4,160 research outputs found

    Building materials with historical and heritage interest – A database in progress

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    Conservation and restoration of architectural heritage requires knowledge of the conservation state of its constituent materials in order to provide recommendations concerning the intervention plan, and the materials and the techniques to be used. Information on physical, chemical and mechanical characterization of materials, when available, is usually shared by different actors, but is not normally accessible by the general public. In this context, the DB-HERITAGE project intends to build a reference sample collection or repository for historical materials and an IT-tool to collect the related data on construction materials history, properties, and performance. This database is being developed to categorize materials by type and function, addressing the relevant issues in the historical context of construction materials. An overview of the database tools will be presented in this paper, exemplifying some of its outputs

    The association of dietary patterns with cognition through the lens of neuroimaging—a systematic review

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    Despite the reported benefits of diet on cognition in older adults, randomized controlled trials (RCT) testing the impact of dietary interventions on cognitive scores have yielded less promising results when cognition was assessed via neuropsychological tests. More recently, neuroimaging has been used to identify more subtle brain-related changes associated to cognition. Hence, employing a combination of neuroimaging techniques with neuropsychological tests could clarify this controversy. To determine the effect of diet on cognitive performance, we conducted a systematic review of PubMed and Scopus databases for all studies, on middle-aged and older adults, combining neuroimaging, neuropsychological tests, and data on dietary patterns. The inclusion criteria were met by 14 observational studies and no RCTs. The range of brain measures assessed varied from volumes to white matter integrity, functional connectivity, brain glucose metabolism and beta-amyloid deposition. Given the variability of methods used in assessing cognitive performance, diet and brain correlates, conducting a meta-analysis was not possible. Here the evidence suggests that, in observational studies, dietary patterns may be associated with brain correlates that have been shown to precede cognitive decline. As such, neuroimaging should be included in future RCTs to identify any benefits of diet on brain measures linked with cognitive health

    A pair of planets around HD 202206 or a circumbinary planet?

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    Long-term precise Doppler measurements with the CORALIE spectrograph reveal the presence of a second planet orbiting the solar-type star HD202206. The radial-velocity combined fit yields companion masses of m_2\sini = 17.4 M_Jup and 2.44 M_Jup, semi-major axes of a = 0.83 AU and 2.55 AU, and eccentricities of e = 0.43 and 0.27, respectively. A dynamical analysis of the system further shows a 5/1 mean motion resonance between the two planets. This system is of particular interest since the inner planet is within the brown-dwarf limits while the outer one is much less massive. Therefore, either the inner planet formed simultaneously in the protoplanetary disk as a superplanet, or the outer Jupiter-like planet formed in a circumbinary disk. We believe this singular planetary system will provide important constraints on planetary formation and migration scenarios.Comment: 9 pages, 14 figures, accepted in A&A, 12-May-200

    Orbital and physical properties of planets and their hosts: new insights on planet formation and evolution

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    We explore the relations between physical and orbital properties of planets and properties of their host stars to identify the main observable signatures of the formation and evolution processes of planetary systems. We use a large sample of FGK dwarf planet hosts with stellar parameters derived in a homogeneous way from the SWEET-Cat database to study the relation between stellar metallicity and position of planets in the period-mass diagram. In the second part we use all the RV-detected planets orbiting FGK stars to explore the role of planet-disk and planet-planet interaction on the evolution of orbital properties of planets with masses above 1MJup. We show that planets orbiting metal-poor stars have longer periods than those in metal-rich systems. This trend is valid for masses at least from 10MEarth to 4MJup. Earth-like planets orbiting metal-rich stars always show shorter periods (fewer than 20 days) than those orbiting metal-poor stars. We also found statistically significant evidence that very high mass giants have on average more eccentric orbits than giant planets with lower mass.Finally, we show that the eccentricity of planets with masses higher than 4MJup tends to be lower for planets with shorter periods. Our results suggest that the planets in the P-MP diagram are evolving differently because of a mechanism that operates over a wide range of planetary masses. This mechanism is stronger or weaker depending on the metallicity of the respective system. One possibility is that planets in metal-poor disks form farther out from their central star and/or they form later and do not have time to migrate as far as the planets in metal-rich systems. The trends and dependencies obtained for very high mass planetary systems suggest that planet-disk interaction is a very important and orbit-shaping mechanism for planets in the high-mass domain. Shortened.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures and 1 table. Accepted for publication in A&

    Características reprodutivas de ovelhas Santa Inês cruzadas com reprodutores Dorper e Somalis brasileira.

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    Os cruzamentos na ovinocultura tornaram-se um importante instrumento para aumentar a velocidade de crescimento dos animais e incrementar os parâmetros reprodutivo, sendo justificadas as pesquisas que gere tecnologias. Objetivou-se, com o presente trabalho, comparar a prolificidade e a fertilidade, de ovelhas Santa Inês (SI) cruzados com as raças Dorper (DP) e Somalis Brasileira (SB). A pesquisa foi conduzida no Campo Experimental Pedro Arle, da Embrapa Tabuleiros Costeiros/SE. Foram utilizadas 95 ovelhas da raça SI com idade variando de dois a sete anos e peso médio de 45,3 kg, criadas em regime semi-intensivo. As fêmeas foram inseminadas por laparoscopia (IL) com sêmen congelado de dois reprodutores das raças DP, SB e SI, formando assim três grupos genéticos: GG1 : SI x SI, GG2 : DP x SI e GG3 : SB x SI. Observou-se que não houve associação entre taxa de fertilidade ao parto e o tipo de acasalamento, obtendo-se taxa média de 43,16 %. A prolificidade média foi de 1,19, não apresentando diferença significativa (P>0,05) entre grupos genéticos. Com base nos resultados, conclui-se que as ovelhas SI apresentaram razoável taxa de fertilidade ao parto, quando submetidas à Inseminação Artificial Laparoscópica em nível de campo, com indução do estro apenas pelo efeito macho; o efeito da heterose sobre a prolificidade pode ser desprezível. Reproductive characteristics of sheep Santa Inês crossed with reproducers Dorper and Somalis Brasileira. Abstract - Interbreedings from the sheep raising become an important means to increase the rapidity of animals growth and even increase reproductive parameters, the searches have been justified for the technological. Advanced development the actual performance considered to confer the prolification and the fertility sheep Santa Snês breed (SI) interbred with the Dorper (DP) and Somalis Brazilian breeds (SB). The search was conduced at experimental rural rustic camp denominated Pedro Arle, to belong to Embrapa Tabuleiros Costeiros/SE. It were utilized ninety five sheeps of the SI breed with age between from two to seven ages and 45,3 medium weight, they were breeding in a half-active regime. The females were inseminated by laparoscopia ( IL) with frozen semen that belongs reproducers of the DP, SB and SI breeds, producing in this manner three genetical groups: GG1: SI x SI, GG2: DP x SI and GG3: SB x SI. So it was understood that there wasn´t any association between the fertility parturition rate in comparison to mating type, obtaining consequently a medium rate of 43,16 %. The prolification average was 1,19, it didn´t present any significative diference ( p>0,05) among to geneticals groups. Basing at these results, it has been concluded that the SI sheeps showed reasonable fertlility rate for the artificial insemination laparoscopic in search level, with induction oestrum only by effect male animal; contrasting the heterose effect and prolification can be worthless

    Schistosome and liver fluke derived catechol-estrogens and helminth associated cancers

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    Infection with helminth parasites remains a persistent public health problem in developing countries. Three of these pathogens, the liver flukes Clonorchis sinensis, Opisthorchis viverrini and the blood fluke Schistosoma haematobium, are of particular concern due to their classification as Group 1 carcinogens: infection with these worms is carcinogenic. Using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) approaches, we identified steroid hormone like (e.g., oxysterol-like, catechol estrogen quinone-like, etc.) metabolites and related DNA-adducts, apparently of parasite origin, in developmental stages including eggs of S. haematobium, in urine of people with urogenital schistosomiasis, and in the adult stage of O. viverrini. Since these kinds of sterol derivatives are metabolized to active quinones that can modify DNA, which in other contexts can lead to breast and other cancers, helminth parasite associated sterols might induce tumor-like phenotypes in the target cells susceptible to helminth parasite associated cancers, i.e., urothelial cells of the bladder in the case of urogenital schistosomiasis and the bile duct epithelia or cholangiocytes, in the case of O. viverrini and C. sinensis. Indeed we postulate that helminth induced cancers originate from parasite estrogen-host epithelial/urothelial cell chromosomal DNA adducts, and here we review recent findings that support this conjecture.José M. Correia da Costa, Maria J. Gouveia, Mónica C. Botelho, Lúcio L. Santos, and Júlio H. Santos thank FCT for Pest- OE/AGR/UI0211/2011 and Strategic Project UI211-2011- 2013, Clínica Sagrada Esperança and Hospital Américo Boavida, Luanda, Angola. Nuno Vale thanks to Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT, Portugal) and FEDER (European Union) for funding through project grants CONCREEQ/275/QUI and PEstC/QUI/UI0081/2011. Nuno Vale also thanks FCT for Post-Doc grant SFRH/BPD/48345/2008. The research findings reviewed here were supported by award R01CA155297 (Paul J. Brindley, Gabriel Rinaldi, Banchob Sripa) from the National Cancer Institute, NIH and P50 P50AI098639 (Banchob Sripa, Paul J. Brindley) from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH

    Anatomical factors in medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaws

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    Abstract in proceedings of the Fourth International Congress of CiiEM: Health, Well-Being and Ageing in the 21st Century, held at Egas Moniz’ University Campus in Monte de Caparica, Almada, from 3–5 June 2019.This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

    The HARPS search for southern extra-solar planets. XXVII. Up to seven planets orbiting HD 10180: probing the architecture of low-mass planetary systems

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    Context. Low-mass extrasolar planets are presently being discovered at an increased pace by radial velocity and transit surveys, opening a new window on planetary systems. Aims. We are conducting a high-precision radial velocity survey with the HARPS spectrograph which aims at characterizing the population of ice giants and super-Earths around nearby solar-type stars. This will lead to a better understanding of their formation and evolution, and yield a global picture of planetary systems from gas giants down to telluric planets. Methods. Progress has been possible in this field thanks in particular to the sub-m/s radial velocity precision achieved by HARPS. We present here new high-quality measurements from this instrument. Results. We report the discovery of a planetary system comprising at least five Neptune-like planets with minimum masses ranging from 12 to 25 M_Earth, orbiting the solar-type star HD 10180 at separations between 0.06 and 1.4 AU. A sixth radial velocity signal is present at a longer period, probably due to a 65-M_Earth object. Moreover, another body with a minimum mass as low as 1.4 M_Earth may be present at 0.02 AU from the star. This is the most populated exoplanetary system known to date. The planets are in a dense but still well-separated configuration, with significant secular interactions. Some of the orbital period ratios are fairly close to integer or half-integer values, but the system does not exhibit any mean-motion resonances. General relativity effects and tidal dissipation play an important role to stabilize the innermost planet and the system as a whole. Numerical integrations show long-term dynamical stability provided true masses are within a factor ~3 from minimum masses. We further note that several low-mass planetary systems exhibit a rather "packed" orbital architecture with little or no space left for additional planets. (Abridged)Comment: 20 pages, 15 figures, accepted for publication in A&
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