SISTAX - An intelligent tool for recovering information on natural products chemistry

This work describes the development of a new program, named SISTAX, for the expert system SISTEMAT. This program allows anyone interested in chemotaxonomy to carry out an intelligent search for organic compounds in databases through chemical structures. When coupled with can efficient encoding system, the program recognizes skeletal types and can find any substructural constraints demanded by the user. An example of an application of the program to the diterpene class found in plants is described.

A natural combinatorial chemistry strategy in acylpolyamine toxins from Nephilinae orb-web spiders

The present study shows how nature combined a small number of chemical building blocks to synthesize the acylpolyamine toxins in the venoms of Nephilinae orb-web spiders. Considering these structures in four parts, it was possible to rationalize a way to represent the natural combinatorial chemistry involved in the synthesis of these toxins: an aromatic moiety is connected through a linker amino acid to a polyamine chain, which in turn may be connected to an optional tail. The polyamine chains were classified into seven subtypes (from A to G) depending on the way the small chemical blocks are combined. These polyamine chains may be connected to one of the three possible chromophore moieties: 2,4-dihydroxyphenyl acetic acid, or 4-hydroxyindole acetic acid, or even with the indole acetic group. The connectivity between the aryl moiety and the polyamine chain is usually made through an asparagine residue; optionally a tail may be attached to the polyamine chain; nine different types of tails were identified among the 72 known acylpolyamine toxin structures. The combinations of three chromophores, two types of amino acid linkers, seven sub-types of polyamine backbone, and nine options of tails results in 378 different structural possibilities. However, we detected only 91 different toxin structures, which may represent the most successful structural trials in terms of efficiency of prey paralysis/death.

APPLICATIONS OF ARTIFICIAL-INTELLIGENCE IN ORGANIC-CHEMISTRY .17. NEW PROGRAMS IN THE SISTEMAT PROJECT

This work describes the new improvements of the SISTEMAT project, one system for structural elucidation mainly in the field of Natural Products Chemistry. Some examples of the resolution of problems using C-13 Nuclear Magnetic Resonance and Mass Spectroscopy are given. Programs to discover new heuristic rules for structure generation are discussed. The data base contains about 10000 C-13 NMR spectra.

Chemistry and pharmacology of some plants mentioned in the letter of Pero Vaz de Caminha

Brazil has a long tradition in the study of medicinal plants. When the Portuguese arrived to the new colony, Pero Vaz de Caminha, the scriber of the fleet, left the first impressions of the local and the inhabitants. He clearly mentions how the Indians use natural dye as tincture to paint their bodies. This article reviews the phytochemical and pharmacological characteristics of these colorants and other medicinal plants recently identified mentioned in this letter.

Interdisciplinaridade: concepções de professores da área ciências da natureza em formação em serviço

O objetivo do presente estudo foi investigar como os docentes da área de Ciências Naturais concebem o conceito de interdisciplinaridade e de que forma desenvolveriam um trabalho interdisciplinar a partir de um tema comum sugerido: o Efeito Estufa. Através de questionários dissertativos, os professores-alunos participantes de um projeto de formação em serviço (Pró-Ciências), expressaram suas concepções iniciais a respeito do tema. A análise das respostas obtidas levou-nos às seguintes conclusões: os professores entrevistados têm apenas concepções rudimentares de interdisciplinaridade e confundem este conceito com o de multidisciplinaridade. Afirmam que é possível trabalhar o conceito de Efeito Estufa de maneira interdisciplinar, mas não indicam metodologias adequadas para fazê-lo, devido à carência conceitual apontada anteriormente.

Mechanical behavior of natural fiber composites

The use of natural fibers as reinforcement in polymeric composites for technical applications has been a research subject of scientists during the last decade. There is a great interest in the application of sisal fiber as substitutes for glass fibers, motivated by potential advantages of weight saving, lower raw material price, and ecological advantages of using green resources which are renewable and biodegradable.Castor oil, a triglyceride vegetable that has hydroxyl groups, was reacted with 4,4' diphenylmethane diisocyanate (MDI) to produce the polyurethane matrix. Woven sisal fibers were used untreated and thermal treated at 60 C for 72h, and the composites were processed by compression molding.The present work study tensile behavior at four composites: dry sisal/polyurethane, humid sisal/polyurethane, dry sisal/phenolic and humid sisal/phenolic resin. The moisture content influences of sisal fibers on the mechanical behaviors were analyzed.Experimental results showed a higher tensile strength for the sisal/phenolic composites followed by sisal/polyurethane, respectively. In this research, sisal composites were also characterized by scanning electron microscopy. (C) 2011 Published by Elsevier Ltd. Selection and/or peer-review under responsibility of ICM11

Desenvolvimento de sistemas de screening automatizados para determinação de sulfonamidas em mel e procedimento limpo para a quantificação de sulfaquinoxalina em medicamentos veterinários

Pós-graduação em Química - IQ

Desenvolvimento de sensores baseados em eletrodos modificados com pentacianonitrosilferratos para determinação de compostos sulfurados em gás natural

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Formação continuada na perspectiva da racionalidade comunicativa: possibilidades de articulação entre literatura infantil e o ensino de ciências da natureza

Pós-graduação em Educação para a Ciência - FC

Ensino e aprendizagem de avaliação funcional descritiva na atuação profissional de professores de ciências no ensino fundamental

Pós-graduação em Educação para a Ciência - FC

Sólitons e gravitação

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

O cientificismo como obstáculo à compreensão ético-política da Psicologia

In separating the phenomena of their social, human, and ecological contexts, and by not taking into account intentional and valorative categories, natural-scientific methodologies impede the comprehension of some human activities which include values, chiefly ethical and political. In this context, scientism is the dogmatic and non-thematized acceptance of natural-scientific methods. From this point on, in the context of psychology, the aim of this paper is to demonstrate how scientism can function as an epistemological and methodological obstacle to an ethical and political understanding of psychology. Thus, at first, through reflections based on problems encountered in the literature on the subject, scientism's dogmas and some counterpoints are presented; some of its consequences are addressed, by taking up two examples from current literature - the labeling and the racial interpretations, and, finally, a program of research which deals with these problems is presented as an alternative: critical psychology.

Metabolômica, uma abordagem otimizada para exploração da biodiversidade brasileira: estado da arte, perspectivas e desafios

Brazilian biodiversity is a colossal source of secondary metabolites with remarkable structural features, which are valuable in further biodiscovery studies. In order to fully understand the relations and interactions of a living system with its surroundings, efforts in natural product chemistry are directed toward the challenge of detecting and identifying all the molecular components present in complex samples. It is plausible that this endeavor was born out of recent technological sophistication in secondary metabolite identification with sensitive spectroscopic instruments (MS and NMR) and higher resolving power of chromatographic systems, which allow a decrease in the amount of required sample and time to acquire data. Nevertheless, the escalation of data acquired in these analyses must be sorted with statistical and multi-way tools in order to select key information. Chromatography is also of paramount importance, more so when selected compounds need to be isolated for further investigation. However, in the course of pursuing a greener environment, new policies, with an aim to decrease the use of energy and solvents, are being developed and incorporated into analytical methods. Metabolomics could be an effective tool to answer questions on how living organisms in our huge biodiversity work and interact with their surroundings while also being strategic to the development of high value bio-derived products, such as phytotherapeutics and nutraceuticals. The incorporation of proper phytotherapeutics in the so-called Brazilian Unified Health System is considered an important factor for the urgent improvement and expansion of the Brazilian national health system. Furthermore, this approach could have a positive impact on the international interest toward scientific research developed in Brazil as well as the development of high value bio-derived products, which appear as an interesting economic opportunity in national and global markets. Thus, this study attempts to highlight the recent advances in analytical tools used in detection of secondary metabolites, which can be useful as bioproducts. It also emphasizes the potential avenues to be explored in Brazilian biodiversity, known for its rich chemical diversity.

As dificuldades para a gestão do PIBID a partir do olhar de coordenadores e colaboradores em subprojetos na Faculdade de Ciências Bauru: limites e possibilidades

The Institutional Program of Initiation to Teaching, the PIBID, has by its nature the training of teachers. Focused on graduate students, the PIBID acts as a proposal for training beyond the mandatory classes, giving to the students that are entering the program, a great opportunity to improve their training as a teacher. Thus, this work focuses on a discussion of the PIBID at the Faculty of Sciences UNESP Bauru, aimed at subprojects of graduate students linked to the areas of Natural Sciences, Mathematics, Physics, Biology and Chemistry, working in an interdisciplinary way. I interviewed five teachers (three area coordinators and two contributors) seeking to verify, in their view, the understanding about the program and what were the major difficulties in the training of teachers. For contributors teachers and coordinators of the subprojects, interdisciplinarity has a very important role in the training of new teachers, and the PIBID allows to work this concept more broadly than just in the mandatory classes. However, a program so big like the PIBID comes with problems and it is in this context that this study was conducted. Coordinator teachers and contributors of the subprojects identified flaws in the program that may affect the activities proposed in the institutional design