A novel BCR-ABL1 mutation in a patient with philadelphia chromosome-positive B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia - Raquel Vinhas; Lourenço, Alexandra; Susana Santos; Marcos Lemos; Patrícia Ribeiro; {de Sousa}, Aida Botelho; Baptista, Pedro Viana; Fernandes, Alexandra Ramos (OncoTargets and Therapy, 2018)
Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL) represents the most common genetic subtype of adult ALL (20%–30%) and accounts for approximately 50% of all cases in the elderly. It has been considered the subgroup of ALL with the worst outcome. The introduction of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) allows complete hematologic remission virtually in all patients, with improved disease-free survival and overall survival. Nevertheless, the emergence of resistant mutations in BCR-ABL1 may require different TKI strategies to overcome the patient’s resistance and disease relapse. Here, we report a Ph+ B-ALL case with persistent minimal residual disease (MRD) after treatment with dasatinib. The patient expressed the P190BCR-ABL1 isoform and a novel BCR-ABL1 mutation, p.Y440C. The latter is in the C-terminal lobe of the kinase domain, which likely induces deviations in the protein structure and activity and destabilizes its inactive conformation. The treatment was substituted by bosutinib, which binds to the active conformation of the protein, prior to allogeneic bone marrow transplant to overcome the lack of a complete response to dasatinib. These findings strengthen the importance of BCR-ABL1 mutational screening in Ph+ patients, particularly for those who do not achieve complete molecular remission.
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/5876/147258/PT# info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/PD/PD%2FBD%2F52211%2F2013/PT# cofinanced by the ERDF under the PT2020 Partnership Agreement (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728). Inn-INDIGO/0002/2015.
Keywords: All; e14a2; mutation; p.Y440C; Philadelphia chromosome

Synthesis, Cytotoxicity Evaluation in Human Cell Lines and in Vitro DNA Interaction of a Hetero-Arylidene-9(10H)-Anthrone - Peixoto, Daniela; Figueiredo, Margarida; Malta, Gabriela; Catarina Roma-Rodrigues; Baptista, Pedro V; Fernandes, Alexandra R; Barroso, Sónia; Carvalho, Ana Luísa; Afonso, Carlos A. M.; Ferreira, Luisa M.; Branco, Paula S. (European Journal of Organic Chemistry, 2018)
A new and never before reported hetero-arylidene-9(10H)-anthrone structure (4) was unexpectedly isolated on reaction of 1,2-dimethyl-3-ethylimidazolium iodide (2) and 9-anthracenecarboxaldehyde (3) under basic conditions. Its structure was unequivocally confirmed by X-ray crystallography. No cytotoxicity in human healthy fibroblasts and in two different cancer cell lines was observed, indicating its applicability in biological systems. Compound 4 interacts with CT-DNA by intercalation between the adjacent base pairs of DNA with a high binding affinity [Kb = 2.0 (±0.20) × 105 m–1], which is 10 × higher than that described for doxorubicin [Kb = 3.2 (±0.23) × 104 m–1]. Furthermore, compound 4 quenches the fluorescence emission of a GelRed–CT-DNA system with a quenching constant (KSV) of 3.3 (±0.3) × 103 m–1 calculated by the Stern–Volmer equation.
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/5876/147218/PT# info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/5876/147258/PT# info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/3599-PPCDT/127013/PT# info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/3599-PPCDT/125363/PT# POCI-01-0145- 710-FEDER-007265 POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728
Keywords: anthracenecarboxaldehyde; Anthrone; Decarbonylation; DNA intercalation; Imidazolium salt

Styryl and phenylethynyl based coumarin chromophores for dye sensitized solar cells - Martins, Sergio; Avo, Joao; Lima, Joao; Nogueira, Jose; Andrade, Luisa; Mendes, Adelio; Pereira, Antonio; Branco, Paula S. (JOURNAL OF PHOTOCHEMISTRY AND PHOTOBIOLOGY A-CHEMISTRY, 2018)
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Nanoparticle-AntagoMIR based targeting of MIR-31 to induce osterix and osteocalcin expression in mesenchymal stem cells - Mark McCully; João Conde; Baptista, Pedro V; Mullin, Margaret; Dalby, Matthew J.; Berry, Catherine C. (PLoS ONE, 2018)
Mesenchymal stem cells are multipotent adult stem cells capable of generating bone, cartilage and fat, and are thus currently being exploited for regenerative medicine. When considering osteogenesis, developments have been made with regards to chemical induction (e.g. differentiation media) and physical induction (e.g. material stiffness, nanotopography), targeting established early transcription factors or regulators such as runx2 or bone morphogenic proteins and promoting increased numbers of cells committing to osteo-specific differentiation. Recent research highlighted the involvement of microRNAs in lineage commitment and terminal differentiation. Herein, gold nanoparticles that confer stability to short single stranded RNAs were used to deliver MiR-31 antagomiRs to both pre-osteoblastic cells and primary human MSCs in vitro. Results showed that blocking miR-31 led to an increase in osterix protein in both cell types at day 7, with an increase in osteocalcin at day 21, suggesting MSC osteogenesis. In addition, it was noted that antagomiR sequence direction was important, with the 5 prime reading direction proving more effective than the 3 prime. This study highlights the potential that miRNA antagomiR-Tagged nanoparticles offer as novel therapeutics in regenerative medicine.
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/5876/147258/PT# The author CCB wishes to acknowledge funding from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC); BB/L008661/1. (https://www.bbsrc.ac.uk/); PVB was supported by the Unidade de Ciencias Biomoleculares Aplicadas-UCIBIO, which is financed by national funds from Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia / Ministerio da Educacao e Ciencia (FCT/MEC) (https://www.fct.pt/) (UID/Multi/04378/2013) and co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) (http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/en/funding/erdf/) under the PT2020 Partnership Agreement (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728); PP for PD/BD/105734/2014. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Combination of chemotherapy and Au-nanoparticle photothermy in the visible light to tackle doxorubicin resistance in cancer cells - Pedro Pedrosa; Rita Mendes; Rita Cabral; Martins, Luísa M. D. R. S.; Baptista, Pedro V; Fernandes, Alexandra R (Scientific Reports, 2018)
Despite great advances in the fight against cancer, traditional chemotherapy has been hindered by the dose dependent adverse side effects that reduce the usable doses for effective therapy. This has been associated to drug resistance in tumor cells that often cause relapse and therapy failure. These drawbacks have been tackled by combining different therapeutic regiments that prevent drug resistance while decreasing the chemotherapy dose required for efficacious ablation of cancer. In fact, new metallic compounds have been in a continuous development to extend the existing chemotherapy arsenal for these combined regimens. Here, we demonstrate that combination of a metallic compound (TS265), previously characterized by our group, with photothermy circumvents cells resistant to Doxorubicin (DOX). We first engendered a colorectal carcinoma cell line (HCT116) highly resistant to DOX, whose viability was diminished after administration of TS265. Cancer cell death was potentiated by challenging these cells with 14 nm spherical gold nanoparticles followed by laser irradiation at 532 nm. The combination of TS265 with photothermy lead to 65% cell death of the DOX resistant cells without impacting healthy cells. These results support the use of combined chemotherapy and photothermy in the visible spectrum as an efficient tool for drug resistant tumors.
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/5876/147258/PT# info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/5876/147216/PT# This work was supported by the Unidade de Ciencias Biomoleculares Aplicadas - UCIBIO which is financed by national funds from FCT/MEC (UID/Multi/04378/2013; UID/QUI/00100/2013) and co-financed by the ERDF under the PT2020 Partnership Agreement (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728); PP for PD/BD/105734/2014; RM for SFRH/BD/132163/2017. I. Coutinho for access to laser and P. Martins for initial induction of HCT116 DOXR.
Keywords: chemotherapy; Infrared devices; Therapy PTT

Multifunctional microfluidic chip for optical nanoprobe based RNA detection - Application to Chronic Myeloid Leukemia - Alves, Pedro Urbano; Raquel Vinhas; Fernandes, Alexandra R; Birol, Semra Zuhal; Trabzon, Levent; Iwona Bernacka-Wojcik; Rui Igreja; Paulo Lopes; Baptista, Pedro Viana; Hugo Águas; Elvira Fortunato; Rodrigo Martins (Scientific Reports, 2018)
Many diseases have their treatment options narrowed and end up being fatal if detected during later stages. As a consequence, point-of-care devices have an increasing importance for routine screening applications in the health sector due to their portability, fast analyses and decreased cost. For that purpose, a multifunctional chip was developed and tested using gold nanoprobes to perform RNA optical detection inside a microfluidic chip without the need of molecular amplification steps. As a proof-of-concept, this device was used for the rapid detection of chronic myeloid leukemia, a hemato-oncological disease that would benefit from early stage diagnostics and screening tests. The chip passively mixed target RNA from samples, gold nanoprobes and saline solution to infer a result from their final colorimetric properties. An optical fiber network was used to evaluate its transmitted spectra inside the chip. Trials provided accurate output results within 3 min, yielding signal-to-noise ratios up to 9 dB. When compared to actual state-of-art screening techniques of chronic myeloid leukemia, these results were, at microscale, at least 10 times faster than the reported detection methods for chronic myeloid leukemia. Concerning point-of-care applications, this work paves the way for other new and more complex versions of optical based genosensors.
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/5876/147333/PT# info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/5876/147258/PT# info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/PD/PD%2FBD%2F52211%2F2013/PT# sem pdf conforme despacho. FCT - Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology under the project number POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007688, and project DISERTOX, Reference PTDC/CTM-NAN/2912/2014. co-financed by the ERDF under the PT2020 Partnership Agreement (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728.

Secondary Metabolites and Biological Activity of Invasive Macroalgae of Southern Europe - Maximo, Patricia; Ferreira, Luisa M.; Branco, Paula; Lima, Pedro; Lourenco, Ana (MARINE DRUGS, 2018)
In this review a brief description of the invasive phenomena associated with algae and its consequences on the ecosystem are presented. Three examples of invasive algae of Southern Europe, belonging to Rodophyta, Chlorophyta, and Phaeophyta, were selected, and a brief description of each genus is presented. A full description of their secondary metabolites and biological activity is given and a summary of the biological activity of extracts is also included. In Asparagopsis we encounter mainly halogenated compounds. From Caulerpa, several terpenoids and alkaloids were isolated, while in Sargassum, meroterpenoids prevail.
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Incorporation of Coumarin-Based Fluorescent Monomers into Co-Oligomeric Molecules - Teixeira, Edgar; Lima, Joao C.; Jorge Parola, A.; Branco, Paula S. (POLYMERS, 2018)
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Uma análise comparativa de ferramentas de análise estática para deteção de erros de memória - Patrícia Monteiro; João Lourenço; António Ravara (INForum 2018 - Simpósio de Informática, 2018)

Blue enamel pigment—Chemical and morphological characterization of its corrosion process - Machado, A.; Vilarigues, M. (Corrosion Science, 2018)
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Export Date: 5 June 2018Article in Press

Cellulose-Based Biomimetics and Their Applications - Ana P.C. Almeida; Canejo, João P; Fernandes, Susete N.; Coro Echeverria; Almeida, Pedro L; Godinho, Maria H (Advanced MaterialsAdvanced Materials, 2018)
Abstract Nature has been producing cellulose since long before man walked the surface of the earth. Millions of years of natural design and testing have resulted in cellulose-based structures that are an inspiration for the production of synthetic materials based on cellulose with properties that can mimic natural designs, functions, and properties. Here, five sections describe cellulose-based materials with characteristics that are inspired by gratings that exist on the petals of the plants, structurally colored materials, helical filaments produced by plants, water-responsive materials in plants, and environmental stimuli-responsive tissues found in insects and plants. The synthetic cellulose-based materials described herein are in the form of fibers and films. Fascinating multifunctional materials are prepared from cellulose-based liquid crystals and from composite cellulosic materials that combine functionality with structural performance. Future and recent applications are outlined.
doi: 10.1002/adma.201703655
Keywords: cellulose-based liquid-crystalline materials; cellulose-based photonic materials; cellulosic fibers and films mimicking the shapes of natural systems; nature's bioinspired systems; responsive cellulose-based materials

Cellulose-Based Materials: Cellulose-Based Biomimetics and Their Applications (Adv. Mater. 19/2018) - Ana P.C. Almeida; Canejo, João P; Fernandes, Susete N.; Coro Echeverria; Almeida, Pedro L; Godinho, Maria H (Advanced MaterialsAdvanced Materials, 2018)
In article number 1703655, Maria H. Godinho and co-workers review cellulose and cellulose-based materials which have properties that mimic natural designs and functions. Such materials are inspired by gratings, helical filaments, structurally colored water, and stimuli-responsive materials that exist in insects and plants. Synthetic cellulose-based materials in the form of fibers and films are considered. The inside front cover shows a eurodium awn cross section, by scanning electron microscopy, displaying the helical arrangements of cellulose fibrils.
doi: 10.1002/adma.201870131
Keywords: cellulose-based liquid-crystalline materials; cellulose-based photonic materials; cellulosic fibers and films mimicking the shapes of natural systems; nature's bioinspired systems; responsive cellulose-based materials

Characterization of the alteration processes of historical glasses on the seabed - Palomar, T. (2018)
Glass objects are common in shipwrecks since they are associated with ordinary glassware or commercial products. The alteration pathologies of historical glasses from two wrecks from the Mediterranean Sea were analyzed to characterize their alteration mechanisms. The results of this research proved that the alteration layers presented a moderate content of Na2O, similar to the average salinity of the ocean, and a high content of Al2O3 due to an extremely basic environment during the corrosion process. The biofouling layer protected the glass surfaces. Dark deposits with a high content of MnO were observed in the most instable glass.
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Keywords: Biofouling; Degradation; Historical glass; Seabed; Shipwreck

Combination of chemotherapy and Au-nanoparticle photothermy in the visible light to tackle doxorubicin resistance in cancer cells - Pedro Pedrosa; Rita Mendes; Rita Cabral; Luísa M.D.R.S. Martins; Pedro V. Baptista; Alexandra R. Fernandes (Scientific Reports, 2018)
Despite great advances in the fight against cancer, traditional chemotherapy has been hindered by the dose dependent adverse side effects that reduce the usable doses for effective therapy. This has been associated to drug resistance in tumor cells that often cause relapse and therapy failure. These drawbacks have been tackled by combining different therapeutic regiments that prevent drug resistance while decreasing the chemotherapy dose required for efficacious ablation of cancer. In fact, new metallic compounds have been in a continuous development to extend the existing chemotherapy arsenal for these combined regimens. Here, we demonstrate that combination of a metallic compound (TS265), previously characterized by our group, with photothermy circumvents cells resistant to Doxorubicin (DOX). We first engendered a colorectal carcinoma cell line (HCT116) highly resistant to DOX, whose viability was diminished after administration of TS265. Cancer cell death was potentiated by challenging these cells with 14 nm spherical gold nanoparticles followed by laser irradiation at 532 nm. The combination of TS265 with photothermy lead to 65% cell death of the DOX resistant cells without impacting healthy cells. These results support the use of combined chemotherapy and photothermy in the visible spectrum as an efficient tool for drug resistant tumors.
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The conservation of stained-glass windows in Latin America: A literature overview - M. Corrêa Pinto, Amanda; Macedo, Maria Filomena; G. Vilarigues, Márcia (2018)
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Keywords: Conservation; Deterioration; Latin America; Stained-glass windows

Convergence of miR-143 overexpression, oxidative stress and cell death in HCT116 human colon cancer cells - Gomes, S. E.; Pereira, D. M.; Roma-Rodrigues, C.; Fernandes, A. R.; Borralho, P. M.; Rodrigues, C. M. P. (PLoS One, 2018)
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) regulate a wide variety of biological processes, including tumourigenesis. Altered miRNA expression is associated with deregulation of signalling pathways, which in turn cause abnormal cell growth and de-differentiation, contributing to cancer. miR-143 and miR-145 are anti-tumourigenic and influence the sensitivity of tumour cells to chemotherapy and targeted therapy. Comparative proteomic analysis was performed in HCT116 human colon cancer cells stably transduced with miR-143 or miR-145. Immunoblotting analysis validated the proteomic data in stable and transient miRNA overexpression conditions in human colon cancer cells. We show that approximately 100 proteins are differentially expressed in HCT116 human colon cancer cells stably transduced with miR-143 or miR-145 compared to Empty control cells. Further, Gene Ontology and pathway enrichment analysis indicated that proteins involved in specific cell signalling pathways such as cell death, response to oxidative stress, and protein folding might be modulated by these miRNAs. In particular, antioxidant enzyme superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) was downregulated by stable expression of either miR-143 or miR-145. Further, SOD1 gain-of-function experiments rescued cells from miR-143-induced oxidative stress. Moreover, miR-143 overexpression increased oxaliplatin-induced apoptosis associated with reactive oxygen species generation, which was abrogated by genetic and pharmacological inhibition of oxidative stress. Overall, miR-143 might circumvent resistance of colon cancer cells to oxaliplatin via increased oxidative stress in HCT116 human colon cancer cells.
Gomes, Sofia EPereira, Diane M Roma-Rodrigues, Catarina Fernandes, Alexandra R Borralho, Pedro M Rodrigues, Cecilia M P eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Validation Study PLoS One. 2018 Jan 23;13(1):e0191607. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0191607. eCollection 2018.
Keywords: *Cell death; *Oxidative Stress; Cell Proliferation; Colonic Neoplasms/genetics/metabolism/*pathology; Gene Expression; HCT116 Cells; Humans; MicroRNAs/*genetics; Superoxide Dismutase-1/genetics

Critical overview on the structure and metabolism of human aldehyde oxidase and its role in pharmacokinetics - Mota, Cristiano; Coelho, Catarina; Leimkühler, Silke; Garattini, Enrico; Terao, Mineko; Santos-Silva, Teresa; Romão, Maria João (2018)
Aldehyde oxidases are molybdenum and flavin dependent enzymes characterized by a very wide substrate specificity and performing diverse reactions that include oxidations (e.g., aldehydes and aza-heterocycles), hydrolysis of amide bonds, and reductions (e.g., nitro, S-oxides and N-oxides). Oxidation reactions and amide hydrolysis occur at the molybdenum site while the reductions are proposed to occur at the flavin site. AOX activity affects the metabolism of different drugs and xenobiotics, some of which designed to resist other liver metabolizing enzymes (e.g., cytochrome P450 monooxygenase isoenzymes), raising its importance in drug development. This work consists of a comprehensive overview on aldehyde oxidases, concerning the genetic evolution of AOX, its diversity among the human population, the crystal structures available, the known catalytic reactions and the consequences in pre-clinical pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic studies. Analysis of the different animal models generally used for pre-clinical trials and comparison between the human (hAOX1), mouse homologs as well as the related xanthine oxidase (XOR) are extensively considered. The data reviewed also include a systematic analysis of representative classes of molecules that are hAOX1 substrates as well as of typical and well characterized hAOX1 inhibitors. The considerations made on the basis of a structural and functional analysis are correlated with reported kinetic and metabolic data for typical classes of drugs, searching for potential structural determinants that may dictate substrate and/or inhibitor specificities.
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Keywords: Aldehyde Oxidase; Drug metabolism; Hepatic clearance; Molybdoenzymes; Non-CYP enzymes; Xenobiotics

A double Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia patient, co-expressing P210(BCR-ABL1) and P195(BCR-ABL1) isoforms - Vinhas, R.; Lourenco, A.; Santos, S.; P Ribeiro; Silva, M; de Sousa, A. B.; P.V. Baptista; Fernandes, A. R. (Haematologica, 2018)
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Vinhas, RaquelLourenco, Alexandra Santos, Susana Ribeiro, Patricia Silva, Madalena de Sousa, Aida Botelho Baptista, Pedro V Fernandes, Alexandra R eng Case Reports Letter Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Italy Haematologica. 2018 Nov;103(11):e549-e552. doi: 10.3324/haematol.2018.192534. Epub 2018 Aug 9.
Keywords: *Fusion Proteins, bcr-abl/biosynthesis/genetics; *Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; *Gene Expression Regulation, Leukemic; *Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL; *Philadelphia Chromosome; Adult; Humans; Isoenzymes/genetics; Male; Positive/diagnosis/enzymology/genetics/pathology

EPR and electrochemical interpretation of bispyrazolylacetate anchored Ni(ii) and Mn(ii) complexes: cytotoxicity and anti-proliferative activity towards human cancer cell lines - Kuheli Das; Beyene, Belete B.; Amitabha Datta; Garribba, Eugenio; Catarina Roma-Rodrigues; Silva, Ana; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Hung, Chen-Hsiung (New Journal of Chemistry, 2018)
Two mononuclear NiII and MnII compounds, [Ni(bdtbpza)2(CH3OH)4] (1) and [Mn(bdtbpza)2(CH3OH)2(H2O)2] (2), are afforded by employing a ‘scorpionate’ type precursor [bdtbpza = bis(3,5-di-t-butylpyrazol-1-yl)acetate]. The single crystal X-ray structure reveals that the central metal ion (NiII for 1 and MnII for 2) is surrounded by a pair of Oacetate atoms of two bis(pyrazol-1-yl)acetate units, while four OMeOH donors for 1 and two OMeOH plus two Owater for 2 complete the first coordination sphere. Thus, both compounds exhibit a slightly distorted octahedral geometry possessing an O6 coordination environment. EPR spectra of CuII-doped 1 and of 2 recorded on the polycrystalline solids and in organic solution confirm the octahedral geometry around the metal ions and the binding of six oxygen atoms. The electrochemical study of compounds 1 and 2 shows that one electron reduction of MnII occurs at a more negative potential than NiII, indicating a lower tendency of reduction for Mn than Ni. Both compounds displayed a high cytotoxic activity against A2780 ovarian carcinoma cells and no cytotoxic activity in normal primary human fibroblasts for concentrations up to 55 μM. Notwithstanding, compound 1 is found to be the most cytotoxic towards A2780 cancer cells. The cytotoxic activity of compound 1 is correlated with the induction of apoptosis associated with a higher mitochondria dysfunction and autophagy cell death. In addition, the compounds can induce oxidative damage leading to ROS accumulation. Overall, the data presented here demonstrate that 1 has potential for further in vivo studies aiming at its future application in ovarian cancer therapy.
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Evaluation of cell toxicity and DNA and protein binding of green synthesized silver nanoparticles - Ribeiro, A. P. C.; Anbu, S.; Alegria, E.C.B.A.; Fernandes, A. R.; P.V. Baptista; Mendes, R.; Matias, A.S.; Mendes, M.; Guedes da Silva, M.F.C.; Pombeiro, A. J. L. (Biomed Pharmacother, 2018)
Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were prepared by GREEN chemistry relying on the reduction of AgNO3 by phytochemicals present in black tea extract. AgNPs were fully characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy ((UV-vis)), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy dispersive absorption spectroscopy (EDS). The synthesized AgNPs induced a decrease of the cell viability in a dose-dependent manner with a low IC50 (0.5+/-0.1muM) for an ovarian carcinoma cell line (A2780) compared to primary human fibroblasts (IC50 5.0+/-0.1muM). The DNA binding capability of CT (calf thymus) DNA was investigated using electronic absorption and fluorescence spectroscopies, circular dichroism and viscosity titration methods. Additionally, the AgNPs strongly quench the intrinsic fluorescence of BSA, as determined by synchronous fluorescence spectra.
Ribeiro, A P CAnbu, S Alegria, E C B A Fernandes, A R Baptista, P V Mendes, R Matias, A S Mendes, M Guedes da Silva, M F C Pombeiro, A J L eng France Biomed Pharmacother. 2018 May;101:137-144. doi: 10.1016/j.biopha.2018.02.069. Epub 2018 Feb 23.
Keywords: Animals; BSA interaction; Cancer cell lines; Cattle; Cell Survival/*drug effects/physiology; cytotoxicity; DNA interaction; DNA-Binding Proteins/*metabolism; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Drug Evaluation, Preclinical/methods; Green chemistry; Green Chemistry Technology/*methods; HCT116 Cells; Humans; Metal Nanoparticles/*toxicity; Plant Extracts/isolation & purification/metabolism/*toxicity; Protein Binding/drug effects/physiology; Serum Albumin, Bovine/metabolism; Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs); Silver/metabolism/*toxicity; Tea/metabolism/toxicity

First insights of peptidoglycan amidation in Gram-positive bacteria - the high-resolution crystal structure of Staphylococcus aureus glutamine amidotransferase GatD - Leisico, Francisco; V. Vieira, Diana; Figueiredo, Teresa A.; Silva, Micael; Cabrita, Eurico J.; Sobral, Rita G.; Ludovice, Ana Madalena; Trincão, José; Romão, Maria João; de Lencastre, Hermínia; Santos-Silva, Teresa (Scientific Reports, 2018)
Gram-positive bacteria homeostasis and antibiotic resistance mechanisms are dependent on the intricate architecture of the cell wall, where amidated peptidoglycan plays an important role. The amidation reaction is carried out by the bi-enzymatic complex MurT-GatD, for which biochemical and structural information is very scarce. In this work, we report the first crystal structure of the glutamine amidotransferase member of this complex, GatD from Staphylococcus aureus, at 1.85 Å resolution. A glutamine molecule is found close to the active site funnel, hydrogen-bonded to the conserved R128. In vitro functional studies using 1H-NMR spectroscopy showed that S. aureus MurT-GatD complex has glutaminase activity even in the absence of lipid II, the MurT substrate. In addition, we produced R128A, C94A and H189A mutants, which were totally inactive for glutamine deamidation, revealing their essential role in substrate sequestration and catalytic reaction. GatD from S. aureus and other pathogenic bacteria share high identity to enzymes involved in cobalamin biosynthesis, which can be grouped in a new sub-family of glutamine amidotransferases. Given the ubiquitous presence of GatD, these results provide significant insights into the molecular basis of the so far undisclosed amidation mechanism, contributing to the development of alternative therapeutics to fight infections.
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Higher order scaffoldin assembly in Ruminococcus flavefaciens cellulosome is coordinated by a discrete cohesin-dockerin interaction - Bule, Pedro; Pires, Virgínia M R; Alves, Victor D.; Ana Luísa Carvalho; Prates, José A. M.; Ferreira, Luís M. A.; Smith, Steven P.; Gilbert, Harry J.; Noach, Ilit; Bayer, Edward A.; Najmudin, Shabir; Fontes, Carlos M. G. A. (Scientific Reports, 2018)
Cellulosomes are highly sophisticated molecular nanomachines that participate in the deconstruction of complex polysaccharides, notably cellulose and hemicellulose. Cellulosomal assembly is orchestrated by the interaction of enzyme-borne dockerin (Doc) modules to tandem cohesin (Coh) modules of a non-catalytic primary scaffoldin. In some cases, as exemplified by the cellulosome of the major cellulolytic ruminal bacterium Ruminococcus flavefaciens, primary scaffoldins bind to adaptor scaffoldins that further interact with the cell surface via anchoring scaffoldins, thereby increasing cellulosome complexity. Here we elucidate the structure of the unique Doc of R. flavefaciens FD-1 primary scaffoldin ScaA, bound to Coh 5 of the adaptor scaffoldin ScaB. The RfCohScaB5-DocScaA complex has an elliptical architecture similar to previously described complexes from a variety of ecological niches. ScaA Doc presents a single-binding mode, analogous to that described for the other two Coh-Doc specificities required for cellulosome assembly in R. flavefaciens. The exclusive reliance on a single-mode of Coh recognition contrasts with the majority of cellulosomes from other bacterial species described to date, where Docs contain two similar Coh-binding interfaces promoting a dual-binding mode. The discrete Coh-Doc interactions observed in ruminal cellulosomes suggest an adaptation to the exquisite properties of the rumen environment.
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Important cytotoxic and cytostatic effects of new copper(i)-phosphane compounds with N,N, N,O and N,S bidentate ligands - Morais, T. S.; Jousseaume, Y.; MF, M. Piedade; Roma-Rodrigues, C.; Fernandes, A. R.; Marques, F.; Villa de Brito, M. J.; Garcia, M. H. (Dalton Trans, 2018)
A family of six phosphane Cu(i) complexes bearing N,N, N,O and N,S bidentate ligands was synthesized. All the compounds were fully characterized by classical analytical and spectroscopic methods, and five of them were also characterized by X-ray diffraction studies. All the compounds exhibit high cytotoxicity against the human breast cancer cell line MCF7 with IC50 values far lower than those found for cisplatin, a current chemotherapeutic in clinical use. Compounds 1[combining low line] and 3[combining low line] induce cell cycle arrest in the G2/M phase and cell death by apoptosis. The cytotoxic and cytostatic effects of these compounds on MCF7 cells suggest that they are suitable for further in vivo studies with breast cancer models.
Morais, Tania SJousseaume, Yann M Piedade, M Fatima Roma-Rodrigues, Catarina Fernandes, Alexandra R Marques, Fernanda Villa de Brito, Maria J Garcia, M Helena eng England Dalton Trans. 2018 Jun 12;47(23):7819-7829. doi: 10.1039/c8dt01653d.

The Important Role of the Nuclearity, Rigidity, and Solubility of Phosphane Ligands in the Biological Activity of Gold(I) Complexes - Svahn, N.; Moro, A. J.; Roma-Rodrigues, C.; Puttreddy, R.; Rissanen, K.; P.V. Baptista; Fernandes, A. R.; J. C. Lima; Rodriguez, L (Chemistry, 2018)
A series of 4-ethynylaniline gold(I) complexes containing monophosphane (1,3,5-triaza-7-phosphaadamantane (pta; 2), 3,7-diacetyl-1,3,7-triaza-5-phosphabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane (3), and PR3 , with R=naphthyl (4), phenyl (5), and ethyl (6)) and diphosphane (bis(diphenylphosphino)acetylene (dppa; 7), trans-1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethene (dppet; 8), 1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethane (dppe; 9), and 1,3-bis(diphenylphosphino)propane (dppp; 10)) ligands have been synthesized and their efficiency against tumor cells evaluated. The cytotoxicity of complexes 2-10 was evaluated in human colorectal (HCT116) and ovarian (A2780) carcinoma as well as in normal human fibroblasts. All the complexes showed a higher antiproliferative effect in A2780 cells, with the cytotoxicity decreasing in the following order 5>6=9=10>8>2>4>7>3. Complex 4 stands out for its very high selectivity towards ovarian carcinoma cells (IC50 =2.3 mum) compared with colorectal carcinoma and normal human fibroblasts (IC50 >100 mum), which makes this complex very attractive for ovarian cancer therapy. Its cytotoxicity in these cells correlates with the induction of the apoptotic process and an increase of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS). The effects of the nuclearity, rigidity, and solubility of these complexes on their biological activity were also analyzed. X-ray crystal structure determination allowed the identification of short N-Hpi contacts as the main driving forces for the three-dimensional packing in these molecules.
Svahn, NooraMoro, Artur J Roma-Rodrigues, Catarina Puttreddy, Rakesh Rissanen, Kari Baptista, Pedro V Fernandes, Alexandra R Lima, Joao Carlos Rodriguez, Laura eng CTQ2016-76120-P/Ministerio de Economia, Industria y Competitividad, Gobierno de Espana UID/QUI/50006/2013/Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia UID/Multi/04378/2013/Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia 298817/Academy of Finland Germany Chemistry. 2018 Oct 1;24(55):14654-14667. doi: 10.1002/chem.201802547. Epub 2018 Sep 3.
Keywords: Antineoplastic Agents/chemical synthesis/*chemistry/pharmacology; antitumor agents; Apoptosis; bcl-2-Associated X Protein/metabolism; biological activity; Cell Line; Cell Survival/drug effects; Coordination Complexes/chemical synthesis/*chemistry/pharmacology; Crystallography, X-Ray; Gold; Gold/*chemistry; HCT116 Cells; Humans; Ligands; Membrane Potential, Mitochondrial/drug effects; Molecular Conformation; Phosphines/*chemistry; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2/metabolism; Quantum Theory; Reactive Oxygen Species/metabolism; Solubility; Structure-Activity Relationship; X-ray diffraction

Molecular recognition of a Thomsen-Friedenreich antigen mimetic targeting human galectin-3 - Santarsia, Sabrina; Grosso, Ana Sofia; Trovão, Filipa; Jesús Jiménez-Barbero; Ana Luísa Carvalho; Nativi, Cristina; Marcelo, Filipa (ChemMedChem, 2018)
Overexpression of the Thomsen-Friedenreich (TF) antigen in cell membrane proteins occurs in 90% of adenocarcinomas. Additionally, the binding of the TF-antigen to human galectin-3 (Gal-3), also frequently overexpressed in malignancy, promotes cancer progression and metastasis. In this context, structures that interfere with this specific interaction display the potential to prevent cancer metastasis. Herein, a multidisciplinary approach, combining the optimized synthesis of a TF-antigen mimetic with NMR, X-ray crystallography methods and isothermal titration calorimetry assays has been employed to unravel the molecular structural details that govern the Gal-3/TF-mimetic interaction. The TF-mimetic presents a binding affinity for Gal-3 similar to the TF-natural antigen and retains the binding epitope and the bioactive conformation observed for the native antigen. Furthermore, from a thermodynamic perspective a decrease in the enthalpic contribution was observed for the Gal-3/TF-mimetic complex, however this behaviour is compensated by a favourable entropy gain. From a structural perspective, these results establish our TF-mimetic as a scaffold to design multivalent solutions to potentially interfere with Gal-3 aberrant interactions and likely be used to hamper Gal-3-mediated cancer cells adhesion and metastasis.
doi: 10.1002/cmdc.201800525
Keywords: galectin-3; Molecular recognition; NMR spectroscopy; Tumour-associated carbohydrate antigens; X-ray crystallography

Multifunctional microfluidic chip for optical nanoprobe based RNA detection - application to Chronic Myeloid Leukemia - Pedro Urbano Alves; Raquel Vinhas; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Birol, Semra Zuhal; Trabzon, Levent; Iwona Bernacka-Wojcik; Rui Igreja; Paulo Lopes; Pedro Viana Baptista; Hugo Águas; Elvira Fortunato; Rodrigo Martins (2018)
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Multifunctional microfluidic chip for optical nanoprobe based RNA detection - application to Chronic Myeloid Leukemia - Alves, P. U.; Vinhas, R.; Fernandes, A. R.; Birol, S. Z.; Trabzon, L.; Bernacka-Wojcik, I.; Igreja, R.; Lopes, P.; P.V. Baptista; Aguas, H.; E. Fortunato; R. Martins (Sci Rep, 2018)
Many diseases have their treatment options narrowed and end up being fatal if detected during later stages. As a consequence, point-of-care devices have an increasing importance for routine screening applications in the health sector due to their portability, fast analyses and decreased cost. For that purpose, a multifunctional chip was developed and tested using gold nanoprobes to perform RNA optical detection inside a microfluidic chip without the need of molecular amplification steps. As a proof-of-concept, this device was used for the rapid detection of chronic myeloid leukemia, a hemato-oncological disease that would benefit from early stage diagnostics and screening tests. The chip passively mixed target RNA from samples, gold nanoprobes and saline solution to infer a result from their final colorimetric properties. An optical fiber network was used to evaluate its transmitted spectra inside the chip. Trials provided accurate output results within 3 min, yielding signal-to-noise ratios up to 9 dB. When compared to actual state-of-art screening techniques of chronic myeloid leukemia, these results were, at microscale, at least 10 times faster than the reported detection methods for chronic myeloid leukemia. Concerning point-of-care applications, this work paves the way for other new and more complex versions of optical based genosensors.
Alves, Pedro UrbanoVinhas, Raquel Fernandes, Alexandra R Birol, Semra Zuhal Trabzon, Levent Bernacka-Wojcik, Iwona Igreja, Rui Lopes, Paulo Baptista, Pedro Viana Aguas, Hugo Fortunato, Elvira Martins, Rodrigo eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't England Sci Rep. 2018 Jan 10;8(1):381. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-18725-9.
Keywords: Early Detection of Cancer; Gold; Humans; K562 Cells; Lab-On-A-Chip Devices; Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive/*diagnosis/*genetics; Metal Nanoparticles; Microfluidic Analytical Techniques/*instrumentation; Optical Fibers; Point-of-Care Systems; RNA/*analysis; Signal-To-Noise Ratio; THP-1 Cells

Nano-Strategies to Fight Multidrug Resistant Bacteria—“A Battle of the Titans” - Pedro V. Baptista; McCusker, Matthew P.; Carvalho, Andreia; Ferreira, Daniela A.; Mohan, Niamh M.; Marta Martins; Alexandra R. Fernandes (2018)
Infectious diseases remain one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The WHO and CDC have expressed serious concern regarding the continued increase in the development of multidrug resistance among bacteria. Therefore, the antibiotic resistance crisis is one of the most pressing issues in global public health. Associated with the rise in antibiotic resistance is the lack of new antimicrobials. This has triggered initiatives worldwide to develop novel and more effective antimicrobial compounds as well as to develop novel delivery and targeting strategies. Bacteria have developed many ways by which they become resistant to antimicrobials. Among those are enzyme inactivation, decreased cell permeability, target protection, target overproduction, altered target site/enzyme, increased efflux due to over-expression of efflux pumps, among others. Other more complex phenotypes, such as biofilm formation and quorum sensing do not appear as a result of the exposure of bacteria to antibiotics although, it is known that biofilm formation can be induced by antibiotics. These phenotypes are related to tolerance to antibiotics in bacteria. Different strategies, such as the use of nanostructured materials, are being developed to overcome these and other types of resistance. Nanostructured materials can be used to convey antimicrobials, to assist in the delivery of novel drugs or ultimately, possess antimicrobial activity by themselves. Additionally, nanoparticles (e.g., metallic, organic, carbon nanotubes, etc.) may circumvent drug resistance mechanisms in bacteria and, associated with their antimicrobial potential, inhibit biofilm formation or other important processes. Other strategies, including the combined use of plant-based antimicrobials and nanoparticles to overcome toxicity issues, are also being investigated. Coupling nanoparticles and natural-based antimicrobials (or other repurposed compounds) to inhibit the activity of bacterial efflux pumps; formation of biofilms; interference of quorum sensing; and possibly plasmid curing, are just some of the strategies to combat multidrug resistant bacteria. However, the use of nanoparticles still presents a challenge to therapy and much more research is needed in order to overcome this. In this review, we will summarize the current research on nanoparticles and other nanomaterials and how these are or can be applied in the future to fight multidrug resistant bacteria.
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Keywords: antimicrobial resistance,multidrug resistance,nanomaterials,Nanoparticles,Plant-based compounds,Novel antimicrobial agents,Nanotheranostics.

Nanoparticles as emerging diagnostic tools in liquid tumours - Matias, A.S.; Vinhas, R.; Mendes, R.; Fernandes, A. R.; P.V. Baptista (European Medical J Innov, 2018)
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A novel BCR-ABL1 mutation in a patient with Philadelphia chromosome-positive B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia - Vinhas, R.; Lourenco, A.; Santos, S.; Lemos, M.; P Ribeiro; de Sousa, A. B.; P.V. Baptista; Fernandes, A. R. (Onco Targets Ther, 2018)
Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL) represents the most common genetic subtype of adult ALL (20%-30%) and accounts for approximately 50% of all cases in the elderly. It has been considered the subgroup of ALL with the worst outcome. The introduction of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) allows complete hematologic remission virtually in all patients, with improved disease-free survival and overall survival. Nevertheless, the emergence of resistant mutations in BCR-ABL1 may require different TKI strategies to overcome the patient's resistance and disease relapse. Here, we report a Ph+B-ALL case with persistent minimal residual disease (MRD) after treatment with dasatinib. The patient expressed the P190(BCR-ABL1) isoform and a novel BCR-ABL1 mutation, p.Y440C. The latter is in the C-terminal lobe of the kinase domain, which likely induces deviations in the protein structure and activity and destabilizes its inactive conformation. The treatment was substituted by bosutinib, which binds to the active conformation of the protein, prior to allogeneic bone marrow transplant to overcome the lack of a complete response to dasatinib. These findings strengthen the importance of BCR-ABL1 mutational screening in Ph+ patients, particularly for those who do not achieve complete molecular remission.
Vinhas, RaquelLourenco, Alexandra Santos, Susana Lemos, Marcos Ribeiro, Patricia de Sousa, Aida Botelho Baptista, Pedro Viana Fernandes, Alexandra Ramos eng Case Reports New Zealand Onco Targets Ther. 2018 Nov 30;11:8589-8598. doi: 10.2147/OTT.S177019. eCollection 2018.
Keywords: All; e14a2; mutation; p.Y440C; Philadelphia chromosome

Optimal-Enhanced Solar Cell Ultra-thinning with Broadband Nanophotonic Light Capture - Mendes, Manuel J.; Haque, Sirazul; Sanchez-Sobrado, Olalla; Araújo, Andreia; Hugo Águas; Elvira Fortunato; Rodrigo Martins (iScienceiScience, 2018)
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doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2018.04.018

POxylated Dendrimer-Based Nano-in-Micro Dry Powder Formulations for Inhalation Chemotherapy - Rita B. Restani; Rita F. Pires; Anna Tolmatcheva; Rita Cabral; Pedro V. Baptista; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Casimiro, Teresa; Vasco D.B. Bonifácio; Aguiar-Ricardo, Ana (2018)
Abstract POxylated polyurea dendrimer (PUREG4OOx48)-based nanoparticles were loaded with paclitaxel (PTX) and doxorubicin (DOX) and micronized with chitosan (CHT) by using supercritical CO2-assisted spray drying (SASD). Respirable, biocompatible, and biodegradable dry powder formulations (DPFs) were produced to effectively transport and deliver the chemotherapeutics with a controlled rate to the deep lung. In vitro studies performed with the use of the lung adenocarcinoma cell line showed that DOX@PUREG4OOx48 nanoparticles were much more cytotoxic than the free drug. Additionally, the DPFs did not show higher cytotoxicity than the respective nanoparticles, and DOX-DPFs showed a higher chemotherapeutic effect than PTX formulations in adenocarcinoma cells.
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Ru(II)( p-cymene) Compounds as Effective and Selective Anticancer Candidates with No Toxicity in Vivo - Lenis-Rojas, O. A.; Robalo, M. P.; Tomaz, A. I.; Carvalho, A.; Fernandes, A. R.; Marques, F.; Folgueira, M.; Yanez, J.; Vazquez-Garcia, D.; Lopez Torres, M.; Fernandez, A.; Fernandez, J. J. (Inorg Chem, 2018)
Ruthenium(II) complexes are currently considered a viable alternative to the widely used platinum complexes as efficient anticancer agents. We herein present the synthesis and characterization of half-sandwich ruthenium compounds with the general formula [Ru( p-cymene)(L-N,N)Cl][CF3SO3] (L = 3,6-di-2-pyridyl-1,2,4,5-tetrazine (1) 6,7-dimethyl-2,3-bis(pyridin-2-yl)quinoxaline (2)), which have been synthesized by substitution reactions from the precursor dimer [Ru( p-cymene)(Cl)(mu-Cl)]2 and were characterized by elemental analysis, mass spectrometry, (1)H NMR, UV-vis, and IR spectroscopy, conductivity measurements, and cyclic voltammetry. The molecular structure for complex 2 was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The cytotoxic activity of these compounds was evaluated against human tumor cells, namely ovarian carcinoma A2780 and breast MCF7 and MDAMB231 adenocarcinoma cells, and against normal primary fibroblasts. Whereas the cytotoxic activity of 1 is moderate, IC50 values found for 2 are among the lowest previously reported for Ru( p-cymene) complexes. Both compounds present no cytotoxic effect in normal human primary fibroblasts when they are used at the IC50 concentration in A2780 and MCF7 cancer cells. Their antiproliferative capacity is associated with a combined mechanism of apoptosis and autophagy. A strong interaction with DNA was observed for both with a binding constant value of the same magnitude as that of the classical intercalator [Ru(phen)2(dppz)](2+). Both complexes bind to human serum albumin with moderate to strong affinity, with conditional binding constants (log Kb) of 4.88 for complex 2 and 5.18 for complex 1 in 2% DMSO/10 mM Hepes pH7.0 medium. The acute toxicity was evaluated in zebrafish embryo model using the fish embryo acute toxicity test (FET). Remarkably, our results show that compounds 1 and 2 are not toxic/lethal even at extremely high concentrations. The novel compounds reported herein are highly relevant antitumor metallodrug candidates, given their in vitro cytotoxicity toward cancer cells and the lack of in vivo toxicity.
Lenis-Rojas, Oscar ARobalo, M Paula Tomaz, Ana Isabel Carvalho, Andreia Fernandes, Alexandra R Marques, Fernanda Folgueira, Monica Yanez, Julian Vazquez-Garcia, Digna Lopez Torres, Margarita Fernandez, Alberto Fernandez, Jesus J eng Inorg Chem. 2018 Nov 5;57(21):13150-13166. doi: 10.1021/acs.inorgchem.8b01270. Epub 2018 Oct 19.
Keywords: Animals; Antineoplastic Agents/adverse effects/chemical synthesis/chemistry/*pharmacology; Apoptosis/drug effects; Cell Cycle/drug effects; Cell Line, Tumor; Cell Proliferation/drug effects; Coordination Complexes/adverse effects/chemical synthesis/chemistry/*pharmacology; Cymenes; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor; Humans; Molecular Structure; Monoterpenes/adverse effects/chemistry/*pharmacology; Ruthenium/adverse effects/chemistry/*pharmacology; Structure-Activity Relationship; Zebrafish

Spectroscopy, electrochemistry and antiproliferative properties of Au(iii), Pt(ii) and Cu(ii) complexes bearing modified 2,2':6',2''-terpyridine ligands - Maron, A.; Czerwinska, K.; Machura, B.; Raposo, L.; Roma-Rodrigues, C.; Fernandes, A. R.; Malecki, J. G.; Szlapa-Kula, A.; Kula, S.; Krompiec, S. (Dalton Trans, 2018)
Structural, spectroscopic and electrochemical properties of six complexes [AuCl(L1)](PF6)2.CH3CN (1), [AuCl(L2)](PF6)2 (2), [PtCl(L1)](BPh4).CH3CN (3), [PtCl(L2)](SO3CF3) (4), [CuCl2(L1)] (5) and [CuCl2(L2)].CH3CN (6) with modified 2,2':6',2''-terpyridine ligands, 4'-(4-methoxyphenyl)-2,2':6',2''-terpyridine (L1) and 4'-(4-methoxynaphthalen-1-yl)-2,2':6',2''-terpyridine (L2) were thoroughly investigated and a significant role of the substituent (4-methoxyphenyl or 4-methoxynaphthalen-1-yl) and the metal center was demonstrated. The naphthyl-based substituent was found to increase the emission quantum yield of the luminescent Au(iii) and Pt(ii) complexes. Furthermore, the antiproliferative potential of the reported complexes was examined towards human colorectal (HCT116) and ovarian (A2780) carcinoma cell lines as well as towards normal human fibroblasts. The Au(iii) complex 2 and Cu(ii) complex 5 were found to have a higher antiproliferative effect on HCT116 colorectal and A2780 ovarian carcinoma cells when compared with the Pt(ii) complex with the same ligand (4). The order of cytotoxicity in both cell lines is 2 > 6 > 1 > 3 > 4. Complex 2 seems to be more cytotoxic towards HCT116 and A2780 cancer cell lines with IC50 values 300x and 130x higher in normal human fibroblasts compared to the respective cancer cells. The viability loss induced by the complexes agrees with Hoechst 33258 staining and the typical morphological apoptotic characteristics like chromatin condensation and nuclear fragmentation and flow cytometry assay. The induction of apoptosis correlates with the induction of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Fluorescence microscopy analysis indicates that after 3 h of incubation, complexes 1-4 are localized inside HCT116 cells and the high levels of internalization correlate with their cytotoxicity.
Maron, AnnaCzerwinska, Katarzyna Machura, Barbara Raposo, Luis Roma-Rodrigues, Catarina Fernandes, Alexandra R Malecki, Jan G Szlapa-Kula, Agata Kula, Slawomir Krompiec, Stanislaw eng England Dalton Trans. 2018 May 8;47(18):6444-6463. doi: 10.1039/c8dt00558c.
Keywords: *Electrochemical Techniques; *Luminescent Measurements; Antineoplastic Agents/chemical synthesis/chemistry/*pharmacology; Apoptosis/drug effects; Cell Proliferation/drug effects; Cell Survival/drug effects; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor; Humans; Ligands; Organometallic Compounds/chemical synthesis/chemistry/*pharmacology; Pyridines/chemistry/*pharmacology; Quantum Theory; Reactive Oxygen Species/metabolism; Structure-Activity Relationship; Tumor Cells, Cultured

Synthesis of tetrahydro-1H-indolo[2,3-b]pyrrolo[3,2-c]quinolones via intramolecular oxidative ring rearrangement of tetrahydro-β-carbolines and their biological evaluation - Bathula, Chandramohan; Catarina Roma-Rodrigues; Chauhan, Jyoti; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Sen, Subhabrata (New Journal of Chemistry, 2018)
A simple oxidative ring rearrangement of diversely substituted 1-(2-amminoaryl)-tetrahydro-β-carbolines has been developed to generate architecturally interesting tetrahydro-1H-indolo[2,3-b]pyrrolo[3,2-c]quinolones. This unique transformation involves four reaction centers (aniline, C1-carboline and C2/C3 of indole) and utilizes tert-butylhypochlorite as the reagent. The generic nature of the reaction was demonstrated by the synthesis of a wide variety of analogs 9a–j. A putative reaction mechanism was proposed. Cytotoxicity screening of these compounds against three human cancer cells (A2780 ovarian and HCT116 colorectal carcinoma cell lines and A549 lung adenocarcinoma cell line) revealed selective inhibition of proliferation of the A2780 human ovarian carcinoma cell line by one of the molecules 9a with an IC50 of 14 μM. No cytotoxic activity was observed in human normal fibroblasts for concentrations up to 100 μM. Compound 9a induced hyperpolarization of the mitochondrial membrane potential of the A2780 cell line leading to an increase of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that trigger cell death via apoptosis. Interestingly, compound 9a was also able to induce cell death via autophagy. Compounds that induce apoptosis and autophagy, thus leading to cancer cells’ death, are good candidates for cancer therapy.
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Synthesis, Cytotoxicity Evaluation in Human Cell Lines and in Vitro DNA Interaction of a Hetero-Arylidene-9(10H)-Anthrone - Peixoto, Daniela; Figueiredo, Margarida; Malta, Gabriela; Catarina Roma-Rodrigues; Pedro V. Baptista; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Barroso, Sónia; Ana Luísa Carvalho; Afonso, Carlos A. M.; Ferreira, Luisa M.; Branco, Paula S. (2018)
A new and never before reported hetero-arylidene-9(10H)-anthrone structure (4) was unexpectedly isolated on reaction of 1,2-dimethyl-3-ethylimidazolium iodide (2) and 9-anthracenecarboxaldehyde (3) under basic conditions. Its structure was unequivocally confirmed by X-ray crystallography. No cytotoxicity in human healthy fibroblasts and in two different cancer cell lines was observed, indicating its applicability in biological systems. Compound 4 interacts with CT-DNA by intercalation between the adjacent base pairs of DNA with a high binding affinity [Kb = 2.0 (±0.20) × 105 m–1], which is 10 × higher than that described for doxorubicin [Kb = 3.2 (±0.23) × 104 m–1]. Furthermore, compound 4 quenches the fluorescence emission of a GelRed–CT-DNA system with a quenching constant (KSV) of 3.3 (±0.3) × 103 m–1 calculated by the Stern–Volmer equation.
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How do we drive deep eutectic systems towards an industrial reality? - Alexandre Paiva (Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry, 2018)

Activated carbons from the Co-pyrolysis of rice wastes for Cr(III) removal - Diogo Dias; Bernardo, Maria; Nuno Lapa; Filomena Pinto; Matos, Inês; Fonseca, Isabel (Chemical Engineering Transactions, 2018)

Assistant without Master? Some Conceptual Implications of Assistive Robotics in Health Care - Bettina-Johanna Krings; Nora Weinberger (Technologies, 2018)
The subject of “technical assistants” in inpatient care is currently being widely discussed in scientific and public circles. In many cases, though, it has become apparent that the umbrella term “assistive technologies”, also in the context of robotics, is very contrived. Against this background, the authors of this article reflect on the meaning of “assistance” in socio-technical systems, and critically review its relevance. To understand and demonstrate “assistive” functions, it is essential to establish a frame of reference. The re-evaluation of an empirical study of people with dementia in inpatient care has revealed the functional character of technical assistance systems. The results, however, show that the theoretical debate on the social and organisational function of “assistance” in these technical fields is still lacking. Therefore, the reflections in this paper may also provide some starting points for this debate.

Bulk dynamics of the thermoresponsive random copolymer of di(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate (MEO2MA) and oligo(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate (OEGMA) - A. C. Santos; A. F. M. Santos; H. P. Diogo; J. P. Farinha; N. T. Correia; M. Dionísio; M. T. Viciosa (Polymer, 2018)
DOI: 10.1016/j.polymer.2018.06.041

A case study on the impact of nearly Zero-Energy Buildings on distribution transformer aging - Lopes, R.; Magalhães, P.; Gouveia, J. P.; Aelenei, D.; Lima, C.; Martins, J. (Energy, 2018)

Cell wall glycans mediate recognition of the dairy bacterium Streptococcus thermophilus by bacteriophages - P. Szymczak; S. R. Filipe; G. Covas; F. K. Vogensen; Neves, A. R.; T. Janzen (Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 2018)

Cellulose paper functionalised with polypyrrole and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) for paper battery electrodes - I. Ropio; Baptista, A. C.; J. P. Nobre; J. Correia; F. Belo; S. Taborda; B. M. Morais Faustino; Borges, J. P.; A. Kovalenko; Ferreira, I. (Org Electron, 2018)
A simple process of commercial paper functionalisation via in situ polymerisation of conductive polymers onto cellulose fibres was investigated and applied as electrodes in paper-based batteries. The functionalisation involved polypyrrole (PPy) and Poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) as conductive polymers with the process of functionalisation optimised for each polymer individually with respect to oxidant-to-monomer ratios and polymerisation times and temperature. Paper with conductivity values of 44 mS/cm was obtained by exposing the samples to pyrrole vapour for a period of 30 min at room temperature; however, polymerisation at temperatures of 40 °C lead to higher conductivity values to up 141 mS/cm. Consequently, functionalised PPy and PEDOT papers were applied as cathodes in batteries with Al foil anodes and commercial paper soaked in an electrolyte solution of NaCl.

Cellulose paper functionalised with polypyrrole and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) for paper battery electrodes - Ropio, Inês; Baptista, Ana Catarina; Nobre, Joana; J. Correia; F. Belo; S. Taborda; B. M. Morais Faustino; Borges, João Borges; A. Kovalenko; Ferreira, Isabel (Organic Electronics, 2018)
A simple process of commercial paper functionalisation via in situ polymerisation of conductive polymers onto cellulose fibres was investigated and applied as electrodes in paper-based batteries. The functionalisation involved polypyrrole (PPy) and Poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) as conductive polymers with the process of functionalisation optimised for each polymer individually with respect to oxidant-to-monomer ratios and polymerisation times and temperature. Paper with conductivity values of 44 mS/cm was obtained by exposing the samples to pyrrole vapour for a period of 30 min at room temperature; however, polymerisation at temperatures of 40 °C lead to higher conductivity values to up 141 mS/cm. Consequently, functionalised PPy and PEDOT papers were applied as cathodes in batteries with Al foil anodes and commercial paper soaked in an electrolyte solution of NaCl.

Cellulose-based electrospun fibers functionalized with polypyrrole and polyaniline for fully organic batteries - Baptista, Ana Catarina; Ropio, Inês; Romba, Beatriz; Nobre, Joana; Célia Henriques; Silva, Jorge Carvalho; Martins, J. I.; Borges, João Paulo; Ferreira, Isabel (Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 2018)
A novel cellulose-based bio-battery made of electrospun fibers activated by biological fluids has been developed. This work reports a new concept for a fully organic bio-battery that takes advantage of the high surface to volume ratio achieved by an electrospun matrix composed of sub-micrometric fibers that acts simultaneously as the separator and the support of the electrodes. Polymer composites of polypyrrole (PPy) and polyaniline (PANI) with cellulose acetate (CA) electrospun matrix were produced by in situ chemical oxidation of pyrrole and aniline on the CA fibers. The structure (CA/PPy|CA|CA/PANI) generated a power density of 1.7 mW g−1 in the presence of simulated biological fluids, which is a new and significant contribution to the domain of medical batteries and fully organic devices for biomedical applications.

Cellulose-based electrospun fibers functionalized with polypyrrole and polyaniline for fully organic batteries - Baptista, A. C.; I. Ropio; B. Romba; J. P. Nobre; Henriques, C; Silva, J.C.; Martins, J. I.; Borges, J. P.; Ferreira, I. (J Mater Chem A, 2018)
A novel cellulose-based bio-battery made of electrospun fibers activated by biological fluids has been developed. This work reports a new concept for a fully organic bio-battery that takes advantage of the high surface to volume ratio achieved by an electrospun matrix composed of sub-micrometric fibers that acts simultaneously as the separator and the support of the electrodes. Polymer composites of polypyrrole (PPy) and polyaniline (PANI) with cellulose acetate (CA) electrospun matrix were produced by in situ chemical oxidation of pyrrole and aniline on the CA fibers. The structure (CA/PPy|CA|CA/PANI) generated a power density of 1.7 mW g−1 in the presence of simulated biological fluids, which is a new and significant contribution to the domain of medical batteries and fully organic devices for biomedical applications.

Challenges faced when addressing the role of cities towards a below 2-degree world - Giannakidis, G.; Gargiulo, M.; De Miglio, R; A. Chiodi; Seixas, J.; Simoes, S. G.; Dias, L.; Gouveia, J. (Limiting Global Warming to Well Below 2°C: Energy System Modelling and Policy Development, 2018)

CuI p-type thin films for highly transparent thermoelectric pn modules - B. M. M. Faustino; Gomes, D.; Faria, J.; T. Juntunen; G. Gaspar; Bianchi, C.; Almeida, A.; Marques, AC; I. Tittonen; Ferreira, I. (Sci Rep, 2018)
Developments in thermoelectric (TE) transparent p-type materials are scarce and do not follow the trend of the corresponding n-type materials – a limitation of the current transparent thermoelectric devices. P-type thermoelectric thin films of CuI have been developed by three different methods in order to maximise optical transparency (>70% in the visible range), electrical (σ = 1.1 × 104 Sm−1) and thermoelectric properties (ZT = 0.22 at 300 K). These have been applied in the first planar fully transparent p-n type TE modules where gallium-doped zinc oxide (GZO) thin films were used as the n-type element and indium thin oxide (ITO) thin films as electrodes. A thorough study of power output in single elements and p-n modules electrically connected in series and thermally connected in parallel is inclosed. This configuration allows for a whole range of highly transparent thermoelectric applications.

Cytochrome b5 reductase is the component from neuronal synaptic plasma membrane vesicles that generates superoxide anion upon stimulation by cytochrome c - Samhan-Arias, A. K.; Fortalezas, S.; Cordas, C.; Moura, I.; Moura, J. J. G.; Gutierrez-Merino, C. (Redox Biol, 2018)

Design and Evolution of an Opto-electronic Device for VOCs Detection - Ana Carolina Pádua; Susana Palma; Gruber, Jonas; Gamboa, Hugo; Roque, Ana Cecília A (Proceedings of the 11th International Joint Conference on Biomedical Engineering Systems and Technologies, 2018)
Electronic noses (E-noses) are devices capable of detecting and identifying Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) in a simple and fast method. In this work, we present the development process of an opto-electronic device based on sensing films that have unique stimuli-responsive properties, altering their optical and electrical properties, when interacting with VOCs. This interaction results in optical and electrical signals that can be collected, and further processed and analysed. Two versions of the device were designed and assembled. E-nose V1 is an optical device, and E-nose V2 is a hybrid opto-electronic device. Both E-noses architectures include a delivery system, a detection chamber, and a transduction system. After the validation of the E-nose V1 prototype, the E-nose V2 was implemented, resulting in an easy-to-handle, miniaturized and stable device. Results from E-nose V2 indicated optical signals reproducibility, and the possibility of coupling the electrical signals to the opt ical response for VOCs sensing.

Development of a ferrocenyl-based MIP in supercritical carbon dioxide: Towards an electrochemical sensor for bisphenol A - Rebocho, S.; Cordas, C. M.; Viveiros, R.; T. Casimiro (J Supercrit Fluids, 2018)

Discovery of new FXR agonists based on 6-ECDCA binding properties by virtual screening and molecular docking - Antonella Giancristofaro; Arménio J.M. Barbosa; Alessandra Ammazzalorso; Pasquale Amoia; Barbara De Filippis; Marialuigia Fantacuzzi; Letizia Giampietro; Cristina Maccallinia; Rosa Amoroso (MedChemComm, 2018)

Efficient heterogeneous polyoxometalate-hybrid catalysts for the oxidative desulfurization of fuels - Mirante, Fátima; Luís Dias; Mariana Silva; Ribeiro, Susana O.; Corvo, Marta C.; Baltazar de Castro; Granadeiro, Carlos M.; Balula, Salete S. (Catalysis Communications, 2018)
The heterogenization of the highly active monovacant polyoxotungstate ([PW11O39]7 −, abbreviated as PW11) was achieved by preparing the corresponding long chain quaternary ammonium salt (ODA7PW11, ODA = CH3(CH2)17(CH3)3N). The complete cation exchange confers total heterogeneity to the monovacant catalyst while keeping its oxidative catalytic activity. In fact, the heterogeneous catalyst allowed for the complete desulfurization of a multicomponent model diesel (2000 ppm S) after 40 min of reaction, conciliating extraction (using BMIMPF6 solvent) and oxidation (ECODS process using H2O2 oxidant). The heterogeneous catalyst has shown a superior desulfurization performance when compared with the homogeneous quaternary ammonium TBAPW11 catalyst (TBA = (C4H9)4 N). Both hybrid catalysts have been successfully reused in consecutive ECODS cycles. Additionally, the long carbon chain cations provide a protective environment around the polyoxometalate allowing for ODA7PW11 to retain its heterogeneity and structure after the ECODS process.
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Electrospun composite cellulose acetate/iron oxide nanoparticles non-woven membranes for magnetic hyperthermia applications - Matos, Ricardo; Chaparro, Catarina; Silva, Jorge Carvalho; Valente, Manuel; Borges, João Paulo; Paula I P Soares (Carbohydrate polymers, 2018)
In the present work composite membranes were produced by combining magnetic nanoparticles (NPs) with cellulose acetate (CA) membranes for magnetic hyperthermia applications. The non-woven CA membranes were produced by electrospinning technique, and magnetic NPs were incorporated by adsorption at fibers surface or by addition to the electrospinning solution. Therefore, different designs of composite membranes were obtained. Superparamagnetic NPs synthesized by chemical precipitation were stabilized either with oleic acid (OA) or dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) to obtain stable suspensions at physiological pH. The incorporation of magnetic NP into CA matrix was confirmed by scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The results showed that adsorption of magnetic NPs at fibers’ surface originates composite membranes with higher heating ability than those produced by incorporation of magnetic NPs inside the fibers. However, adsorption of magnetic NPs at fibers’ surface can cause cytotoxicity depending on the NPs concentration. Tensile tests demonstrated a reinforcement effect caused by the incorporation of magnetic NPs in the non-woven membrane.

Engineered protein variants for bioconjugation - Fernandes, C.S.M.; Teixeira, GDG; Iranzo, O.; Roque, A. C. A. (Biomedical Applications of Functionalized Nanomaterials - Concepts, Development and Clinical Translation, 2018)

Enhanced Biogas Production through Anaerobic co-Digestion of OFMSW with Maize Cob Waste Pre-Treated with Hydrogen Peroxide - Elena Surra; Bernardo, Maria; Nuno Lapa; Isabel A.A.C. Esteves; Fonseca, Isabel; José Paulo Mota (Chemical Engineering Transactions, 2018)

Facile Microwave-assisted Synthesis Manganese Doped Zinc Sulfide Nanoparticles - David Magalhães Sousa; Luís Cerqueira; Marques, Ana; Guilherme Gaspar; João Carlos Lima; Ferreira, Isabel (Scientific Reports, 2018)

From a natural polymer to relevant NAG-NAM precursors - L. C. Carvalho; F. Queda; C. V. Almeida; S. R. Filipe; M. Manuel M. Marques (Asian J Org Chem., 2018)

Functional Stimuli-Responsive Gels: Hydrogels and Microgels - Coro Echeverria; Fernandes, Susete N.; Godinho, Maria Helena; Borges, João Borges; Paula I P Soares (Gels, 2018)
One strategy that has gained much attention in the last decades is the understanding and further mimicking of structures and behaviours found in nature, as inspiration to develop materials with additional functionalities. This review presents recent advances in stimuli-responsive gels with emphasis on functional hydrogels and microgels. The first part of the review highlights the high impact of stimuli-responsive hydrogels in materials science. From macro to micro scale, the review also collects the most recent studies on the preparation of hybrid polymeric microgels composed of a nanoparticle (able to respond to external stimuli), encapsulated or grown into a stimuli-responsive matrix (microgel). This combination gave rise to interesting multi-responsive functional microgels and paved a new path for the preparation of multi-stimuli “smart” systems. Finally, special attention is focused on a new generation of functional stimuli-responsive polymer hydrogels able to self-shape (shape-memory) and/or self-repair. This last functionality could be considered as the closing loop for smart polymeric gels.

Genomic organization, gene expression and activity profile of Marinobacter hydrocarbonoclasticus denitrification enzymes - Carreira, C.; Mestre, O.; Nunes, R.F.; Moura, I.; Pauleta, S. R. (PEERJ, 2018)

Highly Photoluminescent Sulfide Clusters Confined in Zeolites - Ruivo, A.; Coutino-Gonzalez, E.; Santos, M. M.; Baekelant, W.; Fron, E.; Roeffaers, M.B.J.; Pina, F; Hofkens, J.; Laia C.A.T. (Journal of Physical Chemistry C, 2018)

How are cities planning to respond to climate change? Assessment of local climate plans from 885 cities in the EU-28 - Reckien, D.; Heidrich, O.; Church, J.; Pietrapertos, F.; De Gregorio-Hurtado, S.; D'Alonzo, V.; Foley, A.; Simoes, S. G.; Lorencová, E.K.; Orruk, H.; Orrum, K.; Wejs, A.; et al. (Journal of Cleaner Production. doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.03.220, 2018)

Imine Ligands Based on Ferrocene: Synthesis, Structural and Mössbauer Characterization and Evaluation as Chromogenic and Electrochemical Sensors for Hg+2 - Rosa, V.; Gaspari, A.; Folgosa, F.; Cordas, C. M.; Tavares, P; Santos-Silva, T.; Barroso, S.; T. Avilés (New J Chem, 2018)

Injectable hydrogels based on pluronic/water systems filled with alginate microparticles: Rheological characterization - Maria Teresa Cidade; Diogo J. Ramos; Jenifer Santos; Núria Calero; J. Muñoz; Borges, João Paulo (Publisher Logo Conference Proceedings, 2018)
In this paper the rheological characterization of Pluronic/water systems filled with alginate microparticles is presented. The rheological characterization of the Pluronic/water systems allowed for the choice of the best Pluronic concentration taking into account its applications as injectable hydrogels for tissue repair. The effect on the rheological behavior of the addition of alginate microparticles, to be loaded with the drug, was analyzed and the maximum concentration of microparticles determined.

INSMART – Insights on integrated modelling of EU cities energy system transition - Simoes, S.; Dias, L.; Gouveia, J. P.; Seixas, J.; De Miglio, R; Chiodi A.; Gargiulo M.; Long, G.; Giannakidis, G. (Energy Strategy Reviews, 2018)

Machine learning for the meta-analyses of microbial pathogens’ volatile signatures - Susana Palma; Ana P. Traguedo; Ana R. Porteira; Maria J. Frias; Gamboa, Hugo; Roque, Ana C A (Scientific Reports, 2018)
Non-invasive and fast diagnostic tools based on volatolomics hold great promise in the control of infectious diseases. However, the tools to identify microbial volatile organic compounds (VOCs) discriminating between human pathogens are still missing. Artificial intelligence is increasingly recognised as an essential tool in health sciences. Machine learning algorithms based in support vector machines and features selection tools were here applied to find sets of microbial VOCs with pathogen-discrimination power. Studies reporting VOCs emitted by human microbial pathogens published between 1977 and 2016 were used as source data. A set of 18 VOCs is sufficient to predict the identity of 11 microbial pathogens with high accuracy (77%), and precision (62–100%). There is one set of VOCs associated with each of the 11 pathogens which can predict the presence of that pathogen in a sample with high accuracy and precision (86–90%). The implemented pathogen classification methodology supports future database updates to include new pathogen-VOC data, which will enrich the classifiers. The sets of VOCs identified potentiate the improvement of the selectivity of non-invasive infection diagnostics using artificial olfaction devices.

Mining households' energy data to disclose fuel poverty: Lessons for Southern Europe - Gouveia, João Pedro; Júlia Seixas; Gavin Long (Journal of Cleaner Production, 2018)
Fuel poverty is a recognized and increasing problem in several European countries. A growing body of literature covers this topic, but dedicated analysis for Portugal are scarce despite the high perception of this condition. This paper contributes to fill this knowledge gap focusing on a European southern city while bringing new datasets and analysis to the assessment of this topic; consumer groups identification and to policy discussion. Daily electricity smart meters' registries were combined with socio-economic data, collected from door-to-door surveys, to understand the extent and the determinants of energy consumption for two contrasting consumer groups (herein called fuel poverty and fuel obesity groups). The analysis is based on the amount and annual profile of electricity consumption and was complemented with building energy simulations for relevant building typologies in those groups, to identify heating and cooling thermal performance gaps. The existence of these gaps allowed confirming and/or discarding the initial hypothesis of the poverty or obesity conditions. Results disclose socio-economic variables, as income, and consumers' behavior as key determinants of electricity consumption. It was identified a severe lack of thermal comfort levels inside households of both groups, either in cooling (98% for fuel poverty and 87% for fuel obesity) and heating seasons (98% for fuel poverty and 94% for fuel obesity). Major conclusion refers that electricity consumption cannot be used alone to segment consumer groups. This assessment may serve to support energy policy measures and instruments targeted to different consumers' groups. For example, distinct campaigns and differentiated incentives may apply to achieve energy efficiency and reduction while keep or improve indoor comfort levels.

Molecular order and dynamics of water in hybrid cellulose acetate–silica asymmetric membranes - Beira, M Jardim; Silva, M. P.; Condesso, M.; Cosme, P.; P. L. Almeida; Corvo, Mc; P.J. Sebastião; J. L. Figueirinhas; de Pinho, MN (Molecular Physics, 2018)
In this work 2H NMR spectroscopy and 1H NMR relaxometry and diffusometry were used to characterise water order and dynamics in cellulose acetate/silica asymmetric membranes. Two hydrated membranes were characterised allowing the identification of extra ordering of the water molecules and the presence in each membrane of up to two spectral components with different degrees of order and different T1 values. The mechanism behind this order increase was ascribed to the rapid exchange of the water molecules between the pore walls and its interior. T1 relaxometry dispersions allowed for the identification of the relevant mechanisms of pore-confined water motion, with rotations mediated by translational displacements (RMTD) as the dominant mechanism in the low frequency region. Using the RMTD low cut off frequency along with the in situ directly measured diffusion constant it was possible do determine characteristic lengths of correlated water motion in both membranes studied, which fall in ranges compatible with typical pore dimensions in similar membranes.
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Mononuclear molybdenum-containing enzymes - Maia, L.; Moura, J. J. G. (Reference Module in Chemistry, 2018)

Nanoparticles as Emerging Diagnostic Tools in Liquid Tumours - Ana Sofia Matias; Raquel Vinhas; Rita Mendes; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Pedro Viana Baptista (European Medical Journal Innovations, 2018)

New approaches in glass printing with decal technology and luminescent glass enamels - Rocha, Ana Margarida; Machado, Graciela; Teresa Almeida (IMPACT 10 Conference, 2018)

Nitric oxide detection using electrochemical third-generation biosensors – based on heme proteins and porphyrins - Gomes, F.; Maia, L.; Cordas, C.; Delerue-Matos, C.; Moura, I.; Moura, J. J. G.; Morais, S. (Electroanalysis, 2018)

Non-destructive testing application of radiography and ultrasound for wire and arc additive manufacturing - Ana Lopez; Ricardo Bacelar; Inês Pires; Telmo G.Santos; José PedroSousa; Luísa Quintino (Additive Manufacturing, 2018)
The present work addressed the challenges of identifying applicable Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) techniques suitable for inspection and materials characterization techniques for Wire and Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM) parts. With the view of transferring WAAM to the industry and qualifying the manufacturing process for applications such as structural components, the quality of the produced parts needs to be assured. Thus, the main objective of this paper is to review the main NDT techniques and assess the capability of detecting WAAM defects, for inspection either in a monitoring, in-process or post-process scenario. Radiography and ultrasonic testing were experimentally tested on reference specimens in order to compare the techniques capabilities. Metallographic, hardness and electrical conductivity analysis were also applied to the same specimens for material characterization. Experimental outcomes prove that typical WAAM defects can be detected by the referred techniques. The electrical conductivity measurement may complement or substitute some destructive methods used in AM processing.

O vidro enquanto material e o vidro enquanto arte - Teresa Almeida (Specularis - looking through, 2018)

An overview of the Covenant of Mayors application in Portugal (in Portuguese). - Simoes, S. G.; Mesnier, C. (Cities leading the Way to a Sustainable Future, http://cidadesorientadas.dgterritorio.gov.pt/, 2018)

Peptidoglycan synthesis drives an FtsZ-treadmilling-independent step of cytokinesis - J. M. Monteiro; A. R. Pereira; N. T. Reichmann; B.M. Saraiva; P. B. Fernandes; H. Veiga; A. C. Tavares; Santos, M.; M. T. Ferreira; V. Macário; M.S. VanNieuwenhze; S. R. Filipe; et al. (Nature, 2018)

Peroxidase-like activity of cytochrome b5 is triggered upon hemichrome formation in alkaline pH - Samhan-Arias, A.; Maia, L. B.; Cordas, C. M.; Moura, I.; Gutierrez-Merino, C.; Moura, J. J. G. (BBA - Proteins and Proteomics, 2018)

The pivotal role of electricity in the deep decarbonization of energy system: cost-effective options for Portugal - Seixas, J.; Simoes, S. G.; Fortes, P.; Gouveia, J. (Limiting Global Warming to Well Below 2°C: Energy System Modelling and Policy Development, 2018)

The PrioritEE Approach to Reinforce the Capacities of Local Administrations in the Energy Management of Public Buildings - Salvia, M.; Simoes, S.; Fueyo, N.; Cosmi, C.; Papadopoulou, K.; Gouveia, J. P.; et al (New Metropolitan Perspectives. ISHT 2018. Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, Springer, 2018)

Protein- and Peptide-Based Biosensors in Artificial Olfaction - Arménio J.M. Barbosa; Ana Rita Oliveira; Roque, Ana C A (Trends in Biotechnology, 2018)
Animals’ olfactory systems rely on proteins, olfactory receptors (ORs) and odorant-binding proteins (OBPs), as their native sensing units to detect odours. Recent advances demonstrate that these proteins can also be employed as molecular recognition units in gas-phase biosensors. In addition, the interactions between odorant molecules and ORs or OBPs are a source of inspiration for designing peptides with tunable odorant selectivity. We review recent progress in gas biosensors employing biological units (ORs, OBPs, and peptides) in light of future developments in artificial olfaction, emphasizing examples where biological components have been employed to detect gas-phase analytes.

Putting xanthine oxidoreductase and aldehyde oxidase on the NO metabolism map: nitrite reduction by molybdoenzymes - Maia, L.; Moura, J. J. G. (Redox Biol, 2018)

RNA Polymerase II Phosphorylated on CTD Serine 5 Interacts with the Spliceosome during Co-transcriptional Splicing - Nojima, T; Rebelo, K; Gomes, T; Grosso, A R; Proudfoot, NJ; Carmo-Fonseca, M (Mol Cell, 2018)
The highly intronic nature of protein coding genes in mammals necessitates a co-transcriptional splicing mechanism as revealed by mNET-seq analysis. Immunoprecipitation of MNase-digested chromatin with antibodies against RNA polymerase II (Pol II) shows that active spliceosomes (both snRNA and proteins) are complexed to Pol II S5P CTD during elongation and co-transcriptional splicing. Notably, elongating Pol II-spliceosome complexes form strong interactions with nascent transcripts, resulting in footprints of approximately 60 nucleotides. Also, splicing intermediates formed by cleavage at the 5′ splice site are associated with nearly all spliced exons. These spliceosome-bound intermediates are frequently ligated to upstream exons, implying a sequential, constitutive, and U12-dependent splicing process. Finally, lack of detectable spliced products connected to the Pol II active site in human HeLa or murine lymphoid cells suggests that splicing does not occur immediately following 3′ splice site synthesis. Our results imply that most mammalian splicing requires exon definition for completion.

Robótica e Trabalho: o futuro hoje - António Brandão Moniz (Glaciar/FLAD, 2018)

Sanguine paint: production, characterization, and adhesion to the glass substrate - Ângela Santos; Vilarigues, Márcia (Studies in Conservation, 2018)

Scalable and Easy-to-use System Architecture for Electronic Noses - Ana Carolina Pádua; Daniel Osório; João Rodrigues; Gonçalo Santos; Ana Porteira; Susana Palma; Roque, Ana; Gamboa, Hugo (In Proceedings of the 11th International Joint Conference on Biomedical Engineering Systems and Technologies, 2018)
The purpose of this work was the development of a scalable and easy-to-use electronic noses (E-noses) system architecture for volatile organic compounds sensing, towards the final goal of using several E-noses acquiring large datasets at the same time. In order to accomplish this, each E-nose system is comprised by a delivery system, a detection system and a data acquisition and control system. In order to increase the scalability, the data is stored in a database common to all E-noses. Furthermore, the system was designed so it would only require five simple steps to setup a new E-nose if needed, since the only parameter that needs to be changed is the ID of the new E-nose. The user interacts with a node using an interface, allowing for the control and visualization of the experiment. At this stage, there are three different E-nose prototypes working with this architecture in a laboratory environment.

Small phospho-donors phosphorylate MorR without inducing protein conformational changes - Castro, N.S.S.; Laia, C. A. T.; B.K. Maiti; Cerqueira, N.; Moura, I.; Carepo, M. S. P. (Biophys Chem, 2018)

Specularis - looking through - T. Almeida; G. Machado (ed) (i2ADS - Instituto de Investigação em Arte, Design e Sociedade & Faculdade de Belas Artes da Universidade do Porto, 2018)

Synthesis and characterization of Locust Bean Gum derivatives and their application in the production of nanoparticles - Braz, Luis; Grenha, Ana; Corvo, Marta C.; Lourenço, João Paulo; Ferreira, Domingos; Sarmento, Bruno; da Costa, Ana M Rosa (Carbohydrate Polymers, 2018)
The development of LBG-based nanoparticles intending an application in oral immunization is presented. Nanoparticle production occurred by mild polyelectrolyte complexation, requiring the chemical modification of LBG. Three LBG derivatives were synthesized, namely a positively charged ammonium derivative (LBGA) and negatively charged sulfate (LBGS) and carboxylate (LBGC) derivatives. These were characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, elemental analysis, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, gel permeation chromatography, and x-ray diffraction. As a pharmaceutical application was aimed, a toxicological analysis of the derivatives was performed by both MTT test and LDH release assay. Several nanoparticle formulations were produced using LBGA or chitosan (CS) as positively charged polymers, and LBGC or LBGS as negatively charged counterparts, producing nanoparticles with adequate properties regarding an application in oral immunization.
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Synthesis, cytotoxicity evaluation in human cell lines and in vitro DNA interaction of a hetero arylidene-9(10H)-anthrone - Branco, Paula S.; Peixoto, Daniela; Figueiredo, Margarida; Malta, Gabriela; Catarina Roma-Rodrigues; Batista, Pedro Viana; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Barroso, Sónia; Carvalho, Ana Luisa; Afonso, Carlos A. M.; Ferreira, Luísa Maria (European Journal of Organic Chemistry, 2018)
A new and never yet reported hetero arylidene-9(10H)-anthrone structure (4) was unexpectedly isolated on reaction of 1,2-dimethyl-3-ethylimidazolium iodide (2) and 9-anthracenecarboxaldehyde (3) under basic conditions. Its structure was unequivocally attributed by X-ray crystallography. No cytotoxicity in human healthy fibroblasts and in two different cancer cell lines was observed indicating its applicability in biological systems. Compound 4 interacts with CT-DNA by intercalation between the adjacent base pairs of DNA with a high binding affinity (Kb = 2.0(± 0.20) x 105 M-1) which is 10x higher than that described for doxorubicin (Kb = 3.2 (±0.23) × 104 M-1). Furthermore, compound 4 quenches the fluorescence emission of GelRed-CT-DNA system with a quenching constant (KSV) of 3.3(±0.3) x 103 M-1 calculated by the Stern-Volmer equation.
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Keywords: anthracenecarboxaldehyde; arylidene anthrone; Decarbonylation; DNA intercalation; Imidazolium salt

Synthesis, electrospinning and in vitro test of a new biodegradable gelatin-based poly(ester urethane urea) for soft tissue engineering - Tânia Vieira; Silva, Jorge Carvalho; Borges, João Paulo; Célia Henriques (European Polymer Journal, 2018)
Biodegradable polyurethanes have been studied as scaffolds for tissue engineering due to their adjustable physico-chemical properties. In this work, we synthesized a biodegradable gelatin-based poly(urethane urea) using polycaprolactone-diol, as soft segment, and isophorone diisocyanate and gelatin from cold water fish skin as hard segment. The synthesis was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and proton nuclear magnetic resonance and the influence of the amount of gelatin introduced in the polymer backbone was analyzed by thermal analysis. Gelatin-based poly(urethane urea) electrospun fibrous mats and solvent cast films were then produced and their physico-chemical and biological properties studied. They present an amorphous structure, elastomeric behavior and water contact angles typical of hydrophobic surfaces. Hydrolytic degradation was analyzed in phosphate buffer saline (PBS), lipase and trypsin solutions. No mass changes were detected during 37 days in PBS and trypsin while significant degradation by lipase was observed. Human foetal foreskin fibroblasts were seeded on the fibrous mats and films. Populations were evaluated by colorimetric cell viability assays and morphology by fluorescence imaging. The substrates supported cell adhesion and proliferation. The novel gelatin-based poly(urethane urea) fibrous mats offer attractive physico-chemical and biological properties for soft tissue engineering applications.

Thermodynamic and kinetic properties of the outer membrane cytochrome OmcF, a key protein for extracellular electron transfer in Geobacter sulfurreducens - Teixeira, L. R.; Dantas, J.M.; Salgueiro, C.A.; Cordas, C. M. (BBA - Bioenergetics, 2018)

Thermodynamic and kinetic properties of the outer membrane cytochrome OmcF, a key protein for extracellular electron transfer in Geobacter sulfurreducens - Liliana R. Teixeira; Joana M Dantas; Salgueiro, , Carlos A.; Cordas, Cristina M. (Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Bioenergetics, 2018)
Gene knock-out studies on Geobacter sulfurreducens have shown that the monoheme c-type cytochrome OmcF is essential for the extracellular electron transfer pathways involved in the reduction of iron and uranium oxy-hydroxides, as well as, on electricity production in microbial fuel cells. A detailed electrochemical characterization of OmcF was performed for the first time, allowing attaining kinetics and thermodynamic data. The heterogeneous electron transfer rate constant was determined at pH 7 (0.16 ± 0.01 cm s−1) indicating that the protein displays high electron transfer efficiency compared to other monoheme cytochromes. The pH dependence of the redox potential indicates that the protein has an important redox-Bohr effect in the physiological pH range for G. sulfurreducens growth. The analysis of the structures of OmcF allowed us to assign the redox-Bohr centre to the side chain of His47 residue and its pKa values in the reduced and oxidized states were determined (pKox = 6.73; pKred = 7.55). The enthalpy, entropy and Gibbs free energy associated with the redox transaction were calculated, pointing the reduced form of the cytochrome as the most favourable. The data obtained indicate that G. sulfurreducens cells evolved to warrant a down-hill electron transfer from the periplasm to the outer-membrane associated cytochrome OmcF.
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Keywords: Bioelectrochemistry; Cytochrome; Electron transfer; Redox potential

Tilapia fish microbial spoilage monitored by a single optical gas sensor - Semeano, Ana T. S.; Daniele F. Maffei; Susana Palma; Li, Rosamaria W. C.; Bernadette D.G.M. Franco; Roque, Ana C A; Gruber, Jonas (Food Control, 2018)
As consumption of fish and fish-based foods increases, non-destructive monitoring of fish freshness also becomes more prominent. Fish products are very perishable and prone to microbiological growth, not always easily detected by organoleptic evaluation. The analysis of the headspace of fish specimens through gas sensing is an interesting approach to monitor fish freshness. Here we report a gas sensing method for monitoring Tilapia fish spoilage based on the application of a single gas sensitive gel material coupled to an optical electronic nose. The optical signals of the sensor and the extent of bacterial growth were followed over time, and results indicated good correlation between the two determinations, which suggests the potential application of this simple and low cost system for Tilapia fish freshness monitoring.

Topography of human cytochrome b5/cytochrome b5 reductase interacting domain and redox alterations upon complex formation - Samhan-Arias, A. K.; Almeida, R. M.; Ramos, S.; Cordas, C. M.; Moura, I.; Gutierrez-Merino, C.; Moura, J. J. G. (Biochim Biophys Acta, 2018)

The triheme cytochrome PpcF from Geobacter metallireducens exhibits distinct redox properties - Ferreira, Marisa R.; Joana M Dantas; Salgueiro, , Carlos A. (FEBS Open Bio, 2018)
Abstract Electrogenic bacteria, such as Geobacter, can couple the oxidation of carbon sources to the reduction of extracellular electron acceptors; such acceptors include toxic and radioactive metals, as well as electrode surfaces, making Geobacter a suitable candidate for applied use in bioremediation and bioenergy generation. Geobacter metallireducens is more promising in this regard than the better studied Geobacter sulfurreducens, as it has more efficient Fe (III) reduction rates and can respire nitrate to ammonia. The operon responsible for nitrate reductase activity in G. metallireducens includes the gene encoding the cytochrome PpcF, which was proposed to exchange electrons with nitrate reductase. In the present work, we perform a biochemical and biophysical characterization of PpcF. Spectroscopic techniques, including circular dichroism (CD), UV-visible, and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) revealed that the cytochrome is very stable (Tm > 85 °C), contains three low-spin hemes, and is diamagnetic (S=0) and paramagnetic (S=1/2) in the reduced and oxidized states, respectively. The NMR chemical shifts of the heme substituents were assigned and used to determine the heme core architecture of PpcF. Compared to the PpcA-family from G. sulfurreducens, the spatial disposition of the hemes is conserved, but the functional properties are clearly distinct. In fact, potentiometric titrations monitored by UV-visible absorption reveal that the reduction potential values of PpcF are significantly less negative (-56 and -64 mV, versus the normal hydrogen electrode at pH 7.0 and 8.0, respectively). NMR redox titrations showed that the order of oxidation of the hemes is IV-I-III a feature not observed for G. sulfurreducens. The different redox properties displayed by PpcF, including the small redox-Bohr effect and low reduction potential value of heme IV, were structurally rationalized and attributed to the lower number of positively charged residues located in the vicinity of heme IV. Overall, the redox features of PpcF suggest that biotechnological applications of G. metallireducens may require less negative working functional redox windows than those using by G. sulfurreducens.
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Keywords: Electron transfer; Geobacter metallireducens; multiheme c-type cytochrome PpcF; NMR

Uma análise comparativa de ferramentas de análise estática para deteção de erros de memória - Patrícia Monteiro; João Lourenço; António Ravara (FCT–NOVA, 2018)

Uma análise comparativa de ferramentas de análise estática para deteção de erros de memória - Patrícia Monteiro (FCT–NOVA, 2018)

Unusual reduction mechanism of copper in cysteine-rich environment - B.K. Maiti; Maia, L.; Moro, A. J.; J. C. Lima; Cordas, C.; Moura, I.; Moura, J. J. G. (Inorg Chem, 2018)

Very high fluence nitrogen implantations in metals studied by Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry - J. Cruz; H. Silva; J. Lopes; Rocha, J.; A. P. Jesus (Surface and Coatings Technology, 355, 2018)

Vidro e Visão - Rocha, Ana Margarida (SPECULARIS — LOOKING THROUGH, Exposição de Arte Contemporânea, 2018)

Waterborne polyurethane/Fe3O4-synthetic talc composites: synthesis, characterization, and magnetic properties - dos Santos, Leonardo M; Ligabue, Rosane; Dumas, Angela; Le Roux, Christophe; Micoud, Pierre; Meunier, Jean-François; Martin, François; Corvo, Marta; Almeida, Pedro; Einloft, Sandra (Polymer Bulletin, 2018)
Nano-Fe3O4-synthetic talc gel was used as filler in the synthesis of waterborne polyurethane/Fe3O4-synthetic talc nanocomposites. This filler presents numerous edges (Si–O and Mg–O) and OH groups easily forming hydrogen bonds and polar interaction with water conferring hydrophilic character, consequently improving filler dispersion within a water-based matrix. Yet, the use of waterborne polyurethane (WPU) as matrix must be highlighted due to its environmentally friendly characteristics and low toxicity compared to solvent-based product. Fe3O4-synthetic talc-nanofillers were well dispersed into the polyurethane matrix even at high filler content as supported by XRD and TEM analyses. NMR indicates the interaction of filler OH groups with the matrix. For all nanocomposites, one can see a typical ferromagnetic behavior below Curie temperature (about 120 K) and a superparamagnetic behavior above this temperature. The use of Fe3O4-synthetic talc for obtaining magnetic nanocomposites resulted in improved materials with superior mechanical properties compared to solvent-based nanocomposites.
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19th century stained-glass windows from Belém do Pará (Brazil): Analytical characterisation and pathology - Amanda M. Corrêa Pinto; Thais A.B.C. Sanjad; Rômulo S. Angélica; Marcondes L. da Costa; Rosildo S. Paiva; Teresa Palomar (Boletín de la Sociedad Española de Cerámica y Vidrio, 2018)
The aim of this work was to determine the physico-chemical characteristics of the stained-glass windows into the 19th century of two mausoleums located in the city of Belém do Pará (Brazil), and to evaluate their state of conservation. The glass chemical composition was determined by WXRF and SEM/EDS. The samples’ morphology and the microorganisms’ identification were carried out by optical microscopy. The results indicated that the samples were soda-lime silicate glass, with approximately 70wt. % of SiO2, which contributed to the resistance of the stained glass to the weathering. The concentration of Na2O was normally twice the K2O, which contrasts with the composition of other panels produced during the same period, as reported in the literature. The biofilm is composed by cyanobacteria and rotifers. Overall, the panels analysed were in a good state of conservation, despite their exposure to tropical climate conditions for more than a century with no preventive measures whatsoever. Resumen El objetivo del presente trabajo fue determinar las características físico-químicas de las vidrieras del siglo XIX correspondientes a dos mausoleos ubicados en la ciudad de Belém do Pará (Brasil) para evaluar su estado de conservación. La composición química del vidrio fue determinada por WXRF y SEM/EDS. La morfología de las muestras y la identificación de los microorganismos fueron realizadas por microscopia óptica. Los resultados indicaron que las muestras eran vidrios de silicato sódico-cálcico, con aproximadamente el 70% en peso de SiO2, lo que aumentó la resistencia a la corrosión de los vidrios de estas vidrieras. La concentración de Na2O fue normalmente el doble que de K2O, lo que contrasta con la composición de otros paneles producidos durante el mismo período, de acuerdo con la literatura. El biofilm presentó cianobacterias y rotíferas. En general, los paneles analizados presentaban un buen estado de conservación, a pesar de su exposición a las condiciones climáticas tropicales durante más de un siglo, sin las medidas de conservación preventivas.
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Keywords: Biodeterioration; Biodeterioro; Brazilian Amazon Region; Conservación; Conservation; Región Amazónica de Brasil; Soda-lime silicate glass; Stained glass; Vidrieras; Vidrios sódico-cálcicos

Biochemical and functional insights on the triheme cytochrome PpcA from Geobacter metallireducens - Portela, Pilar C.; Fernandes, Tomás M.; Joana M Dantas; Ferreira, Marisa R.; Salgueiro, , Carlos A. (Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics, 2018)
G. metallireducens bacterium has highly versatile respiratory pathways that provide the microorganism an enormous potential for many biotechnological applications. However, little is known about the structural and functional properties of its electron transfer components. In this work, the periplasmic cytochrome PpcA from G. metallireducens was studied in detail for the first time using complementary biophysical techniques, including UV–visible, CD and NMR spectroscopy. The results obtained showed that PpcA contains three low-spin c-type heme groups with His-His axial coordination, a feature also observed for its homologue in G. sulfurreducens. However, despite the high sequence homology between the two cytochromes, important structural and functional differences were observed. The comparative analysis of the backbone, side chain and heme substituents NMR signals revealed differences in the relative orientation of the hemes I and III. In addition, redox titrations followed by visible spectroscopy showed that the redox potential values for PpcA from G. metallireducens (−78 and −93 mV at pH 7 and 8, respectively) are considerably less negative. Overall, this study provides biochemical and biophysical data of a key cytochrome from G. metallireducens, paving the way to understand the extracellular electron transfer mechanisms in these bacteria.
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Keywords: Electron transfer; Multiheme -type cytochrome

Biomolecular Interaction Studies Between Cytochrome PpcA From Geobacter sulfurreducens and the Electron Acceptor Ferric Nitrilotriacetate (Fe-NTA) - Ferreira, Marisa R.; Salgueiro, , Carlos A. (Frontiers in Microbiology, 2018)
Geobacter sulfurreducens is a dissimilatory metal-reducing bacterium that exhibits an enormous respiratory versatility, including the utilization of several toxic and radioactive metals as electron acceptors. This versatility is also replicated in the capability of the most abundant cytochrome in G. sulfurreducens, the periplasmic triheme cytochrome PpcA, to reduce uranium, chromium and other metal ions. From all possible electron transfer pathways in G. sulfurreducens, those involved in the iron reduction are the best characterized to date. In a previous work we provided structural evidence for the complex interface established between PpcA and the electron acceptor Fe(III)-citrate. However, genetic studies suggested that this acceptor is mainly reduced by outer membrane cytochomes. In the present work, we used UV-visible measurements to demonstrate that PpcA is able to directly reduce the electron acceptor ferric nitrilotriacetic acid (Fe-NTA), a more outer membrane permeable iron chelated form. In addition, the molecular interactions between PpcA and Fe-NTA were probed by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The NMR spectra obtained for natural abundance and 15N-enriched PpcA samples in the absence and presence of Fe-NTA showed that the interaction is reversible and encompasses a positively charged surface region located in the vicinity of the heme IV. Overall, the study provides for the first time a clear illustration of the formation of an electron transfer complex between PpcA and a readily outer-membrane permeable iron chelated form. The structural and functional relationships obtained explain how a single cytochrome is designed to effectively interact with a wide range of G. sulfurreducens electron acceptors, a feature that can be explored for optimal bioelectrochemical applications.
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CFD modelling of flow patterns, tortuosity and residence time distribution in monolithic porous columns reconstructed from X-ray tomography data - S. Pawlowski; N. Nayak; M. Meireles; Portugal, C. A. M.; S. Velizarov; Crespo, J. G. (Chemical Engineering Journal, 2018)
Highly porous monolithic alumina columns find a wide variety of applications, including in chromatography, due to increased surface area and good accessibility to the ligands and reduced diffusional hindrances. Several modelling approaches have been applied to describe experimentally observed flow behaviour in such materials, which morphology plays a key role in determining their hydrodynamic and mass transfer properties. In this work, a direct computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modelling approach is proposed to simulate flow behaviour in monolithic porous columns. The morphological structure of a fabricated alumina monolith was first reconstructed using 3D X-ray tomography data and, subsequently, OpenFOAM, an open-source CFD tool, was used to simulate the essential parameters for monoliths’ performance characterisation and optimisation, i.e. velocity and pressure fields, fluid streamlines, shear stress and residence time distribution (RTD). Moreover, the tortuosity of the monolith was estimated by a novel method, using the computed streamlines, and its value (∼1.1) was found to be in the same range of the results obtained by known experimental, analytical and numerical equations. Besides, it was observed (for the case of the monolith studied) that fluid transport was dominated by flow heterogeneities and advection, while the shear stress at pore mouths was significantly higher than in other regions. The proposed modelling approach, with expected high potential for designing target materials, was successfully validated by an experimentally obtained residence time distribution (RTD).
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Keywords: Computational fluid dynamics (CFD); Porous monoliths; Residence time distribution (RTD); Shear stress; Tortuosity; X-ray tomography

Chemical composition and alteration processes of glasses from the Cathedral of León (Spain) - Teresa Palomar (Boletín de la Sociedad Española de Cerámica y Vidrio, 2018)
The Cathedral of León has one of the most important ensembles of medieval stained glass windows in Europe; however, most of them have been altered by atmospheric weathering. The main objective of this study was the characterization of a set of glass samples from the Cathedral of León, the comparison with glasses from previous interventions in the cathedral and the study of the relation between the alteration pathologies, the chemical composition of the glasses and the environment in which they were placed. The samples were characterized by means of binocular microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry, visible spectrophotometry, X-ray fluorescence spectrometry and X-ray diffraction. The main alteration of glasses exposed until the 19th century was the formation of pits by dealkalinization, while the glasses exposed until the present formed CaSO4 deposits as a consequence of the synergic effect of rainwater and gaseous pollutants. Glasses altered by the browning of manganese were also characterized. Resumen La Catedral de León posee una de las colecciones de vidrieras medievales más importantes de Europa; sin embargo, muchos de los vidrios se han alterado por degradación atmosférica. El objetivo principal de este estudio fue la caracterización de un conjunto de vidrios procedentes de la Catedral de León, su comparación con vidrios procedentes de intervenciones previas en la catedral y el estudio de la relación entre las patologías de alteración, la composición química del vidrio y el medio en el que estuvieron expuestas. Las muestras se caracterizaron mediante lupa binocular, microscopía electrónica de barrido y microanálisis de dispersión de energía de rayos X, espectrofotometría visible, espectrometría de fluorescencia de rayos X y difracción de rayos X. La alteración principal de los vidrios expuestos hasta el s. xix consistió en la formación de picaduras por desalcalinización, mientras que en los vidrios expuestos hasta la actualidad se formaron depósitos de CaSO4 como consecuencia del efecto sinérgico de la lluvia y los gases contaminantes. También se han caracterizado vidrios alterados por el enmarronamiento del manganeso.
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Keywords: Alteración atmosférica; Alteration pathologies; Atmospheric weathering; Catedral de León; Cathedral of León; Patologías de alteración; stained glass windows; Vidrieras

Cr(III) removal from synthetic and industrial wastewaters by using co-gasification chars of rice waste streams - D. Dias; N. Lapa; M. Bernardo; W. Ribeiro; Matos, I.; I. Fonseca; Pinto, F (Bioresource Technology, 2018)
Blends of rice waste streams were submitted to co-gasification assays. The resulting chars (G1C and G2C) were characterized and used in Cr(III) removal assays from a synthetic solution. A Commercial Activated Carbon (CAC) was used for comparison purposes. The chars were non-porous materials mainly composed by ashes (68.3–92.6% w/w). The influences of adsorbent loading (solid/liquid ratio – S/L) and initial pH in Cr(III) removal were tested. G2C at a S/L of 5 mg L−1 and an initial pH of 4.50 presented an uptake capacity significantly higher than CAC (7.29 and 2.59 mg g−1, respectively). G2C was used in Cr(III) removal assays from an industrial wastewater with Cr(III) concentrations of 50, 100 and 200 mg L−1. Cr(III) removal by precipitation (uptake capacity ranging from 11.1 to 14.9 mg g−1) was more effective in G2C, while adsorption (uptake capacity of 16.1 mg g−1) was the main removal mechanism in CAC.
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Keywords: Char; Cr(III) removal; Gasification; Rice waste streams

The Crystal Structure of the R280K Mutant of Human p53 Explains the Loss of DNA Binding - Gomes, Ana Sara; Trovão, Filipa; Andrade Pinheiro, Benedita; Freire, Filipe; Gomes, Sara; Oliveira, Carla; Domingues, Lucília; Romão, Maria João; Saraiva, Lucília; Ana Luísa Carvalho (International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2018)
The p53 tumor suppressor is widely found to be mutated in human cancer. This protein is regarded as a molecular hub regulating different cell responses, namely cell death. Compelling data have demonstrated that the impairment of p53 activity correlates with tumor development and maintenance. For these reasons, the reactivation of p53 function is regarded as a promising strategy to halt cancer. In the present work, the recombinant mutant p53R280K DNA binding domain (DBD) was produced for the first time, and its crystal structure was determined in the absence of DNA to a resolution of 2.0 Å. The solved structure contains four molecules in the asymmetric unit, four zinc(II) ions, and 336 water molecules. The structure was compared with the wild-type p53 DBD structure, isolated and in complex with DNA. These comparisons contributed to a deeper understanding of the mutant p53R280K structure, as well as the loss of DNA binding related to halted transcriptional activity. The structural information derived may also contribute to the rational design of mutant p53 reactivating molecules with potential application in cancer treatment.
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Development of a ferrocenyl-based MIP in supercritical carbon dioxide: Towards an electrochemical sensor for bisphenol A - Sílvia Rebocho; Cordas, Cristina M.; Raquel Viveiros; Casimiro, Teresa (The Journal of Supercritical Fluids, 2018)
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Keywords: BPA; Electrochemistry; Ferrocenylmethyl methacrylate; Green solvent; Molecular imprinting

Development of itaconic acid-based molecular imprinted polymers using supercritical fluid technology for pH-triggered drug delivery - Gonçalo Marcelo; Inês C. Ferreira; Raquel Viveiros; Casimiro, Teresa (International Journal of Pharmaceutics, 2018)
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Keywords: Crosslinked polymer; Metronidazole; Molecular imprinting; pH-responsive; Supercritical carbon dioxide

Early stages of surface alteration of soda-rich-silicate glasses in the museum environment - Rodrigues, Alexandra; Sarah Fearn; Teresa Palomar; Vilarigues, Márcia (Corrosion Science, 2018)
This paper studied the alteration of three soda-rich-silicate glass types (Cristallo, façon-de-Venise and soda-lime silicate). Replica samples were exposed to different environments simulating museum-like conditions – room temperature and different relative humidities (RH). Results were analysed by SIMS, μ-FTIR, Optical Microscopy and Optical 3D profilometry. Cristallo appears as the most vulnerable, whilst the soda-lime glass appears as the most resistant to the environmental deterioration. The thickness of the altered layer is proportional to the time of exposure and to the RH of the surrounding atmosphere. From the results obtained, the glass composition and the water available and adsorbed to the surface strongly influence the kinetics of the surface alteration.
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Keywords: -FTIR; Cultural heritage; Deterioration; SIMS; Soda-rich-silicate glass

Enhanced Catalytic Properties of Carbon supported Zirconia and Sulfated Zirconia for the Green Synthesis of Benzodiazepines - Godino-Ojer, Marina; Milla-Diez, Leticia; Matos, Inês; Durán-Valle, Carlos J.; Bernardo, Maria; Fonseca, Isabel M.; Pérez Mayoral, Elena (ChemCatChem, 2018)
Abstract This work reports for the first time a new series of promising porous catalytic carbon materials, functionalized with Lewis and Brønsted acid sites useful in the green synthesis of 2,3-dihydro-1H-1,5-benzodiazepine – nitrogen heterocyclic compounds. Benzodiazepines and derivatives are fine chemicals exhibiting interesting therapeutic properties. Carbon materials have been barely investigated in the synthesis of this type of compounds. Two commercial carbon materials were selected exhibiting different textural properties: i) Norit RX3 (N) as microporous sample and ii) mesoporous xerogel (X), both used as supports of ZrO2 (Zr) and ZrO2/SO42− (SZr). The supported SZr led to higher conversion values and selectivities to the target benzodiazepine. Both chemical and textural properties influenced significantly the catalytic performance. Particularly relevant are the results concerning the non-sulfated samples, NZr and XZr, that were able to catalyze the reaction leading to the target benzodiazepine with high selectivity (up to 80 %; 2 h). These results indicated an important role of the carbon own surface functional groups, avoiding the use of H2SO4. Even very low amounts of SZr supported on carbon reveal high activity and selectivity. Therefore, the carbon materials herein reported can be considered an efficient and sustainable alternative bifunctional catalysts for the benzodiazepine synthesis.
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Keywords: benzodiazepines; cascade reactions; multifunctional carbon catalysts; zirconia and sulphated zirconia carbon catalysts

Highly active Cao catalysts from waste shells of egg, oyster and clam for biodiesel production - Rúbia Risso; Pedro Ferraz; Sara Meireles; Fonseca, Isabel; Vital, Joaquim (Applied Catalysis A: General, 2018)
Calcium oxide (CaO) catalysts derived from waste shells of egg, oyster and clam were prepared and used in the methanolysis of soybean oil. Eggshells were subjected to ultrasound irradiation and mollusc shells were subjected to calcination-hydration-calcination cycles to increase the surface area of CaO and improve its catalytic activity. The catalysts were characterized by XRD, TPD-CO2, TG-DSC, DLS and N2 adsorption, while the catalytic activity for the methanolysis of soybean oil was evaluated. Five hours of sonication reduced the CaO particle size by 34%, which resulted in a 56% increase in the activity. Two cycles of hydration-dehydration applied to the material obtained by calcination of oyster shells provided CaO with 27 m2 g−1. The transesterification rate was 2.5 times higher than that obtained with the untreated sample. After treatments, highly active CaO was obtained which indicates its enormous potential for biodiesel production. A kinetic model assuming the adsorption of methoxide anions on the surface of CaO particles was proposed.
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Keywords: Biodiesel; Calcium oxide; Hydration-dehydration; Ultrasound; Waste shells

Historic K-rich silicate glass surface alteration: Behaviour of high-silica content matrices - Rodrigues, Alexandra; Sarah Fearn; Vilarigues, Márcia (Corrosion Science, 2018)
Several K-Ca-Si glass compositions typical of Central-European glassworks are susceptible to damage beyond recall, even in mild museum conservative conditions. In order to provide a comprehensive picture of the deterioration process, replica samples were produced and exposed to four different museum-like environments. The corrosion experiment was followed by the use of ToF-SIMS, μ-Raman and μ-FTIR, performing a systematic compositional and structural study for the early stages (one year) of surface alteration. This work demonstrates the dominant role of Pb2+ and Ca2+ content for the inferable existence of connected conduction pathways, with strong implications on the surface's hydration, alkali-diffusion and hydrolysis.
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Keywords: -FTIR; -Raman; Cultural heritage; K-Ca-Si glass alteration; ToF-SIMS

The Influence of Environment in the Alteration of the Stained-Glass Windows in Portuguese Monuments - Teresa Palomar; Pedro Redol; Cruz Almeida, Isabel; Pereira da Silva, Eduardo; Vilarigues, Marcia (Heritage, 2018)
This work presents the results of the exposure of soda-lime, potash-lime and mixed-alkali silicate glasses during ten and twenty months in different Portuguese monuments with historical stained-glass windows to characterize the influence of local environmental conditions. The glass samples were exposed in the Monastery of Batalha (Batalha), the Monastery of Jerónimos (Lisbon), and the Cathedral of Évora (Évora). A set of analytical techniques to assess the physicochemical effects were used, including optical microscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. All the samples presented crystalline deposits on their surface; however, their quantity and nature depended on the atmospheric conditions during the days before the collection. Potash-lime silicate glass was the most altered glass in comparison with soda-lime and mixed-alkali silicate glasses. The samples from the Cathedral of Évora showed a high content of dust and salts on their surface but without severe chemical pathologies; however, those samples exposed in the Monastery of Jerónimos and the Monastery of Batalha presented alteration layers due to a high humidity environment.
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Liquid Fibres and Their Networks from Cellulose-Based Liquid Crystalline Solutions - J. P. Canejo; Fernandes, S N; M. H. Godinho; Pieranski, P. (Liquid Crystals, 2018)
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Maize cob waste pre-treatments to enhance biogas production through co-anaerobic digestion with OFMSW - Elena Surra; Bernardo, Maria; Nuno Lapa; Isabel Esteves; Fonseca, Isabel; José Paulo Mota (Waste Management, 2018)
In the present work, the enhancement of biogas and methane yields through anaerobic co-digestion of the pre-hydrolised Organic Fraction of Municipal Solid Wastes (hOFMSW) and Maize Cob Wastes (MCW) in a lab-scale thermophilic anaerobic reactor was tested. In order to increase its biodegradability, MCW were submitted to an initial pre-treatment screening phase as follows: (i) microwave (MW) irradiation catalysed by NaOH, (ii) MW catalysed by glycerol in water and alkaline water solutions, (iii) MW catalysed by H2O2 with pH of 9.8 and (iv) chemical pre-treatment at room temperature catalysed by H2O2 with 4 h reaction time. The pre-treatments cataysed by H2O2 were performed with 2% MCW (wMCW/v alkaline water) at ratios of 0.125, 0.25, 0.5 and 1.0 (wH2O2/wMCW). The pre-treatment that presented the most favourable balance between sugars, lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose solubilisations, as well as low production of phenolic compound and furfural (inhibitors), was the chemical pre-treatment catalysed by H2O2, at room temperature, with a ratio of 0.5 wH2O2/wMCW (Pre1). This Pre1 was then optimised testing reaction times of 1, 2 and 3 days at a different pH (11.5) and MCW percentage (10% w/v). The optimised pre-treatment that presented the best results, considering the same criteria defined above, was the one carried out during 3 days, at pH 9.8 and 10% MCW w/v (Pre2). The anaerobic reactor was initially fed with the hOFMSW obtained from the hydrolysis tank of an industrial AD plant. The hOFMSW was than co-digested with MCW submitted to the pre-treatment Pre1. In another assay, hOFMSW was co-digested with MCW submitted pre-treatment Pre 2. The co-digestion of hOFMSW + Pre1 increased the biogas yield by 38.9% and methane yield by 29.7%, when compared to the results obtained with hOFMSW alone. The co-digestion of hOFMSW + Pre2 increased biogas yield by 46.0% and CH4 yield by 36.3%. In both cases, the methane content obtained in the biogas streams was above 66% v/v. These results show that pre-treatment with H2O2, at room temperature, is a promising low cost way to valorize MCW through co-digestion with hOFMSW.
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Keywords: Anaerobic co-digestion; Biogas; Maize cob wastes; OFMSW; Pre-treatments

Molecular interactions between Geobacter sulfurreducens triheme cytochromes and the redox active analogue for humic substances - Joana M Dantas; Ferreira, Marisa R.; Catarino, Teresa; Oleksandr Kokhan; P Raj Pokkuluri; Salgueiro, , Carlos A. (Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Bioenergetics, 2018)
The bacterium Geobacter sulfurreducens can transfer electrons to quinone moieties of humic substances or to anthraquinone-2,6-disulfonate (AQDS), a model for the humic acids. The reduced form of AQDS (AH2QDS) can also be used as energy source by G. sulfurreducens. Such bidirectional utilization of humic substances confers competitive advantages to these bacteria in Fe(III) enriched environments. Previous studies have shown that the triheme cytochrome PpcA from G. sulfurreducens has a bifunctional behavior toward the humic substance analogue. It can reduce AQDS but the protein can also be reduced by AH2QDS. Using stopped-flow kinetic measurements we were able to demonstrate that other periplasmic members of the PpcA-family in G. sulfurreducens (PpcB, PpcD and PpcE) also showed the same behavior. The extent of the electron transfer is thermodynamically controlled favoring the reduction of the cytochromes. NMR spectra recorded for 13C,15N-enriched samples in the presence increasing amounts of AQDS showed perturbations in the chemical shift signals of the cytochromes. The chemical shift perturbations on cytochromes backbone NH and 1H heme methyl signals were used to map their interaction regions with AQDS, showing that each protein forms a low-affinity binding complex through well-defined positive surface regions in the vicinity of heme IV (PpcB, PpcD and PpcE) and I (PpcE). Docking calculations performed using NMR chemical shift perturbations allowed modeling the interactions between AQDS and each cytochrome at a molecular level. Overall, the results obtained provided important structural-functional relationships to rationalize the microbial respiration of humic substances in G. sulfurreducens.
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Keywords: AQDS; Electron transfer; Humic substances; Multiheme cytochromes; NMR

Multifunctional cellulose-paper for light harvesting and smart sensing applications - T. Vicente, Antonio; Araujo, Andreia; Mendes, Manuel J.; Nunes, Daniela; Oliveira, Maria J.; Sanchez-Sobrado, Olalla; Ferreira, Marta P.; Hugo Aguas; Elvira Fortunato; Rodrigo Martins (J. Mater. Chem. C, 2018)
A novel generation of flexible opto-electronic smart applications is now emerging{,} incorporating photovoltaic and sensing devices driven by the desire to extend and integrate such technologies into a broad range of low cost and disposable consumer products of our everyday life and as a tool to bring together the digital and physical worlds. Several flexible polymeric materials are now under investigation to be used as mechanical supports for such applications. Among them{,} cellulose{,} the most abundant organic polymer on the Earth{,} commonly used in the form of paper{,} has attracted much research interest due to the advantages of being recyclable{,} flexible{,} lightweight{,} biocompatible and extremely low-cost{,} when compared to other materials. Cellulose substrates can be found in many forms{,} from the traditional micro-cellulose paper used for writing{,} printing and food/beverage packaging (e.g. liquid packaging cardboard){,} to the nano-cellulose paper which has distinct structural{,} optical{,} thermal and mechanical properties that can be tailored to its end use. The present article reviews the state-of-the-art related to the integration and optimization of photonic structures and light harvesting technologies on paper-based platforms{,} for applications such as Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS){,} supporting remarkable 107 signal enhancement{,} and photovoltaic solar cells reaching [similar]5% efficiency{,} for power supply in standalone applications. Such paper-supported technologies are now possible due to innovative coatings that functionalize the paper surfaces{,} together with advanced light management solutions (e.g. wave-optical light trapping structures and NIR-to-visible up-converters). These breakthroughs open the way for an innovative class of disposable opto-electronic products that can find widespread use and bring important added value to existing commercial products. By making these devices ubiquitous{,} flexible and conformable to any object or surface{,} will also allow them to become part of the core of the Internet of Things (IoT) revolution{,} which demands systems{'} mobility and self-powering functionalities to satisfy the requirements of comfort and healthcare of the users.
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Novel insights into the degradation of β-1,3-glucans by the cellulosome of Clostridium thermocellum revealed by structure and function studies of a family 81 glycoside hydrolase - Krishan Kumar; Correia, Márcia; Virgínia R. Pires; Arun Dhillon; Kedar Sharma; Vikky Rajulapati; Fontes, Carlos M. G. A.; Ana Luísa Carvalho; Goyal, Arun (International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, 2018)
Abstract The family 81 glycoside hydrolase (GH81) from Clostridium thermocellum is a β-1,3-glucanase belonging to cellulosomal complex. The gene encoding \{GH81\} from Clostridium thermocellum (CtLam81A) was cloned and expressed displaying a molecular mass of  82 kDa. CtLam81A showed maximum activity against laminarin (100 U/mg), followed by curdlan (65 U/mg), at pH 7.0 and 75 °C. CtLam81A displayed Km, 2.1 ± 0.12 mg/ml and Vmax, 109 ± 1.8 U/mg, against laminarin under optimized conditions. CtLam81A activity was significantly enhanced by Ca2+ or Mg2+ ions. Melting curve analysis of CtLam81A showed an increase in melting temperature from 91 °C to 96 °C by Ca2+ or Mg2+ ions and decreased to 82 °C by EDTA, indicating that Ca2+ and Mg2+ ions may be involved in catalysis and in maintaining structural integrity. \{TLC\} and MALDI-TOF analysis of β-1,3-glucan hydrolysed products released initially, showed β-1,3-glucan-oligosaccharides degree of polymerization (DP) from \{DP2\} to DP7, confirming an endo-mode of action. The catalytically inactive mutant CtLam81A-E515A generated by site-directed mutagenesis was co-crystallized and tetragonal crystals diffracting up to 1.4 Å resolution were obtained. CtLam81A-E515A contained 15 α-helices and 38 β-strands forming a four-domain structure viz. a β-sandwich domain I at N-terminal, an α/β-domain II, an (α/α)6 barrel domain III, and a small 5-stranded β-sandwich domain IV.
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Keywords: X-ray crystallography

Phenol in Mixed Acid Benzene Nitration Systems - Afonso, Diogo; Ribeiro, Alejandro. F.G.; Araújo, Paulo; Vital, Joaquim; Madeira, Luis M. (Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, 2018)
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Progress and prospects in reverse electrodialysis for salinity gradient energy conversion and storage - Ramato Ashu Tufa; Sylwin Pawlowski; Joost Veerman; Karel Bouzek; Enrica Fontananova; Gianluca {di Profio}; Velizarov, Svetlozar; João Goulão Crespo; Kitty Nijmeijer; Efrem Curcio (Applied Energy, 2018)
Salinity gradient energy is currently attracting growing attention among the scientific community as a renewable energy source. In particular, Reverse Electrodialysis (RED) is emerging as one of the most promising membrane-based technologies for renewable energy generation by mixing two solutions of different salinity. This work presents a critical review of the most significant achievements in RED, focusing on membrane development, stack design, fluid dynamics, process optimization, fouling and potential applications. Although RED technology is mainly investigated for energy generation from river water/seawater, the opportunities for the use of concentrated brine are considered as well, driven by benefits in terms of higher power density and mitigation of adverse environmental effects related to brine disposal. Interesting extensions of the applicability of RED for sustainable production of water and hydrogen when complemented by reverse osmosis, membrane distillation, bio-electrochemical systems and water electrolysis technologies are also discussed, along with the possibility to use it as an energy storage device. The main hurdles to market implementation, predominantly related to unavailability of high performance, stable and low-cost membrane materials, are outlined. A techno-economic analysis based on the available literature data is also performed and critical research directions to facilitate commercialization of RED are identified.
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Keywords: Fouling; Hydrogen production; Ion exchange membranes; Low-energy desalination; Reverse electrodialysis; Salinity Gradient Power; Techno-economic ANALYSIS

Recent Advances in the Manipulation of Circularly Polarised Light with Cellulose Nanocrystal Films - Fernandes, S N; Lopes, L.F.; M. H. Godinho (Current Opinion in Solid State and Materials Science, 2018)
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Recovery of phenolic compounds from multi-component solution by a synthesized activated carbon using resorcinol and formaldehyde - Madureira, Joana; Melo, Rita; Verde, Sandra Cabo; Matos, Inês; Bernardo, Maria; Noronha, João P.; Margaça, Fernanda M. A.; Fonseca, Isabel M. (Water Science and Technology, 2018)
The adsorption of four phenolic compounds (gallic acid, protocatechuic acid, vanillic acid and syringic acid) is investigated using a synthesized mesoporous carbon on both single and multi-component synthetic solutions. Some correlation of the adsorption capacity of the carbon and the nature of adsorbate could be made, except for gallic acid whose concentration decrease seems to be not exclusively due to adsorption but also to polymerization reaction. In the multi-component mixture, negative effects in the adsorption capacity are observed probably due to competition for the active centers of the adsorbent surface. In desorption studies, ethanol presents better performance than water and acetonitrile. Vanillic acid is the compound with the higher adsorption and interestingly it is then possible to desorb a relatively high amount of it from the adsorbent, which may represent a possibility for a selective recovery of vanillic acid. These results present a potential way to treat the wastewater from the cork industry.
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Sample Cell for Studying Liquid Interfaces with an {in Situ} Electric Field Using X-Ray Reflectivity and Application to Clay Particles at Oil–{}Oil Interfaces - Larsen, Simon R.; Hansteen, Marie; Pacakova, Barbara; Theodor, Keld; Arnold, Thomas; Rennie, Adrian R.; Helgesen, Geir; Knudsen, Kenneth D.; Bordallo, Heloisa N.; Fossum, Jon Otto; Cavalcanti, Leide P. (Journal of Synchrotron Radiation, 2018)
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Targeting protein-carbohydrate interactions in plant cell-wall biodegradation: the power of carbohydrate microarrays - Ribeiro, Diana O.; Pinheiro, Benedita A.; Carvalho, Ana Luisa; Palma, Angelina S. (Carbohydrate Chemistry: Chemical and Biological Approaches Volume 43, 2018)
The plant cell-wall is constituted by structurally diverse polysaccharides. The biodegradation of these is a crucial process for life sustainability. Cellulolytic microorganisms are highly efficient in this process by assembling modular architectures of carbohydrate-active enzymes with appended non-catalytic carbohydrate-binding modules (CBMs). Carbohydrate microarrays offer high-throughput and sensitive tools for uncovering carbohydrate-binding specificities of CBMs{,} which is pivotal to understand the function of these modules in polysaccharide biodegradation mechanisms. Features of this technology will be here briefly reviewed with highlights of microarray approaches to study plant-carbohydrates and CBM-carbohydrate interactions{,} along with an overview of plant polysaccharides and microorganisms strategies for their recognition.
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Thermodynamic and functional characterization of the periplasmic triheme cytochrome PpcA from Geobacter metallireducens - Fernandes, Tomás M.; Leonor Morgado; Salgueiro, , Carlos A. (Biochemical Journal, 2018)
The Geobacter metallireducens bacterium can couple the oxidation of a wide range of compounds to the reduction of several extracellular electron acceptors, including pollutants or electrode surfaces for current production in microbial fuel cells. For these reasons, G. metallireducens are of interest for practical biotechnological applications. The use of such electron acceptors relies on a mechanism that permits electrons to be transferred to the cell exterior. The cytochrome PpcA from G. metallireducens is a member of a family composed by five periplasmic triheme cytochromes, which are important to bridge the electron transfer from the cytoplasmic donors to the extracellular acceptors. Using NMR and visible spectroscopic techniques, a detailed thermodynamic characterization of PpcA was obtained, including the determination of the heme reduction potentials and their redox and redox-Bohr interactions. These parameters revealed unique features for PpcA from G. metallireducens compared to other triheme cytochromes from different microorganisms, namely the less negative heme reduction potentials and concomitant functional working potential ranges. It was also shown that the order of oxidation of the hemes is pH independent, but the protein is designed to couple e-/H+ transfer exclusively at physiological pH.
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Ultra-fast plasmonic back reflectors production for light trapping in thin Si solar cells - Araújo, Andreia; Mendes, Manuel J.; Mateus, Tiago; João Costa; Nunes, Daniela; Elvira Fortunato; Hugo Águas; Rodrigo Martins (Solar Energy, 2018)
A fast method is presented to fabricate plasmonic light trapping structures in just ten minutes (>5 × faster than the present state of art), with excellent light scattering properties. The structures are composed of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) deposited by thermal evaporation and self-assembled using a rapid thermal annealing (RTA) system. The effect of the RTA heating rate on the NPs production reveals to be crucial to the decrease of the annealing process. The Ag NPs are integrated in thin film silicon solar cells to form a plasmonic back reflector (PBR) that causes a diffused light reflectivity in the near-infrared (600–1100 nm wavelength region). In this configuration the thicknesses of the AZO spacer/passivating layers between NPs and rear mirror, and between NPs and silicon layer, play critical roles in the near-field coupling of the reflected light towards the solar cell absorber, which is investigated in this work. The best spacer thicknesses were found to be 100 and 60 nm, respectively, for Ag NPs with preferential sizes of about 200 nm. The microcrystalline silicon (μc-Si:H) solar cells deposited on such improved PBR demonstrate an overall 11% improvement on device efficiency, corresponding to a photocurrent of 24.4 mA/cm2 and an efficiency of 6.78%, against 21.79 mA/cm2 and 6.12%, respectively, obtained on flat structures without NPs.
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Keywords: Plasmonic light trapping; rapid thermal annealing; Silver nanoparticle self-assembled structures; Thin film Si solar cells

Immortalization and characterization of a new canine mammary tumour cell line FR37-CMT - Raposo, L. R.; Roma-Rodrigues, C.; P. Faísca; Alves, M; Henriques, J.; Carvalheiro, M. C.; Corvo, M. L.; Baptista, P. V.; Pombeiro, A. J.; Fernandes, A. R. (Veterinary and Comparative Oncology, 2017)
Here we describe the establishment of a new canine mammary tumour (CMT) cell line, FR37-CMT that does not show dependence on female hormonal signaling to induce tumour xenografts in NOD-SCID mice. FR37-CMT cell line has a stellate or fusiform shape, displays the ability to reorganize the collagen matrix, expresses vimentin, CD44 and shows the loss of E-cadherin which is considered a fundamental event in epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT). The up-regulation of ZEB1, the detection of phosphorylated ERK1/2 and the downregulation of DICER1 and miR-200c are also in accordance with the mesenchymal characteristics of FR37-CMT cell line. FR37-CMT shows a higher resistance to cisplatin (IC50>50 µM) and to doxorubicin (IC50>5.3 µM) compared with other CMT cell lines. These results support the use of FR37-CMT as a new CMT model that may assist the understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying EMT, CMT drug resistance, fostering the development of novel therapies targeting CMT.
sem pdf conforme despacho. Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia (FCT/MEC) - SFRH/BD/70202/2010 ; UID/Multi/04378/2013 ; UID/DTP/04138/2013.
Keywords: canine mammary tumours; cisplatin; Doxorubicin; epithelial to mesenchymal transition; MiRNAs

Photothermal enhancement of chemotherapy in breast cancer by visible irradiation of Gold Nanoparticles - Rita Mendes; Pedro Pedrosa; Lima, João C.; Fernandes, Alexandra R; Baptista, Pedro V (Scientific Reports, 2017)
Photothermal Therapy (PTT) impact in cancer therapy has been increasing due to the enhanced photothermal capabilities of a new generation of nanoscale photothermal agents. Among these nanoscale agents, gold nanoshells and nanorods have demonstrated optimal properties for translation of near infra-red radiation into heat at the site of interest. However, smaller spherical gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are easier to produce, less toxic and show improved photoconversion capability that may profit from the irradiation in the visible via standard surgical green lasers. Here we show the efficient light-to-heat conversion of spherical 14 nm AuNPs irradiated in the visible region (at the surface plasmons resonance peak) and its application to selectively obliterate cancer cells. Using breast cancer as model, we show a synergistic interaction between heat (photoconversion at 530 nm) and cytotoxic action by doxorubicin with clear advantages to those of the individual therapy approaches.
Unidade de Ciencias Biomoleculares Aplicadas - UCIBIO - FCT/MEC (UID/Multi/04378/2013) ERDF (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728; PD/BD/105734/2014)
Keywords: AGENTS; Cells; DELIVERY; DESTRUCTION; Hyperthermia; LIFE; Microscopy; SIZE; THERMAL THERAPY

O papel inevitável das renováveis na descarbonização do sistema energético nacional [The Inevitable Role of Renewable Energy for the decarbonisation of the Portuguese economy] - Fortes, P.; Simões, S.; Gouveia, J. P.; Seixas, J. (Conferência APREN [Conference of the APREN], 2017)

Hyperthermia Severely Affects the Vascular Effects of MDMA and Metabolites in the Human Internal Mammary Artery In Vitro - Fonseca, D. A.; Guerra, A. F.; F. Carvalho; Fernandes, E; Ferreira, LM; Branco, P. S.; Antunes, P. E.; Antunes, M. J.; Cotrim, M. D. (CARDIOVASCULAR TOXICOLOGY, 2017)
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Study of the removal mechanism of aquatic emergent pollutants by new bio-based chars - Bernardo, Maria Manuel Serrano; Madeira, Catarina Alexandra Catanas; dos Santos Nunes, Nuno Carlos Lapa; Dias, Diogo André Costa Messias; Godinho, Delfina Maria Barbosa; de Jesus Pinto, Maria Filomena; do Nascimento Matos, Inês Alexandra Morgado; Carvalho, Ana Paula Batista; de Figueiredo Ligeiro Fonseca, Isabel Maria (Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 2017)
This work is dedicated to study the potential application of char byproducts obtained in the gasification of rice husk (RG char) and rice husk blended with corn cob (RCG char) as removal agents of two emergent aquatic contaminants: tetracycline and caffeine. The chars presented high ash contents (59.5–81.5{%}), being their mineral content mainly composed of silicon (as silica) and potassium. The samples presented a strong basic character, which was related to its higher mineral oxides content. RCG char presented better textural properties with a higher apparent surface area (144 m2 g−1) and higher micropore content (V micro = 0.05 cm3 g−1). The alkaline character of both chars promoted high ecotoxicity levels on their aqueous eluates; however, the ecotoxic behaviour was eliminated after pH correction. Adsorption experiments showed that RG char presented higher uptake capacity for both tetracycline (12.9 mg g−1) and caffeine (8.0 mg g−1), indicating that textural properties did not play a major role in the adsorption process. For tetracycline, the underlying adsorption mechanism was complexation or ion exchange reactions with the mineral elements of chars. The higher affinity of RG char to caffeine was associated with the higher alkaline character presented by this char.
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Target highlights from the first post-PSI CASP experiment (CASP12, May-August 2016) - Kryshtafovych, Andriy; Albrecht, Reinhard; Baslé, Arnaud; Bule, Pedro; Caputo, Alessandro T.; Carvalho, Ana Luisa; Chao, Kinlin L.; Diskin, Ron; Fidelis, Krzysztof; Fontes, Carlos M. G. A.; Fredslund, Folmer; Gilbert, Harry J.; et al. (Proteins: Structure, Function, and Bioinformatics, 2017)
The functional and biological significance of the selected CASP12 targets are described by the authors of the structures. The crystallographers discuss the most interesting structural features of the target proteins and assess whether these features were correctly reproduced in the predictions submitted to the CASP12 experiment. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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Keywords: CASP; NMR; protein structure prediction; X-ray crystallography

A digital microfluidics platform for loop-mediated isothermal amplification detection - Coelho, Beatriz Jorge; Bruno Veigas; Hugo Águas; Elvira Fortunato; Rodrigo Martins; Baptista, Pedro Viana; Rui Igreja (Sensors, 2017)
Digital microfluidics (DMF) arises as the next step in the fast-evolving field of operation platforms for molecular diagnostics. Moreover, isothermal schemes, such as loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP), allow for further simplification of amplification protocols. Integrating DMF with LAMP will be at the core of a new generation of detection devices for effective molecular diagnostics at point-of-care (POC), providing simple, fast, and automated nucleic acid amplification with exceptional integration capabilities. Here, we demonstrate for the first time the role of coupling DMF and LAMP, in a dedicated device that allows straightforward mixing of LAMP reagents and target DNA, as well as optimum temperature control (reaction droplets undergo a temperature variation of just 0.3°C, for 65°C at the bottom plate). This device is produced using low-temperature and low-cost production processes, adaptable to disposable and flexible substrates. DMF-LAMP is performed with enhanced sensitivity without compromising reaction efficacy or losing reliability and efficiency, by LAMP-amplifying 0.5 ng/µL of target DNA in just 45 min. Moreover, on-chip LAMP was performed in 1.5 µL, a considerably lower volume than standard bench-top reactions.
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/5876/147333/PT# info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/5876/147258/PT# FEDER (Financial Institute for Regional Development) funds through the COMPETE 2020 Program (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728). Inn-INDIGO/0002/2015 RADetect for BV.
Keywords: c-Myc; digital microfluidics; lab-on-a-chip; loop-mediated isothermal amplification; Point-of-care diagnostics

Elastomeric Patterns Probed by a Nematic Liquid Crystal - Trindade, AC; A. P. C. Almeida; Canejo, João P; Patrício, Pedro; Pieranski, Pawel; Godinho, Maria H (Molecular Crystals and Liquid Crystals, 2017)
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Potentiating angiogenesis arrest in vivo via laser irradiation of peptide functionalised gold nanoparticles - Pedro Pedrosa; Amelie Heuer-Jungemann; Kanaras, Antonios G.; Fernandes, Alexandra R; Baptista, Pedro V (Journal of Nanobiotechnology, 2017)
Background: Anti-angiogenic therapy has great potential for cancer therapy with several FDA approved formulations but there are considerable side effects upon the normal blood vessels that decrease the potential application of such therapeutics. Chicken chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) has been used as a model to study angiogenesis in vivo. Using a CAM model, it had been previously shown that spherical gold nanoparticles functionalised with an anti-angiogenic peptide can humper neo-angiogenesis. Results: Our results show that gold nanoparticles conjugated with an anti-angiogenic peptide can be combined with visible laser irradiation to enhance angiogenesis arrest in vivo. We show that a green laser coupled to gold nanoparticles can achieve high localized temperatures able to precisely cauterize blood vessels. This combined therapy acts via VEGFR pathway inhibition, leading to a fourfold reduction in FLT-1 expression. Conclusions: The proposed phototherapy extends the use of visible lasers in clinics, combining it with chemotherapy to potentiate cancer treatment. This approach allows the reduction of dose of anti-angiogenic peptide, thus reducing possible side effects, while destroying blood vessels supply critical for tumour progression.
national funds from FCT/MEC (UID/Multi/04378/2013) and co-financed by the ERDF under the PT2020 Partnership Agreement (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728); PP for PD/BD/105734/2014
Keywords: angiogenesis; CAM assay; Gold nanoparticles; Green laser; Phototherapy; VEGFR pathway

Quantitative real-time monitoring of RCA amplification of cancer biomarkers mediated by a flexible ion sensitive platform - Bruno Veigas; Pinto, Joana; Raquel Vinhas; Calmeiro, Tomás; Rodrigo Martins; Elvira Fortunato; Baptista, Pedro Viana (Biosensors & Bioelectronics, 2017)
Ion sensitive field-effect transistors (ISFET) are the basis of radical new sensing approaches. Reliable molecular characterization of specific detection of DNA and/or RNA is vital for disease diagnostics and to follow up alterations in gene expression profiles. Devices and strategies for biomolecular recognition and detection should be developed into reliable and inexpensive platforms. Here, we describe the development of a flexible thin-film sensor for label free gene expression analysis. A charge modulated ISFET based sensor was integrated with real-time DNA/RNA isothermal nucleic acid amplification: Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) and Rolling Circle Amplification (RCA) techniques for c-MYC and BCR-ABL1 genes, allowing for the real-time quantification of template. Also, RCA allowed the direct quantification of RNA targets at room temperature, eliminating the requirement for external temperature controllers and overall complexity of the molecular diagnostic approach. This integration between the biological and the sensor/electronic approaches enabled the development of an inexpensive and direct gene expression-profiling platform.
i3N UID/CTM/50025/2013# info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/OE/SFRH%2FBD%2F78970%2F2011/PT# (Project PTDC/BBBNAN/1812/2012, (POCI-01-0145- FEDER-007728); SFRH/BD/52211/2013
Keywords: Cancer; Cmisfet; Field-effect sensors; Gene expression analysis; Rca

Smuggling gold nanoparticles across cell types: A new role for exosomes in gene silencing - Catarina Roma-Rodrigues; Pereira, Francisca; Alves De Matos, António Pedro; Fernandes, Marta; Baptista, Pedro V; Fernandes, Alexandra R (Nanomedicine-Nanotechnology Biology And Medicine, 2017)
Once released to the extracellular space, exosomes enable the transfer of proteins, lipids and RNA between different cells, being able to modulate the recipient cells’ phenotypes. Members of the Rab small GTP-binding protein family, such as RAB27A, are responsible for the coordination of several steps in vesicle trafficking, including budding, mobility, docking and fusion. The use of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) for gene silencing is considered a cutting-edge technology. Here, AuNPs were functionalized with thiolated oligonucleotides anti-RAB27A (AuNP@PEG@anti-RAB27A) for selective silencing of the gene with a consequent decrease of exosomes´ release by MCF-7 and MDA-MB-453 cells. Furthermore, communication between tumor and normal cells was observed both in terms of alterations in c-Myc gene expression and transportation of the AuNPs, mediating gene silencing in secondary cells.
Sem PDF. Unidade de Ciencias Biomoleculares Aplicadas - UCIBIO - national funds from FCT/MEC (UID/Multi/04378/2013) ERDF (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728)
Keywords: Breast cancer; Cell–cell communication; Exosomes; Gene silencing; Gold nanoparticles

Toxicity of the amphetamine metabolites 4-hydroxyamphetamine and 4-hydroxynorephedrine in human dopaminergic differentiated SH-SY5Y cells - Feio-Azevedo, R.; Costa, V. M.; Ferreira, LM; Branco, P. S.; Pereira, F. C.; Bastos, ML; Carvalho, E.; Capela, JP (TOXICOLOGY LETTERS, 2017)
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Gold nanoparticle approach to the selective delivery of gene silencing in cancer-The case for combined delivery? - Rita Mendes; Fernandes, Alexandra R; Baptista, Pedro V (Virus Genes, 2017)
Gene therapy arises as a great promise for cancer therapeutics due to its potential to silence genes involved in tumor development. In fact, there are some pivotal gene drivers that suffer critical alterations leading to cell transformation and ultimately to tumor growth. In this vein, gene silencing has been proposed as an active tool to selectively silence these molecular triggers of cancer, thus improving treatment. However, naked nucleic acid (DNA/RNA) sequences are reported to have a short lifetime in the body, promptly degraded by circulating enzymes, which in turn speed up elimination and decrease the therapeutic potential of these drugs. The use of nanoparticles for the effective delivery of these silencers to the specific target locations has allowed researchers to overcome this issue. Particularly, gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) have been used as attractive vehicles for the target-specific delivery of gene-silencing moieties, alone or in combination with other drugs. We shall discuss current trends in AuNP-based delivery of gene-silencing tools, considering the promising road ahead without overlooking existing concerns for their translation to clinics.
Sem PDF. Unidade de Ciencias Biomoleculares Aplicadas-UCBIO - national funds from Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia (FCT/MCTES) (UID/Multi/04378/2013) ERDF (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728)
Keywords: Combinatory therapy; Gene silencing; Gold nanoparticles; Interfering RNA; nanotechnology

Stability and ligand promiscuity of type A carbohydrate-binding modules are illustrated by the structure of Spirochaeta thermophila StCBM64C - Pires, Virgínia M R; Pereira, Pedro M M; Brás, Joana L A; Correia, Márcia; Cardoso, Vânia; Bule, Pedro; Alves, Victor D.; Najmudin, Shabir; Venditto, Immacolata; Ferreira, Luís M. A.; Romão, Maria João; Ana Luísa Carvalho; et al. (Journal of Biological Chemistry, 2017)
Deconstruction of cellulose, the most abundant plant cell wall polysaccharide, requires the cooperative activity of a large repertoire of microbial enzymes. Modular cellulases contain non-catalytic type A Carbohydrate-Binding Modules (CBMs) that specifically bind to the crystalline regions of cellulose, thus promoting enzyme efficacy through proximity and targeting effects. Although type A CBMs play a critical role in cellulose recycling, their mechanism of action remains poorly understood. Here we produced a library of recombinant CBMs representative of the known diversity of type A modules. The binding properties of 40 CBMs, in fusion with an N-terminal green fluorescence protein (GFP) domain, revealed that type A CBMs possess the ability to recognize different crystalline forms of cellulose and chitin over a wide range of temperatures, pHs and ionic strengths. A Spirochaeta thermophila CBM64, in particular, displayed plasticity in its capacity to bind both crystalline and soluble carbohydrates under a wide range of extreme conditions. The structure of S. thermophila StCBM64C revealed an untwisted, flat, carbohydrate-binding interface comprising the side chains of four tryptophan residues in a coplanar linear arrangement. Significantly, two highly conserved asparagine side chains, each one located between two tryptophan residues, are critical to insoluble and soluble glucan recognition but not to bind xyloglucan. Thus, CBM64 compact structure and its extended and versatile ligand interacting platform illustrates how type A CBMs target their appended plant cell wall degrading enzymes to a diversity of recalcitrant carbohydrates under a wide range of environmental conditions.
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Developments in the Reactivity of 2-Methylimidazolium Salts - Peixoto, Daniela; Figueiredo, Margarida; Gawande, Manoj B; Corvo, Marta C.; Vanhoenacker, Gerd; Afonso, Carlos A. M.; Ferreira, Luisa M.; Branco, Paula S. (JOURNAL OF ORGANIC CHEMISTRY, 2017)
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Gold Nanoparticles for BCR-ABL1 Gene Silencing: Improving Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor Efficacy in Chronic Myeloid Leukemia - Raquel Vinhas; Fernandes, Alexandra R; Baptista, Pedro V (Molecular Therapy - Nucleic Acids, 2017)
Introduction of tyrosine kinase inhibitors for chronic myeloid leukemia treatment is associated with a 63% probability of maintaining a complete cytogenetic response, meaning that over 30% patients require an alternative methodology to overcome resistance, tolerance, or side effects. Considering the potential of nanotechnology in cancer treatment and the benefits of a combined therapy with imatinib, a nanoconjugate was designed to achieve BCR-ABL1 gene silencing. Gold nanoparticles were functionalized with a single-stranded DNA oligonucleotide that selectively targets the e14a2 BCR-ABL1 transcript expressed by K562 cells. This gold (Au)-nanoconjugate showed great efficacy in gene silencing that induced a significant increase in cell death. Variation of BCL-2 and BAX protein expression, an increase of caspase-3 activity, and apoptotic bodies in cells treated with the nanoconjugate demonstrate its aptitude for inducing apoptosis on K562 BCR-ABL1-expressing cells. Moreover, the combination of the silencing Au-nanoconjugate with imatinib prompted a decrease of imatinib IC50. This Au-nanoconjugate was also capable of inducing the loss of viability of imatinib-resistant K562 cells. This strategy shows that combination of Au-nanoconjugate and imatinib make K562 cells more vulnerable to chemotherapy and that the Au-nanoconjugate alone may overcome imatinib-resistance mechanisms, thus providing an effective treatment for chronic myeloid leukemia patients who exhibit drug tolerance.
FCT/MEC - UID/Multi/04378/2013 ; ERDF - POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728
Keywords: Au-nanoconjugate; BCR-ABL1; chronic myeloid leukemia; Gene silencing; tyrosine kinase inhibitors

Digital microfluidics for nucleic acid amplification - Coelho, Beatriz; Bruno Veigas; Elvira Fortunato; Rodrigo Martins; Hugo Águas; Rui Igreja; Baptista, Pedro V (Sensors, 2017)
Digital Microfluidics (DMF) has emerged as a disruptive methodology for the control and manipulation of low volume droplets. In DMF, each droplet acts as a single reactor, which allows for extensive multiparallelization of biological and chemical reactions at a much smaller scale. DMF devices open entirely new and promising pathways for multiplex analysis and reaction occurring in a miniaturized format, thus allowing for healthcare decentralization from major laboratories to point-of-care with accurate, robust and inexpensive molecular diagnostics. Here, we shall focus on DMF platforms specifically designed for nucleic acid amplification, which is key for molecular diagnostics of several diseases and conditions, from pathogen identification to cancer mutations detection. Particular attention will be given to the device architecture, materials and nucleic acid amplification applications in validated settings.
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/5876/147333/PT# info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/5876/147258/PT# This work was funded by FEDER funds through the COMPETE 2020 Program (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728). BV thanks SFRH/BPD/124311/2016. PVB thanksWater JPI Proj TRACE (Ref 281715).
Keywords: digital microfluidics; Nucleic acid amplification; Point-of-care diagnostics

Gold nanobeacons for tracking gene silencing in zebrafish - Cordeiro, Milton; Lara Carvalho; Joana Silva; Leonor Saúde; Fernandes, Alexandra R; Baptista, Pedro V (Nanomaterials, 2017)
The use of gold nanoparticles for effective gene silencing has demonstrated its potential as a tool for gene expression experiments and for the treatment of several diseases. Here, we used a gold nanobeacon designed to specifically silence the enhanced green fluorescence protein (EGFP) mRNA in embryos of a fli-EGFP transgenic zebrafish line, while simultaneously allowing the tracking and localization of the silencing events via the beacon’s emission. Fluorescence imaging measurements demonstrated a decrease of the EGFP emission with a concomitant increase in the fluorescence of the Au-nanobeacon. Furthermore, microinjection of the Au-nanobeacon led to a negligible difference in mortality and malformations in comparison to the free oligonucleotide, indicating that this system is a biocompatible platform for the administration of gene silencing moieties. Together, these data illustrate the potential of Au-nanobeacons as tools for in vivo zebrafish gene modulation with low toxicity which may be used towards any gene of interest.
Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia, Ministry of Science and Education (FCT/MEC) - PTDC/BBB-NAN/1812/2012 ; SFRH/BD/87836/2012 ; Unidade de Ciencias Biomoleculares Aplicadas-UCIBIO - UID/Multi/04378/2013 ; ERDF - POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728
Keywords: Fli-EGFP; Gene silencing; Gold nanobeacons; Gold nanoparticles; Zebrafish

Gold nanoparticles in molecular diagnostics and molecular therapeutics - Matias, Ana S.; Carlos, Fábio F.; Pedrosa, P.; Fernandes, Alexandra R; Baptista, Pedro V (Metal Nanoparticles in Pharma, 2017)
Gold nanoparticles, due to their unique physicochemical properties, are among the most widely used nanoscale-based platforms for molecular diagnostics. The intrinsic chemical stability and apparent lack of toxicity have also prompted for application in therapeutics, e.g., for imaging modalities and as vectorization strategies for molecular modulators, i.e., gene silencing, specific targeting of cellular pathways, etc. Because of their common molecular ground, these approaches have been synergistically coupled together into molecular theranostic systems that allow for radical new in vivo diagnostics modalities with simultaneous tackling of molecular disequilibria leading to disease. Despite this tremendous potential, gold nanoparticle- based systems still have to make their effective translation to the clinics. This chapter focuses on the use of gold nanoparticles for molecular diagnostics and molecular therapeutics and their application in theranostics. Attention is paid to those systems that have moved toward the clinics.
sem pdf. Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT/MEC) for funding, UCIBIO (UID/Multi/04378/2013), co-financed by the ERDF under the PT2020 Partnership Agreement (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728), WaterJPI/0003/2013, and PD/BD/105734/2014 for PP.
Keywords: Molecular diagnostics; Molecular therapeutics; Nanodiagnostics; Nanomedicine; nanotheranostics; Targeted delivery

Multifunctional gold-nanoparticles: A nanovectorization tool for the targeted delivery of novel chemotherapeutic agents - Fernandes, Alexandra R; João Jesus; Pedro Martins; Sara Figueiredo; Daniela Rosa; Martins, Luísa M R D R S; Corvo, Maria Luísa; Carvalheiro, Manuela C.; Costa, Pedro M.; Baptista, Pedro V (Journal of Controlled Release, 2017)
Due to their small size and unique properties, multifunctional nanoparticles arise as versatile delivery systems easily grafted with a vast array of functional moieties, such as anticancer cytotoxic chemotherapeutics and targeting agents. Here, we formulated a multifunctional gold-nanoparticle (AuNP) system composed of a monoclonal antibody against epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) (anti-EGFR D-11) for active targeting and a Co(II) coordination compound [CoCl(H2O)(phendione)2][BF4] (phendione = 1,10-phenanthroline-5,6-dione) (TS265) with proven antiproliferative activity towards cancer cells (designated as TargetNanoTS265). The efficacy of this nanoformulation, and the non-targeted counterpart (NanoTS265), were evaluated in vitro using cancer cell models and in vivo using mice xenografts. Compared to the free compound, both nanoformulations (TargetNanoTS265 and NanoTS265) efficiently delivered the cytotoxic cargo in a controlled selective manner due to the active targeting, boosting tumor cytotoxicity. Treatment of HCT116-derived xenografts tumors with TargetNanoTS265 led to 93% tumor reduction. This simple conceptual nanoformulation demonstrates the potential of nanovectorization of chemotherapeutics via simple assembly onto AuNPs of BSA/HAS-drug conjugates that may easily be expanded to suit other cargo of novel compounds that require optimized controlled delivery to cancer target.
sem pdf conforme despacho. Unidade de Ciencias Biomoleculares Aplicadas - UCIBIO - national funds from FCT/MEC - (UID/Multi/04378/2013) ; ERDF (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728 ; PEst-OE/UI/DTP/04138/2013)
Keywords: cancer therapy; colorectal cancer; Gold nanoparticles; Lung cancer; Metal complexes; Nanomedicine; Targeting

Tumor microenvironment modulation via gold nanoparticles targeting malicious exosomes: Implications for cancer diagnostics and therapy - Catarina Roma-Rodrigues; Raposo, Luís R.; Rita Cabral; Fabiana Paradinha; Baptista, Pedro V; Fernandes, Alexandra R (International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2017)
Exosomes are nanovesicles formed in the endosomal pathway with an important role in paracrine and autocrine cell communication. Exosomes secreted by cancer cells, malicious exosomes, have important roles in tumor microenvironment maturation and cancer progression. The knowledge of the role of exosomes in tumorigenesis prompted a new era in cancer diagnostics and therapy, taking advantage of the use of circulating exosomes as tumor biomarkers due to their stability in body fluids and targeting malignant exosomes’ release and/or uptake to inhibit or delay tumor development. In recent years, nanotechnology has paved the way for the development of a plethora of new diagnostic and therapeutic platforms, fostering theranostics. The unique physical and chemical properties of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) make them suitable vehicles to pursuit this goal. AuNPs’ properties such as ease of synthesis with the desired shape and size, high surface:volume ratio, and the possibility of engineering their surface as desired, potentiate AuNPs’ role in nanotheranostics, allowing the use of the same formulation for exosome detection and restraining the effect of malicious exosomes in cancer progression.
UCIBIO - FCT/MEC - UID/Multi/04378/2013 ; ERDF - POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728; FCT/MEC - SFRH/BD/70202/2010
Keywords: Cancer diagnostics; cancer therapy; Exosomes; Gold nanoparticles; Tumor microenvironment

Allele specific LAMP- gold nanoparticle for characterization of single nucleotide polymorphisms - Carlos, Fábio Ferreira; Bruno Veigas; Matias, Ana S.; Gonçalo Dória; Orfeu Flores; Baptista, Pedro V (Biotechnology Reports, 2017)
Due to their relevance as disease biomarkers and for diagnostics, screening of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) requires simple and straightforward strategies capable to provide results in medium throughput settings. Suitable approaches relying on isothermal amplification techniques have been evolving to substitute the cumbersome and highly specialized PCR amplification detection schemes. Nonetheless, identification of an individual's genotype still requires sophisticated equipment and laborious methods. Here, we present a low-cost and reliable approach based on the allele specific loop-mediated isothermal amplification (AS-LAMP) coupled to ssDNA functionalized gold nanoparticle (Au-nanoprobe) colorimetric sequence discrimination. The Au-nanoprobe integration allows for the colorimetric detection of AS-LAMP amplification product that can be easily interpreted in less than 15 min. We targeted a clinical relevant SNP responsible for lactose intolerance (-13910C/T dbSNP rs#: 4988235) to demonstrate its proof of concept and full potential of this novel approach.
sem pdf conforme despacho.
Keywords: Gold nanoparticles; Gold nanoprobes; Isothermal amplification; Lactose intolerance; SNP

Nanoparticles-Emerging potential for managing leukemia and lymphoma - Raquel Vinhas; Rita Mendes; Fernandes, Alexandra R; Baptista, Pedro V (Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology, 2017)
Nanotechnology has become a powerful approach to improve the way we diagnose and treat cancer. In particular, nanoparticles (NPs) possess unique features for enhanced sensitivity and selectivity for earlier detection of circulating cancer biomarkers. In vivo, NPs enhance the therapeutic efficacy of anticancer agents when compared with con-ventional chemotherapy, improving vectorization and delivery, and helping to overcome drug resistance. Nanomedicine has been mostly focused on solid cancers due to take advantage from the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect experienced by tissues in the close vicinity of tumors, which enhance nanomedicine's accumulation and, consequently, improve efficacy. Nanomedicines for leukemia and lymphoma, where EPR effect is not a factor, are addressed differently from solid tumors. Nevertheless, NPs have provided innovative approaches to simple and non-invasive methodologies for diagnosis and treatment in liquid tumors. In this review, we consider the state of the art on different types of nanoconstructs for the management of liquid tumors, from preclinical studies to clinical trials. We also discuss the advantages of nanoplatforms for theranostics and the central role played by NPs in this combined strategy.
FCT/MEC to UCIBIO (UID/Multi/04378/2013); RV by PD/BD/52211/2013; RM by PTDC/QEQ-MED/1902/2014.
Keywords: diagnostics; leukemia; Lymphoma; Nanomedicine; nanoparticles; nanotheranostics; Therapeutics

Targeting canine mammary tumours via gold nanoparticles functionalized with promising Co(II) and Zn(II) compounds - Raposo, Luis R.; Catarina Roma-Rodrigues; Jesus, Joao; Martins, L. M. D. R. S.; Pombeiro, Armando J. L.; Baptista, P. V.; Fernandes, A. R. (Veterinary and Comparative Oncology, 2017)
Background: Despite continuous efforts, the treatment of canine cancer has still to deliver effective strategies. For example, traditional chemotherapy with doxorubicin and/or docetaxel does not significantly increase survival in dogs with canine mammary tumors (CMTs). Aims: Evaluate the efficiency of two metal compounds [Zn(DION)2]Cl (TS26
Sem pdf conforme despacho. Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia - UID/Multi/04378/2013; SFRH/BD/70202/2010; UID/QUI/00100/2013; UID/DTP/04138/2013 ; ERDF - POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728
Keywords: 1; 10-phenanthroline-5; 6-dione metal compounds; canine mammary tumours; cisplatin; Doxorubicin; FR37-CMT; Gold nanoparticles; nanotechnology

Current trends in molecular diagnostics of chronic myeloid leukemia - Raquel Vinhas; Cordeiro, Milton; Pedro Pedrosa; Fernandes, Alexandra R; Baptista, Pedro V (Leukemia & Lymphoma, 2017)
Nearly 1.5 million people worldwide suffer from chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), characterized by the genetic translocation t(9;22)(q34;q11.2), involving the fusion of the Abelson oncogene (ABL1) with the breakpoint cluster region (BCR) gene. Early onset diagnosis coupled to current therapeutics allow for a treatment success rate of 90, which has focused research on the development of novel diagnostics approaches. In this review, we present a critical perspective on current strategies for CML diagnostics, comparing to gold standard methodologies and with an eye on the future trends on nanotheranostics.
sem pdf. Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia (FCT/MEC - Project UCIBIO) - UID/Multi/04378/ 2013 ; ERDF - POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007728 ; FCT/MEC - (PD/BD/52211/2013; SFRH/BD/87836/2012; PD/BD/105734/2014)
Keywords: chronic myeloid leukemia; Molecular diagnostics; nanotheranostics; precision medicine

Is caffeic acid, as the major metabolite present in Moscatel wine protein haze hydrolysate, involved in protein haze formation? - Chagas, Ricardo; Lourenco, Ana Maria; Monteiro, Sara; Ferreira, Ricardo Boavida; Ferreira, Luisa Maria (FOOD RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL, 2017)
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International Symposium on Macromolecules and Secondary Metabolites of Grapevine and Wine (Macrowine), Changins, Nyon, SWITZERLAND, 2016

INSMART – Integrative Energy Planning For Cities Low Carbon Futures: Analytical Framework - Gouveia, J.P.,; Dias, L.; Seixas, J.; Simões, S. (3rd Energy for Sustainability Conference, 2017)

Integrative Energy Planning For Cities Low Carbon Futures: Modelling and Scenarios results - Dias, L.,; Simões, S.; Gouveia, J. P.; Seixas, J. (3rd Energy for Sustainability Conference, 2017)

Additive technology safety issues: Impact on the related job design in industry - Nuno Araújo; Cláudia Fernandes; António Brandão Moniz; José Barata (4º Congresso Internacional sobre Condições de Trabalho, 2017)
The embedding of technology and the digitalization of processes and services within industry holds the promise for increased flexibility and productivity. Associated with the tendencies within industry 4.0 there are several enabling technologies, such has 3D printing and additive manufacturing technologies that are becoming very popular and used for industrial processes, although not without hazard. With the present paper the authors aim to explore the impacts industrial 3D printing on health and safety at work and design possible industrial intervention measures. The technological process underneath 3D printing by itself encompasses hazardous exposure scenarios, for example: i) those that imply that thermoplastics are heated, nozzle extruded and then deposited onto a surface to build a part. Thus, by-product nanoparticles (< 1/10.000 of a millimetre) are emitted; ii) for low temperature polylactic acid (PLA) 20 billion of particles per minute can be released; iii) at higher temperatures acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) feedstock can release up to 200 billion nanoparticles. The raw materials, can have multiple uses (e.g. raw material or support materials), origins (e.g. metallic, plastic) and forms (e.g. solid, powder). These materials encompass hazards related with: i) harmful chemicals, used mainly on support materials that are used to allow the creation of empty spaces on printed parts, such as phenyl phosphates, hazardous during use and disposal; ii) the use of metal powders, such as titanium and aluminium can spontaneously combust causing fires; iii) hot surfaces, high voltage, ultraviolet radiation, laser and moving parts are important hazards related with 3D printing machines. Occupational health and safety measures must deal with: 1. technology that allows the contention of the hazardous agent emission without compromising the production process – for example by airtight chambers, ventilation and exhaustion chambers; 2. Compliance with ATEX directives, for metal powders use; 3. development of training and certification requirements for operating 3D industrial processes and to capacitate workers (materials, techniques, best practises); 4. Making available protective equipment’s that respond to the hazards. There are many practical challenges related with occupational health and safety, for 3D printing technologies industrial incorporation and ownership. It’s known that hazardous materials are released during the fabrication processes, although the exposure scenarios are not well known or studied. More robust experiments and sophisticated control methods are needed to know and tackle the hazards for 3Dprinting use in industrial contexts – the size and distribution of particles (including nanoparticles), its concentration, its mass and the total volatile organic compound (COV). The study of Huang et al (2013) on societal impact develops these issues. Since the product safety regulations depend currently on centralized manufacturing (safety testing and regular inspection in factories), 3D printing is expected to bring a dispersion of manufacturing, raising questions about safety issues. Some authors suggests that even if we move the regulation process from the products to the software of the manufacturing process in 3D-printing, concerns still remain due to the poor success of the information regulation on line as well as to the scarce ability to stop the distribution of files, particularly when combined with jurisdictional concerns.

Design of structured adsorbents for aplications in gas adsorption processes - Conventional shaping vs 3D-Printed formulation - O. Sulim; R. Ribeiro; I. Esteves; C. Antunes; A. Garate; Duarte, P; Ferreira, I.; J. Mota; M. Plaza (2017)
Microporous materials highly activated and with potential to be used as adsorbents in many applications for gas separation/purification are usually available as powders. These solids usually have a great and reversible gas uptake, high gas selectivity, good chemical and thermal stability, but are unsuitable to be used in gas adsorption processes, such as Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) or Simulated Moving Bed (SMB). Zeolites, carbons and more recently metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are examples of those materials. Their use in adsorption-based processes are dependent of their upgrading from powders (micrometer scale) to particles (pellets, spheres or granules at millimeter scale). This would overcome large pressure drops and consequent energy consumptions when packing adsorbent columns in those processes. Thus, shaping adsorbents is an important step to use them in industry, although it greatly affects their capacity and selectivity towards a specific gas separation. In this work, we explore techniques to shape powdered adsorbents, followed by their textural and mechanical characterizations, and the study of their adsorption properties towards the main components of post-combustion flues gases (CO2 and N2). Materials densification is proposed by employing two approaches: - Conventional shaping through binderless mechanical compression and binder-containing extrusion; and - Formulation by 3D printing (or additive manufacturing) to produce packed bed morphologies that precisely replicate computer aided design (CAD) models. Porous separation media are important for fluid-solid contacting in many unit operations, including adsorption. Due to practical limitations, media particles are typically packed randomly into a column in a shaped form, allowing fluid to flow through the interstitial voids. Key to the effectiveness of packed columns are the flowrelated properties of mass transfer, fluid distribution and dispersion, and back pressure, which in turn depend upon packing geometry. Until now, no alternative was found to overcome this limitation and have optimal ordered packing arrangements at the micron scale. 3D-Printing (or additive manufacturing) brings a wide range of benefits that traditional methods of manufacturing or prototyping simply cannot. With this approach, complex ordered geometries, that are not possible by conventional extrusion, can be designed and printed for a porous media, being the equipment resolution the only limiting step to overcome. The effect of parameters like compression force, particle sieving, binder nature, binder/adsorbent ratio were firstly studied using conventional shaping techniques, as a basis for the consequent development of 3D-printed formulations. The structured samples are then characterized and adsorption equilibria studies are performed on them to evaluate their performance as media for gas adsorption separation processes. A volumetric/manometric adsorption unit built in-house was used for this purpose. Relevant experimental data is obtained, which allows to conclude that 3D-printed media can be an alternative porous media for application in gas adsorption processes.

How the European Directive cost-effectiveness model to nZEB fails widely 2050 decarbonisation goals. - Flores, M.; Seixas, J. (XIII Congresso Ibero-Americano de Engenharia Mecânica, 2017)

The pivotal role of electricity to the deep decarbonization of energy system: cost-effectiveness options for Portugal - Júlia Seixas; Simões, Sofia; Patrícia Fortes; Gouveia, J. P. (3rd International Conference on Energy and Environment, 2017)

Targeting canine mammary tumours via gold nanoparticles functionalized with promising Co(II) and Zn(II) compounds - Raposo, L. R.; Roma-Rodrigues, C.; J Jesus; Martins, L. M. D. R. S.; Pombeiro, A. J.; P.V. Baptista; Fernandes, A. R. (Veterinary and Comparative Oncology, 2017)
Background: Despite continuous efforts, the treatment of canine cancer has still to deliver effective strategies. For example, traditional chemotherapy with doxorubicin and/or docetaxel does not significantly increase survival in dogs with canine mammary tumors (CMTs).Aims: Evaluate the efficiency of two metal compounds [Zn(DION)2]Cl (TS262, DION = 1,10-phenanthroline-5,6-dione) and [CoCl(H2O)(DION)2][BF4] (TS265) and novel nanovectorizations designed to improve the anti-cancer efficacy of these compounds in a new CMT derived cell line (FR37-CMT). Materials and methods: FR37-CMT cells were exposed to different concentrations of TS262 and TS265 and two new nanoparticle systems and cellular viability was determined. These nanosystems are composed of polyethylene-glycol, bovine-serum-albumin and TS262 or TS265 (NanoTS262 or NanoTS265, respectively). Results: In FR37-CMT, TS262 and TS265 displayed IC50 values well below those displayed by doxorubicin and cisplatin. The nanovectorizations further decreased the IC50 values. Discussion: TS262 and TS265 proved to be effective against FR37-CMT cells and more effective than of doxorubicin and cisplatin. The Nanosystems efficiently delivered the cytotoxic cargo inducing a significant reduction of cell viability in FR37-CMT cell line when compared to the free compounds. Conclusions: TS262 and TS265 are compounds with potential in the treatment of CMTs. NanoTS262 and NanoTS265 demonstrate that such simple nanovectorization via gold nanoparticles shows tremendous potential as anti-cancer formulations, which may easily be expanded to suit other cargo.
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Keywords: 1,10-phenanthroline-5,6-dione metal compounds; canine mammary tumours; cisplatin; Doxorubicin; FR37-CMT; Gold nanoparticles; nanotechnology

Renaissance of protein crystallization and precipitation in biopharmaceuticals purification - Raquel dos Santos; Ana Luísa Carvalho; Roque, A. Cecília A. (Biotechnology Advances, 2017)
AbstractThe current chromatographic approaches used in protein purification are not keeping pace with the increasing biopharmaceutical market demand. With the upstream improvements, the bottleneck shifted towards the downstream process. New approaches rely in Anything But Chromatography methodologies and revisiting former techniques with a bioprocess perspective. Protein crystallization and precipitation methods are already implemented in the downstream process of diverse therapeutic biological macromolecules, overcoming the current chromatographic bottlenecks. Promising work is being developed in order to implement crystallization and precipitation in the purification pipeline of high value therapeutic molecules. This review focuses in the role of these two methodologies in current industrial purification processes, and highlights their potential implementation in the purification pipeline of high value therapeutic molecules, overcoming chromatographic holdups.
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Keywords: Anything but chromatography; Biopharmaceutical; Crystallization; Downstream process; precipitation; Protein Purification

2,2'-Spirobis chromene Derivatives Chemistry and Their Relation with the Multistate System of Anthocyanins - Moro, A. J.; A. J. Parola; Pina, F; Pana, A. M.; Badea, V.; Pausescu, I.; Shova, S.; Cseh, L. (Journal of Organic Chemistry, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Moro, Artur J. Parola, A. Jorge Pina, Fernando Pana, Ana-Maria Badea, Valentin Pausescu, Iulia Shova, Sergiu Cseh, Liliana Pina, Fernando/C-8161-2011; Moro, Artur/C-6689-2013 Pina, Fernando/0000-0001-8529-6848; Moro, Artur/0000-0003-3285-4919; Parola, A. Jorge/0000-0002-1333-9076; Pana, Ana-Maria/0000-0001-5424-7883

Aggregation induced emission of gold(I) complexes in water or water mixtures - Pinto, A.; Svahn, N.; J. C. Lima; Rodriguez, L (Dalton Transactions, 2017)
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Times Cited: 2Pinto, Andrea Svahn, Noora Lima, Joao Carlos Rodriguez, Laura Rodriguez, Laura/A-4169-2011; Lima, Joao/F-3658-2010 Rodriguez, Laura/0000-0003-1289-1587; Lima, Joao/0000-0003-0528-1967 1477-9234

Assembly of Ruminococcus flavefaciens cellulosome revealed by structures of two cohesin-dockerin complexes - Bule, Pedro; Alves, Victor D.; Israeli-Ruimy, Vered; Carvalho, Ana L.; Ferreira, Luís M. A.; Smith, Steven P.; Gilbert, Harry J.; Najmudin, Shabir; Bayer, Edward A.; Fontes, Carlos M. G. A. (Scientific Reports, 2017)
Cellulosomes are sophisticated multi-enzymatic nanomachines produced by anaerobes to effectively deconstruct plant structural carbohydrates. Cellulosome assembly involves the binding of enzyme-borne dockerins (Doc) to repeated cohesin (Coh) modules located in a non-catalytic scaffoldin. Docs appended to cellulosomal enzymes generally present two similar Coh-binding interfaces supporting a dual-binding mode, which may confer increased positional adjustment of the different complex components. Ruminococcus flavefaciens’ cellulosome is assembled from a repertoire of 223 Doc-containing proteins classified into 6 groups. Recent studies revealed that Docs of groups 3 and 6 are recruited to the cellulosome via a single-binding mode mechanism with an adaptor scaffoldin. To investigate the extent to which the single-binding mode contributes to the assembly of R. flavefaciens cellulosome, the structures of two group 1 Docs bound to Cohs of primary (ScaA) and adaptor (ScaB) scaffoldins were solved. The data revealed that group 1 Docs display a conserved mechanism of Coh recognition involving a single-binding mode. Therefore, in contrast to all cellulosomes described to date, the assembly of R. flavefaciens cellulosome involves single but not dual-binding mode Docs. Thus, this work reveals a novel mechanism of cellulosome assembly and challenges the ubiquitous implication of the dual-binding mode in the acquisition of cellulosome flexibility.
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Binding of the five multistate species of the anthocyanin analog 7-beta-D-glucopyranosyloxy-4'-hydroxyflavylium to the beta-cyclodextrin derivative captisol - Mendoza, J.; Basilio, N.; Dangles, O.; Mora, N.; Al Bittar, S.; Pina, F (Dyes and Pigments, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Mendoza, Johan Basilio, Nuno Dangles, Olivier Mora, Nathalie Al Bittar, Sheiraz Pina, Fernando Pina, Fernando/C-8161-2011 Pina, Fernando/0000-0001-8529-6848; Basilio, Nuno/0000-0002-0121-3695 1873-3743

Cellulose Nanocrystals: Mind the Microgap in Iridescent Cellulose Nanocrystal Films (Adv. Mater. 2/2017) - Fernandes, Susete N.; Almeida, Pedro L; Monge, Nuno; Aguirre, Luis E.; Reis, Dennys; de Oliveira, Cristiano L. P.; Neto, António M. F.; Pieranski, Pawel; Godinho, Maria H (Advanced MaterialsAdvanced Materials, 2017)
Cellulose nanocrystals are isolated from plant cellulose structures, e.g., cotton. In article 1603560, M. H. Godinho and co-workers describe a tunable photonic material produced from these cellulose nanocrystals iridescent films, which reflects both right- and left-handed circularly polarized light, taking advantage of the gaps existing along the cellulose nanocrystals films that are filled with a nematic liquid crystal.
doi: 10.1002/adma.201770008
Keywords: cellulose nanocrystals; liquid crystals; mimicking Plusiotis resplendens cuticles; Photonics

Contrasting pK(a) Shifts in Cucurbit 7 uril Host-Guest Complexes Governed by an Interplay of Hydrophobic Effects and Electrostatic Interactions - Basilio, N.; Gago, S.; A. J. Parola; Pina, F (Acs Omega, 2017)
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Times Cited: 2Basilio, Nuno Gago, Sandra Jorge Parola, A. Pina, Fernando Parola, A. Jorge/F-4048-2010; Pina, Fernando/C-8161-2011; Basilio, Nuno/F-2389-2012 Parola, A. Jorge/0000-0002-1333-9076; Pina, Fernando/0000-0001-8529-6848; Basilio, Nuno/0000-0002-0121-3695

The contributions of molecular vibrations and higher triplet levels to the intersystem crossing mechanism in metal-free organic emitters - Huang, R. J.; Avo, J.; Northey, T.; Chaning-Pearce, E.; dos Santos, P. L.; Ward, J. S.; Data, P.; Etherington, M. K.; Fox, M. A.; Penfold, T. J.; Berberan-Santos, M. N.; J. C. Lima; et al. (Journal of Materials Chemistry C, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Huang, Rongjuan Avo, Joao Northey, Thomas Chaning-Pearce, E. dos Santos, Paloma L. Ward, Jonathan S. Data, Przemyslaw Etherington, Marc K. Fox, Mark A. Penfold, Thomas J. Berberan-Santos, Mario N. Lima, Joao C. Bryce, Martin R. Dias, Fernando B. Fox, Mark/C-2576-2011; Dias, Fernando/F-3551-2011; Lima, Joao/F-3658-2010 Fox, Mark/0000-0002-0075-2769; Dias, Fernando/0000-0001-9841-863X; Lima, Joao/0000-0003-0528-1967; Etherington, Marc Kenneth/0000-0003-2101-5757 2050-7534

Copper(ii) complexes of functionalized 2,2[prime or minute]:6[prime or minute],2[prime or minute][prime or minute]-terpyridines and 2,6-di(thiazol-2-yl)pyridine: structure, spectroscopy, cytotoxicity and catalytic activity - Czerwinska, Katarzyna; Machura, Barbara; Kula, Slawomir; Krompiec, Stanislaw; Erfurt, Karol; Catarina Roma-Rodrigues; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Shul'pina, Lidia S.; Ikonnikov, Nikolay S.; Shul'pin, Georgiy B. (Dalton Transactions, 2017)
Six new copper(ii) complexes with 2,2[prime or minute]:6[prime or minute],2[prime or minute][prime or minute]-terpyridine (4[prime or minute]-Rn-terpy) [1 (R1 = furan-2-yl), 2 (R2 = thiophen-2-yl), and 3 (R3 = 1-methyl-1H-pyrrol-2-yl)] and 2,6-di(thiazol-2-yl)pyridine derivatives (Rn-dtpy) [4 (R1), 5 (R2), and 6 (R3)] have been synthesized by a reaction between copper(ii) chloride and the corresponding ligand. The complexes have been characterized by UV-vis and IR spectroscopy, and their structures have been determined by X-ray analysis. The antiproliferative potential of copper(ii) complexes of 2,2[prime or minute]:6[prime or minute],2[prime or minute][prime or minute]-terpyridine and 2,6-di(thiazol-2-yl)pyridine derivatives towards human colorectal (HCT116) and ovarian (A2780) carcinoma as well as towards lung (A549) and breast adenocarcinoma (MCF7) cell lines was examined. Complex 1 and complex 6 were found to have the highest antiproliferative effect on A2780 ovarian carcinoma cells, particularly when compared with complex 2, 3 with no antiproliferative effect. The order of cytotoxicity in this cell line is 6 > 1 > 5 > 4 > 2 [approximate] 3. Complex 2 seems to be much more specific towards colorectal carcinoma HCT116 and lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells. The viability loss induced by the complexes agrees with Hoechst 33258 staining and typical morphological apoptotic characteristics like chromatin condensation and nuclear fragmentation. The specificity towards different types of cell lines and the low cytotoxic activity towards healthy cells are of particular interest and are a positive feature for further developments. Complexes 1-6 were also tested in the oxidation of alkanes and alcohols with hydrogen peroxide and tert-butyl-hydroperoxide (TBHP). The most active catalyst 4 gave, after 120 min, 0.105 M of cyclohexanol + cyclohexanone after reduction with PPh3. This concentration corresponds to a yield of 23% and TON = 210. Oxidation of cis-1,2-dimethylcyclohexane with m-CPBA catalyzed by 4 in the presence of HNO3 gave a product of a stereoselective reaction (trans/cis = 0.47). Oxidation of secondary alcohols afforded the target ketones in yields up to 98% and TON = 630.
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Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) as low-cost and green electrolytes for electrochromic devices - Cruz, H.; Jordao, N.; Branco, L. C. (Green Chemistry, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Cruz, Hugo Jordao, Noemi Branco, Luis C. Branco, Luis/C-6426-2013; Jordao, Noemi/C-6742-2013 Branco, Luis/0000-0003-2520-1151; Jordao, Noemi/0000-0001-9769-1976 1463-9270

Development of fluorescent thermoresponsive nanoparticles for temperature monitoring on membrane surfaces - Santoro, S.; Sebastian, V.; Moro, A. J.; Portugal, C. A. M.; J. C. Lima; Coelhoso, I. M.; Crespo, J. G.; Mallada, R. (Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 2017)
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Times Cited: 2Santoro, S. Sebastian, V. Moro, A. J. Portugal, C. A. M. Lima, J. C. Coelhoso, I. M. Crespo, J. G. Mallada, R. Moro, Artur/C-6689-2013; Lima, Joao/F-3658-2010; Coelhoso, Isabel/D-1955-2013; Portugal, Carla /C-8912-2013 Moro, Artur/0000-0003-3285-4919; Lima, Joao/0000-0003-0528-1967; Coelhoso, Isabel/0000-0001-7032-3436; /0000-0002-4758-9380 1095-7103

Development of PLGA dry powder microparticles by supercritical CO2-assisted spray-drying for potential vaccine delivery to the lungs - Tavares, Márcia; Cabral, Renato P.; Costa, Clarinda; Pedro Martins; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Casimiro, Teresa; Aguiar-Ricardo, A. (2017)
In this work, biocompatible and biodegradable poly(d-l-lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) composite microparticles with potential use as carrier for vaccines and other drugs to the lungs were developed using supercritical CO2-assisted spray-drying (SASD). Bovine serum albumin (BSA) was chosen as model vaccine, and l-leucine as a dispersibility enhancer, and their effects on the particle characteristics were evaluated. The dry powder formulations (DPFs) were characterized in terms of their morphology and aerodynamic performance using an in vitro aerosolization study – Andersen cascade impactor (ACI) − to obtain data such as the fine particle fraction (FPF) with percentages up to 43.4%, and the mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) values between the 1.7 and 3.5μm. Additionally, pharmacokinetic and cytotoxicity studies were performed confirming that the produced particles have all the necessary requirements for potential pulmonary delivery.
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Keywords: doe; Dry powder inhalation; Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid); Pulmonary drug delivery; Supercritical assisted atomization

Dinuclear RuII(bipy)2 Derivatives: Structural, Biological, and in Vivo Zebrafish Toxicity Evaluation - Lenis-Rojas, Oscar A.; Catarina Roma-Rodrigues; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Marques, Fernanda; Pérez-Fernández, David; Guerra-Varela, Jorge; Sánchez, Laura; Vázquez-García, Digna; López-Torres, Margarita; Fernández, Alberto; Fernández, Jesús J. (Inorganic ChemistryInorganic Chemistry, 2017)
Ruthenium-based drugs exhibit interesting properties as potential anticancer pharmaceuticals. We herein present the synthesis and characterization of a new family of ruthenium complexes with formulas [{Ru(bipy)2}2(μ-L)][CF3SO3]4 (L = bptz, 1a) and [{Ru(bipy)2}2(μ-L)][CF3SO3]2 (L = arphos, 2a; dppb, 3a; dppf, 4a), which were synthesized from the Ru(II) precursor compound cis-Ru(bipy)2Cl2. The complexes were characterized by elemental analysis, mass spectrometry, 1H and 31P{1H} NMR, IR spectroscopy, and conductivity measurements. The molecular structures for three Ru(II) compounds were determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The newly developed compounds interact with CT-DNA by intercalation, in particular, 2a, 3a, and 4a, which also seemed to induce some extent of DNA degradation. This effect seemed to be related with the formation of reactive oxygen species. The cytotoxic activity was evaluated against A2780, MCF7, and MDAMB231 human tumor cells. Compounds 2a and 4a were the most cytotoxic with activity compared to cisplatin (∼2 μM, 72 h) in the A2780 cisplatin sensitive cells. All the compounds induced A2780 cell death by apoptosis, however, to a lesser extent for compounds 4a and 2a. For these compounds, the mechanism of cell death in addition to apoptosis seemed to involve autophagy. In vivo toxicity was evaluated using the zebrafish embryo model. LC50 estimates varied from 5.397 (3a) to 39.404 (1a) mg/L. Considering the in vivo toxicity in zebrafish embryos and the in vitro cytotoxicity in cancer cells, compound 1a seems to be the safest having no effect on dechirionation and presenting a good antiproliferative activity against ovarian carcinoma cells.Ruthenium-based drugs exhibit interesting properties as potential anticancer pharmaceuticals. We herein present the synthesis and characterization of a new family of ruthenium complexes with formulas [{Ru(bipy)2}2(μ-L)][CF3SO3]4 (L = bptz, 1a) and [{Ru(bipy)2}2(μ-L)][CF3SO3]2 (L = arphos, 2a; dppb, 3a; dppf, 4a), which were synthesized from the Ru(II) precursor compound cis-Ru(bipy)2Cl2. The complexes were characterized by elemental analysis, mass spectrometry, 1H and 31P{1H} NMR, IR spectroscopy, and conductivity measurements. The molecular structures for three Ru(II) compounds were determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The newly developed compounds interact with CT-DNA by intercalation, in particular, 2a, 3a, and 4a, which also seemed to induce some extent of DNA degradation. This effect seemed to be related with the formation of reactive oxygen species. The cytotoxic activity was evaluated against A2780, MCF7, and MDAMB231 human tumor cells. Compounds 2a and 4a were the most cytotoxic with activity compared to cisplatin (∼2 μM, 72 h) in the A2780 cisplatin sensitive cells. All the compounds induced A2780 cell death by apoptosis, however, to a lesser extent for compounds 4a and 2a. For these compounds, the mechanism of cell death in addition to apoptosis seemed to involve autophagy. In vivo toxicity was evaluated using the zebrafish embryo model. LC50 estimates varied from 5.397 (3a) to 39.404 (1a) mg/L. Considering the in vivo toxicity in zebrafish embryos and the in vitro cytotoxicity in cancer cells, compound 1a seems to be the safest having no effect on dechirionation and presenting a good antiproliferative activity against ovarian carcinoma cells.
doi: 10.1021/acs.inorgchem.7b00790

Effect of beta-Cyclodextrin on the Multistate Species Distribution of 3-Methoxy-4',7-dihydroxyflavylium. Discrimination of the Two Hemiketal Enantiomers - Gago, S.; Basilio, N.; Quintas, A.; Pina, F (Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Gago, Sandra Basilio, Nuno Quintas, Alexandre Pina, Fernando 28th International Conference on Polyphenols Jul 11-15, 2016 Tech Univ Wien, Vienna, AUSTRIA Quintas, Alexandre/J-6436-2012; Pina, Fernando/C-8161-2011 Quintas, Alexandre/0000-0002-5188-0453; Pina, Fernando/0000-0001-8529-6848; Basilio, Nuno/0000-0002-0121-3695 1520-5118

Effect of marine aerosols on the alteration of silicate glasses - Palomar, T.; Chabas, A.; Bastidas, D.M.; de la Fuente, D.; Verney-Carron, A. (Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids, 2017)
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Export Date: 5 June 2018

The effect of three luminescent ionic liquids on corroded glass surfaces - A first step into stained-glass cleaning - Delgado, J. M.; Nunes, D.; E. Fortunato; Laia, C. A. T.; Branco, L. C.; Vilarigues, M. (Corrosion Science, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Delgado, J. M. Nunes, D. Fortunato, E. Laia, C. A. T. Branco, L. C. Vilarigues, M. Branco, Luis/C-6426-2013; Fortunato, Elvira/E-2590-2011; Vilarigues, Marcia/K-8709-2015 Branco, Luis/0000-0003-2520-1151; Fortunato, Elvira/0000-0002-4202-7047; Vilarigues, Marcia/0000-0003-4134-2819 1879-0496

The effect of three luminescent ionic liquids on corroded glass surfaces – A first step into stained-glass cleaning - Delgado, J. M.; Nunes, D.; E. Fortunato; Laia, C. A. T.; Branco, L. C.; Vilarigues, M. (Corrosion Science, 2017)
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Cited By :2Export Date: 5 June 2018

Exploring the diethylaminoflavylium derivatives multistate system of chemical reactions in the presence of CTAB micelles: thermodynamic reversibility achieved through different kinetic pathways - Pessego, M.; Basilio, N.; Mendoza, J.; Avo, J.; Cunha-Silva, L.; A. J. Parola; Pina, F (Rsc Advances, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Pessego, Marcia Basilio, Nuno Mendoza, Johan Avo, Joao Cunha-Silva, Luis Parola, A. Jorge Pina, Fernando Basilio, Nuno/F-2389-2012 Basilio, Nuno/0000-0002-0121-3695; Parola, A. Jorge/0000-0002-1333-9076; Pina, Fernando/0000-0001-8529-6848

Gold(I)-Complex-Titania Hybrid Photocatalyst for Hydrogen Production - Aguilo, E.; Soler, L.; Casanovas, A.; Moro, A. J.; J. C. Lima; Rodriguez, L; Llorca, J. (Chemcatchem, 2017)
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Times Cited: 1Aguilo, Elisabet Soler, Lluis Casanovas, Albert Moro, Artur J. Lima, Joao Carlos Rodriguez, Laura Llorca, Jordi Rodriguez, Laura/A-4169-2011; Lima, Joao/F-3658-2010; Soler, Lluis/I-4606-2014; Moro, Artur/C-6689-2013 Rodriguez, Laura/0000-0003-1289-1587; Lima, Joao/0000-0003-0528-1967; Soler, Lluis/0000-0003-1591-3366; Moro, Artur/0000-0003-3285-4919 1867-3899

Halilectin-3, a Lectin from the Marine Sponge Haliclona caerulea, Induces Apoptosis and Autophagy in Human Breast Cancer MCF7 Cells Through Caspase-9 Pathway and LC3-II Protein Expression - Luiz Gonzaga do Nascimento-Neto; Maria Guadalupe Cabral; Romulo Farias Carneiro; Zelia Silva; Francisco Vassiliepe Sousa Arruda; Celso Shiniti Nagano; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Alexandre Holanda Sampaio; Edson Holanda Teixeira* and Paula Alexandra Videira* (2017)
Background: An ideal strategy for cancer treatment is the specific induction of tumor cell death, sparing normal cells. Marine sponges are rich biological reservoirs of biomolecules, especially lectins, which have attracted considerable attention due to potential biological effect on human cells. Lectins are proteins that bind specific carbohydrate signatures and some gained further interest for their capacity to bind tumor associated carbohydrates antigens and induce tumor cell apoptosis. Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the antitumor potential of H3, a lectin, recently reported from marine sponge Haliclona caerulea on the human breast cancer cell line MCF7. Results: H3 reduced MCF7 cell viability with an IC50 of 100 μg/ml, without a significant effect on normal cells. At 24h, H3 induced a significant arrest in the G1 cell cycle phase. Consistently, almost 50% of the cells were in early apoptosis and showed remarkable increased expression of caspase-9 (CASP 9). H3 impaired dramatically the adhesiveness of MCF7 cells in culture. Assays conducted with Lysotracker Red probe showed increased organelle acidity, suggesting autophagic cell death, which was further supported by increased expression of microtubule-associated protein light chain 3 (LC3) and observable conversion of LC3-I in LC3-II by western blot. Conclusion: The apoptotic effect of H3 may be related to a balance between apoptotic and autophagic cell death, mediated by increased expression of CASP 9 and LC3-II. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report about a sponge lectin triggering both apoptosis and autophagy in MCF7 cell.
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Keywords: Apoptosis; Breast cancer; Haliclona caerulea.; lectins; marine sponges

Helical Microfilaments with Alternating Imprinted Intrinsic Curvatures - Silva, Pedro Emanuel Santos; Godinho, Maria Helena (Macromolecular Rapid CommunicationsMacromolecular Rapid Communications, 2017)
There has been an intense research for developing techniques that can produce filaments with helical shapes, given the widespread of potential applications. In this work, how helices with different curvatures can be precisely imprinted in microfilaments is shown. It is also shown that using this technique, it is possible to produce, in a single fiber, helices with different curvatures. This striking and innovative behavior is observed when one side of the stretched filaments is irradiated with UV light, modifying the mechanical properties at surface. Upon release, the regions with higher curvature start to curl first, while regions with lower intrinsic curvature remain stretched until start to curl later. The results presented here can be important to understand why structures adopt a helical shape in general, which can be of interest in nanotechnology, biomolecular science, or even to understand why plant filaments curl.
doi: 10.1002/marc.201600700
Keywords: Electrospinning; helices; intrinsic curvature; urethane/urea elastic microfilaments

Hiding and unveiling trans-chalcone in a constrained derivative of 4 ',7-dihydroxyflavylium in water: a versatile photochromic system - Pessego, M.; Gago, S.; Basilio, N.; Laia, C. A. T.; A. J. Parola; J. C. Lima; Pina, F (Organic & Biomolecular Chemistry, 2017)
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Times Cited: 1Pessego, Marcia Gago, Sandra Basilio, Nuno Laia, Cesar A. T. Jorge Parola, A. Lima, Joao C. Pina, Fernando Basilio, Nuno/F-2389-2012; Pessego, Marcia/E-1790-2012; Pina, Fernando/C-8161-2011; Lima, Joao/F-3658-2010; Parola, A. Jorge/F-4048-2010 Basilio, Nuno/0000-0002-0121-3695; Pessego, Marcia/0000-0001-7292-0568; Pina, Fernando/0000-0001-8529-6848; Lima, Joao/0000-0003-0528-1967; Parola, A. Jorge/0000-0002-1333-9076 1477-0539

Highly selective tungstate transporter protein TupA from Desulfovibrio alaskensis G20 - Otrelo-Cardoso, Ana Rita; Nair, Rashmi R; Correia, Márcia A. S.; Cordeiro, Raquel S. Correia; Panjkovich, Alejandro; Svergun, Dmitri I.; Santos-Silva, Teresa; Rivas, Maria G. (Scientific Reports, 2017)
Molybdenum and tungsten are taken up by bacteria and archaea as their soluble oxyanions through high affinity transport systems belonging to the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters. The component A (ModA/TupA) of these transporters is the first selection gate from which the cell differentiates between MoO4 2−, WO4 2− and other similar oxyanions. We report the biochemical characterization and the crystal structure of the apo-TupA from Desulfovibrio desulfuricans G20, at 1.4 Å resolution. Small Angle X-ray Scattering data suggests that the protein adopts a closed and more stable conformation upon ion binding. The role of the arginine 118 in the selectivity of the oxyanion was also investigated and three mutants were constructed: R118K, R118E and R118Q. Isothermal titration calorimetry clearly shows the relevance of this residue for metal discrimination and oxyanion binding. In this sense, the three variants lost the ability to coordinate molybdate and the R118K mutant keeps an extremely high affinity for tungstate. These results contribute to an understanding of the metal-protein interaction, making it a suitable candidate for a recognition element of a biosensor for tungsten detection.
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Influence of the structural features of amino-based pyranoanthocyanins on their acid-base equilibria in aqueous solutions - Oliveira, J.; Araujo, P.; A. Fernandes; Bras, N. F.; Mateus, N.; Pina, F; de Freitas, V. (Dyes and Pigments, 2017)
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Times Cited: 1Oliveira, Joana Araujo, Paula Fernandes, Ana Bras, Natercia F. Mateus, Nuno Pina, Fernando de Freitas, Victor Pina, Fernando/C-8161-2011 Pina, Fernando/0000-0001-8529-6848; Oliveira, Joana/0000-0002-9996-1463; Freitas, Victor/0000-0003-0586-2278 1873-3743

Ion-Exchange Membranes for Stable Derivatization of Protein Crystals - Polino, Mariella; Carvalho, Ana Luı́sa; Juknaitė, Lina; Portugal, Carla A. M.; Coelhoso, Isabel M.; Romão, Maria João; João G. Crespo (Crystal Growth & DesignCrystal Growth & Design, 2017)
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doi: 10.1021/acs.cgd.7b00315

A journey from calix 4 arene to calix 6 and calix 8 arene reveals more than a matter of size. Receptor concentration affects the stability and stoichiometric nature of the complexes - Lavande, N.; Acuna, A.; Basilio, N.; Francisco, V.; Malkhede, D. D.; Garcia-Rio, L. (Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Lavande, Nitin Acuna, Angel Basilio, Nuno Francisco, Vitor Malkhede, Dipalee D. Garcia-Rio, Luis Basilio, Nuno/F-2389-2012 Basilio, Nuno/0000-0002-0121-3695; Garcia-Rio, Luis/0000-0003-2802-8921 1463-9084

MechanoAPI-ILs: Pharmaceutical Ionic Liquids Obtained through Mechanochemical Synthesis - Martins, I. C. B.; M. C. Oliveira; H. P. Diogo; Branco, L. C.; Duarte, M. T. (Chemsuschem, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Martins, Ines C. B. Conceicao Oliveira, M. Diogo, Herminio P. Branco, Luis C. Duarte, M. Teresa Branco, Luis/C-6426-2013 Branco, Luis/0000-0003-2520-1151; Martins, Ines/0000-0002-1639-7554; Oliveira, Maria Conceicao/0000-0002-3068-4920; Diogo, Herminio/0000-0002-0808-1306 1864-564x

Mind the Microgap in Iridescent Cellulose Nanocrystal Films - Fernandes, Susete N.; Almeida, Pedro L; Monge, Nuno; Aguirre, Luis E.; Reis, Dennys; de Oliveira, Cristiano L. P.; Neto, António M. F.; Pieranski, Pawel; Godinho, Maria H (Advanced MaterialsAdvanced Materials, 2017)
A new photonic structure is produced from cellulose nanocrystal iridescent films reflecting both right and left circularly polarized light. Micrometer-scale planar gaps perpendicular to the films' cross-section between two different left-handed films' cholesteric domains are impregnated with a nematic liquid crystal. This photonic feature is reversibly tuned by the application of an electric field or a temperature variation.
doi: 10.1002/adma.201603560
Keywords: cellulose nanocrystals; liquid crystals; mimicking Plusiotis resplendens cuticles; Photonics

Mixed ligand aroylhydrazone and N-donor heterocyclic Lewis base Cu(II) complexes as potential antiproliferative agents - Manas Sutradhar; Rajeshwari,; Roy Barman, Tannistha; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Fabiana Paradinha; Catarina Roma-Rodrigues; Guedes da Silva, M. Fátima C.; Armando J. L. Pombeiro (2017)
A series of four mixed ligand aroylhydrazone and N-donor heterocyclic Lewis base Cu(II) complexes [CuL(X)]2 [L refers to the dianionic form of (5-bromo-2-hydroxybenzylidene)-2-hydroxybenzohydrazide; X=pyrazine (Pz; 1), pyridine (Py; 2), imidazole (Imz; 3) and 3-pyridinecarbonitrile (3-PyCN; 4)] has been synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, various spectroscopic techniques and X-ray crystallography (for 1, 2 and 4). The antiproliferative effect of complexes 1–4 was examined in 4 human tumor cell lines (ovarian carcinoma (A2780), colorectal carcinoma (HCT116), lung adenocarcinoma (A549) and breast adenocarcinoma (MCF7)) and in normal human primary Fibroblasts. Complex 4 exhibits a high cytotoxic activity against ovarian and colorectal carcinoma cells (A2780, HCT116 respectively), with IC50 much lower than those for normal primary fibroblasts. Complex 4 could induce cell death via apoptosis but not autophagy in colorectal carcinoma cells.
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Keywords: Antiproliferative agent; Aroylhydrazone ligand; Human tumor cell lines; Mixed ligand copper(II) complexes; X-ray Structure

Nanoparticles—Emerging Potential for Managing Leukemia and Lymphoma - Raquel Vinhas; Rita Mendes; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Pedro V. Baptista (2017)
Nanotechnology has become a powerful approach to improve the way we diagnose and treat cancer. In particular, nanoparticles possess unique features for enhanced sensitivity and selectivity for earlier detection of circulating cancer biomarkers. In vivo, nanoparticles enhance the therapeutic efficacy of anticancer agents when compared to conventional chemotherapy, improving vectorization and delivery, and helping to overcome drug resistance. Nanomedicine has been mostly focused on solid cancers due to take advantage from the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect experienced by tissues in the close vicinity of tumors, which enhance nanomedicine’s accumulation and, consequently, improve efficacy. Nanomedicines for leukemia and lymphoma, where EPR effect is not a factor, are addressed differently from solid tumors. Nevertheless, nanoparticles have provided innovative approaches to simple and non-invasive methodologies for diagnosis and treatment in liquid tumors. In this review, we consider the state of the art on different types of nanoconstructs for the management of liquid tumors, from pre-clinical studies to clinical trials. We also discuss the advantages of nanoplatforms for theranostics and the central role played by nanoparticles in this combined strategy.
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A non-invasive optical method for mapping temperature polarization in direct contact membrane distillation - Santoro, S.; Vidorreta, I. M.; Sebastian, V.; Moro, A.; Coelhoso, I. M.; Portugal, C. A. M.; J. C. Lima; Desiderio, G.; Lombardo, G.; Drioli, E.; Mallada, R.; Crespo, J. G.; et al. (Journal of Membrane Science, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Santoro, S. Vidorreta, I. M. Sebastian, V. Moro, A. Coelhoso, I. M. Portugal, C. A. M. Lima, J. C. Desiderio, G. Lombardo, G. Drioli, E. Mallada, R. Crespo, J. G. Criscuoli, A. Figoli, A. Lima, Joao/F-3658-2010; Portugal, Carla /C-8912-2013; Lombardo, Giuseppe /B-2656-2012; Moro, Artur/C-6689-2013 Lima, Joao/0000-0003-0528-1967; Lombardo, Giuseppe /0000-0002-9416-967X; Moro, Artur/0000-0003-3285-4919; Coelhoso, Isabel/0000-0001-7032-3436 1873-3123

PEDOT electrodeposition on oriented mesoporous silica templates for electrochromic devices - Fonseca, S. M.; Moreira, T.; A. J. Parola; Pinheiro, C; Laia, C. A. T. (Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells, 2017)
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Times Cited: 3Fonseca, Sofia M. Moreira, Tiago Jorge Parola, A. Pinheiro, Carlos Laia, Cesar A. T. Parola, A. Jorge/F-4048-2010; Moreira, Tiago/I-4266-2016; Fonseca, Sofia/D-3097-2013 Parola, A. Jorge/0000-0002-1333-9076; Moreira, Tiago/0000-0002-5880-1754; Fonseca, Sofia/0000-0002-6624-5719 1879-3398

pH-Driven self-sorting in a four component host-guest system - Basilio, N.; Mendoza, J.; Gago, S.; A. J. Parola (Chemical Communications, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Basilio, Nuno Mendoza, Johan Gago, Sandra Parola, A. Jorge Basilio, Nuno/F-2389-2012 Basilio, Nuno/0000-0002-0121-3695; Parola, A. Jorge/0000-0002-1333-9076 1364-548x

pH-Tunable Fluorescence and Photochromism of a Flavylium-Based MCM-41 Pigment - Gago, S.; Pessego, M.; Laia, C. A. T.; A. J. Parola (Acs Omega, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Gago, Sandra Pessego, Marcia Laia, Cesar A. T. Jorge Parola, A. Parola, A. Jorge/F-4048-2010 Parola, A. Jorge/0000-0002-1333-9076

Photocaged Competitor Guests: A General Approach Toward Light-Activated Cargo Release From Cucurbiturils - Romero, M. A.; Basilio, N.; Moro, A. J.; Domingues, M.; Gonzalez-Delgado, J. A.; Arteaga, J. F.; Pischel, U. (Chemistry-a European Journal, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Romero, Miguel A. Basilio, Nuno Moro, Artur J. Domingues, Mara Gonzalez-Delgado, Jose A. Arteaga, Jesus F. Pischel, Uwe Romero, Miguel A./G-7966-2016; Moro, Artur/C-6689-2013 Romero, Miguel A./0000-0002-0986-4468; Moro, Artur/0000-0003-3285-4919 1521-3765

Photothermal enhancement of chemotherapy in breast cancer by visible irradiation of Gold Nanoparticles - Mendes, R.; Pedrosa, P.; J. C. Lima; Fernandes, A. R.; P.V. Baptista (Scientific Reports, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Mendes, Rita Pedrosa, Pedro Lima, Joao C. Fernandes, Alexandra R. Baptista, Pedro V. Baptista, Pedro/A-1237-2009; Lima, Joao/F-3658-2010 Baptista, Pedro/0000-0001-5255-7095; Lima, Joao/0000-0003-0528-1967

Photothermal enhancement of chemotherapy in breast cancer by visible irradiation of Gold Nanoparticles - Rita Mendes; Pedro Pedrosa; João C. Lima; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Pedro V. Baptista (2017)
Photothermal Therapy (PTT) impact in cancer therapy has been increasing due to the enhanced photothermal capabilities of a new generation of nanoscale photothermal agents. Among these nanoscale agents, gold nanoshells and nanorods have demonstrated optimal properties for translation of near infra-red radiation into heat at the site of interest. However, smaller spherical gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are easier to produce, less toxic and show improved photoconversion capability that may profit from the irradiation in the visible via standard surgical green lasers. Here we show the efficient light-to-heat conversion of spherical 14 nm AuNPs irradiated in the visible region (at the surface plasmons resonance peak) and its application to selectively obliterate cancer cells. Using breast cancer as model, we show a synergistic interaction between heat (photoconversion at 530 nm) and cytotoxic action by doxorubicin with clear advantages to those of the individual therapy approaches.
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Potentiating angiogenesis arrest in vivo via laser irradiation of peptide functionalised gold nanoparticles - Pedro Pedrosa; Amelie Heuer-Jungemann; Antonios G. Kanaras; Alexandra R. Fernandes; Pedro V. Baptista (2017)
Anti-angiogenic therapy has great potential for cancer therapy with several FDA approved formulations but there are considerable side effects upon the normal blood vessels that decrease the potential application of such therapeutics. Chicken chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) has been used as a model to study angiogenesis in vivo. Using a CAM model, it had been previously shown that spherical gold nanoparticles functionalised with an anti-angiogenic peptide can humper neo-angiogenesis.
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Recent Advances of Metallocenes for Medicinal Chemistry - Santos, M. M.; Bastos, P.; Catela, I.; Zalewska, K.; Branco, L. C. (Mini-Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry, 2017)
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Times Cited: 0Santos, Miguel M. Bastos, Pedro Catela, Isabelle Zalewska, Karolina Branco, Luis C. Branco, Luis/C-6426-2013; Santos, Miguel/Q-1975-2017 Branco, Luis/0000-0003-2520-1151; Santos, Miguel/0000-0001-8973-1595 1875-5607