Pathways to post-traumatic growth in Korean female cancer patients: the mediation effects of coping strategies and resilience.

ABSTRACTBackground: Cancer is a life-threatening disease in Korean women. Female cancer patients in Korea have reported poor physical functioning and psychological distress after diagnosis. However, some patients experience post-traumatic growth (PTG), which includes positive feelings and changes.Objective: The main purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between PTG and its associated factors in Korean female cancer patients to understand how female cancer patients achieve PTG while experiencing cancer diagnosis and treatment. This study aimed to improve the quality of life of many Korean female patients with cancer.Methods: This study investigated the structural model of the paths from the disruption of core beliefs (CBD), coping strategies, and resilience to PTG in a sample of female cancer patients. In total, 164 middle-aged women diagnosed with cancer were included in the final sample.Results: First, it was determined that the proposed structural model was substantial and had high fit indices. Second, problem-solving was positively associated by the CBD routes. Third, it was also favorably expected that problem-solving would lead to resilience and resilience would lead to PTG. These findings are important for developing future interventions for Korean female cancer patients and can be considered as an important variable to improve their PTG.

The proposed structural model observed paths of how female cancer patients achieve post-traumatic growth while experiencing cancer diagnosis and treatment.Disruption of core beliefs as a factor positively associates problem-solving in Korean female cancer patients.Problem-solving and resilience as factors positively associate post-traumatic growth in Korean female cancer patients.

User Experience of Augmented Reality Glasses-based Tele-Exercise in Elderly Women.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to identify any difference in user experience between tablet- and augmented reality (AR) glasses-based tele-exercise programs in elderly women. METHODS: Participants in the AR group (n = 14) connected Nreal glasses with smartphones to display a pre-recorded exercise program, while each member of the tablet group (n = 13) participated in the same exercise program using an all-in-one personal computer. The program included sitting or standing on a chair, bare-handed calisthenics, and muscle strengthening using an elastic band. The exercise movements were presented first for the upper and then the lower extremities, and the total exercise time was 40 minutes (5 minutes of warm-up exercises, 30 minutes of main exercises, and 5 minutes of cool-down exercises). To evaluate the user experience, a questionnaire consisting of a 7-point Likert scale was used as a measurement tool. In addition, the Wilcoxon rank-sum test was used to assess differences between the two groups. RESULTS: Of the six user experience scales, attractiveness (p = 0.114), stimulation (p = 0.534), and novelty (p = 0.916) did not differ significantly between the groups. However, efficiency (p = 0.006), perspicuity (p = 0.008), and dependability (p = 0.049) did vary significantly between groups. CONCLUSIONS: When developing an AR glasses-based exercise program for the elderly, the efficiency, clarity, and stability of the program must be considered to meet the participants' needs.

The moderating effect of resilience on the relationship between academic stress and school adjustment in Korean students.

Introduction: This study investigated the moderating effects of resilience on the relationship between academic stress and school adjustment among Korean adolescents. We examined the moderating effect for the total scores of school adjustment and the two subscales of school adjustment (academic adjustment and general school adjustment). Methods: Data were obtained in Pusan, Korea, using the convenience sampling method, and a total of 674 participants' responses were used for the final analysis. Hierarchical regression analysis and multiple regression analysis were performed to examine our research questions. Results: The results of the study showed that academic stress was a significant predictor of school adjustment among Korean adolescents. More specifically, academic stress was related to poor school adjustment. The study also found that resilience has a significant mediating effect on the relationship between academic stress and school adjustment. Discussion: Our findings suggest that resilience is likely to alleviate the harmful effect of academic stress on school adjustment. Finally, implications for school-based intervention were discussed for providing practical academic assistance.

Autoinduction of a genetic locus encoding putative acyltransferase in Corynebacterium glutamicum.

A genetic locus, encoding putative acyltransferase, was induced by autoinducers in Corynebacterium glutamicum. The autoinducers were maximally produced by the bacterium after 24 h culture. Those molecules are resistant to proteinase K treatment (300 µg ml(-1)) for 30 min at 37°C or at 121°C for 15 min, and remained stable after extensive storage at 4°C. Autoinducers in the cell-free culture fluids from Corynebacterium ammoniagenes and Pseudomonas aeruginosa also induced the expression of acyltransferase in C. glutamicum, suggesting possible cross-recognition of the autoinducers by C. glutamicum. C. glutamicum thus possesses an autoinduction system which secretes autoinducers during growth, triggering the expression of downstream genes, exemplified by the putative acyltransferase gene.

Lens-free shadow image based high-throughput continuous cell monitoring technique.

A high-throughput continuous cell monitoring technique which does not require any labeling reagents or destruction of the specimen is demonstrated. More than 6000 human alveolar epithelial A549 cells are monitored for up to 72 h simultaneously and continuously with a single digital image within a cost and space effective lens-free shadow imaging platform. In an experiment performed within a custom built incubator integrated with the lens-free shadow imaging platform, the cell nucleus division process could be successfully characterized by calculating the signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) and the shadow diameters (SDs) of the cell shadow patterns. The versatile nature of this platform also enabled a single cell viability test followed by live cell counting. This study firstly shows that the lens-free shadow imaging technique can provide a continuous cell monitoring without any staining/labeling reagent and destruction of the specimen. This high-throughput continuous cell monitoring technique based on lens-free shadow imaging may be widely utilized as a compact, low-cost, and high-throughput cell monitoring tool in the fields of drug and food screening or cell proliferation and viability testing.

MKP1 regulates the induction of MCP1 by Streptococcus pneumoniae pneumolysin in human epithelial cells.

Epithelial cells act as the first line of host defense against microbes by producing a range of different molecules for clearance. Chemokines facilitate the clearance of invaders through the recruitment of leukocytes. Thus, upregulation of chemokine expression represents an important innate host defense response against invading microbes such as Streptococcus pneumoniae. In this study, we report that the expression of Monocyte Chemotactic Protein 1 (MCP1) was highly induced in response to S. pneumoniae in vitro and in vivo. Among numerous virulence factors, pneumococcal pneumolysin was found to be the major factor responsible for this induction. Furthermore, MCP1 induction was mediated by the p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) whose activation was controlled by MAPK phosphatase 1 (MKP1). Therefore, this study reveals novel roles of pneumolysin in mediating MKP1 expression for the regulation of MCP1 expression in human epithelial cells.

Role of pneumococcal pneumolysin in the induction of an inflammatory response in human epithelial cells.

Epithelial cells act as the first line of host defense against microorganisms by producing a range of molecules for clearance. Proinflammatory cytokines facilitate the clearance of invaders by the recruitment and activation of leukocytes. Upregulation of cytokine expression thus represents an important host innate defense response against invading microorganisms such as Streptococcus pneumoniae. Histological analysis of the airway revealed less leukocyte infiltration during the early stage of pneumococcal infection, when compared with nontypable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi) infection. Here, we report that S. pneumoniae is less potent in inducing proinflammatory cytokine expression compared with NTHi. Among numerous virulence factors, pneumococcal pneumolysin was found to be the major factor responsible for the induction of inflammation. Interestingly, pneumolysin induces cytokine expression to a lesser extent at the early stage of infection, but becomes more potent in inducing inflammation at the late stage. Thus, this study reveals that pneumolysin induces the proinflammatory cytokine expression in a time-dependent manner.

MKP1 regulates the induction of inflammatory response by pneumococcal pneumolysin in human epithelial cells.

The expression of proinflammatory cytokines represents an important host innate response during infections. The reduction of cytokine expression thus mediates impaired host defenses. We previously reported that pneumococcal pneumolysin is less potent in inducing inflammatory responses in human epithelial cells at the early stage of treatment. How this might occur in response to pneumolysin is still not clearly understood. Here, we show the expression of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) was reduced by MAPK phosphatase 1 (MKP1), expression of which was significantly increased in response to pneumolysin at the early stage of treatment. TNF-α expression was mediated in a time-dependent manner by p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase, activation of which is under the control of MKP1. Thus, this study reveals novel roles of pneumolysin in mediating MKP1 expression for the regulation of proinflammatory cytokine expression in a time-dependent manner.