Drag på parnassen. Två sextiotalsstudier. : Del I: Medelklass med mänskligt ansikte. Medelklassradikalism i fyra romaner av Christer Kihlman, Jarl Sjöblom, Marianne Alopaeus och Ulla-Lena Lundberg. Del II: Modernistdebatten. Sak, person och fält i en finlandssvensk litteraturdebatt år 1965.

The objective of my dissertation Pull (or Draught, or Moves) at the Parnassus , is to provide a deeper understanding of Nordic Middle Class radicalism of the 1960 s as featured in Finland-Swedish literature. My approach is cultural materialist in a broad sense; social class is regarded a crucial aspect of the contents and contexts of the novels and literary discussions explored. In the first volume, Middle Class With A Human Face , novels by Christer Kihlman, Jarl Sjöblom, Marianne Alopaeus, and Ulla-Lena Lundberg, respectively, are read from the points of view of place, emotion, and power. The term "cryptotope" is used to designate the hidden places found to play an important role in all of these four narratives. Also, the "chronotope of the provincial small town", described by Mikhail Bakhtin in 1938, is exemplified in Kihlman s satirical novel, as is the chronotope of of war (Algeria, Vietnam) in those of Alopaeus and Lundberg s. All the four novels signal changes in the way general "scripts of emotions", e.g. jealousy, are handled and described. The power relations in the novels are also read, with reference to Michel Foucault. As the protagonists in two of them work as journalists, a critical discussion about media and Bourgeois hegemony is found; the term "repressive legitimation" is created to grasp these patterns of manipulation. The Modernist Debate , part II of the study, concerns a literary discussion between mainly Finland-Swedish authors and critics. Essayist Johannes Salminen (40) provided much of the fuel for the debate in 1963, questioning the relevance to contemporary life of the Finland-Swedish modernist tradition of the 1910 s and 1920 s. In 1965, a group of younger authors and critics, including poet Claes Andersson (28), followed up this critique in a debate taking place mainly in the newspaper Vasabladet. Poets Rabbe Enckell (62), Bo Carpelan (39) and others defended a timeless poetry. This debate is contextualized and the changing literary field is analyzed using concepts provided by sociologist Pierre Bourdieu. In the thesis, the historical moment of Middle Class radicalism with a human face is regarded a temporary luxury that new social groups could afford themselves, as long as they were knocking over the statues and symbols of the Old Bourgeoisie. This is not to say that all components of the Sixties strategy have lost their power. Some of them have survived and even grown, others remain latent in the gene bank of utopias, waiting for new moments of change.

The reduction of serum soluble Flt-1 in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration

PURPOSE: To evaluate serum soluble Flt-1 (sFlt-1) in age-related degeneration (AMD) patients.

DESIGN: Case control study.

METHODS: Fifty-six non-AMD participants, fifty-three early AMD patients and ninety-seven neovascular AMD patients from Belfast in Northern Ireland. Serum samples were collected from each patient. Serum sFlt-1 was measured by human sVEGFR1/sFlt-1 ELISA kit. The results were analyzed by Excel and SPSS.

RESULTS: Serum sFlt-1 concentration of non-AMD, early AMD, and neovascular AMD were 90.8±2.9 pg/mL (±SEM), 88.2±2.6 pg/mL and 79.9±2.2 pg/mL. sFlt-1 from neovascular AMD patients was significantly decreased compared to non-AMD and early AMD patients (ANOVA, p<0.01). For each 10 point increase in sFlt-1, the odds for having neovascular AMD compared with non-AMD and neovascular AMD decreases by 27.8% OR=0.722 (95% CI: 0.588-0.888, p=0.002) and 27.0% OR=0.730 (95% CI: 0.594-0.898, p=0.003), respectively. In patients over 73 years of age, serum sFlt-1 <80 pg/mL was associated with a >6-fold higher risk of neovascular AMD.

CONCLUSIONS: Reduced serum sFlt-1 differentiates those patients with neovascular AMD from both early AMD and non-AMD participants. In those aged over 73, serum sFlt <80 pg/mL seems to indicate a particularly high risk of neovascular AMD. Our results indicate serum sFlt-1 could be a biomarker for development of neovascular AMD.

Inlärning och öppet-fält aktivitet hos förskolebarn

The purpose of this study was to analyze the impact of learning on open-field activity among pre-school children varying from 3 to 5 years old. Altogether 25 children, 13 girls and 12 boys, entered the test from three different preschools in Dalarna. Six of these children represented the control group. The children were asked to learn 2 tasks, 1 visual memory task and 1 spatial constructing-kit task. Before, between and after the tasks, the children were allowed to move freely in the open field. The control group did not solve any learning tasks and only entered the open field, which was divided into 18 equally large squares, where the children’s activities were observed. The children’s learning times as well as their spontaneous open-field activity and wall-seeking behaviour were registered. The result showed as a general rule that the learning time was reduced between each session. However, the visual memory task increased the children’s spontaneous open-field behaviour more and decreased their wall seeking to a greater extent than the spatial-construction learning task.

Fostransanspråk : En studie om Tunabygdens lärarklubbs fostransanspråk i samhälleliga fält mellan åren 1930-1953

Syftet med detta arbete är att undersöka lärares yrkesidentitet i Tunabygdens lärarklubb mellan åren 1930-1953, och se om deras självuppfattningar och föreställningar om sin yrkesroll som fostrare inom olika samhälleliga fält har förändrats under klubbens verksamhetshistoria. Frågeställningarna arbetet har utgått ifrån har varit: Vad anses i Tunabygdens lärarklubb vara lärarens angelägenheter i sin roll som fostrare, vad ingår i lärarens fält? Hur reflekterar lärarna i Tunabygdens lärarklubb över sin roll som fostrare inom de olika samhälleliga fälten? Samt, sker det någon förändring under klubbens verksamhetshistoria gällande vad som uppfattas vara lärares angelägenheter i sin roll som fostrare, samt hur lärarna reflekterar över sin egen roll som fostrare? Om så är fallet, vad kan detta bero på? Ett flertal slutsatser kan dras utifrån det berörda källmaterialet. En slutsats är att lärarnas fostransanspråk på samhälleliga fält grundar sig bland annat på en funktionell syn på läraryrket och skolan, där skolan och lärarna förväntas tillgodose vissa samhällsbehov. Ytterliga slutsatser är att lärarnas självreflektion kring den egna fostrande rollen påverkas i hög grad av samhällets utveckling.

Etablering, tillväxt och skador för plantor odlade i såddrör (Tubesprout™) - resultat efter två säsonger i fält

Försöket visade på mycket god överlevnad för plantor odlade i såddrören, Tubesprout™. Efter två år var överlevnaden för dessa 91 % för tall och 79 % för gran. För miniplantorna odlade i Jiffy varierade överlevnaden efter två år mellan 84 (tall) och 64 % (gran). Lägst överlevnad efter både det första och andra året hade de större referensplantorna. Av dessa levde 67 % av tallplantorna och endast 45 % av granplantorna. Bidragande till den goda överlevelsen hos Tubesprout™-odlade plantor var få snytbaggeskador och nästan inga skador av torka. Det andra miniplantsystemet, Jiffy 18, klarade snytbaggen nästan lika bra som Tubesprout™, men drabbades istället av stora avgångar beroende på torka. Hylsan tycks förhindra uttorkning av plantan som annars är ett stort problem vid plantering på torra marker av små plantor. För de äldre täckrotsodlade referensplantorna var den mesta plantdöden orsakad av kraftiga snytbaggeskador. Granen var värst drabbad med drygt 50 % snytbaggedödade plantor efter två år, medan den plantavgång hos tall som var orsakad av snytbagge var 26 %. Några plantor som stod i Tubesprout™ på försöksytan blev dock uppryckta, sannolikt av kråkfåglar.

Pop-sportens fält

Sociologisk Forsknings digitala arkiv

Zelluläre Kontrolle adulter Neurogenese - Expression und Funktion des VEGF-Rezeptor-1 (Flt-1) im adulten Säugerhirn

Neurale Stammzellen sind im adulten Säugerhirn in der Subventrikulären Zone (SVZ) der Lateralventrikel und dem Hippokampus lokalisiert. In der SVZ entstandene neurale Zellen migrieren entlang eines von Astrozyten umgebenen Pfades, dem Rostralmigratorischen Strom (RMS), zum Olfaktorischen Bulbus (OB), wo sie zu olfaktorischen Interneuronen differenzieren. Vaskuläre Wachstumsfaktoren, wie VEGF-A beeinflussen die adulte Neurogenese. Die vorliegende Arbeit beschreibt erstmalig detailliert die spezifische Expression des VEGF-Rezeptor-1 (VEGFR-1) in den Regionen olfaktorischer und hippokampaler Neurogenese des adulten ZNS. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass VEGFR-1 im adulten Hirn hauptsächlich in GFAP-positiven Zellen in der SVZ, dem RMS, dem OB, dem Corpus callosum und dem Hippokampus exprimiert ist. In vivo-Analysen transgener Mäuse (Flt-1TK-/-), denen die Signaltransduktionsdomäne des VEGFR-1 fehlt, demonstrieren hier erstmals eine Rolle des VEGFR-1 in adulter Neurogenese. Flt-1TK-/- weisen eine erhöhte Proliferation neuronaler Vorläuferzellen der SVZ auf. Im RMS ist jedoch 6 Tage nach BrdU-Administration die Anzahl markierter Zellen im Vergleich zum Wildtyp (wt) um 47,97% reduziert, ohne dass es zu einer Akkumulation in der SVZ kommt. Zusammen mit der in Kulturversuchen stark erhöhten Migrationsgeschwindigkeit von Neuroblasten der Flt-1TK-/- und einer verminderten Abwanderung von Zellen aus dem RMS ins Corpus callosum der Flt-1Tk-/-, weist dies auf eine gesteigerte Migration zum OB hin. Tatsächlich war der OB der Flt-1TK-/-, vor allem die Plexiform- und Periglomerulärzellschicht (PGL), signifikant vergrößert. Im OB der transgenen Tiere migrieren zudem signifikant mehr BrdU-markierte Zellen in die PGL. Dort differenzieren signifikant mehr Neurone als im wt. Subtypisierungen zeigen, zudem eine erhöhte Differenzierung in dopaminerge Interneurone in der PGL der Flt-1TK-/-. Im Gehirn Flt-1TK-/- war die Konzentration von VEGF-A erhöht. Intrazerebroventrikuläre Infusion von VEGF-A in wt-Tiere erbrachte den eindeutigen Nachweis, dass die Erhöhung der VEGF-A-Konzentration im Gehirn der Flt-1TK-/- ursächlich für die in diesen Tieren beobachtete Reduktion der BrdU-positiven Zellen im RMS ist. Dies ist gleichzeitig der erste Nachweis einer Wirkung von VEGF-A auf Neuroblasten im RMS in vivo unter physiologischen Bedingungen. Die erhöhte VEGF-A-Konzentration könnte auch den anderen hier dargelegten Effekten zugrunde liegen. VEGFR-1 ist somit ein regulatorischer Faktor für die adulte olfaktorische Neurogenese und spielt eine potentielle Rolle in der Differenzierung dopaminerger Interneurone.

Reduction of circulating soluble Flt-1 alleviates preeclampsia-like symptoms in a mouse model

Preeclampsia (PE) is characterized by widespread endothelial damage with hypertension, proteinuria, glomeruloendotheliosis and elevated soluble Flt-1 (sFlt-1), a natural occurring antagonist of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Cancer patients receiving anti-VEGF therapy exhibit similar symptoms. We suggested that a decrease in circulating sFlt-1 would alleviate the symptoms associated with PE. Adenoviral (Adv) overexpression of sFlt-1 induced proteinuria, caused glomerular damage and increase in blood pressure in female Balb/c mice. Circulating level of sFlt-1 above 50 ng/ml plasma induced severe vascular damage and glomerular endotheliosis. Albumin concentration in urine was elevated up to 30-fold, compared to control AdvGFP-treated animals. The threshold of kidney damage was in the range of 20-30 ng/ml sFlt-1 in plasma (8-15 ng/ml in urine). Co-administration of AdvsFlt-1 with AdvVEGF to neutralize circulating sFlt-1 resulted in more than a 70% reduction in free sFlt-1 in plasma, more than 80% reduction in urine and rescued the damaging effect of sFlt-1 on the kidneys. This demonstrates that below a critical threshold sFlt-1 fails to elicit damage to the fenestrated endothelium and that co-expression of VEGF is able to rescue effects mediated by sFlt-1 overexpression.

Autocrine activity of soluble Flt-1 controls endothelial cell function and angiogenesis

Background - The negative feedback system is an important physiological regulatory mechanism controlling angiogenesis. Soluble vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) receptor-1 (sFlt-1), acts as a potent endogenous soluble inhibitor of VEGF- and placenta growth factor (PlGF)-mediated biological function and can also form dominant-negative complexes with competent full-length VEGF receptors. Methods and results - Systemic overexpression of VEGF-A in mice resulted in significantly elevated circulating sFlt-1. In addition, stimulation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) with VEGF-A, induced a five-fold increase in sFlt-1 mRNA, a time-dependent significant increase in the release of sFlt-1 into the culture medium and activation of the flt-1 gene promoter. This response was dependent on VEGF receptor-2 (VEGFR-2) and phosphoinositide-3'-kinase signalling. siRNA-mediated knockdown of sFlt-1 in HUVEC stimulated the activation of endothelial nitric oxide synthase, increased basal and VEGF-induced cell migration and enhanced endothelial tube formation on growth factor reduced Matrigel. In contrast, adenoviral overexpression of sFlt-1 suppressed phosphorylation of VEGFR-2 at tyrosine 951 and ERK-1/-2 MAPK and reduced HUVEC proliferation. Preeclampsia is associated with elevated placental and systemic sFlt-1. Phosphorylation of VEGFR-2 tyrosine 951 was greatly reduced in placenta from preeclamptic patients compared to gestationally-matched normal placenta. Conclusion - These results show that endothelial sFlt-1 expression is regulated by VEGF and acts as an autocrine regulator of endothelial cell function.

Negative regulation of soluble Flt-1 and soluble endoglin release by heme oxygenase-1

Preeclampsia is characterized clinically by hypertension and proteinuria. Soluble Flt-1 (sFlt-1; also known as soluble vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-1 [VEGFR-1]) and soluble endoglin (sEng) are elevated in preeclampsia, and their administration to pregnant rats elicits preeclampsia-like symptoms. Heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and its metabolite carbon monoxide (CO) exert protective effects against oxidative stimuli. Thus, we hypothesized that HO-1 upregulation may offer protection against preeclampsia by inhibiting sFlt-1 and sEng release.

Glutaredoxin-1 Is up-regulated in preeclampsia and increases soluble Flt-1 expression

INTRODUCTION: Preeclampsia is a vascular disorder in pregnancyand is biochemical characterization by high soluble Flt-1 and lowplacenta growth factor as well as an imbalance in redox homeostasis.During conditions of high oxidative stress, cysteine residues on keyproteins are reversibly altered by S-glutathionylation, modifying theirfunction. Glutaredoxin-1 (Glrx) enzymatically catalyzes the removal of S-glutathione adducts, conferring reversible signaling dynamics toproteins with redox-sensitive cysteines. The role of Glrx in preeclampsiais unknown.METHODS: Immunohistochemistry and Western blot analysis for Glrx orglutathione were conducted on human placenta samples collected pre-termfrom early onset preeclamptic patients (n=10) or non-preeclamptic induceddeliveries (n=9). Human endothelial cells were infected with adenovirusencoding Glrx or LacZ prior to the cells being exposed to hypoxia (0.1%O2, 24h) to measure changes in soluble Flt-1 (sFlt-1). Quantitative PCRand ELISA were used to measure sFlt-1 at mRNA and protein level.RESULTS: Immunohistochemical staining for GSH revealed lowerS-glutathionylation adducts in preeclampsia placenta in comparison tocontrols. Glrx expression, which catalyses de-glutathionylation wasenhanced in early onset preeclampsia compared to pre-term controlsamples. In contrast, no change was observed in preeclamptic and IUGRplacentas at full term. In endothelial cells overexpressing Glrx, sFlt-1expression was dramatically enhanced at mRNA (3-fold P<0.05) andprotein level (5 fold P>0.01, n=4) after hypoxia andoverexpressing Glrxin mice enhanced levels of circulating sFlt-1 during in vivo ischemia.CONCLUSIONS: Enhanced Glrx expression in preeclamptic placentain line with an apparent decrease in S-glutathionylation may leavekey proteins susceptible to irreversible oxidation in conditions of highoxidative stress.

Paracrine action of sFLT-1 secreted by stably-transfected Ehrlich ascites tumor cells and therapy using sFLT-1 inhibits ascites tumor growth in vivo

Background Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is known to play a major role in angiogenesis. A soluble form of Flt-1, a VEGF receptor, is potentially useful as an antagonist of VEGF, and accumulating evidence suggests the applicability of sFlt-1 in tumor suppression. In the present study, we have developed and tested strategies targeted specifically to VEGF for the treatment of ascites formation.Methods As an initial strategy, we produced recombinant sFLT-1 in the baculovirus expression system and used it as a trap to sequester VEGF in the murine ascites carcinoma model. The effect of the treatment on the weight of the animal, cell number, ascites volume and proliferating endothelial cells was studied. The second strategy involved, producing Ehrlich ascites tumor (EAT) cells stably transfected with vectors carrying cDNA encoding truncated form of Flt-1 and using these cells to inhibit ascites tumors in a nude mouse model. Results The sFLT-1 produced by the baculovirus system showed potent antiangiogenic activity as assessed by rat cornea and tube formation assay. sFLT-1 treatment resulted in reduced peritoneal angiogenesis with a concomitant decrease in tumor cell number, volume of ascites, amount of free VEGF and the number of invasive tumor cells as assayed by CD31 staining. EAT cells stably transfected with truncated form of Flt-1 also effectively reduced the tumor burden in nude mice transplanted with these cells, and demonstrated a reduction in ascites formation and peritoneal angiogenesis. Conclusions The inhibition of peritoneal angiogenesis and tumor growth by sequestering VEGF with either sFlt-1 gene expression by recombinant EAT cells or by direct sFLT-1 protein therapy is shown to comprise a potential therapy. Copyright (C) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Makt, konst, elit - konstfältets positioner, relationer och resurser i 1940- och 1950-talens Helsingfors

The dissertation examines the power mechanisms and institutional power hierarchies of the 1940s-1950s era arts elite in Helsinki and their influence on issues of taste in the visual arts. For the purposes of this study, the elite is understood to consist mainly of the board members of the principal elected bodies in the field of the arts. The theoretical framework employed is based on Pierre Bourdieu s field theory and the network perspective. The author has examined what the key, pervasive valuations were that governed the exercising of power by the arts elite in issues of taste, involving determination of who was an acknowledged artist and what was good art. The dissertation demonstrates that this exercising of power was governed by certain collective practices which maintained the illusion that the exercising of power was democratic and based on artistic quality. These practices were the corporate system, using artistic arguments in issues of taste, and using networks in the exercising of power. The struggle in the field of the arts was about who ultimately was entitled to define the value of contemporary art; the issue did not arise regarding historical art. Artists managed to gain a leading position as gatekeepers in issues regarding contemporary art. The author discusses a number of conflicts in the field of the arts that highlight the institutional hierarchies and the capital held by the various players. The structural changes that occurred in administration in the field of cultural production in the 1950s led to the separation of bureaucratic competence on the one hand and aesthetic competence on the other. There was a hierarchy in the field of the arts between institutions, between instruments of legitimisation, and between the symbolic and social capital of players in the field. The hierarchy in the arts ultimately depended on how well the elite could influence tastes through the instruments at their disposal. The various instruments of legitimisation grants, purchases, etc. were ranked differently in the evaluation of acknowledged artists and good art. The dissertation discusses what values, in the form of types of symbolic capital, the arts elite embraced and what role these played in the elite s exercising of power, with particular focus on gender, language, region and economic capital. The aesthetic capital of an artist was of only minor importance in the exercising of power by the arts elite. The dissertation further discusses the points of contact between the arts elite and players in other fields, such as the economic, media and consumer fields. When the arts elite, through the Academy of Fine Arts, became an active player in the art market, this led to a hierarchy where the division between acknowledged and not-acknowledged galleries became sharper.

Anpassning i språkkontakt : Morfologisk och ortografisk anpassning av engelska lånord i svenskan

The study investigates the formal integration of English loanwords into the Swedish language system. The aim has been to analyse and describe the morphological/morphosyntactic and the orthographical integration of the loanwords. I have studied how the foreign language elements get accommodated to Swedish and which factors are relevant in the integration. The material for the study consists of Swedish newspapers published in Sweden and Finland in paper format (with a focus on the years 1975 and 2000) and newspapers in digital format on the net. The theoretical frame for the study is contact linguistics. The study is based on a sociolinguistic, structural and language political perspective on what language is, and what language contact is. The method used is usage-based linguistic analysis. In the morphological study of the loanwords, I have made both a quantitative and a qualitative study. I have analysed the extent to which loanwords show some indication of integration in Swedish, and to what extent they show no signs of integration at all. I have also analysed integration in relation to word classes i.e., how nouns, adjectives and verbs integrate and which factors are relevant for the result of the integration. The result shows that most loanwords (36 %) do not show any signs of being formally integrated in Swedish. They undergo neither inflectional, nor derivational changes. One fifth of the loanwords are inflected according to the rules of Swedish grammar. Nouns are generally more often than verbs placed in positions in the sentence where no formal adaption is needed. Almost all of the verbs in the material are inflected according to Swedish rules of grammar. Only 3 % of the loanwords are inflected according to English rules or are placed in an ungrammatical position in the sentence. The orthographical study shows that English loanwords very seldom get adapted to Swedish orthography. Some English vowel and consonant graphemes are replaced with Swedish ones, for example a, ay and ai are replaced with aj or ej (mail → mejl). The study also indicates that morphological integration is related to orthographical integration: loanwords that are inflected according to Swedish grammar are more likely to be orthographical integrated than loanwords that are inflected according to English grammar. The results also shows that the integration of loanwords are affected by mostly language structural factors and language political factors.