This thesis presents the ASIC implementation of the RSA algorithm, which is one of the most widely used Public Key Cryptosystems (PKC) in the world. In RSA Cryptosystem, modular exponentiation of large integers is used for both encryption and decryption processes. The security of the RSA increases as the number of the bits increase. However, as the numbers become larger (1024-bit or higher) the challenge is to provide architectures, which can be implemented in hardware, operate at high clock speeds, use a minimum of resources and can be used in real-time applications. In this thesis, a semi-custom VLSI implementation of the RSA Cryptosystem is performed for both 512-bit and 1024-bit processes using 0.35&micro / m AMI Semiconductor Standard Cell Libraries. By suiting the design into a systolic and regular architecture, the broadcasting signals and routing delays are minimized in the implementation. With this regular architecture, the results of 3ns clock period (627Kbps) using 87K gates (8.7mm2 with I/O pads) for the 512-bit implementation, and 4ns clock period (237Kps) using 132K gates (10.4mm2 with I/O pads) for the 1024-bit implementation have been achieved. These results are obtained for the worst-case conditions and they include the post-layout routing delays. The design is also verified in real time using the Xilinx V2000E FPGA on the Celoxica RC1000 Hardware. The 1024-bit VLSI implementation has been sent to IMEC for fabrication as a prototype chip through Europractice Multi-Project Wafer (MPW) runs.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-12T15:54:51Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 arquivo607_1.pdf: 1573923 bytes, checksum: 64f355c17fab0797315fdf979c778510 (MD5) license.txt: 1748 bytes, checksum: 8a4605be74aa9ea9d79846c1fba20a33 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008 / Faculdade Intergrada do Recife / Este estudo investigou os efeitos agudos do extrato aquoso do chá verde (GTE) e dos seus constituintes polifenóis (-)-epigalocatecina-3-galato (EGCG) e (-)-epicatecina (EC) sobre a produção de testosterona basal e estimulada, em células de Leydig de ratos in vitro. Células de Leydig purificadas foram incubadas por 3 horas com GTE, EGCG ou EC e com o precursor da testosterona androstenediona, na presença ou ausência de ativadores da proteína quinase A (PKA) e da proteína quinase C (PKC). O GTE e a EGCG, mas não a EC, inibiram ambas as produções de testosterona, basal e quinaseestimuladas. Células pré-tratadas por 15 minutos com GTE ou EGCG e recuperadas por 1 hora foram submetidas a tratamento com gonadotrofina coriônica humana (hCG), hormônio liberador de gonadotrofinas (LHRH), 22OHColesterol ou androstenediona. Nestas condições o efeito inibitório do GTE/EGCG em suas maiores concentrações utilizadas (69,2 e 100 μg/mL, respectivamente) sob a produção de testosterona estimulada por hCG/LHRH ou 22OHColesterol se manteve, enquanto que a produção de testosterona estimulada pela androstenediona retornou para os níveis do controle, indicando que o efeito inibitório sob a função da enzima 17β-hidroxidesidrogenase (17β-HSD) foi reversível. Nestas mesmas condições de pré-tratamento, porém utilizando menores concentrações de GTE/EGCG (13,8 e 20 μg/mL, respectivamente) observou-se que o efeito inibitório destes polifenóis sobre a produção de testosterona estimulada pelo 22OHColesterol foi revertida e até excedeu os níveis do controle, indicando que o efeito inibitório dos polifenóis sob a função da enzima de clivagem da cadeia lateral (P450scc) em mitocôndrias foi reversível. Conclui-se que os efeitos inibitórios do GTE podem ser explicados, pelo menos em parte, pela ação da EGCG, seu principal componente, e que a presença do grupo galato em sua estrutura parece ser importante para sua alta eficácia na inibição da síntese de testosterona. Os mecanismos envolvidos nos efeitos do GTE e da EGCG são provavelmente diversos e envolvem a inibição das cascatas de sinalização da PKA/PKC, assim como a inibição da função das enzimas P450scc e 17β-HSD

Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM) with conduction disease and Atrial Fibrillation (AF) are the two cardiac-specific diseases associated with lamin A/C gene (LMNA) mutations. Protein Kinase C Alpha, (PKCα) functions as a nodal integrator of cardiac contractility by “sensing” intracellular calcium and signal transduction. PKCα has been implicated in heart failure and cardiac hypertrophy. Moreover, abnormal PKCα function results in irregular atrial potassium channel activity associated with chronic AF PKCα is a lamin A/C binding partner. Thus, the deregulation of PKCα signaling can contribute to the development of DCM and AF. Our hypothesis is that the AF (Thr528Met), DCM-associated (Arg541Cys) and (Arg541Gly) and DCM/AF-associated (Tyr481Stop) LMNA variants will disrupt the cellular distribution of PKCα therefore resulting in impaired PKCα function. The first objective was to phenotypically characterise Arg541Cys LMNA variant in murine skeletal myoblasts cell line (C2C12) in comparison to cellular phenotypes induced by LMNA variants associated with AF, DCM and DCM with AF. Arg541Cys lamin A and C variants formed circular and sickle-shaped lamin A/C in the nucleus of C2C12 cells. The second objective was to determine the effect of these lamin variants on cellular distribution of PKCα in C2C12 cells. PKCα mislocalized into the nucleus of C2C12 cells transfected with AF and DCM-associated variants (Thr528Met and Arg541Cys). Colocalization analysis showed significant increase in PKCα in the nucleus of AF (Thr528Met) and DCM (Arg541Cys) variants when lamin A and C, were co-transfected compared to wild-type, DCM (Arg541Gly) and DCM/AF (Tyr481Stop) variants. Densitometry analysis showed statistically significant increase in phosphorylated PKCα, the active form of PKCα, in nuclear and cytoplasmic extracts of C2C12 cells expressing Arg541Cys variant. Densitometry analysis also showed statistically significant increase in non-phosphorylated PKCα in the nuclear extract of Thr528Met variant expressing cells. The third objective was to determine the effect of AF and DCM-associated variants on the activity of PKCα. PKCα activity is quantified by measuring the phosphorylation of a known phosphorylated PKCα substrate. Alpha-6-tubulin phospho (Ser165) is phosphorylated by PKCα. Hence, this was used to quantify PKCα activity. No statistical significance was observed in the level of phosphorylated alpha-6-tubulin at (Ser165) in the C2C12 cells that were transfected with lamin A and C variants compared to wild type. Furthermore, PKCα phosphorylation state is cyclic in nature and this could have had an impact on the phosphorylation state of the chosen substrate in this study. The functional consequence of nuclear translocation of PKCα with respect to laminopathies is unknown. Abnormal activation of the Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK1/2) which are branches of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signalling cascade in hearts of mice, and humans prior to the onset of cardiomyopathy. These findings have been associated to cardiac disease-causing lamin A/C alteration to signal transduction pathways implicated in heart function and cardiomyopathy. Human LMNA cardiomyopathy, could lead to abnormal activation of MAPK signalling pathways via abnormal PKCα activation in cardiomyocytes.

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We sought to evaluate the individual contributions of Notch1 and PKC-ζ to disease progression in a mouse model of immune-mediated bone marrow failure and to define a mechanism for their potential cellular cooperation. We transferred parental bulk splenocytes into F1-hybrid recipients to induce a robust immune-mediated bone marrow failure (BMF) that we could partially rescue by administering a pharmacological inhibitor of Notch activation. Transferring splenocytes from PKC--ζ-/- animals did not induce disease, and treating animals with a pharmacological inhibitor of PKC-ζ also provided full protection from disease. We found that inhibiting Notch1 resulted in PKC-ζ down-regulation, and blocking PKC-ζ reduced Notch1 activation, possibly within a positive feedback loop. Our data suggest that both Notch1 and PKC-ζ contribute to disease progression in our mouse model of immune-mediated bone marrow failure. Furthermore, additional findings from the lab demonstrated physical interactions between Notch1, members of the T cell signalosome and PKC-ζ that are essential to mediating full activation of T cells following signaling through the TCR and CD28. Notch1 and/or PKC-ζ may represent novel therapeutic targets in the treatment of bone marrow failure.

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