Prevalence and risk factors for over weight/obesity in Leiria’s 7th graders (2009-2013)

Overweight/obesity (Ow/Ob) are well documented risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVDRF), and its prevalence has been increasing even in children and adolescents, over the past decades

Experimental investigations on continuous glass-GFRP beams: preliminary nonlinear numerical modelling

This paper describes results of experimental and numerical investigations about the structural behaviour of composite beams made of annealed glass panes and GFRP pultruded profiles. A brief description of flexural tests previously carried out on simply supported glass and glass-GFRP composite beams is first presented. Then, results of flexural tests on two-span glass-GFRP composite beams, bonded with three different structural adhesives, are described in detail. Finally, a preliminary numerical study of the glass-GFRP composite simply supported beams is presented. In this study, two-dimensional finite element models were developed in order to simulate and analyse the serviceability and post-cracking behaviour of those beams. Experimental and numerical results presented in this paper prove the advantages and technical viability of glass-GFRP composite beams

Numerical simulation of transparent glass-GFRP composite beams using smeared crack models

This paper describes results of experimental and numerical investigations about the structural behaviour of composite beams made of annealed glass panes and GFRP pultruded profiles. A brief description of flexural tests previously carried out on glass and glass-GFRP composite beams is first presented. The second part of this paper describes the numerical simulation of a rectangular glass-GFRP composite beam. Two-dimensional finite element (FE) models of the composite beam were developed in order to simulate and analyse their serviceability behaviour (prior to glass breakage) as well as their post-cracking behaviour until the failure. To this end, a multi-fixed smeared crack model was used, and the effects of the following parameters were evaluated: (i) fracture energy of glass and (ii) shear retention factor. Experimental and numerical results are compared regarding the cracking load and post-cracking behaviour, namely in terms of crack pattern and load-deflection response.(undefined

Calibração de um sistema de modelação para o estuário do Guadiana

Com a entrada em funcionamento da barragem do Alqueva o regime de caudais no rio Guadiana irá ser alterado. Actualmente a albufeira do Alqueva encontra-se em fase de enchimento sendo garantido um caudal mínimo de 5 a 10m3/s que passa para o estuário. Neste cenário torna-se importante conhecer o comportamento das principais variáveis físicas que caracterizam o estuário do Guadiana, nomeadamente níveis, correntes salinidade e transito de sedimentos. Neste artigo utiliza-se o sistema de modelação MOHID, efectuando-se a calibração do modelo para as medidas de campo disponíveis. Esta tarefa insere-se num trabalho de modelação mais amplo de caracterização do Guadiana do ponto de vista hidrodinâmico e de transporte de propriedades

Padrões de referência da pressão plantar no movimento do cão da Serra da Estrela

Neste trabalho caracteriza-se em termos de pressão plantar o movimento do Cão da Serra da Estrela no andamento "Marcha Semelhante ao Pacing" ("Ambladura"). Foram analisados 11 cães Serra da Estrela, isentos de displasia da anca e sem sinais visíveis de patologias que afectem o movimento, recorrendo a um sistema de plataformas de pressão plantar (RSSCAN) com 2 metros de comprimento. Para a caracterização do movimento do Serra da Estrela foi desenvolvido um software de apoio que permite a análise cinética, determinando-se vários parâmetros espaciais, temporais e cinéticos relativos ao movimento do Cão da Serra da Estrela, que poderão servir de referência em futuros estudos sobre patologias do aparelho locomoto

Handedness asymmetries and manual dexterity performances between right and left-handedness children

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Evidence for late Pleistocene volcanism at Santa Maria Island, Azores?

Santa Maria Island constitutes the oldest volcanic island within the Azores Archipelago, with no onshore record of eruptions younger than ≈2.8 Ma. A recent high-resolution multibeam bathymetric survey, however, revealed the presence of a seemingly young submerged wide volcanic edifice at approximately −70/−80 m, on the northeastern sector of the island shelf. The outer flanks of this volcanic edifice are partially eroded by marine erosion, but its general morphology is largely preserved, attesting to its relative youth. The edifice's aspect ratio and crater size are typical of a tuff ring formed by very violent surtseyan to taalian eruptions (with water/magma interaction ratios close to 1), implying extrusion at sea level or in very shallow waters, conditions that are incompatible with the present-day water depth at which this structure occurs. A detailed geomorphological analysis – coupled with a correlation with a modified reference eustatic curve – allowed the formulation and discussion of a formation model for the tuff ring, which involves extrusion during a period immediately preceding a rapid relative sea-level drop, most likely at ≈43 ka. Extrusion during such a period would have allowed for the subaerial consolidation and palagonitization of the tuff ring, increasing its resistance to erosion, before being finally submerged during the Last Glacial Termination. Submersion during the Last Glacial Termination – a period characterised by extremely fast sea-level rise – also helps to explain why this tuff ring was submerged without being completely razed by marine erosion. Our study offers insights on the formation and preservation of tuff rings in coastal environments, and in relation to sea-level oscillations, suggesting that consolidation plays a crucial role in the process. Crucially, our study suggests that Santa Maria's volcanism might have extended well into the very late Pleistocene, raising important hazard implications. Future work is scheduled to confirm this hypothesis, including sampling of the volcanic products by dredging and/or by remote operated vehicle. Our study also emphasises the importance of available high-resolution bathymetric surveys to the formulation of solid volcanic hazard assessments on volcanic islands.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Detection of apoptotic events, using different methods, in renal tissues after acute haemorrhage.

Apoptosis plays an important role in cellular damage caused by acute renal hypoperfusion. The aim of this study was to detect apoptotic events in an animal model of acute haemorrhage, followed by volume replacement with different intravenous solution

Molecular and morphological data reveal three new cryptic species of \u3cem\u3eChiasmocleis\u3c/em\u3e (Mehely 1904) (Anura, Microhylidae) endemic to the Atlantic Forest, Brazil

Three new cryptic species of Chiasmocleis from the Atlantic Forest of Brazil are described. Two of these species occur in the northeastern states of Sergipe and Bahia, whereas the third species is found in the southeastern state of São Paulo. The new species can be distinguished from other congeneric species by the molecular data, as evidenced in the phylogeny, and by a combination of morphological characters including: size, foot webbing, dermal spines, and coloration patterns. Chiasmocleis species differ in osteological traits, therefore we also provide an osteological description of each new species and comparisons with data reported for other species in the genus

Synthesis of fluorescent tetracyclic lactams by a “one pot” three steps palladium-catalyzed borylation, Suzuki coupling (BSC) and lactamization. DNA and polynucleotides binding studies

Tetracyclic lactams (benzothieno[2,3-c]quinolones) were prepared by “one pot” three steps palladium-catalyzed borylation, Suzuki coupling (BSC) and lactamization, starting from ortho-haloanilines and alkyl 3-bromobenzo[b]thiophene-2-carboxylates. The former were used as the components to be borylated with pinacolborane, and the latter as the brominated component in the Suzuki coupling. The amidation occurred with loss of the alkyl alcohol, presumably in the Suzuki coupling product, giving the corresponding tetracyclic lactam. This constitutes a novel application of the BSC reaction using sterically hindered substrates. In this work studies of absorption and fluorescence in several solvents and in presence of salmon sperm DNA or synthetic double stranded (ds) heteropolynucleotides, poly(dA-dT)•(dA-dT) and poly(dG-dC)•(dG-dC), were performed. The binding constants values (Ki = 2.6x10^5- 4.5x10^5 M^-1) point to a high affinity of the lactams to DNA. It was shown that the intercalation is the prefered mode of binding and that the substituted new lactams (with F or OMe) exhibit a higher affinity for A-T regions. Quenching experiments with iodide show that the methoxylated lactam is the more intercalative in DNA. The same type of experiments using this compound bound to heteropolynucleotides show a very low accessibility (fa = 0.07) of the lactam in poly(dG-dC)•(dG-dC) to the quencher showing a large majority of intercalative binding while the high affinity for A-T regions together with a higher accessiblity (fa = 0.25) point to the possiblity of intercalative and groove binding.Foundation for the Science and Technology (Portugal) and FEDER for financial support through a research project POCI/QUI/59407/2004 and through Centro de Química and Centro de Física of Univ. Minho