Park C, et al. J Korean Med Sci. 2016 Apr;31(4):590-597. https://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2016.31.4.590

Background: This study aims to determine the correlation between medical education systems, medical college (MC) and medical school (MS), and empathy by investigating the changes in empathy among students with each additional year of medical education. Methods: The subjects were MC and MS students who had participated in the same study the previous year. All participants completed the same self-report instruments: a questionnaire on sociodemographic characteristics, and the Korean edition of the Student Version of the Jefferson Scale of Empathy (JSE-S-K), Among 334 students, the final analysis was conducted on the data provided by 113 MC and 120 MS students, excluding 101 with incomplete data. Results: The age and sex did not affect the changes in empathy. Though the JSE-S-K score of MS was significantly higher than that of MC in initial investigation, this study found no difference of empathy between MC and MS. Conclusion: Empathy increased significantly after one year of medical education. The difference between two education systems, MC and MS, did not affect the changes in empathy.

Seung Yup Lee, Ah Rah Lee, Ram Hwangbo, Juhee Han, Minha Hong and Geon Ho Bahn. Exp Neurobiol 2015;24:312-24. https://doi.org/10.5607/en.2015.24.4.312

Hyperactivity related behaviors as well as inattention and impulsivity are regarded as the nuclear symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). To investigate the therapeutic effects of atomoxetine on the motor activity in relation to the expression of the dopamine (DA) D2 receptor based on the hypothesis that DA system hypofunction causes ADHD symptoms, which would correlate with extensive D2 receptor overproduction and a lack of DA synthesis in specific brain regions: prefrontal cortex (PFC), striatum, and hypothalamus. Young male spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), animal models of ADHD, were randomly divided into four groups according to the daily dosage of atomoxetine and treated for 21 consecutive days. The animals were assessed using an open-field test, and the DA D2 receptor expression was examined. The motor activity improved continuously in the group treated with atomoxetine at a dose of 1 mg/Kg/day than in the groups treated with atomoxetine at a dose of 0.25 mg/Kg/day or 0.5 mg/Kg/day. With respect to DA D₂ receptor immunohistochemistry, we observed significantly increased DA D₂ receptor expression in the PFC, striatum, and hypothalamus of the SHRs as compared to the WKY rats. Treatment with atomoxetine significantly decreased DA D₂ expression in the PFC, striatum, and hypothalamus of the SHRs, in a dose-dependent manner. Hyperactivity in young SHRs can be improved by treatment with atomoxetine via the DA D2 pathway.