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In a first client-focussed section (Part 1), Rosa Maria Riveiro Conde, Andrés Mazaira and Patrício Ricardo Soares Costa surveyed customers of northern Portuguese thermal tourism units about their perceptions of the service quality (Chapter 1.1). Joaquim Antunes then relates the results of a questionnaire he distributed among clients at similar businesses in the centre of Portugal in order to highlight the importance of relationship marketing for the medical and wellness tourism branch (Chapter 1.2). Finally, Mei-Ting Hsieh and Timothy Lee present the outcome of their questionnaire survey, carried out at Taiwanese (thermal or mineral spring) spa destinations to determine the most important motivations of clients, and formulate some changes that should be made with regard to the elaboration of more efficient marketing strategies (Chapter 1.3). Maria João Carneiro, Celeste Eusébio, Elisabeth Kastenholz and Helena Alvelos open the second part that concentrates on result-focussed case studies (Part 2) with their analysis of the socioeconomic impacts of a Portuguese social health tourism program at micro and macro levels in Portugal (Chapter 2.1). Timothy Lee ends his critical analysis of the Australian spa hotel industry with a list of very concrete recommendations that can immediately be implemented by medical and wellness tourism business owners and authorities (Chapter 2.2). He and Boram Lim co-authored and obtained similarly concrete outcomes when comparing the same subsector, spa hotels in Australia, with ryokan facilities in Japan (Chapter 2.3). Also very practical are the results of the innovation-focussed case studies (Part 3). Ana Isabel Renda, Júlio da Costa Mendes and Patrícia Oom do Valle suggest that the wellness potential of the spas at hotels in Loulé (Algarve) should also be used by the residents in order to combat seasonality and increase profitability (Chapter 3.1). Using the example of Ourense, the Galician spa capital, Noelia Araújo Vila and José Antonio Fraiz Brea argue for marketing these kinds of destinations by using them as locations for the making of (parts of) soap opera series, films, and so forth (Chapter 3.2). Jesús Raúl Navarro García and Frederico Alvim stress the potential of the natural surroundings for marketing medical and wellness destinations (Chapter 3.3). Finally, analysing the online information search behaviour of Finnish rural well-being tourists, Anja Tuohino and Juho Pesonen come to very practical conclusions that, like all the case studies presented in this book, can inspire other players in the medical and wellness sector (Chapter 3.4). From the beginning, the organising committee invested a lot of energy in networking, as it was its intention to strengthen relationships between the most diverse stakeholders of the medical and wellness tourism sector in the euroregion Galicia-North of Portugal. Therefore, the list of partners and sponsors is very extensive.1 On the Portuguese side, we would like to mention the municipality of Chaves, AETUR, ADIRBA, CETIES, ADITEC, ULP, ADRAT, AMAT, Turismo de Portugal, Porto e Norte de Portugal, ATP, Centenário do Turismo, FCT, Hotel Casino of Chaves (Solverde), Vidago Palace Hotel (Unicer), Termas de Chaves, Termas de Pedras Salgadas, Termas do Norte de Portugal, AQUATOUR, and the journal Turismo & Desenvolvimento. On the Galician side, we give special thanks to Xunta da Galicia – Secretaria Geral para o Turismo, TurGalicia, University of Vigo (Master of Tourism in Ourense), AEITE, GAL, TermaRed, Termatalia, and Observatorio do Termalismo. At the international level, we could count on the full support of the special interest group ‘Health and Wellness Tourism’ of the Association for Tourism and Leisure Education (ATLAS). Most of the credit, however, must be given to CCDR - Norte, ON2, and EU – FEDER2 who funded the whole event (inclusive of the edition of the book of abstracts, the proceedings and the present book) coded as NORTE-07- 0927-FEDER-000197 – CHAVES 2011 – (From Villes Thermales to) Sustainable Health and Wellness Destinations.

Bipolar disorder (BD) is a debilitating psychiatric disease characterized by alternating episodes of mania and depression. Among mood stabilizers, lithium is the mainstay for the treatment of BD, with approximately one-third of patients showing remission from episode recurrence. While there is evidence suggesting genetic load for lithium response in BD, its molecular underpinnings are still not completely understood. To identify genes potentially involved in (or correlated with) lithium response, we carried out a genome-wide expression analysis on lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs) from 10 BD patients responders (R) and 10 non-responders (NR) to lithium. We compared expression levels of the two groups and tested whether in vitro lithium treatment had different effects in LCLs of R compared to NR. At basal, 2060 genes were differentially expressed between R and NR while no genes were differentially regulated by lithium in the two groups. After pathway analysis based on the 2060 genes, 9 genes were selected for validation with qRT-PCR. Eight genes were validated in the same sample of LCLs while only insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) was significantly over-expressed in R compared to NR in the same sample as well as in an independent sample comprised of 6 R and 6 NR (sample 1, fold change=1.94; p=0.005; sample 2, fold change=2.21; p=0.005). IGF-1 was also significantly over-expressed in R but not in NR when compared to a sample of non-psychiatric controls. Our findings suggest that IGF-1 may be involved in lithium response, supporting further investigation on its potential as a biomarker.

An unequivocal set of procedures for the synthesis of 4-amino-1,5,6,8-tetrahydropyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidine-2,7-diones (7) and 2-amino-3,5,6,8-tetrahydropyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidine-4,7-diones (8), in a maximum of four steps from an α,β-unsaturated ester 1, is reported. Thus, the acid hydrolysis of the 2,4-diaminopyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidines 3 yields the 4-amino-2-oxopyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidines 7 while the cyclization of the Michael adducts 9 (formed by reaction of 1 and methyl cyanoacetate) with guanidine affords the corresponding 2-amino-4-oxopyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidines 8. Both isomers were also obtained by hydrolysis of the 4-amino-2-bromo- and 2-amino-4-bromo-5,6-dihydropyrido[2,3-d]pyrimidin-7(8H)-ones 5 and 6, respectively.

Aim of study: This paper aims to test a participatory methodology to draw parallels and paradoxes as to how some forest sector-related entities and local communities view the Montemuro Mountain forest, namely in terms of its characteristics, the offered opportunities, its problems and the likely solutions for its management as well as the role played by stakeholders, which can be replicated in other case studies and can also facilitate the forest policy making process.Area of study: The Natura 2000 Network “Montemuro Mountain” Site in Portugal.Material and methods: This study combined several consultation and citizen participation techniques.Main results: The perceptions shared by the stakeholders are some similar, others not similar and others still quite paradoxical regarding forest characteristics and the opportunities they offer. The study has shown that it is possible to implement and improve citizen participation methodologies. This can be a viable way towards more effective forest management and fire prevention as this may help blunt conflicts of interest in forest space management. However, for participation to be truly effective and representative, a policy regarding training and awareness of the importance of information is necessary.Research highlights: The stakeholder perceptions on forests and forest management are assessed; forest fires and agrarian abandonment are central for territory’s development; depopulation, old age and absenteeism emphasize degradation of forest areas; Conscious citizen participation benefit policymaking and forest management.Abbreviations used: ZIF: Forest Intervention Zones; GAL: Local Follow-up Group; GTFs: Technical Bureaus of Forestry.

AIM: To analyze the clinical impact of preformed antiHLA-Cw vs antiHLA-A and/or -B donor-specific antibodies (DSA) in kidney transplantation. METHODS: Retrospective study, comparing 12 patients transplanted with DSA exclusively antiHLA-Cw with 23 patients with preformed DSA antiHLA-A and/or B. RESULTS: One year after transplantation there were no differences in terms of acute rejection between the two groups (3 and 6 cases, respectively in the DSA-Cw and the DSA-A-B groups; P = 1). At one year, eGFR was not significantly different between groups (median 59 mL/min in DSA-Cw group, compared to median 51 mL/min in DSA-A-B group, P = 0.192). Moreover, kidney graft survival was similar between groups at 5-years (100% in DSA-Cw group vs 91% in DSA-A-B group, P = 0.528). The sole independent predictor of antibody mediated rejection (AMR) incidence was DSA strength (HR = 1.07 per 1000 increase in MFI, P = 0.034). AMR was associated with shortened graft survival at 5-years, with 75% and 100% grafts surviving in patients with or without AMR, respectively (Log-rank P = 0.005). CONCLUSION: Our data indicate that DSA-Cw are associated with an identical risk of AMR and impact on graft function in comparison with "classical" class I DSA. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Evaluating sustainable development is, at present, an essential prerequisite for promoting sustainable agriculture. The approaches for building sustainable farming systems presented in the next chapters of this book use various methods and procedures to assess the sustainability of farming systems. In that sense, this chapter presents some useful elements regarding those initiatives: Arbre de l’Exploitation Agricole Durable (ARBRE), Framework for the Evaluation of Sustainable Land Management (FESLM), Indicateur de Durabilite des Exploitacions Agricoles (IDEA), Indicator of Sustainable Agricultural Practice (ISAP), Multiscale Methodological Framework (MMF), diagnostic de durabilite du Reseau de l’Agriculture Durable (RAD), Response-Inducing Sustainability Evaluation (RISE), Sustainability Assessment of the Farming and the Environment (SAFE), and the Sustainability Solution Space for Decision Making (SSP) method.

This chapter intends to display the environmental considerations in the evolution of agricultural policies of the European Union. In the initial part, it is stated that the agricultural policies are changing. The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) of the European Union appears as the result of solving the problem for the food decrease production after the Second World War. Nowadays, the CAP primary principles and objectives are changing according to the globalisation and the European environmental concerns. CAP has adjusted to a new reality – the sustainability of the agricultural production. As consequence, the CAP has evolved significantly since 1950 and developed important measures. The common market organisation and other policies including environmental concerns pointed in the MacSharry Reform, the check-health and in the agri-environmental measures appeared as an alternative of the old CAP. The future CAP will have also environmental objectives. CAP will fight against climate changes, supporting employment and growth; promoting the environmental protection and rural development plans and food security; and avoiding global hunger and poverty.

This chapter constitutes an assay of a sustainable farming model for the Montemuro mountain (Portugal), a protected area of Natura 2000 network. The model integrates a strategy to reverse the trend of abandonment of this territory, promotes the conservation of natural values through the active management of traditional systems and needs to be economically viable, socially attractive and conducive to more environmental gains. The planning of the farming system was carried having for base the multiobjective programming (noninferior set estimation method complemented with compromise programming). Two objectives were considered to the mathematical formulation of the model: an economic objective – maximising the gross value added – and the second target regarded the environmental scope, minimising energy costs. As results, it is verified that the balance between the selected objectives was established by the selection of a particular set of vegetable activities and always by selecting bovine of trunk Friesian breed and sheep. Bovines of local breed (Arouquesa) are also an option to consider in most of the situations but in smaller numbers.

Food sufficiency, environmental preservation, socio-economic viability and equity are the major components of sustainable farming. However, establishing the definitions and operational methodologies that enable their application in the decision-making process and in the sustainability assessment processes has proved to be a very difficult task. It is necessary to select, from among the various approaches, the methods of evaluation on which decision-making is based. In this chapter, there are briefly presented the needs for building farming systems enclosed in the main objectives of this book. In the final part of the chapter, the book organization and a short summary of the highlights for each of the chapters focusing on the methodologies used are presented.

In silico screening of a collection of 1584 academic compounds identified a small molecule hit for the human adenosine A(2A) receptor (pK(i) = 6.2) containing a novel chromene scaffold (3a). To explore the structure-activity relationships of this new chemical series for adenosine receptors, a focused library of 43 2H-chromene-3-carboxamide derivatives was synthesized and tested in radioligand binding assays at human adenosine A(1), A(2A), A(2B) and A(3) receptors. The series was found to be enriched with bioactive compounds for adenosine receptors, with 14 molecules showing submicromolar affinity (pK(i) ≥ 6.0) for at least one adenosine receptor subtype. These results provide evidence that the chromene scaffold, a core structure present in natural products from a wide variety of plants, vegetables, and fruits, constitutes a valuable source for novel therapeutic agents.

The first part of this report studies the electrochemical properties of single-crystal platinum electrodes in acetonitrile electrolytes by means of cyclic voltammetry. Potential difference infrared spectroscopy in conjunction with linear voltammetry was used to obtain a molecular-level picture of this interface. The second part of this report studies the hydrogen evolution and the hydrogen oxidation reactions on the three low-index faces of Pt electrodes in acetonitrile electrolytes. The data (CVs and IR spectra) strongly suggest that acetonitrile and CN(-) molecules are adsorbed on single-crystal platinum electrodes in the range of -1.5 to 0.3 V versus Ag/AgCl. Those species block part of the adsorption sites for hydrogen adatoms, and they decompose on the surface in the presence of water. The nature of the cation and the presence of water strongly affect the onset of acetonitrile electrolysis and the kinetics and stability of the adsorbed species on the electrode. Finally, the hydrogen evolution and the hydrogen oxidation reactions on platinum single-crystal surfaces in acetonitrile electrolytes are strongly affected by the surface-energy state of Pt electrodes.

Intramolecular cyclization of iminochromenylpyridinium chlorides (I) in the presence of DABCO provides access to title imidazopyridine-fused chromones (II) in moderate yields.

Dissertação de mestrado em Biologia Celular e Molecular, apresentada ao Departamento Ciências da Vida da Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia da Universidade de Coimbra. A depressão é uma desordem psiquiátrica que representa uma das maiores causas de incapacidade em todo o Mundo, sendo que é caracterizada pelo enfraquecimento da plasticidade neuronal, anormal rede neuronal e, somente em alguns casos, perda celular. No entanto, o mecanismo pelo qual surgem estas alterações neuronais é ainda desconhecido. Os antidepressivos, largamente usados no tratamento de depressão têm como alvo os sistemas de transmissão de monoaminas, inibindo o reuptake destes neurotransmissores restabelecendo a transmissão monoamínica. Apesar de ser verificado um rápido aumento dos níveis de monoaminas com a administração de antidepressivos, o seu efeito terapêutico apenas se torna visível após um longo período. Estudos recentes demonstraram que os antidepressivos podem aumentar os níveis da neurotrofina BDNF antes de ser verificado um aumento do BDNF mRNA, o que sugere um efeito modulador mediado pelos antideprressivos na tradução de BDNF. Tais resultados originaram a hipótese de trabalho que se assenta na possibilidade de uma acção reguladora dos miRNAs na tradução do BDNF. Posto isto, teve-se como objectivo a avaliação do efeito de miRNAs modulados previamente por medicamentos antidepressivos na morfologia e sobrevivência neuronal, e igualmente na tradução de BDNF. Os nossos resultados sugerem que os mir-302b, mir-214 e mir-136 não levam a alterações da morfologia e sobrevivência de neurónios do hipocampo com a sobre- ou subregulação destes miRNAs. A quantificação dos níveis de expressão de BDNF após modulação com os miRNAs mostrou-se de difícil execução; porém, tendo em conta que um número significativo de miRNAs é validado ou previsto para interagir com o gene de BDNF, principalmente na 3’ UTR, foi avaliado o significado funcional do 3’ UTR nas células neuronais. O truncamento da porção longa da 3’ UTR (long 3’ UTR) resultou numa diminuição do comprimento dendrítico total a 6 e 12 DIV embora nenhuma alteração tenha sido verificada no número de dendrites primárias e secundárias. Para além disso, foi visível uma diminuição do número de espículas “mushroom” em regiões distais de neurónios maduros e uma menor percentagem de colocalização entre PSD-95 e SynI a 6, 9 e 12 DIV. Finalmente, os resultados obtidos mostram que a ausência de transcriptos BDNF com o “long 3’UTR” não têm um pronunciado efeito na forma dos neurónios mas são sim os responsáveis por um défice no comprimento dendrítico total, assim como na maturação sináptica e conectividade. Estas evidências podem ser importantes para entender o papel dos miRNAs na recuperação da depressão. Tendo em conta que não foram observadas alterações morfológicas com um único miRNA pode ser possível que a regulação da tradução de BDNF requira a acção de múltiplos miRNAs na regulação dos dois tipos de transcriptos de BDNF (short 3’ UTR e long 3’ UTR). Esta regulação diferencial pode ser analisada por um controlo detalhado da maturação sináptica e sua actividade em condições fisiológicas e patológicas. Depression is a mood disorder, which represents one of the major causes of disability of people worldwide. The major features of this disorder are the neuronal plasticity impairment, abnormal neuronal network and in some case a cell loss but the mechanism whereby they occur is still not fully understood. Antidepressant drugs, a common choice for depression treatment, target monoamine neurotransmitters systems decreasing serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake and consequently, promoting the restoring of the monoamine neurotransmission. Although a fast increase in monoamine levels with antidepressant administration, the therapeutic effects takes longer to be visible. Recent studies found that antidepressant drugs can increase the neurotrophin BDNF expression even before the rise of BDNF mRNA transcription, suggesting that they can potentiate postregulation of BDNF. These results have raised the working hypothesis of a role of miRNAs modulated by antidepressants in the BDNF gene regulation. With this purpose, we have evaluated the effect of miRNAs modulated by antidepressant treatment in the neuronal morphology and survival as well as their effect on BDNF expression. Our results suggest that mir-302b, mir-214 and mir-136 do not cause morphological changes in neuronal morphology and survival since the up- or downregulation do not represented a differential morphological behavior. Measurements of BDNF expression levels modulating miRNAs were challenging; however, as many miRNAs are putative or validated targets for BDNF gene, mostly in the 3’UTR, it was evaluated the meaning of the 3’ UTR long for neuronal cells. Truncation of the long 3’ UTR BDNF led to a decrease of the total dendritic length at 6 and 12 DIV although the number of primary and dendrites remained unaltered. Moreover, it was visible a lower number of mushroom spines at distal fields of matured neurons and a lower percentage of colocalization with PDS-95 and Syn I at 6, 9 and 12 DIV. Taken together, the results shows that the absence of BDNF transcripts with the long 3’UTR (BDNFlox mice) do not have major impact on neuronal shape but rather a deficit in the total dendritic length and impairment of the synaptic maturation and connectivity. These evidences may be important to understand the role of the miRNAs on depression´s recovery. Since was not observed a neuronal morphological change acting on single miRNAs it may be possible that the BDNF translational regulation requires multiple miRNAs and translation factors acting in a cooperative but specific manner on the two populations of BDNF (BDNF 3’UTR short, BDNF 3’UTR long). This differential regulation can be underlined by detailed control of the synaptic maturation and activity in physiological and pathological conditions.

In this paper the preparation and purification of an amorphous polymer network, poly[oxymethylene-oligo(oxyethylene)], designated as aPEO, are described. The flexible CH2CH2O segments in this host polymer combine appropriate mechanical properties, over a critical temperature range from -20 to 60 ºC, with labile salt-host interactions. The intensity of these interactions is sufficient to permit solubilization of the guest salt in the host polymer while permitting adequate mobility of ionic guest species. We also report the preparation and characterization of a novel polymer electrolyte based on this host polymer with lithium tetrafluoroborate, LiBF4, as guest salt. Electrolyte samples are thermally stable up to approximately 250 ºC and completely amorphous above room temperature. The electrolyte composition determines the glass transition temperature of electrolytes and was found to vary between –50.8 and –62.4 ºC. The electrolyte composition that supports the maximum room temperature conductivity of this electrolyte system is n = 5 (2.10×10-5 S cm-1 at 25 ºC). The electrochemical stability domain of the sample with n = 5 spans about 5 V measured against a Li/Li+ reference. This new electrolyte system represents a promising alternative to LiCF3SO3 and LiClO4-doped PEO analogues., Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia

A first group of articles focuses (1) on the recovery of the landscape and the river Guadaíra (Andaluzia) in the surroundings of and together with the Pozo Amargo spa resort (Jesús Raúl Navarro García e Frederico Alvim); (2) on the use of soap operas to promote spa tourism in Ourense (Galicia) (Noelia Araújo Vila and José Antonio Fraiz Brea); (3) on highlighting the role of developmental stimulator in the spa sector, using the recent Galician experience in the field as an example (Noelia Araújo Vila e José Antonio Fraiz Brea); (4) on the transformation of Castelo Novo into a spa tourism product (António Costa Gonçalves) and (5) on the evolution of Spanish and Portuguese wellness-oriented hydrotherapy in the last decades (Josep Sánchez Ferré). A second group of articles focuses on examples outside the Iberian Peninsula. Iulia Scarlat studies the growth of one of the oldest baths in Europe, those of Băile Herculane (Romania). Anna Petropoulou compares Greek regions with and without spas and concludes that there is a strong correlation between local economic growth and tourist destinations with centuries-old baths. Anja Tuohino and Juho Pesonen show how Finns interested in experiencing health and wellness moments in rural areas search for tourist information on-line. Timothy Jeongl Yeol Lee argues that Australia’s spa resort industry can be strengthened - cooperatively – with joint planning according to rules agreed to by every stakeholder. The same author and Boram Lim compare Japanese ryokan and Australian spa resorts, focusing on lodging aspects. The third group of articles begins with an analysis of the largest Portuguese programme for social spa tourism for the elderly in the decade of 1997 to 2007, organized by INATEL by a team from the University of Aveiro, composed of Maria João Carneiro, Eusébio Celeste, Kastenholz Elisabeth and Helena Alvelos. Another quantitative approach is the one by Carlos Marques and Isa Gonçalves from the University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro. From a case study at a spa in the Algarve they deduce that the most important factor for a satisfactory spa experience is relaxation, whereas the most satisfied clients had an “enthusiastic experience”. Five colleagues from Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Javad Bagheri, HJH van den Berg-Emons, JJM Pel, HLD Horemans and HJ Stam use three devices to measure the effects of whole body vibration in muscular performance and do not register any significant difference between them as far as Jump Force and Jump Rate of Force Development. The group ends with what it started with: a case study about senior spa tourism. This was conducted by Mei-Ting Hsieh and Jeongl Timothy Yeol Lee in Taiwan in the attempt to discover what motivates elderly tourists into visiting certain spas or not. The fourth group of articles starts with an analysis of the thermal bath cluster in Galicia by Miguel Loureiro and Pedro Gonzalez-Figueroa Dorrego. They identify 14 key factors for the success of a cluster initiative and highlight the importance of intellectual capital. Rosa Maria Riveiro Conde, Andrés Mazaira and Patrício Ricardo Soares Costa apply the SERVPERF scale to the spa sector in Northern Portugal to measure the perceived service quality. By using other quantitative techniques Pablo Carlos Villamarin and Maria Elisa Alén González prove that Galician health and wellness organizations (thermal baths, spas and thalassotherapy) define clear differentiation strategies. Joaquim Gonçalves Antunes applies the quota sampling process to the spa goers of the Dão-Lafões region, in order to measure their level of loyalty. Three investigators from the University of Vigo, José Álvarez Garcia, José Antonio Fraiz Brea and Maria de la Cruz del Rio Rama, analyse what obstacles need to be overcome by Spanish bathing resorts in the deployment and certification of a Quality Management System. The fifth and final part opens with a case study in Loulé, Algarve, by Ana Isabel Renda, Júlio da Costa Mendes and Patrícia Oom do Valle. Its results show the growing interest of hotels in promoting spas to some segments of residents and, also, those residents’ reluctance to take advantage of the offer in the environment in question. Roos Gerritsma and Xavier Puertas ask what part yoga plays in attracting Dutch (yoga) tourists to Barcelona and Spanish (yoga) tourists to Amsterdam, the yoga capital of the Netherlands. Roos Gerritsma joined Angelique Lombarts to present the first phase of the research project “Preventive Wellness, also in the Netherlands” whose main objective is to specify the ideal preventive wellness experience for Dutch spas. Einar Svansson uses a case study at the Blue Lagoon, Iceland, to confirm that we can learn more about a spa destination, by reconstructing its history from the point of view of its lead users. Three Romanian investigators Dragica Tomka, Vladimir Holodkov and Romana Romanov, built a model that correlates 3 factors: (1) innovation management with its own principles, (2) change management, focusing on improving wellness and quality of life and (3) the sustainable local development in regions that have natural resources for wellness purposes. They aim to use this model to monitor and improve how the three areas in question interrelate in a given region. Um primeiro bloco de artigos focaliza (1) na recuperação da paisagem e do rio Guadaíra (Andaluzia) nos arredores das e em conjunto com o balneário Pozo Amargo (Jesús Raúl Navarro García e Frederico Alvim); (2) no aproveitamento de telenovelas para promover o turismo termal em Ourense (Galiza) (Noelia Araújo Vila e José Antonio Fraiz Brea); (3) em destacar o papel de motor de desenvolvimento do sector termal, realçando a vivência galega recente nesta área (Noelia Araújo Vila e José Antonio Fraiz Brea); (4) na transformação de Castelo Novo em produto turístico termal (António Costa Gonçalves) e (5) na evolução do termalismo lúdico espanhol e português nas últimas décadas (Josep Sánchez Ferré). Um segundo grupo de artigos concentra-se em exemplos fora da península ibérica. Iulia Scarlat avalia a evolução de umas das mais antíguas termas europeias, as de Băile Herculane (Romania). Anna Petropoulou compara regiões gregas com e sem spas e conclui que existe uma forte relação entre o crescimento económico local e destinos turísticos com termas centenárias. Anja Tuohino e Juho Pesonen controlam como finlandeses interessados em passar momentos de saúde e bem-estar em áreas rurais procuram informações turísticas on-line. Timothy Jeongl Yeol Lee argumenta que a indústria hoteleira (unidades com spa) da Austrália pode ser reforçada por um planeamento cooperativo que envolve todos os stakeholders. O mesmo autor e Boram Lim comparam ryokan japoneses e hotéis spa australianos, concentrando-se em aspetos ligados ao alojamento. O terceiro aglomerado de artigos começa por uma análise da década 1997/2007 do maior programa português de turismo social e termal para idosos, organizado pelo INATEL por uma equipe da Universidade de Aveiro, composta por Maria João Carneiro, Eusébio Celeste, Kastenholz Elisabeth e Helena Alvelos. Outra abordagem quantitativa é a de Carlos Marques e Isa Gonçalves da Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro. Deduzem a partir de um estudo de caso num spa algarvio que o relaxamento é a condição básica para uma experiência de spa satisfatória, enquanto os clientes mais satisfeitos tiveram uma “experiência entusiasmante”. Cinco colegas de Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Javad Bagheri, HJH van den Berg-Emons, JJM Pel, HLD Horemans e HJ Stam medem com três dispositivos os efeitos da vibração de corpo inteiro no desempenho muscular e notam nenhuma diferença significativa entre eles quanto a Jump Force e Jump Rate of Force Development. O bloco termina com o que começou: um estudo de caso sobre o turismo termal sénior. Este foi conduzido por Mei-Ting Hsieh e Jeongl Timothy Yeol Lee em Taiwan no sentido de descobrir o que motiva turistas idosos para visitar ou não certos spas. O quarto conjunto de artigos é iniciado por uma análise do cluster termal da Galiza por Miguel Loureiro e Pedro Gonzalez-Figueroa Dorrego. Identificam 14 fatores-chave para o sucesso de uma iniciativa de cluster e destacam a importância do capital intelectual. Rosa Maria Riveiro Conde, Andrés Mazaira e Patrício Ricardo Soares Costa aplicam a escala SERVPERF ao setor termal do norte de Portugal para avaliar a qualidade de serviço percebida. Recorrendo a outras técnicas quantitativas Pablo Carlos Villamarin e Maria Elisa Alén González comprovam que os estabelecimentos de saúde e bem-estar galegos (termas, spas e centros de talassoterapia) definem claramente estratégias de diferenciação. Joaquim Gonçalves Antunes aplica o processo de amostragem por quotas aos aquistas da região Dão-Lafões, a fim de medir o seu grau de fidelidade. Três investigadores da Universidade de Vigo, José Álvarez Garcia, José Antonio Fraiz Brea e Maria de la Cruz del Rio Rama, analisam quais os obstáculos a serem superados por balneários espanhóis no processo de implementação e certificação de um Sistema de Gestão de Qualidade. A quinta e última parte abre com um estudo de caso em Loulé, Algarve, da autoria de Ana Isabel Renda, Júlio da Costa Mendes e Patrícia Oom do Valle. Os resultados mostram o crescente interesse da hotelaria em promover os spa’s a alguns segmentos de residentes, e, simultaneamente, a relutância destes em deslocar-se para aproveitar tal oferta em tal ambiente. Roos Gerritsma e Xavier Puertas perguntam-se qual o papel do yoga em atrair turistas (yoga) holandeses a Barcelona e turistas (yoga) espanhóis a Amsterdam, a cidade yoga por excelência dos Países Baixos. Roos Gerritsma juntou-se à Angelique Lombarts para apresentar a primeira fase do projeto de investigação “Preventive Wellness, also in the Netherlands” cujo objetivo principal é indicar a experiência de bem-estar preventiva ideal para os spas holandeses. Einar Svansson aproveita-se de um estudo de caso no Blue Lagoon, Islândia, para comprovar que podemos conhecer melhor um destino termal, reconstruindo a sua história da perspetiva dos lead users. São três investigadores romenos, Dragica Tomka, Vladimir Holodkov e Romana Romanov, que construíram um modelo que correlaciona 3 fatores: (1) a gestão inovadora com os seus próprios princípios, (2) a gestão da mudança, focando a melhoria do bem-estar e da qualidade de vida e (3) o desenvolvimento local sustentável em regiões que possuem recursos naturais para fins de bem-estar. Querem utilizar este modelo para monitorizar e melhorar o inter-relacionamento entre as três áreas em questão numa dada região. Most of the credit must be given to CCDR - Norte, ON2, and EU – FEDER2 who funded the whole event (inclusive of the edition of the book of abstracts, the proceedings and the present book) coded as NORTE-07-0927-FEDER-000197 – CHAVES 2011 – (From Villes Thermales to) Sustainable Health and Wellness Destinations. Two research centres of the University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro – the Centre for Transdisciplinary Development Studies (CETRAD) and the Centre for Research in Sports Sciences, Health and Human Development (CIDESD) were responsible for the organisation. From the beginning, the organizing committee invested a lot of energy in networking, as it was its intention to strengthen relationships between the most diverse stakeholders of the medical and wellness tourism sector in the euroregion Galicia-North of Portugal. Therefore, the list of partners and sponsors is very extensive. On the Portuguese side, we would like to mention the municipality of Chaves, AETUR, ADIRBA, CETIES, ADITEC, ULP, ADRAT, AMAT, Turismo de Portugal, Porto e Norte de Portugal, ATP, Centenario do Turismo, FCT, Hotel Casino of Chaves (Solverde), Vidago Palace Hotel (Unicer), Termas de Chaves, Termas de Pedras Salgadas, Termas do Norte de Portugal, AQUATOUR, and the journal Turismo & Desenvolvimento. On the Galician side, we give special thanks to Xunta da Galicia – Secretaria Geral para o Turismo, TurGalicia, University of Vigo (Master of Tourism in Ourense), AEITE, GAL, TermaRed, Termatalia, and Observatorio do Termalismo. At the international level, we could count on the full support of the special interest group ‘Health and Wellness Tourism’of the Association for Tourism and Leisure Education (ATLAS).

The literature presents different methods for quantifying and characterizing partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamide (HPAM) in solution. However, only a few of these are suitable for determining the critical overlap concentration (C \ ). The evaluation of C \ is impor- tant for describing the transition from the dilute to the semidilute regime, that is, when the solution depicts a characteristic viscosity at concentrations above C \ . This article describes the determination of C \ for HPAM in solution by potentiometry. The molecular weight, degree of hydrolysis, and polymerization degree are determined by mathematical manipulation of the constant of formation of aggre- gates, which is based on the law of mass action. The potentiometric curves were initially linear; asymptotic behavior followed. The inflec- tion point was determined by the intersection, and the resulting equation of mathematical development statistically satisfied the experi- mental data and described the number of moles of monomers, the equilibrium constant for the formation of the aggregate, C \ , and the acidity constant of the polymer. The results for C \ , the degree of copolymerization, and the molecular weight proved that this method is a good alternative for the characterization of polymers with ionizable monomers and that are soluble in water. V C 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 000: 000-000, 2012

Aims: Bipolar disorder (BD) is a lifelong psychiatric illness characterized by manic and depressive episodes affecting 1–5% of the general population. Among mood-stabilizing treatments, lithium represents the mainstay in the therapeutic management of BD. However, besides the relatively high rate of excellent responders, a significant fraction of patients present patterns of partial or nonresponse to lithium. This variability might be influenced by genetic factors, even though findings have so far been inconclusive. Here, we present the results of an exploratory genome-wide scan followed by extended genotyping carried out on a sample of 204 Sardinian BD patients characterized for lithium response. Materials & methods: Phenotypic assessment of lithium response was made using the retrospective criteria of long-term treatment response scale. Using Affymetrix® 6.0 SNP arrays, we genotyped a subsample of 52 BD patients evenly distributed at the extreme ends of the treatment response scale. The associated SNPs were then prioritized and selected for validation and extended genotyping in the whole sample of BD patients characterized for lithium response. Association was also tested using the scale for a quantitative trait analysis. Results: Our findings showed that several SNPs were nominally associated (p ≤ 10-5) with lithium response in the subgroup of 52 BD subjects. Some association signals were then confirmed in the extended sample. The strongest association, also supported by the quantitative trait analysis, was shown for a SNP located in intron 1 of the ACCN1 gene, encoding for a cation channel with high affinity for sodium and permeable to lithium. Conclusion: Our results indicate that ACCN1 gene is a potential candidate for response to lithium treatment that would serve as a genetic marker of lithium efficacy for BD patients. Original submitted 13 May 2011; Revision submitted 12 July 2011

2-Aryl-1,9-dihydrochromeno[3,2-d]imidazoles were prepared by a one-pot cascade reaction involving salicylaldehydes and arylideneaminoacetonitriles. These novel compounds were isolated in 11–95% yield after reflux in ethanol and triethylamine. A dimeric structure was also identified and partially evolved to the tricyclic product in DMSO solution, according to an evolution study by 1H NMR spectroscopy.

Dipyridinium dichloride (I) and α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds give under optimized conditions in the presence of an excess of NaOAc the title compounds in a highly regioselective manner.

A one-pot procedure was developed for the synthesis of novel 3-[amino(methoxy)methylene]-2-oxo-3,4-dihydro-2H-chromen-4-yl)-3-cyanoacetamides and chromeno[3,4-c]pyridine-1-carbonitriles from the reaction of 2-oxo-2H-chromene-3-carbonitriles and cyanoacetamides. These chromene derivatives were identified as new scaffolds for adenosine receptors and the hits 3a, 3c, 5a, and 5b were found.

Alkaline Bacillus subtilis protease catalyzed the synthesis of a biosurfactant derived from castor oil by esterification between ricinoleic acid and D-glucose in organic media using N,N- dimethylformamide as solvent. This mixture was kept under constant agitation at 60 °C. The conditions of enzymatic synthesis had been optimized before, with a maximum yield of 60% in 48 hours of D-glucose esters of long chain. Afterwards, the product obtained (Biosurfactant) was purified and characterized by different analytical techniques. This product reduced the water surface tension from 72 mN/m to 30 mN/m at room temperature and neutral pH. The purified biosurfactant was very stable over a broad range of pHs (2 – 12) and temperatures (25 – 100 °C). Besides, it showed a great solubility and stability in saline conditions (50 – 115 g/L). Aforementioned results suggest that D-glucose ester obtained can be efficiently used as a tensoactive agent, remaining stable under all conditions studied, thereby allowing its use as an emulsifier and/or lubricant in downstream processes of the petroleum industry, representing, therefore, a alternative for conventional surfactants.

The A, B, and AB feline blood types are recognized worldwide and their frequencies vary geographically and among breeds. Frequencies of feline blood types have been reported previously from northern Portugal; however, they are unknown in other parts of the country.This 13-year retrospective study was undertaken to determine the frequency of feline blood types in domestic shorthair (DSH) cats from the Lisbon area of central Portugal.Blood samples were obtained at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital of the Technical University of Lisbon and its Veterinary Blood Bank and at several veterinary clinics in the Lisbon area. Blood-typing was performed by the classical agglutination assay or using a cartridge assay.The study population comprised 515 DSH cats of both sexes and various ages. Frequencies of blood types A, B, and AB were 97.5%, 2.1%, and 0.4%, respectively.As in other parts of the world, this study showed a clear predominance of type-A cats in the Lisbon area of Portugal.

Mouse liver glutathione transferase P1-1 has three cysteine residues at positions 14, 47 and 169. We have constructed the single, double and triple cysteine to alanine mutants to define the behaviour of all three thiols. We confirm that C47 is the 'fast' thiol (pK 7.4), and define C169 as the alkaline reactive residue with a pKa of 8.6. Only a small proportion of C14 is reactive with 5,5′-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenoic acid) (DTNB) at pH 9 in the C47A/C169A double mutant. The native enzyme and the C169A mutant exhibited Michaelis-Menten kinetics, but all other thiol to alanine mutants exhibited sigmoidal kinetics to varying degrees. The C169A mutant exhibited 'ping pong' kinetics, consistent with a mechanism whereby liberation of a proton from a reduced enzyme-glutathione (GSH) complex to form an enzyme-GS- (unprotonated) complex is essentially irreversible. Intriguingly, similar behaviour has recently been reported for a mutant of the yeast prion Ure2p. This cooperative behaviour is 'mirrored' in the crystal structure of the C47A mutant, which binds the p-nitrobenzyl moiety of p-nitrobenzyglutathione in distinct orientations in the two crystallographic subunits. The asymmetry seen in this structure for product binding is associated with absence of a water molecule W0 in the standard wild-type conformation of product binding that is clearly identifiable in the new structure, which may represent a structural model for binding of incoming GSH prior to displacement of W0. Elimination of W0 as a hydroxonium ion may be the mechanism for the initial proton extrusion from the active site. © 2010 FEBS., This study was supported by the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (grants BFU2008-02372 ⁄BMC, PET 2007_0319_03, BFU2005-24122-E and CSD2006-23 to M.C.), the Generalitat de Catalunya (grant 2009 SGR 1309 to M.C.), the European Union (LSHG-CT-2006-031220) and the Health Research Board of Ireland (HRB 144 ⁄ 96).

s and Program of the International Conference “Sustainable Health and Wellness Destinations” Resumos e programa da Conferência Internacional “Destinos de saúde e bem-estar sustentáveis” From the beginning, the organising committee invested a lot of energy in networking, as it was its intention to strengthen relationships between the most diverse stakeholders of the medical and wellness tourism sector in the euroregion Galicia-North of Portugal. Therefore, the list of partners and sponsors is very extensive.1 On the Portuguese side, we would like to mention the municipality of Chaves, AETUR, ADIRBA, CETIES, ADITEC, ULP, ADRAT, AMAT, Turismo de Portugal, Porto e Norte de Portugal, ATP, Centenário do Turismo, FCT, Hotel Casino of Chaves (Solverde), Vidago Palace Hotel (Unicer), Termas de Chaves, Termas de Pedras Salgadas, Termas do Norte de Portugal, AQUATOUR, and the journal Turismo & Desenvolvimento. On the Galician side, we give special thanks to Xunta da Galicia – Secretaria Geral para o Turismo, TurGalicia, University of Vigo (Master of Tourism in Ourense), AEITE, GAL, TermaRed, Termatalia, and Observatorio do Termalismo. At the international level, we could count on the full support of the special interest group ‘Health and Wellness Tourism’ of the Association for Tourism and Leisure Education (ATLAS). Most of the credit, however, must be given to CCDR - Norte, ON2, and EU – FEDER2 who funded the whole event (inclusive of the edition of the book of abstracts, the proceedings and the present book) coded as NORTE-07- 0927-FEDER-000197 – CHAVES 2011 – (From Villes Thermales to) Sustainable Health and Wellness Destinations.

In a context of growing global threats, from climate change, the depletion and degradation of natural resources, to the recent global economic crisis, consequences of short and long term are being witnessed, which undermine the agriculture sustainability. The systems vulnerability, their inability to resilience and the need for innovation is observed, emphasizing also the most capable systems (more sustainable), offering new opportunities and encouraging more environmentally friendly practices. This work takes as starting point the evolution of economic, environmental and social parameters in farms, in recent years, in order to try to identify the difficulties and the solutions capable of sustaining agriculture in the context of multiple hazards at the farm level. The main methodology focuses on inquiries to the responsible agents for developing the main agriculture activities held in Trás-os-Montes, including farmers and their associations. The results confirm the dependence of production factors outside the farm, the limited availability and the high cost of manpower, the weakness of marketing channels and the poor organization of the sector as the main problems. Effective responses to these situations are the opportunities of the activities under study: (a) establishment of an organized marketing circuit, (b) strengthening of mutual help between farms, (c) collective use of inputs, (d) use of environmentally friendly production practices, (e) self-use of products produced on the farm, strengthening their autonomy. This work proposes the society valuation for different levels of agriculture intensity, through discrete choices methodology, to identify the real importance that society attributes to the agrarian activity.

Unprecedented cascade condensation/cyclization reaction of salicyl aldehydes and substituted 1-(cyanomethyl) pyridinium chlorides affords the desired tetracyclic products.

Tese de Doutoramento em Psicologia - Ramo do Conhecimento de Psicologia Experimental e Ciências Cognitivas, Esta tese teve como objectivo central estudar o papel que a imaginação assume na memória para acções. Para tal, realizámos duas experiências onde manipulámos a imaginação em relação ao movimento e ao objecto implicados nas TAP. Em ambas as experiências, utilizámos o mesmo tipo de procedimento, que permitiu a comparação entre diferentes condições TAP e TV, medidas numa prova de evocação livre imediata. Os resultados do Estudo 1 confirmaram os dois efeitos principais movimento e objecto, embora não tenhamos encontrado interacção entre as variáveis. Por outro lado, os resultados revelaram que a superioridade das TAP em relação às TV (efeito TAP) não se verificou numa das condições experimentais, na qual eram introduzidos objectos reais na TV. Quando comparámos os grupos de TAP verificámos que o desempenho parece estar relacionado com o número de pistas envolvidas. Numa tentativa de esclarecer esta e outras questões levantadas pelo Estudo 1, realizámos uma segunda experiência (Estudo 2) onde controlámos a variável visão (ou seja, o acesso visual aos movimentos e objectos envolvidos nas tarefas de codificação). Os resultados revelaram que o controlo da variável visão interfere negativamente com o objecto, evidenciando a importância das pistas visuais dos objectos envolvidas no momento de codificação (Bäckman e Nilsson, 1984, 1985). O facto de não termos encontrado interacção entre as variáveis movimento e objecto em ambos os estudos parece revelar que nenhuma das duas variáveis desempenha um papel mais relevante do que a outra nas TAP (Kormi-Nouri, 1995). Esta conclusão aponta para a necessidade de abandonarmos um debate dicotómico entre a importância do movimento versus objecto, e de um maior investimento no estudo de outras variáveis passíveis de interferir neste tipo de memória, tais como as que nos propusemos analisar nesta tese, nomeadamente, a imaginação e a visão., This thesis had, as a central objective, the study of the role that the imagination assumes in the memory for actions. For such, we carried out two experiments where we manipulated the imagination regarding the movement and the object implicated in the TAP. In both experiments we used the same type of procedure, which allowed the comparison between different conditions TAP and TV, measured in a free recall test. The results of Experiment 1 confirmed the two main effects movement and object, even though we have not found interaction between the variables. On the other side, the results revealed that the superiority of the TAP regarding the TV (effect TAP), did not happen in one of the experimental conditions, in which real objects were introduced in the TV condition. When we compared the groups of TAP we checked that the performance appears to be connected with the number of involved traces. In an attempt of clarifying this and other questions raised by Experiment 1, we carried out a second experiment where we controlled the variable vision (in other words, the visual access to the movements and objects involved in the tasks of codification). The results showed that the control of the variable vision interferes negatively with the object, showing up the importance of the visual traces of the objects involved at the moment of codification (Bäckman e Nilsson, 1984, 1985). The fact of not having found interaction between the variables movement and object in both studies, it seems to reveal that none of the two variables performs a role more relevant than the other one in the TAP (Kormi-Nouri, 1995). This conclusion promotes the necessity of abandoning a dichotomous discussion between the importance of the movement versus object, and of a bigger investment in the study of other variables that can be susceptible of interfering in this type of memory, such as the ones we propose to analyse in this theory, namely, the imagination and the vision., Doutoramento foi financiado pela FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (ref. – SFRH / BD / 17473 / 2004), no âmbito do POCI 2010 Formação Avançada para a Ciência – Medida IV.3.

Bipolar disorder (BD) is a highly heterogeneous and heritable psychiatric illness. Age at onset has been shown to be a powerful tool for dissecting both the phenotypic and genetic complexity of BD. In this article, we present findings from an association study between the DRD2 TaqIA polymorphism and age at onset, showing that both alleles and genotypes at this locus associate with early onset BD.

Reduction of the α,β-unsaturated ester moiety of (+)-methyl hardwickiate with magnesium in methanol afforded methyl (4aS,6S,8aS,1R,5R)-5,6,8a-trimethyl-5-[2′-(3″-oxoyl)-ethyl-perhydro-1-naphthalenyl]-carboxaylate, while reduction with sodium in n-propanol, followed by esterification with diazomethane, furnished its C-4 epimer. After comparison of the 1 H - and 13 C -NMR data of these compounds with those reported for crolechinic acid isolated from Croton lechleri, a stereochemical revision for the natural product is suggested.

The objective of this work is to identify the effects (economic, environmental and social) of the economic crisis in agrarian activity at the farm level, focused on farms with the goat livestock of Bravia breed, and to identify the mechanisms/actions/innovations developed by these farms, in order to their survival, as the created opportunities that can sustain them. The methodology focuses on surveys to farmers who hold different levels of livestock heads, in order to measure the evolution of economic, social and environmental indicators before the economic crisis and at the current scenario. The aim is also carry out a SWOT analysis of these systems. In a global view is observed none or little impact of the economic crisis in the studied herds. The high mortality rate, the need of constant labor and the dependence of farmers in farmers' cooperative for most of the purposes are the main weaknesses found on these production systems. Effective responses to these situations reveal themselves as the main opportunities of the activity under study.

Syntheses of three enantiomers of natural hydroxybutenolide diterpenes, 16,18-dihydroxycleroda-3,13Z-dien-16,15-olide (4), (+)-16-hydroxycleroda-3,13Z-dien-16,15-olide (5), and (-)-16-hydroxyhalima-5(10),13Z-dien-16,15-olide (6), via a furan photosensitized oxygenation reaction of (+)-hardwickiic acid (2), are described.

A series of new 2-imino-2H-chromene-3-carboxamides 5 were synthesized in excellent yield and high atom economy by the Knoevenagel condensation of salicylaldehyde derivatives 4 and N-substituted cyanoacetamides 3 using aqueous sodium carbonate or hydrogen carbonate solution, at room temperature. Treatment of compounds 5 with aqueous HCl led to the formation of the corresponding 2-oxochromenes 6.

Tese de mestrado, Biologia (Microbiologia Aplicada), 2009, Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Ciências Nível de preservação: critical, Criado em: 2010-03-19 18:30:05, Criado por: creator:LSARAM, Alterado em: 2010-03-23 15:45:47, Modificado por: super:LSARAM Made available in DSpace on 2010-07-28T16:13:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 21619_ulfc080739_tm.pdf: 552592 bytes, checksum: fba67112671446680bcce20f34020a99 (MD5) 21619.xml: 9805 bytes, checksum: 035f4fe18da522cb23a34475d1092a06 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009

Background: Measurement of C-peptide under standardized conditions provides a sensitive and well-established assessment of β-cell function. We describe the analytical and clinical validation of an automated, microparticle-based chemiluminescent immunoassay method. The assay is designed to measure C-peptide in human serum, plasma and urine. Methods: Assay performance characteristics such as precision and recovery were measured according to protocols established by the Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI). A reference range study was conducted. Analytical sensitivity and specificity, interfering substances, recovery, and linearity studies were performed. Method comparison, against the ADVIA Centaur C-Peptide assay (Siemens), was evaluated with clinical specimens from patients with abnormal insulin secretion. Results: The detection limit for this assay was 0.01 ng/mL. Functional sensitivity (inter-assay imprecision ≤20%) was 0.015 ng/mL at a coefficient of variation (%CV) of 11.2%. Total imprecision was below 6.5% CV. The assay was linear upon dilution. Comparison with the ADVIA Centaur C-Peptide assay yielded a correlation coefficient (r) of 0.99. Conclusions: The ARCHITECT C-Peptide assay measures C-peptide rapidly, accurately, and precisely in human serum, plasma and urine. It provides useful improvements for β-cell function testing and for evaluating the clinical status of a patient in combination with other diabetes markers. Clin Chem Lab Med 2009;47:834–41.

The reaction of salicylic aldehydes with malononitrile was reinvestigated, and the reaction pathway was followed by 1H NMR spectroscopy. A delicate control of the experimental conditions allowed the synthesis of 2-imino-2H-chromene-3-carbonitriles 1, (2-amino-3-cyano-4H-chromen-4-yl)malononitriles 2, 4-amino-5-imino-2,7-dimethoxy-5H-chromeno[3,4-c]pyridine-1-carbonitrile 12, and (4,5-diamino-1-cyano-1,10b-dihydro-2H-chromeno[3,4-c]pyridin-2-ylidene)malononitrile 13. Two novel 2-iminochromene dimers, with structures 8 and 9, were isolated and fully characterized. The activity of compound 8a on Aspergillus spp. growth and on ochratoxin A production was evaluated. The results of the bioassays indicate that compound 8a, applied at concentrations of 2 mM, totally inhibited the growth of the fungi tested. Ochratoxin A production by Aspergillus alliaceus was reduced by about 93% with a 200 microM solution of this compound. A moderate inhibitory effect was observed for the analogous structure 8b, and no inhibition was registered for compounds 2 and 1, used as synthetic precursors of the dimeric species 8.

Currently, agricultural farm units are faced with a double and most times contradictory challenge, in order to be successful: on the one hand the invested capital has to be profitable and the economic performance has to be maximised. On the other hand, given the socio-environmental situation, it is necessary to preserve and to protect the environment and natural resources. Given the potential conflict of the two aims, since the satisfaction of one implies the underperformance of the other (and vice versa), the question then is: which is the solution to choose? We intend, in this work, to formulate a farm plan with the purpose of reconciling the criteria of environmental sustainability with that of economic competitiveness. For this achievement we proceed to the comparative study of sustainability of different groups of farms identified in the study area (first evaluation cycle) through MESMIS (“Marco para la Evaluación de Sistemas de Manejo de Recursos Naturales Mediante Indicadores de Sustentabilidad” - Framework for Evaluation of Natural-Resource Systems Handling through Sustainability Indicators) methodology, that allowed to select the more sustainable group of farms. Based on the found potentialities and weakness on these production systems, we stepped to the planning of a production unit of bovine meat, which obeys simultaneously to economic and environmental objectives, using Multicriteria Decision. We finished the work with the sustainability evaluation between groups of farms identified previously and the planned farms (second evaluation cycle), based, again, in the MESMIS methodology, to confirm (or not) the greatest sustainability of the last ones. Analyses of the results allow us to confirm the greatest relative sustainability of the planned farm, for the diverse traced scenarios.

The activity on Aspergillus spp. growth and on ochratoxin A production of two novel chromene dimers (3) was evaluated. The results of the bioassays indicate that the chromene dimer 3a inhibited mycelia growth by approximately 50% (EC50) at 140.1 μmol L−1 for A. niger, 384.2 μmol L−1 for A. carbonarius, 69.1 μmol L−1 for A. alliaceus and 559.1 μmol L−1 for A. ochraceus. When applied at concentrations of 2 mmol L−1, 3a totally inhibited the growth of all Aspergillus spp. tested. Furthermore, ochratoxin A production by A. alliaceus was reduced by about 94% with a 200 μmol L−1 solution of this compound. A moderate inhibitory effect was observed for the analogous structure 3b on ochratoxin A production but not in mycelia growth. No inhibition was registered for compounds 2a and 2b, used as synthetic precursors of the dimeric species 3., Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) - SFRH/BD/11228/2002.

Bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signaling is essential for neural crest development in several vertebrates. Genetic experiments in the mouse have shown that Bmp2 is essential for the genesis of migratory neural crest cells. Using several markers and a transgenic reporter approach, we now show that neural crest cells are induced in Bmp2 null mutant embryos, but that these cells fail to migrate out of the neural tube. The absence of migratory neural crest cells in these mutants is not due to their elimination by cell death. The neuroectoderm of Bmp2-/- embryos fail to close and create abnormal folds both along the anterior-posterior and medio-lateral axes, which are associated with an apparent medio-lateral expansion of the neural tube. Finally, our data suggest that the molecular cascade downstream of BMP signaling in early neural crest development may be different in mouse and avian embryos.

This paper presents an approach to personalisation in e-learning. The concept of a personalised learning policy (PLP) is introduced and its application in a learning management system (LMS) is detailed. Aiming to represent the criteria used in the system adaptation process, a data structure named orientation layer is proposed. The student current cognitive status is determined considering both the interactions between student and system and the aspects judged relevant to be observed. As a result, didactic contents and learning activities that match the pedagogical goals with the student's preferences and skills are provided. That is, the LMS is endowed with a level of configurability and the system adaptive behaviour is consistent with the system users (i.e. teachers and students).

Partindo dos princípios gerais de funcionamento da memória episódica, desenvolve¬ram¬se diferentes explicações para a maior robustez da memória em tarefas auto¬performa¬tivas, ou seja, tarefas que implicam a sua realização motora, em comparação com tarefas verbais. Com o presente estudo pretendemos analisar o fenómeno da memória para acções, manipulando a variável de prioridade de processamento numa tarefa de dupla codificação. A experiência consistiu na apresentação de pares de acções em duas modalidades diferen¬tes (visual e auditiva) comparando os efeitos obtidos em tarefas auto¬performativas e ver¬bais. Os resultados do presente estudo mostraram: (1) a superioridade da memória para ac¬ções actuadas mesmo no caso dos participantes processarem em simultâneo duas acções e através de diferentes modalidades; (2) que as acções visualizadas são mais facilmente evo¬cadas do que as ouvidas; (3) e, por fim, que a prioridade de processamento é uma variável decisiva para a recordação de acções que competem entre si., Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT), Centro de Investigação em Psicologia da Universidade do Minho (CIPsi)

Para a construção destas normas recorremos a 59 adultos de duas Universidades de Portugal, e aplicamos a adaptação de um instrumento de avaliação de normas para eventos de acções publicado por Molander e Arar (1998). O presente estudo avalia acções em três dimensões diferentes: familiaridade, emocionalidade e envolvimento motor. Os resultados demonstram que as acções presentes no questionário são susceptíveis de gerar uma variação suficiente de resposta quanto à avaliação das acções nas suas três dimensões. Ao contrário dos resultados de Molander e Arar (1998) constata-se uma independência das dimensões avaliadas., In this study we are interested in the development of norms for actions in three dimensions: familiarity, emotionality and motor activity. Our sample was 59 adults from two Portuguese Universities that answered to the Molander and Arar (1998) instrument of norms to action events. Results showed that the action events are able to produce response variation in relation to the three dimensions and that there is a clear independence between the three dimensions evaluated.

Despite the large number of clerodanes isolated as natural products in the last decade, the correct 13C NMR chemical shift assignments of some carbons are still in doubt. In order to provide unambiguous assign-ments of the chemical shifts of clerodane diterpenes, a complete 13C NMR spectral analysis of methyl (+)-hard-wickiate and 14 hemisynthetic derivatives is reported. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

One of the biggest challenges in system development is the definition of its architecture. A proper architectural definition facilitates not only the system design as a whole but also the development and reuse of components. Component technologies provides a number of advantages for the development of e-learning systems, including modularization, reduced development time, and increased degree of interoperability, portability and maintainability. This paper aims at investigating the application of an architectural model in the development of component-based e-learning systems. We illustrate the use of this architectural model in the development of a collaborative electronic voting system