Redesigning a Manufacturing System Based on Functional Independence: The Case of a Tree Nursery

AbstractThe engineering of manufacturing systems encompasses two main areas of development: the manufacturing process (manufacturing technologies, and flow and handling of materials), and the production management (flow of information - signals). These two areas must be designed to perform according to the expressed needs. This paper shows that the Axiomatic Design (AD) theory can be used to analyse a manufacturing system to find the origin of the lack of productivity, and, subsequently, to redesign a solution avoiding the weakness points. A case study of a tree nursery of a large wood production enterprise was used to show the application of the axiomatic design principles, particularly through analysing the design equation and including new design parameters with the independence in mind. The redesign solution based on the independence of functions promoted the simplification of the information (signals) flow, avoiding the identification of each production element, and avoiding errors, which increases the productivity and the production volume, by elimination of waste of time in production operations. The proposed solution brought results that encourage the application of AD to increment the productivity of manufacturing systems, in alternative to expensive investments

Cardiac resynchronization therapy is effective even in elderly patients with comorbidities

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) in elderly patients (> or =65 years) with younger patients and to assess the impact of comorbidities in CRT remodeling response. METHODS: This is a prospective study of 87 consecutive patients scheduled for CRT who underwent clinical and echocardiographic evaluation before and 6 months after CRT. A reduction in left ventricular end-systolic volume (LVESV) > or =15% after CRT defined remodeling responders, and a reduction of at least one New York Heart Association class defined clinical responders. Multivariate analysis was used to identify independent predictors of non-response to CRT in terms of reverse remodeling. RESULTS: The mean age was 62 +/- 11 years, with 36 elderly patients (41%). The baseline QRS duration was 145 +/- 32 ms. After CRT, there were significant and similar improvements of left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction, LVESV, LV dP/dt, and mitral regurgitation jet area (JA) between elderly (> or =65 years) and younger (74 mm, and JA >10 cm(2) before CRT, but not comorbidities. CONCLUSION: This work suggests that being elderly is not an impediment to CRT success even in the presence of comorbidities

Identification of 'super-responders' to cardiac resynchronization therapy: the importance of symptom duration and left ventricular geometry

AIMS: Some patients show such an important clinical improvement and reverse remodelling after cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) that anatomy and function approach normal. These patients have been called 'super-responders'. The aim of our study was to identify predictors of becoming a super-responder after CRT. METHODS AND RESULTS: Eighty-seven consecutive patients who underwent CRT were prospectively studied. Before CRT and 6 months after, clinical and echocardiographic evaluation was performed. Patients with a decrease in New York Heart Association functional class >or=1, a two-fold or more increase of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) or a final LVEF >45%, and a decrease in LV end-systolic volume >15% were classified as super-responders. There were 12% super-responders. At baseline, there were no significant differences between super-responders and the other patients, except for the fact that super-responders had significantly smaller mitral regurgitation and LV end-diastolic diameter (LVEDD) and a shorter duration of heart failure symptoms. Mitral regurgitation jet area, LVEDD, and duration of heart failure symptoms were correlated with this super-response. Moreover, an evolution of symptoms for <12 months was an independent predictor of super-response to CRT. CONCLUSION: Patients in earlier phases of the cardiomyopathy, with a less altered ventricular geometry, seem to have a greater probability of becoming super-responders

A Step Forward in Breast Cancer Research: From a Natural-Like Experimental Model to a Preliminary Photothermal Approach

Supplementary Materials - The following are available online at https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/21/24/9681/s1, Figure S1: GNPs’ size distribution by intensity (%) obtained by DLS.Breast cancer is one of the most frequently diagnosed malignancies and common causes of cancer death in women. Recent studies suggest that environmental exposures to certain chemicals, such as 7,12-Dimethylbenzanthracene (DMBA), a chemical present in tobacco, may increase the risk of developing breast cancer later in life. The first-line treatments for breast cancer (surgery, chemotherapy or a combination of both) are generally invasive and frequently associated with severe side effects and high comorbidity. Consequently, novel approaches are strongly required to find more natural-like experimental models that better reflect the tumors’ etiology, physiopathology and response to treatments, as well as to find more targeted, efficient and minimally invasive treatments. This study proposes the development and an in deep biological characterization of an experimental model using DMBA-tumor-induction in Sprague-Dawley female rats. Moreover, a photothermal therapy approach using a near-infrared laser coupled with gold nanoparticles was preliminarily assessed. The gold nanoparticles were functionalized with Epidermal Growth Factor, and their physicochemical properties and in vitro effects were characterized. DMBA proved to be a very good and selective inductor of breast cancer, with 100% incidence and inducing an average of 4.7 tumors per animal. Epigenetic analysis showed that tumors classified with worst prognosis were hypomethylated. The tumor-induced rats were then subjected to a preliminary treatment using functionalized gold nanoparticles and its activation by laser (650–900 nm). The treatment outcomes presented very promising alterations in terms of tumor histology, confirming the presence of necrosis in most of the cases. Although this study revealed encouraging results as a breast cancer therapy, it is important to define tumor eligibility and specific efficiency criteria to further assess its application in breast cancer treatment on other species.The APC was funded by Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Coimbra and Coimbra Chemistry Centre, Department of Chemistry, University of Coimbra. This work was also supported by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT), Portugal under the project’s references UIDB/00645/2020 and UID/DTP/04138/2019. TFG was supported by FCT, Portugal under the reference SFRH/BD/147306/2019. Thanks to FCT/MCTES for the financial support to CESAM (UIDP/50017/2020+UIDB/50017/2020), through national funds.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Algorithms for automated diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases based on ECG data: A comprehensive systematic review

The prevalence of cardiovascular diseases is increasing around the world. However, the technology is evolving and can be monitored with low-cost sensors anywhere at any time. This subject is being researched, and different methods can automatically identify these diseases, helping patients and healthcare professionals with the treatments. This paper presents a systematic review of disease identification, classification, and recognition with ECG sensors. The review was focused on studies published between 2017 and 2022 in different scientific databases, including PubMed Central, Springer, Elsevier, Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI), IEEE Xplore, and Frontiers. It results in the quantitative and qualitative analysis of 103 scientific papers. The study demonstrated that different datasets are available online with data related to various diseases. Several ML/DP-based models were identified in the research, where Convolutional Neural Network and Support Vector Machine were the most applied algorithms. This review can allow us to identify the techniques that can be used in a system that promotes the patient’s autonomy.N/

Implications for Quality and Wine Production

UID/FIS/04559/2020Nowadays, there is a growing concern about micronutrient deficits in food products, with agronomic biofortification being considered a mitigation strategy. In this context, as Zn is essential for growth and maintenance of human health, a workflow for the biofortification of grapes from the Vitis vinifera variety Fernão Pires, which contains this nutrient, was carried out considering the soil properties of the vineyard. Additionally, Zn accumulation in the tissues of the grapes and the implications for some quality parameters and on winemaking were assessed. Vines were sprayed three times with ZnO and ZnSO4 at concentrations of 150, 450, and 900 g ha−1 during the production cycle. Physiological data were obtained through chlorophyll a fluorescence data, to access the potential symptoms of toxicity. At harvest, treated grapes revealed significant increases of Zn concentration relative to the control, being more pronounced for ZnO and ZnSO4 in the skin and seeds, respectively. After winemaking, an increase was also found regarding the control (i.e., 1.59-fold with ZnSO4-450 g ha−1). The contents of the sugars and fatty acids, as well as the colorimetric analyses, were also assessed, but significant variations were not found among treatments. In general, Zn biofortification increased with ZnO and ZnSO4, without significantly affecting the physicochemical characteristics of grapes.publishersversionpublishe

a detailed view of the methodology

Rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMD) are prevalent and leading causes of disability and consumption of healthcare and social resources. EpiReumaPt is a national population-based survey developed by the Portuguese Society of Rheumatology that aimed to estimate the prevalence of RMDs and determine their impact on function, quality of life, mental health and use of healthcare resources. This article describes in detail the design, methodology and planned analyses of EpiReumaPt. Recruitment started in September 2011 and finished in December 2013. This study involved a three-stage approach. The first step was a face-to-face survey performed by trained interviewers at the household of 10,661 subjects who where randomly selected by a stratified multistage sampling. A highly sensitive screening questionnaire for RMDs was used. Secondly, participants who screened positive (64%) for at least one RMD as well as 20% of individuals with a negative screening were invited for assessment by a rheumatologist. In total, 3,877 subjects participated in this second phase, where they were also invited to donate a blood sample to be stored at the Biobanco-IMM. History and physical examination, followed by appropriate laboratory and imaging tests were performed. At the end of the visit, the rheumatologist established a diagnosis. Finally, a team of three experienced rheumatologists reviewed all the clinical data and defined the diagnoses according to previously validated criteria. The EpiReumaPt dataset, containing data from several questionnaires, various clinical measurements and information from laboratory and imaging tests, comprises an invaluable asset for research. The large amount of information collected from each participant and the large number of participants, with a wide age range covering and being representative of the adults from the entire country, makes EpiReumaPt the largest study of RMDs performed in Portugal.publishersversionpublishe

Both “illness and temptation of the enemy”: melancholy, the medieval patient and the writings of King Duarte of Portugal (r. 1433–38)

Recent historians have rehabilitated King Duarte of Portugal, previously maligned and neglected, as an astute ruler and philosopher. There is still a tendency, however, to view Duarte as a depressive or a hypochondriac, due to his own description of his melancholy in his advice book, the Loyal Counselor. This paper reassesses Duarte's writings, drawing on key approaches in the history of medicine, such as narrative medicine and the history of the patient. It is important to take Duarte's views on his condition seriously, placing them in the medical and theological contexts of his time and avoiding modern retrospective diagnosis. Duarte's writings can be used to explore the impact of plague, doubt and death on the life of a well-educated and conscientious late-medieval ruler