We introduce the historical context and motivation for the search for magnetic monopoles or monopole-like objects. Beginning the theoretical part we investigate the properties of groups as they relate to symmetries in physical theories. Using this as a basis we investigate the requirements for global and local gauge invariance for a scalar field, the latter giving the non-trivial connection to a gauge field. From this we present the Georgi-Glashow model and develop its particle spectrum using the connected Higgs field and its associated Higgs mechanism. We then present the electromagnetic duality by extending the Maxwell's equations toinclude magnetic sources. Using the assumption of magnetic sources we present the Dirac quantization condition, motivating the quantization of electric charge. Returning to our model we present the 't Hooft-Polyakov ansatz and investigate its defining properties as a finite energy soliton in our Higgs field. We show the magnetic properties and motivate its validity as a monopole like object. Continuing we define BPS-states on the lower bound for the mass of a monopole like object with magnetic and electric charge. Giving a BPS monopole as a solution in the vein of 't Hooft and Polyakov. Returning to the electromagnetic duality we propose the Montonen-Olive conjecture by exchanging massive vector bosons in our model with the BPS monopoles we developed. We shortly comment on evident problems and present supersymmetry as a possible solution. Finally we present the Witten Effect by allowing a CP violating term in our Lagrangian. From this we extend the Montonen-Olive conjecture to include invariance under the SL(2,Z) group.

L’huile d’olive est un produit ancestral largement reconnu pour ses effets bénéfiques sur la santé humaine. Sa technique de fabrication a beaucoup évolué au cours des siècles, notamment ces dernières années avec l’automatisation croissante des chaînes de production. La première partie de ce manuscrit fait le bilan de ces différentes évolutions, puis la seconde partie détaille l’impact de chacune des étapes de fabrication sur la composition nutritionnelle de l’huile. Nous avons ainsi étudié l’influence du broyage, des séparations liquide-liquide et solide-liquide. L’optimisation de ces étapes permet l’obtention d’une huile enrichit de façon endogène puisque tous les nutriments étaient présents dans l’olive. En complément nous avons également développé des méthodes d’enrichissement exogène de l’huile. Dans ce cas des molécules bioactives issues de plantes ou de légumes sont ajoutées à l’huile d’olive. Afin de limiter les étapes d’extraction et de bannir l’utilisation de solvants organiques, l’huile est utilisée en tant que solvant d’extraction et l’enrichissement se fait de façon directe dans l’huile. Pour accélérer des cinétiques d’extraction qui pourraient être très longues, nous avons utilisé des ultrasons. Les résultats obtenus sont très encourageants et ils permettent d’imaginer un élargissement de la gamme de produits oléicoles disponibles / Olive oil is an ancestral product widely known for its benefic effects on human health. Its processing has changed a lot through centuries, especially these past few years with the increasing automation of the production lines. The first part of this manuscript describes these evolutions while the second part gives details on the influence of each processing step on the nutritional composition of the olive oil. We have studied the influence of the crushing systems, liquid-liquid and solid-liquid separations. The optimization of each of these steps allows the endogenous enrichment of the oil with nutrients extracted from the olive fruit. Then, we have also developed exogenous olive oil enrichment methods by bioactive compounds issued from plants and vegetables. In order to restrain the number of extraction steps and avoid the use of petroleum solvents, the olive oil is used as the extraction solvent so the enrichment is directly performed in the oil. To accelerate extraction kinetics that could be very long we developed ultrasound accelerated extraction techniques. The results obtained in this work are very promising and extensions of olive oil available product ranges are possible

Depuis de nombreuses années, une approche a été mise en œuvre reposant sur l'identification de l'origine géographique d'un produit agro-alimentaire via la connaissance de ses isotopes du Sr, notamment via l'analyse du rapport 87Sr/86Sr. L'objectif de cette thèse est d'appliquer cette stratégie de reconnaissance aux huiles d'olive, en s'appuyant sur la production des huiles AOP de Nîmes dans le Sud de la France (Gard). La viscosité, la charge organique élevée, la teneur faible en Sr de cette matrice, rendent néanmoins inadaptés les protocoles de purification du Sr existants. La première approche de l'étude correspond donc à la définition et à la validation d'une méthode de traitement des huiles d'olive en vue de la purification du Sr afin de procéder à l'analyse de sa composition isotopique (CI). La seconde partie de l'étude est consacrée à la définition des processus d'assimilation et de transfert du Sr dans l'olivier. Cette approche, menée grâce à une étude détaillée d'un des moulins AOP de Nîmes, a permis de démontrer que le transfert du Sr des sols vers l'olivier et au sein des oliviers se fait sans fractionnement isotopique.La dernière partie de l'étude s'appuie sur la mesure et la caractérisation des rapports isotopiques 87Sr/86Sr des dix huiles d'olive AOP de Nîmes, et une comparaison de cette signature avec celle des formations géologiques sur lesquelles reposent les parcelles de culture. L'identité de la CI huile-territoire de culture a permis de conclure, dans le contexte de production de l'huile d'olive AOP de Nîmes, que les isotopes du Sr constituent un très bon outil de traçage de l'origine géographique des produits oléicoles. / For many years, an approach based on the identification of the geographical origin for food product has been implemented through the knowledge of its Sr isotopes, particularly through the analysis of 87Sr / 86Sr ratio. The objective of this thesis is to develop a similar strategy for the olive oils, from the example of PDO Nimes (Gard), in southern France. A specific methodology is necessary since the existing purification protocols of Sr revealed themselves inadequate because of viscosity, high organic load, low Sr content of this matrix In order to proceed to the analysis of the isotopic composition (IC), the first part of the study highlights the definition and validation of a specific method for the treatment of olive oils and strontium purification. The second part of the study is dedicated to expose the processes of assimilation and transfer of strontium into the olive tree. This approach, conducted through a detailed study of one of Nîmes PDO mills, demonstrated that the transfer of strontium from soils to olive tree, and within the olive tree, occurs without isotope fractionation.The last part of the manuscript studies the isotopic ratios 87Sr / 86Sr of the ten PDO olive oils of Nimes and consists in a comparison of this signature with the geological formations underlying the cultivation soils. This approach allows discussing quality of Sr isotopic tool in the geographical recognition of the olive products. The observed similarity between th IC from oils and soil allow us to conclude that, in this context of production, the Sr isotopes are a efficient tool to trace and certify the geographical origin of the oil.

Este trabalho descreve a reação de reticulação alternativa do pericárdio bovino com os acetais do glutaraldeído, preparados a partir da solução de glutaraldeído na presença do etanol em meio ácido. Os acetais difundem para dentro da matriz colagênica, e a reticulação ocorre após a desproteção dos grupos aldeídicos com uma amina terciária. O material obtido sob estas condições mostrou as propriedades biológicas e mecânicas similares ou superiores àqueles descritos para o pericárdio bovino reticulado pelo procedimento convencional com glutaraldeído, e provavelmente, com resultados de uma distribuição e natureza química mais homogênea das reticulações formadas, devido à ausência das reticulações polímeros de glutaraldeído. As biopróteses manufaturadas com pericárdio reticulado com acetais do glutaraldeído, também mostraram durabilidade superior e foi menos suscetível ao processo de calcificação, como determinado em implantes subcutâneos em ratos. Resultados preliminares de teste à fadiga e performance hidrodinâmica foram caracterizados por um comportamento similar àqueles materiais tratados convencionalmente sugerindo que, o pericárdio reticulado com acetais do glutaraldeído pode ser um procedimento alternativo e mais eficiente na manufatura das biopróteses, particularmente com respeito à calcificação, um dos maiores problemas encontrados pós-implante. / This work describes the cross-linking of bovine pericardium with glutaraldehyde acetals, which are its protected forms. The acetals, prepared from a glutaraldehyde solution in the presence of ethanol in acidic media was al/owed to diffuse within the collagen matrix, and cross-linking achieved by deprotection with a tertiary amine. The material obtained under this conditions showed biological and mechanical properties similar or superior to those described for bovine pericardium crosslinked by conventional procedure with glutaraldehyde, and probably, as a results of a more homogeneous distribution and chemical nature of the formed crosslinks, that is the absence of polymeric cross-links. Bioprostheses manufactured with glutaraldehyde acetals cross-linked bovine pericardium, also showed higher durability and was less susceptible to calcification process, as determined in subcutaneous implant in rats. Preliminary results on fatigue test and hydrodynamic performance were characterized by a behavior similar to those observed for conventional/y treated materials suggesting that, glutaraldehyde acetals crosslinked bovine pericardium may be an alternate and more efficient procedure in the manufacture of bioprostheses, particularly in respect to calcification, one of the major problems found post-implantation.

Déterminer la composition en triacylglycérols des huiles végétales est un défi important à relever aussi bien en biologie végétale que dans le domaine médical ou celui de l’industrie agro-alimentaire. La chromatographie en phase liquide à polarité inversée de phases en milieu non aqueux (NARP-LC) est la méthode la plus utilisée, avec cependant une utilisation récurrente de solvants chlorés. Le premier objectif de ce travail a été de proposer des conditions analytiques alternatives n’utilisant pas de solvants chlorés. Pour ce faire, nous avons établi le diagramme de force éluante sur phases stationnaires en C18 des phases mobiles binaires constituées d’acétonitrile comme solvant faible et de divers solvants forts (acétone, iso-propanol, acétate d’éthyle, butanol) à quatre températures différentes (25, 43, 63 et 85°C). La comparaison dans des conditions iso-éluantes de l’analyse de 9 huiles de graines contenant une large gamme de TAG nous a permis de montrer que le mélange MeCN/BuOH 74/26 à 25°C est le meilleur choix, en terme de sélectivité pour l’analyse des TAG. Ce qui répond à notre premier objectif. Dans un second temps, nous avons comparé le potentiel séparatif des phases stationnaires de nouvelle génération à petit diamètre de particules, partiellement ou totalement poreuses. L’optimisation des conditions chromatographiques nous a permis de décrire deux systèmes chromatographiques, très performants, en termes d’efficacité et de rapidité. Le premier permet la séparation de TAG contenant des acides gras polyinsaturés isomères de position en C18 : 3 et C18 : 2. L’identification de ces isomères particuliers a été réalisée grâce à la synthèse d’informations complémentaires, obtenues en GC/MS, LC/MS ainsi que l’utilisation de lois de rétention chromatographiques. En outre, ce travail nous a permis de proposer un tableau récapitulatif regroupant un très grand nombre de TAG, qui n’ont jamais été décrits à notre connaissance. Le second permet une analyse rapide de l’huile d’olive, en moins de 5 min, tout en respectant les consignes qualitatives imposées par l’organisme «Conseil Oléique International (COI)». Comparée aux méthodes officielles couramment utilisées, elle mérite d’être proposée comme méthode de référence pour le contrôle de qualité de l’appellation de ces huiles. / The determination of triacylglycerols in vegetable oils is an important challenge in plant biology, in the medical field, and in food industry. Nowadays, non-Aqueous Reversed Phase Liquid Chromatography (NARP-LC) using chlorinated solvents is commonly used for this purpose. The first objective of this work was to develop alternative analytical conditions that can avoid using chlorinated solvents. In a first step, by using C18 stationary phases, we have established the eluotropic solvent strength scale as a function of temperature of several binary mobile phases consisting of acetonitrile as weak solvent and various strong solvents including acetone, isopropanol, ethyl acetate, and butanol. The comparison of the results obtained under iso-eluotropic conditions for nine seed oils containing a wide range of TAG enabled us to show that the MeCN/BuOH (74/26, v/V) mixture operating at 25 °C are the best mobile phase conditions for TAG analysis, in terms of selectivity, thus avoiding the use of chlorinated solvents. In a second step, we compared the separation of TAGs on new generation of fully or partially porous stationary phase particles of small diameter. After optimizing the separating conditions, the obtained data allowed us to propose two highly efficient chromatographic systems. The first system enables the efficient separation of C18:3 and C18:2 positional isomers of C18 polyunsaturated fatty acids containing TAG. For the identification of these TAG isomers, it was necessary to combine the data obtained by GC-MS and LC -MS as well as the data obtained by the application of some chromatographic retention laws. Taken together, these results allowed us to provide a list containing a large number of TAG unknown to date. The second system allows rapid analysis of olive oil in less than 5 min. This system obeying the guidelines of the International Olive Council can be proposed as a candidate reference method for rapid quality control of olive oils.

>Magister Scientiae - MSc / The high rate of rediscovery of known compounds has led to a decline in the discovery of novel natural products. The high biodiversity of organisms growing in extreme conditions such as oceans has led to the increased interest by researchers for their use as a source of novel natural products. Marine bacteria are known for their extensive biosynthetic capacity to produce diverse natural products, which are suitable for various biotechnology applications such as in agriculture, for treatment of fungal plant pathogens, and as antibiotics, for treatment of bacterial infections. This study aimed at discovering novel secondary metabolites from marine bacteria previously associated with novel marine invertebrate species endemic to the South African coast. The methodologies used in this study included a bioassay guided fractionation coupled to genome sequencing and mining. For the bioassay guided fractionation approach, the study first focused on screening marine bacteria for antimicrobial activity when cultured on 4 different media, against fungal strains previously shown to be virulent olive trunk pathogens. In parallel, the bacterial isolates with the most inhibitory activity against the fungal pathogens were also screened for antimicrobial activity against 4 indicator strains including Gram-negative Escherichia coli 1699 (E. coli), Pseudomonas putida, and Gram-positive Staphylococcus epidermidis ATCC14990, and Bacillus cereus ATCC10702. One of the marine bacterial isolates, PE6-126, showed diverse antimicrobial activity including antibacterial and antifungal activity against the tested strains. The genome sequencing data revealed that this isolate was B. cereus based on the average nucleotide identity (ANI) (>99%) to reference strains. antiSMASH analysis of the genome revealed nine predicted secondary metabolite clusters including bacteriocins (2), non-ribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) (2), siderophore (1), sactipeptide (1), betalactone (1), linear azol(in)e-containing peptides (LAP) - bacteriocin (1) and a terpene (1). Some of these pathways had low to no sequence similarity to known pathways, indicating the potential of these pathways to produce novel compounds. One of the pathways showed very high sequence similarity to the thuricin CD pathway in Bacillus thuringiensis. Considering that thuricin CD has been reported to have antimicrobial activity against B. cereus (ATCC1072), it was hypothesised that it could also be produced by PE6-126. However, the antimicrobial extract from PE6-126 was tested for sensitivity to proteinase K and heat treatment, which thuricin CD is known to be sensitive to. The results revealed that the antimicrobial activity was not lost after treatment, implying that a different metabolite could be responsible for the anti-B. cereus activity. In addition, PE6-126 initially displayed antimicrobial activity against a multi-drug resistant E. coli 1699, suggesting some of the antimicrobial compound/(s) produced by this strain could potentially be novel. The bioassay-guided fractionation approach coupled to Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS) did not lead to identification of the antimicrobial compound/(s), therefore it remains a question whether the secondary metabolite pathways predicted by antiSMASH lead to the production of the active compound/(s). The results from this study showed that even well studied species have the potential to synthesize as yet undescribed compounds, based on the novelty of some of the pathways. This study highlights the importance of employing a genome-guided approach in drug discovery, as there may be many novel compounds to discover from biosynthetic pathways that have not yet been characterised. Further research is needed to identify the antimicrobial compound/(s) produced by PE6-126.

Vegetable oil is more difficult to degrade by microorganisms in comparison to carbohydrates and protein. Thus, it creates serious environmental and health concerns if oil-derived waste streams produced by restaurants and industries remain untreated. In this study, a strategy has been developed to grow filamentous fungi in pure olive oil so that it can be used as a bench-mark for growth in olive oil mill sidestreams. The growth of different strains (Aspergillus oryzae, Neurospora intermedia and Rhizopus oryzae) was tested in pure olive oil. A pre-germination stage using glucose as carbon and energy source, or the addition of yeast extract, were found necessary for successful fungal growth in olive oil. Here, A. oryzae showed a superior performance in comparison to N. intermedia and R. oryzae. Medium pH did not impact A. oryzae growth in olive oil, whereas a concentration higher than 40 g/L of the latter impaired the growth of the ascomycete. Obtained biomasses from A. oryzae and N. intermedia cultivations in olive oil were analyzed and compared for protein, fat, ash, and alkali-insoluble material (cell wall content), where the presence of olive oil had a steering effect. The fungal biomass of A. oryzae, obtained from cultivation in the absence of olive oil, contained 0.33% fat and 48% protein, whereas the respective values in the presence of olive oil were 31% and 14%. Similar trends on fat and protein contents were observed for the biomass of N. intermedia. Sudan black staining was also performed on fresh biomass which clearly indicated the presence of oil globules inside the fungal cells. This research can be a fundamental step towards treatment of oil-based waste streams, which entails high-energy and costs if treated, or environmental impacts during informal discharges. Moreover, the fact that the composition of fungal biomass can be steered through addition of olive oil increases the versatility of the originated biomass for various applications, namely in feed, food and biofuel production.

No description available.

The organic wastes including olive oil mill residues are an inseparable part of food manufacturing processes while implying multi-faceted damages to the environment. A good quantity of research has been conducted to examine the biogas enhancement level in the anaerobic process of olive residues.  Seeking the optimum pretreatment method and the co-digesting substrates, the current study has conducted aggregative research on 155 experiments out of 22 studies. The conducted meta-analysis recognized the chemical type of pretreatments as the most effective treating procedures, according to which, application of the combined alkaline and lime, followed by trace metal cobalt supplementations are recognized as the most effective methods.  Furthermore, the study found intriguing results on the optimum type of olive main substrate, inoculum, digester type and effective volume as well as the superior country and year, in the anaerobic digestion of the olive mill residues.

The tocopherol (Vitamin E) content of forage from three invasive shrub species was measured to assess the value of the shrubs as a source of vitamin E for goats browsing on overgrown Appalachian pastures. Plant leaf clusters were collected from multiflora rose (Rosa multiflora Thunb.), autumn olive (Elaeagnus umbellata Thunb.), and Morrow's honeysuckle (Lonicera morowii Gray) in replicated plots at a site in southern West Virginia during the 1999 growing season. Alpha-, beta-, gamma-, and delta-tocopherol were extracted with hexane, separated by high performance liquid chromatography on a normal-phase diol column, and quantified. Significant differences (P<0.001) in concentration were found among species for all forms of tocopherol. Alpha-tocopherol predominated, accounting for more than 90% of the total tocopherols in all three species. Alpha-tocopherol levels increased in all species with maturity; however, the magnitude of the increase was not the same in all species. At the end of the growing season, autumn olive had the highest levels of alpha-tocopherol (1270 ± 55 ppm dry matter [DM]), followed by Morrow's honeysuckle (840 ± 55 ppm DM), and multiflora rose (610 ± 55 ppm DM). Goats grazing on mature browse may obtain adequate intake of vitamin E. High nutritive value and/or low concentrations of antiquality factors may not coincide with the high levels of vitamin E found in mature tissue, and the actual vitamin E intake will depend on the feeding behavior of the goat. / Master of Science