Economic evaluation of combined generation and storage solutions in low voltage Portuguese consumers

This paper presents the results that were obtained inthe scope of a consultancy study developed by INESC TEC for aPortuguese distribution network company to evaluate theinterest of installing storage devices and PV panels in LVinstallations. We conducted simulations for consumers withannual demands of 5000 kWh (Type C consumers) and 7500kWh (Type B consumers). In general, we concluded that theinstallation of storage devices is still of little economic interestgiven the current investment level and the tariffs paid to injectelectricity in the networks. The largest NPV values wereobtained when only installing PV panels in Type B consumers,the larger ones, and selling the surplus energy to the network

Economic evaluation of generation and storage solutions in low voltage end user installations

Storage technologies are expected to assume an increasing relevance in the next few years, given the widespread number of available options, the possible applications and the reduction of investment costs. Therefore and apart from the well-known hydro pumping stations, the installation of storage is being considered as an increasingly viable option namely in distribution networks and also in end user installations. This paper reviews the recently passed Portuguese legislation on self-consumption and details a model to evaluate the economic interest of installing batteries together with PV panels according to several possible business models. The simulations suggest that the tariffs currently applied and the investment costs turn these options still not attractive so that a final simulation was developed to evaluate the break even value of the tariffs to turn the investments on storage paid in a reasonable horizon

Forecast of the bidding curve of generation players in the Iberian electricity market

This paper reports the research that was developedto predict biding curves submitted by generation players to theMarket Operator of the Iberian Electricity Market. In thisscope, we used a data set based on publicly availableinformation from the website of the Market Operator to developa two-step ANN prediction model. The first step involves theprediction of the amount of energy bidden at zero price and thesecond ANN predicts the parameters of the equation of the linethat better approximates the remaining bid curve. The testswere done using information of a large generation player butthis approach can be replicated to other players so that theindividual predicted curves can be composed in order to obtainthe aggregated selling curve for each hour of the next day

Application of gold nanoparticles as radiosensitizer for metastatic prostate cancer cell lines

More than 50% of all prostate cancer (PCa) patients are treated by radiotherapy (RT). Radioresistance and cancer recurrence are two consequences of the therapy and are related to dose heterogeneity and non-selectivity between normal and tumoral cells. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) could be used as potential radiosensitizers to overcome these therapeutic limitations of RT. This study assessed the biological interaction of different morphologies of AuNPs with ionizing radiation (IR) in PCa cells. To achieve that aim, three different amine-pegylated AuNPs were synthesized with distinct sizes and shapes (spherical, AuNPsp-PEG, star, AuNPst-PEG, and rods, AuNPr-PEG) and viability, injury and colony assays were used to analyze their biological effect on PCa cells (PC3, DU145, and LNCaP) when submitted to the accumulative fraction of RT. The combinatory effect of AuNPs with IR decreased cell viability and increased apoptosis compared to cells treated only with IR or untreated cells. Additionally, our results showed an increase in the sensitization enhancement ratio by cells treated with AuNPs and IR, and this effect is cell line dependent. Our findings support that the design of AuNPs modulated their cellular behavior and suggested that AuNPs could improve the RT efficacy in PCa cells.The author is grateful for the financial support of Foundation for Science and Technology (grant reference: SFRH/BD/138271/2018).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Metabolic disruption of gold nanospheres, nanostars and nanorods in human metastatic prostate cancer cells

Nanomaterials offer a broad spectrum of applications in biomedicine. The shapes of gold nanoparticles could modulate tumor cell behavior. Spherical (AuNPsp), stars (AuNPst) and rods (AuNPr) shapes of polyethylene glycol coated-gold nanoparticles (AuNPs-PEG) were synthesized. Metabolic activity, cellular proliferation, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) were measured and the impact of AuNPs-PEG in metabolic enzymes function was evaluated by RT-qPCR in PC3, DU145, and LNCaP prostate cancer cells. All AuNPs were internalized, and the different morphologies of AuNPs showed to be an essential modulator of metabolic activity. For PC3 and DU145, the metabolic activity of AuNPs was found to rank in the following order from lowest to highest: AuNPsp-PEG, AuNPst-PEG, and AuNPr-PEG. Regarding LNCaP cells, the AuNPst-PEG were less toxic, followed by AuNPsp-PEG and AuNPr-PEG, but it seems not to be dose-dependent. The proliferation was lower in AuNPr-PEG in PC3 and DU145 cells but was stimulated around 10% in most conditions (0.001–0.1 mM) in LNCaP cells (not statistically significant). For 1 mM, LNCaP cells showed a significant decrease in proliferation only for AuNPr-PEG. The outcomes of the current study demonstrated that different AuNPs conformations influence cell behavior, and the correct size and shape must be chosen considering its final application in the field of nanomedicine.The author is grateful for the financial support of Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) through project reference—2022.09032.PTDC and also to FCT through COMPETE to the project NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-024325.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The influence of miRNAs on radiotherapy treatment in prostate cancer - a systematic review

In the last years, extensive investigation on miRNomics have shown to have great advantages in cancer personalized medicine regarding diagnosis, treatment and even clinical outcomes. Prostate cancer (PCa) is the second most common male cancer and about 50% of all PCa patients received radiotherapy (RT), despite some of them develop radioresistance. Here, we aim to provide an overview on the mechanisms of miRNA biogenesis and to discuss the functional impact of miRNAs on PCa under radiation response. As main findings, 23 miRNAs were already identified as being involved in genetic regulation of PCa cell response to RT. The mechanisms of radioresistance are still poorly understood, despite it has been suggested that miRNAs play an important role in cell signaling pathways. Identification of miRNAs panel can be thus considered an upcoming and potentially useful strategy in PCa diagnosis, given that radioresistance biomarkers, in both prognosis and therapy still remains a challenge.The authors would like to acknowledge Fundacão para a Ciência e Tecnologia by the PhD fellowship (SFRH/BD/138271/2018) for SS.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Application of Gold Nanoparticles as Radiosensitizer for Metastatic Prostate Cancer Cell Lines

More than 50% of all prostate cancer (PCa) patients are treated by radiotherapy (RT). Radioresistance and cancer recurrence are two consequences of the therapy and are related to dose heterogeneity and non-selectivity between normal and tumoral cells. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) could be used as potential radiosensitizers to overcome these therapeutic limitations of RT. This study assessed the biological interaction of different morphologies of AuNPs with ionizing radiation (IR) in PCa cells. To achieve that aim, three different amine-pegylated AuNPs were synthesized with distinct sizes and shapes (spherical, AuNPsp-PEG, star, AuNPst-PEG, and rods, AuNPr-PEG) and viability, injury and colony assays were used to analyze their biological effect on PCa cells (PC3, DU145, and LNCaP) when submitted to the accumulative fraction of RT. The combinatory effect of AuNPs with IR decreased cell viability and increased apoptosis compared to cells treated only with IR or untreated cells. Additionally, our results showed an increase in the sensitization enhancement ratio by cells treated with AuNPs and IR, and this effect is cell line dependent. Our findings support that the design of AuNPs modulated their cellular behavior and suggested that AuNPs could improve the RT efficacy in PCa cells