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Following the transection and repair of major nerve trunks in the forearm, the functional outcome is influenced by mechanisms in the peripheral, as well as in the central nervous system. In the present thesis the interest is focused on assessment of the outcome after nerve repair, central nervous factors influencing the outcome, and sense substitution to compensate for sensory loss. A new model in
Clostridium difficile is a spore-forming bacterium that causes antibiotic-associated diarrhoea and is responsible for hospital outbreaks of diarrhoea. In the first study, 173 consecutive isolates of C. difficile collected from 147 patients at Malmö University Hospital during 1995 were typed by AP-PCR to determine whether cross-transmission could explain the increased incidence of Clostridium diffi
During the last decade it has been discovered that around 2% of the soil-living prokaryotes belong to the domain Archaea. In many soils the most abundant archaeal group is the ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) that, in addition to ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB), preform the first and rate-limiting step in the nitrification process. The knowledge of factors that regulates the archaeal abundance and
Liver is the most common site of dissemination in colorectal cancer, and untreated liver metastases are associated with a poor prognosis. The main reason for trying to detect liver metastases early is that liver resection offers a chance for cure in selected patients. The sensitivity of alkaline phosphatases (ALP), carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), computed tomography (CT), CT with arterial contrast
T cell activation requires the combination of antigen in the context of MHC and costimulatory molecules to induce a functional immune response. For our studies, we primarily utilized superantigens (SAg) that bind MHC class II molecules as first signal. Mutations in the SAg MHC class II a-chain binding site reduced the number of responding T cells expressing particular TCR Vb chains, whereas mutati
Levels of ultraviolet-B (UV-B, 280-320 nm) radiation reaching the Earth´s surface increase due to stratospheric ozone depletion. In this thesis the effect of enhanced UV-B radiation was studied on the atrazine-tolerant mutant Stallion, susceptible to photoinhibition, and the atrazine-sensitive cultivar Paroll of Brassica napus (oilseed rape). Photosynthetic parameters were studied with chlorophyll
The pro-inflammatory mediators leukotrienes have shown to be important players in the pathogenesis of diseases like asthma and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Patients suffering from IBD have been found to have an increased risk of developing colon cancer. Since leukotrienes have been shown in increased concentrations in stools of IBD patients we hypothesise that LTD4 can play a role in the deve
Fluidised bed thermal gasification of biomass is an effective route that results in 100 % conversion of the fuel. In contrast to chemical, enzymatic or anaerobic methods of biomass treatment, the thermal conversion leaves no contaminated residue after the process. The product gas evolved within thermal conversion can be used in several applications such as: fuel for gas turbines, combustion engine
In the debate on how to make democracy strong against terrorism, it has been suggested that the Western democracies need new protective measures. This paper argues that, far from protecting democracy, such measures may in fact undermine the very values and virtues that make democracy possible. Information freedom, the right to due process and the protection of privacy are all fundamental for the
Laccase, the phenol oxidizing enzyme, was first described towards the end of the 19th century from the wound sap of the lacquer tree Rhus vernicifera. The enzyme has the widest distribution in nature among the multicopper oxidases. It catalyzes single electron transfer oxidation in the presence of molecular oxygen producing water as by-product. Based on these highly desired mild oxidising conditio
