A arte no tempo

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

síntese e perspectivas

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Complete blood count parameters as biomarkers of retinopathy of prematurity: a Portuguese multicenter study

© The Author(s) 2023. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.Purpose: To evaluate complete blood count (CBC) parameters in the first week of life as predictive biomarkers for the development of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). Methods: Multicenter, prospective, observational study of a cohort of preterm infants born with gestational age (GA) < 32 weeks or birth weight < 1500 g in eight Portuguese neonatal intensive care units. All demographic, clinical, and laboratory data from the first week of life were collected. Univariate logistic regression was used to assess risk factors for ROP and then multivariate regression was performed. Results: A total of 455 infants were included in the study. The median GA was 29.6 weeks, and the median birth weight was 1295 g. One hundred and seventy-two infants (37.8%) developed ROP. Median values of erythrocytes (p < 0.001), hemoglobin (p < 0.001), hematocrit (p < 0.001), mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (p < 0.001), lymphocytes (p = 0.035), and platelets (p = 0.003) of the group of infants diagnosed with ROP any stage were lower than those without ROP. Mean corpuscular volume (MCV) (p = 0.044), red blood cell distribution width (RDW) (p < 0.001), erythroblasts (p < 0.001), neutrophils (p = 0.030), neutrophils-lymphocytes ratio (p = 0.028), and basophils (p = 0.003) were higher in the ROP group. Higher values of MCV, erythroblasts, and basophils remained significantly associated with ROP after multivariate regression. Conclusion: In our cohort, the increase in erythroblasts, MCV, and basophils in the first week of life was significantly and independently associated with the development of ROP. These CBC parameters may be early predictive biomarkers for ROP.Open access funding provided by FCT|FCCN (b-on). This work was supported by the Laboratório de Genética and the Instituto de Saúde Ambiental (ISAMB) of the Faculdade de Medicina of Universidade de Lisboa and the Instituto de Investigação Científica Bento da Rocha Cabral. The writing of the manuscript was also supported by funds from Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia to ISAMB (ref. UIDB/04295/2020 and UIDP/04295/2020). This work was also part of a doctoral project funding by the company CUF with a PhD grant in Medicine awarded in 2021 and by the Portuguese Society of Ophthalmology with a PhD grant awarded in 2019.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

breve percurso histórico, sucinto panorama nacional actual

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Specific surface area and saltweathering of limestones : a laboratory study

Specific surface areas (SSA) results are used to discuss results of salt weathering tests of two grainstones and a travertine. SSA was found to be especially useful in the understanding of the travertine heterogeneous behaviour (with higher SSA in the clay-richer zones) and the conclusions can be considered transferable to travertines in general. The transferability of conclusions applies insofar as in these continental limestones the terrigenous clay-rich zones, whose composition was verified by the infrared spectra, would promote mesoporous portions that favour the migration of solutions and that are, hence, more susceptible to salt weathering. SSA did not distinguish the grainstones types (Semi-rijo and Moca Creme), which present different weight loss in the salt weathering tests (higher in Moca Creme), a result explained by the predominant macroporous (IUPAC sense) character of these rocks. These results suggest that petrographic studies can be employed in the definition of groups of rocks for which SSA could be used as estimator of mass loss under salt weathering conditions . Other perspectives of the stone cycle are also referred for the travertine considering the presence of a certain amount of pores with nanometric size in this rock and the possible higher specific values of presumably clay-richer residues from its cutting.Supported by the Portuguese Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia through Project PORENET (POCTI/CTA/44940/2002) and strategic Projects PEst-OE/CTE/UI0697/2011 and Pest-OE/CTE/UI0098/2011. Funding by the European Union (FEDER) and the national budget of the Portuguese Republic

Susceptibility of limestone petrographic features to salt weathering : a scanning electron microscopy study

Salt weathering is a major erosive process affecting porous materials in buildings. There have been attempts to relate erosive mass loss to physical characteristics of materials, but in the case of natural stone it is necessary to consider the effect of petrographic features that are a source of heterogeneity. In this paper, we use scanning electron microscopy before and after salt weathering tests in cubic specimens of three limestone types (two grainstones and a travertine) in an attempt to built conceptual models that relate petrographic features and salt weathering susceptibility (represented by mass loss). In the grainstones, the most relevant feature in controlling salt weathering processes is the interface between micrite aggregates and sparry cement that constitute weakness surfaces and barriers to fluid migration. Given the small size of the heterogeneities in relation to the test sample dimension and their spatial distribution, the macroscopic erosive patterns are globally homogeneously distributed, affecting edges and corners. In the travertine specimens, there are macroheterogeneities related to the presence of detritic-rich portions that cause heterogeneous erosive patterns in the specimens. Petrological modeling helps to understand results of salt weathering tests, supporting field studies for natural stone selection.(POCTI/CTA/44940/2002; PEst-OE/CTE/UI0697/2011 and Pest-OE/CTE/UI0098/2011, funding by the European Union and national budget of the Portuguese Republic)Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologi

Hydrogeological study of A High Mountain Area (Serra da Estrela, Central Portugal) : a multidisciplinary approach : uma abordagem multidisciplinar

The results of a preliminary hydrogeological study of the river Zêzere catchment upstream of Manteigas (Serra da Estrela Natural Park, Central Portugal) are presented. In this mountain region, different types of groundwater and surface water (used in several economic activities) occur. The methodology adopted in this study emphasizes the way how Geology, Geomorphology, Geophysics, Geochemistry, Soil Science and Hydrogeology contribute to the description of the hydrological phenomena taking place in the catchment, such as infiltration and aquifer recharge and groundwater flow and geochemistry - allowing to develop better hydrogeologic conceptual models. The hydrological modelling in course includes the use of the VISUAL BALAN code, which is being coupled to a GIS. The hydrogeochemical techniques are highlighted as well as its preliminary results concerning major and minor elements. The thermomineral water study includes the identification of the reservoir’s geologic material, the characterization of water-rock interaction and geothermometry