O marketing de experiências nos hotéis boutique: estudo de caso do Boutique Chiado Suites

A qualidade dos serviços prestados nas empresas é um fator cada vez mais reconhecido nos dias de hoje. Trata-se de uma componente crítica para distinguir uma empresa das suas concorrentes, criando uma vantagem competitiva sustentável. Deste modo, através da presente dissertação, é realizado um estudo empírico a fim de compreender como colocar em prática o marketing de experiências, em particular, nos hotéis boutique, dando resposta à questão: De que forma o marketing de experiências se pode tornar uma mais valia uma unidade hoteleira? Não obstante, atualmente os clientes não procuram apenas uma estadia num hotel, mas sim uma experiência de lazer única e memorável. No entanto, conseguir dar resposta aos requisitos dos clientes e aos altos níveis de qualidade e serviço, trata-se de um dos maiores desafios no setor hoteleiro. A partir da observação do hotel Boutique Chiado Suites e de uma investigação de marketing aprofundada, são depreendidas convergências teóricas visando compreender a forma como o marketing de experiências pode melhorar as perceções de satisfação e qualidade do serviço prestado nos hotéis. As conclusões gerais do presente estudo destacam a importância do marketing de experiências nas organizações, em particular na hotelaria e turismo, sobretudo numa fase de pandemia, provocada pelo aparecimento do vírus Covid-19, que afetou fortemente este setor. Adicionalmente, os resultados da pesquisa evidenciam sugestões de marketing de experiências e, de que forma o colocar em prática, em particular no modelo de hotéis boutique.The quality of services provided in companies are increasingly recognized factor nowadays. This is a critical factor in distinguishing a company from its competitors, creating a sustainable competitive advantage. This dissertation is an empirical study carried out, in order to understand how to lay experience marketing into practice, particularly in boutique hotels, answering the questions: How can experience marketing become an asset in a hotel? However, today customers are not only looking for a hotel to stay, but they are looking for a unique and memorable leisure experience. However, being able to meet customer requirements and high levels of quality and service is one of the biggest challenges in the hotel sector. From the observation of the Boutique Chiado Suites hotel and an in-depth marketing investigation. This thesis tries to understand how the marketing of experiences could improve perceptions of service quality and satisfaction in hotels. The general conclusions of the present study highlight the importance of marketing experiences in organizations, particularly in hotels and tourism. Also, this type of marketing could be very important to survive a pandemic phase, caused by corona virus, which strongly affected this sector. Additionally, suggestions for marketing experiences are mentioned, and how to put them into practice, particularly in the boutique hotel model

Imprinting genómico na espermatogénese anormal devido a paragem meiótica

Mestrado em Biologia Molecular e CelularO imprinting genómico é um mecanismo epigenético, no qual os alelos parentais são expressos diferencialmente, resultando em expressão monoalélica dos genes imprinted. Uma das marcas de imprinting é a metilação do DNA em dinucleótidos CpG, que permite a transcrição ou repressão dos genes. Na linha germinal masculina, as marcas de imprinting herdadas são apagadas e são restabelecidas as marcas paternas. A infertilidade masculina é um problema que afecta muitos casais, podendo ter várias causas. A azoospermia secretora devido a paragem de maturação meiótica é caracterizada pela presença de células germinativas que não completam o desenvolvimento espermatogénico, parando no estadio de espermatócito primário. A paragem de maturação (PM) pode ser completa, sem produção de espermatozóides (PM pura), ou incompleta, com focos de espermatozóides visíveis em bíopsias testiculares (PM não pura). Com este trabalho pretendeu-se estudar, por tratamento com bissulfito de sódio, clonagem molecular e sequenciação de DNA, os perfis de metilação dos genes imprinted H19 e MEST, em pacientes com azoospermia secretora devido a PM meiótica, e comparar estes perfis em espermatócitos primários de PMs puras e não puras. Os resultados obtidos para os espermatócitos primários de PMs puras e PMs não puras sugerem que não existem diferenças entre os dois grupos em termos de metilação dos genes imprinted. No entanto, estes resultados revelam que as células espermatogénicas dos pacientes de ambos os grupos apresentam erros de imprinting tais como alguma desmetilação no gene H19, incluindo o local de ligação-6 da proteína CTCF, e alguma metilação do gene MEST, suportando uma associação entre espermatogénese anormal e ocorrência de erros de imprinting. ABSTRACT: Genomic imprinting is an epigenetic mechanism that leads to the differential expression of parental alleles, resulting in mono-allelic expression of imprinted genes. DNA methylation at CpG dinucleotides is an imprinting mark that allows the transcription or repression of the genes. In the male germ line the heritable imprinting marks are erased and re-established the paternal marks. Male infertility is a problem affecting many couples and may have different causes. Non obstructive azoospermia with meiotic maturation arrest is characterized by the presence of germ cells that do not complete the spermatogenic development, stopping at primary spermatocyte stage. The maturation arrest (MA) may be complete, with no spermatozoa produced (pure MA), or incomplete, with rare spermatozoa in the testis (non pure MA). We studied the methylation status of the imprinted genes H19 and MEST, by sodium bisulphite treatment, molecular cloning and DNA sequencing, in patients with meiotic MA. We also compared the methylation profiles obtained for primary spermatocytes of pure MA with those obtained for non pure MA. The results obtained for primary spermatocytes of pure MA and non pure MA suggests that these groups are not different in terms of methylation of the imprinted genes. However, these results reveal that the spermatogenic cells of the patients of both groups presents imprinting errors such as some demethylation for H19, including the CTCF-binding site 6, and some methylation for MEST, supporting the association between abnormal spermatogenesis and the occurrence of imprinting errors

Autonomia do menor sujeito às responsabilidades parentais

Ao longo do tempo, a conceção que fazemos dos menores tem se vindo a modificar, passando estes de seres irracionais que devem obediência aos seus pais para verdadeiros sujeitos de direitos que se vão gradualmente desenvolvendo – física e intelectualmente – e adquirindo novas capacidades. Como tal, compete ao Direito adaptar-se às mudanças e garantir aos menores capacidade para a prática de determinados atos para os quais estes estarão habilitados, de acordo com a sua maturidade e discernimento, promovendo, deste modo, uma autonomia progressiva que proteja direitos como a autodeterminação, o livre desenvolvimento da personalidade e a livre disposição corporal dos menores. Naturalmente que esse reconhecimento de autonomia e atribuição de capacidade aos menores não pode deixar de considerar outros agentes importantes: os pais destes. Como sabemos, os menores são considerados juridicamente incapazes de exercer os seus direitos, obrigando o Código Civil Português ao suprimento dessa incapacidade através da figura da representação legal (aplicada aos pais). Aos progenitores compete, assim, velar pela segurança, educação, vida e saúde dos menores, e protegê-los e representá-los no exercício de direitos para os quais estes não possuem a devida capacidade. Face a isto, apresenta-se também relevante compreender qual o papel dos progenitores nas situações em que o menor já apresenta suficiente discernimento e capacidade para exercer alguns direitos, e como se compatibilizam estas figuras legais. Um dos atos em que se discute essa (in)capacidade e se contrapõe a mesma à autonomia, bastante referido na doutrina e que nos propomos a desenvolver a título exemplificativo, diz respeito ao consentimento informado e à inerente (in)capacidade dos menores para consentir em intervenções ou tratamentos médico-cirúrgicos (também designados simplesmente por “atos médicos”). A este acresce ainda o direito à recusa informada de atos médicos, e o dever de confidencialidade que envolve todo o instituto.Over time, the notion we had over minors has been modified, with them moving from irrational beings who must obey their parents, to gradually developed – physically and intellectually – lawful citizens. As such, the Law needs to adapt to the new circumstances, in a way that can ensure minors’ capacity to perform certain legal acts for which they’re qualified, according to their maturity and judgment. Like so, promoting a progressive autonomy that upholds the rights to self-determination, free development of personality and the right over one’s own body. Naturally, such recognition of autonomy and capacity cannot disregard other important agents, like their parents. As we know, minors are considered to be legally unable of exercising their rights, as underage people, compelling the Portuguese Civil Code to suppress such incapability by resorting to the figure of legal representation (applied to the parents). Therefore, the parents should ensure the safety, education, life and wellbeing, as well as protect and represent their minor children in the exercise of their rights, since the latter are not viewed as capable by the law. In this regard, it’s also relevant to understand the parents’ role in situations where the minors show enough discernment and capability to exercise their rights, and to check how are these figures compatible with the Law. One of the legal acts that holds special importance in this discussion and we’re going to address for instance, involving both minors’ capacity and autonomy matters, regards to informed consent and the inherent incapacity of minors to consent to medical treatment, in addition to the right of informed medical refusal and the confidentially duty applied to the doctors

Síntese de tetrahidroquinolinas a partir da D-eritrose

Dissertação de mestrado em Química MedicinalEste trabalho teve como objetivo a síntese de tetrahidroquinolinas por reação da imina, resultante da combinação do aldeído da D-eritrose 54 com a p-metoxianilina, com vários 1,3-dienos. Eram dois os objetivos principais: (1) investigar se o grupo hidroxilo livre presente na componente D-eritrosilo seria capaz de induzir estéreoseletividade em cicloadições [4π+2π]; (2) efetuar a introdução de uma cadeia poliol na posição 2 da THQ. Foram postos a reagir dienófilos ricos em eletrões (dienófilos dadores), 1,3- butadienos substituídos, tais como, 2,3-dimetil-1,3-butadieno, (E)-5-bromo/hidroxilpenta- 1,3-dieno, (E)-buta-1,3-dien-1-ol, (buta-1,3-dien-2-iloxi)trimetilsilano e ainda o ciclopentadieno de modo a avaliar a seletividade da reação e perceber se o dienófilo reagiria através de uma reação Diels-Alder normal ou Diels-Alder inversa. Na maioria dos casos, foi necessária a presença de um ácido de Lewis para melhorar a reatividade. Nos casos do éter etilvinílico e do viniloxitrimetilsilano, foram obtidas misturas complexas sob condições ácidas. No entanto, foram obtidos os produtos esperados na ausência de catalisador. A maioria dos dienófilos mencionados acima originou uma única tetrahidroquinolina, resultante da reação de cicloadição inversa [4π+2π], com rendimentos variados (23-97%). No caso particular do (buta-1,3-dien-2- iloxi)trimetilsilano formou-se apenas o produto da reação de Diels-Alder normal (dieno mais ativado), com um rendimento de 53%, e no caso do 2,3-dimetil-1,3-butadieno formaram-se os dois produtos da cicloadição, numa proporção de 3:1, na qual o produto maioritário foi o resultante da reação de Diels-Alder normal.This work aimed the synthesis of tetrahydroquinolines by reaction of the imine resulting from combination of D-erythrose aldehyde 54 and p-methoxyaniline obtained in situ with various 1,3-dienes. This strategy had two main objectives: (1) to investigate whether the free hydroxyl group present in erythrosyl moiety would be able to induce stereoselectivity in [4π+2π] cycloadditions; (2) to introduce a polyol chain at position 2 of THQ compounds. Electron rich dienophiles (electron-donor dienophiles), substituted 1,3- butadienes, such as 2,3-dimethyl-1,3-butadiene, (E)-5-bromo/hydroxyl-penta-1,3- diene, (E)-buta-1,3-dien-1-ol, (buta-1,3-dien-2-yloxy)trimethylsilane and cyclopentadiene were reacted to evaluate the selectivity of the reaction and to find if the dienophile reacts through normal or reverse electron-demand cycloaddition. In most cases, the presence of a Lewis acid was required to improve the reactivity. In the case of ethyl vinyl ether and vinyloxytrimethylsilane, complex mixtures were obtained under acidic conditions. It was, however, possible to obtain the expected product in the absence of catalyst. Most of dienophiles mentioned above gave a single tetrahydroquinoline product resulting from reverse electron-demand [4π+2π] cycloaddition, obtained in variable yields: 23-97%. In the particular case of (buta-1,3-dien-2-yloxy)trimethylsilane only the product of the normal Diels-Alder reaction was obtained, in 53% yield; and in case of 2,3-dimethyl-1,3-butadiene two products were formed, in a 3:1 ratio, in which the major compound resulted from normal Diels-Alder reaction

Paralytic shellfish toxins and ocean warming: bioaccumulation and ecotoxicological responses in jujvenile Gilthead Seabream (Sparus aurata)

Warmer seawater temperatures are expected to increase harmful algal blooms (HABs) occurrence, intensity, and distribution. Yet, the potential interactions between abiotic stressors and HABs are still poorly understood from ecological and seafood safety perspectives. The present study aimed to investigate, for the first time, the bioaccumulation/depuration mechanisms and ecotoxicological responses of juvenile gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata) exposed to paralytic shellfish toxins (PST) under different temperatures (18, 21, 24 °C). PST were detected in fish at the peak of the exposure period (day five, 0.22 µg g-1 N-sulfocarbamoylGonyautoxin-1-2 (C1 and C2), 0.08 µg g-1 Decarbamoylsaxitoxin (dcSTX) and 0.18 µg g-1 Gonyautoxin-5 (B1)), being rapidly eliminated (within the first 24 h of depuration), regardless of exposure temperature. Increased temperatures led to significantly higher PST contamination (275 µg STX eq. kg-1). During the trial, fish antioxidant enzyme activities (superoxide dismutase, SOD; catalase, CAT; glutathione S-transferase, GST) in both muscle and viscera were affected by temperature, whereas a significant induction of heat shock proteins (HSP70), Ubiquitin (Ub) activity (viscera), and lipid peroxidation (LPO; muscle) was observed under the combination of warming and PST exposure. The differential bioaccumulation and biomarker responses observed highlight the need to further understand the interactive effects between PST and abiotic stressors, to better estimate climate change impacts on HABs events, and to develop mitigation strategies to overcome the potential risks associated with seafood consumption.Agência financiadora European Union (EU) 678193 Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) IF/00253/2014 CEECIND/01739/2017 UID/Multi/04326/2019info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Mesenteric Panniculitis in Sjögren’s Syndrome: A New Systemic Manifestation to Consider?

The association between mesenteric panniculitis and Sjögren's syndrome, although rare, is starting to be recognized. Usually, mesenteric panniculitis is symptomatic, presenting with either general or gastrointestinal symptoms. Sjögren's syndrome is an autoimmune disease that typically affects secretory glands, but may have serious systemic involvement. We report the case of a 77-year-old patient in whom accidental discovery of asymptomatic mesenteric panniculitis on computed tomography led to the diagnosis of Sjögren's syndrome with several systemic manifestations

coronary angiography as a diagnostic method for all? - a retrospective study

INTRODUCTION: Type 1 diabetes mellitus is associated with an increased risk of coronary artery disease, which is frequently asymptomatic. This risk increases significantly in those with nephropathy. In selected patients, simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplantation is the renal and pancreatic replacement therapy of choice, as it increases longevity and stabilizes diabetic complications. Despite essential, universal screening protocols are still controversial for coronary artery disease in this population. METHODS: We retrospectively analysed 99 simultaneous pancreas-kidney recipients from our centre from 2011 to 2018 and selected 77 patients who underwent coronary angiography during the pre-transplant evaluation. Our aim was to identify potential risk factors associated with significant lesions on coronary angiography. RESULTS: Almost half of our cohort of 77 candidates submitted to coronary angiography had coronary artery disease. Of these, nearly 30% underwent revascularization, although only one of them reported symptoms of myocardial ischemia. In a univariate analysis, the presence of smoking habits was the only risk factor for coronary artery disease. We also found that 20 or more years of type 1 diabetes mellitus was significantly associated with the presence of coronaropathy. DISCUSSION: Selection of diabetic candidates with acceptable cardiac risk before simultaneous pancreas-kidney transplantation is imperative. Given the impact of a correct diagnosis and a low procedural risk, we defend the routine use of coronary angiography as the initial screening method for coronary artery disease in this population. Particularly care must be taken in evaluating asymptomatic patients with long-term type 1 diabetes mellitus and smokers.publishersversionepub_ahead_of_prin

Asymptomatic chronic red eye: a surgical technique case report

© 2023 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of IJS Publishing Group Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)Introduction and importance: Ocular Surface Squamous-cell Neoplasia (OSSN) is an infrequent diagnosis whose clinical suspicion assumes great importance and should not be overlooked. The following case-report aims to describe the diagnosis and treatment of a patient with OSSN whose complaints were mild in comparison to the severity of the disease. The chosen surgical technique was paramount for a disease-free outcome while minimizing the scarring effects of surgical removal. Case presentation: Patient presented mild discomfort right eye and painless persistent hyperaemia. Slit-lamp observation showed a clear diagnosis and lesion's extent evaluated through multimodal imaging. After surgical excision the patient underwent topical ocular treatment with mitomycin-C for a higher margin of safety even before the pathology results were available. Discussion: Ancillary exam technology improvement has allowed a higher margin of safety while determining the extent of OSSN lesions. In the absence of clear diagnostic criteria and guidelines, clinical reasoning and OSSN awareness are critical for timely diagnosis and treatment, as several treatment options are available, allowing an increasing number of patients to be treated non-invasively. In this case-report, we highlight the importance of early-recognition and the reasoning for choosing a combined treatment option with a higher margin of safety. Conclusion: Early recognition and prompt treatment of OSSN lesions is of paramount importance to avoid ocular invasiveness and potentially preclude both ocular and systemic complication. The choice of a combined surgical and medical approach may provide a higher margin of safety for suitable cases. This patient is currently disease-free at 6-month follow-up.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Transcriptomic and chemogenomic analyses unveil the essential role of Com2-regulon in response and tolerance of Saccharomyces cerevisiae to stress induced by sulfur dioxide

During vinification Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells are frequently exposed to high concentrations of sulfur dioxide (SO2) that is used to avoid overgrowth of unwanted bacteria or fungi present in the must. Up to now the characterization of the molecular mechanisms by which S. cerevisiae responds and tolerates SO2 was focused on the role of the sulfite efflux pump Ssu1 and investigation on the involvement of other players has been scarce, especially at a genome-wide level. In this work, we uncovered the essential role of the poorly characterized transcription factor Com2 in tolerance and response of S. cerevisiae to stress induced by SO2 at the enologically relevant pH of 3.5. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that Com2 controls, directly or indirectly, the expression of more than 80% of the genes activated by SO2, a percentage much higher than the one that could be attributed to any other stress-responsive transcription factor. Large-scale phenotyping of the yeast haploid mutant collection led to the identification of 50 Com2-targets contributing to the protection against SO2 including all the genes that compose the sulfate reduction pathway (MET3, MET14, MET16, MET5, MET10) and the majority of the genes required for biosynthesis of lysine (LYS2, LYS21, LYS20, LYS14, LYS4, LYS5, LYS1 and LYS9) or arginine (ARG5,6, ARG4, ARG2, ARG3, ARG7, ARG8, ORT1 and CPA1). Other uncovered determinants of resistance to SO2 (not under the control of Com2) included genes required for function and assembly of the vacuolar proton pump and enzymes of the antioxidant defense, consistent with the observed cytosolic and mitochondrial accumulation of reactive oxygen species in SO2-stressed yeast cells.This work was funded by INNOVINE&WINE, Norte-01-0145-FEDER-000038, co-financed by the European Region-al Development Fund (ERDF) through Norte 2020 and by ERFD through POCI-COMPETE 2020. Support received by FCT-Portuguese Foundationfor Science and Technology(PTDC/EXPL/AGR-TEC/1823/2013 and PTDC/AGR-TEC/3315/2014) and by INTERACT project –“Integrated Research in Environment, Agro-Chain and Technology”, no. NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000017, in its line of research enti-tled VitalityWine. Supportreceived by Biosystems and In-tegrative Sciences Institute (BioISI; FCT/UID/Multi/04046/2018) and iBB-Institute for Bioengi-neering and Biosciences (UID/BIO/04565/2019) by FCT and from Programa Operacional Regional de Lisboa 2020 (pro-ject no. 007317 and PTDC/AGR-TEC/3315/2014_LISBOA-01-0145-FEDER-016834) is also acknowledged.The authors thank Professor Isabel Sá-Correia for the help and guidance in conducting the chemogenomic analysi