Sex-different and growth hormone-regulated expression of microRNA in rat liver

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short non-coding RNAs playing an important role in post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression. We have previously shown that hepatic transcript profiles are different between males and females; that some of these differences are under the regulation of growth hormone (GH); and that mild starvation diminishes some of the differences. In this study, we tested if hepatic miRNAs are regulated in a similar manner.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Using microarrays, miRNA screening was performed to identify sex-dependent miRNAs in rat liver. Out of 324 unique probes on the array, 254 were expressed in the liver and eight (3% of 254) of those were found to be different between the sexes. Among the eight putative sex-different miRNAs, only one female-predominant miRNA (miR-29b) was confirmed using quantitative real-time PCR. Furthermore, 1 week of continuous GH-treatment in male rats reduced the levels of miR-451 and miR-29b, whereas mild starvation (12 hours) raised the levels of miR-451, miR-122a and miR-29b in both sexes. The biggest effects were obtained on miR-29b with GH-treatment.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We conclude that hepatic miRNA levels depend on the hormonal and nutritional status of the animal and show that miR-29b is a female-predominant and GH-regulated miRNA in rat liver.</p

Disturbance-based management of ecosystem services and disservices in partial nitritation-anammox biofilms

The resistance and resilience provided by functional redundancy, a common feature of microbial communities, is not always advantageous. An example is nitrite oxidation in partial nitritation-anammox (PNA) reactors designed for nitrogen removal in wastewater treatment, where suppression of nitrite oxidizers like\ua0Nitrospira\ua0is sought. In these ecosystems, biofilms provide microhabitats with oxygen gradients, allowing the coexistence of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria. We designed a disturbance experiment where PNA biofilms, treating water from a high-rate activated sludge process, were constantly or intermittently exposed to anaerobic sidestream wastewater, which has been proposed to inhibit nitrite oxidizers. With increasing sidestream exposure we observed decreased abundance, alpha-diversity, functional versatility, and hence functional redundancy, among\ua0Nitrospira\ua0in the PNA biofilms, while the opposite patterns were observed for anammox bacteria within\ua0Brocadia. At the same time, species turnover was observed for aerobic ammonia-oxidizing\ua0Nitrosomonas\ua0populations. The different exposure regimens were associated with metagenomic assembled genomes of\ua0Nitrosomonas,\ua0Nitrospira, and\ua0Brocadia, encoding genes related to N-cycling, substrate usage, and osmotic stress response, possibly explaining the three different patterns by niche differentiation. These findings imply that disturbances can be used to manage the functional redundancy of biofilm microbiomes in a desirable direction, which should be considered when designing operational strategies for wastewater treatment

Pregnancy to postpartum transition of serum metabolites in women with gestational diabetes

Context Gestational diabetes is commonly linked to development of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). There is a need to characterize metabolic changes associated with gestational diabetes in order to find novel biomarkers for T2DM. Objective To find potential pathophysiological mechanisms and markers for progression from gestational diabetes mellitus to T2DM by studying the metabolic transition from pregnancy to postpartum. Design The metabolic transition profile from pregnancy to postpartum was characterized in 56 women by mass spectrometry-based metabolomics; 11 women had gestational diabetes mellitus, 24 had normal glucose tolerance, and 21 were normoglycaemic but at increased risk for gestational diabetes mellitus. Fasting serum samples collected during trimester 3 (gestational week 32 ± 0.6) and postpartum (10.5 ± 0.4 months) were compared in diagnosis-specific multivariate models (orthogonal partial least squares analysis). Clinical measurements (e.g., insulin, glucose, lipid levels) were compared and models of insulin sensitivity and resistance were calculated for the same time period. Results Women with gestational diabetes had significantly increased postpartum levels of the branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) leucine, isoleucine, and valine, and their circulating lipids did not return to normal levels after pregnancy. The increase in BCAAs occurred postpartum since the BCAAs did not differ during pregnancy, as compared to normoglycemic women. Conclusions Postpartum levels of specific BCAAs, notably valine, are related to gestational diabetes during pregnancy

Sex-different hepaticglycogen content and glucose output in rats

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Genes involved in hepatic metabolism have a sex-different expression in rodents. To test whether male and female rat livers differ regarding lipid and carbohydrate metabolism, whole-genome transcript profiles were generated and these were complemented by measurements of hepatic lipid and glycogen content, fatty acid (FA) oxidation rates and hepatic glucose output (HGO). The latter was determined in perfusates from <it>in situ </it>perfusion of male and female rat livers. These perfusates were also analysed using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy to identify putative sex-differences in other liver-derived metabolites. Effects of insulin were monitored by analysis of Akt-phosphorylation, gene expression and HGO after s.c. insulin injections.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Out of approximately 3 500 gene products being detected in liver, 11% were significantly higher in females, and 11% were higher in males. Many transcripts for the production of triglycerides (TG), cholesterol and VLDL particles were female-predominant, whereas genes for FA oxidation, gluconeogenesis and glycogen synthesis were male-predominant. Sex-differences in mRNA levels related to metabolism were more pronounced during mild starvation (12 h fasting), as compared to the postabsorptive state (4 h fasting). No sex-differences were observed regarding hepatic TG content, FA oxidation rates or blood levels of ketone bodies or glucose. However, males had higher hepatic glycogen content and higher HGO, as well as higher ratios of insulin to glucagon levels. Based on NMR spectroscopy, liver-derived lactate was also higher in males. HGO was inhibited by insulin in parallel with increased phosphorylation of Akt, without any sex-differences in insulin sensitivity. However, the degree of Thr172-phosphorylated AMP kinase (AMPK) was higher in females, indicating a higher degree of AMPK-dependent actions.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Taken together, males had higher ratios of insulin to glucagon levels, higher levels of glycogen, lower degree of AMPK phosphorylation, higher expression of gluconeogenic genes and higher hepatic glucose output. Possibly these sex-differences reflect a higher ability for the healthy male rat liver to respond to increased energy demands.</p

The effects of custodial vs. non-custodial sentences on re-offending: A systematic review of the state of knowledge

As part of a broad initiative of systematic reviews of experimental or quasiexperimental evaluations of interventions in the field of crime prevention and the treatment of offenders, our work consisted in searching through all available databases for evidence concerning the effects of custodial and non-custodial sanctions on reoffending. For this purpose, we examined more than 3,000 abstracts, and finally 23 studies that met the minimal conditions of the Campbell Review, with only 5 studies based on a controlled or a natural experimental design. These studies allowed, all in all, 27 comparisons. Relatively few studies compare recidivism rates for offenders sentenced to jail or prison with those of offenders given some alternative to incarceration (typically probation). According to the findings, the rate of re-offending after a non-custodial sanction is lower than after a custodial sanction in 11 out of 13 significant comparisons. However, in 14 out of 27 comparisons, no significant difference on re-offending between both sanctions is noted. Two out of 27 comparisons are in favour of custodial sanctions. Finally, experimental evaluations and natural experiments yield results that are less favourable to non-custodial sanctions, than are quasi-experimental studies using softer designs. This is confirmed by the meta-analysis including four controlled and one natural experiment. According to the results, non-custodial sanctions are not beneficial in terms of lower rates of re-offending beyond random effects. Contradictory results reported in the literature are likely due to insufficient control of pre-intervention differences between prisoners and those serving “alternative” sanctions

The Nordic Expert Group for Criteria Documentation of Health Risks from Chemicals. 153. Occupational chemical exposures and cardiovascular disease

The main task of the Nordic Expert Groupfor Criteria Documentation of Health Risks from Chemicals (NEG) is to produce criteria documents to be used by the regulatory authoritiesasthescientific basis for setting occupational exposure limits for chemical substances. For each document, NEG appoints one or several authors. An evaluation is made of all relevant published, peer-reviewed original literaturefound. Whereas NEG adopts the document by consensus procedures,therebygrantingthequalityandconclusions, theauthorsareresponsible for the factual content of the document.The evaluation of the literature and the drafting of this document on Occupational chemical exposures and cardiovascular diseasewere done by Dr Bengt Sjögren, Dr Carolina Bigert and Prof. Per Gustavsson at the Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden. The draft versions were discussed within NEG and the final version was adopted at the NEG meeting on 9 May 2019. Editorial work and technical editing were performed by the NEG secretariat

Tredimensionella fastigheter - en belysning utifrån jordabalkens grannelagsrätt

Mitt fastighetsrättsliga intresse har gjort att jag har valt att skriva om en nyhet i fastighetsrätten, nämligen tredimensionella fastigheter som infördes den 1 januari 2004. En tredimensionell fastighet är avgränsad i horisontal- och vertikalplanet och bildar sålunda en sluten volym. Tidigare kunde en fastighet endast avgränsas horisontellt i markplanet. Till följd av den tredimensionella fastighetens form kan fastigheten ha grannar under, åt sidorna och ovanför. Den grannelagsrättsliga regleringen i 3 kap. JB har därför genomgått en förändring. Syftet med examensarbetet är att belysa de tredimensionella fastigheterna utifrån de grannelagsrättsliga reglerna i 3 kap. JB. Ett av syftena med tredimensionell fastighetsindelning är att möjliggöra lämpliga enheter att förvalta. Att fastighetsrättsligt trygga stora investeringar är ett annat av syftena. Ett ytterligare syfte med tredimensionell fastighetsindelning är att ge möjlighet att lämna mark på ytan orörd men under marken rymma en självständig tredimensionell fastighet. En tredimensionell fastighet skall endast bildas om det är lämpligare än andra åtgärder. Exempel på andra åtgärder är att bilda en traditionell fastighet och knyta ett servitut till fastigheten. I vissa fall kan det vara mer ekonomiskt att bilda en tredimensionell fastighet framför en traditionell fastighet. Innan möjligheten till tredimensionella fastigheter, har tredimensionellt fastighetsutnyttjande lösts genom nyttjanderätt, servitut, ledningsrätt, gemensamhetsanläggning och samägande med avtal om nyttjande av tredimensionellt åtskilda enheter. Grannelagsrätt är ett förhållande av ömsesidiga rättigheter och förpliktelser mellan grannar. De allmänna grannelagsrättsliga reglerna är tillämpliga på alla typer av fastigheter, både traditionella och tredimensionella fastigheter. Allmänna grannelagsrättsliga regler innefattar allt från den allmänna hänsynsregeln, som är en avvägning mellan grannars intresse, till grannes rätt att bortta gren eller rot. Däremellan ryms regler om skyddsåtgärder vid grävning och tillträde till annans fastighet vid grävning. De särskilda grannelagsrättsliga reglerna är tillämpliga på en anläggning som ryms inom en tredimensionell fastighet eller ett tredimensionellt fastighetsutrymme. De särskilda grannelagsrättsliga reglerna behandlar skyddsåtgärder vid byggnadsarbete och rätt till tillträde till annans fastighet vid byggnadsarbete, samt regler om skyldighet för fastighetsägare att åtgärda bristfälligheter på fastighet. Eftersom en tredimensionell fastighet har fler grannar än en traditionell fastighet har särskilda grannelagsrättsliga regler för tredimensionella fastigheter införts. Jag anser att det är mest lämpligt att hantera de grannelagsrättsliga frågorna som enbart rör tredimensionella fastigheter i särskilda paragrafer. Den enskilde grannen har därmed lättare att ta del av reglerna. Jag har i min undersökning funnit luckor i grannelagsrätten avseende tredimensionella fastigheter. För att motverka dessa luckor presenterar jag två förslag till nya paragrafer. Båda de föreslagna paragraferna utgör särskilda grannelagsrättsliga regler. Det ena förslaget ger en ägare av en hotad anläggningsdel en rätt att själv åtgärda brister på en närliggande anläggningsdel. Det andra förslaget inför en skyldighet för en ägare av en bristfällig anläggningsdel att bekosta skyddsåtgärder vid grävning nedanför vanligt källardjup

“Did I see her as a victim? Absolutely not.“ : A thematic analysis of the portrayal of offenders and victims in the TVseries I Am a Killer

Studiens syfte var att utifrån Nils Christies teori om det ideala offret, i kombination med ettgenusteoretiskt perspektiv analysera hur offer och gärningspersoner framställdes i TV-serien I Am a Killer. Den valda analysmetoden var tematisk analys. Studien visade att Christies idealtyper inte var vanligt förekommande, och att Christies icke-idealtyper var dominerande. Vidare visade studien att offer såväl som förövare inte framställdes olika utifrån deras könstillhörighet. Slutsatserna som gjordes var att Christies teori om idealtyper inte gick att applicera fullt ut på riktiga människor. I stället visade sig termen rollblandning vara mer tillämplig på verkliga människor och fall. Vidare var stereotypa idéer och föreställningar om män respektive kvinnor till viss del förekommande i materialet. Tidigare forskning gällande framställningen av kvinnliga offer och gärningspersoner samt manliga offer och gärningspersoner bekräftades till viss del men inte fullt ut. The purpose of the study was to analyze how victims and offenders were portrayed in the Netflix series I Am a Killer, through Nils Christie’s theory of the ideal victim in combination with a gender theoretical perspective. The chosen method of analysis was a thematic content analysis. The study showed that Christie’s ideal types were not common and that non-ideal victims and offenders dominated. Furthermore, the study did not show that victims and offenders were portrayed differently based on their gender. The conclusions made were that Christie’s ideal types were not applicable in the realm of reality, the roles ”victim” and” offender” were generally intertwined which made the term victim-offender overlap more useful and accurate. Furthermore, stereotypical ideas regarding men and women were somewhat present in the material. To a certain extent that confirmed previous research regarding the portrayal of gender in media as well as in victimization and perpetratorship

“Did I see her as a victim? Absolutely not.“ : A thematic analysis of the portrayal of offenders and victims in the TVseries I Am a Killer

Studiens syfte var att utifrån Nils Christies teori om det ideala offret, i kombination med ettgenusteoretiskt perspektiv analysera hur offer och gärningspersoner framställdes i TV-serien I Am a Killer. Den valda analysmetoden var tematisk analys. Studien visade att Christies idealtyper inte var vanligt förekommande, och att Christies icke-idealtyper var dominerande. Vidare visade studien att offer såväl som förövare inte framställdes olika utifrån deras könstillhörighet. Slutsatserna som gjordes var att Christies teori om idealtyper inte gick att applicera fullt ut på riktiga människor. I stället visade sig termen rollblandning vara mer tillämplig på verkliga människor och fall. Vidare var stereotypa idéer och föreställningar om män respektive kvinnor till viss del förekommande i materialet. Tidigare forskning gällande framställningen av kvinnliga offer och gärningspersoner samt manliga offer och gärningspersoner bekräftades till viss del men inte fullt ut. The purpose of the study was to analyze how victims and offenders were portrayed in the Netflix series I Am a Killer, through Nils Christie’s theory of the ideal victim in combination with a gender theoretical perspective. The chosen method of analysis was a thematic content analysis. The study showed that Christie’s ideal types were not common and that non-ideal victims and offenders dominated. Furthermore, the study did not show that victims and offenders were portrayed differently based on their gender. The conclusions made were that Christie’s ideal types were not applicable in the realm of reality, the roles ”victim” and” offender” were generally intertwined which made the term victim-offender overlap more useful and accurate. Furthermore, stereotypical ideas regarding men and women were somewhat present in the material. To a certain extent that confirmed previous research regarding the portrayal of gender in media as well as in victimization and perpetratorship