Resource design in constrained networks for network lifetime increase

As constrained "things" become increasingly integrated with the Internet and accessible for interactive communication, energy efficient ways to collect, aggregate, and share data over such constrained networks are needed. In this paper, we propose the use of constrained RESTful environments interfaces to build resource collections having a network lifetime increase in mind. More specifically, based on existing atomic resources, collections are created/designed to become available as new resources, which can be observed. Such resource design should not only match client's interests, but also increase network lifetime as much as possible. For this to happen, energy consumption should be balanced/fair among nodes so that node depletion is delayed. When compared with previous approaches, results show that energy efficiency and network lifetime can be increased while reducing control/registration messages, which are used to set up or change observations

GACN: Self-clustering genetic algorithm for constrained networks

Extending the lifespan of a wireless sensor network is a complex problem that involves several factors, ranging from device hardware capacity (batteries, processing capabilities, and radio efficiency) to the chosen software stack, which is often unaccounted for by the previous approaches. This letter proposes a genetic algorithm-based clustering optimization method for constrained networks that significantly improves the previous state-of-the-art results, while accounting for the specificities of the Internet engineering task force, Constrained RESTful Environment (CoRE), standards for data transmission and specifically relying on CoRE interfaces, which fit this purpose very well.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Stellar parameters for stars of the CoRoT exoplanet field

Aims:To support the computation and evolutionary interpretation of periods associated with the rotational modulation, oscillations, and variability of stars located in the CoRoT fields, we are conducting a spectroscopic survey for stars located in the fields already observed by the satellite. These observations allow us to compute physical and chemical parameters for our stellar sample. Method: Using spectroscopic observations obtained with UVES/VLT and Hydra/Blanco, and based on standard analysis techniques, we computed physical and chemical parameters ($T_{\rm{eff}}$, $\log \,(g)$, $\rm{[Fe/H]}$, $v_{\rm{mic}}$, $v_{\rm{rad}}$, $v \sin \,(i)$, and $A(\rm{Li})$) for a large sample of CoRoT targets. Results: We provide physical and chemical parameters for a sample comprised of 138 CoRoT targets. Our analysis shows the stars in our sample are located in different evolutionary stages, ranging from the main sequence to the red giant branch, and range in spectral type from F to K. The physical and chemical properties for the stellar sample are in agreement with typical values reported for FGK stars. However, we report three stars presenting abnormal lithium behavior in the CoRoT fields. These parameters allow us to properly characterize the intrinsic properties of the stars in these fields. Our results reveal important differences in the distributions of metallicity, $T_{\rm eff}$, and evolutionary status for stars belonging to different CoRoT fields, in agreement with results obtained independently from ground-based photometric surveys. Conclusions: Our spectroscopic catalog, by providing much-needed spectroscopic information for a large sample of CoRoT targets, will be of key importance for the successful accomplishment of several different programs related to the CoRoT mission, thus it will help further boost the scientific return associated with this space mission.Comment: 43 pages, 17 figures, accepted for publication in A&

Observational study in Takotsubo cardiomyopathy

INTRODUCTION: Takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TC) is a still rarely diagnosed clinical syndrome, which is characterized by transient cardiac dysfunction with reversible wall motion abnormalities. AIM: Determine the demographic characteristics, clinical presentation and prognosis of patients with TC. METHODS: Retrospective study of 39 patients admitted for TC in a cardiology center during a period of 3 years. RESULTS: In the population studied, the mean age was 67.15±12.01 years and women were predominant.The most frequent comorbidities were hypertension (76.9%), dyslipidemia (51.3%), psychiatric illness (23.1%) and diabetes mellitus (12.8%). The emotional stress was the most common triggering event (n=10), however, in 17 patients we were not able to identify any precipitating factor. Cardinal symptoms which led to admission, were acute chest pain (n=28) and dyspnoea (n=15). The most common ECG findings were ST segment elevation (n=21), inversion of the T wave (n=21) and QTc prolongation (n=22). All patients had typical wall motion abnormalities in the echocardiography and/or ventriculography. The mean ejection fraction was 35.59±5.54%. The most common in-hospital complication was acute heart failure (n=16, 41%), whereas 3 patients developed cardiogenic shock. The presence of moderate to severe LVS dysfunction (p=0.048) and higher levels of C reactive protein (p=0.02) and pBNP (p=0.042) were associated with the development of acute heart failure. Rhythm disturbances occurred in 3 patients and there was only one non-cardiovascular death. At follow-up at 6 months all patients showed recovery of LVS function; there was one recurrence and 3 deaths from non-cardiovascular causes. CONCLUSION: According to the literature, our review shows higher prevalence of TC in women and a clinical and electrocardiographic presentation similar to the picture of an acute coronary syndrome. In the acute phase, the TC is not necessarily a benign entity, because we observed a high prevalence of acute heart failure

SLC35A2-CDG: Novel variant and review

SLC35A2 encodes the X-linked transporter that carries uridine diphosphate (UDP)-galactose from the cytosol to the lumen of the Golgi apparatus and the endoplasmic reticulum. Pathogenic variants have been associated to a congenital disorder of glycosylation (CDG) with epileptic encephalopathy as a predominant feature. Among the sixty five patients described so far, a strong gender bias is observed as only seven patients are males. This work is a review and reports a SLC35A2-CDG in a male without epilepsy and with growth deficiency associated with decreased serum IGF1, minor neurological involvement, minor facial dysmorphism, and camptodactyly of fingers and toes. Sequence analysis revealed a hemizygosity for a novel de novo variant: c.233A > G (p.Lys78Arg) in SLC35A2. Further analysis of SLC35A2 sequence by comparing both orthologous and paralogous positions, revealed that not only the variant found in this study, but also most of the reported mutated positions are conserved in SLC35A2 orthologous, and many even in the paralogous SLC35A1 and SLC35A3. This is strong evidence that replacements at these positions will have a critical pathological effect and may also explain the gender bias observed among SLC35A2-CDG patients.This work is supported by National Funds through the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (Portuguese national funding agency for science, research and technology) in the frameworks of the UID/Multi/00215/2013 project–Unit for Multidisciplinary Research in Biomedicine–UMIB/ICB AS/UP

Structural differences on cell wall polysaccharides of brewer's spent Saccharomyces and microarray binding profiles with immune receptors

Funding Information: This work was financial supported by FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia , I.P. within the project “Yeast4FoodMed” ( POCI-01-0145-FEDER-030936 and PTDC/BAA-AGR/30936/2017 ) and LAQV/REQUIMTE ( UIDB/50006/2020 and UIDP/50006/2020 ) through national funds and, where applicable, co-financed by the FEDER , within the PT2020 Partnership Agreement. This work was also financed by national funds from FCT , in the scope of the project UIDP/04378/2020 and UIDB/04378/2020 of the Research Unit on Applied Molecular Biosciences - UCIBIO and the project LA/P/0140/2020 of the Associate Laboratory Institute for Health and Bioeconomy - i4HB. Rita Bastos ( PD/BD/114579/2016 ), Viviana G. Correia ( PD/BD/105727/2014 ) and Angelina S. Palma ( PTDC/BIA-MIB/31730/2017 ) were supported by FCT . Elisabete Coelho (CDL-CTTRI-88-ARH/2018 - REF. 049-88-ARH/2018 ) and Benedita Pinheiro thank the research contracts funded by FCT through program DL 57/2016 – Norma transitória. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The AuthorsBrewing practice uses the same yeast to inoculate the following fermentation (repitching). Saccharomyces pastorianus, used to produce Lager beer, is widely reused, not changing its fermentation performance. However, S. cerevisiae, used to produce Ale beer, is partial or not even reused, due to its poor performance. It is hypothesized that cells modulate their wall polysaccharides to increase the cell-wall strength. In this work industrial S. cerevisiae and S. pastorianus brewer's spent yeasts with different repitching numbers were studied. Glucans were the main component of S. cerevisiae whereas mannoproteins were abundant in S. pastorianus. The major changes were noticed on glucans of both species, β1,3-glucans decrease more pronounced in S. cerevisiae. The increase of α1,4-Glc, related with osmotolerance, was higher in S. cerevisiae while β1,4-Glc, related with cell-wall strength, had a small increase. In addition, these structural details showed different binding profiles to immune receptors, important to develop tailored bioactive applications.publishersversionpublishe

Design and development of a prototype electrotherapy device

This article describes a complete prototype system that can be used in electrotherapy treatments, that is, in medical treatments involving electric currents. The system is composed of two main blocks: the master and the slave. The Master block, whose main component is a CPU, controls the user interface. The Slave block, which is composed of a microcontroller and a wave generator, produces the appropriated voltages and currents compatible with the desired treatment. The whole system is powered by a 12 V power supply and the output signal voltage ranges between -100 V and 100 V. Despite the prototype being able of performing all the electrotherapy treatments in the low-medium frequency ranges, it was tested in aesthetic mesotherapy, namely in anticellulite, located anticellulite, antistretch, and antiflaccidity. In these treatments, the output signal is composed of an overlap of two frequencies: the first one is selected in the range of 1.2 kHz - 1.8 kHz and the second in the range of 0.07 Hz - 2 Hz. The system was tested in a clinical environment with real patients. It showed good results both in effectiveness of treatments and in terms of pain suffered by the patients.(undefined