'Let's work together to pass medical school': a qualitative study of medical student attitudes to teamwork, competition and collaboration.

Teamwork is vital to all types of work, and graduates of higher education programmes must be prepared to contribute to a wide variety of professional teams. This is especially true in healthcare, where graduates will work in multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) under considerable pressure. This study is a follow-up to a previous study, where we described how competition between students is a barrier to constructive teamwork.

Beyond the Bite: Exploring Mental Health of Dental Faculty in Pakistan- a multi-institutional study.

Introduction: Mental health issues are being reported increasingly amongst healthcare staff and students globally. The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency of common mental health issues amongst dental faculty members at multiple institutions in Pakistan.

Methods: Following approval from the institutional ethics review board, dental faculty members at 14 dental institutions were invited to participate in an online survey based on globally validated scales for mental health problems including the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21).

Readiness for clinical practice: Self-perceived confidence of final year dental students in Turkey - A multi-institutional study.

Introduction: The primary aim of undergraduate dental education is to prepare dental students for independent dental practice and to enable them to provide safe and effective dental care. This study aimed to investigate the self-perceived preparedness of senior dental undergraduate students in Turkey.

Methods: Purposive sampling was used to recruit final-year dental students from 10 dental institutions offering undergraduate dental programs in Turkey.

Optimizing group work strategies in virtual dissection.

Due to its haptic and interactive nature, virtual anatomy provides an opportunity for small-group learning, enabling students to develop their group work skills before they graduate. However, there is currently little practical guidance supported by pedagogic principles detailing how to incorporate it into curricula. Anatomy educators at the University of Plymouth conducted action research aiming to capture students' overall perceptions of the virtual anatomy platform Anatomage.

A micro-computed tomographic evaluation of maxillary first molar root canal morphology in Black South Africans.

Purpose: This study was conducted to investigate the root canal anatomy of maxillary first molars in Black South Africans.

Methods: Micro-computed tomography was used to investigate 101 maxillary first molars (53 teeth from the right, 48 from the left; 50 male and 51 female teeth). The number of root canals in each tooth was determined, and the relationship between side, sex and age was analyzed using chi-squared test.

Mutual recognition of qualifications, health workforce migration, and graduate outcomes: a comparative mapping study of undergraduate dental education in Europe.

Background: The resource needs of health services are served by the recognition of qualifications across borders which allows professionals to migrate between countries. The movement of dentists across the European Union (EU), especially into the United Kingdom (UK), has provided a valuable boost to workforce supply. Recent changes to policy recognising overseas qualifications have brought attention to the equivalence of qualifications awarded in EU countries.

Quantitative Analysis of Challenges Encountered by UK Widening Participation Medical Students in Comparison With Their Non-Widening Participation Peers.

Objectives: Few studies have captured the experiences of widening participation (WP) medical students, and none have compared their experiences to their non-WP peers. This study aims to identify which challenges WP students are more likely to face.

Methods: A 22-item questionnaire was distributed to medical students across all UK medical schools.

Fostering engagement in virtual anatomy learning for healthcare students.

Background: The use of virtual learning platforms is on the rise internationally, however, successful integration into existing curricula is a complex undertaking fraught with unintended consequences. Looking beyond medical and pedagogic literature can provide insight into factors affecting the user experience. The technology acceptance model, widely used in software evaluation, can be used to identify barriers and enablers of engagement with virtual learning platforms.

Ten tips for effective use and quality assurance of multiple-choice questions in knowledge-based assessments.

Multiple-choice questions (MCQs) are the most popular type of items used in knowledge-based assessments in undergraduate and postgraduate healthcare education. MCQs allow assessment of candidates' knowledge on a broad range of knowledge-based learning outcomes in a single assessment. Single-best-answer (SBA) MCQs are the most versatile and commonly used format.

Enhancing learning experiences in pre-clinical restorative dentistry: the impact of virtual reality haptic simulators.

Background: Utilization of Virtual Reality haptic simulation (VRHS) to aid in the training of various pre-clinical skills is of recent interest. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of VRHS in restorative dentistry on the learning experiences and perceptions of dental students.

Methods: An interventional study design was utilized to recruit third year students.

A narrative review of adaptive testing and its application to medical education.

Adaptive testing has a long but largely unrecognized history. The advent of computer-based testing has created new opportunities to incorporate adaptive testing into conventional programmes of study. Relatively recently software has been developed that can automate the delivery of summative assessments that adapt by difficulty or content.

Perceived confidence of dental students and new graduates in performing tooth extractions-An exploratory study.

Introduction: The ability to perform uncomplicated tooth extractions is a core clinical skill in undergraduate dental education. The aim of this study was to evaluate pre-extraction assessment skills of dental students and interns and explore their self-perceived confidence in performing these tooth extractions.

Materials And Methods: A cross-sectional survey investigated the self-perceived confidence to perform the extraction for a set of eight expert-rated cases.

Exploring basic science knowledge retention within a cohort of undergraduate medical students in the United Kingdom: A longitudinal study.

Background: Clinical reasoning is reliant on students having acquired a strong foundation in the basic sciences. However, there remains uncertainty regarding whether medical students are maintaining this knowledge over the span of their degrees. Therefore, this project aimed to assess long-term retention of basic science knowledge within a cohort of students from an undergraduate medical school in the United Kingdom (UK).

Exploring the recent developments of alginate silk fibroin material for hydrogel wound dressing: A review.

Hydrogels, a type of polymeric material capable of retaining water within a three-dimensional network, have demonstrated their potential in wound healing, surpassing traditional wound dressings. These hydrogels possess remarkable mechanical, chemical, and biological properties, making them suitable scaffolds for tissue regeneration. This article aims to emphasize the advantages of alginate, silk fibroin, and hydrogel-based wound dressings, specifically highlighting their crucial functions that accelerate the healing process of skin wounds.

Recent Updates on Peptide Molecules in Drug and Vaccine Development.

Peptides are of great importance in the areas of science because they can act as drug carriers and their therapeutic effect and their ability to generate an immune response. As culturing of viral agents for drugs and vaccine development is harmful, therefore, peptide-based drugs and vaccines have achieved great importance. Large immunoglobulins cannot pass the plasma membrane, so peptides are used to study this interaction because of their small size.

Evaluation treatment planning system for oropharyngeal cancer patient using machine learning.

Unlabelled: Oropharyngeal cancer (OPC) comprises a group of various malignant tumours that grow in the throat, larynx, mouth, sinuses, and nose. THE RESEARCH AIMS: to investigate the performance of the OPC VMAT model by comparison to clinical plans in terms of dosimetric parameters and normal tissue complication probabilities.

Purpose: Tune the model which at least matches the performance of clinical created photon treatment plans and analyse and find the most appropriate strategic plan scheme for OPC.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Mediterranean region over 18 months: bridging the health outcomes and sustainable development goals.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic spread across the globe, including across the Mediterranean basin. This region presents diversity in economy, culture, and societal affairs. We attempted to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on the population and on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), our aim being to aid in the development of COVID-19 national plans.

Blended learning in undergraduate dental education: a global pilot study.

Aims: To explore the global trends in blended learning in undergraduate dental education during the COVID pandemic and during the recovery phase by engaging with the students and faculty and evaluate the implications for dental education in the post-COVID era.

Methods: It was a pilot cross-sectional study which employed a convenience sampling technique to recruit representatives of dental faculty and undergraduate students in 80 dental institutions globally. A previously validated questionnaire consisting of a combination of closed and open-ended items was used for data collection.

How Well Prepared Are Dental Students and New Graduates in Pakistan-A Cross-Sectional National Study.

The transition of an undergraduate dental student to an actual practicing dentist is a crucial phase and ensuring the preparedness of graduates for the complexity and demands of contemporary dental practice is a challenging task. This study aimed to evaluate the self-perceived preparedness of undergraduate dental students and house officers in the dental colleges of Pakistan. A cross-sectional national study was planned to collect information from dental students and new graduates in Pakistan.

Increased core body temperature exacerbates defective protein prenylation in mouse models of mevalonate kinase deficiency.

Mevalonate kinase deficiency (MKD) is characterized by recurrent fevers and flares of systemic inflammation, caused by biallelic loss-of-function mutations in MVK. The underlying disease mechanisms and triggers of inflammatory flares are poorly understood because of the lack of in vivo models. We describe genetically modified mice bearing the hypomorphic mutation p.

Progress and challenges in the harmonisation of European undergraduate dental education: A systematic literature review with narrative synthesis.

Introduction: Harmonising education to support workforce mobility has been a policy objective for the European Union. However, alignment across varied national contexts presents challenges in dental education.

Methods: A systematic literature review with narrative synthesis.

Decolonisation of curricula in undergraduate dental education: an exploratory study.

Aims To explore experiences and perceptions of students and staff regarding decolonisation of the curriculum in a dental undergraduate programme.Methods Participants were invited to respond to an online survey on decolonisation of the dental curriculum. The target population included current students on the Bachelor of Dental Surgery and Bachelor of Dental Therapy and Hygiene programmes, as well as dental staff at a university in the South West region of England.

The retroelement Lx9 puts a brake on the immune response to virus infection.

The notion that mobile units of nucleic acid known as transposable elements can operate as genomic controlling elements was put forward over six decades ago. However, it was not until the advancement of genomic sequencing technologies that the abundance and repertoire of transposable elements were revealed, and they are now known to constitute up to two-thirds of mammalian genomes. The presence of DNA regulatory regions including promoters, enhancers and transcription-factor-binding sites within transposable elements has led to the hypothesis that transposable elements have been co-opted to regulate mammalian gene expression and cell phenotype.