Joint interpretation of AER/FGF and ZPA/SHH over time and space underlies hairy2 expression in the chick limb

Embryo development requires precise orchestration of cell proliferation and differentiation in both time and space. A molecular clock operating through gene expression oscillations was first described in the presomitic mesoderm (PSM) underlying periodic somite formation. Cycles of HES gene expression have been further identified in other progenitor cells, including the chick distal limb mesenchyme, embryonic neural progenitors and both mesenchymal and embryonic stem cells. In the limb, hairy2 is expressed in the distal mesenchyme, adjacent to the FGF source (AER) and along the ZPA-derived SHH gradient, the two major regulators of limb development. Here we report that hairy2 expression depends on joint AER/FGF and ZPA/SHH signaling. FGF plays an instructive role on hairy2, mediated by Erk and Akt pathway activation, while SHH acts by creating a permissive state defined by Gli3-A/Gli3-R>1. Moreover, we show that AER/FGF and ZPA/SHH present distinct temporal and spatial signaling properties in the distal limb mesenchyme: SHH acts at a long-term, long-range on hairy2, while FGF has a shortterm, short-range action. Our work establishes limb hairy2 expression as an output of integrated FGF and SHH signaling in time and space, providing novel clues for understanding the regulatory mechanisms underlying HES oscillations in multiple systems, including embryonic stem cell pluripotency. (C) 2012. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.FCT, Portugal [SFRH/BD/33176/2007]; Ciencia2007 Program Contract (Portuguese Government); IBB/CBME, LA; FCT, Portugal (National and FEDER COMPETE Program funds) [PTDC/SAU-OBD/099758/2008, PTDC/SAU-OBD/105111/2008]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

SpaceSheep: comunicações de satélite para cenários de agricultura inteligente

The need to increase productivity in daily activities has been contributing to the development of new systems that can optimize those tasks. Within the agricultural sector, IoT solutions are allowing the autonomous monitoring of crops and animals, reducing human effort and, consequently, the cost of the final product. One of those solutions was developed under the scope of the SheepIT project, which is an animal monitoring system developed to remove weeds in vineyards by controlling the behaviour of herds. To do so, each animal is equiped with a sensorand actuator-based device (collar), which monitors and conditions its actions. The information these devices collect is periodically forwarded to an aggregator node (gateway) through fixed nodes spread around the pasture area (beacon), where is then processed and uploaded to a remote computational platform via the Internet. However, these animals typically move around extensive areas with poor or non-existent ground network coverage, which inhibits the proper communications operation of such system. This work aimed to mitigate the common lack of coverage in rural areas. To do so, a satellite communications interface was integrated into the SheepIT project and, consequently, the messages exchanged by the system were adapted and optimized to meet the constraints of this new technology. These modifications extend the SheepIT project to be able to operate in scenarios where ground network coverage is not available.A necessidade do aumento de produtividade de atividades diárias tem vindo a contribuir para o desenvolvimento de novos sistemas que consigam otimizar essas tarefas. Dentro do sector agrícola, soluções de IoT têm permitido a monitorização autónoma de plantações e animais, reduzindo o esforço humano e, consequentemente, o custo do produto final. Uma dessas soluções foi desenvolvida no âmbito do projeto SheepIT, um sistema de monitorização animal desenvolvido de forma a remover espécies infestantes em vinhas atráves do controlo do comportamento de rebanhos. Para isso, cada animal está equipado com um dispositivo com sensores e atuadores (collar), que monitoriza e condiciona as suas ações. A informação recolhida por estes dispositivos é enviada periodicamente para um nó agregador (gateway) através de nós fixos espalhados pela área de pasto (beacon), onde é então processada e transferida para uma plataforma computacional remota atráves da Internet. Todavia, estes animais deslocam-se tipicamente por extensas áreas com cobertura de rede terrestre fraca ou inexistente, inibindo o correto funcionamento de tal sistema. Este trabalho visou mitigar a ausência de cobertura comum em áreas rurais. Para tal, uma interface de comunicações satélite foi integrada no projeto SheepIT e, consequentemente, as mensagens trocadas pelo sistema foram adaptadas e otimizadas de forma a responder às limitações desta nova tecnologia. Estas modificações extendem o projeto SheepIT para operar em cenários em que a cobertura de rede terrestre não está disponível.Mestrado em Engenharia de Computadores e Telemátic

Avaliação da comunidade microbiana diazotrófica em solos sob cultura biológica por métodos moleculares

Dissertação mest., Biologia Marinha, Universidade do Algarve, 200

Adoption of Electronic Health Records in the Portuguese healthcare system in the presence of privacy concerns

Electronic Health Records promise to solve many of the current healthcare challenges since they have the potential to improve performance and quality of healthcare. However, for an EHR be fully employed by all the stakeholders, it is necessary to overcome some of the existent barriers to its adoption. With the EHRs available online, the risk of patient privacy violations as well as cyber-attacks increases the patients’ concerns for their information privacy. Therefore, this study deepens about Portuguese patients’ concern around information privacy, factors influencing these concerns and how the decision to adopt EHRs can be influenced in patients with privacy concerns. A cross-sectional online survey showed that Portuguese citizens have concerns for information privacy and those vary across gender and education. Moreover, when presented with positive message framings, individuals are more willing to adopt EHRs and the majority of the respondents believe that this system will improve the overall quality of the Portuguese healthcare system.Os Registos de Saúde Electrónicos (RSE) prometem solucionar muitos dos desafios que os sistemas de saúde hoje enfrentam, uma vez que têm o potencial de melhorar a qualidade dos serviços e o desempenho dos sistemas de saúde. No entanto, para que os RSE sejam utilizados na sua plenitude, é necessário superar alguns obstáculos existentes à sua adopção. Com a disponibilização dos RSE online, a perda de privacidade do paciente, bem como cyber-ataques, levam os indivíduos a preocuparem-se com o modo como os seus dados pessoais são guardados e partilhados. Deste modo, esta tese procura perceber se os portugueses estão preocupados com a perda de privacidade dos seus dados médicos aquando da adopção dos RSE, que factores influenciam a estas preocupações e como é que a decisão de adoptar RSE pode ser influenciada em pacientes com preocupações pela perda de privacidade. Através de um questionário online conduzido a cidadãos portugueses, foi possível perceber que a maioria dos indivíduos está preocupada com a perda de privacidade dos seus dados médicos e tal varia com o sexo e a educação. Para além disso, os portugueses estão mais dispostos a adoptar os RSE quando apresentados com mensagens positivas e a maioria considera que os RSE irá melhorar a qualidade do sistema de saúde português

Where healthcare takes place: A route to patients well-being

Tem-se acumulado evidência de que as características objectivas do ambiente físico hospitalar têm impacto sobre o bem-estar dos doentes. Argumentamos que o conhecimento acerca do papel do ambiente físico hospitalar está incompleto se não se considerarem os mecanismos psicológicos subjacentes, e se não se determinar a sua contribuição específica. O Estudo 1 apresenta a adaptação e validação de uma medida da percepção da qualidade do ambiente hospitalar. O Estudo 2 mostra que a relação entre a qualidade objectiva do ambiente físico e o bem-estar dos doentes é mediada através das suas percepções acerca do ambiente físico e social, estando estas altamente correlacionadas; e que este processo é moderado pela condição do doente. Embora não se tenham encontrado diferenças na relação entre a qualidade objectiva do ambiente físico e as percepções do ambiente físico e social; a satisfação dos doentes internados é explicada pela percepção do ambiente social, enquanto a dos doentes na consulta é explicada pela percepção do ambiente físico. O Estudo 3 revela que as pessoas associam a qualidade do ambiente físico à do social e que ambas comunicam uma mensagem sobre o bem-estar que pode ser esperado. Finalmente, o Estudo 4 mostra que, controlando o efeito do ambiente social, o ambiente físico tem um efeito independente sobre o bem-estar, mas apenas quando é inadequado. Globalmente, estes resultados demonstram a relevância do ambiente físico para a experiência dos doentes e sugerem a necessidade de uma abordagem mais abrangente na compreensão da influência do ambiente físico hospitalar.Evidence has been accumulated showing that the objective features of hospital physical environment have an impact on patients’ well-being. We argue that our understanding the role of the hospital physical environment is incomplete without an account for the underlying psychological mechanisms involved, and without determining its specific contribution. Four studies are presented. Study 1 presents the adaptation and validation of a measure of hospital environmental quality. Study 2 showed that the link between the objective physical environment and patients’ well-being is mediated through perceptions of hospital physical and social environments, highly correlated; and that this process is moderated by patients’ status. For both inpatients and outpatients, objective environmental quality predicts the perceptions of the hospital physical and social environments. However, it is the perceived quality of the physical environment that predicts outpatients’ satisfaction, whereas inpatients’ satisfaction predicted by the quality of the social environment. Study 3 revealed that the quality of the hospital physical and social environments are associated in people’s minds, and communicate a message about the well-being that can be expected. Finally, Study 4 showed that the physical environment has a significant effect on expected well-being, regardless of, and over and above, the quality of the social environment, but only when it is inadequate. This set of results substantiates the relevance of the physical environment to patients’ experience. All together, our work suggests the need of a more comprehensive approach to improve the understanding of the influence of hospital physical environment

First meeting of the Portuguese Society for Developmental Biology (SPBD)

[excerpt] The 1st Meeting of the Portuguese Society for DevelopmentalBiology (SPBD – Sociedade Portuguesa de Biologia doDesenvolvimento; was held during two sunny autumndays at the Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência (IGC) locatedin the beautiful seaside city of Oeiras. This smallmeeting provided unprecedented conditions for Portuguese Developmental Biology researchers to know what is being done inPortugal, to receive feedback on their own work and to establishstrong and productive national collaborations.(undefined

Banking crises in Europe: the importance of region - specific early warning models

Banking crises, albeit rare, can have nefarious consequences. As such, it is relevant to understand not only what factors cause these crises, but what variables can be used in their early detection. Economic integration still requires country speci cities to be considered in macro-prudential monitoring. This project explores the dynamics of banking crises, the role of economic and stock market growth as warning variables for several European regions. Dynamic probit models are used in a panel dataset. Results show that real GDP, stock market growth and house price growth are good indicators of crisis, and separate models for regions within the Eurozone predict crisis more accurately

Physical-chemical properties of Corema album (white crowberry or camarinha)

This study evaluated the biometric characteristics (diameter, mass), the chemical properties (moisture content, fiber, total and reducing sugars, total soluble solids, total acidity), and some physical properties (color, texture). The results obtained showed that the Corema album berries had an average diameter of 8.63 ± 0.84 mm, and a mass of 0.66 ± 0.11 g. Regarding the chemical analysis, the results obtained show an average moisture content of 87.89 ± 4.01 % (fresh weight) and a fiber content of 36.52 ± 1.96 % (dry matter). The percentage of total and reducing sugars was 62.80 ± 0.77 % and 41.24 ± 1.74 % (dry matter), respectively. The result also showed Brixº of 6.20 ± 0.03 and a total acidity of 10.7 ± 0.1 % (Citric Acid). This study allowed concluding that the berries Corema album at study showed parameters of diameter and mass higher than those reported in the bibliography. It was also possible to conclude through the chemical analyzes performed that these berries are a very rich source of water, fibers and total sugars. Finally , these results confirm that Corema album berries have multiple physical-chemical properties that may be of high interest to the market of commercial berries

Ensinar inglês no 1º Ciclo do Ensino Básico: que competências profissionais para a docência?

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