Innovative Tourism Partnership Models: The Case of Nautical Stations in Portugal and Spain

This chapter provides a deeper insight into the concept of a nautical station. More specifically, it tries to determine the importance of partnership models defined by digital platforms as a tool for a cooperation strategy in the development of new products; such is the case of nautical tourism in Portugal, a coastal nation in southwestern Europe. With this objective in mind and framed by the concept of the nautical station as a starting point, a descriptive analysis explores this topic. The case of Spain, with the development of the Nautical Resorts Association, is a model for best practice that must be not replicated but adapted to the situation in Portugal. This chapter advocates that nautical tourism, as a strategic tourist product for Portugal, will gain more prominence and strength if supported by a collaboration model between the various stakeholders of the tourism system framed by partnership models

Real-time quantitative PCR with SYBR Green I detection for estimating copy numbers of nine drug resistance candidate genes in Plasmodium falciparum

BACKGROUND: Evaluating copy numbers of given genes in Plasmodium falciparum parasites is of major importance for laboratory-based studies or epidemiological surveys. For instance, pfmdr1 gene amplification has been associated with resistance to quinine derivatives and several genes involved in anti-oxidant defence may play an important role in resistance to antimalarial drugs, although their potential involvement has been overlooked. METHODS: The (ΔΔ)Ct method of relative quantification using real-time quantitative PCR with SYBR Green I detection was adapted and optimized to estimate copy numbers of three genes previously indicated as putative candidates of resistance to quinolines and artemisinin derivatives: pfmdr1, pfatp6 (SERCA) and pftctp, and in six further genes involved in oxidative stress responses. RESULTS: Using carefully designed specific RT-qPCR oligonucleotides, the methods were optimized for each gene and validated by the accurate measure of previously known number of copies of the pfmdr1 gene in the laboratory reference strains P. falciparum 3D7 and Dd2. Subsequently, Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) were developed to the remaining genes under study and successfully applied to DNA obtained from dried filter blood spots of field isolates of P. falciparum collected in São Tomé & Principe, West Africa. CONCLUSION: The SOPs reported here may be used as a high throughput tool to investigate the role of these drug resistance gene candidates in laboratory studies or large scale epidemiological surveys

Predominância lateral e atividades motoras: um estudo em idade pré-escolar

O objetivo deste estudo foi identificar a preferência manual de crianças em idade pré-escolar, de 3 a 5 anos, e caraterizar o contributo de atividades de expressão motora na definição da lateralidade. O estudo caracterizou-se como uma pesquisa de natureza quantitativa, envolvendo 16 crianças da educação pré-escolar, 10 do género feminino e 6 do género masculino. Como instrumento de recolha de dados, optou-se pela utilização do teste Card-reaching task (Carlier et al. 2006, adaptada de Bishop et al., 1996) e do Teste de preferência manual de Van Strien, 2002 (adaptado). Com base nos resultados: i) constatou-se que a maturação parece ser um fator determinante da lateralidade, já que o índice de preferência manual evidenciou uma correlação com a idade, indicando que as crianças mais velhas são mais lateralizadas que as mais novas; ii) observou-se o predomínio da destralidade em todas as idades e em ambos os géneros; iii) verificou-se que o género feminino demonstrou uma maior definição da lateralidade quando comparado com o género masculino e iv) concluiu-se que o número de sessões de atividade motora realizadas poderão não ter sido suficientes para obter resultados que nos permitam atestar o contributo das mesmas na definição da lateralidade de crianças em idade pré-escolar, ainda que possam ter contribuído para alargar o seu vocabulário motor.The objective of this study was to identify the manual preference of children in preschool age, 3-5 years, and characterize the contribution of motor expression activities in the definition of laterality. The study was characterized as a quantitative research involving 16 children of preschool education, 10 female and 6 male gender. As data collection instrument, it was decided to use the Card-reaching task test (Carlier et al., 2006, adapted from Bishop et al., 1996) and Hand Preference Test Van Strien, 2002, (adapted). Based on the results: i) it was found that the maturation appears to be a determinant of laterality, since the manual preference index showed a correlation with age, indicating that older children are more lateralized that younger; ii) noted the predominance of destralidade at all ages and both genders; iii) it was found that the females showed a greater definition of handedness when compared to the male gender and iv) it was concluded that the number of motor activity sessions may not have been sufficient to obtain results that allow us attest to the contribution the same definition in the laterality of children of preschool age, even though they may have contributed to extend its motor vocabulary.Le but de cette étude était d’identifier la préférence manuelle des enfants d’âge préscolaire, les 3-5 ans et de caractériser la contribution des activités d’expression motorr dans la définition de la latéralité. L’étude a été caractérisé comme une étude quantitative impliquant 16 enfants de l’éducation préscolaire, 10 femmes et 6 sexe masculin. Comme instrument de collecte de données, il a été décidé d’utiliser le test de carte de tâche envergure (Carlier et al., 2006, adapté de Bishop et al., 1996) et de la préférence manuelle test Van Strien 2002 (adapté). Basé sur les résultats: i) il a été constaté que la maturation semble être un facteur déterminant de la latéralité, comme l’indice d’emploi de préférence a montré une corrélation avec l’âge, ce qui indique que les enfants plus âgés sont plus latéralisés que le plus jeune; ii) a noté la prédominance de destralidade à tous les âges et des deux sexes; iii) il a été constaté que les femelles ont montré une plus grande définition de l’impartialité par rapport à l’égalité entre les hommes et iv) il a été conclu que le nombre de séances d’activité de moteur peut ne pas avoir été suffisante pour obtenir des résultats qui nous permettent attestons à la contribution la même définition dans la latéralité des enfants d’âge préscolaire, même si elles peuvent avoir contribué à étendre son vocabulaire moteur

O desenvolvimento de competências pessoais e sociais na pessoa com atraso mental e suas implicações

Apesar dos diferentes estudos e das amplas reformas da Educação Especial, uma questão prevalece sobre todas as outras - o desenvolvimento pessoal e social da criança com Atraso Mental, nomeadamente a criança multideficiente. A Escola Inclusiva, a educação em ambientes o menos restritivos possível e a interação com pares revelam-se essenciais para que possamos falar de qualidade de vida. A articulação com todos os intervenientes no processo educativo, tomando a família como um parceiro de excelência, é, sem dúvida, sinónimo de enriquecimento mútuo. O desenvolvimento de competências pessoais e sociais na criança com multideficiência implica uma reflexão contínua sobre a intervenção e a criação/implementação de metodologias e estratégias que assegurem a cada criança a sua condição enquanto indivíduo e cidadão com direito ao sucesso. Neste estudo será analisado o impacto de uma intervenção individualizada, organizada e implementada de forma sistemática para a promoção da aquisição de competências pessoais e sociais na criança multideficiente

Entre o ser e o saber: a importância das competências sociais no Jardim de Infância

Relatório de Prática Profissional Supervisionada apresentado à Escola Superior de Educação de Lisboa para obtenção do grau de mestre em Educação Pré-EscolarO presente relatório, de caráter crítico e reflexivo, traduz o culminar do processo vivenciado no âmbito da Prática Profissional Supervisionada (PPS) em contexto de Jardim de Infância (JI) do Mestrado em Educação Pré-Escolar (MEPE). Para retratar este percurso, este relatório contempla a caracterização do contexto onde desenvolvi a minha prática, a análise da ação, bem como a investigação que realizei em torno da problemática que considerei significativa face ao grupo. Sabendo que o trajeto de vida de um indivíduo acontece em contacto com o outro e, que estas crianças estavam no início dessa caminhada, surgiram algumas inquietudes sobre os seus comportamentos em momentos de interação social e a dificuldade da equipa em geri-los. Propus-me, então, a refletir sobre a importância das competências sociais em JI e a olhar para o meu papel, enquanto (futura) educadora de infância de forma mais ponderada e a refletir sobre o que considero ser essencial proporcionar às crianças com as quais me cruzarei. Assim, o relatório reflete a problemática “Entre o ser e o saber: A importância das competências socias no Jardim de Infância”, através da qual reflito sobre as competências sociais em JI, a sua importância e o papel do educador no desenvolvimento das mesmas. Para dar resposta às minhas inquietações, realizei uma Investigação-Ação em que recorri a diferentes técnicas de recolha de dados: a observação direta da ação desenvolvida durante a PPS, em termos gerais, e das estratégias utilizadas para a gestão das dinâmicas de grupo, em particular, dois inquéritos por questionário realizados à Educadora Cooperante (EC) e a consulta documental. Através da triangulação dos dados reunidos, foi possível compreender que as competências sociais detêm um papel fundamental em contexto de sala de atividades pois permitem apoiar a criança no estabelecimento das suas interações sociais. Para isso o educador deve apropriar-se de um conjunto de estratégias e adequá-las permanentemente dado que estas nem sempre têm os mesmos resultados ao longo do tempo e podem, também, não resultar com outros grupos de crianças. O trabalho desenvolvido permitiu ainda constatar que o papel do educador passa por dar as bases essenciais ao futuro da criança, ajudando-a a experienciar estas competências sociais na interação com o outro, para a ajudar a tornar-se um cidadão do futuro. Ao estar emersa num processo de reflexão contínuo sobre a minha ação, refletindo sobre o meu futuro profissional, no presente relatório apresento ainda uma reflexão crítica sobre a (re)construção da minha identidade profissional.ABSTRACT This critical and reflective report reflects my Supervised Professional Practice in the kindergarten of my master degree in preschool education. This report contemplates the context characterization where I developed my practice, the analysis of the action, as well as the research I developed around the problematic I considered significant to the group. Knowing that the life path of an individual happens in contact with other, and these children were at the beginning of that path, some concerns emerged about their behavior during social interaction and the team’s difficulty on managing it. In this way, I proposed myself to reflect about the social skills in the kindergarten and also my role as an intern and kindergarten teacher. In that way, the report reflects the problematic "Between being and knowing: The importance of social skills in kindergarten", through which I reflect the social skills in kindergarten, its importance and the educator’s role in its development. In order to answer my concerns, I made an Action-Investigation in which I used different techniques to collect data: direct observation of the developed action during the SPP, in general terms, and the strategies used to manage group dynamics, in particular, two inquiries by questionnaires to the Cooperative Educator and documentary consultation. Through the triangulation of the collected data, it was possible to understand that the social skills play a fundamental role in the activities room because it allows supporting the child on the establishment of their social interactions. In order to do that, the educator must gather strategies and adapt them permanently as they don’t always have the same results over time and may not work with other groups of children. The work developed also presented that the educator’s role is to provide essential basis for the child’s future, helping them experiencing these social skills in interaction with each other, in order to help them becoming future’s citizen. Lastly, due to my reflective process during my Supervised Professional Practice I will present the (re)construction of my professional identity.N/

Mechanism of Antifungal Activity by 5-Aminoimidazole-4-Carbohydrazonamide Derivatives against Candida albicans and Candida krusei

Systemic mycoses are one major cause of morbidity/mortality among immunocompromised/debilitated individuals. Studying the mechanism of action is a strategy to develop safer/potent antifungals, warning resistance emergence. The major goal of this study was to elucidate the mechanism of action of three (Z)-5-amino-N’-aryl-1-methyl-1H-imidazole-4-carbohydrazonamides (2h, 2k, 2l) that had previously demonstrated strong antifungal activity against Candida krusei and C. albicans ATCC strains. Activity was confirmed against clinical isolates, susceptible or resistant to fluconazole by broth microdilution assay. Ergosterol content (HPLC-DAD), mitochondrial dehydrogenase activity (MTT), reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation (flow cytometry), germ tube inhibition and drug interaction were evaluated. None of the compounds inhibited ergosterol synthesis. Ascorbic acid reduced the antifungal effect of compounds and significantly decreased ROS production. The metabolic viability of C. krusei was significantly reduced for values of 2MIC. Compounds 2h and 2k caused a significant increase in ROS production for MIC values while for 2l a significant increase was only observed for concentrations above MIC. ROS production seems to be involved in antifungal activity and the higher activity against C. krusei versus C. albicans may be related to their unequal sensitivity to different ROS. No synergism with fluconazole or amphotericin was observed, but the association of 2h with fluconazole might be valuable due to the significant inhibition of the dimorphic transition, a C. albicans virulence mechanism.This research was partially supported by national funds through FCT—Foundation for Sci ence and Technology within the scope of UID/Multi/04546/2019, UIDB/04423/2020, UIDB/50006/2020, UID/QUI/00686/2020

Soluble human Suppression of Tumorigenicity 2 is associated with endoscopic activity in patients with moderate-to-severe ulcerative colitis treated with golimumab

Suppressor of Tumorigenicity 2 (ST2) is an IL33 receptor detected in the mucosa and serum of ulcerative colitis (UC) patients. We evaluated soluble ST2 (sST2) as a surrogate biomarker of disease outcome and therapeutic response, in moderate-to-severe UC patients treated with golimumab.Agência financiadora Merck Sharp and Dohme, Lda, Portugal MK8259-22info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Efficacy, Stability, and Safety Evaluation of New Polyphenolic Xanthones Towards Identification of Bioactive Compounds to Fight Skin Photoaging

Antioxidants have long been used in the cosmetic industry to prevent skin photoaging, which is mediated by oxidative stress, making the search for new antioxidant compounds highly desirable in this field. Naturally occurring xanthones are polyphenolic compounds that can be found in microorganisms, fungi, lichens, and some higher plants. This class of polyphenols has a privileged scaffold that grants them several biological activities. We have previously identified simple oxygenated xanthones as promising antioxidants and disclosed as hit, 1,2-dihydroxyxanthone (1). Herein, we synthesized and studied the potential of xanthones with different polyoxygenated patterns as skin antiphotoaging ingredients. In the DPPH antioxidant assay, two newly synthesized derivatives showed IC₅₀ values in the same range as ascorbic acid. The synthesized xanthones were discovered to be excellent tyrosinase inhibitors and weak to moderate collagenase and elastase inhibitors but no activity was revealed against hyaluronidase. Their metal-chelating effect (FeCl₃ and CuCl₂) as well as their stability at different pH values were characterized to understand their potential to be used as future cosmetic active agents. Among the synthesized polyoxygenated xanthones, 1,2-dihydroxyxanthone (1) was reinforced as the most promising, exhibiting a dual ability to protect the skin against UV damage by combining antioxidant/metal-chelating properties with UV-filter capacity and revealed to be more stable in the pH range that is close to the pH of the skin. Lastly, the phototoxicity of 1,2-dihydroxyxanthone (1) was evaluated in a human keratinocyte cell line and no phototoxicity was observed in the concentration range tested.This research was supported by national funds through FCT, Foundation for Science and Technology, within the scope of UIDB/04423/2020 and UIDP/04423/2020 under the project PTDC/SAU-PUB/28736/2017 (reference POCI-01-0145-FEDER-028736), cofinanced by COMPETE 2020, Portugal 2020 and the European Union through the ERDF and by FCT through national funds, as well as CHIRALBIOACTIVE-PI-3RL-IINFACTS-2019, and supported by the Applied Molecular Biosciences Unit-UCIBIO which is financed by national funds from FCT/MCTES (UID/Multi/04378/2019). Thanks are also due to FCT, the European Union, QREN, FEDER, COMPETE, by funding cE3c center (Ref. UID/BIA/00329/2019) and Direcao Regional da Ciencia e Tecnologia (Azores Government) by funding Azorean Biodiversity Group.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio