A tuberculose (TB) é uma doença infecciosa causada pelo Mycobacterium tuberculosis, que necessita de uma vacina mais efetiva, pois a única vacina licenciada apresenta eficácia variando entre 0 a 80%. Entre as estratégias em desenvolvimento destaca-se a vacina DNAhsp65, que consiste de um plasmídeo carregando o gene hsp65 de Mycobacterium leprae, que demonstra eficácia na profilaxia da TB. Como as HSPs são proteínas altamente conservadas e podem desencadear respostas auto-imunes, seria interessante o desenvolvimento de uma vacina baseada na utilização apenas dos epítopos da proteína Hsp65 reconhecidos por células T. Estudos com vacinas de DNA baseadas na fusão de peptídeos à glicoproteína D (gD) do Herpes Vírus Tipo-1 têm mostrado maior ativação de linfócitos T e B peptídeos-específicos. Dessa forma, o presente trabalho teve como objetivo a construção e avaliação da imunogenicidade de vacinas de DNA constituídas pelo gene da proteína gD e a seqüência gênica que codifica os cinco epítopos da Hsp65. Para a obtenção da seqüência codificadora dos epitopos, denominada Vac1, foi realizada uma síntese gênica e em seguida, essa seqüência foi fusionada ao gene que codifica a gD em dois sítios presentes em seu interior, no sítio da enzima ApaI e entre os sítios das enzimas PvuII e ApaI, com a retirada de uma porção central da gD. Além dessas construções, também foi realizada a construção da Vac2 pela ligação de fragmentos Vac1 que em seguida foi fusionada ao gene da gD no sítio de ApaI. Essas construções, gDVac1AA, gDVac1PA e gDVac2 foram clonadas no vetor pVAX1 e avaliadas quanto a expressão das proteínas. Após a caracterização, camundongos foram imunizados com quatro doses das vacinas e a imunogenicidade avaliada após trinta dias da última dose. Os ensaios ex vivo foram realizados com o soro para dosagem de anticorpos e com as células do baço, que foram estimuladas com as proteínas Hsp65, Vac1 e Vac2. Como resultado, obtivemos duas construções vacinais, pVAXgDVac1PA e pVAXgDVac2, eficientes em induzir anticorpos do subtipo IgG2a específicos a proteína e aos epitopos da Hsp65 e as três vacinas, pVAXgDVac1AA, pVAXgDVac1PA e pVAXgDVac2, foram capazes de induzir proliferação de linfócitos T e produção de IFN- após estímulo ex vivo. As vacinas foram, portanto, eficazes em desencadear um padrão de resposta Th1 importante no combate ao bacilo M. tuberculosis. / Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease, caused by the infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis and needs a vaccine more effective, for the only current permitted vaccine shows its effectiveness varying of 0-80%. DNAhsp65 vaccine is among the strategy in development, it consists of a plasmid loading the Mycobacterium leprae hsp65 gene and has been efficient in the prophylaxy of TB. As the HSPs are conserved and they can induce autoimmune disease, a vaccine based only in the epitopes of the Hsp65 protein recognized for T cells could be more interesting. Studies with DNA vaccines based on the fusion of peptides to Herpes Type Virus-1 D glycoprotein (gD) have improved the activation of peptide-specific T and B cells. In this context, the aim of this study was the construction of DNA vaccines encoding gD protein plus Mycobacterium leprae Hsp65 protein epitopes and the evaluation of its immunogenicity. The gene sequence encoding the five Hsp65 epitopes, called Vac1, was obtained by synthetic gene and, after that, this sequence was fusioned in two sites inside gene that enconding the gD, in the ApaI enzyme site and between the PvuII and ApaI enzyme sites with the withdrawal of a gD central portion. In addition, Vac2 was contructed through the linking of Vac1 fragments followed by its insertion in the ApaI site inside gD gene. These constructions, gDVac1AA, gDVac1PA and gDVac2 were cloned in pVAX1 vector and they were evaluated to protein expression. After the characterization, mice were immunized with four doses of vaccine and the immunogenicity was evaluated after thirty days from the last immunization. The ex vivo assays were carried by quantification of antibodies in the serum and the splenocytes were stimulated with the Hsp65, Vac1 and Vac2 proteins. As result, two vaccine constructions, pVAXgDVac1PA and pVAXgDVac2 were efficient in the induction of IgG2a subtype antibodies specific to Hsp65 protein and its respective epitopes. All the three vaccines pVAXgDVac1AA, pVAXgDVac1PA and pVAXgDVac2 were capable to induce T cell proliferation and IFN- production after stimulation. Therefore, the vaccines were efficient to induce a Th1 profile which is important in the combat to Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacillus.

Com a frequente utilização de Tecnologias da Informação e da Comunicação (TICs) em contextos educacionais, uma nova configuração de atividades virtuais trouxe à tona novos desafios para profissionais da área de educação ou de treinamento. A partir das contribuições originadas no campo da Realidade Virtual, merecem atenção às soluções que se utilizam de Ambientes Virtuais Interativos 3D como uma alternativa às estratégias de treinamento conduzidas em ambientes reais de aprendizagem. Essas soluções ganham destaque à medida que se observa a utilização de diferentes métodos ou formas de se ensinar e aprender com esses ambientes. Nesse contexto o campo das Habilidades Sensório-Motoras (HSM) constitui-se um desafio no que tange à necessidade de desenvolvimento de métodos para quantificar ou qualificar a habilidade de um aprendiz ou profissional que esteja sob avaliação durante a realização de uma tarefa. Diante desse cenário, apresenta-se a pesquisa em pauta, com o objetivo de definir, implementar e validar um método para avaliação da aquisição de HSM em Ambientes Virtuais Interativos 3D no contexto de treinamento médico. O escopo da presente investigação foi definido mediante a realização de um processo de revisão de literatura sobre os principais fundamentos encontrados na área. Por meio da condução de dois processos de Revisão Sistemática, foi possível recuperar o estado da arte sobre métodos e parâmetros utilizados na avaliação da aquisição de HSM. Para atingir os objetivos da investigação, foram conduzidos experimentos com base em um modelo teórico de avaliação e em um método semiautomatizado. Os resultados dos experimentos indicaram que o método construído foi capaz de avaliar diferentes tarefas virtuais durante a aquisição de Habilidades Sensório-Motoras, assim como verificar o grau de convergência e divergência de processos de discriminação e classificação de HSM observados na avaliação de tarefas virtuais pelo método semiautomatizado e por especialistas. / Along with the frequent use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in educational contexts, a new configuration of virtual activities has brought up new challenges for professionals in the field of education or training. Based on contributions coming from the field of Virtual Reality, solutions used in 3-D Interactive Virtual Environments need to be highlighted as an alternative to training strategies conducted in real learning environments. These solutions gain ground as the use of different methods or ways of teaching and learning are observed in these environments. In this context, the field of Sensory Motor Skills (SMS) becomes a challenge as far as the need for development of methods is concerned in order to quantify or qualify the skills of a learner or a professional who is being evaluated during the performance of a task. This research is set in this scenario aiming to define, implement and validate a method to evaluate the acquisition of SMS in 3-D Interactive Virtual Environments in the context of medical training. The scope of this investigation was defined by means of a literature review on the current major founding principles in the area. Two processes of Systematic Review were conducted which produced the state of the art on methods and parameters used in the evaluation of SMS acquisition. In order to achieve the objectives of the investigation, two experimental studies were conducted based on a theoretical evaluation model and a semi-automated method. The results of the experimental studies showed that the method constructed was able to evaluate different virtual tasks during the acquisition of Sensory Motor Skills, and to verify the convergence or divergence degree of processes of discrimination and classification of SMS observed in the evaluation of virtual tasks by the semi-automated method and by human experts.

A presente tese se refere ao estudo do efeito de uma rugosidade tri-dimensional sobre a evolução de ondas Tollmien-Schlichting (T-S) em uma camada limite do tipo Blasius. Os experimentos foram realizados em condições controladas sobre um aerofólio cujo perfil permitiu a obtenção de uma extensa região de escoamento sem gradiente de pressão. As ondas T-S foram excitadas artificialmente utilizando-se uma fonte pneumática localizada a montante da rugosidade. A interação entre a onda T-S gerada e a rugosidade ocorreu a alguns comprimentos de onda a jusante da fonte. Foi utilizado nos experimentos uma rugosidade com altura oscilatória. A freqüência de oscilação da rugosidade foi aproximadamente 1500 vezes menor do que a freqüência das ondas T-S excitadas. Sendo assim, assumiu-se a rugosidade como sendo estacionária em relação as ondas geradas. A medição do comportamento das ondas de instabilidade bem como o campo de velocidade média do escoamento foram feitas utilizando-se a técnica de anemometria a fio quente. Os resultados obtidos mostram uma amplificação de perturbações em uma pequena faixa de números de onda transversal. Comparações entre os resultados experimentais e os obtidos a partir da teoria de instabilidade secundária da camada limite são apresentadas no trabalho. Essas comparações sugerem que nos experimentos ocorreu a amplificação das perturbações devido a instabilidade secundária do tipo K, ou fundamental. / The current thesis is devoted to a study of the effect of a shallow 3-D roughness element on the evolution of a 2-D Tollmien-Schlichting wave in a Blasius boundary layer. The experiments were carried out under controlled disturbance conditions on an airfoil section which could provide a long run with zero pressure gradient flow. A pneumatically driven slit source was used to introduce the T-S wave upstream of the lower branch of the neutral stability curve. A few wavelengths downstream, the T-S wave interacted with a cylindrical roughness element. The height of the roughness was slowly oscillating in time, which allowed a continuous measurement of the T-S wave response downstream of the roughness. The oscillation frequency was approximately 1500 times lower than the frequency of the Tollmien-Schlichting wave and therefore, behaved as a steady roughness with respect to the T-S wave. Hot wire anemometry was used to measure wall normal profiles of longitudinal velocity and spanwise scans close to the maximum of the eigenfunction of the T-S wave. The oscillation of the roughness and the synchronization of all equipments permitted the use of ensemble average techniques. The experimental results were compared with the boundary layer secondary instability theory. The analysis of the compared results suggests that the disturbances were amplified by a resonance mechanism known as K-type or fundamental.

Context. Volvo Construction Equipment is planning to use Microsoft Hololens as a tool for the on-site manager to keep a track on the automotive machines and obtain their corresponding work information. For that, a miniature site has been build at PDRL BTH consisting of three different automotive vehicles. We are developing Augmented Reality applications for Microsoft Hololens to recognize these automotive vehicles. There is a need to identify the most feasible recognition method that can be implemented using Microsoft Hololens. Objectives. In this study, we investigate which among the Vuforia 3-D recognition method and the feasible method is best suited for the Microsoft Hololens and we also find out the maximum distance at which an automotive vehicle can be recognized by the Microsoft Hololens. Methods. In this study, we conducted a literature review and the number of articles has been reviewed for IEEE Xplore, ACM Digital Library, Google Scholar and Scopus sources. Seventeen articles were selected for review after reading their titles and abstracts of articles obtained from the search. Two experiments were performed to find out the best recognition method of the Microsoft Hololens and the maximum distance at which an automotive vehicle can be recognized by the Microsoft Hololens. Results. QR-code recognition method is the best recognition method to be used by Microsoft Hololens for recognizing automotive vehicles in the range of one to two feet and Vuforia 3-D recognition method is recommended for more than two feet distance. Conclusions. We conclude that the QR-code recognition method is suitable for recognizing vehicles in the close range (1-2 feet) and Vuforia 3-D object recognition is suitable for recognition for distance over two feet. These two methods are different from each other. One used the 3-D scan of the vehicle to recognize the vehicle and the other uses image recognition (using unique QR-codes). We covered effect of distance on the recognition capability of the application and a lot of work has to be done in terms of how does the QR-code size effects the maximum distance at which an automotive vehicle can be recognized. We conclude that there is a need for further experimentation in order to find out the impact of QR-code size on the maximum recognition distance.

Les progrès récents en sciences de la terre font de plus en plus de données multidisciplinaires disponibles pour l'exploration minière. Cela a permis le développement de méthodologies de calculer la prédictivité pour les zones aurifères basées sur des analyses statistiques des différents paramètres. L‘utilisation de nouveaux logiciels développés, la distribution spatiale et la topologie des polygones (e.g. intrusions granitiques) et des polylignes (e.g. zones de cisaillement) sont contrôlées par les paramètres définis par les utilisateurs (par exemple, la densité, la longueur, la surface, etc.). La distance des gisements d'or par rapport à polygones ou polylignes est calculée en utilisant une fonction de probabilité distribution. Les analyses statistiques des résultats de la modélisation montrent que i) les valeurs de la moyenne à la surface relative des polygones, la moyenne de longueur relative de polylignes, le nombre d'objets et leur regroupement sont essentiels à des évaluations statistiques ; ii) tester la validité des différents méthodes d'inversion dépend de l‘importance relative sur la corrélation entre les paramètres utilisés; et iii) la robustesse des points d'intérêt de distribution est de déduire des lois à l'égard de la qualité des données d'entrée. Cette approche a été appliquée aux données géologiques et géophysiques de l‘Yenissei Ridge d‘une surface totale de 75730 km2 pour cartographier la prédictivité de 29 nouvelles zones aurifères correspondant à une surface de 1811 km2. La méthode développée dans cette étude permet de réduire jusqu'à quatre fois de la superficie considérée comme des zones aurifères par des études précédentes. Pour la construction la plus précise des zones aurifères un modèle 3D de densité de l‘Yenissei Ridge a été construit. Ce modèle est basé sur les données de surface, gravimétriques et aéromagnétiques (grilles numérique de 1x1km2), profils sismiques et magnétotelluriques de "Batholite" et "Shpate". Ce modèle 3D de densité montre que: a) l‘Yenissei Ridge a une structure de couverture pliée, résultant d'un événement de la collision néoprotérozoïque ; b) γNPta granites Tatarsky-Ayhta et zones de cisaillement sont des seuls objets qui présente des relations spatiales avec la minéralisation aurifère. / Recent progresses in geosciences make more and more multidisciplinary data available for mining exploration. This allows developing methodologies to compute predictivity for gold zones by the statistical analysis of variable input parameters. Using newly developed software, the spatial distribution and the topology of polygons (e.g. intrusions) and polylines (e.g. shear zones) are controlled by parameters defined by users (e.g. density, length, surface, etc.). The distance of points of interest (gold deposits) with respect to a given type of objects (polygons or polylines) is given using a probability distribution function. The statistical analyses of output results from the direct modeling process show that i) values of relative surface mean of polygons, relative length mean of polylines, the number of objects and their clustering are critical to statistical appraisals, ii) the validity of the different tested inversion methods strongly depends on the relative importance and on the dependency between the parameters used, and iii) the robustness of the inferred distribution points of interest laws with respect to the quality of the input data. This approach was applied to the geological and geophysical data of the Yenissei ridge of the total area of 75730 km2 for the predictivity mapping of 29 new gold zones with the total area of 1811 km2. The newly developed method allows reducing up to four times of the area of predictivity gold zones, compared with previous studies. For more accurate construction of gold zones, a 3D density model of the Yenisei ridge was constructed. This model is based on surface gravity and aeromagnetic data (numerical grids of 1x1km), ―Batholite‖ and ―Shpate‖ seismic and magnetotelluric profiles, respectively. The 3D density model shows that: a) the Yenissei ridge has a cover-folded structure, formed during a Neopretorozoic collisional event, b) only γNPta Tatarsky-Ayhta granites and shear zones have spatial relationships with gold mineralization.

Orientador: Carlos Antonio Gamero / Banca: Saulo Philipe Sebastião Guerra / Banca: Antonio Gabriel Filho / Resumo: A qualidade e eficiência no corte da palha realizado pelos mecanismos de corte das semeadoras-adubadoras são elementos determinantes no processo de semeadura, em função da ocorrência de "embuchamentos" e de paradas, no afastamento da palhada ou mesmo no conhecido efeito do "envelopamento" da semente que ocasiona a deposição sobre a palha enterrada pelo mecanismo. Dessa forma, o objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o desempenho de diferentes mecanismos de corte de palha de uma semeadora-adubadora de maneira individualizada em diferentes quantidades de cobertura vegetal adicionadas artificialmente em um solo de textura argilosa. Para a realização do trabalho foi utilizado um dinamômetro (anel ortogonal), projetado, construído e calibrado numa célula de carga padrão. O experimento foi conduzido na Fazenda Experimental Lageado, pertencente à Faculdade de Ciências Agronômicas - Unesp de Botucatu. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi em parcelas subdivididas com quatro repetições, sendo as parcelas principais constituídas de cinco quantidades de palhada de aveia preta, adicionadas artificialmente ao solo em área conduzida em plantio direto e as subparcelas de três mecanismos de abertura de sulco, sendo estes: disco liso (DL), disco corrugado (DC) e disco ondulado (DO). O disco ondulado proporcionou maior resistência ao rolamento, reduzindo a velocidade do conjunto (trator e equipamento). A mobilização do solo avaliada nos diferentes tratamentos principais (quantidade de palhada) e secundários (configuração de discos) apresentou diferenças de volume de solo mobilizado, as maiores quantidades de palhada proporcionaram maior taxa de cobertura do solo e consequentemente menor evaporação de água aumentando a área mobilizada. Os discos estriados e ondulados apresentam comportamento semelhante em relação às forças laterais, horizontal, momento... (resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The quality and efficiency in straw cutting are determinants in the sowing process, according to the occurrence of "tamp" and stops, the magnitude of the straw removal or even the known effects of the seed "envelopment" where the cutting mechanism can not cut the remaining straw. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of different mechanisms for straw cutting of a seeder individualized in different amounts of crop coverage artificially added in a clay soil. It was used a dynamometer (orthogonal ring), designed, built and calibrated in a standard load cell to carry out the work . The experiment was conducted at Unesp - Sao Paulo State University in the Experimental Farm Lageado, belonging to the College of Agricultural Sciences - Unesp, Botucatu. The experimental design was split plot with four replications, with main plots consisting of five quantities of black oat straw, artificially added to the soil in area with no-tillage system and subplots of three opening furrows mechanisms, which are: plane disk (PD), corrugated disk (CD) and wavy disk (WD). The wavy disk provided greater rolling resistance, reducing the speed of the set (tractor and equipment). The evaluation of the soil in the different main treatments (amount of straw) and secondary treatments (setting disks), showed differences in the volume. The largest quantities of straw provided higher rate of soil cover and consequently less water evaporation by increasing the mobilized area. The striated and wavy disks showed similar behavior with respect to lateral and, horizontal forces and longitudinal time and horizontal force in function of the mobilized area. In the settings of the studied disks, it was found that the plane disk needed less load to greater penetrate into the soil, due to the values found in the vertical force in the component of reaction, demonstrating higher efficiency... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

Currently, one of the main research problems in Structural Bioinformatics is associated to the study and prediction of the 3-D structure of proteins. The 1990’s GENOME projects resulted in a large increase in the number of protein sequences. However, the number of identified 3-D protein structures have not followed the same growth trend. The number of protein sequences is much higher than the number of known 3-D structures. Many computational methodologies, systems and algorithms have been proposed to address the protein structure prediction problem. However, the problem still remains challenging because of the complexity and high dimensionality of a protein conformational search space. This work presents a new computational strategy for the 3-D protein structure prediction problem. A first principle strategy which uses database information for the prediction of the 3-D structure of polypeptides was developed. The proposed technique manipulates structural information from the PDB in order to generate torsion angles intervals. Torsion angles intervals are used as input to a genetic algorithm with a local-search operator in order to search the protein conformational space and predict its 3-D structure. Results show that the 3-D structures obtained by the proposed method were topologically comparable to their correspondent experimental structure.

Vertical integration technologies, such as three-dimensional integration and interposers, are technologies that support high integration densities while offering shorter interconnect lengths as compared to planar integration and other packaging technologies. To exploit these advantages, however, several challenges lay across the designing, manufacturing and testing stages of integrated systems. Considering the high complexity of modern microelectronic devices and the diverse features of vertical integration technologies, this thesis sheds light on the circuit design process. New methodologies and tools are offered in order to assess and improve traditional objectives in circuit design, such as performance, power, and area for vertically integrated circuits. Interconnects on different interposer materials are investigated, demonstrating the several trade-offs between power, performance, area, and crosstalk. A backend design flow is proposed to capture the performance and power gains from the introduction of the third dimension. Emphasis is also placed on the power consumption of modern circuits due to the immense growth of battery-operated devices in the last fifteen years. Therefore, the effect of scaling the operating voltage in three-dimensional circuits is investigated as it is one of the most efficient techniques for reducing power while considering the performance of the circuit. Furthermore, a solution to eliminate timing penalties from the usage of voltage scaling technique at finer circuits granularities is also presented in this thesis.

Com a frequente utilização de Tecnologias da Informação e da Comunicação (TICs) em contextos educacionais, uma nova configuração de atividades virtuais trouxe à tona novos desafios para profissionais da área de educação ou de treinamento. A partir das contribuições originadas no campo da Realidade Virtual, merecem atenção às soluções que se utilizam de Ambientes Virtuais Interativos 3D como uma alternativa às estratégias de treinamento conduzidas em ambientes reais de aprendizagem. Essas soluções ganham destaque à medida que se observa a utilização de diferentes métodos ou formas de se ensinar e aprender com esses ambientes. Nesse contexto o campo das Habilidades Sensório-Motoras (HSM) constitui-se um desafio no que tange à necessidade de desenvolvimento de métodos para quantificar ou qualificar a habilidade de um aprendiz ou profissional que esteja sob avaliação durante a realização de uma tarefa. Diante desse cenário, apresenta-se a pesquisa em pauta, com o objetivo de definir, implementar e validar um método para avaliação da aquisição de HSM em Ambientes Virtuais Interativos 3D no contexto de treinamento médico. O escopo da presente investigação foi definido mediante a realização de um processo de revisão de literatura sobre os principais fundamentos encontrados na área. Por meio da condução de dois processos de Revisão Sistemática, foi possível recuperar o estado da arte sobre métodos e parâmetros utilizados na avaliação da aquisição de HSM. Para atingir os objetivos da investigação, foram conduzidos experimentos com base em um modelo teórico de avaliação e em um método semiautomatizado. Os resultados dos experimentos indicaram que o método construído foi capaz de avaliar diferentes tarefas virtuais durante a aquisição de Habilidades Sensório-Motoras, assim como verificar o grau de convergência e divergência de processos de discriminação e classificação de HSM observados na avaliação de tarefas virtuais pelo método semiautomatizado e por especialistas. / Along with the frequent use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in educational contexts, a new configuration of virtual activities has brought up new challenges for professionals in the field of education or training. Based on contributions coming from the field of Virtual Reality, solutions used in 3-D Interactive Virtual Environments need to be highlighted as an alternative to training strategies conducted in real learning environments. These solutions gain ground as the use of different methods or ways of teaching and learning are observed in these environments. In this context, the field of Sensory Motor Skills (SMS) becomes a challenge as far as the need for development of methods is concerned in order to quantify or qualify the skills of a learner or a professional who is being evaluated during the performance of a task. This research is set in this scenario aiming to define, implement and validate a method to evaluate the acquisition of SMS in 3-D Interactive Virtual Environments in the context of medical training. The scope of this investigation was defined by means of a literature review on the current major founding principles in the area. Two processes of Systematic Review were conducted which produced the state of the art on methods and parameters used in the evaluation of SMS acquisition. In order to achieve the objectives of the investigation, two experimental studies were conducted based on a theoretical evaluation model and a semi-automated method. The results of the experimental studies showed that the method constructed was able to evaluate different virtual tasks during the acquisition of Sensory Motor Skills, and to verify the convergence or divergence degree of processes of discrimination and classification of SMS observed in the evaluation of virtual tasks by the semi-automated method and by human experts.

Two ways of drawing cubes on dot paper connect students to life outside their classroom.