Comparison of the effect of online physical exercise and computerized cognitive stimulation in patients with Alzheimer's disease during the Covid-19 pandemic.

INTRODUCTION: To investigate the effect of physical exercise alone and in combination with cognitive stimulation on cognition, physical function, and quality of life in patients with Alzheimer's Disease (PwAD). METHODS: The study was a randomized controlled, single-blinded trial with pre-and post-treatment and follow-up assessments conducted at the private hospital and home environment in PwAD. Seventy-five (N = 75) participants diagnosed with AD were enrolled, but sixty (N = 60) participants (mean age 77.8 years, standard deviation (SD) 6.7) were randomized as physical exercise group (PEG) (n = 20), physical exercise and cognitive stimulation group (PE + CSG) (n = 20) and control group (CG) (n = 20). Participants in PEG and PE + CSG performed an online supervised physical exercise program (SPEP) given biweekly for 12 weeks. Additionally, the cognitive stimulation (CS) program was offered for at least three or five days for 12 weeks for PE + CSG. No treatment was given for the CG. The primary outcome measures were cognition, balance, functional mobility (FM), upper extremity muscle strength (UEMS) and lower extremity muscle strength (LEMS), and quality of life (QoL). Furthermore, depression, basic activities of daily living (BADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) were measured secondarily. RESULTS: PE + CSG demonstrated significant improvement in cognition, balance, FM, UEMS, IADL and reduction in depression compared to the CG (p < 0.05). Besides, participants in the PE + CSG had statistically superior QoL and IADL than the PEG (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The addition of CS to the SPEP was a safe and effective method to gain statistically significant improvements in cognition, balance, FM, UEMS, IADL, and reduction in depression in PwAD.

LMS-supported HyFlex clinical supervision model: Illuminating perspectives from teacher candidates in the department of English language teaching.

This study presents a HyFlex Clinical Supervision Model supported by a Learning Management System (LMS). The model is designed to facilitate a seamless transition from face-to-face to remote education, particularly in unforeseen circumstances such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The primary aim is to understand the mode preferences of teacher candidates for various aspects of the teaching process, including receiving feedback on lesson plans, structuring teaching sessions, observation, being observed, and receiving feedback after teaching sessions during mentoring activities. The study included 58 fourth-year teacher candidates who were enrolled in English Language Teaching departments across six state universities in five regions in Turkey. Data was collected through an online questionnaire using Google Forms and interviews conducted via Zoom. The study uncovered diverse preferences among teacher candidates with regards to teaching sessions, observation methods, and feedback. The HyFlex clinical supervision model proposed is adaptable to both traditional and remote practicum settings.

Effects of Crataegus microphylla on vascular dysfunction in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

Vascular dysfunction plays a key role in the pathogenesis of diabetic vascular disease. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether chronic in vivo treatment of Crataegus microphylla (CM) extract in diabetic rats induced with streptozotocin (STZ, intraperitoneal, 65 mg/kg) preserves vascular function and to evaluate whether the reduction of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), proinflammatory cytokines, and lipid peroxidation mediates its mechanisms of action. Starting at 4 weeks of diabetes, CM extract (100 mg/kg) was administrated to diabetic rats for 4 weeks. In aortic rings, relaxation to acetylcholine and vasoreactivity to noradrenaline were impaired, whereas aortic iNOS expression and plasma tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6), total nitrite-nitrate, and malondialdehite levels were increased in diabetic rats compared with controls. Chronic CM treatment significantly corrected all the above abnormalities in diabetic rats. In comparison, pretreatment of the aorta of diabetic rats with N-[3(aminomethyl) benzyl]-acetamidine, dihydrochloride (10(-5) M), a selective inhibitor of iNOS, produced a similar recovery in vascular reactivity. These results suggest that chronic in vivo treatment of CM preserves endothelium-dependent relaxation and vascular contraction in STZ-induced diabetes, possibly by reducing iNOS expression in the aorta and by decreasing plasma levels of TNF-α and IL-6 and by preventing lipid peroxidation.

Somatostatin receptor 1 (SSTR1) and somatostatin receptor 5 (SSTR5)expression in hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Somatostatin analogues are considered for the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinomas which express somatostatin receptors (SSTR). There is limited data for the SSTR subtypes. Somatostatin receptor 1 (SSTR1) and Somatostatin receptor 5 (SSTR5) expressions are investigated in needle biopsy materials of patients diagnosed as hepatocellular carcinoma, using immunohistochemical methods in the assistance of antibody kits. METHODOLOGY: The needle biopsy materials of forty-one patients that were diagnosed as hepatocellular carcinoma between 2000 and 2006 have been examined. The underlying diseases, 4FP values, treatments received and the sections were evaluated after SSTR1 and SSTR5 staining. RESULTS: SSTR1 expression was found in 31 (75.6%) and SSTR5 expression in 21 of (51.2%) 41 biopsies. SSTR1 and SSTR5 expressions were not determined in 10 (24.4%) and 20 (48.8%) of the cases. In addition, no significant correlation of the SSTR1 and SSTR5 stains with the underlying diseases (chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis) and gender was observed. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated that the tumor cells in the tissue samples of the patients diagnosed with advanced-stage hepatocellular carcinoma expressed a high proportion of SSTR1 and SSTR5.

Significance of p53 expression in gastrointestinal stromal tumors.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Gastrointestinal stromal tumors are non-epithelial tumors originating from the gastrointestinal tract walls. They expose a wide spectrum of histological properties from benign to poorly differentiated malignant tumors. METHODOLOGY: In this study 41 cases of gastrointestinal stromal tumors were reviewed for p53 expression using immunohistochemical stains. Immunoreactivity properties of the tumors were compared to prognostic factors such as mitotic index, tumor size, tumor site, presence of necrosis, mucosal invasion, proliferative index, telomerase activity, hemorrhage, cellularity, and histological pattern. RESULTS: There was a significant difference in positive immunostaining of three case groups (12.2% in benign, 19.5% in borderline, and 68.3% in malignant group). Statistical analysis revealed a statistically significant positive correlation between p53 immunostaining properties and tumor size (p = 0.01), mitotic index (p=0.05), cellularity (p = 0.042), and diagnosis (p = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that p53 expression may be a useful tool in classifying and predicting the prognosis of gastrointestinal stromal tumors as it is well correlated with tumor size, mitotic index, cellularity, and diagnosis according to our study results.