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Stroke is a major cause of death and disability around the world. Stroke leads to loss of neurons and also other cells in the brain due to lack of blood supply. Currently no therapies are available to treat stroke-related disability. It has been shown that stroke leads to increased neurogenesis, birth of new neurons, within the brain. This increased neurogenesis is not sufficient to restore lost f
This thesis focuses on developing stem cell targeted gene therapy for the severe hereditary disorder Infantile Malignant Osteopetrosis (IMO) as well as increasing the understanding of how the genetic defect present in IMO affects the hematopoietic stem cells and hematopoiesis in general. IMO is a rare congenital disorder associated with an increased number of non-functional osteoclasts and the a
The aim of the thesis is to investigate experiences of and ways of relating to environmental issues and towards their profession among a group of graduates in environmentla science. The respondents were either in the end of or had completed an educational program in Environmental sciences with a social science perspective offered at Malmö University. Those who hade completed the program have recen
The local deposition, pharmacokinetics, and systemic activity of inhaled and intranasal glucocorticosteroids in different formulations and devices(ICSs) has been investigated. After nasal administration of the ICS budesonide (Bud), the systemic availability (F) was found to be significantly higher from an aqueous pump spray and from the powder inhaler Turbuhaler, than from a pressurized metered do
In this thesis, semiconductor nanowires are studied from the point of view of growth and electrical properties. The growth of nanowires is done by chemical beam epitaxy (CBE), an ultra-high vacuum technique allowing a precise control of precursor deposition and low growth rates. In conventional epitaxy, growth is usually two or three- dimensional, depending on growth conditions and material combin
The investigations presented in this thesis have evaluated different strategies to prevent thrombosis in an experimental model of deep arterial injury in rats. Unfractionated heparin (UFH) is often used to prevent thrombosis in microvascular surgery and in other vascular interventions, but a major drawback of UFH is increased bleeding. In the first paper the low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH) da
Multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) is still the leading cause of mortality in the surgical intensive care unit. The effect on among others endothelial barrier permeability, reticuloendothelial function, organ function and protease-antiprotease activities was studied following a variety of challenges, especially over-activation of macrophages induced by intraperitoneal administration of zym
According to the theory of sexual selection, traits can evolve because they confer a mating advantage in competition with members from the same sex. In animals, sexual selection is considered as an important evolutionary force. In this thesis I have investigated the potential for sexual selection in plants. I have concentrated on the phase of reproduction that occurs after pollinators have deposit
The aim of the present thesis was to define and evaluate a strategy for identification of children who are at risk of developing progressive renal lesions after acute pyelonephritis. Tc-DMSA renal scintigraphy is widely accepted as the most sensitive method for detecting parenchymal lesions and diagnosing acute pyelonephritis. Qualitative and quantitative evaluation standards were elaborated to i
We have studied protein motions with nanosecond time-resolved crystallography. The release of carbon monoxide from its complex with myoglobin (MbCO) was triggered by nanosecond laser pulses. X-ray data were collected with time delays ranging from 4 ns to 1.9 ms using the Laue method, at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Grenoble. For the first time point, X-ray pulses of 150 ps durati
In this study simultaneous videoradiography and intraluminal manometry (videomanometry) have been used in combination in three studies to analyze how different therapeutic strategies affect the physiology of swallowing in healthy volunteers and in patients with pharyngeal dysfunction. Analyses of healthy volunteers showed few significant measurable effects on the pharyngeal swallow. Some decreased
P2 receptors mediate the actions of the extracellular nucleotides ATP, ADP, UTP and UDP regulating several physiological responses including cardiac function, vascular tone, smooth muscle cell (SMC) proliferation, platelet aggregation, and the release of endothelial factors. The aim of the present study was to investigate the mRNA and protein expression of P2 receptors in human SMCs, endothelial c
Eicosanoids are known to be involved in many different aspects of eukaryotic physiology and pathology. Notably, over the past 10 years much attention has been given to cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) due to its involvement in colorectal cancer. Less is known about the other major branch of arachidonic acid metabolism, namely the lipoxygenases (LO). The cysteinyl leukotrienes (CysLTs) are a family of met
Structure- property relationships and thickening mechanism in aqueous solution of two hydrophobically modified polymers (HM-P) with different architecture have been investigated. The two polymers, hydrophobically modified ethyl hydroxyethyl cellulose (HM-EHEC) and hydrophobically modified polyethylene glycol (HM-PEG), are commonly used as associative thickeners in the paint industry. The strength
Sepsis and subsequent multiple organ failure remain the major cause of mortality in intensive care units. Leukocyte-mediated tissue damage is a key feature in septic lung injury. Accumulating data suggest that platelets play a role in inflammation and tissue injury. However, the role of platelets in sepsis-induced leukocyte recruitment and lung edema formation in abdominal sepsis is not demonstrat
The Baltic Sea is one of the largest brackish water bodies in the world and is suffering extensive environmental issues caused by eutrophication and warming climate. A halocline in the water column divides more saline bottom water fed by inflows through the narrow connection with the North Sea from the surface waters and inhibiting exchange of oxygen between the two water masses. With the nutrient
This thesis deals with the problem of interpreting test scores. The intention has been to explore and elucidate the effects of trait anxiety on test scores that have been obtained in applied research settings. Paper I showed that different relationships between personality traits and cognitive functioning emerged in a group of men with solvent induced chronic toxic encephalopathy (TE; N=57) compa
The problem which the present study discusses is modernity. The study interprets modernity’s cultural and anthropological dispositions as historical appearances. Consequently, it is situated at the intersection of cultural sociology and historical anthropology. The aim is to generate insight and understanding rather than a coherent theory. The key element consists of combination and variation of c
Different aspects of porphyrin proteins have been studied with theoretical methods. For example, we have studied: - The importance of hydrogen bonds for the discrimination between carbon monoxide and molecular oxygen by myoglobin, the oxygen carrier in muscles, modelling the active site both in vacuum and in the protein matrix - The inner-sphere reorganisation energy during electron transfer for
Ferrochelatase catalyses the synthesis of heme by inserting Fe(II) into protoporphyrin IX. The structure of ferrochelatase from yeast has been determined (2.4 Å). The structure is homodimeric with each of the monomer made up of two Rossmann type domains with an active-site cleft between them. Metal binding studies with Co(II) and Cd(II) ions reveal the metal binding residues as being the His-Glu
