1,198 research outputs found
Recipes for low carbon, adaptable design
The thesis contributes a more lucid understanding of the potential for interaction amongst different facets of sustainability in the context of building design, providing evidence that the assimilation of diverse and often seemingly unconnected aspects of sustainability is not the unassuming process implicit in the current sustainability discourse. Working inductively and with a focus on two sustainable principles (the current UK government sponsored sustainability agenda, low carbon design, and an alternative interpretation, adaptable design, whose literature is framed in a sometimes complementary, at others antagonistic fashion to the former), this thesis develops an understanding of interaction in building design processes, using publically available documentary evidence and a comparative case-study approach.
The thesis describes and categorises instances of interaction arising in the twenty-three case study building design processes, demonstrating both the empirical existence of interaction and improving the theoretical conceptualisation beyond basic ideas of synergy and conflict. Interaction is noted as arising from both technical incompatibilities and project actors interpretation of the agendas themselves: a socio-technical issue.
The thesis distinguishes multiple approaches adopted by design teams to managing the entanglement encountered. Interpreting these interaction strategies in their case context, factors driving the selection of a particular approach are inductively derived and combined to form a tentative conceptual framework. This framework aides a systematic comparison across project cases, facilitated by the crisp set qualitative comparative analysis (csQCA) technique. Projects are described as configurations of the identified conditions and, by operationalizing interaction in a manner consistent with case study observation and the existing literatures of adaptable and low carbon design, assessed for successfulness in reconciling the agendas. The technique identifies three causal pathways to successful reconciliations of adaptable and low carbon design.
Finally, the thesis makes a methodological contribution, through an evaluation of the application of QCA to a novel problem space (socio-technical, project-orientated problems of the built environment). Through the richness of documentary data obtained for study, it also demonstrates the potential effectiveness of documents as primary sources in the field of building design, where they are often relegated to a supporting role
Collagenase-1 Complexes with α2-Macroglobulin in the Acute and Chronic Wound Environments
The purpose of this study was to examine the appearance and activation of collagenase-1 (MMP-1) in the wound environment. We found that MMP-1 accumulates in the fluid phase of the burn wound environment within 2 d of injury and reaches maximal levels by day 4. Two forms of the enzyme were evident; one that corresponded to proMMP-1 and another that corresponded to a group of high molecular mass (≈200 kDa and >200 kDa doublet) MMP-1 containing complexes. ProMMP-1 and MMP-1 containing complexes also occurred in wound fluid from venous stasis ulcers, but neither was detected in mastectomy fluid or in plasma. Levels of the proteinase inhibitor α2-macroglobulin in burn fluid and chronic ulcer wound fluid were almost as high as in plasma, and the high molecular mass MMP-1 containing complexes in burn fluid appeared to result from binding between α2-macroglobulin and activated MMP-1. These observations provide direct evidence that active MMP-1 in the fluid phase of the wound environment becomes complexed to α2-macroglobulin
Public education in New Hampshire-an economic appraisal, Station Bulletin, no.481
The Bulletin is a publication of the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station, College of Life Sciences and Agriculture, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire
Patterns of expenditures among rural New Hampshire school districts, Station Bulletin, no.491
The Bulletin is a publication of the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station, College of Life Sciences and Agriculture, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire
Rural real estate tax delinquency in New Hampshire, Bulletin, no. 290
The Bulletin is a publication of the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station, College of Life Sciences and Agriculture, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire
Dairy herd replacements in Southern New Hampshire, Bulletin, no. 302
The Bulletin is a publication of the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station, College of Life Sciences and Agriculture, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire
Studies in local government and taxation in rural New Hampshire, Bulletin, no. 346
The Bulletin is a publication of the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station, College of Life Sciences and Agriculture, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire
7‑hydroxymitragynine is an active metabolite of mitragynine and a key mediator of its analgesic effects
Mitragynina speciosa, more commonly known as kratom, is a
plant native to Southeast Asia, the leaves of which have been used
traditionally as a stimulant, analgesic, and treatment for opioid addiction. Recently,
growing use of the plant in the United States and concerns that kratom
represents an uncontrolled drug with potential abuse liability, have
highlighted the need for more careful study of its pharmacological activity. The
major active alkaloid found in kratom, mitragynine, has been reported to have
opioid agonist and analgesic activity in vitro
and in animal models, consistent with the purported effects of kratom leaf in
humans. However, preliminary research has provided some evidence that
mitragynine and related compounds may act as atypical opioid agonists, inducing
therapeutic effects such as analgesia, while limiting the negative side effects
typical of classical opioids. Here we report evidence that an active metabolite
plays an important role in mediating the analgesic effects of mitragynine. We
find that mitragynine is converted in
vitro in both mouse and human liver preparations to the much more potent
mu-opioid receptor agonist 7-hydroxymitragynine, and that this conversion is
mediated by cytochrome P450 3A isoforms. Further, we show that 7-hydroxymitragynine
is formed from mitragynine in mice and that brain concentrations of this
metabolite are sufficient to explain most or all of the opioid-receptor-mediated
analgesic activity of mitragynine. At the same time, mitragynine is found in the
brains of mice at very high concentrations relative to its opioid receptor
binding affinity, suggesting that it does not directly activate opioid
receptors. The results presented here provide a metabolism-dependent mechanism
for the analgesic effects of mitragynine and clarify the importance of route of
administration for determining the activity of this compound. Further, they
raise important questions about the interpretation of existing data on
mitragynine and highlight critical areas for further research in animals and
humans.</p
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