The purpose of this essay has been to find out how a commune can work with commitment as a part of the attractive work in order to reduce staff turnover among social workers. Furthermore, the essay refers to contribute the theoretical knowledge in the field. In order to achieve this purpose ten semistructured interviews were conducted, of which eight were with socialworkers and two with unit managers of the social workers in the commune studied. The result showed that the definition of engagement also includes the feeling of caring and wanting to do more than you’re expected to. The result also showed that the social workers engagement are affected of work features, the organization, the leadership and the team of colleagues. Another result show that theese contents can not be statically prioritized, but instead should be put in relation to to the group and the individual's current needs. Based on what was identified as the current needs of the social workers, a result was also a number of development proposals for how the commune and unit managers for social security workers can work to create engagement. / Syftet med uppsatsen har varit att ta reda på hur en kommun kan arbeta med engagemang som en del av det attraktiva arbetet för att minska personalomsättning bland socialsekreterare. Vidare avser uppsatsen bidra med teoretisk kunskap inom området. För att uppnå syftet har tio semistrukturerade intervjuer genomförts, varav åtta var med socialsekreterare och två med enhetschefer för socialsekreterare i den studerade kommunen. Resultatet visade att definitionen av begreppet engagemang också inkluderar en känsla av att bry sig och vilja göra mer än man förväntas. Resultatet visade också att socialsekreterarnas engagemang påverkas av arbetets egenskaper, organisationen, ledarskapet och arbetsgruppen. Ytterligare en slutsats är att ovanstående faktorer och dess innefattande aspekter inte kan statiskt prioriteras utan bör stå i relation till gruppen och individernas nuvarande behov. Utifrån vad som identifierades vara socialsekreterarnas nuvarande behov blev ett resultat även ett antal utvecklingsförslag för hur kommunen och enhetschefer för socialsekreterare kan arbeta för att skapa engagemang.

Le comportement dynamique de structures complexes, comme les alternateurs, doit être maîtrisé afin d’en garantir un fonctionnement fiable. Cependant, la modélisation comporte de nombreuses incertitudes rendant délicates la prédiction du comportement vibratoire. Ces travaux de recherche ont pour objectif de fournir des outils d’aide à la décision afin de faciliter la prise de décision rapide suite au redémarrage d’alternateurs. Basé sur la théorie info-gap, un premier outil d’aide à la décision est proposé : il a pour objectif d’évaluer la robustesse de réponses dynamiques vis-à-vis d’un modèle modal incertain. Nous avons également étudié comment de l’information nouvelle peut être intégrée au modèle d’incertitude pour améliorer sa représentativité à la réalité.Une expansion par l’erreur en relation de comportement étendue de modes propres identifiés permet ensuite d’enrichir la représentativité du modèle numérique fournissant ainsi un modèle qualifié d’hybride et permettant d’évaluer les niveaux de réponse. Comme la modélisation comporte de nombreuses méconnaissances, nous avons proposé le procédé d’expansion robuste dont l’objectif est d’obtenir des vecteurs étendus robustes. En présence de méconnaissances sévères, nous montrons enfin qu’il est préférable de calibrer un modèle en maximisant la robustesse vis-à-vis des incertitudes plutôt qu’en maximisant uniquement la fidélité vis-à-vis des données. Couplée à des techniques de réduction de modèle et de construction de méta modèles,nous appliquons cette démarche à une structure de complexité industrielle représentative du contexte industriel. / The complex structural dynamic behavior of alternator must be well understood in order to insuretheir reliable and safe operation. The numerical model is however difficult to construct mainlydue to the presence of a high level of uncertainty. The objective of this work is to providedecision support tools in order to assess the vibratory levels in operation before to restart thealternator. Based on info-gap theory, a first decision support tool is proposed: the objective hereis to assess the robustness of the dynamical response to the uncertain modal model. Based on realdata, the calibration of an info-gap model of uncertainty is also proposed in order to enhance itsfidelity to reality. Then, the extended constitutive relation error is used to expand identified modeshapes which are used to assess the vibratory levels. The robust expansion process is proposed inorder to obtain robust expanded mode shapes to parametric uncertainties. In presence of lack-ofknowledge,the trade-off between fidelity-to-data and robustness-to-uncertainties which expressesthat robustness improves as fidelity deteriorates is emphasized on an industrial structure by usingboth reduced order model and surrogate model techniques.

När plan- och bygglagen (PBL) reviderades 2011 tillfördes ett krav på kommunerna att handlägga ett bygglovsärende inom tio veckor från det att ärendet blev komplett. Det infördes dock inga sanktioner mot kommunerna om de skulle överskrida tidsfristen. Efter flera utredningar av bland andra Boverket har det visat sig att kommunerna har svårt att hålla tidsfristen. Justitieombudsmannen (JO) har flertalet gånger sedan revideringen 2011 kritiserat kommuner som inte haft en rimlig handläggningstid. Regeringen gav 2016 Boverket i uppdrag att undersöka hur kommunerna förhåller sig till tidsfristen samt att ta fram ett förslag om sanktionssystem mot byggnadsnämnden när de överskrider tio veckor. Syftet med uppdraget var att kommunerna skulle förbättra sina handläggningstider och att byggprocessen skulle bli mer effektiv. Boverket konstaterade i sin rapport att 81 procent av kommunerna klarar av att handlägga majoriteten av sina ärenden inom tidsfristen och att kommunerna succesivt har förbättrat sina handläggningstider sedan 2011 års PBL infördes. Boverket ansåg i rapporten att införandet av en reducerad bygglovsavgift var det mest lämpliga system att införa mot nämnderna. Reducering av bygglovsavgift infördes i PBL den 1 januari 2019 genom paragraf 12:8 a. Reduceringen innebär att bygglovsavgiften ska minskas med en femtedel för varje påbörjad vecka som överskrider tidsfristen. I denna studie har det undersökts vilken inverkan den nya regeln har fått på utvalda kommuner, och hur kommunerna förhåller sig till den. Studien är avgränsad genom att fokus har riktats mot bygglov utanför detaljplan, liten avvikelse inom detaljplan och vid större projekt. Studien bygger på intervjuer med bygglovschefer eller handläggare i fyra kommuner i Västra Götalands län, där tre av kommunerna valdes efter befolkning och den fjärde valdes för att representera en kommun med stor andel säsongsboende. Inför intervjuerna har de intervjuade fått till sig en intervjuguide och under intervjuerna har samma grundfrågor ställts med möjlighet till fördjupade följdfrågor. Resultatet visar att 12:8 a inte kommer att få en stor inverkan på kommunerna och därmed inte leda till en mer effektiv byggprocess. Orsaken till detta är att lagändringen är en liten del i hela kedjan med en avsaknad av tidsfrister inom andra delar av byggprocessen. Nu kommer kommunerna att flytta resurser till den del som är tidsstyrd medan andra moment i processen blir nedprioriterade. Utifrån resultatet är slutsatsen att hela byggprocessen bör ses över. Paragraferna inom själva PBL men även andra lagar bör samverka bättre med varandra, och att den vägledningen som Boverket ska ge till kommunerna bör bli tydligare då kommunerna tolkar lagar olika. Sammantaget har 12:8 a inte fått någon större påverkan på byggprocessen och PBL:s syfte om en enklare plan- och bygglag fortsätter att motverkas. / The Planning and Building act (PBL) was rewritten in 2011. A new requirement was added for the local authorities to handle building permits within ten weeks from when the applications were completed. However there were no sanctions added against the local authorities if they were to exceed the deadline of ten weeks. Several investigations performed by, for example Boverket, show that the local authorities have difficulties meeting the deadline. JO has several times, since the readjustment in 2011, complained to local authorities of their unreasonable processing time. In 2016 the government gave Boverket an assignment to investigate if the local authorities are meeting the deadlines and to propose a sanction system for the building committees, if they exceed the ten weeks. The purpose of the assignment was to improve the local authorities' processing time and to make the building process more effective. The report from Boverket showed that 81 percent of the local authorities handle a majority of the building permits within the deadline and that the processing time has improved every year since the Planning and Building act was rewritten in 2011. It was stated in the report from Boverket, that a reduction of the building permit fee was the most suitable penalty to use against the local authorities for a time violation. The reduction of the building permit fee was introduced in PBL on the first of January 2019, and was stated in paragraph 12:8 a. The penalty is structured so that every started week that exceeds the deadline, the building permit fee will be reduced by a fifth. In this study it has been analysed what impact the rule has had on four local authorities and how they interpret the rule. The study has been limited to and is only focused on building permits that are outside of the detailed plan, with minor deviance from the detailed plan and building permits for major buildings. The study is based on interviews with the manager in the department of building permit in four different local authorities located in Västra Götaland. Three of the local authorities were chosen based on size of population and the fourth was chosen to represent a local authority that has major seasonal accommodation. Before every interview the interviewees have been given an interview guide, and during the interviews the same basic questions have been asked with an opportunity to ask in-depth follow-up questions. The result showed that 12:8 a will not have a significant impact on the local authorities and therefore will not result in a more effective building process. The reason for this is that the new regulation is only a small part in the bigger picture and has a lack of deadlines in other parts of the building process. This will lead to local authorities simply moving resources to the area that has a deadline, while other steps of the process will not be as prioritized. The conclusion from these findings show that the whole building process should be looked over. The rules within PBL should be better aligned with each other and also with other laws. The guidance that Boverket gives to the local authorities should also be clearer, since local authorities can interpret the law differently. Overall, the 12:8 a paragraph will not have a big impact on the building process. The purpose of PBL on a simpler Planning and Building act continues to be sidestepped.

Cette thèse propose trois nouveaux développements de la méthode des bases réduites (RB) et de la méthode d'interpolation empirique (EIM) pour des problèmes non-linéaires. La première contribution est une nouvelle méthodologie, la méthode progressive RB-EIM (PREIM) dont l'objectif est de réduire le coût de la phase de construction du modèle réduit tout en maintenant une bonne approximation RB finale. L'idée est d'enrichir progressivement l'approximation EIM et l'espace RB, contrairement à l'approche standard où leurs constructions sont disjointes. La deuxième contribution concerne la RB pour les inéquations variationnelles avec contraintes non-linéaires. Nous proposons une combinaison RB-EIM pour traiter la contrainte. En outre, nous construisons une base réduite pour les multiplicateurs de Lagrange via un algorithme hiérarchique qui conserve la positivité des vecteurs cette base. Nous appliquons cette stratégie aux problèmes de contact élastique sans frottement pour les maillages non-coïncidents. La troisième contribution concerne la réduction de modèles avec assimilation de données. Une méthode dédiée a été introduite dans la littérature pour combiner un modèle numérique avec des mesures expérimentales. Nous élargissons son cadre d'application aux problèmes instationnaires en exploitant la méthode POD-greedy afin de construire des espaces réduits pour tout le transitoire temporel. Enfin, nous proposons un nouvel algorithme qui produit des espaces réduits plus représentatifs de la solution recherchée tout en minimisant le nombre de mesures nécessaires pour le problème réduit final / This thesis introduces three new developments of the reduced basis method (RB) and the empirical interpolation method (EIM) for nonlinear problems. The first contribution is a new methodology, the Progressive RB-EIM (PREIM) which aims at reducing the cost of the phase during which the reduced model is constructed without compromising the accuracy of the final RB approximation. The idea is to gradually enrich the EIM approximation and the RB space, in contrast to the standard approach where both constructions are separate. The second contribution is related to the RB for variational inequalities with nonlinear constraints. We employ an RB-EIM combination to treat the nonlinear constraint. Also, we build a reduced basis for the Lagrange multipliers via a hierarchical algorithm that preserves the non-negativity of the basis vectors. We apply this strategy to elastic frictionless contact for non-matching meshes. Finally, the third contribution focuses on model reduction with data assimilation. A dedicated method has been introduced in the literature so as to combine numerical models with experimental measurements. We extend the method to a time-dependent framework using a POD-greedy algorithm in order to build accurate reduced spaces for all the time steps. Besides, we devise a new algorithm that produces better reduced spaces while minimizing the number of measurements required for the final reduced problem

Genom smarttelefonens genombrott och framfart har mobiltelefonen på bara några år kommit att bli en av de mest centrala delarna i många individers liv. Den används bland annat för att hålla kontakt med familj, vänner och kollegor, för att kommunicera och vara aktiv i olika sociala flöden. Många människor är sociala varelser som pratar och kommunicerar med andra individer hela tiden. Men det finns något som håller på att glömmas bort, något som kan tyckas självklart; att kunna föra ett muntligt samtal med en annan individ utan att en mobiltelefon på något sätt finns med i bilden. Sherry Turkle och Professor Jean M. Twenge har under många år bedrivit forskning på barn och unga vuxna som är flitiga användare av sina smarttelefoner. Många av dessa unga personer har aldrig haft något annat val än att ha en smarttelefon och hela deras sociala liv existerar genom den. Ett växande fenomen är att många av dessa unga personer kommunicerar med varandra genom text i sina smarttelefoner, även om de sitter bredvid varandra i samma rum. Barn leker inte tillsammans som de gjorde förr och deras emotionella utveckling verkar gå allt mer långsamt. Syftet med följande undersökning har varit att skapa en motvikt till denna utveckling och genom ett medietekniskt perspektiv presentera en mobilapplikation som uppmuntrar och inspirerar till muntlig dialog mellan individer. / Through the smartphone's breakthrough and advancement, the mobile phone has in just a few years become one of the most central parts in many individuals' lives. It is used, among other things, to keep in touch with family, friends and colleagues, to communicate and be active in different social online activities. Many people are social beings who talks and communicate with other individuals most of the time. But there is a lack of something that may seem obvious; be able to have an oral conversation with another human being without a mobile phone in any way being included in the picture.  Sherry Turkle and Professor Jean M. Twenge have been conducting research for many years on children and young adults who are frequent users of smartphones. Many of these young people have never had any choice but to have a smartphone and their entire social life exists through it. One growing phenomena is that many of these young people communicate with each other through text in their smartphones, even though they sit next to each other in the same room. Children do not play together as they did in the past and their emotional development seems to progress more slowly. The purpose of the following survey is to create a counterweight to this fosterage and, through a media-technical perspective, present a mobile application that encourages and inspires oral dialogues between individuals.

Une modélisation d'ordre réduit basée sur le partitionnement des données (cluster-based reduced-order modelling ou CROM) est développée pour identifier de manière non supervisée des mécanismes d'interaction non linéaires. La connaissance de ces mécanismes permet de pronostiquer la formation d’événements souhaitables ou non. L’approche proposée adopteun point de vue probabiliste en mettant à profit la linéarité de l’équation d’évolution de probabilité qui tient cependant compte d'éventuelles actions non linéaires des actionneurs. Le cadre est appliqué à l’attracteur de Lorenz, aux données numériques de la couche de mélange, à la turbulence tridimensionnelle du sillage d’un corps non profilé, d’un train, et aux données expérimentales d’un moteur à combustion.Pour ces exemples, le CROM permettait l'identification des quasi-attracteurs par exemple les deux régimes d’écoulement de la couche de mélange ou les états bimodaux du corps Ahmed . Les transitions principales entre ces quasi-attracteurs sont caractérisées par des regroupements de données appelé « flipper cluster ». L'identification de ces « flipper cluster » peut servir pour le contrôle des écoulements en utilisant le partitionnement des données obtenues par exemple de l'évolution temporelle de la traînée ou de la portance.Un contrôle en boucle fermé basé sur la CROM est appliqué à un écoulement le long d'une rampe courbée en vue de diminuer les extensions de la zone de recirculation par rapport à la meilleure excitation périodique en boucle ouverte. L'actionneur est mis en marche en fonction des regroupements préalablement observés. Le résultat est comparé à l’ensemble des lois de contrôle définies par toutes les combinaisons possibles des « on » et « of » par les regroupements de données. Bien quele contrôle basé sur la CROM ne permet pas de réduire la zone de recirculation par rapport à la réduction maximale en boucle ouverte, 28 % de l'apport d 'énergie nécessaire et 81 % pour une loi de contrôle particulière peuvent être économisé. / A cluster-based reduced-order modeling strategy is developed for the unsupervised identification of nonlinear flow mechanisms and precursors to desirable or undesirable events. The proposed approach assumes a probabilistic viewpoint taking advantage of the linearity of the evolution equation for the probability while including nonlinear actuation dynamics.The framework is applied to the Lorenz attractor, numerical data of the spatially evolving mixing layer, the three-dimensional turbulent wake of a bluf body, of a train, and experimental data of a combustion engine.For these examples, CROM has been shown to identify quasi-attractors such as the two shedding regimes of the mixing layer or the bimodal states of the Ahmed body; main transition processes between those quasiattractors are characterized by branching regions or flipper cluster; desirable phase space regions and possible actuation mechanisms areindicated by analysis of cluster features like drag and lift forces which can be further exploited for control purposes.In particular, a CROM-based feedback control is applied to a separating flow over a smooth ramp to examine whether the recirculation area can be diminished compared to the best open-loop periodic excitation by turning the actuation on or of depending on the applicable cluster. The CROMbased control is compared to the complete set of control laws defined byall possible combinations of 'on' and 'of' for the given set of clusters.While the recirculation area cannot be further decreased compared to the best open-loop forcing, a similar size can be achieved for 28% (CROMbased control) or 81% (one particular control law) savings in the control input energy.

[pt] O uso de materiais sustentáveis e os resultados das pesquisas sobre energias renováveis têm sido aplicados nas obras civis que buscam estar à vanguarda no fornecimento de sistemas construtivos novos, leves, resistentes e de baixo custo. Dentre estes materiais, o bambu é uma solução que apresenta características químicas, físicas e mecânicas compatíveis e em muitos aspectos superiores em comparação com os materiais industrializados. Pesquisas desenvolvidas no Departamento de Engenharia Civil da PUC-Rio, desde 1979, fornecem dados de caracterização do bambu como material de construção, porém estudos mais aprofundados sobre seu desempenho estrutural se fazem necessários. Neste trabalho procura-se avaliar o comportamento de uma estrutura de pórtico plano em modelo reduzido sob carregamento estático e dinâmico. Os resultados se comparam com os de um modelo reduzido em aço. O bambu ensaiado é da espécie Phyllostachys aurea, que foi estudado na PUC–Rio anteriormente. Os dados coletados em relação às propriedades físicas, mecânicas e dinâmicas se verificam usando as normas ISO-22157-1 e ISO/TR 22157-2 que existem para estabelecer as propriedades físicas e mecânicas sujeitas à carga estática. Nos pórticos de modelos reduzidos é aplicada as cargas estáticas vertical e lateral para avaliar a resposta no regime elástico e plástico, e assim, comparar ao comportamento dos materiais segundo suas propriedades, como à deformação permanente e o comportamento rígido-plástico. Na análise dinâmica, realizam-se ensaios de vibração livre aplicando deslocamento inicial, para identificar os parâmetros modais estruturais que correspondem aos valores de amortecimento coeficiente de amortecimento (igual) 1,5 por cento e coeficiente de amortecimento (igual) 2,3 por cento e frequência natural de 13 Hz e 35 Hz, em segmentos de bambu e nos modelos de pórtico respectivamente. / [en] The use of green and ecological materials in addition to the renewable energy in civil engineering are leading provider of new building systems, lightweight, durable and inexpensive are reality at the present time. Among these materials, bamboo is a solution that has some chemical, physical and mechanical properties compatible and in many cases even superior in comparison with industrialized materials. Studies carried out in the Department of Civil Engineering of PUC-Rio, since 1979, generated technical data concerning the chemical, physical and mechanical characterization of bamboo as a building material. Further studies on its structural performance in different forms and geometry are needed for establishing the method of calculation of bamboo structures. This study presents the results of an investigation for the evaluation of the behavior of a plane frame structure subjected to lateral and vertical static and only lateral dynamic loading. This work is the first investigation on the dynamic behavior of the bamboo frame, in the available technical literature. To achieve this objective and to compare the obtained results with those of a steel model, bamboo plane frame of the same scale using the species Phyllostachys aurea, was prepared. The physical and mechanical properties of the bamboo were established using ISO-22157-1, ISO/TR22157-2 recommendations for static load. In the plane frame models a static load is applied to evaluate the response in the elastic and plastic regime. In turn the obtained data are compared with those of steel plane frame. In dynamic analysis, free vibration tests were performed in bamboo segments and plane models frame applying initial displacement. The values of damping damping coefficient (equal) 1,5 percent and damping coefficient (equal) 2,3 percent and the natural frequencies of 13 Hz and 35 Hz for the segment and the bamboo portal frame models respectively were obtained.

Apesar de vários avanços no combate ao câncer, a incidência do câncer de pele tipo melanoma e a mortalidade relacionada a essa doença tem aumentado. Considerando-se que a radiação ultravioleta (UV) é o principal agente causador de diversos danos à pele, inclusive o câncer de pele, é de grande importância medir de forma adequada as propriedades fotoprotetoras dos filtros solares. Diante dos problemas provocados pelo uso de filtros solares, as pesquisas têm se voltado no sentido de encontrar produtos naturais com propriedades antioxidantes visto que já foi demonstrado que muitos desses agentes naturais possuem efeitos anticarcinogênico, e antimutagênico. Assim, um dos objetivos desse trabalho foi a avaliação de três formulações fotoprotetoras comerciais por meio de parâmetros bioquímicos não comumente utilizados, mas que refletem o efeito dessas formulações no sistema antioxidante natural da pele e também no processo inflamatório induzido pela radiação UV. Esses efeitos foram mensurados in vivo em camundongos sem pelos, utilizando-se como marcadores o antioxidante não enzimático glutationa reduzida (GSH), enzima antioxidante superóxido dismutase (SOD), a enzima mieloperoxidase (MPO) e as citocinas IL-1? e TNF-?. Outro importante objetivo desse estudo foi avaliar o efeito de um extrato de soja biotransformado (ESB) pelo fungo A. awamori em células de melanoma humano das linhagens 451LU e A375, altamente metastáticas, e estudar os mecanismos de ação pelos quais o extrato induz a morte celular por apoptose nestas células e também avaliar o potencial desse extrato para a prevenção e tratamento do câncer de pele. Os resultados mostraram que com relação ao processo inflamatório induzido pela radiação UVB, verificou-se que o FPS, apesar de avaliar somente o eritema, é um bom indicador do nível de proteção da pele, uma vez que todas as formulações apresentaram um potencial protetor contra o aumento da atividade da MPO e liberação das citocinas pró-inflamatórias IL-1? e TNF-?. No entanto, as formulações não forneceram proteção contra a depleção do antioxidante endógeno GSH e, apesar de possuírem mesmo FPS 15 essas formulações apresentaram diferentes níveis de proteção com relação à redução da atividade da enzima SOD induzida pela radiação UV. Os resultados referentes ao estudo do ESB mostraram que o tratamento das células de melanoma altamente invasivas com o extrato resultou em inibição do crescimento/viabiliade das células associado com a indução de apoptose. As análises revelaram que o ESB resultou em indução da clivagem de PARP e ativação das caspases-3, -7 e -8; aumento da expressão de TNF-R2 e da expressão de TRAIL e do receptor DR4. Além disso, o tratamento das células de melanoma com o extrato ESB aumentou a fosforilação e ativação de IKK, degradação de I?B? e translocação de p65/NF?B para o núcleo. Apesar de ser geralmente aceito que a ativação do NF-?B seja responsável pela resistência à apoptose, neste estudo foi demonstrado que a estimulação da via do NF-?B é necessária pela indução da apoptose mediada pelo extrato ESB. Finalmente, conclui-se que as formulações fotoprotetoras devem ser avaliadas de forma mais profunda, empregando-se diferentes métodos a fim de se garantir formulações mais eficazes tanto contra os danos induzidos tanto pela radiação UVB quanto pela radiação UVA. Além disso, esses estudos identificaram uma atividade anticâncer do extrato ESB que é altamente relevante para a quimioprevenção/quimioterapia contra o câncer de pele tipo melanoma. / Despite several advances in fighting cancer, the incidence of melanoma type skin cancer and the mortality related to this disease have increased. Considering that ultraviolet radiation (UV) is the main causative agent of various skin damages, including skin cancer, it is of great importance to adequately measure the photoprotective properties of sunscreens. Considering the problems caused by the use of sunscreens, researches have been focused towards finding natural products with antioxidant properties as it has been shown that many of these natural agents possess anticarcinogenic and antimutagenic effects. Thus, an objective of this study was to evaluate three marketed photoprotective formulations through biochemical parameters not commonly used, but which reflect the effect of these formulations on the skin\'s natural antioxidant system and also in the inflammatory process induced by UV radiation. These effects were measured in vivo in hairless mice, employing as markers reduced glutathione (GSH), a non-enzymatic antioxidant; superoxide dismutase (SOD), an antioxidant enzyme; myeloperoxidase (MPO) enzyme and IL-1? and TNF-? cytokines. Another important objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of a biotransformed soy extract (BSE) by the A. awamori fungus against 451LU and A375 human melanoma cell strains, highly metastatic, and to study the action mechanisms by which the extract induces cell death by apoptosis in these cells; in addition it was intended to evaluate the potential of this extract for the prevention and treatment of skin cancer. The results demonstrated that regarding the inflammatory process induced by UVB irradiation, it was found that the FPS, although only assessing the erythema, is a good indicator of the level of skin protection, since all formulations showed a protector potential against the increased MPO activity and the release of IL-1? and TNF-? pro-inflammatory cytokines. Nevertheless, the formulations did not provide protection against the depletion of the GSH endogenous antioxidant and, despite having the same nominal SPF (SPF=15), these formulations showed different levels of protection with respect to the reduction of SOD activity induced by UV radiation. The results of the BSE study demonstrated that the treatment of highly invasive melanoma cells with the extract resulted in the cell growth/viability inhibition associated with the induction of apoptosis. The analysis revealed that BSE resulted in induction of PARP cleavage and activation of caspase-3, -7 and -8, increased expression of TNF-R2 and expression of TRAIL and DR4 receptor. Furthermore, the treatment of melanoma cells with BSE extract increased phosphorylation and activation of IKK, degradation of I?B? and translocation of p65/NF?B to the nucleus. Although it is generally accepted that the activation of NF-kB is responsible for resistance to apoptosis, this study demonstrated that the stimulation of NF-?B is required for the induction of apoptosis mediated by BSE extract. Finally, it is concluded that the photoprotective formulations should be more deeply evaluated, using different methods in order to ensure more effective formulations against damages induced both by UVB radiation and UVA radiation. In addition, these studies identified an anticancer activity of the BSE extract that is highly relevant to chemoprevention/chemotherapy against melanoma type skin cancer.

Em decorrência da destruição da camada de ozônio pela poluição, a incidência da radiação ultravioleta sobre a Terra tem aumentado, e consequentemente, o número de casos de câncer de pele tem elevado cada vez mais. Diversos estudos têm demonstrado que os danos causados pela radiação solar à pele são causados frequentemente pela geração de radicais livres e ativação de mediadores do processo inflamatório. Estudos têm concluído que os filtros solares são capazes de penetrarem na pele e agirem como fontes de formação de espécies reativas de oxigênio (EROs) quando submetidos à radiação ultravioleta, o que leva a uma preocupação de que as moléculas fotoprotetoras podem ser geradoras de EROs ao invés de prevenir a formação dessas espécies pelo bloqueio da radiação solar. Desta forma, o objetivo deste estudo foi avaliar os efeitos dos filtros solares 3- benzofenona (3-BZ), octilmetoxicinamato (OMC) e salicilato de octila (OS) na pele de camundongos sem pêlos submetida ou não à radiação UVB. Além disso, a retenção cutânea dos filtros solares foi avaliada in vitro utilizando pele de orelha de porco em células de difusão e in vivo em pele de camundongos sem pêlos. Os resultados de retenção cutânea in vitro demonstraram que a formulação gel creme promoveu maior retenção dos filtros solares na pele em comparação às formulações loção e creme. Além disso, a 3-BZ apresentou a maior retenção na pele quando comparadas as retenções dos filtros solares veiculados na mesma formulação. Todos os filtros solares penetraram na pele de camundongos sem pêlos após 1 hora da aplicação da formulação gel creme, o que garantiu a presença dos filtros solares na derme e epiderme no momento da exposição à radiação UVB. A formulação adicionada dos filtros solares preveniu em 76% a depleção de GSH induzida pela radiação UVB. Entretanto, o tratamento dos animais com a formulação contendo os filtros solares não foi capaz de impedir o aumento das atividades da metaloproteinase-9 e mieloperoxidases induzido pela radiação. Além disso, a utilização da formulação adicionada dos filtros solares em associação à exposição à radiação UVB provocou uma diminuição da atividade da enzima antioxidante superóxido dismutase presente na pele. Desta forma, considerando os parâmetros avaliados neste estudo, a formulação fotoprotetora parece não proteger a pele contra os danos causados pela radiação UVB quanto deveria. Além disso, estes filtros parecem ser instáveis frente à radiação o que comprometendo assim a eficácia e segurança dos mesmos. / Due to the destruction of the ozone layer by pollution, the incidence of ultraviolet radiation on Earth has enlarged and, consequently, the number of cases of skin cancer has increased even more. Several studies have shown that the damages caused by solar radiation to the skin are usually caused by free radical generation and activation of inflammatory mediators. Several studies have concluded that sunscreens are able to penetrate the skin and act as sources of formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) under ultraviolet radiation exposition, leading, therefore, to the concern regarding the possibility of sunscreen molecules generate ROS instead of preventing the formation of these species by blocking sunlight. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of benzophenone-3 (3-BZ), octylmethoxycinnamate (OMC) and octyl salicylate (OS) sunscreens in the skin of hairless mice exposed or not to UVB radiation. Furthermore, the sunscreen skin retention was in vitro assessed using pig ear skin in diffusion cells and in vivo assessed using hairless mice. The results demonstrated that the cream gel rendered higher epidermal concentrations of the evaluated filters compared to the lotion and cream formulations. Comparing the skin retention amounts of each filter in the same formulation, 3-BZ showed higher skin retention ability than OMC and OS. In addition, all sunscreens penetrated the skin of hairless mice after 1 hour of the applied gel cream formulation, which guaranteed the presence of sunscreen in the dermis plus epidermis at the time of UVB exposure. The formulation of sunscreens prevented by 76% the GSH depletion induced by UVB radiation. However, the treatment of the animals with the sunscreens loaded-formulation was not able to inhibit the increase of metalloproteinase-9 and myeloperoxidase activities induced by radiation. Furthermore, the use of sunscreens loaded-formulation in combination with UVB radiation exposition caused the decrease in the amounts of the superoxide dismutase antioxidant enzyme present in skin. Thus, considering the parameters evaluated in this study, the sunscreens loaded-formulation does not seem to effectively protect skin against damages caused by UVB radiation as it was supposed to. Moreover, these filters seem to be unstable against the radiation and thus compromising their efficacy and safety.

Na última década foram descobertas jazidas de petróleo e gás em águas profundas ao longo da costa sudeste do Brasil, o que tem levado à reavaliação de conceitos e técnicas até então utilizados para sua exploração em pequenas profundidades. Parâmetros que anteriormente eram supostamente não críticos passaram a ser relevantes no dimensionamento estrutural dos risers. Efetivamente, a descoberta de novas jazidas na Bacia de Santos incentivou o desenvolvimento de pesquisas nesta área, no Brasil e no mundo. Os depósitos de petróleo e gás encontrados abaixo da camada de sal (daí serem referidas por pré-sal) ocorrem em áreas com lâmina dágua de mais de 2.000 metros, requerendo novas tecnologias para viabilizar sua extração. Os risers de produção nada mais são do que tubulações que levam petróleo e gás do fundo do oceano para a superfície. Nas suas diversas configurações geométricas (vertical, em catenária, lazy wave, entre outros), são elementos estruturais extremamente esbeltos, que devem suportar carregamentos dinâmicos oriundos da correnteza marítima em grande profundidade, ondas de superfície, escoamento interno e deslocamentos impostos, atendendo a exigentes critérios de projeto. O riser vertical será o foco deste trabalho, no qual se pretende utilizar modelos matemáticos com poucos graus de liberdade, denominados modelos de ordem reduzida (MOR), mas com adequada capacidade de representação qualitativa e quantitativa da resposta estrutural, fazendo uso de modos não lineares como funções de projeção, dentro do método de Galerkin não linear. Os modos não lineares, intensivamente estudados no Grupo de Pesquisa Dinâmica, Estabilidade e Controle de Sistemas Estruturais da Escola Politécnica da USP, por conterem intrinsecamente informações de harmônicos de ordem superior, são capazes de, em menor número do que os modos lineares utilizados no método da superposição modal clássico, descreverem acuradamente a resposta do sistema não linear. Serão utilizados procedimentos baseados tanto no método das variedades invariantes, quanto no método das múltiplas escalas, em modelos analíticos. Para a redução de graus de liberdade, será utilizado o método de projeção que se baseia na imposição da igualdade entre os trabalhos virtuais dos modelos de alta e baixa hierarquia (MOR), de sorte que o sistema sob carregamento dinâmico possa ser estudado em espaço de fase de baixa dimensão. A presente pesquisa, além dos desafios acadêmicos inerentes ao tema, apresenta evidente relevância econômica e estratégica para o País. / In the last decade, deposits of oil and gas under deep waters were discovered along the Brazilian Southeast coast, which led to reassessment of concepts and techniques previously used for their exploitation under shallow waters. Parameters that were not previously considered to be critical became relevant in the structural design of the risers. Indeed, the discovery of new deposits in the so-called Santos Basin encouraged the development of research in this area in Brazil and worldwide. The oil and gas deposits found in the pre-salt layer occur in waters deeper than 2,000 meters, requiring new technologies to facilitate their extraction. The risers of production are nothing more than pipes that carry oil and gas from the ocean to the surface. In its various geometric configurations (vertical, catenary, lazy waves, etc.), they are extremely slender structural elements, which must withstand dynamic loads from deep currents, surface waves, internal flow and imposed motions, observing the strict design criteria regarding ultimate and service limit states. The vertical riser will be the focus of this work, which uses mathematical models with few degrees of freedom, known as reduced-order models (ROM), but with adequate capacity to represent the structural response both qualitatively and quantitatively, using non-linear modes as projection functions within the non-linear Galerkin method. The non-linear modes were intensively studied in the research group \"Dynamics, Stability and Control of Structural Systems\" at the Escola Politécnica of USP. Because they contain information of higher-order harmonics, they are able to accurately describe the response of the nonlinear system, using a smaller number of modes than the linear modes used in the classical modal superposition method. Procedures based on the method of invariant manifold and the method of multiple scales alike will be applied to analytical continuum models (with infinite number of degrees of freedom). For the reduction of degrees of freedom, a method based on the identification of the virtual works in both the high-hierarchy and the ROM will be used, so that the system under dynamic loading can be studied in a low-dimension phase space. 13 This research, in addition to academic challenges inherent to the subject has obvious economic and strategic importance for the country.