A prescriptive cost model for demand shaping: an application for target costing

Costing tools and traditional cost models are used primarily to calculate costs. However, these models would be more relevant if used as decision-making support tools. That is, they should allow ex-ante rather than ex-post analyses. Nevertheless, cost models tend to follow a linear logic of resources-activities-products (e.g. as it is the case of Activity Based Costing) when uncertainty, variability and dynamics of the current market demand cost models that help decision makers to define which resources are needed to satisfy market needs (e.g. as it is the case of Target Costing), i.e. in a reverse logic. Such models can be designated prescriptive cost models and require significant computational resources to attend the complexity of the problems for which they can be applied. The prescriptive analysis intends to recommend actions based on specified or desired results and it is the most evolved stage of business analytics, far beyond descriptive and predictive approaches. This paper presents and discusses a prescriptive cost model applied in the context of Target Costing. The relevance and validity of this approach are discussed and several opportunities for further work are presented.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Mobile device sensing system for urban goods distribution logistics

This paper presents a low cost mobile application (app) integrated on an Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem, which uses varied sensor information collected by mobile devices to track and assist on the logistics of urban goods distribution processes. The proposed approach is leveraged by the trend of decreasing costs for mobile data communication in urban environments. Taking into account basic sensor data available in mobile devices (e.g., GPS, accelerometer and magnetometer), it is possible to track the users’ movements and adopted routes, identify transit times and driving styles, identify the quality of roads, and track the process of loading/unloading of urban goods. This data can also be analyzed through a data mining process to identify patterns, present driving advice and perform a resource optimization process.This work has been supported by COMPETE: POCI-01-0145- FEDER-007043 and FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia within the Project Scope: UID/CEC/00319/2013.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Biofilms in diabetic foot ulcers: impact, risk factors and control strategies

Diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) are a serious complication from diabetes mellitus, with a huge economic, social and psychological impact on the patients life. One of the main reasons why DFUs are so difficult to heal is related to the presence of biofilms. Biofilms promote wound inflammation and a remarkable lack of response to host defences/treatment options, which can lead to disease progression and chronicity. In fact, appropriate treatment for the elimination of these microbial communities can prevent the disease evolution and, in some cases, even avoid more serious outcomes, such as amputation or death. However, the detection of biofilm-associated DFUs is difficult due to the lack of methods for diagnostics in clinical settings. In this review, the current knowledge on the involvement of biofilms in DFUs is discussed, as well as how the surrounding environment influences biofilm formation and regulation, along with its clinical implications. A special focus is also given to biofilm-associated DFU diagnosis and therapeutic strategies. An overview on promising alternative therapeutics is provided and an algorithm considering biofilm detection and treatment is proposed.This work was supported by: Base Funding—UIDB/00511/2020 of the Laboratory for Process Engineering, Environment, Biotechnology and Energy—LEPABE—funded by national funds through the FCT/MCTES (PIDDAC); Project Biocide_for_Biofilm-PTDC/BII-BTI/30219/2017- POCI-01-0145-FEDER-030219, ABFISH–PTDC/ASP-PES/28397/2017-POCI-01-0145-FEDER- 028397 and Germirrad-POCI-01-0247-FEDER-072237, funded by FEDER funds through COMPETE2020— Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização (POCI) and by national funds (PID DAC) through FCT/MCTES. The authors also thank the CITAB (Centre for the Research and Technol ogy of Agro-Environmental and Biological Sciences) under the scope of the FCT funds with reference UIDB/AGR/04033/2020. Ana Afonso (2020.04773.BD) and Diana Oliveira (SFRH/BD/138217/2018) acknowledge the FCT grants. Anabela Borges thanks the FCT for the financial support of their work contract through the Scientific Employment Stimulus—Individual Call—[CEECIND/01261/2017].info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

New adsorbers for the removal of genotoxic impurities from active pharmaceutical ingredients

Active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) available in the market are mostly synthesized, in organic solvent media, using highly reactive molecules that may be present in the final product as genotoxic impurities (GTIs). These compounds have the ability to react with DNA, preventing its normal replication, resulting in an associated carcinogenic risk, becoming an increasing concern from pharmaceutical companies and regulatory authorities [1]. Although it is desirable to avoid the use of GTIs in the manufacture of APIs, this is not always possible. Therefore, there is a call to develop simple, robust and economical routes to remove GTIs to limits below the Threshold of Toxicological Concern (1.5 µg/day) [2]. Such adsorbents should be highly selective to reach ultra-low GTI levels with minimal API losses and compatible with organic solvents where the API synthesis takes place [3]. Herein we report two different strategies for the development of new adsorbing materials designed for selective removal of GTIs from API organic solvent solutions. These new materials are: i) molecular imprinted polymers (MIPs), in the particular case designed for removal of an aromatic amine GTI, 4-dymethylaminopyridine) [4]; and ii) a novel functionalized polymer consisting on polybenzimidazole (PBI) modified with a DNA base (PBI-adenine). PBI-Adenine is designed to have a high affinity for a broad range of DNA alkylating agents mimicking the DNA-GTI adduct formation that takes place in vivo [5,6]. These platforms proved to be robust materials being able to remove, in a single stage, more than 95% of the GTIs from organic solvent API mixtures. Both approaches, meet the pharmaceutical industry challenges, by opening new horizons for the use of these adsorbers as a complement to the existing operation units as MIPs, as well as their assembling as membranes for organic solvent nanofiltration (OSN) derived from PBI. References [1] Teasdale A. et al., Org. Process Res. Dev. 17, 2013, 221-230. [2] EMEA Guidelines on the “Limits on Genotoxic Impurities”, EMEA/CHMP/QWP/251344/2006, 2006. [3] Székely G. et al., Green Chem. 15, 2013, 210-225. [4] Esteves T. et al., Sep. Purif. Technol. 163, 2016, 206-214. [5] Ferreira F. C.; Esteves T.; Vicente A. I.; Afonso C. A. M., “Polímeros polibenzimidazolo com cadeia espaçadora funcionalizada e seu método de obtenção para remoção de impurezas genotóxicas.” Patent request Nº 109480, with priority date of 22 June 2016. [6] Vicente A. I. et al., Chem. Mat., 2016, under preparation. Acknowledgements: We thank financial support from Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) through the Project SelectHost (PTDC/QEQ-PRS/4157/2014) and iBB-Institute for Bioengineering and Biosciences (UID/BIO/04565/2013), from Programa Operacional Regional de Lisboa 2020 (Lisboa-01-0145-FEDER-007317). We thank to Hovione PharmaScience Ltd for supplying the API and technical know-how

Impact of the Cationic Moiety of Ionic Liquids on Chemoselective Artificial Olfaction

Funding Information: This research was funded by the European Research Council (ERC) under the EU Horizon 2020 research and innovation program [grant reference SCENT-ERC-2014-STG-639123, 2015–2022, and Grant Agreement No. 101069405─ENSURE─ERC-2022-POC1] and by national funds from FCT-Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P., for projects PTDC/BII-BIO/28878/2017, PTDC/CTM-CTM/3389/2021, UIDP/04378/2020, and UIDB/04378/2020 of the Research Unit on Applied Molecular Biosciences-UCIBIO and the project LA/P/0140/2020 of the Associate Laboratory Institute for Health and Bioeconomy-i4HB. The authors thank FCT/MCTES for the PhD grant SFRH/BD/128687/2017. Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.Ionogels and derived materials are assemblies of polymers and ionic liquids characterized by high stability and ionic conductivity, making them interesting choices as gas sensors. In this work, we assessed the effect of the ionic liquid moiety to generate ionogels and hybrid gels as electrical and optical gas sensors. Six ionic liquids consisting of a constant anion (chloride) and distinct cationic head groups were used to generate ionogels and hybrid gels and further tested as gas sensors in customized electronic nose devices. In general, ionogel-based sensors yielded higher classification accuracies of standard volatile organic compounds when compared to hybrid material-based sensors. In addition, the high chemical diversity of ionic liquids is further translated to a high functional diversity in analyte molecular recognition and sensing.publishersversionpublishe

Drinking-water isolated Delftia acidovorans selectively coaggregates with partner bacteria and facilitates multispecies biofilm development

Coaggregation plays an important role in the development of multispecies biofilms in different environments, often serving as an active bridge between biofilm members and other organisms that, in their absence, would not integrate the sessile structure. The ability of bacteria to coaggregate has been reported for a limited number of species and strains. In this study, 38 bacterial strains isolated from drinking water (DW) were investigated for their ability to coaggregate, in a total of 115 pairs of combinations. Among these isolates, only Delftia acidovorans (strain 005P) showed coaggregating ability. Coaggregation inhibition studies have shown that the interactions mediating D. acidovorans 005P coaggregation were both polysaccharide-protein and protein-protein, depending on the interacting partner bacteria. Dual-species biofilms of D. acidovorans 005P and other DW bacteria were developed to understand the role of coaggregation on biofilm formation. Biofilm formation by Citrobacter freundii and Pseudomonas putida strains highly benefited from the presence of D. acidovorans 005P, apparently due to the production of extracellular molecules/public goods favouring microbial cooperation. This was the first time that the coaggregation capacity of D. acidovorans was demonstrated, highlighting its role in providing a metabolic opportunity for partner bacteria.This work was financially supported by LA/P/0045/2020 (ALiCE), UIDB/00511/2020 and UIDP/00511/2020 (LEPABE), funded by national funds through FCT/MCTES (PIDDAC); UIDB/04469/2020 (CEB) and by LABBELS – Associate Laboratory in Biotechnology, Bioengineering and Microelectromechnaical Systems, LA/P/0029/2020; UIDB/04033/2020 (CITAB); Project Biocide_for_Biofilm-PTDC/BII-BTI/30219/2017-POCI-01-0145-FEDER-030219, ABFISH–PTDC/ASP-PES/28397/2017-POCI-01-0145-FEDER- 028397 and Germirrad-POCI-01-0247-FEDER-072237, funded by FEDER funds through COMPETE2020–Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização (POCI) and by national funds (PIDDAC) through FCT/MCTES; project HealthyWaters (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000069)- NORTE 2020/ERDF; and the FCT grant (2020.04773.BD).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Aquaculture of the clam (Tapes decussatus) on a closed system.

43rd European Marine Biology Symposium. Ponta Delgada, Açores, 8-12 de Setembro de 2008

Decision process to manage renewable energy production in smart grid environment

This research work is related to the Electric Vehicle (EV) integration in the electricity market, using the OpenADR open protocol for demand response. The proposed solution integrates a local developed EV charging system and a cloud management system, to coordinate the available energy produced from renewable energy sources, taking into account its intermittent production and the requirements of the EV charging process at home. Considering the smart mobility paradigm, all transactions processes are available at mobile devices in real-time, where users can define their usual behavior, configure the energy consumption profile at home, establish new profiles for specific days according to the EV charging process, and consult the historical transactions.This work has been supported by COMPETE: POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007043 and FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia within the Project Scope: UID/CEC/00319/2013.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Marine Conservation in the Azores: Evaluating Marine Protected Area Development in a Remote Island Context

In the Archipelago of the Azores, over 110,000 km2 of marine areas presently benefit from some form of protection, including a suite of coastal habitats, offshore areas, seamounts, hydrothermal vents, and large parcels of mid-ocean ridge. These areas are integrated in the recently established network of marine protected areas (MPAs), which stands as the cornerstone of Azorean marine conservation policies. This article describes and analyses the process of MPA establishment in the Azores and the current network of protected areas. Three phases of MPA development are identified, progressing from individual MPA establishment with little scientific support in the 1980s, the increasing scope of scientific research during the 1990s under European Union initiatives and the gradual implementation of an MPA network in the 2000s. Expert critical evaluation of the contemporary situation demonstrates that this network must be integrated within a wider regional marine management strategy, with MPA success being contingent upon the implementation of management plans, appropriate enforcement and monitoring, and bridging gaps in scientific knowledgeThisworkispartoftheresearchproject“2020:toward ecosystem-basedmanagementoftheAzoresmarine resources,biodiversityandhabitatsM2.1.2/I/026/2011.” FCT/MCTESprovidedindividualfundingsupporttoRA (SFRH/BD/46621/2008),ACwassupportedbyProgram InvestigadorFCT(IF/00029/2014/CP1230/CT0002)from FCTandPA(Ciência2007and2008).IMAR-DOP/UAz isResearchandDevelopmentunitno.531andLARSyS- AssociatedLaboratoryno.9fundedbythePortuguese FoundationforScienceandTechnology(FCT)through FCT—Pest/OE/EEI/LA0009/2011–2014(COMPETE,QERN, andOE)andbytheAzoresFundScienceandTechnology (FRTC)Pro-ConvergenciaandRAA