Vanhustenhuollon ammattilaisten kokemuksia vanhusten kotona asumisen vaikeutumisesta ja tukemisesta 16 kunnassa

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Superoxide dismutase 3-mediated cell survival and proliferation

This dissertation studies the signaling events mediated by the extracellular superoxide dismutase (SOD3). SOD3 is an antioxidant enzyme which converts the harmful superoxide into hydrogen peroxide. Overproduction of these reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the cellular environment as a result of tissue injury or impaired antioxidant defense system has detrimental effects on tissue integrity and function. However, especially hydrogen peroxide is also an important signaling agent. Ischemic injury in muscle causes acute oxidative stress and inflammation. We investigated the ability of SOD3 to attenuate ischemia induced inflammation and to promote recovery of skeletal muscle tissue. We found that SOD3 can downregulate the expression of several inflammatory cytokines and cell adhesion molecules thus preventing the accumulation of oxidant-producing inflammatory cells. Secondly, SOD3 was able to promote long-term activation of the mitogenic Erk pathway, but increased only briefly the activity of pro-survival Akt pathway at an early stage of ischemic inflammation, thus reducing apoptosis. SOD3 is a prominent antioxidant in the thyroid gland where oxidative stress is constantly present. We investigated the role of SOD3 in normal thyroid follicular cells and the changes in its expression in various hyperproliferative disorders. We first showed that SOD3 is TSH-responsive which indicated its participation in thyroid function. Its principal function seems to be in follicular cell proliferation since knockdown cells were deficient in proliferation. Additionally, it was overexpressed in goiter tissue. However, SOD3 was consistently downregulated in thyroid cancer cell lines and tissues. In conclusion, SOD3 is involved in tissue maintenance, cell proliferation and inflammatory cell migration. Its mechanisms of action are the activation of known proliferation/survival pathways, inhibition of apoptosis and regulation of adhesion molecule expression.Siirretty Doriast

Comment on Huang, X., et al. "Sourdough Fermentation Degrades Wheat Alpha-Amylase/Trypsin Inhibitor (ATI) and Reduces Pro-Inflammatory Activity". Foods 2020, 9, 943.

Non peer reviewe

Management of brand image : image survey on selective cosmetics

Siirretty Doriast

The selection of António Guterres as Secretary-General shows Security Council horse-trading still trumps transparency at the UN

Former Portuguese Prime Minister, António Guterres, is expected to be appointed as the next UN Secretary-General later today, replacing Ban Ki-Moon, who will step down at the end of the year. As Katie Verlin Laatikainen outlines, the selection process adopted to select Ban Ki-Moon’s successor was intended to be more transparent than in previous years, but the appointment of Guterres will nevertheless leave some observers disappointed as there had been hopes that either a female or Eastern European candidate would take on the position for the first time

Assessing Wärtsilä's exhaust gas abatement solution: Life cycle assessment of a SOx scrubber system

Wärtsilä offers competent technical solutions for complying with the sulphur content regulations set by the IMO. Wärtsilä’s exhaust gas cleaning systems are a viable option for ship owners and operators that prefer to continue operating their vessels with fuels with a sulphur content of over 0,5% m/m. As the number of environmental regulations on maritime traffic and related industries is likely to increase in the near future, a proactive approach can yield beneficial results for companies looking to offset the impact of potential future restrictions. In this study, a life cycle assessment of a Wärtsilä V-SOx hybrid scrubber system was conducted. The used methodology followed the principles and framework demonstrated in the ISO 14040 standard. The main objective of the study was to generate information about the environmental impacts of the scrubber system throughout its life cycle. The results were to be used to initiate the process of developing environmental KPIs to monitor and improve Wärtsilä’s environmental performance. Also, the study was conducted to support Wärtsilä’s efforts to decarbonize its own operations by 2030. The studied scrubber system was installed on a tanker vessel in 2019. The life cycle inventory for the LCA was built using data from Wärtsilä’s internal databases, scientific literature and documentation provided by the customer. The impacts were assessed with the ILCD 2011 midpoint+ method, which contains the impact categories recommended by the European Joint Research Centre. Most of the potential environmental impacts occurred during the operational phase. The raw material extraction & manufacturing of components phase produced the second highest potential impacts. These phases combined produced more than 98% of the potential impacts in each measured impact category except for the freshwater ecotoxicity category. The system had been operated mostly in open loop mode, and therefore an additional scenario analysis was conducted to get an overview of the potential environmental impacts of operating the system in closed loop mode. Although contributing less to marine eutrophication, closed loop operation was found to produce a significant number of indirect impacts in all the other impact categories. For example, the production of sodium hydroxide used in closed loop operation multiplied the potential CO2 emissions in both additional scenarios. In addition to direct environmental impacts, the LCA produced significant insight to the indirect impacts behind the processes that are connected to the system’s life cycle. As the responsibility of mitigating environmental burden through regulations will likely extend to affect more operators in supply chains, Wärtsilä is taking proactive steps to find various ways of improving its environmental performance.Wärtsilä tarjoaa tehokkaita teknisiä ratkaisuja IMO:n asettamien rikkipitoisuusmääräysten noudattamiseen. Wärtsilän pakokaasunpuhdistusjärjestelmät ovat pätevä vaihtoehto laivanomistajille ja operaattoreille, jotka haluavat jatkaa alustensa toimintaa polttoaineilla, joiden rikkipitoisuus on yli 0,5% m/m. Koska meriliikennettä ja siihen liittyviä toimialoja koskevien ympäristömääräysten määrä todennäköisesti lisääntyy lähitulevaisuudessa, ennakoiva lähestymistapa voi tuottaa hyödyllisiä tuloksia yrityksille, jotka haluavat lieventää mahdollisten tulevien määräysten vaikutuksia. Tässä työssä suoritettiin elinkaariarviointi Wärtsilän V-SOx hybridijärjestelmälle. Käytetty metodologia noudatti ISO 14040 – standardin toimintaperiaatteita ja viitekehystä. Tutkimuksen päätavoitteena oli tuottaa tietoa järjestelmän ympäristövaikutuksista koko sen elinkaaren ajalta. Tuloksia käytettiin käynnistämään ympäristöindikaattoreiden kehitysprosessi, joiden tarkoituksena on seurata ja auttaa parantamaan Wärtsilän ympäristötehokkuutta. Työn tarkoituksena oli myös tukea Wärtsilän vuodelle 2030 asettamaa hiilineutraalisuustavoitetta. Tutkimuksen kohteena ollut pesurijärjestelmä asennettiin erääseen säiliöalukseen vuonna 2019. Elinkaari-inventaario rakennettiin käyttäen Wärtsilän sisäisiä tietokantoja, tieteellistä kirjallisuutta ja asiakkaan toimittamaa dokumentaatiota. Ympäristövaikutukset arvioitiin ILCD 2011 midpoint+ menetelmällä, joka sisältää Euroopan yhteisen tutkimuskeskuksen suosittelemat vaikutusluokat. Valtaosa potentiaalisista ympäristövaikutuksista syntyi käyttövaiheen aikana. Raaka-aineiden louhinta & komponenttien valmistusvaihe tuotti toiseksi eniten potentiaalisia ympäristövaikutuksia. Nämä vaiheet tuottivat makean veden ekomyrkyllisyysluokkaa lukuunottamatta yli 98% potentiaalisista vaikutuksista jokaisessa mitatussa vaikutusluokassa. Järjestelmää oli käytetty pääosin avoimen kierron tilassa, minkä vuoksi suoritettiin ylimääräinen skenaarioanalyysi yleiskuvan saamiseksi suljetun kierron käytön mahdollisista ympäristövaikutuksista. Vaikka suljetun kierron toiminnalla oli vähemmän vaikutusta merialueiden rehevöitymiseen, sen havaittiin aiheuttavan huomattavan määrän epäsuoria vaikutuksia kaikissa muissa mitatuissa vaikutusluokissa. Suljetun kierron operaatiossa käytettävän natriumhydroksidin tuotanto esimerkiksi moninkertaisti potentiaaliset CO2 päästöt molemmissa lisäskenaarioissa. Suorien ympäristövaikutusten lisäksi työ tuotti merkittävää näkemystä järjestelmän elinkaareen liittyvien prosessien taustalla olevista välillisistä vaikutuksista. Koska vastuu ympäristöstä tulee todennäköisesti koskettamaan yhä useampaa toimijaa tulevaisuudessa, Wärtsilä tekee ennakoivia toimenpiteitä löytääkseen erilaisia tapoja parantaa ympäristötehokkuuttaan

Without EU clout, how would the UK fare at the United Nations?

Outside the EU, the UK would have to forge new alliances in international diplomacy. Karen E Smith and Katie Laatikainen consider how it would affect the UK’s role in multilateral processes – debates in international organisations, multilateral treaty negotiations, and so on – particularly in the context of the United Nations

Rural smokers : a prevention opportunity

Background: Smoking is the largest single cause of preventable death and disease in Australia. This study describes smoking prevalence and the characteristics of rural smokers to guide general practitioners in targeting particular groups.Methods: Cross sectional surveys in the Greater Green Triangle region of southeast Australia using a random population sample (n=1563, participation rate 48.7%) aged 25&ndash;74 years. Smoking information was assessed by a self administered questionnaire.Results: Complete smoking data were available for 1494 participants. Overall age adjusted current smoking prevalence was 14.9% (95% CI: 13.1&ndash;16.7). In both genders, current smoking prevalence decreased with age. Those aged 25&ndash;44 years were more likely to want to stop smoking and to have attempted cessation, but less likely to have received cessation advice than older smokers.Discussion: This study provides baseline smoking data for rural health monitoring and identifies intervention opportunities. General practice is suited to implement interventions for smoking prevention and cessation at every patient encounter, particularly in younger individuals.<br /

Self-Sovereign Identity Ecosystems: Benefits and Challenges

Verifiable credentials, coupled with decentralized ledger technologies, have been potential providers of trustworthy digital identity for individuals, organizations, and other entities, and thus, potential enablers of trustful digital interactions. The rapid development of this technology—called self-sovereign identity (SSI)—and the ecosystems built around it have been fostered even more by the societal needs stemming from the current pandemic crisis, when governments, non-profit organizations, businesses, and individuals are working together on different aspects of SSI to enable mainstream adoption. In this study, we build on rich qualitative data gathered from SSI practitioners to give a fresh overview of the perceived benefits and challenges of SSI. The paper advances research on the domain of SSI adoption and provides valuable insights into the feasibility of SSI for practitioners both in the private and public sectors

Environmental, Individual and Personal Goal Influences on Older Adults’ Walking in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area

Physical activity is a fundamental factor in healthy ageing, and the built environment has been linked to individual health outcomes. Understanding the linkages between older adult’s walking and the built environment are key to designing supportive environments for active ageing. However, the variety of different spatial scales of human mobility has been largely overlooked in the environmental health research. This study used an online participatory mapping method and a novel modelling of individual activity spaces to study the associations between both the environmental and the individual features and older adults’ walking in the environments where older adult’s actually move around. Study participants (n = 844) aged 55+ who live in Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Finland reported their everyday errand points on a map and indicated which transport mode they used and how frequently they accessed the places. Respondents walking trips were drawn from the data and the direct and indirect effects of the personal, psychological as well as environmental features on older adults walking were examined. Respondents marked on average, six everyday errand points and walked for transport an average of 20 km per month. Residential density and the density of walkways, public transit stops, intersections and recreational sports places were significantly and positively associated with older adult’s walking for transport. Transit stop density was found having the largest direct effect to older adults walking. Built environment had an independent effect on older adults walking regardless of individual demographic or psychological features. Education and personal goals related to physical activities had a direct positive, and income a direct negative, effect on walking. Gender and perceived health had an indirect effect on walking, which was realized through individuals’ physical activity goals.Peer reviewe