| 1. |
|
|
| 2. |
- Codita, Alina, et al.
(author)
-
Effects of spatial and cognitive enrichment on activity pattern and learning performance in three strains of mice in the IntelliMaze.
- 2012
-
In: Behavior Genetics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0001-8244 .- 1573-3297. ; 42:3, s. 449-460
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The IntelliMaze allows automated behavioral analysis of group housed laboratory mice while individually assigned protocols can be applied concomitantly for different operant conditioning components. Here we evaluate the effect of additional component availability (enrichment) on behavioral and cognitive performance of mice in the IntelliCage, by focusing on aspects that had previously been found to consistently differ between three strains, in four European laboratories. Enrichment decreased the activity level in the IntelliCages and enhanced spatial learning performance. However, it did not alter strain differences, except for activity during the initial experimental phase. Our results from non-enriched IntelliCages proved consistent between laboratories, but overall laboratory-consistency for data collected using different IntelliCage set-ups, did not hold for activity levels during the initial adaptation phase. Our results suggest that the multiple conditioning in spatially and cognitively enriched environments are feasible without affecting external validity for a specific task, provided animals have adapted to such an IntelliMaze.
|
|
| 3. |
- Hartig, Terry, 1959-, et al.
(author)
-
The need for psychological restoration as a determinant of environmental preferences
- 2006
-
In: Journal of Environmental Psychology. - : Elsevier BV. - 0272-4944 .- 1522-9610. ; 26:3, s. 215-226
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Environmental preferences vary with the environments evaluated and the people who evaluated them. When research has considered the explanatory power of person variables, it has focused on traits or demographic characteristics. Little research has considered how environmental preferences vary with regularly occurring psychological states, such as attentional fatigue. In this experiment, we investigated the need for psychological restoration as a within-individual determinant of the common preference differential between natural and urban environments. We treated preference as an attitude, constituted of beliefs about the likelihood of restoration during a walk in a given environment and the evaluation of restoration given different restoration needs. College students (N = 103) completed the procedure just before a morning lecture (less fatigue condition) or immediately after an afternoon lecture, which itself followed the passage of time and other activities over the day (more fatigue condition). In both fatigue conditions, participants reported more favorable attitudes toward a walk in a forest than a walk in a city center, but this difference was larger with the more fatigued. This result apparently owes to the more fatigued participants' more positive evaluation of attentional recovery, and a greater judged likelihood of restoration when walking in the forest.
|
|
| 4. |
- Niemi, Jan
(author)
-
Online characterization of wood pulp : foundations for a photoacoustic sensing technique
- 2009
-
Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Today, there is an increasing demand in the paper industry for better utilisation of the raw material and improved energy efficiency. Also, the increasing use of recycled paper in the manufacturing process leads to a situation where the knowledge of pulp properties needs to be improved and controlled. These demands calls for improved control strategies and this in turn requires new measurement techniques that can make a better characterisation of the pulp. One important process parameter to be controlled is pulp consistency. Poor control of pulp consistency leads to an unstable process that compromises the production, quality and energy efficiency in the pulp mill. Hence, accurate consistency control is fundamental to achieve process stability. Another important parameter is pulp composition, such as the share of long fibres and short fibres (fines). Using only a single measurement technique, it is difficult to accurately determine the pulp properties such as total consistency and the share of fibres and fines in a pulp suspension. The overall objective of this work is to investigate whether a sensing strategy based on the photoacoustic technique can provide wood pulp property information online.This thesis shows that fibres are the predominant source of attenuation of ultrasonic waves. It also shows that fines are the predominant source of optical scattering. Hence, additional information about the examined media can be extracted by using a combination of the measurement techniques. The combination enables an estimation of the total consistency and, in addition, identification of the two different length fractions, fibres and fines in a given pulp suspension. A photoacoustic sensor has been developed that is able to relate the optical extinction of a laser light pulse propagating through a turbid medium to a photoacoustic signal. Simultaneously, a signal related to the ultrasonic attenuation in the medium is also obtained. The sensor is fast and has no moving parts, leading to a low manufacturing cost, low maintenance requirements and greater robustness. Because the sensor simultaneously measures optical and acoustic properties, the sensor can extract more information about the pulp suspension compared to a single technique and is therefore applicable in the pulp and paper industry. Hence, better process control is achievable and improvements in production, quality and energy efficiency in the paper making process are obtainable.
|
|
| 5. |
- Jalilzadehazhari, Elaheh, 1985-
(author)
-
A decision-making framework for enhancing client well-being : When designing windows and blinds
- 2019
-
Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The current state of window and blind design moves beyond evaluating a single function, such as energy consumption, to include a human perspective in architectural design approach to create value. A current thought among architects and design professionals is that the highest value outcomes can be obtained when any architectural design contributes to enhanced well-being. Previous studies show that an individual’s well-being is determined by five main life domain factors: health, economy, personality, demographic variables and behavior variables. However, the life domain factors health and economy show stronger and more positive correlations to well-being. At this point, value creation within architectural design context, including window and blind design, can be seen as an attempt to enhance well-being by improving health and providing economic benefits for clients. Clients can represent i) owners who own a built asset, ii) investors who commit capital and expect to obtain financial return, or iii) occupants who live or work in the building every day. In the context of owner-occupied buildings, the value creation process is mainly seen as an attempt to enhance well-being for one entity by improving health and providing economic benefits. When considering investment properties or assets held for sale, the value creation process is mainly translated into an attempt to enhance well-being for several entities by improving health for occupants and providing economic benefits for owners and/or investors.Selecting a window and blind design to enhance client well-being remains a challenging task due to three main difficulties. The first difficulty relates to the contradictory effects of windows and blinds on visual and thermal comfort, energy consumption and life cycle cost. The second difficulty is the availability of a variety of window and blind designs in different sizes, positions and forms, making the selection of windows and blinds an intricate decision challenge for architects and designers. The third difficulty involves decisions about the selection of windows and blinds that should include all criteria and their interactions simultaneously.To resolve the abovementioned difficulties, this research applied the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) as a multi-criteria decision-making method to select a window and blind design based on a trade-off between visual comfort, thermal comfort, energy consumption and life cycle cost. The analyses of results show the capability of AHP in resolving difficulties, however its application is mainly limited to a small number of designs. To overcome this limitation, a decision-making framework was developed based on integration between non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm-II (NSGA-II) as an optimization algorithm and AHP. The strength and limitations of the decision-making framework were later tested by employing it in window and blind design practice. To investigate further benefits from the implementation of the framework, it was expanded by evaluating additional building envelopes, i.e. windows as well as external walls, roof and floor constructions, which made it possible to select a trade-off construction solution. The analyses of results show the framework’s ability to resolve difficulties and locate a trade-off design in a relatively short period of time. However, the decision-making framework only allows the analysis of the objective criteria for evaluating visual comfort, thermal comfort, energy consumption and life cycle cost. This is because it is necessary to rely on the creativity of the architects and designers when designing windows and blinds in order to consider subjective issues. The decision-making framework can be used either by design teams or customer service experts in window manufacturing companies. A literature study was therefore conducted to extend the technology acceptance model and thereby investigate the determinants of framework user acceptance of the decision-making framework. The results showed that organizational, individual, technological and environmental characteristics were the most influential external variables when investigating determinants of framework user acceptance of the framework. Organizational characteristics included top management support, training, organizational culture, and organizational size, while individual characteristics included the users’ previous knowledge and experience. Technological characteristics embraced information quality and system quality, meanwhile environmental characteristics comprised fulfillment of regulations and competitiveness.
|
|
| 6. |
- Lutzen, K
(author)
-
Nursing ethics into the next millennium: a context-sensitive approach for nursing ethics
- 1997
-
In: Nursing ethics. - : SAGE Publications. - 0969-7330 .- 1477-0989. ; 4:3, s. 218-226
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The aim of this article is to argue for the need for a context-sensitive approach to the understanding of ethical issues in nursing practice as we face the next millennium. This approach means that the idea of universalism must be questioned because ethics is an interpersonal activity, set in a specific context. This view is based on issues that arise in international collaborative research as well as in research focused on ethical problems in nursing practice. Moral values are indigenous to a particular culture and influence beliefs about health and illness as well as what priorities are to be made in providing health care. Nursing practice must include thoughtful reflection on the meaning of moral concepts and principles in terms of culture. Theoretical developments in nursing ethics must be based on empirical research focusing on contextual aspects of health care.
|
|
| 7. |
- Oliynyk, Ganna
(author)
-
Metabolism and neural differentiation in childhood neuroblastoma
- 2017
-
Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Neuroblastoma is the most common and aggressive extracranial solid tumor during childhood. MYCN-amplification is found in approximately 25 % of all neuroblastoma cases, and is defined as high-risk disease. Development of novel therapeutic approaches focused on MYCN targeting are essential for increased survival these children. The MYC family of oncoproteins consists of transcriptional factors involved in many normal cellular processes. Abnormal expression of MYC is associated with 70 % of human cancers and correlates with an aggressive undifferentiated phenotype, chemotherapy resistance and poor clinical prognosis. Targeting MYCN by small molecular weight molecules remains a challenge. In paper I we established that one known c-MYC targeting compound, the small chemical molecule 10058-F4, is also a potent MYCN inhibitor. 10058-F4 treatment increased cell death and neuronal differentiation in MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma cells and prolonged survival in mice. Interestingly, we found that MYCN inhibition resulted in changes in expression of metabolic proteins, in accumulation of intracellular lipid droplets and demonstrated that this is due to mitochondrial dysfunction. Our data reported in paper I strongly suggests that MYCN regulated metabolic processes may contribute to the aggressiveness of neuroblastoma. In paper II we applied several approaches to further investigate the MYCN-mediated metabolic alterations in neuroblastoma. The combination of mass spectrometry based proteomics and transcriptome data analysis highlighted key metabolic enzymes involved in energetic pathways of cancer cells. The functional metabolic measurements supported the data analysis and demonstrated that MYCN not only enhanced the glycolytic capacity of neuroblastoma cells, but also increased mitochondrial respiration. The data presented in paper II suggests that MYCN-amplification is associated with a high-energetic metabolic phenotype. Importantly, we demonstrated that targeting of fatty acid oxidation resulted in potentiated neuronal differentiation, decreased viability of MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma as well as decreased tumor burden in vivo in a neuroblastoma xenograft model. Our previous findings highlighted an important role of fatty acid metabolism in MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma. In paper III we used specific inhibitors and demonstrated that targeting of de novo fatty acid synthesis in MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma cells resulted in increased mitochondrial dysfunction and glycolytic flux. In addition, we observed that MYCN downregulation and neuronal differentiation are consequences of inhibiting de novo synthesis of fatty acids in neuroblastoma cells. In paper IV we demonstrated that the miR-17~92 cluster, which is upregulated by MYCN, suppresses neuronal differentiation via targeting of the nuclear hormone receptor family in neuroblastoma. Importantly, we showed that MYCN inhibition leads to increased expression of the glucocorticoid receptor, which is accompanied by decreased levels of members of the miR-17~92 clusters and elevated expression of the neural differentiation markers TrkA, SCG2 and TH. Furthermore, increased GR expression followed after MYCN downregulation and decreased tumor burden was observed in a pre-clinical NB model following combined MYC inhibition and activation of glucocorticoid signaling. Together the data generated in our laboratory and included in the present thesis demonstrates that targeting of MYCN and MYCN-controlled metabolic processes may provide an attractive basis for development of novel therapeutic approaches for childhood neuroblastoma.
|
|
| 8. |
- Riiser, Kirsti, et al.
(author)
-
Stories of paediatric palliative care : a qualitative study exploring health care professionals’ understanding of the concept
- 2022
-
In: BMC Palliative Care. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1472-684X. ; 21:1
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: By sharing patient stories, health care professionals (HCPs) may communicate their attitudes, values and beliefs about caring and treatment. Previous qualitative research has shown that HCPs usually associate paediatric palliative care (PPC) with death or dying and that they find the concept challenging to understand and difficult to implement. Attending to HCPs’ stories may provide a richer account of their understanding of PPC. Thus, the aim of this study was to explore PPC stories narrated by HCPs to gain increased insight into their understanding of what PPC entails. Methods: This qualitative study collected data from four focus group interviews with 21 HCPs from different units in two Norwegian hospitals. Stories told by the HCPs to illustrate their comprehension of PPC were analysed following thematic analysis procedures. Results: Four themes were identified illustrating what PPC meant to the participants: creating spaces for normality, providing tailored support for the family, careful preparations for saying goodbye and experiencing dilemmas and distress. The stories centred on family care, particularly relating to dramatic or affective situations when the death of a child was imminent. Conclusion: The stories reflect how the HCPs view PPC as a specific field of health care that requires particular professional sensitivity, including good communication, collaboration and planning. Thus, the HCPs in this study demonstrated knowledge about the core qualities needed to succeed in PPC. However, similar to previous research, the stories illustrate that how HCPs speak about PPC is strongly associated with end-of-life care, and by that the HCPs do not capture the breadth of the PPC concept. The findings highlight the importance of increasing knowledge about the meaning and content of PPC among HCPs in order to maintain quality of life for all children with life-limiting or life-threatening conditions throughout their illness trajectory.
|
|
| 9. |
- Xylia, Maria, et al.
(author)
-
On the road : non-fossil fuel deployment for the public bus fleet of Sweden
- 2015
-
Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The public transport sector in Sweden has set a target to run 90% of its total vehicle-kilometers on renewable fuels by 2020, and double its market share in the long term. The focus of this paper is the adoption of renewable fuels in public bus fleets. Data for all 21 Swedish counties were gathered and analyzed, mapping the bus fleets’ condition in relation to renewable fuel deployment, CO2 emissions and energy efficiency. The main factors affecting fuel choices in the bus fleets were investigated through a survey among environmental managers and transport planners at regional public transport authorities. The analysis highlights the challenges implied in the rapid shift that regional bus fleets are undergoing to adopt renewable fuels and reduce emissions. Political will and procurement have been strong success factors in facing these challenges. The survey indicates the stakeholders’ interest to switch to electricity for city routes, while biodiesel and HVO are preferred for longer routes. When it comes to how fuel choices are made, environmental factors seem to be prioritized, while the barriers identified are mainly economic and political.
|
|
| 10. |
- Bentinger, Magnus, et al.
(author)
-
Stimulation of coenzyme Q synthesis.
- 2008
-
In: Biofactors. - : Wiley. - 0951-6433 .- 1872-8081. ; 32:1-4, s. 99-111
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)
|
|
