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Development of regulatory T cells and their role in autoimmune diseases
Tomicová, Kateřina ; Hadlová, Petra (advisor) ; Vašek, Daniel (referee)
T regulatory lymphocytes (Treg) are the basic cell population of the immune system. They play a role in suppression of immune responses, maintenance of homeostasis of the body and tolerance of its own tissues. Tregs develop in the thymus from bone marrow progenitors, similar to other T lymphocytes. At the same time, they also develop in the periphery from mature helper T lymphocytes due to the cytokines IL-2 and TGF-β. The key molecule that characterizes Treg is the transcription factor FOXP3 expressed in the nukleus. Other molecules typically found on the surface of Treg include the surface molecules IL-2RA, CTLA-4, ICOS, GITR, TIGIT and PD-1. FOXP3 is an essential molecule for Treg suppressive function and stability. Stability is ensured by hypomethylation and histone modifications of the FOXP3 gene. Deficiency of Treg cells can cause autoimmune diseases such as IPEX, APECED and DiGeorge syndrome, demonstrating the importance of these cells for proper immune function. Studying the mechanisms of Treg cell function and understanding how to maintain their stability is contributing to a large body of research that seeks to exploit their unique properties in therapies and treatments for autoimmune and cancer diseases. Treg cell therapy is developing in two main directions. The first focuses on the...
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Genotype-phenotype correlation in rare diseases using Human Phenotype Ontology to improve molecular genomic diagnostic methods
Schwarz, Martin ; Macek, Milan (advisor) ; Šípek, Antonín (referee) ; Velemínská, Jana (referee)
Rare diseases are a diverse group of mostly inherited diseases with a very low prevalence of less than 1/2000 in the population. Identification of new genetic variants associated with these specific diseases is important for accurate and effective diagnosis and therapy. A variety of laboratory methods is used to identify genetic variants, including non-targeted methods such as aCGH and massive parallel sequencing of gene panels, exome or whole genome. The data obtained contains a number of benign findings and distinguishing them is not easy. In order to refine the filtering of variants according to the clinical features of the patient, the terminology of Human Phenotype Ontology was created. It is a structured ontology of individual phenotypic traits, its use increases the detection rate of genetic methods. This extensive terminology has been translated into Czech language and is ready for use. Furthermore, we present five cases in which the Human Phenotype Ontology terms were used to successfully find a causative variant. The first patients are monozygotic twins with Zimmermann-Laband syndrome and a heterozygous pathogenic variant c.1606G>A p.(Ala536Thr) in the KCNN3 gene. Their phenotype is unusually mild, the absence of gingival fibromatosis is a surprising finding. The second case report is a patient...
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Torque teno virus - a marker of immune function
Řídel, Martin ; Saláková, Martina (advisor) ; Horníková, Lenka (referee)
Anelloviruses are a viral family of small, uncoated viruses with single-stranded DNA genome, in which Torque teno virus belongs. Torque teno virus is highly prevalent in human population and its prevalence is expected to be 100 %. To date, its patogenity has not been confirmed and more, it was discovered that the viral load reflects the immune status. Considering its high prevalence without causing any pathogenity, it is possible its use in clinical practice in monitoring the immunocompetence of patients with transplanted organs but also in patients with chronic viral infections (eg. HIV or HCV) or autoimmune disorders. Thus, Torque teno virus could provide an easy and alternative option for assesing immune status and help monitoring patient's status. Key words: Torque teno virus, immune system, biomarker, viral load
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Biology and ecological dynamics of Baltic Fucus belts
Kivader, Martin ; Neustupa, Jiří (advisor) ; Němcová, Yvonne (referee)
The belt-forming algae of the genus Fucus are key species of the otherwise species-poor Baltic Sea. The distribution of the Fucus species is limited by the reduced salinity of brackish water to which the Baltic populations have adapted. The genus Fucus is known for high phenotypic plasticity and the absence of reproductive barriers, complicating the study of its recent radiation. The recent speciacion of the Baltic endemic F. radicans from locally adapted F. vesiculosus populations probably happened twice independenly 2 500-400 years ago. Baltic Sea is the largest brackish ecosystem characterised by a pronounced salinity gradient ranging from 1.2 to 30.2 ‰. It is influenced by the discharge of over 200 rivers and water exchange with the ocean is limited by the shallow Danish Straits. Since 1970s, Fucus decline and local extinction due to eutrophication of the Baltic Sea have been reported. Baltic water has high residence time which leads to accumulation of nutrients. In 1974, Helsinki Commission was established and the Helsinki Convention on the protection of the Baltic Sea Area was signed in response to its worsening state. Fucus belts, however, continue to decline and their ability for recovery is limited. Increased sedimentation due to eutrophication has in many locations resulted in the loss of...
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The role of the FAR5 gene in alpine adaptation of Arabidopsis arenosa
Poštulková, Alžběta ; Bohutínská, Magdalena (advisor) ; Munclinger, Pavel (referee)
The repeated adaptation presents a unique opportunity to study the mechanisms of evolution in natural replicates. Repeated adaptation of Arabidopsis arenosa, a wild relative of the model organism Arabidopsis thaliana, to the alpine environment was previously studied. Genomic analysis by selection scans revealed a set of candidate alleles. Here, I present a functional follow-up study of a candidate alpine-adaptive allele of FAR5. Specifically, I asked: What are the characteristics of the alpine (A) allele compared to the foothill (F) allele? Is there any phenotypic effect of the two different alleles of FAR5? What are the environmental factors shaping the distribution of the alpine allele of FAR5 among the populations of A. arenosa? I first demonstrated that natural variation in FAR5 played a role in adaptation to the alpine environment: I identified four SNPs that were positively selected in the alpine populations across all five high altitude colonizations of A. arenosa. Three of these SNPs are coding and are linked together, forming a distinct alpine allele of the FAR5 protein. Using a unique crossing design based on a natural standing variation of the two identified FAR5 alleles, I prepared carriers of the non-native alleles on the genomic background of foothill and alpine populations. I then...
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Labour market participation of seniors in South Korea in relation to the demographic aging
Pavlátová, Jolana ; Hulíková Tesárková, Klára (advisor) ; Kurtinová, Olga (referee)
Labour market participation of seniors in South Korea in relation to the demographic aging Abstract This paper focuses on demographic aging and economic activity of the elderly in South Korea. The aim is to analyze population aging and the development of economic activity of the elderly, including potentially related factors. Based on a literature review, demographic concepts related to the changing age structure, the historical, economic, and demographic development of South Korea in the 20th century, and the current socioeconomic status of South Korean seniors are briefly introduced. In the analytical section, using data from Statistics Korea, the World Population Prospects 2022 publication, and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation's database, trends of demographic aging to date since 1950 and the evolution of senior labor force participation since 1990 are analyzed using the standard demographic tools. Using data from the KLoSA sample survey, factors potentially related to the economic activity of seniors are examined. Binary logistic regression is used for this purpose. The results show a rapid increase in the share of the elderly in the total population and at the same time an increasing share of the economically active among the elderly, although this share has been very high in...
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Quantitative methods for studying and monitoring of insect populations
Vašák, David ; Šípek, Petr (advisor) ; Řeřicha, Michal (referee)
In the context of the necessity to research the global decline of insects, the scientific community has increasingly focused on the quantitative monitoring of insect populations, specifically their biomass and abundance. These metrics provide a different type of information on population trends compared to monitoring diversity or geographical distribution. However, interpreting population trends based on these metrics is accompanied by a number of challenges. This thesis highlights these issues and underscores the necessity of quantitative monitoring and its benefits for understanding insect population dynamics. Additionally, it provides an overview of the most commonly used methods for insect quantitative monitoring, ranging from traditional approaches to modern techniques. Lastly, it also presents studies that address the monitoring of insect biomass and abundance. Keywords: insect, biomass, abundance, population trends, insect decline, monitoring methods
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Latency for the first occurrence of delinquent behavior in patients in protective sexological treatment, depending on the diagnosis and the level of risk
Kuncová, Tereza ; Klapilová, Kateřina (advisor) ; Weiss, Petr (referee)
This thesis deals with the topic of the latency period from the realization of paraphilic preference to the appearance of the first delinquent behavior. The main goal of the thesis is the qualitative exploration of possible triggers and barriers shaping the latency period in persons with paraphilia in protective sexological treatment. The theoretical part of the thesis introduces the issue of paraphilias, presents selected diagnoses associated with an increased risk of committing a sexual offense, and discusses also the prevalence of paraphilias in the Czech and foreign populations. In addition, the work does not neglect the risk assessment for predicting the recidivism among sexual offenders. The empirical part contains qualitative research carried out through a semi-structured interview with nine patients in protective sexuological treatment or security detention. Internal and external triggers and internal and external barriers of delinquent behavior were identified using the method of thematic analysis. The group of external triggers, according to patients' statements, included: a victim in a sexual context, the absence of a relationship, work load, a dysfunctional family background and the influence of addictive substances. Internal triggers included: failing in interpersonal relationships,...
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Evaluation of the rationality of prescribing of selected potentially inappropriate medications in ambulatory geriatric patients (II.)
Želivská, Nela ; Fialová, Daniela (advisor) ; Pokladníková, Jitka (referee)
Institution/Department: Charles University, Faculty of Pharmacy in Hradec Kralove, Department of Social and Clinical Pharmacy Title of diploma thesis: Evaluation of the rationality of prescribing of selected potentially inappropriate medications in ambulatory geriatric patients (II.) Diploma thesis supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Daniela Fialova, PharmDr. Ph.D. Author: Nela Zelivska Introduction: The percentage of geriatric patients in the population is constantly increasing, thus the importance and need for knowledge of rational geriatric pharmacotherapy in everyday clinical practice is also on the rise. Polymorbidity and polypharmacotherapy are very common in geriatric patients, for this reason it is also necessary to regularly review drug regimens in older age and address potential drug- related problems. Criteria for potentially inappropriate medications in the aged (PIMs) have been defined by expert groups as a helpful tool to improve the rationality of drug prescribing in older adults. The risks of PIMs in older patients often outweigh their benefits or there is insufficient scientific evidence of adequate efficacy/safety of these drugs in older adults, for which reason the use of PIMs in older patients should be limited and their rationality of prescribing regularly monitored. This diploma thesis...
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Aquatic insects versus fish: adaptations to fish predation
Chawner, Adam Mark ; Černý, Martin (advisor) ; Jor, Tomáš (referee)
in English In this thesis, I review how aquatic insects have adapted to fish predation in various habitats during all phases of their life cycles. Aquatic insects are a large group of heterogeneous species and this review introduces these orders and species, including the environments they inhabit. Fish are some of the most common and most impactful predators of aquatic insects and this thesis identifies a wide range of behavioural, morphological, chemical and life history defence mechanisms of various complexity and uniqueness aquatic insect orders have developed to counter fish predation. Most aquatic insects are subject to predation during their aquatic larval stage. A few orders also inhabit the water as adults, as is the case most notably for aquatic Coleoptera. More complex adaptations to fish predation are presented in this order. Oviposition is noted as a strategy used to negate fish predation even before individuals hatch. The use of fish predation as means to control mosquito larvae communities is presented and reviewed. Keywords: aquatic insects, fish predation, defence mechanisms, adaptation to predation
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