1,318 research outputs found
Jernbanekalenderen, 1912-1943/44
Get PDFFortsettelse av Norsk jernbanekalender; 1887-1910 ; fortsetter som Tjenestemenn ved statsbanen
Valg av ny vegtrasé fra Kårstø til Våg, E39
No full textFor prosjektet ”Ferjefri E39”, opprettet i regi av Statens vegvesen, skal det i løpet av en tjueårsperiode bygges en
ferjefri E39 fra Kristiansand til Trondheim. Prosjektet er med i Nasjonal transportplan for 2014-2023. Et av målene
med Ferjefri E39 er å forbedre den generelle vegstandarden langs E39. En eksisterende vegstrekning, Kårstø til Våg
i Rogaland fylke, er en delstrekning i prosjektet. Denne strekningen ligger i nærheten av Haugesund i Tysvær
kommune. Det er denne vegstrekningen som gjennomgås i masteroppgaven for å finne det beste alternativet til en ny
vegtrasé som skal erstatte den eksisterende.
Den nye vegtraséen skal bygges etter H11-standard. Det betyr at vegen bygges med fire felt og midtdeler med en
dimensjonerende fartsgrense på 110 km/t. Dagens veg består av to felt uten midtdeler med en fartsgrense varierende
fra 60-80 km/t. Strekningen fra Kårstø til Våg har en rekke sårbare landskapsformer, variert terreng, flere tettsteder,
vann, nærhet til fjord og utfordringer i forhold til miljø. Målet med oppgaven er å finne det beste alternativet for en
vegtrasé der det er tatt hensyn til tekniske utfordringer og klimagassutslipp, i tillegg til faktorene ovenfor.
For å komme frem til anbefalt vegtrasé ble det sett på tolv forslag til vegtraséer i en innledende fase av
masteroppgaven. Disse alternativene ble så redusert til tre alternativer ut fra vurderinger i forhold til ulendt terreng,
myrer, innsjøer, fjordkryssinger, kommuneplan for Tysvær kommune, miljødata og horisontal- og vertikalgeometri.
Konstruksjonsverktøyet Novapoint ble brukt som hjelpemiddel for å lage veglinjene for alternativene.
For de tre gjenstående alternativene ble det gjennomført en konsekvensanalyse. Her ble prissatte og ikke-prissatte
konsekvenser med håndbok V712 som hjelpemiddel gjennomgått. De utvalgte konsekvensene i en tilpasset analyse
var for de prissatte konsekvensene; anleggskostnader, trasélengde, masseberegning og stigningsgrad, sett i
sammenheng med klimagassutslipp. For de ikke-prissatte konsekvensene ble alle konsekvensene fra håndbok V712
brukt; landskapsbilde, nærmiljø og friluftsliv, naturmangfold, kulturminner og naturressurser, i tillegg til kommuneplanen
for Tysvær kommune. Konsekvensanalysen ga grunnlag til å rangere alternativene opp mot hverandre.
Klimagassutslipp sett i forhold vegutforming har vært et fokusområde i oppgaven gjennom et litteraturstudium. Det
er sannsynlig at bygging av en ny vegtrasé etter H11-standard vil gi reduserte utslipp fordi vegkvaliteten,
kurvaturen, flyt i trafikken og stigningsgraden forbedrer seg. På den annen side vil økt kvalitet på vegen og økt
fartsgrense føre til generert og ny trafikk, og derfor økt klimagassutslipp. Ved at den dimensjonerende fartsgrensen
økes til 110 km/t blir fartsgrensen økt i forhold til optimalhastigheten, 80 km/t, for reduksjon av klimagassutslipp
Mannan Enhances IL-12 Production by Increasing Bacterial Uptake and Endosomal Degradation in L. acidophilus and S. aureus Stimulated Dendritic Cells
Get PDFThe mannose receptor (MR) is a C-type lectin involved in endocytosis and with a poorly defined ability to modulate cellular activation. We investigated the effect of mannan treatment prior to stimulation of murine bone marrow-derived dendritic cells with the Gram-positive bacteria Lactobacillus acidophilus NCFM (L. acidophilus) on the induction of Interleukin (IL)-12. Mannan enhanced the IL-12 production induced by L. acidophilus in a dose dependent manner (up to 230% enhancement). Additionally, mannan-enhanced IL-12 induction was also demonstrated with another Gram-positive bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), while an IL-12 reducing effect was seen on Escherichia coli stimulated cells. Furthermore, the expression of Interferon β (Ifnb) was increased in cells treated with mannan prior to stimulation with L. acidophilus. The addition of mannan but not of bacteria led to endocytosis of MR, while addition of mannan prior to L. acidophilus or S. aureus resulted in increased endocytosis of bacteria, a faster killing of endocytosed bacteria, and increased reactive oxygen species production. Expression of signaling lymphocytic activation molecule (SLAMF)1 shown previously to be involved in the facilitation of endosomal degradation was upregulated by mannan but not by L. acidophilus and S. aureus. The IL-12 enhancement by mannan but not the IL-12 induced by the bacteria was abrogated by addition of inhibitors of clathrin coated pits (chlorpromazine and monodansylcadaverine). Furthermore, the addition of acid sphingomyelinase, a facilitator of ceramide raft formation, prior to addition of L. acidophilus enhanced the IL-12 production and the endocytosis of bacteria. In summary, our results show that mannan increases the IL-12 production induced by some Gram-positive bacteria through MR-endocytosis, which increases bacterial endocytosis and endosomal killing. The differential effect of MR activation on the IL-12 production induced by Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria may influence the immune response toward allergens and other glycoproteins
Safety Certification for Stochastic Systems via Neural Barrier Functions
No full textProviding non-trivial certificates of safety for non-linear stochastic systems is an important open problem. One promising solution to address this problem is the use of barrier functions. Barrier functions are functions whose composition with the system forms a Martingale and enable the computation of the probability that the system stays within a safe set over a finite time horizon. However, existing approaches to find barrier functions generally restrict the search to a small class of functions, often leading to conservatism. To address this problem, in this letter, we parameterize barrier functions as neural networks and show that bound propagation techniques and linear programming can be successfully employed to find Neural Barrier Functions. Further, we develop a branch-and-bound scheme based on linear relaxations that improves the scalability of the proposed framework. On several case studies we show that our approach scales to neural networks of hundreds of neurons and multiple hidden layers and often produces certificates of safety that are tighter than state-of-the-art methods.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Team Luca LaurentiTransport and Plannin
Révision de <i>Brachyoxylon rotnaense</i> Mathiesen, description de <i>B. serrae</i> n. sp. et conséquences pour la stratigraphie du Crétacé inférieur d'Asie du Sud-Est
No full textLes niveaux mésozoïques du bassin de Muang Phalan au Laos ont livré des restes d\u27organismes continentaux (vertébrés, mollusques, bois). Les bois avaient été rapprochés d\u27une espèce connue dans le Lias du Danemark, Brachyoxylon rotnaense Mathiesen, alors que les vertébrés indiquaient plutôt le milieu du Crétacé. Une révision du matériel type de B. rotnaense, de celui de son synonyme taxonomique supposé Simplicioxylon hungaricum Andreánszky, des échantillons lao et de matériel nouveau thaïlandais permet de confirmer la synonymie taxonomique, d\u27infirmer le rapprochement du matériel lao et de l\u27espèce européenne et enfin de reconnaître une nouvelle espèce regroupant le matériel lao et thaï, décrite ici sous le nom de B. serrae n. sp. Cette nouvelle espèce de Brachyoxylon est caractérisée par la présence, dans la ponctuation radiale, de groupes de ponctuations contiguës très aplaties et de paires de ponctuations opposées dans de longues files unisériées araucariennes. Notre révision permet de lever l\u27ambiguïté stratigraphique et confirme la singularité biogéographique de la Péninsule indosinienne au Crétacé inférieur.The Mesozoic strata of Muang Phalan in southern Laos yielded fossils of terrestrial organisms (vertebrates, molluscs, wood). The latter was assigned to a species known from the Liassic strata of Denmark, Brachyoxylon rotnaense Mathiesen, whereas vertebrates are indicative of a late Early Cretaceous age. A revision of the type material for B. rotnaense and for its putative taxonomical synonym Simplicioxylon hungaricum Andreánszky, of the Lao material and of new material from Thailand allowed to: 1) confirm the taxonomical synonymy; 2) reject the assignment of the Lao material to the European species; and finally 3) to recognize a new species, here described as B. serrae n. sp., encompassing the Lao and Thai materials. This new species of Brachyoxylon is characterized by the occurrence, in the radial pitting, of clusters of much flattened contiguous pits and of pairs of opposite pits in otherwise long araucarian uniseriate rows. Our revision removed the stratigraphical ambiguity and confirmed the biogeographical peculiarity of Indosinian terrestrial biomes during the Early Cretaceous.</p
Osteoprotegerin and cardiovascular disease
Get PDFThe articles of this thesis are not available in Munin: 1. Vik A, Mathiesen EB, Noto AT, Sveinbjornsson B, Brox J and Hansen JB.: 'Serum
osteoprotegerin is inversely associated with carotid plaque echogenicity in humans', Atherosclerosis (2007) 191(1):128-134. Available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2006.03.002 2. Vik A, Mathiesen EB, Brox J, Wilsgaard T, Njølstad I, Jørgensen L and Hansen JB.: 'Relation
between serum osteoprotegerin and carotid intima media thickness in a general population - The Tromsø Study', Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis (2010) 8: 2133-9. Available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1538-7836.2010.03990.x 3. Vik A, Mathiesen EB, Johnsen SH, Brox J, Wilsgaard T, Njølstad I and Hansen JB.: 'Serum osteoprotegerin, sRANKL and carotid plaque formation and growth in a general population - The Tromso Study', Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis (2010) 8: 898-905. Available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1538-7836.2010.03790.x 4. Vik A, Mathiesen EB, Brox J, Wilsgaard T, Njølstad I, Jørgensen L, Hansen JB.: 'Serum
osteoprotegerin is a predictor for cardiovascular disease and mortality in a general population – The Tromsø Study', Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis (2011) 9: 638–644. Available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1538-7836.2011.04222.x</a
DNA fusion gene vaccination mobilizes effective anti-leukemic cytotoxic T lymphocytes from a tolerized repertoire
No full textThe majority of known human tumor-associated antigens derive from non-mutated self proteins. T cell tolerance, essential to prevent autoimmunity, must therefore be cautiously circumvented to generate cytotoxic T cell responses against these targets. Our strategy uses DNA fusion vaccines to activate high levels of peptide-specific CTL. Key foreign sequences from tetanus toxin activate tolerance-breaking CD4+ T cell help. Candidate MHC class Ibinding tumor peptide sequences are fused to the C terminus for optimal processing and presentation. To model performance against a leukemia-associated antigen in a tolerized setting, we constructed a fusion vaccine encoding an immunodominant CTL epitopederived from Friend murine leukemia virus gag protein (FMuLVgag) and vaccinated tolerant FMuLVgag-transgenic (gag-Tg) mice. Vaccination with the construct induced epitopespecificIFN-c-producing CD8+ T cells in normal and gag-Tg mice. The frequency and avidity of activated cells were reduced in gag-Tg mice, and no autoimmune injury resulted. However, these CD8+ T cells did exhibit gag-specific cytotoxicity in vitro and in vivo. Also, epitope-specific CTL killed FBL-3 leukemia cells expressing endogenous FMuLVgag antigen and protected against leukemia challenge in vivo. These results demonstrate a simple strategy to engage anti-microbial T cell help to activate epitope-specific polyclonal CD8+ T cell responses from a residual tolerized repertoire
Stroke care
No full textIncludes bibliographical references and index.Stroke epidemiology, definition, burden, and prevention / Joanne V. Hickey -- Development of stroke systems of care / Claranne Mathiesen and Sarah L. Livesay -- Interprofessional teams in stroke care / Patricia A. Blissitt -- Prehospital care / Sarah L. Livesay -- Diagnostics for stroke / Cynthia Bautista and Sarah L. Livesay -- Ischemic stroke / Karen B. Seagraves and Sarah L. Livesay -- Intracerebral hemorrhagic stroke / Christy Casper and Alexandra Graves -- Subarachnoid hemorrhage / Mary L. King -- Management of stroke-related complications / Mary Guhwe, Susan Chioffi, and Kelly Blessing -- Stroke rehabilitation / Terrie M. Black, Pamela S. Roberts, Sarah L. Livesay, and Joanne V. Hickey -- Poststroke reintegration into the community / Lindy Suarez -- Quality, outcomes, and program evaluation for stroke / Joanne V. Hickey and Sarah L. Livesay -- Future of stroke care / Sarah L. Livesay and Joanne V. Hickey.1 online resource (x, 381 pages)
Implementation of a two-plasmid CRISPR/Cas9 system in Lactobacillus plantarum : a new approach in the development of a novel vaccine against Mycobacterium tuberculosis
Get PDFTuberculosis (TB) is the leading cause of deaths from a single infectious agent, and in 2017 1.7 million people died from TB. To date the only available vaccine against the disease is the bacille Calmette-Guèrin (BCG) vaccine. The BCG vaccine does not ensure full protection against the mature form of TB, and is not recommended to immunocompromised patients. Therefore, a new and more effective vaccine is urgently needed. This study is a part of a larger project with a long-term goal to develop mucosal vaccines, utilizing the lactic acid bacteria (LAB) Lactobacillus plantarum as delivery vectors of antigens. LAB occurs in a wide range of habitats, ranging from food products such as fruit and dairy, but also human mucosal surfaces such as the small intestine and colon. Lactobacilli are natural inhabitants of the human gastro intestinal tract (GIT) and are generally regarded as safe (GRAS). Some Lactobacilli are believed to have probiotic properties and live in close association with the intestinal epithelium and have shown immunomodulatory effects in human. These properties make Lactobacilli, such as L. plantarum, an ideal candidate as a delivery vector of immunogens.
In the present study, pSIP inducible vectors for cytoplasmic and membrane anchoring of the TB fusion antigen Ag85B_TB10.4 in L. plantarum were constructed, and production of surface localized antigen was confirmed. Currently, the production of the antigen is plasmid based. To reduce the number of heterologous genes of the recombinant L. plantarum, it is desirable to integrate the antigen production into genome of the bacteria. In this thesis, methods for utilization of the CRISPR/Cas system was attempted developed for integration of the antigen. To simplify integration, as it is independent of helper genes unlike the pSIP system, construction of vectors for constitutive production of Ag85B_TB10.4 were attempted. Evaluation of the functionality of the CRISPR/Cas system in L. plantarum was performed through experiments of gene editing, replacement and depletion with Cas9, Cas9D10A and dCas9.
In conclusion, Ag85B_TB10.4 was successfully anchored to the cell membrane of L. plantarum by using the pSIP system, while construction of a vector for constitutive production of Ag85B_TB10.4 failed. Conceivably due to toxicity of the constitutive production of the antigen in E. coli. The CRISPR/dCas9 system was successfully developed, and reduction of transcripts of target genes was confirmed by ddPCR. Gene editing and exchange with Cas9 and Cas9D10A gave the expected phenotype, but no mutations were detected from DNA sequencing. These methods require further optimisations
Utvikling av en non-GMO slimhinne vaksine mot SARS-CoV-2
No full textLactic acid bacteria (LAB) have been proposed as a good delivery vector of surface-bound antigens, in the development of non-genetically modified organism (non-GMO) mucosal vaccines. LABs are considered good because they have been used in the food industry for centuries and are considered safe for consumption. In addition, LABs can survive, and are found naturally, in the gastrointestinal tract of humans, where they interact with the immune cells in mucosal surfaces. Lactiplantibacillus plantarum (previously known as Lactobacillus plantarum), have been shown to be one of the most promising LAB candidates.
In this study, two different approaches were attempted to express the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antigen RBD. 1) The constitutive expression system pOST in Pichia pastoris, where the expressed protein contained either a monomer or dimer of RBD. 2) The inducible expression system pSIP in L. plantarum. In addition, the antigens were displayed on the surface of L. plantarum using the cell wall binding LysM anchor.
The pOST expression system in P. pastoris was not able to express the SARS-CoV-2 antigen RBD in this study. Multiple attempts of detection and purification showed no positive results. The pSIP expression system was successful in the expression of the SARS-CoV-2 antigen RBD and displayed the antigens on the surface of L. plantarum. Furthermore, binding studies with crude protein extract containing the RBD antigens and L. plantarum cells showed positive results in flow cytometry analysis, indicating successful binding of RBD antigens to the bacterial surface.
The current results show a promising starting point towards the development of a non-GMO mucosal vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, using the pSIP expression system in L. plantarum.Melkesyrebakterier har blitt foreslått som gode kandidater for leveransen av overflate-bundet antigener, i utviklingen av ikke-genetiske modifiserte organisme (non-GMO) slimhinne vaksine. Melkesyrebakterier er ansett som gode kandidater, fordi de har blitt brukt i matindustrien i århundrer og er ansett som trygge å innta. I tillegg kan melkesyrebakterier overleve, og er funnet naturlig, i mage-tarm kanalen hvor de interagerer med immunceller i slimhinnene. Lactiplantibacillus plantarum (tidligere kjent som Lactobacillus plantarum), har vært vist å være en av de mest lovende kandidatene.
I denne studien ble to framgangsmåter for å uttrykke SARS-CoV-2 antigenet RBD, forsøkt. 1) Det konstitutive uttrykningssystemet pOST i Pichia pastoris, hvor det uttrykte proteinet inneholdt enten en monomer eller dimer av RBD. 2) Det induserbare uttrykningssystemet pSIP i L. plantarum. I tillegg ble antigenet eksponert på overflaten av L. plantarum ved bruk av det cellevegg-bindene LysM ankeret.
I denne studien var ikke uttrykningssystemet pOST i P. pastoris istand til å uttrykke SARS-CoV-2 RBD antigenet. Mange forsøk på deteksjon og rensing av antigenet ga ingen positive resultater. pSIP uttrykningssystemet i L. plantarum derimot, ble vist til å kunne uttrykke RBD antigenet, i tillegg til antigenet ble eksponert på overflaten av L. plantarum. Bindingsstudier av rå protein ekstrakt som inneholdt RBD antigenet og L. plantarum celler viste positive resultater etter flow cytometri analyse, noe som indikerer suksessfull binding av RBD antigenet til bakterieoverflaten.
De nåværende resultatene viser en lovende start mot utviklingen av en non-GMO slimhinne vaksine mot SARS-CoV-2, ved bruken av pSIP uttrykningssystemet i L. plantarum.submittedVersionM-BIOTE
- …
