16 research outputs found
Contribution to the development of product category rules for ceramic bricks
An Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) provides information on a product's environmental performance
along its life cycle. This paper aims to contribute to the development of Product Category Rules
(PCR) specific for ceramic bricks in order to support the establishment of a “cradle to grave” EPD. The
methodology for developing the PCR takes into account ISO 14025, ISO 21930 and EN 15804, and the
environmental profile is based on the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology. In this context, some
core issues like product category definition, impact categories, indicators, cut-off criteria and allocation
criteria are addressed. The selected impact categories for this study were: global warming, ozone layer
depletion, photochemical oxidation, acidification, eutrophication, depletion of abiotic resources and
respiratory inorganics. Indicators of energy and water consumption were also considered, as well as
particle emissions to air. The results obtained from an LCA study on ceramic bricks produced in Portugal,
to support the development of the PCR, show that the use of different fuels in the brick manufacturing
stage has a significant effect in some impact categories. The use of petroleum coke generates higher
impacts than natural gas or biomass. In general, the major environmental impacts occur in the brick
manufacturing stage, mainly due to fuel usage in the firing operation. Particle emissions to air should be
considered as an additional parameter in the EPD, being especially important when solid fuels are used. A
sensitivity analysis of the cut-off criteria options was also conducted, which concluded that a 0.5%
decrease in mass proved to be adequate for adoption, with a significant reduction in the effort required
for data collection
Carbon storage in harvested wood products: implications of different methodological procedures and input data—a case study for Portugal
This study aims to quantify the contribution of the harvested wood products (HWP) to the carbon removals/emissions by the agriculture, forestry and land-use sector (hereafter referred to as HWP contribution) using the tier 1 method proposed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in the 2006 Guidelines (hereafter referred to as GL tier 1 method) and to compare it with the results obtained with the tier 2 method proposed by the IPCC in the Good Practice Guidance for Land Use, LandUse Change and Forestry (hereafter referred to as GPG tier 2 method). The HWP contribution was calculated for three approaches: stock change, production and atmospheric flow. Another objective was to perform a sensitivity analysis in order to identify the calculation procedures and the input data that have the largest impact on the HWP contribution estimates. An uncertainty analysis was also carried out with Monte Carlo simulation. The case study of Portugal was analysed in this study. The HWP contribution obtained with the GL tier 1 method ranged from 150 to 1,240 Gg C year-1, for the period from 1990 to 2004. These results are similar to those obtained with the GPG tier 2 method, except for the production approach, since the GL tier 1 method underestimated carbon accumulation in solid waste disposal sites (SWDS) under this approach. The
most influential calculation procedures and input data were the algorithm used to calculate the change in carbon stocks for the pools that follow a first-order decay, the procedure to estimate the input of carbon to the pool of HWP in SWDS, the procedure to determine the change in carbon stocks of HWP in SWDS for the production approach, the type of carbon stocks considered in SWDS and the conversion factor for wood-based panels.publishe
The contribution of wood products to carbon sequestration in Portugal
Carbon sequestration in wood products in Portugal was estimated for the 1990–2000 period using two accounting approaches: the stock-change and the atmospheric-flow. Calculations rely on historical data for production and trade of wood products, and on typical values for their lifetimes. Carbon sequestration in wood products, calculated by the stock-change approach, increased from 310 Gg C yr–1 in 1990 to 611 Gg C yr–1 in 2000. The estimates of carbon sequestration using the atmospheric-flow approach, in the same period, varied from 322 Gg C yr–1 to 783 Gg C yr–1, and do not show the same increasing trend given by the stock-change approach, as they depend not only on the change in the stocks of wood products but also on their trade. The sensitivity analysis performed shows that the results are significantly affected by the parameters related with the lifetime of the products, the carbon fraction in paper and the biomass conversion factor.Contribution des produits du bois à la séquestration du carbone au Portugal. La séquestration de carbone par les produits du bois au Portugal a été estimée pour la période 1990–2000, par deux approches de calcul: le stock-change et l’atmospheric-flow. Les calculs se basent sur des données historiques de production et de commerce de produits du bois, ainsi que sur les durées de vie caractéristiques de ces produits. La séquestration de carbone par les produits du bois, calculée par l’approche stock-change, a augmenté de 310 Gg C an–1 à 611 Gg C an–1 entre 1990 et 2000. La séquestration de carbone, estimée par l’approche atmospheric flow, pour la même période, a varié entre 322 Gg C an–1 à 783 Gg C an–1, et ne présente pas la même tendance d’augmentation obtenue par l’approche stock-change, vu qu’elle dépend non seulement de la variation des stocks des produits du bois, mais aussi du commerce des produits du bois. Une analyse de sensitivité réalisée montre que les résultats sont significativement affectés par les paramètres liés à la durée de vie des produits, la fraction de carbone dans le papier et le facteur de conversion de la biomasse
Evaluation of the environmental performance of printing and writing paper using life cycle assessment
Comparative life cycle assessment of three representative feed cereals production in the Po Valley (Italy)
The cultivation of three different cereals e wheat, triticale and maize (five classes: 300, 400, 500, 600
and 700) e dedicated to grain production for feed purposes was assessed to quantify their environmental
profiles and identify the most sustainable crop from an environmental perspective. The most
critical processes throughout the life cycle of the cropping systems were also identified. These cereals
were chosen because they are the most widespread cereal crops in the Po Valley (Lombardy region), the
most important agricultural area in Italy.
The standard framework of the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was followed to assess the environmental
performance of the different cropping systems. Several impact categories were evaluated, including
climate change (CC), ozone depletion (OD), terrestrial acidification (TA), freshwater eutrophication (FE),
marine eutrophication (ME), human toxicity (HT), photochemical oxidant formation (POF), terrestrial
ecotoxicity (TEC), freshwater ecotoxicity (FEC), marine ecotoxicity (MEC), water depletion (WD), fossil
depletion (FD) as well as land use as an indicator.
The results showed that the maize class 300 was the cereal with the worst environmental profile in the
base case, considering economic allocation and no environmental burdens related with digestate production.
This scenario presented the most intensive agricultural practices and the lowest biomass yield in
comparison with the other crops. In contrast, the maize classes 600 and 700 were the cereal crops with
the best environmental profiles in most impact categories. The lower requirements of fertiliser (and thus,
fertilisation activities) as well as the higher biomass yield were responsible of these favourable results.
However, according to the environmental results, the selection of the best biomass source depends on
several methodological assumptions such as the functional unit and the allocation criteria considered
(between the grain and the straw) as base for the calculations. Thus, the results of a sensitivity analysis
showed that the choice of a mass allocation instead of economic one caused lower environmental impacts
in all the categories. Moreover, the consideration or not of the environmental burdens related to
the digestate production (the main organic fertiliser used) was also a critical step in the environmental
evaluations. The inclusion of environmental loads related to digestate production caused a notable increase
in the impact of all the cropping systems regardless the cereal and the impact category. This
conclusion could be extrapolated to other systems that exclude the additional burdens allocated to the
production of organic fertilisers
Rapid test detection of anti-infliximab antibodies: performance comparison with three different immunoassays
Background and aims: Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) of infliximab (IFX) and anti-infliximab antibodies (ATIs) is essential for treatment optimisation in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients. The aim of this study was to estimate and compare the agreement and accuracy between a new rapid test and three established enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) to quantify ATIs levels, and to evaluate the impact of exogenous IFX on the performance of these assays.
Methods: We analysed 200 serum samples from 57 IBD outpatients in IFX induction or maintenance therapy at six IBD centres in Portugal. ATI levels were quantified using the rapid test Quantum Blue® (QB) Anti-Infliximab (Bühlmann) and three established ELISAs: In-House, Theradiag (Lisa Tracker Anti-Infliximab), and Immundiagnostik (IDKmonitor Infliximab). ATIs were quantified in patients' serum samples and spiked samples with exogenous IFX, based on analytical and clinical cutoffs. Qualitative agreement and accuracy were estimated by Cohen's kappa (k) with 95% confidence intervals.
Results: ATIs quantification with clinical cutoffs showed a slight agreement between QB rapid test and In-House [k = 0.163 (0.051-0.276)] and Immundiagnostik [k = 0.085 (0.000-0.177)]. Regarding IFX/ATIs status, the QB rapid test showed a substantial agreement with Theradiag [k = 0.808 (0.729-0.888)] and a fair agreement with In-House [k = 0.343 (0.254-0.431)] and Immundiagnostik [k = 0.217 (0.138-0.297)]. The QB rapid test could not detect ATI-positive levels in samples with exogenous IFX at 5-300 µg/ml. Interference on ATIs detection was observed at exogenous IFX ⩾30 µg/ml for In-house and Immundiagnostik assays.
Conclusion: QB rapid test is only suitable to detect ATI-positive levels in the absence of IFX.The authors disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This work was funded in part by the Portuguese IBD Study Group (GEDII), and in part by PDE/BDE/114583/2016, from Portuguese national funds by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Detecção de cardiotoxicidade subclínica induzida por trastuzumabe em portadoras de câncer de mama Detection of early sub-clinical trastuzumab-induced cardiotoxicity in breast cancer patients
FUNDAMENTO: O trastuzumabe (TZB) é um anticorpo monoclonal humanizado recombinante usado no tratamento do câncer de mama HER2-positivo, com reconhecida cardiotoxicidade associada. Os métodos para sua detecção subclínica precoce não estão bem estabelecidos. OBJETIVO: Avaliar a cardiotoxicidade induzida por TZB em pacientes (pts) portadoras de câncer de mama acompanhadas por um período de 3 meses de tratamento. MÉTODOS: Estudo prospectivo de pts consecutivas em tratamento com TZB para câncer de mama HER2-positivo avançado, admitidas entre maio e setembro de 2010. Foram comparados dados clínicos, laboratoriais e ecocardiográficos antes da introdução de TZB e 3 meses após o início do tratamento com a droga. Foram estudadas a deterioração da função sistólica do ventrículo esquerdo (segundo critérios do Comitê de Avaliação e Revisão Cardíaca) e a função diastólica (classificação da Sociedade Americana de Ecocardiografia). RESULTADOS: Estavam disponíveis dados de 51 pacientes, cuja idade média era de 55,4±14,0 anos. Nenhuma paciente apresentou insuficiência cardíaca sintomática no terceiro mês. Não houve diferenças na fração de ejeção do ventrículo esquerdo (FEVE) aos 3 meses (69,3 ± 7,4 contra 67,1 ± 6,5%, p > 0,05), tendo sido observada redução em 57,9% pts (em apenas uma a FEVE foi BACKGROUND: Trastuzumab (TZB) is a recombinant humanized monoclonal antibody, used for the treatment of HER2-positive breast cancer, with recognized associated-cardiotoxicity. The methods for its early sub-clinical detection are not well defined. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate TZB-induced cardiotoxicity in patients (pts) with breast cancer followed for a 3-month period of treatment. METHODS: Prospective study of consecutive pts treated with TZB for advanced HER2-positive breast cancer enrolled between May-September/2010. A comparison of clinical, laboratory and echocardiographic data, prior to and at the 3rd month after starting TZB was performed. Left ventricular systolic function deterioration (Cardiac Review and Evaluation Committee criteria) and diastolic function (American Society of Echocardiography classification) were studied. RESULTS: Data were available for 51 women, mean age = 55.4 ± 14.0y. At the 3rd month, no patient had symptomatic heart failure. Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) did not differ at 3 months (69.3 ± 7.4 vs. 67.1 ± 6.5%, p > 0.05), decreasing in 57.9% pts (only one to LVEF < 55%). There was a significant increase in the E/e' ratio (3.9 ± 0.8 vs. 8.0 ± 1.9, p < 0,001) due to an e' velocity reduction (0.19 ± 0.02 vs. 0.10 ± 0.03, p < 0.001). Other diastolic parameters remained unchanged. Both the left atrial and the left ventricular volumes remained unchanged. N-terminal pro-B type natriuretic peptide levels did not increase. During the follow up period two pts died and two were admitted to the hospital, all for non-cardiovascular causes. CONCLUSIONS: During the first 3 months of TZB treatment none of the pts presented overt heart failure or significant LVEF deterioration. A significant reduction in the E/e' ratio was detected, but neither the loading parameters nor LVEF changed significantly
Detection of Early Sub-Clinical Trastuzumab-Induced Cardiotoxicity in Breast Cancer Patients
FUNDAMENTO: O trastuzumabe (TZB) é um anticorpo monoclonal humanizado recombinante usado no tratamento do câncer de mama HER2-positivo, com reconhecida cardiotoxicidade associada. Os métodos para sua detecção subclínica precoce não estão bem estabelecidos. OBJETIVO: Avaliar a cardiotoxicidade induzida por TZB em pacientes (pts) portadoras de câncer de mama acompanhadas por um período de 3 meses de tratamento. MÉTODOS: Estudo prospectivo de pts consecutivas em tratamento com TZB para câncer de mama HER2-positivo avançado, admitidas entre maio e setembro de 2010. Foram comparados dados clínicos, laboratoriais e ecocardiográficos antes da introdução de TZB e 3 meses após o início do tratamento com a droga. Foram estudadas a deterioração da função sistólica do ventrículo esquerdo (segundo critérios do Comitê de Avaliação e Revisão Cardíaca) e a função diastólica (classificação da Sociedade Americana de Ecocardiografia). RESULTADOS: Estavam disponíveis dados de 51 pacientes, cuja idade média era de 55,4±14,0 anos. Nenhuma paciente apresentou insuficiência cardíaca sintomática no terceiro mês. Não houve diferenças na fração de ejeção do ventrículo esquerdo (FEVE) aos 3 meses (69,3 ± 7,4 contra 67,1 ± 6,5%, p > 0,05), tendo sido observada redução em 57,9% pts (em apenas uma a FEVE foi < 55%). Houve aumento significativo da relação E/e' (3,9 ± 0,8 contra 8,0 ± 1,9, p < 0,001) devido a uma redução da velocidade e' (0,19 ± 0,02 contra 0,10 ± 0,03, p < 0,001). Os demais parâmetros diastólicos permaneceram inalterados. Tanto o volume atrial esquerdo quanto o ventricular esquerdo permaneceram inalterados. Não houve aumento dos níveis de peptídeo natriurético tipo pró-B N-terminal. Durante o período de seguimento, duas pacientes morreram e duas foram internadas, todas por causas não cardiovasculares. CONCLUSÃO: Durante os três primeiros meses de tratamento com TZB, nenhuma das pacientes apresentou insuficiência cardíaca franca ou deterioração significativa da FEVE. Detectou-se redução significativa da relação e/e', porém sem alterações importantes dos parâmetros de carga e da FEVE