The aim of this study was to determine the relationships between maternal metabolic flexibility during pregnancy and neonatal health outcomes. Percent change in lipid oxidation (before and after a high-fat meal) was calculated as the measure of "metabolic flexibility". Neonatal adiposity was assessed within 48 h of delivery by skinfold anthropometry. Metabolic flexibility (r = -0.271, p = 0.034), maternal HOMA-IR (r = 0.280, p = 0.030), and maternal body mass index (r = 0.299, p = 0.018) were correlated with neonatal subscapular skinfold (i.e., measure of neonatal adiposity). https://www.selleckchem.com/peptide/avexitide.html Clinical Trail Registration Number NCT03504319. Novelty This is the first study to link maternal metabolic flexibility, body mass index, and insulin resistance during pregnancy to neonatal adiposity at parturition.
The UK practice of laparoscopic cholecystectomy has reduced during the COVID-19 pandemic due to cancellation of non-urgent operations. Isolated day-case units have been recommended as 'COVID-cold' operating sites to resume surgical procedures. This study aims to identify patients suitable for day case laparoscopic cholecystectomy (DCLC) at isolated units by investigating patient factors and unexpected admission.

Retrospective analysis of 327 patients undergoing DCLC between January and December 2018 at Ysbyty Gwynedd (District General Hospital; YG) and Llandudno General Hospital (isolated unit; LLGH), North Wales, UK.

The results showed that 100% of DCLCs in LLGH were successful; 71.4% of elective DCLCs were successful at YG. Increasing age (
 = 0.004), BMI (
 = 0.01), ASA Score (
 = 0.006), previous ERCP (
 = 0.05), imaging suggesting cholecystitis (
 = 0.003) and thick-walled gallbladder (
 = 0.04) were significantly associated with failed DCLC on univariate analysis. Factors retaining significance (OR, 95% CI) after multiple regression include BMI (1.82, 1.05-3.16;
 = 0.034), imaging suggesting cholecystitis (4.42, 1.72-11.38;
 = 0.002) and previous ERCP (5.25, 1.53-18.00;
 = 0.008). Postoperative complications are comparable in BMI <35kg/m
and 35-39.9kg/m
.

Current patient selection for isolated day unit is effective in ensuring safe discharge and could be further developed with greater consideration for patients with BMI 35-39.9kg/m
. As surgical services return, this helps identify patients suitable for laparoscopic cholecystectomy at isolated COVID-free day units.
Current patient selection for isolated day unit is effective in ensuring safe discharge and could be further developed with greater consideration for patients with BMI 35-39.9kg/m2. As surgical services return, this helps identify patients suitable for laparoscopic cholecystectomy at isolated COVID-free day units.On 20 August 2020, Public Health England released a new version of the 'COVID-19 Guidance for the remobilisation of services within health and care settings infection prevention and control recommendations', superseding that of 18 June 2020. In this document, the infection prevention and control principles determine that the treatment, care and support of patients are to be managed in three COVID-19 pathways. These are 'high risk', 'medium risk' and 'low risk'. In the operating theatre, where procedures may be urgent or planned, and where various surgical and anaesthetic procedures generate airborne particles (aerosols), it is crucial to communicate the infection prevention and control recommendations in a way that is easily understood and followed by all healthcare professionals. The theatre team at one hospital in the East of England produced local alternating signage to communicate the COVID-19 pathway risk during cases in theatres. This signage - named the 'COVID-19 Flag' - is placed outside of the individual theatre to ensure that staff are informed of the infection risk with the cases underway. Furthermore, it is a quick visual guide to be used in conjunction with national guidance and local protocols for appropriate decisions regarding the treatment and care of patients in the operating theatres.As the population of older adults continues to grow, the need for health care professionals trained in the delivery of interprofessional care for older adult patients is critical. The purpose of this paper is to detail the outcomes of an interprofessional, geriatrics training program for healthcare professionals with a faculty appointment. Specifically, we gathered outcomes at four levels reactions/satisfaction, learning, behavioral, and organizational. Our findings suggest that programs structured like the Faculty Development Program (FDP) have the potential to increase the amount of geriatrics content introduced in already existing health professions curricula, as well as to offer faculty needed training in how to provide their students with interprofessional learning experiences.Providing care to women following stillbirth affects the well-being of midwifery staff. In this grounded theory study, the authors used focus groups and individual interviews to explore the experiences of midwifery students at a faith-based university in Papua New Guinea. Balancing it Out is the process students used to balance social, cultural and professional factors to achieve their aim of providing the best possible care to women following stillbirth. Provision of holistic care to women following stillbirth and cross-sector health promotion are crucial to attain the best outcomes for women and the midwifery staff who provide their care.
Epidemiologic studies demonstrate worse outcomes in women with cystic fibrosis (CF) than men. Women are colonized earlier with respiratory pathogens and have increased rates of pulmonary exacerbations post-puberty and near ovulation. The etiology of this disparity is unclear, but sex hormones may contribute to these differences.

We sought to explore if natural hormonal fluctuations and hormonal contraception associate with changes in lung function, respiratory symptoms, or inflammatory markers.

We prospectively followed women with CF who were not on hormonal contraceptives and reported regular menstrual cycles. We captured study visits at points that corresponded to menses, ovulation, and the luteal phase. A subset of subjects were subsequently placed on a standard oral estrogen/progesterone combination contraceptive pill, ethinyl estradiol/norethindrone (Loestrin), and re-evaluated. Measurements included lung function, symptom questionnaires, sweat tests, blood for hormone levels, and sputum for inflammatory markers, bacterial density, and cytology.

Taking together, rs1042704 significantly reduces collagen catabolism in tissue, which tips the balance of homeostasis of collagen in tissue, contributing to the fibrotic phenotype of DD. Since around 30% of the worldwide population have at least one copy of the low collagenolytic alternate allele, further investigation of rs1042704 across multiple pathologies is needed.The extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway has been reported to play a pivotal role in mediating spinal cord injury (SCI) progression. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of phosphorylated ERK1/2 (p-ERK1/2) inhibition on SCI-induced astrocyte activation and inflammation and its possible mechanism in rats. Here, female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to four groups (1) Sham group, (2) SCI group, (3) TGN-020 group (aquaporin-4, AQP4, blocking agent), (4) PD98059 group (ERK blocking agent). A well SCI model was established by compressing the thoracic vertebra 10 level (weight 35 g, time 5 min) in rats. Western blotting and immunofluorescence staining were used to measure the expression of associated proteins after SCI. HE staining and Nissl staining were performed to detect the morphological changes of spinal cords and the number of surviving neurons following SCI, respectively. The Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan open-field rating scale was used to evaluate functional locomotor recovery following SCI in rats. Our results demonstrated that SCI significantly induced the upregulation of aquaporin-4, p-ERK1/2, glial fibrillary acidic protein, proliferating cell nuclear antigen, and proinflammatory cytokines (tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-6 and interleukin-1β). However, treatment with TGN-020 or PD98059 could effectively inhibit astrocyte proliferation and proinflammatory cytokine release, preserve the number of surviving ventral horn neurons, and subsequently improve the locomotor function of rats after SCI. Interestingly, the SCI-induced elevation of AQP4 expression was downregulated by p-ERK1/2 inhibition, suggesting that blocking ERK1/2 phosphorylation could attenuate astrocyte activation and inflammatory processes through negative regulation of AQP4. Therefore, p-ERK1/2 blockade may be employed as a therapeutic target for SCI.Prenatal opioids exposure negatively affects the neurobehavioral abilities of children born from dependence dams. Adolescent housing conditions can buffer the detrimental impacts of early life experiences or contradictory can worsen individual psychosocial functions. The present study investigated the effects of maternal morphine dependence and different rearing conditions on behaviors and protein expression in brain reward circuits of male pups. Female Wistar rats a week before conception, during pregnancy and lactation were injected twice daily with escalating doses of morphine or saline. On a postnatal day 21, male pups were weaned and subjected to three different environments for two months standard (STD), isolated (ISO), or enriched environment (EE). The anxiety and drug-related reward were measured using elevated plus maze, open field test, and conditioned place preference. Western blotting was used to determine the protein level of ΔFosB and μ-opioid receptor proteins in the striatum and the midbrain of male offspring, respectively. Results showed that maternal morphine administration dramatically increased anxiety-like and morphine place preference behaviors in offspring. Also, ISO condition aggravated these behavioral outcomes. While, rearing in EE could attenuate anxiety and morphine conditioning in pups. At molecular levels, maternal morphine exposure and social isolation markedly increased both of ΔFosB and μ-opioid receptor proteins expression. However, rearing in the EE declined ΔFosB protein expression. Together, these findings help to elucidate long lasting impacts of early life morphine exposure and rearing environment on the behavioral and molecular profile of addicted individuals.
The aim of this article is to analyze the recently established structure of the unit for pediatric integrative medicine (Portuguese Unidade de Pediatria Integrativa, UPI), its aims and activities at the Children and Adolescent's Institute and the Institute for the Treatment of Childhood Cancer of the Medical Faculty of the University of São Paulo. To give a complete overview, opinions and views of stakeholders were reflected in the analysis.

An ethnographic approach was chosen to provide an overview of the work of UPI through semi-structured qualitative interviews and participant observation. Observational notes, informal conversations and informational material complemented the collected data. The analysis of the transcribed interviews focused on specific questions regarding the unique role of pediatric integrative medicine in a conventional hospital setting and a perspective for the future.

The UPI is making use of Complementary and Integrative Medicine based on three major pillars - treatment, research and teaching. The unit is a pioneer for the field of Integrative Medicine in Latin America. Its goal is to improve the health and treatment of children using the methods of Integrative Medicine by generating positive outcomes in patient care and evidence-based research. Further expansion of the activities is planned for the future to promote the exchange and further dissemination of pediatric integrative medicine based on stringent research.

UPI is a novelty on the Latin-American continent and has the potential to contribute significantly to the acceptance and expansion of integrative models by introducing complementary methods in conventional medicine.
UPI is a novelty on the Latin-American continent and has the potential to contribute significantly to the acceptance and expansion of integrative models by introducing complementary methods in conventional medicine.The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has now rapidly spread around the world, causing an outbreak of acute infectious pneumonia. To develop effective and safe therapies for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 has become the major global public health concern. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/cu-cpt22.html Traditional medicine (TM)/herbal medicines (HMs) have been used to treat multiple epidemics in human history, which brings hope for the fight against COVID-19 in some areas. For example, in China, India, and South Korea with traditional medication history and theory, the governments issued a series of guidelines to support TM/HMs in the medication of COVID-19. In contrast, other countries e.g. North American and European governments are typically silent on these practices, unless to warn of possible harm and overselling. Such difference is due to the discrepancy in culture, history and philosophical views of health care and medication, as well as unharmonized policies and standards in the regulation and legalization of TM/HMs among different areas.

0001). Qreflux was not significantly different between different cuff inflation pressures. RV and EV were statistically different at different cuff pressure settings (analysis of variance, P  less then .0001). The IR was almost identical at different pressure settings (0.43 ± 0.23 at 60 mm Hg, 0.43 ± 0.20 at 90 mm Hg, and 0.42 ± 0.19 at 120 mm Hg). CONCLUSIONS The amount of reflux is primarily determined by the value of EV in a distal cuff compression-decompression maneuver. Both the ratio RV/EV (IR) and RV were related to the severity of the disease, more severe forms having larger IR and RV values. BACKGROUND The cyanoacrylate closure (CAC) procedure is a safe and effective modality for the treatment of an incompetent saphenous vein. Thrombus extension into the deep vein, known as endovenous glue-induced thrombosis (EGIT), may be a worrisome complication of the procedure. However, the incidence, classification, and risk factors of EGIT have not been elucidated. We report, herein, the incidence, classification, and risk factors of EGIT following the CAC procedure for an incompetent saphenous vein. METHODS A retrospective review was performed of prospectively collected data of CAC patients. Preoperatively, the diameter, reflux time, and peak reflux velocity of the saphenous vein were measured. The CAC procedure was performed as per the instructions for use. Postoperative follow-up was conducted at 1 week, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year after the procedure. Postoperative duplex scanning was performed to evaluate the occlusion of the target vein and presence of EGIT. Demographic data, risk factors, procedurUSIONS EGIT is not an uncommon complication of CAC. A small diameter of the saphenous vein ( less then 5 mm) is a risk factor for the development of EGIT. A classification system and treatment protocol for EGIT based on the area of thrombus extension into the deep vein is proposed for managing patients. Besides typical sexually transmitted microbes, even environmental, opportunistic microbes have been found in copulatory organs of insects and even humans. To date, only one study has experimentally investigated the sexual transmission of opportunistic microbes from male to female insects, whereas nothing is known about the transmission from females to males. Even if opportunistic microbes do not cause infection upon transmission, they might eventually become harmful if they multiply inside the female. While the immune system of females is often assumed to target sexually transmitted microbes, most studies ignore the role of mating-associated opportunistic microbes. Variation in immunity between populations has been linked to parasite or bacteria prevalence but no study has ever addressed between-population differences in immune responses to sexually transmitted opportunistic microbes. We here show that bacteria applied to the copulatory organs of common bedbugs, Cimex lectularius, are sexually transmitted to populations. BACKGROUND Immunosuppressive therapy (IST) yields durable hematologic improvement (HI) in a subset of patients with lower-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). Age, human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DR15 positivity, and duration of transfusion dependence are putative clinical variables predictive for response. We investigated the effect of somatic gene mutations on response to IST in lower-risk MDS. PATIENTS AND METHODS Forty of 66 patients who received antithymocyte globulin with or without cyclosporine A identified at the Moffitt Cancer Center were molecularly profiled using a 49-gene myeloid panel. All patients profiled received antithymocyte globulin, and cyclosporine A was provided to 60% of patients. RESULTS The overall frequency of HI was 42%. Presence of a large granular lymphocytic clone, hypocellular bone marrow, HLA-DR15 positivity, trisomy 8, and age had no influence on response to IST. Among 40 patients evaluated by next-generation sequencing, the presence of an SF3B1 mutation (MT) was significantly associated with IST nonresponse (1 of 9 SF3B1 MT, 11% vs. 21 of 31 wild type, 68%; P = .002). All patients with SF3B1 MT had ring sideroblasts > 15% (RS) by morphology; the corresponding HI rate was 20% among patients with RS versus 50% for those without RS (P = .09). CONCLUSION These findings support the clinical implementation of genomics in MDS. The presence of an SF3B1 mutation adversely influences response to IST and should be incorporated into treatment decisions upon validation of these findings. OBJECTIVE To1 describe the development and evaluate the feasibility of a surgical objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) for the purpose of competency assessment based on the Royal College of Canada's CanMEDS framework. DESIGN A unique surgical OSCE was developed to evaluate the clinical and surgical management of common orthopaedic problems using simulated patients and cadaveric specimens. Cases were graded by degree of difficulty (less complex, complex, more complex) Developing an assessment tool with significant resource utilization and good correlation with traditional methods is challenging. The feasibility of an OSCE that evaluates independent clinical and surgical decision making was evaluated. In addition, as part of establishing construct validity, correlation of OSCE scores with previously validated O-scores was performed. SETTING A tertiary level academic teaching hospital. PARTICIPANTS Thirty-four Postgraduate year 3-5 trainees of a 5-year Canadian orthopedic residency program creating 96 operative case performances available for final review. RESULTS The development of the OSCE cases involved a multistep process with attending surgeons, residents and a surgical education consultant. There were 4 different OSCE days, over a 3 year period (2016-2018) encompassing a variety of less complex and more complex procedures. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/Sodium-orthovanadate.html Performance on the OSCE correlated strongly with the (O-SCORE, 0.89) and a linear regression analysis correlated moderately with year of training (r2 = 0.5737). The feasibility analysis demonstrated good financial practicality with solid programmatic integration. CONCLUSIONS The unique surgical OSCE scores correlate strongly with an established entrustability scale. Administering this OSCE to evaluate preoperative and intraoperative decision making to complement other forms of assessment is feasible. The financial burden to training programs is modest in comparison to the insight gained by both residents and faculty.

More noticeable effect of RDI was noted on fruit earliness. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/sb290157-tfa.html Water savings were also remarkable. Negative effects of RDI on berry size or total soluble solid content were not perceived. Our results suggest that RDI is a suitable strategy to save irrigation water without substantial negative effects on yield and berry size. However, the effects on skin color were insufficient in the trial conditions.It is very important for healthcare professionals to have good clinical communication skills, especially dentists. Patient-centred care results in patient satisfaction, better outcomes, and less complaints from dental patients. Due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the clinical communications skills programme of the pre-graduate course in dental medicine at the University of Porto had to be transformed to an online format. Based on their role as faculty, the authors aimed to recount their initial reflections and concerns within this perspective, and to share how they adapted to the new reality of teaching clinical communication skills online, as well as the conclusions of our experience, in the hope that this will help others who may have to go through a similar process. The authors acknowledged that the students achieved the pre-established goals of the clinical communications skills programme through the new online format.University is a period in which students can experience a considerable amount of challenges that may influence their health lifestyles. The aim of this article is to discover the role of therapeutic adherence to the Mediterranean diet and self-efficacy as mediators in the relationship between sleep quality and the average grades of nursing students. The sample was made up of 334 nursing students, with a mean age of 21.84 years (SD = 6.24). Pittsburgh Sleep Quality questionnaires, adherence to the Mediterranean diet and the Baessler and Shwarzer General Self-efficacy Scale were administered. The results of the multiple mediational model determined that quality of sleep has a direct influence on academic performance. Adherence to the Mediterranean diet and quality of sleep have an effect on the degree of self-efficacy of nursing students. This study demonstrates that good sleep quality and adherence to the Mediterranean diet improve academic performance in nursing students. Future research should include multicenter longitudinal studies.
The aim of the study was to compare the emotional state and strength-velocity parameters of patients with frailty and pre-frailty syndrome undertaking a 12-week training programme.

The study was completed by 36 individuals, including 17 with frailty syndrome (FS) and 19 with pre-frailty syndrome (PFS). The age of the subjects ranged from 63 to 89 years, with a mean 69.2 years (±5.0). The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Spielberg's State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), and Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) were used. The strength of knee muscles was evaluated. The above tests were conducted at two time points before the training sessions (T1); and after 12 weeks of regular training sessions (T2).

After completion of the training programme, statistically significant differences in BDI were observed between the PFS and FS groups (especially in somatic symptoms). Following the training, BDI values in the PFS group were significantly lower (fewer depressive symptoms) than in the FS group. The parameter vamprove the psychophysical condition of patients.Verticillium wilt caused by Verticillium dahliae is a threatening disease of cotton, causing economic loss worldwide. In this study, nine endophytic Bacillus strains isolated from cotton roots exhibited inhibitory activity against V. dahliae strain VD-080 in a dual culture assay. B. altitudinis HNH7 and B. velezensis HNH9 were chosen for further experiments based on their high antagonistic activity. The secondary metabolites of HNH7 and HNH9 also inhibited the growth of VD-080. Genetic marker-assisted detection revealed the presence of bacillibactin, surfactin, bacillomycin and fengycin encoding genes in the genome of HNH7 and HNH9 and their corresponding gene products were validated through LC-MS. Scanning electron microscopy revealed mycelial disintegration, curling and shrinkage of VD-080 hyphae after treatment with methanolic extracts of the isolated endophytes. Furthermore, a significant reduction in verticillium wilt severity was noticed in cotton plants treated with HNH7 and HNH9 as compared to control treatments. Moreover, the expression of defense-linked genes, viz., MPK3, GST, SOD, PAL, PPO and HMGR, was considerably higher in plants treated with endophytic Bacillus strains and inoculated with VD-080 as compared to control.Farnesyl-diphosphate farnesyltransferase 1 (FDFT1, squalene synthase), a membrane-associated enzyme, synthesizes squalene via condensation of two molecules of farnesyl pyrophosphate. Accumulating evidence has noted that FDFT1 plays a critical role in cancer, particularly in metabolic reprogramming, cell proliferation, and invasion. Based on these advances in our knowledge, FDFT1 could be a potential target for cancer treatment. This review focuses on the contribution of FDFT1 to the hallmarks of cancer, and further, we discuss the applicability of FDFT1 as a cancer prognostic marker and target for anticancer therapy.To test the effect of the moment of bentonite addition, co-addition of tannins, and bentonite type on the differential affinity of pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins towards bentonite during grape must fermentation, three separate experiments were set up. PR proteins in the obtained wines were analyzed by reverse phase and size exclusion high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The most significant reduction of bentonite dose and PR protein concentration was achieved by applying bentonite in the last third of fermentation. Particular thaumatin-like proteins (TLP) and proteins with lower molecular mass in general were more affected than others, while TLPs were more affected than chitinases. Exogenous enological tannins interacted with particular PR proteins, mostly TLPs, and lowered the total bentonite dose required. The combined application of tannins and bentonite in fermentation removed more PR proteins than bentonite alone, but did not achieve a synergistic effect in reducing the bentonite dose. Various bentonite types, including two Na-activated bentonites, an activated Na bentonite with specifically adsorbed silica, and an active Na-Ca bentonite, exhibited differential affinity towards different PR proteins.

Moodle represents a great contribution to the educational world since it provides an evolving platform for Virtual Learning Management Systems (VLMS) that became a standard de facto for most of the educational institutions around the world. Through the pedagogical functions provided, it collects in the many globally spread out databases a huge amount of information regarding the activities that teachers and students perform during the learning process. This reality makes Moodle a natural choice for conducting experimental research by Artificial Intelligence researchers interested in theories for improving learning and teaching; particularly those related with the controversial learning styles concept. Roughly defined, a learning style intends to be a model of the way and media an apprentice acquires knowledge and hence the way a teacher should present that knowledge to the apprentice matching his/her learning style. Independently of the many controversies (be these scientific, psychological or even ethical) aonal behavior required to support a teachbot. This made our effort much harder than expected, perhaps because of the illusion induced by the widespread use of Moodle. In this article we present our results and experiences extending Moddle with intelligent behavior from a software architecture point of view, focusing on the lessons learnt in such extension. Our experience indicates that this simplicity is far from being so and hence it is worth to share the limitations and how we overcome them.The purpose of this research was to understand the automation of Higher Education Institutes (HEIs), and to evaluate the automated process from the perspective of developing country. A single case study of City University of Science and Information Technology (CUSIT), Pakistan was selected as a unit of analysis. Mix methodology was used in this research. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted from the top management as a primary source while secondary data regarding usage and functions of LMS was collected for the period of 2 years (four semesters Fall-2017-Spring 2019). Data from both sources was utilized, and triangulated for case building and analysis. It was found that CUSIT has a state-of-the-art automated infrastructure, management information system (MIS) and learning management system (LMS) which facilitates faculty, staff and administration. LMS provides an integrated and digital platform to key stakeholders particularly to the teachers for sharing course outlines, lesson plan, assignment generation and submission, announcements and generating assessment reports. Similarly, the student gets access to all course material, assignments, assessment report, notices, and other relevant information at any point of time. However, the system lacks some of the major E-learning features with limited support to the large file size, real time learning, online classes, real time feedback and query system etc. Furthermore, this study identified few seldomly used functions of automated system as well as few duplications and operational activities which requires consideration by the management. The case of CUSIT proves to be a practical case for all those universities who are facing challenges due to corona virus pandemic and are looking for a solution to continue education through distance learning and e-learning platforms. This study supports the automation of HEIs and provides lesson learned for the academia and management of HEIs by identification of success features as well as limitations of the system.The purpose of this research is to assess the effect of Voki, a tool of web 2.0 on students' academic achievement and attitudes towards English courses. The study group of this research, using a quasi-experimental design with a pretest-posttest control group, consists of 5th-grade students at a public secondary school in the Merkezefendi district of Denizli province, Turkey. In the experiment group, the "Party Time" unit was taught via Voki-supported activities while the same unit was taught according to the current curriculum without using Voki in the control group. The entire process of the experiment lasted 6 weeks. In the study, the academic achievement test and attitude scale towards English courses (Cronbach's Alpha = 0.92) were used to measure dependent variables. The normality distributions of the data were examined after the data were collected, and it was decided to analyze the data through the mean, standard deviation, and independent-sample t-test. According to the results of the research, there was an increase in the achievement test scores of both groups in the English lesson. However, a statistically significant difference was observed in the speaking section of the experimental group in the achievement test. There was no significant difference between the attitudes of the groups towards English courses. It is therefore recommended that English teachers should use Voki application in speaking activities.Innovative learning techniques are needed, to match the expectations of the current audience to improve business ethics education for the twenty-first century. One of the innovative technologies which is believed to have a big effect on a bachelor's degree is augmented reality (AR). Incorporating AR into the modern education system is expected to produce optimal augmentation in the learning and teaching environment. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/BIBR1532.html This will have a large impact on increasing students' moral imagination. This study examines the use of AR-based behavior simulation, as an innovative technique for learning ethics, to improve moral imagination. This study employs a 3 × 2 experiment method, three training modes (AR-based behavioral simulation, paper-based-behavioral simulation, and no training) and two times (time one and time two) between- and within-subject factorial design. The subjects are 147 students on a business ethics course. The result of this study reveals that the use of AR-based behavior simulation can improve moral imagination.Researchers see self-regulated learning (SRL) as a fundamental skill for succeeding in massive open online courses (MOOCs). However, there is no sufficient evidence of adequate functioning of SRL dimensions such as environment structuring, goal setting, time management, help-seeking, task strategies, and self-evaluation in the MOOC environment. This study fills the gap in understanding the structure of SRL skills utilising the Online Self-Regulated Learning Questionnaire (OSLQ). The construct-related validity of the OSLQ is evaluated based on self-reported survey responses of 913 Russian MOOC learners with confirmatory factor analysis and criterion-related validity is checked with independent samples t-tests comparison. The results show that the original six-factor hierarchical model does not fit the data adequately. The evidence implies that the dimension 'help-seeking' is not effective in the MOOC environment. Therefore, a redefined five-factor hierarchical model of the OSLQ is suggested.