Practical Anatomy Online Learning among COVID‑19 Pandemic Era: Perceptions of 1st‑Year MBBS Students

Introduction: With the rise of the COVID‑19 pandemic, digital learning has been implemented in medical colleges across India to continue the ongoing medical education. Anatomy is the basis of medical science and is best learned through offline classes that allow students to experiencethe texture of structures and handling of specimens. During this pandemic period, cadaveric dissection was not used to study anatomy. The aim of this study was to learn about students’ attitudes regarding virtual teaching and learning in anatomy, as well as the problems they may confront. MaterialsandMethods: Adescriptive cross‑sectional study was conducted in the department of anatomy among the 50 1st‑year MBBS students of All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Rajkot in April 2021. Google Forms were used to obtain informed consent from students. Prevalidated questionnaires were given online to the students and responses were noted and descriptive statistical data was derived from the analysis. Results: About 37 (74%) respondents found traditional classes are better than online teaching. Majority preferred to attend anatomy practicals offline with safety precautions. About 17 (34%) showed interest in prerecorded videos. About 35 (60%) students faced social isolation as an impact of online learning. Technical issues and distractions were the key problems faced while learning anatomy online. Conclusion: Prerecorded videos of the practicals are helpful in teaching anatomy practicals, and can be used in future to ensure an unbroken, continuous, and effective delivery of medical education

The utility of the Ion Torrent PGM next generation sequencing for analysis of the most commonly mutated genes among patients with colorectal cancer in India

Background: The requirement for the mutation analysis for Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene (KRAS) in colorectal cancer (CRC) is rapidly increasing as it is a predictive biomarker and also, its absence signifies response to anti?epidermal growth factor receptor (anti?EGFR) antibody treatment. The aim of our study was to investigate the pathological diagnosis and distribution of KRAS mutations in colorectal cancer with the use of next generation sequencing platform (Ion Torrent). Methods: A total of 56 CRC samples were tested to identify the genetic mutations, especially KRAS using the primers which included ~2800 COSMIC mutations of 50 oncogenes. Ion Torrent personal genome machine (semiconductor?based sequencing) was used for the sequencing and analysis. Along with KRAS, other 49 genes were also studied for COSMIC mutations. Results: KRAS mutation 25 (44.6%) had the highest frequency, followed by TP53 10 (17.9%) and PIK3CA mutation 4 (7.1%). Of all the KRAS mutations identified, mutations in codon 12 were most frequent followed by mutations in codon 13 and 61. The most frequent substitution was glycine to aspartate mutation in codon 12 (p.Gly12Asp) followed by glycine to valine (p.Gly12Val). Combinations of mutations were also studied. Our study revealed that seven cases (12.5%) had both KRAS and TP53 mutations (highest of all the combinations). Conclusion: The analysis of KRAS mutation frequency and its mutational subtype analysis in human CRCs by using semiconductor?based platform in routine clinical practices have been performed in Indian population. The findings were similar to earlier published reports from the Western literature.

Study of the Location and Morphology of the Pterion in Dry Skulls and Their Clinical Implications

Background: Pterion is usually marked by an H-shaped formof sutures that forms the union of the frontal, parietal, greaterwing of sphenoid, and temporal bones. The center of pterion isaround 4.0 cm higher to the zygomatic arch and 3.0-3.5 cmposterior to frontozygomatic suture. The present study wasconducted with the aim to determine the location of pterion andits clinical implications.Materials and Methods: The present study was conducted inthe Department of Anatomy, Mahatma Gandhi Medical College& Hospital, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India. The study included 40skulls of unknown gender. PT was taken as the distance fromthe center of Pterion to the superior part of thetemporozygomatic suture. For the linear measurements, onejaw of caliper pointed at the frontozygomatic suture and theother at the pterion center. All the data thus obtained wasarranged in a tabulated form and analyzed using SPSSsoftware. Mean and median values of all the results werecalculated.Results: A total of 40 skulls were studied in the present study.The mean distance on the right side was 3.5 cm and on leftside was 3.6 cm with variation between 2.1 To 4.4 cm on bothsides. The median distance on the right side was 3.46 cm andon the left side was 3.48 cm.Conclusion: The location and the type of pterion variesamongst different ethnic and racial groups. The present studymay be of use to the forensic experts and anthropologists.

Expression of CD71 by flow cytometry in acute leukemias: More often seen in acute myeloid leukemia.

Background: CD71 is a marker that has been usually used for identifying dysplasia in the erythroid series. We have tried to evaluate the expression of CD71 in various types of acute leukemias. Materials and Methods: We studied 48 patients of acute leukemia, of which 25 were acute myeloid leukemia (AML), 13 were precursor B‑acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B‑ALL), 8 were T‑ALL, and 2 were mixed phenotype acute leukemia (T/myeloid) as per the WHO classification. Results: We found that the expression of CD71 was most prevalent in AMLs (84%), followed by T‑ALL (50%) and least in B‑ALL (30%). Conclusion: This finding clearly shows the higher expression of CD71 in AMLs compared to other common type of leukemias, such as B‑ and T‑ALL. We suggest that the high expression of CD71 in AMLs could be used as a diagnostic marker and may also be used for minimal residual disease analysis after further studies in posttreatment scenario. This study is the first of its kind in the South Asian population.