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The capacitive biosensor technology can be utilized for the analytical detection of a variety of different compounds. By employing the electrical double-layer principle, it is possible to detect very low concentrations of the target analyte due the methods inherent high sensitivity. This affinity-based capacitive biosensor is a powerful tool also for the analytical detection of low molecular weigh

Realistic and accurate reconstructions of past vegetation cover are necessary to study past environmental changes. This is important since the effects of human land-use changes (e.g. agriculture, deforestation and afforestation/reforestation) on biodiversity and climate are still under debate. Over the last decade, development, validation, and application of pollen-vegetation relationship models h

Antibiotic resistance is a major threat for our society and finding novel antibacterial therapies is of greatimportance. In this thesis, we investigate bacterial sialic acid uptake inhibitors as a novel antibacterial approach.Bacteria do not biosynthesise sialic acid and therefore harvest it from the host. Sialic acid plays a crucial role forpathogenic bacteria, since it is used as a source of car

Background Direct cell reprogramming is characterized by the use of defined factors to rewire the transcriptional and epigenetic network of one cell-type into one of a different lineage. We have recently identified the transcription factors PU.1, IRF8, and BAFT3 (PIB) as sufficient to induce a type 1 conventional dendritic cell (cDC1) fate in both somatic and cancer cells.1,2 cDC1 is a rare dendri

Land remediation is an important part of restoration measures after a radioactive fallout containing long-lived fission products such as 137Cs. In this multidisciplinary study, we focused on three main issues related to remediation of contaminated urban areas. First, we assessed how much decontamination contributes to reducing resident radiation exposure and how much this reduction depends on the

European Environmental Research Infrastructures (ENVRIs) on the ESFRI level are core facilities for providing data, research products and services from the four subdomains of Earth system science – Atmosphere, Marine, Solid Earth, and Biodiversity/Terrestrial Ecosystems. The ENVRI Cluster represents the core component of the European environmental research infrastructure landscape, with the ENVRI

Background: The African continent hosts many industrial mining projects, and many more are planned due to recent prospecting discoveries and increasing demand for various minerals to promote a low-carbon future. The extraction of natural resources in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) represents an opportunity for economic development but also poses a threat to population health through rapid urbanisation a

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis and often causes pain and functional impairment. Despite its high burden on society, knowledge about the occurrence of OA and its associated mortality is sparse. The epidemiology of OA is difficult to determine due to the patients’ fluctuating symptoms and challenges in detecting and defining the radiographic disease. The specific aims of th

Aims/hypothesis: Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is the leading cause of kidney failure and has a substantial genetic component. Our aim was to identify novel genetic factors and genes contributing to DKD by performing meta-analysis of previous genome-wide association studies (GWAS) on DKD and by integrating the results with renal transcriptomics datasets. Methods: We performed GWAS meta-analyses us

Background: Speech impairments are an early feature of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and consequently, analysing speech performance is a promising new digital biomarker for AD screening. Future clinical AD trials on disease modifying drugs will require a shift to very early identification of individuals at risk of dementia. Hence, digital markers of language and speech may offer a method for screening

Moving from a fossil dependent to a fossil free economy requires increased energy production from renewable resources. This thesis discusses the utilization of agricultural waste streams, such as straw and manure, for biogas production. The first part of the research presented focuses on pretreatment of straw with the aim to reduce the handling issues concerning straw and improve the degradation o

Environmental pollution is a significant concern for scientists, practitioners, authorities and the society. Among the various pollutants, chlorinated solvents pose a considerable risk to our groundwater resources. These hazardous chemicals, often used in industrial processes, can contaminate soil and water, posing a threat to both human health and ecosystems. Detecting and tracking the spread of

BACKGROUND: Bisphosphonates have profound effects on bone physiology, and could modify the process of metastasis. We undertook collaborative meta-analyses to clarify the risks and benefits of adjuvant bisphosphonate treatment in breast cancer.METHODS: We sought individual patient data from all unconfounded trials in early breast cancer that randomised between bisphosphonate and control. Primary ou

Delirium is a serious and common condition in the intensive care unit (ICU), which affects 30-50 % of the patients and is associated with increased mortality and morbidity in the context of long-term outcomes. No evidence-based treatment for delirium exists, and currently, delirium is mainly treated pharmacologically with haloperidol, a typical antipsychotic agent. The “Agents Intervening against

Room acoustic simulations are an important tool, both for design of spaces with satisfactory acoustics and for use in virtual reality experiences. Auralization of acoustic simulations are becoming more and more important in the context of Virtual and Augmented reality (VR and AR respectively), as the technology is used more and more in healthcare, culture and research. In this work, ray tracing si

Insect behaviours, such as host and mate selection, are often mediated by chemical cues. The chemical cuesare detected by large and rapidly evolving families of chemoreceptors which include odorant receptors (ORs),gustatory receptors (GRs) and ionotropic receptors (IRs). In this thesis, I used a model system of beetle(Coleoptera) species to study the functional evolution of insect ORs, their ligan

A Warehouse Management System (WMS) is a software that tracks and manages warehouse activities. The first WMS was introduced in 1975 and today the WMS market is valued at over USD 3 billion. Most warehouses use one as quality assurance becomes unlikely plausible without software support. This thesis focuses on Company X, who are the third-largest manufacturer by revenue in their industry and a

Kemira Kemia AB produces a water treatment chemical named ”PIX-Sulfate”, where “PI” stands for “poly iron x”, and the “x” represents a conjugate ion, such as chloride or sulfate, in this case, sulfate. The main process for producing PIX Sulfate at Kemira’s plants today is to dissolve magnetite in diluted sulfuric acid and to oxidize the resulting liquid using oxygen. Currently, this process is car