Fatores associados ao consumo de álcool e drogas entre estudantes universitários

OBJETIVO: Estudos recentes mostram o uso preocupante de álcool e drogas entre universitários. O objetivo do trabalho foi verificar o grau de associação entre o estilo de vida e situação socioeconômica e o uso de álcool, tabaco, medicamentos e "drogas ilícitas" nos últimos 12 meses entre universitários. MÉTODOS: A amostra compreendeu 926 alunos da área de Ciências Biológicas de uma universidade do Município de São Paulo, os quais responderam a questionário anônimo e de auto-preenchimento em 2000 e 2001. Foram utilizados os testes de análise de variância e qui-quadrado para verificar a correlação entre o uso de substâncias e as variáveis estudadas. RESULTADOS: Entre os alunos com alguma religião, o consumo de álcool foi de 83,1%, o de tabaco, 20,7% e o de "drogas ilícitas", 24,6%, nesse período. Entre os alunos que não possuíam religião, o consumo nas três categorias foi superior nos últimos 12 meses: álcool (89,3%), tabaco (27,7%) e "drogas ilícitas" (37,7%). A renda familiar mensal mostrou-se relacionada ao uso de álcool e "drogas ilícitas" (p<0,001 para ambos). Os alunos que utilizaram tabaco e "drogas ilícitas" apresentavam mais horas livres nos dias úteis do que os alunos que não fumavam no período analisado (p=0,033 e p=0,008, respectivamente). CONCLUSÕES: O consumo de substâncias psicoativas entre os alunos estudados foi comum, indicando a necessidade de implementação de medidas para reduzir tal consumo. Alunos com renda familiar alta e sem religião podem ser considerados com maior risco de consumo de drogas nessa população.

Influência da Motilidade Gastrintestinal no processo de desintegração de comprimidos

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

The Yellow-­crowned Night Heron Nyctanassa violacea (Aves: Pelecaniformes: Ardeidae) in the Azores and Madeira Archipelagos: a new species for the Western Palearctic

This paper presents and describes the first confirmed occurrence of the Yellow-crowned Night Heron Nyctanassa violacea in the Azores, which also represents the first record for Europe and the Western Palearctic. We also present and discuss subsequent reports of the species in Macaronesia. Several hypotheses may help to explain the occurrence of this species in this part of the Atlantic, including disorientation caused by strong winds and increasing observation pressure. However, further studies are necessary to assess the part played by the different factors in the occurrence of new vagrant individuals/species in Macaronesia.

Daytime dive characteristics from six short-finned pilot whales Globicephala macrorhynchus off Madeira Island

Six time-depth recorders attached with suction-cups were deployed in resident and transient adult short-finned pilot whales to evaluate their daytime diving characteristics in their preferred habitat area off Madeira Island. Here, data on the proportion of time spent at the surface and at different dive phases (descent, bottom and ascent), dive depths and dive rates are presented. With mean attachment durations of 2 h 31 min (SD=2 h), the whales spent a considerable amount of time at the surface (mean=76.3%, SD=18.6) and presented a low diving rate (mean=6.8 dives h‾¹, SD=6.1; considering dive as submergence deeper than 10 m). The maximum dive depth recorded in this study was 988 m, and dives deeper than 500 m, which were recorded from resident and transient whales, suggest foraging activity along their preferred habitat area. The analysis of dives deeper than 100 m shows that the percentage of time spent on descent, bottom or ascent varied between dives, with means of ~40, 30 and 30%, respectively.

Lipid extractions from marine deep-sea invertebrates : modifications to the Bligh & Dyer method to increase lipid yields

The deep-sea environment is difficult to sample, and often only small quantities of samples can be obtained when using less destructive methods than dredging. When working with marine animals that are difficult to sample and with limited quantities of tissue to extract lipids, it is essential to ensure that the used method extracts the maximum possible quantity of lipids. This study evaluates the efficiency of introducing modifications to the method originally described by Bligh & Dyer (1959). This lipid extraction method is broadly used with modifications, although these usually lack proper description and evaluation of increment in lipids. In this study we consider the improvement in terms of amount of lipids extracted by changing the method. Lipid content was determined by gravimetric measurements in eight invertebrates from the deep-sea, including deep-sea hydrothermal vents animals, using three different approaches. Results show increases of 14% to 30% in lipid contents obtained from hydrothermal vent invertebrate tissues and whole animals by placing the samples in methanol for 24 hours before applying the Bligh & Dyer mixture. Efficiency of the extractions using frozen and freeze-dried samples was also compared. For large sponges, the use of lyophilized materials resulted in increases of 3 to 7 times more lipids extracted when compared with extractions using frozen samples.

A new species of Malacoctenus from the Cape Verde Islands, eastern Atlantic (Pisces Teleostei, Labrisomidae)

Malacoctenus carrowi is described on the basis of three specimens from the Cape Verde Islands. The species is most similar to the only other eastern Atlantic species of the same genus, Malacoctenus africanus Cadenat, 1951. M. carrowi differs in colouration, a more elongated body, longer snout length, lower lateral line scale count and the absence of scales on the breast and is probably endemic to the Cape Verde Islands. A key to the Atlantic species of Malacoctenus is provided.

Efficiency of sampling methods and effort to assess arthropod diversity in Azorean native forests

The BALA project (Biodiversity of Arthropods of Laurisilva of the Azores) is a research initiative to quantify the spatial distribution of arthropod biodiversity in native forests of the Azores archipelago. Arthropods were collected using a combination of two techniques, targeting epigean (ground dwelling) and canopy (arboreal) arthropods: pitfall traps (with Turquin and Ethylene solutions) and beating samples (using the three most dominant plant species). A total of 109 transects distributed amongst 18 forest fragments in seven of the nine Azorean islands were used in this study. The performance of alternative sampling methods and effort were tested. No significant differences were found in the accumulated number of species captured whether an alternative method was used or whether another transect with similar effort was established in another location within the same fragment. A combination of Ethylene and Turquin traps captured more species per individual, Turquin and beating captured more species per sample, and Turquin captured more species per unit time. An optimization exercise was performed and we found that the protocol applied during recent years is very close to optimal, allowing its future replication with confidence. The minimum combinations of sampling effort and methods, in order to monitor or to inventory diversity, taking into account different proportions of sample completeness are discussed.

Long-term monitoring across elevational gradients to assess ecological hypothesis : a description of standardized sampling methods in oceanic islands and first results

We are launching a long-term study to characterize the biodiversity at different elevations in several Azorean Islands. Our aim is to use the Azores as a model archipelago to answer the fundamental question of what generates and maintains the global spatial heterogeneity of diversity in islands and to be able to understand the dynamics of change across time. An extensive, standardized sampling protocol was applied in most of the remnant forest fragments of five Azorean Islands. Fieldwork followed BRYOLAT methodology for the collection of bryophytes, ferns and other vascular plant species. A modified version of the BALA protocol was used for arthropods. A total of 70 plots (10 m x 10 m) are already established in five islands (Flores, Pico, São Jorge, Terceira and São Miguel), all respecting an elevation step of 200 m, resulting in 24 stations examined in Pico, 12 in Terceira, 10 in Flores, 12 in São Miguel and 12 in São Jorge. The first results regarding the vascular plants inventory include 138 vascular species including taxa from Lycopodiophyta (N=2), Pteridophyta (N=27), Pinophyta (N=2) and Magnoliophyta (N=107). In this contribution we also present the main research question for the next six years within the 2020 Horizon.

Seven invertebrates new for the marine fauna of Madeira Archipelago

Ocaña and den Hartog (2002) recorded 18 species of sea anemones from Madeira archipelago. During SCUBA dives along the coasts of Madeira and Porto Santo, the present author encountered a further three sea anemone species and several other marine invertebrates not yet recorded for the marine fauna of Madeira Island. Similar to previous publications (e.g. Wirtz 1998, Wirtz 2007, Ocaña & Wirtz 2009), these findings are reported here.

New data on hoverflies (Diptera: Syrphidae) from the Azorean island Pico (Portugal)

The hoverfly fauna of the Azores currently comprises 23 species (Smit 2010), but the current state of knowledge concerning these species differs for each island. In the year 1938, R. Frey and R. Storå recorded the first seven hoverfly species on Pico Island (Frey 1945), and these very same ones were still mentioned by Rojo et al. (1997). Smit (2010) added one more species to this list (Table 1). In the summer of 2014, the author of this article sampled hoverflies on Pico Island in several habitats. In this paper, the results will be presented.

A sea urchin (Diadema africanum Rodriguez et al., 2013) and a pipe fish (Syngnathus phlegon Risso, 1827) : two new records for the Azores

Maciel & Costa (2010) reported the presence of 17 species of costal sea urchins (Echinoidea) in the Azores, while Porteiro et al. (2010) reported six species of pipefishes (Syngnathidae) for the area. During SCUBA diving at Santa Maria Island, the first author detected a sea urchin and a pipe fish which are new to the marine fauna of the Azores.

Biodisponibilidade ambiental de iodo e iodúrias em crianças de Santa Maria e São Miguel, Açores

Dissertação de Mestrado, Ciências Biomédicas, 14 de Outubro de 2015, Universidade dos Açores.

Depleção do DNA mitocondrial (mtDNA) em leucócitos de doentes com doença Machado-Joseph : um estudo piloto

Dissertação de Mestrado, Ciências Biomédicas, 5 de Outubro de 2015, Universidade dos Açores.

Formação contínua: relatos e reflexões

Neste volume, intitulado “FORMAÇÃO CONTÍNUA: RELATOS E REFLEXÕES”, reúnem-se diversos tipos de documentos produzidos no âmbito do projeto “Qualificação dos Professores em Países Lusófonos” (Programa EU-ACP – EDULINK – ID Number 9 – ACP – RPR – 118#28) – que decorreu entre 31 de dezembro de 2008 e 31 de dezembro de 2011. O objetivo do projeto foi o de “dotar as Instituições do Ensino Superior (IES) de competências que lhes permitissem desenvolver um programa de formação contínua (FC) de professores para o Ensino Básico, de qualidade e culturalmente específico, em países onde o Português é a língua de ensino”. Participaram no projeto as Escolas Superiores de Educação de Lisboa e de Viana do Castelo (Portugal), a Universidade de Cabo Verde (Cabo Verde), o Instituto Superior Politécnico (São Tomé e Príncipe), a Universidade Pedagógica (Moçambique) e a Universidade Nacional de Timor (Timor Lorosae). A ONGD portuguesa Engenho e Obra participou com o estatuto de “associada”. De entre todas as ações desenvolvidas devem destacar-se os Seminários realizados em Portugal (Lisboa e Viana do Castelo), Cabo Verde (Cidade da Praia) e Moçambique (Maputo), intercalados com Visitas Intercalares às IES participantes. De realçar também, que cada IES desenvolveu, no seu país, um Programa de Formação Contínua de Professores. Constituiu- se ainda uma rede de aprendizagem online onde todos os materiais científicos e pedagógicos desenvolvidos foram disponibilizados. Trabalharam-se quatro áreas de formação: Qualidade da Educação e Desenvolvimento (QED); Ensino das Ciências (EC); Ensino da Matemática (EM); e Tecnologias da Informação e Comunicação (TIC). Este volume divide-se em três partes: – Na primeira, estão contidos os documentos estruturantes do projeto – o Sumário Executivo e o Quadro Lógico. Estes representam a filosofia subjacente e as ações que foram previstas e implementadas; – Na segunda, incluem-se textos de cada uma das quatro áreas de formação (QED; EC; EM; TIC), produzidos pelos participantes e que procuram ou relatar experiências e boas-práticas desenvolvidas durante a 6 Formação contínua – relatos e reflexões implementação local dos programas de formação contínua ou contextualizar a formação com reflexão teórico-prática adicional; – Na terceira, estão textos de conferências proferidas nos três Seminários e que procuraram contextualizar alguns dos problemas relativos aos processos e modelos de formação de professores, frequentemente com uma preocupação de estudo mais aprofundado da realidade dos países onde os Seminários decorreram. – Em anexo apresentam-se, os Planos de Trabalho que foram seguidos nos Seminários bem como uma lista de participantes. Os conteúdos dos textos são de exclusiva responsabilidade dos autores.

Cold-water coral communities in the Azores : diversity, habitat and conservation

Tese de Doutoramento, Ciências do Mar (especialidade em Ecologia Marinha), 11 de Setembro de 2015, Universidade dos Açores.