Envelhecimento acelerado de aguardentes vínicas na presença de fragmentos de madeira. Influência nos compostos odorantes

A tecnologia de envelhecimento tradicional, que consiste na colocação da aguardente vínica em vasilhas de madeira durante vários anos, é uma técnica morosa e onerosa. Assim, têm vindo a ser introduzidas e desenvolvidas novas técnicas, com o intuito de optimizar o processo e reduzir os custos. Uma dessas novas técnicas consiste em introduzir pedaços de madeira (aparas, toros ou outras formas) na bebida a envelhecer, condicionada em depósitos de inox. Têm sido realizados muitos estudos em vinhos, mas em aguardentes a experimentação é escassa [1, 2]. Assim, este trabalho teve como objectivo avaliar a influência da utilização de alternativas ao envelhecimento de aguardentes em vasilhas de madeira, na composição química das aguardentes obtidas, dando particular atenção aos compostos odorantes provenientes da madeira. Para tal, uma mesma aguardente vínica da Lourinhã foi submetida a um processo de envelhecimento, com três formas de madeira: aguardente colocada em vasilha de madeira (V), aguardente colocada em vasilha de inox com introdução de madeira sob a forma de dominós (D) e aguardente colocada em vasilha de inox com introdução de madeira sob a forma de tábuas (T), tendo sido colhidas amostras de aguardente, ao fim de 180 dias de envelhecimento, para análise e quantificação dos compostos odorantes. Os resultados obtidos mostram que a forma da madeira teve um efeito altamente significativo na maioria dos compostos analisados. No caso dos compostos odorantes derivados da lenhina da madeira (fenois voláteis e vanilina), os teores mais elevados foram encontrados nas aguardentes envelhecidas na presença de fragmentos (dominós ou tábuas), enquanto para os compostos odorantes derivados das hemiceluloses da madeira (ácido acético e aldeídos furânicos) os teores mais elevados foram determinados nas aguardentes envelhecidas em vasilha de madeira. Os resultados deste trabalho sugerem a possibilidade de diferenciação química das aguardentes, em função da tecnologia de envelhecimento

Sensory and chemical modifications of wine brandy aged with chestnut and oak wood

This work evaluated the sensorial and chemical modifications in brandy aged in presence of two types of wood fragments in comparison with a brandy aged in wooden barrels

Estimación de efectos locales con movimientos sísmicos y microtemblores

Se presenta una visión amplia de la utilización de registros de movimiento sísmicos fuertes, movimientos sísmicos débiles y microtemblores para la evaluación de efectos locales. La revisión del estado del arte enfatiza en el análisis de microtemblores debido a la facilidad de la obtención de los registros en cualquier sitio

Estimación de efectos locales con movimientos sísmicos y microtemblores

Se presenta una visión amplia de la utilización de registros de movimiento sísmicos fuertes, movimientos sísmicos débiles y microtemblores para la evaluación de efectos locales. La revisión del estado del arte enfatiza en el análisis de microtemblores debido a la facilidad de la obtención de los registros en cualquier sitio

A Reconfigurable Custom Machine for Accelerating Cellular Genetic Algorithms

In this work we present a reconfigurable and scalable custom processor array for solving optimization problems using cellular genetic algorithms (cGAs), based on a regular fabric of processing nodes and local memories. Cellular genetic algorithms are a variant of the well-known genetic algorithm that can conveniently exploit the coarse-grain parallelism afforded by this architecture. To ease the design of the proposed computing engine for solving different optimization problems, a high-level synthesis design flow is proposed, where the problem-dependent operations of the algorithm are specified in C++ and synthesized to custom hardware. A spectrum allocation problem was used as a case study and successfully implemented in a Virtex-6 FPGA device, showing relevant figures for the computing acceleration

Estimación de efectos locales con movimientos sísmicos y microtemblores

Se presenta una visión amplia de la utilización de registros de movimiento sí­smicos fuertes, movimientos sí­smicos débiles y microtemblores para la evaluación de efectos locales. La revisión del estado del arte enfatiza en el análisis de microtemblores debido a la facilidad de la obtención de los registros en cualquier sitio.Postprint (published version

A Rapid, Cost-Effective Method of Assembly and Purification of Synthetic DNA Probes >100 bp

Here we introduce a rapid, cost-effective method of generating molecular DNA probes in just under 15 minutes without the need for expensive, time-consuming gel-extraction steps. As an example, we enzymatically concatenated six variable strands (50 bp) with a common strand sequence (51 bp) in a single pool using Fast-Link DNA ligase to produce 101 bp targets (10 min). Unincorporated species were then filtered out by passing the crude reaction through a size-exclusion column (<5 min). We then compared full-length product yield of crude and purified samples using HPLC analysis; the results of which clearly show our method yields three-quarters that of the crude sample (50% higher than by gel-extraction). And while we substantially reduced the amount of unligated product with our filtration process, higher purity and yield, with an increase in number of stands per reaction (>12) could be achieved with further optimization. Moreover, for large-scale assays, we envision this method to be fully automated with the use of robotics such as the Biomek FX; here, potentially thousands of samples could be pooled, ligated and purified in either a 96, 384 or 1536-well platform in just minutes

Overexpression of Adenosine A2A receptors in rats: effects on depression, locomotion, and anxiety

Copyright: © 2014 Coelho, Alves, Canas, Valadas, Shmidt, Batalha, Ferreira, Ribeiro, Bader, Cunha, do Couto and Lopes. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.Adenosine A2A receptors (A2AR) are a sub-type of receptors enriched in basal ganglia, activated by the neuromodulator adenosine, which interact with dopamine D2 receptors. Although this reciprocal antagonistic interaction is well-established in motor function, the outcome in dopamine-related behaviors remains uncertain, in particular in depression and anxiety. We have demonstrated an upsurge of A2AR associated to aging and chronic stress. Furthermore, Alzheimer's disease patients present A2AR accumulation in cortical areas together with depressive signs. We now tested the impact of overexpressing A2AR in forebrain neurons on dopamine-related behavior, namely depression. Adult male rats overexpressing human A2AR under the control of CaMKII promoter [Tg(CaMKII-hA2AR)] and aged-matched wild-types (WT) of the same strain (Sprague-Dawley) were studied. The forced swimming test (FST), sucrose preference test (SPT), and the open-field test (OFT) were performed to evaluate behavioral despair, anhedonia, locomotion, and anxiety. Tg(CaMKII-hA2AR) animals spent more time floating and less time swimming in the FST and presented a decreased sucrose preference at 48 h in the SPT. They also covered higher distances in the OFT and spent more time in the central zone than the WT. The results indicate that Tg(CaMKII-hA2AR) rats exhibit depressive-like behavior, hyperlocomotion, and altered exploratory behavior. This A2AR overexpression may explain the depressive signs found in aging, chronic stress, and Alzheimer's disease.Joana E. Coelho, Vânia L. Batalha and Diana G. Ferreira were supported by a grant from Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT); Paula M. Canas and Rodrigo A. Cunha were supported by FCT (PTDC/SAU-NSC/122254/2010) and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA, grant 09-68-ESR- FP-010). Luísa V. Lopes is an Investigator FCT, funded by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (PTDC-099853/2009) and Bial.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Profiling post-COVID-19 condition across different variants of SARS-CoV-2: a prospective longitudinal study in unvaccinated wild-type, unvaccinated alpha-variant, and vaccinated delta-variant populations

BACKGROUND: Self-reported symptom studies rapidly increased understanding of SARS-CoV-2 during the COVID-19 pandemic and enabled monitoring of long-term effects of COVID-19 outside hospital settings. Post-COVID-19 condition presents as heterogeneous profiles, which need characterisation to enable personalised patient care. We aimed to describe post-COVID-19 condition profiles by viral variant and vaccination status. METHODS: In this prospective longitudinal cohort study, we analysed data from UK-based adults (aged 18–100 years) who regularly provided health reports via the Covid Symptom Study smartphone app between March 24, 2020, and Dec 8, 2021. We included participants who reported feeling physically normal for at least 30 days before testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 who subsequently developed long COVID (ie, symptoms lasting longer than 28 days from the date of the initial positive test). We separately defined post-COVID-19 condition as symptoms that persisted for at least 84 days after the initial positive test. We did unsupervised clustering analysis of time-series data to identify distinct symptom profiles for vaccinated and unvaccinated people with post-COVID-19 condition after infection with the wild-type, alpha (B.1.1.7), or delta (B.1.617.2 and AY.x) variants of SARS-CoV-2. Clusters were then characterised on the basis of symptom prevalence, duration, demography, and previous comorbidities. We also used an additional testing sample with additional data from the Covid Symptom Study Biobank (collected between October, 2020, and April, 2021) to investigate the effects of the identified symptom clusters of post-COVID-19 condition on the lives of affected people. FINDINGS: We included 9804 people from the COVID Symptom Study with long COVID, 1513 (15%) of whom developed post-COVID-19 condition. Sample sizes were sufficient only for analyses of the unvaccinated wild-type, unvaccinated alpha variant, and vaccinated delta variant groups. We identified distinct profiles of symptoms for post-COVID-19 condition within and across variants: four endotypes were identified for infections due to the wild-type variant (in unvaccinated people), seven for the alpha variant (in unvaccinated people), and five for the delta variant (in vaccinated people). Across all variants, we identified a cardiorespiratory cluster of symptoms, a central neurological cluster, and a multi-organ systemic inflammatory cluster. These three main clusers were confirmed in a testing sample. Gastrointestinal symptoms clustered in no more than two specific phenotypes per viral variant. INTERPRETATION: Our unsupervised analysis identified different profiles of post-COVID-19 condition, characterised by differing symptom combinations, durations, and functional outcomes. Our classification could be useful for understanding the distinct mechanisms of post-COVID-19 condition, as well as for identification of subgroups of individuals who might be at risk of prolonged debilitation. FUNDING: UK Government Department of Health and Social Care, Chronic Disease Research Foundation, The Wellcome Trust, UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, UK Research and Innovation London Medical Imaging & Artificial Intelligence Centre for Value-Based Healthcare, UK National Institute for Health Research, UK Medical Research Council, British Heart Foundation, UK Alzheimer's Society, and ZOE

Coexistence of one- and two-dimensional supramolecular assemblies of terephthalic acid on Pd(111) due to self-limiting deprotonation

The adsorption of terephthalic acid [C6H4(COOH)(2), TPA] on a Pd(111) surface has been investigated by means of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and near-edge x-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy under ultrahigh vacuum conditions at room temperature. We find the coexistence of one- (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) molecular ordering. Our analysis indicates that the 1D phase consists of intact TPA chains stabilized by a dimerization of the self-complementary carboxyl groups, whereas in the 2D phase, consisting of deprotonated entities, the molecules form lateral ionic hydrogen bonds. The supramolecular growth dynamics and the resulting structures are explained by a self-limiting deprotonation process mediated by the catalytic activity of the Pd surface. Our models for the molecular ordering are supported by molecular mechanics calculations and a simulation of high resolution STM images