Impact of Innovation Variables on Quality of Pharmaceutical Products Packaging

Emergence of new demands in consumers due to changes in consumption habits and patterns and also increased awareness of health issues among consumers can pose the need to provide new and innovative packaging. Innovation in packaging, in addition to product introduction, has been the main factor to differentiate product from competitors\u27 offerings, and has played an important role in marketing, whilst is considered as the main selling factor. On the other hand, given the economic conditions today, quality is a crucial component in the packaging and appears to be a prerequisite for entering the labor market. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of innovation variables on packaging quality of pharmaceutical products. The study is a cross-sectional one, and the statistical population includes directors, managers and experts working in pharmaceutical companies in capital city of Tehran. The sample size of 150 was determined on the basis of Cochran\u27s formula. The data gathering tool was a researcher-made questionnaire analyzed using one-sample t-test. Moreover, the Friedman tests with the help of SPSS software were used to prioritize each of the variables. The results showed that the focus on customer needs, market orientation, learning capability of the organization, as well as technological capacities of the organization, managers\u27 and employees\u27 tendency to abandon the existing knowledge, concentration on core competencies of the organization, lack of investment on previous technologies and strategic relation of the organization with customers and suppliers have a positive impact on the quality of pharmaceutical products packaging. As it stands, focus on customer needs and concentration on core competencies of the organization are ranked as the most effective variables influencing the quality of packaging and the variable of learning capability of the organization is ranked as the least effective one

Covid-19 as an opportunity to teach epistemic insight: findings from exploratory workshops on Covid-19 and science with students aged 15–17 in England

The contributions of science and scientists to combatting Covid-19 have been at the forefront of media attention throughout 2020 and early 2021, exposing the public to the processes of science in an unprecedented manner. The pandemic has highlighted the necessity of scientists working collaboratively with other disciplines in informing thinking about a complex, evolving real-world problem. This draws attention to recent efforts, both in the UK and internationally, towards curriculum reform integrating epistemic insight (knowledge about knowledge, including about what disciplines are and how they interact), with significant implications for the teaching of science in schools. We present findings from two exploratory workshops with 15–17-year-old students in England on the role of science during the pandemic. We found that the workshops provided space for students to begin to develop epistemic insight regarding how science informs decision-making in dialogue with other disciplines. We make recommendations proposing pedagogical approaches using live, complex, real-world problems to address issues around understandings of the nature of science, misinformation, trust and participation in science

A framework for teaching epistemic insight in schools

This paper gives the rationale and a draft outline for a framework for education to teach epistemic insight into schools in England. The motivation to research and propose a strategy to teach and assess epistemic insight followed research that investigated how students and teachers in primary and secondary schools respond to big questions about the nature of reality and human personhood. The research revealed that there are pressures in schools that dampen students’ expressed curiosity in these types of questions and limit their developing epistemic insight into how science, religion and the wider humanities relate. These findings prompted the construction of a framework for education for students aged 5–16 designed to encourage students’ expressed interest in big questions and develop their understanding of the ways that science interacts with other ways of knowing. The centrepiece of the framework is a sequence of learning objectives for epistemic insight, organised into three categories. The categories are, firstly, the nature of science in real world contexts and multidisciplinary arenas; secondly, ways of knowing and how they interact; and thirdly, the relationships between science and religion. Our current version of the Framework is constructed to respond to the way that teaching is organised in England. The key principles and many of the activities could be adopted and tailored to work in many other countries

Primary school students’ perspectives on questions that bridge science and religion: Findings from a survey study in England

This article describes the development of a questionnaire to discover primary school students’ perceptions of science, religion and the relationships between them on a range of topics that are known as Big Questions. The questionnaire was administered in 16 primary schools in England with over 750 students aged 10–11. The findings indicate that students in this age group have begun to consider how science and religion relate and that while there is a diversity of positions, a significant proportion perceived science and religion to conflict. Analysis of responses also indicated that primary school students’ epistemic insight was limited in relation to their understanding of the nature of science and, in particular, the idea that science has limitations. The basis and potential consequences of such views are considered and recommendations for teaching practice are presented, together with ideas for future research. It is anticipated that the study will inform teachers and curriculum planners developing approaches and guidance materials in science and religious education

Designing and Construction of the Suicide Vector pDS132-ΔkanR to Delete Kanamycin Resistance Sequence in Mutant Strain of Brucella melitensis Rev1 Mutant Strain in order to Generate a Candidate Vaccine Strain

Background and Aim: Brucellosis is a common disease between humans and animals. Vaccination is the best approach to prevent brucellosis. Existing vaccines such as Rev1 are associated with disadvantages such as abortion in pregnant animals. Therefore, it is necessary to generate an appropriate vaccine that is produced by molecular methods. The aim of this study was designing and construction of pDS132-Δkanr suicide vector to delete kanamycin resistance sequence (kanR) in a mutant strain of Brucella melitensis rev1 to generate a candidate vaccine strain. Materials and Methods: In this study, the plasmid pDS132 was used as a suicide vector to delete target gene. In order to construct the deletion cassette, two homologous fragments were separately designed and constructed by PCR, and tandemly cloned into the pBluescriptSK(-) vector using appropriate restriction enzymes. Then, the deletion cassette was digested from the recombinant vector by terminal restriction enzymes, and sub cloned into the pDS132 vector to construct the suicide vector pDS132-ΔkanR.  Results: The pDS132-ΔkanR contains 590bp upstream sequences and 421bp downstream sequences on the deletion cassette fragment; it can be used as specific suicide vector to disrupt the kanR sequence in genome of mutant strain of Brucella melitensis Rev1. Conclusions: The use of suicide pDS132-ΔkanR system facilitated mutant construction which is a more specific and effective system in comparison with the other positive marker-dependent suicide systems and primary techniques such as serial passages