Abstract in Uncoded languages Praegune kaitsejalatsite testimise standard (EN 344) kontrollib soojapidavuslikke omadusi vaid jalatsi ühes punktis, mõõtes temperatuuri muutust. Meetod, mis kasutab termilist jala mudelit, võimaldab mõõta jalatsi soojaisolatsiooni üheaegselt erinevates piirkondades ning ühtlasi ka jalatsi kui terviku soojaisolatsiooni. Selle uurimuse käigus arendati termilise jala mePresent standard on safety footwear (EN 344) checks the insulation only at one point in the shoes by means of measuring the temperature change. A method that uses thermal foot model allows to measure footwear insulation simultaneously at various locations and for whole footwear as well. In the present work the method of heated foot model was developed further. It is possible to simulate sweating a

HIV-1 is dominating the global HIV pandemic, while HIV-2 is mainly confined to West Africa. The highest HIV-2 prevalence figures have been reported from Guinea-Bissau. While HIV-1 infection almost invariably leads to progressive immune dysfunction and AIDS, HIV-2 infection is characterised by a smaller proportion of individuals with disease progression to AIDS. In order to monitor the long-term e

The middle ear (ME) pressure is regulated by gas diffusion over the ME mucosa and pressure equalizations via the Eustachian tube (ET). Disturbance in the regulation of ME pressure is believed to contribute to the development of chronic ear diseases. In this work subjects with chronic central perforation (CCP), healthy ears with ventilation tubes (VTs), attic cholesteatoma (AC) and Meniere’s diseas

Risk stratification of patients with chronic kidney disease and atherosclerotic heart disease is crucial. Microalbuminuria (MA) is associated with an increased risk of kidney and cardiovascular (CV) death, especially in patients with diabetes. However, MA in many instances is not sensitive for disease outcome; for instance, not all diabetic patients with albuminuria progress to kidney failure, and

Gastrointestinal dysmotility is common, particularly in patients with diabetes mellitus. The aim of this thesis is to explore whether gastrointestinal dysmotility and endocrine secretion are interrelated, and how the symptoms manifest themselves in these patients. Patients with diabetes mellitus and gastrointestinal symptoms underwent gastric emptying scintigraphy, esophageal manometry and deep-

Autoimmunity, such as type 1 diabetes (T1D), arises as a result of tolerance breakdown against host tissues, i.e. the β-cells. Central tolerance is established during thymic T cell development and defects in key events during this process could contribute to the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases. The work presented in this thesis was aiming at unravelling some of those aspects. We have investi

Immune cells play paradoxical roles in cancer progression. On one hand, the immune system protects us against tumor development by recognizing and eliminating cancerous cells. On the other hand, tumor-associated immune cells can contribute to tumor progression by secreting growth factors as well as immunosuppressive, pro-angiogenic and/or pro-metastatic mediators. In this thesis we identified a f

This thesis explores the relation between gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and gastrointestinal symptoms and dysmotility. In primary Sjögren’s syndrome (pSS), a patient group with high levels of GnRH antibodies, associations between objective signs and symptoms of autonomic dysfunction (AD), impaired gastric emptying (IGE), and inflammatory and serological features were studied. Forty-three

Total hip arthroplasty is a very successful procedure. Despite this fact, however, a certain portion of patients has to be revised. One major reason for revision is the wear of the polyethylene leading to loosening and osteolysis. The overall aim of this thesis was to evaluate linear wear and migration of cemented, all - polyethylene sockets and polyethylene liners in total hip arthroplasty. The a

Atoms and molecules absorb and emit light at certain, welldefined wavelengths, and this forms the basis of spectroscopy. The wavelengths are given by the discrete energy levels of the atoms/molecules. When illuminated by light of a suitable wavelength, the light will be absorbed, making it possible to deduce information on the presence and concentration of various elements and compounds. When ato

The aim of this work was to get a more detailed basis for planning of local public transport. With more knowledge of how segments of travellers assess different parts of a journey, bus routes can be planned to fit either all passengers or selected groups better. It will also be possible to evaluate perceived travel utility separately for each category of passengers. Stated Preference questionnaire

HAMLET (human alpha-lactalbumin made lethal to tumor cells), a molecular complex derived from human milk, is an interesting new tool in cancer research since it induces programmed cell death in tumor cells while leaving normal, differentiated cells unharmed. The in vivo effects of HAMLET were studied in a rat xenograft model of human glioblastoma. HAMLET reduced the tumor volume and delayed the o

Spectroscopic analysis of scattering media is difficult because the effective path length of the light is non-trivial to predict when photons are scattered many times. The main area of research for such conditions is biological tissues, which scatter light because of variations of the refractive index on the cellular level. In order to analyze tissues to diagnose diseases, or predict doses during,

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a heterogeneous disorder that is defined as carbohydrate intolerance with onset or first recognition during pregnancy. Impaired beta-cell function and insulin resistance are the hallmarks of GDM. The overall aim of this thesis was to study the genetic and immunological risk factors that increase susceptibility to GDM. First, we investigated whether autoimmuni

Tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy can be utilised for gas detection in biological and medical applications. The common approach is to analyse transmitted light according to the Beer-Lambertian law. Normally, the light has a well-defined path length through the gas sample since it can be assumed that it has negligible scattering properties. Samples which, by contrast, have strong scatteri

The aim of this thesis is to describe suicide attempts in a group of drug abusers who previously had received treatment of their addiction. Another aim is to interpret and analyse the life situations that the individual associates with the suicide attempt. The dissertation is based on interviews conducted on two occasions with 92 drug abusers, 62 men and 30 women. The majority of the drug abusers

New results are presented from the investigation of relative sea-level changes in the Nanortalik and Qaqortoq-Narsarsuaq areas in SW Greenland from c. 11 000 cal. years BP to the present. Isolation and transgression sequences from seven lakes and seven tidal basins are identified using some of the traditional methods such as stratigraphic description, magnetic susceptibility, saturated induced rem