Following the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in China, undergraduate students may experience psychological changes. During emergency circumstances, social support is an important factor influencing the mental health condition among undergraduate students in Shaanxi province. This study aims to find the factors associated with mental health symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress among undergraduate students in Shaanxi province during the COVID-19 pandemic in China. A cross-sectional study was conducted from Feb 23 to Mar 7, 2020. A total of 1278 undergraduate students from the universities located in Shaanxi province participated in this study. The mental health symptoms were measured by 12-item Perceived Social Support Scale (PSSS) and Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21) instruments. This survey showed that females receive more social support compared to males (t = -5.046, P<0.001); males have higher-level depression symptoms (t = 5.624, P<0.001); males have higher-level anxiety symptoms (t = 6.332, P<0.001), males have higher-level stress symptoms (t = 5.58, P<0.001). This study also found participants who have low social support was negatively correlated with mental health symptoms. In Conclusion, Males and low social support were associated with having the higher level of depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms among undergraduate students in Shaanxi province during the COVID-19 pandemic in China. Therefore, it is suggested that people should supply more social support for undergraduate students in Shaanxi province during COVID-19 pandemic.
Background Leptospirosis is still endemic in Malaysia and has been prevalent in Selangor where cases have been underreported. Primarily, this was due to lack of awareness in the urban community in this region. This study determined the knowledge, attitude and preventive practice (KAP) of leptospirosis, and identified the significant predictors influencing KAP among urban community in Hulu Langat, Selangor. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted from 2015 to 2017 using validated questionnaire. Sampling methods included multistage cluster sampling, followed by simple random sampling to obtain 315 respondents. Descriptive analysis was performed to determine the KAP while χ 2 and the subsequent logistic regression analysis were carried out to identify associations and predictors between variables. Results Respondents were mainly Malaysian Bumiputra with a mean (Standard Deviation (SD)) age of 32.5 (13.0) years. Of 315 respondents, 80.3% ( n = 253) had poor knowledge, 87.0% ( n = 274) had good attitude, and 81.3% ( n = 256) showed unacceptable practice towards leptospirosis and its prevention. Regression analysis identified age as the sole predictor influencing good knowledge (AOR 2.388; 95% CI = 1.298, 4.396; p = 0.005). Education level (AOR 2.197; 95% CI = 1.109, 4.352; p = 0.024) was also noted as the significant predictor influencing the overall practice. Conclusions The urban community in Selangor showed a positive attitude in waste management despite having little knowledge regarding the disease itself. The study also discovered inadequacy in preventive practice, hence marking the importance of the proper integration of knowledge and attitude into forming an acceptable practice to reduce transmission of Leptospira among urban population in Malaysia.
Problem considered: Lumbar puncture (LP) refusal rates of as high as 30% have been reported in developing countries. Without LP, the patients may suffer suboptimal treatment or unnecessary complications from their disease. Due to a lack of studies exploring the reasons behind this LP refusal, no solution has been suggested to address this problem. Therefore, we carried out this study with the aim of determining knowledge of and attitude towards LP among the public. Methods: A cross-sectional survey study among staff in a public university in Malaysia was conducted using stratified random sampling. Self-administered questionnaires were sent to 500 staff members from April to August 2015. The questionnaire, which included questions on demography, knowledge and attitude towards LP, was pre-tested and validated (Cronbach's alpha = 0.701). Results: A total of 316 of 500 (63%) responded, of which 294 were complete and analysed. The median (IQR) age was 34 and 65% were female. 80% had tertiary education. The mean knowledge score was 6 AE 3; 74% were categorised into poorly informed, 23% moderately informed, and 3% well-informed. The mean attitude score was 35 AE 4; 3% were categorised as having poor attitude, 72% moderate attitude, and 27% good attitude. Respondents with higher education had a higher knowledge and attitude score (p = 0.001), while respondents afraid of needles had a lower attitude score (p = 0.019). Total knowledge scores and total attitude scores showed a positive correlation (r = 0.272, p = 0.001). Conclusion: The public are not adequately informed about LP, leading to the unreceptive attitudes towards LP consent. Therefore, the public should be educated about LP to create better awareness.
Mitochondria play important roles in regulating cell bioenergetics status and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. ROS-induced mitochondrial damage is among the main intracellular signal inducers of autophagy. Autophagy is a cellular catabolic process that regulates protein and organelle turnover, while a selective form of autophagy, mitophagy, specifically targets dysfunctional mitochondrial degradation. This study aims to measure the levels of autophagy, mitophagy, oxidative stress, and apoptosis in invasive breast carcinoma tissues using immunohistochemistry (IHC). Tissue microarrays of 76 patients with breast cancer were stained with six IHC markers (MnSOD, Beclin-1, LC3, BNIP3, Parkin, and cleaved caspase 3). The expression intensity was determined for each tumor tissue and the adjacent tumor-matched control tissues. Intermediate and strong staining scores of MnSOD, Beclin-1, LC-3, BNIP-3, and Parkin were significantly higher in tumor tissues compared to the adjacent matched control. The scoring intensity was further classified into tissues with negative staining and positive staining, which showed that positive scores of Beclin-1 and Parkin were significantly high in tumor tissues compared to other markers. Positive association was also noted between BNIP-3 and Beclin-1 as well as LC-3 and cleaved caspase-3 immunostaining. To our knowledge, this is one of the first studies that measure both mitophagy and autophagy in the same breast cancer tissues and the adjacent matched control. The findings from this study will be of great potential in identifying new cancer biomarkers and inspire significant interest in applying anti-autophagy therapies as a possible treatment for breast cancer.
The Ebola virus disease is a zoonotic, acute viral syndrome which occurs by infection with one the strains of the Ebola virus. It is primarily endemic in Africa however the recent outbreak in the year 2014 spanned from West Africa all the way to Europe and America. This shows the virus possess a global threat and should not be considered localized to only certain parts of the world. The social and economic impact of zoonotic diseases today is high as 80% of human pathogens are of zoonotic origin. Human to human transmission happens when there is contact with bodily fluids of infected humans during the infectious phase of the disease. This spread could be through nosocomial means or community spread. Poor knowledge of the syndrome among health care workers coupled with lack of funding and deficient resources has crippled their ability to diagnose and break the chain of transmission of the disease at its early stages. The virus undergoes pathogenesis by immune evasion, immune suppression, coagulopathy, and hypovolemic shock, multiple organ failure and death in up to 90% of cases. The unavailability of a cure or vaccine for this syndrome makes it a recurrent threat due to high risk behavior practiced in endemic countries such as bush meat consumption. Thus this study gives the reader a review of current literature on this deadly disease with the aim of increasing knowledge and aiding its prevention and control.
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