Effectiveness and satisfaction with virtual and donor dissections: A randomized controlled trial.

In recent years, human anatomy education has faced challenges with traditional donor dissection, leading to the emergence of virtual dissection as an alternative. This study aims to investigate the academic performance and satisfaction of medical students by comparing the virtual and donor dissections. An open-labeled crossover randomized controlled trial was conducted with 154 first-year medical students in Human Anatomy and Neuroanatomy laboratories, which were divided into three classes. Students were randomly assigned to either the virtual (virtual dissection followed by donor dissection) or donor (donor dissection followed by virtual dissection) groups in each class. A curriculum, incorporating head-mounted displays (HMDs), a life-sized touchscreen, and tablets, was developed. Data was evaluated through quizzes and surveys. In the Human Anatomy laboratory, each class of the donor group conducted heart extraction, dissection and observation. In observation class, the virtual group had a significantly higher mean quiz score than the donor group (p < 0.05). Compared to the donor, satisfaction was significantly higher for the HMD (understanding of concept and immersion), life-size touchscreen (esthetics, understanding of the concept, and spatial ability), and tablet (esthetics, understanding of the concept, spatial ability, and continuous use intention). In the Neuroanatomy laboratory, the virtual group showed significantly higher mean quiz scores than the donor group (p < 0.05), and tablet showed a significantly higher satisfaction than donor in terms of esthetics, understanding of the concept, and spatial ability. These results suggest that virtual dissection has the potential to supplement or replace donor dissection in anatomy education. This study is innovative in that it successfully delivered scenario-based virtual content and validated the efficacy in academic performance and satisfaction when using virtual devices compared to donor.Trial registration: This research has been registered in the Clinical Research Information Service (CRIS, https://cris.nih.go.kr/cris/search/detailSearch.do?search_lang=E&focus=reset_12&search_page=L&pageSize=10&page=undefined&seq=26002&status=5&seq_group=26002 ) with registration number "KCT0009075" and registration date "27/12/2023".

The impact of the modified schedules of anatomy education on students' performance and satisfaction: Responding to COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea.

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic substantially undermined medical education and healthcare systems. Owing to the pandemic in South Korea, most medical schools needed to be flexible when conducting online and offline classes, but the guidelines did not reflect the specificity of medical schools. This study described the impact of modified anatomy education schedules at the Seoul National University College of Medicine (SNUCM) on students' academic performance and satisfaction. METHODS: Anatomy education in SNUCM is divided into three regional units (the upper and lower limbs, trunk, and head and neck). Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, the schedule was mixed with simultaneous and rotating schedules. The authors conducted exceptions for online lectures, cadaver dissections, and written and practical examinations in three classes of approximately 50 students each. Furthermore, the authors assessed students' performance using three sets of written and practical examinations, and students completed a questionnaire regarding modified anatomy laboratory schedules. RESULTS: Despite the pandemic events in Seoul and South Korea during the laboratory sessions, all sessions were completed without any confirmed COVID-19 cases among the students, faculty, and staff. Most of the scores on the written and practical examinations significantly decreased in 2020 compared to those in 2019. However, in the trunk session that used the virtual anatomy application, the score on the practical examination in 2020 was significantly higher than that in 2019. Over 70% (79 and 77 out of 105 respondents on the upper and lower limbs and trunk, respectively) and 53% (55/105) students reported that there were no significant difficulties in studying anatomy in a face-to-face laboratory. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, an adequate education program for cadaver dissection should be developed and provided to overcome the pandemic restrictions. The study findings could serve as a reference for anatomy education during the COVID-19 pandemic.

MicroRNA-132 and microRNA-223 control positive feedback circuit by regulating FOXO3a in inflammatory bowel disease.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Although many progresses have been achieved for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), it is still remained as idiopathic disease to be completely controlled. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been identified as key players in many human diseases through degradation or translational inhibition of target genes. Because role of miRNAs in IBD is not completely understood yet, we need to identify miRNAs as novel targets for treatment of IBD. METHODS: Microarray analysis for miRNAs was performed using dextran sulfate sodium-induced colitis samples and selected differentially regulated miRNAs. Candidate genes were validated using in vitro system and IBD patient samples. Molecular mechanism for regulation of inflammatory signaling was identified using gene modulation system of miRNAs. RESULTS: We selected 14 upregulated and 15 downregulated miRNAs through microarray analysis. Among candidate miRNAs, significant upregulation of miR-132 and miR-223 was confirmed in inflamed mouse tissues as well as human IBD patient tissues. Through bioinformatics analysis, we identified FOXO3a as direct target of miRNAs and confirmed regulatory mechanism using luciferase assay. Expression of miRNAs clearly suppressed the level of IκBα through downregulation of FOXO3a, leading to enhanced NF-κB signaling to promote the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines. The downregulation of FOXO3a concurrent with upregulation of cytokines was significantly reversed by sequestration of miRNAs with miRNA sponges. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings provided the evidences that miR-132 and 223 are critical mediators in positive circuit for pathogenesis of IBD by negatively regulating FOXO3a to enhance the expression of inflammatory cytokines and can be a good therapeutic target for IBD treatment.

Improved lipid profile in ovariectomized rats by red ginseng extract.

The effects of red ginseng extract on lipid metabolism were examined in ovariectomized rats. Twenty-four female Sprague-Dawley rats (210 +/- 20 g) were studied for 10 weeks. The rats were divided into four groups: (I) "sham" non-ovariectomized rats treated with olive oil, (II) control ovariectomized rats treated with olive oil, (III) ovariectomized rats treated with 0.5 mg/kg 17beta-estradiol in olive oil, and (IV) ovariectomized rats treated with 5mg/kg red ginseng extract in olive oil. Red ginseng extract induced significant reductions in total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol/total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol/total cholesterol, and low density lipoprotein cholesterol/high density lipoprotein cholesterol, implying the effectiveness of ginseng in targeting postmenopausal symptoms.

Hypoxia-inducible factor 1 alpha activates and is inhibited by unoccupied estrogen receptor beta.

Previously, we showed that hypoxia induces ligand-independent estrogen receptor (ER)alpha activation. In this study, we found that hypoxia activated the ER beta-mediated transcriptional response in HEK293 cells in the absence of estrogen. ER beta transactivation was induced by the expression of the hypoxia-inducible factor 1 alpha (HIF-1 alpha) under normoxia. ER beta interacted with HIF-1 alpha, and SRC1 and CBP potentiated the effect of HIF-1 alpha on ER beta-mediated transcription. We then examined the effect of ER beta on HIF1-alpha transactivation. Surprisingly, ER beta attenuated the transcriptional activity of HIF-1 alpha, as measured by HRE-driven reporter gene expression and hypoxic induction of VEGF mRNA in HEK293 cells. Taken together, these data show that HIF-1 alpha activates ER beta-mediated transcription in the absence of a ligand, and ER beta inhibits HIF-1 alpha-mediated transcription.

Estrogen activities and the cellular effects of natural progesterone from wild yam extract in mcf-7 human breast cancer cells.

We studied the estrogenic activity and cellular effect of wild yam extract in MCF-7 human breast cancer cells. The extract increased the activity of the progesterone receptor and pS2 genes at the mRNA levels in human breast cancer MCF-7 cells, although the effects were not as prominent as those of 17beta-estradiol (E(2)). Western blot analysis showed that the level of estrogen receptor alpha protein was down-regulated after treatment with E(2) or wild yam extract. Wild yam extract also inhibited proliferation of MCF-7 cells. These data indicate that wild yam extract acts as a weak phytoestrogen and protects against proliferation in human breast carcinoma MCF-7 cells.

Estrogen and hypoxia regulate estrogen receptor alpha in a synergistic manner.

Hypoxia activates and degrades estrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha) in human breast cancer cells, which may play an important role in the development and progression of breast cancer. In this study, the synergistic effects of estrogen (E(2)) and hypoxia on ERalpha-mediated transactivation and ERalpha degradation were investigated. ERalpha-mediated transcriptional activity was synergistically increased by E(2) and hypoxia, as determined by the transient expression of ERalpha and ER-responsive reporter plasmids in HEK 293 cells. Twenty hours of E(2) and hypoxia treatment synergistically induced degradation of ERalpha by 95% via a proteasome-dependent pathway in MCF-7 cells. These results provide evidence that hypoxia may stimulate yet unknown factor(s), which can further stimulate ERalpha signal transduction pathways.

Modulation of the genomic estrogen receptor pathway by water extracts of Cirsium japonicum.

We investigated the estrogenic activity of Cirsium japonicum water extracts, which have long been used to treat vascular-related diseases. The activity of the extracts was characterized in a transient transfection system, using estrogen receptor isoforms and estrogen-responsive luciferase plasmids in HEK 293 cells. The extract activated both and estrogen receptors. Activation was inhibited by the estrogen receptor antagonist ICI 182,780, indicating that the effects were mediated through the estrogen receptor isoforms. Treatment with the extracts increased expression of the progesterone receptor and pS2 genes and expression of estrogen receptor was decreased in MCF-7 cells. These results suggested that the Cirsium japonicum water extracts showed estrogenic effects and may be a potential clinical application for treatment of estrogen related vascular diseases.