Browsing by Author "Costa, Miguel"
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- Current advancements on maintenance for household appliancesPublication . Lino Ferreira, Luis; Albano, Michele; Rocha, Rafael; Costa, Miguel; Machado Silva, Ana; Silva, Marlos; Matos, Luísa; Afonso Landeck, JorgeThis communication describes research and development directions that are being explored for the creation of a maintenance system for home appliances. The solution will enable a faster and more accurate automation of after-sale services for home appliances. It will be based on three tiers: data acquisition, data analysis and business tiers. The communication provides a context for the work, both regarding the application area in general and the three tiers, and then describes the objectives of the system being designed.
- Development of biosensors for functional textile applicationsPublication . Nascimento, Ana; Abreu, Cristina; Silva, Mariana; Leite, Bárbara; Rouly, Simon; Ferraz, Ricardo; Costa, Miguel; Prudêncio, Cristina; Parente, Elsa; Vieira, MónicaSARS-CoV-2, the cause of the disease COVID-19, has a high level of contagiousness, and has been verified as a major epidemiological threat. In order to reduce the spread of the virus, the entire population was advised to use personal protective equipment, among which are the face masks. The eficacy of masks depend on the time of use, amount of moisture and contact with infectious agents. The objective of this study is the development of a colorimetric biosensor, based on biological reactions that detect a given analyte through color change. This biosensor will be incorporated in a textile surface, with the capacity of direct indication of the protection effectiveness of the face masks, giving the user information about the filtration level of the equipment, with a humidity sensor; and of the contamination space, with a sensor to detect the presence of the virus. Thus, a biosensor for SARS-CoV-2 is intended to indicate the contact with the virus. It was developed based on gold nanoparticles functionalized with sialic acid, to be coupled with a humidity biosensor and previously presented to scientific community. The humidity biosensor is intended to contribute to reduce the risk spread and contagion of the disease, by monitoring the effectiveness of the protection of the masks, since humidity causes the degradation of the filtering quality of the masks. For the development of the humidity biosensor, two approaches were adapted: clay and silica mesoporous, which will be impregnated, together with the SARS-CoV-2 biosensor, on a textile surface, and then incorporated into the textile mask. The developed biosensor appears to be more reliable through silica-based technology with methylene blue dye, is aligned with the Portuguese standard for textile face masks that indicate up to 4 hours of use and [85±5]% of maximum relative humidity, as maximum levels expected for the inutilization of the masks. After reaching this humidity the biosensor changes color, indicating to us the need for mask replacement.
- Evaluation of the bacterial activity of natural compoundsPublication . Costa, Miguel; Cunha, Sofia; Prudêncio, Cristina; Parente, E.; Vieira da Silva, ManuelaMedicinal plants with therapeutic properties are an important source of new biologically active compounds. They present great potential for therapeutics and prevention applications. The use of plant extracts and phytochemical products, both with known antimicrobial properties, is of great importance in the treatment of infectious diseases, where resveratrol, propolis and chamomile stand out
- Smask: Smart Mask with colorimetric biossensor for SARS-CoV-2 contamination and humidityPublication . Vieira, Mónica; Ferraz, Ricardo; Prudêncio, Cristina; Costa, Miguel; Parente, ElsaA atual pandemia, devido ao vírus SARS-CoV-2, exigiu a implementação de medidas de proteção individual, como o uso de máscaras de proteção. A eficácia das máscaras depende do tempo de uso, da quantidade de humidade e do contato com agentes infeciosos. Em atividades que requeiram o uso deste equipamento por longos períodos de tempo e/ou com alto risco de exposição é importante conhecer essa eficácia em tempo real. O projeto SMASK visa desenvolver um biossensor colorimétrico que permita a deteção da presença do SARS-CoV-2 e da quantidade de humidade que comprometam a eficácia da máscara, e que indique, de forma simples, a necessidade da sua substituição. Esta tecnologia será desenvolvida para máscaras têxteis de nível 2 e 3 e será baseada em nanopartículas funcionalizadas com biomoléculas que reconhecem especificamente o SARS-CoV-2; e em partículas de substâncias higroscópicas, que indiquem a saturação da máscara. Com uma mudança de cor, o biossensor indicará uma perda efetiva da capacidade de proteção. A transposição desta tecnologia para outras aplicações pode ser uma arma de defesa na prevenção da disseminação do vírus Sars-CoV-2 ou de outros agentes biológicos, uma vez que qualquer utilizador terá informação em tempo real e poderá agir imediatamente, evitando a transmissão.