| 1. |
- Yan, C., et al.
(författare)
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Size-dependent influence of NOx on the growth rates of organic aerosol particles
- 2020
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Ingår i: Science Advances. - : American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). - 2375-2548. ; 6:22
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Atmospheric new-particle formation (NPF) affects climate by contributing to a large fraction of the cloud condensation nuclei (CCN). Highly oxygenated organic molecules (HOMs) drive the early particle growth and therefore substantially influence the survival of newly formed particles to CCN. Nitrogen oxide (NOx) is known to suppress the NPF driven by HOMs, but the underlying mechanism remains largely unclear. Here, we examine the response of particle growth to the changes of HOM formation caused by NOx. We show that NOx suppresses particle growth in general, but the suppression is rather nonuniform and size dependent, which can be quantitatively explained by the shifted HOM volatility after adding NOx. By illustrating how NOx affects the early growth of new particles, a critical step of CCN formation, our results help provide a refined assessment of the potential climatic effects caused by the diverse changes of NOx level in forest regions around the globe.
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| 2. |
- Huang, Wei, et al.
(författare)
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Potential pre-industrial–like new particle formation induced by pure biogenic organic vapors in Finnish peatland
- 2024
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Ingår i: Science Advances. - 2375-2548. ; 10:14
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Pure biogenic new particle formation (NPF) induced by highly oxygenated organic molecules (HOMs) could be an important mechanism for pre-industrial aerosol formation. However, it has not been unambiguously confirmed in the ambient due to the scarcity of truly pristine continental locations in the present-day atmosphere or the lack of chemical characterization of NPF precursors. Here, we report ambient observations of pure biogenic HOM-driven NPF over a peatland in southern Finland. Meteorological decoupling processes formed an “air pocket” (i.e., a very shallow surface layer) at night and favored NPF initiated entirely by biogenic HOM from this peatland, whose atmospheric environment closely resembles that of the pre-industrial era. Our study sheds light on pre-industrial aerosol formation, which represents the baseline for estimating the impact of present and future aerosol on climate, as well as on future NPF, the features of which may revert toward pre-industrial–like conditions due to air pollution mitigation.
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| 3. |
- Nitschke, S., et al.
(författare)
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Glycogen synthase downregulation rescues the amylopectinosis of murine RBCK1 deficiency
- 2022
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Ingår i: Brain. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0006-8950 .- 1460-2156. ; 145:7, s. 2361-2377
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Longer glucan chains tend to precipitate. Glycogen, by far the largest mammalian glucan and the largest molecule in the cytosol with up to 55 000 glucoses, does not, due to a highly regularly branched spherical structure that allows it to be perfused with cytosol. Aberrant construction of glycogen leads it to precipitate, accumulate into polyglucosan bodies that resemble plant starch amylopectin and cause disease. This pathology, amylopectinosis, is caused by mutations in a series of single genes whose functions are under active study toward understanding the mechanisms of proper glycogen construction. Concurrently, we are characterizing the physicochemical particularities of glycogen and polyglucosans associated with each gene. These genes include GBE1, EPM2A and EPM2B, which respectively encode the glycogen branching enzyme, the glycogen phosphatase laforin and the laforin-interacting E3 ubiquitin ligase malin, for which an unequivocal function is not yet known. Mutations in GBE1 cause a motor neuron disease (adult polyglucosan body disease), and mutations in EPM2A or EPM2B a fatal progressive myoclonus epilepsy (Lafora disease). RBCK1 deficiency causes an amylopectinosis with fatal skeletal and cardiac myopathy (polyglucosan body myopathy 1, OMIM# 615895). RBCK1 is a component of the linear ubiquitin chain assembly complex, with unique functions including generating linear ubiquitin chains and ubiquitinating hydroxyl (versus canonical amine) residues, including of glycogen. In a mouse model we now show (i) that the amylopectinosis of RBCK1 deficiency, like in adult polyglucosan body disease and Lafora disease, affects the brain; (ii) that RBCK1 deficiency glycogen, like in adult polyglucosan body disease and Lafora disease, has overlong branches; (iii) that unlike adult polyglucosan body disease but like Lafora disease, RBCK1 deficiency glycogen is hyperphosphorylated; and finally (iv) that unlike laforin-deficient Lafora disease but like malin-deficient Lafora disease, RBCK1 deficiency's glycogen hyperphosphorylation is limited to precipitated polyglucosans. In summary, the fundamental glycogen pathology of RBCK1 deficiency recapitulates that of malin-deficient Lafora disease. Additionally, we uncover sex and genetic background effects in RBCK1 deficiency on organ-and brain-region specific amylopectinoses, and in the brain on consequent neuroinflammation and behavioural deficits. Finally, we exploit the portion of the basic glycogen pathology that is common to adult polyglucosan body disease, both forms of Lafora disease and RBCK1 deficiency, namely overlong branches, to show that a unified approach based on downregulating glycogen synthase, the enzyme that elongates glycogen branches, can rescue all four diseases.
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| 4. |
- Bosmans, Kim, et al.
(författare)
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Experiences of insecurity among non-standard workers across different welfare states : A qualitative cross-country study
- 2023
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Ingår i: Social Science and Medicine. - : Elsevier. - 0277-9536 .- 1873-5347. ; 327
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In recent decades, economic crises and political reforms focused on employment flexibilization have increased the use of non-standard employment (NSE). National political and economic contexts determine how employers interact with labour and how the state interacts with labour markets and manages social welfare policies. These factors influence the prevalence of NSE and the level of employment insecurity it creates, but the extent to which a country’s policy context mitigates the health influences of NSE is unclear. This study describes how workers experience insecurities created by NSE, and how this influences their health and well-being, in countries with different welfare states: Belgium, Canada, Chile, Spain, Sweden, and the United States. Interviews with 250 workers in NSE were analysed using a multiple-case study approach. Workers in all countries experienced multiple insecurities (e.g., income and employment insecurity) and relational tension with employers/clients, with negative health and well-being influences, in ways that were shaped by social inequalities (e.g., related to family support or immigration status). Welfare state differences were reflected in the level of workers’ exclusion from social protections, the time scale of their insecurity (threatening daily survival or longer-term life planning), and their ability to derive a sense of control from NSE. Workers in Belgium, Sweden, and Spain, countries with more generous welfare states, navigated these insecurities with greater success and with less influence on health and well-being. Findings contribute to our understanding of the health and well-being influences of NSE across different welfare regimes and suggest the need in all six countries for stronger state responses to NSE. Increased investment in universal and more equal rights and benefits in NSE could reduce the widening gap between standard and NSE.
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| 5. |
- Castarède, Dimitri, et al.
(författare)
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Development and characterization of the Portable Ice Nucleation Chamber 2 (PINCii)
- 2023
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Ingår i: Atmospheric Measurement Techniques. - 1867-1381. ; 16:16, s. 3881-3899
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Portable Ice Nucleation Chamber 2 (PINCii) is a newly developed continuous flow diffusion chamber (CFDC) for measuring ice nucleating particles (INPs). PINCii is a vertically oriented parallel-plate CFDC that has been engineered to improve upon the limitations of previous generations of CFDCs. This work presents a detailed description of the PINCii instrument and the upgrades that make it unique compared with other operational CFDCs. The PINCii design offers several possibilities for improved INP measurements. Notably, a specific icing procedure results in low background particle counts, which demonstrates the potential for PINCii to measure INPs at low concentrations ( < 10 L (-1)). High-spatial-resolution wall-temperature mapping enables the identification of temperature inhomogeneities on the chamber walls. This feature is used to introduce and discuss a new method for analyzing CFDC data based on the most extreme lamina conditions present within the chamber, which represent conditions most likely to trigger ice nucleation. A temperature gradient can be maintained throughout the evaporation section in addition to the main chamber, which enables PINCii to be used to study droplet activation processes or to extend ice crystal growth. A series of both liquid droplet activation and ice nucleation experiments were conducted at temperature and saturation conditions that span the spectrum of PINCii's operational conditions ( 50 <= temperature <= 15 degrees C and 100 <= relative humidity with respect to ice <= 160 %) to demonstrate the instrument's capabilities. In addition, typical sources of uncertainty in CFDCs, including particle background, particle loss, and variations in aerosol lamina temperature and relative humidity, are quantified and discussed for PINCii.
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
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| 8. |
- Hägglund, Gunnar, et al.
(författare)
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Treatment of spasticity in children and adolescents with cerebral palsy in Northern Europe : a CP-North registry study
- 2021
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Ingår i: BMC Neurology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1471-2377. ; 21:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Spasticity is present in more than 80% of the population with cerebral palsy (CP). The aim of this study was to describe and compare the use of three spasticity reducing methods; Botulinum toxin-A therapy (BTX-A), Selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR) and Intrathecal baclofen therapy (ITB) among children and adolescents with CP in six northern European countries.METHODS: This registry-based study included population-based data in children and adolescents with CP born 2002 to 2017 and recorded in the follow-up programs for CP in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland and Scotland, and a defined cohort in Finland.RESULTS: A total of 8,817 individuals were included. The proportion of individuals treated with SDR and ITB was significantly different between the countries. SDR treatment ranged from 0% ( Finland and Iceland) to 3.4% (Scotland) and ITB treatment from 2.2% (Sweden) to 3.7% (Denmark and Scotland). BTX-A treatment in the lower extremities reported 2017-2018 ranged from 8.6% in Denmark to 20% in Norway (p < 0.01). Mean age for undergoing SDR ranged from 4.5 years in Norway to 7.3 years in Denmark (p < 0.01). Mean age at ITB surgery ranged from 6.3 years in Norway to 10.1 years in Finland (p < 0.01). Mean age for BTX-A treatment ranged from 7.1 years in Denmark to 10.3 years in Iceland (p < 0.01). Treatment with SDR was most common in Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) level III, ITB in level V, and BTX-A in level I. The most common muscle treated with BTX-A was the calf muscle, with the highest proportion in GMFCS level I. BTX-A treatment of hamstring and hip muscles was most common in GMFCS levels IV-V in all countries.CONCLUSION: There were statistically significant differences between countries regarding the proportion of children and adolescents with CP treated with the three spasticity reducing methods, mean age for treatment and treatment related to GMFCS level. This is likely due to differences in the availability of these treatment methods and/or differences in preferences of treatment methods among professionals and possibly patients across countries.
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| 9. |
- Matilla-Santander, N., et al.
(författare)
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COVID-19 and Precarious Employment : Consequences of the Evolving Crisis
- 2021
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Ingår i: International Journal of Health Services. - : Sage Publications. - 0020-7314 .- 1541-4469. ; 5:2, s. 226-228
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The world of work is facing an ongoing pandemic and an economic downturn with severe effects worldwide. Workers trapped in precarious employment (PE), both formal and informal, are among those most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Here we call attention to at least 5 critical ways that the consequences of the crisis among workers in PE will be felt globally: (a) PE will increase, (b) workers in PE will become more precarious, (c) workers in PE will face unemployment without being officially laid off, (d) workers in PE will be exposed to serious stressors and dramatic life changes that may lead to a rise in diseases of despair, and (e) PE might be a factor in deterring the control of or in generating new COVID-19 outbreaks. We conclude that what we really need is a new social contract, where the work of all workers is recognized and protected with adequate job contracts, employment security, and social protection in a new economy, both during and after the COVID-19 crisis.
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| 10. |
- Varga, Tibor V, et al.
(författare)
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Lipidomic profiles, lipid trajectories and clinical biomarkers in female elite endurance athletes
- 2020
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Ingår i: Scientific Reports. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2045-2322. ; 10, s. 1-9
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We assessed whether blood lipid metabolites and their changes associate with various cardiometabolic, endocrine, bone- and energy-related comorbidities of Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) in female elite endurance athletes. Thirty-eight Scandinavian female elite athletes underwent a day-long exercise test. Five blood samples were obtained during the day - at fasting state and before and after two standardized exercise tests. Clinical biomarkers were assessed at fasting state, while untargeted lipidomics was undertaken using all blood samples. Linear and logistic regression was used to assess associations between lipidomic features and clinical biomarkers. Overrepresentations of findings with P < 0.05 from these association tests were assessed using Fisher's exact tests. Self-organizing maps and a trajectory clustering algorithm were utilized to identify informative clusters in the population. Twenty associations PFDR < 0.05 were detected between lipidomic features and clinical biomarkers. Notably, cortisol demonstrated an overrepresentation of associations with P < 0.05 compared to other traits (PFisher = 1.9×10-14). Mean lipid trajectories were created for 201 named features for the cohort and subsequently by stratifying participants by their energy availability and menstrual dysfunction status. This exploratory analysis of lipid trajectories indicates that participants with menstrual dysfunction might have decreased adaptive response to exercise interventions.
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