| 1. |
- Abbey-Lee, Robin N., et al.
(författare)
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The Influence of Rearing on Behavior, Brain Monoamines, and Gene Expression in Three-Spined Sticklebacks
- 2018
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Ingår i: Brain, behavior, and evolution. - Basel : S. Karger AG. - 0006-8977 .- 1421-9743. ; 91:4, s. 201-213
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The causes of individual variation in behavior are often not well understood, and potential underlying mechanisms include both intrinsic and extrinsic factors, such as early environmental, physiological, and genetic differences. In an exploratory laboratory study, we raised three-spined sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus) under 4 different environmental conditions (simulated predator environment, complex environment, variable social environment, and control). We investigated how these manipulations related to behavior, brain physiology, and gene expression later in life, with focus on brain dopamine and serotonin levels, turnover rates, and gene expression. The different rearing environments influenced behavior and gene expression, but did not alter monoamine levels or metabolites. Specifically, compared to control fish, fish exposed to a simulated predator environment tended to be less aggressive, more exploratory, and more neophobic; and fish raised in both complex and variable social environments tended to be less neophobic. Exposure to a simulated predator environment tended to lower expression of dopamine receptor DRD4A, a complex environment increased expression of dopamine receptor DRD1B, while a variable social environment tended to increase serotonin receptor 5-HTR2B and serotonin transporter SLC6A4A expression. Despite both behavior and gene expression varying with early environment, there was no evidence that gene expression mediated the relationship between early environment and behavior. Our results confirm that environmental conditions early in life can affect phenotypic variation. However, the mechanistic pathway of the monoaminergic systems translating early environmental variation into observed behavioral responses was not detected.
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| 2. |
- Borg, Farhana, 1967-
(författare)
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Caring for people and the planet : preschool children’s knowledge and practices of sustainability
- 2017
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Children across the globe today are continuously being exposed to and affected by various kinds of real-world complexities and challenges; however, research on their knowledge and practices in terms of sustainability is limited, in particular with regards to how preschool- and home-related factors are associated with their learning for sustainability. Since 1998, different types of eco-certification have been awarded by the Swedish National Agency for Education and Keep Sweden Tidy Foundation to promote education for sustainability (EfS) in all areas of education and learning. Despite certificates having been granted in Sweden since 1998, no studies have been conducted at the national level to investigate whether eco-certification has any role to play in children’s learning for environmental and sustainability issues. This knowledge is important to develop pedagogical activities to engage young children meaningfully in learning for sustainability at preschool. This study was undertaken so as to address this research gap in a Swedish context.The overall aim of this study was to enhance the existing knowledge about preschool children’s learning for sustainability in Sweden. The objectives of this study have been to investigate and compare the knowledge and self-reported practices of sustainability among children attending eco-certified and non-eco-certified preschools, respectively, and to explore the extent to which preschool- and home-related factors are associated with children’s knowledge and practices of sustainability. Further, this study explored children’s perceived sources of such knowledge. The term ‘knowledge’ in this text refers to the descriptions of children’s ideas and thoughts. Similarly, eco-certified preschool refers to a school that work explicitly with EfS.The study was designed from a "child’s perspective": this means that it was designed by adults to understand children’s perceptions and actions. Bandura’s (1977) social learning theory and Bruner’s (1961) iconic (image-based) modes of representation were applied in various stages of the study. A conceptual framework was developed within the three-interlocking-circles model of sustainability that illustrates how environmental, social and economic dimensions are interconnected. The concept of sustainability was operationalized in four themes: economic equality, resource sharing, recycling and transport use.With the use of illustrations and semi-structured questions, final-year preschool children (n=53), aged five to six years, and the directors (n=7) at six eco-certified and six non-eco-certified preschools were interviewed, while guardians (n=89) and teachers (n=74) filled out questionnaires. Qualitative and quantitative data were analyzed using content analysis and Orthogonal Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis (OPLS-DA), respectively. The quality and complexity of children’s responses were assessed and classified using the SOLO Taxonomy (Biggs & Collis, 1982).The results showed that by the time the children completed preschool, many had acquired some knowledge about how to use money, about the sorting of different recyclable items at home and at preschool, and about the impact of different modes of transport on the environment and people’s lives. They also had ideas about the lives of other children in the world and what it can mean to share resources with other people. There was a positive relationship between children’s declarative (understanding) and functional (practice) knowledge of sustainability issues and the involvement of teachers and guardians in sustainability-related discussions and activities. No statistically significant differences between eco-certified and non-eco-certified preschools in terms of children’s declarative and functional knowledge were found. Parents were reported to be the main sources of children’s knowledge along with the children themselves, teachers and media.The findings offer support for integrating environmental, social and economic dimensions of sustainability into the daily pedagogical activities of preschools and for giving children opportunities to participate in discussions and practical activities that concern their lives. Further studies are needed to investigate the extent to which different educational activities contribute to developing children’s understanding and behavior when it comes to a sustainable society.
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| 3. |
- Cocco, Arianna
(författare)
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The γ-aminobutyric acid and proton signaling systems in the zebrafish brain : Characterization and effect of stress
- 2018
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The central nervous system of vertebrates is continuously processing sensory information relayed from the periphery, integrating it and producing outputs transmitted to efferents. In the brain, neurons employ an array of messenger molecules to filter afferent information and finely regulate synaptic transmission. The γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) is the major inhibitory neurotransmitter in the adult vertebrate central nervous system, synthesized from α, L-glutamate by the glutamate decarboxylases (GADs). GABA promotes fast hyperpolarization of target cells mediated by the ionotropic, chloride-conducting type A GABA (GABAA) receptors. Those channels are homo- or heteropentamers and, in the zebrafish, at least twenty-three genes encode for putative GABAA receptor subunits.The present PhD thesis presents the expression levels of the almost complete panel of the GABA signaling machinery in the adult zebrafish brain and retinas. The results point toward GABA signaling modalities in zebrafish strikingly similar to those observed in mammals. The most common GABAA receptor subunit combinations in the whole brain were proposed to be α1β2γ2 and α1β2δ, and region-specific GABAA channels were also inferred. Those included telencephalic α2bβ3γ2, α2bβ3δ, α5β2γ2, α5β3γ2 and cerebellar α4β2γ2 and α4β2δ. A tissue specific expression was documented for the paralogues α6a and α6b; the former was abundantly transcribed in the retinas, the latter in the cerebellum. Proposed retinal GABAA receptors were α1βxγ2, α1βxδ, α6aβxγ2 and α6aβxδ, with either β2 or β3.Focus was also placed on functional aspects of the GABA signaling system in the adult zebrafish brain, and specifically on the effects of stress on GABAA receptor subunits expression. Treated animals experienced social isolation and repeated confinement, and depicted increased mRNA levels of several GABAA receptor monomers. It was deduced that a higher number of extrasynaptic, tonic-current-mediating GABAA channels was synthesized in the brain following stress. As synaptic transmission promotes extracellular acidification, interest was also placed on the acid-sensing ion channel (ASIC) subunits. The overall results presented in this PhD thesis point toward GABA and proton signaling systems in the zebrafish brain that have many common points with those of mammals. Thus, fundamental signaling pathways appear to be conserved across vertebrates.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Larsen, M. H., et al.
(författare)
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Effects of Emergence Time and Early Social Rearing Environment on Behaviour of Atlantic Salmon: Consequences for Juvenile Fitness and Smolt Migration
- 2015
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Ingår i: Plos One. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1932-6203. ; 10:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Consistent individual differences in behaviour have been well documented in a variety of animal taxa, but surprisingly little is known about the fitness and life-history consequences of such individual variation. In wild salmonids, the timing of fry emergence from gravel spawning nests has been suggested to be coupled with individual behavioural traits. Here, we further investigate the link between timing of spawning nest emergence and behaviour of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), test effects of social rearing environment on behavioural traits in fish with different emergence times, and assess whether behavioural traits measured in the laboratory predict growth, survival, and migration status in the wild. Atlantic salmon fry were sorted with respect to emergence time from artificial spawning nest into three groups: early, intermediate, and late. These emergence groups were hatchery-reared separately or in co-culture for four months to test effects of social rearing environment on behavioural traits. Twenty fish from each of the six treatment groups were then subjected to three individual-based behavioural tests: basal locomotor activity, boldness, and escape response. Following behavioural characterization, the fish were released into a near-natural experimental stream. Results showed differences in escape behaviour between emergence groups in a net restraining test, but the social rearing environment did not affect individual behavioural expression. Emergence time and social environment had no significant effects on survival, growth, and migration status in the stream, although migration propensity was 1.4 to 1.9 times higher for early emerging individuals that were reared separately. In addition, despite individuals showing considerable variation in behaviour across treatment groups, this was not translated into differences in growth, survival, and migration status. Hence, our study adds to the view that fitness (i.e., growth and survival) and life-history predictions from laboratory measures of behaviour should be made with caution and ideally tested in nature.
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| 7. |
- Österlund, J., et al.
(författare)
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A 10-year review found increasing incidence trends of emergency egg allergy reactions and food-induced anaphylaxis in children
- 2019
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Ingår i: Acta Paediatrica. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0803-5253 .- 1651-2227. ; 108:2, s. 314-320
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aim: International reports have suggested that food allergies and food‐induced anaphylaxis have increased in children. We investigated the incidence of emergency food reactions over a 10‐year period.Methods: This study retrospectively reviewed the medical records of children presenting to Umeå University hospital, Sweden, with an emergency food reaction from January 1, 2006 to December 31, 2015. Cases were identified using discharge codes for allergies and anaphylaxis. Anaphylaxis cases were included if they fulfilled the international criteria.Results: We found emergency food allergy reactions in 519 children (58% boys) from 2006–2015 at a median age of 1.3 years. One‐third were hospitalised (32%) including 71/99 cases of anaphylaxis. Milk and eggs were the most commonly identified triggers. Emergency reactions to eggs increased during the study period with a Spearman rank correlation coefficient of 0.770 (p < 0.01) and the figures for anaphylaxis were 0.745 (p = 0.013). The incidence of food‐induced anaphylaxis increased and was 30 per 100 000 person‐years for the study period.Conclusion: Most of the emergency reactions, treated by secondary care paediatricians and emergency physicians, were to milk and eggs. Allergic reactions to eggs increased from 2006 to 2015, as did food‐related anaphylaxis.
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