Cell-derived matrices for scaffolds improvement

Cells’ surrounding microenvironment is highly complex, comprising an organized macromolecular network. Additionally, it plays crucial structural and signaling roles for cellular functions and, ultimately, for tissues’ features. Current biomaterials used in tissue engineering applications fail to recapitulate this complex environment, prompting the pursuit of other alternatives. In this scenario, cell-derived matrices appear as a promising approach since they can avoid the risk of disease transmission while conserving their bioactivity. Different types of cells can be used to obtain cell-derived matrices with specific biological cues that emulate the ones present in the native tissues. To improve the low mechanical properties of cell-derived matrices, they have been combined with different materials, giving rise to scaffolds with proper mechanical properties and improved bioactivity. The current developments in the culture techniques and decellularization methods, and types of cell-derived matrices to improve scaffolds performance for application in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine are overviewed herein.The authors thank the funds obtained from the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) through the project HEALTH-UNORTE (ref. NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000039) and the project BAMOS (H2020-MSCA-RISE program no. 734156). F.R.M. acknowledges FCT for her contract under the Transitional Rule DL 57/2016 (CTTI-57/18-I3BS(5))

Novo bioprocesso enzimático para a produção do prebiótico epilactose

Programa doutoral em Chemical and Biological EngineeringA epilactose é um oligossacárido funcional raro e ainda muito pouco explorado. Esta tese teve como objetivo desenvolver um novo bioprocesso enzimático para a produção de epilactose, bem como a sua purificação e avaliação do seu potencial efeito prebiótico. A levedura Saccharomyces cerevisiae foi usada como hospedeiro para a produção heteróloga da enzima celobiose 2-epimerase da bactéria Caldicellulosiruptor saccharolyticus (CsCE). A estirpe mais promissora produziu uma CsCE com atividade específica de 1.22 U/mg, resultando num rendimento de epilactose de 4.99 g/g (epilactose/proteína). Sob as condições ótimas determinadas (80 ºC, pH 7.5), a produção de epilactose a partir de lactose alcançou uma produtividade de 9 g/L·h e um rendimento máximo de 27%, o valor mais elevado alguma vez reportado usando a enzima CsCE produzida por um hospedeiro reconhecido como seguro. A enzima produzida por S. cerevisiae provou ser adequada para a produção de misturas de prebióticos enriquecidas em epilactose. No entanto, há ainda uma quantidade considerável de lactose que não reagiu e que necessita ser removida para se obter um produto final mais puro. Após selecionar a melhor enzima para hidrolisar lactose e otimizar as condições da reação através de desenho experimental, 99.5% da lactose foi hidrolisada utilizando β-galactosidase de Aspergillus niger. Posteriormente, duas estratégias diferentes (tratamento com carvão ativado ou com microrganismos) foram comparadas no que respeita a remoção de monossacáridos. O método mais eficaz foi a utilização da levedura S. cerevisiae, resultando numa redução de 96.4% do teor de monossacáridos. O processo global culminou numa mistura contendo 87% de epilactose e um rendimento de recuperação de 76.4%. A epilactose mais pura foi sujeita a fermentações in vitro usando inóculos fecais para se avaliar o seu potencial prebiótico. Foram utilizados dois dadores fecais diferentes, um seguindo uma dieta Mediterrânica (DM) e outro adotando uma dieta vegana (DV). A produção de metabolitos e a modulação da microbiota intestinal confirmou o elevado potencial prebiótico da epilactose e revelou que a sua ação pode ser independente dos hábitos alimentares. O principal resultado foi a estimulação considerável de bactérias produtoras de butirato e a consequente produção deste metabolito, que foi significativamente superior em comparação com lactulose DM: 70 vezes, DV: 29 vezes) e rafinose (DM: 63 vezes, DV: 89 vezes). Para finalizar, a epilactose foi incorporada num iogurte de soja funcional, que revelou propriedades muito interessantes e importantes para a aceitabilidade do consumidor. Os resultados reunidos nesta tese representam importantes desenvolvimentos no estudo da epilactose enquanto potencial composto prebiótico.Epilactose is a rare functional oligosaccharide and is still a very under explored compound. This thesis aimed to develop a novel enzymatic bioprocess for the production of epilactose, as well as its purification and the evaluation of its potential prebiotic activity. The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae was used as host for the heterologous production of cellobiose 2-epimerase from Caldicellulosiruptor saccharolyticus (CsCE). The most promising strain produced a CsCE with a specific activity of 1.22 U/mg, resulting in an epilactose yield of 4.99 g/g (epilactose/protein). Under the determined optimal conditions (80 ºC, pH 7.5), the production of epilactose from lactose (50 g/L) achieved a productivity of 9 g/L·h and a maximum yield of 27%, the highest value ever reported using CsCE enzyme produced by a GRAS host. The enzyme produced by S. cerevisiae was proven to be suitable for the production of epilactose-enriched prebiotic mixtures. Nonetheless, a considerable amount of unreacted lactose still needs to be removed in order to obtain a purer epilactose. After a screening study to find the best enzyme for lactose hydrolysis and the optimization of the reaction conditions through experimental design, 99.5% of the lactose was hydrolyzed using the enzyme β-galactosidase from Aspergillus niger. Afterwards, two different strategies (activated charcoal and microbial treatment) were compared in terms of monosaccharides removal. The most effective method was the use of the yeast S. cerevisiae, resulting in a 96.4% reduction of the monosaccharides content. The overall process culminated in a mixture with 87% of epilactose and a recovery yield of 76.4%. The purer epilactose was submitted to in vitro fecal fermentations in order to evaluate its potential prebiotic effects. Two different fecal donors were used, one following a Mediterranean diet (DM) and another one adopting a Vegan diet (DV). The metabolite production and the gut microbiota modulation confirmed the high prebiotic potential of epilactose and revealed that it can be independent of the dietary habits. The main result was the considerable stimulation of butyrate-producing bacteria and the consequent production of this metabolite, that was significantly higher compared to lactulose (DM: 70-fold, DV: 29-fold) and raffinose (63-fold, DV: 89-fold). Finally, epilactose was incorporated in a functional soy yogurt, that revealed very interesting and important properties for consumer acceptability. The results gathered in this thesis represent important developments on epilactose research as a potential prebiotic compound.Este doutoramento foi apoiado pela Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia através das bolsas SFRH/BD/132324/2017 e COVID/BD/152440/2022, da unidade de financiamento estratégico da UIDB/04469/2020 e do LABBELS – Associate Laboratory in Biotechnology and Bioengineering and Microelectromechanical Systems

Enzymatic degradation of ochratoxin A: the role of ultra-pure water

Ochratoxin A (OTA) is a toxic mycotoxin, making its removal from food essential for public health. This study examines OTA degradation by porcine pancreatic lipase (PPL) in ultra-pure water versus buffer systems through in vitro assays and molecular modeling. The results show that PPL fully degrades OTA in ultra-pure water within 7 h at 44 °C, whereas only partial degradation occurs in phosphate buffer. After 4 h, PPL in water degrades 91% of OTA, compared to only 12% in buffer. The enzymes half-life is longer in water (~4 h 4 min) than in phosphate buffer (~2 h 30 min), suggesting better stability in water. Other buffers, including acetate, citrate, and borate, confirmed higher degradation efficiency in low-conductivity, acidic environments similar to ultra-pure water. Additionally, using the model compound p-nitrophenyl octanoate (p-NPO), it was found that p-NPO degrades faster in buffer, likely due to a salting-out effect. Molecular modeling and circular dichroism analysis indicate that PPLs secondary structure in water promotes an ideal conformation for OTA binding. This study suggests ultra-pure water as a greener, sustainable option for reducing mycotoxins in food, with broad industrial applications.This study was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UIDB/04469/2020 unit, with DOI 10.54499/UIDB/04469/2020 and by LABBELS—Associate Laboratory in Biotechnology, Bioengineering and Microelectromechanical Systems, LA/P/0029/2020. This research was also funded by FEDER (European Regional development fund)-COMPETE-QRENEU through the Chemistry Research Centre of the University of Minho (UID/QUI/00686/2020), contract CEEC INST/00156/2018/CP1642/CT0011. Joana Santos also thanks FCT for funding (UI/BD/152286/2021).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Influence of different processing techniques on microalgal protein extraction

The nutrient-rich composition of microalgae biomass positions it as a highly promising natural food ingredient. This holds the potential to not only enhance the nutritional value of various food products but also simultaneously alter their structural attributes. This work investigated the effect of five protein extraction techniques such as freeze-thawing, enzymatic-assisted extraction, high-pressure homogenization, ultrasounds-assisted extraction, and pH adjustment (pH 7, pH 10, and pH 13) in protein yield, and subsequente cell and protein structure of three microalgal suspensions, namely, Chlorella vulgaris, Nannochloropsis oceanica, and Tetraselmis chui. In Chlorella vulgaris, freeze- thawing and high-pressure homogenization exhibited a higher effect in terms of protein yield (~26.60 g protein /100 g protein microalgae). The same occurred for Nannochloropsis oceanica with also ultrasounds-assisted extractions and pH 7 and 10 having a protein yield above 30 %. Tetraselmis chui was similar to Chlorella vulgaris (>20.00 g protein /100 g protein microalgae) for freeze-thawing, high-pressure homogenization and ultrasound-assisted extraction. Enzymatic-assisted had a the lower protein yield for all the three microalgae (<10.00 g protein /100 g protein microalgae). The majority of proteins extracted from Chlorella vulgaris samples had molecular weights exceeding 337 kDa, whereas proteins extracted from Nannochloropsis and Tetraselmis had molecular weights ranging from 5 to 50 kDa. -helices occurred in proteins extracted from Chlorella vulgaris through freeze-thawing and enzymatic-assisted extraction, while Nannochloropsis and Tetraselmis only had -sheet. In conclusion, for optimal protein yield recovery, methodologies such as freeze-thawing and high-pressure homogenization are the most efficient across all studied microalgae. The method selected for extraction had a greater impact on both the protein yield and structure for spray-dried cells. © 2025 The AuthorsThis study was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UIDB/04469/2020 unit and LA/P/0029/2020 (LABBELS – Associate Laboratory in Biotechnology, Bioengineering and Microelectromechanical Systems). This study was also supported by “Pacto da Bioeconomia Azul” (Project No. C644915664-00000026) within the WP5 Algae Vertical, funded by Next Generation EU European Fund and the Portuguese Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR), under the scope of the incentive line “Agendas for Business Innovation” through the funding scheme C5- Capitalization and Business Innovation. Catarina Moreira, Rafaela Nunes, and Bernardo Carvalho are recipients of Ph.D. scholarships supported by FCT (Ref. 2021.05734.BD, SFRH/BD/07527/2020, and 2022.12615.BDANA, respectively). Pedro Ferreira-Santos would like to express gratitude to the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities and the European Union - NextGenerationEU/PRTR - for financial support (FJC2021-046978-I).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Micro-aeration as a strategy to enhance bioconversion of long-chain fatty acids to methane

Tese de doutoramento em Engenharia Química e BiológicaWaste lipids have high energy value, but the amount of lipids effectively converted into methane is still limited, because high lipid loads lead to long-chain fatty acids (LCFA) accumulation, hindering bioconversion. Micro-aeration can improve methane production in AD, and facultative anaerobic bacteria (FAB) or aerobic bacteria (AB) seem to be key microorganisms in the process. In this work, micro-aeration was applied, targeting the intensification of lipids/LCFA biodegradation to methane. Two experiments were performed in batch assays, to study micro-aeration's impact on syntrophic communities' activity. In the first experiment, anaerobic sludge was incubated with ethanol, in the presence of oxygen concentrations up to 5 % (Chapter 3). In the second experiment, two synthetic consortia composed by syntrophic fatty acid degrading bacteria and hydrogenotrophic methanogenic partners were constructed in the laboratory and supplemented with two Pseudomonas strains (Chapter 4). The cultures were subjected to 0-10% O2, and the conversion of palmitate (C16:0), caprylate (C8:0), and butyrate (C4:0) to methane was monitored. The results from the two experiments show that the activity of FAB/AB in general, and Pseudomonas spp. in particular, were crucial for maintaining the syntrophic relationships under micro-aerobic conditions, providing a shielding effect towards the syntrophic communities and limiting the inhibitory effect of oxygen. Indirect micro-aeration was then studied in the degradation of glucose (Chapter 5) or oleate (Chapter 6). Anaerobic bioreactors were compared with bioreactors that received aerated feeding. Organic loading rates of 2 g L-1 d-1 (in COD) were applied in both experiments. The results from the study with glucose indicate that aerated feeding enhances methane production, without interfering with the microbial community composition. However, with oleate, aeration in the feeding acted as a pre-treatment, contributing to oleate to palmitate conversion by AB/FAB even before entering the bioreactor. The reactors that received aerated feeding were able to operate in continuous for longer periods, with higher stability than the anaerobic reactors, and required shorter batch periods for degradation of the palmitate and acetate that accumulated during the continuous phases. In conclusion, this thesis shows that FAB/AB/Pseudomonas spp. have a crucial role in protecting and maintaining functional and resilient syntrophic communities. Moreover, in LCFA biodegradation, micro-aeration can trigger a first aerobic treatment that converts oleate to palmitate, and may facilitate further conversion to methane, relatively to strict anaerobic process.Os lípidos residuais possuem um alto valor energético, mas a quantidade de lípidos convertidos efetivamente a metano ainda é limitada, pois cargas elevadas de lípidos resultam na acumulação de ácidos gordos de cadeia longa (AGCL), dificultando a sua bioconversão. O microarejamento pode melhorar a produção de metano em digestores anaeróbios (DA), e as bactérias anaeróbias facultativas (BAF) ou aeróbias (BA) parecem ser microrganismos com um papel-chave no processo. Neste trabalho, foi aplicado microarejamento com o objetivo de intensificar a biodegradação de lípidos/AGCL a metano. Foram realizados dois ensaios em batch, para estudar o impacto do microarejamento na atividade de comunidades sintróficas. No primeiro ensaio, uma lama anaeróbia foi incubada com etanol, na presença de concentrações de oxigénio até 5 % (Capítulo 3). No segundo ensaio, foram construídos dois consórcios sintéticos compostos por bactérias sintróficas que degradam ácidos gordos e os parceiros metanogénicos hidrogenotróficos, suplementados com duas estirpes de Pseudomonas (Capítulo 4). As culturas foram submetidas a 0-10 % de O2, e a conversão de palmitato (C16:0), caprilato (C8:0) e butirato (C4:0) a metano foi monitorizada. Os resultados dos dois ensaios mostram que em geral a atividade das BAF/BA, e em particular das Pseudomonas spp., foi crucial para a manutenção das relações sintróficas em condições microaeróbias, proporcionando um efeito protetor para as comunidades sintróficas e limitando o efeito inibidor do oxigénio. O microarejamento indireto foi então aplicado na degradação de glucose (Capítulo 5) e oleato (Capítulo 6). Nestes trabalhos, reatores anaeróbios foram comparados com reatores que receberam alimentação arejada. Foi aplicada aos dois ensaios, uma carga orgânica de 2 g L-1 d-1 (em CQO). Os resultados do ensaio com glucose indicam que a alimentação arejada aumenta a produção de metano, sem interferir na composição da comunidade microbiana. No entanto, com o oleato, o arejamento da alimentação atuou como um pré-tratamento, contribuindo para a conversão do oleato a palmitato por BA/BAF antes da entrada no reator. Os reatores que receberam alimentação arejada foram capazes de operar em contínuo por períodos mais longos, com maior estabilidade do que os reatores anaeróbios, e necessitaram de períodos em batch mais curtos para a degradação do palmitato e acetato que acumularam durante as fases em contínuo. Em conclusão, esta tese demonstra que BAF/BA/Pseudomonas spp. têm um papel crucial na proteção e manutenção de comunidades sintróficas funcionais e resilientes. Além disso, na biodegradação de AGCL, o microarejamento pode estimular um primeiro tratamento aeróbio em que se converte o oleato em palmitato e pode facilitar a posterior conversão deste a metano, em comparação com o processo estritamente anaeróbio.I acknowledge the support of Fundação para Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) through the PhD scholarships SFRH/BD/132845/2017 and COVID/BD/152450/2022, and all the entities supporting this work: FCT under the scope of the strategic funding of UIDB/04469/2020 unit, the European Regional Development Fund under the scope of the Norte2020—Programa Operacional Regional do Norte—BioEcoNorte project (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000070)

The (eventual) asymmetry of the property repartition as a result of the lacking regulation of the patrimonial effects of the institute

Dissertação de mestrado em Direito das Crianças, Família e SucessõesA presente dissertação visa analisar e refletir relativamente aos efeitos patrimoniais da união de facto. A pertinência do referido instituto jurídico na sociedade exige que, no momento da dissolução da união de facto, o destino a atribuir às massas patrimoniais possa estar previsto em nome de mais certeza, segurança e justiça. Apesar de a união de facto estar regulada pela Lei 7/2001, de 11 de maio, a referida lei é omissa face aos efeitos patrimoniais. Ao longo do nosso estudo demonstramos o problema que essa omissão constitui, evidenciando situações em que a desproporcionalidade e o desajuste das soluções encontradas é notório. A necessidade de um novo instrumento legislativo que se caracterize por maior certeza e exatidão nesta matéria tornou-se, por isso, inegável. Perante este circunstancialismo, gizamos um eventual modelo que pudesse constituir um contributo para uma melhor solução jurídica, avançando com algumas soluções que pudessem responder às questões que fomos suscitando relativamente à Lei 7/2001, de 11 de maio. Imbuídos nesse espírito, decidimos indagar face às soluções encontradas em outros ordenamentos jurídicos, estudando, concretamente, a solução encontrada pelo ordenamento jurídico francês a respeito desta matéria. Na ausência de regulamentação jurídica e de disposições contratuais elaboradas entre os membros da união de facto face aos efeitos patrimoniais, a doutrina e jurisprudência têm atuado no sentido de poder solucionar estas questões, sendo que estudamos os institutos gerais do Direito a que frequentemente se recorre. Tendo em conta o cariz eminentemente pessoal da relação de união de facto, julgamos que o instituto tem dignidade suficiente para que possa ter uma regulamentação jurídica própria e devidamente adequada. Ressalvamos, no entanto, que não é nosso propósito a aproximação excessiva ou até uma eventual confusão com o regime do casamento. No entanto, entendemos que as soluções atualmente praticadas não encontram o grau de adequação exigido e indicado para um instituto tão expressivo na sociedade como a união de facto.The following dissertation discusses about the patrimonial effects of “de facto” unions. The relevance of this legal element in society demands that, when those unions come to an end, the destination of property is legally determined to achieve a righteous and fair repartition. Despite being regulated by Law 7/2001, of 11th of May, the given law does not explicitly regulate the patrimonial effects of the mentioned unions. During our study, we will demonstrate the problems that emerge from the mentioned omission, as we show a set of cases where the disproportionality of the consecrated solutions is clear. The need for a new legal instrument which provides for a more exact solution is undeniable. In these circumstances, we have developed a new model that might contribute for a better solution by answering some questions that we have faced concerning Law 7/2001, of 11th of May. We have also decided to investigate the solutions adopted in foreign law systems, paying special attention to the French one concerning this matter. Facing the absence of legal norms or negotiable dispositions made by members of the “de facto” union regarding patrimonial effects, law scholars and courts addressed this problem by using general law figures to solve it. Taking into account the personal effects of the “de facto” union, we consider it to be important enough to have its own appropriate legal regulation. Having said that, it is not our purpose to cause a confusion or an excessive approximation of this regime to the one that is appliable to marriage, as we are sure that the actual legal regulation of this phenomenon is not adequate for such an expressive reality

The selection of students for specialized music education in Portugal: a study of the public school

Tese de doutoramento em Estudos da Criança (especialidade em Educação Artística)A aprendizagem musical no sistema educativo português organiza-se, essencialmente, em dois ramos de ensino: o genérico e o especializado. Este trabalho procura compreender como é feita a seleção de alunos na rede de escolas públicas de Ensino Artístico Especializado (EAE) de Portugal continental. Neste sentido foi conduzida uma contextualização educativa de Portugal continental, das áreas territoriais onde a escola pública especializada está implantada e do respetivo historial de cada estabelecimento de ensino público. A revisão de literatura tem como objetivo reunir as diferentes conceções sobre aptidão musical, sobre seleção e sobre as características do ideário político da escola pública ao longo da história. O trabalho empírico desenvolveu-se através do desenho metodológico do estudo de caso intrínseco e utiliza a entrevista semiestruturada como instrumento de recolha de dados. A entrevista foi direcionada aos diretores de todas escolas de ensino artístico especializado da música da rede pública do continente e a três antigos diretores destas mesmas escolas. Este instrumento permitiu recolher informação sobre os conceitos de aptidão, seleção, exclusão, política educativa e sugestões para o futuro. Os resultados obtidos implicam que o processo de seleção, baseado em conceções difusas acerca da aptidão musical, tem sido efetuado com instrumentos de medição sobre os quais gravitam bastantes dúvidas. O processo de seleção demonstra não estar ajustado às necessidades do cenário educativo atual e no qual a exclusão paira sobre diversos momentos do percurso educativo dos alunos. A exclusão e a seleção demonstram ter contornos de carácter eminentemente social, sendo que a problemática central é avaliada de um ponto de vista político pela totalidade dos entrevistados. Assim, foi gerada uma síntese global que infirma a problemática não de um ponto de vista da aptidão musical, mas no universo das políticas educativas. As possíveis soluções apontam para a necessidade de redimensionamento da rede pública de EAE da música, da distribuição em território nacional e para a democratização do seu acesso.Music learning in the Portuguese education system is essentially organized into two branches of teaching: general and specialized. This work seeks to understand how students are selected in the network of public schools for Specialized Artistic Education (EAE) in mainland Portugal. To this end, an educational contextualization of mainland Portugal, the territorial areas where specialized public schools are located and the respective history of each public educational establishment was conducted. The literature review aims to bring together the different conceptions of musical aptitude, selection and the characteristics of the political ideology of public schools throughout history. The empirical work was developed through the methodological design of the intrinsic case study and uses the semi-structured interview as a data collection tool. The interview was directed at the directors of all the specialized artistic music schools in the mainland's public network and three former directors of these same schools. This instrument made it possible to gather information on the concepts of aptitude, selection, exclusion, educational policy and suggestions for the future. The results obtained imply that the selection process, based on fuzzy conceptions about music aptitude, has been carried out using measuring instruments that raise a lot of doubts. The selection process has not been adapted to the needs of the current educational scenario, in which exclusion looms over various moments of the students' educational journey. Exclusion and selection appear to be eminently social in nature, and the central problem is assessed from a political point of view by all the interviewees. Thus, a global synthesis was generated which affirms the problem not from the point of view of music aptitude, but in the universe of educational policies. The possible solutions point to the need to resize the public music EAE network, to distribute it throughout the country and to democratize access to it

London: The (online?) cry from minorities

A "Passeio - Plataforma de Arte e Cultura Urbana" é uma plataforma do Centro de Estudos de Comunicação e Sociedade (CECS).Nunca vi tantas manifestações como em Londres. No entanto, tenho observado, em algumas delas, certas coisas que me têm deixado a pensar nesse ato em si. A refletir do ponto de vista das dinâmicas sociais, e não ancorado a um pensamento ou tendência ideológica, ou de outro tipo...I've never seen so many protests as in London. However, I have observed certain things in some of them that have left me thinking about the act itself. Thinking from the point of view of social dynamics, and not anchored to an ideological thought or tendency, or any other kind..

Life cycle assessment of bacterial cellulose and comparison to other cellulosic sources

Bacterial cellulose (BC) is a 3D exopolysaccharide synthesized by certain acetic acid bacteria, possessing unique properties such as nanofibrillar morphology and high purity. BC has gained increasing attention for several potential market applications, including in textiles. However, along with techno-economic challenges, the industrialization of BC pulp must align with sustainable practices and minimize the environmental impact. To date, a comparative environmental assessment of BC pulp against plant-based celluloses (e.g. wood pulp or nanocellulose (NC)) or of BC-lyocell against cotton or man-made cellulose fibers (e.g. viscose and lyocell) has not been reported. In this study, both BC pulp and BC-lyocell production were modelled for life cycle assessment (LCA). For BC pulp, the results were compared with nanocelluloses, using different life cycle impact assessment methods. For BC-lyocell, the results were compared with cotton, viscose, and lyocell fibres, using information available from the literature. The major contributors to the environmental impact of both the BC pulp and BC-lyocell were the preparation of the culture medium, followed by cellulose washing and energy consumption. The BC pulp showed lower environmental impacts than NCs. BC-Lyocell exhibited a larger environmental impact than cotton, viscose, and lyocell in most of the environmental categories, except for land use and water depletion. Following a comprehensive impact and sensitivity analysis, several measures were identified to enhance the environmental performance of BC, such as exploring by-products for culture medium preparation and optimizing the use of chemicals (NaOH) and energy.This study was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of BioTecNorte operation (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000004) funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the scope of Norte2020 - Programa Operacional Regional do Norte and by the integrated project be@t – Textile Bioeconomy (TC-C12-i01, Sustainable Bioeconomy No. 02/C12-0i1/2022), promoted by the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP), Next Generation EU, for the period 2021–2026. The authors also acknowledge the financial support of the FCT (ESF) through the grant given to Francisco A.G.S. Silva (SFRH/BD/146375/2019). This work was also supported by national funds through FCT/MCTES (PIDDAC): LEPABE, UIDB/00511/2020 (DOI: 10.54499/UIDB/00511/2020) and UIDP/00511/2020 (DOI: 10.54499/UIDP/00511/2020) and ALiCE, LA/P/0045/2020 (DOI: 10.54499/LA/P/0045/2020).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The possibilities and challenges of personalized pediatric dentistry

Personalized dental treatment consists of providing solutions adapted to the patient and not using standard solutions for all patients. This applies in domains as diverse as the use of diagnostic tests to identify particular biological markers, often genetic, that aid in describing which medical treatments to prescribe, as well as providing dental treatment technique, including personalized medical devices that will work best for each patient. The big question is how we will use the new information, new methods, and new devices available, and put them at the service of better dentistry, focused on better patient care and absense of pain and discomfort. This work will provide an analysis of some of the areas where personalized medicine is evolving the most, and concrete cases in which relevant steps can be taken