Orientador: Gisela de Aragão Umbuzeiro / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Tecnologia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-21T02:00:16Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Ribeiro_AlysonRogerio_M.pdf: 3701819 bytes, checksum: b2f0a69f435398e5de38f031d75649e3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012 / Resumo: As planarias de água doce possuem vasta distribuição geográfica, plasticidade biologica, facilidade de cultivo em laboratório, sensibilidade a contaminantes diversos e capacidade regenerativa, por isso vem sendo utilizadas como organismos-teste em ensaios ecotoxicologicos. Porem, ainda não ha normatização internacional ou nacional que padronize esses ensaios. O objetivo deste trabalho foi verificar o potencial do uso de planarias de agua doce (Girardia tigrina) na avaliação de alguns contaminantes e amostras ambientais utilizando protocolos padronizados avaliando-se mortalidade e atraso na regeneração encefálica. Foram empregados 15 organismos por concentração-teste nos ensaios de mortalidade de filhotes (96h) e 20 planarias adultas regenerantes por concentração-teste nos ensaios de regeneração encefálica (120h). Avaliou-se cromo e zinco como substancias de referencia e empregou-se cobre, azo corante têxtil Disperse Red 1, herbicida atrazina, nanotubos de carbono de parede múltipla, alem de amostras da ETE Carioba e do Ribeirão dos Cristais. Carta controle com substancia de referencia foi realizada, sendo estabelecido um protocolo para o monitoramento da sensibilidade das culturas de G. trigrina. O zinco foi a substancia mais apropriada que o cromo, com a vantagem do ensaio de sensibilidade poder ser finalizado em 24h. Os métodos utilizados para realização do ensaio de regeneração encefálica e de mortalidade de filhotes foram eficazes para a observação de efeitos adversos das substancias analisadas. Todas as amostras testadas apresentaram toxicidade as planarias, exceto os nanotubos de carbono. Atraso na regeneração encefálica foi o endpoint mais sensível para os contaminantes avaliados. Os protocolos utilizados neste estudo podem ser utilizados como subsídios na elaboração futura de normas técnicas de testes ecotoxicologicos com planarias de agua doce / Abstract: Freshwater planarians are worldwide distributed, have biological plasticity and a unique body regenerative capacity. They are easily maintained under laboratorial conditions and are sensitive for several compounds. For these reasons they have been used in ecotoxicological testing although the lack of national or international guidelines. This research aimed to verify the potential use of freshwater planarians (Girardia tigrina) in mortality and regeneration delay endpoints to assess the toxicity of environmental contaminants using standardized protocols. The culture sensitivity of G. tigrina was monitored with zinc, which was the most suitable substance for this purpose, providing responses in only 24h. The adopted protocols for regeneration and mortality tests were efficient to assess the adverse effects of the chemical agents (copper, an azo textile dye, atrazine), carbon nanotubes and wastewater and water samples from Carioba WWTP and Cristais River. The regeneration test was the most sensitive endpoint and all analyzed substances showed toxicity for planarians, except carbon nanotubes. The methods adopted in this research can be used as basis for the development of a testing guideline using freshwater planarians / Mestrado / Tecnologia e Inovação / Mestre em Tecnologia

Control Method for Invasive Aquatic Species introduced via Ballast Water: Effects of Carbon Dioxide Supersaturation on Survivorship of Digesia tigrina (Planaria: Maculata) and Lirceus brachyurus (Isopoda: Crustacea) Survivorship of an aquatic species of planaria (Digesia tigrina) and isopods (Lirceus barchyurus) to elevated levels of carbon dioxide (CO₂) was determined. Both planaria and isopods were exposed to levels of freshwater supersaturated with carbon dioxide, and percent mortality was calculated for various exposure durations, and at various pressure levels. The data collected were graphically analyzed to determine the time necessary to produce mortality in 50% (LT50) of any given sample of specimens tested at a certain pressure level. At 38.6 kPa, 103.4 kPa and 172.4 kPa, the LT50 for planaria was calculated to be 150.3 ± 10.1, 58.6 ± 11.1, and 27.8 ± 6.2 minutes, respectively. At 38.6 kPa, 103.4 kPa and 172.4 kPa , the LT50 for isopods was calculated to be 181.1 ± 52.5, 79.7 ± 21.9, and 40.5 ± 17.0 minutes, respectively. These results suggest that CO₂ supersaturation may be an easily applied, efficient method that would end the unwanted introduction of nonnative aquatic species to habitats via ballast water released from shipping vessels. Effect of High Hydrostatic Pressure Processing on Freely Suspended and Shellfish Associated T7 Bacteriophage The effectiveness of hydrostatic pressure processing (HPP) for inactivating viruses has only been evaluated in a limited number of studies and most of the work has been performed with freely suspended viruses. In this work, the inactivation of freely suspended, as well as shellfish associated bacteriophage T7, by HPP was studied. T7 was selected in hopes that it could potentially serve as a model for animal virus behavior. Both clams (Mercenaria mercenaria) and oysters (Crassostrea virginica) were homogeneously blended separately and inoculated with bacteriophage T7. The inoculated shellfish meat, as well as freely suspended virus samples, were subjected to HPP under the following conditions: 2, 4 and 6 min durations; 241.3, 275.8 and 344.7 Megapascals (MPa) pressure levels; and temperature ranges of 29.4 – 35, 37.8 – 43.3 and 46.1 – 51.7Ë C. Plaque forming unit (PFU) reductions of 7.8 log10 (100% inactivation) were achieved for freely suspended T7 at 344.7 MPa, 2 min and 37.8 – 43.3Ë C. At 46.1 – 51.7Ë C, T7 associated with either clams or oysters was inactivated at nearly 100% (> 4 log10) at all pressure levels and durations tested. The results indicated that T7 is readily inactivated by HPP under the proper conditions, may be protected or made more susceptible by shellfish meat, and may serve as a viable model for the response of several animal viruses to HPP. / Master of Science

No description available.

O gênero Erythroxylum P. Browne pertence a família Erythroxylaceae Kunth e é principalmente conhecido devido as espécies E. coca e E. novogranatense, as “plantas da coca”. O gênero é a única fonte natural da cocaína e de outros alcaloides com núcleo ecgonina, principais responsáveis pelos efeitos tóxicos e biológicos originados pelo consumo de suas espécies. A presença da cocaína é amplamente aceita para as plantas de coca, porém a sua biossíntese por outras espécies apresenta divergência, o que pode estar relacionada ao período de coleta. Além destas particularidades fitoquímicas, as espécies do gênero também apresentam importantes atividades como antioxidante e antimicrobiana, além de toxicidade a humanos e a ovinos. O Brasil é o centro da diversidade e do endemismo do gênero e no sul do país, nos estados do Rio Grande do Sul e de Santa Catarina, as carcaterísticas fitoquímicas e potencialidades tóxicas e farmacológicas das espécies apresentam um campo aberto para estudos. Desta forma, foram avaliadas características fitoquímicas e potencialidades tóxicas e farmacológicas de espécies nativas dos estados do Rio Grande do Sul e de Santa Catarina, coletadas em dois períodos climáticos distintos, verão e inverno, além de revisão bibliográfica sobre as espécies produtoras de cocaína e as implicações segundo a legislação brasileira vigente. Foram utilizadas metodologia de planária, disco-difusão em ágar, microdiluição em caldo, medida da extinção da absorção do cátion 2,2-difenil-1-picrilhidrazil e procedimentos preconizados pelas Nações Unidas para a investigação fitoquímica de espécies produtoras de cocaína. Foi verificado que 24 espécies apresentam o aparato enzimático para a produção da cocaína. Embora E. novogranatense origina rendimentos apropriados ao tráfico, segundo a legislação Brasileira vigente, apenas E. coca encontra-se proscrita, o que torna necessário a inclusão de E. novogranatense na lista de plantas proscritas. Para o estudo toxicológico desenvolvido com E. deciduum sobre modelo de planária, foi necessário adaptar a metodologia existente. O extrato da espécie ocasionou aumento significativo da velocidade de locomoção (p= 0.016) e comportamentos estereotipados padronizados de posição tipo C e hipercinesia tipo parafuso, eventos característicos da neurotransmissão dopaminérgica em planárias. Os resultados, além de ampliar as possibilidades do uso destes vermes na busca por extratos ativos, demonstram que E. deciduum biossintetiza metabólitos ativos sobre este neurotransmissor, os quais podem estar relacionados com os efeitos ocasionados pelo consumo da espécie vegetal. A influência do período de coleta sobre as potencialidades farmacológicas e as características fitoquímicas foi investigada e os resultados demonstram esta infuência. Diferentes extratos de E. argentinum e E. deciduum, coletadas durante o verão, apresentaram atividade antimicrobiana superiores a verificada para os extratos obtidos de coletas realizadas no inverno. O extrato etanólico de E. argentinum, coleta verão, pode ser considerado um verdadeiro antimicrobiano, MIC= 0,78mg/ mL, e desta forma torna-se uma fonte promissora para a descoberta de novas moléculas antimicrobianas. Os extratos das espécies E. argentinum e E. deciduum demonstram pertinentes resultados sobre a atividade antioxidante. A influência do período de coleta, verão/ inverno, sobre a atividade foi identificada. A influência do período de coleta sobre as atividades tóxico-farmacológicas é corroborada pelo perfil alcaloídico obtido de noves espécies do gênero, coletadas durante o verão e o inverno, nos estados do Rio Grande do Sul e de Santa Catarina. O perfil alcaloídico das espécies E. amplifolium, E. argentinum, E. cuneifolium, E. cuspidifolium, E. deciduum, E. microphyllum, E. myrsinites, E. pelleterianum e E. vacciniifolium demonstra a presença dos alcaloides: éster de metecgonidina, éster de metilecgonina, cuscohigrina e tropacocaína e dos intermediários da biossíntese: higrina, tropinona e tropanol. A identificação dos metabólitos éster de metilecgonina e éster de metilecgonidina também demonstra que as espécies do gênero Erythroxylum presentes no Sul do Brasil apresentam potencialidade econômicas, pois podem ser empregadas na produção de padrões toxicológicos. Os objetivos propostos foram cumpridos e permitem concluir que espécies do gênero Erythroxylum dos estados do Rio Grande do Sul e de Santa Catarina, Sul do Brasil, demonstram importância tóxica, farmacológica e química, sendo parte destas influenciada pelo período de coleta, verão/ inverno. / “Chemical and Biological Study of Erythroxylum P. Browne Species Collected in Southern Brazil”. Erythroxylum P. Browne genus belongs to the Erythroxylaceae Kunth family and is mainly known due to E. coca and E. novogranatense species, the "coca plants". The genus is the only natural source of cocaine and other alkaloids with ecgonine nucleus, mainly responsible for the toxic and biological effects caused by the consumption of their species. The presence of cocaine is widely accepted for coca plants, but its biosynthesis by other species shows divergence, which may be related to the collect period. Besides these phytochemical peculiarities, the species of the genus also present important activities such as antioxidant and antimicrobial, besides toxicity to humans and sheep. Brazil is the center of diversity and endemism of the genus and in the south of the country, in the states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina, the phytochemical characteristics, toxic and pharmacological potentials of the species present an open field for studies. Thus, phytochemical characteristics, toxic and pharmacological potentials of native species of the states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina were assessed, collected in two distinct climatic periods, summer and winter, as well as a bibliographical review on cocaine producing species and implications under current Brazilian law. Some methodologies were used such as planaria, disc-diffusion in agar, microdilution in broth, extinction measurement of the absorption of cation 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and procedures recommended by the United Nations for the phytochemical investigation of cocaine producing species. It was verified that twenty-four species present the enzymatic apparatus for the production of cocaine. Although E. novogranatense originate income appropriate to traffic according to current Brazilian legislation, only E. coca is outlawed, which makes it necessary to include E. novogranatense in the list of proscribed plants. For the toxicological study developed with E. deciduum on planaria model, it was necessary to adapt the existing methodology. The extract of the species caused a significant increase in locomotion velocity (p= 0.016) and standardized stereotyped behaviors of type C position and screw- type hyperkinesia, characteristic events of dopaminergic neurotransmission in planarians. The results, besides expanding the possibilities of the use of these worms in search for active extracts, demonstrate that E. deciduum biosynthesizes active metabolites on this neurotransmitter, which may be related to the effects caused by the consumption of the plant species. The influence of the collect period on pharmacological potentials and phytochemical characteristics was investigated and the results demonstrate this influence. Different extracts of E. argentinum and E. deciduum collected during summer showed higher antimicrobial activity than the extracts obtained from winter collect. The ethanolic extract of E. argentinum, summer collect, may be considered a true antimicrobial, MIC= 0.78mg/ mL, on Staphylococcus aureus, and in this way it becomes a promising source for the discovery of new antimicrobial molecules. The extracts of E. argentinum and E. deciduum species demonstrate relevant results on antioxidant activity. The influence of the collecting period, summer/ winter, on the activity was verified. The influence of collect period on toxic- pharmacological activities is corroborated by the alkaloid profile obtained from nine species of the genus, collected during summer and winter in the states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina. The alkaloid profile of E. amplifolium, E. argentinum, E. cuneifolium, E. cuspidifolium, E. deciduum, E. microphyllum, E. myrsinites, E. pelleterianum and E. vacciniifolium species shows the presence of alkaloids: ecgonidine methyl ester, ecgonine methyl ester, cuscohygrine and tropacocaine and the biosynthesis intermediates: hygrine, tropinone and tropanol. The identification of the ecgonine methyl ester and ecgonidine methyl ester also shows that Erythroxylum genus species present in southern Brazil have economic potential because they can be used in the production of toxicological standards. The aims were met and allow the conclusion that Erythroxylum genus of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina states, south of Brazil, show toxic, pharmacological and chemical importance, part of these being influenced by the collect period, summer/ winter.

O gênero Erythroxylum P. Browne pertence a família Erythroxylaceae Kunth e é principalmente conhecido devido as espécies E. coca e E. novogranatense, as “plantas da coca”. O gênero é a única fonte natural da cocaína e de outros alcaloides com núcleo ecgonina, principais responsáveis pelos efeitos tóxicos e biológicos originados pelo consumo de suas espécies. A presença da cocaína é amplamente aceita para as plantas de coca, porém a sua biossíntese por outras espécies apresenta divergência, o que pode estar relacionada ao período de coleta. Além destas particularidades fitoquímicas, as espécies do gênero também apresentam importantes atividades como antioxidante e antimicrobiana, além de toxicidade a humanos e a ovinos. O Brasil é o centro da diversidade e do endemismo do gênero e no sul do país, nos estados do Rio Grande do Sul e de Santa Catarina, as carcaterísticas fitoquímicas e potencialidades tóxicas e farmacológicas das espécies apresentam um campo aberto para estudos. Desta forma, foram avaliadas características fitoquímicas e potencialidades tóxicas e farmacológicas de espécies nativas dos estados do Rio Grande do Sul e de Santa Catarina, coletadas em dois períodos climáticos distintos, verão e inverno, além de revisão bibliográfica sobre as espécies produtoras de cocaína e as implicações segundo a legislação brasileira vigente. Foram utilizadas metodologia de planária, disco-difusão em ágar, microdiluição em caldo, medida da extinção da absorção do cátion 2,2-difenil-1-picrilhidrazil e procedimentos preconizados pelas Nações Unidas para a investigação fitoquímica de espécies produtoras de cocaína. Foi verificado que 24 espécies apresentam o aparato enzimático para a produção da cocaína. Embora E. novogranatense origina rendimentos apropriados ao tráfico, segundo a legislação Brasileira vigente, apenas E. coca encontra-se proscrita, o que torna necessário a inclusão de E. novogranatense na lista de plantas proscritas. Para o estudo toxicológico desenvolvido com E. deciduum sobre modelo de planária, foi necessário adaptar a metodologia existente. O extrato da espécie ocasionou aumento significativo da velocidade de locomoção (p= 0.016) e comportamentos estereotipados padronizados de posição tipo C e hipercinesia tipo parafuso, eventos característicos da neurotransmissão dopaminérgica em planárias. Os resultados, além de ampliar as possibilidades do uso destes vermes na busca por extratos ativos, demonstram que E. deciduum biossintetiza metabólitos ativos sobre este neurotransmissor, os quais podem estar relacionados com os efeitos ocasionados pelo consumo da espécie vegetal. A influência do período de coleta sobre as potencialidades farmacológicas e as características fitoquímicas foi investigada e os resultados demonstram esta infuência. Diferentes extratos de E. argentinum e E. deciduum, coletadas durante o verão, apresentaram atividade antimicrobiana superiores a verificada para os extratos obtidos de coletas realizadas no inverno. O extrato etanólico de E. argentinum, coleta verão, pode ser considerado um verdadeiro antimicrobiano, MIC= 0,78mg/ mL, e desta forma torna-se uma fonte promissora para a descoberta de novas moléculas antimicrobianas. Os extratos das espécies E. argentinum e E. deciduum demonstram pertinentes resultados sobre a atividade antioxidante. A influência do período de coleta, verão/ inverno, sobre a atividade foi identificada. A influência do período de coleta sobre as atividades tóxico-farmacológicas é corroborada pelo perfil alcaloídico obtido de noves espécies do gênero, coletadas durante o verão e o inverno, nos estados do Rio Grande do Sul e de Santa Catarina. O perfil alcaloídico das espécies E. amplifolium, E. argentinum, E. cuneifolium, E. cuspidifolium, E. deciduum, E. microphyllum, E. myrsinites, E. pelleterianum e E. vacciniifolium demonstra a presença dos alcaloides: éster de metecgonidina, éster de metilecgonina, cuscohigrina e tropacocaína e dos intermediários da biossíntese: higrina, tropinona e tropanol. A identificação dos metabólitos éster de metilecgonina e éster de metilecgonidina também demonstra que as espécies do gênero Erythroxylum presentes no Sul do Brasil apresentam potencialidade econômicas, pois podem ser empregadas na produção de padrões toxicológicos. Os objetivos propostos foram cumpridos e permitem concluir que espécies do gênero Erythroxylum dos estados do Rio Grande do Sul e de Santa Catarina, Sul do Brasil, demonstram importância tóxica, farmacológica e química, sendo parte destas influenciada pelo período de coleta, verão/ inverno. / “Chemical and Biological Study of Erythroxylum P. Browne Species Collected in Southern Brazil”. Erythroxylum P. Browne genus belongs to the Erythroxylaceae Kunth family and is mainly known due to E. coca and E. novogranatense species, the "coca plants". The genus is the only natural source of cocaine and other alkaloids with ecgonine nucleus, mainly responsible for the toxic and biological effects caused by the consumption of their species. The presence of cocaine is widely accepted for coca plants, but its biosynthesis by other species shows divergence, which may be related to the collect period. Besides these phytochemical peculiarities, the species of the genus also present important activities such as antioxidant and antimicrobial, besides toxicity to humans and sheep. Brazil is the center of diversity and endemism of the genus and in the south of the country, in the states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina, the phytochemical characteristics, toxic and pharmacological potentials of the species present an open field for studies. Thus, phytochemical characteristics, toxic and pharmacological potentials of native species of the states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina were assessed, collected in two distinct climatic periods, summer and winter, as well as a bibliographical review on cocaine producing species and implications under current Brazilian law. Some methodologies were used such as planaria, disc-diffusion in agar, microdilution in broth, extinction measurement of the absorption of cation 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and procedures recommended by the United Nations for the phytochemical investigation of cocaine producing species. It was verified that twenty-four species present the enzymatic apparatus for the production of cocaine. Although E. novogranatense originate income appropriate to traffic according to current Brazilian legislation, only E. coca is outlawed, which makes it necessary to include E. novogranatense in the list of proscribed plants. For the toxicological study developed with E. deciduum on planaria model, it was necessary to adapt the existing methodology. The extract of the species caused a significant increase in locomotion velocity (p= 0.016) and standardized stereotyped behaviors of type C position and screw- type hyperkinesia, characteristic events of dopaminergic neurotransmission in planarians. The results, besides expanding the possibilities of the use of these worms in search for active extracts, demonstrate that E. deciduum biosynthesizes active metabolites on this neurotransmitter, which may be related to the effects caused by the consumption of the plant species. The influence of the collect period on pharmacological potentials and phytochemical characteristics was investigated and the results demonstrate this influence. Different extracts of E. argentinum and E. deciduum collected during summer showed higher antimicrobial activity than the extracts obtained from winter collect. The ethanolic extract of E. argentinum, summer collect, may be considered a true antimicrobial, MIC= 0.78mg/ mL, on Staphylococcus aureus, and in this way it becomes a promising source for the discovery of new antimicrobial molecules. The extracts of E. argentinum and E. deciduum species demonstrate relevant results on antioxidant activity. The influence of the collecting period, summer/ winter, on the activity was verified. The influence of collect period on toxic- pharmacological activities is corroborated by the alkaloid profile obtained from nine species of the genus, collected during summer and winter in the states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina. The alkaloid profile of E. amplifolium, E. argentinum, E. cuneifolium, E. cuspidifolium, E. deciduum, E. microphyllum, E. myrsinites, E. pelleterianum and E. vacciniifolium species shows the presence of alkaloids: ecgonidine methyl ester, ecgonine methyl ester, cuscohygrine and tropacocaine and the biosynthesis intermediates: hygrine, tropinone and tropanol. The identification of the ecgonine methyl ester and ecgonidine methyl ester also shows that Erythroxylum genus species present in southern Brazil have economic potential because they can be used in the production of toxicological standards. The aims were met and allow the conclusion that Erythroxylum genus of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina states, south of Brazil, show toxic, pharmacological and chemical importance, part of these being influenced by the collect period, summer/ winter.

O gênero Erythroxylum P. Browne pertence a família Erythroxylaceae Kunth e é principalmente conhecido devido as espécies E. coca e E. novogranatense, as “plantas da coca”. O gênero é a única fonte natural da cocaína e de outros alcaloides com núcleo ecgonina, principais responsáveis pelos efeitos tóxicos e biológicos originados pelo consumo de suas espécies. A presença da cocaína é amplamente aceita para as plantas de coca, porém a sua biossíntese por outras espécies apresenta divergência, o que pode estar relacionada ao período de coleta. Além destas particularidades fitoquímicas, as espécies do gênero também apresentam importantes atividades como antioxidante e antimicrobiana, além de toxicidade a humanos e a ovinos. O Brasil é o centro da diversidade e do endemismo do gênero e no sul do país, nos estados do Rio Grande do Sul e de Santa Catarina, as carcaterísticas fitoquímicas e potencialidades tóxicas e farmacológicas das espécies apresentam um campo aberto para estudos. Desta forma, foram avaliadas características fitoquímicas e potencialidades tóxicas e farmacológicas de espécies nativas dos estados do Rio Grande do Sul e de Santa Catarina, coletadas em dois períodos climáticos distintos, verão e inverno, além de revisão bibliográfica sobre as espécies produtoras de cocaína e as implicações segundo a legislação brasileira vigente. Foram utilizadas metodologia de planária, disco-difusão em ágar, microdiluição em caldo, medida da extinção da absorção do cátion 2,2-difenil-1-picrilhidrazil e procedimentos preconizados pelas Nações Unidas para a investigação fitoquímica de espécies produtoras de cocaína. Foi verificado que 24 espécies apresentam o aparato enzimático para a produção da cocaína. Embora E. novogranatense origina rendimentos apropriados ao tráfico, segundo a legislação Brasileira vigente, apenas E. coca encontra-se proscrita, o que torna necessário a inclusão de E. novogranatense na lista de plantas proscritas. Para o estudo toxicológico desenvolvido com E. deciduum sobre modelo de planária, foi necessário adaptar a metodologia existente. O extrato da espécie ocasionou aumento significativo da velocidade de locomoção (p= 0.016) e comportamentos estereotipados padronizados de posição tipo C e hipercinesia tipo parafuso, eventos característicos da neurotransmissão dopaminérgica em planárias. Os resultados, além de ampliar as possibilidades do uso destes vermes na busca por extratos ativos, demonstram que E. deciduum biossintetiza metabólitos ativos sobre este neurotransmissor, os quais podem estar relacionados com os efeitos ocasionados pelo consumo da espécie vegetal. A influência do período de coleta sobre as potencialidades farmacológicas e as características fitoquímicas foi investigada e os resultados demonstram esta infuência. Diferentes extratos de E. argentinum e E. deciduum, coletadas durante o verão, apresentaram atividade antimicrobiana superiores a verificada para os extratos obtidos de coletas realizadas no inverno. O extrato etanólico de E. argentinum, coleta verão, pode ser considerado um verdadeiro antimicrobiano, MIC= 0,78mg/ mL, e desta forma torna-se uma fonte promissora para a descoberta de novas moléculas antimicrobianas. Os extratos das espécies E. argentinum e E. deciduum demonstram pertinentes resultados sobre a atividade antioxidante. A influência do período de coleta, verão/ inverno, sobre a atividade foi identificada. A influência do período de coleta sobre as atividades tóxico-farmacológicas é corroborada pelo perfil alcaloídico obtido de noves espécies do gênero, coletadas durante o verão e o inverno, nos estados do Rio Grande do Sul e de Santa Catarina. O perfil alcaloídico das espécies E. amplifolium, E. argentinum, E. cuneifolium, E. cuspidifolium, E. deciduum, E. microphyllum, E. myrsinites, E. pelleterianum e E. vacciniifolium demonstra a presença dos alcaloides: éster de metecgonidina, éster de metilecgonina, cuscohigrina e tropacocaína e dos intermediários da biossíntese: higrina, tropinona e tropanol. A identificação dos metabólitos éster de metilecgonina e éster de metilecgonidina também demonstra que as espécies do gênero Erythroxylum presentes no Sul do Brasil apresentam potencialidade econômicas, pois podem ser empregadas na produção de padrões toxicológicos. Os objetivos propostos foram cumpridos e permitem concluir que espécies do gênero Erythroxylum dos estados do Rio Grande do Sul e de Santa Catarina, Sul do Brasil, demonstram importância tóxica, farmacológica e química, sendo parte destas influenciada pelo período de coleta, verão/ inverno. / “Chemical and Biological Study of Erythroxylum P. Browne Species Collected in Southern Brazil”. Erythroxylum P. Browne genus belongs to the Erythroxylaceae Kunth family and is mainly known due to E. coca and E. novogranatense species, the "coca plants". The genus is the only natural source of cocaine and other alkaloids with ecgonine nucleus, mainly responsible for the toxic and biological effects caused by the consumption of their species. The presence of cocaine is widely accepted for coca plants, but its biosynthesis by other species shows divergence, which may be related to the collect period. Besides these phytochemical peculiarities, the species of the genus also present important activities such as antioxidant and antimicrobial, besides toxicity to humans and sheep. Brazil is the center of diversity and endemism of the genus and in the south of the country, in the states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina, the phytochemical characteristics, toxic and pharmacological potentials of the species present an open field for studies. Thus, phytochemical characteristics, toxic and pharmacological potentials of native species of the states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina were assessed, collected in two distinct climatic periods, summer and winter, as well as a bibliographical review on cocaine producing species and implications under current Brazilian law. Some methodologies were used such as planaria, disc-diffusion in agar, microdilution in broth, extinction measurement of the absorption of cation 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and procedures recommended by the United Nations for the phytochemical investigation of cocaine producing species. It was verified that twenty-four species present the enzymatic apparatus for the production of cocaine. Although E. novogranatense originate income appropriate to traffic according to current Brazilian legislation, only E. coca is outlawed, which makes it necessary to include E. novogranatense in the list of proscribed plants. For the toxicological study developed with E. deciduum on planaria model, it was necessary to adapt the existing methodology. The extract of the species caused a significant increase in locomotion velocity (p= 0.016) and standardized stereotyped behaviors of type C position and screw- type hyperkinesia, characteristic events of dopaminergic neurotransmission in planarians. The results, besides expanding the possibilities of the use of these worms in search for active extracts, demonstrate that E. deciduum biosynthesizes active metabolites on this neurotransmitter, which may be related to the effects caused by the consumption of the plant species. The influence of the collect period on pharmacological potentials and phytochemical characteristics was investigated and the results demonstrate this influence. Different extracts of E. argentinum and E. deciduum collected during summer showed higher antimicrobial activity than the extracts obtained from winter collect. The ethanolic extract of E. argentinum, summer collect, may be considered a true antimicrobial, MIC= 0.78mg/ mL, on Staphylococcus aureus, and in this way it becomes a promising source for the discovery of new antimicrobial molecules. The extracts of E. argentinum and E. deciduum species demonstrate relevant results on antioxidant activity. The influence of the collecting period, summer/ winter, on the activity was verified. The influence of collect period on toxic- pharmacological activities is corroborated by the alkaloid profile obtained from nine species of the genus, collected during summer and winter in the states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina. The alkaloid profile of E. amplifolium, E. argentinum, E. cuneifolium, E. cuspidifolium, E. deciduum, E. microphyllum, E. myrsinites, E. pelleterianum and E. vacciniifolium species shows the presence of alkaloids: ecgonidine methyl ester, ecgonine methyl ester, cuscohygrine and tropacocaine and the biosynthesis intermediates: hygrine, tropinone and tropanol. The identification of the ecgonine methyl ester and ecgonidine methyl ester also shows that Erythroxylum genus species present in southern Brazil have economic potential because they can be used in the production of toxicological standards. The aims were met and allow the conclusion that Erythroxylum genus of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina states, south of Brazil, show toxic, pharmacological and chemical importance, part of these being influenced by the collect period, summer/ winter.

A highly structured tissue is formed from an unstructured accumulation of cells during morphogenesis. The pioneering works by Thompson, Turing and Meinhardt introduced physical principles allowing the breaking of symmetry, i.e. the emergence of patterns. This started an ongoing effort to understand the physics behind morphogenesis. In this thesis I will analyze spatial and temporal aspects of morphogenesis for different biological systems in separate parts. The planarian is an ideal model animal to understand mechanisms of spatial body axis formation. This is due to the possibility to measure its body orientation field which utilizes the orientation of the cilia of the planarian’s ventral tissue. Moreover, their astonishing regeneration capabilities allow extensive perturbation experiments. I propose a minimal model which demonstrates the emergence of the wild type body orientation as well as the development of dual-head body orientation due to beta-Catenin RNAi treatment. The topological defects of the body orientation field are calculated on a lattice for simulations and lattice-free for experimental data. These topological defects are a robust way to analyze and compare experiments with simulations. My minimal model reveals sufficient components and mechanisms for robust body axis regeneration. The second important aspect of morphogenesis is the growth regulation of tissues which is often driven by cell proliferation. The regulation of growth is not only important during growth, but also to maintain homeostasis. As fast renewing tissues are very dynamic they may have more pathways of morphogenesis active than non-renewing tissues which points to mechanisms of morphogenesis. The in vivo measurement of this proliferation rate is a challenging task. In this thesis the analysis of DNA labelling assays and the carbon 14 dating method are extended. The carbon 14 dating method can be used to determine cell renewal rates on time scales as long as the lifetime of organism last. Moreover, this method can be applied for tissues in any terrestrial organism because it utilizes the change of carbon 14 in the atmosphere due to atmospheric nuclear bomb tests in the 1960s. The method is extended to gain a better understanding of the tissue dynamics of liver, muscles and amygdala. On the other hand, the DNA labelling assays are used to estimate cell cycle parameters for fast cycling cells. The measurements are fatal to the samples and involve plenty of labor resulting in few sampled data for a time series. The deterministic Nowakowski model is extended to a stochastic model accounting for cell-to-cell and sample-to-sample variability to fully exploit the information contained even in the fluctuations of the data points. A comprehensive parameter recovery study with synthetic ground truth data is performed to evaluate the models. The new stochastic model shows no bias, a good accuracy and scales well with the number of measurements in contrast to the deterministic text-book method. I conclude with proposed applications of my new models and methods that can advance our understanding of growth and pattern formation during morphogenesis. All python software developed in this thesis is shared as open source and a website makes the stochastic analysis of DNA labelling assays available to experimentalists in a user-friendly way.

Cell turnover is a common feature of many organs in all animals and is required to maintain organ structure and function. It is achieved by a tightly regulated balance between cell death and cell division, which can be re-adjusted in response to injury and nutrient availability. How the balance between dying and dividing cells is coordinated has however remained unclear. Planarians represent an important model for studying cell turnover in adult animals, because all tissues undergo continuous cell turnover and a single stem cell type – the neoblast – is the exclusive source of all new cells. Moreover, planarians change their body size proportionally and reversibly depending on the nutritional status: feeding induces rapid and transient neoblast proliferation that results in animal growth, while starvation increases the rate of cell death, leading to de-growth. Importantly, also during starvation neoblasts keep proliferating at a basal-level. The hypothesis I addressed with my thesis research is that planarian energy metabolism might be a central mediator of cell turnover, particularly proliferation control and growth. I approached this hypothesis at several levels, including the characterization of the planarian energy metabolism and energy stores, the dependency of proliferation on the diet, and genetic requirements of proliferation control during starvation and feeding. I found that planarians have orthologs of key enzymes of most animal metabolic pathways, but, surprisingly, seem to lack fatty acid synthase. This suggests that planarians are likely not only auxotrophic for cholesterol, but also for fatty acids. I described that planarians store energy as triacylglycerols (TAGs, stored in lipid droplets) and glycogen, with the intestine as the main storage organ. Interestingly, the amount of TAGs and glycogen changes with size and is higher for larger animals, suggesting a regulatory interplay with the known size-dependency of growth/degrowth rates. Further, we demonstrated that the energy stores are the physiological basis of Kleiber’s law that describes the near-universal scaling between metabolic rate and body mass. I further showed that proliferation occurs in three different modes, one during starvation when proliferation is maintained at basal levels and two after feeding, an initial proliferation mode (at three hours after feeding), which is diet independent and a later proliferation (at 24 hours after feeding), which is diet dependent. The two feeding-induced proliferation modes differ not only in their diet-dependencies, but also in their gene expression profiles, as assessed by RNA-sequencing. To identify genes involved in proliferation regulation, I assessed the requirements of different candidate genes in all three proliferation modes in a small-scale RNA interference screen. This screen revealed that insulin signaling, TORC1 and FGFR are involved in regulating basal proliferation during starvation and – most interestingly –that AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK)-depleted animals showed increased proliferation during starvation at levels characteristic of recently fed animals. This result uncovered AMPK as a modulator that adjusts the neoblast proliferative activity to the nutritional state, potentially independently of TOR. In sum, my work shows how energy metabolism and storage are coordinated with proliferation and growth in planarians and identified AMPK as a central modulator that adjust proliferation to cellular energy states. I discuss potential mechanisms by which AMPK modulates proliferation and putative links between AMPK and cell death, the second process of cell turnover. The energy state as the central mediator of cell turnover and the key players and mechanisms that my work revealed in planarians might also apply across different species:Chapter 1 1. Introduction 1 1.1 Cell turnover is a crucial process for tissue homeostasis 1 1.2 Cell division 2 1.2.1 Control mechanisms of cell division 2 1.2.1.1 Cell cycle machinery 2 1.2.1.2 Organization of the cell cycle control system – cell-cycle intrinsic regulation by Cdk-cyclin complexes 3 1.2.1.3 External control of cell cycle progression 4 1.2.1.4 Metabolic control of cell cycle progression 6 1.2.2 Metabolic requirements of proliferating cells 10 1.2.2.1 The energy stores 11 1.3 Cell death 13 1.4 Suggested mechanisms that coordinate cell death and division and their caveats 14 1.5 Planarians as a model to study cell turnover 16 1.6 Planarian body anatomy 18 1.7 Planarian stem cell system 19 1.7.1 Neoblasts form a heterogeneous population 19 1.7.2 Neoblast proliferative activity 21 1.7.3 Neoblast cell cycle machinery 22 1.7.4 Regulation of neoblast proliferative activity 22 1.8 Cell death in planarians 23 1.9 Mechanisms that coordinate the rate of dividing and dying cells in planarians still remain elusive 24 1.10 Scope of the thesis 24 Chapter 2 2. Planarian energy metabolism and the regulation of planarian growth dynamics 26 2.1 Introduction 26 2.2 Part 1: Planarian energy metabolism 27 2.2.1 The metabolic machinery of S. mediterranea 27 2.2.2 Planarian energy stores 30 2.2.2.1 Visualization of lipid and glycogen storage compartments in planarians 30 2.2.2.2 Investigation of feeding-dependent changes in lipid and glycogen stores 31 2.3 Part 2: Role of planarian organismal energy stores in regulating their growth and degrowth dynamics 36 2.3.1 Background information about known aspects of growth and degrowth dynamics in planarians 36 2.3.1.1 Growth and degrowth arise mainly from changes in cell number 36 2.3.1.2 Growth and degrowth rates are size dependent 37 2.3.2 Energy stores increase disproportionately with size and strongly contribute to the size-dependent dry mass increase 38 2.3.3 Metabolic rate and energy intake are unlikely causes of the size-dependency of the energy stores 41 2.4 Summary and Discussion 43 2.4.1 Part 1: First insights into planarian energy metabolism 43 2.4.1.1 Core planarian metabolic pathways 43 2.4.1.2 Characterization of planarian energy stores 44 2.4.2 Part 2: Implications of size-dependent behavior of planarian energy stores 44 2.4.2.1 Role of energy stores as the physiological origin of Kleiber’s law in planarians 44 2.5 Outlook 46 Chapter 3 3. Towards understanding a systems-level regulation of neoblast proliferative activity 48 3.1 Introduction 48 3.2 Assay development for quantitative determination of proliferating cells 50 3.3 Food quantity and quality affect the later proliferation phase, but not the initial response to feeding 53 3.4 Deep sequencing time course provides insights into gene-expression changes in response to feeding 56 3.5 Discussion 59 3.5.1 Evidence for feeding-induced neoblast regulation at the G0/G1-to-S transition 59 3.5.2 Three distinct modes of neoblast proliferation 59 3.5.3 Early and late proliferation modes show distinct transcriptional profiles 59 3.5.4 Implications from feeding and gene expression profiling experiments 60 3.5.4.1 Potential explanations for diet dependence of the late proliferation mode 60 3.5.4.2 Potential mechanisms of diet-independent early proliferation response 61 3.5.5 Summary and Outlook 61 Chapter 4 4. Towards identifying the mechanisms underlying the regulation of neoblast proliferation 63 4.1 Introduction 63 4.1.1 Chosen gene candidates and their known role in proliferation 64 4.2 RNAi-mediated depletion of candidate genes to test their regulatory role in proliferation 67 4.2.1 Assay design and optimization for the functional RNAi screen 67 4.2.2 Results of small-scale RNAi screen 69 4.3 AMPK - a potential integrator of neoblast proliferation to the nutritional state of the animal 73 4.3.1 AMPK and LKB1 knockdown increases proliferation during starvation 73 4.3.2 AMPK depletion-phenotype of increased proliferation during starvation seems to be TOR independent 73 4.4 Discussion 76 4.4.1 Evidence for a mechanism that regulates basal proliferation during starvation 76 4.4.2 AMPK integrates neoblast activity in response to feeding 77 4.4.2.1 Implications of my observations 77 4.4.2.2 Possible experiments to test the role of AMPK during the regulation of proliferation 78 4.4.3 AMPK potentially regulates proliferation independently of TOR 79 4.4.4 An evolutionarily conserved stem cell switch? 80 4.4.5 Summary and Outlook 80 Chapter 5 5. Discussion and Outlook 81 5.1 Cell-autonomous roles of AMPK in proliferation regulation 83 5.1.1 Independent regulation of ribosomal translation elongation as a potential modulator of neoblast proliferation 83 5.1.2 AMPK might regulate cell cycle progression directly 85 5.1.3 AMPK might regulate symmetric versus asymmetric cell division 85 5.2 Cell non-autonomous roles of AMPK in proliferation regulation 86 5.2.1 AMPK might modulate the release of lipid stores 86 5.3 Possible role of AMPK in regulation of autophagic cell death 87 5.4 AMPK as a potential modulator of cell turnover that couples cell proliferation and cell death to the animal’s energy state 88 5.5 Summary and Outlook 89 Materials and Methods 91 List of Figures 106 List of Tables 107 Acknowledgments 108 References 110

Using a high throughput closed respirometry method to measure oxygen consumption, I determined metabolic rates in asexual and sexual Schmidtea mediterranea and Girardia dorotocephala, as a function of temperature, taxon, stressors, reproductive mode, age, regeneration, and specific dynamic action. This study has shown that oxygen consumption can reliably be measured in planaria using optode closed respirometry, and also provided a reliable method for measuring wet mass in planaria, which has been a challenge to researchers in the past. This research revealed that oxygen consumption in S. mediterranea is 1.5-2.1X greater in the sexual strain over the asexual strain at 13-18°C. Within the sexual strain, oxygen consumption is 1.5 -2.2X greater in sexually mature adults over the sexually immature groups (hatchlings, juveniles, and regenerating sexuals). Furthermore, I was able to quantify differences in sexual morphology between these groups exhibiting significant differences in oxygen consumption. The results of this research supports a theory of higher metabolic costs with sexual maturity in S. mediterranea. Therefore, this study has established sexual and asexual S. mediterranea as simple, yet attractive models for investigating energetic costs between sexual and asexual phenotypes. This research also provided quantitative values for specific dynamic action in planaria, with a maximum increase in oxygen consumption of 160% induced by feeding, as well as metabolic relationships in planaria involving temperature, age, and regeneration. These values establish planaria as one of the simplest animal models in which common metabolic patterns, such as SDA and poikilothermic temperature sensitivity, have been demonstrated. Therefore, this research has contributed to the overall knowledge of the basic physiology in this animal, providing the framework for future metabolic studies in planaria involving environmental factors, reproduction, regeneration, development, and aging. Information from this study may supplement interpretation and understanding of modern cellular, molecular, and genomic studies in planaria.

The present habilitation thesis in theoretical biological physics addresses two central dynamical processes in cells and organisms: (i) active motility and motility control and (ii) self-organized pattern formation. The unifying theme is the nonlinear dynamics of biological function and its robustness in the presence of strong fluctuations, structural variations, and external perturbations. We theoretically investigate motility control at the cellular scale, using cilia and flagella as ideal model system. Cilia and flagella are highly conserved slender cell appendages that exhibit spontaneous bending waves. This flagellar beat represents a prime example of a chemo-mechanical oscillator, which is driven by the collective dynamics of molecular motors inside the flagellar axoneme. We study the nonlinear dynamics of flagellar swimming, steering, and synchronization, which encompasses shape control of the flagellar beat by chemical signals and mechanical forces. Mechanical forces can synchronize collections of flagella to beat at a common frequency, despite active motor noise that tends to randomize flagellar synchrony. In Chapter 2, we present a new physical mechanism for flagellar synchronization by mechanical self-stabilization that applies to free-swimming flagellated cells. This new mechanism is independent of direct hydrodynamic interactions between flagella. Comparison with experimental data provided by experimental collaboration partners in the laboratory of J. Howard (Yale, New Haven) confirmed our new mechanism in the model organism of the unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas. Further, we characterize the beating flagellum as a noisy oscillator. Using a minimal model of collective motor dynamics, we argue that measured non-equilibrium fluctuations of the flagellar beat result from stochastic motor dynamics at the molecular scale. Noise and mechanical coupling are antagonists for flagellar synchronization. In addition to the control of the flagellar beat by mechanical forces, we study the control of the flagellar beat by chemical signals in the context of sperm chemotaxis. We characterize a fundamental paradigm for navigation in external concentration gradients that relies on active swimming along helical paths. In this helical chemotaxis, the direction of a spatial concentration gradient becomes encoded in the phase of an oscillatory chemical signal. Helical chemotaxis represents a distinct gradient-sensing strategy, which is different from bacterial chemotaxis. Helical chemotaxis is employed, for example, by sperm cells from marine invertebrates with external fertilization. We present a theory of sensorimotor control, which combines hydrodynamic simulations of chiral flagellar swimming with a dynamic regulation of flagellar beat shape in response to chemical signals perceived by the cell. Our theory is compared to three-dimensional tracking experiments of sperm chemotaxis performed by the laboratory of U. B. Kaupp (CAESAR, Bonn). In addition to motility control, we investigate in Chapter 3 self-organized pattern formation in two selected biological systems at the cell and organism scale, respectively. On the cellular scale, we present a minimal physical mechanism for the spontaneous self-assembly of periodic cytoskeletal patterns, as observed in myofibrils in striated muscle cells. This minimal mechanism relies on the interplay of a passive coarsening process of crosslinked actin clusters and active cytoskeletal forces. This mechanism of cytoskeletal pattern formation exemplifies how local interactions can generate large-scale spatial order in active systems. On the organism scale, we present an extension of Turing’s framework for self-organized pattern formation that is capable of a proportionate scaling of steady-state patterns with system size. This new mechanism does not require any pre-pattering clues and can restore proportional patterns in regeneration scenarios. We analytically derive the hierarchy of steady-state patterns and analyze their stability and basins of attraction. We demonstrate that this scaling mechanism is structurally robust. Applications to the growth and regeneration dynamics in flatworms are discussed (experiments by J. Rink, MPI CBG, Dresden). / Das Thema der vorliegenden Habilitationsschrift in Theoretischer Biologischer Physik ist die nichtlineare Dynamik funktionaler biologischer Systeme und deren Robustheit gegenüber Fluktuationen und äußeren Störungen. Wir entwickeln hierzu theoretische Beschreibungen für zwei grundlegende biologische Prozesse: (i) die zell-autonome Kontrolle aktiver Bewegung, sowie (ii) selbstorganisierte Musterbildung in Zellen und Organismen. In Kapitel 2, untersuchen wir Bewegungskontrolle auf zellulärer Ebene am Modelsystem von Zilien und Geißeln. Spontane Biegewellen dieser dünnen Zellfortsätze ermöglichen es eukaryotischen Zellen, in einer Flüssigkeit zu schwimmen. Wir beschreiben einen neuen physikalischen Mechanismus für die Synchronisation zweier schlagender Geißeln, unabhängig von direkten hydrodynamischen Wechselwirkungen. Der Vergleich mit experimentellen Daten, zur Verfügung gestellt von unseren experimentellen Kooperationspartnern im Labor von J. Howard (Yale, New Haven), bestätigt diesen neuen Mechanismus im Modellorganismus der einzelligen Grünalge Chlamydomonas. Der Gegenspieler dieser Synchronisation durch mechanische Kopplung sind Fluktuationen. Wir bestimmen erstmals Nichtgleichgewichts-Fluktuationen des Geißel-Schlags direkt, wofür wir eine neue Analyse-Methode der Grenzzykel-Rekonstruktion entwickeln. Die von uns gemessenen Fluktuationen entstehen mutmaßlich durch die stochastische Dynamik molekularen Motoren im Innern der Geißeln, welche auch den Geißelschlag antreiben. Um die statistische Physik dieser Nichtgleichgewichts-Fluktuationen zu verstehen, entwickeln wir eine analytische Theorie der Fluktuationen in einem minimalen Modell kollektiver Motor-Dynamik. Zusätzlich zur Regulation des Geißelschlags durch mechanische Kräfte untersuchen wir dessen Regulation durch chemische Signale am Modell der Chemotaxis von Spermien-Zellen. Dabei charakterisieren wir einen grundlegenden Mechanismus für die Navigation in externen Konzentrationsgradienten. Dieser Mechanismus beruht auf dem aktiven Schwimmen entlang von Spiralbahnen, wodurch ein räumlicher Konzentrationsgradient in der Phase eines oszillierenden chemischen Signals kodiert wird. Dieser Chemotaxis-Mechanismus unterscheidet sich grundlegend vom bekannten Chemotaxis-Mechanismus von Bakterien. Wir entwickeln eine Theorie der senso-motorischen Steuerung des Geißelschlags während der Spermien-Chemotaxis. Vorhersagen dieser Theorie werden durch Experimente der Gruppe von U.B. Kaupp (CAESAR, Bonn) quantitativ bestätigt. In Kapitel 3, untersuchen wir selbstorganisierte Strukturbildung in zwei ausgewählten biologischen Systemen. Auf zellulärer Ebene schlagen wir einen einfachen physikalischen Mechanismus vor für die spontane Selbstorganisation von periodischen Zellskelett-Strukturen, wie sie sich z.B. in den Myofibrillen gestreifter Muskelzellen finden. Dieser Mechanismus zeigt exemplarisch auf, wie allein durch lokale Wechselwirkungen räumliche Ordnung auf größeren Längenskalen in einem Nichtgleichgewichtssystem entstehen kann. Auf der Ebene des Organismus stellen wir eine Erweiterung der Turingschen Theorie für selbstorganisierte Musterbildung vor. Wir beschreiben eine neue Klasse von Musterbildungssystemen, welche selbst-organisierte Muster erzeugt, die mit der Systemgröße skalieren. Dieser neue Mechanismus erfordert weder eine vorgegebene Kompartimentalisierung des Systems noch spezielle Randbedingungen. Insbesondere kann dieser Mechanismus proportionale Muster wiederherstellen, wenn Teile des Systems amputiert werden. Wir bestimmen analytisch die Hierarchie aller stationären Muster und analysieren deren Stabilität und Einzugsgebiete. Damit können wir zeigen, dass dieser Skalierungs-Mechanismus strukturell robust ist bezüglich Variationen von Parametern und sogar funktionalen Beziehungen zwischen dynamischen Variablen. Zusammen mit Kollaborationspartnern im Labor von J. Rink (MPI CBG, Dresden) diskutieren wir Anwendungen auf das Wachstum von Plattwürmern und deren Regeneration in Amputations-Experimenten.