Sialylation is an important carbohydrate modification of glycoconjugates, which introduces sialic acids (SA). The relatively large nine-carbon, negatively charged sugars are typically located at the termini of carbohydrate chains. SA's are often required for functionally important molecular and cellular interactions including virus-host interactions, tumor progression and malignancy, immune system development and function, and nervous system development and function. However, the study of sialylation in vertebrates, including man, encounters serious obstacles associated with the complexity of vertebrates' biology and limitations of available experimental approaches. Drosophila is a useful model system with many advantages including quick generation time, a large number of progeny, simplified glycosylation and neurophysiology, and ease of genetic manipulations. The primary focus of this thesis is on the functions of Drosophila melanogaster CMP sialic acid synthetase (DmCSAS) and sialyltransferase (DSiaT) in the central nervous system (CNS). A combination of genetic, immunostaining, and neurobiology approaches were used to characterize the functions of DmCSAS and DSiaT in Drosophila. This investigation revealed the expression of DmCSAS and suggested that it plays an important role in a specialized and developmentally regulated process in the nervous system of Drosophila. Further experiments examined sub-cellular localization of DmCSAS revealing that this protein has a complex mostly Golgi-associated distribution within the cell in vivo. I discovered a novel link between Drosophila sialylation and circadian rhythm regulation. I also characterized the electrophysiological phenotypes of DmCSAS mutants and compared them to the corresponding defects associated with DSiaT mutations. My experiments also revealed that the relationship between DmCSAS and DSiaT are more complex than originally thought; these genes may have independent functions while also participating in the same pathway. Taken together, these results elucidate the sialylation pathway in Drosophila and shed more light on the role of sialylation in the nervous system. My experiments provide a unique evolutionary perspective on the sialylation pathway in animals and suggest that the neural function of SA in Drosophila can be conserved in vertebrates, including humans.

Οι σύγχρονες τάσεις της Επιστήμης Σχεδιασμού των Υπολογιστικών Συστημάτων έχουν υιοθετήσει την χρήση των Κρυφών Μνημών ή Μνημών Cache, αποβλέποντας στην απόκρυψη της Καθυστέρησης της Κύριας Μνήμης των Συστημάτων (Memory Latency) και την γεφύρωση του χάσματος της απόδοσης του Επεξεργαστή και της Κύριας Μνήμης (Processor – Memory Performance Gap). Οι Μνήμες Cache έτσι έχουν αποκτήσει αδιαμφισβήτητα πρωτεύοντα ρόλο στην Ιεραρχία Μνήμης των Ηλεκτρονικών Υπολογιστών. Οι νέες τάσεις Σχεδιασμού ανέδειξαν την Έννοια του Παραλληλισμού σε πρωτεύοντα ρόλο. Αρχικά διερευνήθηκε ο Παραλληλισμός Επιπέδου Εντολών, ωστόσο η αύξηση της Απόδοσης των Υπολογιστών σύντομα έφτασε ένα μέγιστο. Την τελευταία δεκαετία το κέντρο του ενδιαφέροντος των σχεδιαστών έχει και πάλι μετατοπιστεί, καθώς ένας νέος τύπος Επεξεργαστών έχει εισέλθει στο προσκήνιο, οι Πολυπύρηνοι Επεξεργαστές, ή όπως είναι αλλιώς γνωστοί on-chip Multiprocessors (CMP). Αυτές οι εξελίξεις, σε συνδυασμό με την ολοένα αυξανόμενη πολυπλοκότητα της “συμπεριφοράς” των εκτελούμενων Εφαρμογών, ώθησαν το σχεδιαστικό ενδιαφέρον προς την εκμετάλλευση ενός νεοσύστατου τύπου Παραλληλισμού. Ο Παραλληλισμός Επιπέδου Μνήμης ή Memory Level Parallelism (MLP) αποτελεί τα τελευταία χρόνια, το πλέον ισχυρό μέσο αύξησης της απόδοσης των Υπολογιστικών Συστημάτων και μαζί με τους Πολυπύρηνους Επεξεργαστές θα κυριαρχήσει στο προσκήνιο των εξελίξεων τα επόμενα χρόνια. Σκοπός της παρούσας Διπλωματικής Εργασίας είναι η ανάπτυξη ενός Στατιστικού – Πιθανοτικού Μοντέλου για μελέτη και πρόβλεψη των φαινομένων που αναπτύσσονται σε Μνήμες Cache, στις οποίες αποθηκεύονται δεδομένα από εκτελούμενες Εφαρμογές, με έντονο Παραλληλισμό Επιπέδου Μνήμης. Θα οριστεί ένας Εκτιμητής του Φόρτου που επιβάλλεται στο Σύστημα, από φαινόμενα Παραλληλισμού Επιπέδου Μνήμης (MLP). Στην συνέχεια, με βάση το Μοντέλο που αναπτύσσουμε, θα διερευνηθεί ένα ικανοποιητικό σύνολο Εφαρμογών, και θα εξαχθεί μια Εκτίμηση – Πρόβλεψη για τον Φόρτο (MLP) του Συστήματος. Εφόσον οι Προβλέψεις μας κριθούν επιτυχής, το Μοντέλο Πρόβλεψης Φόρτου MLP που αναπτύξαμε, μπορεί να αποτελέσει χρήσιμο Εργαλείο στα χέρια των Σχεδιαστών που ασχολούνται με την αύξηση της Απόδοσης των Σύγχρονων Υπολογιστικών Συστημάτων. / -

Name and surname: Bc. Iveta Kovářová Supervisor: Mgr. Alice Oktábcová Thesis title: Summary of Principles and Recommendations for Stroke Patients and their Families after Discharge from Acute Stroke Units Background: Stroke is a very serious and common disease with a high mortality. It is important for patients to start rehabilitation as soon as possible. Early discharge allows stroke patients return home to continue rehabilitation in familiar surroundings. The responsibility for continued rehabilitation is in the hands of patients and their families and the main aim is to adjust to everyday life. Objective: The aim of this work is to create an educational material "Summary of Principles and Recommendations for Stroke Patients and their Families after Discharge from Acute Stroke Units", to help patients in the stroke problematics. This Summary includes information about stroke issues, stroke epidemiology, consequences and risks, practical advices, compensatory aids, possibilities of rehabilitation and information on social counseling, speech therapy and outpatient rehabilitation with relevant contacts. A case report in the practical part of this work tries to summarize possibilities of home occupational therapy and get a feedback on the educational material. Methods: This research work summarizes...

To form Cu interconnects, dual-damascene techniques like chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) and post-CMP became inevitable for removing the "overburden" Cu and for planarizing the wafer surface. During the CMP processing, Cu interconnects and barrier metal layers experience different electrochemical interactions depending on the slurry composition, pH, and ohmic contact with adjacent metal layers that would set corrosion process. Ruthenium as a replacement of existing diffusion barrier layer will require extensive investigation to eliminate or control the corrosion process during CMP and post CMP. Bimetallic corrosion process was investigated in the ammonium citrate (a complexing agent of Cu in CMP solutions) using micro test patterns and potentiodynamic measurements. The enhanced bimetallic corrosion of copper observed is due to noble behavior of the ruthenium metal. Cu formed Cu(II)-amine and Cu(II)-citrate complexes in alkaline and acidic solutions and a corrosion mechanism has been proposed. The currently used metallization process (PVD, CVD and ALD) require ultra-high vacuum and are expensive. A novel method of Si surface metallization process is discussed that can be achieved at room temperature and does not require ultra-high vacuum. Ruthenation of Si surface through strong Si-Ru covalent bond formation is demonstrated using different ruthenium carbonyl compounds. RBS analysis accounted for monolayer to sub-monolayer coverage of Si surface. Interaction of other metal carbonyl (like Fe, Re, and Rh) is also discussed. The silicon (111) surface modifications with vinyl terminated organic compounds were investigated to form self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) and there after these surfaces were further functionalized. Acrylonitrile and vinylbenzophenone were employed for these studies. Ketone group of vinylbenzophenone anchored to Si surface demonstrated reactivity with reducing and oxidizing agents.

This thesis deals with the development of multilingual for web browsers Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome. The purpose of the extension is to enable the automated management of provided consents to the processing of personal data on websites using the Transparency and Consent Framework. Extension was developed on the basis of knowledge about this framework and about legal norms GDPR and ePrivacy Directive, which deal with the protection of personal data. Knowledge of the method of developing extensions for web browsers using WebExtensions was also used during the implementation. During testing, consent was successfully enforced in 96,2 % of tested websites in Mozilla Firefox. In Google Chrome, success has been achieved in 82,1 % of tested websites. The banner requiring consent was not displayed in 33 % of websites in Mozilla Firefox and in 31,1 % of websites in Google Chrome.

Composite materials formed from two or more functionally different materials offer a versatile avenue to create a tailored material with well defined traits. Within this dissertation research, multi-functional composites were synthesized based on organic and inorganic materials. The functionally of these composites was experimentally tested and a semi-empirical model describing the sedimentation behavior of these particles was developed. This first objective involved the fabrication of microcomposites consisting of titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles confined within porous, microgels of a thermo-responsive polymer for use in the photocatalytic treatment of wastewater. TiO2 has been shown to be an excellent photocatalyst with potential applications in advanced oxidative processes such as wastewater remediation. Upon UV irradiation, short-lived electron-hole pairs are generated, which produce oxidative species that degrade simple organic contaminants. The rapid sedimentation of these microcomposites provided an easy gravimetric separation after remediation. Methyl orange was used as a model organic contaminant to investigate the kinetics of photodegradation under a range of concentrations and pH conditions. Although after prolonged periods of UV irradiation (~8-13 hrs), the titania-microgels also degrade, regeneration of the microcomposites was straightforward via the addition of polymer microgels with no loss in photocatalytic activity of the reformed microcomposites. The second objective within this dissertation involved the systematic development of abrasive microcomposite particles containing well dispersed nanoparticles of ceria in an organic/inorganic hybrid polymeric particle for use in chemical mechanical polishing/planarization (CMP). A challenge in IC fabrication involves the defect-free planarization of silicon oxide films for successful multi-layer deposition. Planarization studies conducted with the microcomposites prepared in this research, yield very smooth, planar surfaces with removal rates that rival those of inorganic oxides slurries typically used in industry. The density and size of these ceria-microgel particles could be controlled by varying the temperature or composition during synthesis, leading to softer or harder polishing when desired.

Non-planar surface may cause incorrect transfer of patterns during lithography. In today’s IC manufacturing, chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) is used for topographical planarization. Since polish rates for metals and oxides are different, dummy metal fills in layout is used to minimize post-CMP thickness variability. Traditional metal fill solutions focus on satisfying density target determined by layout density analysis techniques. These solutions may potentially reduce yield by increasing probability of failure (POF) due to particulate defects and also impact design performance. Layout design solutions that minimize POF and also improve surface planarity via dummy fill insertions have competing requirements for line spacing. In this thesis, I present a formulation to balance these competing goals and provide a comparative study of greedy (or fixed spacing), variable spacing and LP formulation based fill insertions based on scalability and quality of solution. I extend the variable spacing fill to allow non-preferred direction routing of fill patterns in order to further improve the CA. Traditional fill solutions impact design performance due to increase coupling capacitance on signal nets. I present a fill insertion algorithm that minimizes this increase in coupling capacitance due to fill. Finally, I extend the critical area based solution to include SRAF insertion in order to account for optical diffraction in lithography. Thus the proposed solution addresses both lithography and particulate related defects and minimizes the fill impact on design performance at the same time. Experimental results based on layout of ISCAS 85 benchmark circuits show that the variable spacing and the LP formulation based fill insertion techniques result in substantially reduced critical area while satisfying the layout density and uniformity criteria. The coupling capacitance minimization fill solution reduces the fill impact on coupling capacitance while at the same time minimizing the critical area.

Using the famous Teapot Dome oil field in Casper, Wyoming, USA as a test case, we demonstrate how high-resolution compressional (P) and horizontally polarized shear (SH) wave seismic reflection surveys can overcome the limitations of conventional 3D seismic data in resolving small-scale structures in the very shallow subsurface (< 100-200 m (~328-656 ft)). We accomplish this by using small CMP intervals (5 ft and 2.5 ft, respectively) and a higher frequency source. The integration of the two high-resolution seismic methods enhances the detection and mapping of fine-scale deformation and stratigraphic features at shallow depth that cannot be imaged by conventional seismic methods. Further, when these two high-resolution seismic methods are integrated with 3D data, correlated drill hole logs, and outcrop mapping and trenching, a clearer picture of both very shallow reservoirs and the relationship between deep and shallow faults can be observed. For example, we show that the Shannon reservoir, which is the shallowest petroleum reservoir at Teapot Dome (depth to the top of this interval ranging from 76-198 m (250-650 ft)) can only be imaged properly with high-resolution seismic methods. Further, northeast-striking faults are identified in shallow sections within Teapot Dome. The strike of these faults is approximately orthogonal to the hinge of Teapot Dome. These faults are interpreted as fold accommodation faults. Vertical displacements across these faults range from 10 to 40 m (~33 to 131 ft), which could potentially partition the Shannon reservoir. The integration of 3D and high-resolution P-wave seismic interpretation helped us determine that some of the northeast-striking faults relate to deeper faults. This indicates that some deeper faults that are orthogonal to the fold hinge cut through the shallow Shannon reservoir. Such an observation would be important for understanding the effect on fluid communication between the deep and shallow reservoirs via these faults. Furthermore, the high-resolution seismic data provide a means to better constrain the location of faults mapped from drill hole logs. Relocation of theses faults may require re-evaluation of well locations as some attic oil may have not been drained in some Shannon blocks by present well locations. Therefore our study demonstrates how conventional 3D seismic data require additional seismic acquisition at smaller scales in order to image deformation in shallow reservoirs. Such imaging becomes critical in cases of shallow reservoirs where it is important to define potential problems associated with compartmentalization of primary production, hazard mitigation, enhanced oil recovery, or carbon sequestration.

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OF MASTER THESIS Author: Bc. Kateřina Králová Supervisor: MUDr. Tereza Gueye Title of master thesis: Evaluation of Occupational Therapy Intervention in Acute Inpatient Rehabilitation of Cerebrovascular Units Abstract This diploma thesis deals with the evaluation of occupational interventions on the specific separation of beds of early rehabilitation of the cerebrovascular center of the General University Hospital in Prague. The subject of interest is primarily the results of the assessment obtained through the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. The thesis has two main objectives, namely mapping and analyzing the tools used to assess self-sufficiency and cognitive functions in the department. You can find the description of the evaluation tools in the theoretical part of the thesis. It is also an overview of the topic of the selected topic and a brief description of the system of cerebrovascular care in the Czech Republic. The second objective was to evaluate variables such as length of hospitalization and cognitive status in relation to patient self-sufficiency at the end of hospitalization. Three hypotheses have been identified to meet this goal. The practical part describes the results of the used tools for a particular department. The research group...