ABSTRACT
Introduction: COVID-19 is an ongoing pandemic, which forced countries across the globe to adapt all daily activities to the new reality in order to stop the disease from spreading. The educational process was not an exception, it caused a sudden shift towards the exceptional introduction of online teaching and Kyiv Medical University was one of the first universities in Ukraine to assess the quality of education under the restrictive measures. Objectives: The aim was to analyze the advantages and disadvantages of online education during the COVID-19 pandemic in the learning of neurology at the Department of Neurology, Psychiatry and Physical Rehabilitation, Kyiv Medical University. Methods: 169 students were interviewed using an online questionnaire consisting of 18 items focused on different angles of educational process. Results: According to the obtained results, the biggest pros of online teaching included: flexibility of learning schedule, learning at your own pace; ability to develop deeper problem-solving and clinical thinking skills. Social distancing, family distractions, and internet connection issues negatively affected most students' feelings during online learning. One of the most prominent cons of online learning of neurology pointed out by the majority of medical students was a lack of practical component of training and contact with patients. Conclusions: Online teaching, along with a number of advantages, has significant disadvantages, especially in medical education in case of studying clinical disciplines.
ABSTRACT
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by a loss of α4ß2 and α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) in the brain and severe memory impairments. Previously, we found that antibodies elicited against extracellular domain of α7 nAChR subunit decreased the number of α7 nAChRs in the brains of mice and impaired episodic memory. Here we show that antibodies capable to bind α7(1-208) are present in the blood of both healthy humans and AD patients. In healthy individuals, their capacity to compete with [(125)-I]-α-bungarotoxin for the binding to α7(1-208) increased with age. The level of such antibodies was significantly elevated in children with severe form of obstructive bronchitis and in mice injected with Lewis lung carcinoma cells expressing both α4ß2 and α7 nAChRs. Elevated antibody levels were accompanied with decreased surface nAChRs on the blood lymphocytes of children and of mice immunized with α7(1-208). Among AD patients, the level of α7 nAChR-specific antibodies was significantly larger in people 62.5 ± 1.5 years old with moderate or severe AD stages (15.2 ± 1.3 MMSE scores) compared to those of 76 ± 1.5 years old with the mild (22.7 ± 0.1 MMSE scores) AD stage. We concluded that α7(1-208) nAChR-specific antibodies found in the human blood are formed as a result of common infections accompanied with the destruction of respiratory epithelium. Elevated blood plasma levels of α7(1-208) nAChR-specific antibodies are characteristic for the early-onset AD and, therefore, are suggested as one of the risk factors for the development of this form of the disease.