Fire spread in a large compartment with exposed cross-laminated timber and open ventilation conditions: #FRIC-01 – Exposed ceiling

Exposing cross-laminated timber (CLT) structures in buildings is increasingly popular in modern buildings. However, large timber surfaces, window facades, and different geometries can change the fire dynamics in a compartment. The effect of those parameters, therefore, needs to be studied. Two large-scale CLT compartment fire experiments (95 m2) have consequently been performed. The experiments were designed to represent a modern office building with an open-plan space and large window openings. In this experiment, #FRIC-01, the ceiling was exposed. The wood crib fire developed slowly and travelled approximately 1.5 m before the ceiling ignited at 32.5 min. Thereafter the fire spread rapidly across the ceiling and wood crib before it shortly after retracted. Three such cycles of rapid spread followed by a retraction occurred within 13 min, whereby the wood crib fire grew larger for each cycle. After the flames extended through the compartment for the fourth time, the fire remained fully developed. After a short period of intense burning, the CLT self-extinguished while the wood crib fire was still burning. The compartment withstood full burnout, and no reignition occurred despite some delamination and using an adhesive that lacks a demonstrated resistance against glue-line integrity failure.publishedVersio

Nordic 0 – 24 collaboration on improved services to vulnerable children and young people. First interim report

The Nordic countries are known for their extensive welfare states producing high levels of welfare for their residents across the life course. Still, there are rising concerns related to the situation of vulnerable children and their fam-ilies, not least of which are the early school leavers and young people not in education, employment or training (NEET). In 2017, as a response to these challenges, the Nordic Council of Ministers initiated the Nordic 0–24 project. The overall agenda of the project is to prevent the social exclusion of vulner-able children and young people, and to prevent school dropout and future marginalisation in the labour market. The project’s aim is to improve services in the Nordic countries that are directed at vulnerable children and young people between the ages of 0 and 24 years by means of improving cross-sec-toral collaboration. The project’s starting point is that improved cross-sec-toral collaboration at the state, regional and municipal levels is necessary to provide more coherent, higher quality services. The project comprises cases from all the Nordic countries (Denmark, Fin-land, Iceland, Norway and Sweden) and the autonomous islands (Greenland and Aaland)—the Faroe Islands participate in the Nordic 0–24 project, but without a specific national case. The cases serve as national examples of cross-sectoral collaboration in the delivery of services to the 0–24 age group. The Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training is in charge of the project management, and the project period will continue through 2020. Fafo Institute of Labour and Social Research has, in collaboration with VID Specialized University, been assigned the task of carrying out a process eval-uation of the Nordic 0–24 project. In this first interim report from the process evaluation, we provide an overview of the evaluation’s design. Furthermore, we present a model developed to examine how the national cases may serve as sources for identifying factors that contribute to improved collaboration and more coherent service delivery for vulnerable children and young people. As a background for future analyses, the national policy context of the in-volved cases and relevant national welfare systems and services are also de-scribed.publishedVersio

Mikromineralinnhold i jord og planter - mikromineralforsyning til drøvtyggere i økologisk landbruk

Det var generelt et høgere innhold av de enkelte mikromineralene i andre slått enn i første slått. Flere av planteprøvene viste så lavt innhold av sink at det kan redusere avlingsnivået. Mikromineralinnholdet i kløver var høyere enn i den samlede fraksjonen av gras, kløver og urter, slik at økt kløverinnhold i enga er viktig for å øke innholdet av mikromineraler i fôret Ut fra mineralbehovet hos sau- og storfe viste plante- og blodprøver at flere av besetningene hadde for liten tilførsel av selen og E-vitamin, mens tilførselen av kobolt og kopper stort sett var tilfredsstillende

Velferdsteknologi i boliger. Muligheter og utfordringer

-Målsettingen med denne rapporten er å belyse og diskutere muligheter og utfordringer med implementering av velferdsteknologi knyttet til boligløsninger og det å klare seg godt i egen bolig. Utvikling og implementering av velferdsteknologi forventes å være et viktig grep for å møte de kommende samfunnsutfordringene med en aldrende befolkning, endret sykdomsbilde og knapphet på helse- og omsorgspersonell. Etter å ha presentert nåværende og fremtidige teknologiske muligheter og utfordringer og drøftet disse i forhold til konkrete delmål med implementering av velferdsteknologi i boliger, avsluttes rapporten med å gi noen anbefalinger knyttet til Husbankens ulike roller som pådriver, kompetanseutvikler og kvalitetssikrer

Differential CCR7 Targeting in Dendritic Cells by Three Naturally Occurring CC-Chemokines

The CCR7 ligands CCL19 and CCL21 are increasingly recognized as functionally different (biased). Using mature human dendritic cells (DCs), we show that CCL19 is more potent than CCL21 in inducing 3D chemotaxis. Intriguingly, CCL21 induces prolonged and more efficient ERK1/2 activation compared to CCL19 and to a C-terminal truncated (tailless) CCL21 in DCs. In contrast, tailless-CCL21 displays increased potency in DC chemotaxis compared to native CCL21. Using a CCL21-specific antibody, we show that CCL21, but not tailless-CCL21, accumulates at the cell surface. In addition removal of sialic acid from the cell surface by neuraminidase treatment impairs ERK1/2 activation by CCL21, but not of CCL19 or tailless-CCL21. Using standard laboratory cell-lines, we observe low potency of both CCL21 and tailless-CCL21 in G protein activation and -arrestin recruitment compared to CCL19, indicating that the tail itself does not improve receptor interaction. Chemokines interact with their receptors in a stepwise manner with ultimate docking of their N-terminus into the main binding pocket. Employing site-directed mutagenesis we identify residues in this pocket of selective CCL21 importance. We also identify a molecular switch in the top of TM7 important for keeping CCR7 in an inactive conformation (Tyr312), as introduction of the chemokine receptor-conserved Glu (or Ala) induces high constitutive activity. Summarized, we show that the interaction of the tail of CCL21 with polysialic acid is needed for strong ERK-signaling, whereas it impairs CCL21-mediated chemotaxis and has no impact on receptor docking consistent with the current model of chemokine:receptor interaction. This indicates that future selective pharmacological targeting of CCL19 versus CCL21 should focus on a differential targeting of the main receptor pocket, while selective targeting of tailless-CCL21 versus CCL21 and CCL19 requires targeting of the glycosaminoglycan (GAG) interaction

Differential effect of T-type voltage-gated calcium channel disruption on renal plasma flow and glomerular filtration rate in vivo

Voltage-gated Ca2+ (Cav) channels play an essential role in the regulation of renal blood flow and glomerular filtration rate (GFR). Because T-type Cav channels are differentially expressed in pre- and postglomerular vessels, it was hypothesized that they impact renal blood flow and GFR differentially. The question was addressed with the use of two T-type Cav knockout (Cav3.1−/− and Cav3.2−/−) mouse strains. Continuous recordings of blood pressure and heart rate, para-aminohippurate clearance (renal plasma flow), and inulin clearance (GFR) were performed in conscious, chronically catheterized, wild-type (WT) and Cav3.1−/− and Cav3.2−/− mice. The contractility of afferent and efferent arterioles was determined in isolated perfused blood vessels. Efferent arterioles from Cav3.2−/− mice constricted significantly more in response to a depolarization compared with WT mice. GFR was increased in Cav3.2−/− mice with no significant changes in renal plasma flow, heart rate, and blood pressure. Cav3.1−/− mice had a higher renal plasma flow compared with WT mice, whereas GFR was indistinguishable from WT mice. No difference in the concentration response to K+ was observed in isolated afferent and efferent arterioles from Cav3.1−/− mice compared with WT mice. Heart rate was significantly lower in Cav3.1−/− mice compared with WT mice with no difference in blood pressure. T-type antagonists significantly inhibited the constriction of human intrarenal arteries in response to a small depolarization. In conclusion, Cav3.2 channels support dilatation of efferent arterioles and affect GFR, whereas Cav3.1 channels in vivo contribute to renal vascular resistance. It is suggested that endothelial and nerve localization of Cav3.2 and Cav3.1, respectively, may account for the observed effects. </jats:p

Velferdsteknologi i boliger. Muligheter og utfordringer

Målsettingen med denne rapporten er å belyse og diskutere muligheter og utfordringer med implementering av velferdsteknologi knyttet til boligløsninger og det å klare seg godt i egen bolig. Utvikling og implementering av velferdsteknologi forventes å være et viktig grep for å møte de kommende samfunnsutfordringene med en aldrende befolkning, endret sykdomsbilde og knapphet på helse- og omsorgspersonell. Etter å ha presentert nåværende og fremtidige teknologiske muligheter og utfordringer og drøftet disse i forhold til konkrete delmål med implementering av velferdsteknologi i boliger, avsluttes rapporten med å gi noen anbefalinger knyttet til Husbankens ulike roller som pådriver, kompetanseutvikler og kvalitetssikrer.Forlagets publiserte versjo