Extensive admixture and selective pressure across the Sahel Belt

Genome-wide studies of African populations have the potential to reveal powerful insights into the evolution of our species, as these diverse populations have been exposed to intense selective pressures imposed by infectious diseases, diet, and environmental factors. Within Africa, the Sahel Belt extensively overlaps the geographical center of several endemic infections such as malaria, trypanosomiasis, meningitis, and hemorrhagic fevers. We screened 2.5 million single nucleotide polymorphisms in 161 individuals from 13 Sahelian populations, which together with published data cover Western, Central, and Eastern Sahel, and include both nomadic and sedentary groups. We confirmed the role of this Belt as a main corridor for human migrations across the continent. Strong admixture was observed in both Central and Eastern Sahelian populations, with North Africans and Near Eastern/Arabians, respectively, but it was inexistent in Western Sahelian populations. Genome-wide local ancestry inference in admixed Sahelian populations revealed several candidate regions that were significantly enriched for non-autochthonous haplotypes, and many showed to be under positive selection. The DARC gene region in Arabs and Nubians was enriched for African ancestry, whereas the RAB3GAP1/LCT/MCM6 region in Oromo, the TAS2R gene family in Fulani, and the ALMS1/NAT8 in Turkana and Samburu were enriched for non-African ancestry. Signals of positive selection varied in terms of geographic amplitude. Some genomic regions were selected across the Belt, the most striking example being the malaria-related DARC gene. Others were Western-specific (oxytocin, calcium, and heart pathways), Eastern-specific (lipid pathways), or even population-restricted (TAS2R genes in Fulani, which may reflect sexual selection).

Trans-cultural aspects of social anxiety disorder and related conditions: a Brazilian case series and a review of international clinical studies

Cross-cultural studies have much to teach clinicians and researchers alike about psychopathology in general and about social anxiety disorder (SAD) in particular. Unfortunately, little is known about the degree and the mechanisms through which cultural environment may influence clinical manifestations of SAD. OBJECTIVE: Our objective was to identify culture-related clinical patterns in SAD and related disorders. METHODS: We described socio-demographic and clinical characteristics of a sample of 62 adult outpatients with SAD seen at a university clinic for anxiety and depressive disorders in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and compared them with those reported in clinical samples from North America, Europe, Asia and Oceania identified through a systematic review in Medline, PsychINFO, and LILACS. RESULTS: Our comparison of trans-cultural features of SAD lends partial support to Heimberg's (1997) contention that the majority of socio-demographic features and symptoms of this disorder are relatively independent of geographic and cultural differences. CONCLUSION: Patients with SAD were almost universally characterized by: 1) a predominance of males in clinical samples; 2) early onset of the disorder; 3) high educational attainment; and 4) great frequency of comorbidities.

A importância das estratégias de comunicação de uma marca de moda portuguesa: estudo de caso: Lion of Porches

Dissertação de mestrado em Design de Comunicação de Moda

Avaliação quantitativa da geodiversidade: desenvolvimento de instrumentos metodológicos com aplicação ao ordenamento do território

Tese de Doutoramento em Ciências (Especialidade de Geologia)

Female gender but not season of birth is associated with mood seasonality in a near-equatorial Brazilian city

OBJECTIVE: Studies conducted mainly in countries located in the Northern Hemisphere have shown that season of birth influences mood seasonality. Greater mood seasonality has been observed for individuals born during spring/summer months than those born during autumn/winter months. Expanding past research to the Southern Hemisphere, in this study we examine the influence of season of birth on mood seasonality in a sample of 1,247 healthy young Brazilians. METHOD: The Seasonal Pattern Assessment Questionnaire was used to compute a global seasonality score as a measure of mood seasonality in a cross-sectional study. RESULTS: Analysis of covariance was conducted to examine the effects of month of birth and gender on mood seasonality, with age entered as a covariate. A main effect of gender was observed, F (1, 1197) = 17.86, p < .01; partial Eta-squared = .02, with mood seasonality being higher for females (M = 8) than for males (M = 7). Contradicting previous findings, no significant main effect for month of birth was observed, F (1, 1197) = 0.65, p > .05. CONCLUSION: The unexpected finding is tentatively explained by differences in geographic location and weather fluctuations between the sampling location in Brazil and other countries where season of birth has been found to influence mood seasonality. Additional studies with larger samples from the Southern Hemisphere are necessary to shed additional light on the possible significant influence of season of birth on mood.

Análise de alterações de uso do solo no Parque Nacional da Peneda-Gerês

Dissertação de mestrado integrado em Engenharia Civil

Development of an intelligent earthwork optimization system

Tese de Doutoramento em Engenharia Civil.

Propolis: A complex natural product with a plethora of biological activities that can be explored for drug development

The health industry has always used natural products as a rich, promising, and alternative source of drugs that are used in the health system. Propolis, a natural resinous product known for centuries, is a complex product obtained by honey bees from substances collected from parts of different plants, buds, and exudates in different geographic areas. Propolis has been attracting scientific attention since it has many biological and pharmacological properties, which are related to its chemical composition. Several in vitro and in vivo studies have been performed to characterize and understand the diverse bioactivities of propolis and its isolated compounds, as well as to evaluate and validate its potential. Yet, there is a lack of information concerning clinical effectiveness. The goal of this review is to discuss the potential of propolis for the development of new drugs by presenting published data concerning the chemical composition and the biological properties of this natural compound from different geographic origins.

Geração de uma rede pedonal em formato vectorial e definição de percursos pedonais em ambiente urbano: estudo de caso na Póvoa de Varzim

Dissertação de mestrado integrado em Engenharia Civil

Logificação da Psicologia o itinerário intelectual de Edmundo Curvelo sobre a Mente, a Lógica e a Filosofia

Tese de Doutoramento em Filosofia - Especialidade de Filosofia da Mente

A região nas plataformas: o caso da Nordeste TV

Relatório de estágio de mestrado em Ciências da Comunicação (área de especialização em Especialização em Audiovisual e Multimédia)

Mobilidade geográfica dos trabalhadores e implicações processuais

Dissertação de mestrado em Direito Judiciário

Entrada de multinacionais num cluster e efeitos na estratégia das empresas instaladas

Dissertação de mestrado em Economia Industrial e da Empresa

Emigrantes portugueses low cost: as perspetivas de ontem e de hoje

Dissertação de mestrado em Sociologia (área de especialização em Organizações e Trabalho)

Georeferencing historical documents: the case of the Dume Boundary

Much of the information of historical documents about the territory and property are defined on textual form. This information is mostly geographic and defines territorial areas, its limits and boundaries. For the treatment of this data, we have defined one information system where the treatment of the documental references for the study of the settlement and landscape implies a systematization of the information, normalization, integration and graphic and cartographic representation. This methodology was applied to the case study of the boundary of the monastery-diocese of Dume, in Braga - Portugal, for which there are countless documents and references to this site, but where the urban pressure has mischaracterized very significantly the landscape, making the identification of territorial limits quite difficult. The work carried out to give spatial and cartographic expression to the data, by defining viewing criteria according to the recorded information, proved to be a central working tool in the boundary study and in understanding the dynamics of the sites in the various cultural periods.