Helicobacter pylori is a gastric pathogen colonising the gastric mucus layer and epithelium of gastric tissue and is associated with chronic type B gastritis and peptic ulcer disease. The attachment of H. pylori to gastric epithelial cells involves several structures recognised by specific bacterial surface proteins. Since colonisation is an initial and critical step in the development of a chroni

Interactions of proteins with other proteins, with polymers and with surfaces are of great practical importance within for instance protein purification, drug delivery, and food technology. The aim of this work is to increase the understanding of protein-protein, protein-polyelectrolyte, and protein-surface interactions, particularly concerning the role of electrostatic interactions in these syste

This thesis describes the preparation, characterisation and properties of poly(ethylene-graft-ethylene oxide) (PE-PEO). The grafting reaction was carried out with the grafting onto method using the carboxylic acid groups of poly(ethylene-co-acrylic acid) (PEAA) as reactive sites in an esterification reaction with poly(ethylene oxide) mono-methyl ethers (MPEO) of varying molecular weights: 750, 200

Falls and fractures in older people are a common and increasing health problem which causes physical, social and psychological problems for the individual and is costly to society. The aims of this thesis were to investigate accidental falls of patients aged 65 - 74 who attended an orthopedic emergency ward, to investigate reliability of the modified figure of eight (MFE) and compare it with other

The topic of this dissertation is the work of the poet Bruno K. Öijer (b. 1951). My thesis is, that a recognition of how he has assumed the outsider position is vital for an understanding of his work, and that it also may contribute to an explanation of his particular importance in the cultural arena of the early 70s. The thesis is structured in four parts. Part one deals with the concept “outside

Outer membrane vesicles (OMV) have the size of nanoparticles and are released from the outer membrane of most Gram-negative bacteria. The OMV reflect the composition of the bacterial outer membrane, including lipids and virulence factors specific for the pathogen, and are involved in pathogenesis and bacterial survival. Moraxella catarrhalis and Haemophilus influenzae are Gram-negative bacterial s

Primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) is associated with cardiovascular morbidity and premature death, but the underlying mechanisms are incompletely understood. The aim of this thesis was to investigate cardiovascular parameters and adrenergic function in mild PHPT compared to healthy controls subjects before and after curative parathyroidectomy (PTX). Forty-nine patients with mild PHPT (serum calci

Radicular pain is in the majority of cases caused by a disc herniation with a coexisting inflammation. It is characterized by positive neural tension tests, such as the Slump test, and by decreased range of motion (ROM) in the straight leg raising test (SLR) and lumbar flexion (Fingertip-to-floor test[FTF]). This may suggest that improvement in ROM correlates to reduction of self-reported disabili

Tumors of bone and soft tissue are common but only constitute 1 % of all malignant tumors. The malignant tumors are often difficult to diagnose due to their rarity and morphological resemblance between subtypes. This makes the diagnostic process challenging. Thus, there is a need for ancillary techniques, such as genetic analyses, not only for diagnostic purposes, but also for obtaining informatio

Gender equality has been on the development cooperation agenda for more than three decades. Bilateral agencies have developed policies, strategies, methodologies and tools to support achievement of this important goal. Following the Fourth United Nations Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995 it is important to take stock of the progress that has been made, and identify the changes needed for movi

The main theme of this thesis is the use of fluorescence spectroscopy in biomedicine. The work presented in the thesis can be divided into three areas of applications. The first area involves the use of fluorescence to find the location of a deeply situated fluorophore within turbid media. Fluorescence emitted from the fluorophore will be attenuated when propagating through the medium, due to the

Abstract Technology is always designed for an assumed user in an assumed context. In commercial aviation, these design assumptions are clearly spelt out in that both crew and equipment are certificated for a specific operation as stated in the aircraft flight manual. Despite this well defined user context, the designed-for and the real contexts often differ enough so that adaptations of working p

Proteases and their inhibitors are implicated in the physiology and pathology of the airways. Protease inhibitors include those produced locally, such as secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor (SLPI), and those produced mainly by the liver that can reach the airways via passive diffusion, such as alpha1-antitrypsin (AAT). SLPI is a significant component of the anti-neutrophil elastase shield in th

Stroke is a leading cause of death and disability for which there is no treatment for functional recovery. Following stroke, striatal neurogenesis is increased, with newly formed neuroblasts migrating towards the damage. This response has so far been considered acute and transient. In this thesis, a model of experimental stroke (2 h of middle cerebral artery occlusion, MCAO) used to study three a

The main purpose of my thesis is to investigate how the Chicago School in urban sociology, that was active between 1915 and 1935, developed and why it produced so many classical monographs during a period of about ten to fifteen years. To outline the historical reasons for the School to develop I have chosen to view the historical context as a field with different actors. Another related and overa

Degradation of mRNA is a controlled process which is as important for gene regulation as the synthesis of mRNA. This thesis focuses on mechanisms of mRNA stability and degradation in Bacillus subtilis, the model of Gram-positive bacteria. The aprE mRNA, encoding an exported protease named subtilisin, is extremely stable with a half-life of more than 25 minutes. Average mRNA half-lives in B. subtil

The neutrophil store its effector proteins in several distinct types of cytoplasmic granules, developed sequentially during cell maturation. The different subtypes of granules have unique protein content and functional characteristics. The formation of each granule subtype coincides with the biosynthesis of its content. Granule proteins synthesised during the formation of a granule subtype are thu

Two polymers, alginate and Eudragit S-100 were used as reversibly soluble-insoluble ligand carriers for the selective isolation of enzymes and lectins respectively. These two polymers have the inherent property of being precipitated under well defined conditions. Alginate was made insoluble by the addition of Ca2+ ions, and Eudragit S-100 by a pH shift. The polymers were modified with affinity lig

Gene therapy is a promising therapeutic tool for many diseases of the CNS. Lentiviral vectors are particularly attractive since this vector type can transduce both dividing and non-dividing cells, have a relatively large cloning capacity, can sustain long-term transgene expression and have low immunogenicity. The specificity of the vector is however important to avoid potential off-target effects

Three different methods for Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes computational fluid dynamics modeling of non-premixed ignition and combustion using tabulated chemistry have been developed. All methods make use of flamelet libraries, where the flamelet auto-ignition process is parameterized using a progress variable. The progress variable parameterization of the auto-ignition chemistry allows for using