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Parallel single-cell analysis of active caspase-3/7 in apoptotic and non-apoptotic cells
Ledvina, Vojtěch ; Klepárník, Karel
Caspases are proteases that play key role in the process of apoptosis, the programmed\ncell death. Among them, caspase-3 and -7 are main executioner caspases that cleave\nmany vital proteins during apoptosis and after their widespread activation, the process\ncannot be reversed. To analyze caspase-3/7 activation within single cells, a miniaturized\ndevice for parallel analysis of eight samples was developed. The assay is based on the\nmodified luciferin-firefly luciferase bioluminescence (BL) system. Individual\nsuspended cells were collected and transferred into detection microvials using a\nmicromanipulator. The bioluminescence was detected using a photon counting head\nwith cooled photcathode. The LOD suitable for detection of active caspase-3/7 in both\napoptotic and non-apoptotic cells was reached.
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The role of the nurse is to aid in the improvement of the quality of life for children who have been through meningitis
ŠPAČKOVÁ, Jana
The role of the nurse is to aid in the improvement of the quality of life for children who have been through meningitis. In recent years, the issue of quality of life has become of interest in many disciplines and the general public. In health care, the quality of life is known as HRQoL - Health Related Quality of Life - loosely translated as ?the quality of life related to health?. The term of ?diagnostic quality of life in children and adolescents? is primarily used for the area of professional health care and it is an important indicator of disease severity and the outcomes of provided care. The objective of this thesis was to assess the quality of life of children who have been through meningitis, to identify the main areas in which the quality of life of these children is reduced, and to suggest nursing interventions aimed at improvements. The data collection took place in the period November 2009 - June 2010 at the Clinic for Childhood Infectious Diseases, University Hospital Brno. A qualitative research used the technique of studying written documents and, subsequently, non-standardized in-depth interviews with respondents were carried out. Prior the beginning of the qualitative survey, five research questions were established. Question 1: What kind of care and what interventions do children expect from nurses? Question 2: What kind of care and what interventions do parents expect from nurses? Question 3: How to evaluate subjectively the quality of children?s? life after meningitis as compared to the state prior the disease? Question 4: How do parents see the quality of life of their child after meningitis as compared to the state prior the disease? Question 5: In which areas is the quality of children?s life reduced most? Question 6: What nursing interventions can help nurses to improve the children?s lives? All of the questions were answered using a quantitative research method involving a standardized questionnaire named ?HEALTH AND SATISFACTION QUESTIONNAIRE?. This questionnaire is used in the project ?QOLOP? ? Quality of Life Longitudinal Study of Paediatric Oncology Patients. Hypothesis H 1 was defined prior the start of the quantitative research: The quality of life of children who have been through meningitis is lower than in healthy children. This hypothesis was not confirmed. It is clear, from what has been mentioned above, that the objective of this thesis has been met. This project will be useful in practice. The generated ?Algorithm of Initial Care for a Child with Meningitis? and ?Subsequent Care of a Child with Meningitis? should help nurses orientate and identify the basic needs of children with this disease. Moreover, this thesis can be used as a theoretical basis for the education of nursing students.
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Awareness of women about nutrition problems such as breast cancer prevention
STAŇKOVÁ, Denisa
This thesis focuses on the awareness of women of the nutrition issue as the prevention of breast cancer. The aim of this thesis is to find out whether the women have enough information about nutrition and life style as the prevention of breast carcinoma, where they look for information, if they are interested in this issue and whether they consume food that could work as the prevention. Another goal is to detect possible differences in the attitude to the prevention between women without the potential risk and women with the increased risk, i.e. women over 45. Research questions were determined as follows: "What is the knowledge of women about the issues of nutrition as the prevention of breast cancer?", "What is the proportion of the food that has preventive effect on the rise of breast carcinoma and, on the contrary, the food that supports the tumour growth in the eating habits of women?", "Where do women get information on this issue?", "What is the difference in awareness and consumption of food between women without the potential risk and women with the increased risk, i.e. over 45. The thesis is divided into two parts, a theoretical and a practical one. In the theoretical part I focus on the breast anatomy, basic information on breast cancer and risk factors that are divided into influenceble ones and non-influenceble ones. In the most extensive part of my thesis focuses on the influenceble factors, that is nutrition and life style. I focus especially on nutriments, food and other life style factors that are most connected with breast cancer and have antitumour effects or, conversely, support the tumour growth. The practical part was made by means of a questionnaire which I placed on the Internet and handed out in the waiting room at the general practitioner. The questionnaire was anonymous with 34 questions of a closed and semi-enclosed type. Questions concerned nutrition and life style in relation to the risk of breast cancer and were devised to answer previously defined research questions. The questionnaire survey took place in January and February 2013. I acquired 105 filled in questionnaires from which I randomly chose 86 to obtain two numerously equal groups of women without the potential risk and with the increased risk, i.e. over 45. The result of the research part is that women do not have much information on the life style in connection with the breast cancer. Some respondents, while selecting food with preventive effect, were only guessing and often also marked food which was not related to the breast carcinoma at all. About one third of the respondents even believe that nutrition and other factors are not related to this disease at all. One third of the respondents also stated that they had no interest in learning more information on this issue. Women that have some information usually get it from the magazines and from the Internet. In terms of eating habits, the food of most respondents does not reach the needed quantity to have preventive effects. On the other hand, the food and drinks that support tumour growth do not occur on the menu of the respondents very often. While comparing answers of the women younger 45 and the older group of respondents, it was found out that the younger respondents showed greater unawareness of this issue. No significant differences were recorded in other questions. The results of the survey are graphically processed and evaluated in the final part of this thesis. I suppose this thesis is the contribution to clarifying the current situation of this issue. I believe that the topic of my thesis is up-to-date and that I managed to summarize the most significant information regarding this topic and fulfil the aims I set down. I would be very glad if my work led to the contemplation of this issue and subsequently to a more extensive propagation of the breast cancer prevention.
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Intuition in creative process of animation movie
Nováčková, Jana Kristýna ; DĚCKÁ, Eliška (advisor) ; ČIHAŘOVÁ, Libuše (referee)
This work deals with the relation of emotions to contemporary experimental animation. It engages in the emotional experience of a viewer to non-narrative film storytelling and its means of expression.
At the same time, it examines what the creative processes and attitudes of filmmakers towards emotions in experimental animation are. Analysis of the questionnaires also reveals whether the creator counts on the viewer's specific interpretation of the film.
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Cut Languages in Rational Bases
Šíma, Jiří ; Savický, Petr
We introduce a so-called cut language which contains the representations of numbers in a rational base that are less than a given threshold. The cut languages can be used to refine the analysis of neural net models between integer and rational weights. We prove a necessary and sufficient condition when a cut language is regular, which is based on the concept of a quasi-periodic power series. We show that any cut language with a rational threshold is context-sensitive while examples of non-context-free cut languages are presented.
Fulltext: content.csg -  PDF
Plný tet: v1236-16 - PDF
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Neural Networks Between Integer and Rational Weights
Šíma, Jiří
The analysis of the computational power of neural networks with the weight parameters between integer and rational numbers is refined. We study an intermediate model of binary-state neural networks with integer weights, corresponding to finite automata, which is extended with an extra analog unit with rational weights, as already two additional analog units allow for Turing universality. We characterize the languages that are accepted by this model in terms of so-called cut languages which are combined in a certain way by usual string operations. We employ this characterization for proving that the languages accepted by neural networks with an analog unit are context-sensitive and we present an explicit example of such non-context-free languages. In addition, we formulate a sufficient condition when these networks accept only regular languages in terms of quasi-periodicity of parameters derived from their weights.
Fulltext: content.csg - PDF
Plný tet: v1237-16 - PDF
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Effect of snowpack on runoff generation during rain on snow event.
Juras, Roman ; Máca, Petr (advisor) ; Ladislav , Ladislav (referee)
During a winter season, when snow covers the watershed, the frequency of rain-on-snow (ROS) events is still raising. ROS can cause severe natural hazards like floods or wet avalanches. Prediction of ROS effects is linked to better understanding of snowpack runoff dynamics and its composition. Deploying rainfall simulation together with hydrological tracers was tested as a convenient tool for this purpose. Overall 18 sprinkling experiments were conducted on snow featuring different initial conditions in mountainous regions over middle and western Europe.
Dye tracer brilliant blue (FCF) was used for flow regime determination, because it enables to visualise preferential paths and layers interface. Snowpack runoff composition was assessed by hydrograph separation method, which provided appropriate results with acceptable uncertainty. It was not possible to use concurrently these two techniques because of technical reasons, however it would extend our gained knowledge. Snowmelt water amount in the snowpack runoff was estimated by energy balance (EB) equation, which is very efficient but quality inputs demanding. This was also the reason, why EB was deployed within only single experiment.
Timing of snowpack runoff onset decrease mainly with the rain intensity. Initial snowpack properties like bulk density or wetness are less important for time of runoff generation compared to the rain intensity. On the other het when same rain intensity was applied, non-ripe snowpack featuring less bulk density created runoff faster than the ripe snowpack featuring higher bulk density. Snowpack runoff magnitude mainly depends on the snowpack initial saturation. Ripe snowpack with higher saturation enabled to generate higher cumulative runoff where contributed by max 50 %. In contrary, rainwater travelled through the non-ripe snowpack relatively fast and contributed runoff by approx. 80 %.
Runoff prediction was tested by deploying Richards equation included in SNOWPACK model. The model was modified using a dual-domain approach to better simulate snowpack runoff under preferential flow conditions. Presented approach demonstrated an improvement in all simulated aspects compared to the more traditional method when only matrix flow is considered.
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Design of Experiment for Non-Stationary Processes of Production
Jadrná, Monika ; Macák, Tomáš (advisor)
The doctoral thesis is concerned with the services sector and the area of mass production. Particularly, the optimization of the product portfolio of the travel agency and the optimization of production rounds of ammunition.
The theoretical part deals with the current overview of discussed topic. Further, the terminology and methods of the decision-making process are defined to support decision making. The theoretical basis of research focused on the choice of appropriate input variables in the area of services, and on the choice of a particular material option in the production area and appropriate equipment for the production. The theoretical part forms the basis for the practical part of the thesis.
For the doctoral thesis was chosen an enterprise operating in the defined sector. Product portfolio for the services sector is optimised using Fuzzy logic and Fuzzy sets so that the enterprise can maintain its competitiveness in todays highly ambitious market. Product portfolio for manufacture is optimised for achieving desired properties of the product.
The main aim of the thesis is to propose a new methodological approach for the management of selected business processes in their nonstationary time course. The aim of the practical implementation is to verify the functionality of the proposed methodological approach, both in the area of services and in the field of mass production.
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Population genetic analysis of Old Kladruber horse
Vostrá Vydrová, Hana ; Majzlík, Ivan (advisor) ; Karel, Karel (referee)
The Old Kladruber horse, along with the Lipizzaner horse, Andalusian horse and Lusitano horse, is of the original Italo-Spanish type. The Old Kladruber horse is kept in two colour varieties (grey and black). Because the population is closed, there is a concern about the loss of genetic variation. The genetic diversity and population structure were analysed in the Old Kladruber horse breed based on the pedigree information of animals that were registered in the Studbook to identify factors that may have affected the genetic variability of the breed. Pedigree records collected from 1729 to 2013 contained information on 7971 animals that were used in the analyses. The pedigree depth was up to 33 generations, with an average of 15.1 complete generations. The effective number of founders and ancestors contributing to the current genetic pool was 92.69 and 17.16, respectively. The average values of the inbreeding coefficient were as follows: 13% (with a maximum value of 29%) for the reference population (individuals that can currently take part in reproduction, n=612), 11% for the grey variety (with a maximum value of 25%) and 15% for the black variety (with a maximum value of 29%). The proportion of inbred animals was high (99%). The average rate of inbreeding in the reference population was 1%: 0.8% for the grey variety and 1.1% for the black variety, and the respective estimates of the effective population sizes were 52 for the reference population, 62 for the grey variety and 45 for the black variety. The estimated percentage of genetic diversity lost due to non-random mating within subpopulations and the reference population was 1.0, 1.0 and 1.2%, respectively. The total loss of genetic diversity in the reference population, in the grey variety and in the black variety was 11%, 13% and 17%, respectively.
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Non-invasive methods for sex and steroid homones determination in gibbons of the genus Nomascus
Bolechová, Petra ; Bartoš, Luděk (advisor) ; Pavel, Pavel (referee)
The gibbon primates of the family Nomascus are classified as critically endangered species, and, to date, basic understanding and information about their biology is missing. With regard to the status of these animals in the wild and captive populations in zoos, being familiar with their reproduction, may improve captive breeding programs. Data collection in this study was to be carried out by the practical use of non-invasive methods (polymerase chain reaction for DNA extraction and enzyme immunoassays), using faecal samples for analysis. The first method, polymerase chain reaction, was used for sex determination in juveniles, because of their coat colour and visual similarity of secondary sex characteristic in both sexes; it is not possible to determinate sex without handling the animal. Another main purpose of this study is to try and answer the hypothesis regarding the ovarian cycle of females, factors influencing their hormone concentration and also the onset of sexual maturity in females and the timing of their fur colour change. Hypotheses were checked by monitoring the concentration of progesterone and oestrogen faecal metabolites and by evaluation of the composition of breeding groups of gibbons with the ZOO influence. During a four year period (from 2010 till 2014), there were a total of 51 animals analysed from 16 different zoos with a faecal sample count totalling 1618 samples. The results confirmed the use of noninvasive methods for sex determination, and thus ensuring the maximum welfare standards. Endocrinological analysis confirmed the hypothesis of the influence of the environment (ZOO) to the hormone concentrations and female´s pregnancy effect in conjunction with her age on the final results of the male - father hormone concentrations. The initial information in this study is the confirmation of the onset of ovarian cycle in young females without connection to their fur colour change and a significant factor of a mother´s impact and her territoriality. This study is the first to present a long term monitoring of ovarian cycles in females and hormone concentrations of other individuals, both male and female, and from various age groups. The results allow us to understand the possible impact of zoo environments on the reproductive status of these gibbons and contribute to the general improvement of breeding management.
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