Choreographed Space

In this exhibition I have conversed with painters that have been identified as, Abstract Expressionist, colour field, and/or minimalist painters – Martin, Rothko, Newman, Falkenstein, Bing and Brown are but a few of the them. The work is united by geometry, repetition, the variations of subtle and bold colours, the variable surface treatments, and a polite affinity with subversiveness and flippancy. The subject of these paintings is elemental and these immaterial forms are non-objective in an attempt to infuse the canvas with an atmosphere of open space. In addition, the paintings are uncomplicated. They are quiet and restrained compositions that whisper irreverence and they allude to an anti-decorative aesthetic

Aboriginal Women and Urban Housing: Realizing the Community Benefits

Aboriginal women's housing issues profoundly affect the safety, health, and wellbeing of entire families. For low-income women who occupy marginal positions within the city, there is a particular urgency to access safe and affordable quality housing. In recent decades, evidence has shown that there are many links between housing and health. There is significant data highlighting deficiencies in the quality and availability of social and affordable housing within urban centres. The personal testimonies of Aboriginal women tenants living in housing developed by two urban Aboriginal housing organizations, one in Regina, Saskatchewan and one in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, constitute the main focus of my inquiry. The research findings suggest that Aboriginal women experience a greater level of comfort when they rent from Aboriginal housing providers. The women indicate that these agencies demonstrate a greater capacity to provide adequate housing and services that respect their values and cultural heritage. As a result, Aboriginal women are more inclined to stay in housing delivered by Aboriginal housing providers. Adequate housing helps to foster a sense of security and is a catalyst for Aboriginal women and their families to become established in their neighbourhoods. As well, housing stability permits Aboriginal women to access a wide-range of services and it generates a momentum towards salubrious living, better employment and educational advancement

The effects of trace elements on the microbial communities of thermophilic biogas production

The increasing need for alternatives to fossil fuels and traditional waste management systems can be simultaneously addressed by the production of biogas using organic waste as input material. The biogas produced can be used directly for energy production or upgraded to increase methane purity for use in the engines of motor vehicles. Furthermore, the volume of waste sent to landfills greatly reduced in the process and, when a hygienization step is included, the nutrient-rich output digestate can be used as agricultural fertilizer. Not only does the use of digestate as fertilizer reduce emissions of greenhouse gases by avoiding landfilling, it also decreases the use of fossil fuels associated with the production of chemical fertilizer. Several hindrances to biogas production exist, however, and at different levels. Economic interests demand as high efficiency as possible which includes operating a system close to its limits regarding organic loading rate (OLR), fatty acid content, ammonia content, sulfide content and trace element content. Such operation presents challenges on a technical level. The presence of trace elements may counteract certain forms of inhibition that arise but are an expense biogas plants would gladly do without. Meanwhile political will may lie with other energy sources or waste management systems. The mass balance of trace elements on agricultural land from biogas derived fertilizer must also be considered. In this study, the effects of trace elements in thermophilic biogas production (52°C) were investigated through the operation of two 5-litre CSTR reactors. Surveillance parameters were tracked over the 184 day experiment period with microbiological analysis performed on 9 digester liquid samples taken during three key periods: startup, 3 hydraulic retention times after startup and 3 hydraulic retention times after an increase in OLR. Terminal Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (TRFLP) analysis was used to analyze the dynamics of microbial community members carrying the functional gene, fhs, encoding the enzyme formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase (FTHFS) active in the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway and present in syntrophic acetate oxidizing bacteria. These acetogens are especially important given their role in helping to define the balance between the two possible pathways of methanogenesis, acetoclastic and hydrogenotrophic. A clone library of variants of the fhs gene was constructed to identify dominant members of this population. A phylogenetic analysis was also carried out to place gene variants found in this analysis in the greater context of variation of the fhs gene from previous sequencing of other biogas reactors. This study revealed a lack of differences between biogas production with or without trace element additions which was in contrast to previous studies. While gaps in knowledge in thermophilic systems limited more extensive analysis and thus more definitive conclusions, the variation in composition of food waste must be considered a main variable when considering differences between seemingly similar systems

Catchment influences on mercury methylation in a peatland chronosequence

Since the beginning of industrialization, emissions of mercury (Hg) from human activities in excess of natural levels have increased depo-sition rates to ecosystems, storage in soils and loading to aquatic envi-ronments. Toxicity to animals, subject to this accumulation, as well as to humans consuming them, are the major concerns driving research on this subject. Peatlands play a key role in Hg cycling as hotspots for Hg methylation, methyl mercury (MeHg) being a particularly mobile, bioavailable form of Hg that is prone to bioaccumulation. Underlying geography is fundamental in shaping the hydrology of a given area and, therefore, the locations of points of accumulation and methylation of Hg. In this study, potential relationships between geographic parame-ters, elucidated via GIS analysis were investigated with the aim of iden-tifying which parameters were relevant as explanatory variables in the prediction of Hg concentrations in the study area. Elevation was ex-pected to strongly predict MeHg concentrations due to the presence of a local chronosequence, created by land rise. The land’s age since emergence from the sea ranges from years to thousands of years within a span of 10 km, enabled this investigation in an environment in which climate is controlled for. With 13 of the 15 watershed areas less than 1 ha and 9 less than 500m2, little of meaning could be concluded from statistical analysis with certainty. Linear regression and PLS pointed to Elevation’s rela-tionship with THg, PLS implicated Watershed Area as being associated with MeHg, and PCA hinted at the relevance of Area as well as a clus-ter of Slope, Downslope Index, Curvature, and % Forest for sample sites with extreme values of Hg and other metals. Our results indicate that elevation alone is not a strong predictor of MeHg concentration along this peatland chronosequence

Prevalence of hyperaldosteronism in cats with chronic azotemia : including validation of an aldosterone - ELISA in dogs and cats

Primary hyperaldosteronism is an endocrine disease that recently is suggested to be more common in cats than previously thought, and is suspected to be a contributing factor to the development of chronic kidney disease (CKD) among cats. The clinical signs in cats with primary hyperaldosteronism are similar to those seen in CKD. Both conditions may lead to hypertension, hypokalemia, progressive kidney damage, and proteinuria. Medical therapy is available for primary hyperaldosteronism. Therefore, the differentiation of cats with primary hyperaldosteronism from cats with chronic kidney disease is of clinical importance. Chronic kidney disease is common in cats, but there are few studies on the prevalence of primary hyperaldosteronism in cats. One contributing factor in Sweden may have been the lack of an easily available analysis for aldosterone. The first aim of the present study was to evaluate an aldosterone-ELISA for diagnostic purposes in cats and dogs. The second aim was to compare serum aldosterone concentration between cats with chronic azotemia and nonazotemic cats, and to analyse the correlation between serum aldosterone concentration and blood pressure in cats with chronic azotemia. The aldosteron-ELISA (DRG Diagnostics, Marburg, Germany) were evaluated at the Clinical chemistry laboratory at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences in Uppsala. Twentyeight client-qwned cats were included in the study, 14 cats woth chronic azotemia and 14 nonazotemic cats. Blood samples were taken at the University Animal Hospital, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. The results of the validation of the aldosterone-ELISA assay showed linearity up to serum concentrations of aldosterone of approximately 600 pmol/l. In dogs and cats, the medium intra-assay coefficient of variation was approximately 8%. The medium inter-assay coefficient of variation was 4.4% in cats and 10.4% in dogs. Elevated serum concentrations of aldosterone (hyperaldosteronism) were found in two (14%) cats with azotemia. To distinguish cats with primary hyperaldosteronism from secondary, measurement of the plasma renin concentration is needed. Plasma renin activity will be determined, but was beyond the scope of the present study. There was no significant difference in serum aldosteron concentration between cats with azotemia and non-azotemic cats. Serum aldosterone concentration in hypertensive cats with chronic azotemia was significantly higher (median, 331 pmol/l; range, 313-332 pmol/l) than in normotensive cats with chronic azotemia (median, 223 pmol/l; range 135-280 pmol/l) (p=0.03, Mann-Whitney-U test). To the author's knowledge, this is the first study on the prevalence of hyperaldosteronism in cats with kidney disease in Sweden. Although the study was small, hyperaldosteronism was demonstrated in a number of cats with azotemia. More studies are needed for improved insight in prevalence and ethiology of hyperaldosteronism in cats.Den endokrina sjukdomen primär hyperaldosteronism misstänks vara vanligare hos katt än man tidigare trott och misstänks vara en bidragande faktor till kronisk njursvikt bland katter. Sjukdomstecken vid primär hyperaldosteronism liknar dem för kronisk njursjukdom då båda tillstånden kan leda till hypertension, hypokalemi samt progressiv njurskada med proteinuri. Då specifik terapi för primär hyperaldosteronism finns, är det av kliniskt värde att bland njursjuka katter kunna utskilja de som har en primär hyperaldosteronism. Kronisk njursjukdom är vanligt på katt, men det finns endast ett fåtal studier på hur vanligt primär hyperaldosteronism är hos katt. Ett problem är att det inte funnits en lättillgänglig aldosteronanalys i Sverige. Det här arbetet hade två syften. Först att utvärdera en aldosteronELISA analys för diagnostiskt bruk hos katt och hund. Sedan, att undersöka och jämföra aldosteronnivåerna hos katter med kroniskt förhöjda njurvärden med katter med normala njurvärden, samt att undersöka korrelationen mellan aldosteronnivåerna och blodtryck hos katter med förhöjt njurvärde (kreatinin). Aldosteron-ELISA (DRG Diagnostics, Marburg, Tyskland) utvärderades vid Klinisk kemiska laboratoriet, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet i Uppsala. Tjugoåtta privatägda katter inkluderades i studien, 14 katter med förhöjda njurvärden och 14 katter med normala njurvärden. Resultaten från valideringen av analysmetoden visade på linjäritet upp till serumkoncentrationer av aldosteron på cirka 600 pmol/l. Hos hund och katt sågs mellankörningsvariation på i genomsnitt cirka 8%, samt en inomkörningsvariation på 4,4% hos katt respektive 10,4% hos hund. Förhöjda halter av aldosteron (hyperaldosteronism) återfanns hos två (14%) av katterna med förhöjt njurvärde. För att skilja på primär hyperaldosteronism från sekundär, krävs ett mått på plasma renin-koncentrationen. Detta kommer att analyseras men utanför ramen för detta arbete. Serumkoncentrationen av aldosteron hos katterna med förhöjt njurvärde var inte signifikant högre än hos kontrollkatter. Serumkoncentrationer av aldosteron hos hypertensiva katter med förhöjt njurvärde var signifikant högre (median, 331 pmol/l; spridning, 313-332 pmol/l, outliers ej inkluderade) än hos normotensiva katter med förhöjda njurvärden (median, 223 pmol/l; spridning 135-280 pmol/l) (p=0,03, Mann-Whitney-U test). Till författarens kännedom är detta den första studien över förekomst av hyperaldosteronism hos njursjuka katter i Sverige. Även om studiegruppen var liten, så kunde höga serumaldosteronvärden påvisas hos ett antal katter med förhöjda njurvärden. Fler studier kring hyperaldosteronism hos katt vore därför önskvärt för att få ökad kunskap om prevalens, etiologi samt optimal diagnostik för katter med hyperaldosteronism

Feline vaccination : immunologic protection and possible kidney damage

Under åren 2005-2010 utförde en forskargrupp från Colorado State University studier på vaccinerade katter och fann att katter utvecklade antikroppar mot sina egna njurar efter vaccination med vanligt förekommande basvaccin mot parvovirus, calicivirus och herpesvirus. Virus till vaccinen är odlade på en celllinje från kattnjurar och går under benämningen Crandell Rees Feline Kidney. Antikropparna riktade sig mot antigen identifierade som annexin II och α-enolas och man såg tecken på interstitiell nefrit hos 50 % av katter som hyperinokulerats med Crandell Rees Feline Kidney. Hos människa och mus har antikroppar mot α-enolas och annexin II kopplats till autoimmuna sjukdomar och då framförallt immunologiska reaktioner mot njurcellerna. Man misstänker att vaccinationerna kan orsaka liknande skador på katt, men mer forskning krävs för att fastställa detta. I samma veva började även vaccinationsintervallen studeras och ifrågasättas. Studier har visat att katter har skydd mot parvovirus i minst 7.5 år och troligtvis längre. Det immunologiska skyddet mot herpes- och calicivirus har visat sig kvarstå i 3-4 år eller mer efter att katter har serokonverterat. Ett problem vid vaccination av kattungar och unga katter är kvarvarande maternella antikroppar som förhindrar serokonvertering och eget skydd mot virusen. För att förhindra övervaccination av katter som redan har immunologiskt skydd mot virus bör man utföra mer omfattande serologiska undersökningar för att bedöma den individuella kattens behov av revaccination.Between the years 2005-2010 a group of scientists from Colorado state university discovered that cats vaccinated with common core vaccines against feline panleuopenia, calicivirus and rhinotracheitis, developed antibodies against feline renal cells. The viral antigens in the vaccines are grown in feline renal cells known as Crandell Rees Feline Kidney. Detected autoantibodies were found to recognize antigens in form of annexin II and α-enolase and there were signs of interstitial nephritis in 50% of the cats hyperinoculated with Crandell Rees Feline Kidney. Studies in human and mice have shown that these antibodies are associated with many types of autoimmune diseases, especially immunologic responses to the kidney. A definitive association between kidney disease in felines and average administration of vaccine cannot be made at this stage – further investigation is needed. The guidelines for feline vaccination have also been questioned and further analysed. Studies have shown that vaccinated cats do develope long-term immunity after seroconvertion; 7.5 year for feline panleukopenia and 3-4 years or more for calicivirus and rhinotracheitis. A delayed seroconversion was however discovered in kittens and young cats with remaining maternal antibodies. To prevent unnecessary vaccinations of cats that already have full immunity against these viruses, a more extensive serologic evaluation should be made to determine the need of re-vaccination in the individual cat

Rättsäkert eller effektivt? – Om Polisens inre utlänningskontroller

Har rättsäkerheten gått förlorad i Polisens arbete med inre utlänningskontroller? Våren 2013 blossade debatten kring Reva-projektet upp och det diskuterades huruvida rasprofilering var något som tillämpades i jakten på papperslösa. Uppsatsen undersöker hur styrningen av Polisens arbete ser ut i detta fall, om rättsäkerheten förbisetts och i sådana fall varför. Det görs genom en idealtypsanalys på styrmaterialet, där NPM-värden ställs mot rättsäkerhet. Uppsatsen exemplifierar med verkliga fall och analyserar dessa med relevant teori för att utreda orsakerna. Resultatet visar att NPM-värden är dominerande i styrmaterialet och att detta kan leda till en skev resultatkultur. Styrning utifrån kvantitativa resultat kan ge en stressande effekt på Polisen. I de fall som tas upp har detta resulterat i att beslut fattats på godtyckliga grunder samt att Polisen blivit sämre i sitt bemötande av medborgarna. Slutsatsen är att det är det är Regeringens politik och målstyrning som leder Polisen till övertramp på rättsäkerheten

The effects of symmetry on the dynamics of antigenic variation

In the studies of dynamics of pathogens and their interactions with a host immune system, an important role is played by the structure of antigenic variants associated with a pathogen. Using the example of a model of antigenic variation in malaria, we show how many of the observed dynamical regimes can be explained in terms of the symmetry of interactions between different antigenic variants. The results of this analysis are quite generic, and have wider implications for understanding the dynamics of immune escape of other parasites, as well as for the dynamics of multi-strain diseases.Comment: 21 pages, 4 figures; J. Math. Biol. (2012), Online Firs

Accumulation of Progerin Affects the Symmetry of Cell Division and Is Associated with Impaired Wnt Signaling and the Mislocalization of Nuclear Envelope Proteins

Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome (HGPS) is the result of a defective form of the lamin A protein called progerin. While progerin is known to disrupt the properties of the nuclear lamina, the underlying mechanisms responsible for the pathophysiology of HGPS remain less clear. Previous studies in our laboratory have shown that progerin expression in murine epidermal basal cells results in impaired stratification and halted development of the skin. Stratification and differentiation of the epidermis is regulated by asymmetric stem cell division. Here, we show that expression of progerin impairs the ability of stem cells to maintain tissue homeostasis as a result of altered cell division. Quantification of basal skin cells showed an increase in symmetric cell division that correlated with progerin accumulation in HGPS mice. Investigation of the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon revealed a putative role of Wnt/beta-catenin signaling. Further analysis suggested an alteration in the nuclear translocation of beta-catenin involving the inner and outer nuclear membrane proteins, emerin and nesprin-2. Taken together, our results suggest a direct involvement of progerin in the transmission of Wnt signaling and normal stem cell division. These insights into the molecular mechanisms of progerin may help develop new treatment strategies for HGPS.Peer reviewe