Perfil nutricional e parâmetros bioquímicos no jejum intermitente

Intermittent Fasting (IF) is a dietary reduction strategy initially practiced during the Ramadan period when fasting from dawn to sunset. Studies in people during Ramadan practice have observed improvements in lipid profile and decreased body fat. The aim of the present study was to analyze biochemical and anthropometric parameters of women practicing regular aerobic exercise before, during and after IF, without dietary intervention. The study lasted two months, with women aged 20 to 35 years who applied the 16-hour IF protocol three times a week for 30 days, then another 30 days with a break in IF, performing daily dietary recall and aerobic exercise an hour, two or three times a week. Sociodemographic, biochemical, dietary, anthropometric and a dietary perception questionnaire were collected before, immediately after and one month after the end of fasting. At the end of the study, there was an increase in creatinine, total cholesterol, LDL and decrease in HDL levels. Weight and waist circumference also decreased, but without changes in fat percentage and without differences in food intake. Similar studies evaluating IF show an improvement in lipid profile and body weight when IF was associated with a calorie-restricted diet, highlighting the importance of performing IF with skilled professional follow-up and the need for further human studies to evaluate its effectiveness.O Jejum Intermitente (JI) é uma estratégia de diminuição da ingestão alimentar, inicialmente praticada durante o período do Ramadã, em que jejuam do amanhecer ao pôr do sol. Estudos em pessoas durante a prática do Ramadã observaram melhoras no perfil lipídico e diminuição da gordura corporal. O objetivo do presente estudo foi analisar parâmetros bioquímicos e antropométricos de mulheres praticantes de exercício físico aeróbico regular antes, imediatamente após e 30 dias após a prática do JI, sem intervenção dietética. O estudo teve duração de dois meses, com mulheres de 20 a 35 anos que aplicaram o protocolo de 16 horas de JI três vezes na semana durante 30 dias, depois mais 30 dias com pausa no JI, realizando recordatório alimentar diário e praticando  exercício aeróbico de uma hora, duas ou três vezes na semana. Foram coletados dados sócio demográficos, bioquímicos, dietéticos, antropométricos e um questionário de percepção da dieta, antes, imediatamente após e um mês após o término do jejum. Ao término do estudo observou-se um aumento nos níveis de creatinina, colesterol total, LDL e diminuição do HDL. O peso e a circunferência da cintura diminuíram, porém sem alterações no percentual de gordura e sem diferenças no consumo alimentar. Estudos semelhantes que avaliaram o JI demonstram a melhora no perfil lipídico e  no peso corporal quando o JI estava associado a dieta com restrição calórica, ressaltando a importância da realização do JI com acompanhamento de profissional qualificado e a necessidade de mais estudos em seres humanos para avaliar sua eficácia.&nbsp

Development of a Web-Based Human Resource Sourcing System for Labour Only Contracts

Nowadays in some areas of Nigeria, it has been noticed that the search for a satisfactory team of labourers (skilled and unskilled) or even the right amount of people to undertake the job has become a laborious activity. Therefore, there is need to build a two-way partnership system linking construction firms with the required skilled labour and vice versa. The aim of this research is to develop a web-based human resource sourcing system for labour only contracts. The study made use of a questionnaire instrument and developed a web-based interface for skilled labour sourcing. The questionnaire was distributed to fifty (50) construction professionals who were selected through a convenience sampling technique. The data collected was analyzed using SPSS v.21. The design of the system was done using hypertext markup language (HTML) for authoring web pages. The study revealed that contractors’ sourcing techniques for skilled labour on construction projects were mostly by referral from colleagues and workers from past projects. The study identified the major barriers in sourcing for skilled labour on construction projects as the unavailability of trained skilled labour. The study revealed that years of experience, wages charged and behavior of the worker were major criteria considered while sourcing for skilled labour on construction projects. In conclusion, the study developed a web based human resource sourcing system for labour only contracts that incorporated the needs of the skilled labour and requirement of construction firms. It was recommended that construction professionals and contractors need to harness the benefits of web-based technologies. In addition, there is need to increase the information and communication technology (ICT) trainings of workers in the construction industry so has to have a successful integration of ICT and the construction industry

Supporting the organisation of a workshop on thyroid disruption – final report

Written by Brunel University London, Institute of Environment, Health and Societies National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, September– 2017. Framework Contract ENV.A.3/FRA/2014/0029 on implementation of the Community strategy on Endocrine Disrupters. This document has been prepared for the European Commission however it reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.This report describes the outcomes of a project that culminated in a workshop on thyroid disruption, held on 29th – 31st March 2017 in Maison-Alfort near Paris, France, on the premises of ANSES. The workshop objectives were: To address and discuss interpretations of experimental laboratory studies, wildlife field data as well as human epidemiological data in relation to the identification of thyroid disrupting substances; and to identify ways forward in addressing potential gaps in the test methods in relation to identification of thyroid disrupting substances.European Commission ENV.A.3/FRA/2014/002

Theory of band gap bowing of disordered substitutional II-VI and III-V semiconductor alloys

For a wide class of technologically relevant compound III-V and II-VI semiconductor materials AC and BC mixed crystals (alloys) of the type A(x)B(1-x)C can be realized. As the electronic properties like the bulk band gap vary continuously with x, any band gap in between that of the pure AC and BC systems can be obtained by choosing the appropriate concentration x, granted that the respective ratio is miscible and thermodynamically stable. In most cases the band gap does not vary linearly with x, but a pronounced bowing behavior as a function of the concentration is observed. In this paper we show that the electronic properties of such A(x)B(1-x)C semiconductors and, in particular, the band gap bowing can well be described and understood starting from empirical tight binding models for the pure AC and BC systems. The electronic properties of the A(x)B(1-x)C system can be described by choosing the tight-binding parameters of the AC or BC system with probabilities x and 1-x, respectively. We demonstrate this by exact diagonalization of finite but large supercells and by means of calculations within the established coherent potential approximation (CPA). We apply this treatment to the II-VI system Cd(x)Zn(1-x)Se, to the III-V system In(x)Ga(1-x)As and to the III-nitride system Ga(x)Al(1-x)N.Comment: 14 pages, 10 figure

Electronic structure and the minimum conductance of a graphene layer on SiO2 from density-functional methods.

The effect of the SiO$_2$ substrate on a graphene film is investigated using realistic but computationally convenient energy-optimized models of the substrate supporting a layer of graphene. The electronic bands are calculated using density-functional methods for several model substrates. This provides an estimate of the substrate-charge effects on the behaviour of the bands near $E_F$, as well as a variation of the equilibrium distance of the graphene sheet. A model of a wavy graphene layer is examined as a possible candidate for understanding the nature of the minimally conducting states in graphene.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure