Análise ergonómica do trabalho realizado por operadores florestais

As lesões músculo-esqueléticas são patologias que afetam cada vez mais pessoas, estas podem ser causadas ou agravadas pelo trabalho. No setor florestal não existem muitos estudos que contemplem as várias tarefas que os operadores florestais realizam, por isso ser importante este estudo. Este estudo teve como objetivo avaliar o risco de desenvolvimento de lesões músculo-esqueléticas associado às tarefas realizadas pelos operadores florestais, para isto a recolha de dados foi feita através de observações livres e de questionários aos operadores. Para realizar a avaliação de riscos utilizou-se um método de matrizes desenvolvido pela Direção geral das relações laborais da Catalunha. Para testar a existência de associação entre as variáveis (sociodemográficas e de trabalho) e a presença de dor nas várias regiões corporais, recorreu-se ao teste de independência do Qui-Quadrado e ao Cramer’s V. As regiões com mais queixas foram o punho direito (53%) e a zona lombar (42%), sendo as queixas maioritariamente classificadas com uma intensidade moderada e uma frequência superior a 4 vezes/ano. Os resultados da avaliação de riscos evidenciaram, para muitas das tarefas, um nível grave sugerindo a necessidade de se realizarem alterações. Globalmente não se encontraram associações estatisticamente significativas (p>0,05); das poucas associações encontradas, estas revelaram uma intensidade entre o moderado e o forte.Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are injuries that affects more and more people, these injuries can be caused or aggravated by the work. In the forest sector there are not many studies that contemplate the various tasks that forest operators perform, that's why it's so important do this study. The main objective of this study was to evaluate the risk of developing musculoskeletal disorders associated with the tasks performed by forest operators. Data collection was done through free observations and using questionnaires, specifically developed for this purpose. A matrix method, developed by Direção geral das relações laborais de Catalunha, was the method used to quantify the risk associated to MSDs development. The Chi-square test and Cramer’s V coeficiente were used to assess associations between variables (demographic and work-related characteristics) and the prevalence of complains in each body region assessed. The main regions affected were the right wrist (53%) and lower back (42%), which are in accordance with the results reported by other studies. The majority of complaints were classified with a moderate intensity and a frequency more than 4 times a year. The results of the risk assessment revealed, for many of the tasks, a serious level suggesting the need to make changes. In general, there were no statistically significant differences (p> 0.05). However, of the few cases found, Cramer’s V test revealed moderate and strong associations (> 0.60)

Inclusion of students with special educational needs (sen) in secondary education: the attitudes of parents of students without SEN and with SEN

Foi aplicado um questionário a 30 EE de uma Escola Secundária do distrito de Leiria, constituído por 4 blocos temáticos: caracterização pessoal; inclusão de alunos NEE em turmas do ensino secundário; inclusão e aprendizagem conteudinal e inclusão e aceitação social. Destes 30 participantes 10 EE de alunos sem NEE, cujos educandos tinham contacto com a inclusão; 10 EE de alunos sem NEE, cujos educandos não tinham contacto com a inclusão; 10 EE de alunos NEE. Os dados obtidos pela análise estatística SPSS (versão 22.0), permitiram observar que os EE demonstraram atitudes favoráveis perante a inclusão, considerando mais vantagens que prejuízos para os alunos NEE, como para os alunos sem NEE, principalmente ao nível da aceitação social. Contudo, os EE de alunos sem NEE, cujos educandos têm contacto com a inclusão nas suas turmas, e no que diz respeito à aprendizagem conteudinal e aceitação social, evidenciaram atitudes menos favoráveis face à inclusão.A questionnaire was applied to 30 parents of a Secondary School of the district of Leiria, constituted by 4 thematic blocks: personal characterization; Inclusion of SEN students in secondary school classes; Inclusion and conteudinal learning and inclusion and social acceptance. Of these 30 participants 10 parents of students without SEN, whose students had contact with the inclusion; 10 parents of students without SEN, whose students had no contact with inclusion; 10 parents from SEN students. The data obtained by the SPSS statistical analysis (version 22.0) allowed us to observe that the parents demonstrated favorable attitudes towards the inclusion of students with SEN, considering more advantages than losses for both the SEN students and the non-SEN students, especially at the level of Social acceptance. However, parents of students without SEN, whose students have contact with inclusion in their classes, and with regard to conteudinal learning and social acceptance, have shown less favorable attitudes towards inclusion.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Emotional profiles regarding maths among primary school children – A two-year longitudinal study.

. . . Learning maths is challenging for many primary school students, and teachers must understand students’ learning and emotional processes specific to learning maths. The current research, grounded in control-value theory, focused on achievement emotions regarding maths. Primary school students (N = 71) were studied with the primary objective of examining the longitudinal trajectories of achievement emotions of third graders over two years. The Portuguese Achievement Emotions Questionnaire for Elementary Students was administered biannually to assess enjoyment, anxiety, and boredom regarding maths. The results indicate that enjoyment decreased and boredom increased over time, revealing three emotional profiles: positive, negative and moderate. The positive profile showed the highest scores in maths achievement. Profile membership was moderately stable and became increasingly stable and structured. In examining the complexity of students’ emotional profiles and processes, the importance of understanding them to enhance educational support, development, and learning was highlighted. .Fundação para Ciência e Tecnologia - FCTinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Solos de Cobertura do Anticlinal de Estremoz

A terra rossa é um solo residual resultante da dissolução de rochas carbonatadas como é o caso do mármore existente no anticlinal de Estremoz onde é explorado como rocha ornamental. Este tipo de solo possui determinadas características constituindo boa matéria-prima para aplicações cerâmicas, mais precisamente na olaria tradicional. Na zona das pedreiras observam-se espessos horizontes deste tipo de solo que sendo removido deixa a descoberto o mármore. Na maioria das vezes é depositado em escombreiras perto de cavidades resultantes da extracção do mármore, não sendo aproveitado para qualquer fim. O Alentejo é uma região com uma forte tradição em olaria, onde a Vila de Redondo e a Aldeia de S. Pedro do Corval constituem os pólos mais emblemáticos desta actividade. No entanto, ao longo dos anos tem-se notado uma gradual escassez de depósitos de argila de qualidade, levando os oleiros a adquirir a matéria-prima na região das Caldas da Rainha ou mesmo a importá-la de Espanha. Investigação cooperativa desenvolvida no DGUE, no DGUA, no Cencal e na olaria Xico Tarefa de Redondo, permitiu verificar que a terra rossa e outros solos de cobertura da região, devido às suas características físicas, químicas e mineralógicas, podem ser utilizados como matéria-prima na indústria cerâmica, particularmente na olaria tradicional de Redondo e de S. Pedro do Corval

Application in Pottery of the Residual Soils Associated to Marbles from

Terra rossa is a residual soil that is derived from the chemical dissolution of carbonate rocks. This type of soil occurs in the region of the so-called Estremoz anticlinal, being the result of the weathering of extensive marble occurrences which are exploited for ornamental stone. The research work performed and disclosed in the present paper shows that terra rossa possesses appropriate compositional and technological properties for its use on ceramic applications, particularly for the local traditional pottery. In potential marble quarry sites several thick soil horizons can be found, and whenever the soil is removed marble is shown up. As a rule, the removed soil is deposited around the quarry, and so far no use has been given to it. Pottery has a long tradition in the Alentejo region, and Vila de Redondo and Aldeia de S. Pedro do Corval are known as emblematic centers of this activity. However, time has shown that the scarcity of high quality clay deposits has become an important issue. Therefore, potters are buying clay from other regions of Portugal, in particular in the area of Caldas da Rainha, located in the central west of the country and far from Alentejo, or even importing it from Spain. The cooperative research work carried out in the Laboratories of DGUE, the Department of Geosciences at the University of Aveiro (DGUA) and CENCAL, and at the pottery owned by the artisan Mestre Xico Tarefa, in Vila de Redondo, has shown that terra rossa, due to its physicochemical, mineralogical and technological properties, can be used as a raw material in ceramic manufacturing, particularly in the traditional pottery produced both in Redondo and S. Pedro de Corval

A key role for microRNAs in the development and functional differentiation of γδ T cell subsets

The ability of murine γδ T cells to rapidly produce the pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin 17 (IL-17) or interferon-γ (IFN-γ) underlies their crucial roles in several (patho)physiological contexts. This capacity stems from a complex process of ‘developmental pre-programming in the thymus, after which a large fraction of γδ T cells migrate to peripheral sites already committed to producing either the IL-17 or IFN-γ. We have previously found that one microRNA, miR-146a, maintains peripheral γδ T cell identity by inhibiting IFN-g production by the IL-17-committed CD27− gδ T cell subset. To further and more globally address the role of microRNAs in effector γδ T cell differentiation, we established a double reporter IL17-GFP:IFN-γ-YFP mouse strain and isolated pure IL-17+ and IFN-γ+ γδ T cell populations from the peripheral lymphoid organs to perform small RNA-sequencing. This allowed us to identify clearly distinct microRNA signatures associated with cytokine expression in γδ T cells, from which we selected ten candidate microRNAs differentially expressed between IL-17+ and IFN-γ+ γδ T cells to study further. We characterized the detailed expression pattern of each candidate microRNA in γδ T cell subsets throughout mouse ontogeny and upon gain-of-function studies in in vitro cultures of γδ T cells. Our results indicate that while some microRNAs, such as miR-128-3p and miR181a-5p, regulate γδ T cell development in the thymus, other candidates, including miR-7a-5p, miR-139-5p, miR-322-5p, and miR-450b-3p, modulate peripheral γδ T cell effector functions. More specifically, using a miR-181a deficient mouse model, we have found that miR-181a, highly expressed in immature γδ T cell subsets in the thymus, shifts the in vivo IL-17/IFN-γ balance towards the IL-17 pathway in neonatal life, which is further maintained in the periphery during adult life. On the other hand, miR-7a-5p and miR-139-5p, overexpressed in peripheral IFN-g+ γδ T cells, regulate peripheral γδ T cell effector functions, either acting as an IFN-γ auto-repressor (miR-139-5p) or promoting functional plasticity (miR-7a-5p). Finally, miR-322-5p and miR-450b-3p, overexpressed in IL-17+ γδ T cells, may have therapeutic potential by modulating the production of IFNγ, whose levels are critical in anti-tumoral and anti-viral responses. These data demonstrate the impact of microRNAs on the differentiation and functional identity of effector γδ T cell subsets, which may open new avenues for their manipulation in disease settings.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The Academic Self-Regulation Questionnaire: A study with Portuguese elementary school children

Background: Several studies have focused on the assessment of students’ motivation because this construct is very important to understand students’ learning and how to enhance it. The Academic Self-Regulation Questionnaire (SRQ-A), based on the self-determination theory is a self-report instrument developed to access the reasons why students do their school work. However, there is no Portuguese version of this questionnaire for late elementary students. The primary goal of this research was to analyze the psychometric properties of a Portuguese version of SRQ-A in the domain of Mathematics with elementary school children. Methods: Participants were 341 elementary school children ranging from 8 to 11 years old from the third and fourth grades. The Portuguese version of the SRQ-A included 24 items assessing four regulatory styles (external, introjected, identified, and intrinsic) in three behavioral categories (homework, classwork, and answering questions in mathematics lessons). To examine the psychometric properties of the instrument, we conducted an exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM), measured gender and grade invariance, and calculated internal consistency indexes and temporal stability. Results: ESEM analyses supported the original multidimensional structure of the measure with four regulatory styles using a reduced version of the instrument with 16 items. Correlations between the four regulatory styles revealed a simplex pattern consistent with the continuum of self-determination theory. Results showed adequate internal consistency for all regulatory styles (α ≥ .73; CR ≥ .76) and temporal stability (4-month test-retest ≥ .43). The questionnaire showed measurement and structural invariance across gender and grade. Finally, some gender differences were observed; on average, boys scored higher than girls in external regulation. No differences were observed between grades. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the Portuguese version of the SRQ-A has good psychometric properties providing adequate support for its use in educational research on motivational styles, including studies concerning gender and grade differences in self-regulation.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia - FCTinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

MicroRNA-181a regulates IFN-γ expression in effector CD8+ T cell differentiation

CD8+ T cells are key players in immunity against intracellular infections and tumors. The main cytokine associated with these protective responses is interferon-γ (IFN-γ), whose production is known to be regulated at the transcriptional level during CD8+ T cell differentiation. Here we found that microRNAs constitute a posttranscriptional brake to IFN-γ expression by CD8+ T cells since the genetic interference with the Dicer processing machinery resulted in the overproduction of IFN-γ by both thymic and peripheral CD8+ T cells. Using a gene reporter mouse for IFN-γ locus activity, we compared the microRNA repertoires associated with the presence or absence of IFN-γ expression. This allowed us to identify a set of candidates, including miR-181a and miR-451, which were functionally tested in overexpression experiments using synthetic mimics in peripheral CD8+ T cell cultures. We found that miR-181a limits IFN-γ production by suppressing the expression of the transcription factor Id2, which in turn promotes the Ifng expression program. Importantly, upon MuHV-4 challenge, miR-181a-deficient mice showed a more vigorous IFN-γ+ CD8+ T cell response and were able to control viral infection significantly more efficiently than control mice. These data collectively establish a novel role for miR-181a in regulating IFN-γ-mediated effector CD8+ T cell responses in vitro and in vivo.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio