Desarrollo de una aplicación Android como rehabilitador visual personalizado para pacientes con degeneración macular

Trabajo de Fin de Grado en Ingeniería Informática, Facultad de Informática UCM, Departamento de Arquitectura de Computadores y Automática, Curso 2021/2022. Acceso al repositorio: Drive: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1BMZCqhv4lfnnvFVDEH-m7- uvX_YG9nJo/view?usp=sharing GitHub: https://github.com/DaniEscUCM/VisualRehabilitator.gitThe Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) is an illness that creates one or more stains in the vision that may affect significantly in the everyday life of whoever suffers it. It is a disease that afflicts mostly to people of advanced age and, nowadays, their treatments are not modernized to the digital era. In the present day, it is mainly tested and exercised through paper, as there is not enough investment to digitalize, which would make easier the treatment of the patient, therefore, make easier the professional work. The objective of this project is to develop an application that helps both patients with age-related macular degeneration and professionals who work with them. This application allows the professionals to keep tracking of the progress of their patients, in this way they can follow up on the evolution of the macular degeneration and the progress of the exercises that the patient is doing. The application has evaluations, which can be used by professionals to properly monitor the patients. Thanks to them it is established the location of the reference dot of the patient, to help them see correctly, therefore, the app allows a personalised usage. This dot is the place where the patient has to look so that the stain goes to that location, allowing them to see what they want with the peripheric vision. Besides, the app has 17 exercises to help the patient’s visual rehabilitation. These exercises have different categories, from identifying letters and figures to recognizing parts of the face and everyday objects. Said exercises can be recommended by the professional through a personalized analysis using patient’ clinic data. The aid of the project is that the patient, besides being able to exercise with the professional, also may do it on their own tablet from the comfort of their house without losing their follow-up. Giving the opportunity of doing exercises more frequently than the traditional way where the rehabilitation is only made in person.La Degeneración Macular Asociada a la Edad (DMAE) es una enfermedad que produce una o varias manchas en la visión que puede afectar significativamente en el día a día de las personas que lo padecen. Este trastorno ocular es diagnosticado mayoritariamente a las personas de edad avanzada, y actualmente, los tratamientos no se han actualizado a la era digital. Hoy en día se utilizan principalmente pruebas y ejercicios en papel debido a que no hay suficiente inversión en digitalizarlo, lo cual facilitaría el tratamiento a los pacientes, y por consiguiente, el trabajo de los profesionales. El objetivo de este proyecto es desarrollar una aplicación que ayude tanto a las personas que sufren de la degeneración macular asociada a la edad como a los profesionales de la salud que trabajan con este tipo de pacientes. Esta aplicación permite llevar un seguimiento de los pacientes con los que el profesional trabaja, en el que podrán seguir la evolución de la degeneración macular y el progreso de los ejercicios que va realizando el paciente. La aplicación cuenta con evaluaciones, las cuales pueden ser utilizadas por los profesionales para realizar un seguimiento adecuado de los pacientes. Gracias a esto se puede determinar dónde ubicar el punto de referencia del paciente, el cual es diferente según la persona, para ayudarle a ver correctamente, por lo que la app permite un uso personalizado. Dicho punto indica el lugar donde tiene que fijar la vista para que la mancha quede en esa ubicación, permitiendo así ver su objetivo con la vista periférica. A su vez, la aplicación cuenta con 17 ejercicios para ayudar a los pacientes en su rehabilitación visual. Estos ejercicios son de distintas categorías, desde identificar letras y figuras hasta reconocer partes de una cara y objetos de la vida cotidiana. Dichos ejercicios pueden ser recomendados por el profesional haciendo un análisis personalizado con el uso de los datos clínicos del paciente. La intención del proyecto es que el paciente, además de poder realizar los ejercicios junto con el profesional, también pueda practicar con su tableta personal desde el confort de su casa sin perder seguimiento alguno del progreso y de los resultados. Dando la oportunidad de hacer ejercicios más frecuentemente que por la vía tradicional donde la rehabilitación es efectuada únicamente de manera presencial.Depto. de Arquitectura de Computadores y AutomáticaFac. de InformáticaTRUEunpu

Cognitive reserve and AβI-42 in mild cognitive impairment (Argentina-Alzheimer’s disease neuroimaging initiative)

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between cognitive reserve and concentration of Aβ1-42 in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with mild cognitive impairment, those with Alzheimer’s disease, and in control subjects. Methods: Thirty-three participants from the Argentina-Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative database completed a cognitive battery, the Cognitive Reserve Questionnaire (CRQ), and an Argentinian accentuation reading test (TAP-BA) as a measure of premorbid intelligence, and underwent lumbar puncture for CSF biomarker quantification. Results: The CRQ significantly correlated with TAP-BA, education, and Aβ1-42. When considering Aβ1-42 levels, significant differences were found in CRQ scores; higher levels of CSF Aβ1-42 were associated with higher CRQ scores. Conclusion: Reduced Aβ1-42 in CSF is considered as evidence of amyloid deposition in the brain. Previous results suggest that individuals with higher education, higher occupational attainment, and participation in leisure activities (cognitive reserve) have a reduced risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Our results support the notion that enhanced neural activity has a protective role in mild cognitive impairment, as evidenced by higher CSF Aβ1-42 levels in individuals with more cognitive reserve.Fil: Harris, Paula. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Fundación para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia. Instituto de Investigaciones Neurológicas "Raúl Carrea"; ArgentinaFil: Suarez, Marcos Fernandez. Fundación para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia. Instituto de Investigaciones Neurológicas "Raúl Carrea"; ArgentinaFil: Surace, Ezequiel Ignacio. Fundación para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia. Instituto de Investigaciones Neurológicas "Raúl Carrea"; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Chrem Mendez, Patricio Alexis. Fundación para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia. Instituto de Investigaciones Neurológicas "Raúl Carrea"; ArgentinaFil: Martín, María Eugenia. Fundación para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia. Instituto de Investigaciones Neurológicas "Raúl Carrea"; ArgentinaFil: Clarens, María Florencia. Fundación para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia. Instituto de Investigaciones Neurológicas "Raúl Carrea"; ArgentinaFil: Tapajoz Pereira de Sampaio, Fernanda. Fundación para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia. Instituto de Investigaciones Neurológicas "Raúl Carrea"; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Russo, María Julieta. Fundación para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia. Instituto de Investigaciones Neurológicas "Raúl Carrea"; ArgentinaFil: Campos, Jorge. Fundación para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia. Instituto de Investigaciones Neurológicas "Raúl Carrea"; ArgentinaFil: Guinjoan, Salvador Martín. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Fundación para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia. Instituto de Investigaciones Neurológicas "Raúl Carrea"; ArgentinaFil: Sevlever, Gustavo. Fundación para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia. Instituto de Investigaciones Neurológicas "Raúl Carrea"; ArgentinaFil: Allegri, Ricardo Francisco. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Fundación para la Lucha Contra las Enfermedades Neurológicas de la Infancia. Instituto de Investigaciones Neurológicas "Raúl Carrea"; Argentin

The use of waste oils and fats to produce high value products : formulation of printing inks involving used frying oils

Óleo residual de fritura foi aquecido a 315 ºC na presença de acetato de níquel (II), sendo obtido um polímero viscoso e uma mistura de hidrocarbonetos e compostos orgânicos oxigenados. Obtiveram-se polímeros com viscosidades diversas, dependendo da agitação, fluxo de N2 e do tempo de reação. Os materiais poliméricos foram utilizados como veículo na formulação de tintas de impressão tipo offset, juntamente com carbonato de cálcio e diversos pigmentos. Foram testadas as formulações obtidas para a impressão de gravuras pela técnica de xilogravura, as quais apresentam desempenho semelhante ao de tintas comerciais. ______________________________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACTUsed frying oil was heated at 315 ºC in the presence of nickel (II) acetate, leading to a viscous polymer and a mixture of hydrocarbons and oxygenated compounds. Polymers were obtained with different viscosities, depending on the stirring, nitrogen flux and reaction time. The polymeric materials were used as binders in printing ink formulations, together with calcium carbonate and adequate pigments. The prepared formulations were tested to produce gravures by xylograph process, with performance similar to commercial printing inks

Improvement of mead fermentation by honey-must supplementation

Through honey's fermentation, diverse beverages can be obtained, among which is mead, an alcoholic drink with 8 to 18% of ethanol (v/v). Since honey is a matrix with a low nutrient concentration and other unfavourable growth conditions, several problems are usually encountered, namely delayed or arrested fermentations, unsatisfactory quality parameters and lack of uniformity of the final product, as well as unpleasant sensory properties. In this context, the aim of this work was to optimize mead production through honey-must supplementation with (a) salts, (b) vitamins or (c) salts+vitamins. The effects of the honey-must formulation on the fermentation kinetics, growth profile and physicochemical characteristics of final meads were evaluated. The results showed minor differences in the fermentation profile and time between fermentations with the different formulations. The growth profile was influenced more by the yeast strain than by the supplements added to the honey-must. In general, the honey-must composition did not influence meads' final characteristics, except regarding the SO 2 concentration of the meads produced using the strain QA23. In summary, the addition of salts and/or vitamins to honey-must had no positive effects on the fermentation, growth profile or characteristics of the final products.The research presented in this paper was partially funded by the Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) and by PTDC projects (contracts PTDC/AGR-ALI/68284/2006). A. P. Pereira is a recipient of a PhD grant from the FCT (SFRH/BD/45820/2008).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Asymptotic Approach to the Generalized Brinkman’s Equation with Pressure-Dependent Viscosity and Drag Coefficient

In this paper we investigate the fluid flow through a thin (or long) channel filled with a fluid saturated porous medium. We are motivated by some important applications of the porous medium flow in which the viscosity of fluids can change significantly with pressure. In view of that, we consider the generalized Brinkman’s equation which takes into account the exponential dependence of the viscosity and the drag coefficient on the pressure. We propose an approach using the concept of the transformed pressure combined with the asymptotic analysis with respect to the thickness of the channel. As a result, we derive the asymptotic solution in the explicit form and compare it with the solution of the standard Brinkman’s model with constant viscosity. To our knowledge, such analysis cannot be found in the existing literature and, thus, we believe that the provided result could improve the known engineering practice

A CASE STUDY OF THE KICKING FOOT AND STANCE IN ROUNDHOUSE KICK: CONTROL AND COMBAT SITUATIONS

Once this work is part of a long term study, the aim was to show the preliminary results of the comparison of the kicking foot and stance in the roundhouse kick according to the onset condition (control vs. combat situation). One black belt athlete participated on this study. A motion capture system of 18 cameras (Optitrack© 360Hz) was used for the kinematic data acquisition. In order to obtain the maximum height and speed, execution and movement time of the kicking foot we used one marker. In order to represent the stance positions we used five markers. The preliminary analyses suggest that there are differences between control and combat situations: 1.the maximum height was smaller in combat situation since the athlete prefers to kick in the trunk of the opponent and 2.the stance positions highlight the influence of the movements of the opponent in combat

NOVOS ARRANJOS FAMILIARES NA CONTEMPORANEIDADE FRENTE AO TEXTO RELIGIOSO: uma análise sobre o discurso em “defesa” da família

Vivemos em uma época cuja definição de família diverge entre muitos autores. Um ponto de convergência entre eles, entretanto, é que a formação dos novos arranjos familiares se ambienta em um momento em que a busca pela felicidade e individualização ganha espaço. Além disso, é indubitável que foram razões socioeconômicas que resultaram na necessidade destes novos arranjos e que tais mudanças vão de encontro aos valores tradicionais, principalmente aqueles de cunho religioso. Assim, o presente artigo propõe uma análise da alocução proferida por um pastor evangélico no Congresso Nacional, a fim de investigar as contradições do discurso religioso trazido para dentro de um ambiente político onde as premissas consideradas deveriam ser laicas.Palavras-chave: Arranjos familiares. Religião. Papéis sociais.

Cervical cancer cell lines expressing NKG2D-ligands are able to down-modulate the NKG2D receptor on NKL cells with functional implications

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cervical cancer represents the third most commonly diagnosed cancer and the fourth leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women worldwide. Natural killer (NK) cells play an important role in the defense against viruses, intracellular bacteria and tumors. NKG2D, an activating receptor on NK cells, recognizes MHC class I chain-related molecules, such as MICA/B and members of the ULBP/RAET1 family. Tumor-derived soluble NKG2D-ligands have been shown to down-modulate the expression of NKG2D on NK cells. In addition to the down-modulation induced by soluble NKG2D-ligands, it has recently been described that persistent cell-cell contact can also down-modulate NKG2D expression. The goal of this study was to determine whether the NKG2D receptor is down-modulated by cell-cell contact with cervical cancer cells and whether this down-modulation might be associated with changes in NK cell activity.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We demonstrate that NKG2D expressed on NKL cells is down-modulated by direct cell contact with cervical cancer cell lines HeLa, SiHa, and C33A, but not with non-tumorigenic keratinocytes (HaCaT). Moreover, this down-modulation had functional implications. We found expression of NKG2D-ligands in all cervical cancer cell lines, but the patterns of ligand distribution were different in each cell line. Cervical cancer cell lines co-cultured with NKL cells or fresh NK cells induced a marked diminution of NKG2D expression on NKL cells. Additionally, the cytotoxic activity of NKL cells against K562 targets was compromised after co-culture with HeLa and SiHa cells, while co-culture with C33A increased the cytotoxic activity of the NKL cells.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our results suggest that differential expression of NKG2D-ligands in cervical cancer cell lines might be associated with the down-modulation of NKG2D, as well as with changes in the cytotoxic activity of NKL cells after cell-cell contact with the tumor cells.</p

Impacto econômico da execução do projeto estrutural em uma residência localizada no bairro Tarumã em Manaus/Amazonas: Economic impact of the implementation of the structural project in a residence located in the Tarumã neighborhood in Manaus/Amazonas

O projeto estrutural na execução de obras influencia diretamente a eficácia construtiva final, tanto em obras de baixa quanto de alta complexidade. Através de dimensionamentos estruturais é possível obter dados específicos relevantes ao levantamento de materiais, decisões de métodos construtivos, técnicas de planejamento e otimização de cronograma, além de corroborar no efetivo orçamento de uma obra, controle de riscos e patologias. Nesse contexto, o trabalho tem como objetivo estudar o impacto econômico estrutural em uma obra residencial no localizada no bairro Tarumã, em Manaus/Amazonas. Foi verificado através das planilhas de custos e análises de dados, que os serviços da estrutura possuem significante diferença entre o custo estimado e executado. Contudo, as etapas finalizadas demonstraram que a construção da residência ocorreu de maneira satisfatória

Pain and depression comorbidity causes asymmetric plasticity in the locus coeruleus neurons

There is strong comorbidity between chronic pain and depression, although the neural circuits and mechanisms underlying this association remain unclear. By combining immunohistochemistry, tracing studies and western blotting, with the use of different DREADDS (designer receptor exclusively activated by designer drugs) and behavioural approaches in a rat model of neuropathic pain (chronic constriction injury), we explore how this comorbidity arises. To this end, we evaluated the time-dependent plasticity of noradrenergic locus coeruleus neurons relative to the site of injury: ipsilateral (LCipsi) or contralateral (LCcontra) locus coeruleus at three different time points: short (2 days), mid (7 days) and long term (30-35 days from nerve injury). Nerve injury led to sensorial hypersensitivity from the onset of injury, whereas depressive-like behaviour was only evident following long-term pain. Global chemogenetic blockade of the LCipsi system alone increased short-term pain sensitivity while the blockade of the LCipsi or LCcontra relieved pain-induced depression. The asymmetric contribution of locus coeruleus modules was also evident as neuropathy develops. Hence, chemogenetic blockade of the LCipsi -> spinal cord projection, increased pain-related behaviours in the short term. However, this lateralized circuit is not universal as the bilateral chemogenetic inactivation of the locus coeruleus-rostral anterior cingulate cortex pathway or the intra-rostral anterior cingulate cortex antagonism of alpha1- and alpha2-adrenoreceptors reversed long-term pain-induced depression. Furthermore, chemogenetic locus coeruleus to spinal cord activation, mainly through LCipsi, reduced sensorial hypersensitivity irrespective of the time post-injury. Our results indicate that asymmetric activation of specific locus coeruleus modules promotes early restorative analgesia, as well as late depressive-like behaviour in chronic pain and depression comorbidity.Peer reviewe