Pharmacy students’ perceptions and attitudes towards experiential training in Jordan and United Kingdom

Purpose: To examine the quality of pharmaceutical experiential training by developing an experiential training survey. Methods: An online survey was placed on E-learning platforms in Jordan and UK to develop a validated instrument that can assess pharmacy students' perceptions of the experiential program implemented in their curricula. Results: A total of 377 students from Jordan (250 students) and the UK (127 students) completed the survey. Principal component analysis was used to conduct exploratory factor analysis and to assess the factor structure for the data. A two-factor model was applied to the data obtained from the students. These factors included students’ feelings toward experiential training (Perceiver Feelings; PF) and their ability to conduct a full Pharmaceutical Care Plan (PCP). Students from both Jordan and the UK showed a higher satisfaction PF score toward the experiential training program compared to PCP. Being female and not having prior practice experience led to significantly lower PCP scores compared to males and having a prior practice experience, respectively. Conclusion: The availability of a validated questionnaire will help in investigating the effectiveness of experiential training courses. Keywords: Experiential training; Factor Analysis; Survey development; Pharmac

Characterisation of niosome nanoparticles prepared by microfluidic mixing for drug delivery

Lipid nanoparticles have gained much attention due to their potential as drug delivery systems. They are safe, effective, and be targeted to particular tissues to deliver their payload. Niosomes are one type of lipid nanoparticles that comprise non-ionic surfactants which have proven to be effective due to their stability and biocompatibility. Different manufacturing processes have been reported for niosome preparation, but many of them are not scalable or reproducible for pharmaceutical use. In this study, microfluidic mixing was used to prepare niosomes with different lipid compositions by changing the type of non-ionic surfactant. Niosomes were evaluated for their physicochemical characteristics, morphology, encapsulation efficacy, release profiles of atenolol as a model hydrophilic compound, and cytotoxic activities. Microfluidic mixing allows for particle self-assembly and drug loading in a single step, without the need for post-preparation size reduction. Depending on the lipid composition, the empty particles wer

COVID-19 pandemic: an overview of epidemiology, pathogenesis, diagnostics and potential vaccines and therapeutics

At the time of writing this review, severe acute respiratory coronavirus syndrome-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has infected more than 2,355,853 patients and resulted in more than 164,656 deaths worldwide (as of 20 April 2020). This review highlights the preventive measures, available clinical therapies and the potential of vaccine development against SARS-CoV-2 by taking into consideration the strong genetic similarities of the 2003 epidemic SARS-CoV. Recent studies are investigating the repurposing of US FDA-approved drugs as there is no available vaccine yet with many attempts under clinical evaluation. Several antivirals, antimalarials and immunomodulators that have shown activity against SARS-CoV and Middle East coronavirus respiratory syndromes are being evaluated. In particular, hydroxychloroquine, remdesivir, favipiravir, arbidol, tocilizumab and bevacizumab have shown promising results. The main aim of this review is to provide an overview of this pandemic and where we currently stand. </jats:p

Anxiety and depression among pharmacy students before and during COVID-19 pandemic

Purpose: To evaluate factors associated with anxiety and depression among pharmacy students before and during COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: The Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) questionnaires were translated into Arabic and placed on the e-learning platforms of two Jordanian universities after conducting cognitive interviews. Validity and reliability of the two translated questionnaires were evaluated by conducting Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and calculating Cronbach’s alpha. T-tests and binary regression were conducted to evaluate factors associated with anxiety and depression among pharmacy students. Results: Several factors were associated with depression and anxiety including being an international student (p &lt; 0.05), living alone and away from their primary country of residence (p &lt; 0.05), female gender (p &lt; 0.01), and being a fifth-year student (p &lt; 0.01). Conclusion: A tool to evaluate anxiety and depression among pharmacy students in Jordan has been successfully validated. Also, the results show that pharmacy students suffered from high levels of anxiety and depression, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic

The Prevalence of &ldquo;at Risk&rdquo; Eating Disorders among Athletes in Jordan

Eating disorders (EDs) are addressed as one of the expanding mental health problems worldwide. While an ED is a clinical psychiatric diagnosis that can only be established after a psychiatric assessment, it is important to note that &ldquo;at-risk&rdquo; refers to people who will exhibit aberrant eating patterns but do not fully meet the requirements for an ED diagnosis. This study was designed to address the ED symptoms (i.e., &ldquo;at-risk&rdquo;) in Jordanian athletes and their association with age, sex, body mass index (BMI), and type of sport. A convenient, cross-sectional study was conducted among 249 athlete participants by answering the Eating Attitude Test (EAT-26). The EAT-26 results indicated an ED prevalence of 34% among Jordanian athletes. Within &ldquo;at-risk&rdquo; ED athletes, sex, age, and BMI had no significant differences in the rates of EDs. Outdoor sports had the least effect on EDs, while the highest was amongst gymnastics. EDs prevalence is alarming among Jordanian athletes. Gymnastics is a risk factor for increasing EDs. Our results should be taken into consideration by physicians, mental health professionals, sports nutritionists, coaches, and sport medicine specialists. We recommend establishing strategies pertaining to mental health, especially EDs in sports centers, along with screening programs for those who demand additional assessment and supervision

siRNA delivery to melanoma cells with cationic niosomes

RNA interference (RNAi) is a posttranscriptional regulatory mechanism that employs siRNA. It typically results in the degradation of a target mRNA that encodes a particular protein. Treatment with siRNA therapeutics requires the use of an effective drug delivery system to assist in delivering these therapeutics into the cytoplasm of the transfected cells. Here we describe the transfection of melanoma cancer cells with siRNA using cationic niosome nanoparticles as a delivery system. The method of niosome preparation is first introduced and is followed by complex formation with siRNA and the transfection method