Public service culture collections of microorganisms: are they important for biotechnology?

Microbiology as a scientific discipline recognised the need to preserve microorganisms for scientific studies establishing from its very beginning research culture collections (CC). Later on, to better serve different scientific fields and bioindustries with the increasing number of strains of scientific, medical, ecological and biotechnological importance public service CC were established with the specific aims to support their user communities. Currently, the more developed public service CC are recognised as microBiological Resources Centres (mBRC). mBRC are considered to be one of the key elements for sustainable international scientific infrastructure, which is necessary to underpin successful delivery of the benefits of biotechnology, whether within the health sector, the industrial sector or other sectors, and in turn ensure that these advances help drive economic growth. In more detail, mBRCs are defined by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) as service providers and repositories of the living cells, genomes of organisms, and information relating to heredity and functions of biological systems. mBRCs contain collections of culturable organisms (e.g., microorganisms, plant, animal cells), replicable parts of these (e.g. genomes, plasmids, virus, cDNAs), viable but not yet culturable organisms, cells and tissues, as well as database containing molecular, physiological and structural information relevant to these collections and related bioinformatics. Thus mBRCs are fundamental to harnessing and preserving the world’s microbial biodiversity and genetic resources and serve as an essential element of the infrastructure for research and development. mBRCs serve a multitude of functions and assume a range of shapes and forms. Some are large national centres performing a comprehensive role providing access to diverse organisms. Other centres play much narrower, yet important, roles supplying limited but crucial specialised resources. In the era of the knowledge-based bio-economy mBRCs are recognised as vital element to underpinning the biotechnology.

Cytotoxic evaluation of essential oil from Casearia sylvestris Sw on human cancer cells and erythrocytes

A Casearia sylvestris (Flacourtiaceae) é uma planta popularmente conhecida como "guaçatonga" e é usada por povos indígenas da América do sul (Brasil, Peru e Bolivia) no tratamento de muitas doenças, incluindo câncer. Estudos citotóxicos mostraram que esta planta apresenta um possível e interessante potencial antitumoral devido à presença de moléculas chamadas casearinas. Além disso, a composição do óleo essencial mostrou uma alta concentração de sesquiterpenos de alto potencial citotóxico. Neste trabalho, nós verificamos que o óleo essencial da C. sylvestris apresentou uma boa citotoxicidade seletiva contra as linhagens de células tumorais HeLa, A-549 and HT-29 (CD50 63,3, 60,7 e 90,6 µg.ml-1, respectivamente) quando comparada às células não-tumorais Vero (CD50 210,1 µg.ml-1) e macrófagos de camundongos (CD50 234,0 µg.ml-1). Além disso, o óleo causou hemólise em sete diferentes tipos de eritrócitos, indicando que a C. sylvestris precisa ser usada com cuidado. Também foram testados padrões de β-cariofileno e α-humuleno que mostraram citotoxicidade similar àquelas apresentadas pelo óleo, indicando que estes compostos podem ser os responsáveis pelos efeitos tóxicos que foram observados neste estudo.

Libellulidae (Insecta: Odonata) from Itapiracó reserve, Maranhão, Brazil: new records and species distribution information

In this work, I apply a simple protocol to species occurrence inventory of Odonata in a region of Maranhão state which has very few distributional records. Some relations between species occurrence and environmental characteristics are discussed, mainly in relation to the high occurrence of Erythemis. Eighteen new records are presented discussing the role of this approach to generate useful information for conservation purposes.

Modelo de conhecimento para intermediários de inovação com Crowdsourcing

Tese de Doutoramento em Tecnologias e Sistemas de Informação.

OPM3® Portugal project: information systems and technologies organizations: outcome analysis

Increasing the maturity in Project Management (PM) has become a goal for many organizations, leading them to adopt maturity models to assess the current state of its PM practices and compare them with the best practices in the industry where the organization is inserted. One of the main PM maturity models is the Organizational Project Management Maturity Model (OPM3®), developed by the Project Management Institute. This paper presents the Information Systems and Technologies organizations outcome analysis, of the assesses made by the OPM3® Portugal Project, identifying the PM processes that are “best” implemented in this particular industry and those in which it is urgent to improve. Additionally, a comparison between the different organizations’ size analyzed is presented.

Chemical composition of the essential oils from two subspecies of Protium heptaphyllum

Qualitative and quantitative analyses of the volatile constituents from resin of Protium heptaphyllum (Aubl.) Marchand subsp. ulei (Swat) Daly (PHU), and Protium heptaphyllum (Aubl.) Marchand subsp. heptaphyllum (PHH), Burseraceae were performed using GC-MS and GC-FID. The resins were collected around the city of Cruzeiro do Sul, state of Acre, Brazil. Essential oils from the two subspecies were extracted by hydrodistillation with a yield of 8.6% (PHU) and 11.3% (PHH); the main components were terpinolene (42.31%) and p-cymene (39.93%) for subspecies ulei (PHU) and heptaphyllum (PHH), respectively.

Cortisol, family coping and burden in informal caregivers of addicts

This study focuses on the prospective mediation role of family coping between burden and cortisol levels in informal caregivers of addicts as well as on the feasible use of two different ways to analyse the salivary cortisol levels. Participants were 120 Portuguese informal caregivers of addicts. The cortisol samples were collected at awakening, 45 minutes later and after a 30 minute presentation of images taken from the International Affective Picture System. Family coping and caregiver burden were measured using the Portuguese versions of the Caregiver Reaction Assessment, and the Family Crisis Oriented Personal Evaluation Scale. Cortisol samples were collected in salivettes and the results were computed in order to determine the Area Under the Curve scores (AUCg, AUCi). Results found family coping to be negatively correlated with burden and AUCg levels (i.e. overall intensity) and positively correlated with either AUCg and AUCi (i.e. change over time). The mediation model revealed that family coping was a partial mediator in the relationship between the burden and AUCg levels. Therefore, Family Coping appears to be an essential variable in understanding the stress response and should be considered in further studies and interventions. In addition, the use of two different formulas for calculating cortisol levels provided important new information concerning the relationship between cortisol, burden and family coping. It seems that burden has a more profound effect on the overall intensity of the neuroendocrine response to caregiver stress and not so much on the sensitivity of the system.

Modelação de processos e implementação de ferramentas de Planeamento e Controlo da Produção numa empresa de produção de resguardos de banho

Dissertação de mestrado em Engenharia Industrial

Tree communities of white-sand and terra-firme forests of the upper Rio Negro

The high tree diversity and vast extent of Amazonian forests challenge our understanding of how tree species abundance and composition varies across this region. Information about these parameters, usually obtained from tree inventories plots, is essential for revealing patterns of tree diversity. Numerous tree inventories plots have been established in Amazonia, yet, tree species composition and diversity of white-sand and terra-firme forests of the upper Rio Negro still remain poorly understood. Here, we present data from eight new one-hectare tree inventories plots established in the upper Rio Negro; four of which were located in white-sand forests and four in terra-firme forests. Overall, we registered 4703 trees > 10 cm of diameter at breast height. These trees belong to 49 families, 215 genera, and 603 species. We found that tree communities of terra-firme and white-sand forests in the upper Rio Negro significantly differ from each other in their species composition. Tree communities of white-sand forests show a higher floristic similarity and lower diversity than those of terra-firme forests. We argue that mechanisms driving differences between tree communities of white-sand and terra-firme forests are related to habitat size, which ultimately influences large-scale and long-term evolutionary processes.

Biomass production and essential oil yield from leaves, fine stems and resprouts using pruning the crown of Aniba canelilla (H.B.K.) (Lauraceae) in the Central Amazon

Aniba canelilla (H.B.K.) Mez. is a tree species from Amazon that produces essential oil. The oil extraction from its leaves and stems can be an alternative way to avoid the tree cutting for production of essential oil. The aim of this study was to analyse factors that may influence the essential oil production and the biomass of resprouts after pruning the leaves and stems of A. canelilla trees. The tree crowns were pruned in the wet season and after nine months the leaves and stems of the remaining crown and the resprouts were collected, in the dry season. The results showed that the essential oil yield and chemical composition differed among the stems, leaves and resprouts. The stems' essential oil production differed between the seasons and had a higher production in the resprouting stems than the old stems of the remaining crown. The production of essential oil and leaf biomass of resprouts were differently related to the canopy openness, indicating that light increases the production of the essential oil and decreases the biomass of resprouting leaves. This study revealed that plant organs differ in their essential oil production and that the canopy openness must be taken into account when pruning the A. canelilla tree crown in order to achieve higher oil productivity.

Toxicity and repellency of essential oils to Zabrotes subfasciatus (Boheman) (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Bruchinae) in Phaseolus vulgaris L

The effects of tangerine (Phaseolus vulgaris Blanco), lemon (Citrus medica limonum Lush), pear orange (Citrus sinensis L. Osbeck), red copaiba (Copaifera langsdorffii Desf.), rosemary (Baccharis dracunculifolia De Candole), Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus Labillardière and E. citriodora Hook), lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus Stapf.) and citronella (Cimbopogon nardus Linnaeus) oils at several concentrations on Zabrotes subfasciatus (Boheman) were studied. In toxicity tests, grains of Phaseolus vulgaris L. cv. Rajadinho were impregnated with oils and infested with adults of Z. subfasciatus up to 24 hours old. All tested oils were effective in reducing the viable egg-laying and adult emergence of this pest, in function of the concentrations used, highlighting E. citriodora and E. globulus oils which caused 100% effectiveness from 0.5 mL Kg-1 concentration. In repellency tests, two arenas consisting of plastic containers, connected symmetrically to a central box by two plastic tubes were used. In one of the boxes, untreated beans were placed and on the other ones beans treated with each oil concentration were used. In the central box, five couples of Z. subfasciatus were released. Grains of P. vulgaris treated with oils of E. citriodora, C. citratus and C. oleifera reduced the attraction percentage of Z. subfasciatus adults, while the E. globulus increased this percentage. The percentages of reduced viable eggs ranged from 17.9% (C. medica limonum) to 93.3% (C. nardus), while the reduction on the number of emerged insects was 23.9% and 95.9%, respectively for these same oils.

O erro médico na imprensa portuguesa: quando os pacientes fazem parte da notícia

Esta investigação aborda a qualidade da produção noticiosa sobre o erro médico, como um fator essencial na construção do conhecimento público sobre o tema, com o objetivo de compreender que características definem tal produção e até que ponto poderão ser explicadas pela periodicidade e orientação editorial dos jornais; que conceito de erro médico é veiculado pela produção noticiosa sobre o tema; e quais são os protagonistas no discurso jornalístico sobre o erro médico. Foram analisadas as edições de três jornais portugueses, de 2008 a 2011, resultando num corpus de 266 (4,2%) artigos, que foram classificados de acordo com as seguintes variáveis: as fontes de informação citadas (o seu estatuto e especialidade, no caso dos médicos); os temas que são tratados; as características de enquadramento da informação publicada (tom, género jornalístico; e a presença e número de fontes de informação). Pela análise de conteúdo quantitativa, apurou-se que esse tema está em crescimento, essencialmente com notícias de tom negativo e fontes de informação habitualmente identificadas. Não há evidência para afirmar que a periodicidade e a orientação editorial expliquem as variações dessas características, a não ser relativamente ao número de fontes citadas. Vigoram as notícias centradas nos resultados dos erros (mortes ou lesões), provocados por "erros de omissão" e por "erros de comissão", envolvendo uma diversidade de protagonistas: são, tal como acontece na informação sobre saúde em geral, fontes oficiais e especializadas do campo da saúde. Destacam-se os médicos e os juristas e é dado relevo aos pacientes.

Essential oils of the Sextonia rubra (Mez ) van der Werff (Lauraceae)

The essential oils of the leaves and branches of Sextonia rubra were obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by GC-FID and GC-MS. In the leaves were identified as the major constituents α-pinene (21.7%), β-pinene (15.4%), α-copaene (12.5%) and germacrene D (12.1%). In the branches essential oil, α-copaene (22.9%), β-selinene (7.9%) and β-elemene (7.2%) were identified as the most abundant constituents. This paper describes for the first time the composition of these essential oils.

Habitar sem ver: a amplificação sensorial ao longo de um percurso entre o Largo Condessa do Juncal e a Veiga de Creixomil

Dissertação de mestrado integrado em Arquitectura (área de especialização em Cultura Arquitetónica)

Yield of essential oil and safrole content based on fresh and dry biomass of long pepper in the Brazilian Amazon

Long pepper (Piper hispidinervum) is an Amazonian species of commercial interest due to the production of safrole. Drying long pepper biomass to extract safrole is a time consuming and costly process that can also result in the contamination of the material by microorganisms. The objective of this study was to analyze the yield of essential oil and safrole content of fresh and dried biomass of long pepper accessions maintained in the Active Germoplasm Bank of Embrapa Acre, in the state of Acre, Brazil, aiming at selecting genotypes with best performance on fresh biomass to recommend to the breeding program of the species. Yield of essential oil and safrole content were assessed in 15 long pepper accessions. The essential oil extraction was performed by hydrodistillation and analyzed by gas chromatography. A joint analysis of experiments was performed and the means of essential oil yield and safrole content for each biomass were compared by Student's t-test. There was variability in the essential oil yield and safrole content. There was no difference between the types of biomass for oil yield; however to the safrole content there was difference. Populations 9, 10, 12 and 15 had values of oil yield between 4.1 and 5.3%, and safrole content between 87.2 and 94.3%. The drying process does not interfere in oil productivity. These populations have potential for selection to the long pepper breeding program using oil extraction in the fresh biomass