Nordfriesische Seeleute in der Handelsfahrt von Amsterdam, Hamburg, Altona und Kopenhagen 1750-1840

The article discusses regional networks of North Frisian sailors involved in maritime trade in the period from about 1750 to 1840. For the North Frisians who earned their livelihoods in maritime trade, a heyday began in the 1760s and continued until the Napoleonic Wars, after which the number of North Frisians employed in that business never again reached as high a level. In the eighteenth century, ocean navigation was already a "globalized" sector of the economy with an international employment market and international trade cycles which the sailors had to take into account. For the North Frisians, the four large Northern European ports - Amsterdam, Hamburg, Altona and Copenhagen - were particularly important. There have been numerous studies on whaling and how the North Frisians were involved in it, but hardly any investigations have been carried out on the degree of North Frisian involvement in maritime trade and the significance of the individual ports within that context. The signing-on records of the harbour authorities serve as a source since they permit differentiation according to the seamen's origins in the various North Frisian islands. The study begins with a quantitative analysis of the presence of North Frisians in the individual ports, and the share accounted for by each individual North Frisian island in the total number of North Frisians employed in maritime trade. This analysis provides an impression of the changing significance of the ports and the individual islands. Subsequently the regional connections between the captain and the sailors, and particularly between the captain and the mate is investigated in some detail. Close regional connections are indicative of regional networks, in which context differentiations are again made according to the individual ports and islands. A look at the totals shows that Amsterdam was the most important port between 1770 and 1789, but never really recovered from the slumps that came about in 1790-1794 and 1807-1814. In the early 1790s, Altona became the distinctly predominant commercial port for the North Frisian sailors, and thus took over Amsterdam's role in that respect. The individual North Frisian islands each had their own preferences with regard to their maritime activities (whaling, maritime trade, shoal navigation). This went hand in hand with preferences in the ports from which the seamen entered maritime trade. An analysis of the islands from which the captains recruited their sailors reveals that, here as well, there were regional interdependencies. The North Frisian sailors generally liked to sail with captains from their own island or, if that was not possible, a neighbouring island, and the captains recruited their crews on the basis of similar considerations. These preferences were facilitated in part by the geographical conditions and the division of the shallows into sub-regions. The regional relationships are particularly distinct with regard to the mates. Regional networks formed above all in places where sailors of the same origins met in significant numbers. The use of networks for finding employment was only possible in places where there was a sufficient number of sailors of the same origins. On the other hand, however, this system made it difficult to react to crises, since a sailor lacked a network of his own in other locations, and it was difficult for him to gain admittance to an already existing network of sailors of other origins. The presence of North Frisian captains was especially important, since they were most likely to sign on mates and sailors from their native region

Waldarstellungen auf alten Grabsteinen der Wattenmeerinseln

Beginning in the seventeenth century, a tradition developed on the Wadden Sea islands whereby rich captains had ornate gravestones made for themselves. In these maritime communities, ships - an identity-establishing motif associated with economic prosperity - were often depicted on the gravestones. Although for many seafarers whaling was the source of their affluence, whalers relatively seldom had whales depicted on their grave markers. Altogether a mere ten gravestones bearing whale depictions have been found on the Wadden Sea islands, and none on the mainland. Six of the stones are on Föhr, three on Ameland and one on Sylt. In this article, the stones are described and their function investigated. Five types of whale depictions can be distinguished. Four bear a connection to whaling, the source of the deceased persons’ prosperity. On the gravestone on Sylt, however, the whale is merely an artistic detail with no relationship to whaling. The gravestones with whale depictions were all produced within the relatively short period between 1706 and 1800. The stones, visible to one and all in the cemeteries, later served to keep the legend of whaling and of the ship commanders’ wealth alive

Waldarstellungen auf alten Grabsteinen der Wattenmeerinseln

Beginning in the seventeenth century, a tradition developed on the Wadden Sea islands whereby rich captains had ornate gravestones made for themselves. In these maritime communities, ships - an identity-establishing motif associated with economic prosperity - were often depicted on the gravestones. Although for many seafarers whaling was the source of their affluence, whalers relatively seldom had whales depicted on their grave markers. Altogether a mere ten gravestones bearing whale depictions have been found on the Wadden Sea islands, and none on the mainland. Six of the stones are on Föhr, three on Ameland and one on Sylt. In this article, the stones are described and their function investigated. Five types of whale depictions can be distinguished. Four bear a connection to whaling, the source of the deceased persons’ prosperity. On the gravestone on Sylt, however, the whale is merely an artistic detail with no relationship to whaling. The gravestones with whale depictions were all produced within the relatively short period between 1706 and 1800. The stones, visible to one and all in the cemeteries, later served to keep the legend of whaling and of the ship commanders’ wealth alive

Landsbyvedtægt og øvrighed i hertugdømmet Slesvig

Artiklen bygger på det store materiale af landsbyvedtæger fra hertugdømmet Slesvig og deres retslige karakter. Vedtægten var i sig selv  retsstiftende. Overtrædelser blev straffet med bøder, og her betød myndighedernes godkendelse også, at de støttede det straffesystem, vedtægterne rummede. Et stigende antal vedtægter fik dog et stærkere aftryk fra myndighederne, som enten selv udformede dem eller i hvert fald bidrog til det. Det kunne ses som en umyndiggørelse, men snarere er der tale om interessesammenfald mellem gårdmænd og myndigheder

miR-34a-5p as molecular hub of pathomechanisms in Huntington's disease

Background Although a pivotal role of microRNA (miRNA, miR) in the pathogenesis of Huntington’s disease (HD) is increasingly recognized, the molecular functions of miRNAs in the pathomechanisms of HD await further elucidation. One of the miRNAs that have been associated with HD is miR-34a-5p, which was deregulated in the mouse R6/2 model and in human HD brain tissues. Methods The aim of our study was to demonstrate interactions between miR-34a-5p and HD associated genes. By computational means we predicted 12 801 potential target genes of miR-34a-5p. An in-silico pathway analysis revealed 22 potential miR-34a-5p target genes in the KEGG (Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes) pathway “Huntington’s disease”. Results Using our high-throughput miRNA interaction reporter assay (HiTmIR) we identifed NDUFA9, TAF4B, NRF1, POLR2J2, DNALI1, HIP1, TGM2 and POLR2G as direct miR-34a-5p target genes. Direct binding of miR-34a-5p to target sites in the 3’UTRs of TAF4B, NDUFA9, HIP1 and NRF1 was verifed by a mutagenesis HiTmIR assay and by determining endogenous protein levels for HIP1 and NDUFA9. STRING (Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes/Proteins) analysis identifed protein–protein interaction networks associated with HD like “Glutamine Receptor Signaling Pathway” and “Calcium Ion Transmembrane Import Into Cytosol”. Conclusion Our study demonstrates multiple interactions between miR-34a-5p and HD associated target genes and thereby lays the ground for future therapeutic interventions using this miRNA

Induction of the Endoplasmic-Reticulum-Stress Response: MicroRNA-34a Targeting of the IRE1α-Branch

Neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD) are characterized by the accumulation of misfolded proteins in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and the unfolded protein response (UPR). Modulating the UPR is one of the major challenges to counteract the development of neurodegenerative disorders and other diseases with affected UPR. Here, we show that miR-34a-5p directly targets the IRE1α branch of the UPR, including the genes BIP, IRE1α, and XBP1. Upon induction of ER stress in neuronal cells, miR-34a-5p overexpression impacts the resulting UPR via a significant reduction in IRE1α and XBP1s that in turn leads to decreased viability, increased cytotoxicity and caspase activity. The possibility to modify the UPR signaling pathway by a single miRNA that targets central genes of the IRE1α branch offers new perspectives for future therapeutic approaches against neurodegeneration