Bioactive properties of pollen samples collected in the Northeast of Portugal

Reactive oxygen species are formed during normal cellular metabolism, but when present in high concentration they become toxic. Mammalian ce lls possess intracellular defences such as superoxide dismutase, catalase or glutathione peroxidase in order to protect the cells against excessive levels of free radicals

Retrofit measures evaluation considering thermal comfort using building energy simulation : two Lisbon households

ABSTRACT: Retrofit measures for buildings are in general evaluated considering the energy savings and life cycle cost. However, one of the main benefits, the increase of users comfort is very seldom analysed. In this work, two residential households representative of a large share of households in Portugal, were monitored and its thermal behavior was modeled using Energy Plus. The thermal evaluation of the pre-retrofit households shows that the winter season is problematic due to construction solutions and low availability for heating. The retrofit measures analysis was performed considering different retrofit solutions regarding envelope improvement and efficient systems implementation. In order to work around the question of comparing households that do not use energy for acclimatization and therefore have very low energy consumption, in the retrofit scenarios it was considered the thermal comfort evaluation value for the real case (pre-retrofit) and compared the energy consumption to achieve that same average comfort level (in this case avoiding high discomfort peaks). The measures that more rapidly pay the investment are those related with implementing active systems. The approach used in this paper, should be used in more calibrated models in order to have overall conclusions about the retrofit process at a larger scale.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Retrofit measures evaluation considering thermal comfort using building energy simulation: two Lisbon households

ABSTRACT: Retrofit measures for buildings are in general evaluated considering the energy savings and life cycle cost. However, one of the main benefits, the increase of users comfort is very seldom analysed. In this work, two residential households representative of a large share of households in Portugal, were monitored and its thermal behavior was modeled using Energy Plus. The thermal evaluation of the pre-retrofit households shows that the winter season is problematic due to construction solutions and low availability for heating. The retrofit measures analysis was performed considering different retrofit solutions regarding envelope improvement and efficient systems implementation. In order to work around the question of comparing households that do not use energy for acclimatization and therefore have very low energy consumption, in the retrofit scenarios it was considered the thermal comfort evaluation value for the real case (pre-retrofit) and compared the energy consumption to achieve that same average comfort level (in this case avoiding high discomfort peaks). The measures that more rapidly pay the investment are those related with implementing active systems. The approach used in this paper, should be used in more calibrated models in order to have overall conclusions about the retrofit process at a larger scale.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A solution for funding the development of technology in oilwell drilling

This article proposes a novel methodology to solve an existing gap in benchmark definition by the adoption of statistically defined benchmarks as references to test products or technical procedures. In a win–win partnership, remuneration is made upon realistic bases of comparison being proportional to existing risks. However, establishing values for benchmarks is rarely unanimous if asked to different persons involved in drilling analysis. Conventional benchmarking, which enhances few results and leaves aside poor operational performances, produces references that do not properly represent the geological environment. Nonetheless, when testing new products, it serves as reference to remunerate suppliers. The review of an optimization program, which resulted in a world record of drilling rate of penetration, reveals the financial magnitude of the savings produced, proposing the method discussed as a reliable solution to the development of technology.publishedVersio

Genetic Polymorphisms of the Epidermal Growth Factor and Related Receptor in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer—A Review of the Literature

Learning Objectives After completing this course, the reader will be able to: Describe the role played by EGF and EGFR in lung carcinogenesis.Discuss how different polymorphic alleles from the EGF and EGFR genes may affect drug response.Evaluate the value of determining the presence of EGF and EGFR polymorphisms in NSCLC patients for daily clinical practice. CME Access and take the CME test online and receive 1 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ at CME.TheOncologist.co

Migration routes and non-breeding areas of Common Terns (Sterna hirundo) from the Azores

We describe the migration routes and non-breeding areas of Common Terns (Sterna hirundo) from the Azores Archipelago, based on ringing (banding) recoveries and tracking of three birds using geolocators. Over 20 years, there have been 55 transatlantic recoveries of Common Terns from the Azores population: six from Argentina and 49 from Brazil. The three tracked birds migrated south in different months (August, September, November), but the northern migration was more synchronous, with all leaving in April. The birds were tracked to three areas of the South American coast: the male spent November–April on the northern Brazilian coast (13°N–2°S), whereas the two females first spent some time off central-eastern Brazil (4–16°S; one for 1 week, the other for 3 months) and then moved south to the coast of south-eastern Brazil, Uruguay and northern Argentina (24–39°S). Although caution is needed given the small sample size and errors associated with geolocation, the three tracked terns potentially travelled a total of ~23 200 km to and returning from their non-breeding areas, representing an average movement of ~500 km day–1. With the exception of Belém, in northern Brazil, and Lagoa do Peixe, in southern Brazil, the coastal areas used by the tracked birds were also those with concentrations of ringing recoveries, confirming their importance as non-breeding areas for birds from the Azores

Comparativo entre PVFS2 e GlusterFS em um Ambiente de Computação em Nuvem

Este trabalho apresenta um estudo comparativo sobre o desempenho de dois sistemas de arquivos distribuídos, o Parallel Virtual File System 2 (PVFS2) e o GlusterFS, em um ambiente de computação em nuvem. O estudo comparativo baseia-se no teste de medição de vazão relacionada às operações de leitura e escrita realizadas a partir de um cliente para um conjunto de servidores de dados virtualizados. Os resultados tabulados indicam que PVFS2 mantém vazão constante, e próxima a largura de banda disponível, para todos os tamanhos de arquivos e que GlusterFS mantém alta vazão para arquivos de 1MB com queda significativa para arquivos maiores, e nestes casos tem desempenho inferior ao PVFS2

Modelling the distribution of a commercial NE-Atlantic sea cucumber, Holothuria mammata : demographic and abundance spatio-temporal patterns

Funding: This study was financed by the Operational Programme Mar2020, MAR-02.01.01-FEAMP-0052, “Newcumber – Avanços para o cultivo sustentável de pepinos do mar”. It received further financial support from Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (projects UIDB/04292/2020, UIDB/00006/2020, CoastNet – PINFRA/22128/2016, AB with the Scientific Stimulus Programme – CEECIND/00095/2017 and FA with the individual research grant 2020.09563.BD). This publication was financed by Portuguese national funds through FCT – Fundação IP under project reference UIDB/04292/2020, and by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program under grant agreement N810139: Project Portugal Twinning for Innovation and Excellence in Marine Science and Earth Observation – PORTWIMS.There is an increasing demand for sea cucumbers, for human consumption, mainly from Asian markets and, as a consequence, NE-Atlantic species are now new targets for exploitation and exportation. Holothuria mammata is one of the most valuable species in Europe. However, the lack of historical economic interest in this species in most European countries has also led to a lack of studies concerning biological and ecological aspects on wild populations and this is a major issue for stock management. This study aims to determine the temporal and spatial patterns of distribution of H. mammata, considering its abundance and demographic structure in a NE-Atlantic area, SW Portugal, as a function of environmental conditions. For that, a population from a marine protected area was followed for 1 year at 1.5-month intervals. Throughout the coastal area, six sites were selected and at each sampling campaign three random transects per site and substrate (rock and sand) in which all H. mammata individuals were counted and measured. For each site and survey several environmental parameters of interest, from the water column, the sediment and substrate cover, were also measured. Generalized Linear Models were used to model the spatial and temporal distribution of the species according to environmental conditions, to determine the species’ habitat preferences. The distribution models indicate that abiotic and biotic parameters of the water column are not the main drivers shaping the distribution of H. mammata. The species has a patchy distribution, and its habitat preferences depend on environmental stability, the presence of shelter and habitat complexity, which is more important for smaller, more vulnerable, individuals, while bigger size classes tend to venture more into less stable environments in an opportunistic fashion. The knowledge of these population traits is determinant to develop stock management measures, which are now urgent to prevent the depletion of commercial sea cucumber populations in the NE-Atlantic. Sustainable fisheries policies should be developed and start by considering to delimit fishing areas and periods, considering the species spatial and temporal distribution patterns.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe