Did the COVID-19 pandemic impact help-seeking behavior for seizure management? A Google Trends™ study.

Google Trends™ is a popular tool for analyzing healthcare-seeking patterns based on observed changes in the relative search volume (RSV) of the queries made on the Google™ search engine. Google Trends™ was increasingly utilized during the pandemic to assess the impact on mental health, risk communication, the impact of media coverage, and preparedness prediction. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on help-seeking behaviors for seizures and/or epilepsy by assessing the changes in seizure-related online queries in periods before and since the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic on Google Trends™. We compared the RSV volumes in the year prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic against weekly COVID-19 positive cases for each state and US census regions Search terms were categorized according to seizure symptoms or seizure treatment. Our study showed no significant increase in the RSV for seizure and epilepsy-related searches during the COVID-19 pandemic via Google Trends™. Public health entities and medical systems may use Google Trends ™ as a way to predict national, regional, and local patient needs and drive resources to meet patient demands.

Status of physiology education in US Doctor of Pharmacy programs.

The purpose of the present study was to assess the current status of physiology education in US Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) programs. A survey instrument was developed and distributed through SurveyMonkey to American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) Biological Sciences section members of 132 PharmD programs. Survey items focused on soliciting qualitative and quantitative information on the delivery of physiology curricular contents and faculty perceptions of physiology education. A total of 114 programs responded to the survey, resulting in a response rate of 86%. Out of 114 schools/colleges, 61 programs (54%) offered standalone physiology courses, and 53 programs (46%) offered physiology integrated with other courses. When integrated, the average contact hours for physiology contents were significantly reduced compared with standalone courses (30 vs. 84 h, P < 0.0001). Survey respondents identified diverse strategies in the delivery and assessment of physiology contents. Eighty percent of the responding faculty (n = 204) agree/strongly agree that physiology is underemphasized in PharmD curriculum. Moreover, 67% of the respondents agree/strongly agree that physiology should be taught as a standalone foundational course. A wide variation in the depth and breadth of physiology course offerings in US PharmD programs remains. The reduction of physiology contents is evident when physiology is taught as a component of integrated courses. Given current trends that favor integrated curricula, these data suggest that additional collaboration among basic and clinical science faculty is required to ensure that physiology contents are balanced and not underemphasized in a PharmD curriculum.

A Research Elective Course on Dietary Supplements to Engage Doctor of Pharmacy Students in Primary Literature Evaluation and Scholarly Activity.

PURPOSE: To develop and implement a research elective course to enhance skills of pharmacy students on primary literature evaluation and evidence-based practice on dietary supplements and generate scholarly publications. METHODS: A 2 credit hour independent research elective course was designed and implemented in the third-year doctor of pharmacy curriculum. The course involved student-led research activities that included formulating research project, reviewing of primary literature, collection and evaluation of data, and writing of review articles for publication in peer-reviewed journals. An online survey was administered to evaluate students' perceptions of the course. RESULTS: Students successfully completed the course. The course resulted in peer-reviewed publications through student-faculty collaboration. Pharmacy students enrolled in the elective course perceived that the course helped them enhance their analytical reasoning, critical thinking and drug-literature evaluation skills, gain evidence-based knowledge, and apply the knowledge into practice during their advanced pharmacy practice experiences community pharmacy rotations. CONCLUSIONS: The course provided opportunity to the pharmacy students to not only critically search and evaluate the literature but also publish in peer-reviewed journals. Other pharmacy schools/colleges can adopt this course model to create opportunities for student-faculty collaborations toward scholarly accomplishments.

The role of pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) in colon cancer.

Colon cancer is one of the major causes of cancer-related death in the Western world. Although cytotoxic chemotherapeutic agents are available to treat the disease, these agents become ineffective as the disease advances to an invasive state. An alternative but viable approach to reduce the incidence of this deadly disease is then, to increase the dietary intake of relatively non-toxic fruits and vegetables. An example of a fruit with antioxidant, antidiabetic and anti-atherosclerotic properties is pomegranate. Pomegranate produces anticancer effects in experimental models of lung, prostate and skin cancer. More recently, pomegranate has been found to be anti-carcinogenic in the colon. This communication discusses pomegranate's effect in colon cancer.

Effects of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) on ubiquinone and catalase in the livers of male F-344 rats.

The adrenal steroid, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) acts as a peroxisome proliferator in the rodents. The present study examined the effects on cellular antioxidants ubiquinone and catalase in the liver of DHEA-treated rats. When administered to male F-344 rats for 8 weeks, DHEA produced a significant increase in hepatic ubiquinone-9 and lipid peroxide levels while no change was observed after 2 weeks. Activity of catalase, in contrast, followed an inverse pattern, being significantly induced at 2 weeks with a return to normal levels after 8 weeks. A marked reduction of ubiquinone-10 in DHEA-treated rat livers was only observed after 2 weeks. These findings indicate the potentials of high dose DHEA to modulate ubiquinone in rat hepatic tissue.

Role of nuclear receptors in the regulation of gene expression by dietary fatty acids (review).

Long chain fatty acids, derived either from endogenous metabolism or by nutritional sources play significant roles in important biological processes of membrane structure, production of biologically active compounds, and participation in cellular signaling processes. Recently, the structure of dietary fatty acids has become an important issue in human health because ingestion of saturated fats (containing triglycerides composed of saturated fatty acids) is considered harmful, while unsaturated fats are viewed as beneficial. It is important to note that the molecular reason for this dichotomy still remains elusive. Since fatty acids are important players in development of pathology of cardiovascular and endocrine system, understanding the key molecular targets of fatty acids, in particular those that discriminate between saturated and unsaturated fats, is much needed. Recently, insights have been gained on several fatty acid-activated nuclear receptors involved in gene expression. In other words, we can now envision long chain fatty acids as regulators of signal transduction processes and gene regulation, which in turn will dictate their roles in health and disease. In this review, we will discuss fatty acid-mediated regulation of nuclear receptors. We will focus on peroxisome proliferators-activated receptors (PPARs), liver X receptors (LXR), retinoid X receptors (RXRs), and Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor alpha (HNF-4alpha), all of which play pivotal roles in dietary fatty acid-mediated effects. Also, the regulation of gene expression by Conjugated Linoleic Acids (CLA), a family of dienoic fatty acids with a variety of beneficial effects, will be discussed.