Em cenas naturais, ocorrem com certa freqüência classes espectralmente muito similares, isto é, os vetores média são muito próximos. Em situações como esta dados de baixa dimensionalidade (LandSat-TM, Spot) não permitem uma classificação acurada da cena. Por outro lado, sabe-se que dados em alta dimensionalidade tornam possível a separação destas classes, desde que as matrizes covariância sejam suficientemente distintas. Neste caso, o problema de natureza prática que surge é o da estimação dos parâmetros que caracterizam a distribuição de cada classe. Na medida em que a dimensionalidade dos dados cresce, aumenta o número de parâmetros a serem estimados, especialmente na matriz covariância. Contudo, é sabido que, no mundo real, a quantidade de amostras de treinamento disponíveis, é freqüentemente muito limitada, ocasionando problemas na estimação dos parâmetros necessários ao classificador, degradando, portanto a acurácia do processo de classificação, na medida em que a dimensionalidade dos dados aumenta. O Efeito de Hughes, como é chamado este fenômeno, já é bem conhecido no meio científico, e estudos vêm sendo realizados com o objetivo de mitigar este efeito. Entre as alternativas propostas com a finalidade de mitigar o Efeito de Hughes, encontram-se as técnicas que utilizam amostras não rotuladas e amostras semi-rotuladas para minimizar o problema do tamanho reduzido das amostras de treinamento. Deste modo, técnicas que utilizam amostras semi-rotuladas, tornamse um tópico interessante de estudo, bem como o comportamento destas técnicas em ambientes de dados de imagens digitais de alta dimensionalidade em sensoriamento remoto, como por exemplo, os dados fornecidos pelo sensor AVIRIS. Neste estudo foi dado prosseguimento à metodologia investigada por Lemos (2003), o qual implementou a utilização de amostras semi-rotuladas para fins de estimação dos parâmetros do classificador Máxima Verossimilhança Gaussiana (MVG). A contribuição do presente trabalho consistiu na inclusão de uma etapa adicional, introduzindo a estimação das probabilidades a priori P( wi) referentes às classes envolvidas para utilização no classificador MVG. Desta forma, utilizando-se funções de decisão mais ajustadas à realidade da cena analisada, obteve-se resultados mais acurados no processo de classificação. Os resultados atestaram que com um número limitado de amostras de treinamento, técnicas que utilizam algoritmos adaptativos, mostram-se eficientes em reduzir o Efeito de Hughes. Apesar deste Efeito, quanto à acurácia, em todos os casos o modelo quadrático mostrou-se eficiente através do algoritmo adaptativo. A conclusão principal desta dissertação é que o método do algoritmo adaptativo é útil no processo de classificação de imagens com dados em alta dimensionalidade e classes com características espectrais muito próximas. / In natural scenes there are some cases in which some of the land-cover classes involved are spectrally very similar, i.e., their first order statistics are nearly identical. In these cases, the more traditional sensor systems such as Landsat-TM and Spot, among others usually result in a thematic image low in accuracy. On the other hand, it is well known that high-dimensional image data allows for the separation of classes that are spectrally very similar, provided that their second-order statistics differ significantly. The classification of high-dimensional image data, however, poses some new problems such as the estimation of the parameters in a parametric classifier. As the data dimensionality increases, so does the number of parameters to be estimated, particularly in the covariance matrix. In real cases, however, the number of training samples available is usually limited preventing therefore a reliable estimation of the parameters required by the classifier. The paucity of training samples results in a low accuracy for the thematic image which becomes more noticeable as the data dimensionality increases. This condition is known as the Hughes Phenomenon. Different approaches to mitigate the Hughes Phenomenon investigated by many authors have been reported in the literature. Among the possible alternatives that have been proposed, the so called semi-labeled samples has shown some promising results in the classification of remote sensing high dimensional image data, such as AVIRIS data. In this dissertation the approach proposed by Lemos (2003) is further investigated to increase the reliability in the estimation of the parameters required by the Gaussian Maximum Likelihood (GML) classifier. In this dissertation, we propose a methodology to estimate the a priory probabilities P( i) required by the GMV classifier. It is expected that a more realistic estimation of the values for the a priory probabilities well help to increase the accuracy of the thematic image produced by the GML classifier. The experiments performed in this study have shown an increase in the accuracy of the thematic image, suggesting the adequacy of the proposed methodology.

Espera-se que entre 2010 e 2050, a população mundial total terá um aumento de 2 bilhões de habitantes, ao passo que a população idosa chegará ao número de 1,3 bilhões de habitantes. Dentre os diversos fatores envolvidos com expectativa de vida longa, está bem estabelecido que o hábito alimentar desempenha um papel central para a saúde, o que torna importante o conhecimento do padrão alimentar nesta faixa etária. Para a avaliação da ingestão alimentar média a longo prazo em grande número de indivíduos, os Questionários de Frequência de Alimentos (QFAs) são instrumentos particularmente importantes. Objetivo: validar um questionário de frequência alimentar para idosos saudáveis. Casuística e Métodos: Participaram da pesquisa 43 idosos independentes, com a capacidade cognitiva e funcional preservadas, de ambos os gêneros, com idades > 60 anos. Foi avaliado o consumo alimentar dos indivíduos por meio de 3 recordatórios alimentares de 24 horas e um questionário de frequência alimentar, com o auxílio de um livro de fotografias para visualização do tamanho das porções dos alimentos. Como método padrão-ouro, foi utilizada a água duplamente marcada (DLW) para aferição do gasto energético total diário. Para a análise estatística, foi realizada análise descritiva dos dados, calculado o coeficiente de correlação de Spearman, construídos gráficos de dispersão e de Bland-Altman, e também o Coeficiente de Correlação Intraclasse (ICC). Foi adotado o nível de significância de 5%. Resultados: foi observada excelente concordância entre o QFA e DLW para estimativa do consumo de energia em mulheres idosas, assim boa correlação entre o R24h e DLW para estimativa do consumo de energia em homens idosos. Não foram encontradas correlações significativas entre o QFA e DLW para estimativa do consumo de energia em ambos os sexos. Conclusão: Considerando que o objetivo desta pesquisa foi validar o QFA para os dois gêneros (homem e mulher), o mesmo não foi alcançado. / Introduction: It is expected that between 2010 and 2050, the total world population will increase by 2 billion inhabitants, while the elderly population will reach 1.3 billion. Among the many factors involved in long life expectancy, it is well established that eating habits play a central role in health, which makes it important to know the food pattern in this age group. For the evaluation of the long-term average food intake in a large number of individuals, Food Frequency Questionnaires (FFQs) are particularly important instruments. Objective: to validate a food frequency questionnaire for healthy elderly. METHODS: Participants were 43 independent, with cognitive and functional capacity, of both genders, aged> 60 years. The individuals\' food consumption was evaluated through three 24-hour recalls and a food frequency questionnaire, with the aid of a photo book to visualize the size of the food portions. As a gold standard method, double-labeled water (DLW) was used to measure total daily energy expenditure. For the statistical analysis, a descriptive analysis of the data was performed, the Spearman correlation coefficient was calculated, the dispersion and Bland-Altman graphs were constructed, as well as the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC). The significance level of 5% was adopted. Results: excellent concordance was observed between the QFA and DLW for estimation of energy consumption in elderly women, thus a good correlation between R24h and DLW for estimation of energy consumption in elderly men. No significant correlations were found between the QFA and DLW to estimate the energy consumption in both sexes. Conclusion: Considering that the objective of this research was to validate the FFQ for both genders (man and woman), the same was not achieved.

Este trabalho objetivou o estudo de rotas de formação de metabólitos secundários utilizando precursores isotopicamente marcados com 13C. Os experimentos de crescimento com adição de [1-13C]acetato, [1,2-13C2]acetato e [U-13C315N1]-L-cisteína para o fungo do ambiente marinho Penicillium sp. DRF2 mostrou que as ciclotiocurvularinas são provenientes da rota de formação de policetídeos e pela incorporação de L-cisteína, depois da transformação desta em 3-mercaptopiruvato. Os resultados sugerem que a formação das ciclotiocurvularinas provém de um processo de detoxificação da α,β-desidrocurvularina. O estudo do metabolismo secundário de Aspergillus sp. DLM3-8, também do ambiente marinho, mostrou que o seu perfil metabólico produzido em experimentos de crescimento sob diferentes condições é constante. Os experimentos de incorporação de precursores isotopicamente marcados com 13C na naftoquinonaimina, produzida por Aspergillus sp. DLM3-8 foram inconclusivos, indicando que outras abordagens experimentais devem ser realizadas para se investigar a biossíntese deste metabólito. / This investigation aimed investigated the formation routes of secondary metabolites using 13C-labelled precursors. Feeding experiments with [1-13C]acetate, [1,2-13C2]acetate and [U-13C315N1]-L-cysteine within the growth medium of the marine-derived fungi Penicillium sp. DRF2 showed that cyclothiocurvularins are derived from polyketides and from the incorporation of a L-cysteine residue, after its transformation into 3-mercaptopyruvate. The results suggest that the formation of cyclothiocurvularins is derived from a detoxification process ofα,β-dehydrocurvularin. Investigation of the secondary metabolism of a marine-derived Aspergillus sp. DLM3-8 indicated a stable metabolic profile under a variety of growth conditions. Feeding experiments with 13C-labelled precursors for the biosynthesis investigation of naphthoquinoneimine were inconclusive, indicating that other methodologies should be envisaged in order to investigate the biosynthesis of this metabolite.

In this work were synthesized ketamine isotopomers. Ketamine is used in human medicine and veterinary sectors. It has very broad spectrum of pharmacological effects: anesthetic, analgesic, hallucinogenic, bronchodilator, cardiovascular and antidepressive, which is currently in the research. At first was synthesized precursor of ketamine, N- desmethylketamine which was subsequently labeled the deuterium, tritium and carbon- 14. For the determination of purity and identity mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy were used. KEY WORDS synthesis of ketamine, ketamine, N-desmethylketamine, nor-ketamine, isotopically labeled ketamine, deuterium, tritium, carbon-14.

Upland cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L., is a natural source of fiber and a major row crop in the US with an estimated $7 billion raw product value in 2019. However, it is extremely sensitive to the broadleaf herbicide 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D). With the evolution of herbicide-resistant weeds compounded by off-target spray damage on conventional cotton varieties outside the transgenic Enlist technology (Dow Agrosciences) of herbicide-tolerant cotton varieties (Dow Agrosciences), there is a need to identify and develop novel sources of herbicide tolerance gene for upland cotton genetic improvement. Cotton chromosome substitution (CS) lines carry introgressions from other cultivated and wild allotetraploid Gossypium species that could be sources of novel and exotic alleles for herbicide tolerance. A total of 50 CS lines of G. barbadense L. (CS-B), G. tomentosum Nuttal ex Seeman (CS-T), and G. mustelinum Meers ex Watt (CS-M), in the genetic background of G. hirsutum L. Texas Marker-1 (TM-1) were screened for resistance to a field-recommended rate (1.12 kg ae ha-1) of 2,4-D in the greenhouse. Seven CS lines, CS-T04-15, CS-B12, CS-B15sh, CS-T04, CS-B22sh, CS-T07, and CS-B04-15 with the lowest injury were evaluated for tolerance at four and seven weeks after seedling emergence under field conditions. Progeny tests conducted in the greenhouse validated 2,4-D tolerance of CS-B15sh, showing 41% lower injury than TM-1. Novel variants of CS-T04-15 and CS-T07 were identified with complete tolerance to the herbicide but are segregating. Uptake and translocation of 14C-labeled 2,4-D indicated that reduced translocation of 2,4-D may be the 2,4-D tolerance mechanism in CS-T04-15 and CS-T07, while gene(s) associated with metabolism and reduced auxin transport appeared associated with the 2,4-D tolerance in CS-B15sh. Transcriptome analysis revealed differential expression of genes in 2,4-D-treated CS-B15sh and TM-1 with several components of the 2,4-D/auxin response pathway, including ubiquitin E3 ligase, PB1|AUX/IAA, ARF transcription factors, and F box proteins of the SCFTIR1/AFB complex being up-regulated. Functional annotation of differentially expressed genes revealed down-regulation of auxin transport, suggesting a potential linkage with tolerance mechanism involving altered movement of 2,4-D in CS-B15sh. The selected highly tolerant cotton CS lines will need to be confirmed further using molecular assays.

No description available.

<i>Orobanche</i> species are parasitic weeds that subsist on the roots of many dicotyledonous plants. These parasites form symplastic and apoplastic connections with their hosts and act as strong sinks for the uptake of water, minerals, and photosynthates, often causing severe damage to the hosts. Although the uptake of small molecules such as sugars and herbicides by <i>Orobanche</i> has been documented, movement of macromolecules between host and parasite has not been characterized. The objectives of this research were to 1) determine whether, and by what route, host macromolecules can be translocated to the parasite, and 2) engineer host resistance based on inducible expression of sarcotoxin IA, an anti-microbial peptide from the flesh fly (<i>Sarcophaga peregrina</i>). To address the first objective, transgenic plants expressing GFP localized to either the host cell cytosol (symplast) or secreted to the extra-cellular space (apoplast) were parasitized by <i>O. aegyptiaca</i>. Observations of green fluorescence in <i>O. aegyptiaca</i> tubercles growing on these plants indicate that the 27 kDa GFP molecule was translocated to the parasite via both symplastic and apoplastic routes. This work was supported by studies with xylem- and phloem-specific dyes, which showed that fluorescent dextrans as large as 70 kDa moved into the parasite through xylem connections. The second objective was addressed using tobacco (<i>Nicotiana tabacum</i> L. cv. Xanthi) plants expressing the sarcotoxin IA transgene under control of the parasite-inducible <i>HMG2</i> promoter. In soil experiments, transgenic tobacco plants had greater height and biomass, and showed up to 90% reduction in <i>O. ramosa</i> parasitism as measured by the fresh weight of parasite tubercles. In a semi-hydroponic growth system, where <i>Orobanche</i> tubercles can be visualized at early stages of growth, <i>O. aegyptiaca</i> parasites growing on plants expressing sarcotoxin IA were smaller and had an increased number of senescent tubercles compared to those growing on non-transformed plants. Considering the relatively small size of sarcotoxin IA (4 kDa), it is likely that this peptide moves from host to the parasite, where it accumulates to phytotoxic concentrations. In addition to increasing our knowledge of host-<i>Orobanche</i> interactions, this research used an antibiotic peptide to engineer partial <i>Orobanche</i> resistance into a highly susceptible crop. This strategy has broad implications for the control of other parasitic weeds. / Ph. D.

L’utilisation du glucose exogène est un déterminant de la performance sportive, particulièrement lors d’épreuves de plus d’une heure. Les caractéristiques des sujets, les conditions d’exercice et d’ingestion du glucose sont tous des facteurs pouvant affecter l’oxydation de glucose exogène (OGE). De plus, la co-ingestion d’autres substrats et l’environnement dans lequel l’activité est pratiquée peuvent également avoir un impact sur l’OGE et sa contribution à la fourniture d’énergie. Il est souvent difficile, voire impossible, de comparer les résultats des études qui ont examiné l’OGE due au manque d’uniformité dans la méthodologie. Afin de clarifier l’effet de ces facteurs sur le taux d’OGE, ainsi que sa contribution à la fourniture d’énergie lors de l’exercice prolongé, une revue de littérature et une méta-analyse ont été effectuées. Le sexe, l’âge, la masse corporelle, le VO2max des participants, le moment d’ingestion, le taux d’ingestion, la concentration de la solution, la puissance absolue et relative de l’exercice, et la durée de l’exercice ont été utilisés comme modérateurs. Les facteurs pouvant influencer le taux d’OGE et sa contribution à la fourniture d’énergie pendant l’exercice prolongé rapportés dans cette méta-analyse confirment une relation dose-réponse curvilinéaire. D’autres facteurs, tels le VO2 et le %VO2max de l’exercice, ainsi que le moment d’ingestion, permettent également d’expliquer la relation observée dans le taux d’oxydation exogène et sa contribution à la fourniture d’énergie. La grande majorité des études ayant été effectuées sur une population restreinte (hommes sportifs ou en santé, âgés entre 20 et 30 ans), davantage de travaux sont nécessaires chez les femmes et les sujets d’âge et de masse corporelle différents afin d’éviter les biais d’interprétation dus à au sexe ou aux caractéristiques physiques. Les résultats de cette méta-analyse pourront aider à améliorer les recommandations sur l’ingestion de glucides au cours de l’exercice prolongé. / Exogenous glucose oxidation is a determinant of sports performance especially in activities lasting over 1 hour. Many factors concerning the subjects, the substrate and the exercise itself could influence the capacity of the human body to oxidize exogenous glucose. Furthermore, the co-ingestion of other substrates, as well as the environment in which the activity is performed, could also influence the rate of exogenous glucose oxidation (EGO) and its contribution to the energy yield. The lack of uniformity in methodologies used to investigate EGO makes it very difficult, and in some cases even impossible, to make direct comparisons between study results. In an attempt to shed some light on the impact of those various factors on the rate of EGO and its contribution to the energy yield, the literature was reviewed and a meta-analysis was done. The sex, age, body mass, VO2max, timing of ingestion, rate of ingestion, solution concentration, exercise’s absolute and relative intensity, and exercise duration were used as moderators. Many factors can contribute to EGO and its contribution to the energy yield and the results from this meta-analysis confirm a dose-response relationship. Additional factors, such as exercise VO2 or %VO2max, and ingestion timing also have a significant effect. Further studies might be needed with women and subjects with different age and body mass to avoid bias due to an unbalanced number of studies when comparing subject characteristics. These results should help improve nutritional recommendations for carbohydrate ingestion during prolonged exercise.

Le test d’identification d’état d’un système à événement discret (SED) a pour but d’en identifier l’état final, lorsque son état initial est inconnu. Une solution classique à ce problème, en supposant que le SED n’ait pas de sorties observables, consiste à déterminer une séquences de synchronisation, c.à-d., une séquence d’événements d’entrée qui conduit le SED sur un état connu. Ce problème a été résolu dans les années 60’ à l’aide des automates. L’objectif principal de cette thèse est d’utiliser les réseaux de Petri (RdP) pour obtenir une résolution plus optimal de ce problème et pour une plus large classe de systèmes.Initialement, nous montrons que la méthode classique peut être aisément étendue aux RdP synchronisés. Pour cette classe de réseaux non-autonomes, toute transition est associée à un événement d’entrée.L’approche proposée est générale, dans la mesure où elle s’applique à des RdP bornés arbitraires. Cependant, elle engendre le problème d’explosion combinatoire du nombre d’états. Pour obtenir des meilleures solutions, nous considérons une classe spéciale de RdP : les graphes d’état (GdE). Pour ces réseaux, nous considérons d’abord les GdE fortement connexes et proposons des approches pour la construction de SS, qui exploitent les propriétés structurelles du réseau en évitant ainsi une énumération exhaustive de l’espace d’état. Ces résultats s’étendent aux GdE non fortement connexes et à tout RdP synchronisé composé de GdE. Enfin, nous considérons la classe des RdP non bornés et proposons des séquences qui synchronisent le marquage des places non bornées. Une boîte à outils fournit toutes les approches décrites et est appliquée à des différents bancs d’essai. / State-identification experiments are designed to identify the final state of a discrete event system (DES) when its initial state is unknown. A classical solution, assuming the DES has no observable outputs, consists in determining a synchronizing sequence (SS), i.e., a sequence of input events that drives the system to a known state. This problem was essentially solved in the 60’ using automata. The main objective of this thesis is to use Petri nets (PNs) for solving the state-identification problem more efficiently and for a wider class of systems.We start showing that the classical SS construction method based on automata can be easily applied to synchronized PNs, a class of non-autonomous nets where each transition is associated with an input event. The proposed approach is fairly general and it works for arbitrary bounded nets with a complexity that is polynomial with the size of the state space. However, it incurs in the state-space explosion problem.Looking for more efficient solutions, we begin by considering a subclass of PNs called state machines (SMs). We first consider strongly connected SMs and propose a framework for SS construction that exploits structural criteria, not requiring an exhaustive enumeration of the state space of the net. Results are further extended to larger classes of nets, namely non strongly connected SMs and nets containing SM subnets. Finally we consider the class of unbounded nets that describe infinite state systems: even in this case we are able to compute sequences to synchronize the marking of bounded places. A Matlab toolbox implementing all approaches previously described has been designed and applied to a series of benchmarks.

A família Fabaceae abundante nos trópicos, desperta grande interesse para o uso em recuperação de áreas degradas, já que em sua maioria, são lenhosas e perenes, se adaptam aos mais diversos ecossistemas brasileiros e são capazes de fazer associações simbiônticas com bactérias pertencentes ao gênero Rhizobium, que fixam nitrogênio atmosférico fornecendo-o para a planta em uma forma reativa. Dentro deste contexto, o presente estudo avaliou em um experimento em casa de vegetação como a fixação biológica de nitrogênio em três espécies pertencentes a família Fabaceae variou em função da adição de nitrogênio mineral em diferentes doses e através de tratamentos incluindo-se a inoculação com bactérias do gênero Rhizobium e fungos micorrízicos arbusculares (FMAs). Os resultados obtidos através da atividade da redução de acetileno indicaram que os nódulos se encontravam ativos no último mês de experimento nas três espécies fixadoras de N2. Houve uma grande variação na porcentagem de N na planta proveniente da fixação (NPPfix). Quando as plantas cresceram em meio onde a disponibilidade de N era baixa, sem a aplicação deste nutriente no solo, a FBN foi favorecida, variando de 34 a 84%. Pelo contrário, foi possível observar que a fixação foi inibida em vasos onde a adição de nitrogênio foi elevada. Devido ao uso do solo não esterilizado, os inoculantes aplicados (bactérias e fungos) parecem ter competido com a microbiota nativa do solo, assim sendo, diferenças entre os tratamentos inoculados e o controle (sem inoculação) não foram encontradas neste estudo / Legumes (Fabaceae) are abundant in the tropics and considered as of great interest as restorer of degraded areas, since most of them are woody and perennials, adapted to several Brazilian ecosystems and able to make associations with bacteria belonging to Rhizobium genus, which fix atmospheric nitrogen, and giving it to the plants in a reactive form. In this context, this study evaluated in a greenhouse experiment how nitrogen biological fixation (FBN) varied in three species of Fabaceae family according to the N-mineral addition in different doses and according to treatments including inoculation with bacteria of Rhizobium genus and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). The results obtained from the acetylene reduction activity indicate that the nodules were active in the last month of experiment in the three N2-fixing species. There was a wide variation in the plant N percentage derived from fixation (NPPfix). When plants grew in a soil where N availability was low, without application of this nutrient in the soil, the BNF was favored, ranging the NPPfix from 34 to 84%. On the contrary, it was possible to observe that FBN was inhibited in the pots where N additions were higher. Due to the use of unsterilized soil, the applied inoculants (bacteria and fungi) appear to have competed with the native soil microbiota, thus differences between inoculated and control (without inoculation) could not be established in this study