Precursores de aminas biogénicas no pescado e a sua relação com a alerginicidade

Tese de mestrado, Qualidade Alimentar e Saúde, 2023, Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Farmácia.As reações adversas a alimentos têm vindo a assumir cada vez mais importância no dia-a-dia de vários indivíduos pelo mundo. O termo alergia alimentar é utilizado para descrever respostas imunológicas que podem ser desencadeadas após o consumo de alimentos específicos ou devido a determinadas condições fisiológicas desencadeadas nos indivíduos após o seu consumo. As reações adversas aos alimentos, sejam elas alérgicas ou não, surgem de uma variedade de mecanismos diferentes. Estas podem envolver o sistema imunológico quando se trata de alergias, ou por outro lado, serem apenas reações fisiológicas ou enzimáticas quando se trata de intolerâncias ou intoxicações por determinadas componentes do alimento, nomeadamente aminas biogénicas. Esta dissertação está dividida em cinco partes, onde primeiramente é apresentada uma revisão de bibliografia sobre esta temática, depois a discussão metodológica e aplicação prática, a apresentação de resultados, a sua discussão e a conclusão. Foram realizadas três componentes práticas de forma a fundamentar a bibliografia já existente através dos resultados obtidos. Ao longo do trabalho serão explanadas as características das diferentes proteínas que causam as principais reações adversas, assim como a influência da qualidade microbiológica dos alimentos no desenvolvimento de aminas biogénicas, que são um importante veículo para o desencadeamento de reações adversas ligadas ao consumo de alimentos e que podem desencadear quadros alérgicos. Foi realizado um capítulo experimental onde foram analisados microbiologicamente e quimicamente diversos pratos confecionados com peixe e produtos do mar, assim como foi criado um questionário on-line (amostra conseguida por método de bola de neve) direcionado à população com o objetivo de fazer uma breve identificação e caracterização da população que é afetada com este tipo de patologia. Dada a complexidade de sinais e sintomas que decorrem deste tipo de condição clínica, impõe-se a necessidade de um diagnóstico diferencial que remete a vários fatores de promoção deste tipo de condição. Por esse motivo foi essencial entender a origem de certas debilidades que muitas das vezes surgem no próprio alimento e que após serem consumidos por indivíduos mais sensíveis, podem mesmo desencadear quadros graves de reações adversas. Foi possível concluir que existe uma relação clara entre a qualidade microbiológica dos alimentos e o desenvolvimento de aminas biogénicas, que desencadeiam quadros toxicológicos semelhantes aos alérgicos. Foi também concluído que a alergia ao peixe e produtos do mar é bastante significativa na população portuguesa.Adverse reactions to food have become increasingly important in the daily lives of many individuals around the world. The term food allergy is used to describe immune responses that may be triggered after the consumption of specific foods or due to certain physiological conditions that are triggered in individuals after their consumption. Adverse reactions to food, whether allergic or not, arise from a variety of different mechanisms. These may involve the immune system when it comes to allergies, or on the other hand, they may only be physiological or enzymatic reactions when it comes to intolerances or poisoning by certain food components, namely biogenic amines. This dissertation is divided into five parts, where first a review of the bibliography on this subject is presented, then the methodological discussion and practical application, the presentation of results, their discussion and the conclusion. Three practical components were performed in order to substantiate the existing bibliography through the results obtained. Throughout the work, the characteristics of the different proteins that cause the main adverse reactions will be explained, as well as the influence of the microbiological quality of food in the development of biogenic amines, which are an important vehicle for triggering adverse reactions linked to food consumption and that can trigger allergic reactions. An experimental chapter was carried out where several dishes made with fish and seafood products were analyzed microbiologically and chemically, as well as an online questionnaire (sample obtained by the snowball method) directed to the population with the objective of making a brief identification and characterization of the population that is affected with this type of pathology. Given the complexity of signs and symptoms that arise from this type of clinical condition, there is a need for a differential diagnosis that refers to several factors that promote this type of condition. For this reason, it was essential to understand the origin of certain weaknesses that often arise in the food itself and that after being consumed by more sensitive individuals, can even trigger serious adverse reactions. It was possible to conclude that there is a clear relationship between the microbiological quality of food and the development of biogenic amines, which trigger allergic-like toxicological pictures. It was also concluded that allergy to fish and seafood products is quite significant in the Portuguese population.Instituto Nacional de Saúde Doutor Ricardo Jorge

Epidemiology of periodontal disease among the elderly

The present study aims to reflect on the oral health status of the elderly, addressing periodontal disease, as well as the importance of oral health, general health and quality of life. The methodology adopted consisted of a bibliographic research of scientific articles indexed in PUBMED® and Google Scholar® with the following combined keywords: “Periodontal Disease”, “Gerodontology”, “Oral Health”, “Elderly” and “Epidemiology”, either in Portuguese or in English. The exclusion criteria for the selection of the scientific articles used consisted in limiting the research to the Portuguese and English languages, limiting the publication date to the last 10 years, and only scientific articles referring to the epidemiology of periodontal disease among the elderly. Therefore, from a total of 33 scientific articles, only 17 scientific articles were selected for the present research. The most recent studies do show that periodontal disease is clearly a public health issue, increasing among all ages. However, this oral pathology should be carefully analyzed among the elderly considering the higher risk of association with the development of other systemic diseases and also the physiological, mental and social changes that characterize this specific age group.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Can 8-weeks of Training Affect Active Drag in Young Swimmers?

The aim of this study was to assess the effects of 8-weeks of training on active drag in young swimmers of both genders. Eight girls and twelve boys' belonging to the same swimming team and with regular competitive participation in national and regional events for the previous two seasons participated in this study. Active drag measurements were conducted in two different evaluation moments: at the beginning of the season and after 8 weeks of training (6.0 ± 0.15 training units per week, 21.00 ± 3.23 km per week and 3.50 ± 0.23 km per training unit). The maximal swimming velocity at the distance of 13 m, active drag and drag coefficient were measured on both trials by the method of small perturbations with the help of an additional hydrodynamic body. After 8 weeks of training, mean active drag (drag force and drag coefficient) decreased in girls and boys, although no significant differences were found between the two trials. It seems that 8 weeks of swimming training were not sufficient to allow significant improvements on swimming technique. Key pointsThe velocity perturbation method seems to be a good, simple and reliable approach to assess active drag in young swimmers.Eight weeks of swimming training were not sufficient to allow significant improvements on swimming hydrodynamics.There were no differences between boys and girls concerning active drag. A possible explanation may be related to the similar values of body mass and height in boys and girls found in this study.Specific training sets concerning technique correction and improvement in young swimmers might be a main aim during training planning.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Satisfação dos Utentes da Unidade de Saúde de Tondela

A qualidade dos serviços de saúde prestados tem uma importância fulcral na satisfação dos utentes em geral, uma vez que as suas opiniões são baseadas nas experiências. Com este estudo pretendemos identificar o grau de satisfação dos utentes, utilizando os indicadores EUROPEP e os das áreas específicas; determinar em que medida as variáveis do estado de saúde influenciam a satisfação dos utentes; descrever o nível de satisfação dos utentes em relação às dimensões de enfermagem, médicas, administrativas e funcionamento geral da Unidade de Saúde; determinar em que medida as variáveis sociodemográficas influenciam a satisfação; compreender de que modo os fatores sociodemográficos interferem na satisfação dos utentes face aos cuidados de saúde; compreender a influência das variáveis do estado de saúde sobre a satisfação e promover a melhoria dos cuidados de saúde aos utentes da Unidade de Saúde de Tondela. Este é um estudo quantitativo, descritivo-correlacional e transversal, envolvendo uma amostra de 1343 utentes (idade média=53,32 anos; desvio padrão=19,498 anos). Fez-se a colheita de dados com base no EUROPEP. Concluiu-se que não existem diferenças significativas entre o sexo e a satisfação dos utentes. Relativamente à idade e à satisfação, verificou-se que existem diferenças significativas entre os indicadores, Continuidade e Cooperação, Atitudes após Experiência e Dimensão Interpessoal e Instrumental; a Pertinência revela diferenças altamente significativas. Quanto ao nível de literacia, existem diferenças bastante significativas no indicador Relação de Ajuda e diferenças altamente significativas nos indicadores Profissionais e Pertinência. Em relação ao estado geral de saúde e satisfação, constatou-se que não existem diferenças significativas

Effective cytocompatible nanovectors based on serine-derived gemini surfactants and monoolein for small interfering RNA delivery

Supplementary data to this article can be found online athttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcis.2020.09.077.Non-viral gene therapy based on gene silencing with small interfering RNA (siRNA) has attracted great interest over recent years. Among various types of cationic complexation agents, amino acid-based surfactants have been recently explored for nucleic acid delivery due to their low toxicity and high biocompatibility. Monoolein (MO), in turn, has been used as helper lipid in liposomal systems due to its ability to form inverted nonbilayer structures that enhance fusogenicity, thus contributing to higher transfection efficiency. In this work, we focused on the development of nanovectors for siRNA delivery based on three gemini amino acid-based surfactants derived from serine (12Ser)2N12, amine derivative; (12Ser)2COO12, ester derivative; and (12Ser)2CON12, amide derivative individually combined with MO as helper lipid. The inclusion of MO in the cationic surfactant system influences the morphology and size of the mixed aggregates. Furthermore, the gemini surfactant:MO systems showed the ability to efficiently complex siRNA, forming stable lipoplexes, in some cases clearly depending on the MO content, without inducing significant levels of cytotoxicity. High levels of gene silencing were achieved in comparison with a commercially available standard indicating that these gemini:MO systems are promising candidates as lipofection vectors for RNA interference (RNAi)-based therapies.The authors acknowledge Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnolo-gia (FCT) for financial support through projects UIDB/00081/2020 and UIDB/50006/2020. This work was supported by the‘‘Contrato-Programa” UIDB/04050/2020 funded by national fundsthrough the FCT I.P. Dr. Marisa Passos is gratefully acknowledged for help with the statistical analysis of cytotoxicity data. Fundingby the CCDR-N/NORTE2020/Portugal2020 through project DESign-BIOtechHealth (ref. Norte-01-0145-FEDER-000024) is also acknowledged. I. S. Oliveira and S.G. Silva also acknowledge finan-cial support from FCT through PhD grant SFRH/BD/108629/2015 and Individual Call to Scientific Employment Stimulus - CEEC Indi-vidual grant CEECIND/01932/2017, respectivelyinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Experiência de uma consulta de cardio-oncologia num hospital universitário terciário em Portugal: estudo observacional

© 2022 Sociedade Portuguesa de Cardiologia. Published by Elsevier Espa ̃na, S.L.U. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)Introduction: Heart disease and cancer are the two leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Advances in cancer screening and management have led to longer survival and better quality of life. Despite this progress, many cancer patients experience cardiovascular complications during and after cancer treatment. This study describes the experience of a cardio-oncology program at tertiary academic hospital. Methods: In this retrospective observational study, cancer patients referred to the CHULN cardio-oncology consultation (COC) between January 2016 and December of 2019 were included. Data collected included: patient demographics, cancer type, reason for referral, cardiovascular risk factors, cardiac and oncologic treatments and clinical outcomes. Results: A total of 520 patients (mean age: 65 ± 14 years; 65% women) were referred to the COC. The main reasons for referral were suspected heart failure (26%), pre-high risk chemotherapy assessment (20%) and decreased LVEF (15%). Pre-existing cardiovascular risk factors were common (79%) and 309 (59%) were taking cardiac medications. The most common type of malignancy was breast cancer (216, 41%) followed by gastrointestinal (139, 27%). More than half received anthracycline-based regimens (303, 58%). Most patients (401; 77%) successfully completed cancer therapy. At the time of last data collection, the majority of patients were alive (430, 83%). Cardiac-related mortality was observed in 16%. Conclusions: The close collaboration between cardiology and oncology teams and timely cardiac monitoring was the key to the majority of patients to completing their prescribed cancer therapy.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Reflexividade Ética na Carreira, Valores de Experimentação e Curiosidade em Estudantes Universitários

O presente artigo explora se os níveis de reflexividade ética podem explicar a existência de valores de experimentação ou de respostas adaptativas de curiosidade. Participaram no estudo 488 universitários de ambos os sexos (73.1% raparigas), com idades compreendidas entre os 18 e os 53 anos (M = 21.9, DP = 4.1), a frequentar diferentes anos e cursos universitários. Os resultados de análises de regressão linear hierárquica indicam que existem associações significativas entre os níveis de reflexividade ética na carreira e a curiosidade e que não existe relação entre os níveis de reflexividade ética na carreira e a subfunção experimentação

Does It Matter?

Funding Information: This research was partially co-financed by Hospital da Luz Lisboa under the initiative “Luz Investigação” in the context of the Group GENIUS (Reference LH.INV.F2019015).We investigated the impactof microsatellite instability (MSI) and Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) status in gastric cancer (GC), regarding response to perioperative chemotherapy (POPChT), overall survival (OS), and progression-free survival (PFS). We included 137 cases of operated GC, 51 of which were submitted to POPChT. MSI status was determined by multiplex PCR and EBV status by EBV-encoded RNA in situ hybridization. Thirty-seven (27%) cases presented as MSI-high, and seven (5.1%) were EBV+. Concerning tumor regression after POPChT, no differences were observed between the molecular subtypes, but females were more likely to respond (p = 0.062). No significant differences were found in OS or PFS between different subtypes. In multivariate analysis, age (HR 1.02, IC 95% 1.002–1.056, p = 0.033) and positive lymph nodes (HR 1.82, IC 95% 1.034–3.211, p = 0.038) were the only prognostic factors for OS. However, females with MSI-high tumors treated with POPChT demonstrated a significantly increased OS compared to females with MSS tumors (p = 0.031). In conclusion, we found a high proportion of MSI-high cases. MSI and EBV status did not influence OS or PFS either in patients submitted to POPChT or surgery alone. However, superior survival of females with MSI-high tumors suggests that sex disparities and molecular classification may influence treatment options in GC.publishersversionpublishe

EBV and MSI status in gastric cancer: does it matter?

We investigated the impactof microsatellite instability (MSI) and Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) status in gastric cancer (GC), regarding response to perioperative chemotherapy (POPChT), overall survival (OS), and progression-free survival (PFS). We included 137 cases of operated GC, 51 of which were submitted to POPChT. MSI status was determined by multiplex PCR and EBV status by EBV-encoded RNA in situ hybridization. Thirty-seven (27%) cases presented as MSI-high, and seven (5.1%) were EBV+. Concerning tumor regression after POPChT, no differences were observed between the molecular subtypes, but females were more likely to respond (p = 0.062). No significant differences were found in OS or PFS between different subtypes. In multivariate analysis, age (HR 1.02, IC 95% 1.002–1.056, p = 0.033) and positive lymph nodes (HR 1.82, IC 95% 1.034–3.211, p = 0.038) were the only prognostic factors for OS. However, females with MSI-high tumors treated with POPChT demonstrated a significantly increased OS compared to females with MSS tumors (p = 0.031). In conclusion, we found a high proportion of MSI-high cases. MSI and EBV status did not influence OS or PFS either in patients submitted to POPChT or surgery alone. However, superior survival of females with MSI-high tumors suggests that sex disparities and molecular classification may influence treatment options in GC.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Clonal relatedness of Proteus mirabilis strains causing urinary tract infections in companion animals and humans

Research Areas: Microbiology. Veterinary SciencesABSTRACT - Proteus mirabilis is a major cause of urinary tract infection (UTI) in humans and companion animals. This study aimed to evaluate the antimicrobial resistance, virulence and clonal relatedness of P. mirabilis isolated from dogs, cats and humans with UTI. P. mirabilis isolated from companion animals (N = 107) and humans (N = 76) with UTI were compared by PFGE analysis after overnight Nod macro-restriction using Dice/UPGMA with a 1.5% tolerance. Strains were characterized for antimicrobial resistance by disk diffusion. Twenty-four resistance genes and four virulence genes were screened by PCR. Thirty-nine clusters (similarity > 80%) and 73 single pulse-types were detected. Nine clusters included P. mirabilis isolated from community and hospital patients, including strains with 100% similarity. A high number of clusters (43.6%, n = 17/39) included strains from companion animals and humans. Similarity between some companion animal and human strains varied between 80-100%. One strain from a dog was 100% similar to one human community-acquired P. mirabilis. One P. mirabilis from a cat was found to be 94.7% and 92.4% similar to community and hospital patient strains, respectively. P. mirabilis CMY-2-producers did not cluster all together. Nevertheless, cluster C36 included five P. mirabilis from companion animals (similarity 85.8%-95.7%), of which, four (80%) were multidrug-resistant CMY-2-producers. This study shows that companion animals and humans become infected with closely related P. mirabilis strains. The high number of clusters containing companion animals and human strains points to the zoonotic nature of P. mirabilis. These results underline the potential role of companion animals as reservoirs and in the dissemination of uropathogenic P. mirabilis to humans and vice versa.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio