Environmental education as a “driving force” for the revitalization and rehabilitation of disadvantaged rural areas

[Resumo] A apostar na Educação Ambiental como “força motriz” para a revitalização e requalificação da Aldeia do Vale do Rio, situada na Região Centro de Portugal, docentes da Escola Superior Agrária de Coimbra, estagiários,autarquia, comunidade local e voluntários têm trabalhado em conjunto com vista ao levantamento do património natural, bem como a resolução dos problemas ambientais da aldeia e espaços circundantes. O envolvimento da população em ações de Educação Ambiental passiva e ativa tem contribuído para a valorização de espécies autóctones, nomeadamente o medronheiro(Arbutus unedo L.), bem como para o controlo de plantas invasoras particularmente a Acacia dealbataL.). O trabalho integrado também tem possibilitado reconhecer a apetência da aldeia para a apicultura, aposta em produtos endógenos e ecoturismo. Com encantos naturais e estrategicamente situada a 5 km da Vila de Figueiró dos Vinhos e a apenas 1 km do Rio Zêzere, a Aldeia do Vale do Rio já olha para si mesma com “olhos de futuro”, contando agora com a recém-criada “Associação de Moradores e Amigos do Vale do Rio”, que já começa a trabalhar para o desenvolvimento sustentável da aldeia.[Abstract] Considering the Environmental Education as a "driving force" for the revitalization and rehabilitation of Aldeia do Vale do Rio, located in the central Region of Portugal, teachers and trainees of the Agrarian School of Coimbra, municipal council, local community and volunteers have been working together in order to know the natural resources and search for solutions concerning the environmental problems of the village and surrounding area. The involvement of the population in passive and active environmental education actions have contributed to the promotion of indigenous species, as for example the strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo L), as well as the control of invasive plants (in particulas Acacia dealbata L). The integrated work has also allowed to recognize the attractiveness of the village is now starting to look at itself with the "eyes of future", counting now on the recently created "Association of the Vale do Rio Inhabitats and Friends", which has already been working for its sustainable development

Enantiomers separation by simulated moving bed chromatography. Non-instantaneous equilibrium at the solid-fluid interface

The simulated moving bed (SMB) technology, first conceived for large bulk-scale separations in the petrochemical industry, has found increasingly new applications in the pharmaceutical industry. Among these, the separation of fine chemicals has been the subject of considerable study and research. This work presents the modeling, simulation and design of the operation of a SMB plant in order to separate a binary chiral mixture. The usual assumption of instantaneous equilibrium at the solid–fluid interface is questioned and a first-order kinetics of adsorption is taken into account. The cases of linear, Langmuir and modified Langmuir equilibria are studied. The equivalent true moving bed (TMB) model was used assuming axial dispersion for the fluid flow and plug flow for the solid-phase flow. Intraparticle diffusion was described by a linear driving force (LDF) approximation. Simulation results indicate that, under certain conditions, equilibrium is not actually reached at the adsorbent surface. This leads to different unit performances, in terms of product purities and recoveries, as compared to those predicted assuming instantaneous equilibrium. Moreover, SMB units may be improperly designed by the usual methods (flow-rate ratio separation regions) if non-equilibrium effects are overlooked

Not intrinsically unconstitutional: the Portuguese constitutional court, the right to life, and assisted death

Recently, there have been debates in Portugal regarding the morality of assisted death. One of the leading opponents in Portuguese society against assisted death are Catholics. They argue that the right to life implies that assisted death is immoral and provide four key arguments they believe justify their position. In this article, we reply to these four articles and show that they all fail

METABOLISMO NITROGENADO EM AVES ANTÁRTICAS: ATIVIDADE UREOGÊNICA E URICOGÊNICA DO FÍGADO E RIM DE Pygoscellis Papua

Foi levado a efeito uma pesquisa sobre metabolismo nitrogenado em pingüim Pygoscellis papua. A pesquisa foi centralizada no estudo da atividade ureogênica e uricogênica em fatias e homogenados bem como em frações subcelulares de fígado e de rim dessa ave antártica. Foi verificado que fígado e rim apresentam capacidade de uricogênese superior à ureogênese, fato esse que foi demonstrado pela determinação do conteúdo de uréia e de ácido úrico tanto em fatias como em homogenados de ambos os órgãos incubados em Ringer, contendo aspartato e glicina ou CO2; amônia, contendo aspartato e glicina ou CO2; glutamina e amônia, contendo aspartato e glicina ou CO2. Foi verificado ainda o efeito da L-ornitina e da amônia na etapa mitocondrial da síntese da uréia. Nitrogen metabolism in antarctic birds: ureogenic and uricogenic activity from the liver and kidney of Pygoscellis papua Abstract A research has been carried out on the nitrogen metabolism in the penguin Pygoscellis papua. This study has been centered on the ureogenic and uricogenic activities of slices and homogenates as well as in subcellular fractions from the liver and kidney of this Antarctic bird. It has been found that both liver and kidney display an uricogenic activity higher than that one of the ureogenesis. This fact has been demonstrated by the assay of urea and uric acid in both slices and homogenates from both organs incubated in systems containing Ringer solution and aspartate and glycine or CO2; ammonia with L-aspartate and glycine or CO2; glutamine and ammonia with L-aspartate and glycine or CO2. A research has been carried out also on the effect of L-ornithine and ammonia, on the mitochondrial step of the urea synthesis

Water quality on small ruminants’ dairy farms in Castelo Branco region

The importance of providing quality water for cleaning milking machines and other equipment is perhaps one of the most overlooked factors in ensuring milk quality on most dairy farms. Water for cleaning in the dairy barn is used for different situations, including for the process of milking, which requires cleaning and disinfection of the milking equipment, the milking parlour, and the milk cooling tank. Many factors on dairy farms can contribute to contamination of the raw milk, and one of the major factors responsible for this contamination is the water used to clean the milking and storage equipment.This work was financially supported by QRural Research Unit/IPCB and CERNAS-IPCB (UIDB/00681/2020, FCT).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Recuperação De Sesquiterpenos Do óleo-resina De Copaíba A Partir Da Destilação Molecular

Copaiba oil-resin has aromatic characteristics and pharmacological activities attributed to sesquiterpenes compounds. These purified compounds present application in perfume, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. Therefore, the objective of this work was to use molecular distillation to recover and purify sesquiterpenes of the copaiba oil-resin with purity high. The parameters evaporator temperature (TEV) from 45 to 100 °C and feed flow rate (Q) between 15 and 30 ml min-1 were evaluated through design of experiments (22 with center points). The results showed that it was possible to recover sesquiterpenes with 98.12% purity in the distillate stream. Increased in TEV and reduction in Q were the effects observed experimentally and through the response surface. The best experimental condition was TEV of 100 °C and Q of 15 mL min-1. Collor differences were noticed between distillate streams (colorless) and residue (brown). These can be used as parameters for separation of sesquiterpenes and diterpenes. The molecular distillation proved to be an efficient processo to both recovery and purification of sesquiterpenes from the copaiba oil-resin.39779580

In Vitro Activity Of Artemisia Annua L (asteraceae) Extracts Against Rhipicephalus (boophilus) Microplus [atividade In Vitro De Extratos De Artemisia Annua L (asteraceae) Sobre Rhipicephalus (boophilus) Microplus]

The activity of plant extracts on parasites may indicate groups of substances that are potentially useful for controlling Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus. The aim of the present study was to investigate the in vitro action of Artemisia annua extracts on this tick. The concentrations of the sesquiterpene lactones artemisinin and deoxyartemisinin present in plant extracts were quantified via high-performance liquid chromatography. Four extracts produced from the concentrated crude extract (CCE) were evaluated on larvae using the impregnated paper method, with readings after 24 hours of incubation. The engorged females were immersed in the CCE and in its four derived extracts for five minutes, with incubation for subsequent analysis of biological parameters. The extracts were not effective on the larvae at the concentrations tested (3.1 to 50 mg.mL-1). The CCE showed greater efficacy on engorged females (EC50 of 130.6 mg.mL-1 and EC90 of 302.9 mg.mL-1) than did the derived extracts. These results tend to confirm that the action of artemisinin on engorged females of R. (B.) microplus is conditional to their blood intake. In this case, in vitro methods would be inadequate for effective evaluation of the action of A. annua on R. (B.) microplus.2013135Amaral, N.K., Guidelines for the evaluation of ixodicides against the cattle tick Boophilus microplus (Canestrini, 1887) (Acari: Ixodidae) (1993) Revista Brasileira De Parasitologia Veterinária, 2 (2), pp. 144-151(2009) Anuário Da Pecuária Brasileira, p. 360. , ANUALPEC, Sao Paulo: Angra FNP PesquisasBorges, L.M.F., Acao do extrato hexanico de frutos maduros de Melia azedarach (Meliaceae) sobre Boophilus microplus (Acari: Ixodidae) em bezerros infestados artificialmente (2005) Revista De Patologia Tropical, 34 (1), pp. 53-59Cala, A.C., (2010) Avaliação Da Atividade De Artemisia Annua L., Melia Azedarach L. E Trichilia Claussenii C. Sobre Nematódeos Gastrintestinais De Ovinos, p. 64. , Dissertacao (Mestrado)- Universidade Estadual Paulista, Faculdade de Ciencias Agrarias e Veterinarias, JaboticabalCeleghini, R.M.S., Desenvolvimento e validacao de metodologia analitica por CLAE-IR para determinacao de artemisinina em Artemisia annua L (2009) Química Nova, 32 (4), pp. 875-878Chagas, A.C.S., Efeito acaricida de oleos essenciais e concentrados emulsionaveis de Eucalyptus em Boophilus microplus (2002) Brazilian Journal of Veterinary Research and Animal Science, 39 (5), pp. 247-253Chagas, A.C.S., Sensibilidade do carrapato Boophilus microplus a solventes (2003) Ciência Rural, 33 (1), pp. 109-114Creek, D.J., Kinetics of ironmediated artemisinin degradation:Effect of solvent composition and iron salt (2005) Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 94 (8), pp. 1820-1829Drummond, R.O., Boophilus annulatus and B. Microplus: Laboratory tests of insecticides (1973) Journal of Economic Entomology, 66 (1), pp. 130-133Ekanem, A.P., Brisibe, E.A., Effects of ethanol extract of Artemisia annua L. Against monogenean parasites of Heterobranchus longifilis (2010) Parasitology Research, 106 (5), pp. 1135-1139Fernandes, F.F., Freitas, E.P.S., Acaricidal activity of an oleoresinous extract from Copaifera reticulata (Leguminosae: Caesalpinioideae against larvae of the southern cattle tick, Riphicephalus (Boophilus) microplus (Acari:Ixodidae) (2007) Veterinary Parasitology, 147 (1-2), pp. 150-154Ferreira, J.F.S., Agrotechnological aspects of the anti-malarial plant Artemisia annua and its potential use in animal health in Appalachia (2006) International Symposium on Perfume, Aromatic and Medicinal Plants, (2-4), pp. 797-804. , Revue de Regions Arides - Numero special - Actes du seminaire international les Plants a Parfum, Aromatiques et Medicinales (English version: International Center for Agricultural Research in Dry AreasFerreira, J.F.S., Nutrient Deficiency in the Production of Artemisinin, Dihydroartemisinic Acid, and Artemisinic Acid in Artemisia annua L (2007) Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 55 (5), pp. 1686-1694Ferreira, J.F.S., Gonzalez, J.M., Chemical and biological stability of artemisinin in bovine rumen fluid and its kinetics in goats (Capra hircus) (2008) Revista Brasileira De Parasitologia Veterinária, 17 (SUPPL. 1), pp. 103-109Furlong, J., O carrapato dos bovinos e a resistencia: Temos o que comemorar? (2007) A Hora Veterinária, 159, pp. 26-32Grisi, L., Impacto economico das principais ectoparasitoses em bovinos no Brasil (2002) A Hora Veterinária, 21 (125), pp. 8-10Heimerdinger, A., Extrato alcoolico de Capim-cidreira (Cymbopogon citratus) no controle do Boophilus microplus em bovinos (2006) Revista Brasileira De Parasitologia Veterinária, 15 (1), pp. 37-39Idris, U.A., Adam, S.E., Tartour, G., The anthelmintic efficacy of Artemisia herba-alba against Haemonchus contortus infection in goats (1982) Animal Health Quarterly, 22 (3), pp. 138-143Iqbal, Z., Anthelmintic activity of Artemisia brevifolia in sheep (2004) Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 93 (2), pp. 265-268Keiser, J., Artesunate and artemether are effective fasciolicides in the rat model and in vitro (2006) Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, 57 (6), pp. 1139-1145Keiser, J., Efficacy and safety of artemether against a natural Fasciola hepatica infection in sheep (2008) Parasitology Research, 103 (3), pp. 517-522Keiser, J., Utzinger, J., Food-borne trematodiasis: Current chemotherapy and advances with artemisinins and synthetic trioxolanes (2007) Trends In Parasitology, 23 (11), pp. 555-562Klayman, D.L., Qinghaosu (Artemisinin): Na antimalarial drug from China (1985) Science, 228 (4703), pp. 1049-1055La-Scalea, M.A., Silva, H.S.R.C., Ferreira, E., Reducao voltametrica de artemisinina e sua interacao com grupo heme (hemina) (2007) Brazilian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 43 (3), pp. 371-383Martins, R.M., Estudio in vitro de la accion acaricida del aceite esencial de la graminea Citronela de Java (Cymbopogon winterianus Jowitt) en la garrapata Boophilus microplus (2006) Revista Brasileira De Plantas Medicinais De Botucatu, 8 (2), pp. 71-78Meshnick, S.R., Second-generation antimamalarial endoperoxides (1996) Parasitology Today, 12 (2), pp. 79-82Ribeiro, V.L.S., Acaricidal properties of extracts from the aerial parts of Hypericum polyanthemum on the cattle tick Boophilus microplus (2007) Veterinary Parasitology, 147 (1-2), pp. 199-203Rodrigues, R.A.F., Otimizacao do processo de extracao e isolamento do antimalarico artemisinina a partir de Artemisia annua L (2006) Química Nova, 29 (2), pp. 368-372Silva, H.S.R.C., (2006) Antimaláricos Potenciais: Pró-fármacos Poliméricos E Formas De Liberação Controlada De Artemisinina, p. 209. , Tese (Doutorado)-Universidade de Sao Paulo, Sao PauloSimoes, C.M., (2004) Farmacognosia: Da Planta Ao Medicamento, p. 1102. , 5. ed. Porto Alegre: Editora da UFRGSFlorianopolis: Editora da UFSCTaranto, A.G., Estudo sobre o mecanismo de acao da artemisinina e dos endoperoxidos, a mais nova classe de agents antimalaricos (2006) Sitientibus, 34, pp. 47-58Tariq, K.A., Anthelmintic activity of extracts of Artemisia absinthium against ovine nematodes (2009) Veterinary Parasitology, 160 (1-2), pp. 83-8

Investigating the topology of interacting networks - Theory and application to coupled climate subnetworks

Network theory provides various tools for investigating the structural or functional topology of many complex systems found in nature, technology and society. Nevertheless, it has recently been realised that a considerable number of systems of interest should be treated, more appropriately, as interacting networks or networks of networks. Here we introduce a novel graph-theoretical framework for studying the interaction structure between subnetworks embedded within a complex network of networks. This framework allows us to quantify the structural role of single vertices or whole subnetworks with respect to the interaction of a pair of subnetworks on local, mesoscopic and global topological scales. Climate networks have recently been shown to be a powerful tool for the analysis of climatological data. Applying the general framework for studying interacting networks, we introduce coupled climate subnetworks to represent and investigate the topology of statistical relationships between the fields of distinct climatological variables. Using coupled climate subnetworks to investigate the terrestrial atmosphere's three-dimensional geopotential height field uncovers known as well as interesting novel features of the atmosphere's vertical stratification and general circulation. Specifically, the new measure "cross-betweenness" identifies regions which are particularly important for mediating vertical wind field interactions. The promising results obtained by following the coupled climate subnetwork approach present a first step towards an improved understanding of the Earth system and its complex interacting components from a network perspective

Neonatal screening for cystic fibrosis in São Paulo State, Brazil : a pilot study

Cystic fibrosis is one of the most common autosomal recessive hereditary diseases in the Caucasian population, with an incidence of 1:2000 to 1:3500 liveborns. More than 1000 mutations have been described with the most common being F508del. It has a prevalence of 23-55% within the Brazilian population. The lack of population-based studies evaluating the incidence of cystic fibrosis in São Paulo State, Brazil, and an analysis concerning the costs of implantation of a screening program motivated the present study. A total of 60,000 dried blood samples from Guthrie cards obtained from April 2005 to January 2006 for neonatal screening at 4 reference centers in São Paulo State were analyzed. The immunoreactive trypsinogen (IRT)/IRT protocol was used with the cut-off value being 70 ng/mL. A total of 532 children (0.9%) showed IRT >70 ng/mL and a 2nd sample was collected from 418 (80.3%) of these patients. Four affected children were detected at two centers, corresponding to an incidence of 1:8403. The average age at diagnosis was 69 days, and 3 of the children already showed severe symptoms of the disease. The rate of false-positive results was 95.2% and the positive predictive value for the test was 8%. The cost of detecting an affected subject was approximately US$8,000.00 when this cystic fibrosis program was added to an existing neonatal screening program. The present study clearly shows the difficulties involved in cystic fibrosis screening using the IRT/IRT protocol, particularly in a population with no long-term tradition of neonatal screening421

Bioactive properties of Ruscus aculeatus L.: na underexploited subshrub

Ruscus aculeatus L. is a sub-shrub used in traditional medicine in different parts of the world, namely in Europe and the Iberian Peninsula[1]. Traditionally, the aerial parts are mainly used as diuretics and the underground parts are used for the treatment of urinary tract diseases and as a laxative[2]. In the present work, the aerial part, roots, and rhizomes of R. aculeatus were characterized regarding their bioactive properties in order to contribute to the knowledge of the chemical composition of this unexplored species. The plant material of R. aculeatus was harvested in April 2019 inside woodlands and hedgerows, in Valpaços, Portugal. Two distinct parts were gathered: the aerial part (cladodes or laminar stems and lateral branches) and the underground organs (rhizomes with roots). Hydroethanolic extracts and aqueous (infusions and decoctions) preparations from the two mentioned parts of the plant were prepared. Multi-resistant clinical bacterial strains (Enterococcus faecalis, Listeria monocytogenes, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Morganela morganii, Proteus mirabilis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) were used to screen the antimicrobial activity and the antioxidant activity was evaluated through two different in vitro assays: inhibition of lipid peroxidation in brain homogenates by thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and oxidative hemolysis inhibition assay (OxHLIA). The cytotoxic activity was assayed using MCF-7 (breast adenocarcinoma), NCI-H460 (non-small cell lung carcinoma), HeLa (cervical carcinoma) and HepG2 (hepatocellular carcinoma) human tumor cell lines, and also a non-tumor cell line (porcine liver primary cells, PLP2). All extracts revealed antioxidant activity and potential to inhibit some of the assessed bacteria; except for the infusion of the aerial part (for the lines MCF7 and HepG2) and decoction extracts (line MCF7), all the remaining extracts presented effective results in the inhibition of the tested cell lines; the aqueous extracts of the aerial part and infusions of roots and rhizomes did not show cytotoxic effects in a non-tumor primary cell culture. This preliminary study provided innovative and interesting results in relation to the bioactive properties of this little-studied and explored wild plant.The authors are grateful to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) for financial support by national funds FCT/MCTES to CIMO (UIDB/00690/2020) and national funding by FCT, P.I., through the institutional scientific employment program-contract for L. Barros, A. Fernandes, C. Pereira and R.C. Calhelha´s contract. The authors are grateful to the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the Regional Operational Program North 2020, within the scope of Project Norte-01-0145-FEDER-000042: GreenHealth.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio