BackgroundStudies show that students who use fidelity-based simulation technology perform better and have higher retention rates than peers who learn in traditional paper-based training. Augmented reality is increasingly being used as a teaching and learning tool in a continual effort to make simulations more realistic for students.ObjectiveThe aim of this project was to assess the feasibility and acceptability of using augmented reality via Google Glass during clinical simulation scenarios for training health science students.MethodsStudents performed a clinical simulation while watching a video through Google Glass of a patient actor simulating respiratory distress. Following participation in the scenarios students completed two surveys and were questioned if they would recommend continued use of this technology in clinical simulation experiences. ResultsWe were able to have students watch a video in their field of vision of a patient who mimicked the simulated manikin. Students were overall positive about the implications for being able to view a patient during the simulations, and most students recommended using the technology in the future. Overall, students reported perceived realism with augmented reality using Google Glass. However, there were technical and usability challenges with the device.ConclusionsAs newer portable and consumer-focused technologies become available, augmented reality is increasingly being used as a teaching and learning tool to make clinical simulations more realistic for health science students. We found Google Glass feasible and acceptable as a tool for augmented reality in clinical simulations.

Galectins are proteins with high-affinity β-galactoside-binding sites that function in a variety of signaling pathways through interactions with glycoproteins. The known contributions of galectins-1, -3, -7, -8, and -9 to angiogenesis, metastasis, cell division, and evasion of immune destruction led us to investigate the circulating levels of these galectins in cancer patients. This study compares galectin concentrations by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) from each stage of breast, lung, and colon cancer. Galectins-1 and -7, which share a prototype structure, were found to have statistically significant increases in breast and lung cancer. Of the tandem-repeat galectins, galectin-8 showed no statistically significant change in these cancer types, but galectin-9 was increased in colon and lung cancer. Galectin-3 is the only chimera-type galectin and was increased in all stages of breast, colon, and lung cancer. In conclusion, there were significant differences in the galectin levels in patients with these cancers compared with healthy controls, and galectin levels did not significantly change from stage to stage. These findings suggest that further research on the roles of galectins early in disease pathogenesis may lead to novel indications for galectin inhibitors.

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Substitutable Medical Apps Reusable Technologies (SMART® ) on Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources   (FHIR) is an open, standards platform that allows third parties to build health applications that interact with electronic health record (EHR) systems. This can allow for aggregation of unique data ranging from genomics to lifestyle, thereby promoting the emerging precision medicine approach. It is also the first to provide a way to successfully incorporate interoperability in EHRs and precision medicine implementation.

Glycans are complex carbohydrates found on extracellular membrane lipids and proteins. They are known to be variably expressed by cancer cells, which can have partial or even novel glycan structures. Therefore, we hypothesize that the analysis of breast cancer patient glycomic profiles will result in elucidation of specific and generalizable signatures which will be useful for the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. Our study examines N‐glycan expression and its changes through breast cancer stages and compares them to healthy donor samples to create a catalogue of changes and profiles based on cancer stage and other tumor attributes. We are specifically investigating N‐glycans found in patient serum, on the tumor cells, and on adjacent normal tissue. Serum and tissue (tumor and normal) samples from breast cancer patients were analyzed using mass spectroscopy to determine the presence, type, and amount of over 300 unique glycan compositions. Bioinformatic analysis is being used to develop comprehensive glycomic profiles of patients and glycan signatures of cancer stages. We have found several sets of glycan compositions in the serum that appear to change over the progression of cancer. Most notably, glycans of low molecular mass (H4N2, H3N3, H5N2, H3N3F1, H4N3, H3N4, H3N5, H5N5) are rarely present in healthy samples, but are prevalent in all 4 stages of cancer patients. Alternatively, several glycans of varying molecular weight have low expression in healthy patients but higher expression in cancer patients (H4N4F1, H6N2, H5N4F1, H3N4F1, H5N4, H5N2, H4N5F1). Comparing serum and tumor glycan profiles to those of healthy sera and tissue controls will allow for a more comprehensive understanding of the aberrant expression of glycan structures in breast cancer. The collected information has the potential for more accurate diagnoses and personalized treatments. Prospective uses of differential glycomic profiles could allow oncologists and their patients a more nuanced understanding of the tumor and its characteristics.