On the vulval morphology of some species of Bursaphelenchus (Nematoda: Parasitaphelenchinae)

The vulval pattern of six species of the genus Bursaphelenchus (B. abruptus, B. conicaudatus, B. fraudulentus, B. luxuriosae, B. mucronatus and B. xylophilus) was studied using scanning electron microscopy. A terminology for the vulval region structures observed is proposed herein and illustrated by micrographs and line drawings. It was shown that, of the studied species, only B. mucronatus and B. xylophilus share an identical morphology of the vulval region, all other species differing significantly from each other and from both B. mucronatus and B. xylophilus. This study indicates the diagnostic potential for variation in vulval morphology within Bursaphelenchus and it is recommended that such features are recorded in all future descriptions

Situation and challenges of the Mexicana organic sector

For Mexico, organic farming is a feasible option, given the goodness it offers the country, since it is linked to the geography of poverty, mainly with small-scale farmers with surfaces below 3 ha, 22 indigenous groups, and 35% of women responsible for farming. In addition, it is linked to a form of production that protects and preserves natural resources

Growing a local organic movement: The Mexican Network of Organic Markets

Over the past several years, in response to the rapid growth in global demand for organic goods, the amount of organic production in Mexico has increased dramatically. Indeed, while Mexican agriculture as a whole has suffered severe crises, the organic sector has boomed, and today more than 83 000 producers farm organically on over 300 000 hectares of land. Of these producers, 98 percent are small scale, farming an average of three hectares, and over 50 percent are indigenous people. Unfortunately, as is the case in many developing countries, the vast majority of organic production remains focused on export crops – particularly coffee, but also cocoa, coconut, and other fruit and vegetables – with 85 percent of organic goods being sent to foreign markets. From an environmental point of view, exportoriented production is extremely damaging because of the amounts of fossil fuels required for transportation. In addition, packaging for export consumes precious resources and creates mountains of waste. Moreover, an export-oriented focus constrains the degree to which domestic markets are developed, and it leaves Mexican producers highly vulnerable to international market fluctuations

Influence of Ferredoxin, Iron-Sulfur Carrier and Cobalamin Importer Overexpression on the Production of High-value Products by Escherichia coli

"One of the problems in antibiotics production is the difficulty of their synthesis or low yield in the case of complex biological molecules. They have complex biosynthetic pathways, where cobalamin-dependent SAM enzymes play a pivotal role, with an Fe-S cluster in their structure and the necessity of secondary electron transfer proteins for their activity, making the production improvement difficult. An example of these compounds are fosfomycin (Fom3 enzyme), a broadspectrum antibiotic, and thiostrepton (TsrM enzyme), a Gram-positive antibiotic with anticancer properties, both naturally produced by Streptomyces sp..(...)

Radicalização da infância na segunda modernidade: para uma sociologia da infância crítica

O desenvolvimento da Sociologia da Infância confronta o trabalho teórico com as suas implicações sociais. Considerar as crianças em situação de marginalização e invisibilidade, face às políticas públicas e ao trabalho científico, pode permitir o desenvolvimento de uma perspectiva sociológica que assenta na problematização da normatividade constituída sobre a infância, a partir da modernidade ocidental e da ideologia da classe média. Neste artigo delineiam-se os fundamentos deste esforço, simultaneamente desconstrucionista e crítico, enunciando-se eixos de desenvolvimento de uma Sociologia da Infância crítica.CIFPEC/CIEC - Centro de Investigação em Estudos da Criança, UM (UI 644 e 317 da FCT

Users' Perceptions of Signage Systems at Three Portuguese Hospitals

This article is a report on the quantitative data collected from patients, family members, and visitors using the outpatient areas of three hospitals in Portugal. It details the users' views regarding the existing signage and presents suggestions to improve the design and implementation of the signage systems. A questionnaire was used with 1,287 respondents. The results showed that almost all users had a positive opinion regarding the current signage. However, some of the users' answers and observed behaviors indicated that the majority tended to ignore the signs and preferred to ask staff for help. Additionally, when asked for suggestions, many of the respondents were able to point out existing problems that affected their wayfinding. Although the signage was generally evaluated as good, many of the users perceived a variety of problems and, as already mentioned, asked the staff for directions, which results in lost time and hidden costs for the institutions

Healthcare Signage Design: A review on recommendations for effective signing systems

This article provides a set of recommendations, selected from the systematic literature review carried out, regarding signage systems for healthcare institutions that can be used for designing or redesigning more competent signage systems. The signage systems in healthcare settings are usually poorly designed due to the expansion of the original facilities, a lack of awareness of existing guidelines by the developers, and a lack of agreement between the existing recommendations. There are several guidelines and recommendations available in the literature; however, each work was developed for specific cultural contexts, so there is a lack of uniformity among them. Hence, there is a need to uniformize the guidelines for signage design in healthcare, in order to provide supportive information for developers to build and implement effective and efficient signage systems. This study examined the available literature on the subject and established a set of guidelines organized in categories to help the design process. A literature review was conducted, and 34 selected publications were analyzed from which recommendations were created. A best practices manual was also studied and used as the analytical framework to establish the design categories of the developed recommendations. This review resulted in guidelines divided into nine design categories that should be considered in the design and implementation process of signage systems in healthcare facilities

"Do Your Homework": hegemonic discourses on work, in the tabloid media, during the Eurozone Crisis

This article explores hegemonic discourses on productive work and labor, in the context of the Eurozone crisis. Based on the separation between creditor and debtor countries, often associated with Northern and Southern Europe, the coverage of the Portuguese legislative elections of 2011, in the online versions of two tabloid newspapers, the German Bild and the Portuguese Correio da Manhã, was analyzed. The analysis allowed us to identify a hegemonic discourse, transversal to both newspapers, that places work and the consequent accumulation of capital, as the central axis of valuing a society, dividing Europe into compliant (trustworthy) and non-compliant (untrustworthy) countries. In a few instances, we have identified a counter-hegemonic discourse, that values elements beyond productivity, calls into question the need for compliance, and places the root of the crisis in the very system that values development, as promoted in advanced capitalism.publishe

How interest rates are affected by relationship lending technology : a study on Portuguese SMEs

Este trabalho final de Mestrado investiga o papel do relacionamento das empresas com o banco e seu impacto nas taxas de juros entre outros fatores. Entre outros fatores, as variáveis estudadas são o número de bancos, a localização geográfica e o tipo de gestão/propriedade da empresa. Com uma amostra de 4478 empresas entre o ano de 2010 e 2017 realizou-se uma regressão simples OLS e o resultado obtido mostra que o tipo de relacionamento com o credor tem um impacto sobre as taxas de juro. As principais evidências deste estudo mostram que informações “soft” são importantes, em especial a localização geográfica e o tipo de tipologia da empresa.This dissertation paper investigates the role of relationship lending and its impact on interest rate among other factors. Among other variables, the determinants studied are the number of banks, distance from metropolitan areas and type of company ownership/ management. Using a sample of 4478 companies between the year of 2010 and 2017, it was made an OLS regression and the result shows that relationship lending has an impact on interest rates paid to the lender. Evidence shows that soft information is important, especially the geographical location and the type of ownership/management of the company

Educação sexual na adolescência: meio rural versus meio urbano

O presente estudo teve por objectivo compreender a influência do meio rural e do meio urbano nos conhecimentos dos adolescentes de ambos os sexos, na área da sexualidade. Sob uma óptica quantitativa e transversal, participaram 418 adolescentes a frequentar o 9º ano de escolaridade em escolas públicas inseridas em meios rural e urbano, aos quais foi aplicado um questionário de auto-preenchimento, procurando caracterizar os conhecimentos, as fontes de informação em matéria de sexualidade e as perspectivas acerca da concretização da educação sexual. Os resultados revelaram algumas diferenças nos conhecimentos e interesses dos adolescentes de ambos os contextos em alguns domínios específicos, evidenciando a importância de valorizar as necessidades específicas dos adolescentes e o contexto sócio-cultural e geográfico em que estes se inserem.Abstract: This study aimed to understand the influence of rural and urban settings on the knowledge of adolescents of both sexes regarding sexuality. Under a quantitative and transversal approach, with a sample of 418 adolescents attending the 9th grade in public schools, inserted in urban or rural settings, data was collected through the application of a self-fulfilled questionnaire, seeking to characterize knowledge, sources of information on the subject of sexuality and perspectives on the implementation of sex education. The results revealed some differences in knowledge and educational interests of adolescents between these contexts in some specific areas, highlighting the importance of valuing the specific needs of adolescents and the socio-cultural and geographic context where they belong