Nitrogen is often a limiting factor for plant growth due to its heterogenous distribution in the soil and to seasonal and diurnal changes in growth rates. In most soils, NH4+ and NO3 – are the predominant sources of inorganic nitrogen that are available for plant nutrition. In this context, plants have evolved mechanisms that enable them to optimize nitrogen acquisition, which include transporters specialized in the uptake of nitrogen and susceptible to a regulation that responds to nitrogen limiting or excess conditions. Although the average NH4+ concentrations of soils are generally 100 to 1000 times lower than those of NO3 – (Marschner, 1995), most plants preferentially take up NH4+ when both forms are present because unlike NO3– / NH4+ has not to be reduced prior to assimilation and thus requires less energy for assimilation (Bloom et al., 1992). Apart from high uptake rates in roots, high intracellular ammonium concentrations also result from quantitatively important internal breakdown of amino acids (Feng et al., 1998), and originates in high quantities during photorespiration (Mattson et al., 1997, Pearson et al., 1998). Thus, NH4+ is a key component of nitrogen metabolism for all plants and can accumulate to varying concentrations in all compartments of the cell, including the cytosol, the vacuole and in the apoplast (Wells and Miller, 2000; Nielsen and Schjoerring, 1998). Two related families of ammonium transporters (AMT1 and AMT2), containing six genes which encode transporter proteins that are specific for ammonium had been identified prior to this thesis and some genes had partially been characterised in Arabidopsis (Gazzarrini et al., 1999; Sohlenkamp et al. 2002; Kaiser et al., 2002). However, these studies were not sufficient to assign physiological functions to the individual transporters and AMT1.4 and AMT1.5 had not been studied prior to this thesis. Given this background, it was considered desirable to acquire a deeper knowledge of the physiological functions of the six Arabidopsis ammonium transporters. To this end, tissue specific expression profiles of the individual wildtype AtAMT genes were performed by quantitative real time PCR (qRT-PCR) and promoter-GUS expression. Modern approaches such as the use of T-DNA insertional mutants and RNAi hairpin constructs were employed to reduce the expression levels of AMT genes. Transcript levels were determined, and physiological, biochemical and developmental analysis such as growth tests on different media and 14C-MA and NH4+ uptake studies with the isolated insertional mutants and RNAi lines were performed to deepen the knowledge of the individual functions of the six AMTs in Arabidopsis. In addition, double mutants of the insertional mutants were created to investigate the extent in which homologous genes could compensate for lost transporter functions. The results described in this thesis show that the six AtAMT genes display a high degree of specifity in their tissue specific expression and are likely to play complementary roles in ammonium uptake into roots, in shoots, and in flowers. AtAMT1.1 is likely to be a ‘work horse’ for cellular ammonium transport and reassimilation. A major role is probably the recapture of photorespiratory NH3/NH4+ escaping from the cytosol. In roots, it is likely to transport NH4+ from the apoplast into cortical cells. AtAMT1.3 and AtAMT1.5 appear to be specialised in the acquisition of external NH4+ from the soil. Furthermore, AtAMT1.5 plays an additional role in the reassimilation of NH3/NH4+ released during the breakdown of storage proteins in the cotyledons of germinating seedlings. It was difficult to distinguish a specialisation between the transporters AtAMt1.2 and AtAMt1.1, however the root and flower specific expression patterns are different and indicate alternative functions of both. AtAMT1.4 has a very distinct expression which is restricted to the vascular bundels of leaves and to pollen only, where it is likely to be involved in the loading of NH4+ into the cells.The AtAMT2.1 expression pattern is confined to vascular bundels and meristematic active tissues in leaves where ammonium concentrations can reach very high levels. Additionally, the Vmax of AtAMT2 increases with increasing external pH, contrasting to AtAMT1.1. Thus, AtAMT2.1 it might be specialised in ammonium transport in ammonium rich environments, where the functions of other transporters are limited, enabling cells to take up NH4+ over a wide range of concentrations. The root hair expression ascribes an additional role in NH3/NH4+ acquisition where it possibly serves as a transporter that is able to acquire ammonium from basic soils where other transporters become less effective.RNAi lines showing a reduction in AtAMT gene mRNA levels and NH4+ transport kinetics, grew slower and flowering time was delayed. This indicates that NH4+ is a crucial and limiting factor for plant growth. / Ammonium stellt die von Pflanzen bevorzugte Aufnahmeform anorganischen Stickstoffes dar. Neben dem natürlichen Vorkommen im Boden, wird Ammonium während des Aminosäurestoffwechsels und der Photorespiration innerhalb des Pflanzenkörpers freigesetzt. Um Ammonium aus diesen Quellen zu assimlieren und zwischen den einzelnen Zellen zu transportieren hat die dikotyle Samenpflanze Arabidosis thaliana sechs veschiedene Ammoniumtransporter (AMT) evolviert. Zur Charakterisierung der spezifischen Funktionen der AMts wurden Expressionsprofile der jeweiligen Gene innerhalb der Wurzeln, des Sprosses und der Blüten unter verschiedenen Nährstoffbedingungen mittels quantitativer real-time PCR (qRT-PCT) und Promotor-GUS Expression erstellt. Weiter wurde die Fähigkeit zur spezifischen Regulation der einzelnen Transportergene in Abhängikeit des Stickstoffbedarfes der Pflanze analysiert. Zur Reduktion der mRNA Level der AMTs wurden RNA-Interferenz (RNAi) Mutanten erzeugt und um den Effekt des Verlustes einzelner AMTs zu studieren wurden T-DNA Insertionsmutanten dieser Gene isoliert. Von den mutanten Linien wurden die Transkriptionsraten durch qRT-PCR bestimmt und die NH4+ Transportleistungen durch 14C-Methylammonium (14C-MA) und Ammonium-Aufnahme Experimente analysiert. Weiter wurden Wachstumsanalysen der Mutanten auf verschiedenen Nährmedien durchgeführt und ihre vegetative und generative Entwicklung charakterisiert. Von den isolierten T-DNA Insertionsmutanten wurden Doppelmutanten aller Kombinationen hergestellt und phänotypisch analysiert.Es zeigte sich, daß der an der Plasmamembran lokalisierte AtAMT1.1 in allen Organen in hohen Konzentrationen exprimiert wird und unter Stickstoffmangelbedingungen vermehrt gebildet wird. Vermutlich dient er der generellen Assimilation von internen Ammonium und dessen Transport vom Apoplasten in den Symplasten. AtAMT1.3 und AtAMT1.5 sind in den Wurzeln und hier besonders in den epidermalen Wurzelhaaren exprimiert, die unter anderem der Aufnahme externer Nährsalze dienen. Beide unterliegen starker Regulation durch den internen Stickstoffbedarf der Pflanze. Es ist zu vermuten, daß sie primär der Aufnahme von Ammonium aus dem Boden dienen. AtAMT1.2 wird überwiegend an den vaskulären Geweben und den Blattparenchymzellen exprimiert. Überlappende Expressionsmuster mit AtAMT1.1 machen es schwierig eine spezifische Funktion zu identifizieren. AtAMT1.4 wird ausschließlich im männlichen Gametophyten exprimiert und dient hier vermutlich der Versorgung des Pollen mit Nährsalzen. AtAMT2 wird u.a. in den Wurzelhaaren exprimiert. Seine steigende Affinität zu Ammonium in basischem Milieu, umgekehrt zu AtAMT1.1, läßt vermuten, daß er der Pflanze die Ammoniumaufnahme bei steigendem pH ermöglicht. Im oberirdischen Sproß ist er überwiegend in Meristemen aktiv. Die in der Ammoniumaufnahme beeinträchtigten RNAi-Linien zeigten langsames Wachstum und blühten später als der Wildtyp. Es sind die ersten beschriebenen Ammoniumtransportermutanten, die einen solchen Phänotyp zeigen.

Univ., Diss.--Luzern, 2005.

Die Dissertation besteht aus zwei Teilen, einer Edition der Akten Amt Römhild Nr. 319, 320, 321 und 323 aus dem Thüringischen Staatsarchiv Meiningen und der Beschreibung des Textsorte "Urbar" am Beispiel der in den Akten enthaltenen Urbare. Beiden Teilen geht ein Abschnitt voraus, in dem die Editionsprinzipien und der textlinguistische Forschungsansatz diskutiert und begründet werden. In der Textsortenbeschreibung werden Situation, Struktur sowie Textfunktion, Textthema und Textinhalt der Henneberger Urbare untersucht. Unter der Überschrift "Situation" werden die Urbare vorgestellt. Beschrieben wird der historische, geografische und dialektgeografische Kontext sowie die äußeren Merkmale; die Überlieferungs- Wirkungsgeschichte, Kommunikationspartner und der Handlungsbereich der Urbare werden erschlossen. Wortschatz, Satzbau und Textaufbau der Urbare werden im Kapitel "Struktur" untersucht. Im Kapitel "Textfunktion, Textthema und Textinhalt" wird der Frage nachgegangen, welche Schreiberintentionen aus den Quellen zu erschließen sind, was das Thema der Urbare ist und mit welchen Inhalten dieses Thema gefüllt wird. Im Editionsteil werden die Editionsgrundsätze dargelegt. Beschrieben wird der Aufbau der Edition, die Umsetzung der Handschrift in Maschinenschrift und der Aufbau des Apparates. Abgeschlossen wird die Arbeit durch die Edition der Akten. / My PhD thesis consists of two parts, the one being an edition of the acts "Amt Römhild" nr. 319, 320, 321 and 323 deposited in the Thuringian State Archive in Meiningen, the other a description of the text type "urbar" as based on the urbars contained in the acts. Both parts are preceeded by a section in which the editorial guidlines and the linguistic research approach are discussed und justified. In the decription of the text type, the situation, structure and function of the text are inverstigated, as well as the text theme and content of the urbars from Henneberg. They are presented and described under the section "Situation" (situation): their historical, geographic and dialectal geographic context is described as well as their physical features; the history of dissemination and reception, the participants in the communication and the area of application of the urbars are also accounted for. Vocabulary, sentence syntax and the textual composition of the urbars are analysed in the chapter headed "Struktur" (structure). In the chapter "Textfunktion, Textthema und Textinhalt" (text function, topic and content)the investigation addresses such questions as what scribal intentions can be deduced from the source texts, what is the theme of the urbars und what is the content this theme ist filled out with. In the section containing the edition, the editorial principles are presented. Together with the struture of the edition and the conversion of the manuscript into typescript, the features of the critical apparatus are described. The edition of the acts rounds off the thesis.

<p><p>The Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT) is a relatively new kind of transmission which shows increased efficiency and comfort compared to manual transmissions. Its construction is much like two parallell manual transmissions, where the gearshifts are controlled automatically. The gear-shift of a manual transmission involves a synchronization process, which synchronizes and locks the input shaft to the output shaft via the desired gear ratio. This process, which means transportation of a synchronizer sleeve, is performed by moving the gear shift lever which is connected to the sleeve. In a DCT, there is no mechanical connection between the gear-shift lever and the sleeve. Hence, an actuator system, controlled by a control system, must be used.</p><p>This report includes modelling, control system design and simulation results of a DCT synchronization process. The thesis work is performed at GM Powertrain (GMPT) in Trollhättan. At the time of this thesis, there is no DCT produced by GM, and therefore the results and conclusions rely on simulations. Most of the used system parameters are reasonable values collected from employees at GMPT and manual transmission literature.</p><p>The focus of the control design is to achieve a smooth, rather than fast, movement of the synchronizer sleeve. Simulations show that a synchronization process can be performed in less than 400 ms under normal conditions. The biggest problems controlling the sleeve position occur if there is a large amount of drag torque affecting the input shaft. Delay problems also worsen the performance a lot. An attempt to predict the synchronizer sleeve position is made and simulations shows advantages of that.</p><p>Some further work is needed before the developed control software can be used on a real DCT. Investigations of sensor noise robustness and the impact of dogging forces are the most important issues to be further investigated. Implementation of additional functionality for handling special conditions are also needed.</p></p>

<p>In order to study how science and archeology was exploited for political means during the Third Reich this thesis investigates the scientific institute Ahnenerbe, founded in 1935. The thesis is built up as a literature study combining literature sources from the time of the eventas well as research done around Ahnenerbe after the war.</p><p>The purpose of the thesis is to examine the official and unofficial purposes of the organisation. It investigates how scholars viewed Ahnenerbe at the time, and after the war. It further examines the scientific value of the material published by the organisation, where there is a specific focus on the material covering Germanic Männerbunds.</p>

The Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT) is a relatively new kind of transmission which shows increased efficiency and comfort compared to manual transmissions. Its construction is much like two parallell manual transmissions, where the gearshifts are controlled automatically. The gear-shift of a manual transmission involves a synchronization process, which synchronizes and locks the input shaft to the output shaft via the desired gear ratio. This process, which means transportation of a synchronizer sleeve, is performed by moving the gear shift lever which is connected to the sleeve. In a DCT, there is no mechanical connection between the gear-shift lever and the sleeve. Hence, an actuator system, controlled by a control system, must be used. This report includes modelling, control system design and simulation results of a DCT synchronization process. The thesis work is performed at GM Powertrain (GMPT) in Trollhättan. At the time of this thesis, there is no DCT produced by GM, and therefore the results and conclusions rely on simulations. Most of the used system parameters are reasonable values collected from employees at GMPT and manual transmission literature. The focus of the control design is to achieve a smooth, rather than fast, movement of the synchronizer sleeve. Simulations show that a synchronization process can be performed in less than 400 ms under normal conditions. The biggest problems controlling the sleeve position occur if there is a large amount of drag torque affecting the input shaft. Delay problems also worsen the performance a lot. An attempt to predict the synchronizer sleeve position is made and simulations shows advantages of that. Some further work is needed before the developed control software can be used on a real DCT. Investigations of sensor noise robustness and the impact of dogging forces are the most important issues to be further investigated. Implementation of additional functionality for handling special conditions are also needed.

Universiẗat, Diss.--Hamburg, 2006. / Literaturverz. S. [287] - 300.

In order to study how science and archeology was exploited for political means during the Third Reich this thesis investigates the scientific institute Ahnenerbe, founded in 1935. The thesis is built up as a literature study combining literature sources from the time of the eventas well as research done around Ahnenerbe after the war. The purpose of the thesis is to examine the official and unofficial purposes of the organisation. It investigates how scholars viewed Ahnenerbe at the time, and after the war. It further examines the scientific value of the material published by the organisation, where there is a specific focus on the material covering Germanic Männerbunds.

Zugl.: Würzburg, Univ., Diss., 2005/2006 / Hergestellt on demand

Zugl.: Freiburg (Breisgau), Univ., Diss., 2006 u.d.T.: Mühl, Matthias: Von Lebensform und Christsein