Comparison of Team-Based Learning and Lecturing Methods in Pharmacological Biotechnology for Pharmacology Students

Background: Active learning methods are strategies used by most universities worldwide to enhance the problem-solving ability and develop critical thinking in students. Team-based learning (TBL) is one of these methods, in which students study the lesson prior to discussion. At the beginning of the session, the individual readiness assurance test (iRAT) is given to students, and then they answer the same questions through discussion in a team. Finally, problems are resolved by the teacher and results are given to students. Methods: In the current study, 30 pharmacology students were randomly assigned to two groups of 16 and 14 subjects. The educational content of pharmaceutical biotechnology was given to the 16- and 14-subject groups using traditional lecturing and TBL methods, respectively. Finally, both groups were assessed and compared based on a same method. Results: The average scores of the lecturing and TBL groups were 6.77 ± 1.97 and 8.32 ± 2.65 out of 13.75, respectively (6.25 scores belonged to class activities, which were not included in comparisons). No significant difference was observed between the mean score of groups (P = 0.07), although the difference was very close to significant, which can be attributed to the current study’s small sample size. One subject in the TBL group and six in the lecturing group failed to pass the course; the difference between the groups in this regard was noticeable. Conclusions: Although results of the current study showed no significant superiority of TBL over the lecturing method, most students were satisfied with the TBL method. Hence, it is recommended to employ this method with freshmen. Keywords: Team-based Learning, Pharmacology, Readiness Assurance Test, Pharmaceutical Biotechnolog

A minireview on the in vitro and in vivo experiments with anti-Escherichia coli O157 : H7 phages as potential biocontrol and phage therapy agents

Phage therapy is an old method of combating bacterial pathogens that has recently been taken into consideration due to the alarming spread of antibiotic resistance. Escherichia coli 0157:H7 is a foodborne pathogen that causes hemorrhagic colitis and life-threatening Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS). There are several studies on isolation of specific phages against E. coli 0157:H7 and more than 60 specific phase have been published so far. Although in vitro experiments have been successful in elimination or reduction of E. coli 0157:H7numbers, in vivo experiments have not been as promising. This may be due to escape of bacteria to locations where phages have difficulties to enter or due to the adverse conditions in the gastrointestinal tract that affect phage viability and proliferation. To get around the latter obstacle, an alternative phage delivery method such as polymer microen-capsulation should be tried. While the present time results are not very encouraging the work should be continued as more efficient phage treatment regimens might be found in future. (C)2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Peer reviewe

Synthesis and In Vitro Cytotoxicity of Novel Halogenated Dihydropyrano[3,2-b]Chromene Derivatives

Lung and breast cancers are among the most common cancers. In the present work, initially, 6-bromo-; and 6-chloro-3-hydroxychromone compounds were prepared. In the next step, a series of 8-bromo-; and 8-chloro-dihyropyrano[3,2-b]chromene derivatives were synthesized by one-pot three component reaction of these two compounds, aromatic aldehydes, and ethyl cyanoacetate in the presence of triethylamine in EtOH at reflux conditions. The synthesized compounds were tested for their in vitro cytotoxic activity against A549 (lung cancer) and MCF-7 (breast cancer) cell lines. It was found that some compounds have high to moderate cytotoxicity, which makes them potential candidates for further studies. This study can be the basis for further studies to design and synthesis potent anticancer compounds and investigating their mechanism of action

Isolation, characterization and complete genome sequence of PhaxI: a phage of Escherichia coli O157 :H7

Bacteriophages are considered as promising biological agents for the control of infectious diseases. Sequencing of their genomes can ascertain the absence of antibiotic resistance, toxin or virulence genes. The anti-O157 :H7 coliphage, PhaxI, was isolated from a sewage sample in Iran. Morphological studies by transmission electron microscopy showed that it has an icosahedral capsid of 85–86 nm and a contractile tail of 115�15 nm. PhaxI contains dsDNA composed of 156 628 nt with a G+C content of 44.5 mol% that encodes 209 putative proteins. In MS analysis of phage particles, 92 structural proteins were identified. PhaxI lyses Escherichia coli O157 :H7 in Luria-Bertani medium and milk, has an eclipse period of 20 min and a latent period of 40 min, and has a burst size of about 420 particles per cell. PhaxI is a member of the genus ‘Viunalikevirus’ of the family Myoviridae and is specific for E. coli O157 : H7

Exploring the Possible Effect of Virtual Education and face-to-face education methods on the score of Kerman pharmacy students

Introduction: Pharmacy training is one of the important courses in pharmacy education, its practical parts are trained in educational pharmacies and some parts are taught theoretically. Due to some problems in teaching theoretical parts such as lack of students’ interests, virtual education is employed in this study to compare the possible effect of face-to-face and virtual education on Kerman pharmacy students’ marks in a pharmacy training course. Methods: This study was conducted on 191 pharmacy students in Kerman University of Medical Sciences in the academic years 2017 and 2018 using availability sampling. In the academic year 2017, students who were defined as control group (n=106), taught by lecture method in conventional classroom with practical sessions at pharmacy. In the academic year 2018, the students of experimental group (n=85) were taught through the virtual education using a Learning Management system (Navid) and then practiced at pharmacy like the control group. Independent t and chi-square tests were employed to analyze the gathered data. Results: The mean score of the experimental group in final exam (14.35±4.42) was significantly higher than of the control group (13.16±3.18) (t=2.097, p=0.038). Using Chi-square test, no statistically significant difference was found in term of male or female participants between the two groups (p=0.151, df=2, X2=3.78). Seventy-three students from the experiment group (85.9%) were tended to be educated by virtual education method in the pharmacy training course. Conclusion: Virtual education can be considered as a complementary method alongside with traditional-classroom-based teaching. Given the availability of a suitable platform through the Virtual Medical University and students’ satisfaction, blended- pharmacy training course is recommended

The Efficacy of Montelukast in Adjunct with Amoxicillin in Treatment of Acute Otitis Media (AOM) in Children

BackgroundAcute otitis media (AOM) is very common in children. In spite of spontaneously relief, some cases suffer from the recurrence and other complications occurring after AOM. Animal studies have proved that persistence of leukotrienes in the middle ear may play a role in the development of AOM. Based on this statement, treatment with leukotriene modifiers may be effective in the treatment of OM. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of adjunction of montelukast to antibacterial agents in treatment of AOM.Materials and MethodsOne hundred patients aged 2-6 years were randomly divided into two groups. One of the groups (53%) were treated with "amoxicillin alone", 80-90 mg/kg amoxicillin for 10 days, and the other group (47%), received "amoxicillin and montelukast" 5 mg per day orally for 10 days. Patients were evaluated for resolution and complications of AOM at 2 post enrollment visits (days 2-4 and 10-14).ResultsThe patient followed-up for one month and results showed that, treatment with montelukast had beneficial effects on resolution of AOM. In monotherapy (amoxicillin alone) group, 66% of patients and in the montelukast (amoxicillin and montelukast) group, 85.1% were treated.ConclusionIn this study, the montelukast receiving group showed a better response to treatment. Based on this and previous studies, it is recommended to consider the role of inflammatory mediators in AOM. Prescribing montelukast and other leukotriene receptor antagonists may have benefits for the patients

Antioxidant and Cytotoxic Effects of Aqueous Extract of Iranian Green Tea (Camellia sinensis L.): Antioxidant and Cytotoxicity of Camellia sinensis

Green tea, a common beverage, has several pharmacological effects. In this study, the amounts of phenolic compounds and epigallocatechin (EGC) were determined in an aqueous extract of green tea planted in Lahijan (a city in the north of Iran) by Folin-Ciocalteu method and HPLC, respectively. Antioxidant activity of the extract was measured by DPPH and the FRAP assays. Furthermore, its cytotoxic effect was investigated on HT-29 (colorectal cancer) and 3T3 (normal fibroblast) cell lines, after 24 and 48 h treatment by MTT method. Trypan blue dye exclusion measurement was also done on the HT-29 cells treated with the extract. The results have shown that each gram of the dried extract contains 283.6 ± 10.57 mg total phenolic content and 88.44 ± 1.85 mg EGC. The antioxidant activity of the extract measured by DPPH showed an EC50 value of 84.31 ± 4.14 μg/ml. In the FRAP test, the equivalent amount of Iron (Fe) was 4.45 mmol per g of the dried extract. The extract showed toxicity on the HT-29 cell line with an IC50 value of 82.45 ± 18.39 μg/ml after 48 h treatment. The data were confirmed by trypan blue dye exclusion test. Based on the results, adding green tea to the diet may have many health benefits