Made available in DSpace on 2016-06-02T19:51:26Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DissDF.pdf: 1134030 bytes, checksum: b07729e6cc3c3e73bdb4110395f36b76 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2003-02-25 / The Brazilian public health system is constantly criticized by its inefficiency and lack of quality on its services. The Information Systems are powerful tools which can be used to improve the quality and increase the productiveness of these precious jobs, mainly to the needed people. The systems operators job activity is the main component of stored data, which will be analyzed by the decision makers. This dissertation shows how the Activity Analyses can be used to understand the working situations presented in a specialized health treatment unit, hoping to on the proposal of a managing information system that considers the vary and regulation of the employees job. / O setor de saúde pública brasileiro é constantemente criticado pela ineficiência e falta de qualidade dos serviços prestados. Os sistemas de informação são ferramentas poderosas que podem auxiliar na melhoria da qualidade e no aumento da produtividade destes serviços tão preciosos, principalmente à população carente. A atividade de trabalho dos operadores dos sistemas é o principal componente dos dados armazenados, que serão analisados pelos tomadores de decisão. Esta dissertação mostra como a Análise da Atividade pode ser utilizada para compreender as situações de trabalho presentes em uma unidade de tratamento médico especializada visando auxiliar na proposição de um sistema de informações gerenciais que considere a variabilidade e a regulação no trabalho dos funcionários.

Metallothioneins (MTs) are small, non-enzymatic proteins that are involved in cellular detoxification and metal homeostasis because of their high cysteine content. MTs have also been identified as one of the vast number of adaptive responses to mitochondrial respiratory chain (RC) deficiencies. Aside from this, numerous other studies have linked MTs to several mitochondrion-linked components, including reactive oxygen species (ROS) and oxidative stress, apoptosis, glutathione, energy metabolism and nuclear- and mitochondrial DNA transcription regulation. However, most of the reports concerning the putative link between MTs and mitochondria are from in vitro studies and relatively little supportive in vivo evidence has been reported. Information on the involvement of MTs with respiratory chain function is especially limited. Is was therefore the aim of this study to investigate the involvement of MTs in mitochondrial respiration and respiratory chain enzyme function by using an MT knockout (MTKO) mouse model, which was treated with the irreversible complex I inhibiting reagent, rotenone. The aim was achieved by implementing three objectives: firstly, the RC function was investigated as a complete working unit; secondly, the functional and structural properties of single units (enzymes) of the RC were investigated utilising enzyme activity assays and BN- PAGE/western blot analysis; and thirdly, the possible effect of MTs on mtDNA copy number was investigated. While some tendencies of variation in RC enzyme activity and expression were identified, no significant effect on the overall mitochondrial respiratory function, or any significant differences in the relative mtDNA copy number of MTKO mice were observed. Thus it is concluded, while MTs have in this study revealed relatively small changes in respiratory chain function, which may still prove to have biological ignificance in vivo, the exact nature of the putative role of MTs in mitochondrial respiration or oxidative phosphorylation remains undefined. / Thesis (MSc (Biochemistry))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.

Metallothioneins (MTs) are small, non-enzymatic proteins that are involved in cellular detoxification and metal homeostasis because of their high cysteine content. MTs have also been identified as one of the vast number of adaptive responses to mitochondrial respiratory chain (RC) deficiencies. Aside from this, numerous other studies have linked MTs to several mitochondrion-linked components, including reactive oxygen species (ROS) and oxidative stress, apoptosis, glutathione, energy metabolism and nuclear- and mitochondrial DNA transcription regulation. However, most of the reports concerning the putative link between MTs and mitochondria are from in vitro studies and relatively little supportive in vivo evidence has been reported. Information on the involvement of MTs with respiratory chain function is especially limited. Is was therefore the aim of this study to investigate the involvement of MTs in mitochondrial respiration and respiratory chain enzyme function by using an MT knockout (MTKO) mouse model, which was treated with the irreversible complex I inhibiting reagent, rotenone. The aim was achieved by implementing three objectives: firstly, the RC function was investigated as a complete working unit; secondly, the functional and structural properties of single units (enzymes) of the RC were investigated utilising enzyme activity assays and BN- PAGE/western blot analysis; and thirdly, the possible effect of MTs on mtDNA copy number was investigated. While some tendencies of variation in RC enzyme activity and expression were identified, no significant effect on the overall mitochondrial respiratory function, or any significant differences in the relative mtDNA copy number of MTKO mice were observed. Thus it is concluded, while MTs have in this study revealed relatively small changes in respiratory chain function, which may still prove to have biological ignificance in vivo, the exact nature of the putative role of MTs in mitochondrial respiration or oxidative phosphorylation remains undefined. / Thesis (MSc (Biochemistry))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.