| 1. |
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| 2. |
- Sawcer, Stephen, et al.
(författare)
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Genetic risk and a primary role for cell-mediated immune mechanisms in multiple sclerosis
- 2011
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 476:7359, s. 214-219
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Multiple sclerosis is a common disease of the central nervous system in which the interplay between inflammatory and neurodegenerative processes typically results in intermittent neurological disturbance followed by progressive accumulation of disability. Epidemiological studies have shown that genetic factors are primarily responsible for the substantially increased frequency of the disease seen in the relatives of affected individuals, and systematic attempts to identify linkage in multiplex families have confirmed that variation within the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) exerts the greatest individual effect on risk. Modestly powered genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have enabled more than 20 additional risk loci to be identified and have shown that multiple variants exerting modest individual effects have a key role in disease susceptibility. Most of the genetic architecture underlying susceptibility to the disease remains to be defined and is anticipated to require the analysis of sample sizes that are beyond the numbers currently available to individual research groups. In a collaborative GWAS involving 9,772 cases of European descent collected by 23 research groups working in 15 different countries, we have replicated almost all of the previously suggested associations and identified at least a further 29 novel susceptibility loci. Within the MHC we have refined the identity of the HLA-DRB1 risk alleles and confirmed that variation in the HLA-A gene underlies the independent protective effect attributable to the class I region. Immunologically relevant genes are significantly overrepresented among those mapping close to the identified loci and particularly implicate T-helper-cell differentiation in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis.
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| 3. |
- Shungin, Dmitry, et al.
(författare)
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New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.
- 2015
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 518:7538, s. 187-378
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms.
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| 4. |
- Alipour, Nazanin, et al.
(författare)
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VOC-Induced Flexing of Single and Multilayer Polyethylene Films As Gas Sensors
- 2016
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Ingår i: ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 1944-8244 .- 1944-8252. ; 8:15, s. 9946-9953
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The differential swelling and bending of multilayer polymeric films due to the dissimilar uptake of volatile organic compounds (VOCs; n-hexane, limonene) in the different layers was studied. Motions of thin polyethylene films triggered by the penetrant were investigated to learn more about how their deformation is related to VOC absorption. Single layers of metallocene or low-density polyethylene, and multilayers (2-288-layers) of these in alternating positions were considered. Single-, 24-, and 288 layer films displayed no motion when uniformly subjected to VOCs, but they could display simple curving modes when only one side of the film was wetted with a liquid VOC. Two-layer films displayed simple bending when uniformly subjected to VOCs due to the different swelling in the two layers, but when the VOC was applied to only one side of the film, more complex modes of motion as well as dynamic oscillations were observed (e.g., constant amplitude wagging at 2 Hz for ca. 50 s until all the VOC had evaporated). Diffusion modeling was used to study the transport behavior of VOCs inside the films and the different bending modes. Finally a prototype VOC sensor was developed, where the reproducible curving of the two-layer film was calibrated with n-hexane. The sensor is simple, cost-efficient, and nondestructive and requires no electricity.
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| 5. |
- Andersson, Richard L., et al.
(författare)
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Antibacterial Properties of Tough and Strong Electrospun PMMA/PEO Fiber Mats Filled with Lanasol-A Naturally Occurring Brominated Substance
- 2014
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Ingår i: International Journal of Molecular Sciences. - : MDPI AG. - 1661-6596 .- 1422-0067. ; 15:9, s. 15912-15923
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A new type of antimicrobial, biocompatible and toughness enhanced ultra-thin fiber mats for biomedical applications is presented. The tough and porous fiber mats were obtained by electrospinning solution-blended poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and polyethylene oxide (PEO), filled with up to 25 wt % of Lanasol-a naturally occurring brominated cyclic compound that can be extracted from red sea algae. Antibacterial effectiveness was tested following the industrial Standard JIS L 1902 and under agitated medium (ASTM E2149). Even at the lowest concentrations of Lanasol, 4 wt %, a significant bactericidal effect was seen with a 4-log (99.99%) reduction in bacterial viability against S. aureus, which is one of the leading causes of hospital-acquired (nosocomial) infections in the world. The mechanical fiber toughness was insignificantly altered up to the maximum Lanasol concentration tested, and was for all fiber mats orders of magnitudes higher than electrospun fibers based on solely PMMA. This antimicrobial fiber system, relying on a dissolved antimicrobial agent (demonstrated by X-ray diffraction and Infrared (IR)-spectroscopy) rather than a dispersed and "mixed-in" solid antibacterial particle phase, presents a new concept which opens the door to tougher, stronger and more ductile antimicrobial fibers.
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| 6. |
- Andersson, Richard L., et al.
(författare)
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Micromechanical Tensile Testing of Cellulose-Reinforced Electrospun Fibers Using a Template Transfer Method (TTM)
- 2012
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Ingår i: Journal of Polymers and the Environment. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1566-2543 .- 1572-8919 .- 1572-8900. ; 20:4, s. 967-975
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A template transfer method (TTM) and a fiber fixation technique were established for fiber handling and micro tensile stage mounting of aligned and non-aligned electrospun fiber mats. The custom-made template had been precut to be mounted on a variety of collectors, including a rapidly rotating collector used to align the fibers. The method eliminated need for direct physical interaction with the fiber mats before or during the tensile testing since the fiber mats were never directly clamped or removed from the original substrate. By using the TTM it was possible to measure the tensile properties of aligned poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) fiber mats, which showed a 250 % increase in strength and 450 % increase in modulus as compared to a non-aligned system. The method was further evaluated for aligned PMMA fibers reinforced with cellulose (4 wt%) prepared as enzymatically derived nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC). These fibers showed an additional increase of 30 % in both tensile strength and modulus, resulting in a toughness increase of 25 %. The fracture interfaces of the PMMA-NFC fibers showed a low amount of NFC pull-outs, indicating favorable phase compatibility. The presented fiber handling technique is universal and may be applied where conservative estimates of mechanical properties need to be assessed for very thin fibers.
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| 7. |
- Andersson, Richard L., et al.
(författare)
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Micromechanics of ultra-toughened electrospun PMMA/PEO fibres as revealed by in-situ tensile testing in an electron microscope
- 2014
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Ingår i: Scientific Reports. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2045-2322. ; 4, s. 6335-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A missing cornerstone in the development of tough micro/nano fibre systems is an understanding of the fibre failure mechanisms, which stems from the limitation in observing the fracture of objects with dimensions one hundredth of the width of a hair strand. Tensile testing in the electron microscope is herein adopted to reveal the fracture behaviour of a novel type of toughened electrospun poly(methyl methacrylate)/poly(ethylene oxide) fibre mats for biomedical applications. These fibres showed a toughness more than two orders of magnitude greater than that of pristine PMMA fibres. The in-situ microscopy revealed that the toughness were not only dependent on the initial molecular alignment after spinning, but also on the polymer formulation that could promote further molecular orientation during the formation of micro/nano-necking. The true fibre strength was greater than 150 MPa, which was considerably higher than that of the unmodified PMMA (17 MPa). This necking phenomenon was prohibited by high aspect ratio cellulose nanocrystal fillers in the ultra-tough fibres, leading to a decrease in toughness by more than one order of magnitude. The reported necking mechanism may have broad implications also within more traditional melt-spinning research.
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| 8. |
- Andersson, Richard, et al.
(författare)
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Superparamagnetic [sic] nanofibers by electrospinning
- 2016
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Ingår i: RSC Advances. - : Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). - 2046-2069. ; 6:26, s. 21413-21422
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The preparation of superparamagnetic thin fibers by electrospinning dispersions of nanosized magnetite (Fe3O4, SPIO/USPIO) in a PMMA/PEO polymer solution is reported. The saturation magnetization and coercivity were not affected by the concentration (0, 1, 10, 20 wt%) or fiber orientation, showing hysteresis loops with high magnetization (64 A m(2) kg(-1) @ 500 kA m(-1)) and record low coercivity (20 A m(-1)). AC susceptibility measurements vs. temperature at frequencies from 60 to 2 kHz confirmed superparamagnetism. The mechanical properties were only slightly dependent on the particle concentration because the nanoparticles were separately encapsulated by the polymer. A uniform fibre fracture cross section was found at all the investigated particle contents, which suggests a strong interaction at the polymer/particle interface. A theoretical value of the magnetic low field susceptibility was calculated from the Langevin function and compared with measured values. The results show a distinct but concentration-independent anisotropy, favoring magnetization along the fiber orientation with no sign of exchange interaction, explained by complete nanoparticle separation. Superparamagnetism cannot be inferred from particle size alone, so a relevant interpretation and criterion for superparamagnetism is presented, in accordance with Neel's original definition. From the measurements, it can be concluded that magnetic characterization can be used to elucidate the material morphology beyond the resolution of available microscopy techniques (TEM and SEM).
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| 9. |
- Antonio, Capezza, et al.
(författare)
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Preparation and Comparison of Reduced Graphene Oxide and Carbon Nanotubes as Fillers in Conductive Natural Rubber for Flexible Electronics
- 2019
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Ingår i: Omega. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 0030-2228 .- 1541-3764. ; 4:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Conductive natural rubber (NR) nanocomposites were prepared by solvent-casting suspensions of reduced graphene oxide(rGO) or carbon nanotubes (CNTs), followed by vulcanization of the rubber composites. Both rGO and CNT were compatible as fillers in the NR as well as having sufficient intrinsic electrical conductivity for functional applications. Physical (thermal) and chemical reduction of GO were investigated, and the results of the reductions were monitored by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy for establishing a reduction protocol that was useful for the rGO nanocomposite preparation. Field-emission scanning electron microscopy showed that both nanofillers were adequately dispersed in the main NR phase. The CNT composite displays a marked mechanical hysteresis and higher elongation at break, in comparison to the rGO composites for an equal fraction of the carbon phase. Moreover, the composite conductivity was always ca. 3-4 orders of magnitude higher for the CNT composite than for the rGO composites, the former reaching a maximum conductivity of ca. 10.5 S/m, which was explained by the more favorable geometry of the CNT versus the rGO sheets. For low current density applications though, both composites achieved the necessary percolation and showed the electrical conductivity needed for being applied as flexible conductors for a light-emitting diode.
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| 10. |
- Aplenc, Richard, et al.
(författare)
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Effect of body mass in children with hematologic malignancies undergoing allogeneic bone marrow transplantation.
- 2014
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Ingår i: Blood. - : American Society of Hematology. - 0006-4971 .- 1528-0020. ; 123:22, s. 3504-11
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The rising incidence of pediatric obesity may significantly affect bone marrow transplantation (BMT) outcomes. We analyzed outcomes in 3687 children worldwide who received cyclophosphamide-based BMT regimens for leukemias between 1990 and 2007. Recipients were classified according to age-adjusted body mass index (BMI) percentiles as underweight (UW), at risk of UW (RUW), normal, overweight (OW), or obese (OB). Median age and race were similar in all groups. Sixty-one percent of OB children were from the United States/Canada. Three-year relapse-free and overall survival ranged from 48% to 52% (P = .54) and 55% to 58% (P = .81) across BMI groups. Three-year leukemia relapses were 33%, 33%, 29%, 25%, and 21% in the UW, RUW, normal, OW, and OB groups, respectively (P < .001). Corresponding cumulative incidences for transplant-related mortality (TRM) were 18%, 19%, 21%, 22%, and 28% (P < .01). Multivariate analysis demonstrated a decreased risk of relapse compared with normal BMI (relative risk [RR] = 0.73; P < .01) and a trend toward higher TRM (RR = 1.28; P = .014). BMI in children is not significantly associated with different survival after BMT for hematologic malignancies. Obese children experience less relapse posttransplant compared with children with normal BMI; however, this benefit is offset by excess in TRM.
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