Browsing by Issue Date, starting with "2015-06"
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- Tools to tipple: ethanol ingestion by wild chimpanzees using leaf-spongesPublication . Hockings, Kimberley J.; Bryson-Morrison, Nicola; Carvalho, Susana; Fujisawa, Michiko; Humle, Tatyana; McGrew, William C.; Nakamura, Miho; Ohashi, Gaku; Yamanashi, Yumi; Yamakoshi, Gen; Matsuzawa, TetsuroAfrican apes and humans share a genetic mutation that enables them to effectively metabolize ethanol. However, voluntary ethanol consumption in this evolutionary radiation is documented only inmodern humans. Here, we report evidence of the long-term and recurrent ingestion of ethanol from the raffia palm (Raphia hookeri, Arecaceae) by wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) at Bossou in Guinea, West Africa, from 1995 to 2012. Chimpanzees at Bossou ingest this alcoholic beverage, often in large quantities, despite an average presence of ethanol of 3.1% alcohol by volume (ABV) and up to 6.9% ABV. Local people tap raffia palms and the sap collects in plastic containers, and chimpanzees use elementary technology-a leafy tool-to obtain this fermenting sap. These data show that ethanol does not act as a deterrent to feeding in this community of wild apes, supporting the idea that the last common ancestor of living African apes and modern humans was not averse to ingesting foods containing ethanol.
- Is Europe ready for a results-based approach to fisheries management? The voice of stakeholdersPublication . Santiago, Jose Luis; Ballesteros, Marta A.; Chapela, Rosa; Silva, Cristina; Nielsen, Kare N.; Rangel, Mafalda; Erzini, Karim; Wise, Laura; Campos, Aida; Borges, Maria F.; Sala, Antonello; Virgili, Massimo; Vidarsson, Jonas R.; Baudron, Alan; Fernandes, Paul G.The reformed Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), adopted by the European Union in 2013, aims to achieve sustainable exploitation of marine resources. Beyond the mainstream of stakeholders' engagement, the literature increasingly calls for shared accountability in fisheries management. In such scenarios, identifying stakeholders' insights becomes critical for a successful design of innovative management approaches. This paper analyses how the stakeholders perceive a results-based management system for four fisheries in different European sea-basins as well as at a pan-European level. The results indicate a need for adaptive and participatory management approaches, building on regional adaptations within transparent and plural frameworks for fisheries. To succeed, the system should explicitly address its associated public and private costs; neither participation nor accountability comes for free. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
- Oxygen and hydrogen isotope signatures of Northeast Atlantic water massesPublication . Voelker, Antje; Colman, Alber; Olack, Gerard; Waniek, Joanna J.; Hodell, DavidOnly a few studies have examined the variation of oxygen and hydrogen isotopes of seawater in NE Atlantic water masses, and data are especially sparse for intermediate and deep-water masses. The current study greatly expands this record with 527 δ18O values from 47 stations located throughout the mid- to low-latitude NE Atlantic. In addition, δD was analyzed in the 192 samples collected along the GEOTRACES North Atlantic Transect GA03 (GA03_e = KN199-4) and the 115 Iberia-Forams cruise samples from the western and southern Iberian margin. An intercomparison study between the two stable isotope measurement techniques (cavity ring-down laser spectroscopy and magnetic-sector isotope ratio mass spectrometry) used to analyze GA03_e samples reveals relatively good agreement for both hydrogen and oxygen isotope ratios. The surface (0-100 m) and central (100-500 m) water isotope data show the typical, evaporation related trend of increasing values equatorward with the exception for the zonal transect off Cape Blanc, NW Africa. Off Cape Blanc, surface water isotope signatures are modified by the upwelling of fresher Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW) that generally has isotopic values of 0.0 to 0.5‰ for δ18O and 0 to 2‰ for δD. Along the Iberian margin the Mediterranean Outflow Water (MOW) is clearly distinguished by its high δ18O (0.5-1.1‰) and δD (3-6‰) values that can be traced into the open Atlantic. Isotopic values in the NE Atlantic Deep Water (NEADW) are relatively low (δ18O: –0.1 to 0.5‰; δD: –1 to 4‰) and show a broader range than observed previously in the northern and southern convection areas. The NEADW is best observed at GA03_e Stations 5 and 7 in the central NE Atlantic basin. Antarctic Bottom Water isotope values are relatively high indicating modification of the original Antarctic source water along the flow path. The reconstructed δ18O-salinity relationship for the complete data set has a slope of 0.51, i.e. slightly steeper than the 0.46 described previously by Pierre et al. (1994) for the tropical to subtropical Northeast Atlantic. This slope decreases to 0.46 for the subtropical North Atlantic Central Water (NACW) and the MOW and to 0.32 for the surface waters of the upper 50 m. The δD-salinity mixing lines have estimated slopes of 3.01 for the complete data, 1.26 for the MOW, 3.47 for the NACW, and 2.63 for the surface waters. The slopes of the δ18O-δD relationship are significantly lower than the one for the Global Meteoric Water Line with 5.6 for the complete data set, 2.30 for the MOW, 4.79 for the NACW, and 3.99 for the surface waters. The lower slopes in all the relationships clearly reflect the impact of the evaporation surplus in the subtropics.
- Using niche modelling of indicator species to predict the distribution of xerophitic shrub dune communities in South-Western PortugalPublication . Chefaoui, Rosa M.; Chozas, Sergio; Correia, Otilia; Santos, Ana M. C.; Hortal, JoaquínInland sand dune systems are amongst the most threatened habitat types of Europe. Affected by severe conditions, these habitats present distinct community compositions, which makes them excellent for studying possible interactions among their integrating species and the environment. We focus on understanding the distribution and cooccurrence of the species from dune plant assemblages as a key step for the adequate protection of these habitats. Using data from an extensive survey we identified the shrub species that could be considered indicators of the different xerophytic scrub dune communities in South West Portugal. Then, we modelled the responses of these species to the environmental conditions using Ecological Niche Factor Analysis. We present some preliminary results elucidating whether using species distribution models of indicator species at a regional scale is a valid approach to predict the distribution of the different types of communities inhabiting these endangered habitats.
- Biological activities and chemical composition of methanolic extracts of selected Autochthonous microalgae strains from the Red SeaPublication . Pereira, Hugo; Custodio, Luisa; Rodrigues, Maria Joao; Bruno De Sousa, Carolina; Oliveira, Marta; Barreira, Luísa; Neng, Nuno da Rosa; Florencio Nogueira, Jose Manuel; Alrokayan, Salman A.; Mouffouk, Fouzi; Abu-Salah, Khalid M.; Ben-Hamadou, Radhouan; Varela, JoãoFour lipid-rich microalgal species from the Red Sea belonging to three different genera (Nannochloris, Picochlorum and Desmochloris), previously isolated as novel biodiesel feedstocks, were bioprospected for high-value, bioactive molecules. Methanol extracts were thus prepared from freeze-dried biomass and screened for different biological activities. Nannochloris sp. SBL1 and Desmochloris sp. SBL3 had the highest radical scavenging activity against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl, and the best copper and iron chelating activities. All species had potent butyrylcholinesterase inhibitory activity (>50%) and mildly inhibited tyrosinase. Picochlorum sp. SBL2 and Nannochloris sp. SBL4 extracts significantly reduced the viability of tumoral (HepG2 and HeLa) cells with lower toxicity against the non-tumoral murine stromal (S17) cells. Nannochloris sp. SBL1 significantly reduced the viability of Leishmania infantum down to 62% (250 mu g/mL). Picochlorum sp. SBL2 had the highest total phenolic content, the major phenolic compounds identified being salicylic, coumaric and gallic acids. Neoxanthin, violaxanthin, zeaxanthin, lutein and -carotene were identified in the extracts of all strains, while canthaxanthin was only identified in Picochlorum sp. SBL2. Taken together, these results strongly suggest that the microalgae included in this work could be used as sources of added-value products that could be used to upgrade the final biomass value.
- Proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Technology in Mathematics Teaching ICTMT 12Publication . Amado, Nélia; Carreira, SusanaInnovation, inclusion, sharing and diversity are some of the words that briefly and suitably characterize the ICTMT series of biennial international conferences – the International Conference on Technology in Mathematics Teaching. Being the twelfth of a series which began in Birmingham, UK, in 1993, under the influential enterprise of Professor Bert Waits from Ohio State University, this conference was held in Portugal for the first time. The 12th International Conference on Technology in Mathematics Teaching was hosted by the Faculty of Sciences and Technology of the University of Algarve, in the city of Faro, from 24 to 27 June 2015, and was guided by the original spirit of its foundation. The integration of digital technologies in mathematics education across school levels and countries, from primary to tertiary education, together with the understanding of the phenomena involved in the teaching and learning of mathematics in technological environments have always been driving forces in the transformation of pedagogical practices. The possibility of joining at an international conference a wide diversity of participants, including school mathematics teachers, lecturers, mathematicians, mathematics educators and researchers, software designers, and curriculum developers, is one facet that makes this conference rather unique. At the same time, it seeks to foster the sharing of ideas, experiences, projects and studies while providing opportunities to try-out and assess tools or didactical proposals during times of hands-on work. The ICTMT 12 had this same ambition, when embracing and welcoming just over 120 delegates who actively and enthusiastically contributed to a very packed program of scientific proposals and sessions on various topics.
- On the kernel of a singular integral operator with non-carleman shift and conjugationPublication . Conceição, Ana C.; Marreiros, Rui C.On the Hilbert space (L) over tilde (2)(T) the singular integral operator with non-Carleman shift and conjugation K = P+ +(aI + AC)P- is considered, where P-+/- are the Cauchy projectors, A = (m)Sigma(j=0) a(j)U(j), a, a(j), j = (1, m) over bar, are continuous functions on the unit circle T, U is the shift operator and C is the operator of complex conjugation. Some estimates for the dimension of the kernel of the operator K are obtained.
- Hybrid nanosystems based on natural polymers as protein carriers for respiratory delivery: stability and toxicological evaluationPublication . Rodrigues, Susana; Cordeiro, Clara; Seijo, Begona; Remunan-Lopez, Carmen; Grenha, AnaChitosan/carrageenan/tripolyphosphate nanoparticles were previously presented as holding potential for an application in transmucosal delivery of macromolecules, with tripolyphosphate demonstrating to contribute for both size reduction and stabilisation of the nanoparticles. This work was aimed at evaluating the capacity of the nanoparticles as protein carriers for pulmonary and nasal transmucosal delivery, further assessing their biocompatibility pattern regarding that application. Nanoparticles demonstrated stability in presence of lysozyme, while freeze-drying was shown to preserve their characteristics when glucose or sucrose were used as cryoprotectants. Bovine serum albumin was associated to the nanoparticles, which were successfully microencapsulated by spray-drying to meet the aerodynamic requirements inherent to pulmonary delivery. Finally, a satisfactory biocompatibility profile was demonstrated upon exposure of two respiratory cell lines (Calu-3 and A549 cells) to the carriers. A negligible effect on cell viability along with no alterations on transepithelial electrical resistance and no induction of inflammatory response were observed. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
- Using the reactions O+H2 → OH+H to explore the importance of the atomic quantum states on chemical kinetics and reaction dynamicsPublication . Rio, Carolina; Brandão, J.; Wang, WenliThe O + H2 reaction is a particular example to alert the importance of a clear definition of the quantum state of an atom when referring to a chemical reaction. In its ground state, O (3P), the oxygen atom reacts with H2 through an energy barrier with small rate constant. In contrast, when the oxygen atom is in its first excited state, O (1D), the reaction O + H2 occurs without energy barrier and the rate constant is seven orders of magnitude higher. The dynamic behaviour of this reaction depends also on the quantum state of the oxygen atom.
- Interpretation of pictograms by 3rd grade pupils: the teacher’s rolePublication . Veia, Luciano; Brocardo, Joana; Ponte, João Pedro daIn this paper we analyze how a primary school teacher (João) leads the discussion of a task in a grade 3 class aimed at reading and interpreting pictograms. The paper is part of a larger study that follows an interpretative and qualitative research methodology with a case study design. The results indicate that, in his teaching practice, the teacher strives to ask questions so that his pupils are not limited to the identification of categories of high and low frequency characteristic, that is, "reading the data", but also raises questions related to "reading between the data" and "beyond the data."