Diagnóstico precoce e tratamento de melanoma, um tumor cutâneo com o pior prognóstico, é extremamente importante para um resultado clínico favorável. A biblioteca de peptídeos phage display é um recurso útil de triagem para identificar peptídeos bioativos que interagem com alvos em cânceres. O objetivo desse estudo foi a avaliação de dois traçadores de tecnécio-99m com sequências peptídicas RGD e NGR, conjugados com o quelante bifuncional MAG3. Os conjugados peptídicos (10 μL de uma solução μg/μL) foram marcados com tecnécio-99m usando tampão de tartarato de sódio. A avaliação radioquímica foi feita por ITLC e confirmada por CLAE. O coeficiente de partição foi determinado e ensaios de internalização foram realizados em duas linhagens celulares de melanoma (B16F10 e SKMEL28). A avaliação da biodistribuição dos traçadores foi realizada em animais sadios em diferentes tempos e também em camundongos portadores de células tumorais aos 120 min após a sua administração. Estudos de bloqueamento também foram conduzidos pela co-injeção de peptídeo frio. O desempenho dos conjugados peptídicos mostraram-se bastante parecidos em diversas avaliações. Eles foram radiomarcados com alta pureza radioquímica (>97%). Ambos são hidrofílicos, com excreção renal preferencial. A captação tumoral foi maior para células SKMEL28 do que para as células B16F10, especialmente para o 99mTc-MAG3-PEG8-c(RGDyK) (7,85±2,34 %DI/g) aos 120 min pós-injeção. O desempenho do 99mTc-MAG3-PEG8-c(RGDyk) foi superior que o do traçador com NGR, quanto à captação no melanoma humano podendo ser considerado como um promissor radiofármaco para diagnóstico de melanoma. / Early diagnosis and treatment of melanoma, a cutaneous tumor with a serious prognosis, is extremely important for optimal clinical outcome. Phage display peptide libraries are a useful screening resource for identifying bioactive peptides that interact with cancer targets. The aim of this study was the evaluation of two technetium-99m tracers for angiogenesis detection in melanoma model, using cyclic peguilated pentapeptide with RGD and NGR motifs conjugated with bifunctional chelator MAG3. The conjugated peptides (10 μL of a μg/μL solution) were labeled with technetium-99m using a sodium tartrate buffer. Radiochemical evaluation was done by ITLC and confirmed by HPLC. Partition coefficient was determined and internalization assays were performed in two melanoma cells (B16F10 and SKMEL28). Biodistribution evaluation of the tracers was done in healthy animals at different times and also in mice bearing the tumor cells at 120 min post injection. Blocking studies were also conducted by co-injection of cold peptides. The conjugated showed the same profile in many evaluations. They were radiolabeled with high radiochemical purity (>97%). Both were hydrophilic, with preferential renal excretion. Tumor uptake was higher for human melanoma cells than for murinic melanoma cells, specially for 99mTc-MAG3-PEG8-c(RGDyK) (7.85±2.34 %ID/g) at 120 min post injection. The performance of 99mTc-MAG3-PEG8-c(RGDyk) was much better than NGR tracer concerning human melanoma uptake and might be considered in future investigations focusing radiotracers for melanoma diagnosis.

Diagnóstico precoce e tratamento de melanoma, um tumor cutâneo com o pior prognóstico, é extremamente importante para um resultado clínico favorável. A biblioteca de peptídeos phage display é um recurso útil de triagem para identificar peptídeos bioativos que interagem com alvos em cânceres. O objetivo desse estudo foi a avaliação de dois traçadores de tecnécio-99m com sequências peptídicas RGD e NGR, conjugados com o quelante bifuncional MAG3. Os conjugados peptídicos (10 μL de uma solução μg/μL) foram marcados com tecnécio-99m usando tampão de tartarato de sódio. A avaliação radioquímica foi feita por ITLC e confirmada por CLAE. O coeficiente de partição foi determinado e ensaios de internalização foram realizados em duas linhagens celulares de melanoma (B16F10 e SKMEL28). A avaliação da biodistribuição dos traçadores foi realizada em animais sadios em diferentes tempos e também em camundongos portadores de células tumorais aos 120 min após a sua administração. Estudos de bloqueamento também foram conduzidos pela co-injeção de peptídeo frio. O desempenho dos conjugados peptídicos mostraram-se bastante parecidos em diversas avaliações. Eles foram radiomarcados com alta pureza radioquímica (>97%). Ambos são hidrofílicos, com excreção renal preferencial. A captação tumoral foi maior para células SKMEL28 do que para as células B16F10, especialmente para o 99mTc-MAG3-PEG8-c(RGDyK) (7,85±2,34 %DI/g) aos 120 min pós-injeção. O desempenho do 99mTc-MAG3-PEG8-c(RGDyk) foi superior que o do traçador com NGR, quanto à captação no melanoma humano podendo ser considerado como um promissor radiofármaco para diagnóstico de melanoma. / Early diagnosis and treatment of melanoma, a cutaneous tumor with a serious prognosis, is extremely important for optimal clinical outcome. Phage display peptide libraries are a useful screening resource for identifying bioactive peptides that interact with cancer targets. The aim of this study was the evaluation of two technetium-99m tracers for angiogenesis detection in melanoma model, using cyclic peguilated pentapeptide with RGD and NGR motifs conjugated with bifunctional chelator MAG3. The conjugated peptides (10 μL of a μg/μL solution) were labeled with technetium-99m using a sodium tartrate buffer. Radiochemical evaluation was done by ITLC and confirmed by HPLC. Partition coefficient was determined and internalization assays were performed in two melanoma cells (B16F10 and SKMEL28). Biodistribution evaluation of the tracers was done in healthy animals at different times and also in mice bearing the tumor cells at 120 min post injection. Blocking studies were also conducted by co-injection of cold peptides. The conjugated showed the same profile in many evaluations. They were radiolabeled with high radiochemical purity (>97%). Both were hydrophilic, with preferential renal excretion. Tumor uptake was higher for human melanoma cells than for murinic melanoma cells, specially for 99mTc-MAG3-PEG8-c(RGDyK) (7.85±2.34 %ID/g) at 120 min post injection. The performance of 99mTc-MAG3-PEG8-c(RGDyk) was much better than NGR tracer concerning human melanoma uptake and might be considered in future investigations focusing radiotracers for melanoma diagnosis.

A pilot scale nitrogen (N) removal system was constructed and operated for approximately 365 days and was designed to remove inorganic total ammonia nitrogen (TAN) from solids-separated dairy manure. An anaerobic fermenter, upstream of the N removal reactor, produced volatile fatty acids (VFAs), to be used as an electron donor to fuel denitrification, and TAN at a COD:N ratio of 18:1. However, sufficient amounts of non-VFA COD was produced by the fermenter to fuel the denitrification reaction at an average NO3- removal rate of 5.3 ± 2 mg/L NO₃--N. Total ammonia N was removed from the fermenter effluent in an N removal reactor where a series of aerobic and anoxic zones facilitated aerobic TAN oxidation and anoxic NO₃- and NO₂- reduction. The minimum dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration allowing for complete TAN removal was found to be 0.8 mg/L. However, TAN removal rates were less than predicted using default nitrifying kinetic parameters in BioWin®, a biological modeling simulator, which indicated the presence of a nitrification inhibitor in fermented dairy manure. Furthermore, an N balance during the aerobic zone indicated that simultaneous nitrification-denitrification (SND) was occurring in the aerobic zone of the N removal reactor and was most apparent at DO concentrations below 1.3 mg/L. A series of nitrite generation rate (NGR) experiments confirmed the presence of an inhibitor in fermented dairy manure. A model sensitivity analysis determined that the most sensitive ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB) kinetic parameters were the maximum specific growth rate, , and the substrate half saturation coefficient, . Nitrifying inhibition terms of competitive, non-competitive, mixed competitive, and un-competitive were applied to the growth rate equation in BioWin® but an accurate representation of the observed TAN removal rates in the pilot scale system could not be found by adjusting the kinetic parameters alone. Reducing the default BioWin® hydrolysis rate by approximately 50% produced a more accurate calibration for all inhibition terms tested indicating that the hydrolyization of organic N in dairy manure is less than typical municipal waste water. / Master of Science