Use of MODIS Sensor Images Combined with Reanalysis Products to Retrieve Net Radiation in Amazonia

In the Amazon region, the estimation of radiation fluxes through remote sensing techniques is hindered by the lack of ground measurements required as input in the models, as well as the difficulty to obtain cloud-free images. Here, we assess an approach to estimate net radiation (Rn) and its components under all-sky conditions for the Amazon region through the Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL) model utilizing only remote sensing and reanalysis data. The study period comprised six years, between January 2001–December 2006, and images from MODIS sensor aboard the Terra satellite and GLDAS reanalysis products were utilized. The estimates were evaluated with flux tower measurements within the Large-Scale Biosphere-Atmosphere Experiment in Amazonia (LBA) project. Comparison between estimates obtained by the proposed method and observations from LBA towers showed errors between 12.5% and 16.4% and 11.3% and 15.9% for instantaneous and daily Rn, respectively. Our approach was adequate to minimize the problem related to strong cloudiness over the region and allowed to map consistently the spatial distribution of net radiation components in Amazonia. We conclude that the integration of reanalysis products and satellite data, eliminating the need for surface measurements as input model, was a useful proposition for the spatialization of the radiation fluxes in the Amazon region, which may serve as input information needed by algorithms that aim to determine evapotranspiration, the most important component of the Amazon hydrological balance

Ultrasound Methods for Biodiesel Production and Analysis

Ultrasonic techniques have been widely used in biodiesel production, since the acoustic cavitation is a phenomenon capable of accelerating potentially the transesterification reactions. The equipment employed in such approach was simply equipment available in any regular laboratory of chemistry. Further developments introduced the ultrasound as an important tool to produce biodiesel. The main advantage is increasing the conversion of esters at reduced reaction times, with significantly lower production costs. As a method for characterization and analysis of materials, ultrasound has been used since several decades ago. However, ultrasonic analytical methods based on metrological principles are fairly recent investigated. Using ultrasound as physical principle to interrogate biodiesel is a promising field of research, with some remarkable outcomes produced so far. The aim of this chapter is to demonstrate advances of using ultrasonic techniques in production and characterization of biodiesel, as well as an appraisal of the current technology status, and provide insights into future developments

Ultrasound as a Metrological Tool for Monitoring Transesterification Kinetics

Ultrasound has been widely used as a technological alternative way to analyse non-invasively an assortment of materials. It includes liquids with dissimilar physical characteristics, including mono- and multi-phasic mixtures, suspension formation and dissolution, in-line processing, among other practical applications. Regardless the huge spread of uses, so far ultrasound has not been proved to be able to quantify transesterification kinetics with a metrological approach. The aim of this chapter is to demonstrate that a properly designed ultrasonic experiment can be developed to identify remarkable stages of a transesterification reaction to produce biodiesel. The method was compared both with gas chromatography and hydrogen nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR). For an in-line application, ultrasound has been proved to work properly as a monitoring tool for chemical reaction kinetics

Exercise and Caloric Restriction Alter the Immune System of Mice Submitted to a High-Fat Diet

As the size of adipocytes increases during obesity, the establishment of resident immune cells in adipose tissue becomes an important source of proinflammatory mediators. Exercise and caloric restriction are two important, nonpharmacological tools against body mass increase. To date, their effects on the immune cells of adipose tissue in obese organisms, specifically when a high-fat diet is consumed, have been poorly investigated. Thus, after consuming a high-fat diet, mice were submitted to chronic swimming training or a 30% caloric restriction in order to investigate the effects of both interventions on resident immune cells in adipose tissue. These strategies were able to reduce body mass and resulted in changes in the number of resident immune cells in the adipose tissue and levels of cytokines/chemokines in serum. While exercise increased the number of NK cells in adipose tissue and serum levels of IL-6 and RANTES, caloric restriction increased the CD4+/CD8+ cell ratio and MCP-1 levels. Together, these data demonstrated that exercise and caloric restriction modulate resident immune cells in adipose tissues differently in spite of an equivalent body weight reduction. Additionally, the results also reinforce the idea that a combination of both strategies is better than either individually for combating obesity.Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Biophys, BR-04023062 São Paulo, BrazilUniv São Paulo, Sch Arts Sci & Humanities, BR-03828000 São Paulo, BrazilUniv São Paulo, Inst Biomed Sci, Lab Transplantat Immunobiol, Dept Immunol, BR-05508900 São Paulo, BrazilUniv Fed Pelotas, Sch Nutr, Dept Nutr, BR-96010610 Pelotas, RS, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Biophys, BR-04023062 São Paulo, BrazilFAPESP: 2011/03528-0Web of Scienc

Analysis of Precipitation and Evapotranspiration in Atlantic Rainforest Remnants in Southeastern Brazil from Remote Sensing Data

The Atlantic Rainforest has been intensely devastated since the beginning of the colonization of Brazil, mainly due to wood extraction and urban and rural settlement. Although the Atlantic Rainforest has been reduced and fragmented, its remnants are important sources of heat and water vapor to the atmosphere. The present study aimed to characterize and to analyze the temporal dynamics of precipitation and evapotranspiration in the Atlantic Rainforest remnants in São Paulo state, southeastern Brazil, for the period from January 2000 to December 2010. To achieve this, global precipitation and evapotranspiration data from TRMM satellite and MOD16 algorithm as well as forest remnant maps produced by SOS Mata Atlântica Foundation and Brazilian National Institute for Space Research (INPE) were used. Results found in this study demonstrated that the use of remote sensing was an important tool for analyzing hydrological variables in Atlantic Rainforest remnants, which can contribute to better understand the interaction between tropical forests and the atmosphere, and for generating input data necessary for surface models coupled to atmospheric general circulation models

Effects of land‐cover changes on the partitioning of surface energy and water fluxes in Amazonia using high‐resolution satellite imagery

Spatial variability of surface energy and water fluxes at local scales is strongly controlled by soil and micrometeorological conditions. Thus, the accurate estimation of these fluxes from space at high spatial resolution has the potential to improve prediction of the impact of land‐use changes on the local environment. In this study, Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) and Large‐Scale Biosphere‐Atmosphere Experiment in Amazonia (LBA) data were used to examine the partitioning of surface energy and water fluxes over different land‐cover types in one wet year (2004) and one drought year (2005) in eastern Rondonia state, Brazil. The spatial variation of albedo, net radiation (Rn), soil (G) and sensible (H) heat fluxes, evapotranspiration (ET), and evaporative fraction (EF) were primarily related to the lower presence of forest (primary [PF] or secondary [SF]) in the western side of the Ji‐Parana River in comparison with the eastern side, located within the Jaru Biological Reserve protected area. Water limitation in this part of Amazonia tends to affect anthropic (pasture [PA] and agriculture [AG]) ecosystems more than the natural land covers (PF and SF). We found statistically significant differences on the surface fluxes prior to and ~1 year after the deforestation. Rn over forested areas is ~10% greater in comparison with PA and AG. Deforestation and consequent transition to PA or AG increased the total energy (~200–400%) used to heat the soil subsurface and raise air temperatures. These differences in energy partitioning contributed to approximately three times higher ET over forested areas in comparison with nonforested areas. The conversion of PF to AG is likely to have a higher impact in the local climate in this part of Amazonia when compared with the change to PA and SF, respectively. These results illustrate the importance of conserving secondary forest areas in Amazonia.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/151879/1/eco2126_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/151879/2/eco2126.pd

Methods to Evaluate Land-Atmosphere Exchanges in Amazonia Based on Satellite Imagery and Ground Measurements

During the last three decades, intensive campaigns and experiments have been conducted for acquiring micrometeorological data in the Amazonian ecosystems, which has increased our understanding of the variation, especially seasonally, of the total energy available for the atmospheric heating process by the surface, evapotranspiration and carbon exchanges. However, the measurements obtained by such experiments generally cover small areas and are not representative of the spatial variability of these processes. This chapter aims to discuss several algorithms developed to estimate surface energy and carbon fluxes combining satellite data and micrometeorological observations, highlighting the potentialities and limitations of such models for applications in the Amazon region. We show that the use of these models presents an important role in understanding the spatial and temporal patterns of biophysical surface parameters in a region where most of the information is local. Data generated may be used as inputs in earth system surface models allowing the evaluation of the impact, both in regional as well as global scales, caused by land-use and land-cover changes

Enterotype May Drive the Dietary-Associated Cardiometabolic Risk Factors

Analyses of typical bacterial clusters in humans named enterotypes may facilitate understanding the host differences in the cardiometabolic profile. It stills unknown whether the three previously described enterotypes were present in populations living below the equator. We examined how the identification of enterotypes could be useful to explain the dietary associations with cardiometabolic risk factors in Brazilian subjects. In this cross-sectional study, a convenience sample of 268 adults (54.2% women) reported their dietary habits and had clinical and biological samples collected. In this study, we analyzed biochemical data and metagenomics of fecal microbiota (16SrRNA sequencing, V4 region). Continuous variables were compared using ANOVA, and categorical variables using chi-square test. Vsearch clustered the operational taxonomic units, and Silva Database provided the taxonomic signatures. Spearman coefficient was used to verify the correlation between bacteria abundances within each enterotype. One hundred subjects were classified as omnivore, 102 lacto-ovo-vegetarians, and 66 strict vegetarians. We found the same structure as the three previously described enterotypes: 111 participants were assigned to Bacteroides, 55 to Prevotella, and 102 to Ruminococcaceae enterotype. The Prevotella cluster contained higher amount of strict vegetarians individuals than the other enterotypes (40.0 vs. 20.7 and 20.6, p = 0.04). Subjects in this enterotype had a similar anthropometric profile but a lower mean LDL-c concentration than the Bacteroides enterotype (96 +/- 23 vs. 109 +/- 32 mg/dL, p = 0.04). We observed significant correlations between bacterial abundances and cardiometabolic risk factors, but coefficients differed depending on the enterotype. In Prevotella enterotype, Eubacterium ventriosum (r BMI = -0.33, p = 0.03, and r HDL-c = 0.33, p = 0.04), Akkermansia (r 2h glucose = -0.35, p = 0.02), Roseburia (r BMI = -0.36, p = 0.02 and r waist = -0.36, p = 0.02), and Faecalibacterium (r insulin = -0.35, p = 0.02) abundances were associated to better cardiometabolic profile. The three enterotypes previously described are present in Brazilians, supporting that those bacterial clusters are not population-specific. Diet-independent lower LDL-c levels in subjects from Prevotella than in other enterotypes suggest that a protective bacterial cluster in the former should be driving this association. Enterotypes seem to be useful to understand the impact of daily diet exposure on cardiometabolic risk factors. Prospective studies are needed to confirm their utility for predicting phenotypes in humans.FAPESPUniv Sao Paulo, Sch Publ Hlth, Dept Epidemiol, Sao Paulo, BrazilFundacao Oswaldo Cruz, Rene Rachou Res Ctr, Belo Horizonte, MG, BrazilUniv Fed Sao Paulo, Dept Prevent Med, Sao Paulo, BrazilUniv Sao Paulo, Sch Med, Heart Inst Incor, Lab Genet & Mol Cardiol, Sao Paulo, BrazilUniv Fed Sao Paulo, Dept Prevent Med, Sao Paulo, BrazilFAPESP: 2012/12626-9FAPESP: 2012/03880-9Web of Scienc

The Brazilian Ceremony in Honor of Body Donors: An opportunity to express gratitude and reflect on medical education

Introduction: Memorial ceremonies are a way for institutions to show their gratitude for the gesture made by body donors and are an opportunity for students to reflect on the ethical paradigm shift. Therefore, this study aims to describe the memorial ceremony at the Federal University of Health Sciences of Porto Alegre and assess the perception of both students and the donors’ relatives regarding the event. Material and methods: In 2016, a questionnaire was applied to donors’ relatives with questions regarding structure of the ceremony, ethical training of the students and importance of body donation. Another questionnaire was applied to the first-year students of the medical school, with questions about understanding the use of bodies, and their thoughts on death and relevant ethical issues. Results: Fifty questionnaires were answered by family members and 98% agreed that the ceremony was an opportunity to feel closer to the donors and 100% said that the ceremony is important in the ethical training of students. Among students, 68 questionnaires were answered, and all affirmed that the event had a positive impact on the perception of physician-patient relationship and personal growth, and 86.7% reported enhanced empathy. Conclusion: The memorial ceremony seems to encourage students to reflect on ethical issues, because at the same time that the donors’ relatives perceive an attitude of care and respect on the part of the students, the students state a heightened sense of commitment and responsibility regarding their learning and professional formation, which depends on the gesture made by the donors

Thermal Transport and Rheological Properties of Hybrid Nanofluids Based on Vegetable Lubricants

Nanofluids based on vegetal oil with different wt.% of carbon nanotubes (CNT), hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN), and its hybrid (h-BN@CNT) were produced to investigate the effects of these nano-additives on the thermal conductivity and rheological properties of nanofluids. Stable suspensions of these oil/nanostructures were produced without the use of stabilizing agents. The dispersed nanostructures were investigated by SEM, EDS, XRD, and XPS, while the thermal conductivity and rheological characteristics were studied by a transient hot-wire method and steady-state flow tests, respectively. Increases in thermal conductivity of up to 39% were observed for fluids produced with 0.5 wt.% of the hybrid nanomaterials. As for the rheological properties, it was verified that both the base fluid and the h-BN suspensions exhibited Newtonian behavior, while the presence of CNT modified this tendency. This change in behavior is attributed to the hydrophobic character of both CNT and the base oil, while h-BN nanostructures have lip-lip “bonds”, giving it a partial ionic character. However, the combination of these nanostructures was fundamental for the synergistic effect on the increase of thermal conductivity with respect to their counterparts