Por que conservar o burro de Miranda? Uma argumentação holística

Os sistemas de agricultura nascem, expandem-se, contraem-se e morrem. A metáfora parece abusiva porque nem os sistemas de agricultura são organismos vivos, nem o seu futuro é conjecturável. No entanto, as evidências arqueológicas e paleobotânicas acumuladas nas últimas décadas mostram que desde a invenção da agricultura, há mais de 11.500 anos, vários tipos de sistemas de agricultura se sucederam no tempo, e que estes atravessaram períodos de grande estabilidade, temporariamente interrompidos por rápidas alterações, progressivas ou regressivas. A evolução "saltacional" das formas de fazer agricultura tem várias causas. As alterações climáticas são uma das mais óbvias. As migrações humanas e a descoberta de novos mundos alteraram, subitamente, a estrutura daqueles sistemas através da introdução de novas plantas e animais domesticados, ou de inovadoras técnicas culturais. A escassez de recursos, em consequência do crescimento populacional ou de catástrofes naturais, e a integração mercantil, dois enormes motores do engenho humano, estimularam o desenvolvimento e a experimentação de novas soluções técnicas . Dois pontos-chave no funcionamento dos sistemas de agricultura foram intensamente trabalhados em onze milénios de agricultura: a eficiência do trabalho e a restauração da fertilidade dos solos cultivados

A SINGULAR CERAMIC TYPE IN LATE IRON AGE NORTHWESTERN IBERIAN PENINSULA: AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND ANALYTICAL APPROACH

This contribution offers a study of one of the most particular ceramic forms found in the material culture of the Iron Age of the north-western Iberian Peninsula: the cylindrical vessels. These objects, in their different formats, are typical of the middle and/or lower basin of the Miño River, found in contexts between the mid-1st century BC and mid-1st century AD. Throughout the text, we describe this type in depth and investigate the form from its possible origins (given its difference from the rest of the Iron Age forms), diffusion, func-tionality, and we try to provide a chronology as precise as possible. Traditional archaeological methodology is combined with archaeometry and ethnography. A total of 15 sherds from four archaeological sites of the Miño river middle basin were analyzed using a combination of techniques, including optical microscopy (OM) for the petrographic-mineralogical characterization of the materials, X-ray diffraction (XRD) for further details on the mineralogical composition, and wavelength dispersive X-ray fluorescence (WD-XRF) for the chemical characterization. This type of study allows us to better understand not only the material culture, but also the cultural and socioeconomic dynamics of the moment of transition between the Iron Age and the Roman Age

Influência das mudanças agrícolas sobre as populações de Orthoptera

Na região de Trás-os-Montes, a diminuição da população e o seu envelhecimento, estão a conduzir ao abandono das práticas agrícolas tradicionais. Os lameiros são pastagens semi-naturais submetidas a maneio extensivo, que devido a estas mudanças agrícolas estão a perder grande parte da superfície que ocupavam anteriormente, sendo substituídos por explorações intensivas, florestas e, na maioria dos casos, abandonados. Estas alterações na vegetação são acompanhadas por mudanças nas comunidades de animais que lhes estão associadas, perdendo-se ainda quilómetros de potenciais corredores ecológicos que se mantêm verdes durante grande parte do ano. O presente trabalho pretende conhecer como se vêm afetadas as comunidades de gafanhotos e grilos do mato (Orthoptera) pelas mudanças no maneio dos lameiros

Isonitriles as Alkyl Radical Precursors in Visible Light Mediated Hydro- and Deuterodeamination Reactions

Herein, we report the use of isonitriles as alkyl radical precursors in light-mediated hydro- and deuterodeamination reactions. The reaction is scalable, shows broad functional group compatibility and potential to be used in late-stage functionalization. Importantly, the method is general for Cα-primary, Cα-secondary and Cαtertiary alkyl isonitriles. For most examples, high yields were obtained through direct visible-light irradiation of the isonitrile in the presence of a silyl radical precursor. Interestingly, in the presence of an organic photocatalyst (4CzIPN) a dramatic acceleration was observed. Indepth mechanistic studies using UV/Vis absorption, steady-state and time-resolved photoluminescence, and transient absorption spectroscopy suggest that the excited state of 4CzIPN can engage in a single-electron transfer with the isonitrileWe thank the European Research Council (ERC CoG 101002715 SCAN) and Spanish MCIN/AEI/10.13039/ 501100011033 (grant n° PID2019-107380GB-I00 and PID2022-142594NB-I00 to MT, PID2022-141688OB-I00 and PID2020-118593RB-C22 to ML, PID2019-106184GB-I00, PID2022-139318NB I00 and RED2022-134287-T to IF) for financial support. I.Q. and L.N. thank Comunidad de Madrid for a predoctoral fellowship, and M.M. acknowledges Ministerio de Universidades for a FPU fellowship (FPU20/06

A One Health Approach Molecular Analysis of Staphylococcus aureus Reveals Distinct Lineages in Isolates from Miranda Donkeys (Equus asinus) and Their Handlers

This article belongs to the Special Issue Antibiotics and Alternative Treatments in Zoonosis Therapy.Donkeys (Equus asinus) are in decline in Europe. Occupational exposure to farm animals has been associated with increased staphylococci carriage. We aimed to isolate S. aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) from donkeys and handlers and characterize the antimicrobial resistance profiles and genetic lineages of S. aureus strains. Oral and nasal swab samples were collected from 49 Miranda donkeys and 23 handlers from 15 different farms. Staphylococci species were identified by MALDI-TOF MS. The presence of antimicrobial resistance genes and virulence factors was investigated by PCR. Molecular typing was performed in S. aureus isolates. From the 49 donkey samples, 4 S. aureus (8.2%) and 21 CoNS (42.9%) were isolated. Ten handlers (43.5%) were carriers of S. aureus and 4 (17.4%) carried CoNS. The CoNS isolates showed resistance to several classes of antimicrobials encoded by the mecA, aph (3')-IIIa, ant (4')-Ia, tetM, tetK, lnuA, ermB, ermC, dfrA and dfrG genes. S. aureus isolates were resistant to penicillin, aminoglicosides and tetracycline harboring the blaZ, aph (3')-IIIa, tetL, tetM and tetK genes. All S. aureus isolates from donkeys belonged to ST49 and spa-type t208 while the strains isolated from the handlers were ascribed to 3 STs and 7 spa-types. However, human isolates were from different STs than the donkey isolates. Donkeys are mainly colonized by methicillin-resistant S. sciuri. S. aureus transmission between donkeys and their handlers appears not to have occurred since the isolates belonged to different genetic lineages.This work was funded by the R&D Project CAREBIO2: Comparative assessment of antimicrobial resistance in environmental biofilms through proteomics—towards innovative theranostic biomarkers, with reference NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-030101 and PTDC/SAU-INF/30101/2017, financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the Northern Regional Operational Program (NORTE 2020) and the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT). This work was supported by the Associate Laboratory for Green Chemistry-LAQV, which is financed by national funds from FCT/MCTES (UIDB/50006/2020 and UIDP/50006/2020) and by the projects UIDB/CVT/00772/2020 and LA/P/0059/2020 funded by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT). Vanessa Silva is grateful to FCT (Fundacão para a Ciência e a Tecnologia) for financial support through the PhD grant SFRH/BD/137947/2018.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Synergistic interaction of clusters of iron oxide nanoparticles and reduced graphene oxide for high supercapacitor performance

Supercapacitors have been recognized as one of the more promising energy storage devices, with great potential use in portable electronics and hybrid vehicles. In this study, a composite made of clusters of iron oxide (Fe3O4-γFe2O3) nanoparticles and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) has been developed through a simple one-step solvothermal synthesis method for a high-performance supercapacitor electrode. Electrochemical assessment via cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge–discharge experiments, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) revealed that the Fe3O4-γFe2O3/rGO nanocomposite showed much higher specific capacitance than either rGO or bare clusters of Fe3O4-γFe2O3 nanoparticles. In particular, specific capacitance values of 100 F g−1, 250 F g−1, and 528 F g−1 were obtained for the clusters of iron oxide nanoparticles, rGO, and the hybrid nanostructure, respectively. The enhancement of the electrochemical performance of the composite material may be attributed to the synergistic interaction between the layers of graphene oxide and the clusters of iron oxide nanoparticles. The intimate contact between the two phases eliminates the interface, thus enabling facile electron transport, which is key to attaining high specific capacitance and, consequently, enhanced charge–discharge time. Performance evaluation in consecutive cycles has demonstrated that the composite material retains 110% of its initial capacitance after 3000 cycles, making it a promising candidate for supercapacitors.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación | Ref. PID2020-119242RB-I00Xunta de Galicia | Ref. ED431B 2021/14Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad | Ref. PID2020-113704RB-I00Xunta de Galicia/FEDER | Ref. IN607A 2018/5Xunta de Galicia | Ref. ED431G 2019-06Interreg España-Portugal | Ref. 0712_ACUINANO_1_EInterreg España-Portugal | Ref. 0624_2IQBIONEURO_6_

Carbon mineralization in acidic soils amended with an organo-mineral bentonite waste

Bentonite based organic-mineral wastes contains high concentrations of organic matter and plant nutrients and hence presents a high potential as a soil amendment. However, it also can have high salinity and high copper concentrations that may cause negative effects on microorganisms when the soil is amended with this type of wastes. In this work, the effect of soil amendment with a bentonite based winery waste on soil carbon mineralization was studied in acidic vineyard soils as an indicator of soil quality. The carbon mineralization in the waste is significantly lower and slower than that in the studied vineyard soils despite its significantly higher amount of organic carbon. However, when the bentonite winery waste was added to the soils, the carbon mineralization showed positive priming effects (increased between 78 and 337%). Therefore, reductions in the carbon mineralization, and hence changes on short-term organic matter turnover are not expected after bentonite waste amendment in acid soils.Xunta de Galicia | Ref. (FEADER2009-22) CO-106-0

Enmienda de un suelo de mina con subproductos : efecto sobre la biomasa microbiana determinada mediante el uso de los ácidos grasos de los fosfolípidos

In the present work, the effect of two by-products (pine bark and crushed mussel shell) on microbial biomass and community structure was studied in a soil from a mine tailing located in a copper mine. In a laboratory experiment, different doses (0, 12, 24, 48, 96 and 192 Mg ha-1) of pine bark, crushed mussel shell or mixtures of both by-products were added to the soil. The amended soil samples were incubated for one year at 60% of water holding capacity, and then 33 phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) were extracted from these samples and quantified. The PLFAs concentrations were used for different microbial biomass estimations: total biomass, bacterial biomass, fungal biomass, gram-positive (G+) biomass and gram-negative (G-) biomass. The addition of crushed mussel had no significant effects on the total soil microbial biomass, either bacterial of fungal biomass. However, the addition of pine bark increased the total microbial biomass in the soil (up to 40%), mainly due to increases in the fungal biomass (it increased 1600%). No synergistic effects were observed when the soil was amended with both, pine bark and crushed mussel shell. The main community structure changes were due to the addition of pine bark to the soil, and were also due to modifications in fungal communities. Our results suggest that the microbial biomass was mainly limited in the mine soil by low organic matter concentrations, and therefore, practices increasing the amount of soil organic matter should be priorities for soil reclamation.En el presente trabajo se estudió el efecto de dos subproductos (corteza de pino y concha de mejillón triturada) sobre la biomasa y estructura microbiana de un suelo procedente de una escombrera localizada en una mina de cobre. En un experimento realizado en laboratorio fueron añadidas al suelo diferentes dosis (0, 12, 24, 48, 96 and 192 Mg ha-1) de corteza de pino, concha de mejillón triturada y mezclas de ambos subproductos. Las muestras de suelo enmendado fueron incubadas durante un año al 60% de la capacidad de campo, y posteriormente 33 ácidos grasos de los fosfolípidos (PLFAs) fueron extraídos de estas muestras y cuantificados. La concentración de PLFAs fue utilizada para realizar distintas estimaciones de la biomasa microbiana: biomasa total, biomasa bacteriana, biomasa fúngica, biomasa de bacterias gram + y biomasa de bacterias gram -. La adición de concha de mejillón triturada no tuvo efectos significativos sobre la biomasa total ni sobre la biomasa bacteriana o fúngica. Sin embargo, la adición de corteza de pino al suelo incrementó la biomasa total del suelo (hasta un 40%), debido mayormente al incremento de la biomasa fúngica (se incrementó un 1600%). Tampoco se observaron efectos sinérgicos cuando el suelo fue enmendado con una mezcla de corteza de pino y concha de mejillón triturada. Los mayores cambios en la estructura de las comunidades microbianas fueron debidos a la adición de corteza de pino al suelo, y fueron además debidas a cambios en las comunidades fúngicas. Nuestros resultados sugieren que la biomasa microbiana del suelo de mina está mayormente limitada por la concentración de materia orgánica y, por tanto, deben ser priorizadas prácticas de manejo que contribuyan a incrementarla para la rehabilitación de este tipo de suelos.Neste trabalho foi estudado o efeito de dois subprodutos (casca de pinheiro e concha de mexilhão triturada) na biomassa e estrutura microbiana de um solo procedente de uma escombreira localizada numa mina de cobre. Numa experiência de laboratório, doses diferentes (0, 12, 24, 48, 96 e 192 Mg ha-1) de casca de pinheiro, concha de mexilhão triturada e misturas de ambos os subprodutos foram adicionados ao solo. Amostras de solo corrigido com os resíduos foram incubadas durante um ano a 60% da sua capacidade de retenção de água, e subsequentemente, 33 ácidos gordos dos fosfolípidos (PLFAs) foram extraídos a partir destas amostras e quantificados. A concentração de PLFAs foi usada para estimar vários tipos de biomassa microbiana: biomassa total, biomassa bacteriana, biomassa fúngica, biomassa de bactérias gram positivas e biomassa de bactérias gram negativas. A adição de concha de mexilhão triturada não teve nenhum efeito significativo na biomassa total ou na biomassa bacteriana ou fúngica. Porém, a adição de casca de pinheiro aumentou a biomassa microbiana do solo (até 40%), principalmente devido ao aumento da biomassa fúngica (a qual aumentou de 1600%). Não foi observado nenhum efeito de sinergismo quando o solo foi corrigido com uma mistura de casca de pinheiro e concha de mexilhão triturada. As maiores alterações na estrutura das comunidades microbianas foram produzidas pela adição de casca de pinheiro ao solo, as quais resultaram em alterações nas comunidades fúngicas. Os resultados sugerem que a biomassa microbiana do solo de mina é, maioritariamente limitada pela concentração de matéria orgânica. Assim, práticas que contribuam para o seu aumento devem ser prioritárias para a reabilitação deste tipo de solos