Sistema de Medição de Desempenho na Graduação em Engenharia: Aplicação em um Curso de Engenharia de Produção

A medição do desempenho é uma importante ferramenta para a gestão da educação em instituições de ensino superior. Nelas, esse tipo de mensuração é especialmente interessante, pois se revela útil para a gestão da universidade, sobretudo no que diz respeito ao acompanhamento de resultados e metas e ao atendimento de demandas externas. Diversos stakeholders (gestores acadêmicos, coordenadores de curso, instituições de governo, entidades de fomento, dentre outros) buscam cada vez mais clareza sobre o desempenho das universidades para direcionar políticas e investimentos. Nesse contexto, o presente trabalho foi desenvolvido com o objetivo de fornecer ao Departamento de Engenharia de Produção da Escola Politécnica da Universidade de São Paulo uma proposta de ferramenta que cumpra a demanda de medição de desempenho de seu curso de graduação. Por meio da aplicação de metodologia específica, foi desenvolvida uma proposta de um conjunto de indicadores de desempenho para graduação em Engenharia. Como principais resultados, destacam-se: a definição de um Sistema de Medição de Desempenho (SMD) aplicável na educação superior; a identificação de requisitos operacionais para indicadores; a seleção de indicadores de desempenho específicos; a definição de um formato adequado de ficha de indicadores; e a confecção de um painel de gestão (dashboard). Nesse sentido, o presente trabalho pode servir de referência para a elaboração de sistemas semelhantes de medição de desempenho em outros cursos de graduação em Engenharia, tendo em vista a melhoria contínua da qualidade do ensino oferecido.Performance measurement is an essential tool for the management of higher education institutions. This kind of measurement is especially interesting in these institutions because it proves useful for the management of the university itself, especially about the monitoring of results and targets and the fulfillment of external demands. Many stakeholders (academic managers, course coordinators, government institutions, development agencies, among others), increasingly seek clarity on the performance of public universities to direct policies and investments. In this context, the present work was developed to provide the Departamento de Engenharia de Produção da Escola Politécnica da Universidade de São Paulo with the proposal of a tool that meets the performance measurement demand of its undergraduate program. Through the application of specific methodology, a proposal of a set of key performance indicators (KPIs) for Engineering major was developed. The primary results are the definition of a performance measurement system (PMS) with a format applicable in higher education; the list of operational requirements for indicators; the selection of performance indicators; the definition of a suitable model of indicator form; and the organization of the KPIs in a dashboard. In this sense, this work can serve as a reference for the elaboration of similar performance measurement systems in other Engineering majors, with the goal of continuously improving the quality of the education offered

Caracterização do pão regional do distrito de Viseu e de Pão São

Dissertação de Mestrado em Qualidade e Tecnologia AlimentarO objectivo deste estudo visa a caracterização de diferentes amostras de pão Regional e pão São, procurando encontrar semelhanças e identificar os elementos diferenciadores dos mesmos. As amostras de pão Regional foram recolhidas no distrito de Viseu: Carregal do Sal, Cabanas de Viriato, Santar, Viseu, Mangualde, São Pedro do Sul e São Cipriano. No caso do pão São as amostras foram fornecidas pela empresa produtora, Fábrica do Pão localizada em Seia. Procedeu-se à caracterização física, química e sensorial, tendo sido avaliadas as diferentes propriedades em termos de média e desvio padrão das réplicas efectuadas. Posteriormente, procedeu-se a uma análise estatística, para comparação de médias e avaliação da significância das diferenças, tendo para tal sido usado o teste de Tuckey HSD. Foram ainda calculados os coeficientes de correlação de Pearson. Os resultados foram analisados recorrendo ao software SPSS para o Windows versão 19.0 e Statistic versão 6., sendo realizado o teste de análise de variância "one-way" (ANOVA). Numa fase posterior, os valores obtidos para as características do pão foram sujeitos a uma análise de componentes principais (PCA) e uma análise de Cluster. Em relação aos parâmetros químicos analisados no pão Regional, as amostras apresentaram algumas semelhanças e algumas diferenças, assim como também a nível físico e sensorial. No entanto, no que respeita à análise sensorial, as amostras foram, de modo geral, percepcionadas da mesma forma pelos provadores, não sendo detectadas diferenças significativas. Ainda assim, em termos de apreciação global a amostra preferida foi a da pastelaria Flor de Cabanas. Em relação aos parâmetros químicos, físicose sensoriais do pão São, as amostras mostraram-se semelhantes entre si, o que pode ser explicado por terem basicamente a mesma constituição em termos de ingredientes. Contudo, será de assinalar algumas diferenças em termos de fibra, hidratos de carbono, proteína e cloretos, devido à presença de farinha de tremoço numa das amostras. Quando comparadas as amostras de pão Regional com as de pão São, verificou-se que estas se apresentaram bastante diferentes, quer em termos químicos, físicos ou nível sensorial. Foi possível observar que ao nível sensorial os pães Regionais foram os preferidos pelos provadores.ABSTRACT: The aim of this study is the characterization of different samples of regional bread and healthy bread, trying to identify the similarities and contrasting elements in them. The regional bread samples were collected in the District of Viseu: Carregal do Sal, Cabanas de Viriato, Santar, Viseu, São Pedro do Sul and São Cipriano. The healthy bread samples were provided by the production company "Fábrica do Pão", located in Seia. The physical, chemical and sensory characterization was undertaken, having been avaluted the different proprerties in terms of mean value and standard deviation of the replicas made. Later, we proceeded to a statistical analysis for comparison of means and assessing the significance of the differences, having been used for this the Tukey HSD test. We also calculated the Pearson correlation coefficients. The results were analyzaed using the SPSS software version 19.0 for Windows and Statistica version 6, having been performed an analysis of variance "one way"(ANOVA). At a later stage, the values obtained for the characteristics of bread were subjected to principal components analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis. Regardind the chemical parameters analyzed in the regional bread, the samples showed some similarities and differences, as well as regarding the physical and sensory parameters. However, concerning the sensory analysis, the samples were generally perceived by the panelists in the same way, and no significant differences were observed. Still, in terms of the same way preferred by the panelists the sample from pastry "Flor de Cabanas". With respect to chemical, physical and sensory parameters of the healthy bread, the samples were similar, which can be explained by having basically the same constitution in terms of ingredients. However, there can be noted some differences in terms of fiber, carbohydrates, protein and chlorides, due to the presence of lupine flour in one sample. When comparing the regional bread samples with the healthy bread ones, it was found that they quite different, either at the chemical, physical or sensory levels. It was observed that at the sensory level the regional breads were those preferred by the tasters

TOP BP1(Dpb11) plays a conserved role in homologous recombination DNA repair through the coordinated recruitment of 53BP1(Rad9)

Genome maintenance and cancer suppression require homologous recombination (HR) DNA repair. In yeast and mammals, the scaffold protein TOPBP1Dpb11 has been implicated in HR, although its precise function and mechanism of action remain elusive. In this study, we show that yeast Dpb11 plays an antagonistic role in recombination control through regulated protein interactions. Dpb11 mediates opposing roles in DNA end resection by coordinating both the stabilization and exclusion of Rad9 from DNA lesions. The Mec1 kinase promotes the pro-resection function of Dpb11 by mediating its interaction with the Slx4 scaffold. Human TOPBP1Dpb11 engages in interactions with the anti-resection factor 53BP1 and the pro-resection factor BRCA1, suggesting that TOPBP1 also mediates opposing functions in HR control. Hyperstabilization of the 53BP1-TOPBP1 interaction enhances the recruitment of 53BP1 to nuclear foci in the S phase, resulting in impaired HR and the accumulation of chromosomal aberrations. Our results support a model in which TOPBP1Dpb11 plays a conserved role in mediating a phosphoregulated circuitry for the control of recombinational DNA repair

Investigation on solubilization protocols in the refolding of the thioredoxin TsnC from Xylella fastidiosa by high hydrostatic pressure approach

The lack of efficient refolding methodologies must be overcome to take full advantage of the fact that bacteria express high levels of aggregated recombinant proteins. High hydrostatic pressure (HHP) impairs intermolecular hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions, dissociating aggregates, which makes HHP a useful tool to solubilize proteins for subsequent refolding. A process of refolding was set up by using as a model TsnC, a thioredoxin that catalyzes the disulfide reduction to a dithiol, a useful indication of biological activity. The inclusion bodies (IB) were dissociated at 2.4 kbar. The effect of incubation of IB suspensions at 1–800 bar, the guanidine hydrochloride concentration, the oxidized/reduced glutathione (GSH/GSSG) ratios, and the additives in the refolding buffer were analyzed. To assess the yields of fully biologically active protein obtained for each tested condition, it was crucial to analyze both the TsnC solubilization yield and its enzymatic activity. Application of 2.4 kbar to the IB suspension in the presence of 9 mM GSH, 1 mM GSSG, 0.75 M guanidine hydrochloride, and 0.5 M arginine with subsequent incubation at 1 bar furnished high refolding yield (81%). The experience gained in this study shall help to establish efficient HHP-based protein refolding processes for other proteins.This work was supported by grants from the State of São Paulo Research Foundation – FAPESP (Process 10/13353-0) and National Council for Scientific and Technological Development – CNPq (Process 479816/2007-7) and fellowship 134597/2010-9 from National Council for Scientific and Technological Development – CNPq

Macrophage Replication Screen Identifies a Novel Francisella Hydroperoxide Resistance Protein Involved in Virulence

Francisella tularensis is a Gram-negative facultative intracellular pathogen and the causative agent of tularemia. Recently, genome-wide screens have identified Francisella genes required for virulence in mice. However, the mechanisms by which most of the corresponding proteins contribute to pathogenesis are still largely unknown. To further elucidate the roles of these virulence determinants in Francisella pathogenesis, we tested whether each gene was required for replication of the model pathogen F. novicida within macrophages, an important virulence trait. Fifty-three of the 224 genes tested were involved in intracellular replication, including many of those within the Francisella pathogenicity island (FPI), validating our results. Interestingly, over one third of the genes identified are annotated as hypothetical, indicating that F. novicida likely utilizes novel virulence factors for intracellular replication. To further characterize these virulence determinants, we selected two hypothetical genes to study in more detail. As predicted by our screen, deletion mutants of FTN_0096 and FTN_1133 were attenuated for replication in macrophages. The mutants displayed differing levels of attenuation in vivo, with the FTN_1133 mutant being the most attenuated. FTN_1133 has sequence similarity to the organic hydroperoxide resistance protein Ohr, an enzyme involved in the bacterial response to oxidative stress. We show that FTN_1133 is required for F. novicida resistance to, and degradation of, organic hydroperoxides as well as resistance to the action of the NADPH oxidase both in macrophages and mice. Furthermore, we demonstrate that F. holarctica LVS, a strain derived from a highly virulent human pathogenic species of Francisella, also requires this protein for organic hydroperoxide resistance as well as replication in macrophages and mice. This study expands our knowledge of Francisella's largely uncharacterized intracellular lifecycle and demonstrates that FTN_1133 is an important novel mediator of oxidative stress resistance