Brazilian woods in Portuguese xylarium / Madeiras brasileiras em xilotecas portuguesas

The geographical origin of the wood samples in xylotheques (xylaria, wood collections) are part of the history of knowledge on the biodiversity of a given region. Portugal was the colonizer of Brazil and the transport of wood from the 16th century onwards played a significant part in the relationship of the two countries. This prompted the present study which has the following aims; to survey existing Portuguese xylotheques, identify their samples of Brazilian woods and thus contribute to future studies concerning the origin and distribution of species of Brazil's tropical forests, analyse and characterise the different kinds of wood collection surveyed, as well as identify some woods described by means of data obtained from interviews. Sixteen xylotheques were identified and investigated in Portugal and a survey of the Brazilian species contained in them was carried out. These xylotheques were of qualitatively different types: scientific, technological, expository or historical. It was also observed that the concept of a xylarium in Portugal varies from a simple collection of wood samples in cabinet or a box, to a physical space of larger dimensions reserved specifically for the storage of samples or collections. A total of 3,126 Brazilian wood samples were found. Despite the many expeditions carried out from the 16th century and the numerous shipments of woods sent from Brazil to Portugal, especially from the 18th century onwards, no samples derived from them were identified except in historical xylarium. Instead it was found that most Brazilian samples had been obtained through donations and exchange with Brazilian institutions. In contrast, the African wood samples had been obtained by expeditions undertaken by Portuguese institutions from the 20th century onwards. This can be explained by the emergence only in that century of specialized laboratories. By then it had been recognized in Portugal that due to the increase in global consumption of wood, there was a need to develop technological and scientific expertise on such a valuable resource, and consequently in 1948 the Board of Overseas Scientific Investigations decided to set up the Laboratory of Wood Histology and Technology, with well-defined objectives.

Working group and intervision in psychology in medically assisted procreation – GIPPMA

With a view to improving the provision of care in the field of Psychology in the context of Medically Assisted Reproduction (MAR), the GIPPMA - Working Group and Intervision in Psychology at MAR was created in 2019. This informal group includes Psychologists who carry out their work activities in hospitals of the Portuguese National Health Service (North Zone), a faculty professor/researcher, and master students doing their curricular internships. The GIPPMA was a personal initiative of a group of professionals with the central assumption of creating a shared practical approach, to overcoming some of the difficulties in clinical practice.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Behaviour of low molecular weight compounds, iron and copper of wine spirit aged with chestnut staves under different levels of micro-oxygenation

Alternative technologies for a more sustainable wine spirits’ ageing have been studied but a lack of knowledge on the e ect of oxygenation level remains. This work examined the behaviour of low molecular weight compounds, iron and copper of a wine spirit aged in 50 L demijohns with chestnut wood staves combined with three levels of micro-oxygenation or nitrogen. Compounds and mineral elements were quantified by HPLC and FAAS, respectively, in samples collected at 8, 21, 60, 180, 270 and 365 days of ageing. Results showed that most of the compounds underwent significant changes in their content over time and behave di erently depending on the wine spirit’s oxygenation level: higher contents of gallic acid, syringic acid and vanillin were associated with lower micro-oxygenation level while higher contents of ellagic acid, syringaldehyde, coniferaldehyde and sinapaldehyde resulted from higher one; lowest contents of these compounds were found in the nitrogen modality. Weak correlation between copper and the studied compounds was evidenced whereas closer relationship between iron, vanillin, gallic, syringic and ellagic acids at end of ageing was observed. This study provides innovative information on the role of oxygen in wine spirit’s ageing, and on chestnut wood e ect on wine spirit’s mineral compositioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Grupo de trabalho e interversão em psicologia na procriação medicamente assistida - GIPPMA

With a view to improving provision of care in the field of Psychology in the context of Medically Assisted Procreation (PMA), the GIPPMA - Working Group and Intervision in Psychology at PMA was created in 2019. This informal group includes Psychologists who carry out their work activities in a hospital of the SNS (North Zone) and a professor/researcher. The GIPPMA emerged on the personal initiative of these professionals with the central assumption of creating a shared practical approach, overcoming some of the difficulties present in clinical practice. The group's objectives are: to build standardized psychological protocols in the field of PMA (pre-treatment evaluation, treatment and post-treatment protocols), as well as to develop, evaluate and propose work initiatives aimed at disseminating solutions and good practices in this area. GIPPMA has been emphasizing joint scientific research, seeking to contribute to knowledge on the subject, crucial as a basis for intervention. Similar to other areas of Psychology, which are undergoing rapid development and change, requiring professionals to be constantly updated/trained, this group also includes Clinical Intervision. Taking advantage of the geographical proximity and formal relations between institutions and following what the Portuguese Psychologists Association has been highlighting, GIPPMA considers this area of its activity as relevant in promoting well-being and self-care of professionals, in facilitating training and continuous development, as well as a safe and quality professional practice.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Transporte de madeiras brasileiras para Portugal nos séculos XVIII E XIX / Transportation of brazilian wood to Portugal in the 18th and 19th centuries

O transporte de madeiras do Brasil colônia para Portugal teve início no século XVI e se estendeu até o século XIX. Este tema é escasso em livros e artigos de ciências.  Poucos autores, como Gabriel Soares, tratam desse assunto, trazendo contribuições importantes para a história brasileira. Somando-se a isso, esse trabalho apresenta grande relevância para a comunidade botânica, pois se trata do conhecimento sobre as madeiras que foram transportadas para Portugal. Objetivou-se realizar pesquisas em documentos de ordens de embarque das madeiras brasileiras para Portugal, analisar as entrevistas que foram feitas com coordenadores e curadores de museus, universidades e outros locais de guarda, naquele País, a fim de se obter a contextualização histórica, conceitos, evolução e tipos de transportes de madeiras utilizados, bem como as principais espécies transportadas. Além disso, apresentar uma breve relação do produto transportado e a evolução do transporte que conduziu este material. Esses documentos trouxeram alguns conceitos de transporte de madeira, que vai desde o transporte marítimo até o rodoviário, sendo este o mais atual. A evolução dos transportes associada com a necessidade de cada produto enviado demonstra que, foram desde barcas, seguidos de barcaça, barinel, bergalim, bigue e etc. Porém, os mais relevantes para o transporte de madeiras foram: caravelas, fragatas e principalmente as naus, que hoje foram substituídas pelos navios a hélice. As embarcações foram construídas com peças a partir de madeiras de: Bowdichia virgilioides Kunth. (sucupira), Bagassa guianensis Aubl. (tatauba), Lecythis pisonis Cambess. (sapucaia), Tabebuia serratifolia (Vahl) G.Nichols. (pau-d´arco), Paubrasilia echinata Lam. (pau-brasil), Aspidosperma polyneuron Müll. Arg. (peroba), dentre outras. Os resultados obtidos permitiram identificar a evolução dos transportes e as espécies que foram transportadas do Brasil para Portugal, contribuindo com a perspectiva de dirimir as dúvidas existentes há mais de dois séculos a respeito das madeiras exportadas. Além disso, esta pesquisa permitiu a produção de um glossário relacionando o tipo de madeira com as respectivas partes das embarcações. Trabalhos realizados nesta linha, com interesse nas madeiras e sua identidade histórica e atual, são escassos e significam uma riqueza para a história da ciência botânic

Micro-oxygenation level as a key to explain the variation in the colour and chemical composition of wine spirits aged with chestnut wood staves

A deep knowledge of oxygenation level effect on wine spirits’ ageing is imperative to understand ageing chemistry and to select the most suitable technological option towards quality and sustainability. Following two articles on the same trial, this work focused on colour, total phenolic index (TPI) and basic chemical characteristics of a wine spirit aged in 50 L demijohns with chestnut wood staves together with three micro-oxygenation (MOX) levels. Chromatic characteristics and TPI were monitored over time (8–365 days) while sensory colour, alcoholic strength, acidity, pH and dry extract were assessed at the end of ageing. Results showed that stronger oxygenation promoted significantly faster colour evolution (lower lightness, higher chroma, red, yellow and brown hues) and higher TPI than mild and intermediate oxygenation until 60 days, probably by favouring the leaching of outer wood layers and extraction/degradation of tannins. No significant differences were found between these ageing modalities at 365 days. Outcomes suggest that the stronger MOX is the most suitable modality in terms of quality and sustainability. Significant differences between wine spirits resulting from MOX and control modality (slower colour evolution, lower TPI and dry extract) confirms the oxygen pivotal role in wine spirit’s ageing, particularly in the colour evolutioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Effects of statins therapy on LDL subfractions and inflammation in end-stage renal disease patients on dialysis

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The protective role of adiponectin for lipoproteins in end-stage renal disease patients: relationship with diabetes and body mass index

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) events are the main causes of death in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients on dialysis. The number and severity of CVD events remain inappropriate and difficult to explain by considering only the classic CVD risk factors. Our aim was to clarify the changes and the relationship of lipoprotein subfractions with other CVD risk factors, namely, body mass index (BMI) and adipokines, inflammation and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) oxidation, and the burden of the most prevalent comorbidities, diabetes mellitus (DM) and hypertension (HT). We studied 194 ESRD patients on dialysis and 22 controls; lipid profile, including lipoprotein subpopulations and oxidized LDL (oxLDL), C-reactive protein (CRP), adiponectin, leptin, and paraoxonase 1 activity were evaluated. Compared to controls, patients presented significantly lower levels of cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLc), LDLc, oxLDL, and intermediate and small HDL and higher triglycerides, CRP, adiponectin, large HDL, very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), and intermediate-density lipoprotein- (IDL) B. Adiponectin levels correlated positively with large HDL and negatively with intermediate and small HDL, oxLDL/LDLc, and BMI; patients with DM (n = 17) and with DM+HT (n = 70), as compared to patients without DM or HT (n = 69) or only with HT (n = 38), presented significantly higher oxLDL, oxLDL/LDLc, and leptin and lower adiponectin. Obese patients (n = 45), as compared to normoponderal patients (n = 81), showed lower HDLc, adiponectin, and large HDL and significantly higher leptin, VLDL, and intermediate and small HDL. In ESRD, the higher adiponectin seems to favor atheroprotective HDL modifications and protect LDL particles from oxidative atherogenic changes. However, in diabetic and obese patients, adiponectin presents the lowest values, oxLDL/LDLc present the highest ones, and the HDL profile is the more atherogenic. Our data suggest that the coexistence of DM and adiposity in ESRD patients on dialysis contributes to a higher CVD risk, as showed by their lipid and adipokine profiles.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Effects of hospital facilities on patient outcomes after cancer surgery: an international, prospective, observational study

Background Early death after cancer surgery is higher in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) compared with in high-income countries, yet the impact of facility characteristics on early postoperative outcomes is unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the association between hospital infrastructure, resource availability, and processes on early outcomes after cancer surgery worldwide.Methods A multimethods analysis was performed as part of the GlobalSurg 3 study-a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study of patients who had surgery for breast, colorectal, or gastric cancer. The primary outcomes were 30-day mortality and 30-day major complication rates. Potentially beneficial hospital facilities were identified by variable selection to select those associated with 30-day mortality. Adjusted outcomes were determined using generalised estimating equations to account for patient characteristics and country-income group, with population stratification by hospital.Findings Between April 1, 2018, and April 23, 2019, facility-level data were collected for 9685 patients across 238 hospitals in 66 countries (91 hospitals in 20 high-income countries; 57 hospitals in 19 upper-middle-income countries; and 90 hospitals in 27 low-income to lower-middle-income countries). The availability of five hospital facilities was inversely associated with mortality: ultrasound, CT scanner, critical care unit, opioid analgesia, and oncologist. After adjustment for case-mix and country income group, hospitals with three or fewer of these facilities (62 hospitals, 1294 patients) had higher mortality compared with those with four or five (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 3.85 [95% CI 2.58-5.75]; p<0.0001), with excess mortality predominantly explained by a limited capacity to rescue following the development of major complications (63.0% vs 82.7%; OR 0.35 [0.23-0.53]; p<0.0001). Across LMICs, improvements in hospital facilities would prevent one to three deaths for every 100 patients undergoing surgery for cancer.Interpretation Hospitals with higher levels of infrastructure and resources have better outcomes after cancer surgery, independent of country income. Without urgent strengthening of hospital infrastructure and resources, the reductions in cancer-associated mortality associated with improved access will not be realised