Supercritical phase inversion of starch-poly(e-caprolactone) for tissue engineering applications

In this work, a starch-based polymer, namely a blend of starch-poly(ε-caprolactone) was processed by supercritical assisted phase inversion process. This processing technique has been proposed for the development of 3D structures with potential applications in tissue engineering applications, as scaffolds. The use of carbon dioxide as non-solvent in the phase inversion process leads to the formation of a porous and interconnected structure, dry and free of any residual solvent. Different processing conditions such as pressure (from 80 up to 150 bar) and temperature (45 and 55°C) were studied and the effect on the morphological features of the scaffolds was evaluated by scanning electron microscopy and micro-computed tomography. The mechanical properties of the SPCL scaffolds prepared were also studied. Additionally, in this work, the in vitro biological performance of the scaffolds was studied. Cell adhesion and morphology, viability and proliferation was assessed and the results suggest that the materials prepared are allow cell attachment and promote cell proliferation having thus potential to be used in some for biomedical applications.Ana Rita C. Duarte is grateful for financial support from Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia through the grant SFRH/BPD/34994/2007

Criança, violência e saúde: desafios e questões atuais

This paper examines challenges and current issues involved in measuring exposure to different types of violence which are associated mental health problems in children and adolescents. Standardized measures suitable for epidemiological studies, selected based on their relevance in the current literature, are briefly described and commented. The assessment of child's exposure to violence may focus on a specific event (e.g., kidnapping), a specific context (e.g., war) or even of a certain type of exposure (e.g., intrafamilial physical violence). The assessment of child mental health after exposure to violence has traditionally focused on posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) - most frequently measured through non-diagnostic scales. However, other mental health reactions may be present and screening as well as diagnostic instruments which may be used to assess these reactions are also described. Two issues of emerging importance - the assessment of impairment and of traumatic grief in children - are also presented. Availability of culturally appropriate instruments is a crucial step towards proper identification of child mental health problems after exposure to violence.Este artigo examina os desafios e perspectivas atuais envolvidos na mensuração da exposição a diferentes tipos de violência e problemas de saúde mental em crianças e adolescentes. Instrumentos padronizados apropriados para estudos epidemiológicos, selecionados com base em sua relevância na literatura, são brevemente descritos e comentados. A avaliação de exposição à violência em crianças pode dizer respeito a um evento específico (como sequestro) ou um contexto específico (como guerra) ou mesmo um determinado tipo de exposição (como violência física intrafamiliar). A avaliação da saúde mental infantil após a exposição à violência tradicionalmente concentrou-se na avaliação do transtorno de estresse pós-traumático (TEPT) - freqüentemente avaliado através de escalas não-diagnósticas. Porém, outras reações psicológicas podem ocorrer e instrumentos que podem ser usados para avaliar estas reações também são descritos neste artigo. Dois tópicos de importância emergente - a avaliação de prejuízo funcional e do pesar traumático em crianças - são também apresentados. Instrumentos culturalmente apropriados são essenciais para a identificação de problemas de saúde mental em crianças após a exposição à violência.Division of Child and Adolescent PsychiatryUniversidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM) Departamento de PsiquiatriaUNIFESP, EPM, Depto. de PsiquiatriaSciEL

Tracking of fatness during childhood, adolescence and young adulthood: a 7-year follow-up study in Madeira Island, Portugal

Aims: Investigating tracking of fatness from childhood to adolescence, early adolescence to young adulthood and late adolescence to young adulthood. Subjects and methods: Participants from the Madeira Growth Study were followed during an average period of 7.2 years. Height, body mass, skin-folds and circumferences were measured, nine health- and performance-related tests were administered and the Baecke questionnaire was used to assess physical activity. Skeletal maturity was estimated using the TW3 method. Results: The prevalence of overweight plus obesity ranged from 8.2–20.0% at baseline and from 20.4–40.0% at followup, in boys. Corresponding percentages for girls were 10.6– 12.0% and 13.2–18.0%. Inter-age correlations for fatness indicators ranged from 0.43–0.77. BMI, waist circumference and sum of skin-folds at 8, 12 and 16-years old were the main predictors of these variables at 15, 19 and 23-years old, respectively. Strength, muscular endurance and aerobic fitness were negatively related to body fatness. Physical activity and maturation were independently associated with adolescent (15 years) and young adult (19 years) fatness. Conclusions: Over 7.2 years, tracking was moderate-to-high for fatness. Variance was explained by fatness indicators and to a small extent by physical fitness, physical activity and maturation

Convergence of marine megafauna movement patterns in coastal and open oceans

The extent of increasing anthropogenic impacts on large marine vertebrates partly depends on the animals’ movement patterns. Effective conservation requires identification of the key drivers of movement including intrinsic properties and extrinsic constraints associated with the dynamic nature of the environments the animals inhabit. However, the relative importance of intrinsic versus extrinsic factors remains elusive. We analyze a global dataset of ∼2.8 million locations from >2,600 tracked individuals across 50 marine vertebrates evolutionarily separated by millions of years and using different locomotion modes (fly, swim, walk/paddle). Strikingly, movement patterns show a remarkable convergence, being strongly conserved across species and independent of body length and mass, despite these traits ranging over 10 orders of magnitude among the species studied. This represents a fundamental difference between marine and terrestrial vertebrates not previously identified, likely linked to the reduced costs of locomotion in water. Movement patterns were primarily explained by the interaction between species-specific traits and the habitat(s) they move through, resulting in complex movement patterns when moving close to coasts compared with more predictable patterns when moving in open oceans. This distinct difference may be associated with greater complexity within coastal microhabitats, highlighting a critical role of preferred habitat in shaping marine vertebrate global movements. Efforts to develop understanding of the characteristics of vertebrate movement should consider the habitat(s) through which they move to identify how movement patterns will alter with forecasted severe ocean changes, such as reduced Arctic sea ice cover, sea level rise, and declining oxygen content

Performance of CMS muon reconstruction in pp collision events at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

The performance of muon reconstruction, identification, and triggering in CMS has been studied using 40 inverse picobarns of data collected in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV at the LHC in 2010. A few benchmark sets of selection criteria covering a wide range of physics analysis needs have been examined. For all considered selections, the efficiency to reconstruct and identify a muon with a transverse momentum pT larger than a few GeV is above 95% over the whole region of pseudorapidity covered by the CMS muon system, abs(eta) < 2.4, while the probability to misidentify a hadron as a muon is well below 1%. The efficiency to trigger on single muons with pT above a few GeV is higher than 90% over the full eta range, and typically substantially better. The overall momentum scale is measured to a precision of 0.2% with muons from Z decays. The transverse momentum resolution varies from 1% to 6% depending on pseudorapidity for muons with pT below 100 GeV and, using cosmic rays, it is shown to be better than 10% in the central region up to pT = 1 TeV. Observed distributions of all quantities are well reproduced by the Monte Carlo simulation.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO

Evidence for 'critical slowing down' in seagrass:a stress gradient experiment at the southern limit of its range

The theory of critical slowing down, i.e. the increasing recovery times of complex systems close to tipping points, has been proposed as an early warning signal for collapse. Empirical evidence for the reality of such warning signals is still rare in ecology. We studied this on Zostera noltii intertidal seagrass meadows at their southern range limit, the Banc d'Arguin, Mauritania. We analyse the environmental covariates of recovery rates using structural equation modelling (SEM), based on an experiment in which we assessed whether recovery after disturbances (i.e. seagrass & infauna removal) depends on stress intensity (increasing with elevation) and disturbance patch size (1 m(2) vs. 9 m(2)). The SEM analyses revealed that higher biofilm density and sediment accretion best explained seagrass recovery rates. Experimental disturbances were followed by slow rates of recovery, regrowth occurring mainly in the coolest months of the year. Macrofauna recolonisation lagged behind seagrass recovery. Overall, the recovery rate was six times slower in the high intertidal zone than in the low zone. The large disturbances in the low zone recovered faster than the small ones in the high zone. This provides empirical evidence for critical slowing down with increasing desiccation stress in an intertidal seagrass system

What are the motives underlying Brazilians' food choices? An analysis of the Food Choice Questionnaire and its relationship with different sample characteristics

ABSTRACT: The first aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Food Choice Questionnaire (FCQ)—using the original model—in a sample of 1480 Brazilian adults (69.5% female). The second aim was to rank the reasons underlying the participants' food choices using average FCQ scores and 95% confidence interval. The third aim was to evaluate the relationship between food choice motives and sample characteristics using multiple logistic regression and odds ratios. The validity, the invariance across different groups, and the reliability of the FCQ were confirmed for the sample. Sensory appeal and price emerged as the most important reasons, while ethical concern was the least valued. The factors associated with greater odds of choosing food for specific reasons were being older, female, and a student; practicing physical activity; dieting frequently; self-rating eating quality as good; having a higher body mass index; and having low income. Practical Applications Assessing food choice is a complex task, as it encompasses several factors, such as sensory characteristics, health status, income, culture, lifestyle, and cognitive-affective issues; therefore, the use of appropriate tools should be encouraged. The set analyses followed confirmed that the FCQ was an adequate instrument to evaluate the reasons for food choice of the participants who valued strongly the sensory aspects of the foods and presented specific characteristics (e.g., diet practice) that may influence their decisions. These findings may guide future research and clinical interventions aimed at producing food choices that are more oriented to health and well-being.FAPESPinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Performance of CMS muon reconstruction in pp collision events at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

The performance of muon reconstruction, identification, and triggering in CMS has been studied using 40 inverse picobarns of data collected in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV at the LHC in 2010. A few benchmark sets of selection criteria covering a wide range of physics analysis needs have been examined. For all considered selections, the efficiency to reconstruct and identify a muon with a transverse momentum pT larger than a few GeV is above 95% over the whole region of pseudorapidity covered by the CMS muon system, abs(eta) < 2.4, while the probability to misidentify a hadron as a muon is well below 1%. The efficiency to trigger on single muons with pT above a few GeV is higher than 90% over the full eta range, and typically substantially better. The overall momentum scale is measured to a precision of 0.2% with muons from Z decays. The transverse momentum resolution varies from 1% to 6% depending on pseudorapidity for muons with pT below 100 GeV and, using cosmic rays, it is shown to be better than 10% in the central region up to pT = 1 TeV. Observed distributions of all quantities are well reproduced by the Monte Carlo simulation.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO

Limited effect of chronic valproic acid treatment in a mouse model of Machado-Joseph disease

Machado-Joseph disease (MJD) is an inherited neurodegenerative disease, caused by a CAG repeat expansion within the coding region of ATXN3 gene, and which currently lacks effective treatment. In this work we tested the therapeutic efficacy of chronic treatment with valproic acid (VPA) (200mg/kg), a compound with known neuroprotection activity, and previously shown to be effective in cell, fly and nematode models of MJD. We show that chronic VPA treatment in the CMVMJD135 mouse model had limited effects in the motor deficits of these mice, seen mostly at late stages in the motor swimming, beam walk, rotarod and spontaneous locomotor activity tests, and did not modify the ATXN3 inclusion load and astrogliosis in affected brain regions. However, VPA chronic treatment was able to increase GRP78 protein levels at 30 weeks of age, one of its known neuroprotective effects, confirming target engagement. In spite of limited results, the use of another dosage of VPA or of VPA in a combined therapy with molecules targeting other pathways, cannot be excluded as potential strategies for MJD therapeuticsPM received funding from Ataxia UK Grant (Project: Pharmacologic therapy for Machado-Joseph disease: from a C. elegans drug screen to a mouse model validation). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Timeless standards for species delimitation

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