A study of the ATEX certification processes at a medium-sized company

Tutkimuksen tarkoitus oli tunnistaa keskikokoisen yrityksen ATEX sertifiointi prosesseissa olevat ongelmat. Paitsi tunnistaa ongelmat, tarkoitus oli ehdottaa toimenpiteitä ongelmien ratkaisemiseksi. Osana prosessia nimettiin myös vastuuhenkilöt. Käytetyt menetelmät perustuivat pääasiassa henkilökunnan haastatteluihin ja yrityksen prosessien sekä asiaan liittyvien viranomaisvaatimusten tutkimiseen. Tärkeimpiä havaintoja olivat puutteet henkilökunnan osaamisessa ja tietämyksessä. Lisäksi huomattiin, ettei yrityksen laatujärjestelmä ota riittävällä tasolla huomioon ATEX-vaatimuksia. Näistä huomattavimpia oli mm. tuotekehitysprosessi. Laatujärjestelmän puutteiden lisäksi tuli vielä huonosta valvonnasta ja henkilökunnan asenteista johtuvat ongelmat. ATEX-vaatimuksien täyttämiseen liittyvät ongelmat tunnistettiin, ja niihin löydettiin vähintään tyydyttävät ratkaisut. Samalla nimettiin vastuuhenkilöt uusille prosesseille. Henkilökunnan haastatteluista ja ATEX-standardin tuntemuksesta oli suuri merkitys työn onnistumisen kannalta.The purpose of this study was to identify the dilemmas associated with the ATEX certification processes at a medium-sized company. Furthermore, the aim was to suggest recommendations and actions for solving the acknowledged problems. The responsible agents were also determined. The problem and solution seeking method was based on having dialogs with the employees of the company and on studying the processes of the company as well as the demands of the authorities. To name few of the discoveries, there is a lack of ATEX competence among the staff of the company and the suppliers. Also, the project management system does not include ATEX processes. A few other ATEX processes are not sufficiently defined either. Furthermore, the checklists are not always followed. Lastly, the staff has different strategies when it comes to ATEX issues. The problems were identified and the solutions were found to a satisfactory level. The responsible agents were also named. The interviews proved to give good results. Personal experience and the ATEX directive and standards were also crucial to the study

ApoE Polymorphism Is Associated With C-Reactive Protein in Low-HDL Family Members and in Normolipidemic Subjects

The study was aimed to compare inflammatory parameters between carriers of apoE4 isoforms (apoE4/3, apoE4/2, and apoE4/4 phenotypes) and those of carrying apoE3 isoform without apoE4 isoform (apoE3/3 phenotypes and apoE2/3 phenotypes). The concentrations of serum hsCRP, sVCAM-1, sICAM-1, and sE-selectin were measured in 211 subjects from Finnish low-HDL families and in 157 normolipidemic subjects. The subjects with apoE4 isoform had lower concentrations of serum hsCRP both in low-HDL family members (p < 0.05) and in normolipidemic subjects (p < 0.01). The differences in serum CRP values remained significant after adjustment for age, BMI, smoking status, hypertension, gender, lipoprotein variables, and family number. We conclude that apoE phenotype has a strong influence on serum CRP values

Supporting data in ENDNOTE for: focused ultrasound transiently increases membrane conductance in isolated crayfish axon

NSF (#1707865, PI – Okada

The T allele of the hepatic lipase promoter variant C-480T is associated with increased fasting lipids and HDL and increased preprandial and postprandial LpCIII:B : European Atherosclerosis Research Study (EARS) II

The common C-480T transition in the hepatic lipase (HL) promoter has been shown to be associated with lower HL activity and increased high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. We examined the frequency and lipid associations of this HL polymorphism in 385 healthy, young (18- to 28-year-old) men whose fathers had had a premature myocardial infarction (designated cases) and 405 age-matched controls. These individuals were participants in the European Atherosclerosis Research Study II postprandial trial, who had been recruited from 11 European countries in 4 regions (the Baltic; United Kingdom; and central and southern Europe). Overall, the frequency of the T allele was 0.207 in controls and 0.244 in cases (P=0.08). The T allele was associated with higher fasting plasma total cholesterol (P<0.01), triglycerides (P<0.01), and HDL cholesterol (P<0.01). The strongest association was found with apolipoprotein (apo) A-I concentration, which was 10% higher in individuals homozygous for the T allele compared with those homozygous for the C allele (P<0.001). This polymorphism had no effect on the rise in plasma triglyceride levels after a fatty meal. However, before and after the fat load was ingested, levels of particles containing both apoC-III and apoB (LpC-III:B) were higher in carriers of the T allele, with homozygotes having 23% and 27% higher levels preprandially and postprandially, respectively, than those homozygous for the C allele (P<0.05). Thus, our results demonstrate that the C-480T polymorphism in the HL promoter is associated with alterations in plasma lipids and lipoproteins and the accumulation of atherogenic LpC-III:B particles

Utility of the predictors of coronary heart disease mortality in a longitudinal study of elderly Finnish men aged 65 to 84 years is dependent on context defined by Apo E genotype and area of residence

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/65869/1/j.1399-0004.1999.560505.x.pd

Monoclonal antibody detects Ag polymorphism of apolipoprotein B

AbstractA monoclonal antibody (MB-19) was used to investigate the polymorphism of apolipoprotein B in a large family and in unrelated subjects. Apolipoprotein B was shown to exhibit high-, intermediate- or low-affinitybinding to this antibody. Thus, MB-19 bound strongly to the Ag(c) epitope, an Ag antigenic domain previously characterized by human antisera, while it bound only weakly to the allelic epitope Ag(g). It proved therefore useful for the detection of the two corresponding allelic apoB species designated apoBc (high-affinity binding) and apoBg (low-affinity binding), and for confirming their co-dominant transmission. Intermediate binding resulted from the presence of a mixture of both apoB populations in heterozygous subjects