ABSTRACT
Fish are the most species rich and evolutionarily oldest vertebrate taxon. This represents opportunities for biologists who intend to employ laboratory animals in their comparative or translational research. Yet, the overwhelming majority of such studies use a single fish species, the zebrafish, a suboptimal strategy from the comparative standpoint. Neuronal plasticity (learning and memory) is perhaps one of the most complex biological phenomena from a mechanistic standpoint, and thus its analysis could benefit from the use of evolutionarily ancient and simple vertebrate model organisms, i.e., fish species. However, learning & memory research with the zebrafish has been replete with problems. Here, we employ a novel fish species, the ram cichlid, we argue will be particularly appropriate for this purpose for practical as well as ethological/ecological reasons. First, we investigate whether the ram cichlid exhibits innate preference for certain colours (red, blue, yellow or green) in a four-choice task, the plus maze. Subsequently, we pair the apparently least preferred colour (green, the conditioned stimulus or CS) with food reward (the unconditioned stimulus, US) in the plus maze, a CS-US associative learning task. After eight pairing trials, we run a probe trial during which only the CS is presented. At this trial, we find significant preference to the CS, i.e., acquisition of memory of CS-US association. We argue that our proof-of-concept study demonstrating fast acquisition of CS-US association in the ram cichlid, coupled with the universal utility of some genome editing methods, will facilitate the mechanistic analysis of learning and memory.
Subject(s)
Cichlids , Animals , Zebrafish , Learning , Conditioning, Classical , Conditioning, OperantABSTRACT
Wounds are a major public health challenge for nurses, and poor wound care has important implications for patients and health care systems. The aim of this study is to assess the Italian registered nurses' (RNs) perception in the area of wound care, regarding their knowledge, tasks of care delivery, wound management, values, and attitudes, exploring also the previous specific education received during nursing education. An observational online web-based survey was used to assess learning goals and content for wound care education in undergraduate nursing education and the skills and level of self-efficacy in this area during clinical practice. The data were collected between April and May 2022. A total of 210 RNs were interviewed and divided into five national geographic areas. Northwestern RNs showed a better education about the wound care area during university courses: the rate of RNs that did not receive any training in the wound care area was lower than in other Italian geographical areas. Southern RNs presented a better knowledge about factors that expose the wound to becoming chronic, wound drains care, and the ability to assess diabetic foot. This study showed that, in Italy, education in wound care among nursing students is relatively poor, and many skills are achieved during an RN's career in an empirical way.
