In order to understand how the Pleistocene glacial cycles have influenced the diversification in the Reed Bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus) subspecies complex, we conducted a multilocus phylogeographic study. We analysed DNA sequences from 32 breeding populations, covering the species’ Palearctic distribution, and used population genetics, phylogenetic and coalescent methods to uncover genetic struct

This paper investigates the impact of HIV prevalence on schooling achievement. By associating data of schooling test results, for seven countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, with regional measures of HIV prevalence for 70 different regions, I find evidence that a general increase in HIV prevalence of about 1%, lowers general test score results of about 1% of a standard deviation from the mean. Endogene

Children affected by the multisystem genetic disorder Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome look prematurely aged, suffer from elderly-related conditions and die during adolescence due to cardiovascular complications. The cause of the disease is single point gain-of-function mutations in the LMNA gene, which encodes the lamin A and lamin C proteins, major components of the nuclear lamina. These mut

Heart failure is one of the most common reasons for death in the modern society. As the field of tissue engineering is evolving, cardiac patches as treatment for suffering patients holds future promise. However, methods for efficient purification of cardiomyocytes from biopsies are lacking, hindering the development of such solutions. Here a novel method for separation of cardiomyocytes in a micro

At the Department of Biomedical Engineering work has been done on micro- dispensers - micro-mechanical devices used for handling extremely small volumes of fluid, which is used in the pharmacological industry. The main part of these devices is a membrane which moves distances on the order of micrometers, and vibrates with natural modes at frequencies over 10kHz, and there was a desire to image the

Epithelial ovarian carcinoma is a gynecological cancer with the highest death incidence worldwide. It is treated with surgery and chemotherapeutic drugs: platinum or taxane. However, around 80% of patients have disease progression into more aggressive and chemoresistant cancer. Mitochondria are structures inside both normal and cancer cells which are central to the cell´s metabolism by supplying e

The interest of this research lies in the nexus between the state and the individual in providing social care for people searching asylum in Finland. The study explores the experiences of host families involved in offering home accommodation for asylum seekers. More specifically, it aims to understand the subjective role that host families assign to themselves when providing social care for this t

Interactions between obesity and breast cancer Breast cancer and obesity are both diseases that are afflicting more and more women at an alarming rate in the Western world. In this project we examined how fat cells under different obesity-associated conditions, influenced breast cancer cells. We showed that breast cancer cells are affected by fat cells regarding both cell growth and movement. B

Abstract: This thesis is an anthropological study on how a group of people suffering from Posttraumatic Stress Disorder [PTSD] construct meaning in a community center in Copenhagen. The specific aim of this thesis is to investigate how place can be understood as a factor that plays into well-being and recovery. Based on a case study of a Danish community health center, this study shows how users

Helicobacter pylori is an important pathogen inhabiting the human stomach. H. pylori binds plasminogen, a 90 kDa glycoprotein secreted by liver cells, and utilizes it for enhancing virulence. Surface receptors on the bacteria recognize plasminogen that is then activated into plasmin by host factors. The active plasmin can degrade a range of host proteins including proteins of the extracellular mat

Globalization has led to an increase in competition between places in hopes of attracting mobile capital and investments as well as new inhabitants and tourists. Nature-based tourism has become one of the most steadily growing markets for tourism in Europe. In order for a place to be attractive it has to have a brand that can be constructed depending what sort of resources a place has. A place is

My master degree project started with an open brief, setting out to explore new possibilities within healthcare in relation to the benefits of IoT. By looking at medical trends, cutting edge diagnostic technologies, hypothesis about the future and by interviewing patients and medical personnel a couple of interesting project directions emerged. A decision was made to focus on prevention and one to

Avian malaria parasites can have severe fitness effects on the host although most infections seem to be mild. Some of the avian malaria parasites are host specific and infect specific bird species while others infect a wide range of species. Avian malaria can serve as a natural model system for studies of the effect of environmental change on parasites distribution patterns. The global changes of

Bumblebees and other pollinators are important contributors to the ecosystem service of pollination of wild plants and crops. As in many pollinating insects, their abundance and diversity have declined in recent years, due to loss of natural habitats and fragmentation associated with urbanization and agricultural intensification. However, in urban areas, green space management beneficial to pollin

Body appreciation-unappreciation and body satisfaction-dissatisfaction are in the literature seen as conceptually different, but construct distinction has only been supported using qualitative methods. Because of limits in using Likert-style questionnaires to measure multidimensional constructs, quantitative research has yet to directly demonstrate that it is possible to appreciate the body withou

The purpose of this essay is to investigate the ecclesiological meaning of church buildings in the context of the Church of Sweden. In order to investigate views of ecclesiology and church self-understanding through history, based on the church building as a symbol, I have chosen to study how church buildings are presented in several Swedish sermons. In this essay I analyze and compare four sermo

En viktig komponent i vårt moderna samhälle är plaster och användandet av detta material ökar. Plaster skapas av komponenter som extraheras från petroleum, ett icke-förnybart fossilt bränsle. För en hållbar framtid måste användandet av petroleum minska. Alternativ till petroleum-baserade plaster är bio-plaster. Bioraffinaderier använder idag mindre än 20 % av biomassan för etanolproduktion, överskBioplastics are a promising alternative for petroleum-based plastics that today is on high demand in our contemporary lifestyles. They are made from biopolymers such as polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs). Producing biopolymers from waste material feedstock using microbes increases profitability and environmental benefits as well as sustainability for biorefineries. Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a robust m

Foragers increase their fitness by choosing the most profitable food source to forage on. Food resource is spatially distributed in a landscape context and, most importantly, in a patch scale. Therefore, they have to make daily decisions about where to forage based on their ecological information about the surrounding environment. There is a lack of descriptive studies on the relationship between

This thesis studies the relationship between urbanization and income inequality in China in the period 2001 to 2012. To analyze this question, firstly, it studies the urbanization development by looking of the urbanization ratio, growth rate of urban population and the share of agriculture in GDP. Secondly, it conducts the Gini coefficient of urban and rural sector respectively based on the data p

This thesis aims to show the prospect of capacitance measurements over nanowire arrays as an evaluation method of the p-doping level in weakly p-doped p-n nanowires. The premise of the method is that there will be a high yield of statistical data regarding the doping level of the nanowires. The majority of the work carried out and presented in this thesis is however aimed at the manufacturing of a