Domestic and foreign policy cannot always be kept apart. A change of Government at national level may impact on foreign policy, and foreign policy adventures sometimes translate into consequences at home. Links between domestic and foreign policy may be limiting as well as enabling factors for Governments who find themselves at the cross-roads between national and international power. This study c

Changes in vascular permeability can immensely change plasma volume and affect the degree of oedema in the body. In diseases with an increased vascular permeability, adequate fluid therapy is of considerable importance to prevent hypovolaemia. Mechanisms behind differences in effectiveness of various plasma volume expanders to restore a low plasma volume and a compromised microcirculation are stil

Replacing fossil fuels by biofuels such as ethanol is considered a promising alternative to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and mitigate climate change. Biofuels produced from lignocellulosic biomass, so-called second generation biofuels, result in decreased GHG emissions and limit competition with food and animal feed production. Interest in producing ethanol from lignocellulosic biomass ha

The purpose of this study was to investigate the suggestions that macrophages, and the systems generating nitric oxide (NO) and carbon monoxide (CO), i.e. nitric oxide synthases (NOS) and heme oxygenases (HO), could be important for peripheral nerve regeneration. Immunocytochemistry was used to visualise invading and resident macrophages, inducible NOS (iNOS), two isoforms of HO (HO-1 and HO-2),

The immune response is designed to protect the body from harmful microbial invasions. However, when the immune system attacks itself instead, an autoimmune reaction starts that damage our own cells, tissues and organs. Despite decades of research concerning the etiology of autoimmune diseases the molecular mechanisms of these disorders are poorly understood as they are complex and influenced by bo

Leukotrienes belong to a family of biologically active conjugated trienes that are formed from arachidonic acid via the 5-lipoxygenase pathway and are important mediators of inflammatory reactions. The CysLT1 receptor that specifically serves as receptor for leukotriene D4 (LTD4) has been identified as a G-protein coupled receptor. Cell-cell and cell-matrix complexes of epithelial cells are inter

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) pose serious threats to our global environment. These compounds have high chemical and biological stability and they are also very lipophilic. These characteristics not only render POPs the ability to spread widely and pollute remote areas, they also make them prone to accumulate in adipose tissues of living organisms. Consequently, it is important to monitor P

The aim of the thesis was to examine different aspects of the role of intersubjectivity in metacognitive development and in social understanding. More specifically, it investigates how different theoretical frameworks, such as mentalization theory, the theory of primary intersubjectivity, and interaction theory describe the developmental role of intersubjectivity. The suggestions these theories ma

The current thesis is aimed to increase our understanding of the generation and differentiation of telencephalic neurons, with emphasis on the role of glial cells in these processes. Using in vitro methods we have studied the role of glial cells in neurogenesis, inheritance of genetic regional specification, and influence on differentiation of neurons. We demonstrate that expanded cell cultures ex

The reduction of sludge volumes for disposal is a topic of high interest for wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) all over the world. Steadily increasing volumes for disposal create an economic, environmental, legislative and technological challenge. Researchers and process developers try to minimise the sludge during its genesis or in the downstream treatment. Due to rising costs and scarcity of fo

Plants are exposed to many different stress factors during their lifetime, often more than one factor at a time, which highlights the importance of research regarding interaction among stress factors. Cadmium and ultraviolet-B radiation (UV-B, 280-315 nm) are two potential stress factors in the environment, which have gained increased interest due to atmospheric pollution. In this work the intera

This thesis deals with proteins containing peptide tags for improved partitioning in aqueous two-phase systems. Qualitatively the peptide-tagged protein partitioning could be predicted from peptide data, i.e. partitioning trends found for peptides were also found for the peptide-tagged proteins. However, full effect of the tag as expected from peptide partitioning was not found in the tagged prote

The role of nitric oxide (NO) in the central control of water balance and micturition has not yet been established. In the present thesis, where female rats were used, neuronal NO synthase (nNOS) distribution was studied in structures of the central nervous system known to be associated with the above mentioned control. Moreover, the concert action of a NOS inhibitor and oxytocin (OT), intrathecal

The consequences of bladder outlet obstruction (BOO) with respect to detrusor hypertrophy, structural and functional changes, and obstruction-induced detrusor overactivity were investigated in vivo and in vitro utilizing various animal models. Possible pathophysiological pathways and therapeutic approaches were tested by drug treatment and the use of knockout models. Furthermore the role of estrog

This thesis presents numerical simulations of reacting transport phenomena in polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells. Broadly, the presented work is subdivided into macro and microscale simulations. In macroscale simulations, a unit PEM fuel cell with interdigitated flow field configurations is simulated keeping in mind all the essential transport mechanisms, i.e., transport of species, ion

A method to accurately estimate the binding affinity of a small molecule to a receptor would be indispensable in numerous fields. For instance, most drugs exert their action by binding to a macromolecule target. Thus, a lot of time and resources could be saved in drug design by predicting affinities by computer programs. In a series of 15 papers, we have tested, compared, and improved the most p

Background: The burden of burn injuries is in developing countries, the majority of deaths (98%) related to fire burns are in developing countries.These injuries are associated with poverty and are mainly related to accidents with fires in the home environment. Aims: The aims of the thesis were to record the risk factors, causes, magnitude and outcome of burn treatment as well as establish circums

Body dimensions of 2,936 newborns with cleft lip/palate (CLP) were compared with 2,031,140 singleton newborns between 1973 to 1992. The risk of cleft development was found to be associated with intra-uterine growth retardation - the more severe the cleft, the stronger the association. As digital photography is being increasingly applied in clinical medicine, we devised a computer software program

In this thesis reductions of model and anticancer active Pt(IV) complexes with thiols and ascorbic acid and substitution reactions of cisplatin and model Pt(II) complexes with S-donor nucleophiles (rescue agents) have been investigated using stopped-flow and UV/VIS spectrophotometry. Glutathione (GSH) reduction of the anticancer active Pt(IV) compounds t- and c-[PtCl4(cha)(NH3)] (cha = cyclohexyla

The aim of this thesis was to develop and make a quality assessment of a tool, which includes a questionnaire and a dialogue process that could be useful for workplace health promotion from a salutogenic point of view. The studies have been performed within two health care organizations between 2005 and 2009, together with hospital staff. Two questionnaire studies were conducted (n=446 n=505, resp