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Today's student learning style is much different than before. Many researches have shown that games are a powerful tool in many educational domains, but there is no specific research discuss how to use games to strengthen orthographic projection learning. Therefore, the goal of this paper is to investigate what makes orthographic projection learning difficult in vocational education settings, and then design a game to combat these issue. The ITouYing game is composed of seven sub-units, including 1) Orthographic projection concept, 2) Orthographic projection knowledge quiz, 3) Plane type judge, 4) Stain in plane, 5) Proper view selection, 6) Three view match, and 7) Proper 3-D model selection. Results for ITouYing's effectiveness for learning were examined. They indicated that students like to use the ITouYing game, because it can enhance the student's natural' orthographic projection abilities and also is able to improve student visualization skills between 3-D model and multi-view. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Saussurea involucrata (Kar. et Kir.), known as the snow lotus, grows in the Tian Shan and A'er Tai areas of China. It has recently been reported that the ethyl acetate extract of S. involucrata (SI-2) can inhibit proliferation and induce apoptosis in PC-3 human prostate cancer cells. This study investigated the protective effect of ethyl acetate extract of S. involucrata (SI-2) or rutin, a flavonoid extracted from ethyl acetate extract of S. involucrata (SI-2), on D-galactose- (D-gal-) induced brain injury in mice. Administering SI-2 or rutin (30 mg/kg/d and 30 mg/kg/d) for 6 weeks, concomitant with D-gal injection, significantly increased superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase activities and decreased the MDA level in plasma. Furthermore, the result showed that the percentages of cleaved caspase-3 and PARP in the D-gal-treated mice were much higher than those in the control. Pretreatment using SI-2 or rutin decreased the expression of cyclooxygenase-2 via downregulation of NF-kappaB, resulting in a decrease in lipid peroxidation. Furthermore, our results also showed that oral administration of rutin to these mice significantly improved behavioral performance in a step-through passive avoidance task and these results suggest that SI-2 or rutin exerts potent antiaging effects on D-gal in mice via antioxidative mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE • To determine the effectiveness of the Resonance ureteral stent and clarify the risk factors that lead to stent failure. In the present study, we review our clinical experiences using Resonance stent in treating malignant and benign ureteral obstruction. PATIENTS AND METHODS • Nineteen patients with extrinsic malignant ureteral obstruction ( n = 15) and benign stricture ( n = 4) were retrospectively evaluated. • All patients had received Resonance stent insertion through antegrade or cystoscopic retrograde approaches. The pre-insertion and follow-up interventions included image studies and biochemical tests. The insertion success rate, obstruction patency rate and complications were reviewed. • For categorical variables, the chi-square test and Fisher's exact test were carried out to determine associations between variables. RESULTS • The technical success rate of stent insertion was 84.6%. The mean follow-up was 5 months (range 1-10.5 months). • Five stents failed to alleviate the obstruction, and the patency rate was 77.3% (17/22). • Patients who had had previous radiation therapy had a lower ureter patency rate in comparison with non-radiation patients (50% vs 92.3% respectively, P = 0.039). • The 6- and 9-month patency rates were 81.0% with 11 stents and 27.0% with 3 stents, respectively. CONCLUSIONS • The results of the present study demonstrated that malignant or benign ureteral obstruction could be treated safely and sufficiently with the Resonance metallic stent. • Careful patient selection is critical to achieve successful results. • For malignant ureteral obstruction, previous radiation therapy is a risk factor for stent failure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assistive drawing devices help Cerebral Palsy children to communicate and express themselves. This case study introduces the design of a unique assistive drawing device for a Cerebral Palsy child with upper limbs disability using the USERfit framework for user-centred design. The product design includes three parts: (1) hand-grip assistive device, (2) arm support assistive device and (3) moving drawing board. To further clarify the feasibility of applying this assistive drawing device design, a comparison experiment is performed for another Cerebral Palsy child. This study concludes that: (1) Hand grip, arm movements and body posture must be considered when designing assistive drawing devices for Cerebral Palsy children with upper extremity disabilities to improve drawing movement. (2) In terms of drawing agility, stroke, hand (or body) posture and stability, the assistive drawing device presented here can improve drawing range and drawing movement and is superior to currently used assistive drawing devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although nanodiamonds have long being considered as a potential tool for biomedical research, the practical in vivo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) application of nanodiamonds remains relatively unexplored. In this paper, we present the first application of in vivo MRI contrast enhancement using only iron embedded magnetic nanodiamonds. An MR image enhancement was clearly demonstrated in the rendering of T2-weighted images of mice obtained using an unmodified commercial MRI scanner. The excellent contrast obtained using these nanodiamonds opens the door to the non-invasive in vivo tracking of nanodiamonds and image enhancement. In the future, one can apply these magnetic nanodiamonds together with surface modifications to facilitate drug delivery, targeted therapy, localized thermal treatment, and diagnostic imaging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are widely considered to be an attractive cell source for regenerative therapies, but maintaining multipotency and self-renewal in cultured MSCs is especially challenging. Hence, the development and mechanistic description of strategies that help promote multipotency in MSCs will be vital to future clinical use. Here, using an array of techniques and approaches, including cell biology, RT-quantitative PCR, immunoblotting, immunofluorescence, flow cytometry, and ChIP assays, we show that the extracellular domain of epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) (EpEX) significantly increases the levels of pluripotency factors through a signaling cascade that includes epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), and Lin-28 homolog A (LIN28) and enhances the proliferation of human bone marrow MSCs. Moreover, we found that EpEXinduced LIN28 expression reduces the expression of the microRNA LET7 and up-regulates that of the transcription factor high-mobility group AT-hook 2 (HMGA2), which activates the transcription of pluripotency factors. Surprisingly, we found that EpEX treatment also enhances osteogenesis of MSCs under differentiation conditions, as evidenced by increases in osteogenic markers, including Runt-related transcription factor 2 (RUNX2). Taken together, our results indicate that EpEX stimulates EGFR signaling and thereby context-dependently controls MSC states and activities, promoting cell proliferation and multipotency under maintenance conditions and osteogenesis under differentiation conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Between July 2004 and June 2005, a cross-sectional study was performed to determine the prevalence and patterns of anti-obesity medicine use among subjects seeking obesity treatment in Taiwan. Eighteen obesity outpatient clinics were selected via a random stratified sampling method and 1,060 first-visit clients (791 females and 269 males) aged above 18 years were enrolled and then completed a self-administered questionnaire. The prevalence of anti-obesity medicine use was 50.8%; more females than male used anti-obesity medicines (53.6% vs. 42.4%). Of the 1,060 subjects, 17.1% had used orlistat, 21.1% had taken sibutramine, and 18.3% had utilized un-proven drugs such as cocktail therapy and other anti-obesity drugs. Furthermore, 23.6% and 22.4% of subjects indicated that they concurrently used Chinese herbal preparations and dietary supplements, respectively. Logistic regression analyses demonstrated that the odds ratio (OR) for anti-obesity medicine use was substantially higher in females (OR, 1.9; 95% CI, 1.3-2.6), those aged 18-24 years (OR, 1.6; 95% CI, 1.0-2.6), those with a body mass index (BMI) >35 kg/m2 (OR, 3.4; 95% CI, 2.1-5.7) and respondents concurrently using Chinese herbal preparations (OR, 1.7; 95% CI, 1.2-2.4) and dietary supplements (OR, 2.2; 95% CI, 1.6-3.1). In conclusion, the prevalence of anti-obesity drugs use is high among Taiwanese adults before they seek obesity treatment. Young, obese females, and those who had taken Chinese herbal preparations/dietary supplements had a high likelihood to report using anti-obesity medicines. Use of unproven weight-loss drugs is common and warrants further investigation.