| 101. |
- Sarwar, Farhan, et al.
(author)
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Vittnens kommunikation med andra: Effekter på minnesbehållning och metakognitiv realism
- 2008
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In: Policing in Scandinavia: Proceedings From the Conference on Policing Research in Växjö, August 2007. Växjö University Studies in Policing; 005-2008.. - 1654-6776. ; :005-2008, s. 235-254
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Witnesses to a crime repeat and discuss the event several times during the legal process. The repetitions and discussions may influence the quality of recall as well as the confidence a witness feels in the remembered information. To probe this matter, participants in the current study viewed a short film and then either repeatedly, over a period of three weeks, 1) discussed the event in the lab 2) discussed the event with a family member 3) repeated the event to a silent listener or 4) did nothing. Participants then free-recalled the events in the video, and answered a set of forced choice focused questions. Finally all answers were confidence-judged. For free recall, the repetition condition showed superior accuracy, confidence and calibration compared to all other groups. Discussions tended to result in higher quantity of information than all other groups, whereas accuracy, confidence and calibration remained similar to those in the control group. The groups did not differ on over/under confidence nor did they differ on slope. No group differences were found for the focused questions.
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| 102. |
- Sköldenberg, Erik G., et al.
(author)
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The angiogenic growth factors HGF and VEGF in serum and plasma from neuroblastoma patients
- 2009
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In: Anticancer Research. - 0250-7005 .- 1791-7530. ; 29:8, s. 3311-3319
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- AIM: To determine whether concentrations of the angiogenic growth factors hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A) correlate with clinical and genetic markers in samples taken at diagnosis in children with neuroblastoma (NB). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Heparin plasma (P-) and serum (S-) samples of healthy controls (n=73, mean age +/- SD 3.5+/-2.1; females/males: 23/50) and patients with NB (n=62; 2.2+/-1.8; 26/36) were collected between 1988 and 1999. Clinical data included age at diagnosis, gender, stage, outcome, amplification of the oncogene MYCN, loss of heterozygosity at the short arm of chromosome 1 (1p LOH) and ploidy. RESULTS: HGF and S-VEGF-A were elevated in NB as compared to controls (38/62 patients, p<0.0001 and p<0.05, Mann-Whitney U test). HGF concentrations were higher in high-stage (stage 3-4) as compared to low-stage (stage 1-2) disease (p<0.01). P-HGF was elevated in patients with 1p LOH (p<0.01), MYCN amplification (p<0.001) and di- or tetraploidy (p<0.001). S-HGF concentration was elevated in patients MYCN-amplified tumors only. Plasma and S-HGF concentrations were higher in the deceased group (p<0.05), but not P or S-VEGF-A. CONCLUSION: This study showed that concentrations of HGF and S-VEGF-A are elevated in patients with NB. Furthermore, HGF and S-VEGF-A concentrations correlate to higher stage disease and HGF correlates to genetic markers known to indicate a poor outcome. These observations imply that HGF and VEGF-A have biological roles in NB and suggest the possibility of interference with HGF or VEGF-A signaling as a therapeutic strategy.
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| 103. |
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The African Food Crisis: Lessons from the Asian Green Revolution.
- 2005
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Editorial collection (other academic/artistic)abstract
- This book is the outcome of a three-year project coordinated by a group of Swedish researchers and with collaborating scholars from Africa and Asia. It provides a comparative study between Asian agricultural development during the Green Revolution in food production and the current problematic agricultural situation in sub-Saharan Africa. Case studies of eight African and eight Asian countries (focusing on the early part of the Green Revolution) were carried out. Based on these studies the book presents a causal and explanatory model of Asian green revolutions and discusses why it has occurred in Asia, but not in Africa.
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| 104. |
- Thorslund, Sara, et al.
(author)
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A PDMS-based disposable microfluidic sensor for CD4+ lymphotic counting
- 2008
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In: Biomedical microdevices (Print). - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1387-2176 .- 1572-8781. ; 10:6, s. 851-857
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A refined sensor for CD4+ lymphocyte count was developed and evaluated by comparison to flow cytometry. The micropillar structured sensor surface was cast in PDMS polymer and surface modified to gain biocompatibility and CD4-cell capturing properties. The sensor works by pure capillary action and sample filling and rinsing is performed without external equipment. Whole blood samples showed acceptable agreement (79%) with flow cytometry, however when diluting the blood in PBS buffer we discovered that a larger number of cells were drawn into the sensor microchannel compared to the initial sample, explained by enhanced shear-induced cell migration. Using plasma or PBS with glycerol or albumin additives as diluting media greatly influenced this cell behavior, showing the importance of controlling the dilution media when working with devices based on capillary filling. The sensors need to be further tested with blood samples with lower CD4-counts (<500 cells/μl), which are clinically relevant.
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| 105. |
- Thorslund, Sara, et al.
(author)
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Bioactivated PDMS microchannel evaluated as sensor for human CD4+ cells : The concept of a point-of-care method for HIV monitoring
- 2007
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In: Sensors and actuators. B, Chemical. - : Elsevier BV. - 0925-4005 .- 1873-3077. ; 123:2, s. 847-855
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Up to today, the number of CD4(+) lymphocytes remains the most important biological marker to determine the clinical stage of an HIV-infection. Analysis by flow cytometry, the standard method used today, is unsuitable in many developing countries, because of high costs involved and practical inconveniences. We here present the concept of an inexpensive PDMS-based point-of-care device for CD4(-)count. A simple fluorescence microscope for stained leucocytes counting is the only detection equipment needed. The biosensor surface consists of an initial heparin-based coating that adds hydrophilicity and thromboresistance to the PDMS material. The specific capturing chemistry is based on an avidin/biotin-antibody surface architecture. Pure capillary forces draw whole blood, as well as rinsing buffer, into the biosensor channel, minimizing the need of external equipment. Detection of the captured cells was performed by fluorescence imaging of HOECHST (stains cell nuclei) and CD3-FITC signals. It was shown that the non-specific adsorption of CD4(-) leucocytes was minimal to none. and the detection could therefore be done by only counting the easy identifiable HOECHST+ cells. Characterization of the biosensor coating process was additionally performed with the quartz crystal microbalance-dissipation technique.
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| 106. |
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| 107. |
- Thorslund, Sara, et al.
(author)
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Functionality and stability of heparin immobilized onto poly(dimethylsiloxane)
- 2005
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In: Colloids and Surfaces B. - : Elsevier BV. - 0927-7765 .- 1873-4367. ; 45:2, s. 76-81
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) has become an attractive material when working in the field of microfluidics, mainly because of the rapid prototyping process it involves. The increased surface volume ratio in microchannels makes the interaction between sample and material surface highly important, evident when handling complex biological samples such as plasma or blood. This study demonstrates a new grade of non-covalent heparin surface that adds efficient anticoagulant property to the PDMS material. The surface modification is a simple and fast one-step process performed at neutral pH, optimal when working with closed microsystems. The heparin formed a uniform and functional coating on hydrophobic PDMS with comparatively high level of antithrombin-binding capacity. In addition, long-term studies revelaed that the immobilized heparin was more or less stable in the microchannels over a time of three weeks. Recalcified plasma in contact with native PDMS showed complete coagulation after 1 h, while no fibrin formation was detected in plasma incubated on heparin-coated PDMS within the same time. In conclusion, we see the heparin coating developed and evaluated in this study as a tool that greatly facilitates the use of PDMS in microfluidics dealing with plasma or blood samples.
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| 108. |
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| 109. |
- Trulson, Agneta, et al.
(author)
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The functional heterogeneity of eosinophil cationic protein is determined by a gene polymorphism and post-translational modifications
- 2007
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In: Clinical and Experimental Allergy. - : Wiley. - 0954-7894 .- 1365-2222. ; 37:2, s. 208-218
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background The eosinophil is a cytotoxic cell and takes part in parasite killing and tissue-destructive processes by secretion of proteins such as eosinophil cationic protein (ECP). A polymorphism was demonstrated in the ECP gene, giving rise to a substitution of arginine at position 97 with threonine. This polymorphism is related to disease development. Objective To investigate the functional and molecular heterogeneity of native ECP and the functional consequences of the replacement of arginine with a threonine. Methods ECP was purified from healthy blood donors by gel filtration, ion-exchange chromatography and reversed-phase chromatography. Recombinant ECPs i.e. rECP 97arg and rECP 97thr were produced by the pFASTBAC baculovirus expression system. The cytotoxic activity was determined against an erythroleukaemia or a small cell lung cancer cell line. Results Native ECP was purified to apparent homogeneity and showed a considerable molecular heterogeneity and a corresponding functional heterogeneity with respect to cytotoxic activity. After reduction, the native cytotoxic ECP showed three bands on sodium dodecylsulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis: one major band at 18-20 kDa and two minor bands at about 10 and 5 kDa, respectively. The 5 kDa contained two masses differing with 56.2 Da, which corresponds to the difference in molecular masses of arginine and threonine. rECP 97arg was cytotoxic in contrast to rECP97thr. Deglycosylation with N-glycosidase F did not affect the cytotoxic activity of native ECP to any measurable extent nor the activity of rECP 97arg, whereas rECP 97thr achieved cytotoxic activity. The RNase activities of the recombinant and native ECPs were similar. Conclusion We conclude that ECP is present in several molecular forms with varying biological activities. Some of this functional heterogeneity is based on the genetic polymorphism of the ECP gene and some on post-translational modifications. In subjects carrying the ECP 97thr variant, the cytotoxic activity may be disguised by N-linked glycosylation of the active site.
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| 110. |
- Van Dick, Rolf, et al.
(author)
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Climbing the Mountain : An Introduction to the Journey
- 2007. - 1st Edition
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In: From Intensified Work to Professional Development: A Journey through European Schools. - Brussels, Belgium : P.I.E. Peter Lang SA. - 9789052010632 - 9052010633 ; , s. 13-20
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Book chapter (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Why this title for an introduction to a book on teacher’s working life? We believe the title applies in two respects. First, teachers often feel that they have to climb enormous hills in their daily work. As some of the chapters in this book will show, teaching can be demanding, distressing and even painful. Teachers often have to dela with disruptive students, with red tape and bureaucracy, with large classes, new curricula, etc. On the other hand, teaching can also be very rewarding. Like the climber who has reached the top and feels intrinsically satisfied when enjoying the view from the summit, teachers have also moments when they feel encouraged when their students achieve their objectives, by positive feedback from head teachers or parents, or by experiencing the positive aspects of working in a team.
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