Insights into the role of almond CBF transcription factors in the environmental control of cold acclimation and dormancy break

Dissertation presented to obtain the Ph.D degree in Biology

Cutaneous Leiomyomatosis in a Mother and Daughter

A 34-year-old woman with no known medical history was evaluated for multiple painful brown nodules and papules on the anterior aspect of the trunk. She mentioned a history of similar cutaneous findings on her mother. Biopsies of three lesions revealed piloleiomyomata. Renal and adrenal ultrasound revealed an isolated simple cortical cyst, and pelvic and endovaginal ultrasound revealed two uterine myomata. The clinical diagnosis of hereditary leiomyomatosis and renal cell cancer was corroborated by the identification of a heterozygous variant on exon 5 of the fumarate hydratase gene (c.578C>T p.T193I). Identification of the tumor piloleiomyoma should alert the dermatologist to this rare genodermatosis, which is associated with an increased risk of renal cell tumors, demanding multidisciplinary follow-up, and personal and family counseling.

Neuropsychiatric Features of a Cohort of Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

In order to establish if neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus (NPSLE) can be identified by any characteristic other than those used to diagnose the neuropsychiatric (NP) disease itself, we retrospectively reviewed 98 systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients followed over a mean period of 10 years. NPSLE was identified in 22 patients. Stroke and generalized seizures were the most frequent NP manifestations. The NPSLE and non-NPSLE groups were similar with regard to demographic characteristics, ACR criteria, serum autoantibodies, and frequency of hypertension and hypercholesterolemia. Of note, compared to the non-NPSLE group, NPSLE was associated with a higher frequency of smoking (78 versus 26%), organ damage (73 versus 34%), and cumulative mortality rate (14 versus 7%). The series of patients was further analysed according to the presence of antiphospholipid syndrome (APS). Significantly, the interval between the onset of NP disease and SLE diagnosis was shorter in the APS(-) (0.3 ± 1 years) than in the APS(+) (5 ± 7 years) groups. Recurrence and/or persistence of NP events were only documented in the APS(-) group. Overall cumulative mortality was highest in NPSLE and in APS(+) patients with inadequate anticoagulation control, identifying an aspect that requires improved vigilance and the development of novel therapeutic modalities.

Examination of mycological samples by means of the scanning electron microscope

Three species of Siphomycetes: Rhizopus arhizus, Rhizopus equinus and Rhizopus nigricans, as well as a Septomycete: Emericella nidulans, have been examined by means of a scanning electron microscope. Among the difjerent Rhizopus, this technique showed differences in the appearance of the sporangia. In Emericella nidulans, scanning microscopy enábled one to ascertain that the "Hull cells" were completely hollow and also demonstrated the ornemented aspect of the ascospores.

Visitor behaviours and visitor effects: a case study on the white-crowned mangabey (cercocebus atys lunulatus) of ZSL London Zoo

Tese de mestrado em Antropologia, especialização natureza e conservação

Avaliação da satisfação dos utentes do Hospital de Dia de Especialidades Médicas do Hospital de Egas Moniz

RESUMO: A avaliação da satisfação dos utentes tem tido uma importância crescente na avaliação da qualidade em saúde e na orientação do planeamento e da gestão dos processos e dos recursos da saúde. Os Hospitais de Dia, unidades funcionais que se assumem como uma alternativa moderna à hospitalização tradicional, com maior eficiência e ganhos na qualidade assistencial dos utentes, devem também ser capazes de se auto-avaliar, de forma a detectarem os aspectos menos correctos da sua actuação e a procurar o aperfeiçoamento permanente de todos os aspectos do seu funcionamento. Este trabalho pretendeu avaliar o grau de satisfação dos utentes do Hospital de Dia das Especialidades Médicas do Hospital de Egas Moniz (HDEM), Centro Hospitalar de Lisboa Ocidental. O estudo, que obteve parecer favorável por parte da Comissão de Ética e foi autorizado pelo Conselho de Administração do Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Ocidental, foi um estudo descritivo transversal, utilizando uma perspectiva quantitativa. A amostra seleccionada foi de conveniência, constituída pelos utentes que utilizaram o HDEM num período de 14 dias úteis, 3 a 24 de Junho de 2011. As dimensões da satisfação que foram avaliadas foram a satisfação global, a qualidade global, a satisfação relativa aos profissionais de saúde, a satisfação relativa às instalações, a satisfação relativa aos serviços prestados e ainda a recomendação do serviço a familiares e amigos e os aspectos sócio-demográficos dos utentes do HDEM. Foi construído um questionário com 39 itens (38 de resposta fechada e uma de resposta aberta), agrupados em 13 questões. Para a sua construção foram consultados muitos outros questionários destinados a avaliar a satisfação dos utentes com a prestação dos serviços de saúde. O questionário foi submetido à apreciação por investigadores e outros profissionais, aperfeiçoado e pré-testado antes da sua utilização. A validação do questionário incluiu a determinação da consistência interna através do coeficiente alfa de Cronbach, que foi boa ou muito boa, e a determinação da validade, através do método de Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO), que foi boa ou muito boa. A amostra foi constituída por 136 indivíduos, 61,8% dos quais eram do sexo feminino. O grupo etário mais representado foi o das idades entre os 35 e os 44 anos, seguido dos grupo etário entre os 45 e os 54 anos e entre os 55 aos 64 anos. A maioria dos participantes eram casados ou a viver em união de facto, tinham o ensino secundário ou uma licenciatura e eram trabalhadores no activo. Os resultados do estudo permitiram concluir que os utentes do HDEM que fizeram parte do estudo apresentaram níveis elevados de satisfação em todos os aspectos avaliados. Os maiores níveis de satisfação dos utentes disseram respeito à actuação dos profissionais de saúde e os mais baixos, apesar de positivos, tiveram a ver com aspectos muito particulares das instalações físicas do HDEM, como as condições da sala de espera e as instalações sanitárias. Outro aspecto que motivou algumas críticas por parte dos utentes foi o horário de funcionamento, tendo havido sugestões para o seu alargamento.

Salvage Flexor Hallucis Longus Transfer for a Failed Achilles Repair: Endoscopic Technique

Flexor hallucis longus (FHL) transfer is a well-established treatment option in failed Achilles tendon (AT) repair and has been routinely performed as an open procedure. We detail the surgical steps needed to perform an arthroscopic transfer of the FHL for a chronic AT rupture. The FHL tendon is harvested as it enters in its tunnel beneath the sustentaculum tali; a tunnel is then drilled in the calcaneus as near to the AT footprint as possible. By use of a suture-passing device, the free end of the FHL is advanced to the plantar aspect of the foot. After adequate tension is applied to the construct, the tendon is fixed in place with an interference screw in an inside-out fashion. This minimally invasive approach is a safe and valid alternative to classic open procedures with the obvious advantages of preserving the soft-tissue envelope and using a biologically intact tendon.

MAC regenerative analysis of wireless Ad-Hoc networks

Dissertação apresentada na Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia da Universidade Nova de Lisboa para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Engenharia Electrotécnica e de Computadores

Nevirapine in an animal model of pre-diabetes: study of drug pharmacokinetic and its effects on fasting glycemia and insulin resistance

Dissertação para obtenção do Grau de Mestre em Biotecnologia

Attitude change in arbitrarily large organizations

The alignment of collective goals and individual behavior has been extensively studied by economists under a principal-agent framework. Two main solutions have been presented: explicit incentive contracts and monitoring. These solutions correspond to changes in the objective situation faced by individuals. However, an extensive literature in social psychology provides evidence that behavior is influenced, not only by situational constraints, but also by attitudes. Therefore, an important aspect of organization is to choose the structures and procedures that best contribute to the dissemination of the desired attitudes throughout the organization. This paper studies how the initial configuration of attitudes and the size of the organization affect the optimal organizational structure and the timing of information flows when the objective is to align the members' attitudes. We identify and characterize three factors that affect the optimal organizational structures and procedures and the degree of alignment of attitudes: (1) clustering effects; (2) member cross-influence effects; and (3) leader cross-influence effects.

The Edges of Areal Units: a case study in the heterogeneous effects of assessment district edges

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Geospatial Technologies

Using epidemiological survey data to infer geographic distributions of leishmaniasis vector species

An important aspect of tropical medicine is analysis of geographic aspects of risk of disease transmission, which for lack of detailed public health data must often be reduced to an understanding of the distributions of critical species such as vectors and reservoirs. We examine the applicability of a new technique, ecological niche modeling, to the challenge of understanding distributions of such species based on municipalities in the state of São Paulo in which a group of 5 Lutzomyia sandfly species have been recorded. The technique, when tested based on independent occurrence data, yielded highly significant predictions of species' distributions; minimum sample sizes for effective predictions were around 40 municipalities.

Design and development of a microfluidic platform for use with colorimetric gold nanoprobe assays

Due to the importance and wide applications of the DNA analysis, there is a need to make genetic analysis more available and more affordable. As such, the aim of this PhD thesis is to optimize a colorimetric DNA biosensor based on gold nanoprobes developed in CEMOP by reducing its price and the needed volume of solution without compromising the device sensitivity and reliability, towards the point of care use. Firstly, the price of the biosensor was decreased by replacing the silicon photodetector by a low cost, solution processed TiO2 photodetector. To further reduce the photodetector price, a novel fabrication method was developed: a cost-effective inkjet printing technology that enabled to increase TiO2 surface area. Secondly, the DNA biosensor was optimized by means of microfluidics that offer advantages of miniaturization, much lower sample/reagents consumption, enhanced system performance and functionality by integrating different components. In the developed microfluidic platform, the optical path length was extended by detecting along the channel and the light was transmitted by optical fibres enabling to guide the light very close to the analysed solution. Microfluidic chip of high aspect ratio (~13), smooth and nearly vertical sidewalls was fabricated in PDMS using a SU-8 mould for patterning. The platform coupled to the gold nanoprobe assay enabled detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis using 3 8l on DNA solution, i.e. 20 times less than in the previous state-of-the-art. Subsequently, the bio-microfluidic platform was optimized in terms of cost, electrical signal processing and sensitivity to colour variation, yielding 160% improvement of colorimetric AuNPs analysis. Planar microlenses were incorporated to converge light into the sample and then to the output fibre core increasing 6 times the signal-to-losses ratio. The optimized platform enabled detection of single nucleotide polymorphism related with obesity risk (FTO) using target DNA concentration below the limit of detection of the conventionally used microplate reader (i.e. 15 ng/μl) with 10 times lower solution volume (3 μl). The combination of the unique optical properties of gold nanoprobes with microfluidic platform resulted in sensitive and accurate sensor for single nucleotide polymorphism detection operating using small volumes of solutions and without the need for substrate functionalization or sophisticated instrumentation. Simultaneously, to enable on chip reagents mixing, a PDMS micromixer was developed and optimized for the highest efficiency, low pressure drop and short mixing length. The optimized device shows 80% of mixing efficiency at Re = 0.1 in 2.5 mm long mixer with the pressure drop of 6 Pa, satisfying requirements for the application in the microfluidic platform for DNA analysis.

Double-walled PLLA/PLGA particles for the sustained release of Meloxicam: preparation, characterisation and contolled release studies

There were two main objectives in this thesis investigation, first, the production, characterisation, in vitro degradation and release studies of double walled microspheres for drug release control. The second one, and the most challenging, was the production of double walled nanospheres, also for drug control delivery. The spheres were produced using two polymers, the Poly(L-lactide)Acid, PLLA, and the Poly(L-lactide-co-glycolic)Acid, PLGA.Afterwards, a model drug, Meloxicam, which is an antiinflammatory drug, was encapsulated into the particles. Micro and nanospheres were produced by the solvent extraction/evaporation method, where perfect spherical particles were obtained. By varying the polymers PLLA/PLGA mass ratio, different core and shell composition, as well as several shell and core thickness were observed. In the particles with a PLLA/PLGA mass ratio 1:1, the shell is composed by PLLA and the core by PLGA. It was also verified that the Meloxicam has a tendency to be distributed in the PLGA layer. Micro and nanoparticles were characterised in morphology, size, polymer cristalinity properties and drug distribution. Particles degradation studies was performed, where the particles in a PVA solution of pH 7,4 where placed in an incubator, during approximately 40 days, at 120rpm, and 37ºC, simulating, as much as possible, the human body environment. From these studies, the conclusion was that particles containing a PLGA shell and a PLLA core degrade more rapidly, due to the fact that PLLA is more hydrophobic than the PLGA. Concerning the drug release controlled results, done also for 40 and 50 days, they showed that the microspheres containing a shell of PLLA release more slowly than when the shell is composed of PLGA. This result was predictable, since the drug is solubilised in the PLGA polymer and so, in that case, the PLLA shell works like a barrier between the drug and the outer medium. Another positive aspect presented by this study is the lower initial burst effect, obtained when using double walled particles, which is one of the advantages of the same. In a second part of this investigation, the production of the nanospheres was the main goal, since it was not yet accomplished by other authors or investigators. After several studies, referring to the speed, time and type of agitation, as well as, the concentration and volume of the first aqueous solution of poly-vinyl-alcohol (PVA) during the process of solvent extraction/evaporation it was possible to obtain double walled nanospheres.(...)

Tool for discovering sequential patterns in financial markets

The goal of this thesis is the study of a tool that can help analysts in finding sequential patterns. This tool will have a focus on financial markets. A study will be made on how new and relevant knowledge can be mined from real life information, potentially giving investors, market analysts, and economists new basis to make informed decisions. The Ramex Forum algorithm will be used as a basis for the tool, due to its ability to find sequential patterns in financial data. So that it further adapts to the needs of the thesis, a study of relevant improvements to the algorithm will be made. Another important aspect of this algorithm is the way that it displays the patterns found, even with good results it is difficult to find relevant patterns among all the studied samples without a proper result visualization component. As such, different combinations of parameterizations and ways to visualize data will be evaluated and their influence in the analysis of those patterns will be discussed. In order to properly evaluate the utility of this tool, case studies will be performed as a final test. Real information will be used to produce results and those will be evaluated in regards to their accuracy, interest, and relevance.