Abstract: This doctoral thesis has sought to clarify the influence of gender in gastrointestinal (GI) disorders. Women with different hormone profiles were investigated, their colonic microbiota was characterized, and the impact of lifestyle and risk factors for GI disease were examined. In a pilot study, the relation between vaginal and rectal lactobacilli flora and hormone levels was investigate

The dryer fabric influences the mass and heat transfer, separating the hot, moist paper from the ambient drying air. A dynamic model is presented describing this mass and heat transfer in a dryer fabric based on the fabric parameters: effective diffusivity, porosity, tortuosity, calliper, effective permeability, thermal conductivity and basis weight. The model predicts moisture, temperature and pr

BACKGROUND: Seed galactomannans are preferred hydrocolloids since they are comparatively cheap, non-toxic, eco-friendly and non-polluting during production and application. Galactomannans from seeds of three species of Gleditsia, namely G. sinensis, G. microphylla and G. melanacantha, were characterized in terms of structural and thermal properties. RESULTS: Gleditsia polysaccharides were characte

Background: Macronutrient intake varies substantially between individuals, and there is evidence that this variation is partly accounted for by genetic variants. Objective: The objective of the study was to identify common genetic variants that are associated with macronutrient intake. Design: We performed 2-stage genome-wide association (GWA) meta-analysis of macronutrient intake in populations o

From the starting point of narrative ethnography, this article explores a specific kind of service user involvement in psychiatry: staff training activities in which patients and former patients are invited to “tell their stories”. A core feature of these stories is that they are based on the narrators’ self-perceived experience, and they all have a highly personal character. I call these stories

Removal of seven active pharmaceutical substances (ibuprofen, ketoprofen, naproxen, diclofenac, clofibric acid, mefenamic acid, and gemfibrozil) was assessed by batch experiments, with suspended biofilm carriers and activated sludge from several full-scale wastewater treatment plants. A distinct difference between nitrifying activated sludge and suspended biofilm carrier removal of several pharmac

The western world has had a general decline in student interest for natural sciences. A 2-4 h program is described that can generate interest in chemistry by letting compulsory students conduct experiments that are connected to their life.

Four dilute-acid pretreated and hydrolysed lignocellulosic raw materials were evaluated as substrates for fermentative hydrogen production by Caldicellulosiruptor saccharolyticus. Their fermentability was ranked in the order: barley straw > wheat straw > corn stalk > corn cob. The content of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) in medium with hydrolysates prepared from corn cob (1.0 g/L) and corn stalk (

The crude MeOH extract prepared from the aerial parts of G. stepporum and its EtOAc, n-BuOH, H2O subextracts were screened for their inhibitory activity on H2O2-induced lipid peroxidation in human red blood cells. The EtOAc subextract was found to be the most active one and its chemical composition was further analysed. Six polyphenolic secondary metabolites including quercetin (1), rutin (2), met

Background: Extracellular-signal regulated kinase (ERK1/2) is activated by nerve damage and its activation precedes survival and proliferation of Schwann cells. In contrast, activation of caspase 3, a cysteine protease, is considered as a marker for apoptosis in Schwann cells. In the present study, axonal outgrowth, activation of ERK1/2 by phosphorylation (p-ERK 1/2) and immunoreactivity of cleave

A laterally defined InGaAs double quantum dot with an integrated charge readout sensor is realized in an InGaAs/InP heterostructure. The charge states of the double quantum dot are measured with the use of the charge readout sensor in the few-electron regime in which the current is too weak to be observable by direct measurements of electron transport through the double dot. We also measure the le

Based on the volume of fluid (VOF) method, a steady three-dimensional numerical simulation of laminar film condensation of water vapor in a horizontal minitube, with and without non-condensable gas, has been conducted. A user-defined function defining the phase change is interpreted and the interface temperature is correspondingly assumed to be the saturation temperature. An annular flow pattern i

Objective: Many patients, especially women, suffer from severe gastrointestinal pain and dysmotility for several years without being diagnosed. Depletion of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) in the enteric nervous system (ENS) has been described in some patients. The aim of this study was to examine the expression of GnRH in ENS and antibodies against GnRH in serum, in a dysmotility patient co

The aim is to review a patented method and apparatus for treating tumor diseases (cancer) with a combination of ionizing radiation and pulsed electric fields that might open a new regime of radiation therapy fractionation with a short intensive treatment with high radiation dose fractions combined with pulsed electric fields. Sub-optimal radiation treatment was administered separately or in combin

A blind analysis searching for the decay B-s(0) -> mu(+)mu(-) has been performed using proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 7 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. With an integrated luminosity of 2.4 fb(-1) no excess of events over the background expectation is found and an upper limit is set on the branching fraction BR(B-s(0) -> mu(+)mu(-))

Haemodilution and hypothermia induce coagulopathy separately, but their combined effect on coagulation has not been widely studied. Fibrinogen concentrate can correct dilutional coagulopathy and has an additional effect when combined with factor XIII concentrate. However, their effect on dilutional coagulopathy concomitant with hypothermia has not been studied previously. Free oscillation rheometr

How do we defend ourselves against pathogenic microbes and other parasites infecting us? Research on defence against parasites has traditionally focused on resistance-the ability to prevent infection or limit parasite replication. The genetics, physiology, and evolutionary ecology of such traits are now relatively well understood. During the last few years it has been realized that another, concep

BACKGROUND: There was a decrease 1982-2001 in smoking during early pregnancy in Swedish women. We sought to determine whether there was a parallel decrease in socio-economic inequality in smoking. METHODS: Registry data indicating educational level and smoking status at first antenatal visit in all 2,022,469 pregnancies in Sweden 1982-2001 was analysed. Prevalence differences, odds ratios based on