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The importance of legume proteins in cholesterol metabolism has been recognised, but the hindgut contribution is still unclear. The present work was undertaken to address the role of the caecum–colon in cholesterol metabolism in intact (I) and ileo-rectal anastomosed (IRA) pigs fed with casein or extruded soyabean (ES) diets. Four groups of six growing pigs were assigned to the treatments (casein–I, casein–IRA, ES–I, ES–IRA) for 3 weeks. Plasma total cholesterol, LDL- and HDL-cholesterol were not modified by surgery or diet. In the liver, the ES diet significantly depressed non-esterified, esterified and total cholesterol. The treatments did not affect hepatic 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl CoA reductase, cholesterol 7α-hydroxylase or sterol 27-hydroxylase activities. In the gallbladder bile of ES-fed pigs, total cholesterol was depressed while total bile acid concentration was increased. IRA and the ES diet markedly decreased the biliary bile acid microbial metabolites (namely hyodeoxycholic acid) and increased the primary bile acids (mainly hyocholic acid). The concentration of bile hydrophobic acids was decreased only by the ES diet. Faecal neutral sterol output was increased in ES-fed pigs, but the bile acid and the sum of neutral and acidic steroid outputs were not. Microbial transformation of neutral and acidic steroids was markedly reduced by IRA, especially in the ES-fed pigs. Thus, surgery and ES modulated the steroid profile but the caecum–colon did not seem to play a crucial role in determining cholesterolaemia in pigs.

The “Outwelling Theory” states that salt marshes play a major role in exporting production to adjacent estuarine and coastal ecosystems. However, it has been found that some marshes act as net importers instead of net exporters of organic matter and nutrients. Once we include mangroves and refine the analysis to comprehend bacterioplankton, organic and stable isotope tracers, the picture became, more complex, making room for a revival of the outwelling idea. The exchanges between the Castro Marim salt marsh and the main estuary were tentatively established determining periodically, in a selected cross-section, the concentrations of TSS, FSS, VSS, NH₄, NO₂, NO₃, NKjeldhal, SiO₄, PO₄, TDP, Chlorophyll a and Pheopigments, measuring their fluxes along tidal cycles and computing the corresponding budgets. Apparently, the sedimentary behaviour of the marsh will be close to equilibrium during the period of study. However, it will import mainly inert matter and export mainly organic matter in the same period. Moreover, extrapolating these results to the entire Guadiana salt marshes, the exchanges of sediment do not seem to be significant. Particularly, the marshes will not trap a significantly amount sediment transported by the main river (0.5%). It also seems to follow, that in a general way, the Guadiana salt marshes might have a more significant role than was anticipated in the system economy of OM and nutrients and their outwelling to coastal waters, assuring outputs that could amount to something like 6% of the river load of N, 1.2% of the river load of P, and 20-57% of the river load of TOC, for an average year, and 42% of the river load of N and 35% of the river load of P in a dry year. These findings suggest that a more detailed investigation, over an extended period of time, is certainly worthwhile.

The selection of indicators for the Observatory of Sustainability of the Algarve Region for Tourism (OBSERVE), poses challenges, namely which indicators are relevant to stakeholders and how to assure that information is available. To support the selection of the environmental, sociocultural, economic and institutional indicators, an engagement process was designed and applied, which included meetings with stakeholders, a workshop and an online survey. The results showed that both workshop and online surveys reflected, in general, similar opinions, thus allowing the selecting of the sustainable development indicators for the Algarve region. Additionally, the results showed that nearly 75% of the indicators can be obtained from national statistics and, therefore, can be used on the OBSERVE project, assuring a quick flow of information. As limitations, it is important to mention that the other 25% will need further development, in order to provide data for indicators, like carbon management and client satisfaction. With this approach, the observatory will survey and evaluate the sustainable development of the region (status and trends), based on indicators that answer to the strategic needs of system’s main users, with social and economic implications, i.e., public institutions, economic agents, tourists, local communities and residents.

The sea lamprey is an anadromous species that migrates twice during its life cycle between freshwater and seawater. Microphagous larvae generally spend 4–5 years burrowed in the substrate of rivers and streams before undergoing metamorphosis that ends with the beginning of the juvenile trophic migration. Once metamorphosis is complete, sea lamprey juvenile downstream migrants are fully tolerant to seawater salinity. Pollution resulting from industrial effluents may disturb the seawater acclimatization causing oxidative damage, and ultimately may lead to a decrease of sea lamprey population. The aim of this study was to compare salt acclimation of sea lamprey juveniles captured in river basins with different levels of aquatic pollution, using mitochondrial glutathione (GSH) and malondialdehyde (MDA) of gills and liver as markers of physiological stress and cell damage. The results showed that juveniles from the Lima basin exhibited the highest levels of mitochondrial MDA in gills, even though significant changes in the stress markers of mitochondrial gills of all animals subject to salt acclimation were not detected. In addition, an increase in the oxidative damage of hepatic mitochondria of macrophthalmia from the Vouga basin suggests the occurrence of metabolic failures with the potential to disturb the capacity to adaptation to the marine environment.

Cytochrome P4501A1 (CYP1A1) catalyses the hydroxylation of estradiol and arachidonic acid (AA) producing vasoactive substances, such as catecholestrogens and eicosanoids. Estrogens and eicosanoids are considered to be involved in the pathophysiology of hypertension. However the role of Cytochrome P4501A1 activity in the pathophysiology of hypertension is unclear. CYP1A1 has been known to express genetic variance. Some of its polymorphisms are associated with changes in Cytochrome P4501A1 activity. The C allele of T6325C and the G allele of A4889G polymorphisms have been associated with elevated cytochrome P4501A1 activity. We hypothesized that CYP1A1 polymorphisms would be associated with the risk of hypertension.The hypothesis was tested through a case control study in 208 control and 75 hypertensive male and female subjects. Diabetes and thyroid disease were exclusion factors. We determined the genotype for three CYP1A1 polymorphisms (T6325C, A4889G, and C4887A), using PCR-RFLP, in our population. We observed that the C allele of the CYP1A1 T6325C polymorphism was associated with hypertension (p=0.008, chi-square test). The odds ratio was 2.3 with a 95% confidence interval of 1.3 to 4.1. No association was found between the two other CYP1A1 gene polymorphisms and hypertension. These results implicate the C allele of the CYP1A1 T6325C polymorphism as a risk factor for the development of hypertension and suggest that the activity of cytochrome P4501A1 may play a role in the pathophysiology of this disease.

Streptococcus pneumoniae remains a major public health threat despite widespread use of vaccines and antibiotics. Its well-established synergy with influenza A virus (IAV) often results in secondary bacterial pneumonia, a condition associated with high morbidity and mortality. As pneumococcal pneumonia is invariably preceded by nasopharyngeal colonization, preventing colonization represents a promising intervention strategy. Current approaches, including pneumococcal conjugate vaccines and antibiotics, can drive serotype replacement and antimicrobial resistance, underscoring the need for novel, targeted, and serotype-independent alternatives. We previously identified seven commensal streptococcal strains (S. oralis A22 and S. mitis B22-G22) that robustly inhibit S. pneumoniae growth and biofilm formation in vitro. Here, using a murine model, we demonstrate that colonization with the commensal strain F22Ad significantly reduces pneumococcal density in the nasopharynx by day 10 post-infection and prevents pneumococcal dissemination to the lungs following IAV co-infection. This protective effect was dependent on bacteriocins encoded at the blp1 locus. Among these, Bac2v1 (alone or in combination with Bac1) significantly reduced pneumococcal colonization. Notably, Bac2v1 exerted serotype-independent inhibitory activity, impairing the growth of diverse pneumococcal strains. Our findings provide the first in vivo proof-of-concept that commensal streptococci, and specifically their bacteriocins, can disrupt S. pneumoniae colonization and prevent progression to secondary bacterial pneumonia. This work introduces a previously unrecognized precision-based approach to pneumococcal disease prevention, offering a potential complement to current strategies.