Kilns of Conimbriga

The report revises the current knowledge about the instalation of industrial kilns inside the town, in the Late Roman period.info:eu-repo/semantics/draf

Block Pattern adaptation for Greek female adolescents with Scoliosis of the Spine: An investigation into the feasibility of incorporating body shape asymmetry into Sizing Systems to improve garment fit

Scoliosis of the spine is defined as a side-to-side deviation from the normal frontal axis of the body resulting in body asymmetry, and as a complex, three-dimensional and multifaceted deformity, not only affects a female adolescent’s appearance - fit, usability and appearance of clothing - but can also compromise her health and ability to function. Scoliosis affects at least 2.9% of the population in Greece, appearing particularly among children aged 8-14 years, and more frequently in girls (9 girls for 1 boy). This study traces previous initiatives and current provision for clothing people with divergent body figures, exploring issues at the intersection of human anatomy and fashion, while it takes place in Greece, starting with measuring procedures specifically adapted for body asymmetry that comply with the appropriate code of ethics. External body measurements provide non-invasive evaluation of changes in external asymmetry due to scoliosis, while analysis of the measurements related to the trunk can document the asymmetry arising from the different types and degrees of spinal curvature, providing a 3D classification of scoliotic deformities. Both right and left body halves of 75 females aged 16-22 years of age, diagnosed with Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS), are measured in order to register their different body shapes and to classify them in different scoliotic groups, according to the magnitude and type of their scoliosis. The asymmetric basic pattern blocks derived from the median body measurements for each scoliotic group will be more tolerant of bodies with scoliosis, providing a better garment fit than conventional symmetrical patterns. These new ‘blocks’ will have the potential to be used in mass production, after the development of sizing systems based on body asymmetry, whereby an ‘aesthetic’ and an ‘ethical’ dimension in design could be then incorporated. Applying auto-ethnography, as well as using participant observation and interviewing methods, this research will help gain a deeper understanding of the culture and the needs of the specific target group. Future challenges relate to design perspectives of fashionable clothing for females with non-standard body dimensions, with particular emphasis on scoliosis, having potential for wider application in mass customised apparel for scoliosis

SPELLING TEST FOR LEARNERS WITH DYSLEXIA LEARNING GERMAN AS A SECOND FOREIGN LANGUAGE

Spelling is a basic skill as well as means of acquiring knowledge over the school years. Moreover, it is a complex cognitive process, which can be challenging for learners with specific learning difficulties (dyslexia) in their mother language as well as when learning a foreign language. A challenge, that foreign language teachers face in everyday practice, is being able to respond to the needs of all learners within the mainstream classroom in primary education, including learners with dyslexia. Foreign language teachers need to become equipped with further knowledge and skills, so that they are able to identify these difficulties and teach learners with dyslexia more effectively in an inclusive way (Tsakalidou, Koufokotsiou, & Gaganis, in press; Tsakalidou, 2021, 2020, in press). In the present study we examined the spelling difficulties of learners with dyslexia, when learning German as a second foreign language. The aim of the study was twofold: (a) the comparative analysis of the spelling difficulties across two populations (95 learners between 10 and 11 years, twenty of who had dyslexia) and (b) the evaluation of the effectiveness of spelling intervention in respect to learners with dyslexia. In this article we will describe the Spelling Test constructed and adjusted for the doctoral research, which was undertaken in order to record the spelling difficulties that the learners with dyslexia face, when learning German as a second foreign language in primary education. This test was based on a standardized Spelling Test in the Greek language (Mouzaki, Protopapas, Sideridis, & Simos, 2010). As far as the Spelling Test, we constructed is concerned, satisfactory construct validity and internal reliability were demonstrated, as the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was .944 and revealed a high degree of internal consistency of the instrument. Article visualizations

Redefining the Role of Architecture during the Pandemic Crisis

[ES] This paper focuses on the two-way relationship between a pandemic and architecture. Architecture serves human needs, adapts to them and evolves because of them. This study aims to investigate the issues and challenges that arose in modern housing during the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. A historical review of the pandemics which have plagued humanity is briefly described. Pandemics, as global emergencies, affect human life, the places where the individual is active, and, consequently, the architectural structures. For this reason, the main tool of the study was a questionnaire that was developed and distributed to young people aged between 18 to 35, living in European cities with a population of more than one million. In this way, an initial study was conducted to find out about ways of living during the pandemic and to question how modern architecture will be affected by the current pandemic. In a big part, World War II has formed the current complex housing structures in the modern world. Today, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the current transitional era has brought changes to peoples' lifestyles. The paper continues with the presentation and analysis of the questionnaire’s answers and records the houses’ current issues due to this crisis. The study concludes with certain themes of potential design and environmental strategies for sustainable housing, to improve the individuals' quality of life.Vavouraki, A.; Tsakalidou, V. (2023). Redefining the Role of Architecture during the Pandemic Crisis. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. 692-704. https://doi.org/10.4995/VIBRArch2022.2022.1518669270

Σχεδιασμός, σύνθεση και αποτίμηση της μελατονινεργικής δράσης νέων C2-, C3α- και C3β- υποκατεστημένων ινδολικών παραγώγων

Η παρούσα διπλωματική εργασία αφορά στο σχεδιασμό και τη σύνθεση πέντε νέων σειρών παραγώγων του ινδολίου, τα οποία αξιολογήθηκαν ως προς τη μελατονινεργική τους δράση. Η ορμόνη μελατονίνη, χαρακτηριζόμενη ευρέως ως «η ορμόνη του ύπνου» είναι υπεύθυνη για τη ρύθμιση των κιρκαδιανών ρυθμών στον οργανισμό και, κατ’επέκταση, τη φυσιολογική του λειτουργία. Στο εισαγωγικό πρώτο μέρος της παρούσης εργασίας, αναφέρονται εν συντομία γενικές πληροφορίες σχετικά με το ιστορικό, τη βιοσύνθεση και το μεταβολισμό της ορμόνης, καθώς και σημαντικές πληροφορίες για τους μελατονινεργικούς υποδοχείς της και τα σημαντικότερα μοριακά μοντέλα πρόσδεσης που έχουν περιγραφεί. Ακολουθεί μία σύντομη αναφορά επί των θεραπευτικών ιδιοτήτων της μελατονίνης, τονίζοντας την ανάγκη περαιτέρω μελέτης, λόγω των διαφορετικών ιδιοτήτων της σε ποικίλες ασθένειες και παθήσεις. Στη συνέχεια, στο δεύτερο μέρος της εργασίας, παρουσιάζονται στοιχεία από τις πολυετείς μελέτες χαρτογράφησης των μελατονινεργικών υποδοχέων καταλήγοντας στο σχεδιασμό των πέντε νέων σειρών αναλόγων της μελατονίνης. Η ρετροσυνθετική ανάλυση καθώς και η πειραματική πορεία που ακολουθήθηκε για τη σύνθεση των νέων ινδολο-C2, C3α, C3β- υποκατεστημένων παραγώγων της μελατονίνης περιγράφονται αναλυτικά στο τρίτο και τέταρτο μέρος της εργασίας. Τέλος, ακολουθεί η παρουσίαση των αποτελεσμάτων που ελήφθησαν από το φαρμακολογικό έλεγχο επί των νέων παραγώγων, σε κύτταρα τύπου CHO (Chinese Hamster Ovarian cells) που εκφράζουν τους υποδοχείς hMT1 και hMT2. Γενικώς, τα νέα ανάλογα που παρασκευάσθηκαν στα πλαίσια της παρούσης εργασίας διαθέτουν ικανοποιητική δράση και ως προς τους δύο υποδοχείς (hMT1 και hMT2), με ορισμένα εξ’αυτών να παρουσιάζουν αξιοσημίωτη εκλεκτικότητα. Με βάση την ανάλυση και τη συζήτηση των αποτελεσμάτων αυτών, ως προς την σύγκρισή τους με την εκλεκτικότητα και το βαθμό σύνδεσης της ίδιας της φυσικής ορμόνης, προτείνεται ο σχεδιασμός νέων μελατονινεργικών παραγώγων, με πιθανόν πιο βελτιωμένη μελατονινεργική δράση.The present dissertation refers to the design and synthesis of five series of new indolic derivatives, which were tested for their melatoninergic activity. The hormone melatonin, widely known as the “sleeping hormone”, regulates the circadian rhythms of many organisms, bacteria and mammals, including humans. In the first part of this work, information about the history, biosynthesis and metabolism is shortly cited, as well as literature findings about the melatonin receptors and the relevant molecular models used to describe them. In the second chapter, information about the extensive research on melatonin receptor mapping studies are presented, subsequently resulting in the design of the five new series of melatonin analogs. The retrosynthetic route and experimental course followed for the synthesis of the new indolic- C2, C3α, C3β- compounds, is stated in the third and fourth chapter of this dissertation. In the last chapter the pharmacological results on CHO (Chinese Hamster Ovarian cells) hMT1, hMT2 cells, are evaluated and compared to the activity of the melatonin hormone itself. In general, all of the new indolic compounds, prepared in the context of this work, show satisfactory activity with respect to both receptor subtypes (hMT1 and hMT2) and a number of them show a noteworthy selectivity. Based on the analysis of the above mentioned pharmacological results, the design of a new series of potential melatoninergics is proposed

Comparative genomic analysis between Lactobacillus delbreuckii subsp. lactis and Lactobacillus delbreuckii subsp. bulgaricus of dairy origin

Lactobacillus delbreuckii subsp. lactis and Lactobacillus delbreuckii subsp. bulgaricus are lactic acid bacteria commonly exploited by the dairy industry as starter cultures, mainly for the production of cheese and yogurt. In this work, we present the comparative genomic analysis between the recently sequenced genomes of L. lactis ACA-DC 178 and L. bulgaricus ACA DC 87, isolated from Kasseri cheese and yogurt, respectively. The genome of L. lactis ACA-DC 178 is larger than that of L. bulgaricus ACA-DC 87, containing 2,048 and 1,928 protein coding genes, respectively. Full chromosome alignments revealed strain specific differences, although a high degree of synteny between the two strains was also observed. The core genome of the two stains contained about 1,300 genes while the unique genes of the two strains were als oidentified. The two genomes contained several genomic islands, indicating that a number of genes have been acquired through horizontal gene transfer. We also predicted one confirmed CRISPR system in each genome, three potential antimicrobial peptides in total and also prophage sequences integrated into the genomes of the two strains. Overall,our analysis provides useful insights into the technological potential of the ACA-DC 178 and ACA-DC 87 strains