Digital twin concept applied to simulation and performance reporting for printed circuit board manufacturing

This industrial revolution, also known as Industry 4.0, is now taking place due to technol- ogy requirements. With an ever growing world population, new demands rise, henceforth better, more optimized, more customized, and faster product manufacturing must be achieved. A way to do this is by implementing Smart Manufacturing methods in indus- trial environments, which can be accomplished by using a Digital Twin solution. This dissertation focuses on expanding an already existing Digital Twin, developed by Visteon Corporation, which purpose is to modulate the productive capacity of Visteon’s PCB (Print Circuit Board) production lines. This extension consists of achieving one of the key advantages of using a Digital Twin solution, making predictions regarding a system’s real performance, that in this case, are the production lines. The extension further allows better planning for future changes.A atual revolução industrial, também conhecida como Indústria 4.0, está a ocorrer de- vido a necessidades tecnológicas. Com um aumento constante da população mundial, surgem novas exigências, por isso é necessário alcançar uma melhor, mais otimizada, mais customizada e mais rápida manufatura de produtos. Uma maneira de o fazer é implementando métodos de Smart Manufacturing em ambientes industriais, que pode ser alcançado através de uma solução de Digital Twin. O foco desta dissertação é expandir um Digital Twin já existente, que foi desenvolvido pela Visteon Corporation, cujo objetivo é modular a capacidade produtiva das linhas de produção de PCB (Print Circuit Board) da Visteon. Esta extensão tem como objetivo atingir uma das vantagens mais significativas do uso de uma solução de Digital Twin, fazer previsões da performance real de um sistema, que neste caso, são as linhas de produção. A extensão permite também fazer planeamentos mais rigorosos para o futuro

Your PEL - promote and empower for literacy in health in young people: from investigation to action

Poster apresentado no 14th IPLeiria’sInternational Health Congress, em maio de 2018 em Leiria.Background The “Your PEL - Promote and empower for literacy in health in young people” project focus on a health approach, supported by the new technologies, including three different areas: feeding, harmful consumption and sexuality. It is based on scientific evidences of health pro-motion, on which the need to refocus the action on the results implies the development of appropriate interventions [1, 2]. It is a multi-regional project outlined in the national strategy of smart specialization ,in a partnership between IPSantarém–ESSS and ESGT, IPLeiria–ESSLeIPViseu–ESSV, the Agrupamento de Escolas da Chamusca, the Agrupamento de Escolas da Golegã and ACES Lezíria–UCC Chamusca/Golegã. The students’ participation reveals itself in the project construction, framed in the curricular program and valued by the knowledge mobilization and by the skill gaining on real context. Objective Develop a tool for impact evaluation of health education programs for school in the feeding, harmful consumption and sexuality areas, at ages between 12 to 15 years old and monitoring the health determinants and the effectiveness of the developed strategies. Methods A research-action study divided in three phases: I) construction of the data collection tool and web communication platform; II) evaluation of the intervention needs of the students, development and implementation of the intervention program using the web platform; and III) evaluation of the impact of the program developed. The valuation of the knowledge generated by the project is based on a plan of actions different from the diffusion and dissemination of results, involving the institutions plots and adapted to the very essence. Results The project strategic impact is situated at two levels. One, evaluated after execution, corresponding to the expected results: tool development for impact measurement of the program and intervention pro-gram creation, supported by the web platform. The other, longer in time, that will be evaluated by health gains of the populations in the future. Conclusions The project’s relevance and originality support themselves on scientific evidence, reviling the monetarization as an essential component of the promotional health program [3, 4], valorising the innovation and sustentation of the action on the results, including more suitable interventions for the young population on a school environment. The scientific and technological knowledge impact generated and disseminated by the project will contribute for regional and national valorisation, on a logic translation of knowledge. References 1. Amendoeira J, Carreira T, Cruz O, Dias H, Santiago MC. Programas de educação sexual em meio escolar: Revisão sistemática da literatura”, Revista da UIIPS. 2013;1(4):198-211. 2. André C, Amendoeira J. Intervention programs for the prevention ofsmoking in children and adolescents: A systematic literature review. Atención Primaria. 2013;45(Especial C):23. 3. Matos M, Simões C, Camacho I, Reis M. A Saúde dos Adolescentes Portugueses em tempos de recessão. HBSC; 2015. Acedidoem:www.aventurasocial.com 4. Ministério da Saúde. Plano Nacional de Saúde - Orientações estratégicas para 2012-2016. Lisboa, Portugal: DGS; 2012.KeywordsHealth promotion, Empowerment, Health literacy, Young population.N/

Prognostic factors for recovery in Portuguese patients with Bell’s palsy

The main aim of this study was to identify the prognostic factors that contribute to complete recovery at 6 weeks and 6 months in patients with Bell’s palsy. Material and Methods: This is a prospective, longitudinal, and descriptive study that included 123 patients diagnosed with facial nerve palsy (FNP) at a hospital in Guimarães, Portugal. However, only 73 patients with Bell’s palsy (BP) were included in the assessment of recovery at 6 weeks and 6 months. We analyzed the demographic and clinical characteristics of the patients, including sex, age, paralyzed side, occupation, previous and associated symptoms, seasonal occurrence, familial facial palsy, patient perception, intervention options, and baseline grade according to the House-Brackmann facial grading system (HB-FGS). Of the 123 cases with FNP, 79 (64.2%) patients had BP. Age, sex, and baseline HB-FGS grades were significant predictors of complete recovery at 6 weeks. Patients with HB-FGS grade III or lower (6 weeks baseline) had significant recovery of function at 6 months. Baseline severity of BP, elderly patients, and male sex were early predictors of poor prognosis. Patients with mild and moderate dysfunction according to the HB-FGS achieved significant normal facial function at 6 months. Further prospective studies with longer observation periods and larger samples are needed to verify the results.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Use of high- and low-intensity lasers in the treatment of dentin hypersensitivity : a literature review

Dentin hypersensitivity (DH) is defined as an exaggerated sensitivity of vital dentin exposed to thermal, chemical and tactile stimuli. This study aimed to evaluate, through a literature review, the applicability of high- and low-intensity lasers in the

Evaluation of dental enamel microproperties after bleaching with 35% hydrogen peroxide and different light sources : an in vitro study

To evaluate the tooth enamel surface morphology after the action of 35% hydrogen peroxide with and without LED activation. Material and Methods: 70 bovine incisors with an enamel surface of 4x4x3 mm were used, prepared for reading superfic

Further evidence of possible therapeutic uses of Sambucus nigra L. extracts by the assessment of the In Vitro and In Vivo anti-inflammatory properties of Its PLGA and PCL-Based Nanoformulations

Sambucus nigra L. is widely used in traditional medicine with different applications. However, confirmative studies are strongly required. This study aimed to assess the biological activities of the S. nigra flower’s extract encapsulated into two different types of nanoparticles for optimizing its properties and producing further evidence of its potential therapeutic uses. Different nanoparticles (poly(lactide-co-glycolide, PLGA) and poly-Ɛ-caprolactone (PCL), both with oleic acid, were prepared by emulsification/solvent diffusion and solvent-displacement methods, respectively. Oleic acid was used as a capping agent. After the nanoparticles’ preparation, they were characterized and the biological activities were studied in terms of collagenase, in vitro and in vivo anti-inflammatory, and in vitro cell viability. Rutin and naringenin were found to be the major phenolic compounds in the studied extract. The encapsulation efficiency was higher than 76% and revealed to have an impact on the release of the extract, mainly for the PLGA. Moreover, biochemical and histopathological analyses confirmed that the extract-loaded PLGA-based nanoparticles displayed the highest anti-inflammatory activity. In addition to supporting the previously reported evidence of potential therapeutic uses of S. nigra, these results could draw the pharmaceutical industry’s interest to the novelty of the nanoproducts.Authors also gratefully acknowledge the Régiefrutas and Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) (UIDB/04138/2020, UIDB/00100/2020, UIDP/50017/2020+UIDB/50017/2020) and Portugal 2020 to the Portuguese Mass Spectrometry Network (LISBOA-01-0145-FEDER-402-022125) for financial support. Furthermore, the authors are also grateful to the work supported by the FCT and the Portuguese National and Regional Budget, through CCMAR/Multi/04326/2019 project. Finally, Luísa Custódio was supported by the FCT Scientific Employment Stimulus (CEECIND/00425/2017).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Meglumine antimoniate and miltefosine combined with allopurinol sustain pro-inflammatory immune environments during canine leishmaniosis treatment

Canine leishmaniosis (CanL) caused by Leishmania infantum is a zoonotic disease of global concern. Antileishmanial drug therapies commonly used to treat sick dogs improve their clinical condition, although when discontinued relapses can occur. Thus, the current study aims to evaluate the effect of CanL treatments in peripheral blood, lymph node, and bone marrow cytokine profile associated with clinical recovery. Two groups of six dogs diagnosed with CanL were treated with miltefosine combined with allopurinol and meglumine antimoniate combined with allopurinol (MT+A and MG+A), respectively. At diagnosis and after treatment, during a 3-month follow-up, clinical signs, hematological and biochemical parameters, urinalysis results and antileishmanial antibody titers were registered. Furthermore, peripheral blood, popliteal lymph node, and bone marrow samples were collected to assess the gene expression of IL-2, IL-4, IL-5, IL-10, IL-12, TNF-α, TGF-β, and IFN-γ by qPCR. In parallel, were also evaluated samples obtained from five healthy dogs. Both treatment protocols promoted the remission of clinical signs as well as normalization of hematological and biochemical parameters and urinalysis values. Antileishmanial antibodies returned to non-significant titers in all dogs. Sick dogs showed a generalized upregulation of IFN-γ and downregulation of IL-2, IL-4, and TGF-β, while gene expression of IL-12, TNF-α, IL-5, and IL-10 varied between groups and according to evaluated tissue. A trend to the normalization of cytokine gene expression was induced by both miltefosine and meglumine antimoniate combined therapies. However, IFN-γ gene expression was still up-regulated in the three evaluated tissues. Furthermore, the effect of treatment in the gene expression of cytokines that were not significantly changed by infection, indicates that miltefosine and meglumine antimoniate combined therapy directly affects cytokine generation. Both combined therapies are effective in CanL treatment, leading to sustained pro-inflammatory immune environments that can compromise parasite survival and favor dogs' clinical cure. In the current study, anti-inflammatory and regulatory cytokines do not seem to play a prominent role in CanL or during clinical recovery.publishersversionpublishe

Pooling of sputum samples to increase tuberculosis diagnostic capacity in Brazil during the COVID-19 pandemic

Objectives We assessed whether combining (pooling) four individual's samples and testing with Xpert Ultra has the same accuracy as testing samples individually, as a more efficient testing method. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study of individuals with presumptive TB attending primary health care or general hospital facilities in Alagoas, Brazil. Sputum samples of four consecutive individuals were pooled and the pool and individual samples were tested with Xpert Ultra. The agreement of the tests was compared using kappa statistics. We estimated the sensitivity and specificity of pooling using the individual test as the reference standard and potential cartridge savings. Results Three hundred and ninety-six participants were tested. Ninety-five (24.0%) individual samples were MTB-positive, 300 (75.8%) MTB-not detected, including 20 MTB-trace, and one reported an error. Ninety-nine pools of four samples were tested, of which 62 (62.6%) had MTB-detected and 37 (37.4%) MTB-not detected, including six (6.1%) with MTB-trace. The agreement of individual and pooled testing was 96.0%. Pooling had sensitivity of 95.0% (95%CI 86.9%–99%), specificity of 97.1% (95%CI 85.1%–99.9%) and Kappa of 0.913. The method saved 12.4% of cartridge costs. Conclusion The pooled testing of specimens had a high level of agreement with individual testing. Pooling of samples for testing improves the efficiency of testing, potentially enabling the screening and testing of larger numbers of people more cost-effectively

Whole-genome sequencing of 1,171 elderly admixed individuals from Brazil

As whole-genome sequencing (WGS) becomes the gold standard tool for studying population genomics and medical applications, data on diverse non-European and admixed individuals are still scarce. Here, we present a high-coverage WGS dataset of 1,171 highly admixed elderly Brazilians from a census-based cohort, providing over 76 million variants, of which ~2 million are absent from large public databases. WGS enables identification of ~2,000 previously undescribed mobile element insertions without previous description, nearly 5 Mb of genomic segments absent from the human genome reference, and over 140 alleles from HLA genes absent from public resources. We reclassify and curate pathogenicity assertions for nearly four hundred variants in genes associated with dominantly-inherited Mendelian disorders and calculate the incidence for selected recessive disorders, demonstrating the clinical usefulness of the present study. Finally, we observe that whole-genome and HLA imputation could be significantly improved compared to available datasets since rare variation represents the largest proportion of input from WGS. These results demonstrate that even smaller sample sizes of underrepresented populations bring relevant data for genomic studies, especially when exploring analyses allowed only by WGS