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Aim The variability in density and species diversity of decapod crustaceans was investigated on four islands with different degrees of anthropogenic disturbance around the city of Belém, State of Pará. Methods Samples were obtained from 15 creeks using artisanal traps, every three months between October 2013 and May 2014 on Combu, Onças, Cotijuba and Mosqueiro islands. Results Salinity and temperature little varied, which is common for a tropical Amazon estuary strongly influenced by freshwater inflow. A total of 8,367 decapods were captured, with one record of an exotic species Penaeus monodon. In all seasons, decapod density and richness tended to increase from Combu to Mosqueiro, with increasing proximity to the sea and higher salinity and pH. Except for Combu, species richness and Margalef diversity tended to be slightly greater in the wet season at all islands, especially Onças. Eveness and Shannon diversity did not vary greatly between seasons but were lowest at Onças in the dry season and highest at Combu, decreasing to Mosqueiro, in the wet season. In general, ecological indices are similar in the dry and transition dry to wet seasons, and in the wet season, dominance occurs at Mosqueiro Island. Macrobrachium acanthurus, C. bocourti and P. gracillis were associated with the wet season, whereas M. surinamicum prefers the dry season. M. amazonicum and Macrobrachium sp. have no well-defined seasonal pattern of occurrence at all the islands. Conclusions Despite anthropogenic disturbances and proximity to large human populations, especially on Mosqueiro Island, the density and diversity of decapod crustaceans appear to be reasonably unaffected for the moment. Resumo: Objetivo A variabilidade na densidade e diversidade de espécies de crustáceos decápodes foi investigada em quatro ilhas com diferentes graus de perturbação antropogênica em torno da cidade de Belém, Estado do Pará. Métodos Foram obtidas amostras de 15 canais de maré utilizando armadilhas artesanais, a cada três meses, entre outubro de 2013 e maio de 2014 nas ilhas Combu, Onças, Cotijuba e Mosqueiro. Resultados A salinidade e a temperatura variaram pouco, o que é comum em um estuário amazônico tropical fortemente influenciado pelo influxo de água doce. Foram capturados um total de 8.367 decápodes, com um registro de uma espécie exótica, Penaeus monodon. Em todas as estações, a densidade e riqueza de decápodes aumentou de Combu para Mosqueiro, com a crescente proximidade do mar e maior salinidade e pH. Com exceção de Combu, a riqueza de espécies e diversidade de Margalef tendeu a ser ligeiramente maior na estação chuvosa em todas as ilhas, especialmente em Onças. A Equitabilidade e a diversidade de Shannon foram semelhantes entre as estações, mas eram mais baixas em Onças na estação seca e mais alta em Combu, diminuindo para Mosqueiro na estação chuvosa. Em geral, os índices ecológicos são semelhantes na estação seca e na transição da seca para a estação chuvosa, na estação chuvosa a dominância ocorre na Ilha de Mosqueiro. M. acanthurus, C. bocourti e P. gracillis foram associadas à estação das chuvas, enquanto que M. surinamicum prefere a estação seca. M. amazonicum e Macrobrachium sp. não têm um padrão de ocorrência sazonal definido em todas as ilhas. Conclusões Apesar das perturbações antropogênicas e da proximidade a grandes populações humanas, especialmente na Ilha do Mosqueiro, a densidade e diversidade de crustáceos decápodes parecem ser razoavelmente não afetadas no momento.

In this work, iron oxide in the red mud (RM) waste was restructured to produce mesopores with surface [FeO x (OH) y ] sites for the efficient complexation/adsorption of β-lactam antibiotics. Red mud composed mainly by hematite was restructured by an acid/base process followed by a thermal treatment at 150–450 °C (MRM150, MRM200, MRM300, and MRM450) and fully characterized by Mossbauer, XRD, FTIR, BET, SEM, CHN, and thermogravimetric analyses. The characterization data showed a highly dispersed Fe3+ oxyhydroxy phase, which was thermally dehydrated to a mesoporous α-Fe2O3 with surface areas in the range of 141–206 m2 g−1. These materials showed high efficiencies (21–29 mg g−1) for the adsorption of β-lactam antibiotics, amoxicillin, cephalexin, and ceftriaxone, and the data was better fitted by the Langmuir model isotherm (R 2 = 0.9993) with monolayer adsorption capacity of ca. 39 mg g−1 for amoxicillin. Experiments such as competitive adsorption in the presence of phosphate and H2O2 decomposition suggested that the β-lactamic antibiotics might be interacting with surface [FeO x (OH) y ] species by a complexation process. Moreover, the OH/Fe ratio, BET surface area and porosity indicated that this complexation is occurring especially on [FeO x (OH) y ]surf sites contained in the mesopore space.

INTRODUCTION:Executive functions (EFs) refer to a set of cognitive processes responsible for maintaining behavior, emotion and thoughts, which develops from early childhood and through adolescence to adulthood (1). These functions are all crucial skills for success in all oflife’s aspects, such as learning and academic achievements (1). Physical activity is a behavioral factor that can promote beneficial effects on brain health and cognition, even during adolescence (2). This occurs due to its effects on the human body, mainly on the cardiovascular and cerebrovascular system (2). Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the relationship between aerobic fitness and performance in multiple domains of EFs in adolescents. METHODS: One hundred and thirty-two school-aged adolescents (57 girls) aged 11‒16 years participated in this cross-sectional study. Each participant completed a progressive aerobic cardiovascular endurance running (PACER) test, computerized cognitive tests (Tower of London, Berg’s Card Sorting Task, Go/No-Go Oddball, Sternberg’s Working Memory Search, and Attentional Network Task) and questionnaires for daytime sleepiness, as well as other factors that might influence cognitive performance (age, gender, pubertal stage and body mass index). The multiple linear regression analysis was used to inspect PACER laps as a continuous predictor of each cognitive outcome adjusted for age, gender, pubertal stage, body mass index percentiles, and daytime sleepiness score. Afterwards, the hierarchical linear regression analysis was used to determine the moderating gender effect on the relationship between aerobic fitness and cognitive performance. RESULTS: Higher aerobic fitness was associated with better metacognitive performance, which was assessed through planning time (B =-23, 95% CI -45 to -1, p = 0.041) and solution time (B = -50.2, 95% CI -99.9 to -0.4, p = 0.048) in performing the Tower of London task. There was a moderating gender effect only for the cognitive flexibility (p < 0.05). Higher aerobic fitness was also associated with better performance in completed categories (B = 0.05, 95% CI 0.01 to 0.1, p = 0.013) and persistent errors (B = -0.21, 95% CI -0.39 to -0.03, p = 0.020) in performing Berg’s card sorting test only for girls. There were no relationships found for Go/No-Go Oddball, Sternberg’s Working Memory Search, or Attentional Network Task (ps > 0.05). CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that higher aerobic fitness level was associated with better metacognition in adolescents, independent of gender. Moreover, we observed a positive relationship between aerobic fitness and cognitive flexibility only in girls. KEYWORDS: Child & Adolescent Health; Physical Fitness & Sport; School Psychology. BIBLIOGRAPHY: 1. Diamond A. Executive functions. Annual review of psychology. 2013;64:135-68. 2. Herting MM, Chu X. Exercise, cognition, and the adolescent brain. Birth defects research. 2017;109(20):1672-9.

Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the behavior and practice of planned and structured physical exercises. This study aimed to investigate the association between changes in physical exercise behavior and subjective well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil. Methods This cross-sectional study was performed in Brazil and included a total of 595 individuals recruited through social media platforms, personal and professional contacts. Each participant responded to self-completed questionnaire via an online survey between March 29 and May 7, 2020. The characteristics of physical exercise (frequency, intensity, and duration) were collected before and during the pandemic. The subjective state of mood was measured through the Profile of Mood States (POMS) questionnaire during the pandemic. A generalized linear model was employed for the analysis. Results Exercising during the pandemic only promoted protective effects on the subjective mood. An exercise frequency of 3-5 days/week was associated with improved vigor and between 6-7 days/week with improved vigor and total mood when compared to not exercising at all (p