Innovative Metallic Microfluidic Device for Intensified Biodiesel Production

We present a strategy for intensified biodiesel production in a novel metallic microdevice. Additive manufacturing using Selective Laser Melting (SLM) was employed to build the metallic device consisting of multiple micro reactors monolithically integrated with multiple micro heat exchangers. This device allows high conversion rate of biodiesel production with concomitant use of the rejected heat from external source to enhance the reaction temperature and, thereby, its output. The biodiesel production was carried out using soybean oil, ethanol and NaOH as the catalyst. The influences of the reaction temperature and the residence time in the biodiesel production was examined. Biodiesel yield increased with the reaction temperature and a rate of conversion of 99.6% was achieved with a reactor residence time of less than 35 seconds. The work opens up a pathway to exploit waste heat to intensify biodiesel production and contribute significantly to global sustainability

Continuing education on Paleontology: the experience with the project “Workshop on Paleontology: fossils inside the classroom”

The Natural Sciences are essential in the education of citizens aware of the reality in which they live. In this context, Paleontology has an important in basic education, given its multidisciplinary nature, what enables the integrated understanding of the events and phenomena that changed natural environments during the geological history of our planet. In addition, its teaching promotes the awareness of the importance of the fossils as public patrimony, essential for their preservation. Even though current technology allows quick and easy access to information, the selection of subjects and practical activities is often inadequate, as most teachers do not have expertise in paleontology. With this scenario in mind, we created the “Workshop on Paleontology: fossils inside the classroom”, culminating in a continuing education workshop, aiming to promote better education of Palentology in schools (basic education). The project already held two workshops, in which several theoretical-practical activities were carried out with teachers and future educators of the public-school network of Ribeirão Preto and Jaboticabal cities, possible multipliers of scientific and patrimonial knowledge within the classroom. After the second workshop, a questionnaire was conducted with students and aimed to assess the course and improve upcoming workshops.O ensino das Ciências Naturais é essencial na formação de cidadãos como seres cientes da realidade em que vivem. No contexto da formação básica, a Paleontologia tem papel importante, dada sua natureza multidisciplinar, e seu estudo auxilia na compreensão integrada dos eventos e fenômenos que transformaram ambientes durante a história geológica do nosso planeta. Ademais, seu ensino promove a conscientização da importância dos fósseis como patrimônio público, essencial para sua preservação. Mesmo com a atual facilidade de acesso à informação, a seleção de conteúdos e práticas adequadas nem sempre é apropriada, uma vez que poucos professores têm experiência com a Paleontologia. Tendo tais desafios em mente, formulamos o projeto "Oficina de Paleontologia: os fósseis dentro da sala de aula", no formato de um curso de extensão de educação continuada, com o objetivo de fomentar o ensino elementar de qualidade em Paleontologia nas escolas. Em duas edições, diversas atividades teórico-práticas foram realizadas com professores e futuros educadores da rede escolar pública de Ribeirão Preto e Jaboticabal, possíveis multiplicadores do conhecimento científico e patrimonial dentro da sala de aula. Após o término da segunda oficina, um questionário realizado com os participantes visou avaliar o curso, criando um espaço para críticas e sugestões

Exit and Failure of Credit Unions in Brazil: A Risk Analysis

This study aims to investigate the factors that affect the market exit of Brazilian singular credit unions from 1995 to 2009; it also identifies and lists the determinants of various types of market exits and analyzes whether profitability is a significant factor for credit union survival. This study was conducted with accounting data provided by the Central Bank of Brazil, which derives only from individual cooperatives, i.e. singular credit unions. Quarterly financial statements from these credit unions that were active from 1995 to the second quarter of 2009 were employed, totaling 71,325 observations for 1,929 credit unions. Based on survival and the model of competing risks (such as the Cox, Exponential, Weibull, Gompertz, and Competing Risk models), the results show that there is no statistical evidence to ensure a correlation between profitability and credit union survival. The results also suggest that the size of credit unions plays a key role in their survival and longevity and that their funding and investment management are related to their survival and risk of market exit. In conclusion, the results confirm the initial idea that the duality inherent to credit unions - cooperative principles versus economic efficiency - might influence the stability, survival, and longevity of these institutions. Such results may also imply that a credit union embracing the rationale of a private bank will become more estranged from its members, something which will hinder its future operations and increase the likelihood of its exit from the market

Genome of Herbaspirillum seropedicae Strain SmR1, a Specialized Diazotrophic Endophyte of Tropical Grasses

The molecular mechanisms of plant recognition, colonization, and nutrient exchange between diazotrophic endophytes and plants are scarcely known. Herbaspirillum seropedicae is an endophytic bacterium capable of colonizing intercellular spaces of grasses such as rice and sugar cane. The genome of H. seropedicae strain SmR1 was sequenced and annotated by The Paraná State Genome Programme—GENOPAR. The genome is composed of a circular chromosome of 5,513,887 bp and contains a total of 4,804 genes. The genome sequence revealed that H. seropedicae is a highly versatile microorganism with capacity to metabolize a wide range of carbon and nitrogen sources and with possession of four distinct terminal oxidases. The genome contains a multitude of protein secretion systems, including type I, type II, type III, type V, and type VI secretion systems, and type IV pili, suggesting a high potential to interact with host plants. H. seropedicae is able to synthesize indole acetic acid as reflected by the four IAA biosynthetic pathways present. A gene coding for ACC deaminase, which may be involved in modulating the associated plant ethylene-signaling pathway, is also present. Genes for hemagglutinins/hemolysins/adhesins were found and may play a role in plant cell surface adhesion. These features may endow H. seropedicae with the ability to establish an endophytic life-style in a large number of plant species

Southern African Large Telescope Spectroscopy of BL Lacs for the CTA project

In the last two decades, very-high-energy gamma-ray astronomy has reached maturity: over 200 sources have been detected, both Galactic and extragalactic, by ground-based experiments. At present, Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) make up about 40% of the more than 200 sources detected at very high energies with ground-based telescopes, the majority of which are blazars, i.e. their jets are closely aligned with the line of sight to Earth and three quarters of which are classified as high-frequency peaked BL Lac objects. One challenge to studies of the cosmological evolution of BL Lacs is the difficulty of obtaining redshifts from their nearly featureless, continuum-dominated spectra. It is expected that a significant fraction of the AGN to be detected with the future Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) observatory will have no spectroscopic redshifts, compromising the reliability of BL Lac population studies, particularly of their cosmic evolution. We started an effort in 2019 to measure the redshifts of a large fraction of the AGN that are likely to be detected with CTA, using the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT). In this contribution, we present two results from an on-going SALT program focused on the determination of BL Lac object redshifts that will be relevant for the CTA observatory

Differences in the mutation of the p53 gene in exons 6 and 7 in cervical samples from HIV- and HPV-infected women

BACKGROUND: Human Papillomavirus (HPV) infection is a serious problem for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected women, increases their risk of cervical lesions and cancer. In cervical carcinogenesis, mutations in the p53 gene occur most frequently within exons 5–8. To our knowledge, no previous studies have analyzed mutations in exons 5–8 of the p53 gene in HIV- and HPV-infected women. In our study, we verified these mutations in women with and without cervical abnormalities. FINDINGS: The study included 160 women, divided into three groups: (1) 83 HPV- and HIV-infected women (HIV group); (2) 37 HPV-infected/HIV-uninfected (control group); and (3) 40 normal cytology/DNA-HPV negative/HIV-uninfected women (negative control p53 reactions). HPV-DNA was detected using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and genotyping by PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis. Using primers for exons 5–8, the mutation of the p53 gene was verified by PCR-single strand conformational polymorphism. The total mutation of the p53 gene in exons 5–8 was not significantly associated with the HIV and control groups. The mutations in exon 7 were the highest in the HIV group (43.8%) and in exon 6 in the control group (57.2%) (p = 0.0793) suggesting a tendency toward differential mutation in exon 7 in the HIV group. CONCLUSIONS: Our study provides preliminary evidence that the mutation in exon 7 might be an important differentiating factor for cervical carcinogenesis in HIV-infected women. This aspect deserves an additional cross-sectional and longitudinal study using a larger sample size with a higher number of High-grade squamous intraephitelial lesion (HSIL) to observe the evolution of cervical lesions

Follicle deviation and ovulatory capacity in Bos indicus heifers

The objectives of Experiment 1 were to determine the interval from ovulation to deviation, and diameter of the dominant follicle (DF) and largest subordinate follicle (SF) at deviation in Nelore (Bos indicus) heifers by two methods (observed and calculated). Heifers (n = 12) were examined ultrasonographically every 12 h from ovulation (Day 0) to Day 5. The time of deviation and diameter of the DF and largest SF at deviation did not differ (P > 0.05) between observed and calculated methods. Overall, deviation occurred 2.5 '+ OU -' 0.2 d (mean '+ OU -' S.E.M.) after ovulation, and diameters for DF and largest SF at deviation were 6.2 '+ OU -' 0.2 and 5.9 '+ OU -' 0.2 mm, respectively. Experiment 2 was designed to determine the size at which the DF acquires ovulatory capacity in B. indicus heifers. Twenty-nine heifers were monitored every 24 h by ultrasonography, from ovulation until the DF reached diameters of 7.0-8.4 mm (n = 9), 8.5-10.0 mm (n = 10), or >10.0 mm (n = 10). At that time, heifers were treated with 25 mg of pLH and monitored by ultrasonography every 12 h for 48 h. Ovulation occurred in 3 of 9, 8 of 10, and 9 of 10 heifers, respectively (P < 0.05). In summary, there was no significant difference between observed and calculated methods of determining the beginning of follicle deviation. Deviation occurred 2.5 d after ovulation when the DF reached 6.2 mm, and ovulatory capacity was acquired by DF as small as 7.0 m