1,013 research outputs found
Estudo histopatológico de lesões ateroscleróticas em suínos de raça Alentejana.
Neste trabalho experimental procedeu-se à medição da espessura e à caracterização histológica de lesões ateroscleróticas, em suínos de raça Alentejana, procurando-se estabelecer uma relação entre estas e os valores dos parâmetros sanguíneos associados ao desenvolvimento deste processo patológico. As concentrações plasmáticas de triacilgliceróis, fosfolípidos, colesterol total, colesterol livre, LDLc e HDLc foram determinadas por métodos enzimáticos. Foram também feitas análises histopatológicas a amostras da artéria coronária esquerda. Os animais foram divididos em 2 grupos de 6 indivíduos cada: Grupo I, com elevada colesterolémia (4,25 mmol/L) e Grupo II, com níveis normais (2,53 mmol/L). Os valores do ganho médio diário (GMD) dos dois grupos foram semelhantes. Os animais do Grupo apresentaram valores significativamente mais elevados (P≤0,001) para: colesterol total, colesterol livre, colesterol esterificado e LDLc. A área de lesão foi significativamente superior (P≤0,05) no Grupo I. Verificou-se uma relação linear entre a área de lesão (fases iniciais do tipo I e II) e os teores plasmáticos de colesterol total, de LDLc e de colesterol livre, o que sugere a influência destes parâmetros na dimensão da área de lesão. Os resultados deste trabalho sugerem que os suínos de raça Alentejana podem desenvolver lesões ateroscleróticas ao longo do seu ciclo de vida, tal como o observado em humanos e outras raças de suínos. Estas lesões estão associadas a hipercolesterolemia que poderão ser devidas a mutações genéticas em apolipoproteínas, sistemas enzimáticos ou receptores. São necessários estudos futuros, quer a nível histológico quer a nível de biologia molecular, para um maior aprofundamento do conhecimento das lesões ateroscleróticas em suínos de raça Alentejana.
The present study aimed to assess the histopathological characterization of atherosclerotic lesions in Alentejano pigs, and to evaluate the relationship between several blood parameters and lesions development. Histomorphometric determinations of atherosclerotic lesions were performed on the left coronary artery and plasmatic levels of triacylglycerols, phospholipids, and of total, free, LDL and HDL cholesterol were measured by enzymatic methods. Pigs were assigned to two groups (n=6): Group I, with hypercholesterolemic pigs (4,25 mmol/L), and Group II, with normocholesterolemic ones (2,53 mmol/L). Average daily gain was similar in both groups. Plasmatic levels of total, free, esterified and LDL cholesterol were significantly higher (P≤0,001) in Group I. The atherosclerotic lesion area was significantly higher (P≤0,05) in the same group. Linear correlations between atherosclerotic lesion area (in initial Phases I and II) and plasmatic levels of total, free and LDL cholesterol were observed. The results of this study suggest that the Alentejano pig, like humans and other swine, may develop atherosclerotic lesions during its life cycle. Such lesions, associated with hypercholesterolemia, may be due to genetic mutations in apolipoproteins, lipid enzymes or receptor genes. Further studies on molecular genetics and on hysthopathology of this type of atherosclerostic lesion, in Alentejano pigs are required
The use of eye tracking glasses in basketball shooting : a systematic review
Sports performance is related to cognitive processes that precede the motor task to be developed. In this
way, the coupling between visual information and motor behavior has a major importance in filtering the visual
information, necessary to the accomplishment of the motor task to be executed, ignoring ‘accessory’ stimuli. In
this field, this essay has the goal of achieving a systematic review about past studies in the context of basketball
shooting. We bring to you some evidence that support the applicability and efficiency of Eye Tracking Glasses
systems in the analysis of visual attention in basketball shooting, emphasizing the concept of Quiet Eye,
interconnected with anxiety and occlusion of vision. The results of the studies demonstrate the importance of the
use of Eye Tracking Glasses for the evaluation/intervention in the process of visual attention training related to
efficiency in shooting.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Evaluation of trace elements mobility from soils to sediments between the Iberian pyrite belt and the Atlantic Ocean
An environmental study was conducted in 193 stream sediments and 355 soil samples collected in the lower
section of Guadiana River Basin to evaluate the trace elements transfer from one compartment into another.
The objective was to evaluate the dispersion of Pb, Cu, Zn and other chemical elements resulting from upstream
mines into the lower N-S sector of the Guadiana River Basin to the Atlantic Ocean. The area partly includes
the Iberian Pyrite Belt, a known volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) province with important
mining activity history. Median concentrations of the elements Cu, Pb, Zn, Al, As, Ba, Br, Ca, Mg, Mn and Na
are generally higher in the studied sediments than in soils. Soils are normally acidic and mobility of elements
is in these conditions higher. When the relations between upstream soils and downstream sediments were
established, median values were higher in the upstream soils only for elements such as Co, Ni, K, Pb, Mn
and Ti, probably the less mobile, and the Cu, Zn, Al, As, Ba, Br, Ca, Cr, Fe, Mg and Na have highest concentrations
in the downstream sediments.
Lead was considered the less mobile element and Zn the highly mobile of the base metals in the mining area
of the lower Guadiana River. Dispersion of the metals, considering the studied soil and sediment samples is
partially restricted to the mining areas or downstream sediments but close to the mine sources, where ore
tailings and acid waters occur. Near the mouth, concentrations of As, Cu, Pb and Zn increase in relation
with mining and other pollution sources. Interaction with salt water forces chemical elements precipitation
from water and subsequent increase of their concentration in sediments. This may be the reason for the increase
of those chemical elements concentrations in the sediment
Portuguese study of familial dilated cardiomyopathy: the FATIMA study
Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a myocardial disease, characterized by ventricular dilatation and impaired systolic function, that in more than 30% of cases has a familial or genetic origin. Given its age-dependent penetrance, DCM frequently manifests in adults by signs or symptoms of heart failure, arrhythmias or sudden death. The predominant mode of inheritance is autosomal dominant, and in these cases mutations are identified in genes coding for cytoskeletal, sarcomeric or nuclear envelope proteins. To date, most studies aimed at molecular diagnosis of DCM have been in selected families, or in larger groups of patients, but screening for mutations in a limited number of genes. Consequently, the epidemiology of mutations in familial DCM remains unknown. There is thus a need for multicenter studies, involving screening for a wide range of mutations in several families and in cases of idiopathic DCM. The present article describes the methodology of a multicenter study, aimed at clinical and molecular characterization of familial DCM patients in the Portuguese population.A miocardiopatia dilatada (MCD) é uma
doença do músculo cardíaco caracterizada pela
dilatação ventricular e compromisso da função
sistólica, sendo possível identificar, numa
percentagem superior a 30% dos casos, uma
origem familiar ou genética. Dada a
penetrância dependente da idade, manifesta-se
muitas vezes em adultos por sinais ou sintomas
de insuficiência cardíaca, arritmias ou morte
súbita. O padrão autossómico dominante
predomina, sendo possível identificar, nestes
casos, mutações em genes de proteínas do
citoesqueleto celular, sarcómero ou membrana
nuclear.
Até ao momento, a maioria dos trabalhos
visando o diagnóstico molecular nos casos de
MCD foi realizada em famílias seleccionadas,
ou em grupos mais abrangentes de doentes,
mas rastreando mutações num número restrito
de genes.
Consequentemente a epidemiologia das
mutações nos casos familiares de MCD
continua por esclarecer. É neste contexto que
se coloca a necessidade de efectuar estudos
multicêntricos, envolvendo uma pesquisa
mutacional diversificada em várias familias e
nos casos idiopáticos de MCD.
O presente artigo descreve a metodologia de
um estudo multicêntrico que tem como
objectivo a caracterização clínica e molecular
de casos familiares de MCD na população
portuguesa
Manual de referência FPN para o ensino e aperfeiçoamento em natação: um modelo multidisciplinar
ligadas à prática da natação e pretende, com a sua experiência na missão de melhorar as
condições de prática das disciplinas competitivas, estender a todas as entidades e praticantes
de atividades aquáticas os benefícios duma organização de âmbito nacional, com abrangência
insular, regional e local.
No âmbito do PEFPN_2014-2024, e da análise dos fatores de competitividade, da missão e visão
institucionais da FPN, decorreram quatro vetores estratégicos: (i) massificar a prática da natação;
(ii) desenvolver a prática desportiva; (iii) render e competir ao alto nível; (iv) sustentar a atividade:
estrutural e funcional (transversal a todos os restantes).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Caracterização da curva de crescimento de fêmeas Crioulas Lageanas criadas em condições naturais
MycoMix and risk assessment: a contribute to improve risk analysis
Risk analysis, is a powerful tool for including science-based knowledge in a systematic approach to food safety problems. The use of risk analysis can promote ongoing improvements in public health and provide a basis for expanding international trade in foods. Within risk analysis, the risk assessment results are quantitative or qualitative expressions of the likelihood of harmful effects associated with exposure to a chemical (WHO, 2010). Human risk assessment of combined exposure to multiple chemicals (chemical mixtures) poses several challenges to scientists, risk assessors and risk managers, namely the complexity of the terminology and problem formulation, the diversity of chemical entities, and the toxicological profiles and exposure patterns in test species and humans (EFSA, 2013). Mycotoxins are natural contaminants produced by fungi and its frequent co-occurrence in food poses a threat to human health, mainly to vulnerable population groups as children. MycoMix is an ongoing national project (2013-15) that explores the toxic effects of mixtures of mycotoxins in infant food and its potential health impact. This project aims to study the occurrence of multiple mycotoxins and toxicity interactions in infant foods and cereals consumed by Portuguese children and try to answer several questions: 1) Are children exposed daily to mycotoxins through food? 2) What are the quality and quantity that characterize this exposure? 3) Can this exposure bring harm to children? Answering these questions will raise novel approaches to: 1) apply new techniques on mycotoxin multiple detection, 2) understand the toxicity responses upon multiple mycotoxin exposures, and 3) implement new methodologies to characterize hazard and risk for children exposure to mycotoxins. A multidisciplinary team has been developing, for the first time in Portugal, i) a liquid chromatography (LC) method coupled with tandem mass-spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for multimycotoxin detection in infant food developed and applied to study infant food consumed by Portuguese children, ii) cito and genotoxic assays to assess the toxicity of binary mixtures of mycotoxins detected in analyzed infant foods associated with the MIXTOX tool to assess the interactive effects, iii) in vitro methodologies to simulate the digestive and intestinal absorption processes of binary mixtures of mycotoxins, iv) a web-based dietary assessment and diet planning platform, the “OPEN Portugal”, to record infant food consumption data allowing simultaneously the assessment of the nutritional profile of the inquired children, and v) a set of deterministic, probabilistic (@RISK) and cumulative risk assessment approaches that allow the exposure assessment and risk characterization of Portuguese children to multiple mycotoxins in food. An overview of the results obtained within the MycoMix project will be presented, showing the patterns of the exposure of Portuguese infant to multiple mycotoxins as well as the scientific evidence of the toxic effects of mycotoxin mixtures using in vitro models. Hence,MycoMix outputs contribute for hazard identification and characterization as well as to exposure characterization, contributing for risk analysis.Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT
A surveillance of enteropathogens in piglets from birth to seven days of age in Brazil
The Use of Synthetic Microbial Communities to Improve Plant Health
Despite the numerous benefits plants receive from probiotics, maintaining consistent results across applications is still a challenge. Cultivationindependent methods associated with reduced sequencing costs have considerably improved the overall understanding of microbial ecology in the plant environment. As a result, now, it is possible to engineer a consortium of microbes aiming for improved plant health. Such synthetic microbial communities (SynComs) contain carefully chosen microbial species to produce the desired microbiome function. Microbial biofilm formation, production of secondary metabolites, and ability to induce plant resistance are some of the microbial traits to consider when designing SynComs. Plant-associated microbial communities are not assembled randomly. Ecological theories suggest that these communities have a defined phylogenetic organization structured by general community assembly rules. Using machine learning, we can study these rules and target microbial functions that generate desired plant phenotypes. Well-structured assemblages are more likely to lead to a stable SynCom that thrives under environmental stressors as compared with the classical selection of single microbial activities or taxonomy. However, ensuring microbial colonization and long-term plant phenotype stability is still one of the challenges to overcome with SynComs, as the synthetic community may change over time with microbial horizontal gene transfer and retainedmutations.Here, we explored the advances made in SynCom research regarding plant health, focusing on bacteria, as they are the most dominant microbial form compared with other members of the microbiome and the most commonly found in SynCom studies
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