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Evolutionary computation has been applied to predict the occurrence of massive cyanobacteria proliferations; in the present study, this tool was further used to explore the factors responsible for maintaining picocyanobacterial dominance. Aiming to increase the understanding of factors that promote dominance of picocyanobacteria in tropical reservoirs, we chose two reservoirs used for water supplies located in different regions of Brazil and subjected to climate changes such as warmer winters that intensify water column stratification and prolonged dry seasons that cause water level decreases. This study focused on the diagnosis of the relationships among picocyanobacteria (1–2 μm), zooplankton and environmental variables using evolutionary computation. The integrated data analysis performed here was very successful in elucidating the dynamics of picocyanobacterial density variation influenced by both abiotic and biotic factors by the modeling approach. Relative water column stability - RWCS and electrical conductivity were highlighted as the most important environmental drivers for picocyanobacterial peaks. Hybrid Evolutionary Analysis (HEA) models for the two reservoirs indicated for the first time in the literature that rotifers, small-sized cladocerans and copepods (mainly nauplii) can directly or indirectly control picocyanobacteria in tropical mesotrophic reservoirs, depending on RWCS conditions and electrical conductivity. However, this control is modulated by pH, water transparency and water temperature thresholds.

Introduction Microbial cells secrete many metabolites during growth, including important intermediates of the central carbon metabolism. This has not been taken into account by researchers when modeling microbial metabolism for metabolic engineering and systems biology studies. Materials and Methods The uptake of metabolites by microorganisms is well studied, but our knowledge of how and why they secrete different intracellular compounds is poor. The secretion of metabolites by microbial cells has traditionally been regarded as a consequence of intracellular metabolic overflow. Conclusions Here, we provide evidence based on time-series metabolomics data that microbial cells eliminate some metabolites in response to environmental cues, independent of metabolic overflow. Moreover, we review the different mechanisms of metabolite secretion and explore how this knowledge can benefit metabolic modeling and engineering., The authors are thankful to Mia Jullig for assistance with Fig. 2. Callaghan Innovation and Bioresource Processing Alliance provided PhD stipends for James Daniell and Ninna Granucci respectively., info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

In the last years, Salmonella has been extensively studied not only due to its importance as a pathogen, but also as a host to produce pharmaceutical compounds. However, the full exploitation of Salmonella as a platform for bioproduct delivery has been hampered by the lack of information about its metabolism. Genome-scale metabolic models can be valuable tools to delineate metabolic engineering strategies as long as they closely represent the actual metabolism of the target organism. In the present study, a

Background Chronic kidney disease increases stroke incidence and severity but the mechanisms behind this cerebro-renal interaction are mostly unexplored. Since both vascular beds share similar features, microvascular dysfunction could be the possible missing link. Therefore, we examined the relationship between renal function and cerebral autoregulation in the early hours post ischemia and its impact on outcome. Methods We enrolled 46 ischemic strokes (middle cerebral artery). Dynamic cerebral autoregulation was assessed by transfer function (coherence, phase and gain) of spontaneous blood pressure oscillations to blood flow velocity within 6 h from symptom-onset. Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was calculated. Hemorrhagic transformation (HT) and white matter lesions (WML) were collected from computed tomography performed at presentation and 24 h. Outcome was evaluated with modified Rankin Scale at 3 months. Results High gain (less effective autoregulation) was correlated with lower eGFR irrespective of infarct side (p

©Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2018, Hypertension is a prevalent and major health problem, involving a complex integration of different organ systems, including the central nervous system (CNS). The CNS and the hypothalamus in particular are intricately involved in the pathogenesis of hypertension. In fact, evidence supports altered hypothalamic neuronal activity as a major factor contributing to increased sympathetic drive and increased blood pressure. Several mechanisms have been proposed to contribute to hypothalamic-driven sympathetic activity, including altered ion channel function. Ion channels are critical regulators of neuronal excitability and synaptic function in the brain and, thus, important for blood pressure homeostasis regulation. These include sodium channels, voltage-gated calcium channels, and potassium channels being some of them already identified in hypothalamic neurons. This brief review summarizes the hypothalamic ion channels that may be involved in hypertension, highlighting recent findings that suggest that hypothalamic ion channel modulation can affect the central control of blood pressure and, therefore, suggesting future development of interventional strategies designed to treat hypertension., Dr. Rocha reports a grant from Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology [2010–2013–FCT/PTDC/SAUOSM/109081/2008].

Dissertação de mestrado em Engenharia de Sistemas, Para o sucesso empresarial é fundamental a existência de Sistemas de Informação eficientes e eficazes, permitindo fornecer não só informações necessárias para a gestão, mas também diagnosticar e controlar fatores críticos para o bom desempenho da organização. A crescente necessidade de otimizar processos logísticos e de ter informações realistas é uma constante preocupação das empresas. Na área da produção existe uma crescente necessidade das empresas adotarem métodos mais simplistas, nomeadamente, melhoria nos processos, ou seja, processos mais rápidos e eficientes, menor número de desperdícios e um melhor planeamento. O aparecimento dos ERP’s colmatou certas falhas que as organizações possuíam. Possibilitou a integração dos processos produtivos, e de todas as áreas da organização, garantindo o acompanhamento do crescimento da organização e de intervir nas áreas mais debilitadas. Este documento evidencia assim os benefícios da implementação de um ERP, mais concretamente o SAP, na área da produção. Para que seja possível obter dados suficientes sobre este ERP, esta dissertação será realizada no âmbito empresarial, na empresa Compta SA, com a integração numa equipa de implementação, permitindo o acompanhamento do desenho dos fluxos e de toda a configuração necessária. O processo de análise da implementação do SAP na área da produção caracterizou-se por várias fases, nas quais foi necessário a intervenção do cliente final para que fosse possível adaptar o sistema às necessidades e aquilo que a empresa atualmente pratica. Todas as adaptações realizadas no software têm conta o fluxo praticado a nível organizacional, e tendo em conta as best practices do SAP. Estas adaptações são idealizadas para facilitar o trabalho diário dos utilizadores e para que estes tenham garantias da informação assertiva proveniente do uso do software., For business success it is essential to have efficient and effective Information Systems, allowing not only the information necessary for management, but also to diagnose and control critical factors for better organization performance. The growing need to optimize logistics processes and to have realistic information is a constant concern of companies. At the production area, there is a growing need for companies to adopt more simplified methods, such as improvements in the processes, which means faster and more efficient processes, less waste and a better planning. The emergence of ERPs bridged certain flaws that organizations had. It enabled the integration of production processes, and all areas of the organization, ensuring the monitoring of the growth of the organization and intervening in the weakest areas. This document highlights the benefits of implementing an ERP, more specifically SAP, in the production area. To be able to obtain sufficient data on this ERP, this dissertation will be carried out in the business scope, in Compta SA, with the integration in an implementation team, allowing the follow up of the design of the flows and all the necessary configuration. The process of analyzing the implementation of SAP in the production area is characterized by several phases, in which it is necessary the intervention of the final customer, to be possible to adapt the system to the needs, along with the Company’s currently practices. All adaptations made in the software account for the flow practiced at the organizational level, and taking into account SAP best practices. These adaptations are designed to facilitate the daily work of users and ensure that users have assertive information through the use of the software.

Purpose: Patients suffering from cardiovascular autonomic failure often develop neurogenic supine hypertension (nSH), i.e., high blood pressure (BP) in the supine position, which falls in the upright position owing to impaired autonomic regulation. A committee was formed to reach consensus among experts on the definition and diagnosis of nSH in the context of cardiovascular autonomic failure. Methods: As a first and preparatory step, a systematic search of PubMed-indexed literature on nSH up to January 2017 was performed. Available evidence derived from this search was discussed in a consensus expert round table meeting in Innsbruck on February 16, 2017. Statements originating from this meeting were further discussed by representatives of the American Autonomic Society and the European Federation of Autonomic Societies and are summarized in the document presented here. The final version received the endorsement of the European Academy of Neurology and the European Society of Hypertension. Results: In patients with neurogenic orthostatic hypotension, nSH is defined as systolic BP ≥ 140 mmHg and/or diastolic BP ≥ 90 mmHg, measured after at least 5 min of rest in the supine position. Three severity degrees are recommended: mild, moderate and severe. nSH may also be present during nocturnal sleep, with reduced-dipping, non-dipping or rising nocturnal BP profiles with respect to mean daytime BP values. Home BP monitoring and 24-h-ambulatory BP monitoring provide relevant information for a customized clinical management. Conclusions: The establishment of expert-based criteria to define nSH should standardize diagnosis and allow a better understanding of its epidemiology, prognosis and, ultimately, treatment.

Dissertação de mestrado integrado em Design de Comunicação de Moda, Perante a realidade comercial que se vive atualmente, os consumidores são confrontados com muito informação, diariamente. Neste sentido surge a necessidade das marcas conseguirem comunicar de uma forma diferenciada, capaz de prevalecer na mente do consumidor de modo a que quando existir novamente uma necessidade de consumo do mesmo produto, o consumidor recorde e tenha em mente a marca em questão. Assim como em tantas outras áreas, as marcas de moda não são exceção e têm necessidade de comunicar as suas mais-valias face à concorrência. Para comunicar é necessário que a marca tenha bem definida a sua identidade, assim como os seus pontos fortes e diferenciadores, capazes de serem comunicados e de prenderem a atenção do seu público-alvo. O objetivo deste estudo passa por verificar se as estratégias de comunicação influenciam o crescimento de uma marca. Perante isto, desenvolveu-se um estudo sobre a influência das estratégias de comunicação de uma marca de moda. A opção da marca recaiu sobre uma marca portuguesa, a Frambooesas, marca focada principalmente no swimwear, que representa um mercado cada vez mais forte em Portugal. A investigação empírica dividiu-se em diferentes fases. Primeiramente analisaram-se as estratégias de comunicação a que a marca recorre, para se posicionar na mente do consumidor e, posteriormente, analisou-se a sua concorrência para se perceber as suas semelhanças e as suas diferenças. Por último, analisou-se, junto dos seguidores da marca, a influência das suas estratégias de comunicação. O resultado obtido permitiu verificar que as estratégias de comunicação afetam significativamente as vendas da Frambooesas e que há estratégias mais eficazes do que outras., With the commercial reality we live in, the consumers are overwhelmed with countless information. As such, brands need to be able to communicate in a distinctive way that prevails in the consumers mind to ensure that when the need to consume a similar product reappears, the brand in question comes up in the costumer’s mind. Therefore, as in many other fields, clothing brands are not the exception and they have the need to communicate with the target maker their strengths over the competition. Initially, to communicate the brand needs to well establish its identity, as well as its strengths and differentiating qualities, which should be able to be transmitted and to retain the attention of the target market. The main goal of this study is to verify if the communication strategies influence the brand’s growth. To achieve this, a study about the influence of communication strategies of a clothing brand was developed. The chosen brand is a Portuguese brand, Frambooesas, mainly focused in swimwear, an increasingly relevant market in Portugal. This study had the intention to analyze the communication strategies used by this brand to gain its place in the consumers’ minds, as well as analyze the competitors to understand its similarities and differences. Finally, the influence of the communication strategies of the brand in its followers was analyzed. The obtained result allowed to conclude that the communication strategies affect significantly the sales of Frambooesas. However, some strategies have proved to be more efficient than others.

BACterial Hosts for production of Bioactive phenolics from bERRY fruits (BacHBerry) was a 3-year project funded by the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) of the European Union that ran between November 2013 and October 2016. The overall aim of the project was to establish a sustainable and economically-feasible strategy for the production of novel high-value phenolic compounds isolated from berry fruits using bacterial platforms. The project aimed at covering all stages of the discovery and pre-commercialization process, including berry collection, screening and characterization of their bioactive components, identification and functional characterization of the corresponding biosynthetic pathways, and construction of Gram-positive bacterial cell factories producing phenolic compounds. Further activities included optimization of polyphenol extraction methods from bacterial cultures, scale-up of production by fermentation up to pilot scale, as well as societal and economic analyses of the processes. This review article summarizes some of the key findings obtained throughout the duration of the project., The authors would like to thank the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (BacHBerry, Project No. FP7-613793, and FP7-PEOPLE2013-COFUND, Project No. FP7-609405) for the financial support. AD, RF, MHHN, PG, SGS, and JF would also like to acknowledge the Novo Nordisk Foundation. We express our gratitude to Dr. Martha Cyert (Stanford School of Medicine, EUA), Dr. Hitoshi Shimoi (National Research Institute of Brewing, Japan) and Dr. Yoshio Araki (Graduate School of Biosphere Science, Hiroshima University, Japan) for providing the yeast strain YAA5. We also thank Dr. Ian Macraedie, RMIT University, Australia) for providing the plasmid p416_GPDprGFP-A42., info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

© 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved., Background: Exposures to lead (Pb) during developmental phases can alter the normal course of development, with lifelong health consequences. Permanent Pb exposure leads to behavioral changes, cognitive impairment, sympathoexcitation, tachycardia, hypertension and autonomic dysfunction. However, the effects of an intermittent lead exposure are not yet studied. This pattern of exposure has been recently increasing due to migrations, implementation of school exchange programs and/or residential changes. Objective: To determine and compare lead effects on mammal’s behavior and physiology, using a rat model of intermittent and permanent Pb exposures. Methods: Fetuses were intermittently (PbI) or permanently (PbP) exposed to water containing lead acetate (0.2% w/v) throughout life until adulthood (28 weeks of age). A control group (CTL) without any exposure to lead was also used. Anxiety was assessed by elevated plus maze (EPM) and locomotor activity and exploration by open field test (OFT). Blood pressure (BP), electrocardiogram (ECG), heart rate (HR), respiratory frequency (RF), sympathetic and parasympathetic activity and baro- and chemoreceptor reflex profiles were evaluated. Immunohistochemistry protocol for the assessment of neuroinflammation, neuronal loss (NeuN), gliosis and synaptic alterations (Iba-1, GFAP, Syn), were performed at the hippocampus. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparison between means were used (significance p < 0.05) for statistical analysis. Results: The intermittent lead exposure produced a significant increase in diastolic and mean BP values, concomitant with a tendency to sympathetic overactivity (estimated by increased low-frequency power) and without significant changes in systolic BP, HR and RF. A chemoreceptor hypersensitivity and a baroreflex impairment were also observed, however, less pronounced when compared to the permanent exposure. Regarding behavioral changes, both lead exposure profiles showed an anxiety-like behavior without changes in locomotor and exploratory activity. Increase in GFAP and Iba-1 positive cells, without changes in NeuN positive cells were found in both exposed groups. Syn staining suffered a significant decrease in PbI group and a significant increase in PbP group. Conclusion: This study is the first to show that developmental Pb exposure since fetal period can cause lasting impairments in physiological parameters. The intermittent lead exposure causes adverse health effects, i.e, hypertension, increased respiratory frequency and chemoreflex sensitivity, baroreflex impairment, anxiety, decreased synaptic activity, neuroinflammation and reactive gliosis, in some ways similar to a permanent exposure, however some are lower-grade, due to the shorter duration of exposure. This study brings new insights on the environmental factors that influence autonomic and cardiovascular systems during development, which can help in creating public policy strategies to prevent and control the adverse effects of Pb toxicity., Vera Geraldes acknowledges the post-doctoral fellow given by the Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) (Ref: SFRH/BPD/119315/ 2016).

Leaders often deviate from group norms or social conventions, sometimes inno- vating and sometimes engaging in serious transgressions or illegality. We propose that group members are prone to be more permissive toward both forms of deviance in the case of ingroup leaders compared to other ingroup members or outgroup members and leaders. This granting of “deviance credit” is hypothesized to be underpinned by perceptions of an ingroup leader’s prototypicality of the group (“accrual”) and belief that occupancy of the role confers a right to be supported (“conferral”). Analyses of data from four studies demonstrate that both accrual and conferral (1) mediate evaluations, inclusion and punishment of deviant lead- ers, and (2) they make independent contributions to deviance credit. Implications for leadership, marginalization, corruption, innovation, and transformation are discussed.

Here, the basic principles of reconstructing genome-scale metabolic models with merlin are described. This tool covers the basic stages of this process, providing several tools that allow assembling models, using the sequenced genome as a starting point. merlin has two main modules, separating the process of annotating (enzymes, transporters, and compartments) on the genome from the process of model assembly, though information from the former is integrated in the latter after curation. Moreover, merlin provides several tools to curate the model, including tools for generating reactions' gene rules and placeholder entities for biomass precursors, such as proteins (e-protein) or nucleotides (e-DNA and e-RNA) among others.This tutorial covers each feature of merlin in detail, including the assessment of experimental data for the validation of the model.

OptFlux was launched in 2010 as the first open-source and user-friendly platform containing all the major methods for performing metabolic engineering tasks in silico. Main features included the possibility of performing microbial strain simulations with widely used methods such as Flux Balance Analysis and strain design using Evolutionary Algorithms. Since then, OptFlux suffered a major re-factoring to improve its efficiency and reliability, while many features were added in the form of novel plug-ins, such as the BioVisualizer and the over/under expression plug-ins. The current chapter described the main mathematical formulations of the major methods implemented within OptFlux, also providing a detailed guide on the usage of those functionalities.

OptFlux was launched in 2010 as the first open-source and user-friendly platform containing all the major methods for performing metabolic engineering tasks in silico. Main features included the possibility of performing microbial strain simulations with widely used methods such as Flux Balance Analysis and strain design using Evolutionary Algorithms. Since then, OptFlux suffered a major re-factoring to improve its efficiency and reliability, while many features were added in the form of novel plug-ins, such as the BioVisualizer and the over/under expression plug-ins. The current chapter described the main mathematical formulations of the major methods implemented within OptFlux, also providing a detailed guide on the usage of those functionalities., info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

School bullying has seldom been analyzed through the perspective of society in general. However, severe collective reactions often emerge towards bullies when they attract public attention. In this paper, we analyze the process underlying these non-normative forms of collective action triggered by bullying. A survey was presented to 350 Portuguese participants following the release of a viral video depicting a bullying situation. Results showed that assignment of responsibility to the aggressor predicted agreement with popular justice, which was mediated by anger and moderated by perceived ineffectiveness of social control. Specifically, greater responsibility attributed to aggressors yielded greater anger towards them, which, in turn, triggered more agreement with popular justice. Moreover, this effect was stronger for participants who believed that formal social control mechanisms were ineffective. We discuss these results in light of their contribution for tackling bullying, as well as for the literature on deviance, social control and collective action. O bullying escolar raramente tem sido analisado através do ponto de vista da sociedade em geral. No entanto, nas situações em que o agressor atrai a atenção mediática, verificam-se reações coletivas muito severas. Neste trabalho, analisámos os processos subjacentes à ação coletiva não-normativa que muitas vezes emerge perante situações de bullying. Após um vídeo amador que mostrava uma destas situações se ter tornado viral em Portugal, pedimos a 350 participantes que preenchessem um questionário sobre o tema. Os resultados mostraram que a atribuição de responsabilidade ao agressor predizia a concordância com medidas de justiça popular, e que isto era mediado por emoções de raiva, e moderado pela perceção de ineficácia dos mecanismos de controlo social. Mais especificamente, quanto maior a responsabilidade atribuída ao agressor, maior a raiva sentida, o que levava a um maior grau de concordância com medidas de justiça popular. Para além disso, este efeito era maior para os participantes que acreditavam que os mecanismos formais de controlo social eram ineficazes. Os resultados foram discutidos à luz da sua contribuição para o combate ao bullying, e da literatura sobre desvio, controlo social, e ação coletiva.

Based on subjective group dynamics theory (SGDT; e.g., Marques, Paez, & Abrams, 1998), we examine the effects of a group’s ability to effectively control its deviant members on participants’ ingroup identification. In Studies 1 and 2 (N = 79 and N = 173) participants were informed that the ingroup (vs. outgroup) dealt with deviant occurrences in an effective (vs. ineffective) way. As predicted, induced ingroup effectiveness generated higher ingroup identification, trust in the ingroup’s social control system, and more positive emotional climate, whereas induced ingroup ineffectiveness generated more negative emotional climate or anomie and weaker ingroup identification as compared to outgroup conditions. In Study 3 (N = 115), perceived ingroup effectiveness predicted ingroup identification, via emotional climate, ingroup anomie, confidence in the group’s social control system, and ingroup emotions. We discuss the results in light of SGDT and the role of perceived ingroup social control in promoting ingroup identification., This work is part of project EXCL/MHCPSO/ 0800/2012, which was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT). The first author is the principal investigator, and the second and third authors are, respectively, a member of the research team and a consultant on that project.

The Metabolic Models Reconstruction Using Genome-Scale Information (merlin) tool is a user-friendly Java application that aids the reconstruction of genome-scale metabolic models for any organism that has its genome sequenced. It performs the major steps of the reconstruction process, including the functional genomic annotation of the whole genome and subsequent construction of the portfolio of reactions. Moreover, merlin includes tools for the identification and annotation of genes encoding transport proteins, generating the transport reactions for those carriers. It also performs the compartmentalisation of the model, predicting the organelle localisation of the proteins encoded in the genome and thus the localisation of the metabolites involved in the reactions promoted by such enzymes. The gene-proteins-reactions (GPR) associations are automatically generated and included in the model. Finally, merlin expedites the transition from genomic data to draft metabolic models reconstructions exported in the SBML standard format, allowing the user to have a preliminary view of the biochemical network, which can be manually curated within the environment provided by merlin., PhD grant to O. D. [SFRH /BD/47307/2008]; ERDF-European Regional Development Fund through the COMPETE Programme (operational programme for competitiveness); National Funds through the FCT within the projects FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-009707 (HeliSysBio-molecular Systems Biology in Helicobacter pylori) and FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-015079 (ToMEGIM-Computational Tools for Metabolic Engineering using Genome-scale Integrated Models).

Metabolic Engineering (ME) aims to design microbial cell factories towards the production of valuable compounds. In this endeavor, one important task relates to the search for the most suitable heterologous pathway(s) to add to the selected host. Different algorithms have been developed in the past towards this goal, following distinct approaches spanning constraint-based modelling, graph-based methods and knowledge-based systems based on chemical rules. While some of these methods search for pathways optimizing specific objective functions, here the focus will be on methods that address the enumeration of pathways that are able to convert a set of source compounds into desired targets and their posterior evaluation according to different criteria. Two pathway enumeration algorithms based on (hyper)graph-based representations are selected as the most promising ones and are analyzed in more detail: the Solution Structure Generation and the Find Path algorithms. Their capabilities and limitations are evaluated when designing novel heterologous pathways, by applying these methods on three case studies of synthetic ME related to the production of non-native compounds in E. coli and S. cerevisiae: 1-butanol, curcumin and vanillin. Some targeted improvements are implemented, extending both methods to address limitations identified that impair their scalability, improving their ability to extract potential pathways over large-scale databases. In all case-studies, the algorithms were able to find already described pathways for the production of the target compounds, but also alternative pathways that can represent novel ME solutions after further evaluation., The work is partially funded by ERDF - European Regional Development Fund through the COMPETE Programme (operational programme for competitiveness) and by National Funds through the FCT (Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology) within projects ref. COMPETE FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-015079 and Strategic Project PEst-OE/EQB/LA0023/2013, and also by Project 23060, PEM - Technological Support Platform for Metabolic Engineering, co-funded by FEDER through Portuguese QREN under the scope of the Technological Research and Development Incentive system, North Operational.

[EN] The goal of this work is to develop an original and high performance hybrid lab-on-a-chip, coupling actuators and biosensors for the active control and broad range characterization of biofluids samples. These biofluids will be controlled (moved and mixed) actively by Rayleigh-Surface Acoustic Wave (R-SAW) and analysed in real-time by combining Love-SAW (L-SAW) and Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) technologies. A microfluidic chamber and specific transducer were designed for this application to interact efficiently with the liquid sample entrapped in the chamber and to detect modifications of its physical properties such as viscosity. AT-cut quartz and LiNbO3 36Y-X substrates were used to generate both Rayleigh and Shear-Horizontal waves and ZnO material as guiding layer. The whole system has proven is full efficiency to interact with the fluid and to detect the signal perturbations with no significant loss compared with the measurements carried out with a probe station., The authors wish to thank the ANR for its financial support through the AWESOM project (ANR-12-BS09-021); the operators Laurent Bouvot, Jean Georges Mussot and Emmanuel Vatoux, for their support and assistance in the fabrication of the cell and the SAW devices; and the engineering students, Olivier Bettoni and Bastien Lafont, for their contribution to the cell design.

[EN] Chagas disease (CD), which mostly affects those living in deprived areas, has become one of Latin America's main public health problems. Effective prevention of the disease requires early diagnosis, initiation of therapy, and regular blood monitoring of the infected individual. However, the majority of the Trypanosoma cruzi infections go undiagnosed because of mild symptoms, limited access to medical attention and to a high variability in the sensitivity and specificity of diagnostic tests. Consequently, more affordable and accessible detection technologies capable of providing early diagnosis and T. cruzi load measurements in settings where CD is most prevalent are needed to enable enhanced intervention strategies. This work analyzes the potential contribution of biosensing technologies, reviewing examples that have been tested and contrasted with traditional methods, both serological and parasitological (i.e., molecular detection by PCR), and discusses some emerging biosensing technologies that have been applied for this public health issue. Even if biosensing technologies still require further research efforts to develop portable systems, we arrive at the conclusion that biosensors could improve the accuracy of CD diagnosis and the follow-up of patients' treatments in terms of the rapidity of results, small sample volume, high integration, ease of use, real-time and low cost detection when compared with current conventional technologies., M.I.R.-G., F.S. and D.B. thank the Agence National de la Recherche (ANR), for its financial support by granting the international AWESOM project. The authors of this work are also grateful to Janine W. Ramsey for her useful comments and suggestions about Figure 2

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This work reports the nutritional profile and in vitro neuroprotective properties of leaves of Carpobrotus edulis L, a medicinal and edible succulent species native to the coast of South Africa. Biomass was evaluated for proximate composition and for contents in carotenoids, liposoluble pigments and minerals. Hexane, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate and methanol extracts were prepared by Soxhlet extraction from dried biomass and evaluated for in vitro inhibition of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE), capacity to attenuate hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced injury in the human dopaminergic cell line SH-SY5Y and for anti-neuroinflammatory potential on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated microglia cells. Extracts were evaluated for antioxidant activity by four complementary methods, total content of phenolics, tannins and flavonoids. Finally the profile of the main phenolic compounds was determined by high performance liquid chromatography with diode array detection (HPLC-DAD). C edulis has a high moisture content, high levels of crude protein, fibre, ash, carotenoids, calcium and iron and a low fat level. The extracts were able to efficiently scavenge the free radical 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), reduce iron and chelate copper and iron ions, and exhibited different levels of phenolic compounds in the order ethyl acetate > methanol > dichloromethane > hexane. The main compounds detected were gallic and salicylic acids and quercetin, all in the ethyl acetate extract. The extracts allowed a dual and potent inhibition of AChE and BuChE. The dichloromethane and methanol extracts had the strongest capacity to prevent cell death induced by H2O2, and the methanol extract had anti-neuronflammatory properties. All together our results suggest that consumption of leaves of C edulis can contribute for a balanced diet, and that they may add to the improvement of cognitive functions. It also suggests possible novel biotechnological applications of C. edulis such as source of molecules and/or products for the food and/or pharmaceutical industries. Studies aiming to the isolation and identification of the bioactive compounds are already in progress. (C) 2017 SAAB. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Portuguese National Budget XtremeGourmet project [ALG-01-0247-FEDER-017676] FCT Investigator Programme [IF/00049/2012] info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Over the last 15 years, several genome-scale metabolic models (GSMMs) were developed for different yeast species, aiding both the elucidation of new biological processes and the shift toward a bio-based economy, through the design of in silico inspired cell factories. Here, an historical perspective of the GSMMs built over time for several yeast species is presented and the main inheritance patterns among the metabolic reconstructions are highlighted. We additionally provide a critical perspective on the overall genome-scale modeling procedure, underlining incomplete model validation and evaluation approaches and the quest for the integration of regulatory and kinetic information into yeast GSMMs. A summary of experimentally validated model-based metabolic engineering applications of yeast species is further emphasized, while the main challenges and future perspectives for the field are finally addressed, This work was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of a Ph.D. grant (PD/BD/52336/2013), of the strategic funding of UID/BIO/04469/2013 unit and COMPETE 2020 (POCI-01–0145FEDER-006684) and also in the context of the EU-funded initiative ERA-NET for Industrial Biotechnology (ERA-IB-2/0003/2013), in addition to the BioTecNorte operation (NORTE-01–0145FEDER-000004) funded by European Regional Development Fund under the scope of Norte2020 - Programa Operacional Regional do Norte., info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Atualmente, a sociedade é composta essencialmente por idosos, ou pessoas mais velhas, ou seja, este grupo etário tem vindo a crescer brutalmente visto que a natalidade é baixa e a esperança média de vida é cada vez mais longa. Como tal, torna-se importante dar-se especial atenção a este grupo etário, não só tendo em conta a sua dimensão e riqueza para a sociedade, bem como porque por norma necessitam de cuidados específicos tendo em conta as fragilidades que o processo de envelhecimento acarreta. Além do processo normal de envelhecimento, e das doenças mais comuns a ele associadas, é atribuído também às faixas etárias mais velhas um grande risco no que concerne ao aparecimento de doenças oncológicas. A presente investigação desenvolve-se em torno da doença oncológica e das pessoas mais velhas, nomeadamente, na relação entre ambos, ou seja, o que se pretende estudar é como é que a doença oncológica é vivenciada por este grupo etário e quais os impactos provenientes desta temível doença nos mesmos. No que se refere aos participantes, estes foram compostos por três grupos distintos, doentes oncológicos, familiares dos mesmos e profissionais de saúde da área da oncologia, contando com um total de 10 participantes no estudo, aos quais foi aplicada uma entrevista adaptada aos diferentes públicos. Tendo em conta que através desta investigação se verificou alguma carência/lacuna no que se refere ao apoio psicossocial ao doente oncológico e à família, por parte dos serviços de saúde, o projeto surge neste âmbito, através da criação de um núcleo que dê apoio a estes dois grupos. Este núcleo denominar-se-á NADO&família, significando esta sigla “dar vida” e traduzindo Núcleo de Apoio ao Doente Oncológico.

Although little is known about their nutritional composition, Sarcocornia perennis subsp. perennis, S. perennis subsp. alpini and Salicornia ramosissima (Salicorniaceae) as well as Arthrocnemum macro-stachyum (Amaranthaceae) are consumed in gourmet cuisine. In spite of belonging to different families, these halophytes share morphological and organoleptic characteristics. This work explored the nutritional properties and the antioxidant potential of these species using five integrative methods. All species had a nutritional profile suitable for human consumption with high levels of protein (5.20-13.2 g/100 g dw) and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (FA), particularly or alpha-linolenic acid (19.3-25.9% of total FA), and low concentration of toxic metals (below the limits imposed by the European Commission). These halophytes are also a good source of minerals, particularly sodium (64.1-109 mg/gdw), and S. ramosissima is an excellent source of manganese (204 mu g/g dw). However, due care should be taken not to exceed the legal limits for sodium ingestion. These plants showed also significant antioxidant potential, with high radical scavenging activity (RSA), iron reducing power and total phenolics content (20.5-49.2 mg GAE/g). A. macrostachyum had the highest RSA (lC(50-DPPH) = 0.84 mg/mL; IC50-NO = 0.60 mg/mL), and iron reducing potential (IC50= 0.84 mg/mL) along with high levels of alpha- and gamma-tocopherol (8.74 and 4.71 mg/100 g dw, respectively). (C) 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. XtremeBio project - Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) [PTDC/MAR-EST/4346/2012] XtremeGourmet project from the Portuguese National Budget [ALG-01-0247-FEDER-017676] FCT Investigator Programme [IF/00049/2012] FCT project [CCMAR/Multi/04326/2013] [FCTFRH/BD/105541/2014] info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Genome-scale metabolic models (GSMMs) have become important assets for rational design of compound overproduction using microbial cell factories. Most computational strain optimization methods (CSOM) using GSMMs, while useful in metabolic engineering, rely on the definition of questionable cell objectives, leading to some bias. Metabolic pathway analysis approaches do not require an objective function. Though their use brings immediate advantages, it has mostly been restricted to small scale models due to computational demands. Additionally, their complex parameterization and lack of intuitive tools pose an important challenge towards making these widely available to the community. Recently, MCSEnumerator has extended the scale of these methods, namely regarding enumeration of minimal cut sets, now able to handle GSMMs. This work proposes a tool implementing this method as a Java library and a plugin within the OptFlux metabolic engineering platform providing a friendly user interface. A standard enumeration problem and pipeline applicable to GSMMs is proposed, making use by the community simpler. To highlight the potential of these approaches, we devised a case study for overproduction of succinate, providing a phenotype analysis of a selected strategy and comparing robustness with a selected solution from a bi-level CSOM., The authors thank the project “DeYeastLibrary—Designer yeast strain library optimized for metabolic engineering applications”, Ref. ERA-IB-2/0003/2013, funded by national funds through “Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia / Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Ensino Superior”., info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

The articles in this special section argue that, by looking at quantification as a technical and political technique of power, we can effectively engage with newly established types of transnational power and better under-stand how numbers can enable reconfigurations and hence reorderings of power relations. The section looks at how numbers, in the form of risk assessments, measuring for results, and governance indicators, have a crucial impact in current transnational politics, which in turn influences resource allocation and recognition, discourses on undesirable individuals, possibilities for political leverage, and potential ownership.

Submitted by Mario BC (mario@bc.ufrpe.br) on 2018-02-23T13:52:43Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Maria Isabel Rocha Sampaio.pdf: 1466612 bytes, checksum: 0581b1ce4f89c206caba592f96aa98a3 (MD5) Made available in DSpace on 2018-02-23T13:52:43Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Maria Isabel Rocha Sampaio.pdf: 1466612 bytes, checksum: 0581b1ce4f89c206caba592f96aa98a3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-02-14 Conselho Nacional de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico - CNPq Cranial cruciate ligament rupture causes joint instability and is one of the most common causes of lameness in dogs. One of the most popular current surgical techniques for the treatment of this condition is the tibial tuberosity advancement (TTA). The main objectives were to compare the advance calculation methods described by Koch (2016), Ness (2011), the tibial plateau by Slocum (1993), the common tangent by Dennler et al. (2006) and the table with pre-established values according to the animal weight presented by Vezzoni (2010), also checking between the two stifles of the same animal, if the necessary advance would be the same; and whether the advancement required indicated by the methods used in the study is compatible with the size of cages manufactured in Brazil for standard TTA and TTA rapid technique. For this, digital radiographs of 80 knees from 40 dogs attended at a diagnostic imaging clinic were performed, excluding dogs presenting tibial plateau angle above 30 degrees. Then, the advance calculation methods in question were performed and these values were compared between themselves and between the two members of the same dog. In the present study, it was observed that there is no significant difference between the tibial plateau methods, Ness (2011) and Koch (2016) methods, but there is a difference between such methods and the common tangent methods and the table with pre-established measures by Vezzoni (2010). There was also a moderate confidence index when comparing the pre-defined frame method with all other methods, as well as the common tangent with all other methods except the tibial plateau method, which demonstrated a good reliability index. This positive result was also observed when compare the other methods among themselves. As to the side, no significant difference was observed between right and left limbs, except in the method described by Ness (2011) (p = 0.038). It was also observed in the research that the implants available in the Brazilian market, in most cases, are not exactly coincident with the measures found, being able to lead to a minor or excessive advancement of tibial tuberosity. A ruptura do ligamento cruzado cranial causa instabilidade articular, sendo uma das causas mais comuns de claudicação em cães. Uma das técnicas cirúrgicas atuais mais populares para o tratamento desta afecção éo avanço da tuberosidade tibial (TTA). Esta pesquisa teve como objetivo comparar os métodos de cálculo desse avanço descritos por Koch (2016), Ness (2011), o do platôtibial por Slocum (1993), o da tangente comum por Dennler et al. (2006) e oquadro com valores préestabelecidos de acordo com o peso do animal apresentado por Vezzoni (2010), verificando entre os dois joelhos do mesmo animal, se a quantidade de avanço necessária seria a mesma; e se o tamanho necessário do avanco indicado pelos métodos utilizados no estudo é compatível com o tamanho dos espaçadores fabricados no Brasil para a técnica de TTA padrão e TTA rapid. Para isso foram realizadas radiografias digitais dos dois joelhos de 40 cães atendidos em clínica particular de diagnóstico por imagem, excluindo os cães que apresentassem platô tibial acima de 30 grau. Em seguida foram realizados os métodos de cálculo de avanço em questão e estes valores obtidos foram comparados entre si e entre os dois membros. No presente estudo observou-se que não há diferença significativa entre os métodos do platô tibial, Ness (2011) e Koch (2016), porém há diferença entre tais métodos e os métodos da tangente comum e o do quadro com medidas pré estabelecidas. Houve também índice de confiança moderado ao comparar o método do quadro pré definido com todos os outros métodos, assim como o da tangente comum com todos os outros métodos, exceto o do platô tibial, que demonstrou um índice de confiabilidade bom. Tal resultado positivo também foi observado ao comparar os demais métodos entre si. Quanto ao lado, não foi observada diferença significativa entre membros direito e esquerdo, exceto no método descrito por Ness (2011) (p = 0,038). Também foi observado na pesquisa que os implantes disponíveis no mercado brasileiro, na maioria dos casos, não são exatamente coincidentes com as medidas encontradas, podendo levar a um avanço menor ou excessivo da tuberosidade da tíbia.

Myocardial infarction (MI) is a high prevalence cardiovascular disease with a tendency to increase. Although MI therapy has increased its effectiveness, the loss of myocardial function in consequence of MI is still responsible for major subsequent complications as rhythm changes and heart failure. In human hearts, MI is characterized by cardiomyocyte death and fibrin deposition, which is later replaced by scar tissue. In opposition, zebrafish heart undergoes minimal scaring and cardiac tissue can undergo full functionally regeneration in 60 to 120 days. Therefore, this animal model has been used in cardiovascular research as a model for studying mechanisms of cardiac regeneration. The hearts of zebrafish is anatomically different from the human heart, though the electrocardiogram (ECG) pattern and the critical conduction pathways are comparable to the human's. The objective of our full project is the implementation of an ECG recording system with 3 orthogonal electrodes in 2 planes, in order to create a 4D recording of the zebrafish cardiac electrical activity. Here we present our preliminary work related to a non-invasive ECG monitoring with two electrodes.

The subjective group dynamics theory posits that individuals derogate ingroup members who deviate from prescriptive moral norms. Research on moral disengagement suggests that deviants may, sometimes, be tolerated. This study’s goal was to test whether leniency towards effective ingroup deviants is accounted for by mechanisms of moral disengagement. Portuguese participants (N = 75) judged a Portuguese (ingroup) or Spanish (outgroup) manager whose deviant conduct was either effective (i.e., had positive consequences) or ineffective (i.e., had negative consequences) for a Portuguese company. As predicted, participants favoured deviant but effective ingroup members. This was mediated by an increase in moral disengagement and a decrease in negative emotional reactions. Results suggest that individuals downplay the importance of moral norms when facing ambiguous ingroup deviants, as a means to protect their social identity. We discuss these results in light of subjective group dynamics theory.

Dissertação de mestrado em Gestão de Unidades de Saúde, A presente dissertação tem como objetivo avaliar a satisfação dos clientes com o atendimento em farmácias comunitárias do distrito de Braga. A satisfação é um resultado do marketing de uma empresa e sendo a farmácia uma empresa é uma área importante a ser estudada. Para a realização desta dissertação, realizamos um inquérito. Baseamo-nos em estudos já realizados em relação à satisfação dos clientes em farmácias comunitárias para o desenvolvimento do questionário, de forma a usar escalas previamente validadas. Este inquérito foi aplicado online via email e redes sociais, tendo obtido no total 102 respostas. Os dados obtidos foram analisados no sistema IBM SPSS Statistics 23. Os resultados obtidos mostram que o maior número de inquiridos são pessoas do género feminino, tem idades compreendidas entre os 26 e os 50 anos, vivem em zona rural e como habilitações literárias possuem licenciatura. De forma geral, os resultados mostram que a satisfação é atingida quando parâmetros da qualidade e literacia são alcançados. Avaliou-se também a correlação existente entre variáveis como qualidade, tempo de espera, atendimento e aconselhamento, literacia e lealdade. As variáveis tempo de espera, atendimento e aconselhamento, serviços disponíveis e literacia afetam a satisfação dos clientes com o atendimento, da mesma forma que a satisfação apresenta uma correlação, ainda que fraca, com a lealdade. Deste modo pode-se concluir que a satisfação dos clientes com o atendimento em farmácias comunitárias do distrito de Braga encontra-se saciada e esta está relacionada com várias variáveis., The goal of this dissertation is to evaluate costumer satisfaction regarding the service provided in community pharmacies in the Braga district. Satisfaction results of a company’s marketing and, since a pharmacy is a company, this is an important field to be studied. To perform this dissertation, we conducted a survey. We based our work in studies that had already been performed, pertaining to the satisfaction of clients in community pharmacies, for the development of the questionnaire in order to use previously validated scales. This survey was done online, by email and social networks, obtaining a total of 102 responses. The obtained data was analyzed by the IBM SPSS Statistics 23 system. The obtained results demonstrate that the largest amount of costumers are female, aged between 26 and 50 years old, living in rural areas and possessing as educational qualifications a graduate degree. In general, the results demonstrate that satisfaction is achieved when given quality and literacy parameters are reached. The correlation between variables such as quality, waiting time, service provided, counseling, literacy and loyalty were also evaluated. The variables waiting time, service provided, counseling, available services and literacy affect customer satisfaction pertaining to the service provided, the same way that there is a correlation, although a weak one, between satisfaction and loyalty. Hence it can be concluded that the satisfaction of clients regarding the service provided in community pharmacies of Braga district is satiated and that (that) it is related to several variables.

© 2017 Castro, Serrador, Rocha, Sorond and Azevedo. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms., Background and purpose: Effective cerebral autoregulation (CA) may protect the vulnerable ischemic penumbra from blood pressure fluctuations and minimize neurological injury. We aimed to measure dynamic CA within 6 h of ischemic stroke (IS) symptoms onset and to evaluate the relationship between CA, stroke volume, and neurological outcome. Methods: We enrolled 30 patients with acute middle cerebral artery IS. Within 6 h of IS, we measured for 10 min arterial blood pressure (Finometer), cerebral blood flow velocity (transcranial Doppler), and end-tidal-CO2. Transfer function analysis (coherence, phase, and gain) assessed dynamic CA, and receiver-operating curves calculated relevant cut-off values. National Institute of Health Stroke Scale was measured at baseline. Computed tomography at 24 h evaluated infarct volume. Modified Rankin Scale (MRS) at 3 months evaluated the outcome. Results: The odds of being independent at 3 months (MRS 0–2) was 14-fold higher when 6 h CA was intact (Phase > 37°) (adjusted OR = 14.0 (IC 95% 1.7–74.0), p = 0.013). Similarly, infarct volume was significantly smaller with intact CA [median (range) 1.1 (0.2–7.0) vs 13.1 (1.3–110.5) ml, p = 0.002]. Conclusion: In this pilot study, early effective CA was associated with better neurological outcome in patients with IS. Dynamic CA may carry significant prognostic implications., This study was part of Ph.D. thesis of PC and received publiC national grant from Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT), Portugal, PTDC/SAU-ORG/113329/2009. FS is supported by R01 NS085002 (NINDS).

La cuarta edicion del Congreso sobre Arquitectura y Cooperacion al Desarrollo (ArCaDia 4) se celebro en la Escuela Tecnica Superior de Arquitectura de la Universidade da Coruna los dias 29 y 30 de septiembre de 2016. DOI: https://doi.org/10.17979/spudc.9788497496858

The yeast Kluyveromyces lactis has received attention both from academia and industry due to some important features, such as its capacity to grow in lactose-based media, its safe status, its suitability for large-scale cultivation and for heterologous protein synthesis. It has also been considered as a model organism for genomics and metabolic regulation. Despite this, very few studies were carried out hitherto under strictly controlled conditions, such as those found in a chemostat. Here we report a set of quantitative physiological data generated during chemostat cultivations with the K. lactis CBS 2359 strain, obtained under glucose-limiting and fully aerobic conditions. This dataset serve as a basis for the comparison of K. lactis with the model yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae in terms of their elemental compositions, as well as for future metabolic flux analysis and metabolic modelling studies with K. lactis., This study was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UID/BIO/04469/2013 unit and COMPETE2020 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006684) and BioTecNorte operation (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000004) funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the scope of Norte2020 - Programa Operacional Regional do Norte. T.O.B. would like to express his gratitude for funds provided by Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES, Brasília, Brazil)., info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Submitted by Jagundo Delfina (fina@ese.ipp.pt) on 2017-06-30T12:59:37Z No. of bitstreams: 1 DM_JoanaAlmeida_2017.pdf: 2828292 bytes, checksum: cc818cbc0166f744eec49399a6938c39 (MD5) Made available in DSpace on 2017-06-30T12:59:38Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DM_JoanaAlmeida_2017.pdf: 2828292 bytes, checksum: cc818cbc0166f744eec49399a6938c39 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017

Usually, transport reactions are added to genome-scale metabolic models (GSMMs) based on experimental data and literature. This approach does not allow associating specific genes with transport reactions, which impairs the ability of the model to predict effects of gene deletions. Novel methods for systematic genome-wide transporter functional annotation and their integration into GSMMs are therefore necessary. In this work, an automatic system to detect and classify all potential membrane transport proteins for a given genome and integrate the related reactions into GSMMs is proposed, based on the identification and classification of genes that encode transmembrane proteins. The Transport Reactions Annotation and Generation (TRIAGE) tool identifies the metabolites transported by each transmembrane protein and its transporter family. The localization of the carriers is also predicted and, consequently, their action is confined to a given membrane. The integration of the data provided by TRIAGE with highly curated models allowed the identification of new transport reactions. TRIAGE is included in the new release of merlin, a software tool previously developed by the authors, which expedites the GSMM reconstruction processes., This work was partially supported by a PhD grant (SFRH /BD/47307/2008) and by the ERDF—European Regional Development Fund through the COMPETE Programme (operational programme for competitiveness), and National Funds through the FCT within the projects FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-009707 (HeliSysBio—molecular Systems Biology in Helicobacter pylori) and PTDC/EIAEIA/115176/2009. The authors would also like to thank the FCT Strategic Project PEst-OE/EQB/LA0023/2013 and the Projects “BioInd - Biotechnology and Bioengineering for improved Industrial and Agro-Food processes”, REF. NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-000028 and “PEM – Metabolic Engineering Platform”, project number 23060 , both cofunded by the Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (ON.2 – O Novo Norte), QREN, FEDER., info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

We report a case of a patient with recurrent syncope and paroxysmal atrial fibrillation whose clinical status greatly improved after a period of orthostatic training. The potential efficacy of this non-pharmacological measure in modulating the autonomic tone is discussed below.

Indicators are currently being widely used in international policy making to substantiate analyses and justify decisions on the basis of their alleged scientific objectivity. This article analyses the role of indicators and statistics in the labelling and managing of ‘fragile states’, examining the powerful consequences of these classifications but also discussing the untraceable nature of numbers and the difficulties in attributing ownership of numerical claims and assigning responsibility for their many unforeseen impacts. Focusing on the education sector in Timor-Leste and on the World Bank’s Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (cpia) programme, the article shows how accountability and ownership are negotiated within the context of the g7+ group of self-labelled ‘fragile states’, encouraging an examination of the power relations involved.

Oral health is a leading unmet health need among migrant families. This article describes the 1-year, community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach employed to plan and develop a Lider Communitario (lay community health worker)-led educational intervention for Mexican migrant adult caregivers and their families in three underserved, remote communities in North San Diego County, California. Four partner organizations collaborated, reviewed existing oral health curricula, and sought extensive input on educational topics and research design from key informants, migrant caregivers, and Lideres Communitarios. Based on community stakeholder input, partners developed a logic model and drafted educational intervention materials. Key informants ( n = 28), including several members from two community advisory boards, ranked program priorities and intervention subgroup population via online survey. Three focus groups were conducted with Lideres Communitarios ( n = 22) and three with migrant families ( n = 30) regarding the oral health program's design and content. Twelve Lideres Communitarios reviewed draft intervention materials during two focus groups to finalize the curriculum, and their recommended changes were incorporated. Formative research results indicated that community stakeholders preferred to focus on adult caregivers and their families. A 5-week educational intervention with hands on demonstrations and colorful visuals was developed, covering the following topics: bacteria and tooth decay, oral hygiene, nutrition, gum disease, and dental services. The CBPR process engaged multiple community stakeholders in all aspects of planning and developing the educational intervention.

Bacterial lipids have relevant applications in the production of renewable fuels and biobased oleochemicals. The genus Rhodococcus is one of the most relevant lipid producers due to its capability to accumulate those compounds, mainly triacylglycerols (TAG), when cultivated on different defined substrates, namely sugars, organic acids and hydrocarbons but also on complex carbon sources present in industrial wastes. In this work, the production of storage lipids by Rhodococcus opacus B4 using glucose, acetate and hexadecane is reported for the first time and its productivity compared with Rhodococcus opacus PD630, the best TAG producer bacterium reported. Both strains accumulated mainly TAG from all carbon sources, being influenced by the carbon source itself and by the duration of the accumulation period. R. opacus B4 produced 0.09 and 0.14 g L1 at 24 and 72 h, with hexadecane as carbon source, which was 2 and 3.3 fold higher than the volumetric production obtained by R. opacus PD630. Both strains presented similar fatty acids (FA) profiles in intact cells while in TAG produced fraction, R. opacus B4 revealed a higher variability in fatty acid composition than R. opacus PD630, when both strains were cultivated on hexadecane. The obtained results open new perspectives for the use of R. opacus B4 to produce TAG, in particular using oily (alkane-contaminated) waste and wastewater as cheap raw-materials. Combining TAG production with hydrocarbons degradation is a promising strategy to achieve environmental remediation while producing added value compounds., This work was financially supported by the Portuguese Science Foundation (FCT) and European Social Fund (ESF, POPH-QREN) through the Grant given to A.R. Castro (SFRH/BD/64500/2009), the FCT Strategic Project of UID/BIO/04469/2013 unit and COMPETE 2020 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006684) and project RECI/BBB-EBI/0179/2012 (FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-027462).

New Findings • What is the central question of this study?Will a chronic reduction of neuronal excitability within the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus reduce arterial blood pressure and sympathetic activity in the long term in an animal model of neurogenic hypertension? • What is the main finding and its importance?We show, for the first time, that overexpression of an inwardly rectifying potassium channel in the paraventricular nucleus provided a long-term (>60 days) antihypertensive response in conscious spontaneously hypertensive rats that was associated with a reduction in neurohumorally mediated vasoconstriction, enhanced baroreflex sensitivity and reduced peripheral chemosensitivity; no such response was observed in normotensive rats. Our results support the paraventricular nucleus as a therapeutic target for the chronic control of blood pressure in neurogenic hypertension. Changes in the sympathetic nervous system are responsible for the initiation, development and maintenance of hypertension. An important central sympathoexcitatory region is the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus, which may become more active in hypertensive conditions, as shown in acute studies previously. Our objective was to depress PVN neuronal activity chronically by the overexpression of an inwardly rectifying potassium channel (hKir2.1), while evaluating the consequences on blood pressure (BP) and its reflex regulation. In spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) and Wistar rats (WKY) lentiviral vectors (LVV-hKir2.1; LV-TREtight-Kir-cIRES-GFP5 4 × 109 IU and LV-Syn-Eff-G4BS-Syn-Tetoff 6.2 × 109 IU in a ratio 1:4) were stereotaxically microinjected bilaterally into the PVN. Sham-treated SHRs and WKY received bilateral PVN microinjections of LVV-eGFP (LV-Syn-Eff-G4BS-Syn-Tetoff 6.2 × 109 IU and LV-TREtight-GFP 5.7 × 109 IU in a ratio 1:4). Blood pressure was monitored continuously by radio-telemetry and evaluated over 75 days. Baroreflex gain was evaluated using phenylephrine (25 μg ml−1, i.v.), whereas lobeline (25 μg ml−1, i.v.) was used to stimulate peripheral chemoreceptors. In SHRs but not normotensive WKY rats, LVV-hKir2.1 expression in the PVN produced time-dependent and significant decreases in systolic (from 158 ± 3 to 132 ± 6 mmHg; P < 0.05) and diastolic BP (from 135 ± 4 to 113 ± 5 mmHg; P < 0.05). The systolic BP low-frequency band was reduced (from 0.79 ± 0.13 to 0.42 ± 0.09 mmHg2; P < 0.05), suggesting reduced sympathetic vasomotor tone. Baroreflex gain was increased and peripheral chemoreflex depressed after PVN microinjection of LVV-hKir2.1. We conclude that the PVN plays a major role in long-term control of BP and sympathetic nervous system activity in SHRs. This is associated with reductions in both peripheral chemosensitivity and respiratory-induced sympathetic modulation and an improvement in baroreflex sensitivity. Our results support the PVN as a powerful site to control BP in neurogenic hypertension.

Background/Aims: In a previously described model of isolated rabbit eye, we detected myogenic intrinsic vascular tone of unknown origin in the ophthalmic artery. In order to better understand the origin of these low frequency oscillations, we analyzed their spectral characteristics using fast Fourier. Methods: Hybrid New Zealand rabbits of either sex (n = 24) were used; they were divided into 2 groups according to age. The spectral characteristics of the myogenic behaviour of the rabbit external ophthalmic artery were analyzed using the fast Fourier algorithm. Results: The frequency of the oscillations of the myogenic activity seen in the rabbit external ophthalmic artery varied between 0.033 and 0.066 Hz (mean 0.045 ± 0.012 Hz), all in the region of very low frequency (VLF) oscillations (VLF Conclusion: Fast Fourier analysis proved to be an adequate mathematical tool to analyze the myogenic tone oscillations, which were all in the range of VLF in the model we used. These results indicate that myogenic vascular function of ocular blood flow is composed of VLF oscillations, and they provide a new explanation for the origin of VLF in arterial spectra. They also suggest that the ocular local myogenic vascular function observed is more efficient in younger animals.