ABSTRACT
Objective:To know the current situation of curriculum construction of "Fundamentals of Toxicology" of preventive medicine major in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) universities.Methods:The undergraduates of preventive medicine major from TCM universities in whole China were selected as the research objects using the cluster sampling method, who took "Fundamentals of Toxicology" course in the 2019-2020 academic year. Questionnaires were compiled and analyzed using descriptive method and radar chart.Results:Six TCM universities were investigated in this study. According to the results, 83.09% (344/414) thought it was necessary to set up the "Fundamentals of Toxicology" course, and the main motivation was to deal with the examination. The agreement rate between the opening semester and the students' wishes was 59.90% (248/414), and the percentages of better satisfaction of theoretical course teaching content, selection of teaching materials and class time were 64.73% (268/414), 55.07% (228/414) and 59.90% (248/414) respectively. The satisfaction rate of experimental course setting, teaching effect and class time was 59.66% (247/414), 62.08% (257/414) and 58.21% (241/414) respectively. It was better to set five times [27.29% (113/414)] or four times [26.81% (111/414)], and four students in each group was the best [53.86% (223/414)]. The most interesting experiment project was bone marrow micronucleus test [29.21% (59/202)], and comprehensive design experiments and highly operable experimental projects should be added. The radar chart of the core knowledge was normal operation type, and there were some differences among students in different schools.Conclusion:There are some differences in the course setting and core knowledge mastery level of the "Fundamentals of Toxicology" course of preventive medicine major in TCM universities. It is necessary to optimize the curriculum construction from opening semester, textbook selection, teaching content, experimental project, etc.
ABSTRACT
Cardiovascular diseases are life-threatening illnesses with high morbidity and mortality. Suppressed vagal (parasympathetic) activity and increased sympathetic activity are involved in these diseases. Currently, pharmacological interventions primarily aim to inhibit over-excitation of sympathetic nerves, while vagal modulation has been largely neglected. Many studies have demonstrated that increased vagal activity reduces cardiovascular risk factors in both animal models and human patients. Therefore, the improvement of vagal activity may be an alternate approach for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. However, drugs used for vagus nerve activation in cardiovascular diseases are limited in the clinic. In this review, we provide an overview of the potential drug targets for modulating vagal nerve activation, including muscarinic, and β-adrenergic receptors. In addition, vagomimetic drugs (such as choline, acetylcholine, and pyridostigmine) and the mechanism underlying their cardiovascular protective effects are also discussed.