• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.393-399
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• 2019

Objective: This study investigates the impact of multimorbidity on work through a literature review of longitudinal studies. Methods: A systematic review was carried out in the databases Lilacs, SciELO, PAHO, PubMed/Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cochrane. There were no restrictions regarding the year of publication or language to maximize the identification of relevant literature. The quality of studies was assessed by the protocol STrengthening the Reporting of OBservational studies in Epidemiology (STROBE). Results: An initial database search identified 7522 registries, and at the end of the analysis, 7 manuscripts were included in the review. Several studies have demonstrated direct and indirect impacts of multimorbidity on the health of workers. For this, the number of missed days due to health-related issues was evaluated, as well as the reduction in work productivity of the unhealthy worker, vulnerability of the worker with multimorbidity regarding higher indices of dismissal and recruitment difficulties, and incidence of early retirement and/or receipt of benefits due to disabilities. Conclusions: Multimorbidity has a negative impact on work, with damages to quality of life and work productivity, worsening the absenteeism/presenteeism indices, enhancing the chances of temporary or permanent leaves, and lowering employability and admission of individuals with multimorbidity.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.347-356
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• 2017

ANSYS is a software well accepted by professionals and academics, since it provides a variety of finite elements, material constitutive models, and linear and nonlinear analysis of structures in general. For the concrete material, for instance, the software uses an elastoplastic model with the Willam-Warnke surface of rupture (1975). However, this model is only available for finite elements that do not offer the possibility of use of the element-embedded model for rebars, demanding a much larger amount of elements to discretize structures, making numerical solutions less efficient. This study is, therefore, about the development of a computational model using the Finite Element Method via ANSYS platform for nonlinear analysis of reinforced and prestressed concrete beams under plane stress states. The most significant advantage of this implementation is the possibility of using the element-embedded rebar model in ANSYS with its 2D eight-node quadratic element PLANE183 for discretization of the concrete together with element REINF263 for discretization of rebars, stirrups, and cables, making the solutions faster and more efficient. For representation of the constitutive equations of the steel and the concrete, a proposed model was implemented with the help of the UPF customization tool (User Programmable Features) of ANSYS, where new subroutines written in FORTRAN were attached to the main program. The numerical results are compared with experimental values available in the technical literature to validate the proposed model, with satisfactory results being found.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.193-199
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• 2006

Halotolerant spore-forming Gram-positive bacteria were isolated from the root, rhizosphere, and non-rhizosphere soil of Blutaparon portulacoides. The different isolates were characterized genetically using an amplified ribosomal DNA restriction analysis (ARDRA), and phenotypically based on their colonial morphology, physiology, and nutritional requirements. Three different 16S rRNA gene-based genotypes were observed at a 100% similarity using the enzymes HinfI, MspI, and RsaI, and the phenotypic results also followed the ARDRA groupings. Selected strains, representing the different ARDRA groups, were analyzed by 16S rDNA sequencing, and members of the genera Halobaeillus, Virgibacillus, and Oceanobacillus were found. Two isolates showed low 16S rDNA sequence similarities with the closest related species of Halobacillus, indicating the presence of new species among the isolates. The majority of the strains isolated in this study seemed to belong to the species O. iheyensis and were compared using an AP-PCR to determine whether they had a clonal origin or not. Different patterns allowed the grouping of the strains according to Pearson's coefficient, and the resulting dendrogram revealed the formation of two main clusters, denoted as A and B. All the strains isolated from the soil were grouped into cluster A, whereas cluster B was exclusively composed of the strains associated with the B. portulacoides roots. This is the first report on the isolation and characterization of halotolerant spore-forming Gram-positive bacteria that coexist with B. portulacoides. As such, these new strains may be a potential source for the discovery of bioactive compounds with industrial value.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.28 no.7
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• pp.1078-1085
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• 2018

A salt-tolerant cellulase secreted by a marine Bacillus sp. SR22 strain with wide resistance to temperature and pH was purified and characterized. Its approximate mass was 37 kDa. The endoglucanase, named as Bc22Cel, was purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation, gel filtration chromatography, and extraction from the gel after non-reducing sodium dodecyl sufate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The optimal pH value and temperature of Bc22Cel were 6.5 and $60^{\circ}C$, respectively. The purified Bc22Cel showed a considerable halophilic property, being able to maintain more than 70% of residual activity even when pre-incubated with 1.5 M NaCl for 1 h. Kinetic analysis of the purified enzyme showed the $K_m$ and $V_{max}$ to be 0.704 mg/ml and $29.85{\mu}mol{\cdot}ml^{-1}{\cdot}min^{-1}$, respectively. Taken together, the present data indicate Bc22Cel as a potential and useful candidate for industrial applications, such as the bioconversion of sugarcane bagasse to its derivatives.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.818-825
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• 2012

Keratinases are exciting keratin-degrading enzymes; however, there have been relatively few studies on their immobilization. A keratinolytic protease from Chryseobacterium sp. kr6 was purified and its partial sequence determined using mass spectrometry. No significant homology to other microbial peptides in the NCBI database was observed. Certain parameters for immobilization of the purified keratinase on chitosan beads were investigated. The production of the chitosan beads was optimized using factorial design and surface response techniques. The optimum chitosan bead production for protease immobilization was a 20 g/l chitosan solution in acetic acid [1.5% (v/v)], glutaraldehyde ranging from 34 g to 56 g/l, and an activation time between 6 and 10 h. Under these conditions, above 80% of the enzyme was immobilized on the support. The behavior of the keratinase loading on the chitosan beads surface was well described using the Langmuir model. The maximum capacity of the support ($q_m$) and dissociation constant ($K_d$) were estimated as 58.8 U/g and 0.245 U/ml, respectively. The thermal stability of the immobilized enzyme was also improved around 2-fold, when compared with that of the free enzyme, after 30 min at $65^{\circ}C$. In addition, the activity of the immobilized enzyme remained at 63.4% after it was reused five times. Thus, the immobilized enzyme exhibited an improved thermal stability and remained active after several uses.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.194-200
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• 2006

Recently, the population growth, industrial and agricultural development are rapidly undergoing in the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) in Texas. The Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) composed of the 4 counties and three of them are interesting for Non-point and point source pollutant modeling: Starr, Cameron, and Hidalgo. Especially, the LRGV is an intensively irrigation region, and Texas A&M University Agriculture Program and the New Mexico State University College of Agriculture applied irrigation district program, projects in GIS and Hydrology based agricultural water management systems and assessment of prioritized protecting stream network, water quality and rehabilitation based on water saving potential in Rio Grande River. In the LRGV region, where point and non-point sources of pollution may be a big concern, because increasing fertilizers and pesticides use and population cause. This project objective seeks to determine the accumulation of non-point and point source and discuss the main impacts of agriculture and environmental concern with water quality related to pesticides, fertilizer, and nutrients within LRGV region. The GIS technique is widely used and developed for the assessment of non-point source pollution in LRGV region. This project shows the losses in $kg/km^2/yr$ of BOD (Biological Oxygen Demand), TN (total Nitrogen) and TP (total phosphorus) in the runoff from the surface of LRGV. Especially, farmers in Cameron County consume a lot of fertilizer and pesticide to improve crop yield net profit. Then, this region can be created as larger nonpoint source area for nutrients and the intensity of runoff by excess irrigation water. And many sediment and used irrigation water with including high nutrients can be discharged into Rio Grade River.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.267-276
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• 2017

Purpose: Different esophagojejunostomy (EJ) reconstruction methods are used after totally laparoscopic total gastrectomy (TLTG), and none is considered a standard technique. This report describes a 2-layer hand-sewn EJ technique during TLTG; we also evaluated postoperative morbidity associated with this technique. Materials and Methods: This retrospective cohort study included all consecutive patients who underwent TLTG for gastric cancer (GC) from 2012 to 2016 at 2 affiliated teaching hospitals. All participating surgeons performed standardized intracorporeal 2-layer hand-sewn EJ. Results: We included 51 patients who underwent TLTG for GC and standardized EJ anastomosis. Twenty-seven (53%) were male, and the median age was 60 (36-87) years. The average operative time was $337{\pm}71minutes$ and intraoperative bleeding was $160{\pm}107mL$. There were no open conversions related to EJ. Postoperative morbidity was observed in 9 (17.0%) patients. There was no postoperative mortality. EJ leakage was observed in 2 patients (3.8%) and 1 patient (1.9%) developed EJ stenosis. Patients with leakage were managed non-operatively and the patient with stenosis required endoscopic dilation. The median length of hospital stay was 8 (6-29) days. Conclusions: Two-layer hand-sewn EJ during TLTG for GC is a feasible and safe technique. This method avoids a laparotomy for reconstruction and the disadvantages associated with laparoscopic introduction of mechanical staplers for EJ, and provides an alternative for alimentary tract reconstruction after TLTG.

• Carbon letters
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• v.21
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• pp.16-22
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• 2017

Cobalt was electrodeposited onto chemical vapor deposition (CVD) graphene/Si/$SiO_2$ substrates, during different time intervals, using an electrolyte solution containing a low concentration of cobalt sulfate. The intention was to investigate the details of the deposition process (and the dissolution process) and the resulting magnetic properties of the Co deposits on graphene. During and after electrodeposition, in-situ magnetic measurements were performed using an (AGFM). These were followed by ex situ morphological analysis of the samples with ${\Delta}t_{DEP}$ 30 and 100 s by atomic force microscopy in the non-contact mode on pristine CVD graphene/$SiO_2$/Si. We demonstrate that it is possible to electrodeposit Co onto graphene, and that in-situ magnetic measurements can also help in understanding details of the deposition process itself. The results show that the Co deposits are ferromagnetic with decreasing coercivity ($H_C$) and demonstrate increasing magnetization on saturation ($M_{SAT}$) and electric signal proportional to remanence ($M_r$), as a function of the amount of the electrodeposited Co. It was also found that, after the end of the dissolution process, a certain amount of cobalt remains on the graphene in oxide form (this was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy), as suggested by the magnetic measurements. This oxide tends to exhibit a limited asymptotic amount when cycling through the deposition/dissolution process for increasing deposition times, possibly indicating that the oxidation process is similar to the graphene surface chemistry.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.687-707
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• 2015

A finite element computer code for short-term analysis of steel-concrete composite structures is extended to study long-term effects under service loads, in the present work. Long-term effects are important in engineering design because they influence stress and strain distribution of the structural system and therefore contribute to the increment of deflections in these structures. For creep analysis, a rheological model based on a Kelvin chain, with elements placed in series, was employed. The parameters of the Kelvin chain were obtained using Dirichlet series. Creep and shrinkage models, proposed by the CEB FIP 90, were used. The shear-lag phenomenon that takes place at the concrete slab is usually neglected or not properly taken into account in the formulation of beam-column finite elements. Therefore, in this work, a three-dimensional numerical model based on the assemblage of shell finite elements for representing the steel beam and the concrete slab is used. Stud shear connectors are represented for special beam-column elements to simulate the partial interaction at the slab-beam interface. The two-dimensional representation of the concrete slab permits to capture the non-uniform shear stress distribution in the horizontal plane of the slab due to shear-lag phenomenon. The model is validated with experimental results of two full-scale continuous composite beams previously studied by other authors. Results are given in terms of displacements, bending moments and cracking patterns in order to shown the influence of long-term effects in the structural response and also the potentiality of the present numerical code.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.125-133
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• 2017

Objectives: This study compared the effect of hexamethyldisiloxane (HMDSO) and ammonia ($NH_3$) plasmas on the bond strength of resin cement to fiber posts with conventional treatments. Materials and Methods: Sixty-five fiber posts were divided into 5 groups: Control (no surface treatment); $H_2O_2$ (24% hydrogen peroxide for 1 min); Blasting (blasting with aluminum oxide for 30 sec); $NH_3$ ($NH_3$ plasma treatment for 3 min); HMDSO (HMDSO plasma treatment for 15 min). After the treatments, the Ambar adhesive (FGM Dental Products) was applied to the post surface (n = 10). The fiber post was inserted into a silicon matrix that was filled with the conventional resin cement Allcem Core (FGM). Afterwards, the post/cement specimens were cut into discs and subjected to a push-out bond strength (POBS) test. Additionally, 3 posts in each group were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy. The POBS data were analyzed by one-way analysis of variance and the Tukey's honest significant difference post hoc test (${\alpha}=0.05$). Results: The Blasting and $NH_3$ groups showed the highest POBS values. The HMDSO group showed intermediate POBS values, whereas the Control and $H_2O_2$ groups showed the lowest POBS values. Conclusion: Blasting and $NH_3$ plasma treatments were associated with stronger bonding of the conventional resin cement Allcem to fiber posts, in a procedure in which the Ambar adhesive was used.