O papel do sistema financeiro no crescimento económico da União Europeia: Estudo ênfase em indicadores financeiros

Este trabalho avalia o impacto do desenvolvimento financeiro no crescimento económico, através da análise de dados de painel. A análise abrange 20 países da União Europeia, na sua totalidade e por regiões, tais como, Europa Ocidental, Europa do Norte, Europa Oriental e da Europa Meridional, para o período compreendido entre o ano 2000 e 2015. Pretende-se concluir se existe uma relação positiva e significativa entre o desenvolvimento financeiro e o crescimento económico, nomeadamente, perceber se quanto maior for o desenvolvimento financeiro, maior será o crescimento económico. Perceber se, com um aumento dos indicadores financeiros selecionados, o PIB per capita aumenta ou não. Para medir o desenvolvimento do sector financeiro usou-se o crédito privado em percentagem do PIB (%), o volume de prémio de seguro de vida em percentagem do PIB (%) e os passivos líquidos em percentagem do PIB (%) ou agregado M3. Os resultados obtidos demonstram que as variáveis financeiras crédito privado e passivos líquidos, ambas em percentagem do PIB, contribuem positivamente e significativamente para o crescimento económico. Já a variável volume de prémio de seguro de vida em percentagem do PIB, mostrou-se não ser relevante para este estudo.This paper assesses the impact of financial development on economic growth through panel data analysis. The analysis covers 20 countries of the European Union as a whole and by regions such as Western Europe, Northern Europe, Eastern Europe and Southern Europe for the period 2000 to 2015. It is intended to conclude whether there is a positive and significant relationship between financial development and economic growth, namely to understand if the greater the financial development, the greater the economic growth. Realize whether or not, with an increase in selected financial indicators, GDP per capita increases. To measure the development of the financial sector, private credit by deposit money banks to GDP (%), life insurance premium volume to GDP (%) and net liabilities to GDP (%) or aggregate M3. The results show that the financial variables private credit by deposit money banks to GDP (%) and net liabilities or aggregate M3 to GDP (%), contribute positively and significantly to economic growth. Already variable of life insurance premium volume to GDP proved to be not relevant for this study

Ensino-aprendizagem no 1º ciclo do ensino básico em contextos socioeducativos diferenciados

O presente relatório final de estágio é composto por quatro partes distintas, a primeira é referente à reflexão crítica do estágio, a segunda ao enquadramento teórico e conceptual, a terceira parte diz respeito ao enquadramento teórico e metodológico e a quarta e última faz alusão à análise e interpretação de dados. Desta forma a primeira parte é referente a uma apreciação global do estágio no 1.º Ciclo do Ensino Básico (1.º CEB) e na Educação Pré-escolar (EPE), onde são apresentadas as caraterizações gerais da turma do 1.º CEB e do grupo da EPE. É ainda apresentado, um breve comentário acerca do papel e da importância dos professores supervisores, orientadores cooperantes e também a importância da Unidade Curricular (UC) de Prática de Ensino Supervisionada II (PES II) e PESIII para o meu desenvolvimento e aprendizagem. A segunda parte, é composta por uma vertente mais investigativa acerca do ensino-aprendizagem do 1.º CEB em contextos socioeducativos diferenciados. Em que os objetivos traçados para o estudo são: “observar diferentes contextos escolares, comparando a incidência do contexto rural e urbano no desenvolvimento do trabalho escolar dos alunos que perfura a perspetiva dos professores; compreender como os professores perspetivam a influência dos contextos socioculturais (urbano e o rural) e como esses condicionam o trabalho escolar dos alunos e discutir a atual tendência urbanocêntrica da educação escolar em detrimento da educação de matriz rural”. Seguidamente, a terceira parte diz respeito ao plano de investigação nomeadamente o estudo que pretendemos efetuar, os procedimentos, as técnicas auxiliares e a população amostra do estudo. No que diz respeito à investigação, esta é quantitativa e à técnica utilizada foi inquérito por questionário. Relativamente à quarta e última parte, esta faz referência à análise e interpretação dos resultados obtidos através do inquérito por questionário respondido pelos docentes. No que concerne aos dados recolhidos, é possível verificar que 50% dos respondentes inseridos em contexto urbano e 45% dos respondentes em contexto rural referem que o contexto em que os alunos se encontram pode ter um efeito dificultador ou facilitador do ensino-aprendizagem e, por sua vez, 2,5% dos respondentes referiram que o contexto em que os alunos se encontram não tem um efeito dificultador do processo de ensino-aprendizagem. Congruentemente, 32,5% dos respondentes em contexto urbano e 22,5% em contexto rural referiram que é em contexto urbano onde os alunos desenvolvem mais aprendizagens e 30% dos respondentes situados em contexto urbano e 32,5% em contexto rural enunciaram o fator familiar aquele que mais intervém significativamente na aprendizagem dos alunos em sala de aula. De acordo com os resultados obtidos é possível concluir que os contextos socioculturais de matriz rural suscitam interferências mais negativas no ensino e nas aprendizagens dos alunos, comparativamente com o nível de interferência dos contextos socioculturais de tipologia urbana; o contexto em que os alunos se encontram inseridos pode ser um inibidor ou um facilitador do processo de ensino-aprendizagem; é no contexto urbano que os alunos possuem um maior índice cultural, possuem experiências e vivências mais “ajustadas” com o currículo escolar e é nele que os alunos desenvolvem mais aprendizagens; é em contexto rural que os alunos estão menos familiarizados com o saber escolar; o fator que mais interfere nas práticas de ensino e aprendizagem em sala de aula é o meio familiar e ainda os alunos inseridos em contexto urbano são mais interessados na aprendizagem dos conteúdos e mais motivados para aprenderThis training final report is composed of three distinct parts, the first referring to the training critical reflexion, the second to the theoretical and conceptual framing, the third part concerns the theoretical and methodological framing and the fourth and last part alludes to the data analysis and interpretation. Thus, the first part is referent to the training global appreciation on the 1st Cycle of the Basic Education (1st CBE) and Pre-School Education (PSE), where are presented the general characterizations of the 1st CBE class and of the PSE group. It is also presented a brief comment about the role and importance of the supervisor teachers, cooperating mentors and also the importance of the Curricular Unit (CU) of the Supervised Teaching Practice II (STP II) and STP III for my development and learning. The second part is composed by a more investigative side about the teaching-learning of the 1st CBE in differentiated social educational contexts, where the objectives drawn for the study are: “observe different school contexts, comparing the incidence of the rural and urban context in the development of the school work of the students that drills the teachers perspective; understand how the teachers perspective the influence of the social and cultural contexts (urban and rural) and how these condition the school work of the students and discuss the current urban centric trend of the school education in detriment of the rural matrix education”. Subsequently, the third part concerns the investigation plan, namely the study that we intend to perform, the procedures, the auxiliary techniques and the sample population of the study. In what concerns the investigation, this is quantitative and the technique use was the inquiry by questionnaire. Regarding the fourth and last part, this refers the analysis and interpretation of the results obtained through the inquiry by questionnaire answered by the teachers. In what concerns the data gathered, it is possible to verify that 50% of the respondents inserted in urban context and 45% of the respondents in rural context refer that the context where the students are in may have a difficult or facilitator effect of the teaching-learning and, on the other hand, 2,5% of the respondents referred that the context where the students are in doesn’t have a difficult or facilitator effect of the teaching-learning process. Congruently, 32,5% of the respondents in urban context and 22,5% in rural context referred that it is in urban context where the students develop more learning and 30% of the respondents placed in urban context and 32,5% in rural context enunciated that the family factor is the one that intervenes significantly in the students’ learning in the class room. According the results achieved it is possible to conclude that the social and cultural contexts of rural matrix cause more negative interferences on the teaching and learning of the students, comparatively with the interference level of the social cultural context of urban typology; the context where the students are in can be inhibitor or a facilitator of the teaching-learning process; it is in the urban context that the students possess a higher cultural index, possess experiences more “adjusted” with the school curriculum and it is on it that the students develop more learnings; it is in rural context that the students are less familiarized with the school knowledge; the factor that most intervene in the teaching and learning practices in the class room is the familiar environment and also, the students inserted in urban context are more interested in the contents learning and more motivated to learn

Dietary Methionine Improves the European Seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax) Immune Status, Inflammatory Response, and Disease Resistance

Methionine presents a pivotal role in the regulation of many cellular events with crucial impact on the immune system, such as in processes involved in the control of inflammation and polyamines synthesis. Accordingly, the present study aimed to assess the modulatory effects of dietary methionine on the European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax) immune status, inflammatory response and disease resistance to Photobacterium damselae subsp. piscicida (Phdp). For this purpose, fish were randomly distributed in three independent groups (three replicates per group) and each was fed the corresponding diet: a control diet (CTRL) formulated to meet the established amino acid requirements for the species; a diet supplemented with methionine at 0.5% of feed weight relative to the CTRL diet (8.2% of methionine concentration above CTRL); and one supplemented with methionine at 1% of feed weight to the CTRL diet (11.8% of methionine concentration above CTRL). To evaluate the immune status of fish fed with each of the diets before being submitted to bacterial infection fish were sampled from each group at 2 and 4 weeks after the beginning of feeding. Non-sampled fish were injected intraperitoneally with Phdp (5 × 103 cfu/fish) at 4 weeks after initiation of feeding and the inflammatory response (at 4, 24, and 48 h post-infection) and survival (lasting 21 days post-infection) evaluated. Fish hematological profile, peripheral cell dynamics, plasma humoral immune parameters, leucocyte migration to the inflammatory focus and head-kidney gene expression were evaluated. Results show that methionine dietary supplementation improves seabass cellular immune status without evidence of activation of pro-inflammatory mechanisms. Additionally, the observed enhanced immune status provided by methionine supplementation translated into an improved immune response to infection, as higher cellular differentiation/proliferation and recruitment to the inflammatory focus, improved plasma humoral immune parameters and modulation of key immune-related genes was observed. Lastly, after a bacterial challenge, higher survival was observed in fish fed supplemented diets, ultimately corroborating the positive effect of methionine administration for 4 weeks in the cellular immune status

Functional Feeds to Tackle Meagre (Argyrosomus regius) Stress: Physiological Responses under Acute Stressful Handling Conditions

19 Pág. Centro de Investigación en Sanidad Animal (CISA)Marine algae are recognised sources of bioactive compounds that have attracted great interest as nutritional supplements for aquaculture fish. Intensive rearing conditions often expose fish to husbandry-related stressors, rendering fish more susceptible to disease and reducing production yields. The present work evaluated the potential of two marine algae extracts (Fucus vesiculosus and Nannochloropsis gaditana) as nutritional supplements to mitigate stress effects in meagre (Argyrosomus regius) exposed to an acute handling stress (AS). A plant-based diet was used as a control, and three other diets were prepared, which were similar to the control diet but supplemented with 1% of each algal extract or a combination of the two extracts (0.5% each). The effects of supplemented diets on stress biomarkers, antioxidant enzyme activities, and immune response were analysed in fish exposed to AS after 4 weeks of feeding. Supplemented diets did not affect growth performance but the inclusion of F. vesiculosus promoted higher feed efficiency, as compared to the control group. Dietary algal extracts supplementation reduced plasma glucose levels, increased white blood cell counts, and reduced the expression of pro-inflammatory genes when compared with the control. N. gaditana supplementation led to a reduction in hepatic antioxidant enzyme activity and glutathione levels, while F. vesiculosus supplementation increased muscle glutathione reductase activity and reduced lipid peroxidation. These findings support the potential of algal extracts as nutraceuticals in aquafeeds to enhance the ability of fish to cope with husbandry-related stressful conditions and ultimately improve fish health and welfare.This research was funded by U. Porto and SOJA DE PORTUGAL, grant number PP-IJUP2019-SOJA DE PORTUGAL-14 This research was also partially supported by the FCT, grant numbers POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007621 and PTDC/CVT-WEL/5207/2014.Peer reviewe

Efeito da rega e fertilização no híbrido Eucalyptus globulus x Eucalyptus cypellocarpa

Mestrado em Engenharia Florestal e dos Recursos Naturais / Instituto Superior de Agronomia. Universidade de LisboaA Eucalyptus globulus Labill. é uma das espécies que ocupa maior área florestal em Portugal, ocupando assim um lugar de destaque no quadro económico português. No entanto, tendo em consideração o clima mediterrânico que caracteriza o território nacional, a seca severa no verão afeta negativamente o seu crescimento e produtividade. Neste sentido, estudar as características morfológicas e fisiológicas em resposta ao stress hídrico do material vegetal melhorado torna-se essencial para compreender como as plantas reagem à seca. O objetivo deste trabalho consistiu em estudar o efeito da disponibilidade de água e nutrientes na estrutura e funcionamento de árvores do híbrido Eucalyptus globulus x Eucalyptus cypellocarpa (YG15), em árvores com nove meses de idade a crescer em condições de fertirrega e controlo (s/fertirrigação). A maior disponibilidade de água e nutrientes, permitiu um melhor estado hídrico bem como um maior crescimento do híbrido. As diferenças de crescimento encontradas devem-se ao fecho dos estomas, que levou à restrição da entrada de CO₂ e consequentemente ao declínio da concentração dos hidratos de carbono não estruturais. Observou-se um decréscimo acentuado do potencial de madrugada e do meio-dia nas árvores fertirrigadas entre a primavera e o verão, sugerindo que a água disponível nos meses de julho e agosto foi deficitária. Além disso, o decréscimo da área foliar específica (SLA) observado indica uma adaptação ao stress hídrico. No entanto, os valores de potencial hídrico não se refletiram no conteúdo relativo em água (RWC) que se manteve constante, indicando que as árvores foram eficientes na gestão e uso da água. Para a eficiência fotoquímica do fotossistema II, não encontramos diferenças entre tratamentos indicando que o sistema fotossintético não foi afetado pelo stress hídrico sazonal. Em suma, este híbrido apresentou alguma tolerância à privação de água através da diminuição da SLA e a manutenção de valores elevados de RWCN/

M2 polarizes to the B-T_H contact zone and increases B cell MTOC polarization.

<p>A20 B cells transiently expressing M2-eGFP, M2Y-eGFP or eGFP (green) were pulsed (three upper panels), or not (bottom panel), overnight with 10μM of OVA peptide (OVAp) and incubated with OVAp-specific CD4⁺ T cells for 15 minutes. Cells were fixed and stained for pTyr (blue), and for MTOC with an anti-α-tubulin antibody (red). (A) Representative images of M2 and B cell MTOC polarization to the contact zone. (B) Quantification of MTOC distance. Distance of the B cell MTOC to the contact zone was measured from a total of 100 conjugates from three independent experiments. The mean distance is represented as a red line. Statistical significance between groups was analyzed by one way ANOVA, with p<0.0001.</p

IFN-γ production in T_H cells conjugated with M2-expressing B cells requires specific peptide presentation.

<p>A20 B cells stably expressing M2 or M2Y were pulsed overnight, or not, with different concentrations of OVA peptide (OVAp) and incubated with OVAp-specific CD4⁺ T cells. (A) Extracellular IFN-γ after 20h of incubation. After incubation the supernatant was recovered and analyzed by sandwich ELISA to determine IFN-γ concentration. Supernatants of three independent experiments were tested in duplicate. (B) Upper panel: percentage of T cells producing IFN-γ after 5h of conjugation in the presence of brefeldin A (BFA). Cells were fixed and stained for CD4 with anti-CD4-APC, and for IFN-γ with anti-IFN-γ-PE, and analyzed on a FACS Calibur. Lower panel: IFN-γ mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) of responding T cells. Average of three independent experiments is shown. Statistical significance of the difference between groups was evaluated by a one-tailed unpaired Student’s t test. (C) Representative FACS plots of intracellular IFN-γ production. (D) Representative confocal images of IFN-γ polarization to the contact zone. Prior to incubation B and T cells were labelled with CMFDA (green) and CMAC (blue) live dyes, respectively. Cells were incubated for 2.5h, fixed and stained for IFN-γ (red), and for pTyr (yellow). Images are from one representative experiment out of three and were obtained using a Zeiss LSM 510 META microscope. (E) Quantification of conjugates with IFN-γ polarization per image. Conjugates were evaluated by confocal microscopy based on B-T_H cell contact, and IFN-γ polarization (red). 45 to 55 images were acquired per sample from three independent experiments. Only images with a minimum of three T cells were considered for analysis. Statistical significance of the difference between groups was evaluated by a Mann-Whitney U test.</p

M2 expression leads to the upregulation of adhesion and co-stimulatory molecules in B cells.

<p>(A) Fold increase of the mean fluorescence intensities (MFI) of several surface molecules, relative to untransduced A20 B cells. A20 B cells (black bars) and A20 B cells stably expressing M2 (open bars) or M2Y (grey bars) were stained with fluorescently labelled antibodies and the surface expression of the indicated molecules was analyzed on a LSR Fortessa flow cytometer. Bars represent the mean of three independent experiments. Error bars represent standard error of the mean. Statistical significance was evaluated using a one-tailed Students t-test. (B) Representative FACS histogram plots for the indicated surface molecules.</p