Biogeographical survey and characterization of indigenous yeasts from the vineyards of the azores archipelago

This study aims at the characterization of the fermentative yeasts flora of the vineyards from Azores, for biodiversity preservation and the constitution of a Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain collection. During the harvest of 2009, 88 grape samples were collected from eight islands of the archipelago, that belonged to traditional (Arinto, Verdelho and Terrantez) and hybrid grape varieties. The sampling plan covered 36 locations, including vineyards in appellations of origin and abandoned vineyards. Forty nine spontaneous fermentations were achieved. About 83% of the musts obtained from traditional varieties finished fermentation, while this value was 47% and 33% for musts from hybrid varieties in non-abandoned and abandoned vineyards, respectively. From the final phase of the fermentations, a total of 1470 isolates was obtained. The identification was performed by restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis (RFLP) of ITS sequences. The S. cerevisiae strains were differentiated by the comparison of polymorphic patterns that were obtained from interdelta sequences amplification by PCR. We obtained 660 isolates of non-Saccharomyces species and 810 isolates of S. cerevisiae, classified in 168 strains. Surprisingly, the percentage of S. cerevisiae in fermentations performed with grapes from abandoned vineyards was significantly higher (75%) compared to the values determined for non-abandoned vineyards (56%, for both traditional and hybrid varieties). Contrarily, the number of S. cerevisiae strains per fermentation was lower (3-11) in samples from abandoned vineyards compared to non-abandoned vineyards (1-23). The relative proportion of S. cerevisiae and non-Saccharomyces species was not associated with the grape variety, but rather the type of vineyard. The highest number of S. cerevisiae strains per fermentation was observed in samples collected from the Graciosa Island. Our results show that Azorean vineyards have a high genetic diversity of S. cerevisiae, even in locations where no human intervention occurs.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) - Programa Operacional Ciência e Inovação POCI2010 , POCI/AGR/56102/2004), PTDC(AGR-ALI/103392/2008)Direcção Regional da Ciência e Tecnologia -Açores (DRCT

Phenotypic differentiation and genetic diversity of Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains from vineyards of the Azores Archipelago

This work aims to evaluate diversity of Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains from vineyards of the Azores Archipelago and to estimate the degree of phenotypic and genetic differentiation among geographically isolated islands. During two consecutive years, 163 grape musts were obtained from grape samples collected in eight islands of the Archipelago, that belonged to traditional (Arinto, Verdelho and Terrantez) and hybrid grape varieties. The sampling plan included vineyards in appellations of origin and abandoned vineyards. Ninety-four spontaneous fermentations were achieved. From the final fermentative stages, 2670 yeast isolates were obtained. The species identification was performed by restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis (RFLP) and sequencing of ITS regions. S. cerevisiae strains delimitation was performed by interdelta sequences analysis. S. cerevisiae strains were phenotypically evaluated regarding the combined resistance to ethanol/SO2, ß-glucosidade activity, H2S production and the killer/sensitive phenotype. From all isolates collected, 22.2% belonged to non-Saccharomyces species and 77.8% to S. cerevisiae, which were classified in 284 strains. We found phenotypic variations among strains according to their origin (islands, grape variety or vineyard management). Fifty percent of S. cerevisiae isolates from Graciosa, the island with the largest area of contiguous vineyards, showed killer activity, whereas this value was considerably lower in the other six islands (0 – 12 %). On this island we also found a high genetic diversity, since the average number of S. cerevisiae strains per fermentation was of 6.4 and 6.7 on the islands Graciosa and Santa Maria, respectively. Lower values (ranging between 1.2 and 4.9) were observed in each of the other five islands. On each island of the Azores Archipelago, S. cerevisiae isolates from abandoned vineyards tended to be less resistant to SO2 (100 ppm) in comparison with strains obtained from cultivated vineyards. Sequencing of genetically most distinctive strains is currently underway.João Drumonde-Neves is recipient of a fellowship supported by the program PRO-EMPREGO and the Azores Government. This study was financially supported by FP7 (nº 232454). Financial support was also obtained from FEDER funds through the program COMPETE and by national funds through FCT by the project FCOMP-01-0124-008775

Biogeographical survey of indigenous yeasts from the vineyards of the Azores Archipelago

This study aims at the characterization of the fermentative yeasts flora of the vineyards of the Azores islands, for biodiversity preservation and the constitution of a Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain collection as a genetic resource for future strain selection and improvement. During the harvest of 2009, 88 grape samples were collected from eight islands of the archipelago that belonged to traditional (Arinto, Verdelho and Terrantez) and hybrid (“American”) grape varieties. The sampling plan covered 36 locations, including vineyards in appellations of origin and vineyards that were abandoned for more than 5 years. Forty nine spontaneous fermentations were achieved from the musts of 88 grape samples. About 83% of the musts obtained from grapes of traditional varieties finished fermentation, while this value was 47% and 33% for musts from hybrid varieties in non-abandoned and abandoned vineyards, respectively. From the final phase of each fermentation, 30 isolates were obtained, resulting in a total of 1470 isolates. The molecular identification was performed by restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis (RFLP) of ITS sequences. The S. cerevisiae strains were differentiated by the comparison of polymorphic patterns that were obtained from interdelta sequences amplification. Six hundred and sixty isolates of non-Saccharomyces species and 810 isolates of S. cerevisiae were obtained, which were classified in 168 strains. Surprisingly, the percentage of S. cerevisiae in fermentations performed with grapes from abandoned vineyards was significantly higher (75%) compared to the values determined for non-abandoned vineyards (56%, for both traditional and hybrid varieties). Contrarily, the number of S. cerevisiae strains per fermentation was lower (3-11 strains) in samples collected from abandoned vineyards compared to non-abandoned vineyards (1-23 strains). The relative proportion of S. cerevisiae and non-Saccharomyces species was not associeated with the grape variety, but rather the type of vineyard. The highest number of S. cerevisiae strains per fermentation was observed in samples collected from the Graciosa Island. Our results show that the vineyards on the Azores Islands have a high genetic diversity of S. cerevsiae, whereas this species can also be found in vineyards with no human intervention.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) - Programa Operacional Ciência e Inovação POCI2010 , POCI/AGR/56102/2004), PTDC(AGR-ALI/103392/2008)Direcção Regional da Ciência e Tecnologia - Açores (DRCT

Primitive neuroectodermal tumor of the central nervous system: report of four cases

The clinicopathological and immunohistochemical features of four cases of primitive neuroectodermal tumors of the central nervous system were investigated. Three patients died. All cases showed vimentin-positive cells with the morphology of neoplastic cells and one case showed glial fibrillary acidic protein, neuron-specific enolase and neurofilament protein-positive cell. The present study indicates that this group of tumors have bad prognostics and may show immunocytochemical features indicating glial and/or neuronal differentiation.As alterações clinicopatológicas e imuno-histoquímicas de quatro casos de tumores neuroectodérmicos primitivos do sistema nervoso central foram investigadas. Três pacientes morreram. Todos os casos mostraram células vimentina positivas com morfologia de células neoplásicas e um caso mostrou células neoplásicas com imunoexpressão para proteína glial fibrilar acídica, enolase neuro-específica e neurofilamento. O presente estudo indica que este grupo de tumores tem mau prognóstico e pode mostrar alterações imuno-histoquímicas que indicam diferenciação glial e/ou neuronal.Escola Paulista de Medicina Departamento de Anatomia PatológicaUNIFESP, EPM, Depto. de Anatomia PatológicaSciEL

Lipid nanocarriers for anti-HIV therapeutics: a focus on physicochemical properties and biotechnological advances

Since HIV was first identified, and in a relatively short period of time, AIDS has become one of the most devastating infectious diseases of the 21st century. Classical antiretroviral therapies were a major step forward in disease treatment options, significantly improving the survival rates of HIV-infected individuals. Even though these therapies have greatly improved HIV clinical outcomes, antiretrovirals (ARV) feature biopharmaceutic and pharmacokinetic problems such as poor aqueous solubility, short half-life, and poor penetration into HIV reservoir sites, which contribute to the suboptimal efficacy of these regimens. To overcome some of these issues, novel nanotechnology-based strategies for ARV delivery towards HIV viral reservoirs have been proposed. The current review is focused on the benefits of using lipid-based nanocarriers for tuning the physicochemical properties of ARV to overcome biological barriers upon administration. Furthermore, a correlation between these properties and the potential therapeutic outcomes has been established. Biotechnological advancements using lipid nanocarriers for RNA interference (RNAi) delivery for the treatment of HIV infections were also discussed.This research was funded by FCT/MCTES—Foundation for Science and Technology I.P. from the Minister of Science, Technology, and Higher Education (PIDDAC) and European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) by the COMPETE—Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade (POFC) through the project CONCERT [POCI-01-0145-FEDER-032651 and PTDC/NANMAT/326512017] and the Strategic Funding UID/FIS/04650/2019 and “Contrato-Programa” UIDB/ 04469/2020 (CF-UM-UP and CBMA). Marlene Lúcio thanks FCT and ERDF for the doctoral position [CTTI-150/18-CF (1)] in the scope of the project CONCERT. Maria João Faria thanks FCT for PhD grant [2020.06561.BD]

Groundwater response to climate variability in Mediterranean type climate zones with comparisons of California (USA) and Portugal

Aquifers are a fundamental source of freshwater, yet they are particularly vulnerable in coastal regions with Mediterranean type climate, due to both climatic and anthropogenic pressures. This comparative study examines the interrelationships between ocean-atmosphere teleconnections, groundwater levels and precipitation in coastal aquifers of California (USA) and Portugal. Piezometric and climate indices (1989-2019) are analyzed using singular spectral analysis and wavelet transform methods. Singular spectral analysis identifies signals consistent with the six dominant climate patterns: the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO), the El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), and the Pacific/North American Oscillation (PNA) in California, and the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the Eastern Atlantic Oscillation (EA) and the Scandinavian Pattern (SCAND) in Portugal. Lower-frequency oscillations have a greater influence on hydrologic patterns, with PDO (52.75%) and NAO (46.25%) on average accounting for the largest amount of groundwater level variability. Wavelet coherences show nonstationary covariability between climate patterns and groundwater levels in distinct period bands: 4-8 years for PDO, 2-4 years for ENSO, 1-2 years for PNA, 5-8 years for NAO, 2-4 years for EA and 2-8 years for SCAND. Wavelet coherence patterns also show that coupled climate patterns (NAO+ EA- and paired PDO and ENSO phases) are associated with major drought periods in both the Mediterranean climate zones.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Chemical profiling of infusions and decoctions of Helichrysum italicum subsp picardii by UHPLC-PDA-MS and in vitro biological activities comparatively with green tea (Camellia sinensis) and rooibos tisane (Aspalathus linearis)

Several medicinal plants are currently used by the food industry as functional additives, for example botanical extracts in herbal drinks. Moreover, the scientific community has recently begun focusing on halophytes as sources of functional beverages. Helichrysum italicum subsp. picardii (everlasting) is an aromatic halophyte common in southern Europe frequently used as spice and in traditional medicine. In this context, this work explored for the first time H. italicum subsp. picardii as a potential source of innovative herbal beverages with potential health promoting properties. For that purpose, infusions and decoctions were prepared from roots, vegetative aerial-organs (stems and leaves) and flowers and evaluated for in vitro antioxidant and anti-diabetic activities. Samples were also assessed for toxicity in different mammalian cell lines and chemically characterized by spectrophotometric methods and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography photo diode array mass-spectrometry (UHPLC-PDA-MS). Results were expressed relating to 'a cup-of-tea' and compared with those obtained with green tea (Camellia sinensis) and rooibos tisane (Aspalathus linearis). Tisanes from the everlasting's above-ground organs, particularly flowers, have high polyphenolic content and several phenolics were identified; the main compounds were chlorogenic and quinic acids, dicaffeoylquinic-acid isomers and gnaphaliin-A. The antioxidant activity of beverages from the everlasting's above-ground organs matched or surpassed that of green tea and rooibos. Its anti-diabetic activity was moderate and toxicity low. Overall, our results suggest that the everlasting is a potential source of innovative and functional herbal beverages. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.national funds through Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) [CCMAR/Multi/04326/2013]FCT [SFRH/BD/94407/2013, SFRH/BD/116604/2016]Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO) [12M8315N]FCT Investigator Programme [IF/00049/2012]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Taste panel quality evaluation of 'Hayward' kiwifruit of different origins

In Portugal, the regions of Entre-Douro e Minho and Beira Litoral have exceptional conditions for the production of good quality kiwifruit. However, demand exceeds local supply resulting in importation of kiwifruit from Italy, Chile and New Zealand. Taste panels were run in December, May and June to study the preferences of Portuguese consumers for 'Hayward' kiwifruit. In December, a comparison was made between kiwifruit from Portugal and Italy, in May between kiwifruit from Portugal and Chile and in June between kiwifruit from Portugal, Chile and New Zealand. Attributes assessed by panellists were: appearance, texture, flavour, sweetness and acidity. The same samples were analyzed for: weight, equatorial and longitudinal diameter, firmness, soluble solids (as measured by refractometer) and titratable acidity. In May, panellists preferred Portuguese kiwifruit, but in December and June the preference was not so clear. In December, Portuguese kiwifruit were not at the eating ripe stage and in June they were at the end of their storage life (bad appearance but better flavour, sweetness and texture)

Risk of drowning in people with Parkinson's disease

© 2018 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder SocietySwimming is a common activity, practiced by both healthy and nonhealthy people of all ages. It is a complex activity that requires coordination of breathing with continued and harmonic upper and lower limb movements. Because of the unique properties of water, aquatic activities are usually associated with facilitated movements and therapeutic properties.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Rational development of liposomal hydrogels: A strategy for topical vaginal antiretroviral drug delivery in the context of HIV prevention

HIV/AIDS stands as a global burden, and vaginal microbicides constitute a promising strategy for topical pre-exposure prophylaxis. Preceding the development of a microbicide containing tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) and emtricitabine (FTC), in silico and in vitro studies were performed to evaluate the physicochemical characteristics of both drugs, and to study their biophysical impact in lipid model systems. Results from these pre-formulation studies defined hydrogels as adequate vehicles to incorporate TDF-loaded liposomes and FTC. After studying interactions with mucin, zwitterionic liposomes with a mean diameter of 134 ± 13 nm, an encapsulation TDF efficiency of approximately 84%, and a transition temperature of 41 °C were selected. The chosen liposomal formulation was non-cytotoxic to HEC-1-A and CaSki cells, and was able to favor TDF permeation across polysulfone membranes (Jss = 9.9 μg·cm−2·h−1). After the incorporation of TDF-loaded liposomes and FTC in carbomer hydrogels, the drug release profile was sustained over time, reaching around 60% for both drugs within 3–6 h, and best fitting the Weibull model. Moreover, liposomal hydrogels featured pseudoplastic profiles that were deemed suitable for topical application. Overall, the proposed liposomal hydrogels may constitute a promising formulation for the vaginal co-delivery of TDF/FTC.Funding for this work was provided by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) in the framework of the Strategic Funding UID/FIS/04650/2019 and in the ambit of the project POCI-01-0145-FEDER-032651 and PTDC/ NAN-MAT/326512017, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), through COMPETE 2020, under Portugal 2020, and FCT I.P. This work was also supported by the strategic program UID/BIA/04050/2019 and project ERA-IB-2-6/0004/2014 funded by national Portuguese funds through FCT I.P. M. Lúcio thanks FCT and ERDF for doctoral position Ref. CTTI-150/18-CF(1) in the ambit of the project CONCERT (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-032651 and PTDC/NAN-MAT/326512017). This work was further supported by Institute for Research and Innovation in Health Sciences (UID/BIM/04293/2019), by Programa Gilead GÉNESE, Gilead Portugal (refs. PGG/046/2015 and PGG/002/2016), and by CEB (UID/BIO/04469/2019)