A rare case of colonic pseudolipomatosis

A 54-year-old man was referred to our department for colorectal cancer screening. The colonoscopy revealed, at the ascending colon, several white plaques, some confluent, interspersed with normal mucosa (Fig. 1). Biopsies were performed and the histopathological examination showed a fragment of polypoid colonic mucosa with optically empty vacuoles in the lamina propria (Fig. 2) and irregular cystic spaces of varying sizes, similar to adipocytes in the absence of inflammation or dysplasia. Colonic pseudolipomatosis is a benign and rare condition, with an estimated prevalence of 0.02-0.3 % in colonoscopic series, characterized by the presence of vacuoles with gas content in the lamina propria of the large intestine [1]. The incidence is more frequent between the sixth and seventh decade of life [2]. The pathogenesis remains unclear

Spatial and Temporal Variability Regarding Forest: From Tree to the Landscape

Spatial and temporal variability in forest has become a topic attracting great attention regarding the role of the forest ecosystems in biogeochemical cycles, climate change and biological diversity and in human society. Advances in the natural sciences have brought insights into and a better understanding about the patterns and processes at different spatial and temporal scales. At the same time, this supports a better management of the forest ecosystems and landscapes. Variability from the tree level to the landscape is addressed. Tree characteristics and functions, forest stand dynamics and ecological succession to forest landscape ecology are put together, considering their interrelations and dependencies. Managing forest stands and variability at different scales is described and discussed, including the scope of sustainability. An evaluation of forest and landscape characteristics in Portugal is performed with propositions considering these different elementsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

DNA barcoding of moon jellyfish (Cnidaria, Scyphozoa, Ulmaridae, Aurelia): two cryptic species from the Azores (ne atlantic, macaronesia), and evaluation of the non-íIndigenous species (NIS)

Moon jellies are some of the most popular, widely distributed, and best-studied marine jellyfish. By the end of the past century only two or three Aurelia species were recognized, but with the rise of DNA barcoding studies, around thirty Aurelia species are presently accepted. Most of the species are morphologically indistinguishable and have restricted biogeography. We reveal, with COI, 16S, and ITS1-5.8S sequence data, two (pseudo-)cryptic species of Aurelia, potentially endemic to the Azores ecoregion, herein provisionally classified as A. "cf. pseudosolida" and A. "misteriosa". These species are closely related to the Mediterranean lineages of A. pseudosolida and A. persea, respectively. In the Azores, the shape of the campanula and oral arms readily distinguishes the two species: the former with folded oral arms and globose campanula, and the latter with flattened campanula and thick and long oral arms. Previous reports of A. solida and A. aurita in the Azores should generally correspond to A. "misteriosa" and A. cf. pseudosolida, respectively. The phylogenetic (re-)examination of the available DNA barcodes of Aurelia only evidenced human-mediated dispersal for A. coerulea, A. relicta, and A. aurita. Aurelia solida cannot be yet considered NIS in the Mediterranean. More jellyfish DNA (meta)barcoding should reveal further cryptic diversity, biological invasions, and phylogeographic inferences.Programa Operacional Açores 2020”, within the project “Águas-VivAz”–ref.: ACORES-01-0145- FEDER-000119info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Eficiência energética na iluminação pública. Estudo de casos práticos.

O consumo de energia está na origem de 80% das emissões de gases com efeito de estufa na União Europeia (UE). Consequentemente, reduzir as emissões de gases com efeito de estufa implica um menor consumo de energia e uma maior utilização de energia limpa. É nesta ótica que surge a denominada “Estratégia 20-20-20 para 2020” cujo objetivo é reduzir 20% do consumo de energia, reduzir 20% das emissões de GEE (Gases com Efeito de Estufa) e que 20% da energia consumida seja de fonte renovável

Multiple model adaptive control of neuromuscular blockade: Design guidelines and clinical cases

The high level of uncertainty of the dynamic response of patients subject to anaesthesia motivates the use of adaptive control methods. This paper proposes an approach based on Switched Multiple Model Adaptive Control (SMMAC) to tackle this problem in what concerns the control of the neuromuscular blockade level. It is shown how to design the different elements of the SMMAC controller, enhancing the importance of the observer polynomial, that is shown to be instrumental to stabilize the loop. Clinical results using atracurium as blocking agent are reported, thereby illustrating the application of the proposed approach in actual clinical practice

Long term application of a constructed wetland for phytoremediation of domestic wastewater: macrofauna biodiversity assessment

Constructed wetlands (CW) are engineered systems, phytoremediation based, that mimic several processes (physical, biological, and chemical) that occur in natural wetlands. They comprise several components, impermeabilization liners and substrate, and as the key elements the plants and their associated microorganisms. They were thought primarily for wastewater treatment but nowadays are considered a nature-based solution of excellence in terms of flexibility of their application and services provided. In the present study, the phytoremediation potential of a real scale constructed wetland to treat wastewater from a tourism unity is addressed. The CW was implemented in 2010 at Paço de Calheiros, a tourism house integrated in a rural area. The CW was designed to be placed after a previously installed septic tank that acted as the main treatment before the CW was established. It is a horizontal subsurface flow system planted with a polyculture of Agapanthus africanus, Canna flaccida, Zantedeschia aethiopica, Canna indica, and Watsonia borbonica. The aim of the study is to monitor the efficiency of a CW, after long term operation, based on phytoremediation processes, to treat the wastewater from the tourism unit. Wastewater quality will be assessed through the analysis of physic-chemical and microbiological parameters towards its reuse for irrigation purposes. The biodiversity of macrofauna communities associated to the rhizosphere of selected plants and substrate will be studied.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Role of the mixing conditions and composition of galvanic sludges on the inertization process in clay-based ceramics

Hydroxide-metal sludges from electroplating industry are a potential source of environmental contamination due to their high content of heavy metals. The incorporation of these residues in a ceramic matrix can be a promising way to suppress the harmful effect of metals normally present in those sludges. This work reports the role of the mixing time between the waste and ceramic materials and of the calcination step on the fixing level of several metal-containing species (Al, Zn, Ni, Fe, Ca, Cu, Cr) after sequential leaching in different media (aqueous, acetate and citrate). A strong and/or long mixing process will promote the deagglomeration of the coarser agglomerates and then will increase the reactivity of remaining grains towards the ceramic material during the calcination. As a consequence, inertization is improved for fired samples. With non-calcined samples leaching increases as a result of increasing dispersability/availability of species

Effect of experimental variables on the inertization of galvanic sluges in clay-based ceramics

The incorporation of several industrial wastes in ceramic matrixes had been attempted as an effective low expense technique for the fixation of metallic species in usable products or simply to reduce the residue volume for further disposal. However, the dominant mechanism of the inertization process and the relevant influent parameters are still unknown, mostly due to the complexity of the systems. This work reports the effect of several processing parameters such as the mixing time, the calcination temperature and duration, the relative amount of sludge, and the physical aspect of the sample (powdered or pressed pellets) on the fixing level of relevant species (SiO2, SO4 2−, Zn, Ni, Ca, Cu, Cr) by leaching in different media (aqueous, acetate, and citrate). Statistical tools were used to define the relevance of each experimental variable on the inertization process of the used galvanic sludge. The relative amount of sludge in the mixture, the calcination temperature and the agglomeration state of the sample were found to be the most influent parameters of the inertization process. The incipient reaction between sludge and ceramic matrix components points out for the dominance of a macro- encapsulation mechanism

Physical and chemical characterisation of metal finishing industrial wastes

In EU countries approximately 150,000 ons/year of galvanic sludges are generated by 4000 industrial units from the orresponding wastewater treatment plants. These sludges are generally classified as hazardous (European Waste Catalogue as adopted in Council Decision 2000/532/CE and as amended by Decisions 2001/118/EC, 2001/119/EC and 2001/573/CE), basically due to the presence of heavy metals. This work attempts to better understand the physical and chemical characteristics of these sludges, by studying 39 samples collected in different Portuguese industries that should represent all kinds of similar wastes independent of their place of generation. Chemical composition and leaching characteristics are given, together with density, grain size distribution, and specific surface area values. Statistical analysis was used for grouping the wastes according to chemical parameters, which might be useful to predict potential reuse as raw materials for different applications