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<p>Canines can detect different diseases simply by smelling different biological sample types, including  urine,  breath  and  sweat.  This  has  led  researchers  to  try  and  discovery  unique  volatile  organic compound (VOC) biomarkers. The power of VOC biomarkers lies in the fact that one day they may be able to be utilized for noninvasive, rapid and accurate diagnostics at a point of care using  miniaturized  biosensors.  However,  the  identity  of  the  specific  VOC  biomarkers  must  be  demonstrated before designing and fabricating sensing systems. Through  an  extensive  series  of  experiments,  VOCs  in  urine  are  profiled  by  solid  phase  microextraction (SPME) coupled to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to identify biomarkers for breast cancer using murine models. The results from these experiments indicated that  unique  classes  of  urinary  VOCs,  primarily  terpene/terpenoids  and  carbonyls,  are  potential  biomarkers  of  breast  cancer.  Through  implementing  chemometric  approaches,  unique  panels  of  VOCs  were  identified  for  breast  cancer  detection,  identifying  tumor  location,  determining  the  efficacy of dopaminergic antitumor treatments, and tracking cancer progression. Other diseases, including COVID-19 and hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) were also probed to identify volatile biomarkers present in breath samples.  VOC biomarker identification is an important step toward developing portable gas sensors, but  another  hurdle  that  exists  is  that  current  sensors  lack  selectivity  toward  specific  VOCs  of  interest.  Furthermore,  testing  sensors  for  sensitivity  and  selectivity  is  an  extensive  process  as  VOCs  must  be  tested  individually  because  the  sensors  do  not  have  modes  of  chromatographic  separation or compound identification. Another set of experiments is presented to demonstrate that SPME  fibers  can  be  coated  with  materials,  used  to  extract  standard  solutions  of  VOCs,  and  analyzed  by  GC-MS  to  determine  the  performance  of  various  gas  sensing  layers.  In  the  first  of  these  experiments,  polyetherimide  (PEI)  was  coated  onto  a  SPME  fiber  and  compared  to  commercial polyacrylate (PAA) fibers. The second experiment tuned the extraction efficiency of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) - carbon black (CB) composites and showed that they had higher sensitivity  for  urinary  VOC  extraction  relative  to  a  polydimethylsiloxane  (PDMS)  SPME  fiber.  These results demonstrate SPME GC-MS can rapidly characterize and tune the VOC adsorption capabilities of gas sensing layers. </p>

Depuis plus de 40 ans des chimistes se sont intéressés à l’extraction, à l’activité biologique et à la synthèse de l’homoharringtonine (HHT), un ester naturel de la céphalotaxine, qui est un puissant antileucémique utilisé pour le traitement des leucémies résistantes aux inhibiteurs de tyrosine kinase. Ces alcaloïdes sont extraits de Cephalotaxus, des conifères originaires du sud de la Chine à croissance extrêmement lente et menacés d’extinction. Leur synthèse est donc nécessaire. L’homoharringtonine utilisée en thérapeutique est obtenue à partir de (-)-céphalotaxine d’origine naturelle, par greffage d’une chaîne latérale acide suivie de purifications longues et coûteuses. L’objectif de ce travail consiste à développer une synthèse concise de la (-)-céphalotaxine, afin de s’affranchir de la ressource naturelle, de ce fait de garantir un approvisionnement d’HHT de qualité constante et de développer des analogues de seconde génération.Les stratégies développées dans ce travail ont consisté à développer une synthèse très concise de la céphalotaxine, d’une part en valorisant un synthon ABC nitrile pour y introduire les deux atomes de carbone manquant au squelette de la céphalotaxine, et d’autre part à améliorer l’accès à une synthon analogue ABC ester pour en étudier la réactivité. Ces travaux ont conduit à décrire un nouveau complexe arène chrome pentacarbonyle analogue de céphalotaxine, une méthode originale et efficace de cyclisation anionique d’imide formant un squelette 3-benzazépine à l’aide d’une nouvelle combinaison de bases, le tert-butylate de potassium et le carbonate de potassium agissant en synergie, et une nouvelle méthode de solvolyse de nitrile aliphatiques ou aromatiques sous micro-ondes qui a été exemplifiée. / For over 40 years, chemists are interested in the extraction, biological activity and synthesis Homoharringtonine (HHT ), a natural cephalotaxine ester, which is a potent antileukemic used therapeutically, especially leukemias resistant against tyrosine kinase inhibitors. These alkaloids are extracted from Cephalotaxus, evergreen trees from southern China having extremely slow growth and are in extinction. Their synthesis is thus necessary. Homoharringtonine used therapeutically is obtained from (-)-cephalotaxine of natural origin, by grafting an acidic side chain followed by lengthy and expensive purifications. The objective of this work is to develop a concise synthesis of (-)-cephalotaxine to get rid of the natural resource, thereby ensuring a supply of constant quality and develop similar second generation of HHT.The strategies developed in this work has been to develop a very concise synthesis of cephalotaxine , firstly by enhancing an ABC nitrile synthon to introduce the two carbon atoms missing to the backbone of cephalotaxine , and secondly to improve access to similar ABC ester synthon to investigate its reactivity. This work led to describe a new arena complex chromium pentacarbonyle cephalotaxine analog, an original and efficient method of anionic cyclization of imide forming a 3-benzazepine skeleton using a new combination of bases , potassium tert -butoxide and potassium carbonate acting synergistically, and a new method of aliphatic or aromatic nitrile solvolysis under microwave which was exemplified.

Hydrogenasen sind komplexe Enzyme, die die reversible Oxidation von molekularem Wasserstoff zu Protonen und Elektronen katalysieren. Diese Enzyme erlauben ihrem Wirtsorganismus das Wachstum unter chemolithoautotrophen Bedingungen. Der Modellorganismus Ralstonia eutropha besitzt drei gut charakterisierte Hydrogenasen der [NiFe]-Klasse, die sich durch ihre Sauerstofftoleranz auszeichnen. Ihr aktives Zentrum besteht aus einer komplexen prosthetischen Gruppe, welche aus einem Nickel- und einem Eisenatom besteht. Letzteres koordiniert drei diatomare Liganden, zwei Cyanide und ein CO. Die Synthese der gesamten Ni(SR)2(µ-SR)2Fe(CN)2(CO)-Gruppe ist ein komplexer Prozess. Die sogenannte Maturation benötigt wenigstens sechs akzessorische Proteine, die sogenannten Hyp-Proteine. Das umfassende Verständnis dieser Maturationsprozesse ermöglicht eine Vielzahl von biotechnologischen Anwendungen. Die vorliegende Arbeit untersucht die Maturation unter verschiedenen Gesichtspunkten. Zentrale, offene Fragen sind die Herkunft des Carbonylliganden sowie die Prozesse, die zur Ligandierung des katalytischen Eisens führen. Dazu wurden molekularbiologische, biochemische und spektroskopische Methoden in Verbindung mit Isotopenmarkierung eingesetzt. Unter anderem konnte dabei gezeigt werden, dass das katalytische Eisen alle seine Liganden bereits im HypCD-Komplex, dem zentralen Element der Maturation, erhält. Ferner konnte in dieser Arbeit, erstmalig für [NiFe]-Hydrogenasen, eine konkrete Biosynthese des seltenen und toxischen diatomaren CO-Liganden beschrieben werden. Ausgehend vom Alpha-Kohlenstoff von Glycin wird der Tetrahydrofolat (THF)-abhängige C1-Metabolismus mit C1-Einheiten versorgt. Durch die enzymatische Aktivität von HypX wird die Formylgruppe von N10-Formyl-THF zu CO umgesetzt. / Hydrogenases are complex enzymes that catalyze the reversible oxidation of molecular hydrogen into protons and electrons. These enzymes allow their host organism to grow under chemolithoautotrophic conditions. The model organism Ralstonia eutropha has three well-characterized [NiFe]-hydrogenases, which exhibit an extraordinary high oxygen tolerance. Its active center is a complex prosthetic group which consists of a nickel and iron atom. The latter coordinates three diatomic ligands, two cyanides and one CO. The biosynthesis of the whole Ni(SR)2(μ-SR)2Fe(CN)2(CO)-group is a complex process. This so-called maturation process needs the activity of at least six accessory proteins, the Hyp-proteins. Understanding the maturation allows a variety of biotechnological applications. The present study examines the maturation of [NiFe]-hydrogenases under different aspects. The major questions concern the origin of the carbonyl ligand as well as the processes that lead to ligandation of the designated catalytic iron. To adress these tasks, molecular biological, biochemical and spectroscopic methods in combination with isotopic labeling were employed. Inter alia, it could be shown that the catalytic iron in the HypCD-complex, the central element of the maturation process, contains all three diatomic ligands. Furthermore, this study describes, for the first time in [NiFe]-hydrogenases, a specific biosynthetic route of the rare and toxic diatomic CO-ligand. Starting from the alpha-carbon of glycine the tetrahydrofolate (THF)-dependent one-carbon metabolism is replenished with one-carbon units. Subsequently the formyl group from N10-formyl-THF is hydrolyzed by the enzymatic activity from HypX and further converted to carbon monoxide as determined by isotopic labeling and infrared spectroscopy.

Es wird die enantioselektive Synthese eines substituierten Cyclopentanfragmentes beschrieben, welches zur Synthese einer Vielzahl von Diterpenen aus Euphorbiaceae genutzt werden kann. Schlüsselschritt hierbei ist eine intramolekulare Carbonyl-En-Reaktion. In zwei verschiedenen Syntheseansätzen wurde versucht, dieses zu einem Jatrophan-Diterpen umzusetzen. Versuche hinsichtlich einer Nozaki-Hiyama-Kishi-Kupplung werden beschrieben. Im zweiten Ansatz, wurde über eine Ringschlussmetathese bzw. eine Relay-Ringschlussmetathese versucht entsprechende Jatrophane herzustellen. Dies gelang bei einem Substrat, welches eine zweifach substituierte Doppelbindung beinhaltet. Somit konnte ein nichtnatürliches 17-Norjatrophan enantioselektiv synthetisiert werden. / The enantioselective synthesis of a highly substituted cyclopentan, useful for the synthesis of diterpenes from Euphorbiaceae is described. Key step is a intramolecular carbonyl-en reaction. Two different approaches towards Jatrophanes were examined. The first one envisioning a Nozaki-Hiyama-Kishi coupling didn´t work. The second one employed a ring-closing-metathesis which was successful in the case of a disubstituted double bond formed. The use of an relay-ring-closing-metathesis was also examined. The enantioselective synthesis of a nonnatural 17-Norjatrophane is described in all details.

Formaldehyde is a chemical used widely in the manufacture of building materials. A remarkable example is represented by the Lucite two-step Alpha technology for the large scale production of methyl methacrylate (MMA), the essential building block of all acrylic-based products. Esters and ketones are important intermediates in the manufacture of acrylate esters therefore α-hydroxymethylenation of carbonyl compounds using formaldehyde as a one carbon alkylating agent and subsequent dehydration to the corresponding methylenated derivatives has been explored in the current work. We report a novel catalytic approach for the synthesis of methyl methacrylate (MMA) via one-pot α-methylenation of methyl propanoate (a chemical intermediate of the ALPHA process) with formaldehyde, generated in situ by Ru-catalysed dehydrogenation of methanol. Elucidation of the mechanism involved in the catalytic dehydrogenation of methanol along with the collateral alcohol decarbonylation reaction was gained through a combined experimental and DFT study. The development of an alternative process where anhydrous formaldehyde is produced in situ would provide a simplification over the current second step of the ALPHA technology where the formaldehyde is initially produced as formalin, subsequently dehydrated to afford anhydrous formaldehyde in order to ensure high selectivity to MMA. As an alternative approach, ketones, in particular 3-pentanone and 2-butanone, were targeted as potential substrates in order to overcome some of the problems related to competing reactions that occur at the ester group. Hydroxymethylenation, followed by dehydration and Baeyer-Villager oxidation, possibly catalysed by enzymes to reverse the normal selectivity, leads to the formation of acrylate esters. The catalytic reaction is enabled by a gold carbene hydroxide complex in such a way that the substrate undergoes C-H activation and the nascent metal alkyl acts as a nucleophile towards the electrophilic formaldehyde, supplied in the form of alcoform* (solution of paraformaldehyde in methanol).

Le secteur des transports est soumis à des réglementations sévères visant à limiter les émissions polluantes à l’échappement. Les biocarburants ont reçu une attention particulière en tant que carburant de substitution ou additif aux carburants traditionnels dans l’espoir de remédier aux problèmes de l’épuisement des ressources fossiles et des émissions de certains polluants. Cette thèse a pour objectif principal d’étudier l’impact de l’incorporation des biocarburants oxygénés ou synthétiques aux carburants traditionnels sur les émissions de polluants non réglementés à savoir les composés carbonylés (aldéhydes et cétones) et les hydrocarbures aromatiques polycycliques (HAPs) adsorbés sur la suie. Dans un premier temps, une étude a été menée dans une chambre de combustion interne. Les prélèvements des gaz à l’échappement suivis par les analyses chromatographiques en phase liquide ont permis d’évaluer l’effet de l’additivation du carburant sur les émissions de composés carbonylés. Une deuxième étude a été menée au moyen d’un brûleur à flamme plate permettant de collecter des suies de flammes riches dans des conditions stabilisées. Les mesures effectuées ont permis de déterminer l’effet de l’incorporation des biocarburants oxygénés au carburant sur la production de suie et le contenu d’HAPs adsorbés. Ce travail a été complété par l’étude de la cinétique d’oxydation de trois additifs oxygénés à l’état pur en réacteur auto-agité à pression atmosphérique et dans un large domaine de températures (530-1280 K) et de richesses (0,5-4). Les profils de concentration des réactifs, produits et principaux intermédiaires stables ont été obtenus par spectrométrie infrarouge à transformée de Fourrier (IRTF) et chromatographie en phase gazeuse. Ces résultats ont été ensuite confrontés aux profils d’espèces obtenus par simulation, à l’aide des modèles cinétiques d’oxydation disponibles dans la littérature. / The transport sector is subject to strict regulations aiming at limiting pollutants emissions. Biofuels have received particular attention as alternative fuel or additive to traditional fuels for remedying two issues: the depletion of fossil resources and emissions of certain pollutants. In this work we studied the impact of blending conventional fuels with synthetic or oxygenated biofuels on the emissions of non-regulated pollutants, namely carbonyl compounds (aldehydes and ketones) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) adsorbed on soot. Firstly, the carbonyl compounds emissions were studied using an internal combustion engine. The carbonyls were collected at the exhaust of a diesel engine running with biofuel blends and analyzed using high performance liquid chromatography. Secondly, the impact of blending the conventional fuel with oxygenated biofuels on soot formation and adsorbed PAHs were studied using a flat flame burner under well stabilized conditions. This work was completed by the study of the kinetics of oxidation of three oxygenated additives in a jet-stirred reactor at atmospheric pressure, over the temperature range 530-1280 K and for different equivalence ratios (0.5-4). The concentration profiles of reactants, products and main stable intermediates were obtained by probe sampling and gas analyses including Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and gas phase chromatography. These results were then compared to simulated species concentration profiles obtained using oxidation kinetic models available from the literature.

Time resolved spectroscopy is one of the crucial methods used to study processes on molecular level in biological systems. It is useful especially for monitoring fast processes that take a place in photosynthetic apparatus of photosynthetic organisms, such as electron and energy transfer. The integral parts of photosynthetic apparatus are carotenoids, whose role in the photosynthetic apparatus is not as well explored as it is for chlorophylls. It was proved that carotenoids actively participate in energy transfer processes in photosynthetic antennas. They have a crucial role in protection against excess energy damage. They are also electron donors in both antennas and reaction centers. The fact that photo-physical properties of carotenoids are much different from properties of others organic pigments, complicates studies of their functions in photosynthesis as well as in other biological systems. This thesis employs advanced methods of femtosecond spectroscopy to obtain more information about carotenoid functions in some biological systems and in solution with special focus on carotenoids containing carbonyl group.

Aims: 1. Determination of AGEs (Advanced Glycation End products) in patients with various types of nephropathy. 2. Association AGEs with nutritional parameters and anemia. 3. Influence of renal parameters on sRAGE (soluble form of Receptor for Advanced Glycation End products) levels. 4. Technics and proceeding methods of the podocytes cultivation. 5. Determination of urine podocytes. Methods: We determined fluorescent AGEs by spectrofluorometry, sRAGE by Enzyme-Linked ImmunoSorbent Assay (ELISA). Podocytes were passaged and identified immunocytochemically. Podocytes in urine were specified by flow cytometry method. Results: 1. We did not find significant differences in AGEs serum levels among various types of nephropathy, even though the pathogenesis differs. 2. The albumin and prealbumin levels positively and haemoglobin levels negatively correlate with AGEs in patients with CKD grade 1-5, without necessity of dialysis. 3. Serum sRAGE levels are increased in patients with decreased renal function independently on the course of renal disease. 4. We implemented the methods and technics of podocyte cultivation. 5. Urine podocytes observation and confirmation that podocyturia relates to disease activity. Conclusion: We confirmed that AGEs serum levels depend more on renal function than the type of...