Low cost carriers: the case of Oporto Airport and its touristic impact in the region

Both Oporto and the North Region of Portugal definitions of tourism have evolved significantly during the past decade. In this journey it is relevant to highlight the contribution of the arrival of Low Cost Carriers (LCCs) at Francisco Sá Carneiro Airport, thus contributing to a rapid expansion of this region as a tourism destination. Hence, this work project aims to understand the touristic and economic impact motivated by the entry of LCCs in Oporto and in the North Region of Portugal and tries to understand if this event was in fact an asset in the development of the aforementioned tourism destinations

The potential of Asparagopsis armata to control the bacterial load associated to live feed to improve Seabream (Sparus aurata) larvae performance

Dissertação de mestrado, Aquacultura e Pescas, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade do Algarve, 2014Seaweeds are a source of bioactive compounds producing a large variety of metabolites with a broad spectrum of biological activities. This work attempted to understand the use of A. armata metabolites in larval rearing of Sparus aurata, assessing its development and larval quality, by reducing the bacterial load associated with the live feed. Two A. armata products (a laboratory made extract and a commercial powder, Ysaline®100 - YSA) were tested in Brachionus spp. and Artemia sp. at different concentrations. YSA at 0.5 % was selected to be used during 30 min with live feed. The gilthead seabream larvae trial comprised one treatment where live feed was bathed with YSA vs. a Control (bathed with clear water) (each n = 4). Larval quality parameters (growth, survival, swimbladder inflation, body anomalies and caudal fin development), digestive capacity (digestive system histology and enzymatic activity), immune response (lysozyme activity and cortisol concentration) and microbiological parameters were monitored. Fish larvae from YSA exhibited higher growth rate than Control (P < 0.05). A higher food intake or a reduction of the bacterial load might justify this result. Still, lower survival rates were observed for YSA. This result might be related with variations of the bacterial community or/and to a possible ichthyotoxic effect of A. armata metabolites carried by the live feed. Treatment with YSA also influenced the whole body cortisol since lower concentrations were observed for this group. Further research on how cortisol mechanisms are affected is required to fully understand its effects. Seabream larvae from YSA exhibited lower number of bacteria, either for larvae ability to prevent or reduce the bacteria colonization, which can be related to an enhancement of larval fitness, or to the possibility that A. armata metabolites were carried to the larvae. The reduction of the bacterial load accomplished with live feed immersed for 30 min in YSA improved S. aurata larvae fitness, although the effects are not fully understood

Assessment of gamma oryzanol variability, an attractive rice bran bioactive compound

Gamma-oryzanol is a compound present on rice bran, which has been studied for its bioactive properties, including its cytotoxic activity. The gamma-oryzanol biosynthesis occurs on the lipidic membrane of the plant and can be influenced by edaphoclimatic grown conditions. Two Portuguese rice varieties (Ceres and Macarico) from 6 growing environments were analysed in order to explore the influence of the growing conditions on the gamma-oryzanol content, its constituents, and cytotoxic effect against 4 human tumour cell lines (NCI-H460, HeLa, HepG2, and MCF-7). The overall variability of gamma-oryzanol concentration was from 1.56 g/Kg to 3.19 g/Kg, Ceres reveals higher values than Macarico; those concentrations also varied with the growing environment. The environment was also determinant for the individual concentration of the 3 gamma-oryzanol compounds (cycloartenyl ferulate, 24-methylenecycloartanyl ferulate, and campesteryl ferulate). A cytotoxic effect was observed for all the tested tumour cell lines and also varied with the growing environment.This study was financially supported by FEDER (Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional, Portugal) under the Program PT2020, Project POCI-01-0247- FEDER-017931 - ArrozBig - Development of rice products with low glycemic index; which also supported C. Pereira research grant. The authors are grateful to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) and FEDER under Program PT2020 for financial support to CIMO ID/AGR/00690/2019 and R. Calhelha contract and to FCT, Portugal for the PhD grant of A. Castanho (SFRH/BD/120929/2016).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Exploiting the bioactive properties of γ-oryzanol from bran of different exotic rice varieties

The rice industry is one of the most significant food industries since rice is a widely consumed cereal in the world. As a result of this substantial production, the rice industry has a significant amount of side streams, including bran, representing millions of tons of raw materials mainly designated to animal feed. Rice bran is a rich source of γ-oryzanol, a bioactive compound with substantial health benefits. In this perspective, different bran rice samples from distinct germplasm origins (Philippines, Italy and Portugal) were studied for their γ-oryzanol content by HPLC-PDA, cytotoxicity in four human tumour cell lines, hepatotoxicity in a normal cell line and for their antimicrobial effects on different bacterial and fungal strains. The Ballatinao sample presented the strongest activity against all the tumour cell lines, and was also the sample showing the highest amount of γ-oryzanol, suggesting its contribution to the exhibited cytotoxic properties. Regarding the antimicrobial activity, the tested samples were able to inhibit the majority of bacterial and fungal strains, with the Portuguese Ceres sample being the one presenting the highest bacterial inhibition and the Maluit and Dinorado samples, the highest fungal inhibition. Overall, the results show that rice bran extracts may be considered as potential candidates for antimicrobial agents when incorporated into food matrices.Ruaraid Hamilton from IRRI Philipines for supplying the rice seeds and Paula Marques from COTARROZ Portugal for multiplying the rice grain collection in COTARROZ greenhouses. Project POCI-01-0247-FEDER-017931 - ArrozBig - Development of rice products with low glycemic index and FCT SFRH/BD/120929/2016 PhD grant (Ana Castanho). The authors are grateful to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT. Portugal) and FEDER under Program PT2020 for financial support to CIMO (UID/AGR/00690/2013) and R. Calhelha contracts.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Analyzing Pilot Projects of Creative Tourism in an Ultra-Peripheral Region : Which guidelines can be extracted for sustainable regional development?

Several authors have shown that some tourism typologies - i.e., rural tourism, nature-based tourism, or creative tourism - have a more predominant role in attaining regional sustainability. In this regard, this paper explores the impacts of five pilot projects of creative tourism on the sustainable development of the insular Autonomous Region of the Azores. Through direct exploratory tools, such as interviews and site analyses, the present study enabled us to provide greater insight into creative tourism projects and their relevance to the development of an ultra-peripheral island region. As part of the CREATOUR AZORES Project, this study is based on five creative tourism pilot projects operating in the Azores, Portugal. As such, it is recommended that the regional government, local authorities, and other relevant actors and players in this region actively support and create strategies to strengthen these projects (and similar initiatives) once they not only contribute to regional development and destination promotion but also promote much-desired sustainable development - once these kinds of tourism, in theory, and practice, counteract the dire effects of mass tourism.This paper is financed by Portuguese national funds through FCT–Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P., project number UIDB/00685/2020 and also by the project CREATOUR Azores—Turning the Azores into a Creative Tourism Destination (ACORES-01-0145-FEDER-000127). CREATOUR Azores is coordinated by the Azores Sustainable Tourism Observatory and developed in partnership with the University of the Azores/Gaspar Frutuoso Foundation, being financed by the FEDER, through the Azores Operational Program 2020 and by regional funds, through the Regional Directorate for Science. and Technology. Also, by the project UID/SOC/04647/2013, with the financial support of FCT/MEC through national funds and, when applicable, co-financed by FEDER under the PT2020 Partnership.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Kako različiti sastojci i dodaci utječu na proizvodnju i biološku aktivnost medovine?

Mead is a fermented alcoholic beverage that is made from honey diluted in water and commonly with the addition of other ingredients. The chemical characteristics of mead are closely related to the ingredients and additives that are used in its preparation, especially the type of honey, yeast strain and prefermentation nutrients, as well as herbs, spices and/or fruits. These additives can affect not only the fermentation process, in particular the yeast activity, the formation of metabolites and fermentation time, but also the bioactive potential of the mead, which mainly depends on phenolic compounds. Scientific studies have shown that the mead with added different plant species contains considerable amounts of different classes of polyphenols, which have important biological activities. Within this context, this review study seeks to investigate how different ingredients and additives can affect each of the stages of the preparation of mead, as well as its bioactive potential, in order to understand the effects on its chemical composition, and thus add greater commercial value to this beverage.Medovina je fermentirano alkoholno piće dobiveno otapanjem meda u vodi, često uz dodatak različitih sastojaka. Kemijska svojstva medovine ovise o sastojcima i dodacima koji se koriste u njezinoj pripremi, osobito o vrsti meda, soju kvasca i hranjivim sastojcima koji se dodaju prije vrenja, te o dodanim biljkama, začinima i/ili voću. Ti dodaci ne utječu samo na vrenje, prije svega na aktivnost kvasca, proizvodnju metabolita i vrijeme fermentacije, već i na biološku aktivnost medovine, koja ovisi o sadržaju fenolnih spojeva. Znanstvena istraživanja pokazuju da medovina s dodatkom različitih biljaka sadržava velike količine različitih polifenola s bitnim biološkim svojstvima. Stoga je svrha ovoga preglednog rada bila ispitati na koji način različiti sastojci i dodaci mogu utjecati na pojedine faze pripreme medovine te njezinu biološku aktivnost, s ciljem razumijevanja njihovog učinka na kemijski sastav ovog pića, što mu daje veću tržišnu vrijednost

Highly specific blood-brain barrier transmigrating single-domain antibodies selected by an In Vivo phage display screening

Research Areas: Pharmacology & PharmacyA major bottleneck in the successful development of central nervous system (CNS) drugs is the discovery and design of molecules that can cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Nano-delivery strategies are a promising approach that take advantage of natural portals of entry into the brain such as monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) targeting endogenous BBB receptors. However, the main selected mAbs rely on targeting broadly expressed receptors, such as the transferrin and insulin receptors, and in selection processes that do not fully mimic the native receptor conformation, leading to mistargeting and a low fraction of the administered dose effectively reaching the brain. Thus, there is an urgent need to identify new BBB receptors and explore novel antibody selection approaches that can allow a more selective delivery into the brain. Considering that in vitro models fail to completely mimic brain structure complexity, we explored an in vivo cell immunization approach to construct a rabbit derived single-domain antibody (sdAb) library towards BBB endothelial cell receptors. The sdAb antibody library was used in an in vivo phage display screening as a functional selection of novel BBB targeting antibodies. Following three rounds of selections, next generation sequencing analysis, in vitro brain endothelial barrier (BEB) model screenings and in vivo biodistribution studies, five potential sdAbs were identified, three of which reaching >0.6% ID/g in the brain. To validate the brain drug delivery proof-of-concept, the most promising sdAb, namely RG3, was conjugated at the surface of liposomes encapsulated with a model drug, the pan-histone deacetylase inhibitor panobinostat (PAN). The translocation efficiency and activity of the conjugate liposome was determined in a dual functional in vitro BEB-glioblastoma model. The RG3 conjugated PAN liposomes enabled an efficient BEB translocation and presented a potent antitumoral activity against LN229 glioblastoma cells without influencing BEB integrity. In conclusion, our in vivo screening approach allowed the selection of highly specific nano-antibody scaffolds with promising properties for brain targeting and drug delivery.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Molecular determinants of the SARS-CoV-2 fusion peptide activity

The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, emerged in late 2019 and quickly spread worldwide, resulting in over 125 million infections and 2.7 million deaths as of March 2021 accordingly to the World Health Organization. Despite the great advances achieved by the scientific community in providing crucial information about this virus, we are still far from completely understanding it. SARS-CoV-2 is an enveloped virus, meaning that it is encapsulated by a lipid membrane, which needs to be fused to the host membrane to begin the infection process. Fusion between viral and host membrane is catalyzed by the spike (S) glycoprotein. The S-protein is composed of essential elements for the infection mechanism, namely the receptor-binding domain known to bind to angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 during the viral entry pathway. Another important region, known as the fusion peptide (FP), plays an essential part in the fusion mechanism, by inserting into and disturbing the host membrane. There is still not a consensus among scientists in terms of the fusion peptide location on the S-protein sequence, with two major candidate regions having been proposed. We recently used a machine learning-based tool developed by us to identify viral FPs with accuracies over 85%. With this tool a putative FP, previously suggested in the literature, has been identified, as well as other proposals including the requirement of more than one FP. To further address this question, we are performing a systematic analysis of the SARS-CoV-2 putative FPs, using Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations, which provide a detailed perspective of how these peptides insert and interact with the membrane. In parallel, we are characterizing these systems experimentally. Additionally we are exploring therapeutic strategies targeting these regions. Given the major role of the FP in the virus infection process, this work provides relevant insights and contributes to the fight against COVID-19.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Structural studies of a lipid-binding peptide from tunicate hemocytes with anti-biofilm activity

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Clavanins is a class of peptides (23aa) histidine-rich, free of post-translational modifications. Clavanins have been studied largely for their ability to disrupt bacterial membranes. In the present study, the interaction of clavanin A with membranes was assessed by dynamic light scattering, zeta potential and permeabilization assays. We observed through those assays that clavanin A lysis bacterial cells at concentrations corresponding to its MIC. Further, the structure and function of clavanin A was investigated. To better understand how clavanin interacted with bacteria, its NMR structure was elucidated. The solution state NMR structure of clavanin A in the presence of TFE-d3 indicated an α-helical conformation. Secondary structures, based on circular dichroism measurements in anionic sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and TFE (2,2,2-trifluorethanol), in silico lipid-peptide docking and molecular simulations with lipids DPPC and DOPC revealed that clavanin A can adopt a variety of folds, possibly influencing its different functions. Microcalorimetry assays revealed that clavanin A was capable of discriminating between different lipids. Finally, clavanin A was found to eradicate bacterial biofilms representing a previously unrecognized function.We would like to thank CNPq, CAPES (Ciências sem Fronteiras), FAPDF and FUNDECT. D.G. acknowledges Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia - Ministério da Educação e Ciência (FCT-MEC, Portugal) for fellowship SFRH/BPD/73500/2010 and A.S.V. for funding within the FCT Investigator Programme (IF/00803/2012).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio