Alinhamento de vocabulário de domínio utilizando os sistemas AML e LogMap

Introduction: In the context of the Semantic Web, interoperability among heterogeneous ontologies is a challenge due to several factors, among which semantic ambiguity and redundancy stand out. To overcome these challenges, systems and algorithms are adopted to align different ontologies. In this study, it is understood that controlled vocabularies are a particular form of ontology. Objective: to obtain a vocabulary resulting from the alignment and fusion of the Vocabularies Scientific Domains and Scientific Areas of the Foundation for Science and Technology, - FCT, European Science Vocabulary - EuroSciVoc and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization - UNESCO nomenclature for fields of Science and Technology, in the Computing Sciences domain, to be used in the IViSSEM project. Methodology: literature review on systems/algorithms for ontology alignment, using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses - PRISMA methodology; alignment of the three vocabularies; and validation of the resulting vocabulary by means of a Delphi study. Results: we proceeded to analyze the 25 ontology alignment systems and variants that participated in at least one track of the Ontology Alignment Evaluation Initiative competition between 2018 and 2019. From these systems, Agreement Maker Light and Log Map were selected to perform the alignment of the three vocabularies, making a cut to the area of Computer Science. Conclusion: The vocabulary was obtained from Agreement Maker Light for having presented a better performance. At the end, a vocabulary with 98 terms was obtained in the Computer Science domain to be adopted by the IViSSEM project. The alignment resulted from the vocabularies used by FCT (Portugal), with the one adopted by the European Union (EuroSciVoc) and another one from the domain of Science & Technology (UNESCO). This result is beneficial to other universities and projects, as well as to FCT itself.Introdução: No contexto da Web Semântica, a interoperabilidade entre ontologias heterogêneas é um desafio devido a diversos fatores entre os quais se destacam a ambiguidade e a redundância semântica. Para superar tais desafios, adota-se sistemas e algoritmos para alinhamento de diferentes ontologias. Neste estudo, entende-se que vocabulários controlados são uma forma particular de ontologias. Objetivo: obter um vocabulário resultante do alinhamento e fusão dos vocabulários Domínios Científicos e Áreas Científicas da Fundação para Ciência e Tecnologia, - FCT, European Science Vocabulary - EuroSciVoc e Organização das Nações Unidas para a Educação, a Ciência e a Cultura - UNESCO nomenclature for fields of Science and Technology, no domínio Ciências da Computação, para ser usado no âmbito do projeto IViSSEM. Metodologia: revisão da literatura sobre sistemas/algoritmos para alinhamento de ontologias, utilizando a metodologia Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses - PRISMA; alinhamento dos três vocabulários; e validação do vocabulário resultante por meio do estudo Delphi. Resultados: procedeu-se à análise dos 25 sistemas de alinhamento de ontologias e variantes que participaram de pelo menos uma track da competição Ontology Alignment Evaluation Iniciative entre 2018 e 2019. Destes sistemas foram selecionados Agreement Maker Light e LogMap para realizar o alinhamento dos três vocabulários, fazendo um recorte para a área da Ciência da Computação. Conclusão: O vocabulário foi obtido a partir do Agreement Maker Light por ter apresentado uma melhor performance. Ao final foi obtido o vocabulário, com 98 termos, no domínio da Ciência da Computação a ser adotado pelo projeto IViSSEM. O alinhamento resultou dos vocabulários utilizados pela FCT (Portugal), com o adotado pela União Europeia (EuroSciVoc) e outro do domínio da Ciência&Tecnologia (UNESCO). Esse resultado é proveitoso para outras universidades e projetos, bem como para a própria FCT

Rice husk, brewer’s spent grain, and vine shoot trimmings as raw materials for sustainable enzyme production

Solid by-products with lignocellulosic structures are considered appropriate substrates for solid-state fermentation (SSF) to produce enzymes with diverse industrial applications. In this work, brewer’s spent grain (BSG), rice husk (RH), and vine shoot trimmings (VSTs) were employed as substrates in SSF with Aspergillus niger CECT 2088 to produce cellulases, xylanases, and amylases. The addition of 2% (NH4)2SO4 and 1% K2HPO4 to by-products had a positive effect on enzyme production. Substrate particle size influenced enzyme activity and the overall highest activities were achieved at the largest particle size (10 mm) of BSG and RH and a size of 4 mm for VSTs. Optimal substrate composition was predicted using a simplex centroid mixture design. The highest activities were obtained using 100% BSG for β-glucosidase (363 U/g) and endo-1,4-β-glucanase (189 U/g), 87% BSG and 13% RH for xylanase (627 U/g), and 72% BSG and 28% RH for amylase (263 U/g). Besides the optimal values found, mixtures of BSG with RH or VSTs proved to be alternative substrates to BSG alone. These findings demonstrate that SSF bioprocessing of BSG individually or in mixtures with RH and VSTs is an efficient and sustainable strategy to produce enzymes of significant industrial interest within the circular economy guidelines.This study was funded by the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR), Next Generation EU, for the period 2021–2026, through the integrated project be@t—Textile Bioeconomy (TC-C12-i01, Sustainable Bioeconomy No. 02/C12-i01/2022), and by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UIDB/04469/2020 unit (DOI 10.54499/UIDB/04469/2020).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

EFFECTS OF EXTERNAL LOADING ON POWER OUTPUT DURING VERTICAL JUMPS: A COMPARISON BETWEEN WATER POLO AND VOLLEYBALL PLAYERS

The purpose of this study was to compare results of the effects of external loading on power output during vertical jumps performed on a force platform by twelve male water polo athletes and ten female volleyball players. Peak power output was calculated from time-force curves during vertical jumps with and without external additional loads corresponding to 0%, 5%, 10% and 15 % of their body weight. The jumps were performed from a squat position, without lower limb counter-movement or arm swings. The results showed no significant differences in peak power output between the different loading conditions for volleyball athletes, but a significant difference between 0% and 10% loading conditions for water polo athletes. This study suggests that for both groups the load that generates maximum power output is body weight

Comparison of attraction patterns of Hermetia illucens (Diptera, Stratiomyidae) associated to buried Rattus norvergicus carcasses with steroid hormones treatment

Hermetia illucens (L.) (Diptera, Stratiomyidae) é uma espécie abundante em todo o continente americano. No entanto, ainda há poucos estudos no Brasil abordando aspectos em relação a sua biologia e ecologia, em particular associados a estudos forenses. Neste trabalho, nós observamos os efeitos de hormônios esteróides na decomposição corporal de Rattus norvergicus, variedade Wistar enterrados na atração de H. illucens. Além da presença de diversas espécies de larvas e adultos de insetos freqüentemente encontrados em carcaças nessas condições, observou-se uma grande quantidade de imaturos de H. illucens. Essa espécie representou aproximadamente 22% de todos os espécimes coletados, tendo aparecido somente nos animais que receberam tratamento com esteróides sexuais dos tipos testosterona, progesterona e estradiol. Dentre esses, a maior abundância foi verificada nos que haviam recebido testosterona (68%). A presença de imaturos de H. illucens, apenas nos animais que receberam o tratamento com esteróides, em experimentos realizados em dois anos consecutivos revela uma possível atração/seleção dessa espécie por corpos com quantidades aumentadas de hormônios sexuais. Esse comportamento pode ser particularmente útil para a entomologia forense no que diz respeito à estimativa do intervalo pós-morte (IPM), particularmente quando tem como base informações sobre o ciclo de vida e ecologia de insetos necrófagos.Hermetia illucens (L.) (Diptera, Stratiomyidae) is an abundant species in the entire American continent. Nevertheless, there are few studies in Brazil dealing with aspects of its biology and ecology, particularly associated with forensic studies. In this study we intended to observe the effects of steroids hormones in the corporal decomposition of buried Rattus norvergicus from the Wistar variety in the attraction of H. illucens. Besides the presence of several insect species commonly found in carcasses, a great amount of immature H. illucens was observed. This species represented approximately 22% of all collected specimens and it was only found in the animals that have received treatment with sexual steroids, such as testosterone, progesterone and estradiol. Among the animals under treatment, the greater abundance was verified in those who had received testosterone (68%). The presence of immatures of H. illucens only in the animals that received hormone treatments in experiments accomplished in two consecutive years strongly suggests a possible attraction of this species for bodies with different amounts of sexual hormones. This behavior can also be relevant for the forensic entomology in regard to the post-mortem interval (PMI) estimation, particularly when the PMI is based on information about the necrophagous insect's life cycle and ecology

Bio-detoxification of mycotoxins by lactic acid bacteria from different food matrices

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) play a key role in the biopreservation of a wide range of fermented food products, such as yogurt, cheese, fermented milks, meat, fish, vegetables (sauerkraut, olives and pickles), certain beer brands, wines and silage, allowing their safe consumption, which gave to these bacteria a GRAS (Generally Recognised as Safe) status. Besides that, the use of LAB in food and feed is a promising strategy to reduce the exposure to dietary mycotoxins, improving their shelf life and reducing health risks, given the unique mycotoxin decontaminating characteristic of some LAB. Mycotoxins present carcinogenic, mutagenic, teratogenic, neurotoxic and immunosuppressive effects over animals and Humans, being the most important ochratoxin A (OTA), aflatoxins (AFB1), trichothecenes, zearalenone (ZEA), fumonisin (FUM) and patulin. In a previous work of our group it was observed OTA biodegradation by some strains of Pediococcus parvulus isolated from Douro wines. So, the aim of this study was to enlarge the screening of the biodetoxification over more mycotoxins besides OTA, including AFB1, and ZEA. This ability was checked in a collection of LAB isolated from vegetable (wine, olives, fruits and silage) and animal (milk and dairy products, sausages) sources. All LAB strains were characterized phenotypically (Gram, catalase) and genotypically. Molecular characterisation of all LAB strains was performed using genomic fingerprinting by MSP- PCR with (GTG)5 and csM13 primers. The identification of the isolates was confirmed by 16S rDNA sequencing. To study the ability of LAB strains to degrade OTA, AFB1 and ZEA, a MRS broth medium was supplemented with 2.0 g/mL of each mycotoxin. For each strain, 2 mL of MRS supplemented with the mycotoxins was inoculated in triplicate with 109 CFU/mL. The culture media and bacterial cells were extracted by the addition of an equal volume of acetonitrile/methanol/acetic acid (78:20:2 v/v/v) to the culture tubes. A 2 mL sample was then collected and filtered into a clean 2 mL vial using PP filters with 0.45 m pores. The samples were preserved at 4 °C until HPLC analysis. Among LAB tested, 10 strains isolated from milk were able to eliminate AFB1, belonging to Lactobacillus casei (7), Lb. paracasei (1), Lb. plantarum (1) and 1 to Leuconostoc mesenteroides. Two strains of Enterococcus faecium and one of Ec. faecalis from sausage eliminated ZEA. Concerning to strains of vegetal origin, one Lb. plantarum isolated from elderberry fruit, one Lb. buchnerii and one Lb. parafarraginis both isolated from silage eliminated ZEA. Other 2 strains of Lb. plantarum from silage were able to degrade both ZEA and OTA, and 1 Lb. buchnerii showed activity over AFB1. These enzymatic activities were also verified genotypically through specific gene PCR and posteriorly confirmed by sequencing analysis. In conclusion, due the ability of some strains of LAB isolated from different sources to eliminate OTA, AFB1 and ZEA one can recognize their potential biotechnological application to reduce the health hazards associated with these mycotoxins. They may be suitable as silage inoculants or as feed additives or even in food industry.Acknowledgements This work was funded by FEDER funds through the COMPETE and by national funds through FCT, Ref. FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-028029 and PTDC/AGR-T EC/3900/2012, respectively. Luís Abrunhosa received support through grant Incentivo/EQB/LA0023/2014 from ON.2 O Novo Nort

Separation of non-ferrous frations of shredded end-of-life vehicles for valorising its alloys

Worldwide the end-of-life vehicles (ELV) generate millions of tons of waste, requiring an adequate and efficient management. The non-ferrous fraction contains essentially aluminium, magnesium and copper alloys, being valorised by metallurgical processors to obtain new metals and alloys. However most of the recovered metals are downcycled, as is the case of aluminium where the recycled products are essentially used to produce less purity casting alloys. New or improved separation technologies are therefore necessary in order to allow an accurate separation of alloys or alloy groups, increasing the value of the non-ferrous streams. In this paper, the composition of the non-ferrous fractions of ELV shredders are assessed with particular relevance for the aluminium and magnesium alloys. Essentially, the main cast and wrought alloys are characterized and their markets and applications are discussed. Based on waste composition, several physical separation and sorting technologies can be applied to improve the products quality, which are here depicted and discussed. Physical processing includes operations such as eddy current and heavy media separations. For sorting alloys contained in the non-ferrous stream, other sensor-based technologies are being developed, such as electromagnetic sensing and novel laser induced breakdown spectroscopy systems, constituting an important contribution for boosting the non-ferrous metals recycling rates

Effects of periodontal therapy on white blood cell count and levels of transforming growth factor beta in serum of subjects with severe periodontitis

This study aimed to investigate the effects of nonsurgical periodontal therapy on white blood cell (WBC) count and levels of transforming growth factor beta (TGF—β) in serum from subjects with severe periodontitis. Serum from 28 subjects with periodontitis (mean age: 34.36±6.24; 32% men) and 27 healthy controls (mean age: 33.18±6.42; 33% men) were collected prior to therapy. Blood samples were obtained from 23 subjects who completed therapy (9—12 months). A well—controlled periodontal treatment protocol was established in three stages: mechanical periodontal therapy (scaling and root planning), reinstrumentation of dental sites, and supportive periodontal therapy. Periodontal and systemic parameters such as the total number of WBCs and TGF—β levels, accessed by enzyme—linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), were included. After therapy, all clinical periodontal parameters decreased (

Bioactivity of different enriched phenolic extracts of wild fruits from Northeastern Portugal: a comparative study

Arbutus unedo, Prunus spinosa, Rosa micrantha and Rosa canina are good sources of phenolic compounds, including anthocyanins. These compounds have potent antioxidant properties, which have been related to anticancer activity. Herein, the in vitro antioxidant and antitumor properties of enriched phenolic extracts (non-anthocyanin phenolic compounds enriched extract- PE and anthocyanins enriched extract- AE) of the mentioned wild fruits were evaluated and compared. PE gave higher bioactive properties than the corresponding AE. It was observed a high capacity of A. unedo phenolic extract to inhibit lipid peroxidation in animal brain homogenates (EC50 = 7.21 µg/mL), as also a high antitumor potential against NCI-H460 human cell line (non-small lung cancer; GI50 = 37.68 µg/mL), which could be related to the presence of galloyl derivatives (exclusively found in this species). The bioactivity of the studied wild fruits proved to be more related to the phenolic compounds profile than to the amounts present in each extract, and could be considered in the design of new formulations of dietary supplements or functional foods.Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) for PEst-OE/AGR/UI0690/2011, PEst-C/QUI/UI0686/2011, BD/78307/2011 (R. Guimarães), BPD/68344/2010 (R. Calhelha) and researcher contract of L. Barros

EFEITOS DA TESTOSTERONA, ESTRADIOL OU PROGESTERONA NA DECOMPOSIÇÃO CORPORAL DE RATOS CASTRADOS

Previous results from our laboratory showed that males and females buried in the same place and in the same environmental conditions, conduct the male bodies to reach complete skeletonization before the female ones. So, it was decided to investigate if castrated male rats submitted to different steroid treatments showed different body decomposition patterns. Fifty male Wistar rats were anesthetized at 21 days of age and 40 of them were castrated while 10 were submitted to sham surgeries. The animals were divided into the following groups: Co- Control (sham surgery); Ca- Castreted; T- Testosterone (castrated + testosterone propionate); E- Estradiol (castrated + estradiol cipionate); P- Progesterone (castrated + progesterone). The animals were killed at 81 days of age in a CO2 chamber and were buried in the same grave. Exhumation was done 120 days after burial. The body decomposition was more advanced in the Group T, decreasingly followed by the Groups P, Co and Ca. The Group E was not considered in the analysis because of the significant if differences in body weight in comparison to the other groups in the time of death. The results indicate that steroid sexual hormones can interfere in the process of the body decomposition. This experimental biological model raises an important implication for forensic purposes, once hormonal profiles can induce different aspects of the body decomposition in the same interval of time, opening a precedent to justify investigation of human material to avoid doubts in the determination of the time since death in criminal investigations.  Resultados prévios do nosso laboratório mostraram que ratos machos e fêmeas, quando sepultados em um mesmo local e sob as mesmas condições ambientais apresentam decomposição corporal diferenciada, com os corpos dos machos atingindo esqueletização completa antes das fêmeas. Então, decidiu-se investigar se ratos machos castrados submetidos a diferentes tratamentos com esteróides sexuais desenvolveriam padrões diferentes de decomposição corporal. Cinqüenta ratos Wistar machos foram anestesiados aos 21 dias de idade e 40 deles foram castrados enquanto 10 foram submetidos à cirurgia sham. Os animais foram divididos nos seguintes grupos: Co- Controle (cirurgia sham); Ca- Castrado; T- Testosterona (castração + propionato de testosterona); E- Estradiol (castração + cipionato de estradiol); P- Progesterona (castração + progesterona). Os animais foram mortos aos 81 dias de idade em câmara de CO2 e foram sepultados no mesmo local. A exumação foi feita 120 dias após o sepultamento. A decomposição corporal estava mais avançada no grupo T, seguindo decrescentemente pelos grupos P, Co e Ca. O grupo E não foi considerado nesta análise devido à diferença significativa no peso corporal no momento da morte em relação aos outros grupos. Os resultados indicaram que os hormônios esteróides sexuais podem interferir no processo de decomposição corporal. Esse modelo biológico experimental apresenta uma importante implicação forense, uma vez que perfis hormonais podem induzir diferentes aspectos na decomposição corporal no mesmo intervalo de tempo, abrindo um precedente para justificar a investigação em material humano para evitar dúvidas na determinação do tempo desde a morte em investigações criminais

A FENCING KINEMATIC ANALYSIS BASED ON COACH’S CRITERIA

The purpose of this study was to identify, based on coach's criteria, upper body and center of mass kinematic variables that lead to a good performance in epee fencing. We used an Optitrack motion capture system to evaluate one skilled amateur fencing athlete performing a lunge in the presence or not of a static opponent. In the presence of a static opponent (target), the individual developed a lower centre of mass forward velocity, a higher epee’s tip forward velocity and improved synchronization between the upper and the lower limbs. The best-performed trials according to coach criteria showed differences in the elbow movement in both the armed and unarmed arm compared to the other trials. Our results highlights the importance of the unarmed arm to lunge performance and corroborate the idea that training with and without the use of a target improve different motor abilities