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Body dimensions of 2,936 newborns with cleft lip/palate (CLP) were compared with 2,031,140 singleton newborns between 1973 to 1992. The risk of cleft development was found to be associated with intra-uterine growth retardation - the more severe the cleft, the stronger the association. As digital photography is being increasingly applied in clinical medicine, we devised a computer software program
Calcium homeostasis involves mainly the interaction of PTH, vitamin D and CT. The stomach may be important for calcium homeostasis. Gastric acid is thought to mobilize calcium from the diet, thereby facilitating the absorption of calcium in the small intestines. In the rat, gastrectomy rapidly reduces the calcium content, the density and the trabecular volume of the bone. The gastrectomy-evoked bo
Brain ischemia is a major cause of death and morbidity in the industrialized countries. It is mainly caused by stroke, but may also be the consequence of successful cardiopulmonary resuscitation in victims of cardiac arrest, known as transient global ischemia. Although extensive effort in the field of brain research using experimental rodent models, no neuroprotective treatments are at present ava
Adipose tissue is the main site of energy storage of the body and an important endocrine organ. Knowledge of the regulation of fat metabolism and the endocrine factors secreted by the adipocyte is crucial for the understanding of diseases such as obesity and diabetes. Insulin is the main antilipolytic hormone. Protein kinase B (PKB) and phosphodiesterase 3B (PDE3B) are both phosphorylated and acti
This study aims at clarifying the role of NO in the immunosuppression induced by in vivo tumor growth and by tumor immunotherapy, and determining whether the inhibition of NO production can be used as an adjuvant in tumor immunotherapy. We have shown previously that tumor cells, glioma (N32) and colon carcinoma (H1D2), when genetically engineered to express such immune stimulatory cytokines as IFN
Intestinal ischemia and reperfusion (I/R) is a potentially life-threatening condition, sometimes leading to a systemic inflammatory response and the potential development of the multiple organ dysfunction syndrome. The overall aim of the thesis was to study the effects of intestinal I/R on pulmonary function with special emphasis on removal of excess alveolar fluid, pulmonary endothelial barrier p
The neutrophil granulocytes have a critical role in innate immunity in particular through phagocytosis of microorganisms. Their cytoplasmic granule subsets store digestive enzymes and antibiotic proteins that are released during this event. During the passage in the secretory pathway the granule proteins are retrieved from constitutive secretion to become sorted for storage. The aim of this thesis
In this thesis we have used cells dissected from the lateral ganglionic eminence (LGE), the medial ganglionic eminence (MGE), and the cortical primordium of the embryonic mouse forebrain. The tissue was dissected from either i) wild-type mice, ii) green fluorescent protein (GFP)-, or iii) Gtv-a-expressing transgenic mice, and subsequently grown and expanded in vitro using two different protocols.
The studies in this doctoral thesis investigated how home literacy, self regulation, academic self-concept, and goal orientation influence reading ability. Study 1 investigated the effect of family-based prerequisites, reading attitude, and self-regulated learning on reading ability. Students (n= 4,018) in the eighth grade answered the IEA reading literacy test and the SRLQ. Structural Equation Mo
Leukemic cells suffer from an impaired ability to differentiate due to inherited or acquired genetic lesions. These genetic changes can sometimes be bypassed with various compounds both in vitro, and, more rarely, in vivo, thus inducing terminal differentiation of the leukemic cells. Differentiation of both leukemic and normal hematopoietic cells is believed to be intimately coupled to cell cycle
Neuroblastoma is a pediatric tumor derived from cells in the sympathetic nervous system. In an attempt to explain the heterogeneous clinical behavior of neuroblastoma tumors, neuroblastomas have been characterized with regard to their degree of sympathetic differentiation. Their expression of genes and proteins that regulate normal sympathetic development and cell cycle/cell death regulators was a
C4b-binding protein (C4BP) is an acute-phase plasma glycoprotein which regulates the complement system through its affinity for C4b. In addition, C4BP binds to the anticoagulant protein S and to serum amyloid P component (SAP). Protein S is a vitamin K-dependent protein which looses its anticoagulant properties when binding to C4BP. C4BP is composed of two types of subunits, the a-chain and the b-
The ABO blood group system is undoubtedly the most important genetic and phenotypic marker in clinical transfusion medicine. The A and B determinants are immunodominant, terminally located carbohydrate residues of glycoconjugates on erythrocytes and other cell surfaces. The enzymes responsible for assembly of these structures are glycosyltransferases encoded by the ABO genes on chromosome nine. T
The neutrophil granulocyte contains a number of multifunctional proteins stored in different subsets of granules. The azurophil granules, synthesized early during differentiation, harbour leukocyte elastase, cathepsin G, proteinase 3, and azurocidin; the members of the serprocidin family. In order to study the biosynthesis, processing, and intracellular sorting of the proteins, human cDNA encoding
This dissertation contains seven studies exploring novel instrumentation for ion and electron spectroscopy, including their applicability at storage ring light sources. The studies focus on instrumentation to study decay, dynamics and dissociation of photoexcited molecules, and the possibility to host such instruments at MAX~IV. Commissioning of an instrument for negative-ion/positive-ion coincid
Malignant hyperthermia (MH) susceptibility is a rare inherited muscular disorder, which may cause a lethal increase in metabolism during anaesthesia with certain commonly used anaesthetic. Susceptible individuals are without any signs or symptoms. It is important to identify individuals at risk, since the MH reaction is preventable. Susceptibility to MH is diagnosed with an in vitro contracture te
This thesis focuses on the pedagogue as a social being and how she or he experiences the social life in preschools and schools in Tallsten. In 1996, the child-care and education authorities in Tallsten introduced a new manner of thinking and working based on the communicative pedagogy. The idea of communicative pedagogy was origanlly put forth by the Danish teacher Lars Rokkjaer. One of the goals
Optimal foraging and prey preference in top predators may affect population and community dynamics and structure. Also, optimal foraging and prey preference may shift with prevailing conditions, and therefore create changes in the effect of predation. In this thesis, I examine the effects of intraspecific interactions among northern pike on pike predatory behaviour, prey preference, and subsequent
