Project description:The concomitant use of various types of models (in silico, in vitro, and in vivo) has been exemplified here within the context of biomedical researches performed in the Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Institute (EMRI) of Tehran University of Medical Sciences. Two main research aeras have been discussed: the search for new small molecules as therapeutics for diabetes and related metabolic conditions, and diseases related to protein aggregation. Due to their multidisciplinary nature, the majority of these studies have needed the collaboration of different specialties. In both cases, a brief overview of the subject is provided through literature examples, and sequential use of these methods is described.
Project description:BackgroundAfter the emphasis of the World Health Organization (WHO) on herbal medicines as the primary source for the care and treatment of some diseases, scientific publications increased in this regard. A significant body of basic and clinical researches in the field of herbal medicines are conducted in Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Institute (EMRI). This scientometric study is investigated to assess the global scientific production of EMRI in field of herbal medicines and endocrine disorders.MethodsSome of our search terms were "herbal medicine", "Chinese medicine", "traditional medicine", "endocrine", "metabolism", and "emri" from Scopus, Web of Science (WOS), and PubMed databases until June 20, 2020. Extracted data including first author, journal name, publication year, type of paper and number of citations were analyzed using analysis tools provided by Scopus, WOS databases, and SPSS version 15.ResultsOverall, 126 studies affiliated to EMRI were published on this topic. The number of these publications showed a non-significant increasing time trend. Majority of the published papers were original articles (>60%) and the two top subject areas were medicine and drug. The documents were cited totally 2900, and 2377 times with an average citation/article 29.59, and 24.76 in Scopus and WOS, respectively. The h-index of documents were 28 and 25, in Scopus and WOS, respectively. The highest cited article was a systematic review study in field of diabetes, and top source was "Daru Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences". Top author was affiliated to EMRI, followed by an author from pharmaceutical reserachers as national co-authorship. The highest international co-authorship was with the US.ConclusionsA promising scientific productivity is shown in the studied field. However, the number of publications is insufficient, and more evidence-based publications are required on this topic.
Project description:BackgroundPatents are one of the most important forms of intellectual property. They grant a time-limited exclusivity on the use of an invention allowing the recuperation of research costs. The use of patents is fiercely debated for medical innovation and especially controversial for publicly funded research, where the patent holder is an institution accountable to public interest. Despite this controversy, for the situation in Germany almost no empirical information exists. The purpose of this study is to examine the amount, types and trends of patent applications for health products submitted by German public research organisations.Methods/principal findingsWe conducted a systematic search for patent documents using the publicly accessible database search interface of the German Patent and Trademark Office. We defined keywords and search criteria and developed search patterns for the database request. We retrieved documents with application date between 1988 and 2006 and processed the collected data stepwise to compile the most relevant documents in patent families for further analysis. We developed a rationale and present individual steps of a systematic method to request and process patent data from a publicly accessible database. We retrieved and processed 10194 patent documents. Out of these, we identified 1772 relevant patent families, applied for by 193 different universities and non-university public research organisations. 827 (47%) of these patent families contained granted patents. The number of patent applications submitted by universities and university-affiliated institutions more than tripled since the introduction of legal reforms in 2002, constituting almost half of all patent applications and accounting for most of the post-reform increase. Patenting of most non-university public research organisations remained stable.ConclusionsWe search, process and analyse patent applications from publicly accessible databases. Internationally mounting evidence questions the viability of policies to increase commercial exploitation of publicly funded research results. To evaluate the outcome of research policies a transparent evidence base for public debate is needed in Germany.
Project description:IntroductionResearch is an important aspect of medical training and plays a vital role in the advancement of evidence-based medicine. However, little is known about medical students' attitudes towards research. So, the aim of this study was to assess the opinion of medical students on scientific research.MethodsA cross-sectional study was designed that included students from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Granada (UGR), Granada, Spain. A survey was distributed to assess their interest about research during undergraduate studies (1) and following graduation (2), participation in research activities (3), barriers towards research (4), expectation values and self-perceived skills (5). The opinions of students who had not taken clinical subjects (2nd year students) and students who had taken clinical subjects (4th and 6th year students) were compared.Results91 students were included in the study (32 were 2nd year students and 59 were 4th and 6th year students). More 4th and 6th year students showed no interest in research (50.4% vs. 28.1%, p = 0.042) or in pursuing a doctoral thesis (75% vs. 50.9%, p = 0.079) than 2nd year students. In addition, more 4th and 6th year students felt that they did not have sufficient skills to engage in scientific research (52.4% vs. 18.9%, p = 0.002). Likewise a greater number of 4th and 6th year students considered that the professors did not encourage scientific research activities (74.6% vs. 40.6%, p = 0.002). Generally, students do not participate in scientific dissemination events. The main barriers to research identified were lack of funding and lack of awareness of opportunities.ConclusionInterest in research among medical students seems to decrease as the academic years progress. More research promotion could be implemented during the years of university studies.