Les cellules ont développé plusieurs voies de signalisation et de réponses transcriptionnelles pour réguler leur taille et coordonner leur croissance et leurs divisions cellulaires. L'intérieur des cellules est naturellement surchargé par des macromolécules. Cet encombrement macromoléculaire, appelé crowding, a été intensément étudié in vitro et est connu pour affecter la cinétique des réactions. Cependant, l'étude des effets d'encombrement in vivo est plus difficile en raison du haut niveau de complexité et d'hétérogénéité à l'intérieur d'une cellule. Au cours de cette thèse, nous nous sommes intéressés aux effets de changement du volume cellulaire sur la cinétique de réactions biochimiques chez la levure Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Pour cela, nous avons induit des stress osmotiques pour comprimer la cellule et étudier l'impact du crowding sur les cinétiques de signalisation. La réduction du volume cellulaire augmente la viscosité interne et peut retarder le fonctionnement de plusieurs voies de signalisation et de processus cellulaires. En augmentant progressivement le niveau de compression, on observe un ralentissement des processus biologiques jusqu'à un point où l'adaptation cellulaire est abolie. Ceci a été observé pour la translocation nucléaire de facteurs de transcription (Hog1, Msn2, Crz1, Mig1 et Yap1) ainsi que pour la mobilité des protéines Abp1 et Sec7. Nous montrons aussi que la compression altère la capacité de plusieurs protéines à diffuser dans le cytoplasme de différents types cellulaires. Nous proposons que ces altérations cinétiques induites par l'augmentation de la viscosité intracellulaire ne soient pas sans rappeler une transition vitreuse. Ces résultats suggèrent l'importance d'un encombrement macromoléculaire optimal permettant aux cellules de fonctionner correctement.

Bone discolouration of pig carcasses is a quality concern that has been observed in Ontario slaughter plants. The objectives of this study were to establish the prevalence of pig carcasses showing bone discolouration, its relationship with residues of tetracyclines in bones, and to investigate the use of tetracyclines in feeding programs for grower-finisher pigs as the main risk factor for discolouration. Abattoir data were examined to determine the extent of the problem and the prevalence of bone discolouration during 2006, 2008, 2009, and 2010 was found to be 0.13%, 0.22%, 0.26%, and 0.28%, respectively, indicating that the issue of bone discolouration was present at low levels over the entire period of the study. A controlled trial using feed, water, and injectable tetracycline products to investigate the effect of tetracyclines on residue and bone colour was conducted. Bones were assessed visually for signs of discolouration, and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to measure the levels of tetracycline residues in the bones. Results from this trial demonstrated that discolouration could be produced with 660ppm of chlortetracycline (CTC) in feed for 12 weeks even when 33 days of withdrawal time was observed. It was also found that residues of tetracyclines can be present in bones in the absence of discolouration. A retrospective study was conducted to investigate tetracycline use in herds identified as having discoloured bones at slaughter. Positive shipments were associated with dosage and duration of CTC use as well as with length of withdrawal. In conclusion, discoloured bones of pig carcasses were identified at low levels in one large Ontario abattoir; however, further investigation is needed in order to determine the impact it may have on the swine industry. / Ontario Pork and the University of Guelph - Ontario Ministry of Agriculture (OMAFRA) Sustainable Production System Program

Root-lesion nematodes, Pratylenchus spp., are serious pathogens of potato plants worldwide. Several management practices can control Pratylenchus spp.; however, they all have shown some limitations. Therefore, environmentally-safe, low-cost, and effective control strategies are needed as possible alternative to currently used strategies. This thesis was designed to assess if liquid hog manure (LHM) holds such potential. The objectives of this thesis were to determine: (i) the prevalence and identity of species of Pratylenchus spp. in Manitoba potato fields, (ii) if short-chain volatile fatty acids (VFA) in LHM are the constituents responsible for the manure’s toxicity to Pratylenchus spp. using solution exposure experiments (iii) the effectiveness of LHM in killing Pratylenchus spp. in soil, and (iv) the impact of LHM on nematode communities. Pratylenchus spp. were detected in 39% of 31 potato fields surveyed in Manitoba with population densities ranging, for positive fields, from 45 to 631 nematodes kg-1 fresh soil. Morphometrics of female nematodes and molecular diagnosis (using species-specific PCR primers) showed that the species of Pratylenchus present in the potato fields to be P. neglectus. Potato, cv. Russet Burbank, showed to be a poor host to two populations of Pratylenchus spp. from Manitoba potato fields. Accordingly, P. neglectus does not seem to be a limitation to potato production in Manitoba; thus, P. penetrans, the most widely spread and damaging species to potato was used in the successive studies of assessing the use of LHM to control Pratylenchus spp. in potato fields. VFA (acetic, propionic, n-butyric, isobutyric, n-valeric, isovaleric, and n-caproic acids) accounted for the majority of the lethal effect of LHM to P. penetrans under acidic conditions. VFA in LHM killed Pratylenchus spp. in soil and acidification seemed to enhance its ability when VFA concentration in the manure is low. LHM did not act as a soil fumigant eliminating soil trophic interactions but increased bottom-up food web interactions. VFA in LHM persisted in the soil for four days with biological degradation being their mode of loss. In conclusion, LHM is potentially an effective and low-cost strategy to control Pratylenchus spp. and its efficacy can be improved by acidification.

Root-lesion nematodes, Pratylenchus spp., are serious pathogens of potato plants worldwide. Several management practices can control Pratylenchus spp.; however, they all have shown some limitations. Therefore, environmentally-safe, low-cost, and effective control strategies are needed as possible alternative to currently used strategies. This thesis was designed to assess if liquid hog manure (LHM) holds such potential. The objectives of this thesis were to determine: (i) the prevalence and identity of species of Pratylenchus spp. in Manitoba potato fields, (ii) if short-chain volatile fatty acids (VFA) in LHM are the constituents responsible for the manure’s toxicity to Pratylenchus spp. using solution exposure experiments (iii) the effectiveness of LHM in killing Pratylenchus spp. in soil, and (iv) the impact of LHM on nematode communities. Pratylenchus spp. were detected in 39% of 31 potato fields surveyed in Manitoba with population densities ranging, for positive fields, from 45 to 631 nematodes kg-1 fresh soil. Morphometrics of female nematodes and molecular diagnosis (using species-specific PCR primers) showed that the species of Pratylenchus present in the potato fields to be P. neglectus. Potato, cv. Russet Burbank, showed to be a poor host to two populations of Pratylenchus spp. from Manitoba potato fields. Accordingly, P. neglectus does not seem to be a limitation to potato production in Manitoba; thus, P. penetrans, the most widely spread and damaging species to potato was used in the successive studies of assessing the use of LHM to control Pratylenchus spp. in potato fields. VFA (acetic, propionic, n-butyric, isobutyric, n-valeric, isovaleric, and n-caproic acids) accounted for the majority of the lethal effect of LHM to P. penetrans under acidic conditions. VFA in LHM killed Pratylenchus spp. in soil and acidification seemed to enhance its ability when VFA concentration in the manure is low. LHM did not act as a soil fumigant eliminating soil trophic interactions but increased bottom-up food web interactions. VFA in LHM persisted in the soil for four days with biological degradation being their mode of loss. In conclusion, LHM is potentially an effective and low-cost strategy to control Pratylenchus spp. and its efficacy can be improved by acidification.

Submitted by Katiane Souza (katyane.souza@gmail.com) on 2016-04-07T00:06:08Z No. of bitstreams: 1 arquivototal.pdf: 13382272 bytes, checksum: 7f87ecfccf2692fd7d07c6a65a464403 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-07T00:06:08Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 arquivototal.pdf: 13382272 bytes, checksum: 7f87ecfccf2692fd7d07c6a65a464403 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007-03-02 / Conselho Nacional de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico - CNPq / Because extractive exploration, irregular production and the lacking management proposal concerning to its phytotechnical aspects, the hog-plum plant (Spondias mombin L.) is under marginal condition in the productive chain. So, this study was conducted to identify and quantify the nutritional demands of the hog-plum plant (Spondias mombin L.) for both phosphorus and potassium. The experiment was carried out in the experimental station of the Pesquisa Agropecuária da Paraíba - EMEPA-PB, Mangabeira county. The randomized block experimental desing was used, and the treatments were disposed under the factorial scheme 4 x 4 + 2, with the first two factors consisting of the P and K doses (30, 60, 120 and 240 g plant-1), and two controls (without fertilization and with organic fertilization). In estimating the yield, only the fruits fallen on the ground were taken into account. The nutritional state was evaluated at 60, 120, 180 and 240 days after the first application of the treatments, by collecting four ripe leaves of the branch before inflorescence, in all quadrants at the medium position in the plant. To evaluate fertility of the soil, some samples were collected at the 120th, 180th and 240th day at the depths 0 - 20 and 20 - 40 cm. According to the results, the following conclusions were drawn: the doses 148.06 and 30 g plant-1 of K2O and P2O5, respectively, resulted the highest fruit yield (84.29 kg plant-1); the leaf collections to quantify the contents of P and K in the hog-plum plant should be performed at 240 days; the highest contents of P and K in the leaves were reached, when the highest doses of those elements were applied on the soil; the hog-plum plant positively responds to the organic fertilization; both phosphorus and potassium fertilizations increased the levels of potassium in the soil at depths from 0 to 20 and from 20 to 40 cm. / A exploração extrativista, a irregularidade na produção e a falta de uma proposta de manejo da cajazeira (Spondias mombin L.), quanto aos aspectos fitotécnicos, colocam esta cultura numa condição marginal na cadeia produtiva. Assim, com o objetivo de identificar e quantificar as exigências nutricionais da cajazeira (Spondias mombin L.) para os nutrientes fósforo e potássio, foi realizado na estação experimental da Empresa de Pesquisa Agropecuária da Paraíba, EMEPA-PB, localizada no município de Mangabeira, um experimento em blocos casualizados com os tratamentos dispostos em esquema fatorial 4 x 4 + 2 , sendo os dois primeiros fatores constituídos pelas doses de P e K (30, 60, 120 e 240 g planta-1), acrescidos de duas testemunhas (sem adubação e adubação orgânica). Para a estimativa da variável produção, foram considerados apenas os frutos caídos ao chão. O estado nutricional foi avaliado aos 60, 120, 180 e 240 dias após a primeira aplicação dos tratamentos, com a coleta de 4 folhas maduras do ramo anterior à inflorescência, em todos os quadrantes, na posição mediana da planta. Para avaliar a fertilidade do solo, foram coletadas amostras aos 120, 180 e 240 dias nas profundidades de 0 - 20 e de 20 - 40 cm. Face aos resultados obtidos, concluiu-se que: as doses de 148,06 e 30 g planta-1 de K2O e P2O5, respectivamente, resultaram nas maiores produções de frutos (84,29 kg planta- 1); a coleta de folhas para quantificar os teores de P e K na cajazeira deve ser aos 240 dias; os maiores teores foliares para o P e K foram obtidos quando aplicadas as maiores doses dos respectivos elementos no solo; a cajazeira responde positivamente à adubação orgânica; e, a adubação fosfática e potássica elevaram os níveis de fósforo e potássio no solo nas profundidades de 0 a 20 e de 20 a 40 cm.

In this thesis, a novel Pedestrian Protection System (PPS), composed of the Pedestrian Detection System (PDS) and the Pedestrian Tracking System (PTS), was proposed. The PPS is a supplementary application for the Advanced Driver Assistance System, which is used to avoid collisions between vehicles and pedestrians. The Pedestrian Detection System (PDS) is used to detect pedestrians from near to far ranges with the feature-classi er-based detection method (HOG + SVM). To achieve pedestrian detection from near to far ranges, a novel structure was proposed. The structure of our PDS consists of two cameras (called CS and CL separately). The CS is equipped with a short focal length lens to detect pedestrians in near-to-mid range; and, the CL is equipped with a long focal length lens to detect pedestrians in mid-to-far range. To accelerate the processing speed of pedestrian detection, the parallel computing capacity of GPU was utilized in the PDS. The synchronization algorithm is also introduced to synchronize the detection results of CS and CL. Based on the novel pedestrian detection structure, the detection process can reach a distance which is more than 130 meters away without decreasing detection accuracy. The detection range can be extended more than 100 meters without decreasing the processing speed of pedestrian detection. Afterwards, an algorithm to eliminate duplicate detection results is proposed to improve the detection accuracy. The Pedestrian Tracking System (PTS) is applied following the Pedestrian Detection System. The PTS is used to track the movement trajectory of pedestrians and to predict the future motion and movement direction. A C + + class (called pedestrianTracking class, which is short for PTC) was generated to operate the tracking process for every detected pedestrian. The Kalman lter is the main algorithm inside the PTC. During the operation of PPS, the nal detection results of each frame from PDS will be transmitted to the PTS to enable the tracking process. The new detection results will be used to update the existing tracking results in the PTS. Moreover, if there is a newly detected pedestrian, a new process will be generated to track the pedestrian in the PTS. Based on the tracking results in PTS, the movement trajectory of pedestrians can be obtained and their future motion and movement direction can be predicted. Two kinds of alerts are generated based on the predictions: warning alert and dangerous alert. These two alerts represent di erent situations; and, they will alert drivers to the upcoming situations. Based on the predictions and alerts, the collisions can be prevented e ectively. The safety of pedestrians can be guaranteed.

In this thesis deep convolutional neural networks models and feature descriptor models are compared. Feature descriptors are paired with suitable chosen classifier. These models are a part of machine learning therefore machine learning types are described in this thesis. Further these chosen models are described, and their basics and problems are explained. Hardware and software used for tests is listed and then test results and results summary is listed. Then comparison based on the validation accuracy and training time of these said models is done.

Master's thesis studies the possibilities of generating 3D trees using variety of methods including context-free grammars and L-systems. Master's thesis also includes chapter on evolutionary and genetic algorithms, which briefly summarize their function. In this project genetic algorithm which takes 2D image of tree and the beginning of its trunk is proposed. Based on this information it will generate 3D tree which is visually close to the original image. In addition to methods of generating trees, reader will get information about processing input image and designing test application.

This study aims to modify Vision Transformer (ViT) to achieve higher accuracy. ViT is a model used in computer vision to, among other things, classify images. By applying ViT to the MNIST data set, an accuracy of approximately 98% is achieved. ViT is modified by implementing a method called Histogram of Oriented Gradients (HOG) in two different ways. The results show that the first approach with HOG gives an accuracy of 98,74% (setup 1) and the second approach gives an accuracy of 96,87% (patch size 4x4 pixels). The study shows that when HOG is applied on the entire image, a better accuracy is obtained. However, no systematic optimization has taken place, which makes it difficult to draw conclusions with certainty.

The Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (GNDNERR) has a history of elevated fecal coliform counts. However, the source of the contamination is not well understood. According to past sanitary surveys, there has been a history of malfunctioning residential septic systems and inadequate wastewater treatment in the upper watershed. Feral hogs (Sus scrofa) and birds are also abundant in the estuary and could be potential contributors to elevated fecal coliform levels. To better understand the temporal and spatial variation of fecal coliforms in the GNDNERR and inform oyster reef management, eight sites within the GNDNERR watershed were sampled monthly for one year. Quantitative polymerase chain reactions (qPCR) were used to identify levels of potential sources from humans, feral hogs, and birds within the estuary as well as the concentrations of Enterococcus.