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This study examines on the association between the accountability and economic performance of Portuguese hospital entities after the entry into force of the new Public Accounting Standards, taking into account stakeholder theory, legitimacy theory, and institutional theory. Furthermore, we investigate whether accountability, underlying procurement, and other entity operations act differently in public and private hospitals. For this purpose, we collected data for 56 Portuguese hospital entities in the period from 2018 to 2022. We conducted a quantitative analysis, testing the hypotheses using econometric regressions estimated with panel data. The results show a reduction in the return on assets for both sectors. Our evidence suggests that being a public hospital entity harms economic performance. In this sector, size and gender positively affect economic performance. Still, the level of provisions negatively affects it. In contrast, in private hospital entities, the determinants of their economic performance are the number of directors (with a negative impact) and provisions (with a positive one). These results show that when hospital entities are committed to governance structures and social responsibility, or environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors underlying sustainability strategies, they can enhance their performance. This article contributes by collecting evidence on the effect of accountability on the performance of public hospital entities, the features of which tend to be different from those of private hospital entities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Pavement Management System (PMS) includes constant assessments of the structural and, mainly, functional conditions of the pavement. An automated collection, performed at traffic speeds, in which human error can be minimized, presents perspectives for PMS optimization. To contribute to the functional pavement assessment process, this study investigated the applicability of the functional inventory process for rigid pavements using equipment with laser crack measurement system (LCMS) technology. Test sections were defined following the traditional method of assessing the surface of the pavement proposed by the Brazilian National Department of Transport Infrastructure (DNIT). Additionally, pavement surface macrotexture was evaluated to serve as a basis for comparison with the results obtained with the use of LCMS technology. The analysis of the repeatability and reproducibility of each technique demonstrated that the use of the LCMS equipment and the procedure of analysis is feasible, and could provide equations to correlate the results obtained via the mechanized and traditional procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to analyse a programme designed to welcome and train new employees, implemented in a chemical industry, privileging the transmission of know-how as a dynamic process where learning is co-constructed in the course of the activity. Design/methodology/approach: The design of the programme was based on the analysis of the work performed in real context by operators and supervisors. The data about the programme's evaluation were collected by questionnaire, assessing the trainees' global development and the impact of the training programme (after six months). Findings: This paper involves designing, planning and implementing "4 × 4 Training", a training programme for young trainees. Combining in-class training with an extensive component of on-the-job mentoring, the programme involved trainees, mentors and internal trainers, monitored by work psychologists. The results show both the trainees and the mentors evaluate the programme positively. The professional transmission stands out as an activity that is thought through and defined in group, assisted by a mentoring relationship of mutual learning. Practical implications: When planning and developing intergenerational transmission processes, it is crucial to consider the organisational conditions, to involve from an early stage the key players of each work situation and to guarantee that the mentoring activity and the productive activity overlap coherently. Originality/value: It is an innovative process to integrate trainees in the chemical industry in Portugal. The methodological approach and the findings provide a first framework that justifies the relevance of the transmission of know-how through a real work situation.

The disruption of mitochondria‐associated endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membranes (MAMs) plays a relevant role in Alzheimer's disease (AD). MAMs have been implicated in neuronal dysfunction and death since it is associated with impairment of functions regulated in this subcellular domain, including lipid synthesis and trafficking, mitochondria dysfunction, ER stress‐induced unfolded protein response (UPR), apoptosis, and inflammation. Since MAMs play an important role in lipid metabolism, in this study we characterized and investigated the lipidome alterations at MAMs in comparison with other subcellular fractions, namely microsomes and mitochondria, using an in vitro model of AD, namely the mouse neuroblastoma cell line (N2A) over‐expressing the APP familial Swedish mutation (APPswe) and the respective control (WT) cells. Phospholipids (PLs) and fatty acids (FAs) were isolated from the different subcellular fractions and analyzed by HILIC‐LC–MS/MS and GC–MS, respectively. In this in vitro AD model, we observed a down‐regulation in relative abundance of some phosphatidylcholine (PC), lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC), and lysophosphatidylethanolamine (LPE) species with PUFA and few PC with saturated and long‐chain FA. We also found an up‐regulation of CL, and antioxidant alkyl acyl PL. Moreover, multivariate analysis indicated that each organelle has a specific lipid profile adaptation in N2A APPswe cells. In the FAs profile, we found an up‐regulation of C16:0 in all subcellular fractions, a decrease of C18:0 levels in total fraction (TF) and microsomes fraction, and a down‐regulation of 9‐C18:1 was also found in mitochondria fraction in the AD model. Together, these results suggest that the over‐expression of the familial APP Swedish mutation affects lipid homeostasis in MAMs and other subcellular fractions and supports the important role of lipids in AD physiopathology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate whether accounting information system quality has an impact on the level and efficiency of firms' investments. While firms' growth depends on investment and financing decisions, accounting information is fundamental for the decision-making of several stakeholders. We assess the accounting information system quality by discretionary accruals, whereas the investment inefficiency is estimated by the residuals of an investment regression for a sample of 3073 Portuguese SMEs from 27 industries, over the period from 2016 to 2021 using a panel regression analysis. The empirical evidence suggests that firms exhibiting higher accounting information system quality tend to invest more. In addition, firms with a lower accounting information system quality have more inefficient investments, as they tend to engage in more overinvestment, although this is not significant for underinvestment. Therefore, this study provides new evidence regarding the impact of accounting information systems on investment that may be useful for several stakeholders, such as managers, creditors, regulators, and academics, by providing evidence for SMEs, where empirical studies are scarce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main source of financing is bank loans for Portuguese small and medium-sized entities (SMEs), which implies several constraints to obtaining additional funds. Relying on the argument of Positive Accounting Theory (PAT) that accounting choices are not neutral and on Agency Theory that information asymmetry prevails between insiders and outsiders, we analyzed the impacts of debt on earnings quality, focusing on its level, its increases, and its term of payment. We estimated econometric regressions using panel data with fixed effects over 2013–2019, using discretionary accruals as an inverse proxy of earnings quality. We found empirical evidence that the relationship between debt and earnings quality tends to vary in sign, as the quality of financial information deteriorates with debt, but as debt becomes high, firms tend to increase the quality of earnings. Furthermore, we found that short-term debt tends to decrease earnings quality more than long-term debt. This article aimed to contribute to the prior literature by collecting evidence that debt levels tend to be an incentive to increase earnings management and fill the gap by analyzing the influence of different debt features. This evidence is useful because earnings management may compromise both stakeholders' confidence and the efficient allocation of capital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: The people with intellectual disabilities have been reported to be a vulnerable population in terms of oral health. This study was carried out to determine the oral health condition and treatment needs of Special Olympics athletes in Brazil. Methods: This study is a retrospective review of oral health data collected from athletes participating in Healthy Athletes Program Special Olympics in Brazil, between the years 2015 and 2019. About 1241 athletes from the Brazil Special Olympics program were screened in the cities of São Paulo, Jundiai and Belo Horizonte (located in southeastern Brazil) and Recife (in northeastern Brazil). At each of these events, volunteer dental professionals performed an oral health screening for each athlete, All oral health assessments were done visually; and extra lighting were available if needed. The examinations were performed with the aid of a wooden spatula of the tongue depressor type and under natural light. The following parameters were recorded: mouth pain, untreated tooth decay, missing teeth, gingival signs, urgency and mouth hygiene habits. Data was analyzed using the STATA 14.0 program. Frequency tables were used for descriptive analyses. Categorical variables were compared between the different years of the event using the Chi‐Square or Fisher's Exact test. Continuous variables were compared between different event years using the Kruskal‐Wallis test followed by Dunn's post‐hoc analyses. Simple logistic regression was used to assess the effect of age on dental assessment results. For all tests, a p‐value was considered significant when less than or equal to.05. Results: No statistically significant differences were observed in the frequencies of Mouth Pain and Missing Teeth over the years (p >.05). In relation to Untreated Tooth Decay, there is a higher frequency in the years 2016 and 2018 and a lower frequency in the year 2015 (p =.048). Regarding Gingival Signs of inflammation, there is a higher frequency in the years 2016 and 2018 and a lower frequency in the year 2017 (p <.001). In relation to cases of urgency (in need of treatment (Urgent treatment need, Non‐Urgent or Maintenance)), there was a higher frequency (no urgency) in 2016 (p =.007). Finally, in relation to mouth hygiene habits, there is a higher frequency of participants with irregular habits in the years 2017 and 2019 (p <.001). Conclusion: The dental condition of Brazilian athletes Special Olympycs Brazil reported in this study from 2015 to 2019 showed us that athletes have a high prevalence of dental diseases and these needs could contribute to health damage. The athletes have many unmet dental treatment needs and these needs are similar in different regions of the country and in the years reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, we present the successful preparation of emissive polysulfone thin films doped with tetracoordinated Tb3+ and Eu3+ complexes, with emission co‐regulated by simultaneous excitation light and heat with controllable emissive pattern. We suggest a ligand driven light induced interaction with polymeric organic host that promotes increased emission in the blue region. Our system lays on dynamic irreversible generation of emissive color from green to cyan. Under commercial 366 nm UV lamp, the unambiguously selected pre‐chosen pattern will emit brighter than non‐irradiated film in the blue region of visible spectrum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The endomembrane system in plant cells enables the cell to manage and coordinate a variety of membranous compartments so that they and their contents arrive at the right location. The secretory pathway is an essential part of this complex network and has its gateway at the Endoplasmic Reticulum. Therefore, alterations at the ER can affect how protein trafficking takes place and how cargo leaves this organelle. With this work, we assessed how abnormalities at the Endoplasmic Reticulum would interfere with protein sorting and trafficking. We used an Arabidopsis mutant--leb-2 GFP-h, presenting abnormal ER morphology, and evaluated the expression of aspartic proteinases and genes related to vacuolar transport along with the localization of a specific vacuolar sorting signal--plant-specific insert (PSI). Our results show that alterations in the leb-2 GFP-h mutant did not disrupt the transport of PSI-mCherry to the vacuole but influenced the expression of endogenous aspartic proteinases. Furthermore, the study of key endomembrane genes expression revealed an upregulation of the SNARE proteins AtVAMP722 and AtVAMP723. The leb-2 mutant seems not to interfere with vacuolar routes but may be implicated in secretion events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increase in global life expectancy, maintaining health into old age becomes a challenge, and research has thus concentrated on various strategies which aimed to mitigate the effects of skin aging. Aromatic plants stand out as promising sources of anti-aging compounds due to their secondary metabolites, particularly essential oils (EOs). The aim of this study was to ascribe to Ferulago lutea EO several biological activities that could be useful in the context of skin aging. The EO was obtained using hydrodistillation and characterized by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The anti-inflammatory potential was assessed using lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated macrophages. The effect on cell migration was disclosed using scratch wound assay. Lipogenesis was induced using T0901317, hyperpigmentation with 3-isobutyl-1-methylxantine (IBMX) and senescence with etoposide. Our results show that the EO was characterized mainly by α-pinene and limonene. The EO was able to decrease nitric oxide (NO) release as well as iNOS and pro-IL-1β protein levels. The EO promoted wound healing while decreasing lipogenesis and having depigmenting effects. The EO also reduced senescence-associated β-galactosidase, p21/p53 protein levels and the nuclear accumulation of γH2AX. Overall, our study highlights the properties of F. lutea EO that make it a compelling candidate for dermocosmetics applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]