Wellness-matkailun hohtava aurinko : kirkasvalo osana hyvinvointimatkailupalveluita

Nykyajan hektisessä yhteiskunnassa hyvinvoinnin, terveyden ja itsestään huolehtimisen merkitys on korostunut huomattavasti. Hyvinvointi- ja wellness-matkailun kasvu on kiihtynyt ja tulevaisuudessa hyvinvointialoille ennustetaan räjähdysmäistä kasvua. Valo on yksi tärkeimmistä asioista ihmisen hyvinvoinnin ja elämän rytmin kannalta. Syksyisin luonnollisen valon määrä vähenee ja monet alkavat kärsiä kaamosoireista. Auringon valon puutetta voi korvata kirkasvalolla. Tällä hetkellä kirkasvaloon liittyviä palveluita ei kuitenkaan ole paljoa tarjolla. Hyvinvointi- ja wellness-matkailu ovat kovassa kasvussa ja uusille tuoteideoille on jatkuvasti kysyntää. Voisiko kirkasvalosta tulla seuraava hyvinvointimatkailun trendi? Tämän toiminnallisen opinnäytetyön tavoitteena on suunnitella kirkasvalon ympärille kaksi erilaista tuotepakettia, joita toimeksiantajani voi hyödyntää osana liiketoimintaansa. Opinnäytetyöni tietoperustassa käsittelen wellness-matkailua kotimaassa, valon merkitystä ihmisen hyvinvoinnille, sekä palvelutuotteen tuotekehitystä. Tämän opinnäytetyön pääpaino on tuotesuunnittelussa ja -kehityksessä. Tässä opinnäytetyössä ei keskitytä markkinointiin, brändäykseen tai hinnoitteluun. Toiminnallisen opinnäytetyöni tuotoksina olen suunnitellut kaksi tuotepakettia, tuotekortit ja blueprint-kaaviot.In today's hectic society, welfare, health and self-care have increased in importance significantly. The growth of health and wellness tourism has accelerated, and in the future well-being sectors are predicted to grow exponentially. Light is one of the most important things for a human being and in terms of the rhythm of life. In autumn, the natural light levels fall, and many begin to suffer from seasonal affective symptoms. Lack of sunlight can be replaced by bright light. At the moment, bright light-related services are not much on offer. Well-being and wellness tourism is growing rapidly and there is demand for new product ideas. Could the bright light become the next trend in wellness tourism? The functional purpose of this thesis is to design two different service packages around the bright light, which my thesis mandator can use as a part of the business. My thesis knowledge base, deals with wellness tourism in Finland, the importance of light to people´s well-being, and service product development. This thesis focuses on product design and development. This thesis does not focus on marketing, branding, or pricing, but the main focus is on the service product productization. The outputs of this functional thesis are two product packages, product cards and blueprint diagrams

Lipopolysaccharide : a Link between Periodontitis and Cardiometabolic Disorders

Periodontitis is characterized by an inflammatory response to bacterial infection in the supporting tissues of the teeth. The disease manifests with gingival swelling and bleeding, increased periodontal pocket depth, and alveolar bone loss. Intact bacteria or bacterial products, including lipopolysaccharide (LPS), may enter the bloodstream through inflamed periodontal tissue or via saliva. Bacterial dissemination, further potentiated by gastrointestinal microbiota, may result in endotoxemia and low-grade inflammation. The general aim of this thesis research was to investigate whether LPS links periodontitis with cardiometabolic disorders. The following topics were studied: genetic factors associated with the susceptibility to periodontitis, the systemic effects of endotoxemia induced by periodontitis and cardiometabolic disorders, as well as the influence of periodontal treatment on plasma LPS activity and lipoprotein composition. A study of genetic polymorphisms of the human major histocompatibility complex region demonstrated that a haplotype comprising six SNPs of the BAT1, NFKBIL1, and LTA genes was associated with the risk of having periodontitis. The risk haplotype showed an association with bleeding on probing, probing pocket depth ≥6 mm, and severe periodontitis, and the result was replicated in two different study populations with concordance. In addition, the serum lymphotoxin-α (LTA) concentration was associated with LTA SNPs of the risk haplotype in homozygous patients, and LTA was expressed in the inflamed periodontal tissue. The systemic effects of the periodontitis-derived endotoxemia were investigated before and after periodontal treatment. In the serum of periodontitis patients, LPS was associated with the proatherogenic very low-density lipoprotein intermediate-density lipoprotein (VLDL-IDL) fraction. Although local healing of the periodontium was successful, the systemic inflammation status of the patients failed to improve after periodontal treatment, reflecting the complexity and persistence of the disease. There were no significant changes in plasma LPS activity or its distribution among lipoprotein classes after periodontal treatment. However, the VLDL of patients with severe periodontitis induced higher expression of proinflammatory cytokines in macrophages when compared with VLDL derived from patients with moderate periodontitis. In addition, VLDL isolated from patients with severe periodontitis with suppuration contained more LPS and induced higher cholesterol uptake in macrophages. The effect of nutrient intake on the association of serum LPS activity with cardiometabolic disorders was examined in a population-based cohort. Endotoxemia was strongly associated with prevalent obesity, metabolic syndrome (MetS), diabetes, and coronary heart disease (CHD). In addition, high serum LPS activity was associated with an increased risk of future CHD events. Even though energy intake was correlated with LPS activity in lean, healthy subjects, the general associations were independent of energy or macronutrient intake. The results indicate that genetic variation in the MHC class III region may be important in periodontitis susceptibility. Endotoxemia and low-grade inflammation originating from periodontitis may induce the proatherogenic properties of VLDL particles via macrophage activation and foam cell formation, thereby promoting atherogenesis. The association of obesity, MetS, diabetes, and CHD with endotoxemia supports the significance of bacterial infections and the immune response in the etiology of cardiometabolic disorders. In conclusion, the findings highlight the close relationship between genetics, the immune response, and lipid metabolism, promoting the role of LPS as a link between periodontitis and cardiometabolic disorders.Parodontiitti on krooninen tulehdussairaus hampaita ympäröivissä kiinnityskudoksissa. Suun parodontiittibakteerien aiheuttama infektio ja isännän puolustusvaste johtavat parodontiitille tyypilliseen kova- ja pehmytkudosten tuhoutumiseen. Parodontiitin oireita ovat ienverenvuoto, ikenen punoitus ja turvotus, syventyneiden ientaskujen muodostuminen sekä alveoliluukato. Bakteerit ja niiden toksiinit, kuten endotoksiini eli lipopolysakkaridi, voivat päätyä verenkiertoon tulehtuneen kiinnityskudoksen kautta tai syljen välityksellä. Suun ja myös suoliston bakteerien systeeminen leviäminen voi johtaa endotoksemiaan ja edelleen matala-asteiseen tulehdukseen. Väitöskirjatutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli selvittää, onko endotoksemia yhdistävä tekijä parodontiitin ja kardiometabolisten sairauksien välillä. Työssä tutkittiin parodontiitille altistavaa genetiikkaa, parodontiitin ja kardiometabolisten sairauksien aiheuttaman endotoksemian systeemisiä vaikutuksia sekä parodontiitin hoidon vaikutusta plasman endotoksiinitasoon ja lipoproteiinikoostumukseen. Parodontiitin genetiikkaa käsittelevässä tutkimuksessa havaittiin MHC-alueen geenien BAT1, NFKBIL1 ja LTA variaation yhteys parodontiitin vaikeaan muotoon ja sen oireisiin eli ienverenvuotoon ja patologisesti syventyneisiin ientaskuihin. Parodontiitin aiheuttaman endotoksemian systeemisiä vaikutuksia tutkittiin ennen parodontiitin hoitoa ja hoidon jälkeen. Parodontiittipotilaiden seerumissa endotoksiini yhdistyi VLDL-IDL-lipoproteiinifraktioon. Vaikka hoito paransi taudin kuvaa, potilaiden systeeminen tulehdusaste ei kohentunut. Tämä kuvastaa parodontiittia monimutkaisena kroonisena sairautena. Parodontiitin hoidolla ei myöskään ollut vaikutusta plasman endotoksiinitasoon tai endotoksiinin jakautumiseen lipoproteiiniluokkien välillä. Parodontiitin vakavaa muotoa sairastavien potilaiden VLDL-lipoproteiini sisälsi enemmän endotoksiinia ja aiheutti voimakkaamman tulehdusreaktion verrattuna keskivaikeaa parodontiittia sairastaviin potilaisiin. Tämä tulehdusreaktio häiritsi myös makrofagien kolesteroliaineenvaihduntaa ja aiheutti niihin rasvan kertymistä. Väestötutkimuksessa selvitettiin endotoksemian yhteyttä kardiometabolisiin sairauksiin ja tutkittiin, vaikuttavatko ravintoaineet tähän yhteyteen. Ylipainoisilla tai metabolista oireyhtymää, diabetesta tai sepelvaltimotautia sairastavilla henkilöillä havaittiin korkeat seerumin endotoksiinitasot, jotka yhdistyivät lisääntyneeseen sepelvaltimotautiriskiin riippumatta ravinnon energiamäärästä tai ravintoaineista. Väitöskirjatutkimuksen tulokset osoittavat, että MHC-alueen geneettinen variaatio saattaa altistaa parodontiitille. Parodontiitin aiheuttama endotoksemia ja matala-asteinen tulehdus lisäsivät lipoproteiineissa valtimonkovettumatautia edistäviä ominaisuuksia. Ylipainoisuuden, metabolisen oireyhtymän, diabeteksen ja sepelvaltimotaudin yhteys endotoksemiaan tukee bakteerien ja immuunivasteen osuutta kardiometabolisten sairauksien etiologiassa. Tulokset korostavat endotoksemian merkitystä parodontiittia ja kardiometabolisia sairauksia yhdistävänä tekijänä

From scattered to coherent – strategizing processes of a multinational corporation

Developing a dynamic-strategy perspective, which considers strategizing as practice rather than an outcome, we are able, applying case studies, to capture processes that explain how common cognitive frames are constructed, altered, tested through actions and re-constructed. Capturing several iterations of these processes allow us to understand how new strategy emerges from actors’ strategizing scattered across the organization and how it eventually becomes part of the formal strategy of a multinational corporation. These findings add to the understanding of strategizing as bottom-up social processes that form new meaning, structures and actions. </p

Meriteollisuuden globaali liiketoimintaympäristö ja suomalaisyritysten tulevaisuus - Delfoi-tutkimus

siirretty Doriast

Evaluation of commercial and automated SARS-CoV-2 IgG and IgA ELISAs using coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patient samples

Antibody-screening methods to detect severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) need to be validated. We evaluated SARS-CoV-2 IgG and IgA ELISAs in conjunction with the EUROLabworkstation (Euroimmun, Lubeck, Germany). Overall specificities were 91.9% and 73.0% for IgG and IgA ELISAs, respectively. Of 39 coronavirus disease patients, 13 were IgG and IgA positive and 11 IgA alone at sampling. IgGs and IgAs were respectively detected at a median of 12 and 11 days after symptom onset.Peer reviewe

Real-life clinical sensitivity of SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR test in symptomatic patients

Background Understanding the false negative rates of SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR testing is pivotal for the management of the COVID-19 pandemic and it has implications for patient management. Our aim was to determine the real-life clinical sensitivity of SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR. Methods This population-based retrospective study was conducted in March-April 2020 in the Helsinki Capital Region, Finland. Adults who were clinically suspected of SARS-CoV-2 infection and underwent SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR testing, with sufficient data in their medical records for grading of clinical suspicion were eligible. In addition to examining the first RT-PCR test of repeat-tested individuals, we also used high clinical suspicion for COVID-19 as the reference standard for calculating the sensitivity of SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR. Results All 1,194 inpatients (mean [SD] age, 63.2 [18.3] years; 45.2% women) admitted to COVID-19 cohort wards during the study period were included. The outpatient cohort of 1,814 individuals (mean [SD] age, 45.4 [17.2] years; 69.1% women) was sampled from epidemiological line lists by systematic quasi-random sampling. The sensitivity (95% CI) for laboratory confirmed cases (repeat-tested patients) was 85.7% (81.5-89.1%) inpatients; 95.5% (92.2-97.5%) outpatients, 89.9% (88.2-92.1%) all. When also patients that were graded as high suspicion but never tested positive were included in the denominator, the sensitivity (95% CI) was: 67.5% (62.9-71.9%) inpatients; 34.9% (31.4-38.5%) outpatients; 47.3% (44.4-50.3%) all. Conclusions The clinical sensitivity of SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR testing was only moderate at best. The relatively high false negative rates of SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR testing need to be accounted for in clinical decision making, epidemiological interpretations, and when using RT-PCR as a reference for other tests.Peer reviewe

The phylodynamics of SARS-CoV-2 during 2020 in Finland

Finland has had a low incidence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2) infections as compared to most European countries. Here we report the origins and turnover of SARS-CoV-2 lineages circulating in Finland in 2020. SARS-CoV-2 introduced to Finland in January 2020 and spread rapidly across southern Finland during spring. We observed rapid turnover among Finnish lineages during this period. Clade 20C became the most prevalent among sequenced cases and was replaced by other strains in fall 2020. Bayesian phylogeographic reconstructions suggested 42 independent introductions into Finland during spring 2020, mainly from Italy, Austria, and Spain, which might have been the source for a third of cases. The investigations of the original introductions of SARS-CoV-2 to Finland during the early stages of the pandemic and of the subsequent lineage dynamics could be utilized to assess the role of transboundary movements and effects of early intervention and public health measures.Peer reviewe

Transcriptomics Comparison between Porcine Adipose and Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells during In Vitro Osteogenic and Adipogenic Differentiation

Bone-marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSC) are considered the gold standard for use in tissue regeneration among mesenchymal stem cells (MSC). The abundance and ease of harvest make the adipose-derived stem cells (ASC) an attractive alternative to BMSC. The aim of the present study was to compare the transcriptome of ASC and BMSC, respectively isolated from subcutaneous adipose tissue and femur of 3 adult pigs, during in vitro osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation for up to four weeks. At 0, 2, 7, and 21 days of differentiation RNA was extracted for microarray analysis. A False Discovery Rate ≤0.05 for overall interactions effect and P<0.001 between comparisons were used to determine differentially expressed genes (DEG). Ingenuity Pathway Analysis and DAVID performed the functional analysis of the DEG. Functional analysis of highest expressed genes in MSC and genes more expressed in MSC vs. fully differentiated tissues indicated low immunity and high angiogenic capacity. Only 64 genes were differentially expressed between ASC and BMSC before differentiation. The functional analysis uncovered a potential larger angiogenic, osteogenic, migration, and neurogenic capacity in BMSC and myogenic capacity in ASC. Less than 200 DEG were uncovered between ASC and BMSC during differentiation. Functional analysis also revealed an overall greater lipid metabolism in ASC, while BMSC had a greater cell growth and proliferation. The time course transcriptomic comparison between differentiation types uncovered <500 DEG necessary to determine cell fate. The functional analysis indicated that osteogenesis had a larger cell proliferation and cytoskeleton organization with a crucial role of G-proteins. Adipogenesis was driven by PPAR signaling and had greater angiogenesis, lipid metabolism, migration, and tumorigenesis capacity. Overall the data indicated that the transcriptome of the two MSC is relatively similar across the conditions studied. In addition, functional analysis data might indicate differences in therapeutic application

Peri-operative red blood cell transfusion in neonates and infants: NEonate and Children audiT of Anaesthesia pRactice IN Europe: A prospective European multicentre observational study

BACKGROUND: Little is known about current clinical practice concerning peri-operative red blood cell transfusion in neonates and small infants. Guidelines suggest transfusions based on haemoglobin thresholds ranging from 8.5 to 12 g dl-1, distinguishing between children from birth to day 7 (week 1), from day 8 to day 14 (week 2) or from day 15 (≥week 3) onwards. OBJECTIVE: To observe peri-operative red blood cell transfusion practice according to guidelines in relation to patient outcome. DESIGN: A multicentre observational study. SETTING: The NEonate-Children sTudy of Anaesthesia pRactice IN Europe (NECTARINE) trial recruited patients up to 60 weeks' postmenstrual age undergoing anaesthesia for surgical or diagnostic procedures from 165 centres in 31 European countries between March 2016 and January 2017. PATIENTS: The data included 5609 patients undergoing 6542 procedures. Inclusion criteria was a peri-operative red blood cell transfusion. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary endpoint was the haemoglobin level triggering a transfusion for neonates in week 1, week 2 and week 3. Secondary endpoints were transfusion volumes, 'delta haemoglobin' (preprocedure - transfusion-triggering) and 30-day and 90-day morbidity and mortality. RESULTS: Peri-operative red blood cell transfusions were recorded during 447 procedures (6.9%). The median haemoglobin levels triggering a transfusion were 9.6 [IQR 8.7 to 10.9] g dl-1 for neonates in week 1, 9.6 [7.7 to 10.4] g dl-1 in week 2 and 8.0 [7.3 to 9.0] g dl-1 in week 3. The median transfusion volume was 17.1 [11.1 to 26.4] ml kg-1 with a median delta haemoglobin of 1.8 [0.0 to 3.6] g dl-1. Thirty-day morbidity was 47.8% with an overall mortality of 11.3%. CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate lower transfusion-triggering haemoglobin thresholds in clinical practice than suggested by current guidelines. The high morbidity and mortality of this NECTARINE sub-cohort calls for investigative action and evidence-based guidelines addressing peri-operative red blood cell transfusions strategies. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT02350348