Taxonomin hos Prinia flaviventris - en eller flera arter?

Den asiatiska fågelarten Prinia flaviventris (Delessert, 1840) har sju underarter: P. f. sindi-ana Ticehurst, 1920, P. f. flaviventris (Delessert, 1840), P. f. sonitans Swinhoe, 1860, P. f. delacouri Deignan, 1942, P. f. rafflesi Tweeddale, 1877, P. f. halistona (Oberholser, 1912) och P. f. latrunculus (Finsch, 1905). I det här examensarbetet har jag jämfört ljudinspelningar av sånger och mitokondriella cytokrom b-sekvenser från sex av dessa underarter (inga data för underarten halistona). Syftet har varit att utreda om denna polytypiska art bör delas upp i flera arter. Mina undersökningar har visat att sångerna går att dela in i fyra grupper: 1) Pakistan och NV Indien, 2) Nepal och NÖ Indien (Assam), 3) Kina och Taiwan samt 4) Sydostasien och Indonesien. Samma grupper återfinns i trädet baserat på cytokrom b-sekvenser. De samstämmiga skillnaderna i sång och mitokondriellt DNA visar att dessa fyra grupper utgör skilda utvecklingslinjer och att de därför kan betraktas som fyra olika arter. I den första gruppen från Pakistan och NV Indien återfinns endast underar-ten P. f. sindiana, varför mitt förslag är att den får artnamnet Prinia sindiana. I den andra gruppen från Nepal och NÖ Indien förekommer endast underarten P. f. flaviventris, därför rekommenderar jag att den får heta Prinia flaviventris. I den tredje gruppen från Kina och Taiwan hittas endast underarten P. f. sonitans, så jag föreslår att den får artnamnet Prinia sonitans. I den fjärde gruppen från Sydostasien och Indonesien återfinns tre underarter: P. f. delacouri, P. f. rafflesi och P. f. latrunculus. Eftersom rafflesi är det äldsta namnet av dessa tre bör arten enligt den zoologiska nomenklaturkodens prioritetsregel heta Prinia rafflesi.The Asian passerine bird Prinia flaviventris (Delessert, 1840) is divided into seven sub-species: P. f. sindiana Ticehurst, 1920, P. f. flaviventris (Delessert, 1840), P. f. sonitans Swinhoe, 1860, P. f. delacouri Deignan, 1942, P. f. rafflesi Tweeddale, 1877, P. f. halis-tona (Oberholser, 1912) and P. f. latrunculus (Finsch, 1905). In this MSc thesis, I com-pared sound recordings of songs and mitochondrial cytocrome b sequences from six of these subspecies (no data was available for the subspecies halistona). The purpose was to investigate whether this polytypic species ought to be divided into several species. My analyses of the songs showed that these can be divided into four groups: 1) Pakistan and NW India, 2) Nepal and NE India (Assam), 3) China and Taiwan and 4) Southeast Asia and Indonesia. The same groups were found in the tree based on cytocrome b sequences. The concordant differences in song and mitochondrial DNA show that these four groups constitute different evolutionary lineages, and that they therefore can be treated as four different species. The first group, from Pakistan and NW India, contains only the subspe-cies P. f. sindiana, which should therefore be treated as Prinia sindiana. The second group, from Nepal and NE India, comprises only the subspecies P. f. flaviventris, and therefore I recommend that the name Prinia flaviventris should be restricted to this group. In the third group, from China and Taiwan, only the subspecies P. f. sonitans is found, so I suggest that it will have the name Prinia sonitans. In the fourth group, from Southeast Asia and Indonesia, three subspecies were found: P. f. delacouri, P. f. rafflesi and P. f. latrunculus. Since rafflesi is the oldest available name, the species should be named Prinia rafflesi in accordance with the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature

Diktaturens fångar

Democratization is one of the most studied and problematic areas in political science. Democracy theories are gaining more power and influence in society and researchers are gaining greater influence over those who work practically with development and democratization. This paper will investigate why Ethiopia is not becoming more democratic, despite the fact that the country has moved from a military regime to a regime with multi-party elections. There, the focus is directed to the authoritarian power resistance in the electoral authoritarianism. According to theories of control and manipulation, Ethiopia is an example of a regime that has regular multi-party elections but still violates the liberal-democratic minimum standards on freedom, justice and integrity. Allowing multi-party elections in these regimes becomes an instrument to maintain authoritarian rule rather than a democratic tool, and as a consequence, leading to Ethiopia is not moving toward a democratic system despite existing multi-party elections

Obevakad En studie i medial påverkan på medborgares benägenhet att skänka pengar under humanitära katastrofer

I många högprofilerade kriser blir hjälporganisationer, journalistik och media starkt sammankopplade med varandra. Hjälporganisationerna är beroende av att få ut det humanitära budskapet för att informera världen om katastrofer för att på så sätt kunna utnyttja kraften hos givarna för att samla in pengar och möta krisen. Förhållandet mellan de som levererar nyheterna och de som ger humanitärt bistånd i tider av kris kan vara viktigt och kompletterar varandra men är också ofta tveeggade. Denna uppsats undersöker den svenska presskårens makt och påverkan på svenska folkets benägenhet att donera pengar vid humanitära kriser. Om sambanden mellan jordbävningen på Haiti och svältkatastrofen på Afrikas horn. För att se om det finns ett samband mellan medial närvaro och insamlings siffror och vad de kan få för demokratiska konsekvenser. Vilket analysers utifrån diskursen om CNN effekten och utifrån makten över dagordningen. Undersökningen är en kvantitativ analys med teoriutvecklande och förklarande ambitioner. Vår statistiska undersökning visar att svenskar är mer benägna att skänka pengar till frekvent rapporterade kriser. Vid en hög medial rapportering, förs den aktuella fråga högt upp på dagordningen hos läsarna

Genital Chronic Graft-versus-Host Disease in Females: A Cross-Sectional Study

AbstractUsing the National Institutes of Health (NIH) consensus criteria for chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD), we assessed the prevalence, symptoms, and clinical signs of female genital cGVHD in a cross-sectional population-based study. Forty-two women were evaluated at a median of 80 months (range, 13 to 148 months) after undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Medical history, ongoing medications, and genital signs and symptoms were recorded. Gynecologic examination for the diagnosis and clinical scoring of genital cGVHD was combined with clinical scoring of extragenital cGVHD for the estimation of each patient's global cGVHD score. Biopsy specimens from the genital mucosa were obtained from 38 patients. Genital cGVHD was diagnosed in 22 of 42 patients (52%). Its presence was associated with systemic corticoid steroid treatment of extragenital cGVHD (P = .001), older age (P = .07), and HSCT from a sibling donor (P = .002). Five patients had isolated genital cGVHD. Dryness, pain, smarting pain (P < .05 for all), and dyspareunia (P = .001) were observed more frequently in the women with genital cGVHD. Twelve patients had advanced genital cGVHD (clinical score 3), which was the main factor explaining the high rate (15 of 42) of severe global cGVHD. The rate of genital cGVHD was similar (P = .37) in patients with a follow-up of ≥80 months (10 of 22) and those with a follow-up of <80 months (12 of 20). We found no convincing relationship between clinical diagnosis and histopathological assessment of mucosal biopsy specimens. In our group of women with a long follow-up after HSCT, genital cGVHD was common and in many cases incorrectly diagnosed. Genital cGVHD causes genital symptoms and affects sexual life, and may present without any other cGVHD, warranting early and continuous gynecologic surveillance in all women after HSCT

A Review of the Carbon Footprint of Cu and Zn Production from Primary and Secondary Sources

Copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) with their unique properties are central for economic growth, quality of life, and the creation of new jobs. The base-metal producing sector is, however, under growing public pressure in respect to energy and water requirements and needs to meet several challenges, including increased demand and lower ore grades, which are generally associated with larger resource use. The development of technologies for metal production from secondary sources is often motivated by increased sustainability, and this paper aims to provide further insights about one specific aspect of sustainability—namely, climate change. The paper presents a review of carbon footprints (CF) for Cu and Zn produced from primary and secondary raw materials by analyzing data taken from scientific literature and the Ecoinvent database. Comparisons are carried out based on the source of data selected as a reference case. The data available in the literature indicate that secondary production of Cu and Zn has the potential to be more beneficial compared to primary production regarding the impact on climate change. However, the technologies used today for the production of both metals from secondary sources are still immature, and more research on this topic is needed. The general variation of data suggests that the standardization of a comparison is needed when assessing the environmental benefits of production in line with the principles of waste valorization, the zero waste approach, and circular econom

Daily uplifts and coping as a buffer against everyday hassles: Relationship with stress reactions over time in military personnel

The aim of this research was to gain a deeper understanding of how daily hassles and uplifts interact with each other and with stress reactions over time in military personnel. Interviews were conducted with 15 Swedish veterans five years after an international peace enforcement mission. The grounded theory method was used and result patterns were generated for six specific time periods distributed before, during, and after the mission. A theoretical model was developed showing that everyday uplifts combined with adaptive coping can be sufficient to limit stress reactions related to daily hassles. The model was supported by the fact that, five years after the mission, none of interviewees had received a PTSD diagnosis or needed professional psychological treatment. The last-mentioned outcome is noteworthy in itself given the severe stress often encountered in peace enforcement missions and previous research observations of high PTSD incidence, suicide rates, criminality, and substance abuse in mission participants.publishedVersio

Dehydroepiandrosterone Supplementation Results in Varying Tissue-specific Levels of Dihydrotestosterone in Male Mice

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), an adrenal androgen precursor, can be metabolized in target tissues into active sex steroids. It has been proposed that DHEA supplementation might result in restoration of physiological local sex steroid levels, but knowledge on the effect of DHEA treatment on local sex steroid levels in multiple tissues is lacking. To determine the effects of DHEA on tissue-specific levels of sex steroids, we treated orchiectomized (ORX) male mice with DHEA for 3 weeks and compared them with vehicle-treated ORX mice and gonadal intact mice. Intra-tissue levels of sex steroids were analyzed in reproductive organs (seminal vesicles, prostate, m. levator ani), major body compartments (white adipose tissue, skeletal muscle, and brain), adrenals, liver, and serum using a sensitive and validated gas chromatography-mass spectrometry method. DHEA treatment restored levels of both testosterone (T) and dihydrotestosterone (DHT) to approximately physiological levels in male reproductive organs. In contrast, this treatment did not increase DHT levels in skeletal muscle or brain. In the liver, DHEA treatment substantially increased levels of T (at least 4-fold) and DHT (+536%, P < 0.01) compared with vehicle-treated ORX mice. In conclusion, we provide a comprehensive map of the effect of DHEA treatment on intra-tissue sex steroid levels in ORX mice with a restoration of physiological levels of androgens in male reproductive organs while DHT levels were not restored in the skeletal muscle or brain. This, and the unexpected supraphysiological androgen levels in the liver, may be a cause for concern considering the uncontrolled use of DHEA