[Re] Measuring [LEED] sustainability: from a global rating system to tropical specificity

This paper explores the applicability of the LEED certification system through the case study of Puerto Rico (P.R.), a United States (U.S.) Commonwealth island in the Caribbean, where LEED has become widely recognized as a standard because of the geopolitical relationship with the mainland. Although LEED is used internationally, it was initially developed by the U.S. Green Building Council as a tool to measure building performance in a modern American urban environment with temperate climate, a steady economy and easy access to technology. Furthermore, regionalization strategies such as Regional Priority Credits (RPCs) and Alternate Compliance Paths (ACPs), do not address the sociocultural reality of many regions. Therefore, the focus of this research is to analyse what indicators should be added, modified or substituted to develop a revised LEED model for the specific sociocultural context of P.R.? A mixed methods research will be used to compare LEED criteria with Sustainable Assessment Systems (SAS) such as the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method, the Living Building Challenge and SB Tool. Also, SAS in tropical countries such as Singapore (BCA Green Mark), Costa Rica (RESET) and India (TERI-GRIHA) will be examined. Case studies will be analysed with a main focus in Schools

Ocorrência de um Potyvirus associado ao mosaico da açucena-gigante.

Plants of spider lily (Crinum sp) showing mosaic symptoms were found in Londrina, Paraná. Electron microscopy examinations revealed flexuous rod shaped particles and lamellar inclusion bodies in the cell cytoplasm. RT-PCR products of 2 kb were amplified by a pair of genus specific primers suggesting the association of a potyvirus, being this the first time a virus infection in this host is reported in Brazil

Effect of CORONA treatment on finishing processes of linen fabrics

Application of CORONA technology for finishing processes of cellulosic fabric is an innovation in European textile industry. A CORONA discharge is created between two electrodes with high voltage and a frequency of 20 – 40 kHz affecting the surface of a fabric running continuously at ambience pressure and temperature. The paper presents the newest results of research refer to linen fabrics properties without and after CORONA treatment. Fabrics after Corona get new better properties, what makes finishing processes much easier. Quality of fabrics after Corona can be highly improved in important aspects concerning safety of users. Corona treatment improves significantly wettability of cellulosic fabrics. New stage – CORONA treatment – apply in finishing process in line allows for eliminating initial washing without detriment to quality of finished fabric. Instead of washing applied, CORONA ensures good results in bleaching and evenness of dyeing by some kinds of dyes. Corona gives a chance to get better end properties at lower costs and less environmental aggressio

Mitochondrial DNA variability in populations from East Timor (Timor Leste)

In this study we continue the genetic characterization of human populations from East Timor, as previously started for autosomal STRs and Y STRs, with a preliminary report on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) diversity. Individual samples (n = 133) collected from all the districts of East Timor and representing different linguistic groups were studied for the hypervariable region 1 (HVS1) sequence and the 9-bp deletion (intergenic region COII-tRNA lys).http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B7581-4JSBXBX-1J/1/f4cc71eebbd2186e586bae7a77c79cc

Thymus zygis subsp. zygis an endemic portuguese plant: Phytochemical profiling, antioxidant, anti-proliferative and anti-inflammatory activities

Thymus zygis subsp. zygis is an endemic Portuguese plant belonging to the Thymus zygis species. Although T. zygis is commonly used as a condiment and as a medicinal herb, a detailed description of the polyphenol composition of hydroethanolic (HE) and aqueous decoction (AD) extracts is not available. In this work, we describe for the first time a detailed phenolic composition of Thymus zygis subsp. zygis HE and AD extracts, together with their antioxidant, anti-proliferative and anti-inflammatory activities. Unlike other Thymus species, T. zygis subsp. zygis extracts contain higher amounts of luteolin-(?)-O-hexoside. However, the major phenolic compound is rosmarinic acid, and high amounts of salvianolic acids K and I were also detected. T. zygis subsp. zygis extracts exhibited significant scavenging activity of ABTS+, hydroxyl (•OH), and nitric oxide (NO) radicals. Regarding the anti-proliferative/cytotoxic effect, tested against Caco-2 and HepG2 cells, the AD extract only slightly reduced cell viability at higher concentrations (IC50 > 600 µg/mL, 48 h exposure), denoting very low toxicity, while the HE extract showed a high anti-proliferative effect, especially at 48 h exposure (IC50 of 85.01 ± 15.10 μg/mL and 82.19 ± 2.46 μg/mL, for Caco-2 and HepG2, respectively). At non-cytotoxic concentrations, both extracts reduced the nitric oxide (NO) release by lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells (at 50 μg/mL, HE and AD extracts inhibited NO release in ~89% and 48%, respectively). In conclusion, the results highlight the non-toxic effect of aqueous extracts, both resembling the consumption of antioxidants in foodstuff or in functional food. Furthermore, the HE extract of T. zygis subsp. zygis is a source of promising molecules with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anticancer activities, highlighting its potential as a source of bioactive ingredients for nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industries

Auslander-Buchweitz approximation theory for triangulated categories

We introduce and develop an analogous of the Auslander-Buchweitz approximation theory (see \cite{AB}) in the context of triangulated categories, by using a version of relative homology in this setting. We also prove several results concerning relative homological algebra in a triangulated category \T, which are based on the behavior of certain subcategories under finiteness of resolutions and vanishing of Hom-spaces. For example: we establish the existence of preenvelopes (and precovers) in certain triangulated subcategories of \T. The results resemble various constructions and results of Auslander and Buchweitz, and are concentrated in exploring the structure of a triangulated category \T equipped with a pair (\X,\omega), where \X is closed under extensions and $\omega$ is a weak-cogenerator in \X, usually under additional conditions. This reduces, among other things, to the existence of distinguished triangles enjoying special properties, and the behavior of (suitably defined) (co)resolutions, projective or injective dimension of objects of \T and the formation of orthogonal subcategories. Finally, some relationships with the Rouquier's dimension in triangulated categories is discussed.Comment: To appear at: Appl. Categor. Struct. (2011); 22 page

Uso de funções discriminantes para comparação de cultivares dos gêneros Cynodon e Digitaria quanto à produção de matéria seca e teores de macronutrientes.

Foi realizado um experirnento no Centro Nacional de Pesquisa de Agrobiologia, Seropédica-RJ, com objetivo de comparar as gramineas Coast cross e Tifton 85, do gênero Cynodon, e as gramíneas Suazi (Digitaria swazilandensis) e Transvala (D. decumbens), do gênero Digitaria, quanto a produção de matéria seca (MS) e teores de macronutrientes da parte aérea e sistema radicular, em 15 amostras de cada cultivar, coletadas no período das chuvas (primavera/verão). A análise discriminante demonstrou que as variáveis Mg, Ca e MS na parte aérea e P e N na raiz foram importantes no processo de discriminação dos cultivares estudados. O cultivar Suázi foi diferente dos dernais avaliados quanto a produção de MS e aos teores de Mg e Ca na parte aérea, além do P e N na raiz. Os cultivares Tifton 85 e Coast cross, apesar de serem do mesmo gênero, diferem quanto a produção de MS e aos teores de Mg e Ca na parte aérea, alem do P e N na raiz. Algumas amostras dos cultivares Tifton 85 e Coast cross apresentaram semelhança com O capim Transvala, com relação a produção de MS e aos teores de Mg e Ca na parte aérea, alem de P e N na raiz. An experiment was carried out at the National Center of Research of Agrobiology, Seropedica--RJ, with objective of evaluating the grasses Coast cross (Cynodon spp.) and Tifton 85 (Cynodon dactylon (L.)), of the Cynodon genus, and the grasses Suazi (Digitaria swazilandensis) and Transvala (Digitaria decumbens), of the Digitaria genus, through the discriminant analysis. The evaluated variables were: dry matter production (DMP) and contents of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), magnesium (Mg) and calcium (Ca) in the shoot and root on 15 samples of each grasses, accomplished in the period of the rains (spring/ summer). The discriminant analysis demonstrated that the variables Mg, Ca and dry matter production (DMP) in shoot, and P and N root are important in the discrimination process of the Coast cross, Tifton 85, Suazi and Transvala cultivars. Suazi cultivar is clearly different from the others cultivars, in relationship to Mg and Ca contents and DMP at the shoot, P and N at the root. O Tifton 85 and Coast cross cultivars, in spite of being of the same genus, differ in relationship to Mg and Ca contents and DMP at the shoot, match and N at the root. Some samples of the Tifton 85 and Coast cross cultivars can be similar to the grass Transvala, in relation to the Mg, Ca and DMP contents in shoot, P and N root.Parceria: UFV; PESAGRO-Rio/ESS; UFRRJ; ESALQ

Effect of crop rotation on specialization and genetic diversity of Macrophomina phaseolina.

Charcoal rot, caused by Macrophomina phaseolina, is one of the most important diseases of soybean. Genetic variability among soybean isolates has been observed but the effect of host specialization on genetic variability has not been reported. In this work, isolates from soybean, corn and sunflower were evaluated based on cross inoculations and number of microsclerotia/g of roots. The highest and lowest significant (P<0.005) production of microsclerotia was obtained in soybean (863 microsclerotia/g of roots) and sunflower (578 microsclerotia/g of roots), respectively, regardless of the origin of the isolate. Additionally, the effect of a 20-year crop rotation on genetic variability based on RAPD was studied. Eighty-nine isolates from five populations were obtained from soil samples under four crop rotation systems and an uncropped soil. Seven clusters were obtained considering a similarity level of 85%. Analysis indicated that M. phaseolina is a highly diverse species and also revealed a strong effect of the rotation system on genetic diversity. AMOVA was conducted for the RAPD data. From the total genetic variability, 21% (P<0.0001) could be explained by the differences between populations while 79% could be explained by differences within populations ( Fst = 0.2110; P<0.0001). The mean coefficient of gene differentiation (GST) estimated among the five populations indicated 27% of differentiation between populations similar to the AMOVA results where Fst= 0.2110. Total gene diversity estimated indicated high levels of variability (HT =0.3484). Results suggest that genetic differentiation of M. phaseolina can be altered by crop rotation