Käsitteellisestä ruumiilliseen, sitaatiosta paikkaan - maalaustaide ja nykytaiteen historia

The dissertation "From Conceptual to Corporeal, from Quotation to Site: Painting and History of Contemporary Art" explores the state of painting in contemporary art and art theory since the 1960s. The purpose of the study is to re-consider the dominant "end of painting" -narrative in contemporary art history, which goes back to the modernist ideology of painting as a reductive, medium-specific form of art. Drawing on Michel Foucault´s concepts of discursive formation and archive, as well as Jean-Luc Nancy´s post-phenomenological philosophy on corporeality, I suggest that contemporary painting can be redefined as a discursive-sensuous practice. Instead of seeing painting as obsolete or over as an avantgarde art genre, I show that there have been alternative, neo-avantgardist ways of defining painting since the end of the 1960s, such as French artist Daniel Buren´s early writings on painting as "theoretical practice". Consequently, the tendency of the canonical Anglo-American contemporary art narratives to underestimate the historical and institutional codes of art can be questioned. This tendency can be seen, for example, in Rosalind Krauss´s influential theory on index. The study also reflects the relations between conceptual art and painting since the 1960s and maps recent theories of painting, which re-examine the genre´s possibilities after the modernist rhetoric. Concepts of "flatbed", "painting in the extended field", "as painting" and so on are compared critically with the idea of painting as discursive practice. It is also shown that the issues in painting arise from the contemporary critical art debate while the dematerialisation paradigm of conceptual art has dissolved. The study focuses on the corporeal-material-sensuous -cluster of meanings attached to painting and searches for its avantgardist possibilities as redefined by postfeminist and post-phenomenological discourse. The ideas of hierarchy of the senses and synesthesia are developed within the framework of Jean-Luc Nancy´s and Luce Irigaray´s thought. The parameters for the study have been Finnish painting from 1990 to 2002. On the Finnish art scene there has been no "end of painting" ideology, strictly speaking. The mythology and medium-specificity of modernism have been deconstructed since the mid-1980s, but "the archive" of painting, like themes of abstraction, formalism and synesthesia have been re-worked by the discursive practice of painting, for example, in the works of Nina Roos, Tarja Pitkänen-Walter and Jussi Niva.

Canon and Beyond : Edvard Fazer and the Imperial Russian Ballet 1908 - 1910

The study explores the first appearances of Russian ballet dancers on the stages of northern Europe in 1908 1910, particularly the performances organized by a Finnish impresario, Edvard Fazer, in Helsinki, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Berlin. The company, which consisted of dancers from the Imperial Theatres of St. Petersburg, travelled under the name The Imperial Russian Ballet of St. Petersburg. The Imperial Russian Ballet gave more than seventy performances altogether during its tours of Finland, Sweden, Denmark and central Europe. The synchronic approach of the study covers the various cities as well as genres and thus stretches the rather rigid geographical and genre boundaries of dance historiography. The study also explores the role of the canon in dance history, revealing some of the diversity which underlies the standard canonical interpretation of early twentieth-century Russian ballet by bringing in source material from the archives of northern Europe. Issues like the central position of written documentation, the importance of geographical centres, the emphasis on novelty and reformers and the short and narrow scholarly tradition have affected the formation of the dance history canon in the west, often imposing limits on the historians and narrowing the scope of research. The analysis of the tours concentrates on four themes: virtuosity, character dancing, the idea of the expressive body, and the controversy over ballet and new dance. The debate concerning the old and new within ballet is also touched upon. These issues are discussed in connection with each city, but are stressed differently depending on the local art scene. In Copenhagen, the strong local canon based on August Bournonville s works influenced the Danish criticism of Russian ballet. In Helsinki, Stockholm and Berlin, the lack of a solid local canon made critics and audiences more open to new influences, and ballet was discussed in a much broader cultural context than that provided by the local ballet tradition. The contemporary interest in the more natural, expressive human body, emerging both in theatre and dance, was an international trend that also influenced the way ballet was discussed. Character dancing, now at low ebb, played a central role in the success of the Imperial Russian Ballet, not only because of its exoticism but also because it was considered to echo the kind of performing body represented by new dance forms. By exploring this genre and its dancers, the thesis brings to light artists who are less known in the current dance history canon, but who made considerable careers in their own time.

Kohti lyyristä abstraktismia : Anitra Lucanderin 1950-luvun modernismi

Towards Lyrical Abstraction Anitra Lucander s Modernism in the 1950s Anitra Lucander (1918-2000) was one of the early pioneers of abstract art in Finland. During the Second World War Finnish art and cultural life was isolated and stagnated and figurative art was still dominant after the war. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, new international abstract art movements started to come to Finland. Anitra Lucander was one of the artists of the younger generation after the war who took an interest in the abstract movements in the early 1950s. At the beginning of the 1950s, abstract art came to Finland primarily in the form of Concretism, but simultaneously, a more delicate abstract movement emerged, and Anitra Lucander was among those cultivating such conceptions in her art. In this thesis, I observe and analyze through Anitra Lucander s art this central movement in Finnish modern art that has not yet been extensively studied. I examine how Anitra Lucander s art connects with the style change in Finnish art. I scrutinize the factors that affected Lucander and turned her towards abstract expression, and the effect her art had on emergence of abstract art in Finland. I will also consider the development of her art, the reception and critique of her art and the effect the critique had on her position in the 1950s art world. Because of a lack of earlier studies, I will undertake basic research, relying on empirical primary source material, where the starting point is to place the phenomenon under examination in the historical and cultural context. The most significant study materials are the artist s paintings and graphics from 1948 to 1960, newspaper and magazine articles from the same era, archive sources and interviews with Lucander s relatives, fellow artists and friends. An interesting aspect of the topic is the fact that Anitra Lucander was the only woman among the important pioneers of early Finnish abstract art. Through Lucander s art, I also examine the position of female artists in the tradition of Modernism as well as in the Finnish art world of the 1950s. This theoretical background is provided by the studies of feminist art historians, such as Marsha Meskimmon, Gill Perry, Griselda Pollock and Anne Middleton Wagner. Lucander s position in the male-dominated Finnish art scene of the 1950s, and how she achieved her position, emerges as one of the central themes of the study. I will also observe whether gender is evident in Lucander s art and expression, as well as her reception and critique compared to the reception of her male colleagues art. From a woman s point of view, I reveal the masculine rhetoric and gendered attitudes in the critique of the era. As a theoretical and methodological frame of reference, I use discourse analysis. Anitra Lucander encountered modernistic, international art movements during her journeys to Paris in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Her art evolved from the geometric Concretism of the early decade towards more delicate and painterly abstract expression. After the mid-1950s, she had developed her signature expression; through Cubism and a collage technique, she developed in her painting a delicate, coloristic imagery, which can be characterized as Lyrical Abstraction. Lucander did not consider abstract expression to be categorical, but saw the abstract and the nonfigurative as equals: the line between the abstract and the figurative is very often fleeting in her art. Already in her own time, Lucander achieved a position as one of the most talented young artists of her generation and her work was included in significant exhibitions. This success can definitely be attributed to the fact that she embraced Modernism in its extreme form, abstraction, already at the beginning of her career and networked with male painters who shared her outlook and modernistic expression. For her, this was either a conscious or an unconscious method of adapting to the male-dominated Finnish art field in the 1950s. In spite of acclaim and attention, Lucander had to encounter the gendered attitudes in the critique of the time, and her art was often perceived through stereotypical views as overly feminine and dependent. However, with her art, Lucander played an important role in the breakthrough for colorism and abstract art in Finland in the 1950s.

Tiedettä Pohjantähden alla : Pohjoisen tutkimus ja Ruotsin tiedeseurojen suhteet Ranskaan 1700-luvulla

In the eighteenth century, the birth of scientific societies in Europe created a new framework for scientific cooperation. Through a new contextualist study of the contacts between the first scientific societies in Sweden and the most important science academy in Europe at the time, l Académie des Sciences in Paris, this dissertation aims to shed light on the role taken by the Swedish learned men in the new networks. It seeks to show that the academy model was related to a new idea of specialisation in science. In the course of the eighteenth century, it is argued, the study of the northern phenomena and regions offered the Swedes an important field of speciality with regard to their foreign colleagues. Although historical studies have often underlined the economic, practical undertone of eighteenth-century Swedish science, participation in fashionable scientific pursuits had also become an important scene for representation. However, the views prevailing in Europe tied civilisation and learning closely to the sunnier, southern climates, which had lead to the difficulty of portraying Sweden as a learned country. The image of the scientific North, as well as the Swedish strategies to polish the image of the North as a place for science, are analysed as seen from France. While sixteenth-century historians had preferred to put down the effects of the cold and claim a similarity of northern conditions to the others, the scientific exchange between Swedish and French researchers shows a new tendency to underline the difference of the North and its harsh climate. An explanation is sought by analysing how information about northern phenomena was used in France. In the European academies, new empirical methods had lead to a need for direct observations on different phenomena and circumstances. Rather than curiosities or objects for exoticism, the eighteenth-century depictions of the northern periphery tell about an emerging interest in the most extreme, and often most telling, examples of the workings of the invariable laws of nature. Whereas the idea of accumulating knowledge through cooperation was most manifest in joint astronomical projects, the idea of gathering and comparing data from differing places of observation appears also in other fields, from experimental philosophy to natural studies or medicine. The effects of these developments are studied and explained in connection to the Montesquieuan climate theories and the emerging pre-romantic ideas of man and society.

Ruumiinkuvia! : Suomalainen performanssi- ja kehotaide 1980- ja1990-luvulla psykoanalyysin valossa

My PhD-thesis Body Images! Psychoanalytical Analysis of Finnish Performance and Body Art in the 1980s and 1990s considers Finnish performance and body art performed mainly by visual artists. In Part I, I chart the historical construction of performance art and its extension since the beginning of the 21st century. There are several wievs of the historical background of performance art. I introduce three different genealogies of performance art. One is Rose-Lee Goldberg s view. She connects performance art with the European avant-garde already at the beginning of the 20th century from futurists and dadaists to Russian avant-garde and the Bauhaus. I prefer to present performance art as contemporary art, which began to take shape in connection with visual arts in the 1950s and 1960s. The focus on the body is apparent in nearly all performance art. Nevertheless, throug the concept of body art I want to empasize the artist s body as the place of art. Body art (as part of performance art) functions as thematic and interpretive concept, which allows me to focus on performances where the questions of body image, narcissism, desire, language and pleasure are incorporated in particular intensive ways. In Part II, I explore the arrival of performance art in Finnish visual arts in the 1980s. I study the new generation s relation to earlier Finnish happenings (1960s) and performative actions in 1970 s. I briefly introduce performance groups of the 1980s art scene and consider their reception in media. The main focus is on the group Jack Helen Brut, in which I see many similarities to the so- called Theatre of Images. The goal of this part II is to provide historical context for the performance analysis that follows. In Part III, I develop the concept of body image which is my main theoretical term. The concept of body image is used according to Lacanian psychoanalytical theory, especially his considerations of mirror stages. My first mapping of body image, which I call imaginary body image, is based on Lacan s famous mirror stage article (1949). According to my reading, body image is narcistic and aggressive. The important concepts here are ego, imaginary, méconnaisance and alienation. In 1953 Lacan began to develop different version on mirror stage, in which he emphasized the primacy of symbolic dimension. It is not image, but language which constructs the foundations of body image. Central concepts in this chater are Other as language, ego-ideal, demand and desire. In the last chapter I connect the third version of the mirror stage to concepts of gaze, phantasy, real, jouissance and object a. In previous chapters I had considered body image in relation to ego. Now I explore it in relation to subject. In my reading the body image is fragile phenomen, which oscillates between yearning for coherence and phantasies of fragmented images. Part IV of the thesis begins with an introduction to the central concepts and debates in performace studies over the last few decades. Important concepts are presence, performativity and theatricality. The main substance of my thesis, however, is the performance analysis, which focuses on works by three Finnish artists and one Finnish group. The first analysis concerns the performance (1992) of Kimmo Schroderus. I discuss the relationship between narcissism and body art and the changes in demands projected on body images of men in recent decades in a Euro-American context. I also explore this performance in relation to the myth of Narcissus, which I reinterpret through Narcissus s aggression against his own body. The group Homo S is the main subject of the next analysis. I discuss the relationship between feminist art and performance art, especially in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s. Homo S is different from this early performance art because of its anarchism, humor and rejection of all ideals. Homo S characterizes its performance Body Body (1983) as liberating vulgar feminism . Sociality and performance of erotic relations between women are central in Body Body. Pia Lindman s performances are the subjects of my third analysis. I study three of her performances: Olen muoto (1993), 17 and in love (1994) and Arranged views (1995). I interpret these performances as efforts to disperse the imaginary and symbolic structures of the body image. She constructs the peculiar object a and phantasy space of her own. In the last analysis I move from questions of image and gaze to a study of language, sound and jouissance. I discuss at a general level the performance of orality and helplesness (Hilflosigkeit) in body art. The central elements in Pentti Otto Koskinen s performances are the ear, listening and receptive gestures and postions. Perseveraatio (1998) can be understood representing as submission to the super-ego s power, which compels one to enjoy. I examine particularly closely the performance Maissi on hyvää ei missään nimessä maissia (1995), which I interpret as the return of a baby s body image to the liminal site of choice: language or jouissance?

Den brændende Fakkel : Om dobbeltgrebet i Knud Lyne Rahbeks liv og revolutionsroman

Professor Knud Lyne Rahbek was a novelist, playwright, poet, magazine editor, journalist, socialite person, host of the Bakkehus , historian, theatre manager, translator, publisher etc., but his versatility either side of 1800 is better known than read and more despised than understood. In terms of methodology, the thesis is based on biographical, historical and philological research, while at the same time making use of formalistic and close reading methods. This study begins and ends with 7th of February 1800, when Kamma and Knud Lyne Rahbek join the exiled P.A. Heiberg at the inn near Frederiksberg Castle. What falls between is an interpretation of Rahbek s works in the service of democracy, human rights and freedom of the press as a pragmatic navigation between activities - both subversive and legitimate. Posterity mistook this range as mere spinelessness, and Rahbek was relegated to the literary and historical margins as an anachronism and as a jack of all trades, who did not know what he really wanted and therefore flitted about in so many fields just to be present. But Rahbek s problem was not one of standpoint, but rather how to find a balance between totalizing attitudes and confrontations between rebellious idealism and deep-rooted absolutism, without foregoing his belief in enlightenment, humanism and tolerance. In this way, and also through his personal conduct, which at that time was seen as jovial bonhommie, he made his contribution to the development of modern democratic Denmark in the full awareness of a popular, peaceful and down-to-earth community. Rahbek s principal work about the event of the French Revolution, which provides the focus for the above, is Camill og Constance. Et Revolutions Skilderie (1799). For today s reader, the novel about the revolution is an obvious example of a historical novel, as it does not only provide fictionalized information about past events placing them in a generally accepted perspective of historical development, but also gives the characters qualities, which, in Rahbek s words, allows the real events to influence the fictional characters. From this point of view, the novel of the revolution has shifted the benchmark for the first real historical novel on the European literary scene back by fifteen years. Lacking the aura so easily foisted on fearless iconoclasts or tragic losers, Rahbek s contribution may seem modest in spite of its enormous volume; but only when it is not evaluated in its full context, which is the development of Denmark towards an international democratic society.

Finnish Homicides and Mental Disorders: An investigation of offense and offender characteristics

Although the majority of people with mental illness are not violent, scientific studies over the last decades show that certain psychiatric disorders increase the risk of violent behavior, including homicide. This thesis examined crime scene behaviors and offender background characteristics among mentally ill Finnish homicide offenders. Previously, homicide crime scene behaviors have been investigated in relation to offender demographic characteristics, whereas this study compares the behaviors of offenders with various mental illnesses. The study design was a retrospective chart review of the forensic psychiatric statements of Finnish homicide offenders. The work consists of four substudies. The aims of the study were as follows: To describe differences in the childhood and family backgrounds as well as in the adolescent and adult adjustment of Finnish homicide offenders belonging to different diagnostic categories (schizophrenia, personality disorder, alcoholism, drug addiction or no diagnosis). Further, the study examined associations between the crime scene behaviors and mental status of these offenders. Also, the distinguishing characteristics between two groups of offenders with schizophrenia were examined: early starters, who present antisocial behavior before the onset of schizophrenia, and late starters, who first offend after the onset of mental disorder. Finally, it was investigated how the use of excessive violence is associated with clinical and circumstantial variables as well as offender background characteristics among homicide offenders with schizophrenia. The main findings of the study can be summarized as follows. First, offenders with personality disorder or drug addiction had experienced multiple difficulties in their early environments: both family and individual problems were typical. Offenders with schizophrenia were relatively well-adjusted in childhood compared to the other groups. However, in adolescence and adulthood, social isolation, withdrawal and other difficulties attributable to these offenders illness became evident. In several aspects, offenders with alcohol dependency resembled offenders with no diagnosis in that these offenders had less problematic backgrounds compared to other groups. Second, the results showed that crime scene behaviors, victim gender and the victim-offender relationship differ between the groups. In particular, offenders with a diagnosis of schizophrenia or drug addiction have some unique features in their crime scene behaviors and choice of victims. Offenders with schizophrenia were more likely to kill a blood relative, to use a sharp weapon and to injure the victim s face. Drug addiction was associated with stealing from the victim and trying to cover up the body. Third, the results suggest that the offense characteristics of early- and late-start offenders with schizophrenia differ only modestly. However, several significant differences between the groups were found in characteristics of offenders: early starters had experienced a multitude of problems in their childhood surroundings and also later in life. Fourth, violent acts where the offender did not commit the offense alone or had previous homicidal history were predictive of excessive violence among offenders with schizophrenia. Positive psychotic symptoms did not predict the use of excessive violence. Nearly one third of the cases in the sample involved multiple and severe violence, including features such as sadism, mutilation, sexual components or extreme stabbing. In sum, mentally disordered homicide offenders are heterogeneous in their offense characteristics as well as their background characteristics. Empirically based information on how the offender s mental state is associated with specific crime scene behaviors can be utilized within the police force in developing methods of prioritizing suspects in unsolved homicide cases. Also, these results emphasise the importance of early interventions for problem families and children at risk of antisocial behavior. They may also contribute to the development of effective treatment for violent offenders.

The Role of Genes on Chromosome Locus 4q12 in Human Central Nervous System Tumors

Human central nervous system (CNS) tumors are a heterogeneous group of tumors occurring in brain, brainstem and spinal cord. Malignant gliomas (astrocytic and oligodendroglial tumors), which arise from the neuroepithelial cells are the most common CNS neoplasms in human. Malignant gliomas are highly aggressive and invasive tumors, and have a very poor prognosis. The development and progression of gliomas involve a stepwise accumulation of genetic alterations that generally affect either signal transduction pathways activated by receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs), or cell cycle arrest pathways. Constitutive activation or deregulated signaling by RTKs is caused by gene amplification, overexpression or mutations. The aberrant RTK signaling results in turn in the activation of several downstream pathways, which ultimately lead to malignant transformation and tumor proliferation. Many genetic abnormalities implicated in nervous system tumors involve the genes located at the chromosomal region 4q12. This locus harbors the receptor tyrosine kinases KIT, PDGFRA and VEGFR2, and other genes (REST, LNX1) with neural function. Gene amplification and protein expression of KIT, PDGFRA, and VEGFR2 was studied using clinical tumor material. REST and LNX1, as well as NUMBL, the interaction partner of LNX1, were studied for their gene mutations and amplifications. In our studies, amplification of LNX1 was associated with KIT and PDGFRA amplification in glioblastomas, and coamplification of KIT, PDGFRA and VEGFR2 was detected in medulloblastomas and CNS primitive neuroectodermal tumors. PDGFRA amplification was also correlated with poor overall survival. Coamplification of KIT, PDGFRA and VEGFR2 was observed in a subset of human astrocytic and oligodendroglial tumors. We suggest that genes at 4q12 could be a part of a larger amplified region, which is deregulated in gliomas, and could be used as a prognostic marker of tumorigenic process. The signaling pathways activated due to gene amplifications, activating gene mutations, and overexpressed proteins may be useful as therapeutic targets for glioma treatment. This study also includes the characterization of KIT overexpressing astrocytes, analyzed by various in vitro functional assays. Our results show that overexpression of KIT in mouse astrocytes promotes cell proliferation and anchorage-independent growth, as well as phenotypic changes in the cells. Furthermore, the increased proliferation is partly inhibited by imatinib, a small molecule inhibitor of KIT. These results suggest that KIT may play a role in astrocyte growth regulation, and might have an oncogenic role in brain tumorigenesis. Elucidation of the altered signaling pathways due to specific gene amplifications, activating gene mutations, and overexpressed proteins may be useful as therapeutic targets for glioma treatment.

Vascular growth factors and progenitor cells in cardiac allograft arteriosclerosis

Heart transplantation is the only therapeutic modality for many end-stage heart diseases but poor long-term survival remains a challenging problem. This is mainly due to the development of cardiac allograft arteriosclerosis (TxCAD) that is an accelerated form of coronary artery disease. Both traditional cardiovascular and transplantation-related risk factors for TxCAD have been identified but options for therapy are limited. TxCAD involves dysfunction of cardiac allograft vascular cells. Activated endothelial cells (EC) regulate allograft inflammation and secrete smooth muscle cell (SMC) growth factors. In turn, SMC and their progenitors invade the intima of the injured vessels and occlude the affected coronary arteries. Different vascular growth factors have to be delicately regulated in normal vascular development. In the present study, experimental heterotopic transplantation models were used to study the role of angiogenic and pro-inflammatory vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), EC growth factor angiopoietin (Ang), and SMC mitogen platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) in the development of TxCAD. Pharmacological and gene transfer approaches were used to target these growth factors and to assess their therapeutic potential. This study shows that alloimmune response in heart transplants upregulates VEGF expression, and induces allograft angiogenesis that involves donor-derived primitive EC. Intracoronary adenoviral VEGF gene transfer increased macrophage infiltration, intimal angiogenesis and TxCAD. VEGF inhibition with PTK787 decreased allograft inflammation and TxCAD, and simultaneous PDGF inhibition with imatinib further decreased TxCAD. Specific inhibition of two VEGF-receptors (VEGFR) decreased allograft inflammation and TxCAD, and VEGFR-2 inhibition normalized the density of primitive and mature capillaries in the allografts. Adenovirus-mediated transient Ang1 expression in the allograft had anti-inflammatory and anti-arteriosclerotic effects. Adeno-associated virus (AAV)-mediated prolonged Ang1 or Ang2 expression had similar anti-inflammatory effects. However, AAV-Ang1 activated allograft SMC whereas AAV-Ang2 had no effects on SMC activation and decreased the development of TxCAD. These studies indicate an interplay of inflammation, angiogenesis and arteriosclerosis in cardiac allografts, and show that vascular growth factors are important regulators in the process. Also, VEGF inhibition, PDGF inhibition and angiopoietin therapy with clinically-relevant pharmacological agents or novel gene therapy approaches may counteract vascular dysfunction in cardiac allografts, and have beneficial effects on the survival of heart transplant patients in the future.

Molecular genetics and evolution of Puumala hantavirus

Puumala virus (PUUV) is the causative agent of nephropathia epidemica (NE), a mild form of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome. Finland has the highest documented incidence of NE with around 1000 cases diagnosed annually. PUUV is also found in other Scandinavian countries, Central Europe and the European part of Russia. PUUV belongs to the genus Hantavirus in the family Bunyaviridae. Hantaviruses are rodent-borne viruses each carried by a specific host that is persistently and asymptomatically infected by the virus. PUUV is carried by the bank voles (Myodes glareolus, previously known as Clethrionomys glareolus). Hantaviruses have co-evolved with their carrier rodents for millions of years and these host animals are the evolutionary scene of hantaviruses. In this study, PUUV sequences were recovered from bank voles captured in Denmark and Russian Karelia to study the evolution of PUUV in Scandinavia. Phylogenetic analysis of these strains showed a geographical clustering of genetic variants following the presumable migration pattern of bank voles during the recolonization of Scandinavia after the last ice age approximately 10 000 years ago. The currently known PUUV genome sequences were subjected to in-depth phylogenetic analyses and the results showed that genetic drift seems to be the major mechanism of PUUV evolution. In general, PUUV seems to evolve quite slowly following a molecular clock. We also found evidence for recombination in the evolution of some genetic lineages of PUUV. Viral microevolution was studied in controlled virus transmission in colonized bank voles and changes in quasispecies dynamics were recorded as the virus was transmitted from one animal to another. We witnessed PUUV evolution in vivo, as one synonymous mutation became repeatedly fixed in the viral genome during the experiment. The detailed knowledge on the PUUV diversity was used to establish new sensitive and specific detection methods for this virus. Direct viral invasion of the hypophysis was demonstrated for the first time in a lethal case of NE. PUUV detection was done by immunohistochemistry, in situ hybridization and RT-nested-PCR of the autopsy tissue samples.

Enhanced processing of SPOT multispectral satellite imagery for environmental monitoring and modelling

The Taita Hills in southeastern Kenya form the northernmost part of Africa’s Eastern Arc Mountains, which have been identified by Conservation International as one of the top ten biodiversity hotspots on Earth. As with many areas of the developing world, over recent decades the Taita Hills have experienced significant population growth leading to associated major changes in land use and land cover (LULC), as well as escalating land degradation, particularly soil erosion. Multi-temporal medium resolution multispectral optical satellite data, such as imagery from the SPOT HRV, HRVIR, and HRG sensors, provides a valuable source of information for environmental monitoring and modelling at a landscape level at local and regional scales. However, utilization of multi-temporal SPOT data in quantitative remote sensing studies requires the removal of atmospheric effects and the derivation of surface reflectance factor. Furthermore, for areas of rugged terrain, such as the Taita Hills, topographic correction is necessary to derive comparable reflectance throughout a SPOT scene. Reliable monitoring of LULC change over time and modelling of land degradation and human population distribution and abundance are of crucial importance to sustainable development, natural resource management, biodiversity conservation, and understanding and mitigating climate change and its impacts. The main purpose of this thesis was to develop and validate enhanced processing of SPOT satellite imagery for use in environmental monitoring and modelling at a landscape level, in regions of the developing world with limited ancillary data availability. The Taita Hills formed the application study site, whilst the Helsinki metropolitan region was used as a control site for validation and assessment of the applied atmospheric correction techniques, where multiangular reflectance field measurements were taken and where horizontal visibility meteorological data concurrent with image acquisition were available. The proposed historical empirical line method (HELM) for absolute atmospheric correction was found to be the only applied technique that could derive surface reflectance factor within an RMSE of < 0.02 ps in the SPOT visible and near-infrared bands; an accuracy level identified as a benchmark for successful atmospheric correction. A multi-scale segmentation/object relationship modelling (MSS/ORM) approach was applied to map LULC in the Taita Hills from the multi-temporal SPOT imagery. This object-based procedure was shown to derive significant improvements over a uni-scale maximum-likelihood technique. The derived LULC data was used in combination with low cost GIS geospatial layers describing elevation, rainfall and soil type, to model degradation in the Taita Hills in the form of potential soil loss, utilizing the simple universal soil loss equation (USLE). Furthermore, human population distribution and abundance were modelled with satisfactory results using only SPOT and GIS derived data and non-Gaussian predictive modelling techniques. The SPOT derived LULC data was found to be unnecessary as a predictor because the first and second order image texture measurements had greater power to explain variation in dwelling unit occurrence and abundance. The ability of the procedures to be implemented locally in the developing world using low-cost or freely available data and software was considered. The techniques discussed in this thesis are considered equally applicable to other medium- and high-resolution optical satellite imagery, as well the utilized SPOT data.

The visual preferences for forest regeneration and field afforestation - four case studies in Finland

The overall aim of this dissertation was to study the public's preferences for forest regeneration fellings and field afforestations, as well as to find out the relations of these preferences to landscape management instructions, to ecological healthiness, and to the contemporary theories for predicting landscape preferences. This dissertation includes four case studies in Finland, each based on the visualization of management options and surveys. Guidelines for improving the visual quality of forest regeneration and field afforestation are given based on the case studies. The results show that forest regeneration can be connected to positive images and memories when the regeneration area is small and some time has passed since the felling. Preferences may not depend only on the management alternative itself but also on the viewing distance, viewing point, and the scene in which the management options are implemented. The current Finnish forest landscape management guidelines as well as the ecological healthiness of the studied options are to a large extent compatible with the public's preferences. However, there are some discrepancies. For example, the landscape management instructions as well as ecological hypotheses suggest that the retention trees need to be left in groups, whereas people usually prefer individually located retention trees to those trees in groups. Information and psycho-evolutionary theories provide some possible explanations for people's preferences for forest regeneration and field afforestation, but the results cannot be consistently explained by these theories. The preferences of the different stakeholder groups were very similar. However, the preference ratings of the groups that make their living from forest - forest owners and forest professionals - slightly differed from those of the others. These results provide support for the assumptions that preferences are largely consistent at least within one nation, but that knowledge and a reference group may also influence preferences.

Transcriptome and glycome profiling of human hematopoietic CD133+ and CD34+ cells

New blood cells are continuously provided by self-renewing multipotent hematopoietic stem cells (HSC). The capacity of HSCs to regenerate the hematopoietic system is utilized in the treatment of patients with hematological malignancies. HSCs can be enriched using an antibody-based recognition of CD34 or CD133 glycoproteins on the cell surface. The CD133+ and CD34+ cells may have partly different roles in hematopoiesis. Furthermore, each cell has a glycome typical for that cell type. Knowledge of HSC glycobiology can be used to design therapeutic cells with improved cell proliferation or homing properties. The present studies characterize the global gene expression profile of human cord blood-derived CD133+ and CD34+ cells, and demonstrate the differences between CD133+ and CD34+ cell populations that may have an impact in transplantation when CD133+ and CD34+ selected cells are used. In addition, these studies unravel the glycome profile of primitive hematopoietic cells and reveal the transcriptional regulation of N-glycan biosynthesis in CD133+ and CD34+ cells. The gene expression profile of CD133+ cells represents 690 differentially expressed transcripts between CD133+ cells and CD133- cells. CD34+ cells have 620 transcripts differentially expressed when compared to CD34- cells. The integrated CD133+/CD34+ cell gene expression profiles proffer novel transcripts to specify HSCs. Furthermore, the differences between the gene expression profiles of CD133+ and CD34+ cells indicate differences in the transcriptional regulation of CD133+ and CD34+ cells. CD133+ cells express a lower number of hematopoietic lineage differentiation marker genes than CD34+ cells. The expression profiles suggest a more primitive nature of CD133+ cells. Moreover, CD133+ cells have characteristic glycome that differ from the glycome of CD133- cells. High mannose-type and biantennary complex-type N-glycans are enriched in CD133+ cells. N-glycosylation-related gene expression pattern of CD133+ cells identify the key genes regulating the CD133+ cell-specific glycosylation including the overexpression of MGAT2 and underexpression of MGAT4. The putative role of MAN1C1 in the increase of unprocessed high mannose-type N-glycans in CD133+ cells is also discussed. These studies provide new information on the characteristics of HSCs. Improved understanding of HSC biology can be used to design therapeutic cells with improved cell proliferation and homing properties. As a result, HSC engineering could further their clinical use.

GATA Transcription Factors in Tissue Homeostasis and Pathology of the Gastrointestinal Tract and Liver

Mammalian gastrointestinal tract and liver are self-renewing organs that are able to sustain themselves due to stem cells present in their tissues. In constant, inflammation-related epithelial damage, vigorous activation of stem cells may lead to their uncontrolled proliferation, and further, to cancer. GATA-4, GATA-5, and GATA-6 regulate cell proliferation and differentiation in many mammalian organs. Lack of GATA-4 or GATA-6 leads to defective endodermal development and cell differentiation. GATA-4 and GATA-5 are considered the ones with tumor suppressive functions, whereas GATA-6 is more related to tumor promotion. In the digestive system their roles in inflammation and tumor-related molecular pathways remain unclear. In this study, we examined the GATA-related molecular pathways involved in normal tissue organization and renewal and in inflammation-related epithelial repair in the gastrointestinal tract and liver. The overall purpose of this study was to elucidate the relation of GATA factors to gastrointestinal and hepatic disease pathology and to evaluate their possible clinical significance in tumor biology. The results indicated distinct expression patterns for GATA-4, GATA-5, and GATA-6 in the human and murine gastrointestinal tract and liver, and their involvement in the regulation of intestine-specific genes. GATA-5 was confined to the intestines of suckling mice, suggesting an association with postnatal enzymatic changes. GATA-4 was upregulated in bowel inflammation concomitantly with TGF-β signaling. In gastrointestinal tumors, GATA-4 was restricted to benign neoplasias of the stomach, while GATA-6 was detected especially at the invasive edges of malignant tumors throughout the gut. In the liver, GATA-4 was upregulated in pediatric tumors along with erythropoietin (Epo), which was detected also in the sera of tumor patients. Furthermore, GATA-4 was enhanced in areas of vigorous hepatic regeneration in patients with tyrosinemia type I. These results suggest a central role for GATA-4 in pediatric tumor biology of the liver. To conclude, GATA-4, GATA-5, and GATA-6 are associated with normal gastrointestinal and hepatic development and regeneration. The appearance of GATA-4 along with TGF-β-signaling in the inflammatory bowel suggests a protective role in the response to inflammation-related epithelial destruction. However, in extremely malignant pediatric liver tumors, GATA-4 function is unlikely to be tumor-suppressing, probably due to the nature of the very primitive multipotent tumor cells. GATA-4, along with its possible downstream factor Epo, could be utilized as novel hepatic tumor markers to supplement the present diagnostics. They could also serve a function in future biological therapies for aggressive pediatric tumors.

A Historical Approach to Children s Physics Education : Modelling of DC-circuit Phenomena in a Small Group

This three-phase design research describes the modelling processes for DC-circuit phenomena. The first phase presents an analysis of the development of the DC-circuit historical models in the context of constructing Volta s pile at the turn of the 18th century. The second phase involves the designing of a teaching experiment for comprehensive school third graders. Among other considerations, the design work utilises the results of the first phase and research literature of pupils mental models for DC-circuit phenomena. The third phase of the research was concerned with the realisation of the planned teaching experiment. The aim of this phase was to study the development of the external representations of DC-circuit phenomena in a small group of third graders. The aim of the study has been to search for new ways to guide pupils to learn DC-circuit phenomena while emphasing understanding at the qualitative level. Thus, electricity, which has been perceived as a difficult and abstract subject, could be learnt more comprehensively. Especially, the research of younger pupils learning of electricity concepts has not been of great interest at the international level, although DC-circuit phenomena are also taught in the lower classes of comprehensive schools. The results of this study are important, because there has tended to be more teaching of natural sciences in the lower classes of comprehensive schools, and attempts are being made to develop this trend in Finland. In the theoretical part of the research an Experimental-centred representation approach, which emphasises the role of experimentalism in the development of pupil s representations, is created. According to this approach learning at the qualitative level consists of empirical operations like experimenting, observations, perception, and prequantification of nature phenomena, and modelling operations like explaining and reasoning. Besides planning teaching, the new approach can be used as an analysis tool in describing both historical modelling and the development of pupils representations. In the first phase of the study, the research question was: How did the historical models of DC-circuit phenomena develop in Volta s time? The analysis uncovered three qualitative historical models associated with the historical concept formation process. The models include conceptions of the electric circuit as a scene in the DC-circuit phenomena, the comparative electric-current phenomenon as a cause of different observable effect phenomena, and the strength of the battery as a cause of the electric-current phenomenon. These models describe the concept formation process and its phases in Volta s time. The models are portrayed in the analysis using fragments of the models, where observation-based fragments and theoretical fragements are distinguished from each other. The results emphasise the significance of the qualitative concept formation and the meaning of language in the historical modelling of DC-circuit phenomena. For this reason these viewpoints are stressed in planning the teaching experiment in the second phase of the research. In addition, the design process utilised the experimentation behind the historical models of DC-circuit phenomena In the third phase of the study the research question is as follows: How will the small group s external representations of DC-circuit phenomena develop during the teaching experiment? The main question is divided into the following two sub questions: What kind of talk exists in the small group s learning? What kinds of external representations for DC-circuit phenomena exist in the small group discourse during the teaching experiment? The analysis revealed that the teaching experiment of the small group succeeded in its aim to activate talk in the small group. The designed connection cards proved especially successful in activating talk. The connection cards are cards that represent the components of the electric circuit. In the teaching experiment the pupils constructed different connections with the connection cards and discussed, what kinds of DC-circuit phenomena would take place in the corresponding real connections. The talk of the small group was analysed by comparing two situations, firstly, when the small group discussed using connections made with the connection cards and secondly with the same connections using real components. According to the results the talk of the small group included more higher-order thinking when using the connection cards than with similar real components. In order to answer the second sub question concerning the small group s external representations that appeared in the talk during the teaching experiment; student talk was visualised by the fragment maps which incorporate the electric circuit, the electric current and the source voltage. The fragment maps represent the gradual development of the external representations of DC-circuit phenomena in the small group during the teaching experiment. The results of the study challenge the results of previous research into the abstractness and difficulty of electricity concepts. According to this research, the external representations of DC-circuit phenomena clearly developed in the small group of third graders. Furthermore, the fragment maps uncover that although the theoretical explanations of DC-circuit phenomena, which have been obtained as results of typical mental model studies, remain undeveloped, learning at the qualitative level of understanding does take place.