Inoculation of mycorrhizal fungi on a vineyard. The impact of a mycorrhiza-inoculated under-vine cover crop on grapevine performance and soil quality in a Portuguese vineyard

Mestrado em Engenharia Agronómica / Instituto Superior de Agronomia. Universidade de LisboaGrapevine inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can improve their nutrient and water status and help them cope with abiotic and biotic stresses. However, the inoculation success depends on several factors, such as the host plant and AMF genotype, environmental conditions and the inoculation method. To test the potential benefits of grapevine AMF inoculation through mycelium donor plants (MDP), a three-year experiment was set in a vineyard planted in 2007 in Lisbon. Rye plants were inoculated with Funneliformis mosseae and used as MDP, being established as under-vine cover crops. Another two under-vine management treatments were installed to compare the potential benefits of this inoculation system on grapevine nutrition, growth, physiology, yield, berry quality and soil properties: conventional vegetation management (CON), with regular herbicide applications on the row, and non-inoculated rye covers (NIRC). The inoculation of F. mosseae was successful. Soil from inoculated rye cover (IRC) plots had double and four times the mycorrhizal infective propagules than NIRC and CON plots, respectively. At plant nutrition level, only Fe differed among treatments, whose concentration diminished on grapevine leaves from IRC plots. At pre-harvest, when temperatures were highest and soil water lowest, grapevines from IRC plots had 50% higher photosynthetic rate and 70% higher stomatal conductance than NIRC and CON grapevines. The competition for water induced by the under-vine cover crops diminished the vigour of grapevines by half on their pruning wood weight, compared to CON grapevines, although without statistical significance. No significant effect on yield and berry quality was found, apart from a greater number of clusters from CON and IRC grapevines. Therefore, if correctly managed with adequate irrigation and frequent mowing to avoid excessive competition with grapevines, the use of inoculated under-vine cover crops can improve grapevine performance and offers a sustainable alternative to herbicide use in Mediterranean vineyards, without compromising yield or berry qualityN/

‘Difficult Patients’: A Perspective from the Tertiary Mental Health Services

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O embrião humano: entre a ciência e a filosofia

Os autores expõem as varias perspectivas biológicas acerca do inicio da vida humana que atribuem diferentes estatutos morais ao embrião. Referem o impacto que as descobertas das ciências cognitivas estão a ter neste campo. Acabam por concluir que caberà à filosofia, e não ao campo cientifico, estabelecer um estatuto para o embriao humano.Les auters exposent diverses perspectives biologiques sur Ie debut de la vie humaine, cacune atribue un statut moral diferent a I'embryon. Ils referent I'impacte que las decouvertes des sciences cognitives ont aujourd'hui, sur ce sujet. Ils finissent par conclure qu'il est dû a la philosophie et non a la science I'etablissement d'un statut de I'embryon humai

Contributo ético em neonatologia - I

As decisões éticas relacionadas com o recém-nascido prematuro e/ou com malformações congenitas são difíceis de tomar. E necessário apresentar algumas Iinhas de orientação ética, no sentido de ajudar na descoberta da melhor tomada de decisão em situações Iimite.Les décisions éthiques relatives au nouveau-né premature ou porteur de malformation congénital sont dificiles a prendre. II est nécessaire d'offrir quelques lignes d'orientation éthique dans Ie sens d'aider a choisir la meilleur solution en situation limite

Education for quality of life and mental health: formative intervention for teachers

Publicado em: Atención primaria, vol. 46 (Espec Cong 1). ISSN 0212-6567Introduction: Health Education in schools has been a goal of health policies at national level, especially from 1997. Consequently, schools and teachers expressed the need to broaden and deepen their knowledge in other areas to develop more specific and systematic interventions. Mental Health (MH) and Quality of Life (QOL) are priority health areas, so, it was elaborated a workshop aimed at teachers. Objectives: 1) Developing knowledge about MH and QOL; 2) developing promoting strategies of MH and QOL; 3) including MH and QOL in the educational project of the school and class activities plan. Methods: Take part in this workshop 12 teachers from 2nd and 3rd cycles. The workshop had 15 classroom hours and 15 hours of autonomous work, a total of 5 sessions with intervals of a month. Contents of action: concept and approaches of MH and QOL and promoting strategies associated. In early action all teachers completed the WHOQOL-Bref. This questionnaire have four domains: physical, psychological, social relationship and environment. Results: The attendance rate was 100%. All teachers performed the work proposed by presenting in the classroom. The WHOQOL-Bref show that 9 teachers presented the psychological domain with the lowest score of the four that make up the WHOQOL-Bref (score between 45.8-70.8 in 100). Conclusions: The psychological domain is the most affected area in these 12 teachers. Participation and the tasks in the sessions and the work carried out showed intense interactivity. Critical reflection performed by the teachers presents an evaluation of very good and excellent in all its parameters. The results shows that the areas of MH and QOL reveal themselves generate interest and training in this regard, we point to new experiences in otherschool contexts

intervenções promotoras de atividade física e alimentação saudável

Introdução: Atualmente existe um aumento progressivo da incidência e prevalência da Diabetes Mellitus tipo 2. Condição de saúde relevante para o envelhecimento da população, aproximadamente um quarto das pessoas idosas são portadoras da doença, considerada uma das doenças crónicas prioritárias na intervenção a nível mundial. Os comportamentos de autocuidado e a gestão da doença são um suporte fundamental para a pessoa. Integra assim um papel ativo no tratamento e controlo da sua doença, mudando comportamentos e adotando estilos de vida saudável, fatores determinantes para a manutenção do seu bem-estar e qualidade de vida. Os Cuidados de Saúde Primários assumem um papel fundamental na educação das pessoas com diabetes, mobilizando estratégias que dêem resposta às necessidades identificadas, capacitando-as para o autocuidado e promovendo a gestão da sua doença. Objetivo: Promover a adesão do autocuidado a pessoas idosas com Diabetes Mellitus tipo 2, relativamente á atividade física e á alimentação saudável adaptada á sua condição de doença, na USF Dafundo de Outubro de 2019 a Fevereiro de 2020. Metodologia: Utilizamos a metodologia do Processo de Planeamento em Saúde e a Teoria de Enfermagem do Deficit do Autocuidado de Dorothea Orem, numa amostra de pessoas com 65 e mais anos. Aplicamos a todos os participantes através da entrevista, a avaliação dos dados sociodemográficos, Escala de Barthel, Escala de Lawton & Brody e a Escala de Atividades de Autocuidado com a Diabetes. Resultados: Identificamos défices de autocuidado nas pessoas com diabetes pela não adesão á atividade física e a uma alimentação saudável. O processo de capacitação foi promovido através da educação para a saúde individual e em grupo por possibilitar a aquisição individualizado por um lado e a partilha conhecimentos/competências e experiencias vivenciadas, capacitando a pessoa a idosa para a promoção do autocuidado

Uma perspetiva editorial: relatório de estágio na editora Ponto de Fuga

O presente relatório foi realizado no âmbito da unidade curricular de “Dissertação ou Projeto ou Estagio” do Mestrado em Estudos Editoriais da ́ Universidade de Aveiro e foca-se na descrição das atividades realizadas ao longo do estágio efetuado na editora Ponto de Fuga entre dezembro de 2020 e abril de 2021. Numa primeira parte, é feita a apresentação da editora e sua chancela. De seguida, são expostas e analisadas as tarefas efetuadas, nomeadamente nas áreas do Design e Revisão de Texto. Por último, é realizada uma breve reflexão sobre a experiência de estágio.This report was carried out within the scope of the curricular unit "Dissertation or Project or Internship" of the Master’s in Publishing Studies at the University of Aveiro and focuses on the description of the activities undertaken during the internship carried out at Ponto de Fuga publishing house between December 2020 and April 2021. In the first part, I present the publishing house and it’s subsidiary. Then, I describe and analyze the tasks carried out, namely in the areas of Design and Copyediting. Lastly, I carry out a brief reflection on the intership experience.Mestrado em Estudos Editoriai

Cholesterol 24S-Hydroxylase overexpression inhibits the liver X receptor (LXR) pathway by activating small guanosine triphosphate-binding proteins (sGTPases) in neuronal cells

The neuronal-specific cholesterol 24S-hydroxylase (CYP46A1) is important for brain cholesterol elimination. Cyp46a1 null mice exhibit severe deficiencies in learning and hippocampal long-term potentiation, suggested to be caused by a decrease in isoprenoid intermediates of the mevalonate pathway. Conversely, transgenic mice overexpressing CYP46A1 show an improved cognitive function. These results raised the question of whether CYP46A1 expression can modulate the activity of proteins that are crucial for neuronal function, namely of isoprenylated small guanosine triphosphate-binding proteins (sGTPases). Our results show that CYP46A1 overexpression in SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells and in primary cultures of rat cortical neurons leads to an increase in 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA reductase activity and to an overall increase in membrane levels of RhoA, Rac1, Cdc42 and Rab8. This increase is accompanied by a specific increase in RhoA activation. Interestingly, treatment with lovastatin or a geranylgeranyltransferase-I inhibitor abolished the CYP46A1 effect. The CYP46A1-mediated increase in sGTPases membrane abundance was confirmed in vivo, in membrane fractions obtained from transgenic mice overexpressing this enzyme. Moreover, CYP46A1 overexpression leads to a decrease in the liver X receptor (LXR) transcriptional activity and in the mRNA levels of ATP-binding cassette transporter 1, sub-family A, member 1 and apolipoprotein E. This effect was abolished by inhibition of prenylation or by co-transfection of a RhoA dominant-negative mutant. Our results suggest a novel regulatory axis in neurons; under conditions of membrane cholesterol reduction by increased CYP46A1 expression, neurons increase isoprenoid synthesis and sGTPase prenylation. This leads to a reduction in LXR activity, and consequently to a decrease in the expression of LXR target genes