The master thesis is a prototyping project of a wireless body area network (WBANs) for patient monitoring in hospitals. The goal of this project was to study various technologies suitable for wireless body area networks, complete a requirement analysis, design a WBAN suitable to achieve the requirements and to test and evaluate the system against the requirements. Seven sensor end nodes are chosen to monitor seven vital signs for patient monitoring. After studying different technologies suitable for WBANs, IEEE 802.15.4j was chosen because it communicates in a special allocation of medical spectrum of 2360 to 2400MHz. A coordinator or master will be the center of the network using a star topology. Due to certain limitations in the firmware of the NXP FRDMKW40Z, IEEE 802.15.4j had to be dropped and IEEE 802.15.4 was the final chosen technology because the only difference between IEEE 802.15.4j and IEEE802.15.4 is the difference in the physical layer, while the developed application remains the same, making the shift back to IEEE802.15.4j, in the future, simple. There have been several projects working on the same idea with IEEE 802.15.4, but they do not combine multiple sensors to form a network and the total throughput requirements for this thesis project are much higher. The beacon mode and the non-beacon mode of IEEE 802.15.4 are studied. Non beacon mode is unpredictable due to the use of carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA) to access the medium. When multiple end nodes compete to get access to the medium, unreliability is introduced into the system. In the beacon mode, because of the slotted CSMA access of sixteen equally spaced time slots for communication, there is a restriction of the size of a time slot and thus, the high throughput requirement of the system is not met. The solution proposed in the thesis project is to develop a custom time slot system in the non-beacon mode, where each end node is granted a reserved time slot of a specific length as required by the end node. There is a timer mechanism which makes sure that the time slots for each device maintain the time limit on the time slot, on the side of the main master/coordinator of the network and on the side of the end node. The protocol for an end node to join a personal area network (PAN) is called as the association process. The association process enables the end node to be a part of a PAN to exchange its sensor data. Traditionally, in IEEE 802.15.4, the end nodes scan the sixteen IEEE 802.15.4 channels and when an appropriate coordinator is found, the end node initiates the association process with the coordinator. The solution proposed for the formation of the network by the association process is to use two different technologies. The end nodes and the coordinator exchange information using near field communication (NFC) technology by a simple tapping mechanism. The end node has an active NFC tag while the coordinator has an NFC reader. During the tap between the two devices, first the coordinator reads the end node data from the active tag. This data is required to form the custom time slot. Next the coordinator writes all association information into the active tag. After the NFC data exchange is done, the end node initiates the traditional IEEE 802.15.4 association protocol to join the coordinator’s PAN. Similarly after seven end nodes are associated to the coordinator, the network begins to function. All the end nodes communicate their data to the coordinator. The coordinator collects all the sensor data from the seven end nodes and may send the cumulative sensor data to the backend database servers which may be viewed by the medical authorities, this part is not included in the current version of the project. Several tests are run on this system to evaluate the requirements of latency, throughput and quality of service with two different ranges of 20cm and 250cm. The latency of association between the coordinator and end node is 632ms. The required throughput is met by the network. The packet delivery rate of the system is always above 99%. The graphs for packet delivery rates for all the sensors with a range of 20cm and 250 cm are shown in the appendices. The probabilities for the packet delivery rates greater than 90%, 99%, 99.9% and 99.99% are also graphically shown using a normal distribution in the appendices.

[ES] El interés en desarrollar biosensores de alta sensibilidad para identificar y cuantificar una amplia gama de moléculas ha aumentado notablemente durante las últimas décadas en numerosos campos de aplicación. Entre ellos probablemente el más demandado sea el diagnóstico médico, el cual ha sido impulsado por el descubrimiento de nuevos biomarcadores de enfermedades, tales como los miRNAs. No obstante, la mayoría de las técnicas existentes para realizar la detección requieren el uso de marcadores debido a la falta de sensibilidad para detectar analitos en bajas concentraciones. Las estructuras ópticas basadas en campo evanescente, donde la luz es usada para transformar interacciones bioquímicas en variaciones de las señales ópticas, constituyen una interesante alternativa para el desarrollo de este tipo de biosensores sin la necesidad de utilizar marcadores (label-free). Concretamente las estructuras fotónicas integradas en tecnología Silicon On Insulator exhiben alta sensibilidad, bajo límite de detección y alto nivel de multiplexación en aplicaciones de detección, especialmente cuando se utilizan materiales y procesos basados en silicio y compatibles con CMOS. En esta Tesis Doctoral se muestra el desarrollo de un biosensor fotónico integrado label-free para la detección de oligonucleótidos, y más concretamente biomarcadores de cáncer miRNAs. Este biosensor está basado en la combinación de estructuras de band gap fotónico y la inmovilización de sondas de tipo molecular beacon sobre su superficie. La combinación de sendos elementos de transducción y bioreconomiento ha proporcionado una elevada sensibilidad en la detección de oligonucleótidos manteniendo un footprint por debajo de 100 µm2. El uso de este biosensor fotónico ha permitido también estudiar experimentalmente una novedosa técnica de amplificación de detección. Esta técnica explota el cambio conformacional sufrido por la sonda molecular beacon tras la hibridación con su oligonucleótido complementario, permitiendo alejar una partícula/molécula de la superficie del sensor, lo cual podría ser utilizado para amplificar la respuesta de detección del sensor. Finalmente se propone una estrategia de regeneración en línea de los biosensores nanofotónicos desarrollados mediante una estrategia química basada en el uso de formamida. Esta estrategia no solo permite ahorrar tiempo sino que también reduce la variación entre las medidas obtenidas en experimentos diferentes, siendo especialmente útil cuando se testean niveles similares de analito. / [CA] L'interés en desenvolupar biosensors d'alta sensibilitat per a identificar i quantificar una àmplia gamma de molècules ha augmentat notablement durant les últimes dècades en nombrosos camps d'aplicació. Entre ells probablement el més demandat siga el diagnòstic mèdic, el qual ha sigut impulsat pel descobriment de nous biomarcadors de malalties, com ara els miRNAs. No obstant això, la majoria de les tècniques existents per a realitzar la detecció requereixen l'ús de marcadors a causa de la falta de sensibilitat per a detectar anàlits en baixes concentracions. Les estructures òptiques basades en camp evanescent, on la llum és usada per a transformar interaccions bioquímiques en variacions dels senyals òptics, constitueixen una interessant alternativa per al desenvolupament d'aquesta tipus de biosensors sense la necessitat d'utilitzar marcadors (label-free). Concretament les estructures fotòniques integrades en tecnologia Silicon On Insulator exhibeixen alta sensibilitat, baix límit de detecció i alt nivell de multiplexació en aplicacions de detecció, especialment quan s'utilitzen materials i processos basats en silici i compatibles amb CMOS. En aquesta Tesi Doctoral es mostra el desenvolupament d'un biosensor fotònic integrat label-free per a la detecció d'oligonucleòtids, i més concretament biomarcadors de càncer miRNAs. Aquest biosensor està basat en la combinació d'estructures de band gap fotònic i la immobilització de sondes de tipus molecular beacon sobre la seua superfície. La combinació d'ambdós elements de transducció i bioreconeixement ha proporcionat una elevada sensibilitat en la detecció d'oligonucleòtids mantenint un footprint per davall de 100 µm². L'ús d'aquest biosensor fotònic ha permés també estudiar experimentalment una nova tècnica d'amplificació de detecció. Aquesta tècnica explota el canvi conformacional patit per la sonda molecular beacon després de la hibridació amb el seu oligonucleòtid complementari, permetent allunyar una partícula/molècula de la superfície del sensor, la qual cosa podria ser utilitzada per amplificar la resposta de detecció del sensor. Finalment es proposa una estratègia de regeneració en línia dels biosensors nanofotònics desenvolupats mitjançant una estratègia química basada en l'ús de formamida. Aquesta estratègia no sols permet estalviar temps sinó que també redueix la variació entre les mesures obtingudes en experiments diferents, sent especialment útil quan es testen nivells similars d'anàlit. / [EN] The interest in developing highly sensitive biosensors to identify and quantify a wide range of molecules has remarkably been increasing during the last decades in numerous application fields. Among them, medical diagnosis is probably the most demanded, which has been driven by the discovery of new biomarkers of diseases, such as miRNAs. However, most of the existing techniques to perform the detection require the use of labels due to the lack of sensitivity to detect analytes at low concentrations. Evanescent-wave optical structures, where light is used to transduce biochemical interactions into variations of the optical signals, are an interesting alternative for the development of this type of biosensors allowing a label-free detection. Specifically, the planar integrated photonic structures based on Silicon On Insulator technology exhibit an extremely high sensitivity, a low detection limit and a high level of multiplexing in detection applications, especially when using materials and processes based on silicon and being CMOS compatible. This PhD Thesis is focused on the development of label-free integrated photonic biosensors for the detection of oligonucleotides, and more specifically miRNA cancer biomarkers. This biosensor is based on the combination of photonic band gap structures and the immobilization of molecular beacon probes on its surface. The combination of both transduction and biorecognition elements has provided a very high sensitivity towards the detection of target oligonucleotides while keeping a sensor footprint below 100 µm2. The use of this photonic biosensor also allowed the experimental study of a novel detection amplification technique. This technique exploits the conformational change suffered by the molecular beacon probe after hybridization with its complementary oligonucleotide, allowing the displacement of a particle/molecule away from the sensor surface, what might be used for amplifying the sensor's detection response. Finally, an online regeneration strategy for nanophotonic biosensors developed through a chemical strategy based on the use of formamide is proposed. This strategy not only saves time but also reduces the variation between measurements obtained in different experiments, being especially useful when testing similar levels of analyte. / Ruiz Tórtola, Á. (2021). Desarrollo de biosensores nanofotónicos de alta sensibilidad para la detección de biomarcadores microRNA en aplicaciones de diagnóstico médico [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/172631

[EN] In recent years, advances in wireless technologies and improved sensing and computational capabilities have led to a gradual transition towards Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) and related applications. These applications aim at improving road safety, provide smart navigation, and eco-friendly driving. Vehicular Ad hoc Networks (VANETs) provide a communication structure for ITS by equipping cars with advanced sensors and communication devices that enable a direct exchange of information between vehicles. Different types of ITS applications rely on two types of messages: periodic beacons and event-driven messages. Beacons include information such as geographical location, speed, and acceleration, and they are only disseminated to a close neighborhood. Differently from beacons, event-driven messages are only generated when a critical event of general interest occurs, and it is spread within a specific target area for the duration of the event. The reliability of information exchange is one of the main issues for vehicularcommunications since the safety of people on the road is directly related to the effectiveness of these transmissions. A Medium Access Control (MAC) protocol must guarantee reliable beacon broadcasting within deadline bounds to all vehicles in the neighbourhood, thereby providing them timely notifications about unsafe driving conditions or other hazardous events. Moreover, infotainment and comfort applications require reliable unicast transmissions that must be taken into account. However, high node mobility, highly dynamic topology, and lack of a central control unit, are issues that make the design of a reliable MAC protocol for vehicular environments a very difficult and challenging task, especially when efficient broadcasting strategies are required. The IEEE 802.11p MAC protocol, an approved amendment to the IEEE 802.11 standard, is a random access protocol that is unable to provide guaranteed delay bounds with sufficient reliability in vehicular scenarios, especially under high channel usage. This problem is particularly serious when implementing (semi-) automated driving applications such as platooning, where inter-vehicle spacing is drastically reduced, and the control loop that manages and maintains the platoon requires frequent, timely and reliable exchange of status information (beacons). In this thesis novel protocols compatible with the IEEE 802.11 and 802.11p standards are proposed in order to optimally adjust the contention window size for unicast applications in Mobile Ad hoc Networks (MANETs) and VANETs. Experimental tests comparing our proposals to existing solutions show that the former are able to improve the packet delivery ratio and the average end-to-end delay for unicast applications. Concerning efficient message diffusion (broadcast) in VANET environments, we proposed token-based MAC solutions to improve the performance achieved by existing 802.11p driving safety applications in different vehicular environments, including highway, urban, and platooning scenarios. Experimental results show that the proposed solutions clearly outperform 802.11p when delay-bounded beacons and event notifications must be delivered. / [ES] Recientemente, los avances en las tecnologías inalámbricas y las mejoras en términos de capacidades de sensorización y computación de los dispositivos electrónicos, han dado lugar a una transición gradual hacia servicios y aplicaciones de los Sistemas Inteligentes de Transporte (ITS). Estas aplicaciones tienen como objetivo mejorar la seguridad vial, proporcionar una navegación inteligente, y promover la conducción eco-eficiente. Las redes vehiculares ad hoc (VANETs) proporcionan una infraestructura de comunicaciones para ITS al equipar los coches con sensores avanzados y dispositivos de comunicación que permiten el intercambio directo de información entre vehículos. Los diferentes tipos de aplicaciones ITS se basan en dos tipos de mensajes: mensajes periódicos conocidos como beacons y mensajes asociados a eventos. Los mensajes periódicos incluyen información relativa a la ubicación geográfica, la velocidad y la aceleración, entre otros, y sólo son distribuidos entre los vehículos vecinos. A diferencia de estos beacons, los mensajes asociados a eventos sólo se generan cuando se produce un evento crítico de interés general, el cual se propaga dentro del área de interés de dicho evento y mientras éste siga activo. La fiabilidad del intercambio de información es uno de los principales problemas para las comunicaciones vehiculares, debido principalmente a que las aplicaciones de seguridad dependen directamente de la eficacia de estas transmisiones. Un protocolo de Control de Acceso al Medio (MAC) debe garantizar la difusión fiable de información a todos los vehículos vecinos dentro de unos límites máximos de retardo, proporcionándoles las notificaciones oportunas respecto a condiciones de conducción inseguras y otros eventos peligrosos. Por otra parte, las aplicaciones de información y entretenimiento, así como las aplicaciones orientadas al confort, también requieren transmisiones fiables extremoa-extremo. Sin embargo, la alta movilidad de los vehículos, la variabilidad de la topología, así como la falta de una unidad central de control, son factores que hacen que el diseño de un protocolo MAC fiable para entornos vehiculares sea una tarea especialmente compleja, especialmente cuando son necesarias estrategias de difusión eficientes. El protocolo MAC IEEE 802.11p, una modificación ya aprobada al estándar IEEE 802.11 original para entornos de comunicación vehiculares, es un protocolo de acceso que no es capaz de garantizar unos límites de retardo con la fiabilidad necesaria para estos entornos, especialmente en escenarios de alta utilización del canal inalámbrico. Este problema es particularmente importante a la hora de implementar aplicaciones de conducción (semi-)automática, como el caso de grupos de vehículos donde la separación entre vehículos se reduce drásticamente, y el sistema de control que gestiona y mantiene el grupo requiere de un intercambio frecuente de información fiable y acotado en retardo. En esta tesis se proponen nuevos protocolos MAC compatibles con los estándares IEEE 802.11 y 802.11p basados en el ajuste del tamaño de la ventana de contención para aplicaciones unicast en rede MANETs y VANETs. Los resultados experimentales obtenidos comparando nuestras propuestas con las soluciones existentes muestran que los protocolos propuestos son capaces de mejorar la tasa de entrega de paquetes y el retardo medio extremo-a-extremo para aplicaciones unicast. En lo que respecta a la difusión eficiente de mensajes broadcast en entornos VANET, se han propuesto soluciones MAC basadas en el uso de tokens que mejoran las prestaciones de aplicaciones de conducción segura basadas en el estándar 802.11p, tanto en autopistas, zonas urbanas, y escenarios con grupos de vehículos. Los resultados experimentales muestran que las soluciones propuestas superan claramente al protocolo 802.11p cuando es necesario entregar mensajes y notificaciones de eventos con restricc / [CA] Recentment, els avan en les tecnologies sense fils i les millores en termes de capacitats de sensorització i computació dels dispositius electrònics, han donat lloc a una transició gradual cap a serveis i aplicacions dels sistemes intelligents de transport (ITS). Aquestes aplicacions tenen com a objectiu millorar la seguretat vial, proporcionar una navegació intelligent, i promoure la conducció ecoeficient. Les xarxes vehiculars ad hoc (VANET) proporcionen una infraestructura de comunicacions per a ITS, ja que equipen els cotxes amb sensors avançats i dispositius de comunicació que permeten l'intercanvi directe d'informació entre vehicles. Els diversos tipus d'aplicacions ITS es basen en dos classes de missatges: missatges periòdics coneguts com a beacons i missatges associats a esdeveniments. Els missatges periòdics inclouen informació relativa a la ubicació geogràfica, la velocitat i l'acceleració, entre uns altres, i només són distribuïts entre els vehicles veïns. A diferència d'aquests beacons, els missatges associats a esdeveniments només es generen quan es produeix un esdeveniment crític d'interès general, el qual es propaga dins de l àrea d'interès d'aquest esdeveniment i mentre aquest seguisca actiu. La fiabilitat de l'intercanvi d'informació és un dels principals problemes per a les comunicacions vehicular, principalment perquè les aplicacions de seguretat depenen directament de l'eficàcia d'aquestes transmissions. Un protocol de control d'accés al medi (MAC) ha de garantir la difusió fiable d'informació a tots els vehicles veïns dins d'uns límits màxims de retard, i proporcionar-los les notificacions oportunes respecte a condicions de conducció insegures i altres esdeveniments perillosos. D'altra banda, les aplicacions d'informació i entreteniment, com també les aplicacions orientades al confort, també requereixen transmissions fiables extrema-extrem. No obstant això, l'alta mobilitat dels vehicles, la variabilitat de la topologia, i la falta d'una unitat central de control, són factors que fan que el disseny d'un protocol MAC fiable per a entorns vehiculars siga una tasca especialment complexa, especialment quan són necessàries estratègies de difusió eficients. El protocol MAC IEEE 802.11p, una modificació ja aprovada a l'estàndard IEEE 802.11 original per a entorns de comunicació vehiculars, és un protocol d'accés que no és capa garantir uns límits de retard amb la fiabilitat necessària per a aquests entorns, especialment en escenaris d'alta utilització del canal sense fil. Aquest problema és particularment important a l'hora d'implementar aplicacions de conducció (semi)automàtica, com el cas de grups de vehicles en què la separació entre vehicles es redueix dràsticament, i el sistema de control que gestiona i manté el grup requereix un intercanvi freqüent d'informació fiable i delimitat en retard. En aquesta tesi es proposen nous protocols MAC compatibles amb els estàndards IEEE 802.11 i 802.11p basats en l'ajust de les dimensions de la finestra de contenció per a aplicacions unicast en xarxes MANET i VANET. Els resultats experimentals obtinguts comparant les nostres propostes amb les solucions existents mostren que els protocols proposats són capa de millorar la taxa de lliurament de paquets i el retard mitjà extrem-a-extrem per a aplicacions unicast. Pel que fa a la difusió eficient de missatges broadcast en entorns VANET, s'han proposat solucions MAC basades en l'ús de tokens que milloren les prestacions d'aplicacions de conducció segura basades en l'estàndard 802.11p, tant en autopistes, zones urbanes, i escenaris amb grups de vehicles. Els resultats experimentals mostren que les solucions proposades superen clarament el protocol 802.11p quan cal lliurar missatges i notificacions d'esdeveniments amb restriccions de latència. / Balador, A. (2016). Design and Evaluation of Efficient Medium Access Control Solutions for Vehicular Environments [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/64073

La thérapie photodynamique (PDT) est une technique utilisée cliniquement pour traiter certaines maladies de la peau, la dégénérescence maculaire liée à l’âge et certains types de cancer. Elle fait intervenir trois composants : une molécule photosensible ou photosensibilisateur (PS), la lumière et l’oxygène. Après administration du PS, celui-ci va se localiser plus ou moins sélectivement dans les zones tumorales où il est alors activé par irradiation lumineuse à une longueur d’onde et une puissance données. Ceci engendre la formation d’espèces réactives de l’oxygène (ROS) très réactives, dont l'oxygène singulet1 O2, qui entraînent la destruction des tissus tumoraux par nécrose ou apoptose. Afin d’améliorer la sélectivité du traitement, différentes pistes sont actuellement exploitées dont l’élaboration de « photodynamic molecular beacons » (PMB). Dans un PMB, le photosensibilisateur (PS) est associé via un peptide à un inhibiteur 1O2, appelé quencher. Ce quencher inhibe la formation d’1O2 tant que le composé n’a pas atteint sa cible. Une fois la zone cancéreuse atteinte, des enzymes spécifiques clivent le peptide, libérant ainsi le PS qui retrouve alors sa capacité à former de l’1O2. Trouver un couple PS/quencher adéquat reste un challenge en PDT. Les propriétés photophysiques particulières des caroténoïdes et leur aptitude à inhiber la production d’1O2 font de ces derniers des quenchers potentiellement utilisables pour l’élaboration de PMBs. Chez les plantes, les caroténoïdes (carotènes et xanthophylles) sont des pigments associés à la photosynthèse, qui ont deux rôles principaux : un rôle de collecteur de lumière et un rôle photoprotecteur en protégeant le(s) système(s) photosynthétique(s) contre les dommages photooxydatifs liés à une exposition trop intense à la lumière. Ceci s’opère, entre autre, via le cycle des xanthophylles. Cette aptitude à capter de l’énergie présente un intérêt potentiel à ne pas négliger dans la perspective de la conception de PMB utilisables en thérapie photodynamique. Dans le cadre de cette thèse en co-tutelle avec la Faculté des Sciences de Bizerte nous avons ciblé les caroténoïdes présents dans trois fruits produits en Tunisie à savoir les kakis (Diospyros kaki L.), les abricots (Prunus armeniaca L.) et les pêches (Prunus persica L.) connus pour leur richesse globale en ces pigments. Divers procédés d’extractions ont été étudiés : (i) L’extraction de type Soxhlet par solvants organiques à pression atmosphérique, utilisée comme référence, (ii) l'extraction accélérée par solvant organique (ASE : Accelerated solvent Extraction) effectuée sous pression, enfin (iii) l'extraction par CO2 supercritique avec l’éthanol comme cosolvant. Pour ces deux derniers procédés, une approche par plan d’expériences (surfaces de réponses) a été utilisée pour identifier les facteurs clé et les conditions optimales d’extractions de divers caroténoïdes (pression, température, débit, % de cosolvant, temps, nombre de cycles). L'analyse par chromatographie liquide à haute performance couplée à la détection UV-Visible et à la spectrométrie de masse a ensuite permis l'identification et la quantification des caroténoïdes présents dans les extraits obtenus, permettant ainsi de comparer les profils caroténoïdiques propres à chaque fruit et les performances de chaque procédé d’extraction. Cette étude ayant révélé un profil caroténoïdique particulièrement intéressant chez le kaki par rapport aux autres fruits, une extraction et une purification des caroténoïdes de ce fruit par chromatographie liquide haute pression préparative a ensuite été effectuée afin de disposer d’une quantité suffisante de chaque caroténoïde, et parfois de leurs isomères conformationnels, en vue de l’étude de leurs propriétés photophysiques (absorption, émission de fluorescence, inhibition d’1O2) et de l’évaluation de leur intérêt potentiel en tant que quencher d’1O2 dans un édifice de type PMB / Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a clinically used technique for treating skin diseases, age-relatedmacular degeneration but mainly some types of cancer. PDT involves three components: a photosensitive molecule named photosensitizer (PS), light and oxygen. After administration of the PS, this one will be located more or less selectively in tumoral regions where it is activated by light irradiation at appropriate wavelength and power. This leads to the formation of highly reactive and cytotoxic reactive oxygen species (ROS), especially singlet oxygen, resulting in the destruction of the tumor by necrosis or apoptosis. To improve the treatment selectivity, different strategies are being exploited, one of which is the development of "photodynamic molecular beacons" (PMB). In PMB the photosensitizer is linked via a peptide to an inhibitor of 1O2 (quencher). This quencher inhibits the formation of 1O2 as long as the compound has not reached its target, namely cancer cells. In order to inhibit the toxicity of the PS in non-target cells and restore toxicity only close to the biological target, it is necessary to find an adequate PS/quencher couple. This remains a challenge for PDT. Carotenoids are interesting candidates due to their specific photophysical properties and ability to inhibit 1O2, which makes them potential quenchers for building PMBs. In plants, carotenoids (carotenes and xanthophylls) are pigments involved in the photosynthesis, in which they play two main roles: a light collecting role and a protecting role by preserving the photosynthetic systems against photoxydative damages induced by a too intense light exposure. This protection can for instance occur via the well-known xanthophylls cycle. This capacity to catch energy presents a potential interest that should not be neglected in the framework of the design of PMBs usable in photodynamic therapy. Within the framework as part of this PhD thesis in Cotutelle with the Faculty of Sciences of Bizerte, we focused on carotenoids from three fruits produced in Tunisia: persimmon (Diospyros kaki L.), apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.) and peache (Prunus persica L.), known for their global richness in these natural pigments. Three extraction processes were investigated: (i) the Soxhlet extraction based on the use of organic solvent at atmospheric pressure and used as reference, (ii) the accelerated solvent extraction (ASE) using organic solvent under high pressure, and (iii) the supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) using supercritical CO2 and ethanol as cosolvent. For these two last processes, a design of experiments (Surface Response Design) was used to identify the key factors and optimal extraction conditions of various carotenoids (pressure, temperature, flow, % cosolvent, time, number of cycles). Then, HPLC-PDA coupled with mass spectrometry (MS) enabled the identification and quantification of carotenoids from the extracts. Thus it was possible to compare the profiles in carotenoids content from each fruit as well as the performances of each extraction process. This study showed that the carotenoidic profile in the persimmon was the most interesting as compared to the profiles in the two other fruits. Extraction and purification of the carotenoids from persimmon by preparative high pressure liquid chromatography were then performed in order to have a sufficient amount of each carotenoid and sometimes of their conformational isomers. We finally performed a study of their photophysical properties (absorption, fluorescence emission, 1O2 inhibition) in order to evaluate their potential as 1O2 quencher in molecular construction such as a PMB

As the topic of my diploma work I chose the issue of integration of operation centers in the jurisdiction of the Directory of Czech Police of the South Bohemian Region. This topic was chosen with regard to my job in the police of the Czech Republic and also with the assumption to assess the current state of the operation management in the jurisdiction of the Directory of Czech Police of the South Bohemian Region and compare it with the newly proposed integrated centre which should be created within the framework of integration of existing regional operation centres, evaluation of communication of operations centres within the framework of the integrated rescue system and within the framework of the police of the Czech Republic itself at different levels of operation management. The aim of my thesis is to describe the current state of workplaces of operation centers of the police of the Czech Republic and to assess their integration into a single operation center in the teritory of the South Bohemian region. I analyze the situation from the viewpoint of conduct, management and personal security and I assess material-technical security. Last but not least it's about confirming or refuting the hypothesis that was formulated before i started the thesis. This thesis stems particularly from internal act of conduct of the police of the Czech Republic and from the current legislation. Aims of my work are summarized in the capter Discussion which was preceded by description of the current state of operation centers and their function in the framework of operation conduct. Comparing the current and the suggested solution from the viewpoint of conduct, management, personal security, economic and material-technical security and physical integration. The formulation given by the hypothesis was confirmed based on the comparison carried out in the study of the current state and the prepared state, and seems to be effective. Because of the introduced measures that are realized by integration of the current operation centers into one, the effectivity will be increased.

Today more and more objects in our daily lives are getting connected to the Internet. This phenomenon is called the Internet of Things and is a way for physical things such as cars, buildings or even bus stations to get access and communicate with other objects using the Internet. The problem is that for every Internet of Things device, an application is often needed in order to communicate with these devices. Developing mobile applications in a separate programming language for each operating system can be an expensive and time consuming task. In this thesis, we implement and evaluate a cross-platform mobile solution for users to interact with smart things using the advantages of web technologies. To compare previous findings in this area, two literature reviews has been performed to find out which is the state of the art on cross-platform mobile development frameworks and smart-things technologies used for interacting with physical objects. The result is a mobile application developed using PhoneGap and jQuery Mobile that interacts with iBeacons, where students inside a university building can get directions and schedules for different rooms. The application received good results from a couple of usability studies, and performed well when measuring its performance. The outcome shows that web technologies that exist today are a viable solution to native mobile applications in terms of interacting with smart things such as tagging technologies.

This thesis proposes and analyzes data fusion algorithms that operate on the physical layer of a wireless sensor network, in the context of three applications of cognitive radios: 1. Cooperative spectrum sensing via binary consensus; 2. Multiple transmitter localization and communication footprint identification; 3.Target self-localization using beacon nodes. For the first application, a co-phasing based data combining scheme is studied under imperfect channel knowledge. The evolution of network consensus state is modeled as a Markov chain, and the average transition probability matrix is derived. Using this, the average hitting time and average consensus duration are obtained, which are used to determine and optimize the performance of the consensus procedure. Second, using the fact that a typical communication footprint map admits a sparse representation, two novel compressed sensing based schemes are proposed to construct the map using 1-bit decisions from sensors deployed in a geographical area. The number of transmitters is determined using the K-means algorithm and a circular fitting technique, and a design procedure is proposed to determine the power thresholds for signal detection at sensors. Third, an algorithm is proposed for self-localization of a target node using power measurements from beacon nodes transmitting from known locations. The geographical area is overlaid with a virtual grid, and the problem is treated as one of testing overlapping subsets of grid cells for the presence of the target node. The column matching algorithm from group testing literature is considered for devising the target localization algorithm. The average probability of localizing the target within a grid cell is derived using the tools from Poisson point processes and order statistics. This quantity is used to determine the minimum required node density to localize the target within a grid cell with high probability. The performance of all the proposed algorithms is illustrated through Monte Carlo simulations.

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Exogenously supplied organoselenium compounds, capable of propagating a selenium redox cycle, were shown to supplement natural cellular defenses against oxidants generated during biological activity. Phenylaminoalkyl selenides were developed in our laboratory as novel substrate analogs for the enzyme dopamine beta-monooxygenase. Recently, phenylaminoalkyl selenides were found to protect plasmid DNA and Molecular beacons from oxoperoxynitrate – mediated damage by scavenging this oxidant and forming the corresponding selenoxides as the sole selenium – containing products. Rate constants were determined for the reactions of the phenylaminoalkyl selenoxides with GSH at physiological pH and 25 degrees C. The kinetic data obtained in current and previous research was subsequently used in a MatLab simulation, which showed the feasibility of selenium redox cycling by GSH in the presence of a cellular oxidant, oxoperoxynitrate. Loblolly pine (LP, Pinus taeda) is the primary commercial species in southern forests covering 11.7 million hectares. Somatic embryogenesis (SE) is an effective technique to implement production of high value genotypes of LP. SE is a multi-step process, which includes initiation of somatic embryo (SME) growth from tree tissue, maintenance and multiplication of early stage SMEs and the maturation / germination phase. In this work, we isolated a substance from stage 2 or 3 LP female gametophyte (FG) tissue that stimulates early stage SME growth, and characterized this substance as citric acid on the basis of 1H NMR and mass spectrometry. We then demonstrated that topical application of citric acid to SMEs stimulates embryo colony growth at p = 0.05 for 3 of the 5 genotypes tested. Phenylketonuria (PKU) is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by an impaired conversion of L-phenylalanine (L-Phe) to L-tyrosine (L-Tyr). A novel assay based on enzymatic - colorimetric methodology (ECA) was developed in order to detect elevated concentrations of L-Phe in undeproteinized plasma of PKU patients via continuous spectrophotometric detection. We report here that L-Phe concentrations in undeproteinized plasma measured using our ECA were comparable to those determined on an amino acid analyzer based on Pearson correlation coefficients and a Bland and Altman comparison.