Changes of adolescent sleep patterns during the COVID-19 pandemic

OBJECTIVE: The COVID-19 pandemic has raised numerous concerns regarding its effects on individuals’ health and lifestyle. We aim to analyze potential changes in adolescent sleep patterns from before and during the pandemic and identify specific predictors of changes. METHODS: A subgroup of adolescents from a population-based birth cohort from Pelotas, Brazil, was assessed pre-pandemic (T1, November-2019 to March-2020) and peri-pandemic (T2, August-2021 to December-2021) in in-person interviews (n = 1,949). Sleep parameters, including sleep duration and latency time on workdays and free days, as well as social jetlag (SJL), were assessed using the Munich ChronoType Questionnaire (MCTQ). Socio-demographic, pre-pandemic, and pandemic-related predictors were analyzed. Changes in sleep parameters from T1 to T2 were estimated by multivariate latent change score modeling. RESULTS: The latent change factor shows a significant mean increase in workday sleep duration (M = 0.334, p < 0.001), workday sleep latency (M = 0.029, p = 0.002), and free day sleep latency (M = 0.021, p = 0.034), and a decreased in SJL (M = −0.758, p < 0.001) during the pandemic. Female adolescents presented higher increases in workday sleep duration. Adolescents who adopted a stricter social distancing level during the pandemic presented greater increases in workday sleep duration and smaller reductions in SJL. Self-evaluated insomnia during the pandemic predicted lower increases in workday and free day sleep duration and higher increases in workday and free day sleep latency. CONCLUSION: The COVID-19 outbreak brought certain advantages regarding increased sleep duration and reduced SJL. However, the observed increase in sleep latency and the influence of self-reported insomnia could be related to psychological distress inherent to the pandemic

Fetal Heart Rate Fragmentation

This article was supported by National Funds through FCT– Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P., within CINTESIS, R&D Unit (reference UIDB/4255/2020)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Ethanol production from hydrolyzed kraft pulp by mono- and co-cultures of yeasts: the challenge of C6 and C5 sugars consumption

Second-generation bioethanol production’s main bottleneck is the need for a costly and technically di cult pretreatment due to the recalcitrance of lignocellulosic biomass (LCB). Chemical pulping can be considered as a LCB pretreatment since it removes lignin and targets hemicelluloses to some extent. Chemical pulps could be used to produce ethanol. The present study aimed to investigate the batch ethanol production from unbleached Kraft pulp of Eucalyptus globulus by separate hydrolysis and fermentation (SHF). Enzymatic hydrolysis of the pulp resulted in a glucose yield of 96.1 3.6% and a xylose yield of 94.0 7.1%. In an Erlenmeyer flask, fermentation of the hydrolysate using Saccharomyces cerevisiae showed better results than Sche ersomyces stipitis. At both the Erlenmeyer flask and bioreactor scale, co-cultures of S. cerevisiae and S. stipitis did not show significant improvements in the fermentation performance. The best result was provided by S. cerevisiae alone in a bioreactor, which fermented the Kraft pulp hydrolysate with an ethanol yield of 0.433 g g1 and a volumetric ethanol productivity of 0.733 g L1 h1, and a maximum ethanol concentration of 19.24 g L1 was attained. Bioethanol production using the SHF of unbleached Kraft pulp of E. globulus provides a high yield and productivity.publishe

Getting Value from Pulp and Paper Industry Wastes: On the Way to Sustainability and Circular Economy

The pulp and paper industry is recognized as a well-established sector, which throughout its process, generates a vast amount of waste streams with the capacity to be valorized. Typically, these residues are burned for energy purposes, but their use as substrates for biological processes could be a more efficient and sustainable alternative. With this aim, it is essential to identify and characterize each type of waste to determine its biotechnological potential. In this context, this research highlights possible alternatives with lower environmental impact and higher revenues. The bio-based pathway should be a promising alternative for the valorization of pulp and paper industry wastes, in particular for bioproduct production such as bioethanol, polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA), and biogas. This article focuses on state of the art regarding the identification and characterization of these wastes, their main applied deconstruction technologies and the valorization pathways reported for the production of the abovementioned bioproductspublishe

Epidemiology of smoking in the rural area of a medium-sized city in Southern Brazil

OBJETIVO: Estimar a prevalência de tabagismo e fatores associados entre moradores de zona rural. MÉTODOS: Estudo transversal de base populacional realizado com 1.519 indivíduos, em 2016. Foram aleatoriamente selecionados 24 dos 50 setores censitários que compõem os oito distritos rurais do município de Pelotas, RS. Indivíduos ≥ 18 anos residentes nos domicílios aleatoriamente selecionados eram elegíveis. Foram considerados tabagistas aqueles que fumavam ≥ 1 cigarro/dia há pelo menos um mês ou que declararam haver parado de fumar há menos de um mês. As variáveis independentes incluíram características socioeconômicas, demográficas, comportamentais e de saúde. Foram investigados: idade de início, duração da adição, número de cigarros fumados/dia, carga tabágica e tipos de cigarros consumidos. Foi realizada regressão de Poisson para cálculo das razões de prevalências (RP) ajustadas e intervalos de confiança de 95% (IC95%). RESULTADOS: A prevalência de tabagismo foi 16,6% (IC95% 13,6–20,0), sendo duas vezes maior nos homens do que nas mulheres (RP = 1,99; IC95% 1,44–2,74), na classe econômica D ou E do que na A ou B (RP = 2,23; IC95% 1,37–3,62) e naqueles que consideraram sua saúde ruim ou muito ruim, comparados àqueles que a consideraram muito boa ou boa (RP = 2,02; IC95% 1,33–3,08). Também foi superior em pessoas com 30–59 anos (comparadas àquelas com < 30 anos), com 5–8 anos de escolaridade (comparados às pessoas com ≥ 9 anos), e com rastreio positivo para transtorno relacionado ao consumo de álcool. A prevalência foi menor entre indivíduos com sobrepeso ou obesidade, em comparação aos eutróficos. O tabagismo iniciou em média aos 16,9 anos, com consumo médio de cerca de 14 cigarros/dia e carga tabágica média de 22 maços/ano. O cigarro de papel enrolado à mão foi o mais consumido (57,6%). CONCLUSÕES: Aproximadamente um em cada seis adultos da zona rural de Pelotas é fumante atual. Os achados evidenciam a existência de desigualdades sociais relacionadas à adição tabágica. Ações de prevenção e controle do tabagismo devem continuar sendo estimuladas, sobretudo nos subgrupos mais vulneráveis.OBJECTIVE: To estimate the prevalence of smoking and associated factors among rural residents. METHODS: This is a population-based, cross-sectional study of 1,519 individuals carried out in 2016. We randomly selected 24 of the 50 census tracts that make up the eight rural districts of the city of Pelotas, State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. All individuals aged 18 years or more living in the randomly selected households were eligible. Smokers were all those who smoked ≥ 1 cigarette/day for at least one month or declared that they had stopped smoking for less than one month. The independent variables included socioeconomic, demographic, behavioral, and health characteristics. We investigated age of onset, duration of addiction, number of cigarettes smoked/day, pack-years, and types of cigarettes consumed. Poisson regression was performed to calculate the adjusted prevalence ratios (PR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI). RESULTS: The prevalence of smoking was 16.6% (95%CI 13.6–20.0), and it was twice as high in men in relation to women (PR = 1.99, 95%CI 1.44–2.74), in socioeconomic class D or E in relation to class A or B (PR = 2.23, 95%CI 1.37–3.62), and in those who considered their health poor or very poor in relation those with good or very good health (PR = 2.02, 95%CI 1.33–3.08). It was also higher in persons aged 30–59 years (compared to those aged < 30 years), with 5–8 years of education level (compared to those with ≥ 9 years), and with positive screening for alcohol-related disorder. Prevalence was lower among individuals who were overweight or obese than in those with normal weight. Smoking began on average at 16.9 years, with an average consumption of approximately 14 cigarettes/day and mean pack-years of 22 packs/year. The paper hand-rolled cigarette was the most consumed (57.6%). CONCLUSIONS: Approximately one in six adults in rural Pelotas is a current smoker. The findings show the existence of social inequalities related to smoking addiction. Actions to prevent and control smoking should continue to be stimulated, especially in the most vulnerable subgroups

Targeted therapy using phage technology: a computational and experimental breast cancer study

During the past two decades cancer biology knowledge has widely increased and shifted the paradigm of cancer treatment from nonspecific cytotoxic agents to selective, mechanism-based therapeutics. Initially, cancer drug design was focused on compounds that rapidly killed dividing cells. Though still used as the backbone of current treatments, these highly unspecific targeting drugs lead to significant toxicity for patients, narrowing the therapeutic index, and frequently lead to drug resistance. Therefore, cancer therapies are now based on cancer immunotherapy and targeted agents, whereas novel treatments are strategically combining both to improve clinical outcomes. Despite the nanotechnology advances dictating the development of targeted therapies in diverse classes of nano-based carriers, virus-based vectors still remain highly used due to its biocompatibility and specificity for the target. Particularly, bacteriophages are an interesting alternative ‘nanomedicine’ that can combine biological and chemical components into the same drug delivery system. The great potential of this novel platform for cancer therapy is the ability to genetically manipulate the virus-vector to display specific targeting moieties. Phage display technology, a general technique used for detecting interfaces of various types of interacting proteins outside of the immunological context, allows the target agents to locate the target (with an increased selection process for the specific binding – termed biopanning) and play their essential role inhibiting molecular pathways crucial for tumour growth and maintenance. Phage display specificity core is related with the binding of small peptides displayed at their coat or capsid proteins, enriched during biopanning. Bioinformatics plays an important role in testing and improving phage display libraries by effective epitope mapping, selecting from a large set of random peptides those with a high binding affinity to a target of interest. In this work we demonstrate the screening of a manually constructed 7-mer peptide library of M13KE phage particles against MDA-MB-231 and -435 cancer cell lines. Two peptides – TLATVEV and PRLNVSP – with high affinity for the referred cells were identified, respectively. Based on computationally predicted epitopes based on the peptides extracted from this library the linear peptide sequence was docked onto known membrane proteins from the used cell lines and peptides-proteins interactions were mapped. Umbrella sampling studies were performed to predict the binding affinity and to improve future rational design of binding peptides to these cancer cells

APPROACH SPEED, LAST STEP CHARACTERISTICS AND TAKE-OFF ACCURACY OF T36 CLASS PARALYMPIC LONG JUMPERS

The purpose of this study was to examine the approach speed (VAPP), the characteristics of the last three steps and the accuracy of foot placement at the take-off board (TTB) in T36 Paralympic long jumpers. Nine male finalists in the T36 Class long jump event who competed at the 2012 London Paralympics were analyzed using high speed video cameras and a speed radar gun. Results revealed that VAPP (8.0 ± 0.4 m/s) peaked at a distance of 6.40 ± 3.25 m from the take-off board. Both parameters were significantly correlated with the effective distance of the jump. TTB was 0.14 ± 0.10 m. There was no indication that the last steps were performed using the adequate step length for the proper execution of the “larger penultimate – shorter last step” technique. The adoption of this technique when approaching the take-off board may improve the effectiveness of the approach and aid in achieving a better take-off

Valorization of brewer’s spent grain by furfural recovery/removal from subcritical water hydrolysates by pervaporation

This work is focused on the development of a sustainable process for the valorisation of the main by-product generated in the brewing industry, the brewer’s spent grain (BSG). A two-step process combining subcritical water treatment and pervaporation (PV) was proposed to hydrolyse the hemicelluloses fraction of this lignocellulosic biomass and further removal/recovery of some of the degradation products of sugars by using two different organophilic membranes, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and polyoctilmethylsiloxane (POMS) membranes. Specifically, furfural is the dehydration product of pentoses and it is one of the top biomass-based chemicals being an important platform chemical. For synthetic binary mixtures, lower total permeation flux but higher enrichment factors for furfural were determined for POMS. When dealing with subW hydrolysates, POMS membranes yielded the highest furfural recovery, 94.1 %, with permeate concentrations as high as 40 g⋅L1 . Furthermore, it was assessed that PV is a suitable detoxification method that yielded a retentate nearly free of furfural allowing its use as growth media in the opposite to the subW hydrolysate with inhibitory furfural concentrations for microbial bioprocesses.publishe

A systematic analysis of orphan cyclins reveals CNTD2 as a new oncogenic driver in lung cancer

As lung cancer has increased to the most common cause of cancer death worldwide, prognostic biomarkers and effective targeted treatments remain lacking despite advances based on patients' stratification. Multiple core cyclins, best known as drivers of cell proliferation, are commonly deregulated in lung cancer where they may serve as oncogenes. The recent expansion of the cyclin family raises the question whether new members might play oncogenic roles as well. Here, we investigated the protein levels of eight atypical cyclins in lung cancer cell lines and formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded (FFPE) human tumors, as well as their functional role in lung cancer cells. Of the new cyclins evaluated, CNTD2 was significantly overexpressed in lung cancer compared to adjacent normal tissue, and exhibited a predominant nuclear location. CNTD2 overexpression increased lung cancer cell viability, Ki-67 intensity and clonogenicity and promoted lung cancer cell migration. Accordingly, CNTD2 enhanced tumor growth in vivo on A549 xenograft models. Finally, the analysis of gene expression data revealed a high correlation between elevated levels of CNTD2 and decreased overall survival in lung cancer patients. Our results reveal CNTD2 as a new oncogenic driver in lung cancer, suggesting value as a prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target in this disease

Nutrição de tilápias no Brasil

Tilapias are the most important fish in aquaculture in Brazil, growing in earth ponds and fish cages. Several research groups have studied the tilapias’ requirements of energy, protein (amino acids), vitamins and minerals. In order to optimize the feed conversion ratio and reduce the surplus nitrogen and phosphorus, one must consider the values of digestibility of energy and food nutrients in the development of economically feasible diets. Due to variations in the requirements of new types of tilapia, research is necessary to develop environmentally sustainable diets which will result in economic returns by improving fish growth, feed efficiency and fillet yield. This article reviews the nutrient requirements of tilapia determined in Brazil.As tilápias são os peixes mais utilizados em confinamento no Brasil em tanques de terra e tanques-rede. Diversos grupos de pesquisa têm estudado as exigências de energia, proteína (aminoácidos), vitaminas e minerais de tilápias. Para otimizar a conversão alimentar e reduzir os excedentes de nitrogênio e fósforo, os valores de digestibilidade da energia e nutrientes dos alimentos devem ser considerados na elaboração de dietas viáveis economicamente. Devido a variações nas exigências de novas linhagens introduzidas, são necessárias pesquisas para elaboração de dietas sustentáveis do ponto de vista ambiental, que resultem em retorno econômico por meio de melhorias no crescimento, na eficiência alimentar e no rendimento de filé. Este trabalho apresenta uma revisão sobre as exigências nutricionais de tilápias determinada no Brasi