Estratégias de obtenção do corante do jambo vermelho (Syzygium malaccense) e avaliação de sua funcionalidade

The food industry is interested in natural products. Anthocyanins are phenolic antioxidants of great importance with health-relevant applications. Several studies have linked the intake of fruits and vegetables with reduced risk of chronic degenerative diseases because of its antioxidant properties. This study aimed to compare different strategies for obtaining natural pigments from red jambo (Syzygium malaccence) and analyze its functional potential. Two different strategies were studied: (1) solid-liquid extraction (SLE) in reactor with controlled parameters, (2) powder obtention. The investigation of the functional potential was conducted taking into account the total phenolic content (TPC), the antioxidant activity (AA), the total anthocyanins concentration (TA) and α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibition. The best extracts obtained by SLE showed TPC of 174.15 mg GAE/100g, AA of 3.56 μmol Trolox eq/g and TA of 133.59 mg cyd-3-glu/100 g. The best results for the second strategy were TPC of 1024.22 mg GAE/100 g, AA of 29.03 μmol Trolox eq/g and TA of 1193.41 mg cyd-3- glu/100 g. It was observed moderate amylase inhibition (26.30%) and high glucosidase inhibitory activity (97.47%). Skin extracts showed, in general, superior results when compared to whole red jambo, with superior values for dehydrated products. Based on our result, red jambo can be considered as a rich source of phenolic antioxidants, as well on amylase and glucosidase inhibitors

Avaliação da capacidade de adsorção do CO2 em zeólita 12X com gases sintéticos e originados da pirólise do lodo de esgoto

This work depicts a study of the adsorption of carbon dioxide on zeolite 13X. The activities were divided into four stages: study batch adsorption capacity of the adsorbent with synthetic CO2 (4%), fixed bed dynamic evaluation with the commercial mixture of gases (4% CO2, 1.11% CO, 1 2% H2, 0.233% CH4, 0.1% C3, 0.0233% C4 argon as inert closing balance), fixed bed dynamic modeling and evaluation of the breakthrough curve of CO2 originated from the pyrolysis of sewage sludge. The sewage sludge and the adsorbent were characterized by analysis TG / DTA, SEM, XRF and BET. Adsorption studies were carried out under the following operating conditions: temperature 40 °C (for the pyrolysis of the sludge T = 600 °C), pressures of 0.55 to 5.05 bar (batch process), flow rate of the gaseous mixture between 50 - 72 ml/min and the adsorbent masses of 10, 15 and 20 g (fixed bed process). The time for the adsorption batch was 7 h and on the fixed bed was around 180 min. The results of this study showed that in batch adsorption process step with zeolite 13X is efficient and the mass of adsorbed CO2 increases with the increases pressure, decreases with temperature increases and rises due the increase of activation temperature adsorbent. In the batch process were evaluated the breakthrough curves, which were compared with adsorption isotherms represented by the models of Langmuir, Freündlich and Toth. All models well adjusted to the experimental points, but the Langmuir model was chosen in view of its use in the dynamic model does not have implications for adsorption (indeterminacy and larger number of parameters such as occurred with others) in solving the equation. In the fixed bed dynamic study with the synthetic gas mixture, 20 g of mass adsorbent showed the maximum adsorption percentage 46.7% at 40 °C temperature and 50 mL/min of flow rate. The model was satisfactorily fitted to the three breakthrough curves and the parameters were: axial dispersion coefficient (0.0165 dm2/min), effective diffusivity inside the particle (dm2/min 0.0884) and external transfer coefficient mass (0.45 dm/min). The breakthrough curve for CO2 in the process of pyrolysis of the sludge showed a fast saturation with traces of aerosols presents in the gas phase into the fixed bed under the reaction process

Recuperação e purificação de quitosanases usando adsorção em leito expandido com streamline DEAE com modelagem e simulação usando redes neurais

Expanded Bed Adsorption (EBA) is an integrative process that combines concepts of chromatography and fluidization of solids. The many parameters involved and their synergistic effects complicate the optimization of the process. Fortunately, some mathematical tools have been developed in order to guide the investigation of the EBA system. In this work the application of experimental design, phenomenological modeling and artificial neural networks (ANN) in understanding chitosanases adsorption on ion exchange resin Streamline® DEAE have been investigated. The strain Paenibacillus ehimensis NRRL B-23118 was used for chitosanase production. EBA experiments were carried out using a column of 2.6 cm inner diameter with 30.0 cm in height that was coupled to a peristaltic pump. At the bottom of the column there was a distributor of glass beads having a height of 3.0 cm. Assays for residence time distribution (RTD) revelead a high degree of mixing, however, the Richardson-Zaki coefficients showed that the column was on the threshold of stability. Isotherm models fitted the adsorption equilibrium data in the presence of lyotropic salts. The results of experiment design indicated that the ionic strength and superficial velocity are important to the recovery and purity of chitosanases. The molecular mass of the two chitosanases were approximately 23 kDa and 52 kDa as estimated by SDS-PAGE. The phenomenological modeling was aimed to describe the operations in batch and column chromatography. The simulations were performed in Microsoft Visual Studio. The kinetic rate constant model set to kinetic curves efficiently under conditions of initial enzyme activity 0.232, 0.142 e 0.079 UA/mL. The simulated breakthrough curves showed some differences with experimental data, especially regarding the slope. Sensitivity tests of the model on the surface velocity, axial dispersion and initial concentration showed agreement with the literature. The neural network was constructed in MATLAB and Neural Network Toolbox. The cross-validation was used to improve the ability of generalization. The parameters of ANN were improved to obtain the settings 6-6 (enzyme activity) and 9-6 (total protein), as well as tansig transfer function and Levenberg-Marquardt training algorithm. The neural Carlos Eduardo de Araújo Padilha dezembro/2013 9 networks simulations, including all the steps of cycle, showed good agreement with experimental data, with a correlation coefficient of approximately 0.974. The effects of input variables on profiles of the stages of loading, washing and elution were consistent with the literature

Impactos do estresse salino e da cobertura morta nas características químicas do solo e no desenvolvimento do amaranto

Availability of good quality water has been reduced vertiginously, over the last decade, in the world. In some regions, the water resources have high concentration of the dissolved salts, these characteristics of the water make it s use impossible. Water quality can be a limitation for irrigated agriculture, principally in regions of arid or semiarid climate where the water resources are generally saline and are exposed at high evaporation ratio. For that reason, precipitation of the salts occurs near the soil surface and those salts themselves cumulate in the vegetal tissue, reducing the soil fertility and crop production. The adoption of tolerant crop to the water salinity and soil salinity, adaptable to the climatic conditions is other emergent necessity. This work had the goal of studying the effects of four salinity levels of the irrigation water salinity and use of mulch, dried leaves of Forest mangrove (Acacia mangiumWilld), in cultivated soil with amaranth (Amaranthus cruentus, BRS Alegria variety), in greenhouse. It was utilized the transplant of plants to PVC columns, containing 30 kg of silty loam soil, 10 days after emerging, with space of 50 x 50 cm between lines. Treatments were composed by combination of four levels of salinity (0.147; 1.500; 3.000 e 4.500 dS m-1), obtained by addition NaCl (commercial) to irrigation water and soil with and without protection, by mulch. A factorial system 4 x 2 was used with four repetitions, totalizing 32 parcels. The concentrations of nutrients in soil solution have been evaluated, in the dry matter of the vegetal tissue (roots, stem, leaves and raceme residue), at the end of the vegetative cycle. The use of soil protection reduced time for the beginning inflorescence of plants, at the same time, the increase of the salinity delayed this phase of amaranth development. The use of the mulch effectively increased the height, stem diameter, area of the larger leaf, humidity and dry matter content and amaranth grain production. The vegetal species showed salinity tolerance to experimented levels. The adopted treatments did not affect the pH values, exchangeable cation contents, electrical conductivity of soil solution (EC1:5) and saturated extract (ECSE), and Ca+2, Mg+, Fe+2 and Mn+2 contents, in the soil solution. The increase of the salinity concentration in the irrigation water inhibited the mineralization process of the organic matter (OM) and, consequently, the efficiency in the it´s utilization by plants, at the same time, produced increase in the values of the exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP), sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) and potassium adsorption ratio (PAR), in the soil solution. Therefore, the use of the mulch did not affect the first three parameters. The protein and nutrient contents: K+, Ca+2, P, Mg+2 e Cu+2, in amaranth grains, were improved by tillage condition. The raceme residues showed chemical/nutritional composition that makes advantageous its application in animal ration. In this context, it follows that amaranth tolerate the saline stress, of the irrigation water, until 4.500 dS m-1, temperature and relative humidity of the air predominant in the experimental environment

Estudo de uma coluna de absorção recheada para desidratação do gás natural utilizando microemulsão como absorvente

During natural gas processing, water removal is considered as a fundamental step in that combination of hydrocarbons and water favors the formation of hydrates. The gas produced in the Potiguar Basin (Brazil) presents high water content (approximately 15000 ppm) and its dehydration is achieved via absorption and adsorption operations. This process is carried out at the Gas Treatment Unit (GTU) in Guamaré (GMR), in the State of Rio Grande do Norte. However, it is a costly process, which does not provide satisfactory results when water contents as low as 0.5 ppm are required as the exit of the GTU. In view of this, microemulsions research is regarded as an alternative to natural gas dehydration activities. Microemulsions can be used as desiccant fluids because of their unique proprieties, namely solubilization enhancement, reduction in interfacial tensions and large interfacial area between continuous and dispersed phases. These are actually important parameters to ensure the efficiency of an absorption column. In this work, the formulation of the desiccant fluid was determined via phases diagram construction, employing there nonionic surfactants (RDG 60, UNTL L60 and AMD 60) and a nonpolar fluid provided by Petrobras GMR (Brazil) typically comprising low-molecular weight liquid hydrocarbons ( a solvent commonly know as aguarrás ). From the array of phases diagrams built, four representative formulations have been selected for providing better results: 30% RDG 60-70% aguarrás; 15% RDG 60-15% AMD 60-70% aguarrás, 30% UNTL L60-70% aguarrás, 15% UNTL L60-15% AMD 60-70% aguarrás. Since commercial natural gas is already processed, and therefore dehydrated, it was necessary to moister some sample prior to all assays. It was then allowed to cool down to 13ºC and interacted with wet 8-12 mesh 4A molecular sieve, thus enabling the generation of gas samples with water content (approximately 15000 ppm). The determination of the equilibrium curves was performed based on the dynamic method, which stagnated liquid phase and gas phase at a flow rate of 200 mL min-1. The hydrodynamic study was done with the aim of established the pressure drop and dynamic liquid hold-up. This investigation allowed are to set the working flow rates at 840 mL min-1 for the gas phase and 600 mLmin-1 for the liquid phase. The mass transfer study indicated that the system formed by UNTL L60- turpentine-natural gas the highest value of NUT

Extração supercrítica do óleo de linhaça: construção do extrator, estudo de parâmetros de processo, avaliação química e antioxidante do produto

The aim of the present study was to extract vegetable oil from brown linseed (Linum usitatissimum L.), determine fatty acid levels, the antioxidant capacity of the extracted oil and perform a rapid economic assessment of the SFE process in the manufacture of oil. The experiments were conducted in a test bench extractor capable of operating with carbon dioxide and co-solvents, obeying 23 factorial planning with central point in triplicate, and having process yield as response variable and pressure, temperature and percentage of cosolvent as independent variables. The yield (mass of extracted oil/mass of raw material used) ranged from 2.2% to 28.8%, with the best results obtained at 250 bar and 50ºC, using 5% (v/v) ethanol co-solvent. The influence of the variables on extraction kinetics and on the composition of the linseed oil obtained was investigated. The extraction kinetic curves obtained were based on different mathematical models available in the literature. The Martínez et al. (2003) model and the Simple Single Plate (SSP) model discussed by Gaspar et al. (2003) represented the experimental data with the lowest mean square errors (MSE). A manufacturing cost of US$17.85/kgoil was estimated for the production of linseed oil using TECANALYSIS software and the Rosa and Meireles method (2005). To establish comparisons with SFE, conventional extraction tests were conducted with a Soxhlet device using petroleum ether. These tests obtained mean yields of 35.2% for an extraction time of 5h. All the oil samples were sterilized and characterized in terms of their composition in fatty acids (FA) using gas chromatography. The main fatty acids detected were: palmitic (C16:0), stearic (C18:0), oleic (C18:1), linoleic (C18:2n-6) and α-linolenic (C18:3n-3). The FA contents obtained with Soxhlet dif ered from those obtained with SFE, with higher percentages of saturated and monounsaturated FA with the Soxhlet technique using petroleum ether. With respect to α-linolenic content (main component of linseed oil) in the samples, SFE performed better than Soxhlet extraction, obtaining percentages between 51.18% and 52.71%, whereas with Soxhlet extraction it was 47.84%. The antioxidant activity of the oil was assessed in the β-carotene/linoleic acid system. The percentages of inhibition of the oxidative process reached 22.11% for the SFE oil, but only 6.09% for commercial oil (cold pressing), suggesting that the SFE technique better preserves the phenolic compounds present in the seed, which are likely responsible for the antioxidant nature of the oil. In vitro tests with the sample displaying the best antioxidant response were conducted in rat liver homogenate to investigate the inhibition of spontaneous lipid peroxidation or autooxidation of biological tissue. Linseed oil proved to be more efficient than fish oil (used as standard) in decreasing lipid peroxidation in the liver tissue of Wistar rats, yielding similar results to those obtained with the use of BHT (synthetic antioxidant). Inhibitory capacity may be explained by the presence of phenolic compounds with antioxidant activity in the linseed oil. The results obtained indicate the need for more detailed studies, given the importance of linseed oil as one of the greatest sources of ω3 among vegetable oils

Distribuição ambiental e temporal das comunidades de macroalgas de riachos da Serra da Prata, Estado do Paraná, Sul do Brasil

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Estudo de manejo de águas pluviais urbanas na cidade Natal-Rio Grande do Norte

Urban stormwater can be considered as potential water resources as well as problems for the proper functioning of the manifold activities of the city, resulting from inappropriate use and occupation of the soil, usually due to poor planning of the occupation of the development areas, with little care for the environmental aspects of the drainage of surface runoff. As a basic premise, we must seek mechanisms to preserve the natural flow in all stages of development of an urban area, preserving the soil infiltration capacity in the scale of the urban area, comprising the mechanisms of natural drainage, and noting preserving natural areas of dynamic water courses, both in the main channel and in the secondary. They are challenges for a sustainable urban development in a harmonious coexistence of modern developmental, which are consistent with the authoritative economic environmental and social quality. Integrated studies involving the quantity and quality of rainwater are absolutely necessary to achieve understanding and obtaining appropriate technologies, involving both aspects of the drainage problems and aspects of use of water when subjected to an adequate management of surface runoff , for example, the accumulation of these reservoirs in detention with the possibility of use for other purposes. The purpose of this study aims to develop a computer model, adjusted to prevailing conditions of an experimental urban watershed in order to enable the implementation of management practices for water resources, hydrological simulations of quantity and, in a preliminary way, the quality of stormwater that flow to a pond located at the downstream end of the basin. To this end, we used in parallel with the distributed model SWMM data raised the basin with the highest possible resolution to allow the simulation of diffuse loads, heterogeneous characteristics of the basin both in terms of hydrological and hydraulic parameters on the use and occupation soil. The parallel work should improve the degree of understanding of the phenomena simulated in the basin as well as the activity of the calibration models, and this is supported by monitoring data acquired during the duration of the project MAPLU (Urban Stormwater Management) belonging to the network PROSAB (Research Program in Basic Sanitation) in the years 2006 to 2008

Atividades experimentais no ensino de biologia em escolas públicas do estado do Rio Grande do Norte, Brasil: caracterização geral e concepção de professores

Recent research has revealed that the majority of Biology teachers believe the practice of experimental activities as a didactical means would be the solution for the improvement of the Biology teaching-learning process. There are, however, studies which signal the lack of efficiency in such practice lessons as far as building scientific knowledge is concerned. It is also said that despite the enthusiasm on the teachers‟ part, such classes are rarely taught in high school. Several studies point pedagogical difficulties as well as nonexistence of a minimal infrastructure needed in laboratories as cause of low frequency in experimental activities. The poor teacher performance in terms of planning and development of classes; the large number of students per class; lack of financial stimulus for teachers are other reasons to be taken into account among others, in which can also be included difficulties of epistemological nature. That means an unfavorable eye of the teacher towards experimental activities. Our study aimed to clarify if such scenario is generalized in high schools throughout the state of Rio Grande do Norte Brazil. During our investigation a sample of twenty teaching institutions were used. They were divided in two groups: in the first group, five IFRN- Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Rio Grande do Norte schools. Two of those in Natal, and the other three from the country side. The second group is represented by fifteen state schools belonging to the Natal metropolitan area. The objectives of the research were to label schools concerning laboratory facilities; to identify difficulties pointed by teachers when performing experiment classes, and to become familiar with the conceptions of the teachers in regarding biology experiment classes. To perform such task, a questionnaire was used as instrument of data collecting. It contained multiple choice, essay questions and a semi-structured interview with the assistance of a voice recorder. The data analysis and the in loco observation allowed the conclusion that the federal schools do present better facilities for the practice of experimental activities when compared to state schools. Another aspect pointed is the fact that teachers of federal schools have more time available for planning the experiments; they are also better paid and are given access a career development, which leads to better salaries. All those advantages however, do not show a significantly higher frequency regarding the development of experiments when compared to state school teachers. Both teachers of federal and state schools pointed infra-structure problems such as the availability of reactants, equipments and consumption supplies as main obstacle to the practice of experiments in biology classes. Such fact leads us to conclude that maybe there are other problems not covered by the questionnaire such as poor ability to plan and execute experimental activities. As far as conceptions about experimental activities, it was verified in the majority of the interviewees a inductive-empiric point of view of science possibly inherited during their academic formation and such point of view reflected on the way they plan and execute experiments with students

Capacidade cardiorrespiratória e distribuição de gordura corporal de mulheres com 50 anos ou mais

Verificar a relação entre capacidade cardiorrespiratória e gordura corporal em mulheres. Foram analisadas 229 mulheres com idade entre 50 e 84 anos. Foi realizada avaliação antropométrica e calculada a razão cintura/quadril, bem como o índice de conicidade. A capacidade cardiorrespiratória foi avaliada pelo teste de caminhada de seis minutos. Com o pedômetro foi possível avaliar: velocidade, comprimento da passada e total de passos. Os resultados foram distribuídos em quartil, e a comparação feita pela análise de variância com post-hoc. A relação entre teste de caminhada de seis minutos e a antropometria foi feita pela correlação de Pearson. Os resultados revelaram que mulheres com capacidade cardiorrespiratória no quartil4 apresentaram idade estatisticamente menor (p<0,05) que as do quartil1. As medidas antropométricas apresentaram valores menores (p<0,05), quando comparados os resultados dos quartis3 e 4 com os quartis1 e 2. Conclui-se que mulheres com maior tecido adiposo e acúmulo de gordura central apresentam menor capacidade cardiorrespiratória.

Capacidade funcional de hemiparéticos crônicos submetidos a um programa de fisioterapia em grupo

Este estudo tem como objetivos analisar a eficácia da fisioterapia em grupo sobre a marcha, o equilíbrio corporal e o risco de queda, e verificar se há correlação entre a capacidade funcional da marcha e o equilíbrio em indivíduos com hemiparesia crônica. Participaram do estudo 21 adultos hemiparéticos, com idade média de 58,9±10,6 anos, com seqüela de no mínimo 1 ano após acidente vascular encefálico isquêmico ou hemorrágico. Os sujeitos foram submetidos a um programa de 1 hora de fisioterapia em grupo duas vezes por semana durante seis meses. Foram avaliados por meio da escala de equilíbrio de Berg (EEB) e do teste de levantar e caminhar cronometrado TLCC (TUG, na sigla em inglês de timed up & go) antes do programa, após 13 e ao fim de 26 semanas. Os resultados mostram uma redução progressiva, embora não-significativa, no tempo de execução do TLCC e aumento progressivo, também não-significativo, do escore na EEB. Foi observada forte correlação entre as duas escalas (r=0,7, p<0,05). Assim, a terapia não foi efetiva para produzir melhora nos escores dos testes, mas contribuiu para manter a mobilidade.

Perfil demográfico e condições sanitárias dos idosos em área urbana do Sudeste do Brasil

São apresentadas séries históricas de indicadores demográficos e sanitários para a população com 60 anos e mais do Brasil, Estado de São Paulo e Município de Araraquara, de porte médio. em 1991, os idosos eram 7,8% da população brasileira e 9,7% de Araraquara, superando em número as crianças menores de 5 anos (8,9%). Aumentou o peso relativo do segmento com mais idade (70 anos e mais), que já representa 40% do total, assim como o índice de urbanização dos idosos, 93,7% no Estado e 96,3% no Município, acima da média da população em geral em 1991. As principais causas de morte são as doenças do aparelho circulatório (40% do total de óbitos) e os neoplasmas (15%). São sugeridas medidas para a assistência à saúde dos idosos: a) expansão da capacidade atual de atendimento, através do treinamento gerontológico de médicos generalistas e enfermeiros da rede pública e privada; b) incremento das atividades educativas já existentes, dirigidas aos idosos, profissionais da saúde e educadores do ensino médio; c) incremento do programa de visita domiciliar aos idosos e criação de hospital-dia para evitar internações necessárias e garantir a manutenção dos baixos níveis atuais de institucionalização em asilos (0,7% em Araraquara). A existência de pelo menos 35% dos idosos de Araraquara, com acesso à assistência privada à saúde, reforça a importância da inclusão desses serviços nos programas locais de saúde da terceira idade.

Estudo de propriedades críticas em sistemas complexos: método de procura automática em sistemas tipo Ising e percolação de longo alcance

The new technique for automatic search of the order parameters and critical properties is applied to several well-know physical systems, testing the efficiency of such a procedure, in order to apply it for complex systems in general. The automatic-search method is combined with Monte Carlo simulations, which makes use of a given dynamical rule for the time evolution of the system. In the problems inves¬tigated, the Metropolis and Glauber dynamics produced essentially equivalent results. We present a brief introduction to critical phenomena and phase transitions. We describe the automatic-search method and discuss some previous works, where the method has been applied successfully. We apply the method for the ferromagnetic fsing model, computing the critical fron¬tiers and the magnetization exponent (3 for several geometric lattices. We also apply the method for the site-diluted ferromagnetic Ising model on a square lattice, computing its critical frontier, as well as the magnetization exponent f3 and the susceptibility exponent 7. We verify that the universality class of the system remains unchanged when the site dilution is introduced. We study the problem of long-range bond percolation in a diluted linear chain and discuss the non-extensivity questions inherent to long-range-interaction systems. Finally we present our conclusions and possible extensions of this work

Orchid bee baits attracting bees of the genus Megalopta (Hymenoptera, Halictidae) in Bauru region, São Paulo, Brazil: abundance, seasonality, and the importance of odors for dim-light bees

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)