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Degree of protein structure disorder in prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms
Nováková, Zuzana ; Vondrášek, Jiří (advisor) ; Feidakis, Christos (referee)
The structure-function paradigm of protein biology has been fundamentally changed in the last three decades by the discovery of intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) and regions (IDRs). These proteins have been identified as critical components in various cellular processes, including signaling, protein-protein interactions, and regulation. While it is apparent that IDPs/IDRs are vital in the function of living organisms, the study of their structure has posed a great challenge. Despite recent advancements in NMR spectroscopy and deep learning algorithms for protein structure prediction, IDPs/IDRs remain a relatively unnkown territory, with significant gaps in knowledge about their behavior and function in living systems. Although IDPs are present in all life forms, their abundance reveals a correlation between organismal complexity and degree of protein disorder. Prokaryotic organisms exhibit a much lower prevalence of IDPs than eukaryotic. Notably, a substantial degree of disorder is observed in unicellular parasitic protists, implying, that IDPs are fundamental in pathogenesis and the progression of diseases like malaria and toxoplasmosis. In humans, malfunctions in IDPs are linked to many conditions, including neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinsons's, Alzheimer's as well as various...
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Chronotherapy as a new trend in the treatment of hypertension
Pafková, Patrícia ; Sumová, Alena (advisor) ; Alánová, Petra (referee)
Hypertension is still the leading cause of death and cardiovascular morbidity worldwide, but its long-term control remains unsatisfactory. Blood pressure is subject to certain variability during 24 hours, when its values are 10-20% lower at night than during the day. Due to the new knowledge that the circadian rhythm exists in almost all organ systems, interest in chronotherapy as a new trend in treatment is growing. This bachelor's thesis points out the importance of respecting circadian rhythms and includes current knowledge about chronotherapy of hypertension, together with an analysis of its benefits in the treatment of high blood pressure. Keywords: hypertension, circadian rhytm, antihypertensives, chronotherapy, blood pressure
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Study of the cytostatic effects of sulfur mustard
Krejčová, Martina ; Pourová, Jana (advisor) ; Vokřál, Ivan (referee)
Charles University Faculty of Pharmacy in Hradec Králové Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology Student: Martina Krejčová Supervisor: doc. PharmDr. Jana Pourová, Ph.D. Consultant: Mgr. Petr Jošt. Ph.D. Title of diploma thesis: Study of the cytostatic effects of sulfur mustard Sulfur mustard (HD) belongs to blistering agents used in chemical warfare. It is a bifunctional alkylating agent that covalently modifies DNA. The cytostatic effect of HD is characterized by halting cell division without cell death. The duration for which a cell can remain in this state depends on the extent of DNA damage, which can subsequently be converted into a cytotoxic effect leading to cell death. The aim of the study was to determine the concentration range of HD gas that exhibits cytostatic effects and to investigate the sensitivity of HaCaT skin keratinocyte cells synchronized in the G1, S, and G2/M phases of the cell cycle to alkylating damage induction following release from cell cycle blockage. The cytostatic effect was observed only at very low concentrations, in the range of units of µmol.l-1 . In our experiments, a concentration of 2 µmol.l-1 of HD prevented cell proliferation for 2 days. Lower, submicromolar concentrations, had a stimulatory effect on cell proliferation, while higher concentrations of HD...
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Evaluation of marine alkaloid fascaplysin as a potential antithrombotic agent
Kolářová, Zuzana ; Carazo Fernández, Alejandro (advisor) ; Lomozová, Zuzana (referee)
Charles University Faculty of Pharmacy in Hradec Králové Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology Student: Zuzana Kolářová Supervisor: PharmDr. Alejandro Carazo, Ph.D. Title of the diploma thesis: Evaluation of marine alkaloid fascaplysin as a potential antithrombotic agent Fascaplysin, a pentacyclic indole alkaloid isolated from marine sponge Fascaplysinopsis bergquist sp., is one of the agents of marine origin that is receiving increasing attention and for which significant advances have been made. Fascaplysin is being investigated for, among other things, antineoplastic properties, where fascaplysin shows promising biological effect as a kinase inhibitor. In this study, the potential antithrombotic properties of this substance, which have not yet been sufficiently investigated, were analysed. For this purpose, plasma from 10 healthy donors was used. Aggregation experiments were performed on an optical aggregometer using platelet-rich plasma prepared from blood. Collagen or arachidonic acid (AK) was used to induce aggregation with or without a pre-incubation with fascaplysin at various concentration ranges. Fascaplysin significantly inhibited platelet aggregation for both agents tested. Collagen induction was inhibited at a significantly lower concentration than AK. Fascaplysin also was not...
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Olfactory adaptations in the deep-sea fishes
Kamrla, Jaroslav ; Musilová, Zuzana (advisor) ; Stopková, Romana (referee)
The goal of this work was to summarize the present knowledge about olfaction in deep-sea fishes. The research on this topic is seldom, however, few interesting studies suggest the importance of olfaction in these inhospitable conditions. After a short introduction of how the olfaction works, individual description of deep-sea adaptations follows. Implications on the importance of a specific sense can be made based on comparisons between individual brain areas responsible for the input of each sense. The importance of individual senses was investigated in mesopelagic and demersal species. Ontogenetic shift in sensory importance is one of the adaptations. Furthermore, sexual dimorphism in the olfactory system. Enlarged olfactory organs in males are most likely responsible for easier localisation of a female. Regarding the olfactory receptor repertoire, a whole genome of a hadal fish from the Mariana trench marked a massive loss of olfactory genes but highlighted their specificity. My own data included in this thesis estimate the number of the olfactory genes in deep-sea fishes for which we lack the high-quality genome. The estimates (albeit with large confidence intervals) suggest rather smaller numbers of genes in most of the species, while there are some species with putatively expanded gene...
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Avian communities of overgrown wetlands near fishponds in the Třeboň basin
Tuháček, Filip ; Hořák, David (advisor) ; Voříšek, Petr (referee)
Wetlands are one of the most unique and threatened biotopes on earth. Encroachment, mainly due to the cessation of traditional management leads to the appearance and spread of shrubs (mostly willows, Salix spp.). ey eventually change the appearance of the wetlands into forest- like habitats. is diploma thesis describes avian communities of overgrown wetlands and compares them with those of non-overgrown wetlands, i.e., reedbeds and low vegetation (mainly sedges, Carex spp.). Although the overgrown wetlands did not have the lowest species and population densities, in comparison with non-overgrown wetlands, the densities of wetland specialists and endangered species, such as Savi's Warbler (Locustella luscinioides), Bluethroat (Luscinia sve- cica), and Water Rail (Rallus aquaticus) were lowest in the willow-dominated wetland compared to non-overgrown. Due to the overgrowth of the wetland, the avian communities are more wo- odland and common bird species, such as Common Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita), Willow Warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus), and Great Tit (Parus major). We also wanted to investigate and compare the invertebrate biomass in overgrown and non-overgrown wetlands. We wanted to find out how avian communities depend on the food resources in wetlands around the South Bohemian fish ponds....
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Effect of temperature on sand fly biology and Leishmania transmission
Charvátová, Lada ; Sádlová, Jovana (advisor) ; Dvořák, Vít (referee)
and keywords The current rise in air temperature causes a range of global changes, affecting many species of organisms and their interactions. Phlebotomine sand flies are small members of Dipteran insects of the family Psychodidae, subfamily Phlebotominae, transmitting Leishmania, parasitic flagellates (Kinetoplastida: Trypanosomatidae) that cause the important human disease leishmaniasis. Based on the literature review, the external temperature significantly affects the biology of sand flies. High temperature accelerates their metabolism and shortens the growth rate of immature stages, also influencing body size and body weight (faster development in higher temperatures makes them smaller). The time needed for blood digestion is also reduced, and female defecation and oviposition are accelerated. On the other hand, cold temperatures prolong growth, and cause lower emergence of adult sand flies, slower digestion of blood, or number of laid eggs. Very high or very low temperatures can cause diapause in the larval stage or eggs. In general, the optimal temperature to cover all of their physiological needs is 24-28 řC. Temperature impacts the development of Leishmania in sand flies as well, it is likely that Leishmania has a lower optimal temperature as opposed to sand flies, and therefore some...
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Synthesis and evaluation of potential antifungal agents
Straková, Jana ; Krátký, Martin (advisor) ; Novotná, Eva (referee)
Mycotic systemic infection is often very severe, whether due to patient immunodeficiency, the side effects of available antifungal agents, or clinical or drug resistance. Emphasis should therefore be placed on the timely determination of the correct diagnosis, appropriate indications of current drugs, and especially the development of new antifungal agents (ATM). The core of all synthesized compounds is the molecule of itaconic acid (IA) or its anhydride. The starting molecule was chosen based on its broad spectrum of biological activities, including antibacterial and antifungal activities. The aim was to create ten monoamides using a one-step synthesis of IA anhydride with the appropriate chlorinated aniline. These monoamides were then cyclized to form ten imides. The yields of the reactions to form the monoamides were high, with two exceptions (24% and 31%), and were generally above 80%. The yields of the reactions to form the imides were lower, ranging from 29% to 86%. The antimicrobial activity was tested using the broth microdilution method for all imides and most monoamides. All compounds were ineffective against gram-negative bacteria, and very low activity against gram-positive bacteria was shown by the compounds 1-(2,4,6-trichlorophenyl)-3-methylene-2,5-pyrrolidinedione,...
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Evaluation of the functionality of ecoducts using GIS
Benešová, Eliška ; Matějíček, Luboš (advisor) ; Brůna, Josef (referee)
This thesis deals with the evaluation of ecoducts using GIS, represented by the ArcGIS Pro software tool. We present a new, systematic view on the evaluation of ecoducts, which is directly applicable also in the process of planning their construction. We conclude that the majority of ecoducts in the Czech Republic is not built in an unquestionably correct way in terms of their primary purpose. At the same time, however, most of these ecoducts meet at least some of the assessed criteria; we can therefore reasonably assume that they will be used, albeit with a lower preference. The thesis provides a basis for this view and can be expanded by adding additional evaluated criteria. The validity of the methods and results of this work should be verifiable by field research. Key words: ecoduct, GIS, remote sensing, fragmentation, architecture, linear infrastructure
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THERMAL DECOMPOSITION OF SOLID BIOFUELS AND ASSOCIATED FINE PARTICLE GENERATION
Sitek, Tomáš ; Ličbinský, Roman (referee) ; Svěrák, Tomáš (referee) ; Pospíšil, Jiří (advisor)
Despite otherwise indisputable advantages, biomass burning is associated with significant emissions of fine particles. The different behavior of dissimilar types of biomass during thermal decomposition can be explained to some extent by the different composition, i.e. the different content of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. The main aim of this work was to find the emission characteristics of these three components during heating in a thermogravimetric analyzer. The monitored parameters were the heating rate and the oxygen content in the combustion atmosphere. The output is the dependence of the sample mass and also the corresponding distributions of particles on the temperature. The results show considerable differences between the individual samples, but in general the pyrolysis of cellulose produces the highest particle emissions. Higher oxygen content in the combustion atmosphere and lower heating rates cause earlier sample decomposition and reduce particulate emissions. This is followed by an evaluation of the transferability to a sample of a real biomass based on its known composition using a simple weighted arithmetic mean. Useful information on particle sampling and electron microscope visualization, supplemented by images of particles from the pyrolysis of selected samples can also be found in this work.
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