BackgroundContinuing medical education (CME) is indispensable, but costs are a barrier. We tested the effectiveness of a novel mHealth intervention (mCME V.2.0) promoting CME among Vietnamese HIV clinicians.MethodsWe enrolled HIV clinicians from three provinces near Hanoi. The 6-month intervention consisted of (1) daily short message service multiple-choice quiz questions, (2) daily linked readings, (3) links to online CME courses and (4) feedback messages describing the performance of the participant relative to the group. Control participants had equal access to the online CME courses. Our primary endpoint was utilisation of the online CME courses; secondary endpoints were self-study behaviour, performance on a standardised medical exam and job satisfaction.ResultsFrom 121 total HIV clinicians in the three provinces, 106 (87.6%) enrolled, and 48/53 intervention (90%) and 47/53 control (89%) participants completed the endline evaluations. Compared with controls, intervention participants were more likely to use the CME courses (risk ratio (RR) 2.3, 95% CI 1.4 to 3.8, accounting for 83% of course use (P<0.001)). Intervention participants increased self-study behaviours over controls in terms of use of medical textbooks (P<0.01), consulting with colleagues (P<0.01), searching on the internet (P<0.001), using specialist websites (P=0.02), consulting the Vietnam HIV/AIDS treatment guidelines (P=0.02) and searching the scientific literature (P=0.09). Intervention participants outperformed controls on the exam (+23% vs +12% score gains, P=0.05) and had higher job satisfaction.ConclusionThe mCME V.2.0 intervention improved self-study behaviour, medical knowledge and job satisfaction. This approach has potential for expansion in Vietnam and similar settings.Trial registration numberNCT02381743.

No abstract

The n-hexane extract of Knema pachycarpa fruits (Myristicaceae family), exhibiting strong anti-acetylcholinesterase activity, was investigated by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and then purified by column chromatography.Guided by GC/MS profiling and bioassay, chromatographic separations led to the isolation of five new compounds: two anacardic acid derivatives 1-2, two cardanol derivatives 3-4 and a cardol derivative 5, along with mixtures of known phenolic lipids 6-9. The chemical structures were determined by various spectroscopic methods. New isolated compounds 1-5 were evaluated for their cytotoxicity and antiacetylcholinesterase activity. Cardanol 3 and cardol 5 were the most active compounds in the acetylcholinesterase inhibitory assay with IC 50 values of 2.60 ± 0.24 µM and 2.46 ± 0.23 µM, respectively. Cardanol 4 and cardol 5 showed moderate cytotoxicity against Hela and MCF-7 cancer cell lines with IC 50 values ranging from 31.36 ± 0.41 µM to 41.30 ± 2.49 µM.

The main purpose of this study was to extract and characterize gelatin from skins of fishes: European perch (Perca fluviatilis) and Volga pikeperch (Sander volgensis), which were collected from the Volga-Caspian basin in Russia. The gelatins were prepared using an alkaline pretreatment. The gelatin yield was in the range of 10.2-13.8% on a wet weight basis, and the gel strength exceeded 184 and 193 g for samples from European perch and Volga pikeperch skins, respectively. The pH values of gelatins were 5.49 and 5.73, melting points were 24.5 and 25.5 o C and protein content was 88.6 and 91.0%, respectively. Water-holding and fat-binding capacities of gelatins were 227-235 and 439-453%, respectively. The gelatins were composed of α-chains, β-chains, and γ-chains. The apparent valine content of the two gelatins was significantly higher than those of gelatins from other fish species. The total apparent proportions of imino acids were 192 and 203 residues/1000 residues. The gelatins from European perch and Volga pikeperch skins had relatively high gel strengths, melting points, water-holding and fat-binding capacities as compared with those of other types of fish and could be recommended as potential replacements for mammalian gelatin in the food industry.

Knema is a genus of tropical evergreen trees of the family Myristicaceae found in South East Asian countries such as Vietnam, Thailand, and Malaysia. In this paper, four lignans, (+)-pinoresinol (1),(+) epi-pinoresinol (2), piperitol (3), and pluviatilol (4), were isolated from the ethyl acetate extract of the fruit of Knema pachycarpa, an indigenus tree in Vietnam. The chemical structures were determined by spectroscopic data and comparison with the reported literature. These compounds were isolated from Knema genus for the first time.