Public Education: not a priority of the public power or disinterest of society?

A sociedade brasileira não dispõe de uma educação pública de qualidade por não ser esta uma prioridade do poder público, por outro lado o poder público não a prioriza por não ser uma demanda da sociedade. Acredita-se que para legitimar qualquer diálogo e iniciativa no campo da educação precisa-se envolver os seus legítimos protagonistas, os professores. Realizou-se, desta forma, uma pesquisa+ qualitativa com professores de uma escola municipal de ensino fundamental da cidade de São Paulo, buscando identificar, por meio de entrevistas semi-estruturadas, as suas representações sociais sobre o atual papel da escola pública e as iniciativas do poder público que buscam integrar áreas como a saúde e o meio ambiente no espaço escolar. No eixo de investigação aqui discutido, "o poder público e a escola pública", constatou-se que o assistencialismo, a ineficiência de políticas públicas e o desconhecimento da escola pelos gestores públicos são evidências do descaso do Estado para o desenvolvimento de uma escola de qualidade, sendo esses alguns dos determinantes do descumprimento do papel da instituição escola. O professor tem se sentido cada vez mais impotente, desvalorizado e desinteressado pela educação pública. Assim, cabe à sociedade assumir sua responsabilidade diante do ensino público e ao poder público cabe não só compreender, mas, principalmente vivenciar a escola estabelecendo um diálogo verdadeiro e profundo com o professor, buscando, por meio da educação, uma transformação social sustentável baseada em valores humanos mais éticos e mais justos.Brazilian society does not have high-quality public education because it is not a priority of the public power. On the other hand, the State does not prioritize education because it has not been a demand of society. To legitimate any debate on education, it is necessary to involve the real protagonists, the teachers. A qualitative research was conducted with teachers from a municipal elementary school in São Paulo, Brazil. The aim was to identify, through semi-structured interviews, their social representations on the present role of the public school and the public power's initiatives that have been trying to integrate areas like health and environment into the school these days. On the topic analyzed here, "public power and public school", it has been found that paternalism, inefficacy of public policies and governors' lack of knowledge on school practices are evidences of the State's lack of interest in the development of quality schools, which ends up determining that the school is not able to play its social role. The teacher has been feeling more and more impotent, unvalued and uninterested in public education. Therefore, it is now time for society to undertake its responsibility towards public education. The public power, in turn, must not only know, but also experience the school, establishing a true dialog with the teacher. Through education, it must search for a sustainable social transformation based on new human values concerning ethics and justice

Bark anatomy, chemical composition and ethanol-water extract composition of Anadenanthera peregrina and Anadenanthera colubrina

The bark of Anadenanthera peregrina (L.) Speg and Anadenanthera colubrina (Vell.) Brenan were characterized in relation to anatomical and chemical features. The barks were similar and included a thin conducting phloem, a largely dilated and sclerified non-conducting phloem, and a rhyridome with periderms with thin phellem interspersed by cortical tissues. Only small differences between species were observed that cannot be used alone for taxonomic purposes. The summative chemical composition of A. peregrina and A. colubrina was respectively: 8.2% and 7.7% ash; 28.8% and 29.3% extractives; 2.4% and 2.6% suberin; and 18.9% lignin. The monosaccharide composition showed the predominance of glucose (on average 82% of total neutral sugars) and of xylose (9%). The ethanol-water extracts of A. peregrina and A. colubrina barks included a high content of phenolics, respectively: total phenolics 583 and 682 mg GAE/g extract; 148 and 445 mg CE/g extract; tannins 587 and 98 mg CE/g extract. The antioxidant activity was 238 and 269 mg Trolox/g extract. The barks of the Anadenanthera species are a potential source of polar extractives that will represent an important valorization and therefore contribute to improve the overall economic potential and sustainability of A. peregrina and A. colubrinainfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Evolutionary Analyses of Entire Genomes Do Not Support the Association of mtDNA Mutations with Ras/MAPK Pathway Syndromes

BACKGROUND: There are several known autosomal genes responsible for Ras/MAPK pathway syndromes, including Noonan syndrome (NS) and related disorders (such as LEOPARD, neurofibromatosis type 1), although mutations of these genes do not explain all cases. Due to the important role played by the mitochondrion in the energetic metabolism of cardiac muscle, it was recently proposed that variation in the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genome could be a risk factor in the Noonan phenotype and in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), which is a common clinical feature in Ras/MAPK pathway syndromes. In order to test these hypotheses, we sequenced entire mtDNA genomes in the largest series of patients suffering from Ras/MAPK pathway syndromes analyzed to date (n = 45), most of them classified as NS patients (n = 42). METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The results indicate that the observed mtDNA lineages were mostly of European ancestry, reproducing in a nutshell the expected haplogroup (hg) patterns of a typical Iberian dataset (including hgs H, T, J, and U). Three new branches of the mtDNA phylogeny (H1j1, U5b1e, and L2a5) are described for the first time, but none of these are likely to be related to NS or Ras/MAPK pathway syndromes when observed under an evolutionary perspective. Patterns of variation in tRNA and protein genes, as well as redundant, private and heteroplasmic variants, in the mtDNA genomes of patients were as expected when compared with the patterns inferred from a worldwide mtDNA phylogeny based on more than 8700 entire genomes. Moreover, most of the mtDNA variants found in patients had already been reported in healthy individuals and constitute common polymorphisms in human population groups. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: As a whole, the observed mtDNA genome variation in the NS patients was difficult to reconcile with previous findings that indicated a pathogenic role of mtDNA variants in NS

Molecular and physiological basis of Saccharomyces cerevisiae tolerance to adverse lignocellulose-based process conditions

Lignocellulose-based biorefineries have been gaining increasing attention to substitute current petroleum-based refineries. Biomass processing requires a pretreatment step to break lignocellulosic biomass recalcitrant structure, which results in the release of a broad range of microbial inhibitors, mainly weak acids, furans, and phenolic compounds. Saccharomyces cerevisiae is the most commonly used organism for ethanol production; however, it can be severely distressed by these lignocellulose-derived inhibitors, in addition to other challenging conditions, such as pentose sugar utilization and the high temperatures required for an efficient simultaneous saccharification and fermentation step. Therefore, a better understanding of the yeast response and adaptation towards the presence of these multiple stresses is of crucial importance to design strategies to improve yeast robustness and bioconversion capacity from lignocellulosic biomass. This review includes an overview of the main inhibitors derived from diverse raw material resultants from different biomass pretreatments, and describes the main mechanisms of yeast response to their presence, as well as to the presence of stresses imposed by xylose utilization and high-temperature conditions, with a special emphasis on the synergistic effect of multiple inhibitors/stressors. Furthermore, successful cases of tolerance improvement of S. cerevisiae are highlighted, in particular those associated with other process-related physiologically relevant conditions. Decoding the overall yeast response mechanisms will pave the way for the integrated development of sustainable yeast cell--based biorefineries.This study was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) by the strategic funding of UID/BIO/04469/2013 unit, MIT Portugal Program (Ph.D. grant PD/BD/128247/ 2016 to Joana T. Cunha), Ph.D. grant SFRH/BD/130739/2017 to Carlos E. Costa, COMPETE 2020 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006684), BioTecNorte operation (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000004), YeasTempTation (ERA-IB-2-6/0001/2014), and MultiBiorefinery project (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-016403). Funding by the Institute for Bioengineering and Biosciences (IBB) from FCT (UID/BIO/04565/2013) and from Programa Operacional Regional de Lisboa 2020 (Project N. 007317) was also receiveinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The Gender Congruency Effect across languages in bilinguals: A meta-analysis

In the study of gender representation and processing in bilinguals, two contrasting perspectives exist: integrated vs. the autonomous (Costa, Kovacic, Fedorenko, & Caramazza, 2003). In the former, cross-linguistic interactions during the selection of grammatical gender values are expected; in the latter, they are not. To address this issue, authors have typically explored the cross-linguistic Gender Congruency Effect (GCE: a facilitation on the naming or translation of second language [L2] nouns when their first language [L1] translations are of the same gender, in comparison to those of a different gender). However, the literature suggests that this effect is sometimes difficult to observe and might vary as a function of variables such as the syntactic structure produced to translate or name the target (bare nouns vs. noun phrases), the phonological gender transparency of both languages (whether or not they have phonological gender cues associated with the ending letter [e.g., “–a” for feminine words and “–o” for masculine words in Romance languages]), the degree of L2 proficiency, and task requirements (naming vs. translation). The aim of the present quantitative meta-analysis is to examine the robustness of the cross-linguistic GCE obtained during language production. It involves 25 experiments from 11 studies. The results support a bilingual gender-integrated view, in that they show a small but significant GC effect regardless of the variables mentioned above.This paper was funded through the state budget with reference IF / 00784/2013 / CP1158 / CT0013. The study has also been partially supported by the FCT and the Portuguese Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education through national funds and co-financed by FEDER through COMPETE2020 under the PT2020 Partnership Agreement (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007653). Government of Spain—Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports—through the Training program for Academic Staff (Ayudas para la Formación del Profesorado Universitario, FPU grant BOE-B-2017-2646), the research project (reference PSI2015-65116-P) granted by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, and the grant for research groups (reference ED431B 2019/2020) from the Galician Government, as well as by the FCT (Foundation for Science and Technology, Portugal) through the state budget (reference IF / 00784/2013 / CP1158 / CT0013). Finally, the study has also been partially supported by the FCT and the Portuguese Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education through national funds and co-financed by FEDER through COMPETE2020 under the PT2020 Partnership Agreement (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007653

Low-Spin Heme b3 in the Catalytic Center of Nitric Oxide Reductase from Pseudomonas nautica

Biochemistry, 2011, 50 (20), pp 4251–4262 DOI: 10.1021/bi101605pRespiratory nitric oxide reductase (NOR) was purified from membrane extract of Pseudomonas (Ps.) nautica cells to homogeneity as judged by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The purified protein is a heterodimer with subunits of molecular masses of 54 and 18 kDa. The gene encoding both subunits was cloned and sequenced. The amino acid sequence shows strong homology with enzymes of the cNOR class. Iron/heme determinations show that one heme c is present in the small subunit (NORC) and that approximately two heme b and one non-heme iron are associated with the large subunit (NORB), in agreement with the available data for enzymes of the cNOR class. Mössbauer characterization of the as-purified, ascorbate-reduced, and dithionite-reduced enzyme confirms the presence of three heme groups (the catalytic heme b(3) and the electron transfer heme b and heme c) and one redox-active non-heme Fe (Fe(B)). Consistent with results obtained for other cNORs, heme c and heme b in Ps. nautica cNOR were found to be low-spin while Fe(B) was found to be high-spin. Unexpectedly, as opposed to the presumed high-spin state for heme b(3), the Mössbauer data demonstrate unambiguously that heme b(3) is, in fact, low-spin in both ferric and ferrous states, suggesting that heme b(3) is six-coordinated regardless of its oxidation state. EPR spectroscopic measurements of the as-purified enzyme show resonances at the g ∼ 6 and g ∼ 2-3 regions very similar to those reported previously for other cNORs. The signals at g = 3.60, 2.99, 2.26, and 1.43 are attributed to the two charge-transfer low-spin ferric heme c and heme b. Previously, resonances at the g ∼ 6 region were assigned to a small quantity of uncoupled high-spin Fe(III) heme b(3). This assignment is now questionable because heme b(3) is low-spin. On the basis of our spectroscopic data, we argue that the g = 6.34 signal is likely arising from a spin-spin coupled binuclear center comprising the low-spin Fe(III) heme b(3) and the high-spin Fe(B)(III). Activity assays performed under various reducing conditions indicate that heme b(3) has to be reduced for the enzyme to be active. But, from an energetic point of view, the formation of a ferrous heme-NO as an initial reaction intermediate for NO reduction is disfavored because heme [FeNO](7) is a stable product. We suspect that the presence of a sixth ligand in the Fe(II)-heme b(3) may weaken its affinity for NO and thus promotes, in the first catalytic step, binding of NO at the Fe(B)(II) site. The function of heme b(3) would then be to orient the Fe(B)-bound NO molecules for the formation of the N-N bond and to provide reducing equivalents for NO reduction

Tauroursodeoxycholic Acid Improves Motor Symptoms in a Mouse Model of Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by severe motor symptoms, and currently there is no treatment that retards disease progression or reverses damage prior to the time of clinical diagnosis. Tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA) is neuroprotective in the 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) mouse model of PD; however, its effect in PD motor symptoms has never been addressed. In the present work, an extensive behavior analysis was performed to better characterize the MPTP model of PD and to evaluate the effects of TUDCA in the prevention/improvement of mice phenotype. MPTP induced significant alterations in general motor performance paradigms, including increased latency in the motor swimming, adhesive removal and pole tests, as well as altered gait, foot dragging, and tremors. TUDCA administration, either before or after MPTP, significantly reduced the swimming latency, improved gait quality, and decreased foot dragging. Importantly, TUDCA was also effective in the prevention of typical parkinsonian symptoms such as spontaneous activity, ability to initiate movement and tremors. Accordingly, TUDCA prevented MPTP-induced decrease of dopaminergic fibers and ATP levels, mitochondrial dysfunction and neuroinflammation. Overall, MPTP-injected mice presented motor symptoms that are aggravated throughout time, resembling human parkinsonism, whereas PD motor symptoms were absent or mild in TUDCA-treated animals, and no aggravation was observed in any parameter. The thorough demonstration of improvement of PD symptoms together with the demonstration of the pathways triggered by TUDCA supports a subsequent clinical trial in humans and future validation of the application of this bile acid in PD.National funds, through the Foundation for Science and Technology (Portugal) (FCT), under the scope of the projects PTDC/NEU-NMC/0248/2012, UID/DTP/04138/2013 and POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007038, and post-doctoral grants SFRH/BPD72891/2010 (to A.I.R.), SFRH/BPD/95855/2013 (to M.J.N.), SFRH/BPD/98023/2013 (to A.N.C.), SFRH/BPD/91562/2012 (to A.S.F.) and UMINHO/BI/248/2016 (to S.D.S.). This work has also been developed under the scope of the project NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000013, supported by the Northern Portugal Regional Operational Program (NORTE 2020), under the Portugal 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER), and by FEDER funds, through the Competitiveness Factors Operational Program (COMPETE)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Characterization of crop residues from false banana/Ensete ventricosum/in Ethiopia in view of a full-resource valorization

Research ArticleFalse banana /Ensete ventricosum [Welw.] Cheesman/ is exploited as a food crop in Ethiopia where it represents an important staple food. The plant is harvested and large amounts of biomass residues are originated, mainly from the pseudo stem (i.e., fiber bundles obtained from the leaf sheaths after being scrapped to produce starchy food) and the inflorescence stalk. These materials were studied in relation to their summative chemical composition, composition of lignin, lipophilic and polar extracts. Moreover, their structural characteristics, in view of their valorization, were scrutinized. The analytical studies were performed with the aid of FTIR, GC/MS, Py-GC/MS and SEM. The fiber bundles are aggregates of mainly long and slender fibers with low ash, extractives and lignin contents (3.8%. 4.4% and 10.5% respectively) and high holocellulose and α-cellulose contents (87.5% and 59.6% respectively). The hemicelluloses in the fibers are mostly highly acetylated xylans and the lignin is of the H-type (H:G:S, 1:0.7:0.8). This lignin composition is in line with the FTIR peaks at 1670 cm-1 and 1250 cm-1.The inflorescence stalk has high ash content (12.3% in the main stalk and 24.6% in fines) with a major proportion of potassium, high extractives (25.9%), and low lignin and α-cellulose contents (5.8% and 17.9% respectively). The stalk includes numerous starch granules in the cellular structure with the predominant presence of parenchyma. The potential valorization routes for these materials are clearly different. The fiber bundles could be used as a fiber source for paper pulp production with the possibility of a prior hemicelluloses removal while the inflorescence stalk has nutritional value for food and fodder. Furthermore, it can also be used for sugar fermentation productsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio