305 research outputs found
Palavras doutra tribo: sobre traduções de literatura galega
This paper will not deal with the generic question of the necessity, or even possibility, of translating from Galician into Portuguese. We state here the point of view of the editorial actors - publisher and translator - and take it as an objective fact. We will not deal with the orthographical norm of Galician, either. We will only point that the current Galician orthography is crucial in deciding whether to publish or not a Portuguese version of a Galician text. In the same way, the question of Galician and Portuguese being one or two languages will not be addressed here. For the author of this paper they are variants of one unique language. Cutting a long story short, Galician and Portuguese have in common all the structures that distinguish them from other romance languages. In this study, «Galician» and «Portuguese» refer to two sharply different norms
Etiologic Evaluation and Investigation of Global Development Delay and Intellectual Disability
Developmental Delay (DD) and Intellectual Disability (ID), depending
on the affected individual being under or above five years-old, result
from environmental or genetic causes during the developmental period,
that manifest as a subnormal functioning of intellectual abilities. In
western countries there is a prevalence of about 3%, with a great impact
in the individuals, their families, as well as in the society. Etiologic
diagnosis remains unknown in about 65-80% of the cases. It is a clinically
heterogeneous condition as it can be sporadic or familiar, encompassing
an autosomal dominant, recessive or X-linked transmission.
Etiologic investigation emphasizes the importance of the clinical and
family history as well as the physical examination, with special care for
dysmorphologic evaluation.
The authors reviewed DD/ ID focusing not only on clinical diagnosis but
mostly on genetic causes and etiologic investigation. The protocol presented
is followed by the Medical Genetics Department of Coimbra’s
Paediatrics Hospital, in accordance to the international consensus
Uso de Pediococcus parvulus para a degradação e destoxificação biológica de ocratoxina A, respetivo método e kit
National Patent (INPI)A presente invenção refere-se ao uso de um microrganismo para a degradação e destoxificação biológica de micotoxinas, mais especificamente para a degradação da ocratoxina A em ocratoxina a. Concretamente, relaciona-se com o uso de Pediococcus parvulus para a destoxificação de alimentos e rações. Outro aspeto da presente invenção relaciona-se com o método de destoxificação e a sua aplicação a um kit. A invenção insere-se na área farmacêutica, alimentar e veterinária.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Ozone against mycotoxins and pesticide residues in food: Current applications and perspectives
Food safety may be compromised by the presence of chemical contaminants, such as mycotoxins and pesticide residues. Mycotoxins are natural contaminants produced by certain species of filamentous fungi and can cause toxic effects on human health. Pesticide residues are any specified substance in food resulting from the use of a pesticide with toxicological significance. To protect consumers from these toxic substances, different food regulatory agencies have set maximum levels permitted in different raw materials and processed foods. However, recent research has demonstrated a high incidence of both mycotoxins and pesticide residues (not simultaneously) in foods marketed all around the world, sometimes with levels above the regulated limits. One way to reduce such contaminants is to use ozone (O3) in food processing. Due to its high potential as an oxidant, O3 or the radicals generated in the ozonation process react with mycotoxins and pesticide residues that lose their toxicity due to molecular degradation. In this review paper the recent research into using O3 for gaseous ozonation and ozonized water to decontaminate food by eliminating and/or reducing mycotoxins and pesticide residues are discussed. Also the changes promoted in food quality attributes, the possible formation of degradation products of toxic relevance, as well as some perspectives for the future use of this technology in food processing are explored.National Counsel of Technological and Scientific Development, BrazilCoordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior, BrazilRio de Janeiro State Foundation to Support ResearchAuthors are grateful for the financial support provided by CNPq (National Counsel of Technological and Scientific Development, Brazil), CAPES (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior, Brazil) and FAPERJ (Rio de Janeiro State Foundation to Support Research)
Influence of the infill geometry of 3D-printed tablets on drug dissolution
Communication abstract: Proceedings of the 5th International Congress of CiiEM - Reducing inequalities in Health and Society, held at Egas Moniz’ University Campus in Monte de Caparica, Almada, from June 16th to 18th, 2021.This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.Patient-centric therapy is especially important in pediatrics and may be attained by three-dimensional printing. Filaments containing 30% w/w of theophylline were produced by hot-melt extrusion and printed using fused deposition modelling to produce tablets. Here, preliminary results evaluating the effect of infill geometry (cross, star, grid) on drug content and release are reported.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
New synthetic compounds as inhibitors of mycotoxin synthesis
Ochratoxin A (OTA) is a mycotoxin produced by some Aspergillus and Penicillium
species which is often detected in beer, cereals, coffee, feeds, figs, sultanas and
wine. Some fungicides have been found to be effective in preventing fungal
growth, but, in other cases, an increase in the synthesis of mycotoxins was
reported. Also, the pressure to use less harmful compounds to the environment
stimulates the exploration of new and more benign compounds.
Synthetic compounds were tested on the growth and OTA production of one strain
of A. alliaceus, A. ochraceus, A. carbonarius and A. niger. These new synthetic
compounds have a linear structure incorporating urea and/or a phenolic unit.
Fungi were grown in yeast extract sucrose (YES) medium supplemented with 50
μM to 200 μM of each one of 20 test compounds in triplicate, for 6 days. Growth
was recorded by measuring the diameter of colonies every 24 hours, and OTA was
quantified after 5 days of growth using HPLC and fluorescence detection.
Growth of the A. ochraceus and the A. carbonarius strains were not inhibited by
most of these compounds. However, some led to a decrease in OTA detection.
Compounds without the phenolic unit were found to be less effective, while those
compounds with urea and phenolic units were the most effective. Growth of the A.
alliaceus and of the A. niger strains were inhibited by compound-X by 22 and 27%
respectively.
This approach will lead to the selection of functional groups able to inhibit the
synthesis of OTA which could be incorporated into more powerful antifungal
compounds.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) - SFRH/BD/11228/2002, SFRH/BD/3185/2000, SFRH/BPD/12044/2003
Analysing sulphate and chloride in mineral drinking water by flow injection analysis with a single acoustic wave sensor
Sulphate is a very hydrophilic anion, and, therefore, difficult to be selectively determined in aqueous solution with a coated sensor. Zinc(II) 2,3,9,10,16,17,23,24-Octatosylaminophthalocyanine was used for the first time as a sensitive coating. Selectivity to sulphate regarding chloride was not enough to ignore its contribution in mineral waters, and, therefore, an analytical protocol was carefully designed to allow the determination of both anions with this sensor. Results displayed on the label of eight commercial bottles of mineral waters are within the confidence interval of the values obtained with the FIA-sensor system, both for chloride and sulphate. However, results for chloride obtained by titrimetry are, in half of the cases, statistically different from the ones obtained by the sensor, and in 7 out of 8 of them more precise. There is an evidence of a systematic error in the chloride titrimetric analysis, consistent with a small overtaking of the equivalence point. Precision of the results obtained by the titrimetric analysis of sulphate were in 6 out of 8 of the analysis less precise than with the sensor, probably due to losses of the barium sulphate precipitate, which is consistent with the occurrence of lower values.publishe
Portuguese isolates of Aspergillus section Flavi unraveled by the calmodulin gene
Aspergillus is a large genus, with a complex and ever evolving taxonomy. Section Flavi is one of the most significant sections in the genus. Taxonomy and species identification is subject of great interest for scientists aiming to clarify the species concept and limits within the section. Furthermore, this section comprises both toxigenic and non-toxigenic species/strains, with great interest to biotechnology and food industry. Various genes, namely the rRNA (ITS region), calmodulin and β-tubulin genes, have been widely reported as good markers for Aspergillus species identification, because they are rapid and cost-effective. In the present study, we evaluated the discriminatory power of the ITS region and the calmodulin gene to distinguish closely related taxa within Aspergillus section Flavi. For this purpose, 26 isolates of Aspergillus section Flavi obtained from Portuguese almonds were characterized at various levels: i) phenotypic, regarding various aspects of morphology and physiology; ii) spectral, using MALDI-TOF ICMS to obtain protein fingerprinting; and iii) genotypic, by sequence analysis of a 730 bp segment of the calmodulin gene and a 908 bp segment of the ITS region. For the various methods, dendrograms were created and results were compared. Both genotypic and spectral analyses divided the isolates in 3 groups corresponding to closely related taxa of A. flavus, A. parasiticus and A. tamarii. Except for the ITS region, all sets of analysis positioned 5 of the 26 isolates in two unidentified clades close to A. parasiticus, and divided the A. flavus group in two distinct clades. The phylogenetic analysis of the calmodulin sequences resulted in very similar dendrograms when using various methods of analysis (Neighbor-Joining, Maximum Likelihood, Bayesian Inference), and altering the analytical parameters did not result in significant changes. Furthermore, the genetic dendrograms were strongly supported by the phenotypic and spectral analyses. These results confirm the calmodulin gene as a robust and reliable genomic marker for this group of fungi. The unsolved isolate identifications are currently under further analysis
NO/H2S "crosstalk" Reactions. The Role of Thionitrites (SNO-) and Perthionitrites (SSNO-)
The redox chemistry of H2S with NO and other oxidants containing the NO group is discussed on a mechanistic basis because of the expanding interest in their biological relevance, with an eye open to the chemical differences of H2S and thiols RSH. We focus on the properties of two "crosstalk" intermediates, SNO- (thionitrite) and SSNO- (perthionitrite, nitrosodisulfide) based in the largely controversial status on their identity and chemistry in aqueous/nonaqueous media, en route to the final products N2O, NO2 -, NH2OH/NH3, and S8. Thionitrous acid, generated either in the direct reaction of NO + H2S or through the transnitrosation of RSNO's (nitrosothiols) with H2S at pH 7.4, is best described as a mixture of rapidly interconverting isomers, {(H)SNO}. It is reactive in different competitive modes, with a half-life of a few seconds at pH 7.4 for homolytic cleavage of the N-S bond, and could be deprotonated at pH values of up to ca. 10, giving SNO-, a less reactive species than {(H)SNO}. The latter mixture can also react with HS-, giving HNO and HS2 - (hydrogen disulfide), a S0(sulfane)-transfer reagent toward {(H)SNO}, leading to SSNO-, a moderately stable species that slowly decomposes in aqueous sulfide-containing solutions in the minute-hour time scale, depending on [O2]. The previous characterization of HSNO/SNO- and SSNO- is critically discussed based on the available chemical and spectroscopic evidence (mass spectrometry, UV-vis, 15N NMR, Fourier transform infrared), together with computational studies including quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics molecular dynamics simulations that provide a structural and UV-vis description of the solvatochromic properties of cis-SSNO- acting as an electron donor in water, alcohols, and aprotic acceptor solvents. In this way, SSNO- is confirmed as the elusive "yellow intermediate" (I412) emerging in the aqueous crosstalk reactions, in contrast with its assignment to polysulfides, HSn -. The analysis extends to the coordination abilities of {(H)SNO}, SNO-, and SSNO- into heme and nonheme iron centers, providing a basis for best unraveling their putative specific signaling roles.Fil: Marcolongo, Juan Pablo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía; ArgentinaFil: Venâncio, Mateus F.. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; BrasilFil: Rocha, Willian R.. Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; BrasilFil: Doctorovich, Fabio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía; ArgentinaFil: Olabe Iparraguirre, Jose Antonio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medioambiente y Energía; Argentin
The condensation of salicylaldehydes and malononitrile revisited : synthesis of new dimeric chromene derivatives
The reaction of salicylic aldehydes with malononitrile was reinvestigated, and the reaction pathway was followed by 1H NMR spectroscopy. A delicate control of the experimental conditions allowed the synthesis of 2-imino-2H-chromene-3-carbonitriles 1, (2-amino-3-cyano-4H-chromen-4-yl)malononitriles 2, 4-amino-5-imino-2,7-dimethoxy-5H-chromeno[3,4-c]pyridine-1-carbonitrile 12, and (4,5-diamino-1-cyano-1,10b-dihydro-2H-chromeno[3,4-c]pyridin-2-ylidene)malononitrile 13. Two novel 2-iminochromene dimers, with structures 8 and 9, were isolated and fully characterized. The activity of compound 8a on Aspergillus spp. growth and on ochratoxin A production was evaluated. The results of the bioassays indicate that compound 8a, applied at concentrations of 2 mM, totally inhibited the growth of the fungi tested. Ochratoxin A production by Aspergillus alliaceus was reduced by about 93% with a 200 μM solution of this compound. A moderate inhibitory effect was observed for the analogous structure 8b, and no inhibition was registered for compounds 2 and 1, used as synthetic precursors of the dimeric species 8
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