Comportamento do fósforo em solos argiluviados da Região do Alentejo: sorção de fosfato

O Encontro decorreu na Universidade do Algarve.O poster apresenta os resultaos de um estudo sobre o comportamento do fósforo em solos argiluviados da Região do Alentejo

Phosphate desorption in luvisols and solonetz from a Mediterranean region

Poster apresentado no 6th International Phosphorus Workshop, que decorreu em Sevilha de 27 de Setembro a 1 de Outubro de 2010.Transfer of P from soil to water is controlled by the P retention capacity in the solid phase, namely by the equilibrium between adsorbed and precipitated forms. Desorption of P and/or phosphate dissolution govern the amount of P released into drainage water, runoff or freshwater. Soil P evaluated by Olsen method showed a strong correlation with the capacity of soil to desorb P and, within certain limits, to the transfer of P to water. This transfer of P relates to losses that occur either in surface horizons, or in subsurface horizons (to drainage water, to runoff or by soil erosion to freshwater)

Teaching Laminar-flow reactors: From experimentation to CFD simulation

An integrated chemical engineering lab experiment is described in this paper. It makes use of a laminar-flow tubular reactor (LFTR) through consecutive lab sessions. In a first session (not described here), the pseudo first-order kinetic constant for the reaction between crystal violet and sodium hydroxide is determined at different temperatures in a batch reactor. Then a tracer experiment is used to characterize the flow, pattern in the LFTR, and finally the steady-state conversion of crystal violet in the reactor is measured. For computing the theoretical reactor conversion, students must use the previously collected kinetic and tracer data, in a concept-integration exercise. A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code (Fluent) is also used to simulate both the tracer and the isothermal reaction experiments performed in the LFTR. A very good agreement is obtained between experimental and simulated results and both only differ slightly from the theoretical predictions. The use of the CFD program is particularly noteworthy. For instance, transient simulations allow a very nice visualization of the tracer concentration front evolution, while the steady-state profiles along the axial position provide a good perspective of how reactant concentration varies within the reactor

Changes induced by malathion, methylparathion and parathion on membrane lipid physicochemical properties correlate with their toxicity

Perturbations induced by malathion, methylparathion and parathion on the physicochemical properties of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) were studied by fluorescence anisotropy of DPH and DPH-PA and by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Methylparathion and parathion (50 [mu]M) increased the fluorescence anisotropy evaluated by DPH-PA and DPH, either in gel or in the fluid phase of DPPC bilayers, but mainly in the fluid phase. Parathion is more effective than methylparathion. On the other hand, malathion had almost no effect. All the three xenobiotics displaced the phase transition midpoint to lower temperature values and broadened the phase transition profile of DPPC, the effectiveness following the sequence: parathion>methylparathion>>malathion. A shifting and broadening of the phase transition was also observed by DSC. Furthermore, at methylparathion/lipid molar ratio of 1/2 and at parathion/lipid molar ratio of 1/7, the DSC thermograms displayed a shoulder in the main peak, in the low temperature side, suggesting coexistence of phases. For higher ratios, the phase transition profile becomes sharp as the control transition, but the midpoint is shifted to the previous shoulder position. Conversely to methylparathion and parathion, malathion did not promote phase separation. The overall data from fluorescence anisotropy and calorimetry indicate that the degree of effect of the insecticides on the physicochemical membrane properties correlates with toxicity to mammals. Therefore, the in vivo effects of organophosphorus compounds may be in part related with their ability to perturb the phospholipid bilayer structure, whose integrity is essential for normal cell function.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6T1T-42NY32W-K/1/9c5c8320a8dff42bbf122281b5056b8

Implantation of a Dual-Chamber Pacemaker in a Patient With Situs Inversus and Dextrocardia Using a Novel Ultrasound Technique

Acesso ao texto integral: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6829762/We report a case of a 43-year-old man with situs inversus and dextrocardia who was admitted with syncope in the setting of complete atrioventricular block. The complex anatomy poses a considerable challenge to transvenous permanent pacemaker implantation. We employed a novel technique using vascular ultrasound and agitated saline solution to assist with lead positioning. This technique could be useful in pediatric populations or younger patients, in whom the use of ionizing radiation is an important issue.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Conjugated linoleic acid reduces permeability and fluidity of adipose plasma membranes from obese Zucker rats

NOTICE: this is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. July 2010; 398 (2): 199-204.Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is a dietary fatty acid frequently used as a body fat reducing agent whose effects upon cell membranes and cellular function remain unknown. Obese Zucker rats were fed atherogenic diets containing saturated fats of vegetable or animal origin with or without 1% CLA, as a mixture of cis(c)9,trans(t)11 and t10,c12 isomers. Plasma membrane vesicles obtained from visceral adi- pose tissue were used to assess the effectiveness of dietary fat and CLA membrane incorporation and its outcome on fluidity and permeability to water and glycerol. A significant decrease in adipose membrane fluidity was correlated with the changes observed in permeability, which seem to be caused by the incor- poration of the t10,c12 CLA isomer into membrane phospholipids. These results indicate that CLA supple- mentation in obese Zucker rats fed saturated and cholesterol rich diets reduces the fluidity and permeability of adipose membranes, therefore not supporting CLA as a body fat reducing agent through membrane fluidification in obese fat consumers

What can genetics tell us about the history of a human-mediated introduction of the golden-striped salamander south of its native range?

The golden-striped salamander is a streamside species endemic to the northwestern corner of the Iberian Peninsula. In the first half of the twentieth century, an undisclosed number of individuals of this species were reportedly captured in Buçaco, Central Portugal, and deliberately introduced in Sintra Mountains, 170 km south of its native distribution range. The discovery of a breeding population of this salamander in Sintra during 2015 prompted this work: we used neutral genetic markers, the mitochondrial DNA cytochrome b (cytb), and seven microsatellite loci to elucidate on the relict/human-introduced nature of Sintra population, identify the potential source population, and infer the severity of founder effect. Our results support a human-mediated introduction. First, sequencing analysis of cytb showed the presence of a unique haplotype (h31) in Sintra, which was detected only in Buçaco and in two additional populations located close to Mondego river. Second, microsatellite analysis showed that Sintra is more closely related to populations in between Douro and Mondego rivers (Central Portugal), instead of its geographically closest populations (southernmost), as would be expected if Sintra was a relict population isolated in an interglacial refuge. Third, Sintra presents both reduced levels of genetic variability and effective population size when compared to native populations, particularly to those of Central Portugal. Consistent with an isolated population funded by a small number of individuals (inferred herein to be ca. 10–11 salamanders), Sintra forms a geographically coherent genetic unit that is significantly differentiated from the extant native C. lusitanica populations. Although our data provide supporting evidence for Buçaco as a likely source population, as documented in the literature, overall, we cannot unequivocally exclude other populations close to Mondego river as a potential source of the introduced individuals in Sintra.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Determination of polybrominated diphenyl ethers in water at ng/L level by a simple DLLME-GC-(EI) MS method

Dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) is an extraction procedure gaining popularity in the recent years due to the easiness of operation, high enrichment factors, low cost and low consumption of organic solvents. This extraction method, prior to gas chromatography with mass spectrometry detection (GC-MS), was optimized for the determination of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in aqueous samples. These were extracted with chlorobenzene (extraction solvent) and acetonitrile (dispersive solvent), allowing an enrichment factor of about 470 for BDE-100. The calibration curve for BDE-100 was linear in the range of 0.005-10 mu g/L, with an average reproducibility of 12% (RSD, %). The LOD, calculated by the signal-tonoise ratio, was 0.5 ng/L for BDE-100 and the recovery ranged from 91-107% for all spiked samples. Relative expanded uncertainty was concentration-dependent, reaching high values near the limit of quantification and decreasing until 14% for concentrations higher than 1 mu g/L of BDE-100. The dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction combined with gas chromatography with mass spectrometry detection (DLLME-GC-MS) method could be successfully applied to the determination of other PBDEs in water samples