CHARLES UNIVERSITY Faculty of Pharmacy in Hradec Králové Department of Pharmaceutical Botany Candidate: Diana Karaščáková Supervisor: prof. RNDr. Lubomír Opletal, CSc. Title of diploma thesis: Biological activity of plants secondary metabolites XXX.; Basic search of selected taxons on anticholinesterase activity As part of the study of the biological activity of secondary metabolites, 7 taxa of higher plants were selected. The study deals with basic research of summary and alkaloid extracts prepared from morphological parts of plants Annona muricata (leaves), Leonotis leonurus (perch), Turnera diffusa (perch), Hamelia patens (perch), Uncaria guianensis (bark), Allamanda cathartica (perch) and Morinda citrifolia (leaves). To elucidate the presence of the major types of secondary metabolites, extracts were prepared and subjected to detection reactions by TLC using ten detection reagents. After detection by Dragendorff's reagent of ethyl acetate extracts, alkaloids were significantly present only in Annona muricata. Alkaloids were not detected in the bark of Uncaria guianensis. Using the Ellman method, the extracts were tested for potential inhibitory activity against human brain cholinesterases, using both recombinant enzymes. No significant active substances were present in any of the measured...

Submitted master thesis summarizes current knowledge about biologically active sub-stances contained in soybeans (Glycine max L. Merrill). Mainly deals with problematics of isoflavones, mechanism of origin and effects on human healht. Then the theoretical part summarizes mainly modern instrumental technics using for determination of isofla-vones. The experimantal part is concentrated on identification of soy isoflavones gathered from eight varieties (Brunensis, Bohemians, Naya, Moravians, Silesia, Toutatis, Korus, Kofu) of soybeans cultivated in Czech Republic. For detection of free, conjugated and total isoflavones was used high performance liquid chromatography with mass spectro-meter (LC-MS/MS)

Manumycin antibiotics represent an important class of secondary metabolites produced by Streptomyces bacteria. They belong to a big class of polyketide metabolites and posses significant antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antitumor, and many other biological activities. They are characterized by two short polyketide chains, which are attached to a central subunit. Polyketide chains are synthesized by enzymes of the iterative type II polyketide-synthase. Mechanism of regulation of the polyketide chains length has not been known yet. Understanding mechanism can lead to biosynthesis of novel manumycin antibiotics with predetermined chain lengths what may improve their biological activities in favour of a practical use of these compounds. We prepared a mutant strain of asukamycin producer Streptomyces nodosus ssp. asukaensis with deletion of genes coding for type I/II β-ketoacylsynthase and protein AsuC14, which is a potential factor affecting lower polyketide chain length, for the identification of the chain length factor in manumycin antibiotics producers. Next, the genes for type I/II β-ketoacylsynthase and potential chain length-affecting factor C14 from strains producing manumycins with variable length of the lower polyketide chains were expressed in this mutant strain. Our results demonstrate...

Bacteria of the genus Xenorhabdus live as the natural symbionts of the entomopathogenic nematodes of the family Steinernematidae. They produce a wide range of toxic secondary metabolites of different chemical structure and effect. The synthesis of particular products is specific for each strain of Xenorhabdus. The thesis is focused on evaluating the impact of bacterial metabolites on facultatively entomoparasitic nematodes Oscheius myriophila, the free-living nematode Caenorhabditis elegans and the phytophagous potato cyst nematode Globodera rostochiensis. Target species of nematodes were exposed to 37 strains of Xenorhabdus bacteria, isolated from various species of Steinernematidae. Testing the impact of bacterial metabolites on O. myriophila and C. elegans nematodes was performed both by direct cultivation of target species on solid medium with live bacterial cultures as well as in sterilized liquid bacteria cultures. The effect of toxic substances on G. rostochiensis was evaluated only in selected sterilized bacteria cultures.

This diploma thesis deals with the biodegradation of whey on selected microbial products (carbohydrates, lactic acid, acetic acid and ethanol) thermophilic bacteria of genus Thermus aquaticus and mesophilic bacteria of genus Lactobacillus casei and Bacillus coagulans. For cultivation was used as medium whey, from which the proteins were removed and which was enriched with nutrients. On the basis of culture in the fermentor were determined growth curve and the HPLC method were determined individual bioremediation products.

Unicellular algae (microalgae) are able to produce a number of substances such as starches, oils, proteins, carotenoids, polyphosphates, or crystalline purines directly from inorganic sources by photosynthesis. Different species of microalgae can be used for the economic production of various biomolecules. Due to their autotrophic nature, microalgae are also unique as they can synthesize complex isotopically labeled biomolecules from simple isotopically labeled inorganic substances. Analysis of the chemical composition of microalgae by means of chemical-analytical methods is relatively complex, time-consuming, and laborious. Confocal Raman microscopy represents one of the optical methods by which the chemical composition of microalgae can be determined in situ, i.e. directly within intact cells. This technique combining confocal optical microscopy with Raman spectroscopy enables fast and non- destructive analysis of the chemical composition of substances in the investigated objects, including the effect of isotopic labeling. The chemical composition of the investigated objects is reflected by their Raman spectra, in the case of Raman mapping of microscopic objects by their chemical maps. In this work, a specific case of isotopic labeling was studied, namely the effect of heavy water (D2O) on the deuteration...

The crucial part of the biosynthesis of lincosamide antibiotics lincomycin and celesticetin is the condensation of amino sugar and amino acid moieties. This reaction is catalysed by the oligomeric enzyme lincosamide synthetase (LS). One of the most important components of LS is adenylation domain recognizing and activating amino acid precursor. The substrate specificity of adenylation domain is determined by "nonribosomal code", 10 amino acids residues which side chains are in close contact with the activated substrate. The homologous adenylation domains LmbC from biosynthesis of lincomycin and CcbC from biosynthesis of celesticetin exhibit strong substrate specificity for their natural substrates (2S,4R)-4-propyl-L-proline (PPL) and L-proline, respectively. At first the effect of selected amino acid residues of LmbC nonribosomal code on the substrate specificity of the whole domain was tested. The amino acids residues, most important for preference of PPL substrate over L proline, were determined: G308, A207 and L246. Then the effect of double mutations in nonribosomal codes of both LmbC and CcbC on their substrate specificity was evaluated. The double mutants LmbC G308V + A207F and CcbC V306G + F205A were prepared and tested biochemically. The results brought new evidence of validity of homologous models...

Natural flavonoids and flavonolignans feature beneficial properties for living organisms such as antioxidant and hepatoprotective effects, anticancer, chemoprotective, dermatoprotective and hypocholesterolemic activities. Their metabolism in mammals is complex, the exact structure of their metabolites still remains partly unclear and the standards are usually not commercially available. Hence, this project focused on the preparation of potential and defined biotransformation Phase II sulfated metabolites of silymarin flavonolignans: silybin, 2,3-dehydrosilybin, isosilybin, silychristin, silydianin and flavonoids quercetin, taxifolin, rutin and isoquercitrin. Pure sulfated derivatives were prepared using aryl sulfotransferase from Desulfitobacterium hafniense and aryl sulfotransferase from rat liver. Using heterologously expressed PAPS (3'-phosphoadenosine-5'-phosophosulfate) - independent arylsulfotransferase from Desulfitobacterium hafniense and cheap p-nitrophenyl sulfate as sulfate donor, sulfated flavonolignans and flavonoids were obtained in high yields. Silymarin flavonolignans afforded exclusively monosulfates at the position C-20 (C-19 in the case of silychristin), except 2,3-dehydrosilybin that yielded also the 7,20-O-disulfated derivative. Isoquercitrin and rutin were selectively sulfated...

The aim of my study is to evaluate the impact of seed density on yields of hemp, which was cultivated in two areas, and subsequently to assess biological efficiency of infusion from hemp on fibroblastoidal line of mammalian cells L292. Afterthat in the case of above mentioned biological test we want to find out, if the density and different parts of plant will have an impact on efficiency of extract.

This study examines the role of deffensive host-plant traits in structuring the community of leaf-chewing insects living on willows. Host-plant phylogeny was reconstructed and leaf morphology and content of three different groups of secondary metabolites were measured. Relationships between defensive leaf traits were examined and their influence on insect community structure was analyzed.