Approaches in biotechnological applications of natural polymers

Natural polymers, such as gums and mucilage, are biocompatible, cheap, easily available and non-toxic materials of native origin. These polymers are increasingly preferred over synthetic materials for industrial applications due to their intrinsic properties, as well as they are considered alternative sources of raw materials since they present characteristics of sustainability, biodegradability and biosafety. As definition, gums and mucilages are polysaccharides or complex carbohydrates consisting of one or more monosaccharides or their derivatives linked in bewildering variety of linkages and structures. Natural gums are considered polysaccharides naturally occurring in varieties of plant seeds and exudates, tree or shrub exudates, seaweed extracts, fungi, bacteria, and animal sources. Water-soluble gums, also known as hydrocolloids, are considered exudates and are pathological products; therefore, they do not form a part of cell wall. On the other hand, mucilages are part of cell and physiological products. It is important to highlight that gums represent the largest amounts of polymer materials derived from plants. Gums have enormously large and broad applications in both food and non-food industries, being commonly used as thickening, binding, emulsifying, suspending, stabilizing agents and matrices for drug release in pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. In the food industry, their gelling properties and the ability to mold edible films and coatings are extensively studied. The use of gums depends on the intrinsic properties that they provide, often at costs below those of synthetic polymers. For upgrading the value of gums, they are being processed into various forms, including the most recent nanomaterials, for various biotechnological applications. Thus, the main natural polymers including galactomannans, cellulose, chitin, agar, carrageenan, alginate, cashew gum, pectin and starch, in addition to the current researches about them are reviewed in this article.. }To the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientfíico e Tecnológico (CNPq) for fellowships (LCBBC and MGCC) and the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nvíel Superior (CAPES) (PBSA). This study was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UID/BIO/04469/2013 unit, the Project RECI/BBB-EBI/0179/2012 (FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-027462) and COMPETE 2020 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006684) (JAT)

QCD and strongly coupled gauge theories : challenges and perspectives

We highlight the progress, current status, and open challenges of QCD-driven physics, in theory and in experiment. We discuss how the strong interaction is intimately connected to a broad sweep of physical problems, in settings ranging from astrophysics and cosmology to strongly coupled, complex systems in particle and condensed-matter physics, as well as to searches for physics beyond the Standard Model. We also discuss how success in describing the strong interaction impacts other fields, and, in turn, how such subjects can impact studies of the strong interaction. In the course of the work we offer a perspective on the many research streams which flow into and out of QCD, as well as a vision for future developments.Peer reviewe

Evaluation of appendicitis risk prediction models in adults with suspected appendicitis

Background Appendicitis is the most common general surgical emergency worldwide, but its diagnosis remains challenging. The aim of this study was to determine whether existing risk prediction models can reliably identify patients presenting to hospital in the UK with acute right iliac fossa (RIF) pain who are at low risk of appendicitis. Methods A systematic search was completed to identify all existing appendicitis risk prediction models. Models were validated using UK data from an international prospective cohort study that captured consecutive patients aged 16–45 years presenting to hospital with acute RIF in March to June 2017. The main outcome was best achievable model specificity (proportion of patients who did not have appendicitis correctly classified as low risk) whilst maintaining a failure rate below 5 per cent (proportion of patients identified as low risk who actually had appendicitis). Results Some 5345 patients across 154 UK hospitals were identified, of which two‐thirds (3613 of 5345, 67·6 per cent) were women. Women were more than twice as likely to undergo surgery with removal of a histologically normal appendix (272 of 964, 28·2 per cent) than men (120 of 993, 12·1 per cent) (relative risk 2·33, 95 per cent c.i. 1·92 to 2·84; P < 0·001). Of 15 validated risk prediction models, the Adult Appendicitis Score performed best (cut‐off score 8 or less, specificity 63·1 per cent, failure rate 3·7 per cent). The Appendicitis Inflammatory Response Score performed best for men (cut‐off score 2 or less, specificity 24·7 per cent, failure rate 2·4 per cent). Conclusion Women in the UK had a disproportionate risk of admission without surgical intervention and had high rates of normal appendicectomy. Risk prediction models to support shared decision‐making by identifying adults in the UK at low risk of appendicitis were identified

Alterações do nível pressórico e fatores de risco em graduandos de enfermagem Alteraciones del nível de la presión y factores de riesgo en profesionales graduandos en enfermería Risk factors and alterations in blood pressure levels in undergraduate nursing students

Objetivos: Identificar possíveis alterações do nível presóricoem graduandos de Enfermagem da Universidade Federal de São Paulo; Identificar fatores de risco para hipertensão arterial sistêmica; Verificar a associação entre os níveis pressóricos e os fatores de risco para hipertensão arterial sistêmica. Métodos: Estudo de corte transversal, desenvolvido entre novembro de 2006 a maio de 2007. A amostra foi composta por 120 graduandos de enfermagem da Universidade Federal de São Paulo. Foi aplicado um questionário específico sobre fatores de risco para hipertensão arterial e aferição da pressão arterial. O Teste de Fischer foi usado para determinar possíveis associações. Resultados: Dos graduandos, 92,5% apresentaram níveis pressóricos normais, 4,2% eram hipertensos e 3,3% com pressão limítrofe. Notou-se o aparecimento de alguns fatores de risco para hipertensão arterial e doença cardiovascular. Conclusão: De acordo com os resultados, deve-se atentar para mudanças de hábito e estilo de vida mais saudável desses futuros enfermeiros.<br>Objetivos: Medir la presión arterial para identificar posibles alteraciones en profesionales graduandos en Enfermería; identificar factores de riesgo para hipertensión arterial; verificar la asociación entre los niveles de presión y los factores de riesgo para hipertensión arterial. Métodos: Estudio de corte transversal, desarrollado entre noviembre de 2006 y mayo de 2007. La muestra fue compuesta por 120 graduandos de enfermería de la Universidad Federal de Sao Paulo. Fue aplicado un cuestionario específico sobre factores de riesgo para hipertensión arterial y para evaluar la presión arterial. La Prueba de Fischer fue usada para determinar posibles asociaciones. Resultados: 92,5% de los graduandos presentaron niveles de presión normal, 4,2% eran hipertensos y 3,3% tenían presión limítrofe. Se notó el aparecimiento de algunos factores de riesgo para hipertensión arterial y enfermedad cardiovascular. Conclusión: De acuerdo con los resultados, se deben cambiar hábitos y estilo de vida de modo que sean más saludables para los futuros enfermeros.<br>Objectives: To identify risk factors and alterations in blood pressure levels in undergraduate nursing students and to examine the associations between the risk factors and blood pressure levels. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted between November 2006 and May 2007. The sample consisted of 120 undergraduate nursing students from the Federal University of São Paulo. A specific questionnaire on risk factors for high blood pressure was used. Blood pressure measures were taken and recorded. Fisher's exact test was used to determine associations between risk factors and high blood pressure. Results: The majority of participants (92.5%) had normal blood pressure levels. A few students had high (4.2%) or borderline (3.3%) blood pressure levels. Students had some of the risk factors for high blood pressure and cardiovascular diseases. Conclusion: There is a need to emphasize lifestyle changes among those future nurses