| 1. |
- Abrahamsson, Thomas, et al.
(författare)
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Low diversity of the gut microbiota in infants with atopic eczema
- 2012
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Ingår i: Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. - New York, USA : Elsevier BV. - 0091-6749 .- 1097-6825. ; 129:2, s. 434-U244
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: It is debated whether a low total diversity of the gut microbiota in early childhood is more important than an altered prevalence of particular bacterial species for the increasing incidence of allergic disease. The advent of powerful, cultivation-free molecular methods makes it possible to characterize the total microbiome down to the genus level in large cohorts. OBJECTIVE: We sought to assess microbial diversity and characterize the dominant bacteria in stool during the first year of life in relation to atopic eczema development. METHODS: Microbial diversity and composition were analyzed with barcoded 16S rDNA 454-pyrosequencing in stool samples at 1 week, 1 month, and 12 months of age in 20 infants with IgE-associated eczema and 20 infants without any allergic manifestation until 2 years of age (ClinicalTrials.gov ID NCT01285830). RESULTS: Infants with IgE-associated eczema had a lower diversity of the total microbiota at 1 month (P= .004) and a lower diversity of the bacterial phylum Bacteroidetes and the genus Bacteroides at 1 month (P= .02 and P= .01) and the phylum Proteobacteria at 12 months of age (P= .02). The microbiota was less uniform at 1 month than at 12 months of age, with a high interindividual variability. At 12 months, when the microbiota had stabilized, Proteobacteria, comprising gram-negative organisms, were more abundant in infants without allergic manifestation (Empirical Analysis of Digital Gene Expression in R edgeR test: P= .008, q= 0.02). CONCLUSION: Low intestinal microbial diversity during the first month of life was associated with subsequent atopic eczema.
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| 2. |
- Abrahamsson, Thomas, et al.
(författare)
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No effect of probiotics on respiratory allergies : a seven-year follow-up of a randomized controlled trial in infancy
- 2013
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Ingår i: Pediatric Allergy and Immunology. - : Wiley. - 0905-6157 .- 1399-3038. ; 24:6, s. 556-561
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Supplementation with the probioticLactobacillus reuteri reduced the incidence of IgE-associated allergic disease in infancy. This treatment might therefore also reduce the risk of asthma and allergic rhinoconjunctivitis in school age.Objective: To evaluate whether perinatal and infant supplementation withL.reuteri reduced the prevalence of respiratory allergic disease in school age and to explore whether this supplementation was associated with any long-term side effects.Methods: A randomized, placebo-controlled trial with oral supplementation withL.reuteriATCC 55730 (1x10(8)CFU) during the last month of gestation and through the first year of life comprising 232 families with allergic disease, of whom 184 completed a 7-yr follow-up. The primary outcomes at 7yr of age were allergic disease and skin prick test reactivity (ClinicalTrials.govID NCT01285830).Results: The prevalence of asthma (15% in the probiotic vs. 16% in placebo group), allergic rhinoconjunctivitis (27% vs. 20%), eczema (21% vs. 19%) and skin prick test reactivity (29% vs. 26%) was similar in the probiotic and placebo group. Growth indices and gastrointestinal symptoms were similar in the two groups. No severe adverse events were reported.Conclusion: The effect ofL.reuteri on sensitization andIgE-associated eczema in infancy did not lead to a lower prevalence of respiratory allergic disease in school age. Thus, the effect ofL.reuteri on the immune system seems to be transient. Administration ofL.reuteri during the last weeks of gestation and in infancy was not associated with any long-term side effects.
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| 3. |
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| 4. |
- Abrikossova, Natalia, et al.
(författare)
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Effects of gadolinium oxide nanoparticles on the oxidative burst from human neutrophil granulocytes
- 2012
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Ingår i: Nanotechnology. - Bristol, United Kingdom : IOP Publishing Ltd.. - 0957-4484 .- 1361-6528. ; 23:27
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We have previously shown that gadolinium oxide (Gd2O3) nanoparticles are promising candidates to be used as contrast agents in magnetic resonance (MR) imaging applications. In this study, these nanoparticles were investigated in a cellular system, as possible probes for visualization and targeting intended for bioimaging applications. We evaluated the impact of the presence of Gd2O3 nanoparticles on the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) from human neutrophils, by means of luminol-dependent chemiluminescence. Three sets of Gd2O3 nanoparticles were studied, i.e. as synthesized, dialyzed and both PEG-functionalized and dialyzed Gd2O3 nanoparticles. In addition, neutrophil morphology was evaluated by fluorescent staining of the actin cytoskeleton and fluorescence microscopy. We show that surface modification of these nanoparticles with polyethylene glycol (PEG) is essential in order to increase their biocompatibility. We observed that the as synthesized nanoparticles markedly decreased the ROS production from neutrophils challenged with prey (opsonized yeast particles) compared to controls without nanoparticles. After functionalization and dialysis, more moderate inhibitory effects were observed at a corresponding concentration of gadolinium. At lower gadolinium concentration the response was similar to that of the control cells. We suggest that the diethylene glycol (DEG) present in the as synthesized nanoparticle preparation is responsible for the inhibitory effects on the neutrophil oxidative burst. Indeed, in the present study we also show that even a low concentration of DEG, 0.3%, severely inhibits neutrophil function. In summary, the low cellular response upon PEG-functionalized Gd2O3 nanoparticle exposure indicates that these nanoparticles are promising candidates for MR-imaging purposes.
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| 5. |
- Adolfsson, Ann-Sofie, et al.
(författare)
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Applicability of general grief theory to Swedish women’s experiences after early miscarriage, with factor analysis of Bonanno´s taxonomy, using the Perinatal Grief Scale.
- 2010
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Ingår i: Upsala Journal of Medical Sciences. - : Uppsala Medical Society. - 0300-9734 .- 2000-1967. ; 115:3, s. 201-209
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background. Grief is a normal phenomenon but showing great variation depending on cultural and personal features. Bonanno and Kaltman have nonetheless proposed five aspects of normal grief. The aim of this study was to investigate if women with miscarriage experience normal grief. Material and methods. Content analyses of 25 transcribed conversations with women 4 weeks after their early miscarriages were classified depending on the meaning-bearing units according to Bonanno and Kaltman's categories. In the factor analyses, these categories were compared with the Perinatal Grief Scale and women's age, number of children and number of miscarriages, and gestational weeks. Results. Women with miscarriage fulfill the criteria for having normal grief according to Bonanno and Kaltman. All of the 25 women had meaning-bearing units that were classified as cognitive disorganization, dysphoria, and health deficits, whereas disrupted social and occupational functioning and positive aspects of bereavement were represented in 22 of 25 women. From the factor analysis, there are no differences in the expression of the intensity of the grief, irrespective of whether or not the women were primiparous, younger, or had suffered a first miscarriage. Conclusion. Women's experience of grief after miscarriage is similar to general grief after death. After her loss, the woman must have the possibility of expressing and working through her grief before she can finish her pregnancy emotionally. The care-giver must facilitate this process and accept that the intensity of the grief is not dependent on the woman's age, or her number of earlier miscarriages.
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
- Ahlsson, Anders, 1962-, et al.
(författare)
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A Swedish consensus on the surgical treatment of concomitant atrial fibrillation
- 2012
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Cardiovascular Journal. - London, United Kingdom : Informa Healthcare. - 1401-7431 .- 1651-2006. ; 46:4, s. 212-218
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common arrhythmia among patients scheduled for open heart surgery and is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. According to international guidelines, symptomatic and selected asymptomatic patients should be offered concomitant surgical AF ablation in conjunction with valvular or coronary surgery. The gold standard in AF surgery is the Cox Maze III ("cut-and-sew") procedure, with surgical incisions in both atria according to a specified pattern, in order to prevent AF reentry circuits from developing. Over 90% of patients treated with the Cox Maze III procedure are free of AF after 1 year. Recent developments in ablation technology have introduced several energy sources capable of creating nonconducting atrial wall lesions. In addition, simplified lesion patterns have been suggested, but results with these techniques have been unsatisfactory. There is a clear need for standardization in AF surgery. The Swedish Arrhythmia Surgery Group, represented by surgeons from all Swedish units for cardiothoracic surgery, has therefore reached a consensus on surgical treatment of concomitant AF. This consensus emphasizes adherence to the lesion pattern in the Cox Maze III procedure and the use of biatrial lesions in nonparoxysmal AF.
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| 8. |
- Ahrén, Maria, et al.
(författare)
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Synthesis and Characterization of PEGylated Gd2O3 Nanoparticles for MRI Contrast Enhancement
- 2010
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Ingår i: Langmuir. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 0743-7463 .- 1520-5827. ; 26:8, s. 5753-5762
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Recently, much attention has been given to the development of biofunctionalized nanoparticles with magnetic properties for novel biomedical imaging. Guided, smart, targeting nanoparticulate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents inducing high MRI signal will be valuable tools for future tissue specific imaging and investigation of molecular and cellular events. In this study. We report a new design of functionalized ultrasmall rare earth based nanoparticles to be used as a positive contrast agent in NI RI. The relaxivity is compared to commercially available Gd based chelates. The synthesis, PEGylation, and dialysis of small (3-5 nm) gadolinium oxide (DEG-Gd2O3) nanoparticles are presented. The chemical and physical properties of the nanomaterial were investigated with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and dynamic light scattering. Neutrophil activation after exposure to this nanomaterial was studied by means of fluorescence microscopy. The proton relaxation times as a function of dialysis time and functionalization were measured at 1.5 T. A capping procedure introducing stabilizing properties was designed and verified, and the dialysis effects were evaluated. A higher proton relaxivity was obtained for as-synthesized diethylene glycol (DEG)-Gd2O3 nanoparticles compared to commercial Gd-DTPA. A slight decrease of the relaxivity for as-synthesized DEG-Gd2O3 nanoparticles as a function of dialysis time was observed. The results for functionalized nanoparticles showed a considerable relaxivity increase for particles dialyzed extensively with r(1) and r(2) values approximately 4 times the corresponding values for Gd-DTPA. The microscopy study showed that PEGylated nanoparticles do not activate neutrophils in contrast to uncapped Gd2O3. Finally, the nanoparticles are equipped with Rhodamine to show that our PEGylated nanoparticles are available for further coupling chemistry, and thus prepared for targeting purposes. The long term goal is to design a powerful, directed contrast agent for MRI examinations with specific targeting possibilities and with properties inducing local contrast, that is. an extremely high MR signal at the cellular and molecular level.
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| 9. |
- Almen-Christensson, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Prevention of menstrual migraine with perimenstrual transdermal 17-beta-estradiol: a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind crossover study
- 2011
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Ingår i: Fertility and Sterility. - : Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam.. - 0015-0282 .- 1556-5653. ; 96:2, s. 498-500
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- he effect of treatment with percutaneous E(2) (100 mu g/24 h) during 2 weeks perimenstrually on the number and severity of menstrual migraine attacks was studied in 27 women in a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, crossover trial. We were not able to demonstrate any difference between E(2) supplementation and placebo on the number or severity of migraine attacks, but both regimens showed significant effects compared with before treatment.
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| 10. |
- Almroth, Gabriel, et al.
(författare)
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Fibroblast Growth Factor 23, Hepatocyte Growth Factor, Interleukin-6, High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein and Soluble Urokinase Plasminogen Activator Receptor. Inflammation Markers in Chronic Haemodialysis Patients?
- 2013
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Immunology. - : Wiley-Blackwell. - 0300-9475 .- 1365-3083. ; 78:3, s. 285-290
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Sera from 84 haemodialysis (HD) patients and 68 healthy blood donors were analysed with commercially available ELISA techniques for fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF-23), hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), interleukin-6 (Il-6), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR), to find a possible correlation of FGF-23 and HGF with the earlier recognized inflammatory markers Il-6 and hs-CRP or suPAR. All patients studied had significantly elevated levels of FGF-23, HGF, hs-CRP and suPAR as compared to the controls. Il-6 and hs-CRP correlated for patients (R=0.6) as well as for patients and controls altogether. Ln (natural logarithm) of HGF correlated weakly with Ln Il-6 and Ln CRP (R 0.28-0.37). Ln FGF-23 correlated only with Ln HGF (r=-0.25) in controls. Ln HGF correlated with ln suPAR (r=0.6) in both patients and controls. Although elevated as compared to controls, we found no correlation of FGF-23 with the recognized inflammatory markers Il-6, hs-CRP, nor HGF or the new marker suPAR in HD patients. Ln HGF correlated with Ln Il-6, Ln CRP and Ln suPAR. Although probably involved in vessel disease, FGF-23 and HGF may play other roles than acting in inflammatory vessel disease in HD patients. Further studies are necessary to evaluate the role of these immunological markers in chronic haemodialysis patients with atherosclerosis.
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