Assessing student perception of the integration of portable wireless ultrasound imaging in undergraduate anatomy education.

Anatomy is the foundation of many physiology and healthcare-related degrees. With limited access to cadavers in many universities, it is essential to investigate techniques that could be utilized to support and enhance the teaching of anatomy. Ultrasound is used clinically to aid the diagnosis of a wide range of conditions by visualizing the anatomy of the patient. While research has investigated the advantages of ultrasound in medical education, the potential benefits of ultrasound in undergraduate bioscience degrees remain to be investigated. The aim of this study was to identify if a portable ultrasound probe that wirelessly attaches to a smartphone or tablet was perceived by students as beneficial for their understanding and learning of anatomy, and to identify if there were any barriers for students partaking in ultrasound sessions. Following five ultrasound-teaching sessions, 107 undergraduate students completed a 5-point likert questionnaire on their perception of the integration of portable ultrasound machines in anatomy education. The data indicated that 93% of students perceived that the ultrasound teaching sessions improved their anatomical understanding, 94% perceived that ultrasound increased their ability to understand the clinical relevance of learning anatomy, 97% enjoyed the sessions, and 95% of students believed that ultrasound should be integrated into anatomy teaching. In this study, we also found several barriers for students taking part in ultrasound sessions, including religious beliefs, and lacking adequate background knowledge. In conclusion, these findings demonstrate, for the first time, that students perceive portable ultrasound to enhance their anatomy studies, demonstrating the potential benefit the integration of ultrasound into the anatomy curriculum may serve within undergraduate bioscience courses.

In jars: The integration of historical anatomical and pathological potted specimens in undergraduate education.

INTRODUCTION: Across the UK, many anatomy departments possess historical potted wet cadaveric specimen collections, such as organs preserved in fluid-filled jars. Although considered obsolete by some for anatomical education, there is immense potential for their utilisation in teaching, particularly in institutes that have limited access to cadavers or have had body donation rates impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Another benefit of historical potted cadaveric specimens is that severe pathology, often not seen today, can be observed by the student. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The aim of this study was to understand students' opinions and attitudes towards the use of historical anatomical and pathological potted wet specimen collections in undergraduate science teaching. Following their integration into the anatomy program of a Clinical Sciences degree, seventy-seven undergraduate students completed a five-point Likert questionnaire on their perspective for the integration of the historical potted specimens in anatomical education. This study was approved by the Research Ethics committee at the University of Bradford RESULTS: The study demonstrated that 90 % of students found the collection useful in teaching, 92 % would like to see the collection used more in teaching, and 76 % of students found that the collection encouraged them to consider medical ethics and the donor. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, the survey findings suggest that further utilisation of historical potted wet specimen collections would be useful in the teaching of anatomy and that these collections could potentially encourage conversations on post-mortem bodily integrity, ethics, and organ donation.

Neuregulin signaling in neurons depends on ErbB4 interaction with PSD-95.

Neuregulin-1 signaling molecules have various roles in the nervous system, including effects on neuronal migration and differentiation. In mouse cerebellar granule neurons the effects of neuregulin-1 (type I) are mediated by a homo-dimeric ErbB4 receptor, which can interact with the PSD-95 protein through a C-terminal motif. To determine whether this interaction is critical for signaling we introduced into granule cells a decoy peptide representing the C-terminal 20 amino acids of the mouse ErbB4 receptor. Exposure of unloaded cells to neuregulin-1 did not alter neurite density but increased average neurite length by 50%. In contrast, granule cell cultures loaded with the decoy peptide were unresponsive to the ligand. We conclude that the association of ErbB4 with PSD-95 is important for neuregulin-induced neuronal differentiation.