The ex utero intrapartum treatment is a rare surgical procedure performed in cases of expected postpartum fetal airway obstruction. The technique lies on a safe establishment of a patent airway during labor in anticipation of a critical respiratory event, without interrupting maternal-fetal circulation. Anesthetic management is substantially different from that regarding standard cesarean delivery and its main goals include uterine relaxation, fetal anesthesia and preservation of placental blood flow. We present the case of an ex utero intrapartum treatment procedure performed on a fetus with a large cervical lymphangioma and prenatal evidence of airway compromise. Modifications to the classic ex utero intrapartum treatment management strategies were successfully adopted and will be discussed in the following report.

This study aimed to develop edible monolayer emulsion-based barriers with polysaccharides as film-forming components (chitosan and sodium alginate), soy lecithin as a surfactant and olive oil as a hydrophobic barrier. Monolayer barriers in the form of films were prepared by casting filmogenic emulsions composed of 2% w/v chitosan (dissolved in lactic acid 1% v/v) or 1% w/v sodium alginate, with different lipid contents (25, 50 and 100% w/w biopolymer basis) and different surfactant concentrations (5, 10 and 25% w/w, lipid basis). Glycerol was used as a plasticizer (25 % w/w, biopolymer basis). After the emulsion drying process, the obtained stand-alone films were sprayed with a crosslinking solution, achieving an optimized crosslinker content of 3.2 mgCa2+/cm2 alginate film and 4 mg tripolyphosphate/cm2 chitosan film. The effect of oil and lecithin contents, as well the presence of crosslinking agents, on the film’s water vapour permeability (WVP), water vapour sorption capacity, mechanical properties and colour parameters, was evaluated. The results have shown that the lowest WVP values were obtained with formulations containing 25% lipid and 25% surfactant for chitosan films, and 100% lipid and 25% surfactant for alginate films. The application of the crosslinking agents decreased even further the WVP, especially for chitosan films (by 30%). Crosslinking also increased films’ resistance to deformation under tensile tests. Overall, the films developed present a good potential as polysaccharide-based barriers with increased resistance to water, which envisages the use of the designed formulations to produce either edible/biodegradable films or edible coatings

The interplay of ferroic domain walls with crystalline structures and lattice planar defects becomes rather elaborated in multiferroic materials or in magnetic bilayers and multilayers where magnetic moments of antiferromagnetic and ferromagnetic lattices are coupled at the bilayer interface [1-5]. Single atomic layer and double layers make the antiphase ferroelectric domain walls organized in six-fold vortices in multiferroic materials of the class of the hexagonal rare-earth manganites RMnO3[4,6]. Below TN, the Néel temperature, antiferromagnetic domain walls are coupled to the same antiphase domain walls [3,7,8]. Magnetoelectric coupling exposes the multiferroic nature of these materials [3,4,7]. In addition, the same hexagonal RMnO3 materials often display weak-ferromagnetism of which the origin is poorly understood [1,8,9].

A Ciência e a Tecnologia, especialmente nos últimos 200 anos, têm-se afirmado como o mais sólido empreendimento das sociedades modernas. Diversas decisões, nas suas diversas esferas, são baseadas e fundamentadas nos desenvolvimentos e produtos científicos e tecnológicos que têm contribuído visivelmente para a melhoria da qualidade de vida de muitos seres humanos. A escola tem procurado incorporar nos seus currículos vários desses desenvolvimentos e competências. Neste quadro, tem vindo a ganhar relevância a premência de uma educação em Ciências para todos, desde os primeiros anos de escolaridade, promotora de literacia científica assente em ideias que promovam um desenvolvimento pessoal e social dos alunos que lhes permitam participar responsável e criticamente na sociedade (Martins et al., 2006; Martins e Paixão, 2011; Osborne e Dillon, 2008; Vieira, Tenreiro-Vieira e Martins, 2011; Vieira e Tenreiro-Vieira, 2016). Todos os cidadãos devem dispor de conhecimentos em (bem como sobre e pelas) Ciências e Tecnologia, de modo a formar-se uma sociedade crítica, reflexiva e atenta a situações e dilemas que surgem das relações entre a Ciência e a Tecnologia e as atividades sociais, económicas e políticas (Martins e Paixão, 2011).

In traditional supply chain (SC), planning problems are usually considered individually at each SC entity. However, such decisions often influence the other members in the chain and thus an integrated approach should be considered. By modelling system-wide SC networks, different SC problems, like production planning, coordination, order distribution, among others, can be integrated and solved simultaneously so that the solution is beneficial to all entities in a longterm base. In an attempt to make progress in this area, researchers use various methods for modelling the dynamics of SCs. In the literature review, due to their distinctive characteristics, multi-agent-based systems have emerged as one of the most adequate modelling tools for tackling various aspects of SC problems. In this work, a multi-agent supply chain system (MASCS) model that integrates different SC processes is presented. The proposed model allows modelling different SCs with multi-products and different operational policies considering information asymmetry and distributed/decentralized mode of control. In this article the details of the MASCS model development and implementation are presented. Furthermore, the applicability of the proposed MASCS is briefly demonstrated through the solution of a SC example. The obtained results are discussed and research extensions are outlined.

The crabs Pirimela denticulata (Montagu, 1808) and Xaiva biguttata (Risso, 1816) identified in stomach contents of striped red mullet, Mullus surmuletus (Linnaeus, 1758) are recorded for the first time in Azorean waters, extending their known distribution range. A total of 59 individuals of P. denticulata and 12 of X. biguttata were identified in 22 and 10 mullets, respectively.

This paper proposes a modified binary particle swarm optimization (MBPSO) method for feature election with the simultaneous optimization of SVM kernel parameter setting, applied to mortality prediction in septic patients. An enhanced version of binary particle swarm optimization, designed to cope with premature convergence of the BPSO algorithm is proposed. MBPSO control the swarm variability using the velocity and the similarity between best swarm solutions. This paper uses support vector machines in a wrapper approach, where the kernel parameters are optimized at the same time. The approach is applied to predict the outcome (survived or deceased) of patients with septic shock. Further, MBPSO is tested in several benchmark datasets and is compared with other PSO based algorithms and genetic algorithms (GA). The experimental results showed that the proposed approach can correctly select the discriminating input features and also achieve high classification accuracy, specially when compared to other PSO based algorithms. When compared to GA, MBPSO is similar in terms of accuracy, but the subset solutions have less selected features.

The main objective of this study was to extend the shelf life of fresh red raspberry (Rubus idaeus. L. cv. ‘Kweli’) by using active film-pads inside commercial compostable packages. The pads were produced with chitosan (Ch) with the incorporation of green tea (GTE) and rosemary (RSME) ethanolic extracts as natural antifungal agents. Pads were placed on the bottom of commercial fruit trays underneath the fruits, and the trays were heat-sealed with a polyacid lactic (PLA) film. Preservation studies were carried out over 14 days of storage at refrigeration temperature (4 C). Raspberry samples were periodically analyzed throughout storage, in terms of quality attributes (fungal decay, weight loss, firmness, surface color, pH, total soluble solids), total phenolic content and antioxidant activity. Gas composition inside the packages was also analyzed over time. From the packaging systems tested, the ones with active film-pads Ch + GTE and Ch + RSME were highly effective in reducing fungal growth and decay of raspberry during storage, showing only around 13% and 5% of spoiled fruits after 14 days, respectively, in contrast with the packages without pads (around 80% of spoiled fruits detected). In addition, fruits preserved using packages with Ch + RSME active film-pads showed lower mass loss (5.6%), decreased firmness (3.7%) and reduced antioxidant activity (around 9% and 15% for DPPH and FRAP methods, respectively). This sustainable packaging presents a potential strategy for the preservation of raspberries and other highly perishable small fruits

Natural extracts have been used in several traditional medicine applications and culinary purposes. Their biological properties (antioxidant and antimicrobial) are due to the presence of several active aromatic compounds. Herein, different natural extracts were evaluated, namely structural and thermal characterization and biological activity, in its natural form and incorporated into a polymeric matrix, to assess their effective potential as additives for active food packaging. While rosemary presented the highest thermal stability with a degradation starting at 327°C, lemon balm extract was the less stable (180°C). Regarding the thiobarbituric acid assay, all extracts presented antioxidant activity, in oxidative hemolysis inhibition; anise, cinnamon, and clove extract did not present any action. Overall, the results demonstrated that leaves (rosemary and green tea) and the rhizome (curcumin) are the plant parts with the best performance. Therefore, extracts from aromatic plants are promising natural additives that can be incorporated into polymeric matrices to produce active food packaging film, increasing products shelf-life.

Fresh figs are very appreciated and have been associated with health benefits. However, these fruits are highly perishable. In this study, edible coatings were studied envisaging their positive effect in enhancing figs’ shelf-life. Fig fruits cv. ‘Pingo de mel’ were harvested at commercial ripening stage and single emulsion-based coatings, composed of chitosan + olive oil and alginate + olive oil, were applied. After coatings application by dipping each fruit in the emulsion-based solutions at 4 C and drying, the coated fruits were sprayed with crosslinking solutions (6% tripolyphosphate and 1% calcium chloride for chitosan and alginate-based coatings, respectively). Then, were maintained at 4 C and analyzed after 1, 7, 14 and 19 days of storage. After each time interval, fruits were further maintained at 25 C for 2 days. The results have shown that coatings were effective on delaying fungal decay and postharvest ripening indicators (respiration rate, mass loss, softening and total soluble solids/titratable acidity ratio). The results foresee a fruits’ shelf life between 14 and 19 days under refrigeration at 4 C that may be followed up to 2 days at ambient temperature, higher than that estimated for uncoated fruits (less than 14 days at 4 C plus to 2 days at ambient temperature)