Detta examensarbete har utförts genom ÅF Industry i Trollhättan. Syftet med arbetet är att jämföra två elektriska fördelningssystem i medicinska utrymmen. I sjukhusmiljöer är tillgängligheten av elförsörjning av största vikt. Spänningsbortfall för livsuppehållande utrustning kan få förödande konsekvenser för berörd patient. Svensk standard förespråkar TN-S-system gentemot den europeiska standarden som anser att IT-system är mest lämpligt i dessa utrymmen. Genom att belysa dessa två systems för- och nackdelar kan ett samlat underlag sammanställas som senare används som beslutsunderlag för framtida kunder. Examensarbetet exemplifieras på Östra sjukhuset där befintligt IT-system skall uppgraderas.Skillnaden mellan dessa två fördelningssystem är deras förbindelse med jordpotential. TN-S-system har direkt förbindelse med jord jämfört med IT-system som är helt eller delvis isolerat från jord. Jordfel i TN-S-system kan generera höga felströmmar vilket kan jämföras med IT-system där minimal felström uppstår vid isolationsfel. IT-system och dess isolationsövervakningssystem kan dock anses som mer komplext jämfört med TN-S som är ett vanligare och mer vedertaget fördelningssystem i Sverige.Rapporten konstaterar att IT-system har en stor fördel gentemot TN-S-system. Anledningen är att eventuella jordfelsströmmar i TN-S-system kan bli så pass höga att säkring eller jordfelsbrytare riskerar frånkoppla fördelningssystemet. Denna problematik existerar inte i IT-system då endast små felströmmar uppstår vid isolationsfel. Rekommendationen är att bestycka dessa utrymmen med IT-system med tillhörande isolationsövervakning. Denna tekniska lösning medför tillfredsställande person- och patientsäkerhet med avseende mot elsäkerheten. / This bachelor thesis has been carried out at AF Industry. The purpose of the thesis is to compare two electric distribution systems for medical areas. In medical areas the availability of electric power always has to be maintained. Power failure of life supporting equipment will generate major risks to the patient in question. Swedish standard promotes TN-S-systems compared to the European standard that promotes IT-systems for medical areas. By comparing the advantage and disadvantage of these two systems there can be a complete report compiled, which purpose is to be used to support decision making for future customers. This bachelor thesis will be exemplified in Östra sjukhuset where existing IT-systems will be upgraded.The basic difference between these two electric power systems is their connection to earth. TN-S-systems has direct connection to earth compared to IT-systems that has none or partially connection with earth. Earth fault in TN-systems can generate major current compared to IT-systems where isolations fault generates minimal current. However IT-systems and their isolation monitoring systems might appear as a more complex system compared to TN-S which is a more accepted system in Sweden.The report states that IT-systems has major advantage against TN-systems. The reason is that potential earth fault currents in TN-S-systems might end up disconnecting the fuse or residual current breaker of affected distribution system. This issue doesn't exist in IT-systems where minor fault current is generated from isolation fault. Therefore the recommendation is to equip these medical areas with IT-systems and the associated insulation monitoring systems. This technical solution provides adequate safety for both personal and patients regarding to electrical safety.

Les opiacés figurent parmi les analgésiques les plus puissants pour le traitement des douleurs sévères. Les agonistes du DOR (récepteur delta opiacé) induisent moins d'effets secondaires que ceux du mu, ce qui les rend une cible d'intérêt pour le traitement des douleurs chroniques. Cependant, ils induisent la tolérance à l'analgésie. Des hypothèses récentes proposent que le potentiel des drogues à induire la tolérance soit la conséquence de la stabilisation de différentes conformations du récepteur induites par la liaison avec différents ligands, chacune ayant différentes propriétés de trafic. Dans ce contexte, nous avons déterminé si différents ligands du DOR différaient dans leur capacité à induire la signalisation et le trafic du récepteur. Nos résultats indiquent que DPDPE et SNC-80 sont les drogues les plus efficaces à inhiber la production d’AMPc, suivis par UFP-512, morphine et TIPP. DPDPE et SNC-80 induisent à eux seuls l’internalisation du DOR dans les cellules HEK-293 de façon dépendante de la β-arrestine mais pas de la GRK2 ni PKC. Ces deux drogues induisent également l’internalisation du DOR dans les neurones corticaux et c’est seulement le DPDPE qui permet au DOR de regagner la membrane des cellules HEK-293 et des neurones après récupération. Cette capacité de recyclage était suggérée comme un mécanisme protégeant contre la survenue de la tolérance. Ces observations indiquent que le DOR peut subir différentes régulations en fonction du ligand lui étant associé. Cette propriété de sélectivité fonctionnelle des ligands pourrait être utile pour le développement de nouveaux opiacés ayant une activité analgésique plus durable. / Opiates are among the most powerful painkillers to treat severe pain. Delta opioid receptor (DOR) agonists induce fewer side effects than mu opioid receptor agonists, which makes them a target of interest for the treatment of chronic pain. However, they induce tolerance to analgesia. Recent hypotheses suggest that drugs tolerance is the result of stabilization of ligand-specific conformations of the receptor, with distinct traffic properties such as internalization and/or recycling. In this context, we determined whether different DOR ligands differed with respect to their ability to induce signaling and receptor trafficking. Our results indicate that DPDPE and SNC-80 are the most effective drugs to inhibit the production of cAMP, followed by UFP-512, morphine and TIPP. Only DPDPE and SNC-80 manage to induce DOR internalization in HEK-293 cells. This effect is dependent on β-arrestin but not on GRK2 or PKC. Of these two internalizing agonists, only DPDPE allows the DOR to recycle back to the membrane of HEK-293 cells after recovery. DPDPE and SNC-80 also trigger similar DOR internalization in cortical neurons, and as observed in HEK293 cells only DPDPE allowed the receptor to recycle back to the membrane. This recycling capacity was suggested as a mechanism to protect against the onset of tolerance. These observations indicate that the DOR can undergo different regulations depending on the ligand bound to it. This property of functional selectivity of DOR ligands could be useful for the development of new opiates with longer lasting analgesic properties.

Les récepteurs couplés aux protéines G forment des complexes multimériques comprenant protéines G et effecteurs. Nous cherchons à caractériser de tels complexes comprenant les récepteurs opioïdes delta (DOR) et les canaux Kir3, qui nous sont d’intérêt vu leur implication dans l’analgésie des opioïdes. Des expériences d’immunopurification, de BRET et de liaison GTPgS ont été réalisées à l’intérieur de cellules HEK293 transfectées. Les canaux Kir3 ont été co-immunopurifiés avec les DOR, suggérant une interaction spontanée entre récepteur et effecteur. Des essais BRET ont corroboré que l’interaction était présente dans des cellules vivantes et nous ont permis d’identifier une interaction spontanée et spécifique entre DOR/Gg et Gg/Kir3, indiquant leur coexistence en un même complexe. Puisque l’activation du récepteur implique la présence de changements conformationnels à l’intérieur de celui-ci, nous étions intéressés à vérifier si l’information conformationnelle circule à partir du récepteur lié au ligand jusqu’à l’effecteur en aval. Ainsi, nous avons déterminé l’effet de différents ligands sur le signal BRET généré par les paires suivantes : DOR/Gbg, DOR/Kir3 et Kir3/Gbg. Nous avons constaté une modulation de l’interaction DOR/Gbg et Gbg/Kir3 suivant l’ordre d’efficacité des ligands à stimuler la protéine G, ce que nous n’avons pas observé entre DOR et Kir3. Donc, nous concluons que l’information conformationnelle circule du récepteur au canal Kir3 via la protéine Gbg. Ces résultats nous ont permis de développer un biosenseur BRET (EYFP-Gg2/Kir3.1-Rluc) qui pourrait être utilisé dans le criblage à haut débit afin de détecter de nouvelles molécules ayant une grande efficacité à activer les canaux Kir3. / G protein-coupled receptors form multimeric complexes comprising G protein and effectors. We want to characterize such complexes comprising delta opioid receptors (DOR) and Kir3 channels, which interest us due to their involvement in opioid analgesia. Immunopurification, BRET and GTPgS binding experiments were done in transfected HEK293 cells. Kir3 channels were co-immunopurified with DOR, implying a spontaneous interaction between the receptor and effector. BRET assays corroborated the presence of this interaction in living cells and allowed us to identify a spontaneous and specific interaction between DOR/Gg and Gg/Kir3, indicating their co-existence within the same complex. Since the activation of the receptor implies it undergoes conformational changes, we were interested in evaluating if the conformational information flows from the ligand-bound receptor until the downstream effector. Hence, we determined the effect of different ligands on the BRET signal that was generated by the following pairs: DOR/Gbg, DOR/Kir3 and Kir3/Gbg. We noticed a modulation of the DOR/Gbg and Gbg/Kir3 interactions that followed the order of efficacy of the ligands to activate the G protein, which we did not observe between DOR and Kir3. Therefore, we concluded that the conformational information flows from the receptor to the Kir3 channel via the Gbg protein. These results allowed us to develop a BRET biosensor (EYFP-Gg2/Kir3.1-Rluc), which could be used in high throughput screening to detect new molecules that activate Kir3 channels with high efficacy.

The aim of this work was formulated - the synthesis of potent human carbonic anhydrase inhibitors, and their structure - activity study. The synthesized 136 new compounds were subjected to the studies of their inhibitory activity towards CA I, II, VII, XII and XIII (VU IBT). An efficient method for N-and S-alkylation of heterocyclic compounds (benzimidazole), S-alkylation of heterocyclic and aromatic compounds (imidazole, benzothiazole, benzimidazothiadiazole, pyrimidine, benzenethiol) with 3 - and 4 - (bromoacetyl)benzenesulfonamides and 4 - and 5 - (bromoacetyl)-2-chlorobenzenesulfonamides has ben deveoped. 2-[(6-oksopyrimidine-2-yl)thio]acetylbenzenesulfonamides in dimethylsulfoxide solution were found to exists in two forms - open chain and cyclic. 4-(Hetarylmethylcarbonyl)benzenesulfonamides exibited more inhibitory potency to CA than the 3-(hetarylmethylcarbonyl)benzenesulfonamides. Among all compound studied S-alkylated benzenethiol derivatives exibit the best CA inhibitory properties, while 1,3-thiazole derivatives – the lowest. Sulfonamide group position on the benzene ring is more important for CA binding than the acidic properties of sulfonamide group. The inhibitors having the selectivity of any one CA were selected from synthesized compounds. Most of the compounds possess selectivity to CA I and CA XIII, while selectivity to CA XII almost is not observed. The benzenesulfonamide ring position in CA II active site is unique to each class of compounds as showed in... [to full text] / Šio darbo tikslas – potencialių žmogaus karboanhidrazių (CA) slopiklių sintezė ir jų struktūros – aktyvumo tyrimas. CA slopinimo tyrimams susintetinti 136 įvairiais heterociklais pakeisti benzensulfonamidai ir išmatuotas jų CA I, II, VI, XII ir XIII slopinimo aktyvumas (VU BTI mokslininkai). Paruoštos efektyvios benzimidazolų N- ir S-alkilinimo, imidazolų, benztiazolo, benzimidazotiadiazolo, pirimidinų, benzenalkiltiolių S-alkilinimo 3- ir 4-(bromacetil)benzensulfonamidais bei 4- ir 5-(bromacetil)-2-chlorbenzensulfonamidais metodikos. Nustatyta, kad [(6-oksopirimidin-2-il)tio]acetilbenzensulfonamidai tirpaluose egzistuoja atviroje ir ciklinėje formose. Ištyrus benzensulfonamidinio ir heterociklinio/aromatinio fragmentų struktūros įtaka CA slopinančioms savybėms nustatyta, kad benzensulfonamidinės dalies įtaka CA slopinančiam aktyvumui yra didesnė nei heterociklinės/aromatinės. Sulfonamidinės grupės padėties benzeno žiede įtaka jungimuisi prie CA yra reikšmingesnė nei sulfonamidinės grupės rūgštingumo įtaka. Tiriant atrankumą vienai CA nustatyta, kad iš visų junginių daugiausiai atrankių yra CA I ir XIII, o CA XII atrankių junginių beveik nėra. Daugiausiai kuriai nors CA atrankių junginių yra tarp 4-(hetarilmetilkarbonil)benzensulfonamidų, bei tarp 1,3-tiazolo ir benzenalkiltiolio darinių. Remiantis rentgenostruktūrine CA II, XII ir XIII kompleksų (VU BTI) su kai kuriais slopikliais analize, paaiškintas sumažėjęs junginių giminingumas CA XII, lyginant su CA II, sumažėjęs... [toliau žr. visą tekstą]

Šio darbo tikslas – potencialių žmogaus karboanhidrazių (CA) slopiklių sintezė ir jų struktūros – aktyvumo tyrimas. CA slopinimo tyrimams susintetinti 136 įvairiais heterociklais pakeisti benzensulfonamidai ir išmatuotas jų CA I, II, VI, XII ir XIII slopinimo aktyvumas (VU BTI mokslininkai). Paruoštos efektyvios benzimidazolų N- ir S-alkilinimo, imidazolų, benztiazolo, benzimidazotiadiazolo, pirimidinų, benzenalkiltiolių S-alkilinimo 3- ir 4-(bromacetil)benzensulfonamidais bei 4- ir 5-(bromacetil)-2-chlorbenzensulfonamidais metodikos. Nustatyta, kad [(6-oksopirimidin-2-il)tio]acetilbenzensulfonamidai tirpaluose egzistuoja atviroje ir ciklinėje formose. Ištyrus benzensulfonamidinio ir heterociklinio/aromatinio fragmentų struktūros įtaka CA slopinančioms savybėms nustatyta, kad benzensulfonamidinės dalies įtaka CA slopinančiam aktyvumui yra didesnė nei heterociklinės/aromatinės. Sulfonamidinės grupės padėties benzeno žiede įtaka jungimuisi prie CA yra reikšmingesnė nei sulfonamidinės grupės rūgštingumo įtaka. Tiriant atrankumą vienai CA nustatyta, kad iš visų junginių daugiausiai atrankių yra CA I ir XIII, o CA XII atrankių junginių beveik nėra. Daugiausiai kuriai nors CA atrankių junginių yra tarp 4-(hetarilmetilkarbonil)benzensulfonamidų, bei tarp 1,3-tiazolo ir benzenalkiltiolio darinių. Remiantis rentgenostruktūrine CA II, XII ir XIII kompleksų (VU BTI) su kai kuriais slopikliais analize, paaiškintas sumažėjęs junginių giminingumas CA XII, lyginant su CA II, sumažėjęs... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The aim of this work was formulated - the synthesis of potent human carbonic anhydrase inhibitors, and their structure - activity study. The synthesized 136 new compounds were subjected to the studies of their inhibitory activity towards CA I, II, VII, XII and XIII (VU IBT). An efficient method for N-and S-alkylation of heterocyclic compounds (benzimidazole), S-alkylation of heterocyclic and aromatic compounds (imidazole, benzothiazole, benzimidazothiadiazole, pyrimidine, benzenethiol) with 3 - and 4 - (bromoacetyl)benzenesulfonamides and 4 - and 5 - (bromoacetyl)-2-chlorobenzenesulfonamides has ben deveoped. 2-[(6-oksopyrimidine-2-yl)thio]acetylbenzenesulfonamides in dimethylsulfoxide solution were found to exists in two forms - open chain and cyclic. 4-(Hetarylmethylcarbonyl)benzenesulfonamides exibited more inhibitory potency to CA than the 3-(hetarylmethylcarbonyl)benzenesulfonamides. Among all compound studied S-alkylated benzenethiol derivatives exibit the best CA inhibitory properties, while 1,3-thiazole derivatives – the lowest. Sulfonamide group position on the benzene ring is more important for CA binding than the acidic properties of sulfonamide group. The inhibitors having the selectivity of any one CA were selected from synthesized compounds. Most of the compounds possess selectivity to CA I and CA XIII, while selectivity to CA XII almost is not observed. The benzenesulfonamide ring position in CA II active site is unique to each class of compounds as showed in... [to full text]

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is an age-related neurodegenerative disorder. The degeneration of the neurons of the substantia nigra in the midbrain leads to the loss of dopamine from the striatum, which is responsible for the motor symptoms of PD. In the brain, the enzyme, monoamine oxidase B (MAOB), An analysis of the Lineweaver-Burk plots indicated that 7-(3-bromobenzyloxy)-3,4-dihydro-2(1H)- quinolinone inhibits MAO-B with a Ki value of 2.7 nM. An analysis of the structure-activity relationships for MAO-B inhibition shows that substitution on the C7 position of the 3,4-dihydro- 2(1H)-quinolinone moiety leads to significantly more potent inhibition compared to substitution on C6. In this regard, a benzyloxy substituent on C7 is more favourable than phenylethoxy and phenylpropoxy substitution on this position. In spite of this, C6-substituted 3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinone with potent MAO-B inhibitory activities were also identified. An analyses of selected properties of the 3,4-dihydro-2(1H)- quinolinones showed that the compounds are highly lipophilic with logP values in the range of 3.03- 4.55. LogP values between 1 and 3 are, however, in the ideal range for bioavailability. The compounds synthesised have logP values higher than 3, which may lead to lower bioavailability. Laboratory data further showed that none of the 3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinones are highly toxic to cultured cells at the concentrations, 1 μM and 10 μM, tested. For example, the most potent MAO-B inhibitor, 7-(3-bromobenzyloxy)-3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinone, reduced cell viability to 88.11% and 86.10% at concentrations of 1 μM and 10 μM, respectively. These concentrations are well above its IC50 value for the inhibition of MAO-B. At concentrations required for MAO-B inhibition, the more potent 3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinones are thus unlikely to be cytotoxic. It may thus be concluded that C7-substituted 3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinones are promising highly potent and selective MAO-B inhibitors, and thus leads for the therapy of Parkinson’s disease. represents a major catabolic pathway of dopamine. Inhibitors of MAO-B conserve the depleted supply of dopamine and are thus used in the therapy of PD. In the present study, a series of 3,4- dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinone derivatives were synthesized and evaluated as inhibitors of recombinant human MAO-A and MAO-B. These quinolinone derivatives are structurally related to a series of coumarin (1-benzopyran-2-one) derivatives, which has been reported to act as MAO-B inhibitors. C6- and C7-substituted 3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinone derivatives were synthesized by reacting 6- or 7- hydroxy-3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinone with an appropriately substituted alkyl bromide in the presence of base. To evaluate the MAO inhibitory properties (IC50 values) of the quinolinone derivatives the recombinant human MAO-A and MAO-B enzymes were used. The reversibility of inhibition of a representative 3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinone derivative was examined by measuring the recovery of enzyme activity after the dilution of the enzyme-inhibitor complexes, while the mode of MAO inhibition was determined by constructing Lineweaver-Burk plots. To determine the lipophilicity of the 3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinone derivatives, the logP values were measured. The toxicity of the 3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinone derivatives towards cultured cells (cytotoxicity) was also measured. The results document that the 3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinone derivatives are highly potent and selective MAO-B inhibitors with most homologues exhibiting IC50 values in the nanomolar range. The most potent MAO-B inhibitor, 7-(3-bromobenzyloxy)-3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinone, exhibits an IC50 value of 2.9 nM with a 2750-fold selectivity for MAO-B over the MAO-A isoform. As a MAO-B inhibitor, this compound is approximately equipotent to the most potent coumarin derivative (IC50 = 1.14 nM) reported in literature. Since MAO-B activity could be recovered after dilution of enzyme-inhibitor mixtures, it may be concluded that 7-(3-bromobenzyloxy)-3,4-dihydro-2(1H)- quinolinone is a reversible MAO-B inhibitor. The Lineweaver-Burk plots constructed for the inhibition of MAO-B by 7-(3-bromobenzyloxy)-3,4-dihydro-2(1H)-quinolinone were linear and intersected on the y-axis. These data indicated that this compound also is a competitive MAO-B inhibitor. / MSc (Pharmaceutical Chemistry), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Aid effectiveness is a reoccuring theme in the social sciences. Maybe rightfully so, as development is slow in many parts of the developing world. Core literature on the matter seems to suggest that aid effectiveness is contingent on recipients’ level of corruption. Assuming this to be true, I examine the EU’s disbursements of Official Development Assistance over the past decade by running regressions: is there a relationship between the level of aid received, and a country’s level of corruption? As the EU is one of the largest donors of foreign aid globally, and has the power to shape the global foreign aid agenda, this question puts to the test whether the EU is leading the way, or rather is an obstacle in front. My findings suggest that corruption is not a determinant for aid. The EU thus fails to provide the much needed incentive for reforming political structures and fighting corruption in the developing countries.

The current work focused on defining the material science options to fabricate novel, high performing ethylene/ethane (C₂H₄/C₂H₆) separation carbon molecular sieve (CMS) dense film membranes. Three polymer precursors: Matrimid®, 6FDA-DAM and 6FDA:BPDA-DAM were used as precursors to the CMS membranes. CMS performances were tailored by way of tuning pyrolysis conditions such as the pyrolysis temperature, heating rate, pyrolysis atmosphere etc. The CMS dense film membranes showed attractive C₂H₄/C₂H₆ separation performance far exceeding the polymeric membrane performances. Semi-quantitative diffusion size pore distributions were constructed by studying the transport performance of a range of different penetrant gases as molecular sized probes of the CMS pore structure. This, in conjunction with separation performance data, provided critical insights into the structure-performance relationships of the CMS materials. The effects of testing conditions, i.e. the testing temperature, pressure and feed composition on C₂H₄/C₂H₆ separation performance of CMS dense films were also analyzed. These studies were useful not just in predicting the membrane behavior from a practical stand-point, but also in a fundamental understanding of the nature of CMS membrane separation. The study helped clarify why CMS membranes outperform polymeric membrane performance, as well as allowed comparison between CMS derived from different precursors and processing conditions. The effects on C₂H₄/C₂H₆ separation in the presence of binary gas mixture were also assessed to get a more realistic measure of the CMS performance resulting from competition and bulk flow effects. The current work thus establishes a framework for guiding research ultimately aimed at providing a convenient, potentially scalable hollow fiber membrane formation technology for C₂H₄/C₂H₆ separation

Zeolites have been used in agriculture since the 1960s, due to the effectiveness of these crystalline microporous solids as soil amendments for plant growth, their cation exchange capacity (CEC) and slow-release fertilizer properties. Most work on slow-release fertilizers has focused on natural Clinoptilolite, Phillipsite and Chabazite. The aim of this study was to synthesize zeolites, study their effectiveness as soil amendments and their ability to act as controlled release fertilizers to decrease nitrate leaching. Nitrate pollution of groundwater is a major agro-environmental concern. The zeolites Phillipsite and Linde-type F were synthesized from aluminosilicate gels; ion exchanged to introduce ammonium and characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), Thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA) and Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques, both before and after ion exchange. Ammoniumexchanged Phillipsites (natural and synthetic), ammonium-exchanged synthetic Linde-type F (the zeolite having highest affinity towards ammonium) and ammonium exchanged Phillipsites (high crystalline and high aluminium) were compared with conventional NPK fertilizer.Three glasshouse experiments were performed to study the effects of zeolite-amended soils on maize growth. Ion exchanged synthetic and natural Phillipsites were first used as soil amendments (w/w 2, 4, 8% zeolite to soil). Synthetic Phillipsite, at 2% loading, resulted in the most significant improvement in both plant growth and phased ammonium release. The synthetic ammonium-exchanged zeolites Phillipsite and Linde-type F (at w/w 1, 2, 4%) were then compared; synthetic Phillipsite, at 2% loading, again resulted in the most significant plant growth response with an increase (≥15%) in shoot dry weight and a decrease (≥30%) in nitrate leaching. Experiments using unexchanged synthetic Phillipsite (at w/w 2%), but with added NPK fertilizer, showed increased plant growth and decreased nitrate leaching, compared with parallel experiments containing unexchanged synthetic Linde-type F (at w/w 2%) and a conventional fertilizer amended soil. This revealed the beneficial effect of Phillipsite for soil amendment, even without ion exchange to the ammonium form. To study the physico-chemical properties affecting the release of ammonium from the Phillipsite framework; high crystalline/low aluminium and low crystalline/high aluminium forms were synthesized and ion exchanged. Both forms were introduced as soil amendments (at w/w 1 and 2%) and experiments showed that the lower zeolite crystallinity decreased cation exchange and therefore decreased nitrate leaching. Experimental results from the glasshouse experiments and cation exchange capacity (CEC) experiments suggest that synthetic Phillipsite, at lower loadings (1 and 2% w/w zeolite to soil) have most potential as soil amendments for both plant growth and controlled-release applications. This conclusion is supported by soil leachate and shoots dry weight analysis. Furthermore, Phillipsite, synthesized in a low crystalline and low ammonium form, may be an even better soil amendment for controlled release of ammonium, which will thereby further decrease nitrate pollution.

Today, enzymes are extensively used for many industrial applications, this includes bulk and fine-chemical synthesis, pharmaceuticals and consumer products. Though Nature has perfected enzymes for many millions of years, they seldom reach industrial performance targets. Natural enzymes could benefit from protein redesign experiments to gain novel functions or optimize existing functions. Glutathione transferases (GSTs) are detoxification enzymes, they also display disparate functions. Two Mu-class GSTs, M1-1 and M2-2, are closely related but display dissimilar substrate selectivity profiles. Saturation mutagenesis of a previously recognized hypervariable amino acid in GST M2-2, generated twenty enzyme variants with altered substrate selectivity profiles, as well as modified thermostabilities and expressivities. This indicates an evolutionary significance; GST Mu-class enzymes could easily alter functions in a duplicate gene by a single-point mutation. To further identify residues responsible for substrate selectivity in the GST M2-2 active site, three residues were chosen for iterative saturation mutagenesis. Mutations in position10, identified as highly conserved, rendered enzyme variants with substrate selectivity profiles resembling that of specialist enzymes. Ile10 could be conserved to sustain the broad substrate acceptance displayed by GST Mu-class enzymes. Enzymes are constructed from primarily twenty amino acids, it is a reasonable assumption that expansion of the amino acid repertoire could result in functional properties that cannot be accomplished with the natural set of building blocks. A combination approach of site-directed mutagenesis and chemical modifications in GST M2-2 and GST M1-1 resulted in novel enzyme variants that displayed altered substrate selectivity patterns as well as improved enantioselectivities. The results presented in this thesis demonstrate the use of different protein redesign techniques to modulate various functions in Mu-class GSTs. These techniques could be useful in search of optimized enzyme variants for industrial targets. / biokemi och organisk kemi