Aim of this thesis is modular design of control system for Golem device, which is used for drug research. Several modules with specified controlled area were designed. They communicate using CAN bus and are controlled by Raspberry Pi computer. The thesis includes PCB design and control firmware for modules, backend application for Raspberry Pi, which provides application interface, and simple protocol used for communication between modules. Designed system was tested in simulated environment.

Diploma thesis is focused on the choose of methods and optimalisation analysis procedure of selected pharmaceuticals (salicylic acid, ibuprofene, naproxene, ketoprofene and diclofenac) in surface and waste water by using gas chromatography with mass spectrometer (GC-MS). Solid-phase extraction (SPE) with Oasis HLB cartridges was used as an extraction method in this analysis. Extraction is followed by derivatization and their optimalization of selected pharmaceuticals. Derivatization and its optimalization were performed by two silylation reagens N-methyl-N-(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (MSTFA) and N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (BSTFA). Different volumes of derivatization reagents, different temperatures and different times were used during the procedure. The best combination is then used for analysis of real samples. Real samples of waste water were collected in sewage treatment plants in Brno – Modřice and real samples of surface water were collected from several rivers and one pond in region Moravia. This thesis also presents and tests SPE methods for extraction and concentration selected sulfonamide residues (sulfamethazine, sulfamethoxazole, sulfapyridine and sulfathiazole) from the aquatic environment.

From viewpoint of environmental analysis in the whole world became popular in the latest years the question of drugs’ breakthrough to the component of environment. These contami-nants belong to the biological active compounds, with different physical-chemical and biolog-ical properties and evince great tendency to bioaccumulation. They penetrate to the environ-ment because of their increasing of usage and wrong techniques of liquidation. The most often use drugs are preparations against pain – analgetics, and from this category there are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. The frequent usage of this compounds relate to their easy accessibility. From this large group of compounds was chosen for monitoring: diclofenac, ibuprofen, ketoprofen, salicylic acid, naproxen and acetaminophen; because they include in favorite preparations. The monitoring matrix was the wastewater from two waste water treat-ment plants (WWTP). The sampling was performed in inflow and outflow because the com-paring of concentration of selected contaminants and discovering of efficiency of removing the polutants reliance on treatment technology. For extraction of selected contaminants was used solid phase extraction (SPE) and for determination was used capillary zone electrophore-sis (CZE) with diode array detection (DAD). There was identified and quantified all of se-lected analgetics in inflow and so in outflow of WWTP. That means, this polutants infuse into surface water and then into other components of environment.

This diploma thesis is based on the current issue of the presence of pharmaceuticals in various components of the environment. Concerning the contamination by residues of pharmaceuticals the most affected environment is the aquatic environment where these substances leaks especially from wastewater treatment plants, which eliminate them during the cleaning process only partially. This work is focused on the selected group of pharmaceuticals, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (salicylic acid, ibuprofen, caffeine, naproxen, ketoprofen, diclofenac) in waste water. For analysis purposes two types of sampling were used and compared: the conventional spot sampling of wastewater and the sampling using passive samplers POCIS. The sampling took place at the inflow and outflow of the wastewater treatment plant in Brno Modřice. The solid phase extraction (SPE) using Oasis HLB columns was used as the extraction method. Extracted sample was derivatized then. Derivatization agents were: MSTFA (N-methyl-N-(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamid) and BSTFA (N, O-bis(trimethylsilyl) trifluoroacetamid). The final analysis was performed using gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection Time-of-Flight (GC/TOF-MS).

The theoretical part shortly describes chirality with focus on chiral pharmaceuticals. The processes of their absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination in human body are discussed. These points are very important to understand possible fate of chiral drugs in the environment as there is only little data concerning their environmental behaviour. The occurrence and enantioselective toxicity of chiral drugs is also discussed here. One of the chapters describes non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, as they are analyzed in the wastewater in the experimental part, and their occurrence in the environment. The experimental part describes optimization of the enantioselective HPLC method using Chiralpak AD as column for ibuprofen and ketoprofen. Reproducible separation of enantiomers wasn’t achieved for naproxen. Optimized methods were then applied for analysis of samples from municipal wastewater treatment plant in Brno-Modřice.

Tumor diseases are severe problem worldwide with increasing number of patients suffering from various types of malignancies. Many of approved therapeutics cause serious side toxicities. Therefore, there are intensive efforts to improve cancer treatment protocols. The aim of this study was to deplete regulatory T (Treg) cells without affecting other immunocompetent cells playing a positive role in tumor eradication. Treg cells were reported to hamper anti-tumor immunity and promote tumor growth and survival. Thus, their selective elimination could lead to induction of anti-tumor responses and tumor rejection if combined with chemotherapy with selected N-(2- hydroxypropyl)methacrylamide (HPMA) copolymer-bound drug conjugates. Original approach was to deplete of Treg cells without the use of anti-CD25 mAb that has been widely exploited for Treg cell elimination; however, its long-term persistence in circulation together with inhibitory effect on activated effector cells (CD25+ ) are its main disadvantages. Thus, Treg cells were sensitized to cell cycle-specific cytostatic drugs via application of IL-2/anti-IL-2 JES6.1 mAb immunocomplexes that induce vigorous selective proliferation of this cell population. Subsequent application of cell cycle-specific cytostatics showed steep decrease of Treg cell...

The thesis is focused on the distribution of medicinal products containing the active ingredient pseudoephedrine. These medicines are misused because of its active substance to produce an addictive methamphetamine (meth). The aim is to monitor the development restrictions associated with those drugs in the past, concern and characterize the current status of this issue. In the thesis, the theoretical knowledge of economics and drug problems. The practical part deals with the historical development of restrictions and evaluation of the status quo.

Cardiovascular pharmaceuticals are among the most prescribed drugs. As a result of the high consumption, these pharmaceuticals have been frequently detected in waste and surface waters. Verapamil, diltiazem and atenolol are very important representatives of cardiovascular pharmaceuticals; therefore, the present research focused on their acute and sub-chronic effects, bioconcentration, half-life time and metabolism in fish. Moreover, unified protocol for the quantitative assessment of histopathological alterations on the heart ventricle and coronary blood vessels employing heart index calculation was developed with the aim to better assess histopathological changes in fish heart which is one of the targets of cardiovascular pharmaceuticals and other chemicals. The effects caused by high concentrations of the studied substances, verapamil, diltiazem and atenolol, in fish can be considered similar to the therapeutic effects and side effects that are found in humans. The acute exposure to verapamil at the human therapeutic plasma level reduced the heart rate in common carp embryos and larvae. In addition, the acute and chronic exposure to this substance caused peripheral edema and gastrointestinal haemorrhage in carp. Similarly, the histological changes in heart and the blood vessels of the liver in diltiazem exposed rainbow trout suggested vasodilatation similar to the pharmacological effect of diltiazem in the human body. In rainbow trout sub-chronically exposed to atenolol at a human therapeutic blood plasma concentration, histopathological changes in the cardiovascular system were found. The bioconcentration of verapamil, diltiazem and atenolol in fish can be classified as low. Bioconcentration factor (BCF) of verapamil in whole body homogenates of common carp ranged between 6.6 and 16.6. The BCF of diltiazem was also relatively low (0.5-194) in analysed tissues of trout, following the order kidney liver muscle blood plasma. BCF of atenolol in rainbow trout tissues was the lowest among the tested substances (BCF = 0.002-0.27), following the order of liver > kidney > muscle. In the blood plasma, the concentration of atenolol was below the limit of quantification. Verapamil showed a longer half-life time (10.6 days) in fish compared to the human body, indicating the slow rate of biotransformation and/or elimination of verapamil in fish. Estimated half-life times of diltiazem in liver (1.5 h) and kidney (6.2 h) were in the same order of magnitudes as those determined for the human blood plasma. The half-life time of atenolol in trout was not studied, because of its very low bioconcentration. In diltiazem exposed rainbow trout, 8 groups of metabolites of diltiazem with 17 different isoforms were identified using liquid chromatography/high resolution mass spectrometry method. Diltiazem was found to undergo a biotransformation involving desmethylation, desacethylation and hydroxylation in fish. These results showed that diltiazem was metabolised in fish in a similar way like in the human body by desmethylation and desacethylation. On the other hand, hydroxylation, which was involved to a minor extent, seemed to be species specific. Verapamil had no effect on early life stages of common carp at the environmentally relevant concentration after one month lasting exposure. On the other hand, atenolol and diltiazem in environmentally realistic concentrations caused after 42-day exposure some physiological changes in rainbow trout. Namely, atenolol affected haematological and biochemical parameters of the blood in exposed rainbow trout and diltiazem caused changes in the activity of antioxidant enzymes in trout liver and gills. These data indicated that atenolol and diltiazem, when present in the aquatic environment, could be a source of sub-lethal detrimental effects in fish.

The main complication of aortocoronary reconstruction with vein grafts is restenosis in the course of time. The aim was to assess the effect of a periadventitial polyester system releasing sirolimus on intimal hyperplasia of autologous grafts. The controlled-release system comprises a polyester mesh coated with a sirolimus-eluting copolymer of L lactic acid and ε-caprolactone system designed to be wrapped around an autologous venous graft during its implantation. In vitro sirolimus release and its effects on smooth muscle and endothelial cells were assessed. In vitro, the copolymer-coated polyester mesh released sirolimus over a period of 6 weeks. Mesh-eluted sirolimus inhibited the growth of smooth muscle and endothelial cells in seven-day in vitro experiments. After seven days of sirolimus release from the mesh, smooth muscle and endothelial cell counts decreased by 29% and 75%, respectively, with the cells maintaining high viability. We implanted v. jugularis ext. into a. carotis communis in rabbits. The vein graft was either intact, or was wrapped with a pure polyester mesh, or with a sirolimus-releasing mesh. Three and six weeks after surgery, the veins were subjected to standard histological staining and the thicknesses of the tunica intima, the media and the intima-media complex were...

Charles University in Prague Faculty of Pharmacy in Hradec Králové Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology Student: Bc. Michaela Jahodová Supervisor: PharmDr. Lukáš Červený, Ph.D. Title of diploma thesis: In vitro and ex vivo study of drug-drug interactions of antiretrovirals on intestinal ATP-binding drug transporters The absorption of orally administered drugs takes place especially in the intestine, where it can affect by the activity of drug's ABC transporters located on the apical membrane of the intestinal epithelium. Study of drug interactions in intestinal ABC transporters is essential to ensure effective and safe pharmacotherapy. Testing of bi- directional transport on Caco-2 cells is generally the preferred method for in vitro evaluation of substrates and inhibitors of ABC transporters. Drawbacks of the Caco-2 model increase the need and necessity to introduce new models. A great potential is the involvement of ex vivo methodologies in the human or rat intestine. The aim of the work was to introduce an in vitro methodology using the Caco-2 cell monolayer and the ex vivo methodology of precision-cut rat intestinal slices. By the bi-directional transport method, we analyzed drug interactions of the model substrate P-gp and BCRP Rhodamine 123 (RHD123) and clinically-used tenofovir...