Hybrid Deep Modeling of a GS115 (Mut+) Pichia pastoris Culture with State–Space Reduction

JP acknowledges the PhD grant SFRD/BD14610472019, Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT).Hybrid modeling workflows combining machine learning with mechanistic process descriptions are becoming essential tools for bioprocess digitalization. In this study, a hybrid deep modeling method with state–space reduction was developed and showcased with a P. pastoris GS115 Mut+ strain expressing a single-chain antibody fragment (scFv). Deep feedforward neural networks (FFNN) with varying depths were connected in series with bioreactor macroscopic material balance equations. The hybrid model structure was trained with a deep learning technique based on the adaptive moment estimation method (ADAM), semidirect sensitivity equations and stochastic regularization. A state–space reduction method was investigated based on a principal component analysis (PCA) of the cumulative reacted amount. Data of nine fed-batch P. pastoris 50 L cultivations served to validate the method. Hybrid deep models were developed describing process dynamics as a function of critical process parameters (CPPs). The state–space reduction method succeeded to decrease the hybrid model complexity by 60% and to improve the predictive power by 18.5% in relation to the nonreduced version. An exploratory design space analysis showed that the optimization of the feed of methanol and of inorganic elements has the potential to increase the scFv endpoint titer by 30% and 80%, respectively, in relation to the reference condition.publishersversionpublishe

Application of eye-tracking technology for the evaluation of different packaging designs for premium organic herbal teas

The main goal of this study was to assess the impact four graphic designs (figure 1) on the perception of different extrinsic characteristics (premium and organic denomination, infusion name and brand).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Acceptance of fish and fish products by Portuguese young consumers: an exploratory study based on mothers’ evaluation

Portugal is one of the major fish consuming countries in the World, from where one may collect experiences in order to improve fish consumption in other countries. The aim of this research is to explore the factors that influence the consumption of fish and seafood among 8-14 year old children from the Oporto metropolitan area. A focus group was conducted with mothers of children to gain insights into their knowledge, attitudes and perceptions regarding the inclusion of fish and fish products as a regular part of their children’s diet. Narrative analysis was conducted based on Bardin content analysis. Findings indicated that children eat fish regularly, integrated into the family meal, and that mothers feel confident about their fish buying and preparation skills, leading them to incorporate fish regularly into family meals, with a choice of tastier easy to eat options.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Recursos em areias e cascalhos ao largo da ilha de S. Miguel, Açores

A campanha de geofísica SAMI-1 realizada ao largo da Ilha de S. Miguel (Açores) permitiu a aquisição de perfis sísmicos de alta resolução (Boomer) e de batimetria detalhada. Estes dados possibilitaram a definição das áreas mais promissoras em inertes (areias e cascalhos) na plataforma insular de S. Miguel. Deverão ser efectuados estudos de pormenor de forma a caracterizar estas áreas, para servirem de apoio à elaboração de um plano de gestão da extracção de inertes em redor das ilhas

Music Synthesis From Images

UIDB/00693/2020 UIDP/00693/2020MuSyFI is a system that tries to model an inspirationalcomputational creative process. It uses images as sourceof inspiration and begins by implementing a possibletranslation between visual and musical features. Resultsof this mapping are fed to a Genetic Algorithm (GA)to try to better model the creative process and producemore interesting results. Three different musical artifacts are generated: an automatic version, a co-createdversion, and a genetic version. The automatic versionmaps features from the image into musical features nondeterministically; the co-created version adds harmonylines manually composed by us to the automatic version; finally, the genetic version applies a genetic algorithm to a mixed population of automatic and co-createdartifacts.The three versions were evaluated for six differentimages by conducting surveys. They evaluated whetherpeople considered our musical artifacts music, if theythought the artifacts had quality, if they considered theartifacts ’novel’, if they liked the artifacts, and lastly ifthey were able to relate the artifacts with the image inwhich they were inspired. We gathered a total of 300answers and overall people answered positively to allquestions, which confirms our approach was successfuland worth further exploring.publishersversionpublishe

Fish processing industry residues: a review of valuable products extraction and characterization methods

Fish processing industry has experienced significant growth, playing an important role in the world economy. The increased exploration of marine resources contributes to the generation of considerable amounts of biowaste, which ends up as discards. In the face of the resultant disposal and environmental problems, many efforts have been made to deal with the fishery waste in more efficient ways. Nowadays, these by-products are regarded as important sources of high added value compounds, such as hydroxyapatite, collagen, gelatin, lipids, enzymes, hydrolysates and bioactive peptides, with great potential for human health applications. The present paper aims to review the current methods of extraction and characterization of added value products from fish by-products, as well as their actual and potential applications.This work was supported by FCT-Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (projectPEst-OE/QUI/UI0674/2019, CQM, Portuguese Government funds), and through Madeira 14–20 Program, project PROEQUIPRAM—Reforço do Investimento em Equipamentos e Infraestruturas Científicas na RAM (M1420-01-0145-FEDER-000008) and by ARDITI-Agência Regional para o Desenvolvimento da Investigação Tecnologia e Inovação, through the project M1420-01-0145- FEDER-000005—Centro de Química da Madeira—CQM+ (Madeira 14-20). The work was also performed in the frame of project MarineBlueRefine PROCiência2020 (Portaria nº 371/2015, de 16/12), M1420- 01-0247-FEDER-000006; Pedro Ideia is the recipient of a PhD Grant under the project M1420-09-5369-FSE-000001.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Subcritical carbon dioxide foaming of polycaprolactone for bone tissue regeneration

Accepted manuscriptThe preparation of three-dimensional polycaprolactone scaffolds using dense CO2 as foaming agent, without supercritical conditions, was evaluated in this study towards future applications in bone repair. Herein, 3D foams were obtained at 5.0 MPa and 45 °C. To induce bioactivity, β-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP, 10 wt%) and dexamethasone (5 and 10 wt%) were dispersed in the scaffolds. Foams revealed a pore size range of 164–882 μm, 73–99% porosity and 79–99% interconnectivity, assessed by micro-computed tomography, and a Young modulus of 1.76–2.92 MPa. Dexamethasone did not impair morphology of the matrices in comparison with PCL+β-TCP, which presented a water uptake of nearly 100% after 14 days. A sustained release of dexamethasone was achieved over 35 days in physiologic solution. This study reports the feasibility of using dense CO2 to produce in one-step a porous matrix loaded with active agents opening new possibilities towards injectable systems for in situ foamingEuropean Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement number REGPOT-CT2012-316331-POLARIS. It was also funded by the project “Novel smart and biomimetic materials for innovative regenerative medicine approaches” (RL1-ABMR-NORTE-01-0124-FEDER-000016) co-financed by North Portugal Regional Operational Programme (ON.2 – O Novo Norte), under the National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF), through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the project NORTE‐01‐0145‐FEDER‐000013, supported by the Northern Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020), under the Portugal 2020 Partnership Agreement. The authors would like to acknowledge the funding of the project Associate Laboratory ICVS/3B’s, under grant agreement number POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007038 supported by FEDER, through the Competitiveness Factors Operational Programme (COMPETE), and by National funds, through the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A Novel Robotic Manipulator Concept for Managing the Winding and Extraction of Yarn Coils

Wire rope manufacturing is an old industry that maintains its place in the market due to the need for products with specific characteristics in different sectors. The necessity for modernization and performance improvement in this industry, where there is still a high amount of labor dedicated to internal logistics operations, led to the development of a new technology method, to overcome uncertainties related to human behaviour and fatigue. The removal of successive yarn coils from a twisting and winding machine, as well as cutting the yarn and connecting the other end to the shaft in order to proceed with the process, constitutes the main problem. As such, a mobile automatic system was created for this process, due to its automation potential, with a project considering the design of a 3D model. This novel robotic manipulator increased the useful production time and decreased the winding coil removal cycle time, resulting in a more competitive, fully automated product with the same quality. This system has led to better productivity and reliability of the manufacturing process, eliminating manual labor and its cost, as in previously developed works in other industriesThe authors want to thank Jorge Seabra and Carlos Fernandes from CETRIB/INEGI/LAETA due their continuous support.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Evaluating simulated annealing algorithms in the optimization of bacterial strains

In this work, a Simulated Annealing (SA) algorithm is proposed for a Metabolic Engineering task: the optimization of the set of gene deletions to apply to a microbial strain to achieve a desired production goal. Each mutant strain is evaluated by simulating its phenotype using the Flux-Balance Analysis approach, under the premise that microorganisms have maximized their growth along natural evolution. A set based representation is used in the SA to encode variable sized solutions, enabling the automatic discovery of the ideal number of gene deletions. The approach was compared to the use of Evolutionary Algorithms (EAs) to solve the same task. Two case studies are presented considering the production of succinic and lactic acid as the target, with the bacterium E. coli. The variable sized SA seems to be the best alternative, outperforming the EAs, showing a fast convergence and low variability among the several runs and also enabing the automatic discovery of the ideal number of knockouts.FEDER.Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) - POSC/EIA/59899/2004

Co-pyrolysis of pre-treated biomass and wastes to produce added value liquid compounds

ABSTRACT: It is imperative to find novel environmental friendly liquid fuels to be used in the long distance transportation sector. Pyrolysis of wastes may have an important role in the near future to attain this goal. Biomass pyrolysis has also been widely studied by several researchers, but besides the potentialities of such technology, the bio-oil obtained still has to overcome some challenges related to its unsuitable properties to be used in conventional combustion devices. On the contrary, plastics pyrolysis produces oils, whose main compounds are hydrocarbons, thus they can be used in conventional engines without complex and high cost upgrading processes. Thus, co-pyrolysis of plastics blended with biomass may be a suitable option to produce alternative liquid fuels from wastes. The biomass selected for this study was Eucalyptus globulus wastes, because it has been mostly used in the pulp and paper industry in Iberian Peninsula, which has produced high amounts of wastes. On the other hand, PE (polyethylene) was the plastic chosen, because of the huge wastes amounts generated per year. With the aim of facilitating biomass pyrolysis and to increase the production of liquid compounds with suitable properties to be used as fuels, an alternative to the conventional biomass pyrolysis was studied. First eucalyptus wastes were pre-treated by diluted acid hydrolysis, which removed the hemicellulose fraction, produced added value sugar-based compounds and upgraded the remaining solids to better conditions for pyrolysis. Several pathways were studied, including untreated and pre-treated eucalyptus, blended with different contents of PE wastes. The best technical option is the co-pyrolysis of pre-treated eucalyptus mixed with PE, as the highest liquids yields were produced. However, this process needs to be further studied and the economic viability of the overall process still needs to be proven.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio