Deutsche Lufthansa AG: Equity research

UNL - NSBE

Renault SA: Equity research

UNL - NSBE

Pernod Ricard: Equity research

UNL - NSBE

Performance analysis of an SRI screen based on employment quality in high and low capital industries: International evidence

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Finance from the NOVA ��� School of Business and Economics and Maastricht University School of Business and Economics

An internationalisation research project into the German market for the Portuguese canned seafood company COFACO.

This project is aimed to analyse the German market of canned fish, in order to find out if there is potential of entering the market for the Portuguese canned seafood company named COFACO. The purpose of this foreign market research, carried out for COFACO, is to highlight the main key aspects of the current German seafood market, founded out through a deep analysis. Moreover, the work project is also aimed to give the company suggestions regarding the Brand, the Product and the Distribution strategy to implement in order to succeed, once considered the opportunity to enter the market.

A consumer research project as the basis for the development of a marketing plan for a new spirit brand producing gin in Germany

This work project is about developing a marketing plan for a new gin brand in Germany. It is based on consumer and market research, including Portugal as a trend market for the qualitative research. For the undertaking it is seen as fundamental to understand the industry as well as the consumer needs, attitudes and preferences. Furthermore, it is important to consider the estimation of opinion leaders and trendsetters in the industry. In this context it turned out that barkeepers have a key-influencing role for the stimulation of demand. Based on the insights from this research as well as on the gained market knowledge, the marketing plan was developed. The goal is to convince other brand users to switch brands.

Men's grooming in Germany: A consumer research and discussion of current consumer attitudes

The objective of this dissertation was to explore the German men���s grooming market and to discuss the usage and purchase behavior of young male adults. After a brief market analysis, this dissertation evaluates the results of qualitative and quantitative research. The conducted research explored the consumer���s reasoning for and attitude towards personal grooming, and their attitude towards product attributes and the aging process. The dissertation concludes that men attach high value to personal grooming but only to the extent that their personal need is satisfied. As the male involvement in MG is highly dependent on each consumer���s individual needs, the market requires a careful segmentation.

Evaluation of antihypertensive drugs in patients with obstructive sleep apnea and in rats submitted to chronic intermittent hypoxia

RESUMO: A hipertens��o arterial (HA) �� uma patologia altamente prevalente, embora claramente subdiagnosticada, em doentes com s��ndrome de apneia obstrutiva do sono (SAOS). Estas duas patologias apresentam uma estreita rela����o e a monitoriza����o ambulat��ria da press��o arterial (MAPA), por um per��odo de 24 horas, parece ser o m��todo mais preciso para o diagn��stico de hipertens��o em doentes com SAOS. No entanto, esta ferramenta de diagn��stico para al��m de ser dispendiosa e envolver um n��mero acrescido de meios t��cnicos e humanos, �� mais morosa e, por conseguinte, n��o �� utilizada por rotina no contexto do diagn��stico da SAOS. Por outro lado, apesar da aplica����o de press��o positiva cont��nua nas vias a��reas (CPAP ��� Continous Positive Airway Pressure) ser considerada a terap��utica de elei����o para os doentes com SAOS, o seu efeito no abaixamento da press��o arterial (PA) parece ser modesto, exigindo, por conseguinte, a implementa����o concomitante de terap��utica anti-hipertensora. Acontece que s��o escassos os dados relativos aos regimes de f��rmacos anti-hipertensores utilizados em doentes com SAOS e, acresce ainda que, as guidelines terap��uticas para o tratamento farmacol��gico da HA, neste grupo particular de doentes, permanecem, at�� ao momento, inexistentes. A utiliza����o de modelos animais de hip��xia cr��nica intermitente (CIH), que mimetizam a HA observada em doentes com SAOS, revela-se extremamente importante, uma vez que se torna imperativo identificar f��rmacos que promovam um controle adequado da PA neste grupo de doentes. No entanto, estudos concebidos com o intuito de investigar o efeito anti-hipertensor dos f��rmacos neste modelo animal revelam-se insuficientes e, por outro lado, os escassos estudos que testaram f��rmacos anti-hipertensores neste modelo n��o foram desenhados para responder a quest��es de natureza farmacol��gica. Acresce ainda que se torna imprescind��vel garantir a escolha de um m��todo para administra����o destes f��rmacos que seja n��o invasivo e que minimize o stress do animal. Embora a gavagem seja uma t��cnica indiscutivelmente eficaz e amplamente utilizada para a administra����o di��ria de f��rmacos a animais de laborat��rio, ela compreende uma sequ��ncia de procedimentos geradores de stress para os animais e, que podem por conseguinte, constituir um vi��s na interpreta����o dos resultados obtidos. O objectivo global da presente investiga����o translacional foi contribuir para a identifica����o de f��rmacos anti-hipertensores mais efectivos para o tratamento da HT nos indiv��duos com SAOS e investigar mecanismos subjacentes aos efeitos sist��micos associadas �� SAOS bem como a sua modula����o por f��rmacos anti-hipertensores. Os objectivos espec��ficos foram: em primeiro lugar,encontrar novos crit��rios, baseados nas medidas antropom��tricas, que permitam a identifica����o de doentes com suspeita de SAOS, que erroneamente se auto-classifiquem como n��ohipertensos, e desta forma promover um uso mais criterioso do MAPA; em segundo lugar, investigar a exist��ncia de uma hipot��tica associa����o entre os esquemas de f��rmacos antihipertensores e o controle da PA (antes e ap��s a adapta����o de CPAP) em doentes com SAOS em terceiro lugar, avaliar a efic��cia do carvedilol (CVD), um f��rmaco bloqueador ��-adren��rgico n��o selectivo com actividade antagonista ��1 intr��nseca e propriedades anti-oxidantes num modelo animal de hipertens��o induzida pela CIH; em quarto lugar, explorar os efeitos da CIH sobre o perfil farmacocin��tico do CVD; e, em quinto lugar, investigar um m��todo alternativo �� gavagem para a administra����o cr��nica de f��rmacos anti-hipertensores a animais de laborat��rio. Com este intuito, na primeira fase deste projecto, fizemos uso de uma amostra com um n��mero apreci��vel de doentes com SAOS (n=369), que acorreram, pela primeira vez, �� consulta de Patologia do Sono do CHLN e que foram submetidos a um estudo polissonogr��fico do sono, �� MAPA e que preencheram um question��rio que contemplava a obten����o de informa����o relativa ao perfil da medica����o anti-hipertensora em curso. Numa segunda fase, utiliz��mos um modelo experimental de HT no rato induzida por um paradigma de CIH. Do nosso trabalho resultaram os seguintes resultados principais: em primeiro lugar, o ��ndice de massa corporal (IMC) e o per��metro do pesco��o (PP) foram identificados como preditores independentes de ���auto-classifica����o err��nea��� da HA em doentes com suspeita de SAOS; em segundo lugar, n��o encontramos qualquer associa����o com significado estat��stico entre os v��rios esquemas de f��rmacos anti-hipertensores bem como o n��mero de f��rmacos inclu��dos nesse esquemas, e o controle da PA (antes e depois da adapta����o do CPAP); em terceiro lugar, apesar das doses de 10, 30 e 50 mg/kg de carvedilol terem promovido uma redu����o significativa da frequ��ncia card��aca, n��o foi observado qualquer decr��scimo na PA no nosso modelo animal; em quarto lugar, as raz��es S/(R+S) dos enanti��meros do CVD nos animais expostos �� CIH e a condi����es de norm��xia revelaram-se diferentes; e, em quinto lugar, a administra����o oral volunt��ria mostrou ser um m��todo eficaz para a administra����o di��ria controlada de f��rmacos anti-hipertensores e que �� independente da manipula����o e conten����o do animal. Em conclus��o, os resultados obtidos atrav��s do estudo cl��nico revelaram que o controle da PA, antes e ap��s a adapta����o do CPAP, em doentes com SAOS �� independente, quer do esquema de f��rmacos anti-hipertensores, quer do n��mero de f��rmacos inclu��dos num determinado esquema. Os nossos resultados salientam ainda a falta de validade da chamada self-reported hypertension e sugerem que em todos os doentes com suspeita de SAOS, com HA n��o diagnosticada e com um IMC e um PP acima de 27 kg/m2 e 39 cm, respectivamente, a confirma����o do diagn��stico de HA dever�� ser realizada atrav��s da MAPA, ao inv��s de outros m��todos que com maior frequ��ncia s��o utilizados com este prop��sito. Os resultados obtidos no modelo animal de HA induzida pela CIH sugerem que o bloqueio do sistema nervoso simp��tico, juntamente com os supostos efeitos pleiotr��picos do CVD, n��o parece ser a estrat��gia mais adequada para reverter este tipo particular de hipertens��o e indicam que as altera����es farmacocin��ticas induzidas pela CIH no ratio S/(R+S) n��o justificam a falta de efic��cia anti-hipertensora do CVD observada neste modelo animal. Por ��ltimo, os resultados do presente trabalho suportam ainda a viabilidade da utiliza����o da administra����o oral volunt��ria, em alternativa �� gavagem, para a administra����o cr��nica de uma dose fixa de f��rmacos anti-hipertensores.---------------------------- ABSTRACT: Hypertension (HT) is a highly prevalent condition, although under diagnosed, in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). These conditions are closely related and 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) seems to be the most accurate measurement for diagnosing hypertension in OSA. However, this diagnostic tool is expensive and time-consuming and, therefore, not routinely used. On the other hand, although continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is considered the gold standard treatment for symptomatic OSA, its lowering effect on blood pressure (BP) seems to be modest and, therefore, concomitant antihypertensive therapy is still required. Data on antihypertensive drug regimens in patients with OSA are scarce and specific therapeutic guidelines for the pharmacological treatment of hypertension in these patients remain absent. The use of animal models of CIH, which mimic the HT observed in patients with OSA, is extremely important since it is imperative to identify preferred compounds for an adequate BP control in this group of patients. However, studies aimed at investigating the antihypertensive effect of antihypertensive drugs in this animal model are insufficient, and most reports on CIH animal models in which drugs have been tested were not designed to respond to pharmacological issues. Moreover, when testing antihypertensive drugs (AHDs) it becomes crucial to ensure the selection of a non-invasive and stress-free method for drug delivery. Although gavage is effective and a widely performed technique for daily dosing in laboratory rodents, it comprises a sequence of potentially stressful procedures for laboratory animals that may constitute bias for the experimental results. The overall goal of the present translational research was to contribute to identify more effective AHDs for the treatment of hypertension in patients with OSA and investigate underlying mechanisms of systemic effects associated with OSA, as well as its modulation by AHDs. The specific aims were: first, to find new predictors based on anthropometric measures to identify patients that misclassify themselves as non-hypertensive, and thereby promote the selective use of ABPM; second, to investigate a hypothetical association between ongoing antihypertensive regimens and BP control rates in patients with OSA, before and after CPAP adaptation; third, to determine, in a rat model of CIH-induced hypertension, the efficacy of carvedilol (CVD), a nonselective beta-blocker with intrinsic anti-��1-adrenergic activity and antioxidant properties; fourth, to explore the effects of CIH on the pharmacokinetics profile of CVD and fifth, to investigate an alternative method to gavage, for chronic administration of AHDs to laboratory rats. For that, in the first phase of this project, we used a sizeable sample of patients with OSA (n=369), that attended a first visit at Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Norte, EPE Sleep Unit, and underwent overnight polysomnography, 24-h ABPM and filled a questionnaire that included ongoing antihypertensive medication profile registration. In the second phase, a rat experimental model of HT induced by a paradigm of CIH that simulates OSA was used. The main findings of this work were: first, body mass index (BMI) and neck circumference (NC) were identified as independent predictors of hypertension misclassification in patients suspected of OSA; second, in patients with OSA, BP control is independent of both the antihypertensive regimen and the number of antihypertensive drugs, either before or after CPAP adaptation; third, although the doses of 10, 30 and 50 mg/Kg of CVD promoted a significant reduction in heart rate, no decrease in mean arterial pressure was observed; fourth, the S/(R+S) ratios of CVD enantiomers, between rats exposed to CIH and normoxic conditions, were different and fifth, voluntary ingestion proved to be an effective method for a controlled daily dose administration, with a define timetable, that is independent of handling and restraint procedures. In conclusion, the clinical study showed that BP control in OSA patients is independent of both the antihypertensive regimen and the number of antihypertensive drugs. Additionally, our results highlight the lack of validity of self-reported hypertension and suggest that all patients suspected of OSA with undiagnosed hypertension and with a BMI and NC above 27 Kg/m2 and 39 cm should be screened for hypertension, through ABPM. The results attained in the rat model of HT related to CIH suggest that the blockade of the sympathetic nervous system together with the putative pleiotropic effects of carvedilol is not able to revert hypertension induced by CIH and point out that the pharmacokinetic changes induced by CIH on S/(R+S) ratio are not apparently responsible for the lack of efficacy of carvedilol in reversing this particular type of hypertension. Finally, the results here presented support the use of voluntary oral administration as a viable alternative to gavage for chronic administration of a fixed dose of AHDs.

Fate map of zebrafish left-right organizer

The organizer is a ciliated signalling transient organ, responsible for the patterning of embryo tissues during embryonic development. In higher vertebrates, such as mouse and chick, this organizer (the node and the Hensen���s node, respectively) performs dorsalventral and anteriorposterior axis definition, as well as left-right patterning of the internal organs. In lower vertebrates, such as frog and zebrafish, there is a separate specialized organ for left-right purposes called the Gastrocoel Roof Plate (GRP) and Kupffer���s Vesicle (KV), respectively. It is known that mouse and chick organizer cells give rise to structures like floor plate, notochord, hypochord and somites. Frog GRP originates all these but floor plate. In zebrafish, at 13-14 somite stage (ss) the KV finished its left-right patterning but what happens to this organizer��� cells is still poorly studied. This research attempts to understand the fate and behaviour of the KV cells. We followed the fate of KV cells by live imaging and by tight time-courses with fixed larvae. We assessed in detail their proliferative and death profile, as well as cilia length progression from 9-10 ss until 29-30 ss. We conclude that the KV cells mostly follow the evolutionarily conserved fates described for other organizers. These cells mainly incorporate the notochord and hypochord; few cells incorporate the floor plate and the somites. As a novelty, it is also hypothesized that the hypural cell fate may be among the KV cell fates.

Light harvesting in solar cells using natural pigments from red fruits adsorbed to mesoporous TiO2

Nature has developed strategies to present us with a wide variety of colours, from the green of leaves to the bright colours seen in flowers. Anthocyanins are between these natural pigments that are responsible for the great diversity of colours seen in flowers and fruits. Anthocyanins have been used to sensitize titanium dioxide (TiO2) in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs). DSSCs have become one of the most popular research topic in photovoltaic cells due to their low production costs when compared to other alternatives. DSSCs are inspired in what happens in nature during photosynthesis. A primary charge separation is achieved by means of a photoexcited dye capable of performing the electron injection into the conduction band of a wide band-gap semiconductor, usually TiO2. With this work we aimed to synthesize a novel mesoporous TiO2 structure as the semiconductor in order to increase the dye loading. We used natural occurring dyes such as anthocyanins and their synthetic flavylium relatives, as an alternative to the widely used metal complexes of Ru(II) which are expensive and are environmentally unsafe. This offers not only the chance to use safer dyes for DSSCs, but also to take profit of waste biological products, such as wine and olive oil production residues that are heavily loaded with anthocyanin dyes. We also performed a photodegradation study using TiO2 as the catalyst to degrade dye contaminants, such as those from the wine production waste, by photo-irradiation of the system in the visible region of the light spectrum. We were able to succeed in the synthesis of mesoporous TiO2 both powder and thin film, with a high capacity to load a large amount of dye. We proved the concept of photodegradation using TiO2 as catalyst. And finally, we show that wine production waste is a possible dye source to DSSCs application.

From "Humanities and Computing" to "Digital Humanities": Digital Humanities in Portugal with a focus on Historical Research

In the following text I will develop three major aspects. The first is to draw attention to those who seem to have been the disciplinary fields where, despite everything, the Digital Humanities (in the broad perspective as will be regarded here) have asserted themselves in a more comprehensive manner. I think it is here that I run into greater risks, not only for what I have mentioned above, but certainly because a significant part, perhaps, of the achievements and of the researchers might have escaped the look that I sought to cast upon the past few decades, always influenced by my own experience and the work carried out in the field of History. But this can be considered as a work in progress and it is open to criticism and suggestions. A second point to note is that emphasis will be given to the main lines of development in the relationship between historical research and digital methodologies, resources and tools. Finally, I will try to make a brief analysis of what has been the Digital Humanities discourse appropriation in recent years, with very debatable data and methods for sure, because studies are still scarce and little systematic information is available that would allow to go beyond an introductory reflection.

Study of the role of wall teichoic acids in the localization Staphylococcus aureus cell wall synthesis protein PBP4

The cell wall of Staphylococcus aureus is a highly complex network mainly composed of highly cross-linked peptidoglycan (PG) and teichoic acids (TAs), both important for the maintenance of the integrity and viability of bacteria. The penicillin binding proteins (PBPs), which catalyse the final stage of PG biosynthesis, are targets of ��-lactam antibiotics and have been a key focus of antibacterial research. S. aureus has four native PBPs, PBP1-4 carried by both methicillin-sensitive (MSSA) and ���resistant (MRSA) strains. PBP4 is required for the synthesis of the highly cross-linked PG and, as shown in recent studies, is essential for the expression of ��-lactam resistance in community-acquired strains (CA-MRSA). This protein has a septal localization that seems to be spatially and temporally regulated by an unknown intermediate of the wall teichoic acids (WTA) biosynthesis pathway. Therefore, if WTA synthesis is compromised, PBP4 becomes dispersed throughout the entire cell membrane. The aim of this project was to identify the WTA precursor responsible for the septal recruitment of PBP4. In order to do so, inducible mutants of tarB and tarL genes in the background of NCTCPBP4-YFP were constructed allowing for the study of PBP4 localization in the presence and absence of these specific tar genes.With this work we were able to show that the absence of TarB or TarL leads to the delocalization of PBP4, indicating that TarL or a protein/WTA precursor whose localization/synthesis is dependent on TarL is responsible for the recruitment of PBP4.

Development of an experimental setup for metal cutting research

Analytical, numerical and experimental models have been developed over time to try to characterize and understand the metal cutting process by chip removal. A true knowledge of the cutting process by chip removal is required by the increasing production, by the quality requirements of the product and by the reduced production time, in the industries in which it is employed. In this thesis an experimental setup is developed to evaluate the forces and the temperature distribution in the tool according to the orthogonal cutting model conditions, in order to evaluate its performance and its possible adoption in future works. The experimental setup is developed in a CNC lathe and uses an orthogonal cutting configuration, in which thin discs fixed onto a mandrel are cut by the cutting insert. In this experimental setup, the forces are measured by a piezoelectric dynamometer while temperatures are measured by thermocouples placed juxtaposed to the side face of the cutting insert. Three different solutions are implemented and evaluated for the thermocouples attachment in the cutting insert: thermocouples embedded in thermal paste, thermocouples embedded in copper plate and thermocouples brazed in the cutting insert. From the tests performed in the experimental setup it is concluded that the adopted forces measurement technique shows a good performance. Regarding to the adopted temperatures measurement techniques, only the thermocouples brazed in the cutting insert solution shows a good performance for temperature measurement. The remaining solutions show contact problems between the thermocouple and the side face of the cutting insert, especially when the vibration phenomenon intensifies during the cut. It is concluded that the experimental setup does not present a sufficiently robust and reliable performance, and that it can only be used in future work after making improvements in the assembly of the thermocouples.

Machine diagnosis based on artificial immune systems

Nowadays, many of the manufactory and industrial system has a diagnosis system on top of it, responsible for ensuring the lifetime of the system itself. It achieves this by performing both diagnosis and error recovery procedures in real production time, on each of the individual parts of the system. There are many paradigms currently being used for diagnosis. However, they still fail to answer all the requirements imposed by the enterprises making it necessary for a different approach to take place. This happens mostly on the error recovery paradigms since the great diversity that is nowadays present in the industrial environment makes it highly unlikely for every single error to be fixed under a real time, no production stop, perspective. This work proposes a still relatively unknown paradigm to manufactory. The Artificial Immune Systems (AIS), which relies on bio-inspired algorithms, comes as a valid alternative to the ones currently being used. The proposed work is a multi-agent architecture that establishes the Artificial Immune Systems, based on bio-inspired algorithms. The main goal of this architecture is to solve for a resolution to the error currently detected by the system. The proposed architecture was tested using two different simulation environment, each meant to prove different points of views, using different tests. These tests will determine if, as the research suggests, this paradigm is a promising alternative for the industrial environment. It will also define what should be done to improve the current architecture and if it should be applied in a decentralised system.