Designing an entrepreneurship and production curriculum model for high school students

Today, countries around the world attach special importance to "entrepreneurship" as a vital factor of stability and economic growth. Entrepreneurship is one of the main factors in creating economic value and an effective tool to reduce unemployment. Entrepreneurship education and training in developed countries is a significant part of the education programs of schools, universities, organizations and institutions. The task of secondary education is to prepare young people to choose the paths of life and to shape these paths in order to accept responsibilities in the future. Therefore, the present study has tried to collect information from various documents and sources based on the evaluation of the current curriculum from the perspective of relevant groups (specialists, teachers and students) to design the optimal model Entrepreneurship and Production curriculum (EPC) based on the main elements of the curriculum (objectives, content, learning activities and evaluation). In addition, in order to validate the designed model, it was provided to the curriculum specialists and educational staff, and finally, it presented the designed model along with suggestions and solutions. This research is applied from the perspective of purpose and is of evaluation type and the method of conducting it is field research. The statistical population of the study includes curriculum specialists in the field of entrepreneurship, all teachers working to teach entrepreneurship and production and all students studying in the second year of high school in Ahvaz city in the academic year 2020-2021. Sampling of specialists by purposive sampling method by selecting 14 people as a sample and in the group of teachers by simple random method and by selecting 89 teachers and in the group of students using Cochran's formula by stratified random sampling method, and it was done by selecting 300 people. Data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire that was redesigned using semi-structured interviews and descriptive statistics, and inferential statistics (Chi-square) were used to analyze the data. Statistically, there is a difference between the opinions of the study groups in the element of objectives, content, learning activities and evaluation of the current EPC of the second secondary school. Therefore, based on the results of evaluation and semi-structured interviews with experts and teachers, the proposed model has been designed.Hoy en día, países de todo el mundo prestan especial atención al "espíritu empresarial" como factor vital de estabilidad y crecimiento económico. Por tanto, el presente estudio tiene como objetivo evaluar el currículo actual desde la perspectiva de grupos relevantes (especialistas, docentes y estudiantes) para diseñar el modelo curricular óptimo de Emprendimiento y Producción (EPC) basado en los principales elementos del currículo (objetivos, contenidos, aprendizaje). actividades y evaluación). Además, para validar el modelo diseñado, se entregó a los especialistas curriculares y al personal docente. La población estadística del estudio incluye especialistas en currículo, maestros que enseñan espíritu empresarial y todos los estudiantes que cursan el segundo año de la escuela secundaria en la ciudad de Ahvaz en el año académico 2020-2021. El muestreo de especialistas (14 especialistas) se realizó mediante el método de muestreo intencional, los profesores (89 profesores) mediante el método aleatorio simple y los estudiantes (300 estudiantes) mediante la fórmula de Cochran y el método de muestreo aleatorio estratificado. La herramienta de recolección de datos fue un cuestionario elaborado por investigadores que fue rediseñado mediante entrevistas semiestructuradas y estadística descriptiva, y se utilizó estadística inferencial (Chi-cuadrado) para analizar los datos. Los resultados mostraron que hubo una diferencia entre los grupos de estudio en los elementos principales. Por tanto, a partir de los resultados de la evaluación y entrevistas semiestructuradas con expertos y profesores, se diseñó el modelo propuesto. Según esto, las categorías más básicas son las metas, que pueden facilitar otras acciones y pasos del plan de estudios

A fuzzy logic-based video subtitle and caption coloring system

An approach has been proposed for automatic adaptive subtitle coloring using fuzzy logic-based algorithm. This system changes the color of the video subtitle/caption to "pleasant" color according to color harmony and the visual perception of the image background colors. In the fuzzy analyzer unit, using RGB histograms of background image, the R, G, and B values for the color of the subtitle/caption are computed using fixed fuzzy IF-THEN rules fully driven from the color harmony theories to satisfy complementary color and subtitle-background color harmony conditions. A real-time hardware structure has been proposed for implementation of the front-end processing unit as well as the fuzzy analyzer unit

Extracellular matrix hydrogels from decellularized tissues: structure and function

Extracellular matrix (ECM) bioscaffolds prepared from decellularized tissues have been used to facilitate constructive and functional tissue remodeling in a variety of clinical applications. The discovery that these ECM materials could be solubilized and subsequently manipulated to form hydrogels expanded their potential in vitro and in vivo utility; i.e. as culture substrates comparable to collagen or Matrigel, and as injectable materials that fill irregularly-shaped defects. The mechanisms by which ECM hydrogels direct cell behavior and influence remodeling outcomes are only partially understood, but likely include structural and biological signals retained from the native source tissue. The present review describes the utility, formation, and physical and biological characterization of ECM hydrogels. Two examples of clinical application are presented to demonstrate in vivo utility of ECM hydrogels in different organ systems. Finally, new research directions and clinical translation of ECM hydrogels are discusse

Bioactive Microsphere-Based Scaffolds Containing Decellularized Cartilage

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Sutherland, A. J. and Detamore, M. S. (2015), Bioactive Microsphere-Based Scaffolds Containing Decellularized Cartilage. Macromol. Biosci., 15: 979–989. doi:10.1002/mabi.201400472, which has been published in final form at http://doi.org/10.1002/mabi.201400472. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving.The aim of this study was to fabricate mechanically functional microsphere-based scaffolds containing decellularized cartilage (DCC), with the hypothesis that this approach would induce chondrogenesis of rat bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (rBMSCs) in vitro. The DCC was derived from porcine articular cartilage and decellularized using a combination of physical and chemical methods. Four types of scaffolds were fabricated: Poly(D,L-lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) only (negative control), TGF-β encapsulated (positive control), PLGA surface coated with DCC, and DCC-encapsulated. These scaffolds were seeded with rBMSCs and cultured up to 6 weeks. The compressive modulus of the DCC-coated scaffolds prior to cell seeding was significantly lower than all other scaffold types. Gene expression was comparable between DCC-encapsulated and TGF-β encapsulated groups. Notably, DCC-encapsulated scaffolds contained 70% higher glycosaminoglyan (GAG) content and 85% more hydroxyproline compared to the TGF-β group at week 3 (with baseline levels subtracted out from acellular DCC scaffolds). Certainly bioactivity was demonstrated in eliciting a biosynthetic response from the cells with DCC, although true demonstration of chondrogenesis remained elusive under the prescribed conditions. Encapsulation of DCC appeared to lead to improved cell performance relative to coating with DCC, although this finding may be a dose-dependent observation. Overall, DCC introduced via microsphere-based scaffolds appears to be promising as a bioactive approach to cartilage regeneration, although additional studies will be required to conclusively demonstrate chondroinductivity

Injectable Materials for the Treatment of Myocardial Infarction and Heart Failure: The Promise of Decellularized Matrices

Cardiovascular disease continues to be the leading cause of death, suggesting that new therapies are needed to treat the progression of heart failure post-myocardial infarction. As cardiac tissue has a limited ability to regenerate itself, experimental biomaterial therapies have focused on the replacement of necrotic cardiomyocytes and repair of the damaged extracellular matrix. While acellular and cellular cardiac patches are applied surgically to the epicardial surface of the heart, injectable materials offer the prospective advantage of minimally invasive delivery directly into the myocardium to either replace the damaged extracellular matrix or to act as a scaffold for cell delivery. Cardiac-specific decellularized matrices offer the further advantage of being biomimetic of the native biochemical and structural matrix composition, as well as the potential to be autologous therapies. This review will focus on the requirements of an ideal scaffold for catheter-based delivery as well as highlight the promise of decellularized matrices as injectable materials for cardiac repair

A biomaterials approach to influence stem cell fate in injectable cell-based therapies

Background Numerous stem cell therapies use injection-based administration to deliver high-density cell preparations. However, cell retention rates as low as 1% have been observed within days of transplantation. This study investigated the effects of varying administration and formulation parameters of injection-based administration on cell dose recovery and differentiation fate choice of human mesenchymal stem cells. Methods The impact of ejection rate via clinically relevant Hamilton micro-syringes and biomaterial-assisted delivery was investigated. Cell viability, the percentage of cell dose delivered as viable cells, proliferation capacity as well as differentiation behaviour in bipotential media were assessed. Characterisation of the biomaterial-based cell carriers was also carried out. Results A significant improvement of in-vitro dose recovery in cells co-ejected with natural biomaterials was observed, with ejections within 2% (w/v) gelatin resulting in 87.5 ± 14% of the cell dose being delivered as viable cells, compared to 32.2 ± 19% of the dose ejected in the commonly used saline vehicle at 10 μl/min. Improvement in cell recovery was not associated with the rheological properties of biomaterials utilised, as suggested by previous studies. The extent of osteogenic differentiation was shown to be substantially altered by choice of ejection rate and cell carrier, despite limited contact time with cells during ejection. Collagen type I and bone-derived extracellular matrix cell carriers yielded significant increases in mineralised matrix deposited at day 21 relative to PBS. Conclusions An enhanced understanding of how administration protocols and biomaterials influence cell recovery, differentiation capacity and choice of fate will facilitate the development of improved administration and formulation approaches to achieve higher efficacy in stem cell transplantation

Translational considerations in injectable cell-based therapeutics for neurological applications: concepts, progress and challenges

Significant progress has been made during the past decade towards the clinical adoption of cell-based therapeutics. However, existing cell-delivery approaches have shown limited success, with numerous studies showing fewer than 5% of injected cells persisting at the site of injection within days of transplantation. Although consideration is being increasingly given to clinical trial design, little emphasis has been given to tools and protocols used to administer cells. The different behaviours of various cell types, dosing accuracy, precise delivery, and cell retention and viability post-injection are some of the obstacles facing clinical translation. For efficient injectable cell transplantation, accurate characterisation of cellular health post-injection and the development of standardised administration protocols are required. This review provides an overview of the challenges facing effective delivery of cell therapies, examines key studies that have been carried out to investigate injectable cell delivery, and outlines opportunities for translating these findings into more effective cell-therapy interventions

Injectable extracellular matrix hydrogels for cardiac repair

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States and the rest of the western world. Interrupting the progression of negative remodeling after a myocardial infarction (MI) could mitigate the damage caused by a heart attack and preventing the onset of heart failure. Extracellular matrix (ECM) hydrogels have emerged as potential scaffolds for cardiac repair; however, all ECM hydrogels previously explored have been derived from xenogeneic sources, raising concerns regarding immunogenicity, disease transfer, and increased regulation by the FDA. In this dissertation work, a potentially autologous pericardial matrix hydrogel is developed, characterized, and tested. The presence of sulfated sugars in the material led to the hypothesis that heparin-binding growth factors could be sequestered for prolonged delivery and increased effect in vivo. The positive results of this work prompted the exploration of delivering a novel growth factor candidate with the pericardial matrix to evaluate the potential effect on cardiac function post-MI, demonstrating the potential value of this growth factor delivery system in vivo. Though concerns regarding using a xenogeniec material provided the basis for first investigating an autologous option, understanding the effect on the host response is important, prompting evaluation of the inflammatory response to rat myocardial matrix compared to porcine myocardial matrix. Using a non- decellularized myocardial matrix and saline as controls, we sought to understand the inflammatory response to allogeneic and xenogeneic materials in healthy animals. The only signs of chronic inflammation were seen in the non-decellularized positive controls; little difference was noted between the porcine and rat ECM hydrogels, supporting the conclusion that there may be no added value to allogeneic over xenogeneic materials. Exposure to myocardial matrix had no effect on clotting times or platelet activation in human blood and platelet-rich- plasma samples. Direct injection of the ECM hydrogel into the lumen of the left ventricle did not cause notable ischemia, edema, or hemorrhage in peripheral organs. This work establishes the safety and biocompatibility of the myocardial matrix and, taken with recent results from pre- clinical large animal studies, provides a foundation for moving forward with clinical trial

Evaluation of the "Renewable Energy Management Lesson" curriculum model from the point of view of teachers and related experts

Background and Aim: The present study was conducted with the aim of presenting a research-oriented curriculum model for the preschool period. Methods: The research method is exploratory (qualitative-quantitative) in terms of practical goals, and in terms of data, and in terms of nature, in the qualitative dimension, the foundation data is self-emerging, and in the quantitative dimension, it is a cross-sectional survey. The statistical population of the qualitative part includes university professors and experts in the field of educational sciences and psychology, and in the quantitative part, it consists of all managers and teachers of preschool centers in Tehran with a master's degree and above in the field of educational sciences, in the number of 300 people. The sampling method in the qualitative section was purposeful, snowball type, and 15 experts were selected, and we reached theoretical saturation. In the quantitative section, 169 people were selected based on Morgan's volume determination formula. In the current research, after the open and axial coding of the measurement tool, it was sent in the form of a set form and sent to the experts for selective coding and validated, and based on this, a researcher-made questionnaire was designed and distributed among the randomly selected statistical sample. Then, the collected data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Results: 3 dimensions, 26 components and 142 indicators were finalized for the preschool research-oriented curriculum model Conclusion: After the final confirmation and prioritization of the experts, the dimensions, components and indicators of the model were drawn, and the model was validated again by the experts