Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

L’objectif de cette thèse a été d’évaluer les possibilités de réhabilitation de sols dégradés, contaminés par des HAP ou à faible qualité agronomique (parc à cendres volantes), en couplant la bioremédiation de ces sols à la culture de Miscanthus x giganteus (MxG). Dans un premier temps, la mise au point d’une série de bioessais in vitro au format microplaque a permis de témoigner de la contribution spécifique des exsudats racinaires de MxG et plus particulièrement de la quercétine (identifié parmi les métabolites secondaires racinaires) dans la biostimulation de bactéries HAP-dégradantes. Afin d’appréhender l’effet rhizosphérique de MxG sur la qualité des sols, des cultures en microcosmes de sols reconstitués puis de sols de friches ont été menées en laboratoire. D’une part, la dissipation significative des HAP à 4 cycles a pu être mesurée dans le compartiment racinaire des sols contaminés. D’autre part, l’augmentation des teneurs en carbone organique observée dans les cendres volantes, associée à une dynamisation du cycle de l’azote suggèrent une accélération des processus pédogénétiques liés au « vieillissement » du substrat. En outre, le développement d’un protocole d’extraction et de purification d’acides nucléiques a permis de suivre l’évolution de la diversité des communautés bactériennes des sols par méthode PCR-TTGE des ADNr 16S microbiens. La sélection de phylotypes bactériens a été mise en évidence au niveau rhizosphérique, en particulier à l’interface sol-racine (rhizoplan), soulignant l’influence de processus racinaires sur la structuration des communautés bactériennes in vivo. Enfin, un dernier volet, rendant compte d’expériences exploratoires sur deux saisons de croissance en champs (sols pollués et parc à cendres), a permis de confirmer l’adaptation de MxG à la variété de substrats étudiés, suggérant que sa culture pourrait constituer une alternative d’agriculture durable sur sites contaminés / The aim of this work was to investigate the potential of Miscanthus x giganteus (MxG) for PAH polluted soils remediation and fly ash revegetation. In vitro studies through microplate assays demonstrated the contribution of MxG root exudates and particularly of quercetin (following the identification of root secondary metabolites) to the selective biostimulation of PAH-degrading bacteria. To get insights into bioremediation processes and rhizosphere effects on soil quality, microcosm experiments were conducted at a laboratory scale, using artificially reconstituted soils and collected industrial soils. On the one hand, significant dissipations of four-ring PAH were noticed in the rhizosphere of contaminated soils. On the other hand, significant organic carbon and nitrite inputs could be measured in fly ash, indicating a “restart” of nitrogen cycle and suggesting an enhancement of fly ash weathering processes in the long term. Besides, the development of a soil nucleic acid extraction and purification method permitted to study the evolution of bacterial community diversity in all types of soils, based on PCR-TTGE of eubacterial 16S rDNA. Specific enrichments of bacterial phylotypes could be reported in rhizoplanes, confirming root-associated processes on the selection of soil bacterial communities. Finally, plant adaptation to the broad range of studied substrates in situ lead us to suggest that MxG cultivation could be an effective strategy for a new system of sustainable agricultural activities in wasteland soils

Heme-activated proteins (HAPs) are transcription factors that have multiple roles in plant growth and development, such as embryogenesis, flowering time control, and drought tolerance. In the present study I found that HAP3b was also involved in controlling response to cold stress. Transcript profiling and gene expression analyses indicated that HAP3b repressed the CBF3 regulon under normal growth conditions. As a result, plants with HAP3b-overexpressed showed decreased survival rates while plants homozygous for the null allele hap3b showed an improved freezing tolerance compared to wild-type plants. To understand the mechanism of HAP3b in Arabidopsis, i.e. whether it also acts through forming a heterotrimer, the yeast two-hybrid system and the protein coimmunoprecipitation method were used to identify the proteins that could interact with HAP3b. From yeast two-hybrid analyses, it was found that HAP3b could interact with one (At3g14020) of ten HAP2s and all ten HAP5s tested. Further analyses showed that the newly identified HAP2 protein could only interact with two HAP5 proteins, those encoded by At5g63470 and At1g56170. To address whether HAPs also play important roles in major crop plants, HAP3 genes in barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) were identified and characterized. From database sequence analyses, cloning, and sequencing, it was found that barley plants have at least six full-length members in the HAP3 family. Phylogenetic analyses showed that each barley HAP3 was different, forming its own cluster with the HAP3s from other plant species. Each barley HAP3 also showed its own expression pattern in different tissues, at different developmental stages and under various environmental stresses. In particular, TC176294 showed the highest sequence similarity to HAP3b in Arabidopsis and its high expression was associated with flowering. In addition, TC176294 was upregulated by various abiotic stresses and by abscisic acid (ABA). Thus, TC176294 might be a barley ortholog of HAP3b. TC191694 showed the highest sequence similarity to HAP3c and might be a barley ortholog of HAP3c. TC191694 overexpression plants were early flowering compared to HAP3b-overexpression and wild-type plants while overexpression of TC176294 plants were not.

Cette étude a porté sur l'application du réactif de Fenton comme procédé de réhabilitation de matrices contaminées par des hydrocarbures aromatiques polycycliques (HAP). En solution aqueuse, le choix des conditions de mise en œuvre du réactif est important, afin de générer suffisamment de radicaux pour oxyder les polluants. Une dégradation des composés est possible, mais une différence de réactivité importante est observée entre les HAP "alternants" et "non alternants" (avec un cycle à cinq atomes de carbone). De plus, si certaines précautions particulières ne sont pas prises, les HAP peuvent s'adsorber sur les parois des récipients, et être de ce fait réfractaires à l'oxydation. Les résultats sur les boues résiduaires montrent que sous certaines conditions (concentrations élevées en réactifs), les polluants peuvent être oxydés alors même qu'ils sont adsorbés. De plus, la matrice semble jouer un rôle important, les oxydes de fer étant probablement à même de décomposer le peroxyde d'hydrogène dans le milieu et d'initier ainsi la réaction de Fenton. L'application de ce traitement d'oxydation à des sols et sédiments contaminés est également possible.

Η διπλωματική εργασία μελετά την παροχή υπηρεσιών ψηφιακής τηλεόρασης (DVB) από πλατφόρμες μεγάλου υψομέτρου (High Altitude Platforms-HAPs). Στο πρώτο κεφάλαιο γίνεται μια εισαγωγή στις δορυφορικές επικοινωνίες κομμάτι των οποίων θεωρούνται και οι στρατοσφαιρικές πλατφόρμες. Στο δεύτερο κεφάλαιο αναλύονται θέματα των πλατφορμών αυτών, όπως τα πλεονεκτήματα και μειονεκτήματα τους σε σύγκριση με άλλα δορυφορικά και επίγεια συστήματα, ο σχεδιασμός του καναλιού, δίκτυα αποτελούμενα από στρατοσφαιρικές πλατφόρμες και οι τομείς στους οποίους αυτά βρίσκουν εφαρμογή. Στο τρίτο κεφάλαιο παρουσιάζεται το πρότυπο δορυφορικής μετάδοσης ψηφιακού βίντεο DVB-S, τα σχήματα διαμόρφωσης και κωδικοποίησης που χρησιμοποιεί, οι απαιτήσεις του αλλά και το πρόσφατο DVB-S2. Στο τελευταίο κεφάλαιο παρατίθενται οι εξομοιώσεις που πραγματοποιήθηκαν στα πλαίσια της εργασίας καθώς και τα αποτελέσματα που λήφθηκαν για διάφορα είδη διαμόρφωσης και για μεταβολή των παραμέτρων του ενδιάμεσου καναλιού. Η εργασία καταλήγει με μια σύντομη σύγκριση του στρατοσφαιρικού συστήματος με ένα επίγειο σύστημα μετάδοσης ψηφιακής τηλεόρασης. / -

abstract: A tumor is a heterogeneous combination of proliferating tumor cells, infiltrating immune cells and stromal components along with a variety of associated host tissue cells, collectively termed the tumor microenvironment (TME). The constituents of the TME and their interaction with the host organ shape and define the properties of tumors and contribute towards the acquisition of hallmark traits such as hypoxia. Hypoxia imparts resistance to cancer from chemotherapy and radiotherapy due to the decreased production of reactive oxygen species and also promotes angiogenesis, malignant progression and metastasis. It also provides a powerful physiological stimulus that can be exploited as a tumor-specific condition, allowing for the rational design of anticancer hypoxia-activated pro-drugs (HAP). Accurate evaluation of tumor oxygenation in response to therapeutics interventions at various stages of growth should provide a better understanding of tumor response to therapy, potentially allowing therapy to be tailored to individual characteristics. The primary goal of this research was to investigate the utility of prospective identification of hypoxic tumors, by two different Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) based oximetry approaches, in successful treatment with hypoxia activated therapy. In the present study, I report the utility of these two techniques 1) PISTOL (Proton Imaging of Siloxanes to map Tissue Oxygenation Levels) and 2) use of a hypoxia binding T1 contrast agent GdDO3NI in reporting the modulations of hypoxia pre and post hypoxia activated therapies in pre-clinical models of cancer. I have performed these studies in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and epidermoid carcinoma (NCI-H1975 and A431 cell lines, respectively) as well as in patient derived xenograft models of NSCLC. Both the oximetry techniques have the potential to differentiate between normoxic and hypoxic regions of the tumor and reveal both baseline heterogeneity and differential response to therapeutic intervention. The response of the tumor models to therapeutic interventions indicates that, in conjunction with pO2, other factors such as tumor perfusion (essential for delivering HAPs) and relative expression of nitroreductases (essential for activating HAPs) may play an important role. The long term goal of the proposed research is the clinical translation of both the MRI techniques and aiding the design and development of personalized therapy (e.g. patient stratification for novel hypoxia activated pro-drugs) particularly for cancer. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Bioengineering 2017

L’objectif du travail de recherche était de mettre en relation dans des sols de cokeries anciennement contaminés, la biodisponibilité de polluants (HAP et/ou métaux lourds), leur génotoxicité et leurs effets populationnels chez le ver de terre Eisenia fetida. Cette étude a montré que les sols étudiés, malgré une contamination similaire, présentaient une toxicité vis-à-vis des vers de terre et d’autres organismes terrestres (plantes, collemboles) totalement différente. Ces différences d’écotoxicité seraient imputables à la biodisponibilité des polluants, différente entre les sols. Cette étude a également montré que le traitement de thermodésorption, appliqué à l’un des sols contaminés, augmentait la biodisponibilité des métaux lourds. Le traitement de thermodésorption modifierait à la fois 1) la nature et la composition de la matière organique du sol, 2) la spéciation des métaux lourds, 3) les liens entre la matière organique et les métaux, les rendant plus biodisponibles et génotoxiques vis-à-vis des vers de terre. L’approche biologique-écotoxicologique, qui prend en considération la biodisponibilité des polluants, se révèle donc essentielle en complément de l’approche physico-chimique dans l’évaluation 1) des risques et 2) de l’efficacité de remédiation des sols contaminés. Cette étude a également montré que la mesure des dommages à l’ADN des coelomocytes de vers de terre est un biomarqueur pertinent dans l’évaluation de la génotoxicité des polluants des sols. Ce biomarqueur de génotoxicité peut être utilisé en tant qu’indicateur de biodisponibilité des polluants. Il s’est révélé plus sensible que la survie et au moins aussi sensible que la reproduction, qui sont deux paramètres étudiés classiquement chez les vers de terre. Ce biomarqueur de génotoxicité pourrait être utilisé en tant qu’indicateur précoce de perturbations physiologiques, même si le lien mécanistique entre les dommages à l’ADN et les répercussions sur la reproduction des vers de terre nécessite des recherches ultérieures / The aim of this work research was to show in formerly-contaminated coking plant soils a relationship between the bioavailability of soil pollutants (PAH and/or heavy metals), their genotoxicity and their populational effects in the Eisenia fetida earthworm. This study showed that despite a similar contamination studied soils exhibited a great difference in ecotoxicity to earthworms and other terrestrial organisms (plants, springtails). Differences in ecotoxicity of soils would be attributable to bioavailability of soil pollutants which is different between soils. This study also showed that thermal desorption applied on one of the contaminated soils increased bioavailability of heavy metals. Thermal desorption would modify 1) the nature and composition of soil organic matter, 2) the speciation of heavy metals, 3) links between soil organic matter and heavy metals, rendering them more bioavailable and genotoxic to earthworms. The biological-ecotoxicological approach, which takes into consideration the bioavailability of soil pollutants, reveals to be necessary in addition of the physico-chemical approach in the evaluation of 1) risks and 2) remediation efficiency of contaminated soils. This study also showed that the measure of DNA damage in coelomocytes of earthworms is a relevant biomarker in the evaluation of genotoxicity of soil pollutants. This biomarker of genotoxicity can be used as indicator of bioavailability of soil pollutants. It revealed more sensitive than survival and as sensitive as reproduction, which are classical endpoints measured in earthworms. This biomarker of genotoxicity could be used as early indicator of physiological disturbances, even if the mechanistic link between DNA damage and effects on reproduction require further studies

Diploma thesis occupy with preparation of porous material from magnesium powder with a HAp admixture by cold pressing followed by spark plasma sintering (SPS). This thesis contain both preparation of bulk material, diffusion plot and charakterization of materials based on the compaction process conditions. On the basis of physical mechanical characteristics, the impact of the pressing process on the subsequent sintering and the resulting material properties are evaluated. Bulk material is characterized considering to structure and physical–mechanical properties. Properties of final metarial will serve to optimize conditions for process of bulk material preparation.

No description available.

Osteoporosis is a disease of the bones. It is often called the “silent disease," because someone could have it now or be at-risk without even realizing it. As a result, bones become weak and can break from a minor fall or, in serious cases, even from simple actions, like sneezing or bumping into furniture. Breaking a bone is often the first clue that someone suffers from osteoporosis. The diagnosis of osteoporosis can be made using conventional radiography and by measuring the Bone Mineral Density (BMD). The most popular method of measuring BMD is Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA). In conventional methods the measurement of bone does not give information about the bone quality but for the bone quantity. A non-invasive method that will have the ability to determine the bone quality is of interest. Such a method will contribute to the prediction or even the prevention of bone malfunction. In this study, two quality parameters, that are designed to contribute to improved diagnostic methods of osteoporosis, are determined. Those bone quality parameters are the Calcium/Phosphate (Ca/P) and Hydroxyapatite/Collagen (HAp/Col) ratios. The algorithm developed allows us to trace the spectral changes which take place when an x-ray beam passes through filters based on the Lambert and Beer’s law. A large number of filters were applied to spectra so as to obtain pseudo-monoenergetic spectra. The optimum energy pair would derive from two quasi-monoenergetic spectra with sufficient number of photons which will result in the minimization of the Coefficient of Variation (CV) of the aforementioned ratios. Dual Energy x-ray method is used in order to obtain this energy pair. Both Single and Double exposure techniques are used. / Η οστεοπόρωση είναι μια ασθένεια των οστών. Συχνά αποκαλείται ως η «αθόρυβη ασθένεια», καθώς κάποιος δεν αντιλαμβάνεται ότι νοσεί από αυτή. Σαν αποτέλεσμα της ασθένειας αυτής, τα οστά αδυνατίζουν και μπορεί να σπάσουν ακόμα και με ένα πολύ μικρό πέσιμο, ή ακόμα στις πιο σοβαρές περιπτώσεις, ακόμα και με ένα φτέρνισμα ή ένα χτύπημα στα έπιπλα. Η θραύση ενός οστού είναι το πρώτο σύμπτωμα της εμφάνισης της οστεοπόρωσης. Η διάγνωση της οστεοπόρωσης μπορεί να γίνει με τη συμβατική ακτινογραφία και μετρώντας την πυκνότητα των οστικών αλάτων (BMD). Η πιο διαδεδομένη μέθοδος μέτρησης του BMD είναι η DXA. Στην παρούσα μελέτη, υπολογίστηκαν δύο ποιοτικοί παράμετροι , ο λόγος ασβεστίου-φωσφόρου (Ca/P) και ο λόγος υδροξυαπατίτη- κολλαγόνου (HAp/Col). Πραγματοποιήθηκε αλγόριθμος στον οποίο έγινε χρήση διαφόρων φίλτρων έτσι ώστε να τροποποιηθούν τα φάσματα ακτίνων-Χ και να αποκτηθούν σχεδόν μονοενεργειακά φάσματα. Επιπλέον χρησιμοποιήθηκαν οι τεχνικές μονής και η διπλής έκθεσης.