Assessment of the geological heritage of Cape Mondego Natural Monument (Central Portugal)

In the western coast of Portugal, Cape Mondego is a well-known set of outcrops due to its international stratigraphic relevance given by the establishment of two stratotypes: the Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) for the base of the Bajocian Stage and the Auxiliary Stratotype Section and Point (ASSP) for the base of the Bathonian Stage. The remarkable geodiversity of these Jurassic outcrops justifies the implementation of strategies in order to conserve and promote the geosites, which include a rich palaeontological record of macrofossils, microfossils and dinosaur footprints. Based on the exceptional quality of the geological record, on its international importance and on its high scientific and educational values, this area was classified in 2007 as Natural Monument. However, no geosite systematic inventory was ever done. In this work, a systematic identification, characterization and assessment of geosites was done in the Natural Monument. Based on fieldwork and published data, a first set of 32 potential geosites was identified taking into account their scientific, educational and touristic values. After the application of three criteria (representativeness, singularity and proximity) this group of 32 potential geosites was reduced to 12. These 12 geosites were assessed resulting on the establishment of a medium to high ranks for both educational and geotouristic potential uses. Based on this assessment, some valuing strategies were proposed, aiming at the sustainable use and the promotion of the Natural Monument geosites, within the scope of both educational and geotouristic activities addressed to secondary school students and the general public

Culex quinquefasciatus mosquitoes do not support replication of Zika virus

The rapid spread of Zika virus (ZIKV) in the Americas raised many questions about the role of Culex quinquefasciatus mosquitoes in transmission, in addition to the key role played by the vector Aedes aegypti. Here we analysed the competence of Cx. quinquefasciatus (with or without Wolbachia endosymbionts) for a ZIKV isolate. We also examined the induction of RNA interference pathways after viral challenge and the production of small virus-derived RNAs. We did not observe any infection nor such small virus-derived RNAs, regardless of the presence or absence of Wolbachia. Thus, Cx. quinquefasciatus does not support ZIKV replication and Wolbachia is not involved in producing this phenotype. In short, these mosquitoes are very unlikely to play a role in transmission of ZIKV

Quadros de unidades estratigráficas e da estratigrafia portuguesa

Existem em quase todos os países escalas estratigráficas destinadas a utilização geral sobretudo nas escolas e instituições que se dedicam as ciencias geológicas. Em virtude da falta de escalas semelhantes em Iíngua portuguesa tentou-se, há anos, elaborar uma escala estratigráfica geral, de que se esgotaram varias edições. Em virtude disso, e sendo aconselhavel preparar nova edição da escala em referência, decidiu-se fazê-Ia em novos moldes, revista e actualizada, dar-Ihe maior eficiência e maior volume de informação. Procurou-se elaborar escala com indicação não só dos termos nomenclaturais mais correctos, como da posição de cada unidade, da cronologia e das correlações mais significativas. Além das unidades estratigráficas, juntam-se elementos referentes a Geocronologia isotópica, Geologia de Portugal, bem como se acrescentam quadros de biozonas de alguns fósseis característicos. Na utilização destes quadros chama-se a atenção do leitor para as seguintes indicações: 1) Algumas unidades estratigraticas sao utilizadas com significado (ou valor relativo) diferente do que habitualmente Ihes tem side atribuído. O significado que se Ihes atribui agora e o internacionalmente aceite neste momento. Por exemplo, o Landoveriano, que tem sido interpretado em Portugal como andar, tem actual mente valor de Série. 2) A correlação entre as unidades cronostratigráficas a esquerda, e as unidades da Geologia portuguesa a direita, devem ser estabelecidas apenas com base nas linhas horizontais contínuas. As linhas a tracejado representam limites de unidades diferentes, de datação insuficientemente definida; aquelas linhas descontínuas nao devem pois ser utilizadas como limites cronológicos exactos. 3) São incluídos quadros de biozonas definidas a partir de organismos passíveis de fornecerem datações bastante finas mas que tem side pouco utilizados em formações portuguesas. É o caso de Acritarcas, Dinoflagelados, Nanoplâncton, Foraminíferos e Conodontes. Estamos convictos de que a obra sera útil a todos os que, de algum modo, estao ligados às Geociências. Não será no entanto de estranhar, que em obra desta índole, susceptível de aperfeiçoamento constante, possam ter passado lapsos, mesmo erros ou lacunas. Ficaremos muito gratos aos que porventura os descubram, que no-los comuniquem, a fim de serem corrigidos em eventuais futuras edições

OCORRÊNCIA DE CIANOBACTÉRIAS PRODUTORAS DE TOXINAS NO RIO DOS SINOS (RS) ENTRE OS ANOS DE 2005 E 2008

revista vol 13 nº 2.indd Cyanobacteria are widely distributed autotrophic prokaryotic microorganisms, whose blooms depend on ideal amounts of nitrogen and phosphorous as well optimal temperature and pH conditions. Cyanobacterial blooms in the Sinos River, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil, are triggered by the influx of household and industrial wastes. The present study aimed at monitoring the occurrence of cyanobacteria in the Sinos River and tracking the water quality for human consumption. Water samples were taken from February 2005 to March 2008 at the Alberto Pasqualine Oil Refinery in the municipality of Esteio, Rio Grande do Sul state, totaling 64 samples. The different genera of cyanobacteria found were identified and counted in the laboratory in Sedgewick-Rafter chambers. The genera Planktothrix and Cylindrospermopsis, as well as an unidentified unicelular cyanobacterium were the most frequently found in the samples. Planktothrix sp. achieved 87,009 cells.mL-1 in March 2005, Cylindrospermopsis sp. achieved 65,100 cells.ml-1 in August 2006, and the unidentified unicellular cyanobacterium achieved 20,000 cells.mL-1 in January 2006. Only six samples contained no cyanobacteria. Planktothrix and Cylindrospermopsis are potentially toxic, but cyanotoxins could not be detected in the samples containing more than 20,000 cells.mL-1. Cylindrospermopsis sp, were most numerous during seasonal floods of the Sinos River (over March, June and August) whereas Planktothrix sp. were most numerous during the drought periods (January, February and March). The presence of each predominant cyanobacterium may be correlated with direction of the water flow in Lake Guaíba--Sinos River system.revista vol 13 nº 2.indd Las cianobacterias son microorganismos procariotes y autotróficos que viven en distintos hábitats. El nitrógeno y el fósforo, así como condiciones adecuadas de temperatura y pH en el agua, pueden dar lugar a la formación de floraciones. En el río dos Sinos (RS), la contaminación por efluentes domésticos e industriales estimula la ocurrencia de floraciones. Este trabajo tiene como objetivo monitorear la ocurrencia de cianobacterias en el río dos Sinos, siguiendo las normas de potabilidad de agua para consumo humano. Las colectas fueron realizadas desde febrero del 2005 hasta marzo del 2008, en la zona de captación de la refinería Alberto Pasqualine S/A en Esteio (RS), haciendo un total de 64 muestreos. En laboratorio, los géneros de cianobacterias fueron identificados y luego cuantificados en una cámara Sedgewick-Rafter. Los géneros Planktothrix, Cylindrospermopsis y una cianobacteria unicelular fueron los de mayor ocurrencia. Planktothrix sp. presentó el valor más alto de 87.009 células mL-1 en marzo del 2005; Cylindrospermopsis sp. llegó a 65.100 células mL-1 en agosto del 2006 y una cianobacteria unicelular 20.000 células mL-1 en enero del 2006. Sólo en 6 muestreos no se hallaron células de cianobacterias en el agua del río dos Sinos. Los dos géneros predominantes Planktothrix y Cylindrospermopsis son potencialmente tóxicos, pero no se encontraron cianotoxinas en el agua tratada cuando los conteos de células sobrepasaron las 20.000 células mL-1 en el agua sin potabilizar. Se constató una mayor concentración de células de Cylindrospermopsis sp. durante las crecidas del río dos Sinos (mayo, junio y agosto) y de Planktothrix sp durante el estiaje (enero, febrero y marzo). Habría la posibilidad de que este relacionada la presencia predominante de una u otra cianobacteria con el sentido de flujo en el sistema que forman el lago Guaiba y el río dos Sinos.Cianobactérias são microorganismos procariontes e autotróficos encontrados em diversos habitats. A disponibilidade de nitrogênio e fósforo e de condições ideais de temperatura e de pH nas águas favorecem as florações. No rio dos Sinos (RS), a contaminação por efluentes domésticos e industriais estimulam as florações. Este trabalho teve como objetivo o monitoramento da ocorrência de cianobactérias no rio dos Sinos, seguindo normas de potabilidade de água para consumo humano. As coletas foram realizadas de fevereiro de 2005 a março de 2008, na captação da Refinaria Alberto Pasqualine S/A em Esteio (RS), totalizando 64 amostragens. Em laboratório, foram identificados os gêneros de cianobactérias e quantificados em câmara de Sedgewick-Rafter. Os gêneros Planktothrix, Cylindrospermopsis e uma cianobactéria unicelular foram os de maior ocorrência. Planktothrix sp. apresentou o valor mais alto de 87.009 células mL-1 em março de 2005, enquanto Cylindrospermopsis sp. alcançou 65.100 células mL-1 em agosto de 2006 e uma cianobactéria unicelular, 20.000 células mL-1 em janeiro de 2006. Somente em seis amostragens não foram encontradas células de cianobactérias nas águas do rio dos Sinos. Os dois gêneros predominantes Planktothrix e Cylindrospermopsis, são potencialmente tóxicos, mas não foram encontradas cianotoxinas na água tratada quando as contagens ultrapassaram a 20.000 células mL-1 na água bruta. Constatou-se uma maior concentração de células de Cylindrospermopsis sp. durante a cheia do rio dos Sinos (maio, junho e agosto) e de Planktothrix sp. durante a estiagem (janeiro, fevereiro e março). Há possibilidade de relacionar-se a presença de uma ou outra cianobactéria predominante com o sentido do fluxo no sistema lago Guaíba -- rio dos Sinos

Measured data of Drosophila melanogaster (Diptera Drosophilidae) development and learning and memory behaviour after copper exposition

This article presents the statistical analysis data from Drosophila melanogaster development (from larvae to adult) and learning and memory retention behavior of a Pavlovian conditioning in male and female flies exposed to copper. While the full data sets are available In the article: Copper decrease associative learning and memory in D. melanogaster, this data-in-brief article includes the detailed statistical analysis performed. Data demonstrates Statistica Software analysis between the subject part of the analysis: 2 treatments x 2 sexes x 2 ages and within subject part of the analysis: 2 treatments x 2 sex x 2 ages x 4 times, repeated measures

PROCESSAMENTO EFICIENTE DE REGRAS DE ASSOCIAÇÃO PREFERENCIAIS

The discovery of patterns in transactional databases is a well-explored subject and many methods have been proposed to solve this problem. One of the most well known method is the mining for association rules. However, it is difficult to select the best rules using this method, because it requires a good number for support and confidence, which is not easy to set. In order to overcome this problem, preference-based mining rules methods have been proposed. They help in the process of finding the best rules, taking into account the preferences of the users. Unfortunately, these methods are costly to process. In this research, we present novel algorithms for processing preference-based mining rules efficiently. The algorithm proposed are evoluted using real datasets.A descoberta de padrões em bancos de dados transacionais é um assunto bem explorado e muitos métodos têm sido propostos para resolver estes problemas. Um dos métodos mais conhecidos é a mineração de regras de associação. No entanto, é difícil selecionar as melhores regras usando esse método, porque ele requer um bom número para o suporte e para confiança, o que não é fácil de configurar. Para superar esse problema, métodos que utilizam as preferências do usuário na obtenção de regras de associação foram propostos. Estes métodos auxiliam no processo de encontrar as regras mais interessantes, levando em consideração as preferências dos usuários. Infelizmente, estes métodos são caros para serem processados. Neste artigo, apresentamos novos algoritmos para obter regras de associação, levando em consideração as preferencias dos usuários, de forma eficiente. O algoritmo proposto é evoluído em bases de dados reais

Serra da Estrela PDO cheese authentication: RAPD and SCAR approaches for identification of adulterant breed’s milk

Serra da Estrela cheese is a Protected Denomination of Origin (PDO) product and is perceived as a unique high-quality food, being the most famous Portuguese cheese and presenting high commercial value. It is legitimately manufactured from raw milk of the autochthonous sheep breed Serra da Estrela; however, the adulteration of production with cheaper and/or lowerquality milks from non-autochthones ovine breeds compromises the quality of the final product and undervalues the original PDO cheese. Considering that these fraudulent productions may lead to serious problems at both social and economic levels, it is urgent to develop low-cost, sensitive, fast and reliable analytical techniques that efficiently allow traceability of the breed origin of milk in Serra da Estrela PDO cheese. Here we describe a Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) method capable of efficient detection of adulterant breeds in milk mixtures, containing Serra da Estrela milk, used for fraudulent production of this cheese. Taking this into account, we suggest RAPD to be a valuable tool for identification of sheep breed in a first stage of milk authentication in dairy industry. Furthermore, considering the possible degradation of DNA during milk processing, Sequence Characterized Amplified Region (SCAR) markers were designed envisioning the detection of milk adulteration in processed dairy foods. RAPD-SCAR techniques have been here used, for the first time, to identify breed origin in milk samples, establishing its applicability for quality control on dairy industry, being capable of milk authentication in the final products. In this sense, our findings will play an important role on the valorization of not only the Serra da Estrela PDO cheese, but also on other high-quality dairy products prone to adulteration, contributing to the further development of the dairy industry.Project “Valor Queijo” (CENTRO-07-0202-FEDER-030372

Signaling Mechanisms and Disrupted Cytoskeleton in the Diphenyl Ditelluride Neurotoxicity

Evidence from our group supports that diphenyl ditelluride (PhTe)2 neurotoxicity depends on modulation of signaling pathways initiated at the plasma membrane. The (PhTe)2-evoked signal is transduced downstream of voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels (VDCC), N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDA), or metabotropic glutamate receptors activation via different kinase pathways (protein kinase A, phospholipase C/protein kinase C, mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs), and Akt signaling pathway). Among the most relevant cues of misregulated signaling mechanisms evoked by (PhTe)2 is the cytoskeleton of neural cells. The in vivo and in vitro exposure to (PhTe)2 induce hyperphosphorylation/hypophosphorylation of neuronal and glial intermediate filament (IF) proteins (neurofilaments and glial fibrillary acidic protein, resp.) in different brain structures of young rats. Phosphorylation of IFs at specific sites modulates their association/disassociation and interferes with important physiological roles, such as axonal transport. Disrupted cytoskeleton is a crucial marker of neurodegeneration and is associated with reactive astrogliosis and apoptotic cell death. This review focuses the current knowledge and important results on the mechanisms of (PhTe)2 neurotoxicity with special emphasis on the cytoskeletal proteins and their differential regulation by kinases/phosphatases and Ca2+-mediated mechanisms in developmental rat brain. We propose that the disrupted cytoskeletal homeostasis could support brain damage provoked by this neurotoxicant

Cyclophosphamide in Drosophila promotes genes and transposable elements differential expression and mitochondrial dysfunction

Cyclophosphamide (CPA) is an alkylating agent used for cancer chemotherapy, organ transplantation, and autoimmune disease treatment. Here, mRNA sequencing and high-resolution respirometry were performed to evaluate the alterations of Drosophila melanogaster gene expression fed with CPA under acute (0.1 mg/mL, for 24 h) and chronic (0.05 mg/mL, for 35 days) treatments. Differential expression analysis was performed using Cufflinks-Cuffdiff, DESeq2, and edgeR software. CPA affected genes are involved in several biological functions, including stress response and immune-related pathways, oxi-reduction and apoptotic processes, and cuticle and vitelline membrane formation. In particular, this is the first report of CPA-induced mitochondrial dysfunction caused by the downregulation of genes involved with mitochondria constituents. CPA treatment also changed the transcription pattern of transposable elements (TEs) from the gypsy and copia superfamilies. The results presented here provided evidence of CPA mitochondrial toxicity mechanisms and that CPA can modify TEs transcription in Drosophila flies