Pore performance: artificial nanoscale constructs that mimic the biomolecular transport of the nuclear pore complex

The nuclear pore complex is a nanoscale assembly that achieves shuttle-cargo transport of biomolecules: a certain cargo molecule can only pass the barrier if it is attached to a shuttle molecule. In this review we summarize the most important efforts aiming to reproduce this feature in artificial settings. This can be achieved by solid state nanopores that have been functionalized with the most important proteins found in the biological system. Alternatively, the nanopores are chemically modified with synthetic polymers. However, only a few studies have demonstrated a shuttle-cargo transport mechanism and due to cargo leakage, the selectivity is not comparable to that of the biological system. Other recent approaches are based on DNA origami, though biomolecule transport has not yet been studied with these. The highest selectivity has been achieved with macroscopic gels, but they are yet to be scaled down to nano-dimensions. It is concluded that although several interesting studies exist, we are still far from achieving selective and efficient artificial shuttle-cargo transport of biomolecules. Besides being of fundamental interest, such a system could be potentially useful in bioanalytical devices

Stable trapping of multiple proteins at physiological conditions using nanoscale chambers with macromolecular gates

The possibility to detect and analyze single or few biological molecules is very important for understanding interactions and reaction mechanisms. Ideally, the molecules should be confined to a nanoscale volume so that the observation time by optical methods can be extended. However, it has proven difficult to develop reliable, non-invasive trapping techniques for biomolecules under physiological conditions. Here we present a platform for long-term tether-free (solution phase) trapping of proteins without exposing them to any field gradient forces. We show that a responsive polymer brush can make solid state nanopores switch between a fully open and a fully closed state with respect to proteins, while always allowing the passage of solvent, ions and small molecules. This makes it possible to trap a very high number of proteins (500-1000) inside nanoscale chambers as small as one attoliter, reaching concentrations up to 60 gL−1. Our method is fully compatible with parallelization by imaging arrays of nanochambers. Additionally, we show that enzymatic cascade reactions can be performed with multiple native enzymes under full nanoscale confinement and steady supply of reactants. This platform will greatly extend the possibilities to optically analyze interactions involving multiple proteins, such as the dynamics of oligomerization events

Ursäkta, är detta tjejernas omklädningsrum? - En kvantitativ studie om könsfördelning mellan kvinnliga och manliga idrottare i sportsidornas rapportering med fokus på den internationella kvinnodagen 2016 och 2017

Uppsats/Examensarbete: 15 hp Program och/eller kurs: Examensarbete i Medie- och kommunikationsvetenskap Nivå: Grundnivå Termin/år: HT-17 Handledare: Annika Bergström Kursansvarig: Malin Sveningsson Sidantal: 35 sidor Antal ord: 15 092 ord Syfte: Denna uppsats handlar om att undersöka och studera könsfördelningen inom svensk dagspress i Sverige år 2016 och 2017. Studien är inriktad mot sport och idrottsutövare, därav kommer den endast studera sportsidorna och resterande inom tidningarna utelämnas. Ett samhällsproblem vi står inför idag är synen på könsfördelningen, vilken inte bara är otillräcklig inom flera avseenden gällande sporten och dess bevakning utan också bristfällig. Studien tar avstamp i ett urval av tidningar inom svensk dagspress 2016 och 2017, med avgränsning av datumen 8:e respektive 15:e mars och deras sportsidor. Teori: Nyhetsvärdering, Sandra Hardings genusteori, Genuskontraktet Metod: Kvantitativ innehållsanalys Material: 445st sportartiklar Resultat: Vad mitt resultat visar är en bekräftelse på vad tidigare forskning beskrivit. Inom de flesta tidningar läggs störst vikt på några få framträdande idrotter som fotboll och ishockey. Vad dessa sporter har gemensamt är att de är dominerade av manliga idrottare. Vad som styr sportrapporteringen och nyhetsvärderingen är de oväntade händelser som det rapporteras om. Störst vikt eller inverkan av detta får de kvinnliga sportartiklarna. Artiklar angående internationella kvinnodagen återfanns sällan inom sportrapporteringen Vad som går att se över åren är att 2017 har det blivit populärare att betona denna dag mer explicit än föregående år

Establishing pathological cut-offs for lateral ventricular volume expansion rates

Background: A percent brain volume change (PBVC) cut-off of −0.4% per year has been proposed to distinguish between pathological and physiological changes in multiple sclerosis (MS). Unfortunately, standardized PBVC measurement is not always feasible on scans acquired outside research studies or academic centers. Percent lateral ventricular volume change (PLVVC) is a strong surrogate measure of PBVC, and may be more feasible for atrophy assessment on real-world scans. However, the PLVVC rate corresponding to the established PBVC cut-off of −0.4% is unknown. Objective: To establish a pathological PLVVC expansion rate cut-off analogous to −0.4% PBVC. Methods: We used three complementary approaches. First, the original follow-up-length-weighted receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis method establishing whole brain atrophy rates was adapted to a longitudinal ventricular atrophy dataset of 177 relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) patients and 48 healthy controls. Second, in the same dataset, SIENA PBVCs were used with non-linear regression to directly predict the PLVVC value corresponding to −0.4% PBVC. Third, in an unstandardized, real world dataset of 590 RRMS patients from 33 centers, the cut-off maximizing correspondence to PBVC was found. Finally, correspondences to clinical outcomes were evaluated in both datasets. Results: ROC analysis suggested a cut-off of 3.09% (AUC = 0.83, p < 0.001). Non-linear regression R2 was 0.71 (p < 0.001) and a − 0.4% PBVC corresponded to a PLVVC of 3.51%. A peak in accuracy in the real-world dataset was found at a 3.51% PLVVC cut-off. Accuracy of a 3.5% cut-off in predicting clinical progression was 0.62 (compared to 0.68 for PBVC). Conclusions: Ventricular expansion of between 3.09% and 3.51% on T2-FLAIR corresponds to the pathological whole brain atrophy rate of 0.4% for RRMS. A conservative cut-off of 3.5% performs comparably to PBVC for clinical outcomes. Keywords: Brain atrophy, Ventricular volume, Pathological cutoff, Multiple sclerosis, NED