The future of endemic and threatened birds of the Amazon in the face of global climate change.

The anthropogenic impacts on the environment, including deforestation and the escalating emissions of greenhouse gases, have significantly contributed to global climate change that can lead to alterations in ecosystems. In this context, protected areas (PAs) are pillars for biodiversity conservation by being able, for example, to maintain the viability of populations of endangered species. On the other hand, the species range shifts do not follow the limits of PAs, jeopardizing the conservation of these species. Furthermore, the effectiveness of PAs is consistently undermined by impacts stemming from land use, hunting activities, and illegal exploitation, both within the designated areas and in their adjacent zones. The objectives of this study are to quantify the impacts of climate change on the distribution of threatened and endemic birds of the Amazon biome, evaluate the effectiveness of PAs in protecting the richness of threatened birds, and analyze the representativeness of species within PAs. We found with our results that climate suitability loss is above 80 for 65% of taxa in the optimistic scenario and above 93% in the pessimistic scenario. The results show that PAs are not effective in protecting the richness of Amazonian birds, just as they are ineffective in protecting most of the taxa studied when analyzed individually Although some taxa are presented as "Protected," in future scenarios these taxa may suffer major shrinkages in their distributions and consequently present population unviability. The loss of climatically suitable areas and the effectiveness of PAs can directly influence the loss of ecosystem services, fundamental to maintaining the balance of biodiversity. Therefore, our study paves the way for conservation actions aimed at these taxa so that they can mitigate current and future extinctions due to climate change.

The Effect of Death Anxiety on Work Passion: Moderating Roles of Work Centrality and Work Connection.

Fear of death is an emotional manifestation of the instinct for self-preservation. Any threat to our existence induces an anxiety response. Death anxiety can trigger obsessive-compulsive behaviours, such as an obsessive passion for work. Using a sample of 314 participants (68.2% female), with a mean age of 38.97 years (SD = 10.36), this study sought to observe the predictive effect of death anxiety on work passion, as well as the moderating effect of work-family centrality and connection on the relationship between anxiety and passion. The results revealed that death anxiety negatively affects harmonious passion, and positively affects obsessive passion. Work centrality did not moderate the influence of death anxiety on harmonious and obsessive passion. Nonetheless, work connection moderated the influence of death anxiety on harmonious passion. The negative influence of death anxiety on harmonious passion was greater in a group with high work connection than a group with low connection.

Deep vein thrombosis of lower limbs in patients with COVID-19.

As knowledge has accumulated, COVID-19 has come to be considered a disease of the respiratory system that can also cause multisystemic involvement. This study analyzed the prevalence of deep venous thrombosis (DVT) in the lower limbs of patients with COVID-19 by conducting an integrative review of the literature published from 2019 to 2022. The procedures involved in article selection were identification of keywords, definition of the search strategy, consultation of databases, and exclusion of duplicate articles and others that did not meet the review objectives. Exclusion of articles was based on the following exclusion criteria: articles on arterial vascular complications involving the lower limbs, laboratory experiments, cases reports describing venous and arterial complications involving other sites, and articles unrelated to the outcome of interest: DVT. A total of 284 articles were identified, 42 of which were included. There was considerable variability in the prevalence of DVT among patients with COVID-19 (range: 0.43 to 60.87%). The findings suggest that occurrence of DVT in patients with COVID-19 is associated with disease severity.

Effects of chronic restraint stress in the prostate of prepubertal and adult rats.

PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of chronic stress in the prostate of prepubertal and adult rats. METHODS: Thirty-two male rats were assigned into four groups depending on the type of treatment (control or stressed) and the age at which stress was initiated (prepubertal or adult). Restraint stress stimuli were applied for six weeks. Stressed prepubertal and adult rats evaluated immediately after the last stress stimuli were named SP and SA groups, respectively. Age-matched rats were used as control groups (CP and CA). At the end of the experiment, the rats were euthanized, and prostate morphological parameters were evaluated and statistically compared. RESULTS: Application of stress stimuli to the SP group resulted in reduced body weight, but no prostate morphological modification was noted. The SA group showed reduced testosterone level and prostatic epithelium surface density, in comparison to CA group. Further, the prostatic lumen surface density was increased in adult stressed animals, in comparison to adult controls. CONCLUSIONS: The stress stimuli promoted changes in hormonal and morphological parameters in the prostate of adult stressed rats. Prepubertal stressed animals did not presented modifications of prostate morphology.

A experiência da escrita para uma construção cartográfica: caderno digital itinerante como dispositivo / The writing experience for a cartographic construction: itinerant digital notebook as a device / La experiencia de escritura para una construcción cartográfica: el cuaderno digital itinerante como dispositivo

O objetivo deste trabalho foi discutir acerca da utilização de um dispositivo de pesquisa: o caderno digital itinerante, a partir do qual foi possível promover a construção conjunta de uma pesquisa, partindo do método cartográfico. A pesquisa de campo que deu origem a esta reflexão metodológica teve por objetivo principal cartografar experiências sapatão na cidade, por meio da construção conjunta de um caderno digital itinerante no qual as participantes, juntamente com a pesquisadora, escreviam sobre suas experiências como mulheres lésbicas e/ou pessoas que se reconheciam enquanto sapatão. Tendo como um dos instrumentos a análise do diário de campo, produzido durante a pesquisa, foi possível discutir em profundidade o enfoque metodológico adotado e questionar a dicotomia pesquisadora-objeto, provocando algumas reflexões acerca da temática da participação e do desenvolvimento de pesquisas on-line, sobretudo no período pandêmico. Por fim, apostar na cartografia enquanto método de pesquisa com e não sobre permitiu a produção de uma pesquisadora sapatão que pudesse se ocupar da escuta, lendo sobre diferentes processos de subjetivação e, com isso, produzindo outros sentidos para seu objeto de pesquisa. (AU)

The aim of this study was to discuss the use of a research tool: the itinerant digital notebook, which facilitated the collaborative construction of research based on the cartographic method. The field research that gave rise to this methodological reflection aimed to map dyke experiences in the city through the collaborative construction of an itinerant digital notebook. In this note-book, participants, alongside the researcher, wrote about their experiences as lesbian women and/or individuals who identified as dykes. Using the analysis of the field diary produced during the research as one of the instruments, it was possible to deeply discuss the adopted methodological approach and question the researcher-object dichotomy, prompting reflections on the theme of participation and the development of online research, especially during the pandemic period. Ultimately, embracing cartography as a research method with, not on, participants allowed the production of a dyke researcher who could engage in listening, reading about different processes of subjectivation, and thereby generating alternative meanings for her object of study. (AU)

El objetivo de este trabajo fue discutir el uso de un dispositivo de investigación: el cuaderno digital itinerante, a partir del cual fue posible promover la cons-trucción conjunta de una investigación, a partir del método cartográfico. La investigación de campo que dio origen a esta reflexión metodológica tuvo como objetivo principal mapear las experiencias lesbianas en la ciudad, a través de la construcción conjunta de un cuaderno digital itinerante en el que las parti-cipantes, junto con la investigadora, escribieron sobre sus experiencias como lesbianas y/o personas que se reconocían como bolleras/camioneras. Teniendo como uno de los instrumentos el análisis del diario de campo producido durante la investigación, fue posible discutir en profundidad el abordaje metodológico adoptado y cuestionar la dicotomía investigadora-objeto, provocando algunas reflexiones sobre el tema de la participación y el desarrollo de investigación, especialmente en el período de pandemia. Finalmente, apostar por la carto-grafía como método de investigación con participantes y no sobre las partici-pantes permitió producir una investigadora lesbiana que podía ocuparse de escuchar, leer sobre diferentes procesos de subjetivación y, con eso, producir otros significados para su objeto de investigación. (AU)

Predicting the future of threatened birds from a Neotropical ecotone area.

Climate change affects ecosystems in different ways. These effects are particularly worrying in the Neotropical region, where species are most vulnerable to these changes because they live closer to their thermal safety limits. Thus, establishing conservation priorities, particularly for the definition of protected areas (PAs), is a priority. However, some PA systems within the Neotropics are ineffective even under the present environmental conditions. Here, we test the effectiveness of a PA system, within an ecotone in northern Brazil, in protecting 24 endangered bird species under current and future (RCP8.5) climatic scenarios. We used species distribution modeling and dispersal corridor modeling to describe the priority areas for conservation of these species. Our results indicate that several threatened bird taxa are and will potentially be protected (i.e., occur within PAs). Nonetheless, the amount of protected area is insufficient to maintain the species in the ecotone. Moreover, most taxa will probably present drastic declines in their range sizes; some are even predicted to go globally extinct soon. Thus, we highlight the location of a potentially effective system of dispersal corridors that connects PAs in the ecotone. We reinforce the need to implement public policies and raise public awareness to maintain PAs and mitigate anthropogenic effects within them, corridors, and adjacent areas, aiming to conserve the richness and diversity of these already threatened species.

Restorative Effects of Biophilic Workplace and Nature Exposure during Working Time: A Systematic Review.

The work environment plays a crucial role in the health and performance of employees. The growing interest in workers' well-being has driven the inclusion of nature in workplaces, despite many employees spending most of their time indoors, away from nature. Studies show that biophilic design in offices can have positive effects and promote workers' well-being. However, research on the beneficial effects of nature exposure in the workplace is limited and scattered. Thus, the aim of this systematic review was to consolidate current knowledge on the restorative effects of nature exposure on workers during work activities. Different types of exposure, both outdoors and indoors, were considered, with a focus on outcomes related to well-being, motivation, job satisfaction, and work performance. Out of the initially identified 1225 articles, only 16 met the criteria for analysis. Although the analysed studies provided compelling evidence regarding the restorative effects of nature exposure in the workplace, the review also points out gaps and limitations concerning the number of specific studies in this area and the need to adequately assess the sensory dimensions involved in these effects. Conducting more comprehensive and multidimensional investigations into the impacts of nature on the work environment could contribute to guiding more effective design strategies and creating healthier and more productive workplaces for employees.

Climate change and carnivores: shifts in the distribution and effectiveness of protected areas in the Amazon.

Background: Carnivore mammals are animals vulnerable to human interference, such as climate change and deforestation. Their distribution and persistence are affected by such impacts, mainly in tropical regions such as the Amazon. Due to the importance of carnivores in the maintenance and functioning of the ecosystem, they are extremely important animals for conservation. We evaluated the impact of climate change on the geographic distribution of carnivores in the Amazon using Species Distribution Models (SDMs). Do we seek to answer the following questions: (1) What is the effect of climate change on the distribution of carnivores in the Amazon? (2) Will carnivore species lose or gain representation within the Protected Areas (PAs) of the Amazon in the future? Methods: We evaluated the distribution area of 16 species of carnivores mammals in the Amazon, based on two future climate scenarios (RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5) for the year 2070. For the construction of the SDMs we used bioclimatic and vegetation cover variables (land type). Based on these models, we calculated the area loss and climate suitability of the species, as well as the effectiveness of the protected areas inserted in the Amazon. We estimated the effectiveness of PAs on the individual persistence of carnivores in the future, for this, we used the SDMs to perform the gap analysis. Finally, we analyze the effectiveness of PAs in protecting taxonomic richness in future scenarios. Results: The SDMs showed satisfactory predictive performance, with Jaccard values above 0.85 and AUC above 0.91 for all species. In the present and for the future climate scenarios, we observe a reduction of potencial distribution in both future scenarios (RCP4.5 and RCP8.5), where five species will be negatively affected by climate change in the RCP 4.5 future scenario and eight in the RCP 8.5 scenario. The remaining species stay stable in terms of total area. All species in the study showed a loss of climatic suitability. Some species lost almost all climatic suitability in the RCP 8.5 scenario. According to the GAP analysis, all species are protected within the PAs both in the current scenario and in both future climate scenarios. From the null models, we found that in all climate scenarios, the PAs are not efficient in protecting species richness.

What is the effect of Tribulus terrestris on testicular morphology and sperm production? An experimental study in the rat model.

The objective of this study was to investigate whether treatment with Tribulus terrestris (Tt) has any impact on the testicular morphology and function in a rodent model. Twenty male rats were divided into a control group and a group receiving 100 mg kg-1 body weight of Tt supplementation. After 40 days of experiment, the animals were submitted to euthanasia; epididymal tail spermatozoa were collected; and spermatozoa concentration, motility, and viability were analyzed. In addition, testicles were collected and processed for histomorphometrical analyses. Data were compared using the Student's t-test and considered significant when P < 0.05. Spermatozoa concentration, motility, and viability showed no difference between the groups. Further, testicular weight and volume, seminiferous tubule diameter, tunica propria surface density, seminiferous epithelium surface density, and intertubular compartment surface density were statistically similar between the groups. However, seminiferous epithelium height and tubular lumen surface density were augmented in animals treated with Tt. Treatment with Tt does not cause a major impact on testicular morphology, promoting only subtle modifications. No difference on spermatozoa parameters was observed.

LPS-Induced Mortality in Zebrafish: Preliminary Characterisation of Common Fish Pathogens.

Disease outbreaks are a common problem in aquaculture, with serious economic consequences to the sector. Some of the most important bacterial diseases affecting aquaculture are caused by Gram-negative bacteria including Vibrio spp. (vibriosis), Photobacterium damselae (photobacteriosis), Aeromonas spp. (furunculosis; haemorrhagic septicaemia) or Tenacibaculum maritimum (tenacibaculosis). Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) are important components of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria and have been linked to strong immunogenic responses in terrestrial vertebrates, playing a role in disease development. To evaluate LPS effects in fish, we used a hot-phenol procedure to extract LPS from common fish pathogens. A. hydrophila, V. harveyi, T. maritimum and P. damselae purified LPS were tested at different concentrations (50, 100, 250 and 500 µg mL-1) at 3 days post-fertilisation (dpf) Danio rerio larvae, for 5 days. While P. damselae LPS did not cause any mortality under all concentrations tested, A. hydrophila LPS induced 15.5% and V. harveyi LPS induced 58.3% of zebrafish larvae mortality at 500 µg mL-1. LPS from T. maritimum was revealed to be the deadliest, with a zebrafish larvae mortality percentage of 80.6%. Analysis of LPS separated by gel electrophoresis revealed differences in the overall LPS structure between the bacterial species analysed that might be the basis for the different mortalities observed.

Multi-temporal ecological niche modeling for bird conservation in the face of climate change scenarios in Caatinga, Brazil.

Background: Global shifts in climatic patterns have been recorded over the last decades. Such modifications mainly correspond to increased temperatures and rainfall regime changes, which are becoming more variable and extreme. Methods: We aimed to evaluate the impact of future changes in climatic patterns on the distribution of 19 endemic or threatened bird taxa of the Caatinga. We assessed whether current protected areas (PAs) are adequate and whether they will maintain their effectiveness in the future. Also, we identified climatically stable areas that might work as refugia for an array of species. Results: We observed that 84% and 87% of the bird species of Caatinga analyzed in this study will face high area losses in their predicted range distribution areas in future scenarios (RCP4.5 and RCP8.5, respectively). We also observed that the current PAs in Caatinga are ineffective in protecting these species in both present and future scenarios, even when considering all protection area categories. However, several suitable areas can still be allocated for conservation, where there are vegetation remnants and a high amount of species. Therefore, our study paves a path for conservation actions to mitigate current and future extinctions due to climate change by choosing more suitable protection areas.

Transcriptomic Analysis of Long Non-Coding RNA during Candida albicans Infection.

Candida albicans is one of the most commonly found species in fungal infections. Due to its clinical importance, molecular aspects of the host immune defense against the fungus are of interest to biomedical sciences. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been investigated in different pathologies and gained widespread attention regarding their role as gene regulators. However, the biological processes in which most lncRNAs perform their function are still unclear. This study investigates the association between lncRNAs with host response to C. albicans using a public RNA-Seq dataset from lung samples of female C57BL/6J wild-type Mus musculus with induced C. albicans infection. The animals were exposed to the fungus for 24 h before sample collection. We selected lncRNAs and protein-coding genes related to the host immune response by combining the results from different computational approaches used for gene selection: differential expression gene analysis, co-expression genes network analysis, and machine learning-based gene selection. Using a guilt by association strategy, we inferred connections between 41 lncRNAs and 25 biological processes. Our results indicated that nine up-regulated lncRNAs were associated with biological processes derived from the response to wounding: 1200007C13Rik, 4833418N02Rik, Gm12840, Gm15832, Gm20186, Gm38037, Gm45774, Gm4610, Mir22hg, and Mirt1. Additionally, 29 lncRNAs were related to genes involved in immune response, while 22 lncRNAs were associated with processes related to reactive species production. These results support the participation of lncRNAs during C. albicans infection, and may contribute to new studies investigating lncRNA functions in the immune response.

The Effect of Multicultural Attitudes and Perceived Intergroup Threat on Attitudes Towards Immigrants in Portugal: A Polynomial Regression With Response Surface Analysis.

Supported by the Intergroup Threat Theory (ITT), this study analyzes the effect of multicultural ideology on attitudes towards immigrants mediated by realistic, symbolic, and zero-sum threats. With a sample of Portuguese participants (N = 404)), polynomial regression analysis with response surface methodology was used to test the effects of multicultural attitude (MA) and perceived intergroup threat (PIT) on attitudes towards immigrants (ATI). This study also tested a model in which positive MA leads to a lower PIT, and consequently to more favorable ATI. Four hypotheses were proposed; all of which were confirmed. The results further showed that the direction of discrepancy between MA and PIT can provide a more comprehensive understanding of the complex role of multicultural ideology in predicting ATI. Findings, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.

Trombose venosa profunda de membros inferiores em pacientes com covid-19 / Deep vein thrombosis of lower limbs in patients with COVID-19

Resumo Com o avanço do conhecimento, a covid-19 passou a ser considerada uma doença do sistema respiratório, podendo ter comprometimento multissistêmico. Analisou-se a prevalência de trombose venosa profunda (TVP) em membros inferiores em pacientes acometidos pela covid-19 através de uma pesquisa de revisão integrativa, considerando o período de 2019 a 2022. Os procedimentos utilizados para a seleção dos artigos foram identificação das palavras-chave, elaboração da estratégia de busca, consulta em bases de dados e exclusão dos artigos em duplicata e outros. A exclusão foi feita com base nos seguintes critérios: artigos sobre complicações vasculares arteriais em membros inferiores, pesquisas laboratoriais, relatos de casos referentes a complicações venosas e arteriais em outros sítios e artigos não relacionados ao desfecho de TVP. Do total de 284 artigos, foram incluídos 42. Observou-se grande variabilidade na prevalência de TVP em pacientes com covid-19 (0,43 a 60,87%). Sugere-se que a ocorrência de TVP em pacientes com covid-19 está associada à gravidade desta doença.

Abstract As knowledge has accumulated, COVID-19 has come to be considered a disease of the respiratory system that can also cause multisystemic involvement. This study analyzed the prevalence of deep venous thrombosis (DVT) in the lower limbs of patients with COVID-19 by conducting an integrative review of the literature published from 2019 to 2022. The procedures involved in article selection were identification of keywords, definition of the search strategy, consultation of databases, and exclusion of duplicate articles and others that did not meet the review objectives. Exclusion of articles was based on the following exclusion criteria: articles on arterial vascular complications involving the lower limbs, laboratory experiments, cases reports describing venous and arterial complications involving other sites, and articles unrelated to the outcome of interest: DVT. A total of 284 articles were identified, 42 of which were included. There was considerable variability in the prevalence of DVT among patients with COVID-19 (range: 0.43 to 60.87%). The findings suggest that occurrence of DVT in patients with COVID-19 is associated with disease severity.

Effects of chronic restraint stress in the prostate of prepubertal and adult rats

Purpose: To investigate the effects of chronic stress in the prostate of prepubertal and adult rats. Methods: Thirty-two male rats were assigned into four groups depending on the type of treatment (control or stressed) and the age at which stress was initiated (prepubertal or adult). Restraint stress stimuli were applied for six weeks. Stressed prepubertal and adult rats evaluated immediately after the last stress stimuli were named SP and SA groups, respectively. Age-matched rats were used as control groups (CP and CA). At the end of the experiment, the rats were euthanized, and prostate morphological parameters were evaluated and statistically compared. Results: Application of stress stimuli to the SP group resulted in reduced body weight, but no prostate morphological modification was noted. The SA group showed reduced testosterone level and prostatic epithelium surface density, in comparison to CA group. Further, the prostatic lumen surface density was increased in adult stressed animals, in comparison to adult controls. Conclusions: The stress stimuli promoted changes in hormonal and morphological parameters in the prostate of adult stressed rats. Prepubertal stressed animals did not presented modifications of prostate morphology.

Oral vaccination of fish against vibriosis using spore-display technology.

Oral vaccines are highly demanded by the aquaculture sector, to allow mass delivery of antigens without using the expensive and labor-intensive injectable vaccines. These later require individual handling of fish, provoking stress-related mortalities. One possible strategy to create injection-free vaccine delivery vehicles is the use of bacterial spores, extremely resistant structures with wide biotechnological applications, including as probiotics, display systems, or adjuvants. Bacterial spores, in particular those of Bacillus subtilis, have been shown to behave as mucosal vaccine adjuvants in mice models. However, such technology has not been extensively explored against fish bacterial disease. In this study, we used a laboratory strain of B. subtilis, for which a variety of genetic manipulation tools are available, to display at its spores surface either a Vibrio antigenic protein, OmpK, or the green fluorescence protein, GFP. When previously vaccinated by immersion with the OmpK- carrying spores, zebrafish survival upon a bacterial challenge with V. anguillarum and V. parahaemolyticus, increased up to 50 - 90% depending on the pathogen targeted. Further, we were able to detect anti-GFP-antibodies in the serum of European seabass juveniles fed diets containing the GFP-carrying spores and anti-V. anguillarum antibodies in the serum of European seabass juveniles fed the OmpK-carrying spores containing diet. More important, seabass survival was increased from 60 to 86% when previously orally vaccinated with in-feed OmpK- carrying spores. Our results indicate that B. subtilis spores can effectively be used as antigen-carriers for oral vaccine delivery in fish.

Characterization of novel of temperate phages of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from bovine milk.

Bovine mastitis is an important disease in dairy cows, and Staphylococcus aureus is the most prevalent microorganism. Bacteriophages are considered an alternative to treat bacterial infections due to antimicrobial resistance crisis. In this study, we isolated and characterized novel S. aureus temperate phages, namely B_UFSM4 and B_UFSM5, from bovine milk. The complete genomes of B_UFSM4 and B_UFSM5 have 41.396 bp and 41.829 bp, respectively. The viruses have double-stranded DNA and linear architecture. Phylogenic similarity was observed by proteome with Staphylococcus phage phiPV83, CN125 and JS01. Therefore, the phages were classified into the family Siphoviridae, genus Biseptimavirus and order Caudovirales. In the host range, the B_UFSM4 and B_UFSM5 had lytic activity of 45.8% and 54.16%, respectively, inclusive on isolates from Staphylococcus sciuri and Rothia terrae. Thus, in this study, species novel of S. aureus temperate phages was isolated and characterized, these phages reveal similarities to each other; however, they are distinct from other species of S. aureus phages of the family Siphoviridae.

Propriedades psicométricas da escala de Civic Engagement de Doolitle e Faul (2013) numa amostra portuguesa / Psychometric properties of the Doolitle and Faul Civic Engagement scale (2013) in a Portuguese sample / Propriedades psicométricas de la escala de Civic Engagement de Doolitle y Faul (2013) en una muestra portuguesa

O objetivo deste estudo é analisar as propriedades psicométricas da escala de Engagement Cívico (Doolitle, & Faul, 2013) numa amostra portuguesa. Foi aplicado um processo de tradução-retrotradução dos itens do questionário, cujas caraterísticas psicométricas foram analisadas através de uma amostra de 539 participantes. Os dados foram submetidos a uma análise fatorial confirmatória, análise fatorial confirmatória multigrupo, análise de itens e análise de confiabilidade. Os resultados confirmaram a estrutura original, bifatorial, atitudes cívicas e comportamentos cívicos. As propriedades psicométricas da versão em Português da escala de Engagement Cívico são adequadas, o que permite a utilização deste questionário na população Portuguesa. Pesquisas futuras devem investigar a estabilidade temporal.(AU)

The purpose of this study was to analyze the psychometric properties of the Civic Engagement Scale (Doolittle & Faul, 2013) in a Portuguese sample. A translation-back translation process of the items was carried out, with the psychometric characteristics analyzed using a sample of 539 participants. The data were subjected to confirmatory factor analysis, multi-group confirmatory factorial analysis, item analysis and reliability analysis. The results confirmed the bifactor structure, civic attitudes and civic behaviors. The psychometric properties of the Portuguese version of the Civic Engagement scale were adequate, which allows the use of this questionnaire in the Portuguese population. Future studies should analyze the temporal stability.(AU)

El objetivo de este estudio fue analizar las propiedades psicométricas de la Civic Engagement (Doolitle, & Faul, 2013) en una muestra portuguesa. Se aplicó un proceso de retrotraducción de los ítems del cuestionario, cuyas características psicométricas se analizaron a través de una muestra de 539 participantes. Los datos fueron sometidos a un análisis factorial confirmatorio, análisis factorial confirmatorio multigrupo, análisis de ítems y análisis de confiabilidad. Los resultados confirmaron la estructura bifactorial original, actitudes cívicas y comportamientos cívicos. Las propiedades psicométricas de la versión portuguesa del Civic Engagement son adecuados, lo que permite el uso de este cuestionario en la población portuguesa. Futuras investigaciones deben explorar la estabilidad temporal.(AU)

COVID-19 vulnerability among Brazilian sexual and gender minorities: a cross-sectional study.

Minority groups are more prone to worsen their personal and social vulnerabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to identify factors associated with the highest COVID-19 vulnerability in the Brazilian sexual and gender minorities. This is a cross-sectional study based on 826 respondents of the Brazilian LGBT+ Health Survey, conducted online from August to November 2020. The COVID-19 vulnerability was based on a previous vulnerability index created by an LGBT+ institution, which comprises three dimensions (income, COVID-19 exposure, and health). The outcome was the highest score quartile. Statistical analysis was based on logistic regression models. The COVID-19 vulnerability was higher in heterosexual and other scarce sexual orientations (OR = 2.34; 95%CI: 1.01-9.20, vs. homosexual), cisgender men (OR = 3.52; 95%CI: 1.35-4.44, vs. cisgender women), and those aged ≥ 50 years (OR = 3.74; 95%CI: 1.24-11.25, vs. 18-29 years old). A negative association was found with complete graduate education (OR = 0.06; 95%CI: 0.02-0.22, vs. complete high school), being white (OR = 0.44; 95%CI: 0.23-0.83), and proper facemask use (OR = 0.31; 95%CI: 0.13-0.76). Except for proper facemask use, factors associated with higher COVID-19 vulnerability are structural determinate and suggest overlapping vulnerabilities, as described by the syndemic model. It guides strategies to deal with the pandemic, which includes a joint approach to the common epidemic that affects sexual and gender minorities, broadening the intersectoral approach to decrease inequalities.