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(in English): The thesis focuses on the Loreto litany in Loreto Prague in the 17th and 18th centuries. In the first part, it explores the Loreto litany in its involvement in the liturgy and puts it in context with the reflection of Marian spirituality. The second part examines Loreto litany from the Prague Loreto music collection from the property of Capuchin Order and from the property of the Lobkowicz family. Because some litany have a reduced setting, it extends the view of rural style analysis by examining printed collections of 18th century rural music.

The theme of this thesis is the competitive strategy of The Prague Loreto. Introductory part gives an overview of the development of Loreto and shows its cultural and spiritual values. This section also raises the fundamental question of this thesis -- the falling attendance of The Prague Loreto. Then the product structure, which consists of the cultural and spiritual products, is analyzed for understanding this problem. In the next chapter there are all visitors segmented into the specifics groups, it is analyzed its attendance and the SWOT analysis is created. Consequently the new competitive strategy is proposed. Last part of the thesis consists of the financial analysis, the progress chart and the costing of the new strategy.

Untersuchung von Zytokinen der TNF-SF und TNFR-SF bei unipolar Depressiven im Vergleich zu Gesunden und Aktivitätsanalyse von ROIs des Default Mode Networks bei unipolar Depressiven im Vergleich zu Gesunden und die Untersuchung des Zusammenhangs der 2 untersuchten Parameter.:Abkürzungsverzeichnis 4 1. Einleitung 7 Unipolare Depression im Allgemeinen 7 Depression und Inflammation 8 Strukturelle und neurophysiologische Veränderungen bei der unipolaren Depression 16 Depression, Inflammation und Aktivität der ´Regions of interest´ 21 2. Fragestellung 23 3. Materialien und Methoden 24 Studiendesign 24 Auswahl der Studienteilnehmer 24 Diagnostik der Depression 25 Probengewinnung und biochemische Analyse 25 EEG-Aufzeichnungen 26 EEG-Prozessierung und LORETA-Analysen 27 Verlaufsbeobachtung der Depressiven 29 Statistische Analysen der Zytokinkonzentrationen 29 Statistische Analysen der Stromdichten der ROIs 30 4. Ergebnisse 31 Soziodemographie 31 Vergleiche der TNF-/ TNFR-SF Konzentrationen zwischen den untersuchten Gruppen 32 Assoziationen zwischen den Konzentrationen der TNF-/ TNFR-SF- Mitgliedern und den klinischen Variablen 33 Assoziationen zwischen den Konzentrationen der Mitglieder der TNF/ TNFR- SF und der Soziodemographie 35 Gruppenvergleich der Hirnaktivitäten in den ROIs zwischen Depressiven und gesunden Kontrollen 37 Korrelationen zwischen den Konzentrationen der Mitglieder der TNF-SF und den Aktivitäten der ROIs des DMN 38 Depressive Probanden 38 Gesunde Kontrollen 42 5. Diskussion 46 6. Zusammenfassung der Arbeit 56 7. Literaturverzeichnis 59 8. Anhang 77 Tabellenverzeichnis 78 Abbildungsverzeichnis 79 Lebenslauf 80 Selbstständigkeitserklärung 81 Danksagung 82

Avec l’avancée en âge, l’efficience de l’ensemble des fonctions cognitives, en particulier la mémoire épisodique, tend à diminuer. L’étude des effets Dm et old/new et des résultats de la méthode sLORETA a permis de caractériser sur un plan neurofonctionnel deux types de vieillissement non pathologique chez les seniors. D’une part, le vieillissement cognitif stable se traduit par des processus d’encodage identiques à ceux observés chez des sujets jeunes alors que les processus de récupération nécessitent un recrutement bilatéral des lobes temporaux médians, cette activation étant unilatérale chez les sujets jeunes. Ces résultats vont dans le sens du modèle HAROLD qui suggère une réduction de l’asymétrie hémisphérique avec l’âge. D’autre part, le vieillissement cognitif altéré proviendrait d’une altération des réseaux cérébraux dès la phase d’encodage. La baisse d'activité au niveau du cortex préfrontal gauche, siège des fonctions exécutives, suggèrerait une difficulté de mise en œuvre de stratégies d'encodage efficaces et aurait un impact direct sur l'activité observée au niveau du lobe temporal médian de façon bilatérale ce qui pourrait donc expliquer une difficulté de stockage de l'information. / With advancing age, the efficiency of all cognitive functions, especially episodic memory, tends to decrease. The study of Dm and old/new effects and of the results of the sLORETA method allowed to characterize, on a neurofunctionnal level, two types of non-pathological aging among seniors. On the one hand, stable cognitive aging results in encoding processes similar to those observed in young subjects while the retrieval processes require a bilateral recruitment of the medial temporal lobes, this activation being unilateral in young subjects. These results are in line with the HAROLD model, suggesting a reduction of hemispheric asymmetry with age. On the other hand, the altered cognitive aging might come from an alteration of brain networks at the early stage of the encoding phase. The decline of activity in the left prefrontal cortex, seat of executive functions, would suggest a difficult implementation of effective encoding strategies and have a direct impact on the activity observed in the medial temporal lobe bilaterally which could therefore explain information storage difficulties.

The primary aim of this study was to establish whether redintegrative effects can be revealed under conditions with complex sensory stimulation.  Specifically, would the cortical activity involved in the single-trial, passive encoding of a movie, be reactivated when subsequently exposed to a unisensory component of that movie, e.g. an audio- or visual-only segment?  High-density electrical neuroimaging analysis in the frequency domain was used to assist this aim.  The statistical comparisons revealed a greater number of oscillating neuronal regions across all frequency bands in participants who received audiovisual stimulation prior to unisensory exposure (compared to participants who experienced the same unisensory stimulus without prior audiovisual stimulation).   This difference between groups was significant in the alpha2 (right frontal lobe) and gamma (right frontal, sub-lobar and temporal lobes) frequencies during audio-only stimulation.    This enhanced cortical activity during unisensory stimulation suggests that participants were retrieving associated memory traces from their prior multisensory experience, although specific redintegrative effects could not be confirmed.

The effects of cranial electrotherapy stimulation (CES) on human EEG and brain current density were evaluated by quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG) and low resolution brain electromagnetic tomography (LORETA). A total of 72 research subjects were provided with a single session of CES, 38 were provided with 0.5 Hz CES while 34 were provided with 100 Hz CES. The qEEG paired t-tests revealed that in both frequencies of CES there was a significant (.05) increase in alpha relative power with concomitant decreases in delta and beta relative power. The 0.5 Hz CES decreased a wider frequency range of delta activity, while the 100 Hz CES decreased a wider frequency range of beta activity; suggesting some difference may exist in the EEG response to different frequencies of CES. The changes found in qEEG relative power were consistent with the affective and cognitive effects of CES reported in the literature, such as increased relaxation and decreased anxiety. Statistically significant changes for qEEG values other than relative power, such as coherence, amplitude asymmetry, phase lag and power ratios were also found. The LORETA paired t-tests found statistically significant (.05) increases in cortical and subcortical theta and alpha frequency current density with concomitant decreases in delta and beta current density. The effects of CES on current density varied by frequency, but did not show a differential in response based on proximity to the contacts, or structures within the brain. Statistically significant changes in current density were found in all 2394 gray matter voxels represented by LORETA, indicating a whole brain response to the CES stimulus. The qEEG and LORETA findings revealed that a single 20-minute session of CES does have a significant effect on the cortical and subcortical activity of the human brain resulting in activity consistent with decreased anxiety and increased relaxation.

The main objective of this diploma thesis is to describe simultaneous electroencephalography-correlated functional magnetic resonance imaging analysis using EEG data processing. It includes basic characteristics of EEG and fMRI recording and analysis and their combination as simultaneous EEG/fMRI analysis and deals with obstructions during its processing. The thesis includes a design of an experiment used for recording and analysis of simultaneous EEG/fMRI data using EEG source reconstruction for regressor construction. Thesis incorporates a software solution used for extraction of signal describing a source activity interpolated by EEG source reconstruction. The signal is then processed and used to construct a basic regressor. The thesis also deals with the software solution being used for a study focused on intracranial epileptic discharges localization using a simultaneous EEG/fMRI analysis in which it reveals source activity during ongoing epileptic spike and summarizes the results.

Thèse numérisée par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal.

Οι υπνικές άτρακτοι είναι απότομες αλλαγές της ρυθμικής δραστηριότητας που χαρακτηρίζονται από σταδιακή αύξηση και κατόπιν μείωση του πλάτους. Εμφανίζονται κυρίως στα στάδια 2,3 και 4 του υπνικού εγκεφαλογράμματος. Τοπογραφικές αναλύσεις έχουν δείξει την ύπαρξη δύο ξεχωριστών τύπων υπνικών ατράκτων, «αργές» και «ταχείς», περίπου στα 12 και 14 Hz, αντίστοιχα. Υπάρχουν ενδείξεις ότι υπάρχουν τουλάχιστον δύο, λειτουργικά, ξεχωριστές γεννήτριες υπνικών ατράκτων, που αντιστοιχούν στις κλάσεις συχνοτήτων. Ο λόγος της εργασίας αυτής ήταν η επεξεργασία υπνικών ατράκτων με την τεχνική Ανάλυσης Ανεξάρτητων Συνιστωσών (ICA) με σκοπό την έρευνα της πιθανότητας εξαγωγής, στα από την ICA ανακατασκευαζόμενα ηλεκτροεγκεφαλογραφήματα (ΗΕΓ), «συνιστωσών» ατράκτων που αντιστοιχούν σε ξεχωριστές δομές ΗΕΓ, και η μελέτη των πηγών που δημιουργούν αυτές τις συνιστώσες. Χρησιμοποιήθηκαν 8κάναλες καταγραφές υπνικών ατράκτων ΗΕΓ από έναν εξεταζόμενο, που καταγράφηκαν στα πλαίσια του Biopattern Network of Excellence, οι οποίες αρχικά επεξεργάστηκαν με ένα φίλτρο FIR με συχνότητες αποκοπής (-3dB) στα 6 και 21 Hz. Κατόπιν εφαρμόστηκε η ανάλυση ICA και εξάχθηκαν οι ανεξάρτητες συνιστώσες (ICs). Έγινε επιλογή των συνιστωσών οι οποίες θα ανακατασκεύαζαν τα ΗΕΓ και τέλος ανακατασκευάσθηκαν αυτά. Στα ανακατασκευασμένα ΗΕΓ έφαρμόστηκε η ανάλυση LORETA. Πρωτού γίνει όμως αυτό έγινε μία εξομείωση του «ευθύ» και «ανάστροφου» προβλήματος. Αυτό έγινε για να μελετήσουμε κατά πόσον θα μπορούσαμε να εξάγουμε αξιόπιστα αποτελέσματα από την τεχνική LORETA με τόσο μικρό αριθμό καναλιών καταγραφής. Η μελέτη αυτή έδειξε ότι τα αποτελέσματά μας θα μπορούσαν να μας δώσουν αξιόπιστες πληροφορίες όσον αφορά την ευρεία περιοχή παραγωγής των ατράκτων και όχι την ακριβή τους θέση. Τα τελικά αποτελέσματα έδειξαν ότι υπάρχει διαφοροποίηση, όσον αφορά την περιοχή παραγωγής τους, και σταθερότητα των πηγών που σχετίζονται με συνιστώσες ατράκτων που ανακατασκευάζονται από ξεχωριστές ομάδες ανεξαρτήτων συνιστωσών (ICs). / Sleep spindles are bursts of rhythmic activity characterized by progressively increasing, then gradually decreasing amplitude, present predominantly in stages 2, 3 and 4 of the sleep electroencephalogram (EEG). Topographic analyses of sleep spindle incidence suggested the existence of two distinct sleep spindle types, “slow” and “fast” spindles at approximately 12 and 14 Hz respectively. There are indications that there exist at least two functionally separated spindle generators, corresponding to each frequency spectrum class. The purpose of the present study was to process sleep spindles with Independent Component Analysis (ICA) in order to investigate the possibility of extracting, in the ICA-reconstructed EEG, spindle “components” corresponding to separate EEG activity patterns, and to investigate the sources underlying these spindle components. We used 8-channel EEG recordings of sleep spindles of a single subject, recorded in the framework of the Biopattern Network of Excellence, which were processed by a FIR filter with cut-off frequencies (-3 dB) at 6 and 21 Hz. Afterwards, ICA was applied and ICs were extracted. There were a choice of the ICs which would reconstruct the EEG and the EEG were finally reconstructed. Source analysis using Low-Resolution Brain Electromagnetic Tomography (LORETA) was applied on the reconstructed EEGs. Before that we made a simulation of the “direct” and “inverse” problem. This was made in order to investigate if we would extract reliable results from the LORETA technique with only 8-channel recordings. The investigation stated that the results could give reliable information only for the brain sites at which the spindle generators were located and not for their exact position. Results indicate separability and stability of sources related to sleep spindle components reconstructed from separate groups of Independent Components (ICs).