| 1. |
- Ikram, M. Arfan, et al.
(författare)
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Common variants at 6q22 and 17q21 are associated with intracranial volume
- 2012
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Ingår i: Nature Genetics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1061-4036 .- 1546-1718. ; 44:5, s. 539-544
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- During aging, intracranial volume remains unchanged and represents maximally attained brain size, while various interacting biological phenomena lead to brain volume loss. Consequently, intracranial volume and brain volume in late life reflect different genetic influences. Our genome-wide association study (GWAS) in 8,175 community-dwelling elderly persons did not reveal any associations at genome-wide significance (P < 5 x 10(-8)) for brain volume. In contrast, intracranial volume was significantly associated with two loci: rs4273712 (P = 3.4 x 10(-11)), a known height-associated locus on chromosome 6q22, and rs9915547 (P = 1.5 x 10(-12)), localized to the inversion on chromosome 17q21. We replicated the associations of these loci with intracranial volume in a separate sample of 1,752 elderly persons (P = 1.1 x 10(-3) for 6q22 and 1.2 x 10(-3) for 17q21). Furthermore, we also found suggestive associations of the 17q21 locus with head circumference in 10,768 children (mean age of 14.5 months). Our data identify two loci associated with head size, with the inversion at 17q21 also likely to be involved in attaining maximal brain size.
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| 2. |
- Taal, H. Rob, et al.
(författare)
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Common variants at 12q15 and 12q24 are associated with infant head circumference
- 2012
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Ingår i: Nature Genetics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1061-4036 .- 1546-1718. ; 44:5, s. 532-538
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- To identify genetic variants associated with head circumference in infancy, we performed a meta-analysis of seven genome-wide association studies (GWAS) (N = 10,768 individuals of European ancestry enrolled in pregnancy and/or birth cohorts) and followed up three lead signals in six replication studies (combined N = 19,089). rs7980687 on chromosome 12q24 (P = 8.1 x 10(-9)) and rs1042725 on chromosome 12q15 (P = 2.8 x 10(-10)) were robustly associated with head circumference in infancy. Although these loci have previously been associated with adult height(1), their effects on infant head circumference were largely independent of height (P = 3.8 x 10(-7) for rs7980687 and P = 1.3 x 10(-7) for rs1042725 after adjustment for infant height). A third signal, rs11655470 on chromosome 17q21, showed suggestive evidence of association with head circumference (P = 3.9 x 10(-6)). SNPs correlated to the 17q21 signal have shown genome-wide association with adult intracranial volume(2), Parkinson's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases(3-5), indicating that a common genetic variant in this region might link early brain growth with neurological disease in later life.
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| 3. |
- Kivimäki, M., et al.
(författare)
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Job strain as a risk factor for coronary heart disease : A collaborative meta-analysis of individual participant data
- 2012
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Ingår i: The Lancet. - : Elsevier. - 0140-6736 .- 1474-547X. ; 380:9852, s. 1491-1497
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background Published work assessing psychosocial stress (job strain) as a risk factor for coronary heart disease is inconsistent and subject to publication bias and reverse causation bias. We analysed the relation between job strain and coronary heart disease with a meta-analysis of published and unpublished studies. Methods We used individual records from 13 European cohort studies (1985-2006) of men and women without coronary heart disease who were employed at time of baseline assessment. We measured job strain with questions from validated job-content and demand-control questionnaires. We extracted data in two stages such that acquisition and harmonisation of job strain measure and covariables occurred before linkage to records for coronary heart disease. We defined incident coronary heart disease as the first non-fatal myocardial infarction or coronary death. Findings 30 214 (15%) of 197 473 participants reported job strain. In 1•49 million person-years at risk (mean follow-up 7•5 years [SD 1•7]), we recorded 2358 events of incident coronary heart disease. After adjustment for sex and age, the hazard ratio for job strain versus no job strain was 1•23 (95% CI 1•10-1•37). This effect estimate was higher in published (1•43, 1•15-1•77) than unpublished (1•16, 1•02-1•32) studies. Hazard ratios were likewise raised in analyses addressing reverse causality by exclusion of events of coronary heart disease that occurred in the first 3 years (1•31, 1•15-1•48) and 5 years (1•30, 1•13-1•50) of follow-up. We noted an association between job strain and coronary heart disease for sex, age groups, socioeconomic strata, and region, and after adjustments for socioeconomic status, and lifestyle and conventional risk factors. The population attributable risk for job strain was 3•4%. Interpretation Our findings suggest that prevention of workplace stress might decrease disease incidence; however, this strategy would have a much smaller effect than would tackling of standard risk factors, such as smoking. Funding Finnish Work Environment Fund, the Academy of Finland, the Swedish Research Council for Working Life and Social Research, the German Social Accident Insurance, the Danish National Research Centre for the Working Environment, the BUPA Foundation, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment, the Medical Research Council, the Wellcome Trust, and the US National Institutes of Health.
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| 4. |
- Halme, P., et al.
(författare)
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Challenges of ecological restoration : Lessons from forests in northern Europe
- 2013
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Ingår i: Biological Conservation. - : Elsevier BV. - 0006-3207 .- 1873-2917. ; 167, s. 248-256
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- The alarming rate of ecosystem degradation has raised the need for ecological restoration throughout different biomes and continents. North European forests may appear as one of the least vulnerable ecosystems from a global perspective, since forest cover is not rapidly decreasing and many ecosystem services remain at high level. However, extensive areas of northern forests are heavily exploited and have lost a major part of their biodiversity value. There is a strong requirement to restore these areas towards a more natural condition in order to meet the targets of the Convention on Biological Diversity. Several northern countries are now taking up this challenge by restoring forest biodiversity with increasing intensity. The ecology and biodiversity of boreal forests are relatively well understood making them a good model for restoration activities in many other forest ecosystems. Here we introduce northern forests as an ecosystem, discuss the historical and recent human impact and provide a brief status report on the ecological restoration projects and research already conducted there. Based on this discussion, we argue that before any restoration actions commence, the ecology of the target ecosystem should be established with the need for restoration carefully assessed and the outcome properly monitored. Finally, we identify the most important challenges that need to be solved in order to carry out efficient restoration with powerful and long-term positive impacts on biodiversity: coping with unpredictability, maintaining connectivity in time and space, assessment of functionality, management of conflicting interests and social restrictions and ensuring adequate funding. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd.
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| 5. |
- Heikkila, K., et al.
(författare)
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Job strain and the risk of severe asthma exacerbations : a meta-analysis of individual-participant data from 100 000 European men and women
- 2014
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Ingår i: Allergy. European Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. - : Wiley. - 0105-4538 .- 1398-9995. ; 69:6, s. 775-783
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BackgroundMany patients and healthcare professionals believe that work-related psychosocial stress, such as job strain, can make asthma worse, but this is not corroborated by empirical evidence. We investigated the associations between job strain and the incidence of severe asthma exacerbations in working-age European men and women. MethodsWe analysed individual-level data, collected between 1985 and 2010, from 102 175 working-age men and women in 11 prospective European studies. Job strain (a combination of high demands and low control at work) was self-reported at baseline. Incident severe asthma exacerbations were ascertained from national hospitalization and death registries. Associations between job strain and asthma exacerbations were modelled using Cox regression and the study-specific findings combined using random-effects meta-analyses. ResultsDuring a median follow-up of 10years, 1 109 individuals experienced a severe asthma exacerbation (430 with asthma as the primary diagnostic code). In the age- and sex-adjusted analyses, job strain was associated with an increased risk of severe asthma exacerbations defined using the primary diagnostic code (hazard ratio, HR: 1.27, 95% confidence interval, CI: 1.00, 1.61). This association attenuated towards the null after adjustment for potential confounders (HR: 1.22, 95% CI: 0.96, 1.55). No association was observed in the analyses with asthma defined using any diagnostic code (HR: 1.01, 95% CI: 0.86, 1.19). ConclusionsOur findings suggest that job strain is probably not an important risk factor for severe asthma exacerbations leading to hospitalization or death.
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| 6. |
- Theorell, Töres, et al.
(författare)
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Job strain in relation to body mass index : pooled analysis of 160 000 adults from 13 cohort studies
- 2012
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Ingår i: Journal of Internal Medicine. - : Wiley. - 0954-6820 .- 1365-2796. ; 272:1, s. 65-73
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Job strain in relation to body mass index: pooled analysis of 160 000 adults from 13 cohort studies. J Intern Med 2012; 272: 6573. Background. Evidence of an association between job strain and obesity is inconsistent, mostly limited to small-scale studies, and does not distinguish between categories of underweight or obesity subclasses. Objectives. To examine the association between job strain and body mass index (BMI) in a large adult population. Methods. We performed a pooled cross-sectional analysis based on individual-level data from 13 European studies resulting in a total of 161 746 participants (49% men, mean age, 43.7 years). Longitudinal analysis with a median follow-up of 4 years was possible for four cohort studies (n = 42 222). Results. A total of 86 429 participants were of normal weight (BMI 18.524.9 kg m-2), 2149 were underweight (BMI < 18.5 kg m-2), 56 572 overweight (BMI 25.029.9 kg m-2) and 13 523 class I (BMI 3034.9 kg m-2) and 3073 classes II/III (BMI = 35 kg m-2) obese. In addition, 27 010 (17%) participants reported job strain. In cross-sectional analyses, we found increased odds of job strain amongst underweight [odds ratio 1.12, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.001.25], obese class I (odds ratio 1.07, 95% CI 1.021.12) and obese classes II/III participants (odds ratio 1.14, 95% CI 1.011.28) as compared with participants of normal weight. In longitudinal analysis, both weight gain and weight loss were related to the onset of job strain during follow-up. Conclusions. In an analysis of European data, we found both weight gain and weight loss to be associated with the onset of job strain, consistent with a U-shaped cross-sectional association between job strain and BMI. These associations were relatively modest; therefore, it is unlikely that intervention to reduce job strain would be effective in combating obesity at a population level.
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| 7. |
- Gylle, A. Maria, et al.
(författare)
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Photosynthesis in relation to D1, PsaA and Rubisco in marine and brackish water ecotypes of Fucus vesiculosus and Fucus radicans (Phaeophyceae)
- 2013
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Ingår i: Hydrobiologia. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0018-8158 .- 1573-5117. ; 700:1, s. 109-119
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim of this study was to investigate photosynthetic differences between the marine, Norwegian Sea ecotype and the brackish, Bothnian Sea ecotype of F. vesiculosus and F. radicans and to see whether photosynthetic differences could be connected with the relative amounts of D1 protein (PSII), PsaA (PSI) protein and/or Rubisco. For this purpose, we tested if a higher photosynthetic maximum (P (max)) in the Atlantic Ocean ecotype of F. vesiculosus relative to the Baltic Sea ecotype, and an increase of the P (max) in Baltic Sea ecotype of F. vesiculosus at higher salinity, could be due to an increase in the relative amounts of Rubisco. The proteins have been evaluated on a relative basis. Immunoblot signals showed that the amount of Rubisco was higher in both ecotypes of F. vesiculosus than in F. radicans, but no differences could be detected between the two ecotypes of F. vesiculosus. The results suggest an uneven photosystem protein stoichiometry in Fucus, with more of the PSI protein PsaA relative to the PSII protein D1. The difference in P (max) between the two ecotypes of F. vesiculosus might be related to the difficulties for the algae to adapt to the environment in Bothnian Sea.
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| 8. |
- Heikkilä, K., et al.
(författare)
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Job strain and health-related lifestyle : Findings from an individual-participant meta-analysis of 118 000 working adults
- 2013
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Ingår i: American Journal of Public Health. - 0090-0036 .- 1541-0048. ; 103:11, s. 2090-2097
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objectives. We examined the associations of job strain, an indicator of work-related stress, with overall unhealthy and healthy lifestyles. Methods. We conducted a meta-analysis of individual-level data from 11 European studies (cross-sectional data: n = 118 701; longitudinal data: n = 43 971). We analyzed job strain as a set of binary (job strain vs no job strain) and categorical (high job strain, active job, passive job, and low job strain) variables. Factors used to define healthy and unhealthy lifestyles were body mass index, smoking, alcohol intake, and leisure-time physical activity. Results. Individuals with job strain were more likely than those with no job strain to have 4 unhealthy lifestyle factors (odds ratio [OR] = 1.25; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.12, 1.39) and less likely to have 4 healthy lifestyle factors (OR = 0.89; 95% CI = 0.80, 0.99). The odds of adopting a healthy lifestyle during study follow-up were lower among individuals with high job strain than among those with low job strain (OR = 0.88; 95% CI = 0.81, 0.96). Conclusions. Work-related stress is associated with unhealthy lifestyles and the absence of stress is associated with healthy lifestyles, but longitudinal analyses suggest no straightforward cause-effect relationship between workrelated stress and lifestyle. Copyright © 2013 by the American Public Health Association®.
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| 9. |
- Englund, Oskar, 1982, et al.
(författare)
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Legislative Readiness for RED
- 2011
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- An analysis of the legislative readiness among exporting countries to produce biofuels in compliance with the sustainability criteria in the EU Renewable Energy Directive
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| 10. |
- Gylle, A. Maria, 1965-, et al.
(författare)
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Fluorescence emission spectra of marine and brackish-water ecotypes of Fucus vesiculosus and Fucus radicans (Phaeophyceae) reveal differences in light-harvesting apparatus : emission spectra in Fucus
- 2011
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Ingår i: Journal of Phycology. - : Wiley. - 0022-3646 .- 1529-8817. ; 47:1, s. 98-105
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Bothnian Sea in the northerly part of the Baltic Sea is a geologically recent brackish-water environment, and rapid speciation is occurring in the algal community of the Bothnian Sea. We measured low-temperature fluorescence emission spectra from the Bothnian Sea and the Norwegian Sea ecotypes of Fucus vesiculosus L., a marine macroalga widespread in the Bothnian Sea. Powdered, frozen thallus was used to obtain undistorted emission spectra. The spectra were compared with spectra measured from the newly identified species Fucus radicans L.Bergström et L. Kautsky, which is a close relative of F. vesiculosusand endemic to the Bothnian Sea. The spectrum of variable fluorescence was used to identify fluorescence peaks originating in PSI and PSII in this chl c–containing alga. The spectra revealed much higher PSII emission, compared to PSI emission, in the Bothnian Sea ecotype of F. vesiculosus than in F. radicans or in the Norwegian Sea ecotype of F. vesiculosus. The results suggest that more lightharvesting chl a ⁄ c proteins serve PSII in the Bothnian Sea ecotype of F. vesiculosusthan in the two other algal strains. Treatment of the Bothnian Sea ecotype of F. vesiculosusin high salinity (10, 20, and 35 practical salinity units) for 1 week did not lead to spectral changes, indicating that the measured features of the Bothnian Sea F. vesiculosus are stable and not simply a direct result of exposure to low salinity.
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