<p> PEA3 is a member of the expanding Ets family of transcription factors. In the adult mouse, pea3 mRNA is expressed at highest levels in the brain, epididymis and at lower levels in the mammary gland, testes, ovary and uterus. PEA3 is overexpressed in 93% of all HER2/Neu positive human breast tumors and in 77% of mouse multiple intestinal (Min) tumors. Many of these tumors have disruptions in the Ras/MAPK and Wnt signaling pathways. Analysis of the influence of these pathways on pea3 promoter activity revealed that effectors of both pathways increased transcription from this promoter. Deletion mutations of the pea3 promoter linked to a luciferase reporter gene were used to localize the DNA sequences that are responsible for the effect of the Ras/MAPK pathway on its expression. A Ras-responsive element (RRE), composed of an ETS and an AP-1 binding site, was identified between sequences -247 and -227 and its importance was confirmed through mutational analysis. </p> <p> CYCLIN Dl is a potent oncogene involved in different types of tumors. The CYCLIN D1 gene is amplified in 20% of human mammary carcinomas, and its mRNA is overexpressed in 50% of human breast cancers. The CYCLIN Dl (CDJ) promoter was shown to be responsive to PEA3 transactivation and to dominant-negative PEA3 inhibition in co-transfection experiments in Cos-1 cells. Of the 4 Ets-binding sites (EBS) in the CDJ promoter, one site was shown to be important for the activity of the promoter and for its capacity to respond to PEA3 transactivation. It was also determined that PEA3, ~-catenin, Lef-1 and c-Jun cooperated synergistically to activate the CDJ promoter. PEA3 was absolutely required for the manifestation of this synergy among these transcription factors. These findings collectively illustrate the key role of PEA3 as an effector of multiple oncogenic signaling pathways. </p> / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

O desenvolvimento de sistemas de lógica paraconsistente tem melhorado o nosso poder analítico e aprofundou nossa compreensão dos sistemas de lógicas não-clássicas. Esses sistemas têm possibilitado aplicações em diversas áreas, notadamente em Direito. Embora a lógica clássica seja aceita como um valioso mecanismo para analisar os problemas no domínio dos estudos jurídicos, existem outras abordagens, como o cálculo DL, que contém, em certo sentido, a lógica clássica e, portanto, a teoria dos silogismos, amplamente aceitos no raciocínio jurídico. O objetivo principal da dissertação é apresentar a lógica paraconsistente DL, um sistema desenvolvido por N. da Costa e R. Wolf, baseado no trabalho de McGuill e Parry. Apresentaremos como este sistema pode ser aplicado como uma ferramenta para resolver problemas relacionados com o Direito e de uma formalização de aspectos da hermenêutica. / The development of Paraconsistent logical systems has enhanced our analytical power and deepened our understanding of non-classic logic systems. It also has rendered applications in many fields, notably in Law. Although classical logic is accepted as a valuable mechanism to analyze problems in the realm of legal studies, there are stronger frameworks such as the DL calculus, which encompasses classical logic and therefore the silogism, widely accepted in legal reasoning. My chief aim is to present an overview of the DL paraconsistent calculus, a system developed by da Costa and Wolf, based on the work of McGuill and Parry. I will also show how this system may be applied as a tool in solving problems relating lawlogic and how the formalization of these problems allows for hermeneutical analysis.

O desenvolvimento de sistemas de lógica paraconsistente tem melhorado o nosso poder analítico e aprofundou nossa compreensão dos sistemas de lógicas não-clássicas. Esses sistemas têm possibilitado aplicações em diversas áreas, notadamente em Direito. Embora a lógica clássica seja aceita como um valioso mecanismo para analisar os problemas no domínio dos estudos jurídicos, existem outras abordagens, como o cálculo DL, que contém, em certo sentido, a lógica clássica e, portanto, a teoria dos silogismos, amplamente aceitos no raciocínio jurídico. O objetivo principal da dissertação é apresentar a lógica paraconsistente DL, um sistema desenvolvido por N. da Costa e R. Wolf, baseado no trabalho de McGuill e Parry. Apresentaremos como este sistema pode ser aplicado como uma ferramenta para resolver problemas relacionados com o Direito e de uma formalização de aspectos da hermenêutica. / The development of Paraconsistent logical systems has enhanced our analytical power and deepened our understanding of non-classic logic systems. It also has rendered applications in many fields, notably in Law. Although classical logic is accepted as a valuable mechanism to analyze problems in the realm of legal studies, there are stronger frameworks such as the DL calculus, which encompasses classical logic and therefore the silogism, widely accepted in legal reasoning. My chief aim is to present an overview of the DL paraconsistent calculus, a system developed by da Costa and Wolf, based on the work of McGuill and Parry. I will also show how this system may be applied as a tool in solving problems relating lawlogic and how the formalization of these problems allows for hermeneutical analysis.

Methionine (Met) is an essential amino acid for animals and also the first limiting amino acid in a broiler diet. The dietary supplemental Met sources include the natural isoform L-methionine (L-Met), the synthetic form DL-methionine (DL-Met) and the synthetic Met precursor DL-2-hydroxy-4 (methylthio)-butanoic acid (DL-HMTBA). The objective of this dissertation was to determine the effect of different dietary Met source supplementation and Met deficiency on a series of physiological and biochemical aspects, including growth performance, global DNA methylation and methyltransferase activity, blood antioxidant profile (e.g., acute phase protein, leukocyte count), intestinal nutrient transporter gene expression, Met converting enzyme gene expression and activity, oxidative stress markers, and a potential pathway related to amino acid signaling. To achieve this goal, male Cobb-500 broilers were raised from day of hatch (d0) to d35 post-hatch and fed a diet deficient in methionine and cysteine (Met + Cys) (control) or the same diet supplemented with 0.22% DL-Met, 0.22% L-Met or 0.31% DL-HMTBA (to provide 0.22% DL-Met equivalent) to meet Met + Cys requirements. Tissues (liver, breast muscle, duodenum, jejunum and ileum) and blood samples were collected at various ages from d0 to d35 for analysis. Met supplementation significantly improved body weight gain and feed efficiency compared to the Met deficient group, but no differences were observed among DL-Met, L-Met and DL-HMTBA for growth performance parameters (P > 0.05). Met supplementation had no effect on red blood cell packed cell volume, white blood cell differential count, hepatic total DNA methylation, DNA methyltransferase and Met oxidase activity, and had limited effects on activation of p70S6K, a key amino acid signaling protein (P > 0.05). Although dietary Met sources did not change oxidative status of the treated chickens, both L-Met and DL-Met but not DL-HMTBA supplementation decreased the level of acute phase protein serum amyloid A compared to the control group (P > 0.05). The effect of Met supplementation on gene expression of nutrient transporters and Met converting enzymes were complex and dynamic. Most of the target genes demonstrated tissue- and development-dependent expression patterns, with few significant treatment effects observed. L-Met and DL-Met but not DL-HMTBA supplementation enhanced the neutral amino acid transporters ATB0,+ and B0AT gene expression in various small intestinal segments. All three Met sources increased monocarboxylic acid transporter (MCT1) gene expression in the jejunum. DL-HMTBA and L-Met fed chickens showed greater hepatic L-HMTBA oxidase (HAO1) gene expression. DL-Met increased glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase 2 (GOT2) gene expression in the duodenum. An in vitro study with tissue explants, however, did not demonstrate a similar gene expression pattern as that in the in vivo study. Lastly, RNA sequencing results illustrated that Met deficiency could lead to many differentially expressed genes but different supplemental Met sources had no influence on hepatic gene expression profiles. In conclusion, as common dietary supplemental Met sources, L-Met, DL-Met and DL-HMTBA exhibited similarity in impacting intestinal amino acid/peptide/monocarboxylic acid transporter gene expression and Met converting enzyme activity. The regulatory roles of Met as an antioxidant and nutrient signaling in cell metabolism were not affected by different dietary supplemental Met sources. / Ph. D.

This study is a multivalent investigation of Scandinavian identity formation and cultural structures within the north Atlantic that looks specifically at the construction and maintenance of island identities circa AD800-1250. This not only includes consideration of the Norse settlers but also the effects of contact between the emerging island cultural identities and continental Europe. In order to do this zones of settlement have been defined to better compare the expansion of medieval Scandinavian populations in terms of microscale practices and interactions within family groups and the macroscale vectors of social, economic and political change. It employs a wide variety of material that makes use of aspects of both prehistoric and historic sources. The variety of enabling conditions ultimately provided for a time the circumstances necessary for the long-term success of a number of the settlements established during this period. The evidence is considered in as subjective manner as possible with the sources available also reflecting the conditions of initial region excavation and publication.

The subject matter of this thesis - Islamic nurture of Pakistani children in Oslo - provides a new departure for studies of ethnic minorities in Norway. The study distinguishes itself from related research by focusing on Islam as part of general enculturisation and socialisation processes, with special regard to the social arenas of home, school and mosque. The main research questions of the thesis are: 1. How is religious and cultural tradition transmitted from parents and other 'significant others' to children among Pakistanis in Oslo? 2. What role does Islam have in the lives of children, with regard to meaning and social belonging? The first research question contains two complex theoretical fields: a) The relationship between culture and religion seen both as aspects within Islam and in terms of the relationship between Islam and Pakistani cultural elements, and b) the transmission process, focusing on both formal educational elements and informal socialisation. Based on one year's field work, theories of Islamic nurture in a non-Islamic, secular late-modem society, especially related to the establishment, maintenance and negotiation of identity, have been generated. The thesis contests the view that regards Islam or Pakistani or Norwegian culture as coherent static systems. It also contests views that regard children exclusively as objects or victims of external processes or pressure or present children of immigrant background or children belonging to religious minorities, as doomed to fall `between cultures'. Norwegian Pakistani children's cultural identity does not only change over time, but it is a contextual identity. The children develop what in this thesis is called integrated plural identities; i. e. they convey a broad cultural competence and a capability of cultural code switching without necessarily experiencing personal conflicts of values.

This thesis discusses whether berserkir really went berserk. It proposes revised paradigms for berserkir as they existed in the Viking Age and as depicted in Old Norse literature. It clarifies the Viking Age berserkr as an elite warrior whose practices have a function in warfare and ritual life rather than as an example of aberrant behaviour, and considers how usage of PDE ‘berserk’ may affect the framing of research questions about berserkir through analysis of depictions in modern popular culture. The analysis shows how berserksgangr has received greater attention than it warrants with the emphasis being on how berserkir went berserk. A critical review of Old Norse literature shows that berserkir do not go berserk, and suggests that berserksgangr was a calculated form of posturing and a ritual activity designed to bolster the courage of the berserkr. It shows how the medieval concept of berserkir was more nuanced and less negative than is usually believed, as demonstrated by the contemporaneous existence in narratives of berserkir as king’s men, hall challengers, hólmg†ngumenn, Viking raiders and Christian champions, and by the presence of men with the byname berserkr in fourteenth-century documents. Old Norse literature is related to pre-Viking Age evidence to show that warriors wearing wolfskins existed and can be related to berserkir, thus making it possible to produce models for Viking Age and medieval concepts of berserkir. The modern view of berserkir is analysed and shows that frenzy is the dominant attribute, despite going berserk not being a useful attribute in Viking Age warfare which relied upon men holding a line steady rather than charging individually. The thesis concludes that ON berserkr may be best translated as PDE ‘champion’, while PDE ‘berserker’ describes the type of uncontrollable warrior most commonly envisaged when discussing berserkir. Most illustrations have been removed from the digital version of this thesis for copyright reasons. The references in the captions guide the reader to the original source for those illustrations.

This thesis re-evaluates farming practices in Iceland up to c.l600. Advancing Þorvaldur Thoroddsen's early twentieth century work, Lýsing Íslands, this study incorporates modem archaeological investigations, documentary evidence and recent scholarship to advance the discussions of lceland's livestock economy. The study examines farms and their land to give a holistic understanding of pastoral farming and fodder acquisition. An evaluation of the textual sources demonstrates long-term stability in the relative livestock values, though the kúgildi fluctuated in value. Herd sizes and the composition of these herds are also examined to show the purpose of these animals. The vast corpus of máldagar are analysed to show the economies of church-farms (staðir and bændakirkjur), including the changing nature of livestock farming between the twelfth and sixteenth centuries, on local, regional and countrywide scales. Livestock products and consumption beyond the much discussed milk, meat and wool economies are critiqued. It is here argued that Icelandic farming generally moved towards a wool-producing economy, however, masked by this wool economy generalisation were a diversity of farming practices. It is only by examining the complexities of these practices that we discover that Icelandic farming was not declining, but adapting to the challenges of this period.

Djurskyddslagstiftningen har sedan dess tillkomst 1944 utvecklats i takt med vetenskapligaframgångar, jordbrukets utveckling och en alltmer positiv syn på djur. Djurskyddslagen präglas tillstor del av att djuren ska kunna bete sig naturligt, samt skyddas mot onödigt lidande och sjukdom.På många sätt har därmed Sverige varit ett föregångsland vad gäller djurskyddet ifråga.Regeringen lade 2011 fram förslag på lagändringar i djurskyddslagen, genom en omfattandeutredning. Förslagen har välkomnats av bland annat Förbundet Djurens Rätt och ansetts ligga i tidenför en ny, modern lagstiftning helt i linje med ett nyanserat synsätt vad gäller djur. Dock har endastett fåtal ändringar gjorts sedan utredningens genomförande. Bland annat har ett förbud mot tidelaginförts i en helt ny bestämmelse, samt straffpåföljd vid en överträdelse av denna paragraf. Ävenbestämmelser inom ramen för djurförsöksområdet har förbättrats. Emellertid kvarstår en stor del avutredningens förslag såsom oberörda i dagsläget, vilket har kritiserats från flertalet håll. Hur det serut i dags dato med de förslag som skulle kunnat visa att Sverige återigen står i framkant vad gällerdjurskyddet, är således oklart och utvecklingen kring detta tycks ha avstannat. Vad är anledningentill denna fördröjning? Syftet inom ramen för ifrågavarande uppsats, är således att söka ta reda påvad fördröjningen av en modern djurskyddslag beror på.

The paper investigates people's motivations to work as press photographers. Against the background of precarious working conditions and a relatively poor image of the occupation, why people choose to work in this field seems like an interesting question. Several theories of occupational choice are examined for their usefulness with regard to the focus of the research, taking into account the processual nature of the formation of motivations as well as the special attributes of the field of press photography. A combination of phenomenological and biographical concepts is selected as the theoretical framework of the study, and key elements thereof are explained. The data obtained through several narrative interviews is analyzed and interpreted, resulting in three main dimensions of typologies describing the process of the formation of motivations leading to the occupational choice of press photography. The three dimensions are finally integrated into one typology which describes the different types of peoples choosing press photography as their occupation. (author's abstract) / Series: Schriftenreihe / Forschungsbereich Wirtschaft und Kultur