The envelope (façade) of a building is the first barrier between the exterior and the interior of the building and withstands the highest variation of temperature and solar radiation. Trombe walls are used to take advantage of that and contribute to the heating of interior air, helping the heating system. In this study, a new Trombe wall design is presented with the aim to contribute significantly to the ventilation of residential buildings. For this an exterior wall equipped with a proposed Trombe system was studied in a numerical simulation analysis. The proposed systems consist of two parts, the air cavities on the exterior of the wall, covered with silica glass, and another layer used for heat transfer, on the interior, comprised of a MPCLBs wall of 115mm. Two cities in Romania were considered to represent the coldest and hottest climate in Romania. Brașov representing the cold climate and Constanța representing the hot climate. In the investigation, both the presence and absence of solar radiation were taken into account. In total 4 cases were established. For all four cases monthly research was made using monthly means temperature, direct and diffuse solar radiation. The results are promising and illustrate that the system works the best during the transitional seasons of spring and autumn. The lower the outdoor temperature the higher the temperature can be increased. Overall, solar radiation accounted for an average of 2 °C increase. The temperature increase varied between 3.4 °C to 15.99 °C for Brașov and between 6.42 °C to 12.07 °C in Constanța.

This paper introduces an application of R programming language for geostatistical data processing with a case study of the Mariana Trench, Pacific Ocean. The formation of the Mariana Trench, the deepest among all hadal oceanic depth trenches, is caused by complex and diverse geomorphic factors affecting its development. Mariana Trench crosses four tectonic plates: Mariana, Caroline, Pacific and Philippine. The impact of the geographic location and geological factors on its geomorphology has been studied by methods of statistical analysis and data visualization using R libraries. The methodology includes following steps. Firstly, vector thematic data were processed in QGIS: tectonics, bathymetry, geomorphology and geology. Secondly, 25 cross-section profiles were drawn across the trench. The length of each profile is 1000-km. The attribute information has been derived from each profile and stored in a table containing coordinates, depths and thematic information. Finally, this table was processed by methods of the statistical analysis on R. The programming codes and graphical results are presented. The results include geospatial comparative analysis and estimated effects of the data distribution by tectonic plates: slope angle, igneous volcanic areas and depths. The innovativeness of this paper consists in a cross-disciplinary approach combining GIS, statistical analysis and R programming.

We use Big Bang Nucleosynthesis (BBN) to probe Beyond Standard Model physics in the neutrino sector. Recently the abundances of primordially produced light elements D and He-4 were determined from observations with better accuracy. The good agreement between the theoretically predicted abundances of primordially produced and derived from observations light elements allows to update the BBN constraints on Beyond Standard Models (BSM) physics. We provide numerical analysis of several BSM models of BBN and obtain precise cosmological constraints and indications for new neutrino physics. Namely, we derive more stringent BBN constraints on electron neutrino-sterile neutrino oscillations corresponding to 1% uncertainty of the observational determination of the primordial He-4. The cosmological constraints are obtained both for the case of zero and non-zero initial population of the sterle neutrino state. Then in a degenerate BBN model with neutrino νe↔νs oscillations we analyze the change of the cosmological constraints in case lepton asymmetry L is big enough to suppress oscillations. We obtain constraints on the lepton asymmetry L . We discuss a possible solution to the dark radiation problem in degenerate BBN models with νe↔νs oscillations in case L is large enough to suppress neutrino oscillations during BBN epoch. Interestingly, the required value of L for solving DR problem is close to L indicated by EMPRESS experiment and close to the value of lepton asymmetry necessary to relax Hubble tension.

This paper exposes the initial part of a larger research on the impact of the automotive on human health and the quality of life and environment. After a brief introduction on the need for responsible and sustainable approaches and few questions on the subject, some considerations and statistical data are presented, based on a study of the literature on the impact of road traffic and vehicles noise and vibration on people's comfort and health and their quality of life. The research results show, based on official statistics, the significant harmful impact of noise and vibration from motor vehicles and road transport on people's health and quality of life, especially in urban areas during the day. Also, the significant increase in the number of electric and hybrid vehicles from one year to another, a reality and a necessity nowadays, and the awareness that electric vehicles are not perfectly quiet and comfortable, open new research opportunities and require the development of new standards, materials, tools, equipment and test methods in the field of NVH, in a sustained synergistic approach from all stakeholders, to meet the needs and demands of today's consumers, and to comply with existing regulations and standards on environmental protection and sustainable development.

Hypercholesterolemia is a major risk for the development of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), the main cause of mortality worldwide, and it is characterized by high levels of circulating cholesterol. The drugs currently available for hypercholesterolemia control have several side effects, so it is necessary to develop new effective and safer therapies. Seaweeds serve as sources of several bio-active compounds with claimed beneficial effects. Eisenia bicyclis (Aramé) and Porphyra tenera (Nori) are edible seaweeds which were previously recognized as rich in bioactive compounds. In the present study, we aim to evaluate the anti-hypercholesterolemia effect of these two seaweeds ex-tracts and their health potential. Both extracts, but more efficiently Aramé extract demonstrated to have liver 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase (HMGR) inhibitory activity and to reduce approximately 30 % cholesterol permeation through human Caco-2 cells simulating the intestinal lining, targets for hypercholesterolemia treatments. An untargeted metabolomic assay on human intestinal Caco-2 and liver Hep-G2 cells lines exposed to Aramé and Nori extracts revealed changes in the cell’s metabolism as indicators of the extract’s health beneficial effects. The metabolic pathways affected by exposure to both extracts were associated to lipid metabolism, such as phospholipids, and fatty acid metabolism, pathways of amino acid, cofactors and vitamins and cellular respiration metabolism. More profound for Aramé treated cells, but also seen for Nori ex-posed cells, the metabolites modifications were associated with the protection against CVDs and other diseases and, to the improvement of cells oxidative stress tolerance. The results obtained for the anti-hypercholesterolemia properties, in addition to the revelation of the positive impact on cells metabolism, are an important contribution for further evaluation of these seaweeds extracts as functional foods or for CVDs prevention.

A hybrid material, consisting of commercially available nitrocellulose (NC) membrane non-covalently modified with amino-polyethylene glycol functionalized reduced graphene oxide (NH2-PEG-rGO) nanoparticles, was successfully synthesized for oligonucleotide extraction. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) confirmed the modification of the NC membrane, revealing characteristic peaks of both compounds NC and NH2-PEG-rGO. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) exhibited morphological changes in the NC/NH2-PEG-rGO hybrid membrane, marked by the introduction of NH2-PEG-rGO particles, resulting in a distinctly smothered surface compared to the porous surface of the NC control membrane. Wettability assays revealed hydrophobic behavior for the NC/NH2-PEG-rGO hybrid membrane, with a water contact angle exceeding 90°, contrasting with the hydrophilic behavior characterized by a 16.7° contact angle in the NC membrane. The performance of the NC/NH2-PEG-rGO hybrid membrane was evaluated for the extraction of ssDNA with fewer than 50 nucleotides from solutions containing various ionic species (MnCl2, MgCl2, and MnCl2/MgCl2). The NC/NH2-PEG-rGO hybrid membrane exhibited optimal performance when incubated in MgCl2, presenting the highest fluorescence emission at 525 relative fluorescence units (r.f.u.). This corresponds to the extraction of approximately 610 pg (≈13%) of the total oligo-DNA, underscoring the efficacy of the pristine material, which extracts 286 pg (≈6%) of oligo-DNA in complex solutions.

The main objective of this study was to study the effect of occupational stress on turnover intentions, as well as whether this relationship is mediated by burnout levels and moderated by motivation. The sample of this study consisted of 603 participants, all employees of the Portuguese Tax and Customs Authority, which is part of the Ministry of Finance and belongs to the Direct State Administration. The results indicate that occupational stress (with managers, with career and remuneration and with work overload) has a positive and significant effect on turnover intentions and that this relationship is mediated by burnout. Motivation (intrinsic and identified) has a negative and significant effect on turnover intentions. Intrinsic motivation moderates the rela-tionship between occupational stress (with managers, with colleagues, with career and pay and with family problems) and turnover intentions. These results indicate that among the dimensions of occupational stress, the most critical are stress with managers, work overload and career and pay. These are factors that the Direct State Administration should be concerned about in trying to minimize their causes.

Among all Brazilian economic sectors, the livestock sector stands out due to its large production and high export volume. However, beef production is associated to significant environmental impacts, such as deforestation and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission. The Paris Agreement was settled to avoid that global mean temperature rise up to 1.5 – 2º C by 2100. In 2020, Brazil committed in its nationally determined contribution (NDC) to reduce its GHG emission by 43% until 2030. This study aims to identify the association of beef production and beef cattle emissions, as well as assess predictive GHG emission scenarios for 2030 and value these emissions. To translate the environmental impacts of beef production into economic impacts, and thus amplify the discussion, we valued GHG emissions using the social cost of carbon (SCC). The results showed that the business as usual (BAU) GHG emission derived from beef production would range between 0.423 and 0.634 GtCO₂e in 2030, whereas the maximum emission estimated to meet the NDC should be 0.257 GtCO₂e. The SCC revealed the opportunity to reduce between US $18.8 and $42.6 billion in the cost of BAU emissions from beef production in 2030 if the NDC is met. Lastly, assessing a scenario where climate targets and beef exports are prioritized, between 2-10 kg of beef per capita would be available in the domestic market in 2030. Our results reveal the need and urgency of changes in livestock production to emit less GHG per kg of beef produced, and the avoided monetary cost of reducing emissions.

The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is widely used in food and nonfood industries. During industrial fermentations yeast are exposed to fluctuations in oxygen concentration, osmotic pressure, pH, ethanol concentration, nutrient availability and temperature. Fermentation performance depends on the ability of different yeast strains to adapt to these changes. Suboptimal growth conditions trigger responses to these external stimuli to allow cellular homeostasis to be maintained. Stress-specific signaling pathways are activated to coordinate changes in tran-scription, translation, protein function, and metabolic fluxes while a transient arrest of growth and cell cycle progression occur. cAMP-PKA, HOG-MAPK and CWI signalling pathways are signal transduction pathways turned on during stress re-sponse. Comprehension of the mechanisms involved in the responses and in the adaptation to these stresses during fermentation is key to improving this industrial process. The scope of this review is to outline the advancement of knowledge about the cAMP-PKA signalling and the crosstalk of this pathway with the CWI and HOG-MAPK cascades in response to the environmental challenges heat and hy-perosmotic stress.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic caused by spreading rapidly a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has imposed a unique situation for the humanity. Sao Paulo has reported 124,105 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 5,623 deaths up to June 14th, being considered the epicenter of the pandemic in Brazil and in South America. Due to the measures for social distancing, there was a drop in the air pollution concentration in Sao Paulo. Starting on March 16th, 2020, we broke 90 days of social distancing into 13 weeks and compared to an equivalent period in 2019. We investigated the air quality improvement during the quarantine period and compared the associated avoided deaths to COVID-19 burden deaths. Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) was the best indicator of air quality in the analyzed weeks, since its reduction reached 58 %. Our study showed that the 5,623 deaths occurred during the analyzed weeks of quarantine represents an economic health loss of US$ 10.5 billion. In opposite, we observed a significant air quality improvement due to pollutants concentrations’ reductions during the analyzed weeks. Considering PM₁₀, PM_2.5 and NO₂, the decrease of concentration levels respectively avoided 78, 337 and 387 premature deaths and prevented up to US$ 1.5 billion on health costs. These results highlight the importance of continuing to enforce existing air pollution regulations and measures to protect human health both during and after COVID-19 pandemic.

The growth of the wind power sector has been marked by environmental, economic, and political drivers. Its starring role is also visible in the emergence of the so-called “green jobs”. Notwithstanding, its evolution ought not to compromise issues related to occupational risks. This exploratory study examines psychosocial risks in the operation and maintenance of onshore wind turbines in a leading Portuguese company. We conducted interviews with main stakeholders (Human Resources, OHS professionals, and team leaders); developed an “activity diary” for the operation and maintenance technicians to describe their activity and perceived impacts on health, complemented with collective interviews; and applied the Work and Health Survey. The results revealed particular risks and health impacts: working under adverse weather conditions; working at heights and in confined spaces; spending long work hours inside of the nacelles to achieve an optimum balance between favorable wind slots to intervene and avoiding additional trips up and down the wind turbines without lifts (70m-120m); and the feeling of early ageing. At a time when these workers are striving for recognition of their profession as a “rapid wear profession”, it is a key moment to discuss these results to guarantee sustainable conditions for future generations of workers.

The popular appreciation of dry white wines is most frequently directed to young wines. However, present consumption trends comprise the valorisation of aged dry white wines. Therefore, the present work was aimed at the sensory analysis of these wines with different ages to define their sensory space and to understand which factors drive their quality evaluation by experienced tasters (critics, oenologists and students). Individuals were asked to evaluate several synthetic and aesthetic attributes and to characterise the analytic sensory profile through a Check-All-That-Apply (CATA) methodology. The quality evaluations were differently correlated with wine synthetic parameters according to the taster group. For both critics and oenologists, overall quality scores were driven by persistence and complexity. Moreover, quality was also highly correlated with power for critics and with balance for oenologists. Quality scores were highly correlated with wine browning (absorbance at 420 nm) for critics. The tasting panel showed a homogeneous analytic description of aroma, taste and mouthfeel consistent with wine age. The different ages could be associated to a continuous sensory space characterised by a decreasing perception of freshness and increase in mature and mellowed descriptors. All wines shared an austere in-mouth perception elicited by their acidity, saltiness, bitterness, smoothness and dryness. The age prediction showed that most tasters failed to guess the age wines with more than roughly 13 years old, indicating that tasters were not familiar with the sensory features of white wines with 17 to 46 years old. In conclusion, experienced tasters consistently described the sensory space and recognised the high quality of aged dry white wines. Education programs may use the defined sensory spaces according to aging and to expand the range of quality perception by consumers.

The aim of the paper is to analyze the experimental results of the influence of elevated temperatures and strain rate on the mechanical and structural properties of steel 42CrMo4. The experiments were based on uniaxial tension and compression tests at high temperatures between 700 °C and 1000 °C and strain rates range 0.0018 - 0.1 s^-1. The influence of temperature and strain rate on yield stress, strain to fracture, hardness, structural changes, and fracture characteristics were analyzed. Due to the dynamic recrystallization phenomenon present during the hot tensile tests, an increase in the flow stress is observed at the beginning of the deformation, after which it decreases until the fracture. By increasing the deformation temperature from 700 °C to 1000 °C, the tensile stress decreases significantly for all strain rates. The increase in the strain rate leads to the increase in the tensile stress. In compression tests by increasing the strain rate, the true strain is slightly increasing, but this depends on the temperature. The non-uniformity of deformations obtained at different values of the strain rate and temperature were also analyzed. Analysis by scanning electron microscopy showed the ductile behavior of the material. The degree of damage of the material caused by the presence of cavities increases by increasing the deformation temperature. For all the presented deformation conditions, the presence of the fracture through the ductile fracture mechanism was produced by the localized of necking and the coalescence of microvoids. By increasing the deformation temperature and reducing the strain rate, the fracture behavior of 42CrMo4 steel can be improved.

This study aims to analyze various types of pellet fuels used as energy sources in Bulgaria, focusing on their energy characteristics and the consumer preferences. Both standard and specialized methods such as thermogravimetry (TG) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) are used for the analyses. The results from TG and DSC indicate that during the drying of the samples, moisture is evaporated from their surface, along with the release of volatile substances. The processes during the analysis are accompanied by energy absorption, with the main stage being combustion, where the primary amount of heat is generated. Standard analysis methods show that wood pellets usually contain about 7.31% moisture, 0.72% ash and have a calorific value of 18.33 kJ/kg, while sunflower pellets contain about 7.62% moisture, 2.42% ash and have a calorific value of 19.63 kJ/kg. Mixed pellets contain about 7.07% moisture, up to 0.69% ash and have a calorific value of 18.05 kJ/kg. A specialized marketing research was conducted to investigate consumer attitudes and preferences toward purchasing different types of solid biomass fuels on Bulgarian market. This study provides information on the quality of pellets as fuel by offering a detailed analysis of their fuel properties and ensuring their effective utilization as an energy source.

Hydrodynamic modeling and hazard mapping are essential tools for urban flood mitigation and spatial planning. Leveraging software like HEC-RAS (Hydrologic Engineering Center - River Analysis System) and ArcGIS, this study aimed to map flood-prone areas along the Jijia River in the Ungheni administrative unit of Iasi County. Human-induced environmental changes and global climate shifts have heightened flood risks worldwide, particularly in urbanized areas. Hydrological and hydraulic modeling anticipate and assess flood events, while hydrodynamic modeling accurately simulates flow propagation, in-forming flood extent, timing, and volume. Flood hazard maps offer essential insights into flooded areas, water depths, and velocities, assisting in risk assessment and mitigation strategies. Through the use of different scenarios, river modeling aims to accurately replicate real-world conditions. This study focuses on Ungheni commune in Iasi County, Romania, situated along the Prut River's eastern bank. Utilizing a combination of fixed-grid and irregular mesh elements in modeling al-lows for fine-tuning of flow details and optimization of simulation times. Model accuracy, particularly regarding peak river levels, hinges on hydrograph duration. While a 30-minute error is typically accepted, greater tolerances may apply to river basins with longer response times. The extraction and processing of model results, including maximum water depths, flood extents, and velocity maps, are facilitated by ArcGIS, providing valuable data for effective flood management strategies.

Ethylene is a plant hormone controlling physiological and developmental processes such fruit maturation, hairy root formation and leaf abscission. Its effect on regeneration systems, such as organogenesis and somatic embryogenesis (SE), has been studied and progresses in molecular biology techniques have contributed to unveil mechanisms behind its effects. This compound affects regeneration differently, depending on the species, genotype and explant. In some species, ethylene seems to revert recalcitrance in genotypes with low regeneration capacity. However, its effect is not addictive, since in genotypes with high regeneration capacity this ability decreases in the presence of ethylene precursors, suggesting that regeneration is modulated by ethylene. Several lines of evidence have shown that the role of ethylene on regeneration is markedly connected to biotic and abiotic stresses as well as to hormonal-crosstalk, in particular with key regeneration hormones and growth regulators of the auxin and cytokinin families. Transcriptional factors of the ethylene response factor (ERF) family are regulated by ethylene and strongly connected to SE induction. Thus, an evident connection between ethylene, stress responses and regeneration capacity is markedly established. In this review the effect of ethylene and the way it interacts with other players during organogenesis and somatic embryogenesis is discussed.

Product Development Process is widely known among industry and automobile companies. With the advance of technology and the need to improve product efficiency, many companies have been applying Lean Thinking principles. Their benefits lead those companies to implement their concepts and tools, like Value Stream Design in Indirect Areas, Obeya, Just-in-time (JIT) which is based on the production control system developed and implemented by Toyota. This article describes the case study of the implementation of Lean Product & Process Development (LPPD) on the current Product Development Process (PDP) in an automotive company. The PDP was created by the organization and adapted from Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP). The main findings were a Value Stream Design model of an improved PDP as a useful and successfully contribution for the company. These improvements reduced the product development lead time from 700 days to 369 days. The process efficiency increased from 68% to 85%. The communication and transparency between the cross-functional team (CFT) was improved and show promise for achieving a successful launch of new products.

This paper exposes the initial part of a research consisting in a need analysis carried out by the Romanian partner in the Erasmus+ "Media Education for Aware Adults" project, regarding digital competences and media education of adult educators or trainers. After a short introduction on the subject, in the paper are presented the main findings of the desk research, and two focus group sessions, first one for identifying the necessary digital competences of adult educators, and second one for identifying the elements that educators need in order to adequately support adults in their learning process, especially in relation to the digital environment. The results of the initial research will lead to the development of the main intellectual outputs, namely the digital competences framework, handbook, online platform and training material on digital and media education. In their development will be taken into account, on the one hand, the needs identified in the initial research, and, on the other hand, the need for a sustainable approach to all activities, resources and outputs produced, as well as education itself, this goal being assumed through the project.

Currently available DNA detection techniques frequently require compromises between simplicity, speed, accuracy, and cost. Here, we propose a simple, label-free and cost-effective DNA detection platform developed at screen printed carbon electrodes (SPCEs) modified with reduced graphene oxide (RGO) and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). The preparation of the detection platform involved a two-step electrochemical procedure based on GO reduction onto SPCEs followed by the electrochemical reduction of HAuCl4 to facilitate the post-grafting reaction with AuNPs. The final sensor was fabricated by the simple physical adsorption of a single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) probe onto AuNPs-RGO/SPCE electrode. Each preparation step was confirmed by morphological and structural characterization using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, respectively. Furthermore, the electrochemical properties of the modified electrodes have been investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The results demonstrated that the introduction of AuNPs onto RGO/SPCEs led to an enhancement in surface conductivity, characteristic that favored an increased sensitivity in detection. The detection process relied on the change in the electrochemical signal induced by the binding of target DNA to the bioreceptor, and was monitored particularly by the change in the charge transfer resistance of a [Fe(CN)6]4−/3− redox couple added in the test solution.

This study investigates the relationship between clean and dirty energy markets, specifically focusing on clean energy stock indexes and their potential as hedging assets and safe havens during periods of global economic uncertainty. The research analyzes five clean energy indexes and five dirty energy indexes from May 2018 to May 2023, considering events like the global pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The main objective is to examine the causal relationship among different stock indexes pertaining to dirty and clean energy by using the Granger causality test (VAR Granger Causality/Block Exogeneity Wald Test) to determine whether clean energy indexes can predict future prices of dirty energy indexes. However, the findings reveal that clean and dirty energy indexes do not exhibit hedging characteristics or serve as safe havens during times of economic uncertainty, rejecting the research question. These results have important implications for investment strategies, as assets lacking safe haven characteristics may not preserve portfolio efficiency in uncertain times. The study's insights provide valuable guidance for investors, poli-cymakers, and participants in energy financial markets. It highlights the need to adapt investment approaches and seek alternative options to navigate uncertain economic conditions effectively.

BACKGROUND: Is pharmacovigilance at a moment of prominence for science and in relation to government responsibilities towards their nations, as the new coronavirus pandemic has surprised everyone in a negative and lethal way. OBJECTIVE: Evaluate pharmacovigilance as a resource for controlling and understanding the adverse effects caused by vaccines in use. DESIGN AND SETTING: Narrative review developed by a research group at Faculty of Medicine of the University of Porto. METHODS: This is a narrative review of the literature available in electronic media, government bulletins and similar bodies. The search was carried out using the descriptors: "Pharmacovigilance AND COVID-19 in Brazil", "Vaccine Development AND COVID-19 in Brazil", "Vaccination Hesitancy AND COVID-19 in Brazil", "Pharmacovigilance AND COVID-19", "Vaccine Development AND COVID-19", "Vaccination Hesitancy AND COVID-19", Pharmacovigilance AND COVID-19, Vaccine Development AND COVID-19, Vaccination Hesitancy AND COVID-19, "Public Health Surveillance AND COVID-19". In the period from May 2021 to June 2022. RESULTS: From the database search, 3 journal articles, 4 government bulletins and 535 scientific articles were identified. Of the total of 542 bibliographic materials, 36 were selected according to the selection criteria and objectives of the study. CONCLUSIONS: The vaccines in use have proven efficacy, despite adverse reactions that cannot be attributed solely and exclusively to their use, since the medical history of each patient should be considered in the investigation of each case, especially when there is death. The Brazilian data for adverse events, although the country is continental in its size, are acceptable given the number of deaths recorded.

Climate change, the scarcity of fossil fuels, technical advances in clean energy, and the volatility of crude oil prices are just a few of the factors that have prompted the world to recognize clean energy as a viable alternative to dirty energy. As part of the Paris Climate Accord of 2015, many countries agreed to change their economies to be more sensitive to climate change. Due to this Accord, which increased interest from investors and decision-makers, investments in clean energy companies have benefited [1,2]. Clean energy stocks, which are a part of the larger world of tradable reserves, might experience pricing inefficiencies. In this paper, we investigate the multifractal scaling behavior and efficiency of green finance markets, as well as traditional markets like gold, crude oil, and natural gas between January 1, 2018, and March 9, 2023, which covers periods of low volatility and financial instability (2020 and 2022 events). To test the serial dependency (autocorrelation) and the efficient market hypothesis, in its weak form, we employed the Lo and Mackinlay test and the DFA method. The empirical findings demonstrated that both periods exhibit severe multifractal and significant asymmetry, indicating that the price indices under study are not at all efficient.

Exercise produces oxidants from a variety of intracellular sources, including NADPH oxidases (NOX) and mitochondria. Exercise-derived ROS are beneficial, and the amount and location of these ROS are important to avoid muscle damage associated with oxidative stress. We discuss here some of the evidence that involves ROS production associated with skeletal muscle contraction and the potential oxidative stress associated with muscle contraction. We also discuss the potential role of H2O2 produced after NOX activation in the regulation of glucose transport in skeletal muscle. Finally, we propose a model based on evidence for the role of different populations of mitochondria in skeletal muscle in the regulation of ATP production upon exercise. The sub-sarcolemmal population of mitochondria has the enzymatic and metabolic components to establish a high mitochondrial membrane potential when fissioned at rest but lacks the capacity to produce ATP; calcium entry to the mitochondria will further increase the metabolic input. Upon exercise, sub-sarcolemmal mitochondria will fuse to intermyofibrillar mitochondria and will transfer the membrane potential to them. These mitochondria are rich in ATP synthase and will subsequentially produce the ATP needed for muscle contraction in long-term exercise. These events will optimize energy use and minimize mitochondria ROS production.

The COVID-19 pandemic has become the largest public health crisis since the 1918 influenza pandemic. Despite the extensive research conducted on the SARS-CoV-2 virus in humans, little is still known about animal-related transmission and its consequences. Therefore, this study contributed to a better understanding of this issue by focusing on the serological survey of SARS-CoV-2 in samples from the serum bank of the Bovine Virology Laboratory at the Biological Institute of São Paulo, as well as horses and dogs from the Military Police of the State of São Paulo, and tapirs and bats from the states of Mato Grosso do Sul and São Paulo. To achieve this, the possible presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in domestic and wild animal species was evaluated using the ID Screen® "SARS-CoV-2 Double Antigen Multi Species" ELISA test (ID-Vet.®), following the manufacturer's recommendations. The findings of this study demonstrate a higher occurrence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in domestic animals compared to wild animals, as well as different antibody profiles among the species analyzed, with horses showing a wide range of seroconversion comparable to humans.

The anti-Covid19 vaccination campaign has been fortified on the positive effects that immunization is bringing the nations, since infection rates, hospitalizations, and deaths have been falling according to the data in constant disclosure by official government organs and the channels of communication. In Brazil, the effective and free National Vaccination Program haven’t prioritized patients with rare diseases, who have extreme comorbidities, and who had to follow the calendar prepared by the government. The problematic question is why these “rare people” weren´t considered priorities. The understanding of the reasons and the resumption of the debate about the rights of patients with rare diseases justify this study, which sought to be based on regular descriptors issued by official government agencies and by critics of rare disease issues in debates made in scientific articles. We sought to respond to the following objectives: analyze dispensed care of rare disease patients in the vaccination campaign anti-Covid-19; identify the procedures implemented by the National Vaccination Plan for the Brazilian population over 18 years of age; describe the panorama of the pandemic disease since its discovery to the mutations already disseminated; and evaluate the effectiveness of the plan implemented from the perspective of “rare person”.

Tributyltin (TBT) is an environmental contaminant present on all continents, including Antarctica, with a potent biocidal action. Its use began to be intensified during the 1970s, being effectively banned in 2003, but remaining in the environment to this day due to several factors that increase its half-life and misuse despite the bans. In addition to the endocrine disrupting effect of TBT, that may lead to imposex induction in some invertebrate species, there are several studies that demonstrated that TBT also has an immunotoxic effect. The immunotoxic effects that have been observed experimentally in vertebrates using in vitro and in vivo models involve different mechanisms, but mainly alterations in the expression and/or secretion of cytokines. In this review, we summarize and update the literature on the impacts of TBT on the immune system, as well as discuss what still needs to be done to fill the knowledge gaps regarding the impact of this endocrine disrupting-chemical on immune system homeostasis.

Background and Objectives: Renal cell carcinomas and upper tract urothelial carcinomas are types of malignancies that originate in the kidneys. Each of these examples shows an increasing trend in the frequency and the mortality rate. This study aims to comprehensively define carcinomas by analysing clinical, paraclinical, and histological aspects to predict aggressiveness and mortality. Materials and Methods: We conducted a retrospective investigation on a group of patients suspected with kidney cancers. Results: We identified 188 cases. We observed a higher mortality rate and older age in individuals with urothelial carcinomas. Anemia, acute kidney injury, hematuria and perineural invasion were the main risk factors that predicted their mortality. Tumour size in renal cell carcinomas correlates with the presence of necrosis and sarcomatoid areas. Factors that indicate a higher rate of death are older age, exceeding of the renal capsule, the lesion that includes the entire kidney, lymphovascular invasion, acute kidney injury, and anemia. Conclusions: Even if they originate at the renal level, and the clinical-paraclinical picture is similar, the histopathological characteristics make the difference. In addition, to these are added the previously mentioned common parameters that can represent important prognostic factors. In conclusion, the characteristics commonly identified in one type of cancer may act as risk factors for the other tumor. The detected data include threshold values and risk factors, making a significant contribution to the existing literature.

The present study explored whether exposure to complex childhood trauma (CCT) is reflected in the resting-state electroencephalography (EEG) temporal alpha power of complex trauma-exposed adolescents, given the association of temporal alpha with fear circuitry (learning and conditioning) in a sample of 25 adolescents and similar controls, ages 12-17 years. Both trauma and psychopathology were screened or assessed, and resting-state EEG was recorded, following a preregistered protocol for data collection. Temporal alpha power, corresponding to T5 and T6 electrode location (10-20 international system), was extracted from resting-state EEG in both eyes-open and eyes-closed conditions. We found that in the eyes-open condition, right, but not left, temporal alpha was significantly higher in adolescents exposed to CCT, relative to healthy controls, suggesting that childhood trauma exposure may have a measurable impact on alpha oscillatory patterns, specifically in the right temporal region. Our study highlights the importance of considering neural markers, such as temporal alpha power, in understanding the long-term consequences of CCT exposure in developmental samples, with possible important clinical implications in guiding neuroregulation interventions.

In the quest for robust and efficient digital communication, this paper introduces cutting-edge key exchange protocols leveraging tropical semirings’ computational prowess and block matrices’ structural resilience. Moving away from the conventional use of finite fields, these protocols deliver markedly faster processing speeds and heightened security. We present two implementations of our concept, each utilizing a different platform for the set of commuting matrices: one employing tropical polynomials of matrices and the other employing Linde-de la Puente matrices. The inherent simplicity of tropical semirings leads to a decrease in operational complexity, and using block matrices enhances our protocols’ security profile. The security of these protocols relies on the Matrix Decomposition Problem. We also provide a comparative analysis of our protocols against existing matrix block-based protocols in finite fields. This research marks a significant shift in cryptographic protocol design, specifically tailored for demanding engineering applications, and sets a new standard in secure and efficient digital communication.

Peripheral nerve injuries (PNI) can have several etiologies, such as trauma and iatrogenic interventions that can lead to the loss of structure and/or function impairment. These changes can cause a partial or complete loss of motor and sensory functions, physical disability, and neuropathic pain, what in turn can affect the quality of life. For those reasons, PNI is a major public health concern. This review aims to revisit the concepts associated with the PNI. First, the anatomy of the peripheral nerve is detailed to explain the different types of injury. Then, some of the available therapeutic strategies are explained, including surgical methods, pharmacological therapies, and the use of cell-based therapies alone or in combination with biomaterials in the form of tube guides. Nevertheless, even with the various available treatments, it is difficult to achieve a perfect outcome with complete functional recovery. This review aims to explain the urge for new approaches and to understand the methods to evaluate nerve regeneration in a One Health perspective. In vitro models followed by in vivo models are very important to be able to translate the achievements to human medicine.

The human interferon-induced transmembrane (IFITM) proteins inhibit the fusion of a broad spectrum of enveloped viruses, both when expressed in target cells and when present in infected cells. Upon expression in infected cells, IFITMs incorporate into progeny virions and reduce their infectivity by a poorly understood mechanism. Since only a few Env glycoproteins are present on HIV-1 particles, and Env clustering has been proposed to be essential for optimal infectivity, we asked if IFITM protein incorporation modulates HIV-1 Env clustering. The incorporation of two members of the IFITM family, IFITM1 and IFITM3, into HIV-1 pseudoviruses verified by Western blotting correlated with a marked reduction of infectivity. Super-resolution imaging of Env distribution on single HIV-1 pseudoviruses did not reveal significant effects of IFITMs on Env clustering. However, IFITM3 markedly reduced the Env processing and incorporation into virions relative to control and IFITM1-containing viruses. These results suggest that IFITM1 and IFITM3 restrict progeny HIV-1 infectivity via distinct mechanisms. We propose that IFITM1 interferes with viral fusion by altering the properties of the viral membrane or Env functionality by means other than disrupting Env clusters, while IFITM3 also targets Env processing and incorporation into progeny virions.

Seaweed polysaccharides can substitute synthetic compounds present in commercial stimulants and fertilizers, used in agriculture to improve crops yield and vigor. In this study, three different poly-saccharides (alginate, agar and carrageenan) were extracted from one brown seaweed, Saccorhiza polyschides, and two red seaweeds, Gracilaria gracilis and Chondrus crispus, respectively, and applied on potted turnip greens (Brassica napus L.), with intention to analyze their impact on plant growth, development and metabolism. Turnip plants treated with polysaccharides, specially, carrageenan of Chondrus crispus showed the best results in improving the crop’s productivity, such as plant length and weight, number of leaves, nutrient and pigment content, and soil fertility, compared with turnip plants from the negative control or treated with a commercial leaf fertilizer. λ-carrageenan extracted from the tetrasporophyte generation of Chondrus crispus had the highest bioactivity and positive effect in turnip plants among all treatments. λ-carrageenan has shown that can improve plant growth, increase plant’s biomass, and root system, enhance photosynthetic activity, increase the uptake of soil nutrients, and protect plants against abiotic and biotic stresses, stimulating the production of secondary metabolites and manage its defense pathways. Seaweed extracted polysaccharides have the potential to be used in sustainable agriculture.

Green investors have expressed concerns about the environment and sustainability due to the high energy consumption involved in cryptocurrency mining and transactions. This article investigates the safe haven characteristics of clean energy stock indexes in relation to 3 cryptocurrencies, taking into account their respective levels of "dirty" energy consumption from May 16, 2018, to May 15, 2023. By virtue of analyzing a tumultuous era in the global economy, the level of integration between clean energy stock indexes and cryptocurrencies will be inferred by using Gregory and Hansen's methodology. Furthermore, to assess the presence of a volatility spillover effect between clean energy stock indexes and “dirty-classified” cryptocurrencies, the ?-test of heteroscedasticity of two samples from Forbes and Rigobon will be employed. The empirical findings show that clean energy stock indexes may offer a viable safe haven for dirty energy cryptocurrencies. However, the precise associations differ depending on the cryptocurrency under examination. The implications of the study's results are significant for investment strategies, this knowledge can inform decision-making procedures and facilitate the adoption of sustainable investment practices. Investors and policymakers can gain a deeper understanding of the interplay between investments in renewable energy and the cryptocurrency market.

The implementation of green roofs as sustainable urban drainage systems provides benefits for stormwater control and the environment and is always more encouraged. In this paper, the estimation of the probability of vegetation survival without irrigation has been proposed as a guide to choose the proper values for the design parameters; in particular the growing medium thickness has been related to the average return interval of the water content at the end of the dry period. Moreover the study represents an improvement of the analytical probabilistic approach since a chain of consecutive rainfall events has been considered, in order to take into account the possibility that the storage capacity is not completely available at the beginning of each event because of the pre-filling from more than one previous rainfall as typically happens for green roofs. Finally, developed equations have been validated by means of their application to two case studies, respectively in northern and southern Italy.

Hospitalizations for patients with diabetes and dementia take a significant health and economic toll on older adults in the United States. The present study sought to examine the differences in hospitalization characteristics and outcomes associated with diabetes and dementia separately and together using discharge record data of Los Angeles County residents aged 50+ from the California Department of Health Care Access and Information for the period 2019-2021. Results from multiple linear regression analyses indicated that when compared to those with no diabetes or dementia, patients with diabetes alone exhibited the highest total charges, while those with comorbid diabetes and dementia exhibited lower charges (p≤.05). Results of a multinomial logistic regression found that patients with comorbid diabetes and dementia had the highest odds of having a length of stay of 7+ days (AOR=1.49; 95% CI=1.44-1.53). A matched-case control analysis found that comorbid diabetes and dementia was associated with significantly lower odds of hypertensive disease than diabetes alone (MOR=0.81; 95% CI=0.67-0.97). These results highlight the complexity of factors affecting variation in hospitalization outcomes across these distinct disease profiles. Findings suggest a need to carefully consider this complexity when developing health policies or strategies to improve hospitalization outcomes involving these disease conditions.

Promoting sustainable consumer behavior is now an obligation under new European legislation, requiring Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for accurate environmental impact evaluation. Portugal is a key textile producer, edge in competitiveness in sustainable textile production, driven by electricity-reduced carbon footprint and closed-loop manufacturing. Additionally, while simple spreadsheets can estimate a product's carbon footprint, openLCA software, combined with ecoinvent database, greatly enhances environmental footprint calculations by integrating diverse impact categories, otherwise difficult to estimate. In this study, openLCA is used to evaluate the environmental footprint of a white T-shirt made in Portugal, with 50% recycled cotton from post-industrial wastes combined with 50% organic cotton from Turkey, to assist the design of environmental key performance indicators (KPI). The RECIPE and EF method (adapted) are used to calculate the environmental impacts and allow aggregation in a single score. The KPI related to the global warming impact is validated using a spreadsheet calculator. We propose an “Envi-Score” based on an A to E classification for benchmarking and better communication with the buyers. E is set as the normalized environmental impact of the European benchmark for a mixture material T-shirt encompassing cradle-to-gate boundaries. The introduction of recycled cotton proves to be environmentally beneficial over organic and conventional cotton. Organic cotton proves to be beneficial in comparison with conventional cotton for most environmental categories, except to the ones affected by the lower production yield, for example Land Use. The hotspots for the main impact categories are identified and finally proposed a labelling scheme, to clearly inform about the environmental performance of the products and avoid greenwashing, with the “Envi-Score” rate, carbon footprint, land use and water depletion.

The number of people affected by eye conditions is growing every year, due to the popularity of electronic devices and an aging population. In the world of medicine, accomplishing eye medication administration has always been a difficult task. Despite the fact that there are many eye drops on the market, most of them have important limitations due to quick clearance mechanisms and ocular barriers. One solution with tremendous potential is the contact lens used as medication delivery vehicle to bypass this constraint. Therapeutic contact lenses for ocular medication delivery have attracted a lot of attention because they have the potential to improve ocular bioavailability, patient compliance, and reduce side effects. However, it is essential not to compromise essential features such as water content, optical transparency, and modulus in order to target successful in vitro and in vivo sustained drug delivery profile from impregnated contact lenses. Aside from difficulties like drug stability and burst release, the changing of lens physical and chemical properties caused by therapeutic or non-therapeutic components can limit the commercialization potential of pharmaceutical-loaded lenses. Research has progressed towards bioinspired techniques and smart materials to improve the efficacy of drug-eluting contact lenses. The bioinspired method uses bioinspired polymeric materials to improve biocompatibility, a specialized molecule recognition technique called molecular imprinting, or a stimuli-responsive system to improve biocompatibility and support drug delivery efficacy of drug-eluting contact lenses. This review encompasses strategies of material design, lens manufacturing and drug impregnation under the current auspices in ophthalmic therapies and projects an outlook onto future opportunities in the field of eye conditions management by means of active principles-eluting contact lens.

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) and aluminum oxide (Al2O3) coatings have been investigated in a wide range of bio-applications due to their biodegradation and biocompatibility properties, that are key parameters for their use in the food packaging and biomedical devices fields. The present study evaluates and compares the electrochemical behavior of the non-coated, commercial resin-coated, TiO2-coated and Al2O3-coated aluminum in commercial beer electrolyte. For this, TiO2 and Al2O3 thin films were deposited on aluminum (Al) substrates using atomic layer deposition (ALD). The evaluation of the corrosion barrier layer properties was performed by linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). In addition, profilometry, grazing incidence X-ray diffractometry (GIXRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) analyses were performed to investigate the physical and chemical properties of the pristine and / or corroded samples. TiO2 and Al2O3 films presented an amorphous structure, a morphology that follows Al substrate surface, and a thickness of around 100 nm. Analysis of LSV data showed that ALD coatings promoted a considerable increase in corrosion barrier efficiency being 86.3% for TiO2-coated Al and 80% for Al2O3-coated Al in comparison with 7.1% of commercial resin-coated Al. This is mainly due to the lower electrochemical porosity, 11.4% for TiO2-coated Al and 20.4% for Al2O3-coated Al in comparison with 96% of the resin-coated Al, i.e. an increase of up to twofold in the protection of Al when coated with TiO2 compared to Al2O3 coated. The EIS results allow us to complement the discussions about the reduced corrosion barrier efficiency of the Al2O3 film for beer electrolyte once SEM and FT-IR analyzes did not show drastic changes in both investigated ALD films after the corrosion assays. The above results indicate that ALD TiO2 and Al2O3 films may be a viable alternative to replace the synthetic resin coatings frequently used in aluminum cans of use in the food industry.

Late blight caused by the oomycete pathogen Phytophthora infestans is a devastating disease of potato and tomato worldwide, including Israel. The population structure of this pathogen was monitored in potato and tomato fields in Israel during a 36-year period of 1983-2019. Isolates of the pathogen were tested for sensitivity to phenylamide fungicides, mating type, race structure, and genotype. The phenotypic and genotypic structure of the population from potato have changed greatly from one year to another, from one season to the next, within a season and within a single field. Major changes also occurred in the population collected from tomato crops. The mechanisms driving these multiple changes and the heterogeneous nature of the population in Israel are shown to derive from multiple migration events of the pathogen via seed tubers from Europe and from fitness-driven selection processes.

Ideas about Artificial Intelligence appeared about half a century ago, but only now is it becoming an essential element of everyday life. The data provided is getting bigger and bigger and, in this case, we need artificial intelligence that helps us with superhuman powers. The interaction with medicine is getting closer and closer, medicine being a field that continues to be perfected. Machine learning, deep learning, neural networks, computer vision are some of the mechanisms that are already applied in medicine, becoming a trend in healthcare worldwide. Artificial intelligence will be the thing that will change contemporary medicine. Developed countries such as Japan, France, Germany have already implemented artificial intelligence in their medical systems. The help is in medical diagnosis, patient monitoring, personalized therapy, and workflow optimization. Artificial intelligence will help surgeons to perfect their skills, to standardize techniques, to choose the best surgical technique. The goal is to predict complications, reduce diagnostic time, diagnose complex pathologies, guide the surgeon intraoperatively and reduce medical errors. We are at the beginning but the potential is enormous.

Staphylococcus spp. are among the main pathogens responsible for important infections worldwide, both in humans and in domestic or wild animals. Chiropterans, popularly known as bats, inhabit natural environments and human constructions, and have been considered potential disseminators of several pathogens. Studies have shown the expression of the mecA gene in these animals, being a significant threat to One Health. The objective of this study was to determine antibiotic resistance and the presence of the mecA gene in Staphylococcus spp. isolates from bats from forest areas in the municipalities of Paraná, Brazil. A total of 87 frugivorous chiropterans belonging to the family Phyllostomidae were captured. Of these, 87 rectal and 87 oral swabs samples were collected, re-sulting in 32 Staphylococcus spp. isolates. Twenty-four isolates were characterized as coagu-lase-negative, and 8 coagulase-positive Staphylococcus spp. (STACP), which showed notable re-sistance to oxacillin (78.12%), penicillin G (65.62%) and to other antimicrobials as well. One STACP isolate was mecA-positive. Therefore, further studies are needed to elucidate the mechanisms of contamination and dissemination of these pathogens, emphasizing that anthropic actions in na-tural environments, especially those related to the use of antimicrobials, pesticides may be the main reasons for the presence of resistant bacteria in bats.

Biosensors are measurement devices that can sense several biomolecules, and are widely used for the detection of relevant clinical pathogens such as bacteria and viruses, showing outstanding results. Because of the latent existing risk of facing another pandemic like the one we are living due to COVID-19, researchers are constantly looking forward to developing new technologies for diagnosis and treatment of infections caused by different bacteria and viruses. Regarding that, nanotechnology has improved biosensors design and performance through the development of materials and nanoparticles that enhance their affinity, selectivity, and efficacy in detecting these pathogens, such as employing nanoparticles, graphene quantum dots, and electrospun nanofibers. Therefore, this work aims to present a comprehensive review that exposes how biosensors work in terms of bacterial and viral detection, and the nanotechnological features that are contributing to achieving a faster yet still efficient COVID-19 diagnosis at the point-of-care.

Oxygen is a limiting factor both in the environment and production systems, so reduction may become a stressor. Diel cyclic hypoxia occurs with varying frequency and duration in freshwater habitats. Under a stressful situation fish activate the hypothalamic-pituitary-interrenal axis (HPI) which triggers the release of cortisol that induces secondary and tertiary responses. The recovery of individuals depends on their ability to modulate physiological, and biochemical responses to maintain homeostasis. The aim of this study is to determine the hematological and physiological responses of rainbow trout under repeated hypoxic stress in different time points. The methodology of the experiment consisted of dividing the fish in 5 different treatment groups, 2 control groups and 3 hypoxia groups. Every exposure consisted in decrease the dissolved oxygen concentration from 8mg O2/L to 2mg O2/L for 1 hour. After the exposure the fish went to a recovery tank until the sampling procedure. Hematological and physiological results show a habituation of the fish to different parameters such as hematocrit, hemoglobin and mean corpuscular volume among others. Overall, our results indicate an ability of rainbow trout to resist this type of hypoxic exposures and a habituation of fish to repeated hypoxia as observed in the different measured parameters.

Micro and small wood-processing enterprises represent the heart of the European forest-based industries, being among the key drivers of economic growth in rural, mountainous, and poor regions. Their economic efficiency is of fundamental importance for their existence and the pro-vision of income for the local population in rural areas. Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) is nonparametric, linear-programming-based approach, commonly used to analyse the efficiency of organizational units. This method allows estimating the economic efficiency of a certain eco-nomic system without assumptions about the functional form between resources and products. Furthermore, DEA determines the efficiency frontier and gives results of whether an enterprise, i.e., a Decision Making Unit (DMU) is efficient or not. The main objective of this study was to investigate and evaluate the economic efficiency of micro and small wood-processing enterpris-es in the EU countries and reveal the hidden inputs that facilitate efficiency generation. The eco-nomic efficiency evaluation was carried out on the basis of the official statistical data for the mi-cro and small wood-processing companies in the EU member states for the period 2015-2020 by performing a two-stage DEA analysis. The data used were standardized by value per employee. In addition to the first stage of DEA, fractional regression probit and logit models with four contextual variables were used to reveal the influence of the hidden inputs in the model. The results showed that the micro and small wood-processing enterprises can be regarded as more scale-efficient than technically-efficient entities. The only contextual variable affecting the eco-nomic efficiency was Investments per Person Employed, improving the efficiency by 2% per 1% increase of the investments.

This study aimed to obtain and characterize extracted hemp oil enriched in cannabidiol (CBD) by decarboxylation of cannabidiolic acid (CBDA) and to give new insights into its antioxidant and anticancer effects. Optimization of CBDA decarboxylation in hemp oil was performed, and CBD and CBDA contents and purities were determined by “flash chromatography”, 1H- and 13C-NMR. The antioxidant properties of CBD-enriched oil were investigated by Fe2+ chelating activity, Fe3+ reducing antioxidant power assay, O2− scavenging activity, HO− scavenging ability and lipid peroxidation inhibitory assay and its cytotoxicity, apoptosis- and oxidative stress-inducing effects on NHDF, MeWo, HeLa, HepG2 and HOS cells were determined. The CBD concentration in hemp oil was increased by CBDA soft decarboxylation optimized at 90°C, for 1 h and resulted oil was capable of reducing iron, scavenging free radicals, and inhibiting lipid peroxidation in cell-free oxidative conditions. CBD-enriched oil promoted NHDF proliferation at up to 15 µg CBD/mL, while inducing apoptosis and ROS production and modulating antioxidant enzymes’ gene expression in cancer cells, being selective for osteosarcoma cells and induced apoptosis by p53- and ROS-independent mechanisms. CBD-enriched hemp oil demonstrated antioxidant properties in oxidative conditions and promoted normal fibroblasts’ proliferation, while inducing apoptosis and ROS production in cancer cells.

This study develops a structure for mapping native vegetation in a transition area between Brazilian Cerrado and Atlantic Forest from integrated spatial information from the Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 satellites. Most studies use this data separately, however, the integrated use of optical sensors with Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) sensors can improve the methodology for classifying land use and land cover (LULC). The fusion of Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2, for example, can increase the accuracy of mapping algorithms, using complementary information, such as spectral, backscattering, polarimetry, and interferometry. The study area comprises the Lobo Reservoir Hydrographic Basin, which is part of an environmental conservation unit protected by Brazilian law and with significant human development. LULC were classified, using the random forest deep learning algorithm. The classifying attributes were backscatter coefficients, polarimetric decomposition, and interferometric coherence for radar data (Sentinel-1), and optical spectral data, comprising bands in the red edge, near infrared, and shortwave infrared (Sentinel-2). The attributes were evaluated in three settings in which the SAR and optical data were evaluated separately (C1 and C2, respectively) and in an integrated manner (C3). The study found greater accuracy for C3 (96.54%), an improvement of nearly 2% compared to C2 (94.78%) and more than 40% in relation to C1 (55.73%). The classification algorithm encountered significant challenges in identifying wetlandsin C1, but performance improved in C3, enhancing differentiation by stratifying a greater number of classes during training and facilitating visual interpretation during sampling. Accordingly, the use of SAR and optical data becomes an alternative to optimize LULC mapping in tropical regions, due to the limited influence of atmosphere on images in the microwave range.

Background: Changes in body weight are associated with the regulation of DNA methylation (DNAm). In this study, we investigated the associations between maternal gestational weight gain-related DNAm and foetal and neonatal body composition. Methods: Brazilian pregnant women from the Araraquara Cohort Study were followed up during pregnancy, delivery, and after hospital discharge. Women with normal pre-pregnancy BMI were allocated to two groups: adequate gestational weight gain (AGWG, n=45) and excessive gestational weight gain (EGWG, n=30). Foetal and neonatal body composition was evaluated by ultrasound and plethysmography, respectively. DNAm was assessed in maternal blood using Illumina Infinium MethylationEPIC BeadChip arrays. Linear regression models were used to explore the associations between DNAm and foetal and neonatal body composition. Results: Maternal weight, GWG, neonatal weight, and fat mass were higher in the EGWG group. Analysis of DNAm identified 46 differentially methyl-ated positions and 11 differentially methylated regions (DMRs) between the EGWG and AGWG groups. Nine human phenotypes were enriched for these 11 DMRs located in 13 genes (EMILIN1, HOXA5, CPT1B, CLDN9, ZFP57, BRCA1, POU5F1, ANKRD33, HLA-B, RANBP17, ZMYND11, DIP2C, TMEM232), highlighting the terms insulin resistance, and hyperglycaemia. Maternal DNAm was associated with foetal total thigh and arm tissues and subcutaneous thigh and arm fat, as well as with neonatal fat mass percentage and fat mass. Conclusion: The methylation pat-tern in the EGWG group indicated a risk for developing chronic diseases and involvement of ma-ternal DNAm in foetal lean and fat mass and in neonatal fat mass.

The purpose of this article is to conduct a bibliometric review of literary production in terms of market interdependence. We investigate the effect of contagion on agricultural commodities and identify the commodities and methods used in the most cited publications over the decades. For this, we used the SCOPUS database, sorting with Rayyan, Excel, and finally, the Bibliometrix/R-project. The results showed that corn, wheat, soybeans, cotton, and sugar are the most studied commodities. There is no uniqueness concerning the methods used to identify interdependence and the contagion effect. Also, it is possible to perceive the growing scientific interest concerning the subject, with a diversity of authors and magazines. However, there is a direction of the and magazines most cited articles for analyzing agricultural commodities and energy, demonstrated a worldwide trend of studies relating natural resources, biofuels, clean energy, and efficiency. In addition, countries like China and the United States stand out in this scientific scenario as the countries that produce the most articles.

Background: Metastasis is a complex process that involves the spread of the tumor to distant parts of the body from its original site. Metastatic dissemination represents the main physiopathology of cancer. Soluble factors such as cytokines have been closely related to breast cancer (BC) metastasis. Bisphenol A (BPA) is an endocrine disrupting chemical compound with estrogenic properties, which exposure in the early stages of neonatal life leads to an increase in the size and weight of breast tumors and cellular changes in the tumoral immune microenvironment. Methods: Thus, we used female BALB/c mice that were exposed neonatally to a single dose of BPA. Once sexual maturity was reached, a mammary tumor was induced injecting 4T1 cells in situ. After 25 days of injection, we evaluated endocrine alterations, cytokine expression, tissue alterations denoted by macro and micro metastases in the lung, and metastasis-induced cell infiltration. Results: BPA neonatal treatment did not show significant endocrine alterations. Nevertheless, BPA induced a great rate of metastasis to the lung associated with higher intratumoral expression of IL-1b, IL-6, IFN-g, TNF-a and VEGF. Conclusions Our data suggest that cytokines are key players in BC metastasis induction, and that BPA is a risk factor to be considered. This knowledge must be considered with the aim of recognizing environmental pollution in the clinical history of patients to possibly counter BC metastases.

Morphological and phylogenetic (45S nrDNA+RPB1 gene) analyses of three glomoid spore-producing arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi revealed the presence of two new species be-longing to the genus Glomus in the family Glomeraceae. In the field, Glomus highlandensis sp. nov. was found in a saltmarsh of the Scottish Highlands and in maritime sand dunes of the Baltic Sea in Poland, both saline environments, while G. mongioie sp. nov. originates from the Italian Alps. Phylogenetic placement analysis using environmental sequences indicated that G. highlandensis could have likely worldwide distribution while G. mongioie seems to be a rare species in the world. The molecular and phylogenetic analysis provided important insights about the presence of ribosomal variants in Glomus, with potential negative implication in phylogeny and species recognition.

This scientific paper presents a comprehensive investigation into transient Fourier analysis in some electrical engineering applications. The article deals with two effective approaches for solving transient analysis whose application is rather novel. The first contribution uses combined the Fourier series analytic Laplace-Carson (L­C) transform methods in the complex domain using complex time vectors, thereby significantly simplifying the calculation of the original function. As the inverse transform goes back into the time domain, it employs the Cauchy-Heaviside (C­H) method. The second contribution uses the Fourier transform (F­Τ)for transient analysis of a power converter electrical circuit with the passive and the active load. The method of complex conjugated amplitudes is used for steady-state analysis. Both contributions represent a new approach to this paper. The starting point is the Fourier series/expansions, computation of the Fourier coefficients, then continuing by solving the steady and transient states of the system and confirming the transient states using the Fourier transform. To validate our findings, the worked-out analytical results are verified by modelling in Matlab/Simulink environment.

The electric power distribution utility is responsible for providing energy to consumers in a continuous and stable way, failures in the electrical power system reduce the reliability indexes of the grid, directly harming its performance. For this reason, there is a need for failure prediction to reestablish power in the shortest possible time. Considering an evaluation of the number of failures over time, this paper proposes to perform a failure prediction during the first year of the pandemic in Brazil (2020) to verify the feasibility of using time series forecasting models for fault prediction. The Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) model will be evaluated to obtain a forecast result that can be used by the electric power utility to organize the maintenance teams. The Wavelet transform shows to be promising in improving the predictive ability of the LSTM, making the Wavelet LSTM model suitable for the study at hand. The results show that the proposed approach has better results regarding the evaluation of the error in prediction and has robustness when a statistical analysis is performed.

Introduction: Cholelithiasis and consumption of alcohol are the most frequent causes of acute pancreatitis (AP), accounting for about 30 to 40% of the cases, respectively. The frequency of acute biliary pancreatitis is high in a certain population in Brazil. Objective: To estimate the global frequencies of acute biliary pancreatitis (ABP), acute alcoholic pancreatitis (AAP) and the cases considered as acute idiopathic pancreatitis (AIP) in studies published from October 2006 to December 31, 2018. Methods: A systematic review of observational studies was performed from October 2006 to December 31, 2018. A meta-analysis by the random effects model was used to calculate the frequencies of global ABP, AIP and AAP and subgroups. Results: Forty-six studies representing 2,341,007 AP cases were included in 36 countries. The overall estimate for acute biliary pancreatitis (ABP) was 41.6% (95% CI 39.2-44.1), followed by acute alcoholic pancreatitis (AAP) with 20.5% (95% CI) 16.6- 24.6) and acute idiopathic pancreatitis (AIP) in 18.3% (95% CI 15.1-27.7). Conclusion: ABP is the most prevalent etiology of AP, being two times more frequent than second-placed pancreatitis. Latin America has a frequency for ABP much higher than the rest of the world. The importance of the etiologic diagnosis is the treatment of the cause for prevention of recurrence.

This study investigates the relationship between energy metals and precious metals to assess their suitability as safe haven assets in clean energy investment portfolios. It focuses on the impact of events in 2020 and 2022, characterized by substantial investments in clean energy. The research reveals that, except for Nickel Futures (NICKELc1), energy metals are positively linked with clean energy indexes. This suggests that they can serve as a secure investment option for green investors looking to diversify their portfolios. As a result, the study dismisses the initial question, indicating that energy metals can indeed be considered safe havens within the context of clean energy investments. Additionally, the research reinforces prior findings that precious metals like gold, silver, and platinum possess safe haven characteristics in relation to specific clean energy stock indexes. These results have significant implications, particularly given the increasing investments in clean energy stocks and the recurring uncertainties in the market. In summary, this study supports the idea that both energy metals and precious metals can play valuable roles in clean energy portfolios, providing stability during turbulent times in the market.

Truffles contribute to crucial dynamics in the soil systems, being involved in plentiful ecological functions important for ecosystems. Despite this, the interactions between truffles and surrounding mycobiota remain unknown. Here, we aimed to shed light on how much truffle species could affect its surrounding soil mycobiota. Using traditional chemical analysis and Illumina ITS amplicon sequencing, we compared soil nutrients and mycobiota surrounding two truffle species: Tuber indicum (Ti) and T. pseudohimalayense (Tp) inhabit in the same Pinus armandii forest in southwestern China. Tp soil was more acidic and had higher nutrients (total C, N, P contents) than Ti soil. Fungal richness and diversity of truffle ascomata and surrounding soils were significantly higher in Tp than in Ti. Redundancy analysis showed relationships between soil fungal taxa and soil properties had changed from negative (Tp) to positive (Ti) and shifted from a moisture-driving (Tp) to a total N-driving (Ti). Overall, our results showed that the interactions between truffle and soil system had been altered with species variation, although the causative peculiarity of these associations needs to be further studied.

The growing population in Yucatan has led to the expansion of construction in the Mayan jungle for tourist spaces, residential areas, and agriculture. Recently, rabies cases in cats (Felis catus) have increased. This study aimed to perform the antigenic and genetic characterization of the RABV and to try to identify factors contributing to the increased transmission of rabies virus from wildlife to cats in the State of Yucatan. The ArcGIS software was employed to generate maps depicting the geographic locations of rabies outbreaks in cats. A mixed-effects Poisson regression model was applied to investigate the association between cat rabies cases and sociodemographic and ecological variables. A total of nine feline rabies cases occurred, three antigenic variants were detected: RVV1 (n=1); (RVV3) (n=1), and the canine-originated atypical variant (n=7). Rabies cases were spatially distributed at the urban-jungle interface, which may favor contact between cats and wildlife. No statistically significant associations with sociodemographic/ecological variables were observed. Urban areas with low (0-2%) to moderate (2-4%) changes in land cover showed a substantial increase in the probability of feline rabies cases. This study highlights the concerning resurgence of rabies infections in cats, emphasizing the looming threat of its reintroduction in dogs should vaccination rates diminish. The genetic affinity between the atypical variant and the canine virus underscores the urgent need for vigilance in maintaining high vaccination coverage across all susceptible species.

The clinical practice implies a research translation that helps the use of scientific data and thera-peutic evidence for patient benefits. This review critically summarizes the potential impact of cannabinoids in concomitance with other drugs in the following chronic diseases as Epilepsy, Au-tism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), Oncology, Multiple Sclerosis, and Chronic Pain. The potential in-teractions can change the predicted clinical outcomes of therapeutic protocols and need to be evaluated. Some of the effects would be additive, synergistic or antagonistic, but can also enroll changes in absorption, distribution, metabolism, particularly via cytochrome P450 (CYP) isoen-zymes (e.g CYP2C9 and CYP3A4) and excretion. For instance, the combination of canna-bis-derived compounds and the antifungal drug ketoconazole, a CYP3A4 inhibitor, increases plasma concentration of Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and CBD (CBD). Opposable, rifampic-in, a CYP3A4 inducer, stands out for the approximately 20-40% reduction in plasma THC levels and 50% to 60% for CBD. Other CYP3A4 inhibitors and inducers are likely to have a similar effect on plasma concentrations if co-administered. Indeed, pharmacokinetic interactions have been also reported with antiseizure drugs. Moreover, pharmacodynamic interactions between cannabinoids and drugs with sympathomimetic effects (eg tachycardia, hypertension), central nervous system depressants (eg drowsiness, ataxia), and anticholinergics (eg tachycardia and drowsiness) are also expected. Even though pending further studies, there is currently clinical evidence supporting drug interaction with cannabinoids, demanding doctors evaluate the risk of drug combinations with cannabinoids. The tables herein provided were designed to facilitate the identification of bi-orelevant interactions that may compromise therapeutic efficacy and toxicity.

Machine Learning techniques can be used to identify whether deficits in cognitive functions contribute to antisocial and aggressive behavior. This paper initially presents the results of tests conducted on delinquent and non-delinquent youths to assess their cognitive functions. The dataset extracted from these assessments, consisting of 37 predictor variables and one target. was used to train three algorithms that aim to predict whether the data corresponds to that of a young offender or a non-offending youth. Prior to this, statistical tests were conducted on the data to identify characteristics that exhibited significant differences in order to select the most relevant features and optimize the prediction results. Additionally, other feature selection methods, such as Boruta, RFE, and Filter, were applied, and their effects on the accuracy of each of the three machine learning models used (SVM, RF, and KNN) were compared. 80% of the data were utilized for training, while the remaining 20% were used for validation. The best result was achieved by the K-NN model trained with 19 features selected by the Boruta method, followed by the SVM model trained with 24 features selected by the filter method.

The rapid spread of COVID-19 worldwide was accompanied by intense fears, confusion, worries, anger and stress threatening people’s mental health. Unprecedented measures to slow down and prevent the transmission of COVID-19 have had various impacts on the population’s health behaviour and mental health. The main purpose of the present study is to investigate the lockdown’s effects on university students’ mental health in Romania. Based on a cross-sectional design, the survey data were collected from a sample of 722 participants (247 males; M = 21.1 years; SD ± 1.73). A path analysis was performed to verify the hypothesised direct and indirect effects included in the multiple mediation model. The findings showed a positive association between stress and boredom proneness, missing daily social interactions, spending more time on phone conversations and the increasing interest in following news about the pandemic. The path analysis revealed an excellent fit between the proposed multiple mediation model and the sample data. Boredom proneness and missing daily social interactions both affected stress, directly and indirectly, through more time spent on phone conversations. In addition, it was found that the increased interest in following news about the pan-demic mediated the relationship between boredom proneness and perceived stress. In terms of gender differences, our findings revealed that female students experienced significantly higher stress levels than male students, perceived to a greater extent the lack of daily social interactions and spent more time on phone conversations. Overall, the findings further extend the empirical evidence on university students’ mental health in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, universities need to organise support programmes focused on developing university students’ coping strategies to maintain their mental health even in adverse contexts.

Dietary approach is essential to obesity control, but the effectiveness of changes in meal frequency (MF) as strategies for loss and maintenance of body mass remain unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the influence of MF on a hypocaloric diet on weight loss, active ghrelin levels and metabolic indicators of women with obesity. This is a randomized, parallel clinical trial, including forty women, randomized in two groups, both following a hypocaloric diet, according to MF (G1 – six meals/day; G2 – three meals/day). Dietary, laboratory, anthropometric and body composition indicators were assessed, as well as energy expenditure (EE), before and after the 90 days of intervention. After intervention, both groups decreased body weight, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, fat mass (FM), insulin and HOMA-IR. G1 increased insulin sensitivity and G2 reduced triglyceride and FM and increased fat-free mass (FFM). MF increased ghrelin levels. There were no differences in EE variables. Hypocaloric diet with different MF promoted a reduction in total weight, BMI, WC and FM and an improvement in glycidic metabolism. However, the accomplishment of the three meals/day increased the FFM and active ghrelin and reduced triglyceride, while six meals/day was more beneficial in increasing insulin sensitivity.

Background. Sarcopenia and spinal cord injury (SCI) often coexist, but little is known about the associations of these two pathologies. This study aimed to assess the impact of SCI on muscle and bone mass and the correlations between clinical characteristics of SCI patients and sarcopenia. Methods: 136 patients diagnosed with SCI admitted to rehabilitation hospital were included in the study. The type and severity of injury (AIS), the level of spasticity (MAS), bone mineral density and Appendicular Lean Muscle Mass (ALM) were assessed. Sarcopenia was diagnosed according to the recommended EWGSOP2 cut-off points for ALM. Results: There was a statistically significant association between the ALM value and the gender, 75% of women developing sarcopenia. Among men, 42.9% had sarcopenia. Over 55% of AIS Grades A and B cases had sarcopenia. Mean age of sarcopenic patients was 35.8 years and they had multiple comorbidities. 51.6% of the patients with osteoporosis had sarcopenia. 69.7% of MAS level 0 cases had sarcopenia, while this was diagnosed in about 40% of patients with MAS levels 1-4. Conclusions: Gender, type of injury, presence of multiple comorbidities and age were directly associated with sarcopenia, while surprisingly, spasticity level and the presence of immobilization osteoporosis were not.

Paralyzed patients have always been ideal candidates for physiotherapy due to their body's inability to recover on its own. Regardless of the cause that led to the onset of paralysis (whether localized or generalized), physiotherapy helps these patients with devices and methods designed to restore their proper functioning of the body, as well as quality of life. Obtaining the standing position is the main stage in the therapeutic process, being the indispensable element for the entire protocol. The present study focused on the devices we developed over time, adapting them for each patient, depending on the degree of damage they presented and the possible associated pathologies. At the same time, we wanted these devices to be available for any therapist or even owner, being made of common materials, easy to find, but also affordable.

Does cell clustering influence intrinsic and acquired multi-drug resistance (MDR) differently? To address this question, we studied cultured monolayers (representing individual cells) and cultured spheroids (representing clusters) formed by drug-naïve (intrinsic MDR) and drug-exposed (acquired MDR) lines of ovarian cancer A2780 cells by cytometry of reaction rate constant (CRRC). MDR efflux was characterized by accurate and robust “cell number vs. MDR efflux rate constant (kMDR)” histograms. Both drug-naïve and drug-exposed monolayer cells presented unimodal histograms; the histogram of drug-exposed cells was shifted towards higher kMDR value suggesting greater MDR activity. Spheroids of drug-naïve cells presented a bimodal histogram indicating the presence of two subpopulations with different MDR activity. In contrast, spheroids of drug-exposed cells presented a unimodal histogram qualitatively similar to that of the monolayers of drug-exposed cells but with a moderate shift towards greater MDR activity. The observed greater effect of cell clustering on intrinsic than on acquired MDR can help guide the development of new therapeutic strategies targeting clusters of circulating tumor cells.

Medical and translational scientific research requires the use of animal models as an initial approach to the study of new therapies and treatments, but when the objective is an exploration of translational potentialities, classical models fail to adequately mimic problems in humans. Among the larger animal models that have been explored more intensely in recent decades, small ruminants, namely sheep and goats, have emerged as excellent options. The main advantages associated to the use of these animals in research works are related to their anatomy and dimensions very similar to those of humans in most physiological systems, in addition to their low maintenance and feeding costs, tendency to be docile, long life expectancies and few ethical complications raised in society. The most obvious disadvantages are the significant differences in some systems such as the gastrointestinal, and the reduced amount of data that limits the comparison between works and the validation of the characterization essays. Despite everything, recently these species have been increasingly used as animal models for diseases in different systems, and the results obtained open doors for their more frequent and advantageous use in the future. The purpose of this review is to summarize the general principles related to the use of small ruminants as animal models, with focus on regenerative medicine, to group the most relevant works and results published recently and to highlight the potentials for the near future in medical research.

This work involves results of research on short-term and long-term DC-drifts in electro-optical modulators based on annealed proton exchange waveguides in LiNbO3 crystals after wafer pre-annealing. The relaxation time of the DC-drift of the operating point for a short-term drift is minutes, and for a long-term drift, hours and days. DC-drift was measured by applying bias voltage and changing crystal temperature. Obtained results shows significant impact on stability of operating point in EO-modulators after treatment of defective structure of the near-surface layer of a LiNbO3 crystal. Treatment of the disturbed near-surface layer of a LiNbO3 crystal results in twice reduction of short-term DC-drift and increase of operation stability of electro-optical modulators during long-term measurement of temperature by activation energy calculation.

Blackberry is a fruit that has high nutritional value, a factor that has expanded its consumption worldwide. However, due to the fragility of the fruits and the high incidence of postharvest diseases, the fruits have a short shelf life. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate whether the application of coatings based on microfibrillated cellulose (NC) and lemongrass essential oil (EO) nanoparticles can prolong the shelf life of blackberry fruits after harvest. EO-coated blackberry fruits at nanocellulose concentrations were analyzed as follows: 0; 0.2; 0.4; 0.6 and 0.8%, in addition to the control treatment of which neither essential oil nor nanocellulose was used, for each treatment five repetitions were used. The fruits were analyzed soon after the application of the cover and at three and six days after storage. Fruit quality was assessed by soluble solids (SS), titratable acidity (TA), pH, fresh weight loss (FWL) and colorimetric parameters such as luminosity, hue angle and fruit peel chroma. Coating on EO (1000 ppm) blackberries combined with NC at concentrations of 0.2, 0.4 and 0.6% is promising in preserving blackberry fruits and reducing the process color reversal, up to six days of storage. The 0.4% NC + 1000 ppm EO conjugated coating showed no SS changes in blackberry fruits during the six days of storage.

Ascidians are marine invertebrates that synthesize sulfated glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) within their viscera. Ascidian GAGs are considered analogues of mammalian GAGs and possess great potential as bioactive compounds, presenting antitumor and anticoagulant activity. Due to its worldwide occurrence, and therefore, being a suitable organism for large-scale mariculture in many marine environments, our main objectives are to study Microcosmus exasperatus GAGs re-garding composition, structure and biological activity. We also aim to develop efficient protocols for sulfated polysaccharides extraction and purification aiming large-scale production and clinical applications. Ascidians were collected by free diving. GAGs were extracted by proteolytic diges-tion, purified by ion-exchange liquid chromatography, characterized by agarose gel electropho-resis and enzymatic treatments. Anticoagulant activity was evaluated by aPTT assays. Cell cyto-toxicity was evaluated by MTT assays using LLC tumor cell line. Clonogenic assay was performed using LLC cells as well. Tumor cell migration activity was evaluated in vitro by wound healing assays. Our results show that M. exasperatus presents three distinct polysaccharides. These pol-ysaccharides were fractionated into two fractions named SP1 and SP2. M. exasperatus produces a low anticoagulant dermatan sulfate (SP2) and a fucosylated dermatan sulfate composed of a hy-brid chain of dermatan sulfate, chondroitin sulfate and fucose residues with sulfations at position 2 and 6 of the N-acetyl-galactosamine (SP1), which, interestingly, is not susceptible to heparinases treatment and does not present significant anticoagulant activity. Glycans were tested as anti-tumoral agents and presented relevant activity as such. Short-term incubation with TP does not affect LLC tumor cells viability at low concentrations, while long-term incubation with TP de-creased LLC tumor cells growth/proliferation at different concentrations. TP affected LLC tumor cells migration at different concentrations. As a conclusion, we state that M. exasperatus presents great potential as an alternative GAG source compared to porcine or bovine heparin, producing suitable compounds that present antitumoral properties at low concentrations, that do not pos-sess anticoagulant activity, and do not enhance other aspects of malignancy, such as tumor cell migration and invasion. Our perspectives are to apply these molecules in future preclinical studies as a soluble formula, as well as in nanoparticles, for cancer treatment.

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the nanomechanical properties and chemical composition of restorative materials and dental surfaces using different toothpastes. Methods: Enamel (n=60) and dentin (n=60) bovine blocks were obtained and restored using resin-modified glass ionomer cement (RMGIC, n=30) or composite resin (CR, n=30) to form the dentin adjacent to RMGIC (DRMGIC), enamel adjacent to RMGIC (ERMGIC), dentin adjacent to CR (DCR), and enamel adjacent to CR (ECR). After restoration, one hemiface of each specimen was coated with an acid-resistant varnish to create the control (C) and eroded (E) sides (erosion: 5 days, 4 × 2 min/day; 1% citric acid / abrasion: 2 × 15 s followed by immersion on slurries 2 min). Three toothpastes were used: without fluoride (WF; n=10), sodium fluoride (NaF; n=10), and stannous fluoride (SnF2; n=10). The specimens were analyzed for nanohardness (H), elastic modulus (Er), and chemical composition using energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and Raman microscopy. Data were analyzed using ANOVA two-way repeated measures and Tukey’s test (α = 0.05). Results: The NaF presented lower values of H for DRMGIC-C, with a statistical difference for WF (p < 0.05). SnF2 resulted in lower Er values for ERMGIC-E and RMGIC-E than WF and NaF (p < 0.05). WF showed lower calcium and phosphorus concentrations for DCR-E than other types of toothpastes (p < 0.05). Only stannous-based toothpaste damaged the elasticity of eroded glass ionomer restorations performed in enamel. Toothpastes with fluoride was capable for maintaining main chemical elements of dentin adjacent to restorative materials under challenge conditions.

The use of nanoparticles as antimicrobial agents can be one of the strategies to overcome the tendency of microbes to become resistant to antibiotics’ action. In this study, two composites ZnO/Au and ZnO/Ag, having 1% wt. of noble metal content, were synthesized by simple aqueous solution methods. The structure and morphology of the resulting nanocomposites were analyzed by standard structural and optical characterization methods. The formation of Au NPs and Ag NPs in these experiments was also discussed. The antimicrobial properties of ZnO, ZnO/Au and ZnO/Ag nanomaterials were investigated against Gram-negative bacteria (Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and Gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus). The electrostatic interaction between ZnO and noble metals nanoparticles have contributed to a better visible light adsorption, which led to an enhanced antimicrobial activity. The photocatalytic tests indicated an improvement in photocatalytic degradation of the methylene blue (MB) under UV irradiation using ZnO/Au and ZnO/Ag nanocomposites compared to bare ZnO. The introduction of noble metallic nanoparticles in ZnO matrix proved to be an effective strategy to increase their antimicrobial activity against P. aeruginosa and S. aureus and their photocatalytic activity evaluated through the degradation of MB dye. Comparing the enhancing effects of Au and Ag, it was found that ZnO/Au was a better antimicrobial agent while ZnO/Ag was more effective photocatalyst under UV irradiation.

Electronic waste (e-waste), characterized by the widespread disposal of electronic devices, shows a growing environmental challenge. In this study, we explore the electrocatalytic potential of gold nanoparticles supported on Vulcan obtained from e-waste for their application as electrocatalysts for the methanol oxidation reaction in alkaline media. Gold nanoparticles are synthesized from gold coatings recovered from Intel Pentium 4 processor pins, highlighting their sustainability as electrocatalyst precursors. Comprehensive characterization, including UV-Vis spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray dif-fraction, is performed to assess the electrocatalyst's structural properties. Electrochemical evalu-ation is carried out in 0.5 M KOH electrolyte employing the rotating disk electrode technique, us-ing cyclic voltammetry for the study of methanol oxidation. Remarkably, the gold nanoparticles show electrocatalytic activity on par with commercially synthesized counterparts, demonstrating the feasibility of this approach for sustainable electrocatalyst production. Thus, this research opens new routes for utilizing e-waste as a source of valuable catalyst materials, addressing en-vironmental and technological challenges in the field of alkaline fuel cells.

Southern highbush blueberry plantations have been expanded into worldwide non-traditional growing areas with elite cultivars and improved horticultural practices. This article presents a comprehensive review of current production systems – alternatives to traditional open field production – such as production in protected environments, high-density plantings, evergreen production, and container-based production. We discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each system and compare their differences to the open field production. In addition, potential solutions have been provided for some of the disadvantages. We also highlight some of the gaps existing between academic studies and production in industry, providing a guide for future academic research. All these alternative systems have shown the potential to produce high yields with high quality berries. Alternative systems, compared to the field production, require higher establishment investments and thus create an entry barrier for new producers. Nevertheless, with their advantages, alternative productions have potential to be profitable.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections, in particular biofilm-organized bacteria, remain a clinical challenge and a serious health problem. Rifabutin (RFB), an antibiotic of the rifamycins class, has shown in previous work excellent anti-staphylococcal activity. Here, we proposed to load RFB in liposomes aiming to promote the accumulation of RFB at infected sites and consequently enhancing the therapeutic potency. Two clinical isolates of MRSA, MRSA-C1 and MRSA-C2, were used to test the developed formulations, as well as the positive control, vancomycin (VCM). RFB in free and liposomal forms displayed high antibacterial activity, with minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) ranging from 0.009-0.013 μg/mL and MBIC50 values ranging from 0.008-0.012 μg/mL, in planktonic and biofilm bacteria, respectively. Confocal microscopy studies demonstrated the rapid internalization of unloaded and RFB-loaded liposomes in the bacterial biofilm matrix. In murine models of systemic MRSA-C1 infection, Balb/c mice were treated with RFB formulations and VCM at 20 and 40 mg/kg of body weight, respectively. Obtained data proved the superior therapeutic effectiveness of RFB formulations compared to Control and VCM groups even using a two-fold lower therapeutic dose as demonstrated by significantly reduced bacterial burden and growth index values in major organs. In addition, RFB formulations were the only formulations associated with 100% survival. Globally, this study emphasizes the potential of RFB nanoformulations as an effective and safe approach against MRSA infections.

Gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) with fluorescence in the Near Infrared (NIR) by both one- and two-photon electronic excitation were incorporated in mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) using a novel one-pot synthesis procedure where the condensation polymerization of alkoxysilane monomers in the presence of the AuNCs and a surfactant produce hybrid MSNs of 49 nm diameter. This method was further developed to prepare 30 nm diameter nanocomposite particles with simultaneous NIR fluorescence and superparamagnetic properties, with a core composed of superparamagnetic manganese ferrite nanoparticles (MnFe2O4) coated with a thin silica layer, and a shell of mesoporous silica decorated with AuNCs. The nanocomposite particles feature NIR-photoluminescence with 0.6% quantum yield and large Stokes shift (290 nm), and superparamagnetic response at 300 K, with a saturation magnetization of 13.4 emu g-1. The conjugation of NIR photoluminescence and superparamagnetic properties in the biocompatible nanocomposite has high potential for application in multimodal bioimaging.

Landiolol is an ultra-short-acting, selective ß1- adrenergic receptor blocker that was originally approved by Japan for the treatment of intraoperative tachyarrhythmias. It has gained attention for its use in the management of tachyarrhythmias and perioperative tachycardia, especially atrial fibrillation for both cardiac and non-cardiac surgeries. It can be the ideal agent for heart rate control due to its high β1‐selectivity, the potent negative chronotropic effect, a limited negative inotropic potential, and an ultrashort elimination half‐life (around 4 min); moreover, it may have a potential therapeutic effect for sepsis and pediatric patients. Landiolol seems to be superior to other short‐acting and selective beta‐blockers such as esmolol. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of landiolol, a new ultra-short-acting ß1 selective antagonist, including its pharmacology, clinical applications, efficacy, safety profile, and future directions in research and clinical data.

Background: Acceleration of mass vaccination strategies is the only pathway to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic. Healthcare professionals and students have a key role in shaping public opinion about vaccines. This study aimed to evaluate the attitudes of dental students globally towards COVID-19 vaccines and explore the potential drivers for students' acceptance levels; Methods: A global cross-sectional study was carried out in February 2021 using an online ques-tionnaire. The study was liaised by the scientific committee of the International Association of Dental Students (IADS), and data was collected through the national and local coordinators of IADS member organizations. The dependent variable was the willingness to take the COVID-19 vaccine, and the independent variables included demographic characteristics, COVID-19-related experi-ence, and the drivers of COVID-19 vaccine-related attitude suggested by the WHO-SAGE; Results: A total of 6639 students from 22 countries representing all world regions responded to the ques-tionnaire properly. Their mean age was 22.06 ± 2.79 (17-40) years, and the majority were females (70.5%), in clinical years (66.8%), and from upper-middle-income economies (45.7%). In general, 22.5% of dental students worldwide were hesitant, and 13.9% rejected COVID-19 vaccines. The students in low- and lower-middle-income (LLMI) economies had significantly higher levels of vaccine hesitancy compared to their peers in upper-middle- and high-income (UMHI) economies (30.4% vs 19.8%; p < 0.001); Conclusions: The global acceptance level of dental students for COVID-19 vaccines was suboptimal, and their worrisome level of vaccine hesitancy was influenced by the socioeconomic context where the dental students live and study. The media and social media, public figures, insufficient knowledge about vaccines, and mistrust of governments and the pharmaceutical industry were barriers to vaccination. The findings of this study call for further implementation of epidemiology (infectious diseases) education within undergraduate dental curricula.

Biphasic oily/water nanoemulsions have been proposed as delivery systems for the intranasal administration of curcumin (CUR) and quercetin (QU), due to their high drug entrapment efficiency, the possibility of simultaneous drug administration and protection of the encapsulated compounds from the degradation. To better understand the physicochemical and biological performance of the selected formulation simultaneously co-encapsulating CUR and QU, a stability test of the compounds mixture was firstly carried out using X-ray powder diffraction and thermal analyses, such as differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analyses (TGA). The determination and quantification of the encapsulated active compounds was then required being an essential tool for the development of innovative nanomedicines. Thus, a new HPLC–UV/Vis method for the simultaneous determination of CUR and QU in the nanoemulsions and their evaluation in stability studies in simulated biological fluids was developed and validated. The X-ray diffraction analyses demonstrated that no interaction between the mixture of active ingredients, if any, is strong enough to take place in the solid state. Moreover, the thermal analysis demonstrated that the CUR and QU are stable in the nanoemulsion production temperature range. The proposed analytical method for the simultaneous quantification of the two actives was selective and linear for both compounds in the range of 0.5 – 12.5 µg/mL (R2 &gt; 0.9997), precise (RSD below 3%), robust and accurate (recovery 100 ± 5 %). The method was validated in accordance with ICH Q2 R1 “Validation of Analytical Procedures” and CDER-FDA 2validation of chromatographic methods” guideline. Furthermore, the low detection (LOD &lt; 0.005 µg/mL for CUR and &lt;0.14 µg/mL for QU) and quantification limits (LOQ &lt; 0.017 µg/mL for CUR and &lt; 0.48 µg/mL for QU) of the method were suitable for the application to drug release and permeation studies planned for the development of the nanoemulsions. The method was then applied for the determination of nanoemulsions CUR and QU encapsulation efficiencies (&gt; 99%), as well as for the stability studies of the two compounds in simulated biological fluids over time. The proposed method represents, to our knowledge, the only method for the simultaneous quantification of CUR, and QU in nanoemulsions.

Leishmania parasites present astonishing adaptative abilities that represent a matter of life or death within disparate environments during the heteroxenous parasite life cycle. From an evolutionary perspective, organisms develop methods of overcoming such challenges. Strategies that extend beyond the genetic diversity have been discussed and include variability between parasite cells during the infections of their hosts. The occurrence of Leishmania subpopulation fluctuations with variable structural genomic contents demonstrates that a single strain might shelter the variability required to overcome inconsistent environments. Such intrastrain variability provides parasites with an extraordinary ability to adapt and thus survive and propagate. However, different perspectives on this evolution have been proposed. Strains or species living in the same environment can cooperate but also compete. These interactions might increase the replication rate of some parasites but cause the loss of more aggressive competitors for others. Adaptive responses to intra- and interspecific competition can evolve as a fixed strategy (replication is adapted to the average genetic complexity of infections) or an optional strategy (replication varies according to the genetic complexity of the current infection). This review highlights the complexity of interspecies and intrastrain interactions among Leishmania parasites as well as the different factors that influence this interplay.

Patients with chronic (CM) and high frequency episodic migraine (HFEM) report cognitive complaints that contribute to migraine burden. Although, there is little evidence about the ef-fects of migraine treatments on these symptoms. Objective: To evaluate the effect of preventive treatment on the impact of cognitive symptoms, specifically the ability to concentrate, in individuals with CM and HFEM. Methods: Prospective cohort study in patients with CM and HFEM initiating treatment with botulinum toxin (BT) or anti-CGRP/R monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). Patients were evaluated at baseline and after 3 months of treatment, using a headache diary and a question about the im-pact of migraine attacks on concentration (never, rarely, sometimes, often, and always). Results: 108 patients (105 females, 44.3 years of age on average), 75% with CM and 27% with HFEM were included, 55 received a first session of BT and 53 received 3 injections of a monthly mAb. In both groups, there was a significant decline on the impact of migraine in concentration (related samples Wilcoxon signed rank test <0.001) compared to baseline. Reduction in monthly headache days was the main predictor of any concentration improvement, while treatment group, age, ongoing medication with topiramate or baseline medication overuse were not sig-nificant. Conclusion: Preventive treatment of HFEM or CM with drugs not acting on central nervous sys-tem is associated with a decrease of the impact of migraine attacks on concentration, predicted by the decline in headache days. These results indicate that migraine preventive treatment also improves non-pain symptoms, which is relevant given the contribution of cognitive complaints to the impact of headache attacks

In view of the diminishing contribution of natural products from plants to the discovery of new chemical structures, the aim of this study was to compile the articles from 2021 to 2022, assessing: (1) which classes of compounds these new structures belong to; (2) which plants and families these compounds belong to and (3) assessing the degree of novelty of the compound with an already known structure. The review was elaborate following the Preferred Reporting Items for System-atics Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) statement checklist for guide reporting of systematic reviews. A total of 464 articles were selected for the new compounds of natural origin survey. We included 117 complete articles in this review and reported approximately 109 new structures elucidated during the years 2021 and 2022. Many of the compounds showed small structural var-iations in relation to already known molecules. For some, however, this small modification was decisive for the biological activity reported, demonstrating the importance of descriptive phytochemical studies.

The study was conducted on applying machine learning and data mining methods to personalizing the treatment. This allows investigating individual patient characteristics. Personalization is built on the clustering method and associative rules. It was suggested to determine the average distance between instances for optimal performance metrics finding. The formalization of the medical data pre-processing stage for finding personalized solutions based on current standards and pharmaceutical protocols is proposed. The model of patient data is built. The paper presents the novel approach to clustering built on ensemble of cluster algorithm with better than k-means algorithm Hopkins metrics. The personalized treatment usually is based on decision tree. Such approach requires a lot of computation time and cannot be paralyzed. Therefore, it is proposed to classify persons by conditions, to determine deviations of parameters from the normative parameters of the group, as well as the average parameters. This made it possible to create a personalized approach to treatment for each patient based on long-term monitoring. According to the results of the analysis, it becomes possible to predict the optimal conditions for a particular patient and to find the medicaments treatment according to personal characteristics.

Aim: To investigate how much aerobic and resisted physical exercise affects the behavior of AST and ALT proteins in the NAFLD spectrum. Background: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a pathology resulting from the excessive accumulation of triglycerides in the liver. The pathophysiology of the disease comes from several mechanisms, among them, metabolic, environmental, and genetic. The measurement of liver enzymes, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) are essential to perform a differential diagnosis of NAFLD with other pathologies that affect the liver. The non-pharmacological treatment of NAFLD is based on aerobic and resisted physical exercise, and one of its aims is to reduce the inflammatory markers AST and ALT. Materials and Methods: Systematic review carried out in PubMed, Scopus, Embase, and Cochrane databases. Clinical trials that evaluated the effect of physical exercise on NAFLD on AST and ALT enzymes were included. Results: A total of 24 clinical trials met the inclusion criteria, with a sample size of 1141 participants, aged 20-82 years. The study protocol varied between aerobic exercise and resistance exercise with a weekly frequency between 2-6 times a week, a duration of 20-90 minutes for aerobics, and an intensity between 50-80% of peak VO2 and/or maximum HR for the resisted. Of the 24 studies included, only five showed improvements in both enzymes in the intervention group. Conclusion: Physical exercise cannot make significant changes in the behavior of AST and ALT liver parameters.

Background: Elevated fasting plasma glucose and visceral fat area (VFA) is highly prevalent in obese adults. This study investigated the associations between systemic arterial hypertension (SAH) and laboratory, anthropometric, heart rate variability (HRV), and obstructive sleep apnea markers. Methods: Cross-sectional study with 95 obese patients treated at Obesity Treatment and Surgery Center, located in Salvador, BA, Brazil. SAH data were obtained from electronic medical records of patients. To evaluate the association of SAH with the predictor variables, the sample was stratified in Normotense Group (NG) and Hypertensive Group (HG), and laboratory markers, body composition, polysomnography data, and HRV were measured. Results: The average age of the NG was 36.3 ± 10.1 and HG 40.4 ± 10.6 years, 73.7% were women in the NG and 57.9% in HG; 82.4% in HG had insulin resistance. In the multivarious logistics regression model with adjustments age, sex, height, and oxyhemoglobin saturation, SAH was inversely associated with fasting plasma glucose mg/dL (odds ratio [OR] = 0.96; 95% interval confidence [CI] = 0.92 - 0.99) and VFA cm² (OR = 0.98; 95% CI = 0.97 - 0.99). The area under curve the VFA was 0.728; CI 95% (0.620 - 0.836) and fasting plasma glucose 0.693; CI 95% (0.582 - 0.804). Conclusions: Lower VFA and fasting plasma glucose concentrations were inversely associated with SAH. These results indicate opportunities to improve the outcome in obese patients through counseling and clinical interventions.

Phase change refers to the process of maturation and transition from the juvenile to the adult stage. In response to this shift, certain species like chestnut lose the ability to form adventitious roots, thereby hindering the successful micropropagation of adult plants. While auxin is the main hormone involved in adventitious root formation, other hormones, such as ethylene, are also thought to play a role in its induction and development. In this study, experiments were carried out to determine the effects of ethylene on the induction and growth of adventitious roots. The analysis was performed in two types of chestnut microshoots derived from the same tree, a juvenile-like line with high rooting ability derived from basal shoots (P2BS) and a line derived from crown branches (P2CR) with low rooting responses. By means of the application of compounds to modify ethylene content or inhibit its signalling, the potential involvement of this hormone in the in-duction of adventitious roots was analyzed. Our results show that ethylene can modify the rooting competence of mature shoots, while the response in juvenile material was barely affected. To further characterize the molecular reasons underlying this maturation-derived shift in behaviour, specific gene expression analyses were developed. Findings suggest that several mechanisms, including ethylene signalling, auxin transport and epigenetic modifications, relate to the modu-lation of the rooting ability of mature chestnut microshoots and their recalcitrant behaviour.

In the past decades, regenerative medicine applied on skin lesions has been a field of constant improvement for both human and veterinary medicine. The process of healing cutaneous wound injuries implicates a well-organized cascade of molecular and biological processes. However, sometimes the normal process fails and can result in a chronic lesion. In addition, wounds are considered an increasing clinical impairment, due to the progressive ageing of the population, as well as the prevalence of concomitant diseases, such as diabetes and obesity, that represent risk aggravating factors for the development of chronic skin lesions. Stem cells regenerative potential has been recognized worldwide, including towards skin lesion repair, Tissue engineering techniques have long been successfully associated with stem cell therapies, namely the application of 3D bioprinted scaffolds. With this review we intend to explore several stem cell sources with promising aptitude towards skin regeneration, as well as different techniques used to deliver those cells and provide a supporting extracellular matrix environment, with effective outcomes. Furthermore, different studies are discussed, both in vitro and in vivo, towards their relevance in the skin regeneration field.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are essential signaling molecules involved in almost all metabolic processes. In the present study, a HepG2 insulin resistant cell model (HepG2/IRM) was chosen to investigate the efficacy of hydroxyhydroquinone (HHQ), quassinoids from Picrasma crenata and flavonoids from Rourea cuspidata as potential glycemic controlling agents for insulin sensitization. HHQ was synthetized and extracts from P. crenata and R. cuspidata were tested in hepatic cell line, which were evaluated through cytotoxic activity, levels of ROS, ATP, mitochondrial membrane potential and expression of FoxO1 protein in a high glucose environment. Our results demonstrate that the HHQ, quassinoids and flavonoids were not toxic to cells at concentrations up to 50mM and 50 mg/mL in HepG2/IRM and HepG2. ROS activity was increased for all groups with insulin induction upon glucose consumption. HHQ and quassinoids downregulate the expression of FoxO1 in comparison to cells exposed to flavonoids. The results here presented suggests that quassinoids may act on nuclear glucocorticoid receptors to inhibit FoxO1 expression by competing with cortisol and HHQ can act as ROS scavenger to ameliorate mitochondria activity and modulate ATP generation. This study provides a pharmacological basis for the application of HHQ, quassinoids from P. crenata and flavonoids from R. cuspidata in the treatment of metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes mellitus.

In this paper, based on our previous expertise on ceramic artifacts, several archaeometric methods applied to some samples collected from the Dudești archaeological site (Oltenia region, Romania) are reported for the first time in the literature. The chemical composition and microstructural and morphological characterization of these samples offer important conclusions about the processing conditions. Some specific techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), wave-length-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (WDXRF), Optical microscopy (OM), stereomicroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy, provide composition information about pigments and their decay processes. Additionally, the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) method helps to estimate pore sizes and specific surface areas. Thermal analysis (TGA) was used to establish details regarding the production technology and the raw materials source used to make the ceramics, too. The obtained results indicated that the ceramics are based on a paste of muscovite, feldspar, with high plasticity, quartz, melanterite, and calcite, the latter in very low concentrations. According to the obtained results, we could assume that non-calcareous clays are present in the investigated samples because calcium exists in low concentrations. Gypsum is present, too, in very low concentration, identified by the presence of sulfate group in WDXRF. In the same context, iron oxides significantly impact the firing atmosphere of iron-rich clay, resulting in blackening under reducing conditions and reddish coloration under oxidative conditions. Using hematite and gypsum as pigments further contributes to the color variations in the pottery. The consistent firing temperature range of 200-600 °C in Dudești pottery implies a standardized production process, the variation in color being dependent on the specific reducing/oxidative regime conditions. This relationship between clay composition and local sources suggests a connection to Neolithic pottery production in the region and their color depending on the reducing/oxidative regime conditions.

(1) Background: Breast cancer-associated lymphedema (BCRL) is a major complication of breast cancer treatment, affects the quality of life of breast cancer survivors who develop it. Manual lymphatic drainage has a beneficial result in combating lymphedema in patients who have undergone breast cancer surgery. The hypothesis consists in complete decongestive therapy reduces the lymphedema at the level of the upper limb on the side of mastectomy. (2) Methods: Twenty-five patients with radical mastectomy and upper limb lymphedema on the mastectomy side were included in this study. Upper limb circumferences were measured with a tape measure at the following levels: metacarpophalangeal joint; distal radioulnar joint; 10 cm distal to lateral epicondyle; 5 cm proximal to elbow joint; 10 cm proximal to lateral epicondyle. (3) Results: Patients received twice weekly manual lymphatic drainage, multi-layer compression bandaging and upper limb muscle stimulation exercises on the mastectomy side twice weekly. The circumference assessed at the level of the metacarpophalangeal joints and distal radio-carpal joint decreased at the final evaluation. Forearm perimetery - 5 and 10 cm distal to the lateral epicondyle the circumference decreased at the final assessment. (4) Conclusions: Patients with breast cancer-related lymphedema should receive comprehensive decongestive therapy in the early stage of lymphedema to achieve rapid clinical results and improved quality of life

Microfluidic devices or microdevices refer to systems with a characteristic length in the micrometer range. Systems in this size allow handling small quantities of reagents and samples, with reduced residence time, better control of chemical species concentration, high heat and mass transfers, and high surface/volume ratio. These characteristics led to the application of these microdevices in several areas, such as biological systems, energy, liquid-liquid extraction, food, agricultural sectors, pharmaceuticals, flow chemistry, microreactors, and biodiesel synthesis. Microreactors are devices that have interconnected microchannels, in which small amounts of reagents are manipulated and react for a certain period of time. The traditional characteristics of microreactors are less quantities of reagents and samples, high surface area in relation to volume (10000 m² m^-3), reduction of resistance to heat and mass transfer, reduced reaction times, and narrower residence time distributions. In recent years, several studies have been carried out on biodiesel production in microreactors that explore the influence of operating conditions, mixing and reaction yield, numbering, and especially the microdevices design. Despite all the advantages of microreactors, the literature shows that there are only a few applications on an industrial scale. Two main reasons that hinder the adoption of this technology are the scale-up to a large enough volume to deliver the necessary production capacity and the costs related to industrial manufacturing microreactors. It is often stated that large-scale production of microreactors can be easily achieved by numbering-up. However, researches show that an incredibly high number of microdevices would be needed, which results in a technical unfeasibility and a strong impact on the construction costs of the industrial system. The present review aims to show whether microreactors can replace conventional biodiesel production processes and how this replacement technology could be carried out. The current chapter was divided into the following sections: Introduction, Synthesis and Purification of Biodiesel in Microreactors, Fundamentals of CFD, and Fundamentals of Scale-up. Finally, conclusions and future perspectives are exposed.

Background: drugs provide a significant benefit; however, their use implies an intrinsic potential danger, with the possibility to cause unwanted effects. These effects are known as adverse drug reactions (ADRs). Post-marketing drug safety surveillance detects unknown risks that have not been identified in clinical trials and it is necessary to monitor marketed medications under real-life practice. Due to the scarce information about fixed combination of ciprofloxacin 0.3% / dexamethasone 0.1% (SDO), we performed a drug safety surveillance study. (2) Methods: A prospective non-controlled drug safety surveillance study was conducted in Peruvian population. A total of 236 patients prescribed SDO were included derivates from 12 sites. Patients' standardized information was collected through two phone calls, including demographics, medical history, prescribing patterns of SDO, concomitant medication, and ADRs in detail. The ADRs were classified by causality and severity, followed by outcome measures to identify new risk. (3) Results: 236 patients prescribed with SDO participated in the study and 220 were included. A total of 82 ADRs/220 patients were reported after the use of SDO, presenting a ratio 0.37 ADR/patient. The most frequent ADR with SDO administration was eye irritation (30%). The totality of the ADR was classified as non-serious, and the 97.5% (n=80) was classified as mild and 2.5% as moderate (n=2). No cases under the severe category were identified. (4) Conclusion: No new risks were found in the population where this study was conducted.

Single-particle tracking with quantum dots (QDs) constitutes a powerful tool to track the nanoscopic dynamics of individual cell membrane components unveiling their membrane diffusion characteristics. Here we tested the possibility of extracting from the nano-resolved (16 ms and 30 nm) population dynamics of several quantum dots, time-binned at the second time-scale, the rapid structural changes of the cell membrane surface. We used for this proof-of-concept study bright, small and stable biofunctional QD nanoconstructs recognizing the neuronal cannabinoid type 1 (CB1) receptor and a commercial point-localization microscope to reconstruct in 3D the dynamics of the plasma membrane surface of cultured cells with a spatial resolution of tens of nanometers. CB1 receptor was chosen because it’s a highly expressed and fast diffusing membrane protein. Therefore, rapid QD diffusion on the axonal plasma membrane of cultured hippocampal neurons allowed highly precise reconstruction of the membrane surface in less than one minute. QD nanoconstructs diffused into the membrane of synaptic clefts allowing the entire topological reconstruction of the presynaptic component. In addition, we demonstrated successful reconstruction of the remarkably high dynamics of membrane surface topology at the second time-scale both in HEK-293 cell filopodia and axons. Our results show that this novel technique, which we named nanoPaint, is a powerful precision tool for the study of the structural plasticity of cell membrane surfaces.

Oxytocin (OXT), a pro-social peptide, is increasingly recognized as a potential protective substance against drug addiction. In the context of ethanol, previous researches have shown OXT properties to reduce self-administration, alleviate motor impairment in rodents, and reduce craving in humans. However, its role in behavioral sensitization, a neuroadaptive response resulting from repeated drug exposure linked to increased drug incentive, remains unexplored. OXT is also associated with modulating the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis, with corticosterone well-known as a significant factor in behavioral sensitization development. This study aimed to investigate the effects of Carbetocin (CBT), an analogue of OXT, on the expression of behavioral sensitization to ethanol and concurrent alterations in plasma corticosterone levels in male and female Swiss mice. We also aimed to confirm previous studies on OXT impact on ethanol consumption in male mice, but with a focus on CBT, using the two-bottle choice model and drinking in the dark (DID) methodology. For the sensitization study, mice received either ethanol (1.8 g/kg, ip) or saline treatments daily for 15 consecutive days, followed by treatment with carbetocin (0.64 mg/kg, ip) or a vehicle for 6 days. Subsequently, on day 22, all animals underwent an ethanol challenge to assess the expression of behavioral sensitization. Plasma corticosterone levels were measured on days 21 and 22. CBT effectively prevented the expression of ethanol-induced behavioral sensitization in both male and female subjects, with no alterations detected in corticosterone levels. In the ethanol consumption study, following an initial phase of ethanol acquisition, mice underwent a 6-day treatment with CBT i.p or saline before being reexposed to ethanol. We also found a reduction in ethanol consumption due to CBT treatment. In conclusion, carbetocin emerges as a promising and effective intervention in mitigating ethanol-induced behavioral sensitization and reducing ethanol intake, highlighting its potential significance in alcohol addiction treatment.

This work reports the isolation, purification, and anti-inflammatory evaluation of compounds from the plant species Ageratina pichinchesis. Using open-column chromatography, 11 known compounds were purified, whose chemical structures were elucidated by nuclear magnetic resonance techniques (1D and 2D). All compounds were evaluated in the in vitro model of RAW 264.7 mouse macrophage cells measuring nitric oxide inhibition as a determination of the anti-inflammatory effect. Outstandingly, the compound betuletol 3-O-β-glucoside (11) exhibited inhibition of nitric oxide with an IC50 of 75.08 ± 3.07% at 75 µM, additionally, it inhibited the secretion of interleukin 6 (IL-6) and activation of nuclear factor (NF-kβ). These results show that compound 11 could be considered as a potential anti-inflammatory agent in suppressing the expression of NF-kβ target genes such as the proinflammatory pathway and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS). Consequently, the medicinal use attributed in traditional medicine to the A. pichinchensis species is due to the diversity of compounds that the plant biosynthesizes, demonstrating that its effect relates to anti-inflammatory effects associated with compound 11.

: Coffee is one of the most consumed beverages in the world; its production is based mainly on varieties of the Coffea arabica species. Mexico stands out for its specialty and organic coffee. In Guerrero the production is given by small indigenous community’s cooperatives that market their product as raw material. Official Mexican Standards stipulate the necessary requirements for its commercialization within the national ter-ritory. In this work, the physical, chemical, and biological characterizations of green, medium, and dark roasted beans from C. arabica varieties were carried out. Analysis of HPLC showed higher chlorogenic acid (55 mg/g) and caffeine (1.8 mg/g) contents in the green beans of the Bourbon and Oro Azteca varieties. The caffeine (3.88 mg/g) and melanoidins (97 and 29 mg/g) contents increased according to the level of roasting; a dissimilar effect was found in the chlorogenic acid content (14.5 mg/g). The adequate nutritional content and the sensory evaluation allowed the classification of dark roasted as premium coffee (84.25 points) and the roasted medium as specialty coffee (86.25 points). The roasted coffees presented antioxidant activity without cytotoxic effect. The results obtained will serve as a basis for making decisions on the improvements of the coffees analyzed.

Soil contamination with toxic heavy metals, such as lead (Pb), is a critical environmental issue with adverse effects on ecosystems. Cymbopogon citratus, known as lemongrass, is a medicinal plant with phytoremediation potential for Pb-contaminated soils, besides producing essential oil (EO) and bioactive compounds. Azospirillum brasilense is a plant growth promoting bacteria, and its inoculation into the soil can benefit plants in many ways, such as increased root growth and improved nutrient absorption. This study aimed to investigate the phytochemistry of lemongrass inoculated with A. brasilense and grown in Pb-contaminated soil to assess its responses to inoculation under different Pb levels. The experimental design was completely randomized in a 2 x 5 factorial scheme: two levels of A. brasilense (absence or presence) and five Pb levels (0, 50, 100, 300, and 500 mg Pb kg–1 of soil), totaling 60 experimental plots in ten treatments with six replicates. After four months of treatment, was analyzed total and reducing sugars, total phenolic content, flavonoids, antioxidant activity, antioxidant enzymes, proline, and EO content and composition. Soil Pb levels and A. brasilense inoculation affected phytochemical in lemongrass plants. Azospirillum inoculation reduced total sugars in the roots at all soil Pb levels, while increasing Pb levels favored a rise in sugar contents. There was an increase in flavonoid content in treatments associated with Pb and inoculated with A. brasilense. Antioxidant capacity was lower at lower Pb levels, regardless of bacterial inoculation. Enzymatic response was mainly affected by Pb concentrations between 50 and 100 mg kg–1 soil. EO content was influenced by soil Pb levels, with higher EO production at 500 mg Pb kg–1 soil and without A. brasilense inoculation. Overall, lemongrass cultivation in Pb-contaminated areas can be an alternative for phytoremediation and EO production for the industry. Moreover, A. brasilense inoculation proved to be beneficial in mitigating stress caused by high Pb concentrations in contaminated soils.

The COVID-19 pandemic and tuberculosis have epidemiological similarities, being transmitted airborne, favored by direct contact, crowded environments and vulnerable biological status. We performed a retrospective study of 45 cases of pulmonary tuberculosis associated with COVID-19 (TB+COV+) compared to 45 cases with tuberculous monoinfection (TB+COV-), hospitalized during 2021-2022. The demographic characteristics were similar in the two groups, predominating men, a median age of 51 years, living in rural areas, medium level of education and smoking. Common symptoms of the two groups were cough, weight loss, profuse sweating, loss of appetite and hemoptysis, while fever, headache, myo-arthralgias and digestive symptoms characterized the TB+COV+ forms. The scores of radiological lesions in the TB+COV+ compared to TB+COV- group were significantly higher and persistent, revealing more frequent bilateral extensive lung lesions. There were no significant differences in the biological parameters between the two groups. Mortality was 2.2%, regardless of the association of COVID-19. The frequency of infections with Clostridioides difficile was higher in TB+COV+ cases. In conclusion, the co-infection of COVID-19 had an impact on the clinical and biological expression of tuberculosis diagnosed in a pandemic context.

The aim of this study is to introduce and evaluate a new approach by using 3D printed anthropomorphic breast phantoms in teaching X-ray mammography techniques Radiologic technologists. For this purpose, a physical anthropomorphic breast phantom is created, based on a computational breast version. The phantom is created by a stereolithography 3D printer. The practical exercises were conducted in three sessions with the participation of radiographers students first, second and third year of training, respectively. A survey was prepared to summarise the participants´ opinion about this new form of training in mammography technique. A total of 83 students were trained with the new approach. From these 52 responded to the survey questions. More than half of the students (71.2%) successfully handled the exercise with the physical breast phantom. The training provoked a substantial number of students to express the belief that incorporating modern methods based on digital technologies into their X-ray device training is essential. The instructor was well prepared and with the needed competence. The experience within this training convinces the future professionals to introduce the new technologies in their routine work, particularly for exercising the compression technique and breast positioning.

Many species of the Asteraceae family are used in traditional Mexican medicine for possessing healing properties. Ageratina pichinchensis (Asteraceae) is a plant used for the treatment of gastric ulcers, deep wounds and for its antifungal effects. The aim of this study was to establish a cell suspension culture of A. pichinchensis, quantify the anti-inflammatory constituents 2,3-dihydrobenzofuran and 3-epilupeol, to evaluate the anti-inflammatory potential of its extracts and perform a phytochemical analysis. Cell suspension cultures were established in MS culture medium supplemented with 30 g L-1 sucrose and 1.0 g L-1 α-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) plus 0.1 mg L-1 6-furfurylaminopurine (KIN). The ethyl acetate extracts of cell suspension cultures analyzed by GC revealed that the maximum production of compounds The anti-inflammatory activity of these extracts exhibited significant inhibition of NO production. Furthermore, the phytochemical study of EtOAc and MeOH extracts of the biomass on day 20 led to the identification of 17 known compounds. The structures of compounds were assigned by analysis of 1D and 2D NMR data and the remainder by GC-MS. This is the first report of the production of the (-)-Artemesinol, (-)-Artemesinol glucoside, Encecalin and 3,5-diprenyl-acetophenone compounds by a cell suspension cultures of A. pichinchensis.

The paper focuses on the application of a multilevel, integrative and territorial approach to the protection of cultural heritage through planning instruments in Serbia. It points out the problems of the sectoral approach and discusses international recommendations that can be integrated into the planning methodology. The case study is the area of Djerdap National Park, which has an already established international and national importance. The research suggests that the cultural heritage in the area, with the exception of the Roman limes, is still recognized at the level of individual localities. The study emphasizes the importance of aligning all levels of governance to safeguard the whole spatial entity rather than focusing solely on its particular areas. The interna-tional and national importance of the planning area contributes to the strengthening of awareness of heritage and its institutional protection. However, the vitality of the area, which is key to its sustainable development, comes from the local level. Planning documents contribute to the inte-gration of local values and local communities into development programs and projects.

Estrogens play a protective role during early life stages. However, endogenous 17β-estradiol (E2) can accelerate atherosclerosis progression in low-grade inflammatory conditions like established atherosclerosis. Our single-center cohort study assessed sex-specific associations of gonadal hormones with oxidative stress, inflammation, and myocardial injury markers in 111 patients (37% women) diagnosed with acute myocardial infarction (MI) between July 2011 and December 2013. Blood samples were collected within 48 hours of symptom onset, and we measured sex steroids (E2, total testosterone [T]), oxidized low-density lipoproteins, high-sensitive C-reactive protein (CRP), white blood cell counts (WBC), and cardiac enzymes (creatine kinase [CK], the CK Muscle-Brain fraction [CK-MB], and high-sensitive troponin T [hsTnT]). The SYNTAX score gauged coronary disease severity from coronary angiography results. In men with acute MI, peak cardiac enzyme levels were predicted by post-percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) E2 plasma levels (OR 1.011, p=0.047 - CK; OR 1.018, p=0.013 - CK- MB; OR 1.019, p=0.005 - TnT), peak WBC count (OR 1.487, p=0.015 - CK ; OR 1,709, p=0,005 - CK- MB; OR 1.391, p=0.012 - TnT), and peak CRP plasma levels (OR 1.040, p=0.033 - CK; OR 1.024, p=0.029 - CK-MB; OR 1.063, p=0.006 - TnT). T levels and E2/T ratio were associated with post-PCI CRP in these men (OR 0.980, p = 0.024 - T, OR 1.010, p = 0.076 - CRP). For women, peak WBC was a marker of highest testosterone (OR 1.348, p = 0.062), and only WBC was a significant indicator of myocardial injury extent (OR 1.426, p=0.039 - CK; OR 1.384, p=0.036 - CK-MB; OR 1.299, p=0.048 - TnT). During acute MI, elevated endogenous estradiol levels correlate with myocardial necrosis severity in men, while in women, increased leukocyte levels indicate acute myocardial damage. Elevated plasma T is associated with increased WBC in women. In men, post-PCI plasma CRP specifically indicates endogenous T levels and E2/T ratio during the acute phase.

Forest education is pivotal for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and promoting sustainable forest management in the face of global challenges. However, existing programs struggle to keep up with rapidly changing crises and uncertainties that contribute to deforestation and forest degradation. To address these challenges, integrating innovative approaches into forest education is crucial. This paper demonstrates the transformative use of a role-playing game as an innovative teaching method for integrated forest management. The game provides students with practical experience and a comprehensive understanding of landscape approaches, using the Congo Basin as a case study. Our research focuses on sustainable forest governance, stakeholder roles, and valuing natural assets and ecosystem services, supporting the transformation of economic, political, and social/cultural relationships at various scales. We highlight the potential of innovative forest education to foster sustainability, trigger critical thinking, resolve conflicts, and prevent costly forest losses.