Dural and Leptomeningeal Spine Metastases of Breast Cancer

We present a case of a 57-year-old female diagnosed with invasive ductal breast cancer, which was treated and in remission for 12 years. In 2018 she presented a progressive dorsal back pain, which prevented her from performing basic tasks. An MR study was performed and revealed the presence of an extramedullary metastatic sleeve located in the thoracic intradural space. Concomitant multiple small nodular foci were adhering diffusely to the spinal cord, compatible with leptomeningeal metastatic disease. The occurrence of both forms of spread in the spine is uncommon, and its distinction on imaging is of particular importance taking into account the differences in treatment approach and prognosis.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Levantamento da composição da matovegetação e florística nativa em quintais diversificados.

O solo é componente chave no processo de produção de alimentos e fibras. A produtividade de quintais agroflorestais está diretamente relacionada com a manutenção e/ou construção da fertilidade do solo

Identification of novel Cu, Ag, and Au ternary oxides from global structural prediction

We use ab initio global structural prediction, and specifically the minima hopping method, to explore the periodic table in search of novel oxide phases. In total, we study 183 different compositions of the form MXO2, where M=(Cu, Ag, Au) and X is an element of the periodic table. This set includes the well-known Cu delafossite compounds that are, up to now, the best p-type transparent conductive oxides known to mankind. Our calculations discover 81 stable compositions, out of which only 36 are included in available databases. Some of these new phases are potentially good candidates for transparent electrodes. These results demonstrate, on one hand, how incomplete is still our knowledge of the phase-space of stable ternary materials. On the other hand, we show that structural prediction combined with high-throughput approaches is a powerful tool to extend that knowledge, paving the way for the experimental discovery of new materials on a large scale

Quantitative gated blood pool tomographic assessment of regional ejection fraction: Definition of normal limits

AbstractObjective. Our aim was to select a method of analysis for gated blood pool tomography that reduced variability in a group of normal subjects, allowed comparison with normal limit files and displayed results in the bull's-eye format.Background. Abnormalities in left ventricular function may not be accurately detected by measures of global function because hyperkuiesia in normal regions may compensate for abnormal regional function. Gated blood pool tomography acquires threedimensional data and offers advantages over other noninvasive modalities Tor quantitative assessment of global and regional function.Methods. Alternative methods for selecting the ventricular axis, calculating regional ejection fraction and choosing the number of ventricular divisions were studied In 15 normal volunteers to select the combination of parameter that produced the lowest variability in quantitative regional ejection fraction. Methods for quantitative comparison, of regional ejection fraction with normal limit files and for display in the bull's-eye format were also examined.Results. A fixed axis (the geometric center of the ventricle defined for end-diastole and used for end-systole) gave ejection fractions that were significantly higher in the lateral wall versus in the septum, 82 ± 8 (mean ± 1 SD) versus 39 ± 17 (p < 0.001) at the midcavity and 66 ± 11 versus 21 ± 20 (p < 0.001) at the base. A floating axis system (axis defined individually for end-diastole and end-systole and realigned at the center) gave more uniform regional ejection fraction: 63 ±6 versus 64 ± 8 (p = NS) at the midcavity and 44 ± 16 versus 45 ± 15 (p = NS) at the base. The coefficient of variability for regional ejection fraction was consistently lower using a floating axis. Calculating regional ejection fraction by dividing the regional stroke volume by the enddiastollc volume of the region gave a lower coefficient of variability and a more easily understood value than dividing the regional stroke volume by the total end-diastolic volume of the ventricle. Although the variability was lower using five versus nine ventricular divisions, nine regions offer greater spatial resolution. Comparison of regional ejection fraction with normal data identified regions > 2.5 SD below the mean as abnormal. We described the two-dimensional bull's-eye format as a method for displaying the regional three-dimensional data and illustrated abnormalities in patients with prior myocardial infarction.Conclusions. Gated blood pool tomography performed using a floating axis system, regional stroke volume calculation of ejection fraction and nine regions uses all the three-dimensional blood pool data to calculate regional ejection fraction, allow quantitative comparison with normal limit tiles, display the functional data in the two-dimensional bull's-eye format and demonstrate abnormalities in patients with myocardial infarction

Distribuição e ecologia alimentar da Lontra (Lutra lutra) em dois sistemas costeiros em Portugal

Dissertação de mestrado em Ciências do Ambiente, especialização em Qualidade AmbientalO presente trabalho permitiu o estudo da distribuição da lontra nos dois sistemas costeiros de Portugal. Deste modo percebeu-se que, para o Sítio Natura 2000–Dunas de Mira, há três zonas de alta ocorrência de lontra separadas entre si por zonas com ausência de lontra devido essencialmente à pressão urbana. As variáveis vegetação ripícola, alimento e campos agrícolas estão associadas positivamente com a ocorrência de lontra. No PNRF são as variáveis estradas e pinhal que apresentam associações negativas com a ocorrência de lontra, separando as áreas onde se verifica ocorrência de lontra. A variável matos está associada positivamente à ocorrência de lontra. Foi também realizada uma avaliação da dieta da lontra em função das épocas, para o Sítio Natura 2000 – Dunas de Mira, Gândara e Gafanhas e para o Parque Natural da Ria Formosa (PNRF). Avaliou-se também, a dieta em função das zonas de amostragem, nas duas áreas de estudo, na época de Verão. Verificou-se, de um modo geral, a sazonalidade da dieta para as duas áreas de estudo e também alterações da dieta consoante as zonas de amostragem. Para o Sítio Natura 2000 – Dunas de Mira, pôde-se inferir que o Procambarus clarkii, seguido de Cyprinus carpio e Lepomis gibbosus são as presas mais consumidas. Há, no entanto, pequenas oscilações na dieta ao longo do ano. No Verão, é o Procambarus clarkii que apresenta a maior frequência de ocorrência. No Inverno e na Primavera há um aumento do consumo de Cyprinus carpio. O consumo de Anguilla anguilla é aumentado para o dobro na Primavera e no Verão. Verificou-se um grande número de diferenças significativas quando se comparou o Outono com as outras épocas, devido essencialmente à escassez de água. Há um baixo consumo das presas secundárias quando comparadas com o consumo de peixes e lagostim. No Verão, a categoria de presa mais consumida é o Procambarus clarkii. Além disso, nesta estação foram detectadas diferenças na dieta consoante a zona de amostragem. Nas lagoas, de um modo geral, os peixes são a presa mais consumida, enquanto que nas valas, a presa mais consumida é o Procambarus clarkii. Nos charcos, os items mais consumidos são os passeriformes e o Dysticus sp.. No PNRF verificou-se que as presas mais consumidas são Anguilla anguilla, seguida de Liza aurata, Gobius niger e Chelon labrosus, embora o Procambarus clarkii seja também considerado importante. Verifica-se um acentuado incremento do Gobius niger na dieta de Inverno. Há um incremento do consumo de Outras presas no Verão e no Outono. Foi possível verificar que o Verão e o Inverno foram as épocas que mais diferiram, enquanto que a Primavera e o Outono não apresentaram diferenças com excepção de Outras presas. Na comparação entre zonas de amostragem no Verão, foi possível verificar que a disponibilidade de presas é mais homogénea no PNRF que nas Dunas de Mira, devido à contiguidade das zonas de amostragem. Efectuou-se a compilação de estudos realizados na Península Ibérica que incidem na dieta da lontra. Pôde-se concluir que a dieta é alterada, quer pelas condições que os diferentes habitats proporcionam, quer ao nível da disponibilidade de presas. Verificou-se de que modo a abundância ou escassez de lagostim na dieta altera as contribuições dos outros tipos de presas, na Península Ibérica. Assim, nas áreas onde há presença de lagostim na dieta, existe uma clara alternância entre o consumo de peixe e de lagostim, sendo os restantes tipos de presas consumidos de um modo aleatório. Em áreas onde o lagostim aparece em baixas proporções ou está ausente, verificou-se que as diferenças no consumo de peixe influenciam o consumo de invertebrados, anfíbios, répteis e aves.The present work refers to the study of otter distribution in these two coastal systems of Portugal. It was possible to conclude that in Dunas de Mira, the independent variable “urban pressure” is negatively associated with otter occurrence, while the variables “riparian vegetation”, “food” and “agricultural fields” are positively associated with otter occurrence. In turn, in PNRF, the variables “roads” and “pine tree plantations” present negative associations with otter occurrence, while the variable “scrublands” is positively associated with otter occurrence. There are three source areas of otter occurrence in Dunas de Mira and two source areas in PNRF. In both areas it can be seen that the source areas are isolated because of the occurrence areas with habitat conditions less suitable for otter survival. Otter seasonal diet was also assessed both in Dunas de Mira and in Ria Formosa Natural Park (PNRF). During summer, it was also possible to compare otter diets from different areas. It was verified, in generally, seasonality was verified in the diets for both study areas and differences were also detected between sampling zones. In Dunas de Mira, the most consumed prey were Procambarus clarkii followed by Cyprinus carpio and Lepomis gibbosus. However, during the year otter diet presented only small oscillations. In summer, Procambarus clarkii presents the highest frequency of occurrence. In winter and spring an increase in the consumption of Cyprinus carpio was verified. The consumption of Anguilla anguilla 2-fold higher in spring and summer. Significant differences were detected when Autumn was compared with the other seasons essentially due to water scarcity registered during this period. There is a low consumption of secondary prey when comparing with the consumption of fish and crayfish. In summer, the most consumed prey is Procambarus clarkii and differences were detected between lagoons where fish are generally the most consumed prey and water ditches where the most consumed prey is Procambarus clarkii. In ponds, the most consumed preys were passeriforms and Dysticus sp.. In PNRF the most consumed prey was Anguilla anguilla followed by Liza aurata, Gobius niger and Chelon labrosus. However, Procambarus clarkii is also an important prey in this study area. In winter, a severe increment of Gobius niger consumption was verified. There is an increase of consumption of other prey in summer and autumn. Furthermore, most differences were detected for summer and winter while only the item Other Prey presented differences for spring and autumn. When comparing sampling zones during summer, it was possible to verify that the availability of prey is more homogeneous in PNRF than in Dunas de Mira, due to the contiguity of the sampling zones. A compilation of studies in the Iberian Peninsula focusing on otter’s diet permitted to conclude that diet is modified by conditions provided by the different habitats, as well as by the level of prey availability. It was analysed in which way the abundance or scarcity of crayfish in diet modifies the contributions of other kinds of prey, in the Iberian Peninsula. In areas where crayfish is present in the diet, one can distinguish a clear alternation between the consumption of fish and crayfish. The remaining types of prey are consumed at random. In areas where crayfish appears in low ratios or is absent, it was verified that differences in the fish consumption influence the consumption of invertebrates, amphibians, reptiles and birds

Optimization of phosphorus recovery from anaerobic digester effluents in agri-industry

Phosphorus (P) is an essential nutrient to sustain life. P is widely used by agriculture sectors as fertilizer to secure food production and sustain human necessities. Since the major sources of P come from non-replaceable and non-renewable natural phosphate rock reserves, it is expected a depletion of this raw material in the next 80 years. In addition, every year, it is estimated that up to 10 Mt are wasted into the hydrosphere causing serious environmental damage in water bodies (e.g., eutrophication). Alongside climate change and the increased risk of draughts in the near future, it is important to guarantee the quality of those water bodies and secure food and feed production in the agriculture sector. Therefore, to reduce the pressure in water bodies, we should increase the efforts to treat wastewater before release, which in turn can be used as a source for P recovery. Thus, the main objective of the present work was the optimization of P recovery from full-scale Anaerobic Digestion (AD) effluents using precipitation methods with the addition of chemical (e.g., Mg, Ca or Fe salts), as well as exploring alternatives to conventional chemicals, such as seawater, bine (Mg-rich sources), and mussel shells and cork ashes (Ca-rich sources). This work is integrated in BIOECONORTE project - water and nutrients management based on BIOrefinery and circular ECOnomy towards a sustainable agri-food system of the NORTE of Portugal. The addition of chemicals was based on the initial concentration of P in the effluent (brewery and dairy industry), and different molar ratios (salt:P) 1:1, 2:1, 3:1 or 4:1 were applied. P precipitation using FeCl3, at the different Fe:P ratios, showed a P-recovery between 88-100 % and 57-85% in brewery and dairy wastewaters, respectively. With the addition of CaCl2, for the different Ca:P ratios, and adjusting the pH to 10, the P recovery ranged between 58-84% and 92-95% in brewery and dairy wastewaters, respectively. The experiments carried out with mussel shells (only with dairy wastewater, but for the different Ca:P ratios) demonstrated a P-recovery of 12-41%, 89-99%, and 98-99% when using raw shells, calcinated shells, and hydrated-calcinated shells, respectively. The seawater was tested in synthetic wastewater, at a 20% (v/v) ratio, showing a P recovery of 64%. In conclusion, these results demonstrate the viability of the use of alternative salt sources for P precipitation and recovery, contributing to the circular economy of agri-food industry.This study was supported by the BioEcoNorte project (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000070) funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the scope of Norte2020 - Programa Operacional Regional do Norte and by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UIDB/04469/2020info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Detection of Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis using real time PCR, immunocapture assay, PNA FISH and standard culture methods in different types of food samples

Several methods for the rapid and specific detection of Salmonella in food samples have been described. Here, we compare 4 of those methods in terms of assay time, procedure complexity, detection limit, sensitivity, specificity and accuracy. Milk, eggs and mayonnaise samples were artificially contaminated with Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis cell concentrations ranging from 1 × 10- 2 to 1 × 102 CFU per 25 g or ml of food. Samples were then pre-enriched and analyzed by either: i) real-time PCR, using the iQ-Check Salmonella kit; ii) immunocapture, using the RapidChek SELECT Salmonella; iii) a peptide nucleic acid fluorescence in situ hybridization (PNA FISH) method and iv) the traditional bacteriological method ISO 6579:2002. All methods were able to detect Salmonella in the different types of food matrixes and presented a similar detection level of 1 CFU per 25 g or ml of food sample. The immunocapture and the PNA FISH methods proved to be very reliable, as their results were 100% in agreement with the ISO method. However, real-time PCR presented a significant number of false positives, which resulted in a specificity of 55.6% (CI 95%, 31.3 – 77.6) and an accuracy of 82.2%(CI 95%, 63.2 – 91.4) for this method. Sensitivity was 100% since no false negative results were observed. In conclusion, the implementation of these molecular techniques, mainly the immunocapture and PNA-FISH methods, provides a reliable and less time-consuming alternative for the detection of Salmonella spp. in food samples.This work was supported by the Portuguese Institute Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia (Project "DNA mimics" PIC/IC/82815/2007; Post-Doc Fellowship SFRH/BPD/74480/2010 and PhD Fellowship SFRH/BD/38124/2007)