Browsing by Issue Date, starting with "2018-10"
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- Peri-implantitis- uncovering the molecular mechanisms by a bioinformatics approachPublication . Correia, André; Albino, Rafaela; Barros, Marlene; Rosa, Nuno
- Aerobic granular sludge process treats real fish canning wastewater.Publication . Paulo, A. M. S.; Amorim, Catarina L.; Castro, P. M. L.Aerobic Granular Sludge (AGS) is an innovative technology used for carbon and nutrients removal from wastewater, using less space and energy compared to other biotechnological solutions. Aerobic granules present a compact structure, composed of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), which increase AGS resistance to variable wastewater composition, as those commonly produced by industry. In this study, C, N and P-removal from a fish canning plant wastewater was evaluated using an AGS-SBR (sequential batch reactor). Throughout the first 3 months of operation with variable feed composition, the chemical oxygen demand (COD) at the outlet was below the discharge limit of 125 mg O2 L-1, phosphorous removal was stable and the nitrification process improved. At the higher organic loading rates (OLR), the AGS performance was temporary affected. This study contributes to understanding the effects of the variability of a real wastewater on an AGS process.
- Motives, frequency and attitudes toward emoji and emoticon usePublication . Prada, Marília; Rodrigues, David L.; Garrido, Margarida V.; Lopes, Diniz; Cavalheiro, Bernardo; Gaspar, RuiElectronic Mediated Communication (EMC) has become highly prevalent in our daily lives. Many of the communication formats used in EMC are text-based (e.g., instant messaging), and users often include visual paralinguistic cues in their messages. In the current study, we examined the usage of two such cues – emoji and emoticons. Specifically, we compared self-reported frequency of use, as well as attitudes (6 bipolar items, e.g., “fun” vs. “boring”) and motives for their usage (9 motives, e.g., “express how I feel to others”). We also examined these indicators according to age and gender. Overall, participants (N = 474, 72.6% women; Mage = 30.71, SD = 12.58) reported using emoji (vs. emoticons) more often, revealed more positive attitudes toward emoji usage, and identified more with motives to use them. Moreover, all the ratings were higher among younger (vs. older) participants. Results also showed that women reported to use emoji (but not emoticons) more often and expressed more positive attitudes toward their usage than men. However, these gender differences were particularly evident for younger participants. No gender differences were found for emoticons usage. These findings add to the emerging body of literature by showing the relevance of considering age and gender, and their interplay, when examining patterns of emoji and emoticons use.
- The temporal modulation structure of illiterate versus literate adult speechPublication . Araújo, João; Flanagan, Sheila; Castro-Caldas, Alexandre; Goswami, UshaThe temporal modulation structure of speech plays a key role in neural encoding of the speech signal. Amplitude modulations (AMs, quasi-rhythmic changes in signal energy or intensity) in speech are encoded by neuronal oscillations (rhythmic variations in neural excitability in large cell networks) that oscillate at matching temporal rates. To date, however, all neural studies have investigated adult-directed speech (ADS) as produced and perceived by highly literate adults. Whether temporal features of ADS vary with the skills of the speaker, for example literacy skills, is currently unknown. Here we analyse the temporal structure of ADS spoken by illiterate, low literate (≤ 4 years of literacy) and highly literate (≥ 12 years of literacy) adults. We find that illiterates produce speech differently. Spontaneous conversational speech produced by illiterate adults showed significantly less synchronised coupling between AM bands (less phase synchronisation) than conversational speech produced by low literate and highly literate adults, and contained significantly fewer syllables per second. There was also a significant relationship between years of literacy and the amount of theta-band energy in conversational speech. When asked to produce rhythmic proverbs learned in childhood, all groups could produce speech with similar AM phase synchronisation, suggesting that the differences in spontaneous conversational speech were not caused by physiological constraints. The data suggest that the temporal modulation structure of spoken language changes with the acquisition of cultural skills like literacy that are usually a product of schooling. There is a cultural effect on the temporal modulation structure of spoken language.
- Innovation track: promoting the development of new products and services for the agro-food and agro-environmental systemsPublication . Oliveira, Leandro; Cardoso, Eduardo L.; Teixeira, GraçaThe Innovation Track Contest and Program aims to create the basis for a culture and dynamic of innovation in which working groups of students at MSc level focus on an innovation program towards the development of new products and services for the agro-food and agro-environmental systems. The program includes the support of the research and innovation facilities of the Biotechnology Faculty of the Catholic University at Porto, and each group can have the support of a scientific and a business mentor across the innovation process and the outcomes will be presented to the innovation ecosystem including companies and investors. The working groups follow a design and development methodology in which each team will have the possibility to be involved in the following tasks: technical-scientific feasibility studies; proof of concepts; prototyping; and a business project. The outcomes that will be assessed could include a prototype, a specification file and a business project. The results will be presented to the market through different forms of communication, with the award of monetary prizes in different categories. The Innovation Track has motivated 18 teams of students from three different Universities, 15 targeting the agrofood sector and 3 teams with projects looking for products or services with more relevance on environmental systems. Teams are also being challenged to submit their projetcs to other initiatives like the EcoTrophelia contest for reach wider impact.
- Delirium: nursing interventions directed to the hospitalized adult patient – a bibliographic reviewPublication . Bento, Marta Sofia Pão Mole; Marques, Rita Margarida Dourado; Sousa, Patrícia PontíficeDelirium is a neuropsychiatric syndrome, characterized by an acute attention and cognition deficit disorder, of multifactorial etiology. It has a high prevalence in the elderly population and it’s an indicator of a poor prognosis. It leads to a negative impact, provoking deterioration in the person’s quality of life. Objectives: This study aimed to identify the nursing interventions directed to the hospitalized adult / elderly, for the control of delirium. Methodology: Using a PICO question as a reference, a review of articles published between 2012 and 2017 was carried out. That identified, which nursing interventions aimed at the adult / elderly person hospitalized with delirium. Results: In this bibliographic review 5 studies were selected, in common, they present tendentially, non-pharmacological dynamic strategies of preventive character towards the delirium. This evidences the role of nursing in carrying out preventive actions (preferentially directed to risk factors, which may trigger this neurological alteration), such as the maintenance of the sensorial balance, assessing the local environment, monitoring pain, sleep and the stimulation of the early mobility. Conclusion: The interventions for delirium should include the identification of predisposing and precipitating factors with adequate actions, for its resolution. Research is imperative, to recognize and validate witch interventions may control delirium (prevent/ treat) and thus reduce its consequences.
- Vale a pena trazer o campo para a cidadePublication . Nova, Paulo; Pinto, Elisabete; Silva, Margarida
- Faculdade de EngenhariaPublication . Julião, Jorge
- Bacterial degradation of the veterinary antibiotic florfenicolPublication . Couto, Ana T.; Amorim, Catarina L.; Castro, Paula M. L.Florfenicol (FF) is a synthetic antibiotic, widely used in veterinary medicine. It is one of the few approved antibiotics for use in aquaculture during both production and processing operations, mainly to prevent and treat bacterial diseases. Therefore, this antibiotic is inevitably presented in the effluents from fish farms and eventually directly discharged in surface waters. Removal of FF has been mainly reported using physical-chemical processes but reports on its removal by biological processes is scarce. Bioremediation has been considered the strategy of choice to reduce the risk of hazardous chemicals in the environment. Therefore, microorganisms able to tolerate and degrade FF could represent added value towards more efficient biological removal processes. The main aim of this study was to investigate FF degradation by the bacterial strain Labrys portucalensis F11, capable to degrade other pharmaceuticals.
- Impact of an anthocyanin-rich blueberry extract upon Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium adhesion to Caco-2 and HT29-MTX cell linesPublication . Veiga, M.; Costa, E. M.; Batista, P.; Silva, S.; Pintado, M. M.Introduction: Blueberries have been associated with several potentially beneficial properties including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity and, more recently, with the modulation of the intestinal microbiota. Gut microbiota is considered as essential for the normal functioning of the body and the maintenance of health, with the connection between gut microbiota composition of the intestinal microbiota and the overall health and wellbeing having been widely and systematically reported by the scientific community. Previous works have shown that an anthocyanin rich blueberry extract, when in contact with certain bifidobacteria, was capable of inhibiting the adhesion of potential pathogens to a mucin coated surface, which mimicked the intestinal epithelium. As such, this work aimed to assess whether the blueberry extract was capable of modulating the adhesion of different probiotic bacteria to Caco-2 and HT29-MTX cells, which are representative of the intestinal epithelium. The adhesion was analyzed without any extract (control), in the presence of frutooligossacharide (FOS) and the anthocyanin rich blueberry extract. Conclusions: Extract helped modulate probiotic adhesion; Bacterial adhesion was higher in the presence of extract; Higher relative adhesion values obtained for bifidobacteria.