Inquiry based collaborative learning is a vital asset of modern physiology curriculum. Application of this approach is severely impacted by Covid-19 pandemic when face-to-face physiology laboratories must be modified to comply with needs of social distancing. Introduction of a new technology may mitigate some impact, but it is associated with adding to the complexity of educational activities and may interfere with the proper social dynamic of the classroom. WVNCC team designed a new learning environment, employed, and assessed use of a new technology in our biology laboratory in Weirton Campus.  Originally, during a typical physiology lab, each student operated IWorx physiology stations using a personal computer. The progress of the work was not easily shared with the other students or instructor in the classroom, especially when social distancing was maintained. A new educational environment allowed for an on-demand connection to a large screen monitor for all classroom computers and was achieved using a wireless Polycom Pano content sharing and wireless presentation system (Polycom, San Jose, CA). In a survey, students indicated that the provided equipment is seamlessly incorporated into the lesson and encourages active engagement. Eighty percent agreed that the new technology makes it easier to ensure that social distancing is maintained during collaborative learning. The innovative learning layout presented here allows for prompt guidance, effective collaboration between students, appropriate assessment of student performance. Our design idea and technical solution can be modified for various laboratories and be used during and after Covid-19 pandemic.

A large proportion of the United States population has been exposed to maternal smoking in utero. Mounting data suggests that nicotine can have a negative impact on neural system development. The goal of this study was to evaluate effects of nicotine exposure on chicken neural system. The early chick embryo is an established model of the first month of embryonic development in mammals. Nicotine (nicotine hydrogen bitartrate) or vehicle (sodium bitartrate monohydrate) solutions were injected in eggs prior to incubation (300ng/ml). Three cohorts of 24 eggs distributed between treatment groups were generated. After injections, eggs were sealed and placed in the incubator. Embryos were harvested on day 5 after injections, evaluated and measured, embedded in paraplast, sectioned, and stained with hematoxylin and eosin for histological analysis. Our data indicates that the nicotine treatment does not affect viability, weight, or length of the embryos. Nonetheless, nicotine notably affects the axial rotation of the embryos (defined as a change in the dorsoventral orientation of the head during development). In this study, altered axial rotation was observed in nicotine treated groups 4 times more often than in controls (p<0.05). Microscopic analysis demonstrated that atypical axial rotation was associated with incomplete closing of the embryonic neural tube in the cervical region, but not in other areas of the tube. Further research is needed to evaluate the exact mechanisms of the developmental insult onto neural system development observed in the present study.

A decline in the heart muscle strength is a well-recognized aspect of normal aging. Nonetheless, the resting heart rate (HR) in developing adults appears to be unchanged. The aim of this study was to determine if HR recovery after exercise is influenced by age. Healthy male and female volunteers, aged 12-61 years, were divided into two groups. The first group included participants younger than 30 (18.8 +/- 4.15), and the second group included individuals that were older than 30 (50.0 +/- 8.56 years).  After resting HR in sitting position was recorded, the participants were asked to perform a basic step platform exercise for 3 minutes at a consistent pace of 14 lifts per minute. The HR was measured again right after the completion of the exercise and one more time 10 minutes post exercise. Resting HR recorded in the study was 77.7+/-10.22 beats/min. We observed 41% increase in HR immediately after the completion of the exercise (p=0.001). Only partial recovery was detected after 10 min of rest as HR remained 13% elevated compared to the resting baseline (p=0.005). Remarkably, there was no significant difference between two age groups in the resting HR, maximal HR, or HR change during recovery period (p>0.05). Our data suggest that the age alone does not define HR parameters measured here. Other contributors, like BMI and physical fitness are discussed. The findings of this study may be used for development of community-based strategies for improvement in health and life quality for increasingly aging population.

The body position is influencing multiple physiological functions, including blood pressure, lung capacity, and mood. A previous study indicated significant difference in the HR measures in sitting, prone, and supine position if the breathing pace is normalized to the same frequency (Watanabe at al. 2007). The aim of the study was to determine if heart rate is different in sitting, prone, and supine positions under more common circumstances, when the breathing pattern is not unnaturally adjusted. Heart rates were measured for 1 min in 12 male and female healthy volunteers (average age of those was 35.8+/-17.58) after they were instructed to remain in a seated position for 10 min, and then after 5 minutes in prone and supine positions. Participants kept the same posture during HR measures. Average HR in the sitting position recorded in the study was 77.7+/-10.22 beats/min; HR in prone position was 78.5+/-8.32 beats/min; and HR in supine position was 74.8+/-5.61 beats/min. There were no statistically significant differences between group means as determined by one-way ANOVA (F (2,30) = 0.89, p = .42).  Our data indicate that the sitting, prone, and supine position have similar effect on HR if breathing pattern is not adjusted. As prone, supine, or sitting positions are commonly accepted by patients undergoing manual therapy, our data may have an important implication for efficient management of such patients. The finding of this study also can be used for development of better treatment strategies of the individuals that are exhibiting various degree of circulatory compromise.

The personality of individuals defines their behavioral choices, but how exactly the personality traits are expressed remains uncertain, limiting our ability to create a computable model of a personality and predict behaviors. Here, we proposed a new functional personality model that is based on modern neuroscience advances and defined by four parameters: 1) The hedonic values assigned to different “pleasant” aspects of behavioral outcomes (homeostatic balances, improved social status, et cetera); 2) The aversive values of ”unpleasant” aspects (loss of sexual opportunity, potential of injury, loss of monetary reward, et cetera); 3) Summation parameters: discounting and dissolution parameters for simultaneously processed hedonic/aversive events; and 4) Threshold: the relationship between magnitude of predicted outcome and manifestation of behaviors. We expressed the idea through a mathematical formula, applied it, and at 0.90 power demonstrated that our model has an ability to estimate actual responses (Spearman's Rank-Order correlation = 0.5). Although more research and tuning are needed, we believe that our functional model may eventually allow accurate prediction of human behavior.