Os solos ácidos (pH < 5,0) representam cerca de 40 % das áreas agricultáveis no mundo. Nestes solos ocorre a solubilização de formas tóxicas de alumínio que inibe o crescimento radicular. Independente da presença do Al, o baixo pH pode ser tóxico à raiz, afetando a viabilidade celular no ápice e o crescimento radicular. Há evidências de que o estresse por H+ e/ou Al³+ afetam a parede celular. Por outro lado, modificações na parede podem determinar o grau de tolerância da planta quando submetidos a estes estresses. Assim, utilizou-se de duas abordagens para investigar se possíveis modificações na parede celular melhorariam o crescimento e viabilidade celular na exposição a H+ e Al³+. Na primeira, raízes de plantas do cultivar Micro-Tom (MT) de tomateiro (Solanum lycopersicum L.), com 2 e 13 dias de desenvolvimento, foram expostas de forma direta ou gradual ao baixo pH. Na segunda abordagem, as raízes foram submetidos a um tratamento hipo-osmótico antes de serem expostas a pH 4,0 ou 4,5 + Al. Em plantas com 2 e 13 dias, a exposição gradual foi realizada alterando o pH ao longo de 12 e 24 h, respectivamente. No tratamento hipo-osmótico (priming), as plantas foram transferidas de uma solução de alta osmolaridade (150 mM) para uma com baixa osmolaridade (0,5 mM), a pH 5,8, por 0; 0,5; 1 e 2 h antes de serem expostas a pH 4,0 ou 4,5 + Al por 12h. Como controles, raízes não receberam tratamento osmótico ou foram mantidas continuamente em alta osmolaridade. O crescimento de raízes expostas diretamente a pH 4,5 foi cerca de metade do controle a pH 5,8 e a pH 4,0 foi nulo. Ao contrário do esperado, na exposição gradual a pH 4,5, as raízes cresceram menos do que aquelas expostas diretamente a este pH e a pH 4,0 o crescimento continuou insignificante. No entanto, raízes expostas gradualmente ao pH 4,0 mantiveram a viabilidade das células do ápice, ao contrário daquelas expostas diretamente. Assim, a redução do crescimento radicular pela exposição a baixo pH pode ser uma resposta gerada pela própria planta, não sendo necessariamente decorrente da ação direta do pH. O priming hipo-osmótico antes da exposição a pH 4,0 permitiu a manutenção da viabilidade celular e um crescimento radicular de até 38% das raízes controle a pH 5,8, enquanto que nos controles a pH 4,0 as células morreram e o crescimento foi praticamente nulo. Em pH 4,5 + 5 ?M de Al o priming não reverteu a inibição do crescimento radicular, indicando que as respostas para H+ e Al³+ são diferentes. Ficou evidente que a atividade de GPX está envolvida nas respostas encontradas tanto na exposição gradual a baixo pH como no tratamento hipo-osmótico anterior ao baixo pH, mas não foi possível determinar se é consequência ou uma das possíveis causas destas respostas. No seu conjunto, os dados indicam que possíveis mudanças na parede celular podem estar envolvidas na melhoria do crescimento radicular e viabilidade celular do ápice durante o estresse. / Acidic soils (pH <5.0) represent about 40% of the arable land in the world. In these soils, toxic aluminum becomes soluble and inhibits root growth. Regardless of Al, low pH is, in itself, also toxic, decreasing cell viability and root growth. There is evidence that H+ and Al3+ can affect the cell wall. Reversely, modifications in the wall may determine the degree of tolerance of roots subjected to these stresses. Therefore, we used two approaches to investigate whether possible changes in the cell wall improve growth and cell viability upon exposure to H + and Al³+. In the first approach, roots of plants of the Micro-Tom (MT) cultivar of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.), at 2 and 13 days of development, were exposed directly or gradually to low pH. In the second approach, the roots were subjected to hypoosmotic treatment prior to being exposed to pH 4.0 or 4.5 + Al. In 2- and 13-day plants, gradual exposure was achieved by changing the pH over a 12 and 24 h period, respectively. In the hypo-osmotic pre-treatment (priming), plants were transferred from a high osmolarity solution (150 mM) to another with low osmolarity (0.5 mM), at pH 5.8, for 0, 0.5, 1 and 2 h before being exposed to pH 4.0 or 4.5 + Al for 12h. As controls, roots did not receive any osmotic treatment or were maintained continuously at high osmolarity. Growth of roots exposed directly to pH 4.5 was about half that of control roots at pH 5,8 and at pH 4.0 root growth was suppressed. Different from expected, roots exposed gradually to pH 4.5 grew less than those exposed directly to pH 4.5 and at pH 4.0, root growth remained negligible. However, cell viability was maintained in roots exposed gradually to pH 4.0, unlike those exposed directly. Thus, decreased root growth upon exposure to low pH may be a response generated by the plant itself rather than the direct effect of pH. In roots subjected to hypo-osmotic priming prior to exposure to pH 4.0, cell viability was maintained and root growth was up to 38% of that of control roots at pH 5.8, whereas in control roots at pH 4.0, cell death occurred and root growth was insignificant. At pH 4.5 + 5 uM Al, priming did not reverse the inhibition of root growth, suggesting that responses to H+ and Al3+ are different. GPX was involved in responses to both gradual exposure to low pH and to hypo-osmotic treatment prior to low pH, but it was not possible to determine whether this was a consequence or one of the possible causes of these responses. Taken together, the data indicate that possible changes in the cell wall may be involved in improving root growth and cell viability of the root apex during stress.

Abstract The purpose of the present study was to gain more insight into the blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD)-contrast functional MRI (fMRI) in the brain and its connection to EEG, both in global and local scales of their temporal and spatial relations. BOLD signal changes were studied during hyperventilation (HV) induced EEG reactivity of intermittent rhythmic delta activity (IRDA). The BOLD signal in gray matter decreased 30% more in subjects with IRDA (N = 4) than in controls (N = 4), during the first two minutes of HV. This difference disappeared during IRDA in EEG. BOLD signal changes may provide additional information about dynamic hemodynamic changes relative to HV induced EEG reactivity. BOLD signal changes were investigated during sudden deepening of thiopental anesthesia into EEG burst-suppression level in pigs (N = 5). Positive (6–8%) or negative (-3– -8%) group average BOLD signal changes correlated to the thiopental bolus injection were seen. Positive and negative responses covered 1.6% and 2.3% of the brain voxels, respectively. BOLD signal changes in brain are associated with sudden deepening of thiopental anesthesia into EEG burst-suppression level, but they are spatially inconsistent and scarce. Somatosensory BOLD response was studied in brain before and after globally induced methotrexate (MTX) exposition in pigs (N = 4). After the MTX exposure, reduced (from 2–4% to 0–1%) or negative (-2% to -3%) BOLD responses were detected. Somatosensory BOLD-contrast response shows a slight difference in brain before and after globally induced MTX exposition. An experimental epilepsy model for development of simultaneous EEG and BOLD-contrast fMRI in the localization of epilepsy was developed and tested. Dynamic penicillin induced local epilepsy was applied in deep isoflurane anesthesia in pigs (N = 6). Relatively high (10–20%) and localized BOLD signal increase was found. The dynamic penicillin induced focal epilepsy model in deep isoflurane anesthesia with simultaneous EEG and BOLD-contrast fMRI is feasible for the development of these methods for localization of epileptic focus or foci. In conclusion, with careful experimental design and analysis, BOLD-contrast fMRI with EEG provides a potential tool for monitoring and localising functional changes in the brain.

La formation des premières étoiles, quelques centaines de millions d'années après le Big Bang, marque la fin de l’âge sombre. Actuellement, nous n’avons aucune observation de la formation de ces étoiles, appelée popIII, mais d’après des simulations numériques de différents groupes, il semblerait que ces étoiles primordiales étaient très massives: plusieurs centaines de masses solaires. Ces premières étoiles, ont produits aussi des sursauts gamma (GRBs). Ainsi, l’étude des GRBs produits à partir des popIII, pourraient permette d’étudier directement le stade final des étoiles primordiales. Les télescopes d'aujourd'hui ne peuvent pas regarder assez loin dans le passé cosmique pour observer la formation des premières étoiles, mais la nouvelle génération de télescopes permettra de tester des idées théoriques sur la formation des premières étoiles.Les GRBs sont liés à la mort d’étoiles massives et qu'ils sont connectés avec des supernovae. En ce sens, les GRBs sont l'une des classes de processus explosifs en physique stellaire et devraient suivre les mêmes lois physiques que l'explosion des supernovae. Ce travail tente d'aborder le problème des GRBs comme un problème d'explosion stellaire et utilise les données d’observation sur les spectres et les courbes de lumières notamment.Dans le cadre de cette thèse, des outils spécifiques ont été développés pour étudier les explosions stellaires: un code numérique pour résoudre les réactions nucléaires a été incorporé dans le code hydrodynamique existant. Ces outils ont été utilisés dans les simulations de supernovae afin d’étudier les connections avec les sursauts gamma: analyse spectrale et étude statistique en fonction du redshift. / The formation of the first stars hundreds of millions of years after the Big-Bang marks the end of the Dark Ages. Currently, we have no direct observations on how the primordial stars formed, but according to modern theory of stellar evolution these stars should be very massive (about 100 Msun) Population III stars have a potential to produce probably most energetic flashes in the Universe - gamma-ray bursts. GRBs may provide one of the most promising methods to probe directly final stage of life of primordial stars. Today's telescopes cannot look far enough into the cosmic past to observe the formation of the first stars, but the new generation of telescopes will test theoretical ideas about the formation of the first stars.Thanks to many years of observations we have good GRB's data -statistics of occurrence, spectrum, lightcurves. But there are still a lot of questions in the theory of GRBs. We know that GRBs are related to the death of stars and that they are connected with supernovae. So gamma-ray bursts are one of the classes of explosive processes in stellar physics that should have a lot of common with supernovae explosions. In that case GRBs should follow the same physical laws of explosion as supernovae. This work tries to approach the problem of GRBs as a problem of stellar explosion.Necessary instruments of studying stellar explosion were developed as a part of doctoral research: code for solving systems of nuclear reaction equations was incorporated into hydrodynamical code. These tools were applied for supernovae simulations in order to find possible connection with GRBs. Basing on analysis of supernovae simulations spectral analysis of GRBs was performed.

Cette étude s'intéresse aux effets de la température sur le développement de la canne à sucre et le potentiel d'expansion de cette culture au sein de nouvelles zones géographiques. En particulier, elle vise à caractériser les stades de développement de la plante durant lesquels les basses températures agissent afin d'extrapoler des zones géographiques d'adaptation. Un travail plus particulier est engagé sur l'effet des basses températures en condition d'altitude tropicales dans Les Hauts de La Réunion. L'implantation en cycle de plantation est identifiée comme une étape très importante pour les cultures de canne, et pour la culture dans les Hauts en particulier, car elle conditionne non seulement la date de première récolte et son niveau mais elle a un impact sur le cycle de repousse. Les expérimentations ont lieu à la fois en milieu contrôlé (chambre climatique et serre) et en conditions réelles (champs à différentes altitudes). Une étude méthodologique sur la qualité du matériel végétal est réalisée pour valider les conditions d'expérimentation. Cette étude montre que des expérimentations de débourrement de bourgeons peuvent être réalisées avec des boutures d'un seul bourgeon, de taille réduite. Les comparaisons de débourrement à différentes températures nécessitent d'utiliser des boutures triées, saines, et homogènes, c'est-à-dire provenant de la partie médiane de la tige-mère. Les bourgeons de la partie supérieure (entrenœuds non consolidés à croissance non terminée) et ceux issus de la base de la plante devront être écartés. L'influence de la température est quantifiée sur différentes variétés lors de la phase de débourrement-levée, puis au cours des stades de développement suivants jusqu'à la fermeture du couvert végétal. La température influence considérablement sur le processus de débourrement. Le modèle thermique élaboré, bien que limité à une gamme de températures, prédit de façon satisfaisante la levée à température constante et permet de quantifier les différences variétales observées. Les expérimentations au champ révèlent des différences dans les dynamiques d'émission et de croissance des tiges et de mise en place de la surface foliaire, non seulement entre sites d'altitude différente mais aussi entre variétés. La température joue un rôle majeur dans cette différenciation. De plus, selon le processus étudié, le classement des variétés suivant leurs performances n'est pas strictement identique d'un site à l'autre. Ce constat révèle l'intérêt d'approfondir l'étude sur la période d'installation du feuillage en conditions climatiques variées. Le modèle de débourrement-levée développé au cours de cette étude a permis d'identifier des indicateurs pour évaluer la capacité d'adaptation de différentes variétés de canne à sucre. Associés à une base de données météorologique géolocalisée, ces derniers mettent en évidence l'importance de la température seuil dans la capacité d'adaptation des variétés à différentes zones géographiques. Les méthodes et outils élaborés au cours de cette thèse ont d'ores et déjà des retombées pour accompagner les outils traditionnels de sélection variétale à La Réunion et sont extrapolables dans des zones à températures plus fraîches. Ces retombées pourraient s'accroître avec la mise au point de nouveaux itinéraires techniques. Enfin, la poursuite des travaux cartographiques, comme outils d'étude du potentiel d'implantation des cultures dans les Hauts, constitue également un axe prometteur pour la valorisation des acquis de cette thèse. / This thesis is centered on the effects of temperature on sugarcane development and its potential for geographical expansion under low temperatures in high-altitude tropical conditions. In the highlands of Reunion Island (les Hauts), the duration of the germination, in planting years, affects the date and the level of the first harvest, as well as the sugarcane yield in the following ratoon crop cycle. Trials took place in climate chambers, greenhouses and fields at different temperatures and altitudes. A preliminary study validates the conditions governing the experimentation: bud bursts can be studied through single, healthy, single bud cuttings that are taken from the middle section of the mature stem. Temperature considerably influences the primary tiller germination and emergence stages. The thermal model that was developed satisfactorily predicts bursting at a constant temperature and allows for the quantification of observed varietal differences. Field trials reveal a disparity in the production and growth dynamics of leaves and stems according to locations and varieties. Temperature influences this differentiation. Among the indicators that were elaborated, the duration for the seedling of half the population, when applied to a climatic database, allows one to define geographical zones and time periods conducive to the introduction of sugarcane according to its variety. The methods presented herein can be used in varietal selection for all zones where cold temperature limits the spread of crops. Results could be used for the development of new cultural practices or for further studies in geo-referenced agronomic zoning.

Des modèles de Gravité Quantique (QG) prédisent une violation de l'invariance de Lorentz (LIV), se manifestant par une dispersion de la lumière dans le vide. Si un tel effet existe, des photons d'énergies différentes émis en même temps par une source distante sont détectés sur Terre à des moments différents. Les émissions transitoires à (très) hautes énergies provenant de sources astrophysiques lointaines, comme les sursauts gamma (GRBs) et les blazars sont utilisées pour contraindre cet effet LIV. Cet ouvrage présente les études menées avec deux télescopes gamma majeurs : H.E.S.S. -- pour lequel une étude de la qualité des données étalonnées a été réalisée -- et Fermi-LAT. Les énergies et les temps d'arrivée de photons individuels ont été utilisés pour contraindre le paramètre de dispersion dans le vide ainsi que l'échelle d'énergie E_QG à laquelle des effets LIV peuvent apparaitre. La méthode de maximum de vraisemblance est décrite, avec une étude détaillée des systématiques. Une modification dans le cas de fond non négligeable est appliquée aux données de l'éruption d'un blazar observé par H.E.S.S. : les limites obtenues sur E_QG sont moins contraignantes que les meilleures limites précédentes, mais elles se trouvent à un redshift non couvert à ce jour. Quatre GRBs observés par Fermi-LAT ont aussi été analysés, en déterminant la courbe de lumière de deux manières : ajustements gaussiens et estimation par densité de noyaux. Les meilleures limites sur E_QG pour le cas linéaire/subluminal sont obtenus avec GRB090510 : E_QG,1 > 7,6 E_Planck. Des limites plus robustes, tenant compte des effets intrinsèques à la source, ont également été produites. / Some Quantum Gravity (QG) theories allow for a violation of Lorentz invariance (LIV), manifesting as a dependence on the velocity of light in vacuum on its energy. If such a dependence exists, then photons of different energies emitted together by a distant source will arrive at the Earth at different times. (Very) high energy transient emissions from distant astrophysical sources such as Gamma-ray Bursts (GRBs) and blazars can be used to search for and constrain LIV. This work presents the studies obtained with two leading Gamma-ray telescopes: H.E.S.S. -- for which a study of the quality of the calibrated data was performed -- and Fermi-LAT. The energies and arrival times of individual photons were used to constrain the vacuum dispersion parameter and the energy scale EQG at which QG effects causing LIV may arise. The maximum likelihood method is described, with detailed studies of the systematics. A modification for a non-negligible background is provided and applied to the data of an AGN flare observed by H.E.S.S.: the obtained limits on the QG energy scale are less constraining than the previous best limits obtained with blazars; yet, the new limits lie a redshift range not covered this far. Four bright and quasi background-free GRBs observed by the Fermi-LAT were also analysed, with two different template light curve determinations -- Gaussian fits and Kernel Density Estimates. The best limits on the E_QG scale for the linear/subluminal case are from the shortest burst, GRB090510: E_QG,1 > 7.6 E_Planck. More robust limits, considering the intrinsic effects possibly occurring at the source, were also derived.

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was shown to serve as a strong elicitor of the early defense response in the subtropical seagrass Thalassia testudinum Banks ex König and was capable of inducing an oxidative burst identified at the single cell level. The formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) included a diphenylene iodonium sensitive response, suggesting the involvement of an NADPH oxidase. A 900 bp fragment of this enzyme was sequenced and found to encode a NAD binding pocket domain with extensive homology to the Arabidopsis thaliana rbohF (respiratory burst oxidase homolog) gene. Pharmacological dissection of the early events preceding ROS emission revealed that seagrasses contain ROS-generating machinery and signal transduction components that appear to be evolutionarily conserved with the defense response systems of terrestrial plants. It is undetermined whether or not the increased ROS associated with the oxidative burst is simply an antimicrobial agent or a signaling molecule that will initiate programmed cell death (PCD) and lead to the hypersensitive response (HR), a process not yet characterized in seagrasses. ROS accumulation was found to increase around the lesion as the duration of infection increased. The only PCD characteristic observed following infection was a slight increase in caspase-like protease activity around the lesion. Immunohistochemistry revealed inconsistent activity of proteases. Detection of nuclear condensation by TUNEL and Hoechst staining were also inconclusive and showed diffuse genetic material throughout the cytoplasm. It appears as though lesions from Labyrinthula spp. infection are likely to be a direct result of pathogen-based damage as opposed to host PCD.

INTRODUÇÃO: A ativação da NADPH oxidase de neutrófilos requer o acoplamento das subunidades citosólicas p47phox, p67phox, p40phox e Rac2 ao componente de membrana citocromo b558. Em trabalhos anteriores, nós mostramos que as isoformas vasculares da oxidase são reguladas pela proteína dissulfeto isomerase (PDI), uma chaperona redox. Neste trabalho, nós utilizamos um sistema cellfree semirecombinante como ferramenta para investigar o papel da PDI na ativação da NADPH oxidase do neutrófilo. RESULTADOS: Inibidores da PDI, scrambled RNAse (100g/mL) ou bacitracina (1mM), praticamente suprimiram a geração de superóxido. Para avaliação dos efeitos do estado redox da PDI sobre a atividade da oxidase, amostras de PDI foram previamente oxidadas (H2O2; 0,5 mM) ou reduzidas (DTT; 0,5 mM). A PDI oxidada (100 nM) aumentou a produção de superóxido em aproximadamente 30%, enquanto a mesma concentração de PDI reduzida promoveu efeito inverso, inibindo a atividade do complexo. A adição de um peptídeo contendo a seqüência peptídica do sítio ativo da PDI inibiu a produção de superóxido em 70%. Dados de imunolocalização e colocalização demonstraram que a interação da PDI com a subunidade p47phox parece ser intensificada pelo estímulo com PMA e envolvem modificações do estado redox de ambas as proteínas. CONCLUSÕES: Nossos dados confirmam a associação física e funcional entre a PDI e o complexo NADPH oxidase. Além disso, sugerem que a PDI exerça um importante papel como fator de regulação redox da ativação da oxidase. / Activation of the leukocyte NADPH oxidase requires the assembly of the cytosolic subunits p47phox, p67phox and p40phox and Rac2 with the membranebound cytochrome b558. We have previously shown that the vascular oxidase is regulated by the redox chaperone protein disulfide isomerase (PDI). Taking advantage of the semirecombinant cellfree system, we sought to investigate the role of PDI in the activation of neutrophil NADPH oxidase. The PDI thiol inhibitors scrambled RNase (100g/mL) or bacitracin (1mM), almost suppressed superoxide generation. In order to investigate if the redox status of PDI thiols could modulate superoxide generation, PDI was oxidized or reduced by treatment with H2O2 (0.5mM) or DTT (1mM), respectively. Oxidized PDI increased by 30% superoxide production, while reduced PDI diminished superoxide generation also in 30%. The addition of a peptide (1M) containing PDI´s exact active site sequence inhibited superoxide production by 70 %. Immuno and colocalization data demonstrated the interaction of PDI with the subunit p47phox to be intensified by PMA stimulation and to involve redox status exchange of both proteins. Our data confirm the physical and functional association between PDI and the oxidase complex. Moreover, we show a relevant role for PDI as a redoxdependent supportive factor for NADPH oxidase activation.

Les applications rationnelles sont des objets fondamentaux en géométrie algébrique. Elles sont utilisées pour décrire certains objets géométriques, tels que la représentation paramétrique d'une variété algébrique rationnelle. Plus récemment, les applications rationnelles sont apparues dans des contextes d'informatique pour l'ingénierie, dans le domaine de la modélisation de formes, en utilisant des méthodes de conception assistée par ordinateur pour les courbes et les surfaces. Des paramétrisations des courbes et des surfaces sont utilisées de manière intensive afin décrire des objets dans la modélisation géométrique, tel que structures des voitures, des avions. Par conséquent, l'étude des applications rationnelles est d'intérêt théorique dans la géométrie algébrique et l'algèbre commutative, et d'une importance pratique dans la modélisation géométrique. Ma thèse étudie les images et les fibres des applications rationnelles en relation avec les équations des algèbres de Rees et des algèbres symétriques. Dans la modélisation géométrique, il est important d'avoir une connaissance détaillée des propriétés géométriques de l'objet et de la représentation paramétrique avec lesquels on travaille. La question de savoir combien de fois le même point est peint (c'est-à-dire, correspond à des valeurs distinctes du paramètre), ne concerne pas seulement la variété elle-même, mais également la paramétrisation. Il est utile pour les applications de déterminer les singularités des paramétrisations. Dans les chapitres 2 et 3, on étudie des fibres d'une application rationnelle de P^m dans P^n qui est génériquement finie sur son image. Une telle application est définie par un ensemble ordonné de (n+1) polynômes homogènes de même degré d. Plus précisément, dans le chapitre 2, nous traiterons le cas des paramétrisations de surfaces rationnelles de P^2 dans P^3, et y donnons une borne quadratique en d pour le nombre de fibres de dimension 1 de la projection canonique de son graphe sur son image. Nous déduisons ce résultat d'une étude de la différence du degré initial entre les puissances ordinaires et les puissances saturées. Dans le chapitre 3, on affine et généralise les résultats sur les fibres du chapitre précédent. Plus généralement, nous établissons une borne linéaire en d pour le nombre de fibres (m-1)-dimensionnelles de la projection canonique de son graphe sur son image, en utilisant des idéaux de mineurs de la matrice jacobienne.Dans le chapitre 4, nous considérons des applications rationnelles dont la source est le produit de deux espaces projectifs.Notre principal objectif est d'étudier les critères de birationalité pour ces applications. Tout d'abord, un critère général est donné en termes du rang d'une couple de matrices connues sous le nom "matrices jacobiennes duales". Ensuite, nous nous concentrons sur des applications rationnelles de P^1 x P^1 vers P^2 en bidegré bas et fournissons de nouveaux critères de birationalité en analysant les syzygies des équations de définition de l'application; en particulier en examinant la dimension de certaines parties bigraduées du module de syzygies. Enfin, les applications de nos résultats au contexte de la modélisation géométrique sont discutées à la fin du chapitre. / Rational maps are fundamental objects in algebraic geometry. They are used to describe some geometric objects,such as parametric representation of rational algebraic varieties. Lately, rational maps appeared in computer-engineering contexts, mostly applied to shape modeling using computer-aided design methods for curves and surfaces. Parameterized algebraic curves and surfaces are used intensively to describe objects in geometric modeling, such as car bodies, airplanes.Therefore, the study of rational maps is of theoretical interest in algebraic geometry and commutative algebra, and of practical importance in geometric modeling. My thesis studies images and fibers of rational maps in relation with the equations of the symmetric and Rees algebras. In geometric modeling, it is of vital importance to have a detailed knowledge of the geometry of the object and of the parametric representation with which one is working. The question of how many times is the same point being painted (i.e., corresponds to distinct values of parameter), depends not only on the variety itself, but also on the parameterization. It is of interest for applications to determine the singularities of the parameterizations. In the chapters 2 and 3, we study the fibers of a rational map from P^m to P^nthat is generically finite onto its image. More precisely, in the second chapter, we will treat the case of parameterizations of algebraic rational surfaces. In this case, we give a quadratic bound in the degree of the defining equations for the number of one-dimensional fibers of the canonical projection of the graph of $\phi$ onto its image,by studying of the difference between the initial degree of ordinary and saturated powers of the base ideal. In the third chapter, we refine and generalize the results on fibers of the previous chapter.More generally, we establish a linear bound in the degree of the defining equations for the number of (m-1)-dimensional fibers of the canonical projection of its graph onto its image, by using ideals of minors of the Jacobian matrix.In the fourth chapter, we consider rational maps whose source is a product of two subvarieties, each one being embedded in a projective space. Our main objective is to investigate birationality criteria for such maps. First, a general criterion is given in terms of the rank of a couple of matrices that came to be known as "Jacobian dual matrices". Then, we focus on rational maps from P^1 x P^1 to P^2 in very low bidegrees and provide new matrix-based birationality criteria by analyzing the syzygies of the defining equations of the map, in particular by looking at the dimension of certain bigraded parts of the syzygy module. Finally, applications of our results to the context of geometric modeling are discussed at the end of the chapter.

This master´s thesis is focused on the application of evolutionary algorithms for interleaving data obtained by ultrasound scanning of tissue. The interleaved curve serves to estimate perfusion parameters, thus allowing to detect possible pathophysiology in the scanned area. The theoretical introduction is devoted to perfusion and its parameters, contrast agents for ultrasonic application, ultrasonic modality scanning, optimization, evolutionary algorithms in general and two selected evolutionary algorithms - genetic algorithm and bee algorithm. These algorithms were tested on noisy data obtained from clinical images of mice with tumor. The final part summarizes the results of the practical part and provides suggestions and recommendations for further possible development.

This thesis describes GSM communication, the method of its jamming and design of a jammer for this band. This document is mainly focused on design of the jammer with the variable bandwidth of jamming and the variable level of output power. Requested parameters of jamming are set by a control panel with a LCD display. In this document there is a detailed description of each function block and connection between them. At the end of this thesis there are released measured results of designed jammer.