How far does the dynamic doctrine go?:Looking for the basis of precontractual liability in the CISG

The inherent conundrums of precontractual liability are familiar in most domestic legal systems, but they also turn overly complex if the parties are located in each their jurisdiction. This article analyses whether the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) governs any precontractual questions. Precontractual liability under the CISG has been discussed sparsely in the literature and since the Convention neither expressly deals with nor excludes precontractual liablity it leaves a gap of knowledge. A further examination of the Convention’s applicability to precontractual liability, what the legal foundation of such precontractual duties may be, and what such duties may consist of is desired

Folkebibliotekernes web-baserede referenceservices og bibliotekarens rolle

Artiklen præsenterer en undersøgelse af web-base rede referenceservices i 63 danske folkebiblioteker i kommuner med 20.000 indbyggere eller derover. Undersøgelsen er gennemført i efteråret 2005. Det analyseres om, og hvordan folkebibliotekerne for midler referenceservices på internettet, og hvordan brugerne støttes i anvendelsen af disse services. Med afsæt i forskningslitteraturen behandles centrale begreber som det digitale bibliotek og den digitale bibliotekar, og der sættes fokus på formidling af relevante informationsressourcer, kommunikations- og transaktionsmuligheder samt anden hjælp, der kan erstatte den bibliotekar, som brugeren møder i det fysiske bibliotek. Undersøgelsens metode er en deskriptiv indholdsanalyse af de udvalgte bibliotekers websites. Undersøgelsens resultater giver indblik i den aktuelle status for referenceservices på nettet. Den giver inspiration til forbedring og videreudvikling af eksisterende referenceservices samt afdækker indsatsområder og udviklingsmuligheder

Allergic sensitization:host-immune factors

Allergic sensitization is the outcome of a complex interplay between the allergen and the host in a given environmental context. The first barrier encountered by an allergen on its way to sensitization is the mucosal epithelial layer. Allergic inflammatory diseases are accompanied by increased permeability of the epithelium, which is more susceptible to environmental triggers. Allergens and co-factors from the environment interact with innate immune receptors, such as Toll-like and protease-activated receptors on epithelial cells, stimulating them to produce cytokines that drive T-helper 2-like adaptive immunity in allergy-prone individuals. In this milieu, the next cells interacting with allergens are the dendritic cells lying just underneath the epithelium: plasmacytoid DCs, two types of conventional DCs (CD11b + and CD11b-), and monocyte-derived DCs. It is now becoming clear that CD11b+, cDCs, and moDCs are the inflammatory DCs that instruct naïve T cells to become Th2 cells. The simple paradigm of non-overlapping stable Th1 and Th2 subsets of T-helper cells is now rapidly being replaced by that of a more complex spectrum of different Th cells that together drive or control different aspects of allergic inflammation and display more plasticity in their cytokine profiles. At present, these include Th9, Th17, Th22, and Treg, in addition to Th1 and Th2. The spectrum of co-stimulatory signals coming from DCs determines which subset-characteristics will dominate. When IL-4 and/or IL-13 play a dominant role, B cells switch to IgE-production, a process that is more effective at young age. IgE-producing plasma cells have been shown to be long-lived, hiding in the bone-marrow or inflammatory tissues where they cannot easily be targeted by therapeutic intervention. Allergic sensitization is a complex interplay between the allergen in its environmental context and the tendency of the host’s innate and adaptive immune cells to be skewed towards allergic inflammation. These data and findings were presented at a 2012 international symposium in Prague organized by the Protein Allergenicity Technical Committee of the International Life Sciences Institute’s Health and Environmental Sciences Institute