Theoretical study of the influence of salt doping in the functioning of OLEDs

One of the strategies to improve the efficiency of organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) is to dope the active organic semiconducting layer with inorganic salts, leading to the development of a hybrid organic/inorganic hetero-structure. However, it is hard to know from the experiments how each one of the electronic processes underlying the functioning of OLEDs are affected by the accumulation of inorganic ions of different sign at both organic/electrode interfaces. In order to assess these effects, we performed computer simulations by using a multi-scale model that combines quantum molecular dynamics calculations at atomistic scale with Monte Carlo calculations at mesoscopic scale. We focus our attention on the main differences obtained between doped and pristine organic layers, when bipolar charge injection occurs. Our results show a significant drop on the turn-on applied electric field while maintaining rapid response to the applied field as well as a clear increase in recombination rate and recombination efficiency far from the electrodes for the doped situation, which are responsible for the dramatic improvement of doped OLED performance found in the experiments.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) – Programa Operacional “Ciência , Tecnologia, Inovação” – CONC-REEQ/443/EEI/2005, SFRH/BD/62536/200

Wearable biopotential measurement using the TI ADS1198 analog front-end and textile electrodes : signal conditioning and signal quality assessment

The development of mobile systems for monitoring bioelectric signals outside a hospital environment involves many challenges that do not arise when it is in a controlled environment, like a hospital. The dimensions of these systems are an important factor to consider in order to facilitate their use without interfering with the daily activities of individuals. The purpose of this work is the implementation of a single-supply battery-powered, low power ECG/EMG signal monitoring system based on the ADS1198 Analog Front-End from Texas Instruments. The system was designed to acquire ECG signals from three electrodes using the integrated Right-Leg-Drive (RLD) circuit from the ADS1198. The developed analog front-end was connected for testing purposes through the SPI interface to a NI-USB 8451 board and signals were acquired using LabVIEW. The circuit was tested in several situations and proved to provide high quality signals using textile integrated electrodes and conventional disposable gel electrodes.FEDER- “Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade – COMPETE”, FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, projects PEst-C/CTM/UI0264/2011 and PTDC/EEA-ELC/70803/2006, and Instituto de Telecomunicaçõe

Continuous health monitoring using e-textile integrated biosensors

In this work, continuous health monitoring for disabled or elderly people is proposed using textile integrated electrodes for ECG measurement. Other applications, such as EMG or skin impedance measurement are also envisaged. The paper specifically describes a shirt integrating electrodes for ECG measurement that has been tested in several conditions. The techniques for integration of ECG electrodes can be directly applied for production of EMG or skin-impedance electrodes.Signal processing techniques for heart rate value extraction and to deal with low-quality signal or motion artefacts are being tested and will also be described. Results show that signals acquired with the shirt are comparable to signals acquired with conventional gel electrodes. The complete integration of the electrodes into clothing may have a very interesting psychological benefit, but some issues related to comfort and daily use have to be further investigated.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT

The effects of climate change on the distribution of South American antbirds (Thamnophilus punctatus complex) as affected by niche divergences and contact zone interactions between species

Several studies have shown that climatic change has been accelerating due to human activities, leading to dramatic effects on biodiversity. Modeling studies describe how species have reacted in the past to climatic change, and this information can help us to understand the degree of biotic susceptibility to current and future climatic change. This work aims to determine the effects of past, current and future climatic changes on the geographic distribution of the species complex Thamnophilus punctatus, a bird clade widely distributed across Neotropical dry forests. We also investigate if species that are phylogenetically similar have comparable climatic niches and, consequently, can be expected to respond similarly to climatic change. For this purpose, we calculated similarity, niche overlap, equivalence and genetic distance between all species, modeling their geographic distributions during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) as well as under current conditions and future (2050-2080) scenarios. Our results indicate that there are differences in responses to climatic changes from the LGM to the present among the five species of the T. punctatus complex and that the niches in the measured dimensions are not conserved among the studied species. We therefore suggest that the adequate environmental space of taxa of a widely distributed lineage can be shaped in distinct way, regardless of how closely related their species are or how much their niches overlap. Competitive exclusion in zones of contact is an important factor determining the geographical range of the species of the Thamnophilus punctatus complex, particularly for the very closely related species T. sticturus, T. pelzelni and T. ambiguus.Peer reviewe

Ergonomics in "remote work" activities: a workstation adaptation case study in Brazil

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic decreed by the outbreak of the new coronavirus culminated in the need to implement jobs in the homes of employees who had to adhere to the “remote work” style, due to social isolation actions in Brazil. Many of the employees started to work in the absence of adequate working conditions in their homes, impacting the three dimensions of ergonomics, i.e., physical, organizational and cognitive. The objective of this chapter is to report the adjustments made in a workplace after the change of modality from face-to-face (f2f) activities to “remote work” after the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, aiming to adopt actions aimed at ergonomics. The research was carried out with a professional in the area of Environmental and Sanitary Engineering who started remote work in March 2020. The work is of a qualitative nature, using photos to illustrate the changes occurring before and after the installation of the equipments and reports on strategies to improve working conditions in the “remote work”. The cost of physical adaptations was also computed. The most reported complaints collected by the professional were back pain, neck, forearm, wrist and eye pain, in addition to mental fatigue. The necessary equipment and furniture were acquired for the physical adaptation of the workspace. Issues of working hours, days off, means of communication were also addressed, but aspects of cognitive and organizational ergonomics must have the participation of the entire work group to achieve effective results. The accompaniment of a specialized technical professional would be important for the establishment of further assertive actions, seeking the productivity and quality of life of the employee.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Evolutionary history of the Pectoral Sparrow Arremon taciturnus : evidence for diversification during the Late Pleistocene

We focus on reconstructing a spatiotemporal scenario of diversification of a widespread South American species, the Pectoral Sparrow Arremon taciturnus (Aves: Passerellidae). This species is widely distributed in both the humid and the dry forests of South America and therefore provides an interesting model for understanding the connection between different biomes of South America. We examined nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial genes Cytochrome b (cyt-b) and NADH subunit 2 (ND2) from 107 specimens, and one nuclear marker (intron 7 of the beta-fibrinogen gene) from a subset of samples collected across the distribution ranges of A. t. taciturnus and A. t. nigrirostris. Six major lineages were recovered in the phylogenies that displayed high levels of variance of allele frequencies and corresponded to distinct geographical locations. The estimation of divergence times provided evidence that diversification of the six lineages of the Pectoral Sparrow occurred throughout the Late Pleistocene across major cis-Andean biomes and Amazonian interfluves. Our dataset for A. taciturnus provides further evidence that rivers in Amazonia constitute barriers promoting allopatric speciation, with occasional sharing of alleles among lineages, particularly those with adjacent distributions.Peer reviewe

Robust gap repair in the contractile ring ensures timely completion of cytokinesis

Cytokinesis in animal cells requires the constriction of an actomyosin contractile ring, whose architecture and mechanism remain poorly understood. We use laser microsurgery to explore the biophysical properties of constricting rings in Caenorhabditis elegans embryos. Laser cutting causes rings to snap open. However, instead of disintegrating, ring topology recovers and constriction proceeds. In response to severing, a finite gap forms and is repaired by recruitment of new material in an actin polymerization-dependent manner. An open ring is able to constrict, and rings repair from successive cuts. After gap repair, an increase in constriction velocity allows cytokinesis to complete at the same time as controls. Our analysis demonstrates that tension in the ring increases while net cortical tension at the site of ingression decreases throughout constriction and suggests that cytokinesis is accomplished by contractile modules that assemble and contract autonomously, enabling local repair of the actomyosin network. Consequently, cytokinesis is a highly robust process impervious to discontinuities in contractile ring structure.European Research Council grant: (640553); Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional (FEDER) funds: (Operational Competitiveness Program - COMPETE); Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia grant:(NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-000003); Fundação Luso-Americana para o Desenvolvimento (Life Science 2020); Louis-Jeantet Young Investigator Award; European Social Fund (Programa Operacional Temático Potencial Type 4.2); Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (Quadro de Referência Estratégico Nacional - FEDER).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

How do Robins Erithacus rubecula resident in Iberia respond to seasonal flooding by conspecific migrants?

Inexistent

Coronary computed tomography angiography-adapted Leaman score as a tool to noninvasively quantify total coronary atherosclerotic burden

To describe a coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA)-adapted Leaman score (CT-LeSc) as a tool to quantify total coronary atherosclerotic burden with information regarding localization, type of plaque and degree of stenosis and to identify clinical predictors of a high coronary atherosclerotic burden as assessed by the CT-LeSc. Single center prospective registry including a total of 772 consecutive patients undergoing CCTA (Dual-source CT) from April 2011 to March 2012. For the purpose of this study, 581 stable patients referred for suspected coronary artery disease (CAD) without previous myocardial infarction or revascularization procedures were included. Pre-test CAD probability was determined using both the Diamond-Forrester extended CAD consortium method (DF-CAD consortium model) and the Morise score. Cardiovascular risk was assessed with the HeartScore. The cut-off for the 3rd tercile (CT-LeSc ≥8.3) was used to define a population with a high coronary atherosclerotic burden. The median CT-LeSc in this population (n = 581, 8,136 coronary segments evaluated; mean age 57.6 ± 11.1; 55.8 % males; 14.6 % with diabetes) was 2.2 (IQR 0-6.8). In patients with CAD (n = 341), the median CT-LeSc was 5.8 (IQR 3.2-9.6). Among patients with nonobstructive CAD, most were classified in the lowest terciles (T1, 43.0 %; T2, 36.1 %), but 20.9 % were in the highest tercile (T3). The majority of the patients with obstructive CAD were classified in T3 (78.2 %), but 21.8 % had a CT-LeSc in lower terciles (T1 or T2). The independent predictors of a high CT-LeSc were: Male sex (OR 1.73; 95 % CI 1.04-2.90) diabetes (OR 2.91; 95 % CI 1.61-5.23), hypertension (OR 2.54; 95 % CI 1.40-4.63), Morise score ≥16 (OR 1.97; 95 % CI 1.06-3.67) and HeartScore ≥5 (OR 2.42; 95 % CI 1.41-4.14). We described a cardiac CT adapted Leaman score as a tool to quantify total (obstructive and nonobstructive) coronary atherosclerotic burden, reflecting the comprehensive information about localization, degree of stenosis and type of plaque provided by CCTA. Male sex, hypertension, diabetes, a HeartScore ≥5 % and a Morise score ≥16 were associated with a high coronary atherosclerotic burden, as assessed by the CT-LeSc. About one fifth of the patients with nonobstructive CAD had a CT-LeSc in the highest tercile, and this could potentially lead to a reclass

Prevalence and predictors of coronary artery disease in patients with a calcium score of zero

The absence of coronary calcification is associated with an excellent prognosis. However, a calcium score of zero does not exclude the presence of coronary artery disease (CAD) or the possibility of future cardiovascular events. Our aim was to study the prevalence and predictors of coronary artery disease in patients with a calcium score of zero. Prospective registry consisted of 3,012 consecutive patients that underwent cardiac CT (dual source CT). Stable patients referred for evaluation of possible CAD that had a calcium score of zero (n = 864) were selected for this analysis. The variables that were statistically significant were included in a multivariable logistic regression model. From 864 patients with a calcium score of zero, 107 (12.4 %) had coronary plaques on the contrast CT (10.8 %, n = 93 with nonobstructive CAD and 1.6 %, n = 14 with obstructive CAD). By logistic regression analysis, the independent predictors of CAD in this population were age >55 years [odds ratio (OR) 1.63 (1.05-2.52)], hypertension [OR 1.64 (1.05-2.56)] and dyslipidemia [OR 1.54 (1.00-2.36)]. In the presence of these 3 variables, the probability of having coronary plaques was 21 %. The absence of coronary artery calcification does not exclude the presence of coron