Benzylidene protected bis-MPA, 2,2-bis(hydroxymethyl)propanoic acid, was synthesised and evaluated as building block in the construction of dendrimers. It was found that the anhydride of benzylidene protected bis-MPA reacts with neopentylic alcohols to give high yields of acylated products. Purification is facilitated by the crystalline nature of most ester products. Deprotection by hydrogenolysis

The use of hyperbranched polymers (HBPs) as a processing aid for linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) was investigated. Various generation (or pseudo-generation) HBPs were used which had either 16 carbon atom alkanes or a mixture of 20/22 carbon atom alkanes on the end groups. In addition, the degree of end group substitution was studied. Blends of up to 10% HBP content were mixed via extrusion

This paper uses the notion of material affordances to show that a focus on how people engage with materials helps understanding how organizations transit toward sustainability. Material affordances refer to the enablements and constraints afforded by materials to someone engaging with an environment for a particular purpose. Based on a qualitative study of a company's efforts at becoming circular,

Improving access to SRHR-information and care among refugees and migrants remain a central issue. Countries with strong integration policies have significant reductions in the inequities in sexual and reproductive health outcomes. Securing access to SRHR is linked to the extent to which gender equality is fulfilled, including equal rights for men and women to learn the language and participate in

In the past several years many Western European countries have introduced stricter entry regimes both for third-country nationals, as well as for asylum-seekers and refugees. More recently, since the mixed migratory influx of 2015, the figure of the foreigner has become more and more visible on a national level sparking debates on the future of the European Union (EU), European and national identi

BACKGROUND: Apoptosis is central in both diabetes and atherosclerosis, linked to pancreatic beta cell death and plaque progression. Circulating Caspase-3 has also been associated with diabetes and coronary calcium score. Here, we explored if soluble Caspase-3 (sCaspase-3) is associated with cardio-metabolic risk factors and predicts incidence of diabetes and coronary artery disease (CAD).METHODS:

Despite the growing interest in employee voice, real opportunities for co-workers to challenge the status quo are limited (Kenny et al., 2020; Wilkinson et al., 2018; de Maria, 2008). This conceptual paper explores the unruly dimension of employee voice in connection to whistleblowing and protest as modes of ethical resistance (de Maria, 2008). It partly follows recent attempts inorganisation stud

Breastfeeding profoundly shapes the infant gut microbiota, which is critical for early life immune development, and the gut microbiota can impact host physiology in various ways, such as through the production of metabolites. However, few breastmilk-dependent microbial metabolites mediating host–microbiota interactions are currently known. Here, we demonstrate that breastmilk-promoted Bifidobacter

BACKGROUND: The proportion of older people in the population has increased globally and has thus become a challenge in health and social care. There is good evidence that care based on comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) is superior to the usual care found in acute hospital settings; however, the evidence is scarcer in community-dwelling older people. This study is a secondary outcome of a ra

Factor H is an inhibitor of the complement system, essential for controlling the alternative pathway and also playing a crucial role in various cellular functions. In this thesis, we identified new intriguing functions of FH as a survival factor for primary human monocytes, promoting their differentiation into immunosuppressive macrophages. We showed that FH is expressed by human breast cancer cel

As the second largest exporter of agricultural products worldwide, the Netherlands is a production hub, a leading example of high yields per hectare. However, this productivity includes intensive farming practices, placing a risk on the climate through the emission of greenhouse gases N2O and CO2 from soil. To meet global efforts, the Netherlands must reduce its climatic impact, including soil emi

The inverse motion concept is used to optimize thermo-hyperelastic structures using an exact description of the deformed geometry. This method prescribes the shape of the structure in the deformed state, and the optimization yields the shape of the undeformed configuration, i.e. the manufactured state. The kinematics of the thermoelastic model is defined through the multiplicative decomposition of

Vertebrate immunity is a complex system consisting of a mix of constitutive and inducible defences. Furthermore, host immunity is subject to selective pressure from a range of parasites and pathogens which can produce variation in these defences across populations. As populations evolve immune responses to parasites, they may adapt via a combination of (1) constitutive differences, (2) shared indu

Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) identified hundreds of signals associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D). To gain insight into their underlying molecular mechanisms, we have created the translational human pancreatic islet genotype tissue-expression resource (TIGER), aggregating >500 human islet genomic datasets from five cohorts in the Horizon 2020 consortium T2DSystems. We impute genotypes u