Browsing by Issue Date, starting with "2022-11"
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- Estudo da utilização de deepfakes no ciberespaço, impacto e suas consequências no ambiente socialPublication . Manuel, Garcia Isaías; Sá, Vítor J.; Gomes, Paulo Veloso; Marques, António; Pereira, JavierVivemos numa era inundados por informações vindas de ambos os hemisférios, e em que a economia da atenção nos torna distantes da verdade. O presente estudo tem como âmago estudar a criação, utilização, bem como a partilha de vídeos originados pela inteligência artificial que podem fazer parecer que uma pessoa diz ou faz algo, embora na realidade ela nunca tenha dito ou feito nada desse tipo, esses tipos de conteúdos são denominados Deepfakes. O problema em causa, é a forma como são propagados esses conteúdos que para olho destreinado, podem ser vistos como autênticos. Para elaboração do artigo, optou-se por uma pesquisa quantitativa, por meio de um questionário, e ainda uma revisão bibliográfica em livros, artigos científicos e relatórios. Constatou-se através dos dados obtidos que, muitos utilizadores pretendem verificar a veracidade e a fonte das informações que circulam nas redes sociais digitais.
- Potentially irritant preservatives in newborn baby cosmetics – analysis of labels of products sold in PortugalPublication . Pinto, Diana F. G.; Coelho, Mariana J. P.; Machado, Marisa F. C.; Cruz, Agostinho L. S.; Moreira, Fernando X. F.The use of cosmetics containing preservatives might pose a risk to the skin health of newborns, despite improving their adaptation to the external environment. The present work aimed at depicting the potentially hazardous preservatives in cosmetics sold in the district of Porto, Portugal. A total of 281 labels from newborn cosmetics were analyzed. From 729 different ingredients found in the analyzed labels, 15 were preservatives with previously recorded irritant activity, being sodium benzoate the most mentioned (n = 118). There was a significant difference between the means of number of preservatives with an irritant potential present in the products sold in pharmacies and in the products sold in supermarkets. Most analyzed products contained at least one preservative. Still, the choice of cosmetics for newborns should consider those with a minimum number of preservatives, being more probable to choose a less sensitizing product in pharmacies than in supermarkets.
- Health promotion conceptual evolution and program development: a literature ReviewPublication . Félix, José; Santos, Paula Clara; Baylina, PilarThe World Health Organization defends prevention and health promotion among communities as a driver of economic and social development, where the individual level of health literacy determines health choices such as adopting healthy lifestyles, managing individual healthcare and preventing chronic diseases. Currently, health promotion is guided by a set of values, being these principles essential for identifying needs and priorities, planning, implementing, evaluating and determining the health promotion programs, that can be defined as a set of programmed, integrated and interrelated strategies and actions that aim to promote health, prevent risks, reduce years of life lost due to disability and increase quality of life. There are several models for planning health promotion programs, such as the Precede-Proceed Model, the Multivariate Approach to community Health (MATCH) Model, the Mapped Intervention Model and the Social Marketing Model. A good planning of a health promotion program can effectively reduce the health costs.
- New 4-aminoacridine-cinnamic acid conjugates as multi-stage antimalarial hitsPublication . Fonte, Mélanie; Fontinha, Diana; Moita, Diana; Prades, Omar; Padilla, Yunuen; Ferraz, Ricardo; Fernàndez-Busquets, Xavier; Prudêncio, Miguel; Gomes, Paula; Teixeira, CátiaThe eradication of malaria remains to be achieved, mainly due to the continued spread of drugresistant parasites. To overcome this, multi-stage drugs have been prioritized in antimalarial drug discovery, since targeting more than one process in the Plasmodium’s life cycle may increase efficiency, while decreasing the chances of resistance emergence by the parasite. Quinacrine (QN) was the first synthetic antiplasmodial drug active against blood forms of the Plasmodium parasite but was rapidly superseded by chloroquine (CQ) which has greater safety, efficiency, and bioavailability. Analysing the QN structure, its acridine core is a fusion between the heterocycle core of CQ and primaquine (PQ), another antiplasmodial drug active against liver forms of the parasite, and able to block malaria transmission. A new family of QN derivatives reported by us, 4-aminoacridines, corresponding to the merge of CQ core and PQ, showed moderate dual-stage antimalarial activity. We have now developed a second generation of 4-aminoacridines (Fig.1) through their conjugation to cinnamic acids (CA) of natural origin that have been reported to enhance antimalarial activity when conjugated to antimalarials. In this communication, we will present the chemical synthesis of this new family of N-cinnamoyl-4-aminoacridines and the in vitro assessment or their activity against a) liver stages of P. berghei, b) erythrocytic forms of P. falciparum, and c) early and mature gametocytes of P. falciparum. Results demonstrate that the conjugation of the CA moiety to the 4-aminoacridine core delivers new compounds with enhanced in vitro activity against all three stages of the malaria parasite lifecycle inside mammalian hosts.
- Tablet splitting: influence of technique and tablet formatPublication . Alexandre, Ana; Ferreira, Sónia; Jesus, ÂngeloTablet splitting is a commonly used technique to obtain half of the dose or to facilitate tablet intake. However, there is a risk of not obtaining the correct dose and the efficacy depends on factors such as splitting method and tablet characteristics. Objective: To assess significant differences regarding tablet format or splitting method, regarding loss of mass and splitting accuracy. Methods: Volunteers split ten formulations by hand or using a kitchen knife. Results were treated in order to verify compliance with European Pharmacopeia standards for tablet splitting and recommendations on loss of mass. SPSS was used to assess significant differences between the two methods and tablet format when analysing loss of mass or splitting accuracy. Results: Of the twenty formulation/method combinations, only five complied with all the criteria. There was a significant difference regarding methods and loss of mass, with splitting by hand being the one to achieve the best results. Oblong tablets scored significantly better regarding loss of mass and splitting accuracy. Conclusion: Results seem to indicate that best results can be achieved when splitting tablets if using oblong tablets and splitting them by hand.
- Low serum bromine levels in chronic hemodialysis patients - is there any clinical impact?Publication . Duro, Mary; Novakova, Gergana; Bonev, Presian; Azevedo, Rui; Couto, Cristina; Pinto, Edgar; Almeida, AgostinhoPatients on chronic hemodialysis therapy are at high risk for disturbed trace element status due to both the underlying disease and the hemodialysis process itself. Data on serum bromine levels in these patients are scarce. Using an ICP-MS analytical procedure, serum bromine levels were determined in a cohort of end-stage renal disease patients on chronic hemodialysis (n=57; 68.9±14.0 years old; male/female ratio: 1.37). The results were compared with those of a control group (individuals without evidence of kidney disease according to standard clinical laboratory criteria who attended the same clinical laboratory for routine analyses: n=59; 57.4±17.9 years old; male/female ratio: 0.90). Hemodialysis patients had much lower serum bromine levels than controls: 1086±244 vs. 4137±770 µg/L; P<0.0001. Bromine (bromide in plasma) showed to be extensively removed from plasma due to the hemodialysis process. The actual impact of this bromine “deficiency” is unknown. Bromine has not generally been considered an “essential” element, however, evidence of possible essentiality has been growing. In particular, bromine has been linked to brain metabolism: it is used as a sedative to induce sleep, increases in animals during hibernation as well as in sleeping humans; and a bromine compound with REM sleep-inducing and anti-choline esterase activities (1-methylheptyl gammabromoacetoacetate) was identified in human cerebrospinal fluid. On the other hand, estimates suggest that 40-85% of hemodialysis patients have sleep disorders, mainly insomnia. Thus, the possibility has been raised that the bromine “deficiency” found in these patients may be associated with sleep the disorders that affect them. This is an interesting hypothesis that requires further clinical investigation.
- Digital skills of therapeutic radiographers/radiation therapists – Document analysis for a European educational curriculumPublication . Barbosa, B.; Bravo, I.; Oliveira, C.; Antunes, L.; Couto, J. G.; McFadden, S.; Hughes, C.; McClure, P.; Dias, A. G.It is estimated that around 50% of cancer patients require Radiotherapy (RT) at some point during their treatment, hence Therapeutic Radiographers/Radiation Therapists (TR/RTTs) have a key role to play in patient management. It is essential for TR/RTTs to keep abreast with new technologies and continuously develop the digital skills necessary for safe RT practice. The RT profession and education is not regulated at European Union level, which leads to heterogeneity in the skills developed and practised among countries. This study aimed to explore the white and grey literature to collate data on the relevant digital skills required for TR/RTTs practice.
- A detailed and comparative elemental analysis (Poland vs. Portugal) of espresso coffeePublication . Almeida, Agostinho; Cunha, Ana; Pinto, Edgar; Azevedo, Rui; Seroczynska, Kinga; Konieczynski, Pawel; Wesolowski, MarekCoffee is one of the most popular beverages in the world. There are many different types of coffee, but “espresso” has become the favourite in many countries. In Portugal, 80% of people drink coffee daily and prefer to make it as an espresso. Annual per capita coffee consumption (dry beans) is estimated at 5 kg, being higher in many other Western European countries, namely the Nordic countries. In Poland, also more than 80% of adults consume coffee every day, but instant coffee still takes up the largest share. National per capita consumption (2021) is estimated at between 0.72.5 kg. Espresso coffee is prepared by passing water at high temperature (88-92 ºC) and under high pressure (8-10 bar) through ground coffee (6-8 g) for 20-30 seconds to produce around 25-40 ml of beverage. The extraction of substances existing in coffee powder is very efficient, so their concentration in coffee (beverage) is also very high. In this work, we carried out a comparative study of the elemental composition (n=34 macrominerals and trace elements) of espresso coffee from two different European origins: Northern Poland (n=60, areas of Gdańsk, Gdynia and Elbląg) and Northern Portugal (n=22, Porto Metropolitan Area). Samples (5-10 ml) were taken from the beverage as served in cafes, restaurants and gas stations. In order to better document the contribution of coffee (powder) to the final composition of the beverage, water samples were taken in parallel at the same locations. The analysis was performed by ICP-MS. In both cases, espresso coffee proved to be a concentrated source of many elements (Table 1), with levels much higher than those of water from the same location. Polish waters were globally much more mineralized than Portuguese waters, and generally Polish coffee also showed significantly higher levels of macrominerals and trace elements than the Portuguese ones.
- Trace element imbalances in hemodialysis patients: new data from a cohort of Portuguese patientsPublication . Duro, Mary; Azevedo, Rui; Costa, Félix; Pinto, Edgar; Almeida, AgostinhoPatients with end-stage renal disease undergoing hemodialysis (HD) therapy are at risk of developing deficiencies of essential trace elements and/or overload of toxic trace elements, both of which may significantly affect their clinical status. Those imbalances may result from the disease itself but also from the therapy, namely the hemodialysis process. This work aimed at evaluate the current trace elements status in a cohort of patients under hemodialysis therapy. Serum (n=88) and whole blood samples (n=108) from HD patients, collected during the routine periodic control of Al levels, were analyzed for a wide panel of trace elements using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) (HD group). For comparison purposes, both serum (n=16) and whole blood samples (n=59) of individuals attending the same Clinical Laboratory but with no evidence of renal disease according to standard laboratory analytical criteria were also analysed (Control group).
- A bibliometric review of the barriers hindering or delaying the internationalization process: State of the art and future directionsPublication . Galvão, Anderson; Marques, Carla; Mendes, Telma; Mascarenhas, CarlaIn an increasingly global world, the internationalization process plays an essential role in the company's growth, becoming more important when the domestic market is smaller. This study's main objective is to identify and map studies on barriers to internationalization in order to identify current and future trends that allow inducing new forms and perspectives in the field of research, filling the existing gaps. For the development of this study, we used the collection of articles published in the Web of Science database due to its wide coverage in internationally indexed articles of recognized quality by the scientific community. The results of this study make it possible to identify and map the main obstacles that companies in the textile sector face at the time of internationalization. These results can lead to new ways and perspectives in the field of research and new policies that help companies to overcome these barriers and fill the existing gaps.