DME as renewable fuel for agriculture : a study of the possibility to replace fossil diesel in agriculture machines with DME from biobased resources

Sverige har satt som mål att nettoutsläpp från fossila bränslen ska vara borta till 2045 och mycket behöver göras för att Sverige ska uppnå det målet. Det går att konstatera att Sverige går snabbt framåt med att byta ut fossila bränslen i fordon och har redan nått en nivå på 23 % biokomponenter i drivmedel, den högsta nivån bland länderna i Europeiska Unionen. Biodrivmedel importeras idag i hög grad samtidigt som det finns stora outnyttjade resurser i Sverige som med potentiell låg klimatpåverkan kan bli biodrivmedel. Flera studier kommer fram till att bioenergipotentialen i Sverige är stor. Studien har undersökt litteratur kring det svenska jordbrukets behov av dieselolja. Tyngden fokuseras på DME som drivmedel och DME produktion från förnyelsebar råvara. Vidare har potentiella volymer undersökts. Energibalanser, verkningsgrad och livcykelprincipen ”Well-to-wheel” analyserades. Uppsatsen diskuterar även till viss del DME i förhållande till andra biodrivmedel. Sverige kan genom produktion av DME med god marginal förse det svenska jordbruket med drivmedel och med möjlighet utöver detta, även tillgodose delar av andra sektorers drivmedelsbehov. Kostnaderna för en omställning till DME istället för fossil diesel är oklara och behöver undersökas mer. Studien har visat att Sverige innehar tillräckligt med biomassa för att förse jordbruket med svenskproducerad DME. Kostnaden är oklar, men reduceringen av nettoemissionerna av växthusgaser är hög. Ur ett bereskapsperspektiv är en satsning på DME en utmärkt kandidat för att det svenska jordbruket kan förses med energi vid en potentiell kris. DME kan vara the grand solution, den stora lösningen för det svenska jordbrukets framtida försörjning av fossilfria drivmedel.Sweden has set targets for net emissions from fossil fuels to be gone by 2045 and much must be done for Sweden to achieve this goal. It can be concluded that Sweden is making fast changes to replace fossil fuels and has already reached a level of 23 % bio-based components in fuels in general, the highest level amongst the countries in the European Union. Today, biofuels are mostly imported, but there are still great numbers of unused resources in Sweden, that with a potential low climate impact can become biofuels. Many studies have come to the conclusion that the bioenergy potential in Sweden is high. This thesis has examined literature on the Swedish agriculture’s demand for diesel fuel. The main focus was on DME as a fuel and DME-production from renewable resources. Furthermore, potential for volumes were investigated. Energy balances, thermal efficiency and the lifecycle principal “Well-to-wheel” were analyzed. The essay also discusses DMEs relations to other biofuels. DME can with wide margin fill the demand from the Swedish agriculture sector with fuel and furthermore provide fuel for parts of other sectors. The costs for a conversion to DME instead of fossil diesel are unclear and need to be further evaluated. This study has shown that Sweden has enough biomass to provide the agriculture sector with DME produced in Sweden. The costs are still unclear, but reduction in the net emissions of greenhouse gases is high. From a preparedness perspective DME is a perfect candidate to ensure that the Swedish agriculture sector will be provided with energy during a potential crisis. DME could be the grand solution for the Swedish agriculture sector’s future energy supply

Effect of Vitamin K Supplementation on Insulin Resistance in Older Men and Women

OBJECTIVE—Vitamin K has a potentially beneficial role in insulin resistance, but evidence is limited in humans. We tested the hypothesis that vitamin K supplementation for 36 months will improve insulin resistance in older men and women

Osteoblasts mediate the adverse effects of glucocorticoids on fuel metabolism

Long-term glucocorticoid treatment is associated with numerous adverse outcomes, including weight gain, insulin resistance, and diabetes; however, the pathogenesis of these side effects remains obscure. Glucocorticoids also suppress osteoblast function, including osteocalcin synthesis. Osteocalcin is an osteoblast-specific peptide that is reported to be involved in normal murine fuel metabolism. We now demonstrate that osteoblasts play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of glucocorticoid-induced dysmetabolism. Osteoblast-targeted disruption of glucocorticoid signaling significantly attenuated the suppression of osteocalcin synthesis and prevented the development of insulin resistance, glucose intolerance, and abnormal weight gain in corticosterone-treated mice. Nearly identical effects were observed in glucocorticoid-treated animals following heterotopic (hepatic) expression of both carboxylated and uncarboxylated osteocalcin through gene therapy, which additionally led to a reduction in hepatic lipid deposition and improved phosphorylation of the insulin receptor. These data suggest that the effects of exogenous high-dose glucocorticoids on insulin target tissues and systemic energy metabolism are mediated, at least in part, through the skeleton.NHMRC Grants 402462 and 63281

Diurnal rhythms of bone turnover markers in three ethnic groups

Context: Ethnic groups differ in fragility fracture risk and bone metabolism. Differences in diurnal rhythms (DRs) of bone turnover and PTH may play a role.  Objective: We investigated the DRs of plasma bone turnover markers (BTMs), PTH, and 1,25(OH)2D in three groups with pronounced differences in bone metabolism and plasma PTH.  Participants: Healthy Gambian, Chinese, and white British adults (ages 60–75 years; 30 per country).  Interventions: Observational study with sample collection every 4 hours for 24 hours.  Main Outcomes: Levels of plasma C-terminal telopeptide of type I collagen, procollagen type-1 N-propeptide, N-mid osteocalcin, bone alkaline phosphatase, PTH, and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D were measured. DRs were analyzed with random-effects Fourier regression and cross-correlation and regression analyses to assess associations between DRs and fasting and 24-hour means of BTMs and PTH.  Results: Concentrations of BTMs, PTH, and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D were higher in Gambians compared to other groups (P < .05). The DRs were significant for all variables and groups (P < .03) and were unimodal, with a nocturnal peak and a daytime nadir for BTMs, whereas PTH had two peaks. The DRs of BTMs and PTH were significantly cross-correlated for all groups (P < .05). There was a significant positive association between C-terminal telopeptide of type I collagen and PTH in the British and Gambian groups (P = .03), but not the Chinese group.  Conclusions: Despite ethnic differences in plasma BTMs and PTH, DRs were similar. This indicates that alteration of rhythmicity and loss of coupling of bone resorption and formation associated with an elevated PTH in other studies may not uniformly occur across different populations and needs to be considered in the interpretation of PTH as a risk factor of increased bone loss

Effect of phylloquinone (vitamin K1) supplementation for 12 months on the indices of vitamin K status and bone health in adult patients with Crohn's disease.

peer-reviewedAlthough epidemiological findings support a role for vitamin K status in the improvement of bone indices in adult patients with Crohn's disease (CD), this needs to be confirmed in double-blind, randomised controlled trials (RCT) with phylloquinone (vitamin K1). By conducting two RCT, the present study aimed to first establish whether supplementation with 1000 μg of phylloquinone daily near-maximally suppresses the percentage of undercarboxylated osteocalcin in serum (%ucOC; marker of vitamin K status) in adult patients with CD currently in remission as it does in healthy adults and second determine the effect of supplementation with phylloquinone at this dose for 12 months on the indices of bone turnover and bone mass. The initial dose-ranging RCT was conducted in adult patients with CD (n 10 per group) using 0 (placebo), 1000 or 2000 μg of phylloquinone daily for 2 weeks. In the main RCT, the effect of placebo v. 1000 μg vitamin K/d (both co-administered with Ca (500 mg/d) and vitamin D3 (10 μg/d)) for 12 months (n 43 per group) on the biochemical indices of bone turnover (determined by enzyme immunoassay) and bone mass (determined by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry) were investigated. At baseline, the mean %ucOC was 47 %, and this was suppressed upon supplementation with 1000 μg of phylloquinone daily ( - 81 %; P0·1) on bone turnover markers or on the bone mass of the lumbar spine or femur, but modestly increased (P< 0·05) the bone mass of the total radius. Despite near maximal suppression of serum %ucOC, supplementation with 1000 μg of phylloquinone daily (with Ca and vitamin D3) had no effect on the indices of bone health in adult CD patients with likely vitamin K insufficiency.PUBLISHEDpeer-reviewe

Vitamin K Status in Spaceflight and Ground-Based Models of Spaceflight

Bone loss is a well-documented change during and after long-duration spaceflight. Many types of countermeasures to bone loss have been proposed, including vitamin K supplementation. The objective of this series of studies was to measure change in vitamin K status in response to microgravity under a variety of spaceflight and spaceflight analog (model) conditions, including long-duration spaceflight studies (n = 15), three bed rest studies (n = 15, 49, and 24), and a 14-day saturation dive (n= 6). In crew members who flew 2–6 months on the International Space Station, in-flight and postflight plasma phylloquinone concentrations were unchanged from the preflight mean. Consistent with this finding, urinary γ-carboxyglutamic acid (GLA), a measure of vitamin K-dependent protein turnover, did not change in response to flight. Serum undercarboxylated osteocalcin (%ucOC), a measure of vitamin K function, was generally unchanged in response to flight. Spaceflight findings were corroborated by findings of no changes in phylloquinone, urinary GLA, or %ucOC during or after bed rest in three separate bed rest studies (21–90 days in duration) or after a 14-day saturation dive. The data presented here do not support either a need for vitamin K supplementation during spaceflight or the suggestion of using vitamin K as a bone loss countermeasure in spaceflight. © 2011 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research

Vitamin K Supplementation in Postmenopausal Women with Osteopenia (ECKO Trial): A Randomized Controlled Trial

Angela Cheung and colleagues investigate whether vitamin K1 can prevent bone loss among postmenopausal women with osteopenia

Evidence-based guidelines for the use of biochemical markers of bone turnover in the selection and monitoring of bisphosphonate treatment in osteoporosis: a consensus document of the Belgian Bone Club

OBJECTIVES: To review the clinical value of bone turnover markers (BTM), to initiate and/or monitor anti-resorptive treatment for osteoporosis compared with bone mineral density (BMD) and to evaluate suitable BTM and changes in BTM levels for significance of treatment efficiency. METHODOLOGY: Consensus meeting generating guidelines for clinical practice after review and discussion of the randomised controlled trials or meta-analyses on the management of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. RESULTS: Although the correlation between BMD and BTM is statistically significant, BTM cannot be used as predictive markers of BMD in an individual patient. Both are independent predictors of fracture risk, but BTM can only be used as an additional risk factor in the decision to treat. Current data do not support the use of BTM to select the optimal treatment. However, they can be used to monitor treatment efficiency before BMD changes can be evaluated. Early changes in BTM can be used to measure the clinical efficacy of an anti-resorptive treatment and to reinforce patient compliance. DISCUSSION: Determining a threshold of BTM reflecting an optimal long-term effect is not obvious. The objective should be the return to the premenopausal range and/or a decrease at least equal to the least significant change (30%). Preanalytical and analytical variability of BTM is an important limitation to their use. Serum C-terminal cross-linked telopeptide of type I collagen (CTX), procollagen 1 N terminal extension peptide and bone specific alkaline phosphatase (BSALP) appear to be the most suitable. Conclusion: Consensus regarding the use of BTM resulted in guidelines for clinical practice. BMD determines the indication to treat osteoporosis. BTM reflect treatment efficiency and can be used to motivate patients to persist with their medication.Consensus Development ConferenceJournal ArticlePractice GuidelineResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tReviewSCOPUS: cp.jFLWOAinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe