Lorentz-violating dimension-five operator contribution to the black body radiation

We investigate the thermodynamics of a photon gas in an effective field theory model that describes Lorentz violations through dimension-five operators and Horava-Lifshitz theory. We explore the electrodynamics of the model which includes higher order derivatives in the Lagrangian that can modify the dispersion relation for the propagation of the photons. We shall focus on the deformed black body radiation spectrum and modified Stefan-Boltzmann law to address the allowed bounds on the Lorentz-violating parameter.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures. Version published in PL

Person localization using sensor information fusion

Nowadays the incredible grow of mobile devices market led to the need for location-aware applications. However, sometimes person location is di cult to obtain, since most of these devices only have a GPS (Global Positioning System) chip to retrieve location. In order to sup- press this limitation and to provide location everywhere (even where a structured environment doesn't exist) a wearable inertial navigation sys- tem is proposed, which is a convenient way to track people in situations where other localization systems fail. The system combines pedestrian dead reckoning with GPS, using widely available, low-cost and low-power hardware components. The system innovation is the information fusion and the use of probabilistic methods to learn persons gait behavior to correct, in real-time, the drift errors given by the sensors.This work is part-funded by ERDF - European Regional Development Fund through the COMPETE Programme (operational programme for competitiveness) and by National Funds through the FCT Fundao para a Cincia e a Tecnologia (Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology) within project FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER- 028980 (PTDC/EEI-SII/1386/2012). Ricardo also acknowledge FCT for the support of his work through the PhD grant (SFRH/DB/70248/2010)

Vascular trauma: a five year review

O presente trabalho pretende avaliar a casuística dos traumatismos vasculares agudos admitidos no Serviço de Cirurgia Vascular dos Hospitais da Universidade de Coimbra (HUC) durante o período de 5 anos, compreendido entre Julho de 2004 e Junho de 2009. Foram avaliados 97 doentes, sendo a principal causa de traumatismo as lesões iatrogénicas, seguida dos acidentes de viação. No grupo de doentes não relacionados com procedimentos coronários percutâneos verificou-se que no membro superior as artérias umeral e radial foram as mais afectadas, enquanto no membro inferior foram as artérias femoral superficial e poplítea. A isquémia aguda foi a principal forma de apresentação. Relativamente ao tratamento deste grupo de doentes, a RATT (ressecção e anastomose topo-topo) e o enxerto foram os mais utlizados no membro superior, enquanto a trombectomia e o bypass foram as técnicas mais aplicadas a nível do membro inferior. Não houve mortalidade mas a morbilidade foi elevada, predominando as lesões neurológicas nos traumatismos do membro superior, e a amputação nos do membro inferior. Os resultados deste trabalho foram concordantes com o que está publicado na literatura em que se demonstra um aumento progressivo dos traumatismos de origem iatrogénica

A rare cause of portal hypertension: case report

Apresenta-se caso clínico de doente com quadro de hipertensão portal pela presença de fístula artério-venosa entre a artéria gastroduodenal e a veia porta. Indivíduo do sexo masculino, de 77 anos, previamente saudável, com ascite volumosa de instalação recente. Hemorragia digestiva alta por rotura de varizes esofágicas. TAC abdominal revelando acentuada dilatação da veia porta (30 mm), envolvida em fístula artério-venosa com origem na artéria gastroduodenal; fígado sem estigmas de hepatopatia crónica e sem nódulos; ascite volumosa. Procedeu-se à laparotomia com drenagem de ascite, isolamento e laqueação do trajecto fístuloso entre a artéria gastroduodenal e a veia porta. Sem complicações intra-operatórias. Ao 18º dia, após regressão da ascite, teve alta medicado com diurético

Occurrence and seasonal variation of several endocrine disruptor compounds (pesticides, bisphenols, musks and UV-filters) in water and sediments from the estuaries of Tagus and Douro Rivers (NE Atlantic Ocean coast)

Funding Information: This work was supported by FEDER (Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização - COMPETE 2020), from PIDDAC through FCT/MCTES project POCI-01-0145-FEDER-028708-PTDC/ASP-PES/28708/2017 , by UIDB/04423/2020 and AgriFood XXI R&D&I project, operation No. NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000041 , co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through NORTH 2020 ( Northern Regional Operational Program 2014/2020 ). The Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) supported the contract of Sara C. Cunha (IF/01616/2015), the Ph.D. Grant of Isa Marmelo (DFA/BD/4413/2020) and the contract of Patrícia Anacleto (CEECIND/01739/2017). Other support was provided by the Laboratory of Ecotoxicology and Ecology, Department of Population Studies of the Institute of Biomedical Sciences of Abel Salazar (ICBAS) of the University of Porto , and by the Strategic Funding UIDB/Multi/04423/2019 , UIDB/04423/2020 and LA/P/0101/2020 through national funds provided by FCT and ERDF in the framework of the programme Portugal 2020 to CIIMAR. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 Elsevier B.V.Exposure of aquatic environments to emerging contaminants is a global issue, special relevant in many estuaries due to impacts from anthropogenic activity. The aim of this work was to evaluate thirty-seven endocrine disruptor chemicals (EDCs) from four different classes (pesticides, bisphenols, polycyclic musks and UV-filters) in water and sediment samples collected during one-year in the estuaries of Tagus and Douro Rivers located into the NE Atlantic Ocean coast. EDCs analysis was achieved afterward validation of a gas-chromatography mass spectrometry (GC–MS) method using Dispersive Liquid-Liquid Microextraction (DLLME) as extraction procedure for water samples, and Quick, Easy, Cheap, Efficient, Rugged and Safe (QuEChERS) combined with DLLME for sediments. Tagus estuary presented higher levels of contamination with pesticide residues and bisphenols (BPs) than the Douro estuary in both water and sediment samples. Contrariwise, levels and frequency of polycyclic musks (PCMs) and UV-filters (UVF) were slightly higher in Douro estuary. Levels of pesticide residues in both sediment and water samples, and levels of PCMs and UVF in water samples were higher in warmer seasons (summer and spring) than in colder ones (winter and autumn). The opposite was found in what respect levels of BPs in water and sediment samples, and PCMs and UVF levels in sediment samples. Although the levels found for each contaminant are low, usually in the order of a few ng/mL(g), the presence of a high number of toxic compounds is a source of concern and requires constant monitoring.publishersversionpublishe

Noncommutative Maxwell-Chern-Simons theory in three dimensions and its dual

We consider the Maxwell-Chern-Simons theory in noncommutative three dimensional space-time. We show that the Seiberg-Witten map is ambiguous due to the dimensional coupling constant. To get the dual theory we start from a master action obtained by promoting the global shift invariance to a local one. We also obtain the mapping between the observables of the two equivalent theories. We show that the equivalence between the Maxwell-Chern-Simons theory and the self-dual model in commutative space-time does not survive in the non-commutative setting.Comment: 14 pages, typos correcte

Seasonal occurrence and risk assessment of endocrine-disrupting compounds in Tagus estuary biota (NE Atlantic Ocean coast)

Funding Information: This work was supported by FEDER (Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização - COMPETE 2020), from PIDDAC through FCT/MCTES project POCI-01–0145-FEDER-028708-PTDC/ASP-PES/28708/2017 , by UIDB/50006/2020 and AgriFood XXI R&D&I project, operation No. NORTE-01–0145-FEDER-000041 , co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund ( ERDF ) through NORTH 2020 (Northern Regional Operational Program 2014/2020 ). Funding Information: Sara C. Cunha acknowledges FCT for IF/01616/2015 contract, IM acknowledges FCT for Ph.D. Grant DFA/BD/4413/2020 and PA acknowledges FCT for CEECIND/01739/2017 contract. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The AuthorsEstuaries are continually threatened by anthropogenic pressures, consequently, a large group of contaminants harmful to human health affects the aquatic biota; therefore, it is necessary to monitor their quality. This study deals with the determination of a large group of compounds representing different endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) classes [21 pesticides, 4 polycyclic musk fragrances, 4 UV-filters, 7 bisphenols, 6 polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and 8 of their methoxylated (MeO-BDEs)] in several estuarine species (fish, bivalves, crustaceans, earthworm, and macroalgae) collected seasonally along one year in two distinct areas of Tagus River estuary (“contaminated” vs. “clean” areas). The most abundant compounds found were galaxolide (HHCB) (81% positive samples; 0.04–74 ng/g ww), isoamyl 4-methoxycinnamate (IMC) (64%; 1.13–251 ng/g ww), alachlor (44%; 0.08–16 ng/g ww), and BDE-47 (36%; 0.06–2.26 ng/g ww). Polycyclic musks were the most frequent contaminants in fish (seabass, barbus, mullet, and sole) and macroalgae samples, while UV-filters were predominant in bivalves and crustaceans, and bisphenols in earthworms. Seasonal variation was verified for Σpesticides and Σmusks, with significantly higher levels in summer and autumn, whereas ΣUV-filters highest levels were found in spring and summer, and for ΣPBDEs statistically higher levels were registered in cold seasons (autumn and winter). Σbisphenols were significantly lower in spring than in the other seasons. In general, considering all species analysed in both areas, no statistically significant differences (p > 0.05) were verified between the two collection areas. Based on the estimated daily intake data, consumption of fish from this estuary is unlikely to be a human health concern, since the levels of contamination were below the toxicological threshold values. Overall, the data obtained in this study will allow regulatory authorities to identify and prioritize contaminants monitoring programs in estuaries, such as the case of bisphenol A, which was found, for the first time, in earthworm and clam species.publishersversionpublishe

Balancing the double‐edged sword effect of increased resistant starch content and its impact on rice texture: its genetics and molecular physiological mechanisms

Resistant starch (RS) is the portion of starch that escapes gastrointestinal digestion and acts as a substrate for fermentation of probiotic bacteria in the gut. Aside from enhancing gut health, RS contributes to a lower glycemic index. A genome‐wide association study coupled with targeted gene association studies was conducted utilizing a diverse panel of 281 resequenced Indica rice lines comprising of ~2.2 million single nucleotide polymorphisms. Low‐to‐intermediate RS phenotypic variations were identified in the rice diversity panel, resulting in novel associations of RS to several genes associated with amylopectin biosynthesis and degradation. Selected rice lines encoding superior alleles of SSIIa with medium RS and inferior alleles with low RS groups were subjected to detailed transcriptomic, metabolomic, non‐starch dietary fibre (DF), starch structural and textural attributes. The gene regulatory networks highlighted the importance of a protein phosphatase alongside multiple genes of starch metabolism. Metabolomics analyses resulted in the identification of several metabolite hubs (carboxylic acid, sugars and polyamines) in the medium RS group. Among DF, mannose and galactose from the water‐insoluble fraction were found to be highly associated with low and medium RS lines, respectively. Starch structural analyses revealed that a moderate increase in RS is also linked to an elevation of amylose 1 and amylose 2 fractions. Although rice lines with medium RS content negatively affected textural and viscosity properties in comparison to low RS, the textural property of medium RS lines was in the same acceptable range as IR64, a rice mega variety popular in Asia