| 1. |
- Ek, Åsa, et al.
(författare)
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A study of the proactive occupational safety and health work in a Swedish construction company - the example of vibration exposure
- 2014
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Ingår i: [Host publication title missing]. - 9789176230053 ; , s. 360-370
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Exposure to vibrations from tools and machines used in construction work can induce damages to the human body. One of the most frequent symptoms is the hand-arm vibration syndrome commonly known as white fingers. The proportions of the international workforce exposed to vibrations are high and dominating sectors are construction, agriculture, forestry, and transport. Particularly exposed construction occupational groups include machine operators and drivers of vehicles. In 2005, the Swedish Work Environment Authority introduced a new guideline on the topic of preventing vibration exposure risks (AFS 2005:15) based on the European union 2002/44/EC directive on workers’ exposure to vibration. It includes raised demands on estimating vibration exposure, and clearly stated responsibilities and rights of employers and employees. However, in 2011 the Swedish Work Environment Authority’s inspections showed that many employers belonging to sectors such as building and construction, transport, and mining industry did not have any satisfactory proactive risk management work concerning vibration exposure. This paper reports on a pilot study performed in a large Swedish construction company with the aim to yield more knowledge about factors affecting the implementation of the guidelines and to suggest actions for improvement. A total of 31 construction workers and supervisors were interviewed at nine construction sites in southern Sweden. Interview results demonstrated a lack of knowledge in estimating vibration exposure; the incorporation of the Work Environment Authority’s directions had not been accomplished; driving forces for improving the proactive health and safety work and specifically vibration exposure management was weak on all organisational levels; important factors affecting the implementation of vibration exposure regulations are the psychosocial work environment at construction sites as well as company safety culture; a large proportion of the interviewed construction workers was judged to be at risk for developing vibration injuries if the exposure was not decreased; management, supervisory, and production levels need increased knowledge about vibration exposure and vibration injuries; and methods and tools for easy estimation of vibration exposure needs to be developed.
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| 2. |
- Adamovic, Svetlana, 1965, et al.
(författare)
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Fine mapping study in Scandinavian families suggests association between coeliac disease and haplotypes in chromosome region 5q32.
- 2008
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Ingår i: Tissue Antigens. - : Wiley. - 1399-0039 .- 0001-2815. ; 71:1, s. 27-34
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The previous genome-wide scan in Scandinavian families supported earlier evidence for linkage of a region on chromosome 5 (5q31–33) to coeliac disease. This study deals with further genetic mapping of an 18 cM region, spanning from marker GAh18A (131.87 Mb) to D5S640 (149.96 Mb). Linkage and association analyses were performed in a two-step approach. First, seven microsatellites were added. Strong evidence for linkage was obtained with a Zlr score of 3.96, Pnc = 4 × 10−5 at marker D5S436. The strongest association was with a haplotype consisting of the markers D5S2033 and D5S2490 (Pnc < 0.001). In the second step, we added 17 microsatellites and 69 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to the analysis. These markers were located close to or within candidate genes across the region of approximately 7 Mb beneath the linkage peak marked by D5S2017 and D5S812. A substantial increase of the linkage signal with a maximum Zlr score of 4.6 at marker rs1972644 (Pnc = 2 × 10−6) was obtained and several SNPs showed association. Seven SNPs that individually showed the strongest association were genotyped in a second independent family sample set (225 trios). In the trio family sample as well as in the multiplex family sample, the strongest association was found with SNPs within the region flanked by the associated microsatellites D5S2033 and D5S2490 at 5q32.
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| 3. |
- amundsen, silja, et al.
(författare)
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A comprehensive screen for SNP associations on chromosome region 5q31-33 in Swedish/Norwegian celiac disease families.
- 2007
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Ingår i: European Journal of Human genetics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1018-4813 .- 1476-5438. ; 15:9, s. 980-987
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Celiac disease (CD) is a gluten-induced enteropathy, which results from the interplay between environmental and genetic factors. There is a strong human leukocyte antigen (HLA) association with the disease, and HLA-DQ alleles represent a major genetic risk factor. In addition to HLA-DQ, non-HLA genes appear to be crucial for CD development. Chromosomal region 5q31–33 has demonstrated linkage with CD in several genome-wide studies, including in our Swedish/Norwegian cohort. In a European meta-analysis 5q31–33 was the only region that reached a genome-wide level of significance except for the HLA region. To identify the genetic variant(s) responsible for this linkage signal, we performed a comprehensive single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) association screen in 97 Swedish/Norwegian multiplex families who demonstrate linkage to the region. We selected tag SNPs from a 16 Mb region representing the 95% confidence interval of the linkage peak. A total of 1404 SNPs were used for the association analysis. We identified several regions with SNPs demonstrating moderate single- or multipoint associations. However, the isolated association signals appeared insufficient to account for the linkage signal seen in our cohort. Collective effects of multiple risk genes within the region, incomplete genetic coverage or effects related to copy number variation are possible explanations for our findings.
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| 4. |
- Ek, Weronica E, et al.
(författare)
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Genome-wide DNA methylation study identifies genes associated with the cardiovascular biomarker GDF-15
- 2016
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Ingår i: Human Molecular Genetics. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0964-6906 .- 1460-2083. ; 25:4, s. 817-827
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Growth-differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15) is expressed in low to moderate levels in most healthy tissues and increases in response to inflammation. GDF-15 is associated with cardiovascular dysfunction and over-expressed in the myocardium of patients with myocardial infarction (MI). However, little is known about the function of GDF-15 in cardiovascular disease, and the underlying regulatory network of GDF-15 is not known. To investigate a possible association between GDF-15 levels and DNA methylation, we performed a genome-wide DNA methylation study of white blood cells in a population-based study (N = 717). Significant loci where replicated in an independent cohort (N = 963). We also performed a gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis. We identified and replicated 16 CpG-sites (false discovery rate [FDR] < 0.05), at 11 independent loci including MIR21. MIR21 encodes a microRNA (miR-21) that has previously been shown to be associated with the development of heart disease. Interestingly, GDF15 mRNA contains a binding site for miR-21. Four sites were also differentially methylated in blood from participants previously diagnosed with MI and 14 enriched GO terms (FDR < 0.05, enrichment > 2) were identified, including 'cardiac muscle cell differentiation'. This study shows that GDF-15 levels are associated with differences in DNA methylation in blood cells, and a subset of the loci are also differentially methylated in participants with MI. However, there might be interactions between GDF-15 levels and methylation in other tissues not addressed in this study. These results provide novel links between GDF-15 and cardiovascular disease.
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| 5. |
- Ek, Weronica E., et al.
(författare)
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Tea and coffee consumption in relation to DNA methylation in four European cohorts
- 2017
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Ingår i: Human Molecular Genetics. - : Oxford University Press. - 0964-6906 .- 1460-2083. ; 26:16, s. 3221-3231
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Lifestyle factors, such as food choices and exposure to chemicals, can alter DNA methylation and lead to changes in gene activity. Two such exposures with pharmacologically active components are coffee and tea consumption. Both coffee and tea has been suggested to play an important role in modulating disease-risk in humans by suppressing tumour progression, decreasing inflammation and influencing estrogen metabolism. These mechanisms may be mediated by changes in DNA methylation.To investigate if DNA methylation in blood is associated with coffee and tea consumption we performed a genome-wide DNA methylation study for coffee and tea consumption in four European cohorts (N = 3,096). DNA methylation was measured from whole blood at 421,695 CpG sites distributed throughout the genome and analysed in men and women both separately and together in each cohort. Meta-analyses of the results and additional regional-level analyses were performed.After adjusting for multiple testing, the meta-analysis revealed that two individual CpG-sites, mapping to DNAJC16 and TTC17, were differentially methylated in relation to tea consumption in women. No individual sites were associated in men or in the sex-combined analysis for tea or coffee. The regional analysis revealed that 28 regions were differentially methylated in relation to tea consumption in women. These regions contained genes known to interact with estradiol metabolism and cancer. No significant regions were found in the sex-combined and male-only analysis for either tea or coffee consumption.
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| 6. |
- Thelander, Åsa, et al.
(författare)
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Expert risk communication from an organisational context view
- 2023
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Ingår i: ; , s. 65-65
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- During recent years new threats have accentuated the role of scientific experts for creating risk awareness, understanding, and advice for action or preparedness for informed risk decisions. Scientific experts are expected to engage in risk communication with stakeholders at various levels, not least the general public. Scientific experts exist in organizations where forms and goals may vary, as well as in various industries. One such expert is the radiation protection expert, who exist in several organizational contexts. Responsibilities and requirements on communication are linked to the profession and a general supporting guideline on risk communication was in 2020 launched bythe International Radiation Protection Agency. However, less focus is on the organizational context such as how organizational conditions create opportunities and obstacles for the expert’s risk communication. The aim of this study was to analyze opportunities and limitations in organizational contexts and the significance they have on the experts’ communication on radiation risks. We study how the radiation protection expert understand their responsibility to communicate, how the expert is involved in communication, and how communication is shaped by the organizational context. The qualitative study focuses on radiation protection experts in three cases or contexts having different goals: an authority, a university hospital, and a European research infrastructure consortium. Communicative logics in the organizations was studied through text analyses of home pages and documents. In-depth interviews with radiation protection experts was conducted to learn about theircommunication strategies, practices, and experiences. The study show that high demands are put on the radiation protection expert to engage in communication with the public despite an often existing lack of training in communication. The experts have an implicit understanding of communication and their strategies are experience-based and context dependent. The study shows that communicative logics within the expert’s organization create some possibilities but also hindrances for the expert to communicate risk. Two such logics, the media and a promotional logic entails that certain stakeholders, channels and type of communication is prioritized. In both cases, experts are involved to a low extent and other aspects than risks are highlighted.
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| 7. |
- Adamovic, Svetlana, 1965, et al.
(författare)
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Association study of IL2/IL21 and FcgRIIa: significant association with the IL2/IL21 region in Scandinavian coeliac disease families
- 2008
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Ingår i: Genes and immunity. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1466-4879 .- 1476-5470. ; 9:4, s. 364-367
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The first genome-wide association study performed in a UK coeliac disease (CD) case-control cohort revealed association with a linkage disequilibrium block containing the KIAA1109/Tenr/IL2/IL21 genes. Also recently, an association with a non-synonymous polymorphism in Fcitalic gammaRIIa (CD32a) was reported in CD with an unusually strong P-value. We aimed to replicate the reported associations with the single nucleotide polymorphisms rs13119723 A>G and rs6822844 G>T in the KIAA1109/Tenr/IL2/IL21 region and rs1801274 G>A in the Fcitalic gammaRIIa gene in a family sample consisting of 325 Swedish/Norwegian families using the robust transmission disequilibrium test. The family sample used in this study included 100 families with two or more children affected by CD and 225 families with one affected child. We could confirm significant association between the polymorphisms rs13119723 A>G and rs6822844 G>T located in the KIAA1109/Tenr/IL2/IL21 region and CD (P-value 0.001 and 0.002, respectively). However, we found no association with the Fcitalic gammaRIIa rs1801274 G>A polymorphism (P-value=0.3). In conclusion, our results support the KIAA1109/Tenr/IL2/IL21 region as a true CD susceptibility region.
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| 8. |
- Ahsan, Muhammad, et al.
(författare)
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The relative contribution of DNA methylation and genetic variants on protein biomarkers for human diseases.
- 2017
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Ingår i: PLOS Genetics. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1553-7390 .- 1553-7404. ; 13:9
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Associations between epigenetic alterations and disease status have been identified for many diseases. However, there is no strong evidence that epigenetic alterations are directly causal for disease pathogenesis. In this study, we combined SNP and DNA methylation data with measurements of protein biomarkers for cancer, inflammation or cardiovascular disease, to investigate the relative contribution of genetic and epigenetic variation on biomarker levels. A total of 121 protein biomarkers were measured and analyzed in relation to DNA methylation at 470,000 genomic positions and to over 10 million SNPs. We performed epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) and genome-wide association study (GWAS) analyses, and integrated biomarker, DNA methylation and SNP data using between 698 and 1033 samples depending on data availability for the different analyses. We identified 124 and 45 loci (Bonferroni adjusted P < 0.05) with effect sizes up to 0.22 standard units' change per 1% change in DNA methylation levels and up to four standard units' change per copy of the effective allele in the EWAS and GWAS respectively. Most GWAS loci were cis-regulatory whereas most EWAS loci were located in trans. Eleven EWAS loci were associated with multiple biomarkers, including one in NLRC5 associated with CXCL11, CXCL9, IL-12, and IL-18 levels. All EWAS signals that overlapped with a GWAS locus were driven by underlying genetic variants and three EWAS signals were confounded by smoking. While some cis-regulatory SNPs for biomarkers appeared to have an effect also on DNA methylation levels, cis-regulatory SNPs for DNA methylation were not observed to affect biomarker levels. We present associations between protein biomarker and DNA methylation levels at numerous loci in the genome. The associations are likely to reflect the underlying pattern of genetic variants, specific environmental exposures, or represent secondary effects to the pathogenesis of disease.
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| 9. |
- Akselsson, Roland, et al.
(författare)
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Efficient and effective learning for safety from incidents
- 2012
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Ingår i: Work. - 1051-9815 .- 1875-9270. ; 41, s. 3216-3222
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Learning from incidents is important for improving safety. Many companies spend a great deal of time and money on such learning procedures. The objectives of this paper are to present some early results from a project aimed at revealing weaknesses in the procedures for learning from incidents and to discuss improvements in these procedures, especially in chemical process industries. The empirical base comes from a project assessing organizational learning and the effectiveness of the different steps of the learning cycle for safety and studying relations between safety-specific transformational leadership, safety climate, trust, safety-related behavior and learning from incidents. The results point at common weaknesses in the organizational learning, both in the horizontal learning (geographical spread) and in vertical learning (double-loop learning). Furthermore, the effectiveness in the different steps of the learning cycle is low due to insufficient information in incident reports, very shallow analyses of reports, decisions that focus at solving the problem only at the place where the incident took place, late implementations and weak solutions. Strong correlations with learning from incidents were found for all safety climate variables as well as for safety-related behaviors and trust. The relationships were very strong for trust, safety knowledge, safety participation and safety compliance.
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| 10. |
- Akselsson, Roland, et al.
(författare)
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Resilience Safety Culture
- 2009
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Ingår i: 17th World Congress on Ergonomics 2009.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Safety culture may be seen as the oil necessary for an efficient safety management system. During the work in HILAS SMS task force some weaknesses in the use of safety culture in practice were identified. A work stream was initiated to identify further weaknesses and suggest remedies for them. The objective of this paper is to discuss some of the weaknesses and propose mitigations. A major suggestion is to actively look for „holes‟ in the safety culture and mitigate them. The „holes‟ could be low-score groups, low-score aspects of safety culture, and critical time-windows. Also the efforts by top management may need to be improved. Also means for feed forward control should be used and further developed as proposed by the new school of resilience engineering. Also when problems with long questionnaires are too big shorter questionnaires could be used complemented by interviews and studies of behaviour and artefacts.
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