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The article presents a study investigating the effects of learning authenticity on the learning achievements in an online corporate training program. The authors note the importance for learners to recognize learning authenticity, which is a condition in which the activities of learner, complexity of learning tasks, and condition of evaluations are authentic. Topics include an overview of the team's research methodology, which includes a literature review of learning authenticity research, an explanation of the term achievement as it applies to the study, and a discussion of the results of a correlation analysis of the data.

Abstract: Ethnopharmacological relevance: Evodia, a fruit from Evodia rutaecarpa, has been used in oriental medicine, and since its various pharmaceutical actions, including anti-cancer activity, have become known, evodia has been widely used as a dietary supplement. However, information regarding its toxicity is limited. Materials and methods: Evodia fruit from Evodia rutaecarpa (Juss.) Benth. var. officinalis (Dode) Huang (0, 25, 74, 222, 667, and 2000mg/kg) was administered orally five times per week for 13 weeks. Clinical signs, body weight, food consumption, hematology, serum chemistry, urinalysis, vaginal cytology, sperm morphology, organ weight, and gross and histopathological findings were evaluated. Results: Urinary ketone body excretion was detected in males at 667 and 2000mg/kg and in females at 2000mg/kg. An increase in absolute/relative liver weight was observed in both sexes at 2000mg/kg. Although levels of serum alanine aminotransferase, glucose, total cholesterol, and triglycerides were significantly reduced in males and/or females at 200 and/or 667 and 2000mg/kg, all values were within normal ranges and were considered non-adverse. In addition, no treatment-related differences in body weight, food consumption, hematology, vaginal cytology, sperm morphology, or gross and histopathological examination were detected. Conclusions: The subchronic no-observable-adverse-effect level for evodia fruit powder following oral administration in rats is greater than 2000mg/kg. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: Our study aim was to evaluate neuromuscular ultrasound (NMUS) for the assessment of taxane chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN), the dose-limiting toxicity of this agent.Methods: This cross-sectional study of breast cancer patients with taxane CIPN measured nerve cross-sectional area (CSA) by NMUS and compared with healthy historical controls. Correlations were determined between CSA and symptom scale, nerve conduction studies, and intraepidermal nerve fiber density (IENFD).Results: A total of 20 participants reported moderate CIPN symptoms at a median of 3.8 months following the last taxane dose. Sural nerve CSA was 1.2 mm2 smaller than healthy controls (P ≤ .01). Older age and time since taxane were associated with smaller sural nerve CSA. For each 1 mm2 decrease in sural nerve CSA, distal IENFD decreased by 2.1 nerve/mm (R2 0.30; P = .04).Conclusions: These data support a sensory predominant taxane neuropathy or neuronopathy and warrant future research on longitudinal NMUS assessment of CIPN. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The incidence of many chronic diseases is increasing rapidly in South Korea. Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic disease for which treatment by both doctors and long-term self-care by patients is deemed very important for successful disease management. Purpose: This study is designed to examine and identify the factors influencing self-care competence in Korean women with rheumatoid arthritis. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive design was employed. Participants included 132 women aged 20 years or older who were visiting rheumatoid arthritis outpatient clinics at hospitals in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. Measures included a demographics form, Self-as-Carer Inventory, Korean Activities of Daily Living scale, Visual Analogue Scale, Mishel Uncertainty in Illness Scale–Community Form, and Self-esteem Scale. Results: The analyses illustrated the significance of the prediction model (F = 21.744, p <.001). The value of the adjusted R 2 was set at.401, corresponding to 40.1% explanatory power. Uncertainty (β = −.43) and self-esteem (β =.26) were identified as having the most influence on self-care competence in Korean women with rheumatoid arthritis. Conclusions/Implications for Practice: This cross-sectional study yielded preliminary evidence that nursing interventions that reduce uncertainty and improve self-esteem in Korean women with rheumatoid arthritis are necessary to promote the self-care competence of this vulnerable population. Healthcare professionals should recognize uncertainty and self-esteem as factors that influence self-care competence in Korean women with rheumatoid arthritis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The incidence of many chronic diseases is increasing rapidly in South Korea. Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic disease for which treatment by both doctors and long-term self-care by patients is deemed very important for successful disease management. Purpose: This study is designed to examine and identify the factors influencing self-care competence in Korean women with rheumatoid arthritis. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive design was employed. Participants included 132 women aged 20 years or older who were visiting rheumatoid arthritis outpatient clinics at hospitals in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. Measures included a demographics form, Self-as-Carer Inventory, Korean Activities of Daily Living scale, Visual Analogue Scale, Mishel Uncertainty in Illness Scale–Community Form, and Self-esteem Scale. Results: The analyses illustrated the significance of the prediction model (F = 21.744, p <.001). The value of the adjusted R 2 was set at.401, corresponding to 40.1% explanatory power. Uncertainty (β = −.43) and self-esteem (β =.26) were identified as having the most influence on self-care competence in Korean women with rheumatoid arthritis. Conclusions/Implications for Practice: This cross-sectional study yielded preliminary evidence that nursing interventions that reduce uncertainty and improve self-esteem in Korean women with rheumatoid arthritis are necessary to promote the self-care competence of this vulnerable population. Healthcare professionals should recognize uncertainty and self-esteem as factors that influence self-care competence in Korean women with rheumatoid arthritis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Immunosuppression non-adherence in kidney transplant recipients (KTRs) not only increases the risk of medical intervention due to acute rejection and graft loss but burdens the socioeconomic system in the form of increased healthcare costs. An aggressive preemptive effort by healthcare professionals, geared to ensure adherence to immunosuppressants in KTRs, is significant and imperative.Methods/design: This study was designed as a prospective, open-label, multicenter, randomized controlled study aimed at evaluating the efficacy and stability of an information and communication technology (ICT)-based centralized monitoring system in boosting medication adherence in KTRs. One hundred fourteen KTRs registered throughout the year 2017 to 2018 are randomized into either the ICT-based centralized home monitoring system or to ambulatory follow-up. The planned follow-up duration is 6 months. The ICT-based centralized home monitoring system described consists of a smart pill box equipped with personal identification system, a home monitoring system, an electronic Case Report Form (eCRF) system, and a comprehensive clinical trial management system (CTMS). It alerts both patients and medical staff with texts and pill box alarms if there is a dosage/dosing time error or a missed dose. Medication adherence and transplant outcomes for the follow-up period are compared between the two groups, while patient satisfaction as well as the stability and cost-effectiveness of the ICT-based monitoring system are to be evaluated.Discussion: This on-going study is expected to determine if consistent use of the ICT-based centralized monitoring system described could maximize mediation adherence and subsequently enhance transplant outcomes in KTRs. Further, it would lay the foundation for successful implementation of this ICT-based monitoring system for effective management of medication adherence in KTRs.Trials Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, Identifier: NCT03136588 . Registered on 20 April 2017. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BackgroundTherapeutic drug monitoring of mycophenolic acid (MPA) is required to optimize the immunosuppressive effect and minimize toxicity. We validated a new particle-enhanced turbidimetric inhibition immunoassay (PETINIA) for the determination of MPA levels and evaluated the relationship of MPA trough level with drug-related adverse events.MethodsPETENIA and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) were used to determine MPA concentrations from 54 kidney transplant recipients (KTRs). Agreement between PETINIA and LC-MS results was assessed by Passing-Bablok regression and the Bland-Altman plot method. The association of adverse events with MPA trough level obtained by PETINIA was analyzed.ResultsPETINIA revealed a good agreement with the LC-MS; Regression analysis gave an equation of y = 1.27x − 0.12 (r2 = 0.975,p < 0.001). PETINIA showed a systemic positive bias with a mean difference of 0.66 mg/L compared to LC-MS. However, the magnitude of the positive bias decreased to 0.44 mg/L within the therapeutic range of MPA. Multiple logistic regression showed that MPA trough level determined by PETINIA was an independent risk factor for adverse events (odds ratio 2.28, 95% CI 1.25–4.16,p = 0.007). MPA trough level predicted adverse events with a sensitivity of 77.8% and a specificity of 86.7% using a cut-off level of 5.25 mg/L.ConclusionsGood correlation between the two methods indicates that PETINIA is an acceptable method for the monitoring of MPA therapeutic levels. Furthermore, MPA trough level obtained by PETINIA is a useful monitoring tool to minimize toxicity in KTRs. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract: Ethnopharmacological relevance: Coptidis Rhizoma (CR) is a medical herb from the family Ranunculacease that has been used to treat gastroenteritis, dysentery, diabetes mellitus, and severe skin diseases. Aim of the study: To evaluate the no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) and the toxicity of CR, following repeat oral administration to rats for 13 weeks. Materials and methods: CR was administered by oral gavage to groups of rats (n=10/group, each sex) at dose levels of 0 (control), 25, 74, 222, 667 or 2000mg/kg/day 5 times per week for 13 weeks. Mortality, clinical signs, body weights, food consumption, hematology, serum chemistry, urinalysis, vaginal cytology and sperm morphology, organ weights, gross and histopathological findings were compared between control and CR groups. Results: Urinalysis showed a significant increase in N-acety1-β-glucosaminidase in males in the 2000mg/kg/day group (P<0.01). However, no mortality or remarkable clinical signs were observed during this 13-week study. No adverse effects on body weight, food consumption, hematology, serum chemistry, organ weights, gross lesion, histopathology, vaginal cytology, sperm motility, or deformity were observed in the males or female rats treated with CR. Conclusions: On the basis of these results, the NOAEL of CR is determined to be 667mg/kg/day for males and 2000mg/kg/day for females. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Since cAMP blocks meiotic maturation of mammalian and amphibian oocytes in vitro and cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase 3A (PDE3A) is primarily responsible for oocyte cAMP hydrolysis, we generated PDE3A-deficient mice by homologous recombination. The Pde3a(-/-) females were viable and ovulated a normal number of oocytes but were completely infertile, because ovulated oocytes were arrested at the germinal vesicle stage and, therefore, could not be fertilized. Pde3a(-/-) oocytes lacked cAMP-specific PDE activity, contained increased cAMP levels, and failed to undergo spontaneous maturation in vitro (up to 48 hours). Meiotic maturation in Pde3a(-/-) oocytes was restored by inhibiting protein kinase A (PKA) with adenosine-3',5'-cyclic monophosphorothioate, Rp-isomer (Rp-cAMPS) or by injection of protein kinase inhibitor peptide (PKI) or mRNA coding for phosphatase CDC25, which confirms that increased cAMP-PKA signaling is responsible for the meiotic blockade. Pde3a(-/-) oocytes that underwent germinal vesicle breakdown showed activation of MPF and MAPK, completed the first meiotic division extruding a polar body, and became competent for fertilization by spermatozoa. We believe that these findings provide the first genetic evidence indicating that resumption of meiosis in vivo and in vitro requires PDE3A activity. Pde3a(-/-) mice represent an in vivo model where meiotic maturation and ovulation are dissociated, which underscores inhibition of oocyte maturation as a potential strategy for contraception. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]