Catarina Costa

Macro-Scale Analysis of Damage to Churches after Earthquake in Abruzzo (Italy) on April 6, 2009

This article focuses on the effects of the earthquake which struck the Abruzzo region (Central Italy) on April 6, 2009, causing considerable damage to many ancient buildings, particularly churches. During the emergency after the earthquake, many churches and other historical monuments (towers, city walls, large town houses, etc.) were surveyed, according to first-level damage survey forms for Cultural Heritage buildings, by multidisciplinary working groups composed of experts from several Italian institutions (Universities, Ministry for Cultural Heritage, Fire Brigade, etc.). This article presents a statistical study on the information collected by the University of Padova during the surveys, which was later inserted and organized in a database, and illustrates data on damage assessment of the buildings in question. It also presents an intuitive overview of the seismic effects on several churches, allowing not only better understanding of the response of these structures to this particular earthquake, but also correlating data on it with its effects on the churches.

Geometric characterisation of Portuguese RC buildings with masonry infill walls

Recent earthquakes showed that the vulnerability of some RC buildings with masonry infill walls is high when subjected to seismic actions. During the design practice, the infills are commonly treated as non-structural elements, despite their recognised contribution to the structural response of the buildings. The safety assessment of this type of buildings is important and any detailed information is essential, since such information is needed for estimation of the losses that future earthquakes are likely to induce. The present study focuses on the observation and analysis of architectural and structural design drawings of 80 buildings that represent common RC buildings with masonry infill walls located in Portugal. The data were analysed with the purpose of estimating geometric properties of the masonry infill panels confined by RC frames. Fourteen-hundred masonry infill walls were observed and were divided in to different types according to the different dispositions of the openings. Several measurements were performed in order to have deeper knowledge about the percentage of openings that exist in masonry infill walls and consequently in the building’s façade. Infill panels’ dimensions were also determined and other parameters related to the general characteristics of the buildings and the structural elements were also analysed. Parameters such as beams’ and columns’ dimensions and reinforcement details or slab thickness were also analysed. The collected data are utilized to derive probabilistic distributions, whose goodness-of-fit are partially verified with a statistical test. The results from this study can be used in structural modelling development of nonlinear models for masonry infill panels or computation of fragility models. In addition, the statistical parameters such as mean values, standard deviations, probability density functions and their goodness-of-fit have also been investigated for all the entire parameters.

Nutritional, chemical and antioxidant/pro-oxidant profiles of silverskin, a coffee roasting by-product

Coffee silverskin (a coffee roasting by-product) contains high amounts of dietary fibre (49% insoluble and 7% soluble) and protein (19%). Potassium (∼5g/100g), magnesium (2g/100g) and calcium (0.6g/100g) are the major macrominerals. The vitamin E profile of silverskin comprises α-tocopherol, β-tocopherol, ɣ-tocopherol, δ-tocopherol, β-tocotrienol, ɣ-tocotrienol, and δ-tocotrienol. The fatty acid profile is mainly saturated (C16:0 and C22:0), but the total amount of fat is low (2.4%). Caffeine (1.25g/100g), chlorogenic acid (246mg/100g), and 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (5.68mg/100g) are also present in silverskin. Total phenolics and flavonoids are partially responsible for the in vitro antioxidant activity. Silverskin extracts protected erythrocytes from oxidative AAPH- and H2O2-induced hemolysis, but at high concentrations a pro-oxidant effect on erythrocyte morphology was observed.

The Contribution of the Reciprocal-Engagement Model as a Theoretical Framework of a Portuguese Scale for Quality Assessment of Genetic Counseling

We read the seminal article BComing full circle: a reciprocalengagement model of genetic counseling practice^ (McCarthy Veach et al. 2007) that resulted from the process of defining a model of genetic counseling and practice normalization, encompassing contributions from previous models. The Reciprocal-Engagement Model (REM) proposed by the authors served as the theoretical-practical foundations of the recently developed Portuguese scale for quality assessment of genetic counseling (Paneque et al. 2018). To develop the new scale, we carried out a careful analysis of the REM, of its construction process, and of the principles on which it was based. The REM represents a valuable proposal for the interrelationship among theory, research, and practice in genetic counseling. The model is successful in defining the key areas of the genetic counseling process, delineating the provision of information as a fundamental part of that process; defining relationship as an integral part of counseling; and describing autonomy support and the value of counselees’ resilience and emotions along the process (McCarthy Veach et al. 2007). Given that we were designing a scale focused on the genetic counseling process as a whole and not only on its potential effect, we needed to find a model that could serve as framework and allow us to make conceptual and methodological choices. The Reciprocal-Engagement Model and its main components were undoubtedly an indispensable reference in the configuration of the basic structure of our scale and in the determination of the dimensions to be included. Several components of the REM influenced the construction of our scale, but the most important was the understanding of the mutual relationship between counselor and counselee—that is, as the center of the counseling process (McCarthy Veach et al. 2007). However, the main value of the Reciprocal-Engagement Model is to constitute the first proper model of genetic counseling practice. Previous to its proposal, the profession was based on models of mental health and medicine (McCarthy Veach et al. 2002), such as the client-centered model of Rogers (Marks 2003), the Counseling model, and the Teaching model (Kessler 1997). In Portugal, recent studies on counselees’ and professionals’ views highlighted the need for supporting instruments and quality indicators of genetic counseling (Guimarães et al. 2013; Paneque et al. 2015b). In response, a novel tool for quality assessment of genetic counseling using the REMmodel as a theoretical-practical foundation was developed. The definition of an initial pool of items and their organization were based on the literature review, the identification of the main genetic counseling dimensions, and the theoretical dimensions of the REM. After a pre-test validation, the scale was submitted to psychometric validation using a sample of genetic healthcare professionals who evaluated 81 counseling sessions carried out at main national services. Psychometric validation of the scale was performed through the study of psychometric properties as sensibility, reliability, the analysis of principal components, and correlational analysis. The final product was a version with 50 items that comprises five dimensions and its respective sub dimensions: education (provision of genetic information, patient understanding, and establishment of mutual agenda), the * Milena Paneque milenaph@ibmc.up.pt