are not discussed here for the sake of brevity. Furthermore, despite the high degree of endemism of Oceania flora, several well-known species (e.g. Areca catechu L. and Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn.) have wide geographic ranges. Indeed, whilst native to Oceania, A. catechu is better known as a component of the pharmacopoeias of other regions (e.g. India). However, these species also make an important contribution to Oceanic antidepressant medicinal plants and are therefore discussed in this chapter

<i>Phyllanthus niruri</i> Linn.: Antibacterial Activity, Phytochemistry, and Enhanced Antibiotic Combinatorial Strategies

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global public health threat caused by the misuse and overuse of antibiotics. It leads to infections becoming difficult to treat, causing serious illness, disability, and death. Current antibiotic development is slow, with only 25% of current antibiotics exhibiting novel mechanisms against critical pathogens. Traditional medicinal plants’ secondary metabolites offer potential for developing novel antibacterial compounds. These compounds, often with strong antimicrobial activity, can be used to develop safe and effective antibacterial chemotherapies. This study investigated the antibacterial activity of Phyllanthus niruri Linn. extracts against a panel of bacterial pathogens using disc diffusion and microdilution assays and quantified by calculation of minimum inhibition concentration (MIC). Additionally, the effects of combinations of the extracts and selected conventional antibiotics were examined by sum of fractional inhibition concentration (ƩFIC) calculation and isobologram analysis. Liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC-MS) phytochemistry analysis was used to identify noteworthy compounds in the active extracts and the Artemia nauplii bioassay was used to evaluate toxicity. The aqueous and methanolic extracts exhibited notable antibacterial activity in the broth microdilution assay against Staphylococcus aureus and methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) (MIC = 669 µg/mL and 738 µg/mL, respectively). The methanolic extract also showed noteworthy antibacterial action in the broth assay against Klebsiella pneumoniae (MIC = 738 µg/mL). The aqueous extract had noteworthy growth inhibitory activity against Bacillus cereus (MIC = 669 µg/mL), whilst the methanolic extract demonstrated good antibacterial activity against that bacterium (MIC = 184 µg/mL). The aqueous and methanol extracts showed minimal antibacterial action against Shigella flexneri and Shigella sonnei. The extracts were subjected to LC-MS analysis, which revealed several interesting phytochemicals, including a variety of flavonoids and tannins. The antibacterial activity and lack of toxicity of the P. niruri extracts indicates that they may be worthwhile targets for antibiotic development and further mechanistic and phytochemistry studies are required