The aim was to evaluate first trimester nuchal translucency (NT) measurement for detection and risk assessment of fetal malformations and fetal loss. 39 572 pregnant women were randomised to either a routine ultrasound scan at 12-14 weeks including NT measurement or to a routine scan at 18-20 weeks. Prenatal diagnosis of major congenital heart malformations was compared between the two groups. In

Clinical cytology is a rapid method to detect malignancy in effusions of the serous cavities, but the morphological characteristics of the cells do not always allow diagnosis and a specific marker for malignant cells would improve the diagnostic performance. Telomerase adds telomere repeats to the chromosome ends. It is the most promising universal indicator of malignancy and the project focuses o

Individuals who had a low birthweight (LBW) are at an increased risk of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes when exposed to high-fat overfeeding (HFO). We studied genome-wide mRNA expression and DNA methylation in subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) after 5 days of HFO and after a control diet in 40 young men, of whom 16 had LBW.

The general aim of this thesis was to characterize hematologic malignancies using gene expression profiling in order to obtain an improved classification and to study deregulated transcriptional networks in leukemia. In the first study (Article I), the gene expression profiles of hematologic cell lines were analyzed to investigate whether such cell lines maintain expression profiles that are chara

Objectives: Smoking has been associated with higher disease activity and poor response to anti-tumour necrosis factor (anti-TNF) therapy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We wanted to study the effect of smoking on response to therapy, disease activity measures, and drug survival in RA patients starting their first anti-TNF drug. Methods: In 2005, RA patients in a voluntary rheumatology

The conflicts concerning the preservation or destruction of the deserted church of Mårup in Denmark is followed from the the moment in 1928, when the church became redundant, untill 2004. The protection of the church is in conflict with the protection of the eroding cliff, the church as a symbol in conflict with the church as a source material, and the local people in conflict with central authori

Allocation, control, and management of natural resources are issues that absorb researchers within both the social and natural sciences. This study deals with such research questions as well as with one of the most fundamental issues in Economic History – namely institutional change. The plot is set around continuity and change of property rights institutions governing water resources. The setting

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Few studies have demonstrated that bacterial vaginosis (BV) is associated with sexual behavior risk factors similar to those for other sexually transmitted diseases. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of these factors in a multivariate analysis of data from women infected with BV and Chlamydia trachomatis, and noninfected control subjects. GOALS:

Anaerobic digestion of organic matter results in the production of biogas, which can be used to replace fossil fuels. There is potential for increased biogas production at wastewater treatment plants by digesting urban organic waste either separately or together with the sludge. Biogas production could also be increased by sludge pre-treatment. The objective of this work was to evaluate the poten

In this thesis, different optical methods utilising visible light for characterization of tissue have been developed and evaluated. The feasibility of many of these methods has been demonstrated in the laboratory or in animal experiments. However, the goal is naturally to develop methods useful in the clinic, and thus the emphasis in this thesis has been put on in vivo examinations. Raman spectro

The idea of phosphorus removal at wastewater treatment plants is to transfer dissolved phosphorus into a solid phase. Together with the rest of the produced sludge it is then removed from the water, resulting in a decreased concentration of phosphorus in the effluent and the prevention of the eutrophication in the recipient. Phosphorus can either be stored biologically, with enhanced biological p

Concentrations of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and human kallikrein 2 (hK2) were investigated in blood samples that had been obtained from men who were diagnosed with prostate cancer (PCa) decades later. The studies were based on a cohort comprising 22,444 men who, in 1974?1986, were early middle aged and represented a non-PCa-screened population. The results clearly demonstrate a very strong c

Celiac disease is associated with tissue transglutaminase autoantibodies (tTGA) in individuals carrying the HLA risk-haplotypes DQA105:01-DQB102:01 (DQ2) and/or DQA103:01-DQB103:02 (DQ8). The aim was to identify celiac disease in a HLA genotyped birth-cohort prospectively screened for celiac disease.

Background: Symptoms from the upper gastrointestinal tract are frequently encountered in clinical practice and may be of either organic or functional origin. For some of these conditions, according to the literature, certain management strategies can be recommended. For other conditions, the evidence is more ambiguous. The hypothesis that guided our study design was twofold: Management strategies