The analysis of STRs located on the X chromosome has been one of the strategies used to address complex kinship cases. Its usefulness is, however, limited by the low availability of population haplotype frequency data and lack of knowledge on the probability of mutations. Due to the large amount of data required to obtain reliable estimates, it is important to investigate the possibility of grouping data from populations with similar profiles when calculating these parameters. To better understand the partition of genetic diversity among human populations for the X-STRs most used in forensics, an analysis was carried out based on data available in the literature and new data (23,949 haplotypes in total; from these 10,445 new) obtained through collaborative exercises within the Spanish and Portuguese Working Group of the International Society for Forensic Genetics. Based on the available population data, a similarity in X-STR profiles was found in European populations, and in East Asian populations, except for some isolates. A greater complexity was found for African, South American, and South and Southeast Asian populations, preventing their grouping into large metapopulations. New segregation data on 2273 father/mother/daughter trios were also obtained, aiming for a more thorough analysis of X-STR mutation rates. After combining our data with published information on father/mother/daughter trios, no mutations were detected in 13 out of 37 loci analyzed. For the remaining loci, mutation rates varied between 2.68 × 10−4 (DXS7133) and 1.07x10−2 (DXS10135), being 5.2 times higher in the male (4.16 ×10−3) than in the female (8.01 ×10−4) germline.

In this work, stale bread and waste apple pulp were used as feedstocks for the production of bacterial cellulose (BC). A glucose-rich solution was prepared from stale bread by dilute acid hydrolysis, while an extract comprising fructose and glucose was obtained from the waste apple pulp, which was used for cultivating Komagataeibacter xylinus DSM 2004, either as sole feedstocks or supplemented with Hestrin-Schramm medium. Supplementation significantly improved BC production: 3.38 ± 0.09 g/L for waste apple pulp extract and 2.07 ± 0.22 g/L for stale bread hydrolysate. There was no significant impact on BC chemical structure or fiber diameter, but the biopolymer produced from waste apple pulp extract had slightly higher crystallinity (CI = 59–69%) and lower thermal degradation temperature (Tdeg = 341–350 ℃) than that of the stale bread hydrolysate (CI = 55%; Tdeg = 316–320 ℃). Moreover, supplementation of the waste apple pulp extract led to the preparation of thicker membranes, with higher Young’s modulus, tension, and deformation at break but lower water uptake capacity and lower permeability to O2 and CO2. These results show that waste apple pulp and stale bread are suitable feedstocks for BC production and the cultivation conditions can be adjusted for tailoring the biopolymer’s mechanical and barrier properties to suit different applications.

The regulation of CO₂ emissions from industrial operations is crucial from an environmental perspective. The most widely used solvents for CO₂ capture consist of aqueous alkanolamine solutions. However, amine-based processes face several challenges, such as corrosion, chemical degradation, and high energy requirements for solvent regeneration. As potential alternatives, deep eutectic solvents (DESs) have emerged as promising eco-friendly and biodegradable options for CO₂ capture. This study experimentally measures the solubility of CO₂ in a DES (1 mol NaCl + 16 mol ethylene glycol) using a high-pressure solubility apparatus at the four temperatures of 293.15, 303.15, 313.15, and 323.15 K. For the thermodynamic modeling, the Soave Redlich Kwong equation of state (SRK EoS) was employed, coupled with three different mixing rules of van der Waals (vdW), Wong Sandler (WS), and modified Huron-Vidal (MHV1). The vdW approach was considered in the three cases without using binary interaction, constant binary interaction, and variable binary interaction parameter by temperature. The results demonstrated that by incorporating the WS and MHV1, the local composition concept was successful in addressing the non-ideality of the liquid phase. Among the tested models, the WS (AARD%=6.66) and MHV1 (AARD%=5.61) provided the most accurate predictions of equilibrium pressures. Additionally, Henry's constant, standard Gibbs energy, enthalpy, and entropy of gas solvation were determined using the experimental data together with classical thermodynamic relations. The calculated negative standard enthalpy of solvation indicates an exothermic gas solvation process, signifying that energy is released as CO₂ dissolves in this DES.

Each year, the amount of residue generated from food production increases, caused by the continuous population growth. Banana is one of the most consumed fruits in the world, with an annual production of 116.78 million tonnes. However, just 12 wt% of the plant, corresponding to the bunch, is effectively used. After the bunch is harvested, the rest of the plant is disposed of as residue, the pseudostem (PS) being the main constituent. Aiming to give an added-value application to the PS, this work is focused on the extraction of cellulose from this waste. For this, three different fractions of PS particles—a non-classified fraction (milled but without sieving), a fine fraction (≤180 μm), and a coarse fraction (≥2000 μm)—and three extraction methods—alkaline-acid hydrolysis, enzymatic hydrolysis, and TEMPO oxidation—were studied to determine the most promising method for the cellulose extraction from the PS. The alkaline-acid hydrolysis samples presented a higher number of amorphous compounds, resulting in lower crystallinity (13.50% for the non-classified fraction). The TEMPO-oxidation process, despite allowing the highest cellulose extraction yield (25.25 ± 0.08% on a dried basis), resulted in samples with lower thermal stability (up to 200 °C). The most promising extraction method was enzymatic, allowing the extraction of 14.58 ± 0.30% of cellulose (dried basis) and obtaining extracts with the highest crystallinity (68.98% for the non-classified fraction) and thermal stability (until 250 °C).

Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)-based composite films doped with lanthanide-doped sol–gel derived imidazolium-based ionosilicas (IS-Ln) were recently proposed as active layers of luminescent down shifting (LDS) layers, but subsequent work demonstrated also their potential as electrolytes for electrochromic devices (ECDs) with foreseen application in smart windows of energy-efficient buildings. Nevertheless, some challenges remained to be addressed in the latter devices, the most critical one being the poor solubility of PMMA in the ionic liquid used in the formulation of these materials. To avoid this drawback, in the present work we propose novel lanthanide-containing acrylate/ionosilicas (AC/IS-Ln, Ln = Tb3+, Eu3+). The transparent, homogeneous, and luminescent hybrid materials synthesized are characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis, atomic force microscopy, contact angle measurements, ionic conductivity, and photoluminescence spectroscopy. Optimized samples are successfully employed as electrolytes in luminescent ECD prototypes. The ECD device doped with AC/IS-Eu shows good cycling stability with reproducible bleaching/coloring over 50 chronoamperometry cycles, high coloration efficiency (CE) values CEin/CEout in the visible (−89/+98 cm2 C−1), and near-infrared (−126/138 cm2 C−1) spectral regions, and outstanding memory effect. Graphical Abstract: (Figure presented.)

Espécie de álbum fotográfico sobre a viagem de Francisco Afonso Chaves a África em 1906, "Francisco Afonso Chaves e a viagem a Zanzibar" introduz o naturalista, geofísico e meteorologista açoriano no seu tempo descrevendo, de entre as suas deambulações d’além-mar, a sua viagem a Zanzibar e revelando as cerca de 50 fotografias estereoscópicas que tirou da ilha do Índico. O volume integral intitulado "Viagem a Zanzibar. Journey to Zanzibar 1906 Francisco Afonso Chaves" de que este capítulo faz parte reúne ainda textos de João Paulo Oliveira e Costa, Abdul Sheriff e Farouk Topan.

The authors regret that the values of Table 6 are in the incorrect units. The corrected version of Table 6 is enclosed herewith. Furthermore, the author Jelena Vladić would like to add the DOI to her CEEC grant. Jelena Vladic would like to acknowledge her CEEC grant CEECIND/04909/2022 awarded by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia at program CEEC IND5ed (https://doi.org/10.54499/2022.04909.CEECIND/CP1725/CT0014). The authors would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Bioplastics are a sustainable and environmental-friendly alternative to the conventional petroleum-based plastics, namely due to their source (biobased) and due to their biodegradability or both. Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) stand out among the bioplastics group by being intracellular biobased, biodegradable and biocompatible polymers. PHA production has been highly investigated during the last decades. However, to date, PHA production has been monitored through offline and time-consuming tools, involving hazardous solvents, not allowing a timely control of the bioprocesses, which often results in a loss of process productivity and hinders its implementation at full scale. Therefore, two-dimensional (2D) fluorescence spectroscopy was assessed for monitoring the PHA content at real-time, as it is a non-destructive, solvent-free and non-invasive technique. The complex information of the biological broth was captured within fluorescence excitation-emission matrices (EEMs), which were deconvoluted through projection to latent structures (PLS) modelling to estimate PHA production by an enriched PHA microbial culture, using fermented brewer's spent grain as feedstock. A good correlation for PHA prediction was achieved, with an average error of ca. 4.0% gPHA/gTS for new predictions. This work demonstrates the great potential of using 2D fluorescence spectroscopy to assess the intracellular PHA content without requiring staining agents. Moreover, it unlocks the possibility of an online and real-time monitoring of the biopolymer production processes, which will contribute towards the improvement of the PHA process productivity and, consequently, its implementation at full scale.

Every year, millions of people suffer some form of illness associated with the consumption of contaminated food. Escherichia coli (E. coli), found in the intestines of humans and other animals, is commonly associated with various diseases, due to the existence of pathogenic strains. Strict monitoring of food products for human consumption is essential to ensure public health, but traditional cell culture-based methods are associated with long waiting times and high costs. New approaches must be developed to achieve cheap, fast, and on-site monitoring. Thus, in this work, we developed optical fiber sensors based on surface plasmon resonance. Gold and cysteamine-coated fibers were functionalized with anti-E. coli antibody and tested using E. coli suspensions with concentrations ranging from 1 cell/mL to 105 cells/mL. An average logarithmic sensitivity of 0.21 ± 0.01 nm/log(cells/mL) was obtained for three independent assays. An additional assay revealed that including molybdenum disulfide resulted in an increase of approximately 50% in sensitivity. Specificity and selectivity were also evaluated, and the sensors were used to analyze contaminated water samples, which verified their promising applicability in the aquaculture field.