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The goal of this study is to advance the utility of functional brain imaging as a tool for the diagnosis and treatment of neurological disorders by creating a statistical database of functional MRI (fMRI) brain activation patterns collected from neurologically and psychiatrically unimpaired subjects. Continuous fMRI scans have been obtained from each subject while s/he performed a variety of cognitive tasks that are commonly found in standard neurological and cognitive assessment batteries. The collected fMRI data has been processed, analyzed, and converted into database which can be used as a reference of reliable indices of normal brain activity patterns for a wide range of cognitive functions.

Mass spectrometry (MS) is a rapid, specific and very sensitive analytical method with a broad spectrum of proteomic applications such as protein identification and sequencing, 3D protein structure characterization or study of protein-protein interaction. The introduction of two ionization techniques in late 1980's that are able to ionize the large biomolecules such as proteins, oligosaccharides or nucleic acids with no or low fragmentation has started the rapidly expanding field of MS-based proteomics. The presented thesis was aimed at the application of mass spectrometric approaches to answer several proteomic questions. Firstly we have employed the chemical cross-linking in combination with MS analysis to solve the 3D structure and protein-protein interactions of three model systems: (1) homodimeric human regulatory protein 14-3-3, (2) model of 14-3-3 and regulatory domain of tyrosine hydroxylase, and (3) system of two membrane proteins, cytochrome P450 2B4 and cytochrome b5, involved in xenobiotics biotransformation. This approach works in aqueous solutions under physiological conditions and thus preserves native structure of the investigated proteins. The second part of the thesis was focused on MS identification of proteins/peptides in fungal spores of Aspergillus and Pseudallescheria...

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The design and development of a versatile time resolved fluorescence spectroscopy (TRFS) system capable of near real time data acquisition and processing for potential clinical diagnostic applications is reported. The TRFS apparatus is portable, versatile and compatible with the clinical environment. The main excitation source is a UV nitrogen laser with a nanosecond pulse width and the detection part consists of a dual grating spectrograph coupled with an MCP-PMT. The nitrogen laser also has a dye module attached to it, which enables broadband excitation of the sample. This setup allows rapid acquisition (250 ms for fluorescence decay at a wavelength) of time resolved fluorescence data with a high spectral (as low as 0.5 nm) and temporal (as low as 25 picoseconds) resolution. Alternatively, a state diode pumped pulsed laser can be used for excitation to improve data collection speed. The TRFS system is capable of measuring a broad range of fluorescence emission spectra (visible to near infra-red) and resolving a broad range of lifetimes (ranging from a few hundred picoseconds to several microseconds). The optical setup of the system is flexible permitting the connection of different light sources as well as optical fiber based probes for light delivery/collection depending on the need of the application. This permits the use of the TRFS apparatus in in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo applications. The system is fully automated for real-time data acquisition and processing, facilitating near-real time clinical diagnostic applications.

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Le travail de recherche consiste à développer des hydrogels pour la prolifération et la migration cellulaires in vitro et in vivo en trois dimensions (3D). Des hydrogels à base de polyamidoamines avec d'intéressantes propriétés physicochimiques et une remarquable biocompatibilité ont été développés pour différentes applications biomédicales. Un hydrogel avec des sondes luminescentes d’iridium(III) incorporés de manière covalente, a été conçue comme plate-forme 3D de culture cellulaire, pour la visualisation directe des cellules vivantes en temps réel, et a démontré être un puissant outil de bioimagerie in vitro. En outre, un hydrogel nanocomposite, capable d'induire la chimiotaxie des cellules souches, a été développé et testé in vivo, en confirmant son potentiel en tant qu’implant pour l’ingénierie tissulaire. Finalement, un hydrogel injectable et biodégradable a été réalisé comme un nouvel agent pour la dissection sous-muqueuse endoscopique des lésions néoplasiques digestives. / The research work focuses on the development of hydrogels to investigate three-dimensional (3D) cell proliferation and migration in vitro and in vivo. Polyamidoamines-based hydrogels with interesting physicochemical properties and high biocompatibility have been developed for different biomedical applications. An hydrogel with covalently incorporated iridium(III) fluorescent probes, has been conceived as a 3D cell culture platform for the direct visualization of living cells in real-time, demonstrating to be a powerful tool for in vitro bio-imaging. Moreover, a nanocomposite hydrogel, able to induce chemotaxis of stem cells, was developed andtested in vivo, confirming its potential as a tissue engineering implant. Finally, an injectable biodegradable nanocomposite hydrogel was realized as a novel agent for endoscopic submucosal dissection of large neoplastic lesions of the gastro-intestinal tract.

<p>The Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) region is faced with limited medical personnel and healthcare services to address the many healthcare problems of the region. Poor health indicators reflect the overall decline in socio-economic development. Shortages of access to health services in the region is further complicated by the concentration of health services in urban areas, the region’s multiple medical problems (over 70% of HIV/AIDS cases in the world); and the brain drain phenomenon – it is estimated one-third of African physicians emigrate to North America and Europe. The result is that the SSA region is left with about 10 physicians, and 20 beds, per 100,000 patients. Telemedicine has been found to offer socio-economic benefits, reduce costs, and improve access to healthcare service providers by patients, but previous attempts to move various information technologies from developers in the industrial world to the developing world have failed because of a clear neglect of infrastructural and cultural factors that influence such transfers. The objective of this study is to address key factors that challenge the introduction of telemedicine technology into the health sector in SSA in particular, and by extension, other developing countries with similar socio-economic structures.</p><p>This research offers a distinctive perspective, focusing on visually-based clinical applications in the SSA region, and considerable attention to the national infrastructure and cultural impact of telemedicine transfer (social and value) outcomes. Two research models and its associated hypotheses are proposed and empirically tested using quantitative data collected from SSA physicians and other health professionals. The study also contributes to the ongoing debate on the potential of telemedicine in improving access and reducing costs. This research can help to understand the socio-economic impact of telemedicine outcomes in a comprehensive way. The finding from the survey shows the rapid advances in telemedicine technology specifically, visual clinical applications may become an essential healthcare tool in the near future within SSA countries.</p>

The Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) region is faced with limited medical personnel and healthcare services to address the many healthcare problems of the region. Poor health indicators reflect the overall decline in socio-economic development. Shortages of access to health services in the region is further complicated by the concentration of health services in urban areas, the region’s multiple medical problems (over 70% of HIV/AIDS cases in the world); and the brain drain phenomenon – it is estimated one-third of African physicians emigrate to North America and Europe. The result is that the SSA region is left with about 10 physicians, and 20 beds, per 100,000 patients. Telemedicine has been found to offer socio-economic benefits, reduce costs, and improve access to healthcare service providers by patients, but previous attempts to move various information technologies from developers in the industrial world to the developing world have failed because of a clear neglect of infrastructural and cultural factors that influence such transfers. The objective of this study is to address key factors that challenge the introduction of telemedicine technology into the health sector in SSA in particular, and by extension, other developing countries with similar socio-economic structures. This research offers a distinctive perspective, focusing on visually-based clinical applications in the SSA region, and considerable attention to the national infrastructure and cultural impact of telemedicine transfer (social and value) outcomes. Two research models and its associated hypotheses are proposed and empirically tested using quantitative data collected from SSA physicians and other health professionals. The study also contributes to the ongoing debate on the potential of telemedicine in improving access and reducing costs. This research can help to understand the socio-economic impact of telemedicine outcomes in a comprehensive way. The finding from the survey shows the rapid advances in telemedicine technology specifically, visual clinical applications may become an essential healthcare tool in the near future within SSA countries.