Conversion of Forest to Agro-Silvo-Pastoral System – Montado – in Mediterranean Environments

The Mediterranean environment regions are characterized by climate and soil specificities that justify low productive capacity for primary production when compared to other environments on earth. The Mediterranean forests are essentially formed by trees and shrubs. The shrubs are the perfect fuel to feed the forest fires that occur in a natural and cyclical manner in these environmental conditions. Therefore, the Mediterranean Systems of Agriculture have evolved to control the shrubs and the extensification of the systems because of low productivity. Sustainability is achieved by increase of productivity through improvement of the soil and irrigation. The application of these principles to the Mediterranean Forest resulted in the preservation of the trees, control of the shrubs and improvement of the pastures. Thus, the Mediterranean Agro-Silvo-Pastoral Systems have developed to recover and improve the soil. This desideratum is obtained by an efficient usage of Mediterranean Permanent Pastures. These, in turn, are only sustainable through proper grazing systems. All species of domestic animals are used in the process and because of the seasonal irregularity of the production of forage biomass, the Extensive Systems of Animal Production depend on the production and conservation of fodder crops. This paper intends to demonstrate how to recover a Mediterranean Forest farm, converting it into a Mediterranean Agro-Silvo-Pastoral System, known in Portugal as Montado. This is achieved using the Montado Crop Rotation and the Feeding Scheme of Extensive Systems of Animal Production, and needs investment in infrastructures for its implementation. A brief economic analysis is also elaborated, to conclude the technical, economic and environmental sustainability

The mood-improving actions of antidepressants do not depend on neurogenesis but are associated with neuronal remodeling

The mechanisms underlying the initiation/onset of, and the recovery from, depression are still largely unknown; views that neurogenesis in the hippocampus may be important for the pathogenesis and amelioration of depressive symptoms have gained currency over the years although the original evidence has been challenged. In this study, an unpredictable chronic mild stress protocol was used to induce a depressive-like phenotype in rats. In the last 2 weeks of stress exposure, animals were treated with the antidepressants fluoxetine, imipramine, CP 156,526 or SSR 1494515, alone or combined with methylazoxymethanol, a cytostatic agent used to arrest neurogenesis. We found that antidepressants retain their therapeutic efficacy in reducing both measured indices of depression-like behavior (learned helplessness and anhedonia), even when neurogenesis is blocked. Instead, our experiments suggest re-establishment of neuronal plasticity (dendritic remodeling and synaptic contacts) in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex, rather than neurogenesis, as the basis for the restoration of behavioral homeostasis by antidepressants.This project used compound(s) provided by the National Cancer Institute’s Chemical Carcinogen Reference Standards Repository (operated under contract N02-CB-07008 by Midwest Research Institute; MAM), Sanofi-Synthelabo (SSR 149415) and Pfizer (CP 156,526). The authors’ work was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) (PTDC/SAU-NEU/72699/2006)

Surface rehabilitation of Portland cement concrete (PCC) pavements using single or double surface dressings with soft bitumen, conventional or modified emulsions

Surface dressings are a sustainable maintenance alternative for pavements with surface distresses, due to the low amount of resources involved. This paper aims to analyze the viability of using twelve different surface dressing solutions, including three binders (conventional and modified emulsions, and a soft 160/220 bitumen) and a covering with diluted emulsion, for surface treatment of Portland cement concrete (PCC) pavements. Several test methods were used to evaluate the macrotexture, skid resistance, adhesion, and resistance to wearing on a large scale prototype. In general, single surface dressings increased further the macrotexture of the concrete pavement surface. The skid resistance of single and double surface dressings was similar. The best surface dressing in the pull-off test was that with the 160/220 bitumen. The conventional and modified emulsions presented similar mechanical adhesion in the Vialit plate test. Concerning the prototype wearing test, the best result was obtained for the double surface dressing with bitumen covered with diluted emulsion. Based on this work’s results, the surface dressings are a potential surface rehabilitation alternative for concrete pavements.This work was partially financed by FCT / MCTES through national funds (PIDDAC) under the R&D Unit Institute for Sustainability and Innovation in Structural Engineering (ISISE), under reference UIDB/04029/2020. This work is financed by national funds through FCT - Foundation for Science and Technology, under grant agreement SFRH/BD/137421/2018 attributed to the 1st author

UPA (United to help movement) makes a difference: a school-based intervention to promote mental health literacy and combat mental illness stigma in young people

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Burnout syndrome and coping strategies in Portuguese oncology health care providers

Background Burnout is a multidimensional syndrome and includes symptoms of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment at work. Oncology health care providers are at high risk to develop symptoms of burnout because of work-related stressors. Adaptive coping strategies adopted to deal with stressors may prevent the development of burnout. Objective The present study aims to assess the association between burnout, functional coping strategies, and occupational factors in a sample of oncology providers, mostly nurses. Methods Sociodemographic Questionnaire, the Maslach Burnout Inventory, and the Problem Solving Inventory “Inventário de Resolução de Problemas” were administered. Descriptive, correlational, and linear regression analyses were performed. Results The study showed that emotional exhaustion correlated with lower levels of adaptive coping, less years of experience in Oncology, and a greater amount of hours worked per week. Personal accomplishment was associated with the adaptive coping strategies. No further statistically significant associations were identified. Discussion Our findings support the importance of adaptive coping strategies in order to prevent symptoms of burnout when health professionals face potentially stressful occupational factors. Training aimed at improving adaptive coping skills may prevent burnout syndrome for health care professionals working in Oncology

Estimation of energy consumption on the tire-pavement interaction for asphalt mixtures with different surface properties using data mining techniques

The energy or fuel consumption of the millions of vehicles that daily operate in road pavements has a significant economic and environmental impact on the use phase of road infrastructures regarding their life cycle analysis. Therefore, new solutions should be studied to reduce the vehicles energy consumption, namely due to the tire-pavement interaction, and contribute towards the sustainable development. This study aims at estimating the energy consumption due to the rolling resistance of tires moving over pavements with distinct surface characteristics. Thus, different types of asphalt mixtures were used in the surface course to determine the main parameters influencing the energy consumption. A laboratory scale prototype was developed explicitly for this evaluation. Data mining techniques were used to analyze the experimental results due to the complex correlation between the data collected during the tests, providing meaningful results. In particular, the artificial neural network allowed to obtain models with excellent capacity to estimate energy consumption. A sensitive analysis was carried out with a five input parameter model, which showed that the main parameters controlling the energy consumption are the vehicle speed and the mean texture depth.ERDF funds, through the Competitivity Factors Operational Programme – COMPETE, and by national funds, through FCT – Foundation for Science and Technology, within the scope of the Strategic Project UID/ECI/04047/2013 and the project POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007633info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A Trans-Dimensional Approach to the Behavioral Aspects of Depression

Depression, a complex mood disorder, displays high comorbidity with anxiety and cognitive disorders. To establish the extent of inter-dependence between these behavioral domains, we here undertook a systematic analysis to establish interactions between mood [assessed with the forced-swimming (FST) and sucrose consumption tests (SCT)], anxiety [elevated-plus maze (EPM) and novelty suppressed feeding (NSF) tests] and cognition (spatial memory and behavioral flexibility tests) in rats exposed to unpredictable chronic-mild-stress (uCMS). Expectedly, uCMS induced depressive-like behavior, a hyperanxious phenotype and cognitive impairment; with the exception of the measure of anxiety in the EPM, these effects were attenuated by antidepressants (imipramine, fluoxetine). Measures of mood by the FST and SCT were strongly correlated, whereas no significant correlations were found between the different measures of anxiety (EPM and NSF); likewise, measures of cognition by spatial memory and behavioral flexibility tests were poorly correlated. Inter-domain analysis revealed significant correlations between mood (FST and SCT) and anxiety-like behavior (NSF, but not EPM). Furthermore, significant correlations were found between cognitive performance (reverse learning task) and mood (FST and SCT) and anxiety-like behavior (NSF). These results demonstrate interactions between different behavioral domains that crosscut the disciplines of psychiatry and neurology

Influência da iluminação LED no desempenho fotossintético e na produtividade de Fragaria x ananassa em substrato

I Congresso Luso-Brasileiro de Horticultura. Sessão Horticultura Herbácea (Olericultura)Durante o crescimento e desenvolvimento das plantas, fatores ambientais como a radiação solar e a temperatura podem ser limitantes no período outono-inverno quando a intensidade luminosa e a temperatura são mais baixas, afetando a atividade fotossintética e a produtividade. Um acréscimo de luz, através do uso de lâmpadas LED (light-emitting diodes), pode minimizar os impactos negativos para a fisiologia da planta em condições menos favoráveis de luminosidade, nomeadamente em zonas temperadas (dias curtos). São poucos os estudos efetuados para avaliar a influência do fator luz no comportamento do morangueiro em termos de eficiência fotossíntetica e nos diferentes componentes da produção, nas condições ambientais portuguesas. Neste sentido, foram avaliados alguns parâmetros fisiológicos e a produtividade de oito cultivares de morangueiro (‘Albión’, ‘Camarosa’, ‘Liberty’, ‘Merced’, ‘Rabida’, ‘Reliance’, ‘San Andreas’ e ‘Splendor’) sujeitas a dois tratamentos de luz (com e sem lâmpadas LED) e conduzidas em dois tipos de substrato [fibra de coco (Coco) e mistura de casca de pinheiro compostada, turfa e fibra de coco (M1)]. O ensaio decorreu no complexo de estufas do INIAV, I.P., em Oeiras e a programação da luz foi diária com início em novembro até ao final de fevereiro. O comportamento fisiológico das plantas foi avaliado em duas fases: floração e plena frutificação. Durante a floração, na maioria dos casos, as plantas sujeitas à luz LED apresentaram maiores valores da taxa fotossintética líquida (Pn) e menores valores de transpiração (E) em relação ao controlo. Este efeito variou entre cultivares e substrato. Na fase de plena frutificação (já sem o tratamento de luz), os valores de Pn foram mais baixos, com diferenças entre cultivares e modalidades de substrato. O teor de clorofilas (SPAD) variou apenas em função da cultivar (p <0,05), nas duas fases de avaliação. Um suplemento de luz durante o outono não influenciou a produtividade das cultivares. A produtividade das plantas conduzidas em substrato Coco foi, em média, 23% superior à das plantas em substrato M1. A maior produtividade ocorreu nas cvs. Rabida, Camarosa e San Andreas. Estes resultados sugerem que o desempenho fotossintético e a produtividade da Fragaria ×ananassa estão mais dependentes do genótipo e do substrato do que da luz adicional. Contudo, um suplemento de luz em condições limitantes de radiação pode contribuir para um melhor desempenho fotossintético das plantas de morangueiroinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A Common Variant in the CDK8 Gene Is Associated with Sporadic Pituitary Adenomas in the Portuguese Population: a Case-Control Study

The majority of pituitary adenomas occur in a sporadic context, and in the absence of known genetic predisposition. Three common variants at the NEBL (rs2359536), PCDH15 (rs10763170) and CDK8 (rs17083838) loci were previously associated with sporadic pituitary adenomas in the Han Chinese population, but these findings have not yet been replicated in any other population. The aim of this case-control study was to assess if these variants are associated with susceptibility to sporadic pituitary adenomas in the Portuguese population. Genotype and allele frequencies were determined in 570 cases and in 546 controls. The CDK8 rs17083838 minor allele (A allele) was significantly associated with sporadic pituitary adenomas, under an additive (odds ratio (OR) 1.73, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.19-2.50, p = 0.004) and dominant (OR 1.82, 95% CI 1.24-2.68, p = 0.002) inheritance model. The NEBL rs2359536 and PCDH15 rs10763170 variants were not associated with the overall risk for the disease, although a borderline significant association was observed between the PCDH15 rs10763170 minor allele (T allele) and somatotrophinomas (dominant model, OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.02-2.35, p = 0.035). These findings suggest that the CDK8 rs17083838 variant, and possibly the PCDH15 rs10763170 variant, may increase susceptibility to sporadic pituitary adenomas in the Portuguese population.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio