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Oxygen permeability data is relevant for selecting wine bottles closures. Market available stoppers, two natural and eight microagglomerated corks, were analysed for the oxygen ingress over time in stoppered bottles, under different temperatures (8, 23, and 40 °C), with and without contact between cork and wine simulant. Weibull model described well the oxygen ingress. Differences were found between cork types in long-term oxygen pressure (Po) and ingress rates (τ). For microagglomerated corks, Po increased, and τ decreased with temperature, following the Arrhenius behaviour, with estimated activation energies of 15.3 and 35.2 kJ mol−1, respectively. Microagglomerated corks exhibited slower initial oxygen ingress but higher long-term oxygen ingress than natural corks. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) showed that factors related to the bottleneck-cork interface contributed more to the variance of the system than cork type. Liquid contact reduces oxygen ingress around five times. The temperature impact in the oxygen ingress was lower for natural corks.

Marine invertebrates are widely used as food and feed supplements throughout the world. Among these organisms, crustaceans are highlighted, which have high potential to provide valuable nutritive products. Montagu’s crab (Lophozozymus incisus (H. Milne Edwards)) is abundant in the north-eastern Atlantic Ocean and in the Mediterranean Sea. Nevertheless, this is a poorly studied crab and information about its compositional profile is needed to facilitate processing, utilization and marketing of value-added products. The main purpose of our work was to improve the knowledge on its chemical composition, in order to obtain more information on potential healthy constituents, as well as on its biological properties. A chemical characterization of the ethanol extract was performed by GC–MS and HPLC–DAD. Twenty-eight metabolites were identified and quantified for the first time in this crab. Astaxanthin and alanine were the main carotenoid (ca. 57.0% of total carotenoids) and amino acid (ca. 33% of total amino acid content), respectively. Concerning fatty acids, those unsaturated were predominated (ca. 86.0% of total fatty acids) and cholesterol was the only identified sterol. A dose-dependent response was revealed against cholinesterases, monoamino oxidase A (MAO-A) and α-glucosidase. Therefore, taking into account the biological properties of the identified metabolites, the consumption of this crab could have a positive impact on the human health. Keywords: Lophozozymus incisus (H. Milne Edwards), Compositional profile, Cholinesterase inhibitor, Monoamino oxidase A inhibitor, α-Glucosidase inhibitor

Titan is unique in the solar system: it is an ocean world, an icy world, an organic world, and has a dense atmosphere. It is a geologically active world as well, with ongoing exogenic processes, such as rainfall, sediment transportation and deposition, erosion, and possible endogenic processes, such as tectonism and cryovolcanism. This combination of an organic and an ocean world makes Titan a prime target for astrobiological research, as biosignatures may be present in its surface, in impact melt deposits and in cryovolcanic flows, as well as in deep ice and water ocean underneath the outer ice shell. Impact craters are important sites in this context, as they may have allowed an exchange of materials between Titan's layers, in particular between the surface, composed of organic sediments over icy bedrock, and the subsurface ocean. It is also possible that impacts may have favored the advance of prebiotic chemical reactions themselves, by providing thermal energy that would allow these reactions to proceed. To investigate possible exchange pathways between the subsurface water ocean and the organic-rich surface, we modeled the formation of the largest crater on Titan, Menrva, with a diameter of ca. 425 km. The premise is that, given a large enough impact event, the resulting crater could breach into Titan's ice shell and reach the subsurface ocean, creating pathways connecting the surface and the ocean. Materials from the deep subsurface ocean, including salts and potential biosignatures of putative subsurface biota, could be transported to the surface. Likewise, atmospherically derived organic surface materials could be directly inserted into the ocean, where they could undergo aqueous hydrolysis to form potential astrobiological building blocks, such as amino acids. To study the formation of a Menrva-like impact crater, we staged numerical simulations using the iSALE-2D shock physics code. We varied assumed ice shell thickness from 50 to 125 km and assumed thermal structure over a range consistent with geophysical data. We analyze the implications and potential contributions of impact cratering as a process that can facilitate the exchange of surface organics with liquid water. Our findings indicate that melt and partial melt of ice took place in the central zone, reaching ca. 65 km depth and ca. 60 km away from the center of the structure. Furthermore, a volume of ca. 102 km3 of ocean water could be traced to depths as shallow as 10 km. These results highlight the potential for a significant exchange of materials from the surface (organics and ice) and the subsurface (water ocean), particularly in the crater's central area. Our studies suggest that large hypervelocity impacts are a viable and likely key mechanism to create pathways between the underground water ocean and Titan's organic-rich surface layer and atmosphere.

Spinal trauma is rare in children, but when it occurs, trauma of the cervical spine corresponds to 60%–80% of all cases. The most common causes of pediatric cervical spine injuries are automobile accidents, sports activities, and leisure-related accidents. Herein we report a surgically-treated case of cervical spine trauma with fractures of multiple vertebrae. A 12-year-old female victim of a high fall (from a tree) was admitted to the emergency room with neck pain and weakness in all the limbs. On examination, she was conscious, breathing spontaneously, with grade-4 tetraparesis, and preserved sphincter control. Cervical spine computed tomography (CT) revealed a burst fracture of the C4 body with retropulsion into the spinal cord and fractures of the C5 body and posterior elements of C2, C3, and C4. Cervical spine magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a hypersignal of the spinal cord from C3 to C6 in T2, indicating contusion. Because no signs of posterior spine instability (ligament lesions) were noted on MRI, we decided to perform a C3–C5 anterior arthrodesis with C4 corpectomy and autologous (iliac) graft placement. The patient had a good postoperative evolution. Furthermore, the patient had no motor deficit, but due to the other fractures in the spine, we chose to keep the cervical collar for 3 months and followed-up on an outpatient basis. Although spinal trauma is less frequent in children than in adults, children can have severe cervical spine injuries (multiple fractures with spinal contusion), and then surgery plays a key role in stabilizing the spine and decompressing the spinal cord to avoid sequelae.

Driven by the market demand, several synthetic and natural grafts have been proposed during the last years for tendons regeneration. The synthetic grafts, which present a better mechanical performance than the natural ones, usually fail due to the lack of biocompatibility and bioactivity. Thus, chitosan (Cs) was immobilized on polypropylene (PP) surface, previously activated by plasma treatment, in order to improve the fibroblasts' adhesion and proliferation on it. The Orange II dye method and FTIR-ATR analysis proved the successful Cs immobilization on the PP surface. It was observed by SEM and optical profilometry analysis that the Cs concentration increase leads to a surface roughness (R-a value) increase, as well as to water contact angle (C.A.) decrease at least until 2% (w/V) of Cs. Using the 2% (V/V) Cs solution concentration, according to SEM analysis and resazurin assay, the developed functionalization was well succeeded in improving fibroblasts adhesion and proliferation on PP substrates surface over 7 days of culture., Authors acknowledge the financial support from FCT (Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia), through the Grant SFRH/BD/88829/2012 and the Project UIDB/50006/2020.

Portugal is one of the world's leading producers of ornamental stones and, in the last 50 years, this economic sector registered an annual national average growth of 4%. However, the lack of land-use policies that effectively safeguard the access of extractive industry to the places where these resources occur, current and foreseen production is at risk, compromising the contribution of this sector to the national economy and to the supply of forthcoming generations. The multi-dimensional methodology reported in Mateus et al. (2017) was applied to describe the present-day situation, allowing to objectively identify the tracts hosting ornamental stone resources whose access should be safeguarded, therefore avoiding their sterilisation when confronted to other land-use options. A database on the available geological information concerning 65 ornamental stone tracts, covering 0.43% of mainland Portugal, was built. Among the 54 active exploitation centres and 11 potential areas (for which there is no production data), only 21 tracts (0.07% of mainland Portugal) were classified as of "public importance", meaning they have an intrinsic value that should by itself support a safeguarding decision on their current and future access. According to the weighed criteria used, several promising tracts were not included in this short group. However, these promising tracts do not overcame the threshold due to the shortage of data about regional exploration surveys or on the resource itself, which reflects difficulties in gathering harmonised geological information for all the listed tracts. Thus, two simulation scenarios were completed, corresponding to an increase in knowledge resulting from regional exploration or local, comprehensive geological studies. As a result of these simulated scenarios, the total number of tracts qualified as of "public importance" increased to 41 (0.24% of mainland Portugal). These results highlight the urgent need to supplement the available geological information, contributing to the establishment of a credible and stable mining plan for the Portuguese ornamental stones sector, thus strengthening its sustainability in the short and long term. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to determine the relationship between CK19 mRNA copy number in sentinel lymph nodes (SLN) assessed by one-step nucleic acid amplification (OSNA) technique, and non-sentinel lymph nodes (NSLN) metastization in invasive breast cancer. A model using total tumor load (TTL) obtained by OSNA technique was also constructed to evaluate its predictability. METHODS: We conducted an observational retrospective study including 598 patients with clinically T1-T3 and node negative invasive breast cancer. Of the 88 patients with positive SLN, 58 patients fulfill the inclusion criteria. RESULTS: In the analyzed group 25.86% had at least one positive NSLN in axillary lymph node dissection. Univariate analysis showed that tumor size, TTL and number of SLN macrometastases were predictive factors for NSLN metastases. In multivariate analysis just the TTL was predictive for positive NSLN (OR 2.67; 95% CI 1.06-6.70; P = 0.036). The ROC curve for the model using TTL alone was obtained and an AUC of 0.805 (95% CI 0.69-0.92) was achieved. For TTL >1.9 × 105 copies/μL we got 73.3% sensitivity, 74.4% specificity and 88.9% negative predictive value to predict NSLN metastases. CONCLUSION: When using OSNA technique to evaluate SLN, NSLN metastases can be predicted intraoperatively. This prediction tool could help in decision for axillary lymph node dissection. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Uma transfusão de sangue com o tipo ABO incorreto pode resultar na morte do paciente, com reação hemolítica intravascular, seguida de alterações imunológicas e bioquímicas. Considerando a pequena quantidade de estudos sobre as hemolisinas anti-A e anti-B e a importância desses anticorpos na prática transfusional, o objetivo deste trabalho foi verificar a frequência dessas hemolisinas e a associação a fatores como etnia e gênero em doadores de sangue dos bancos de sangue dos municípios de Itapeva e de Ourinhos, no interior do estado de São Paulo. Foram analisadas todas as amostras de doadores tipo O cadastradas nos bancos de sangue, com elevado nível plasmático de hemolisinas (doadores considerados perigosos). Coletaram-se os dados relativos à frequência das hemolisinas, etnia, gênero e procedência destes doadores. A frequência de doadores de sangue do grupo sanguíneo O perigosos é de 1,2% em Itapeva e de 5,3% em Ourinhos. Na cidade de Ourinhos, o risco de um doador branco ter hemolisina positiva é 2,16 vezes maior do que para outros doadores, e na cidade de Itapeva notou-se que o risco é menor para brancos do que para outros doadores. Em relação ao gênero, em Ourinhos o risco de um doador ter hemolisina positiva é 1,82 vezes maior para o gênero masculino, e na cidade de Itapeva, o risco foi maior para doadores do gênero feminino. A relação entre o gênero, a etnia e a frequência de hemolisinas foi diferente nas duas cidades. Mesmo assim, destaca-se a importância dos bancos de sangue estarem atentos às características de prevalência deste tipo de doador.Blood transfusion using unmatched ABO blood types can result in patient death due to intravascular hemolytic reactions followed by immunological and biochemical changes. Considering the small number of studies on anti-A and anti-B hemolysins and the relevance of these antibodies in the transfusional practice, this work aimed at assessing the frequency of these hemolysins and their relationship to factors such as ethnic background and gender in blood donors of blood banks located in Itapeva and Ourinhos, São Paulo State, Brazil. All samples from type O donors recorded in these two blood banks with high serum levels of hemolysins (donations considered high-risk) were analyzed. Data related to hemolysin frequencies, ethnicity, gender and origin of blood donors were collected. The frequency of donors belonging to the high-risk O blood group was 1.2% in Itapeva and 5.3% in Ourinhos. In Ourinhos the risk of a Caucasian donor being positive for hemolysin is 2.16 times higher than other ethnic groups and in Itapeva, it was observed that the risk is lower for Caucasians than other ethnic groups. Regarding the gender, in Ourinhos the risk of a donor being positive to hemolysin is 1.82 times greater in men and in Itapeva the risk is higher in women. The ratios of gender and ethnic background in respect to frequency were different between the two regions. Thus it is important for blood banks to be aware of regional variations.

The main purpose of this work is to present and to interpret the change of electrical properties of TaxNyOzthin films, produced by DC reactive magnetron sputtering. Some parameters were varied during deposi-tion: the flow of the reactive gases mixture (N2and O2, with a constant concentration ratio of 17:3); thesubstrate voltage bias (grounded, −50 V or −100 V) and the substrate (glass, (1 0 0) Si or high speed steel).The obtained films exhibit significant differences. The variation of the deposition parameters inducesvariations of the composition, microstructure and morphology. These differences cause variation of theelectrical resistivity essentially correlated with the composition and structural changes. The gradualdecrease of the Ta concentration in the films induces amorphization and causes a raise of the resistivity.The dielectric characteristics of some of the high resistance TaxNyOzfilms were obtained in the sampleswith a capacitor-like design (deposited onto high speed steel, with gold pads deposited on the dielectricTaxNyOzfilms). Some of these films exhibited dielectric constant values higher than those reported forother tantalum based dielectric films., This work was supported by FEDER through the COMPETE Program and by the Portuguese Foundation for Science andTechnology (FCT) in the framework of the Strategic Project PEST-C/FIS/UI607/2011, and by the Sectoral Operational ProgrammeHuman Resources Development (SOP HRD), financed from the European Social Fund and by the Romanian Government under the project number POSDRU/159/1.5/S/134378.

In this work, the thermal stability of TiAgx thin films, deposited by magnetron sputtering, was evaluated, envisaging their application in biomedical devices, namely as electrodes for biosignal acquisition. Based on the composition and microstructural characterization, a set of four representative TiAgx thin films was selected in order to infer whether they are thermally stable in terms of functional properties. In order to achieve this purpose, the structural and morphological evolution of the films with annealing temperature was correlated with their electrical, mechanical and thermal properties. Two distinct zones were identified and two samples from each zone were extensively analysed. In the first zone (zone I), Ti was the main component (Ti-rich zone) while in the second, zone II, the Ag content was more significant. The selected samples were annealed in vacuum at four different temperatures up to 500 oC. For the samples produced within zone I, small microstructural changes were observed due to the recrystallization of the Ti structure and grain size increment. Also, no significant changes were observed with annealing temperature regarding the f l ’ functional properties, being thermally stable up to 500 oC. For higher Ag contents (zone II) the energy supplied by thermal treatments was sufficient to activate the crystallization of Ti-Ag intermetallic phases. A strong increase of the grain size of these phases was also reported. The structural and morphological organization proved to be determinant for the physical responses of the TiAgx system. The hardness and Y g’s modulus were significantly improved with the formation of the intermetallic phases. The silver addition and annealing treatments also played an important role in the electrical conductivity of the films, which was once again improved by the formation of Ti-Ag phases. The thermal diffusivity of the films was practically unchanged with the heat-treatment. This set of results shows that this intermetallic-like thin film system has good thermal stability up to high temperatures (as high as 500 oC), which in case of the highest Ag content zone is particularly evident for electrical and mechanical properties, showing an important improvement. Hardness increases about three times, while resistivity values become half of those from the lowest Ag contents zone. These set of characteristics are consistent with the targeted applications, namely in terms of biomedical sensing devices., This research is sponsored by FEDER funds through the program COMPETE – Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade and by national funds through FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, under the projects PTDC/CTM-NAN/112574/2009, PTDC/SAU-ENB/116850/2010, PEst-C/EME/UI0285/2013 and Programa Pessoa 2012/2013 Cooperação Portugal/França, Project nº 27306UA. J. Borges also acknowledges the support by the European social fund within the framework of the realizing the project “Support of intersectoral mobility and quality enhancement of research teams at Czech Technical University in Prague” CZ.1.07/2.3.00/ 30.00.34. The authors would also like to acknowledge CEMUP for SEM analysis.

In this work it was studied the possible use of thin films, composed of Au nanoparticles (NPs) embedded in a TiO2 matrix, in biological applications, by evaluating their interaction with a well-known protein, Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA), as well as with microbial cells (Candida albicans). The films were produced by one-step reactive DC magnetron sputtering followed by heat-treatment. The samples revealed a composition of 8.3 at.% of Au and a stoichiometric TiO2 matrix. The annealing promoted grain size increase of the Au NPs from 3 nm (at 300 °C) to 7 nm (at 500 °C) and a progressive crystallization of the TiO2 matrix to anatase. A broad localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) absorption band (λ = 580–720 nm) was clearly observed in the sample annealed at 500 °C, being less intense at 300 °C. The biological tests indicated that the BSA adhesion is dependent on surface nanostructure morphology, which in turn depends on the annealing temperature that changed the roughness and wettability of the films. The Au:TiO2 thin films also induced a significant change of the microbial cell membrane integrity, and ultimately the cell viability, which in turn affected the adhesion on its surface. The microstructural changes (structure, grain size and surface morphology) of the Au:TiO2 films promoted by heat-treatment shaped the amount of BSA adhered and affected cell viability., This research is sponsored by FEDER funds through the program COMPETE - Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade - and by national funds through FCT - Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia -, under the projects PEST-C/FIS/UI607/2013, PEst-C/EME/UI0285/2013 and PEst-OE/BIA/UI4050/2014. J. Borges also acknowledges the support by the European social fund within the framework of realizing the project "Support of inter-sectoral mobility and quality enhancement of research teams at Czech Technical University in Prague", CZ.1.07/2.3.00/30.0034. The authors also acknowledge Catarina Carneiro for helping with the Flow Cytometer.

Volcano tourism is growing in popularity as more people are interested in exploring unique natural areas and at the same time study the geologic heritage. Protected sites such as national parks, geoparks, and World Heritage sites play an important role in volcano tourism and present visitors with an opportunity to learn about geodiversity in close contact to nature while experiencing scenic beauty. With over 1500 active volcanoes worldwide, for many regions volcano tourism represents a welcome economic advantage. Active and dormant volcanic attractions therefore provide a valuable natural resource for tourism including geotourism, adventure tourism, and ecotourism. Often the aftermath of a violent eruption will bring increased numbers of visitors, which links volcano tourism frequently to disaster tourism or dark tourism with Pompeii, a popular example of World Heritage site, which is based on the devastation caused by a volcanic eruption nearly 2000 years ago.

The beauty and power of erupting volcanoes, as well as the often tragic outcomes of violent eruptions, have long inspired writers and filmmakers. The fictitious Mt Doom is probably one of the most famous volcanoes in the world. In 1954, the British philologist and writer JRR Tolkien (1892–1973) completed his three-volume work entitled The Lord of the Rings. The novel set the stage for modern fantasy literature and featured as one of the central and key elements the volcano Mt Doom or Orodruin (“Mountain of red flame”). This trilogy is one of the most popular works of fiction in the twentieth century and has been named the book of the millennium by many critics and readers. The Orodruin volcano in Mordor was the destination of the Fellowship of the Ring, in the quest to destroy the One Ring, leading to the climax of a long and complex epic struggle. This Tolkien tale became the source of an enormously successful film trilogy directed by Peter Jackson: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Two Towers (2003), and The Return of the King (2003). The filming of the trilogy was a massive undertaking that took 8 years, but resulted in a product that is so far the highest grossing film series of all time.

Due to the increasing need of low voltage actuators, independent from electrochemical processes, electroactive actuators based on poly(vinylidene fluoride) composites with 10, 25 and 40 % of 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide, [C2mim] [NTf2], ionic liquid are prepared by solvent casting and melting. We show that the charge structure of [C2mim] [NTf2] induces the complete piezoelectric -phase crystallization of the PVDF within the composite and decreases its crystallinity fraction significantly. [C2mim] [NTf2] also works as a plasticizer of PVDF, reducing the elastic modulus down to 12 % of the initial value. Moreover, the composites show significant displacement and bending under applied voltages of 2, 5 and 10 Vpp. The displacement and bending of the composite membranes are also evaluated as a function of [C2mim] [NTf2] content and sample thickness. Increasing amounts of ionic liquid result in larger deformations independently of the applied voltage., This work was supported by FEDER through the COMPETE Program and by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) in the framework of the Strategic Projects PEST-C/QUI/UIO686/2013, PEST-C/FIS/UI607/2014 and PEstOE/EQB/LA0004/2013. The authors also thank Support by the project SIMPEInterative multitouch surfaces based on electroactive polymers - QREN-ADI- 23122, through the COMPETE program. JCD and JMSSE thank the FCT for a doctoral grant (SFRH/BD/90215/2012) grant and a contract under the Investigator FCT 2012 program.

Poly(vinylidene fluoride), PVDF, films and membranes were prepared by solvent casting from dimethylformamide, DMF, by systematically varying polymer/solvent ratio and solvent evaporation temperature. The effect of the processing conditions on the morphology, degree of porosity, mechanical and thermal properties and crystalline phase of the polymer were evaluated. The obtained microstructure is explained by the Flory-Huggins theory. For the binary system, the porous membrane formation is attributed to a spinodal decomposition of the liquid-liquid phase separation. The morphological features were simulated through the correlation between the Gibbs total free energy and the Flory-Huggins theory. This correlation allowed the calculation of the PVDF/DMF phase diagram and the evolution of the microstructure in different regions of the phase diagram. Varying preparation conditions allow tailoring polymer 2 microstructure while maintaining a high degree of crystallinity and a large β crystalline phase content. Further, the membranes show adequate mechanical properties for applications in filtration or battery separator membranes., This work was supported by FEDER through the COMPETE Program and by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) in the framework of the Strategic Project PEST-C/FIS/UI607/2013, Pest-C/QUI/UI0686/2013 and the project PTDC/CTM-NAN/112574/2009. A.C.L. and C.M.C. thank the support of the FCT (grant SFRH/BD/62507/2009 and SFRH/BD/68499/2010). The authors also thank the support from the COST Action MP1003, 2010 ‘European Scientific Network for Artificial Muscles’ and funding from Matepro–Optimizing Materials and Processes”, ref. NORTE 07-0124-FEDER-000037”, co-funded by the “Programa Operacional Regional do Norte” (ON.2–O Novo Norte), under the “Quadro de Referência Estratégico Nacional”(QREN), through the “Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional” (FEDER). The authors also thank the Departamento de Física Química, Universidad del País Vasco, Spain, for hosting part of this research.

Poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene)/NaY zeolite composite membranes were prepared by solvent casting and evaluated as a suitable drug release platform through the evaluation of loading and release of ibuprofen. The membranes were characterized at the morphological, structural and mechanical levels. The 1H-NMR spectra indicate that only the membranes with 16 and 32 % of NaY were useful for IBU encapsulation and the drug release was followed by UV-Vis spectroscopy. The release profile is independent of the zeolite content and can be described by the Korsmeyer-Peppas model. The membrane with 32 % zeolite content releases more than double IBU amount when compared with the membrane with 16 % showing that zeolite content allows tailoring membrane drug release content for specific applications. The drug release platform developed in this work is suitable for other drugs and applications., This work was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) in the framework of the Strategic Project PEST-C/FIS/UI607/2014 and PEST C/QUI/UIO686/2013 projects. A.C.L. thank the support of the FCT grants 12 SFRH/BD/62507/2009. The authors also thank funding from Matepro –Optimizing Materials and Processes”, ref. NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-000037”, co-funded by the “Programa Operacional Regional do Norte” (ON.2 – O Novo Norte), under the “Quadro de Referência Estratégico Nacional” (QREN), through the “Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional” (FEDER). The authors acknowledge the n-STeP Project, reference NORTE-07-0124-FEDER 000039, supported by the Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (ON.2) and to the NMR Portuguese network (PTNMR, Bruker Avance III 400-Univ. Minho).

This paper reports on the development of thin film-based stretchable electrodes, suitable for different types of sensors. Columnar Ti–Ag thin films with a Ag content of 8 at.% were prepared by D.C. magnetron sputtering on carbon nanotube/poly(vinylidene fluoride) CNT/PVDF piezoresistive composites. GLancing Angle Deposition, GLAD, technique was used to change the typical normal columnar growth microstructure obtained by conventional sputtering, into different growing architectures, such as inclined columns and zigzag profiles, in order to tune mechanical and electrical responses of the materials. Three different incident angles of the particle flux, α = 40°, 60° and 80°, were used to deposit Ti–Ag thin films with the different architectures. Upon uniaxial stretching of the prepared zigzag thin films, the resistance of the thin film starts increasing smoothly for strains up to 3%. Above 10% strain, a sharp increase of the electrical resistance is observed due to film mechanical failure and therefore interruption of the electrical conductivity pathways. Furthermore, the influence of the thin film architecture was also studied with respect to the performance of piezoresistive sensors based on carbon nanotube/poly(vinylidene fluoride), CNT/PVDF, composites in which Ti–Ag coated films served as electrodes for signal acquisition. Electromechanical tests were thus performed in composites with CNT contents close to the percolation threshold, where the electromechanical response, characterized by the Gauge Factor, is the largest. The stability of the piezoresistive response was analyzed for the various architectures of the GLAD sputtered Ti–Ag electrodes, including incident angle and number of zigzag periods. It is shown that thin film architecture has a pronounced influence in the overall sensor response, where the best results are obtained for piezoresistive polymer composites coated with Ti–Ag films, produced with intermediate (α = 60°) incident angles., This work was supported by FEDER through the COMPETE Program and by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) in the framework of the Strategic Project PEST-C/FIS/UI607/2014 and the project Matepro - Optimizing Materials and Processes", ref. NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-000037", co-funded by the "Programa Operacional Regional do Norte" (ON.2 - O Novo Norte), under the "Quadro de Referencia Estrategico Nacional" (QREN), through the "Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional" (FEDER). The authors also thank FCT for financial support under project PTDC/CTM-NAN/112574/2009. AF thanks the FCT for grant SFRH/BD/69796/2010.

Io, the innermost of Jupiter's four Galilean satellites, is the only body outside the Earth so far known to have large-scale active volcanism. Io's heat flow is much higher than that of the Earth's and its interior is thought to contain a magma ocean. Io's lavas may be hotter than any that has erupted on the Earth today.

International audience; Titanium-silver, Ti-Ag, thin films display excellent biocompatibility and reveal great potential to be used as conductive materials for prosthesis pressure sensors. In the frame of this work, TiAgx thin films were deposited onto silicon and glass substrates by DC magnetron sputtering, using a pure Ti target containing different amounts of Ag pellets. The films display Ag/Ti ratios varying from 0 up to 0.36, resulting in relatively large range of composition, which gave rise to varied morphological, structural and some selected property responses. For Ag/Ti ratios below 3.0 × 10−3, the TiAgx films exhibited similar behavior to those of standard Ti films. Above this critical value, the role of Ag becomes crucial on the crystallographic structure evolution, as well as on the surface morphology changes of the films. A gradual increase of the Ag/Ti ratio leads to the growth of Ti-Ag crystalline phases, whereas the long range order of Ti grains was reduced from 22 nm down to 7 nm. Similarly, a denser microstructure was developed with a reduction of the sharpness of the surface morphology. This critical Ag/Ti ratio (

[EN] Poly(vinylidene fluoride)/zeolite composites prepared by solvent casting at 190 °C have been investigated by scanning electronic microscopy, Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy and broadband dielectric relaxation spectroscopy. The inclusion of the NaY zeolite filler in the polymer matrix induces the crystallization of poly(vinylidene fluoride), PVDF, in the electroactive γ phase. The dielectric function, ac conductivity and electric modulus of the composites were investigated as a function of zeolite content in the frequency range from 0.1 Hz to 1×107 Hz at temperatures from −120 to 150 °C. The main relaxation process (β-relaxation) of the amorphous phase of the polymer matrix is not affected by the presence of the zeolite, as verified by the similar relaxation parameters obtained for the pure polymer and for the PVDF/NaY4% composite. In a similar way, the zeolite low temperature relaxation is not significantly affected by the polymer phase. On the other hand, the electric modulus formalismreveals significant contributions of the fillers to the electrical permittivity and conductivity of the composites. The presence of the zeolite particles increases ac conductivity and theMaxwell Wagner Sillars contribution that is predominant at low frequencies with respect to ohmic contribution to permittivity., This work is partially funded by the Centre of Physics and Centre of Chemistry (University of Minho, Portugal) and by FEDER funds through the Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade-COMPETE and by national funds by FCT-Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, project references, NANO/NMed-SD/0156/2007, PTDC/CTM/69316/2006, PEst-C/QUI/UI0686/2011 and PTDC/CTM-NAN/112574/2009. A.C.L. and C.M.C. also thank the FCT for the grant SFRH/BD/62507/2009 and SFRH/BD/68499/2010, respectively. The authors also thank support from the COST Action MP1003, the European Scientific Network for Artificial Muscles (ESNAM)

Microporous membranes based on poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) with different NaY zeolite contents were prepared by solvent casting at room temperature for lithium ion battery separator applications. The dependence of the polymer porous microstructure with increasing zeolite content is evaluated as well as the thermal, mechanical and electrical properties of the membrane before and after uptake of the electrolyte solution of 1 M LiClO4.3H2O-PC. The zeolite fillers are placed in the walls of the membranes and do not influence significantly the porosity of the membranes. On the other hand, the fillers improve the mechanical strength of polymeric matrix and increase their ionic conductivity. The electrolyte with 16wt% of zeolites is thermally stable up to 100 ºC and exhibits the highest conductivity over the studied range of temperatures (2.33*10-6 and 2.51*10-2 Scm-1 at 20 and 120 ºC, respectively). According to infrared spectroscopic data, major modifications occur in terms of hydrogen bonding interactions at this composition. All porous membranes show good electrochemical stability as determined by cycle voltammetry. The electrochemical stability domain of the sample with 16wt% zeolite content spans about 5.5 V versus Li/Li+., This work is funded by FEDER funds through the "Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade – COMPETE" and by national funds by FCT- Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, project references Projects PTDC/CTM/69316/2006 and Pest-C/QUI/UIO686/2011 and grants SFRH/BD/66930/2009 (J.N.P.), SFRH/BD/62507/2009 (A.C.L.) and SFRH/BD/68499/2010 (C.M.C).

A atividade anti-Leishmania do extrato hidroalcoólico de Stachytarpheta cayennensis, espécie utilizada popularmente no tratamento de lesões cutâneas causadas por Leishmania sp, foi testado em ensaios in vitro utilizando formas promastigotas de Leishmania braziliensis e L. amazonensis. O extrato hidroalcoólico foi preparado a partir das folhas secas e utilizado em culturas de L. amazonensis e L. braziliensis nas concentrações de 500 a 32,5 µg/mL. Após 24 horas as formas promastigotas foram quantificadas para o cálculo da CI50. A citotoxicidade do extrato foi avaliada também em culturas de macrófagos peritoneais. O extrato apresentou efeito leishmanicida dose e espécie-dependente para promastigotas de Leishmania sendo mais eficaz para L. braziliensis. O extrato não apresentou efeito citotóxico quando utilizado nas culturas de macrófagos. Concluiu-se que o extrato hidroalcoólico de S. cayennensis inibe formas promastigotas de Leishmania in vitro o que poderia justificar, pelo menos parcialmente, o uso popular dessa espécie no tratamento de úlceras causadas por Leishmania.