O gerenciamento dos estoques pesqueiros, um dos instrumentos da biomanipulação, deve ter início com a classificação das espécies existentes e sua diversidade, a estrutura da rede alimentar e as relações reguladoras, como a relação predador-presa. O lago Paranoá (Brasília - DF) é um reservatório urbano que sofre pressões antrópicas devido a seus usos múltiplos. Após a construção enchimento, sucessivas introduções de espécies ictíicas exóticas causaram um desequilíbrio que, associado às pressões descritas acima, geraram uma aceleração no processo de eutrofização deste ambiente. Desta forma, os objetivos deste trabalho foram: avaliar os impactos ambientais da introdução das espécies predadoras sobre a cadeia trófica e a qualidade da água do reservatório; determinar a eficiência das diferentes espécies de predadores no controle das presas nas áreas marginais da represa, discutindo possíveis estratégias de manejo pesqueiro baseadas na estocagem de peixes predadores. Para tanto foram construídos 10 limnocurrais com lonas impermeáveis numa baía localizada no ETE-Norte (Estação de tratamento de esgotos - Norte). Em seu interior, após a retirada de todos os peixes, foram estocadas por um período de 28 dias, duas espécies de predadores (Cichla ocellaris e Pseudoplatytoma fasciatum) e uma comunidade simplificada de presas (Tilapia rendalli e Oreochromis niloticus), acima da capacidade do suporte do sistema, definida em 4 classes de tamanho. As biomassas de estocagem foram determinadas a partir da aplicação de retenona em uma área com dimensões conhecidas, e extrapoladas para as áreas dos limnocurrais. As variáveis físicas e químicos da água foram acompanhados semanalmente durante o experimento. Não houve diferenças significativas entre os tratamentos, em relação às variáveis limnológicas. Quanto ao controle das presas, o tucunaré mostrou-se um predador eficiente em relação às classes de tamanhos menores ) (2 - 6,9 cm e 7 - 12,9 cm), fato não observado para o tratamento com surubim. De acordo com os resultados obtidos, não foi comprovada a hipótese de cascata trófica devido à complexidade das interações entre os organismos em ambientes tropicais. / The managing of the fish stocks, one of the tools of the biomanipulation, must begin with the classification of the present species and their diversity, of the structure of the food web and of the regulation relations (as the relation predator-prey).The Paranoá Lake (Brasília, DF) is an urban reservoir that suffers human pressures as a result of its multiple uses. After its construction and filling, the successive introduction of many fish exotic species resulted in an unbalance that, associated with the pressures described above, generated an acceleration in the eutrophication process of the ambient. In this way, the objectives of this work were: evaluate the environmental impacts from the introduction of the species predators in food web and quality from the reservoir\'s water; decide the efficiency of the species of predators in the prey\'s control in the marginal areas from dam, discussing possible fishing strategies of management based in the Stocking of fish predators. Them, 10 limnocorrals were built with waterproof canvases in a bay located in ETE-NORTE (sewers handling Station - North). In its interior, after retreat of all fishes, by a period of 28 days, two species of predators were stocked (Cichla ocellaris and Pseudoplatystoma coruscans), and a community simplified of prey (Tilapia rendalli and Oreochromis niloticus), above from the capacity of the system, defined in 4 classes of size. The biomasses of stocking were determined from application of rotenona in an area with known dimensions, and overstepped for the areas of the limnocorrals. The physical-chemists parameters from the water were accompanied weekly during the experiment. It had no significant differences between the handlings, regarding the variables limnological. As regards the control of prey, C. ocellaris showed itself an efficient predator regarding the smallest classes of sizes (2 - 6,9 cm and 7 - 12,9 cm), fact do not observe for the handling with P. coruscans. Agreement with the results obtained, was not verified to hypothesis of trophic cascade due to the complexity of the interactions between the agencies in tropical environments.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most prevalent neurodegenerative disease in the world. The most accepted hypothesis for the cause of this disease is the amyloid cascade hypothesis, which postulates that the formation of extracellular neurotoxic amyloid-beta binds specific receptors on the surface of neuronal and glial cells to increase cell stress leading to cell death. Our laboratory previously showed that treatment of cultured human SHSY neuronal cells with amyloid beta increases the cellular levels of two key components (caspases-2 and -3) of the extrinsic apoptotic pathway, leading to cell death. The amyloid beta induced caspase elevation was blocked by simultaneously treating the cells with a short mimetic of human ependymin neurotrophic factor, hEPN-1, and the hEPN-1 treatment also blocked cell death. This thesis extends the AD investigation to show that treatment of SHSY cells with amyloid beta may also activate an intrinsic apoptotic mitochondrial stress pathway (assaying caspase-9 as a marker enzyme), and that hEPN-1 treatment significantly lowers this activation. In addition, our laboratory previously showed that treating SHSY cells with amyloid beta increases TUNEL staining, an assay for DNA fragmentation (a hallmark of end stage of apoptosis, and a different apoptotic marker than caspase activation). Treatment with hEPN-1 simultaneously with the amyloid beta, or 6 hrs post amyloid beta, significantly lowered the amyloid beta induced TUNEL signal. This thesis extended the earlier TUNEL experiments to show that hEPN-1 treatment can significantly lower the amyloid beta induced TUNEL staining even when added 18 hrs post amyloid beta. With respect to caspase-8, an initiator caspase in the extrinsic pathway, immunoblot assays of brain lysates from 8 month old transgenic AD mice showed that a 2 week oral delivery of hEPN-1 (conjugated to a carrier to deliver it across the blood brain barrier) significantly lowered caspase-8 levels. Finally, an assay of cellular inhibitors of apoptosis (cIAP) showed a significant increase in their cellular levels in SHSY cells, and in transgenic AD mice treated with hEPN-1, showing for the first time that hEPN-1 may aid cell survival by upregulating proteins known to directly bind specific caspases to block their activity leading to their degradation. The cIAP upregulation occurred in the presence or absence of amyloid beta, indicating that hEPN-1 likely does not block cell death by directly interfering with the interaction of amyloid beta with its cell surface receptors, but instead hEPN-1 may activate an independent cell survival signal transduction pathway in neuronal cells.

"This study characterizes the image quality parameters of a clinical full-field digital mammography system at various x-ray spectral conditions. The energy of the incident x-ray beam, the spectral characteristics, and breast thickness impact the physical performance such as the detective quantum efficiency of the system, thereby affecting the overall performance. The modulation transfer function, noise power spectrum were measured without the anti-scatter grid, and the detective quantum efficiency was calculated for different incident x-ray conditions. Detective quantum efficiency was also calculated with the anti-scatter grid placed above the detector to study its impact. Results indicate a substantial drop in the detective quantum efficiency with the anti-scatter grid under certain conditions. It was also determined that detective quantum efficiency decreases as x-ray beam hardening is increased. A spatial frequency-dependent cascaded liner systems model was developed to predict the detective quantum efficiency of the system for different target-filter combinations. This theoretical model is based upon a serial cascade approach in which the system is conceptually divided into a number of discrete stages. Each stage represents a physical process having intrinsic signal and noise transfer properties. A match between the predicted data and the experimental detective quantum efficiency data confirmed the validity of the model. Contrast-detail performance, a widely used quality control tool to assess clinical imaging systems, for the clinical full-field digital mammography was studied using a commercially available CDMAM phantom to learn the effects of Joint Photographic Experts Group 2000 (JPEG2000) compression technique on detectability. A 4-alternative forced choice experiment was conducted. The images were compressed at three different compression ratios (10:1, 20:1 and 30:1). From the contrast-detail curves generated from the observer data at 50% and 75% threshold levels, it was concluded that uncompressed images exhibit lower (better) contrast-detail characteristics than compressed images but a certain limit to compression, without substantial loss of visual quality, can be used."

No presente trabalho, é realizada a modelagem e identificação de um serovoposicionador hidráulico de uma bancada de testes. As expressões analíticas tradicionalmente utilizadas em uma estratégia em cascata aplicada ao controle de trajetória de posição são obtidas. A estratégia em questão utiliza, conjuntamente, a linearização por realimentação como lei de controle do subsistema hidráulico e a lei de controle de Slotine e Li no subsistema mecânico. Com base na mesma estratégia, um controlador em cascata neural é proposto. Em tal controlador, a função analítica que representa o mapa inverso, presente na linearização por realimentação, e a função de compensação de atrito utilizada na lei de Slotine e Li são substituídas por funções constituidas por meio de redes neurais de perceptrons de múltiplas camadas. Essas redes neurais têm como entradas os estados do sistema e também a temperatura do fluido hidráulico. O novo controlador é apresentado em uma versão onde as redes neurais são aplicadas sem modificações on-line e em outra, onde são apresentadas leis de controle adaptativo para as mesmas. A prova de estabilidade do sistema em malha fechada é apresentada em ambos os casos. Resultados experimentais do controle de seguimento de trajetórias de posição em diferentes temperaturas do fluido hidráulico são apresentados. Esses resultados demonstram a maior efetividade do controlador proposto em relação aos controladores clássicos PID e PID+feefforward e ao controlador em cascata com funções analíticas fixas. Os experimentos são realizados em duas situações: quando não ocorrem variações paramétricas importantes no sistema, onde é utilizado o controlador em cascata neural fixo e quando ocorrem essas variações, onde se utiliza o controlador em cascata neural adaptativo. / In this work, the modeling and identification of a hydraulic actuator testing setup are performed and the analytical expressions that are used in a cascade control strategy applyied in a position trajectory tracking control are designed. Such cascade strategy uses the feedback linearization control law in the hydraulical subsystem and the Slotine and Li control law in the mechanical one. Based on this cascade strategy, a neural cascade controller is proposed, for which the analytical function used as inversion set in the feedback linearization control law and the friction function compensation of the Slotine and Li control law are replaced by multi layer perceptrons neural networks where the inputs are the states of the system and the hydraulic fluid temperature. The novel controller is introduced in two different aproachs: the first one where the neural networks do not have on-line modifications and the second one where adaptive control laws are proposed. For both of them the stability proof of the closed-loop system is presented. Experimental results about some position tracking controls performed in different fluid temperature are showed. The results show that the novel controller is more efective than the classical PID, PID+feedforward and the traditional analytical cascade controller. The experiments are performed in two different setups: considering the system without importants parametric variations where is applied the non adaptive cascade neural controller and in the presence of parametric variations where is applied the adaptive cascade neural controller.

Background: Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) and Long QT Syndrome (LQTS) are genetic cardiovascular diseases that cause sudden cardiac death. When an individual is diagnosed with an inherited disease such as HCM/LQTS it is critical that their biological relatives are notified of their increased risk. Newly diagnosed individuals in turn notify other at-risk family members through a successive process called cascade screening. This facilitates screening of at-risk biological relatives through genetic testing and/or clinical testing, and treatment for HCM/LQTS prior to development of life-threatening complications. However, for cascade screening to detect all potential cases the disease risk must be effectively communicated to all at-risk relatives. The responsibility for notifying family members of this risk largely falls to the first person diagnosed in the family (proband). Empiric evidence suggests that around half of at-risk relatives are not screened in accordance with cascade screening recommendations, potentially due to information about HCM/LQTS risk not being communicated effectively in their families. Factors have been identified that influence communication about genetic risk in families with non-cardiac disease; however, it is not known if or how these factors apply in families with genetic cardiac disease. These include network factors, which describe characteristics of relationships between family members and non-network factors, which describe characteristics of individuals including individual factors, disease factors, and sociocultural factors. There is a critical need to understand communication in families with HCM/LQTS in order to facilitate effective genetic risk communication in families, improve adherence to cascade screening recommendations, and prevent death and complications from cardiovascular diseases. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to improve our understanding of the relationships among network and non-network factors and communication of genetic risk for HCM/LQTS between probands and their relatives. I proposed the following aims: Aim 1: Describe family social network structures and communication paths about risk for HCM/LQTS from probands to their relatives. Aim 2: Identify which network and non-network factors are associated with who is told about risk for HCM/LQTS. Methods: The sample for this study included individuals with HCM or LQTS recruited through the University of Iowa Cardiology Clinics (UI) and the University of Wisconsin Inherited Arrhythmia Clinic (UW). Data were collected using a structured interview, family pedigree, and survey. Analysis included egocentric social network analysis, descriptive, bivariate, and multilevel logit regression modeling. Results: Participants in this study had an average of 24 living at-risk relatives in their families. Overall, just over half (52%) of these at-risk relatives had been reported to have been told about their risk. However, within families, the percentage of relatives told about their risk ranged from 0%-100%. Ninety percent of first-degree relatives were told about their risk, 61% of second-degree relatives were told and 33% of third-degree relatives were told. Recruitment site affiliation was determined to be a confounder and so analyses were calculated separately for UI and UW. In both the UI and UW samples, network factors including closer geographic distance, increased emotional closeness, increased relationship quality, increased frequency of communication, higher betweenness centrality, and closer degree of biological relation were independently associated with increased odds of communication of risk. In the UI sample, non-network factors that were independently associated with increased odds of communication of risk included younger age at diagnosis; having LQTS; having positive genetic test results; having an ICD; younger current age; being female; having increased role limitations due to physical functioning; feeling anxious about telling family members about risk; feeling communication was a burden; feeling that communication was a responsibility or duty; being happy to be able to share important information; and identifying financial issues, pregnancies, or upcoming marriages as playing a role in communication. In a multivariate model, increased frequency of communication, closer degree of biological relation, having an ICD, and identifying financial issues and pregnancies as contributors to communication were significantly associated with communication of genetic risk information. In the UW sample, non-network factors that were independently associated with increased odds of communication of risk included younger age, decreased emotional wellbeing, increased role limitations due to emotional wellbeing, and decreased energy and fatigue. In a multivariate model, increased frequency of communication and closer degree of biological relation were significantly associated with communication. Although over half of at-risk relatives were told about their risk, just over half of those (53.8%) were reported to have screened for disease, which represents 27% of all at-risk relatives. Of those tested, 35% were reported as diagnosed with HCM/LQTS. Conclusion: Communication of genetic risk for HCM/LQTS in families is inadequate and contributes to the problem of relatives not being screened for disease. Insight on the factors that influence communication in families at risk of sudden cardiac death can guide development of interventions, policies, and future research aimed at improving genetic risk communication and cascade screening, and preventing death and complications from inherited cardiac diseases. This research is applicable for genetic conditions where population based screening methods are not effective and rely on families to communicate risk and need for screening.

Eliot Glacier is a small (1.6 km2), relatively well-studied glacier on Mount Hood, Oregon. Since 1901, glacier area decreased from 2.03 ± 0.16 km2 to 1.64 ± 0.05 km2 by 2004, a loss of 19%, and the terminus retreated about 600 m. Mount Hood's glaciers as a whole have lost 34% of their area. During the first part of the 20th century the glacier thinned and retreated, then thickened and advanced between the 1940s and 1960s because of cooler temperatures and increased winter precipitation and has since accelerated its retreat, averaging about 1.0 m a-1 thinning and a 20 m a-1 retreat rate by 2004. Surface velocities at a transverse profile reflect ice thickness over time, reaching a low of 1.4 m a-1 in 1949 before increasing to 6.9 ± 1.7 m a-1 from the 1960s to the 1980s. Velocities have since slowed to about 2.3 m a-1 , about the 1940 speed.

Cancer is a serious family of disease that continues to cripple and claim those afflicted. For the last several decades, America has invested in a national program to alleviate cancer and cancer related suffering, ultimately seeking a cure. As part of this goal, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) has spent significant effort scouring the globe with the hope of finding naturally occurring compounds that can successfully combat cancer. Presently, this effort has uncovered many natural products with chemotherapeutic potential and many of the lead agents used in the fight against cancer are either natural products themselves or are compounds inspired by a natural product. This work describes one family of natural products uncovered by the NCI that is being explored for chemotherapeutic applications, namely the schweinfurthins. The schweinfurthins were isolated by the NCI; however the natural source, Macaranga schweinfurthii, did not provide these compounds in ample quantity to permit further study. The paucity of natural material indicated that a chemical synthesis of these compounds would be the most reliable method to provide meaningful amounts of schweinfurthins. The present work describes the chemical synthesis of four of the most potent schweinfurthins, describes the synthesis of numerous structural analogues, and details advances to the field of cascade cyclizations which makes their synthesis possible.

Quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) are a candidate for calibration sources in space-based remote sensing applications. However, the output beam from a QCL has some characteristics that are undesirable in a calibration source. The output beam from a QCL is polarized both temporally and spatially coherent, and has a non-uniform bivariate Gaussian profile. These characteristics need to be mitigated before QCLs can be used as calibration sources. This study presents the design and implementation of an optical system that manipulates the output beam from a QCL so that it is spatially and angularly uniform with reduced coherence and polarization.

The Lower Karori Reservoir (LKR) is a small, monomictic lake of 2.34 ha situated in the Karori Wildlife Sanctuary (KWS), Wellington. Over the past decade cyanobacterial blooms have become a common occurrence in this water body. In 2005 Anabaena planktonica was detected for the first time in the LKR and this species now forms dense blooms during summer. These blooms are problematic as they reduce aesthetic appeal and have resulted in odour problems for visitors to this high profile wildlife sanctuary. The objectives of this study were to identify key physical, chemical and biological variables influencing phytoplankton dynamics in the LKR and to use ecological models to investigate plausible management options. The key parameters investigated, that may cause bloom formation were; summer stratification, high nutrient levels, and the food web effects of a large population of European perch (Perca fluviatilis). High resolution sampling was carried out every six hours over a 72 hour period during pre-bloom, bloom and post-bloom periods in 2006/7 to elucidate short term temporal and spatial variations in biological and physico-chemical parameters. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (QPCR) was used to enumerate A. planktonica populations, allowing a large number of samples to be simultaneously evaluated. Algal densities were also estimated using conventional phytoplankton enumeration and chlorophyll a analysis. Water samples were collected for nutrient analysis at discrete depths and profiles were taken for temperature, dissolved oxygen and photosynthetic active radiation. Secchi depth and pH were also measured. Weekly or fortnightly phytoplankton and zooplankton samples and physical variables have been collected at LKR since September 2005 as part of an independent sampling program carried out by the KWS, Waikato University and Cawthron Institute. In this project the 2-year data set was used to assist with analysis of lake processes and for validation of the hydrodynamic-ecological model DYRESM-CAEDYM. Between 12 and 15 February, 2007, electric fishing was undertaken within the LKR. A total of 3,946 P. fluviatilis were removed and the effects on phytoplankton and zooplankton concentrations were investigated. To increase knowledge of the physiology of A. planktonica, laboratory experiments were undertaken using cultures subjected to a range of different light intensities and temperature regimes The phytoplankton assemblage of the LKR shows very distinct temporal variations. Summer stratification occurred in the LKR for ~4 months each summer. During these periods A. planktonica comprised up to 99.9% of the surface phytoplankton population. During isothermy chlorophytes, bacillariophytes and small flagellated dinophytes are co-dominant in the phytoplankton assemblage. The results of the QPCR showed distinct diurnal vertical movement of A. planktonica, with the highest cell concentrations occurring at 1900 hours at the surface. Ammonium (NH4-N) is the dominant species of inorganic nitrogen during periods of stratification, while nitrate (NO3-N) is generally dominant during times of isothermy. Phosphate concentrations at surface and depth remained at low levels throughout the sampling period. The large surface populations of A. planktonica, are probably responsible for the elevated total nitrogen concentrations in surface waters during stratified periods. There appeared to be some short term effects of the P. fluviatilis removal with an increase in large crustaceans (e.g., Daphnia sp.) and a reduction in A. planktonica densities observed in the months following the P. fluviatilis removal. Only a small proportion of the total P. fluviatilis population was removed and it is unlikely that the effects will be long-lasting without subsequent removal steps. However, it seems likely that P. fluviatilis is one of the factors contributing to cyanobacterial blooms and management of this fish species should be considered in future lake restoration plans. Growth experiments indicated A. planktonica grow over a wide range of light intensities and temperatures, although highest growth rates were generally associated with higher temperatures (25 C) and light intensities (60 - 140 μmol m-2 s-1). Ecological and hydrodynamic trends within the LKR over a two year period were simulated with adequate success using the model DYRESM-CAEDYM. Management scenarios simulated using DYRESM-CAEDYM suggest implementation of an artificial destratification system in the LKR may be the most practical and effective means of controlling A. planktonica blooms. The addition of an artificial aeration system emitting air at a rate of approximately 50 l-1 s-1 should result in an isothermal system. Without summer stratification some of the physiological features of A. planktonica (e.g., buoyancy regulation and nitrogen-fixation) that give it a competitive advantage over other phytoplankton species will be reduced.

Avec l'extension de la dérégulation du système électrique, les réseaux électriques sont exploités de plus en plus près de leurs limites de sécurité et de stabilité. Les conditions d'exploitation des réseaux deviennent de plus en plus complexes. Dans cette situation, des blackouts se produisent plus fréquemment. Les blackouts à grande échelle provoquent d'énormes pertes économiques et sociales. Nous avons tout d'abord analysé 37 blackouts apparus dans le monde entre 1965 et 2005, classifié leurs caractéristiques selon des phases temporelles identifiées au préalable, résumé leurs mécanismes communs et suggéré quelques méthodes possibles pour la prévention des futurs blackouts. Il est ressorti de cette analyse que la cascade de surcharge et l'écroulement de tension sont de loin les incidents les plus fréquents dans les blackouts et qu'un système pour la prévention de ces incidents en temps réel est nécessaire. Basé sur les nouvelles technologies de surveillance et contrôle des réseaux de type WAMS (Wide-area measurement system en anglais), nous proposons un nouveau système de contrôle de la stabilité du réseau électrique en temps réel. Ce système peut fournir les solutions optimales pour éviter l'instabilité du réseau électrique et fonctionne à base de délestage. Le délestage, une méthode efficace pour éviter les blackouts, a été largement utilisé dans les réseaux électriques. Les plans de délestage actuels sont normalement préparés à l'avance selon l'estimation de l'état d'urgence du réseau. Cependant, les délestages prédéfinis ne peuvent parfois empêcher les blackouts dans certaines situations complexes et imprévues. De ce fait, nous avons proposé trois méthodes de délestage optimal en temps réel et des stratégies optimales associées qui se concentrent sur les situations imprévues et peuvent assurer la stabilité de tension et la stabilité transitoire après le délestage. En utilisant de plus un système intelligent de gestion d'énergie dans l'habitat qui permet d'adapter la consommation d'énergie à la disponibilité des ressources tout en maximisant le confort de l'usager, nos délestages sont réalisés "en douceur", c'est à dire sans mettre aucun client dans le noir. Ce concept est radicalement différent du délestage classique actuel.