Real Context Research Articles

Participatory science and course-based undergraduate research experience to improve research-informed teaching of evolution and palaeontology

AbstractThis study introduces a participatory science-inspired approach to teaching and curriculum design, involving undergraduate students directly in active research. Using a case study on dinosaur eye size, integrated into a first-year undergraduate course in Geology and Palaeontology at a UK university, this study presents the advantages and disadvantages of this approach for both teachers and learners. As part of the study, 22 undergraduate students were involved in data collection, analysis, and the subsequent publication processes, emphasizing active student participation in research. A subsequent survey demonstrated high student engagement and perceived relevance of this participatory science-style teaching approach. Results indicate that students found the approach appealing, engaging, and beneficial for understanding scientific concepts and methods. The case study shows that a participatory science approach through a course-based research experience can enhance student engagement and learning by providing meaningful, hands-on research experiences. This approach allowed students to apply theoretical knowledge in a realistic context, fostering their understanding of evolutionary theory through active data collection and analysis. However, care should be taken concerning data accuracy and ethical aspects, such as exploitation of labour and the recognition of knowledge creators and participants. Despite these challenges, the benefits of integrating such approaches into higher education curricula can be substantial, offering a valuable model for teaching evolutionary theory and related topics.

Approximate planning in spatial search

How people plan is an active area of research in cognitive science, neuroscience, and artificial intelligence. However, tasks traditionally used to study planning in the laboratory tend to be constrained to artificial environments, such as Chess and bandit problems. To date there is still no agreed-on model of how people plan in realistic contexts, such as navigation and search, where values intuitively derive from interactions between perception and cognition. To address this gap and move towards a more naturalistic study of planning, we present a novel spatial Maze Search Task (MST) where the costs and rewards are physically situated as distances and locations. We used this task in two behavioral experiments to evaluate and contrast multiple distinct computational models of planning, including optimal expected utility planning, several one-step heuristics inspired by studies of information search, and a family of planners that deviate from optimal planning, in which action values are estimated by the interactions between perception and cognition. We found that people’s deviations from optimal expected utility are best explained by planners with a limited horizon, however our results do not exclude the possibility that in human planning action values may be also affected by cognitive mechanisms of numerosity and probability perception. This result makes a novel theoretical contribution in showing that limited planning horizon generalizes to spatial planning, and demonstrates the value of our multi-model approach for understanding cognition.

Fifty years of teacher education in South Africa: towards systematic learning and social transformation

ABSTRACT The article tracks key moments in teacher education policy and curriculum in South Africa from the 1970s to the present day. Political and social features of education in each decade are outlined, from a racialised and fragmented system of teacher education, to the imagining of alternatives, and the imperative for educational transformation. The article pays special attention to the role of teacher education in a national agenda of social reconstruction within the goals of the 1996 Constitution of South Africa, to establish a post-apartheid society based on democratic values, social justice and fundamental human rights. Drawing on a conception of teaching as organising systematic learning, we track ways in which changes in teacher education policy have enabled or restricted opportunities for systematic learning for students in different social contexts, and towards advancing equity. We argue that insights from strong theoretical frameworks create conditions of possibility for student teachers to analyse and interrogate their observations and experiences within the existing schooling system. In so doing, they potentially become agents of transformation, as they imagine practical possibilities for improving teaching in and beyond their immediate school and contextual realities. At the same time, we note the limitation of too narrow a focus on systematised knowledge, without sufficient attention to the life histories and aspirations of student teachers themselves. We suggest that a crucial way forward is to consider how personal development, teacher knowledges and classroom experiences and interactions work symbiotically to support student teachers’ pedagogic learning, even against the enduring challenges of severe inequalities in South Africa. This requires attention to how knowledge informs teaching, how curricula can support the process of learning to teach, and how systematic learning can be nurtured in the pursuit of social transformation.

Achieving Inter-Rater Agreement and Inter-Rater Reliability to Assess Fidelity of an Occupation-Based Coaching (OBC) Clinical Trial Intervention

Introduction: Establishing inter-rater agreement and reliability ascertains that multiple raters consistently evaluate observed interventions to ensure that clinical research protocols are delivered as intended by the trial protocol. Purpose: Using the Guidelines for Reporting Reliability and Agreement Studies, we (a) exemplified the steps to establish inter-rater reliability and inter-rater agreement on the occupation-based coaching Video Evaluation Tool and (b) evaluated best practices that promoted high inter-rater reliability and inter-rater agreement between blinded raters prior to starting a pilot randomized controlled trial. The randomized controlled trial examined the preliminary effectiveness of occupation-based coaching via telehealth for rural families with children living with type 1 diabetes to improve family quality of life, participation, self-efficacy, and child health outcomes. Method: We created a library of 13 occupation-based coaching videos portraying a range of evaluations, scores, and ratings. The inter-rater agreement and reliability on the occupation-based coaching Video Evaluation Tool were established through the iterations of (a) blinded rater training, (b) data collection using the tool, and (c) statistical analysis using Cohen’s kappa and Cronbach’s alpha. Findings: Occurrence and Non-Occurrence Checklist (κ = 0.881, p < 0.001); “Caregiver Talk” and “Interventionist Talk Analysis” (ICC = 0.991–0.999, p < 0.001); Evidence of Independent Capacity Rating (ICC = 0.867 p = 0.006). Conclusion: Strong inter-rater reliability and inter-rater agreement was established by engaging two blinded raters through multifaceted training, integrating real-life clients and contexts into the instrumentation and training, and precisely defined rubric criteria. By employing such practices, high inter-rater reliability and agreement can be achieved in clinical research involving interventions and instruments that are highly subjective and individualized. To ascertain greater scientific confidence in the intervention effect, developing a multidomain fidelity framework and establishing high inter-rater agreement and reliability in the instruments a priori to implementation of clinical trials are necessary.

The influence of emotions on science teaching: a case study with three early childhood education teachers

Teaching science in early childhood education (ECE) is crucial for fostering essential scientific thinking skills, which are vital for young learners’ development and formative trajectories. While this educational level presents exciting opportunities for integrating science teaching, it also poses challenges related to teachers ́ cognitive, pedagogical, and emotional constraints. Recognizing the pivotal role of teachers’ emotions in shaping their practices, we aim to specifically examine the influence of teachers’ emotions on science teaching in ECE, an area that remains underresearched. We conducted a multiple case study involving three ECE teachers in La Plata, Argentina, who demonstrated a strong interest in improving their pedagogical practices despite acknowledging their difficulties and insecurities in teaching science. We explored their emotions and how they relate to science lesson planning and implementation through surveys, in-depth interviews, and observations. Data collection was designed in three stages: pre-active, interactive, and post-active teaching. First, we surveyed the range of negative and positive emotions that teachers experienced toward sciences, rooted in their personal and formative prior experiences, and examined how these emotions influenced their planning (pre-active stage). Subsequently, we investigated the emotions associated with science teaching in the interactive stage and recorded classroom observations to document how they implemented their plans. Finally, we conducted in-depth interviews with the teachers while they watched the recorded class videos, allowing them to reflect on their decision-making and implementation characteristics (post-active stage). Our findings reveal a dichotomy: negative emotions derived from past experiences reduce engagement, while positive emotions enhance motivation and enrich the learning environment. Negative emotions arising from the implementation of science activities in real classroom contexts may lead to canceled classes, whereas positive emotions foster persistence and optimism. We discuss the significance of emotional awareness in teaching practices, emphasizing the importance of understanding and managing negative emotions through teacher training and professional development programs. This approach can enhance teacher confidence and satisfaction, ultimately contributing to improved early childhood science education.

Analysing the evolution of argumentation quality among pre-service biology teachers amidst the COVID-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT The COVID-19 pandemic has become one of the most controversial issues in recent years. The pandemic’s impact on argumentation skills, crucial for science teachers, needs exploration to understand its effects on how they evaluate evidence and engage in discussions. This study investigated how biology pre-service teachers’ (PSTs) argumentation quality changed over the pandemic’s first two months of social distancing and quarantine. Using qualitative and quantitative methodologies, data were collected through semi-structured interviews, and Toulmin’s Argument Pattern (TAP) was employed to evaluate the arguments. Initially, nearly half of the participants demonstrated low-level arguments. However, during the second round of interviews, a decrease in Level 1 and 2 arguments and an increase in Level 3 arguments were observed. The observed improvements in argumentation quality, particularly in the use of counterclaims, warrants, and rebuttals, underscore the role of increased familiarity with the issue and exposure to diverse information sources. These findings suggest that real-life contexts, such as the pandemic, offer opportunities for PSTs to develop more sophisticated argumentation skills when exposed to multiple perspectives and ongoing engagement with the topic. Understanding these changes can inform teaching strategies and teacher training programmes, especially during global crises. Future research could examine argumentation quality related to issues such as vaccination and COVID-19 variants.

Lung cancer screening by low-dose CT scan in France: final results of the DEP KP80 study after three rounds

In prior randomised controlled trials, lung cancer screening using low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) has been shown to reduce lung cancer mortality and overall mortality. Despite these results, organised screening in France remains a challenge. This study assessed the feasibility and efficacy of lung cancer screening within a real-life context in a French administrative territory. DEP KP80 was a single-arm prospective study. Participants aged between 55 and 74 years, smokers or former smokers of ≥30 pack-years, were recruited. An annual LDCT scan was scheduled and three rounds were performed. Subjects were selected by general practitioners or pulmonologists, who checked the inclusion criteria and prescribed the CT scan. Between March 2016 and February 2020, 1254 participants were enrolled. Overall, 945 (75.4%) participants underwent baseline LDCT (T0), 376 (42.8%) completed the first round (T1) and 270 (31%) the second (T2) one. Forty-two lung cancers were diagnosed, 30 cancers (71.4%) were stage I or II and 34 cancers (80.9%) were treated surgically. In this study, the overall positive predictive value for a positive screening was 48% (95% CI 37-59) and the negative predictive value 100% (95% CI 100-100). This study demonstrated the feasibility and efficacy of lung cancer screening in a real-life context with most lung cancers diagnosed at an early stage and surgically removed. Our results also highlighted the importance of participation in each round, underlining the fact that optimising organisation is a major goal. Agence Régionale de Santé de Picardie, La Ligue contre le cancer, le Conseil Départemental de la Somme, and AstraZeneca.

A GRASP-based multi-objective approach for the tuna purse seine fishing fleet routing problem

Nowadays, the world’s fishing fleet uses 20% more fuel to catch the same amount of fish compared to 30 years ago. Addressing this negative environmental and economic performance is crucial due to stricter emission regulations, rising fuel costs, and predicted declines in fish biomass and body sizes due to climate change. Investment in more efficient engines, larger ships and better fuel has been the main response, but this is only feasible in the long term at high infrastructure cost. An alternative is to optimize operations such as the routing of a fleet, which is an extremely complex problem due to its dynamic (time-dependent) moving target characteristics. To date, no other scientific work has approached this problem in its full complexity, i.e., as a dynamic vehicle routing problem with multiple time windows and moving targets. In this paper, two bi-objective mixed linear integer programming (MIP) models are presented, one for the static variant and another for the time-dependent variant. The bi-objective approaches allow to trade off the economic (e.g., probability of high catches) and environmental (e.g., fuel consumption) objectives. To overcome the limitations of exact solutions of the MIP models, a greedy randomized adaptive search procedure for the multi-objective problem (MO-GRASP) is proposed. The computational experiments demonstrate the good performance of the MO-GRASP algorithm with clearly different results when the importance of each objective is varied. In addition, computational experiments conducted on historical data prove the feasibility of applying the MO-GRASP algorithm in a real context and explore the benefits of joint planning (collaborative approach) compared to a non-collaborative strategy. Collaborative approaches enable the definition of better routes that may select slightly worse fishing and planting areas (2.9%), but in exchange for a significant reduction in fuel consumption (17.3%) and time at sea (10.1%) compared to non-collaborative strategies. The final experiment examines the importance of the collaborative approach when the number of available drifting fishing aggregation devices (dFADs) per vessel is reduced.

Create the future of food with children: Qualitative insights into children’s perception of plant-based meat, fish, and dairy alternatives

Children’s food preferences are a major influence on what is served for dinner in the household. However, little is known about children’s perceptions of plant-based foods. This study aimed to better understand how 9-to-11-year-old children perceive plant-based meat and dairy alternatives. Different types of plant-based alternatives were investigated: meat and fish substitutes (legumes, nuts), replacements (tofu, tempeh), and analogues, as well as dairy substitutes. These alternatives were placed in a meal context, considering the influence of dish composition. The study combined design probes, interviews, and cooking sessions as different qualitative methods to explore children’s perceptions. First, design probe packages with creative assignments were given to the children. Afterwards, one-to-one interviews were conducted to elaborate on the input gained from the assignments. Lastly, children created in small groups a pizza with plant-based alternatives. Results showed that taste was the topic mentioned most in both positive and negative ways. Initially, children generally had positive taste expectations for the analogues, while their taste expectations for substitutes and replacements were more negative. However, during the cooking session, there was no considerable difference in their actual taste perceptions of analogues, substitutes, and replacements. This highlights the importance of studying perceptions of plant-based alternatives in a real-life meal context, where substitutes and replacements can, next to analogues, also be an integral part of a meal. Although previous research shows that animal welfare is an important driver for children to choose plant-based alternatives, this study showed that animal welfare is linked to plant-based meat analogues only. Therefore, actively linking animal welfare to substitutes and replacements may help to guide children and their households towards a plant-forward diet with more plant-based ingredients such as vegetables, legumes, and grains.

A preliminary investigation on hydrogel disks imbibed with enriched transfersomes as promising tool to promote the cutaneous deposition of vaccine antigens

The skin is an appealing and easily accessible route of administration for fast mass vaccination. However, it relies mainly on injection, meaning no immunization is achieved locally. In addition, pain, fear, and injuries strongly affect and reduce the effectiveness and adherence of patients to vaccination plans. Non-invasive routes of administration offer a safe and reliable solution. On these bases, three series of phospholipid vesicles were eco-friendly developed and adequately modified to pursue cutaneous immunization. Ovalbumin was selected as the model antigen, whereas transfersomes were chosen over liposomes because of their higher capability to cross the skin. Glycerol, sodium hyaluronate, or their combination were added to further improve their penetration, and this led to small (< 60 nm), homogenous vesicles (polydispersity index < 0.2), stable for up to 9 months. The colloidal formulations, alone or combined with occlusive strategies (achieved by cling film or hydrogel disks), were tested on tape-stripped skin to facilitate their application in a potential real-life context. While the enriched transfersomes alone provided better ovalbumin accumulation into the skin, the combination with cling film and especially with the hydrogel disks boosted their performance even further (using the hydrogel disks, in the epidermis, the ovalbumin accumulated ranged from ∼30 to ∼40 μg/cm2 and in the dermis from ∼4 to ∼10 μg/cm2). Despite the antigen-presenting assay do not show any immunogenicity for these vesicles (p > 0.05 with respect to the ovalbumin solution tested at the same dose), they are expected to perform better than the ovalbumin solution due to the protection and the enhanced skin deposition they provide. In addition, all the formulations can be safely administered as they are highly biocompatible in a wide range of doses (> 100% from 0.05 to 50 μg/mL of ovalbumin) and do not exert any inflammatory response. However, further studies are needed to confirm these promising preliminary results.

A Multicriteria Customer Classification Method in Supply Chain Management

Since Kraljic’s strategic matrix was applied to supply chain management, classification of items, suppliers, and customers has become of increasing interest to research and companies. The aim of this research is to develop an easily interpretable multicriteria classification matrix method and validate it in real-world scenarios with a robustness analysis. This method assigns alternatives to one of four classes defined by critical dimensions that integrate several evaluation criteria. Initially, a global search pre-classifies the alternatives using the PROMETHEE net flows. Then, two local searches are carried out that make use of the discriminant properties of the net flow signs to improve the quality of the assignments. This approach is specifically applied to pre-classified alternatives near the boundary between two or more categories. The method has been validated by segmenting thousands of customers. Four customer segments were identified: strategic, collaborative, transactional, and non-preferred. A comparison was made between the results and those derived from an alternative method. Through an extensive sensitivity analysis, the proposed method was shown to be robust to parameter variation, highlighting its reliability in real dynamic contexts. The method provides valuable, easily interpretable information, which constitutes the basis for developing personalised strategies to enhance customer relationship management.

Bringing the community into the classroom: professional identity and practice of social workers who studied alongside at-risk adolescent girls

ABSTRACT This study explores the professional identity development of social workers who participated in an academic elective course alongside at-risk adolescent girls aged 16–18. The course, influenced by critical pedagogy, and community and feminist social work, emphasized three core principles: flattening power hierarchies, challenging socio-structural oppression, and mutual learning. In-depth interviews were conducted with course graduates, social workers with 1 to 4 years of experience. Phenomenological analysis uncovered that the course acted as a ‘transitional space’ between student and professional life. Three subthemes emerged: recognizing the vulnerability and strengths of adolescent girls, reflecting on personal life experiences, and learning about forming partnerships with clients. Forming partnerships with clients was enabled by three vehicles: daring to be equal, daring to be authentic, and learning from clients’ knowledge. This study highlights the creation of a ‘community of practice’ through innovative teaching methods and community involvement. It underscores the importance of hands-on experiences and engagement with real-life contexts to bridge the gap between theory and practice, enhancing understanding of concepts like partnership and nonhierarchical approaches in both community and general social work.

Daily effects of a brief compassion-focused intervention for self-compassion.

Interventions for increasing self-compassion are typically assessed through retrospective reports, which may not accurately capture everyday self-compassionate behaviour. Our study addresses this using experience sampling to evaluate a brief compassion-focused intervention's effects on needs for self-compassion, awareness of opportunities for self-compassion, self-compassionate behaviour and emotional responses to one's distress in daily life. Results indicated that the intervention was associated with less likelihood of reporting needs and opportunities for self-compassion but with no difference in self-compassionate actions or emotional experience. When participants acted self-compassionately, they reported more positive emotional experiences after needing self-compassion. This underscores the disparity between retrospective and ecological assessments, emphasizing the need for interventions to be evaluated in real-life contexts.

Is ignorance bliss? Evaluating information awareness and life satisfaction through the lens of perceived air pollution: The case of Beijing, China

Our study presents fresh insight into the impacts of air-related information accessibility and policy awareness on citizen's life satisfaction, through the lens of perceived air pollution sources. It is widely accepted that disclosing information about air pollution adversely affects an individual's life satisfaction. However, the impact of information accessibility and public policy awareness on life satisfaction remains poorly understood in real-life contexts and their interrelationship warrants exploration. Earlier studies suggested that public scrutiny via information disclosure is a means to lower air pollution levels, potentially enhancing life satisfaction through improved air quality perception and reduced health risks. However, much of that research was based on the flawed presumption that all individuals can access and understand this officially disclosed information. They overlooked the actual availability of information and public reflections on relevant policies that were influenced by their perception of air pollution. This research gap highlights the need for in-depth evidence of the impacts of information accessibility and policy awareness on life satisfaction. Employing a covariance-based Structural Equation Modelling, our study analyses the views of 1867 Beijing residents in 2022. We assessed information accessibility, policy awareness, perceived air pollution sources, life satisfaction, and socio-demographic characteristics covering two time periods: a) before the COVID-19 pandemic and b) during its normalisation phase. Our findings reveal that both information accessibility and policy awareness significantly and positively affect life satisfaction in both periods. Moreover, the indirect parameter analysis underscores the presence of significant heterogeneity when considering the mediating role of impacts of perceived air pollutants. The results of this study offer a novel contribution regarding the relationship between air pollution information accessibility, policy awareness, and life satisfaction.

Redesigning Building Thermal Science Education Through Inquiry-Based Experiential Learning

Mastering building thermal science is essential for architectural professionals, as it supports the design of energy-efficient and thermally optimized buildings, which are critical for addressing the growing demands of sustainable architecture. However, traditional teaching methods often disconnect theoretical instruction from practical application, limiting students’ ability to apply core concepts in real-world scenarios. This study introduces a pedagogical reform that integrates design-oriented and inquiry-based experiments, hands-on physical activities, and field-based testing into the teaching of building thermal science. The revised curriculum focuses on applying theoretical principles in real architectural contexts, allowing students to directly design and experience thermal phenomena such as heat transfer and thermal resistance in building envelope structures. To evaluate the effectiveness of this reform, a control group using traditional confirmatory experiments (following predetermined instructions to complete experiments and validate the results) was compared to a reform group engaged in inquiry-based experimental learning. Over the course of three cohorts (2019, 2020, 2021), the reform group consistently outperformed the control group, with statistically significant improvements in average course grades. Specifically, the reform group had mean grade differences of 7.21 points higher in 2019, 4.55 points higher in 2020, and 5.83 points higher in 2021, as demonstrated by t-test results (p &lt; 0.05). The reform group also exhibited more concentrated grade distributions, reflecting enhanced comprehension and retention of key thermal concepts. In addition to improved academic performance, students in the reform group demonstrated superior problem-solving abilities and a heightened awareness of energy conservation and sustainable design practices. This approach not only deepened their understanding of theoretical knowledge but also fostered a greater commitment to integrating sustainability into their architectural projects.

Connect, care, create: practical framework for physical environment design for person-centred palliative care.

This article aims to explore architectural-rich insights derived from users' experiences within everyday practice in palliative environments and provides a practical framework for healthcare organisations, architects and researchers involved in (re)designing palliative environments for person-centred care. An ethnographic study involving participatory observation was undertaken to gain insight into the influence of palliative environments on the diverse users' subjective experiences. This immersive research took place across multiple palliative environments, encompassing a palliative care unit, a day care centre for palliative care and a hospice located in Belgium. Also, informal conversations and photo-elicitation interviews were conducted with residents, family members, healthcare professionals, volunteers and maintenance staff. Analysing the subjective experiences yielded a practical framework of four architectural atmospheres (proximity, support, engagement, comfort) intended to serve as guiding principles for designing palliative environments. To shape these atmospheres, this article elaborates on 17 spatial aspects and aligns them with real-life experiences of users within palliative environments, thereby enriching and contextualising these insights. This study presents a practical framework encompassing atmospheres, spatial aspects and overarching insights. It is augmented by supplemental material featuring real-life user experiences, all directed towards guiding the design of palliative environments in pursuit of person-centred palliative care. This article advocates for a collaborative, interdisciplinary, holistic design approach that acknowledges these considerations' interconnectedness and considers the users' multiple perspectives. Ultimately, this approach serves as a means of bridging design intentions and actual experiences encountered by users in their real-life contexts to assist healthcare organisations and architects in creating environments for person-centred palliative care.

Telemonitoring activities of daily living in home healthcare services to support aging in place

Abstract Context Assessing older adults’ abilities to carry out their activities of daily living (ADLs) is a key determinant in the provision of homecare services for aging in place. Amidst a growing aging population and lack of human resources, continuous remote monitoring technology appears promising to support health and social care professionals (HSCPs) in identifying service needs. However, implementation studies conducted in real-life settings are lacking. This study is part of an on-going action design research project aimed at developing an ambient telemonitoring system monitoring ADLs to support clinical decision making. It focused on the initial step of implementation and aimed to understand 1) which HSCPs would want to use the system, 2) for which care recipient they requested it, and 3) for which reasons. Methods A multiple embedded case study utilizing mixed methods was conducted across 3 healthcare establishments in Quebec, Canada. Descriptive statistics from surveys and medical records was conducted to describe the profile of HSCPs and their care recipients. An inductive qualitative analysis was carried out through interviews with 23 HSCPs, in charge of 31 care recipients, to deepen our understanding of the reasons why they requested the system. Results HSCPs were primarily women (89%) occupational therapists (43%). Home care recipients were also primarily women (74%), with documented refusal of homecare services (65%), diagnosed with cognitive decline (94%), and living in a single-family home or apartment (68%). Overall, interviews revealed HSCPs challenges in getting the necessary information to assess their care recipients needs, despite the presence of in-home services and other strategies in place (e.g. informal carer support). Moreover, the telemonitoring system was perceived as promising for risk management. Conclusions There is an interest for the use of ADL telemonitoring technology in the delivery of home healthcare services for aging in place. Key messages • To facilitate its integration in practice, we explored the need for, and value of, ADLs telemonitoring technology by health and social care professionals (HSCPs) in real-life contexts. • By studying the integration of innovative technologies in home healthcare practices, such as ADLs telemonitoring, we aim to support HSCPs practice in fulfilling older adults desire to age in place.

Exploring the Challenges of Context in Accessing Mental Health Support in Rural New Zealand: A Case Study Approach.

This paper explores the complexities that impact access to mental health services in rural New Zealand. Historical, cultural, social and political factors will be examined against the philosophical positioning of Foucault and Fairclough. This research is a single-embedded case study design exploring participants' discourses in the context of a rural, bounded geographical area of New Zealand. The results show that mental health support that addresses people's actual needs rather than the needs that governments map against ever-changing policy is required and that an awareness of context within case study research is important. The process of case study design is described, including building upon a rationale for selecting the case, collecting data and conducting case analysis and interpretation. This study examines factors influencing the real-life rural context of accessing mental health support. This article demonstrates that case-study research can be valuable for navigating context complexity and developing nuanced understandings of complex phenomena. The paper highlights how the multifaceted case study context is more than mapping discourses against a rural backdrop. It is necessary to consider the power dynamics that shape experiences and their impact on service creation and its consequent delivery. Rather than services being created that are complex and not meeting people's needs, there is a need to listen to the people who have experienced mental health distress and provide services and support in locations other than clinical settings.

Antimicrobial, anti-biofouling, antioxidant, and biocompatible fabrics with high durability via green growth of trimetallic nanoparticles

There is a high demand for green and sustainable multifunctional fabrics, which find application in a variety of real-life contexts. This study addresses the development of antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-biofouling and biocompatible fabrics through a one-step, versatile and cost-effective in-situ green growth strategy. Monometallic, bimetallic and trimetallic nanoparticles comprising silver (Ag), copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) were grown in-situ on fabric surfaces using Sideritis scardica extract. The average size of nanoparticles was 99 ± 25 nm, 131 ± 29 nm, 68 ± 18 nm for Ag, Cu and Zn. The metallic nanoparticles grown on the fabric surface imparted a range of colors to the fabrics, including yellow, brownish and greenish hues. Nanoparticle-decorated fabrics have antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-biofouling, biocompatibility, and high durability properties. The decoration of fabrics with metallic nanoparticles mediated antimicrobial properties against bacteria (E. coli and S. aureus) and fungi (C. albicans), achieving a reduction of over 99.99 % (Logarithmic reduction>4). Bimetallic and trimetallic Ag and Cu nanoparticles exhibited enhanced antifungal activity in comparison to their monometallic counterparts. The cytotoxic effects of Cu were effectively eliminated through the fabrication of bimetallic nanostructures containing Zn. Notably, the biocompatibility of monometallic and bimetallic combinations involving Ag and Zn exceeded 95 %. The water contact angles of the decorated fabrics ranged from 145° to 153°. The superhydrophobic character of the fabrics prevented pathogen adhesion and inhibited biofilm formation. Moreover, all nanoparticle-decorated fabrics demonstrated antioxidant properties, with radical-scavenging activity ranging from 46 % to 91 %. The fabrics retained their antimicrobial properties against mechanical abrasion, heating and repeated cycles of washing and bending.

Molecular Targets of Plant-Derived Bioactive Compounds in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Background: With a significant increase in both incidence and mortality, oral cancer—particularly oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC)—is one of the main causes of death in developing countries. Even though there is evidence of advances in surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, the overall survival rate for patients with OSCC has improved, but by a small percentage. This may be due, on the one hand, to the fact that the disease is diagnosed when it is at a too-advanced stage, when metastases are already present. Methods: This review explores the therapeutic potential of natural herbal products and their use as adjuvant therapies in the treatment of oral cancer from online sources in databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar, Research Gate, Scopus, Elsevier). Results: Even if classic therapies are known to be effective, they often produce many serious side effects and can create resistance. Certain natural plant compounds may offer a complementary approach by inducing apoptosis, suppressing tumor growth, and improving chemotherapy effectiveness. The integration of these compounds with conventional treatments to obtain remarkable synergistic effects represents a major point of interest to many authors. This review highlights the study of molecular mechanisms and their efficiency in in vitro and in vivo models, as well as the strategic ways in which drugs can be administered to optimize their use in real contexts. Conclusions: This review may have a significant impact on the oncology community, creating new inspirations for the development of more effective, safer cancer therapies with less toxic potential.