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Yes / Metabolic syndrome is a global public health problem and predisposes individuals to obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Although the underlying mechanisms remain to be elucidated, accumulating evidence has uncovered a critical role of adipokines. Chemerin, encoded by the gene Rarres2, is a newly discovered adipokine involved in inflammation, adipogenesis, angiogenesis and energy metabolism. In humans, local and circulating levels of chemerin are positively correlated with body mass index and obesity-related biomarkers. In this review, we discuss both peripheral and central roles of chemerin in regulating body metabolism. In general, chemerin is upregulated in obese and diabetic animals. Previous studies by gain or loss of function show an association of chemerin with adipogenesis, glucose homeostasis, food intake and body weight. In the brain, the hypothalamus integrates peripheral afferent signals including adipokines to regulate appetite and energy homeostasis. Chemerin increases food intake in seasonal animals by acting on hypothalamic stem cells, the tanycytes. In peripheral tissues, chemerin increases cell expansion, inflammation and angiogenesis in adipose tissue, collectively resulting in adiposity. While chemerin signalling enhances insulin secretion from pancreatic islets, contradictory results have been reported on how chemerin links to obesity and insulin resistance. Given the association of chemerin with obesity comorbidities in humans, advances in translational research targeting chemerin are expected to mitigate metabolic disorders. Together, the exciting findings gathered in the last decade clearly indicate a crucial multifaceted role for chemerin in the regulation of energy balance, making it a promising candidate for urgently needed pharmacological treatment strategies for obesity.

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ABSTRACT Title: Relative Energy Deficiency in Female Collegiate Track & Field Athletes. Background: Energy deficiency and its consequences have long been studied in female athletes because of it’s potential for increasing risks of illness and injury. Sustaining an energy deficient diet while training and during competition may result in muscle loss and reduction in performance. Studies suggest that athletes competing in sports focusing on appearance or a lean physique are at high risk for energy deficiency. In 2014, the IOC developed the concept of ‘Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport’ (RED-S) to include new components not previously included in the Female Athlete Triad. A study has not yet been completed applying the RED-S paradigm in collegiate track and field athletes. Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of RED-S in female collegiate track and field athletes. It was hypothesized that the majority of collegiate track and field athletes experience RED-S. It was also hypothesized that a greater percentage of distance runners experience RED-S than other track and field athletes, including throwers, jumpers, and sprinters. The components of RED-S assessed were menstrual function, bone health, and energy expenditure. Methods: This study was a descriptive cross-sectional study, obtaining data through the use of a questionnaire and a relative energy expenditure index on a population of 12 female collegiate track and field athletes. Data were obtained through the use of a LEAF-Q questionnaire, a three-day food and exercise recall, and body composition analysis. Results: The 12 athletes were a combination of distance runners (n=5), throwers (n=2), and sprinters (n=5). Average subject characteristics were: age (20.6 ±1. 44 years), height (165.6 ±7.5cm), weight (63.58 ± 16.97kg), and body fat percentage (20.9± 7.2). Average energy intake over three days was 2146 kcal (±627), and the average predicted energy expenditure was 2380 kcal (±458). Average hours spent in a catabolic (52.8 ± 24.0), highly catabolic (37.5 ± 25.0), anabolic (19.2 ± 24.0), and highly anabolic state (12.4 ± 21.0). Subjects were in a negative energy balance state the majority of the days analyzed, and 75% of the population had at least one day of dietary recall below 45 kcal/kg FFM/day. Spearman’s rho analysis found a significant inverse correlation between Day 1 hours spent in optimal energy balance (± 400 kcal) and body fat percent (p=0.024, rs= -0.643), and significant positive correlation between Day 1 hours spent in optimal energy balance (± 400 kcal) and fat free mass percentage (p=0.03, rs=0.625). Spearman’s rho analysis also found an inverse correlation between Day 1 hours spent in an energy deficit (s= -0.626), and a positive correlation between Day 1 hours spent in an energy deficit and body fat percentage (p=0.026, rs=0.636). Seven out of twelve participants scored ≥ 8 on the LEAF-Q putting them at risk for RED-S. Conclusion: The study highlights the misleading effect of averaging multiple days of dietary recall on energy balance. When participant’s dietary recalls were assessed day by day the majority of hours were spent in a catabolic state, however when the three days of the recall were averaged the severity of the hours spent in a catabolic state lessened. The associations in this study are consistent with previous studies evaluating the relationships between energy balance deficits and body composition, indicating that longer duration spent in an energy deficit is associated with lower lean and higher fat mass. The findings from the LEAF-Q show that 58% of participants were at risk for RED-S, and half of all participants had or were experiencing menstrual dysfunction.

The increasing concern about water quality and energy demand promotes the development of innovative and low-cost processes to improve the nutrient uptake and energy efficiency of existing wastewater treatments (WWT). In this context, the inclusion of a microalgae system (MAS) in the flowsheet of a WWT plant represents a sustainable alternative to conventional technologies, as it combines a low-cost nutrient uptake system with the production of biomass suitable for biofuel production. However, at present, the energy required to cultivate and process the algae cells is often too high to justify their use. The adoption of a low energy harvesting system and an efficient energy conversion process are the sine qua non requirements to guarantee the sustainability of the process. In this thesis, current and innovative harvesting technologies for large scale applications have been reviewed to identify the optimal working conditions of each system and their link to the main characteristics of the algae suspension. In particular, the performance of the Ballasted Dissolved Air Flotation (BDAF) system was investigated using different algae and compared to the conventional Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF). BDAF was demonstrably a very viable harvesting method where the use of floating microspheres as ballasting agents allowed significant coagulant savings, reduced the level of energy dissipation within the flotation chamber, and lowered the overall carbon emissions and the process costs. Cont/d.

En gårdsbiogasanläggning har flera stora interna energiförbrukare. Tidigare forskning har visat att energibehovet för endast omblandning i en biogasanläggning kan uppgå till 1 % av biogasens energiinnehåll vilket är oerhört högt. En omrörningsstudie har genomförts där data som specifik omrörningseffekt (W/m3) och energiförbrukning (kWh/dag) har inhämtats ifrån verkliga fall och sedan jämförts emot varandra. Samband mellan större rötkammarvolymer och högre energiförbrukning per dag för omrörning kunde finnas. Samtidigt som kopplingar mellan mindre anläggningar och högre specifik omrörningseffekt (W/m3) också kunde finnas. En rötkammares värmebehov ligger teoretiskt på cirka 33 % för termofila processer och 20 % för mesofila processer av den teoretiska energiproduktionen för en anläggning med en rötkammare på 750 m3. En planerad anläggning med rötkammarvolym på cirka 3000 m3 och specifik omrörningseffekt på 22 W/m3, borde ha ett högre elbehov per år än 100 000 kWh/år. / A farm biogas plant has several large internal energy consumers. Previous research has shown that the energy for only mixing in a biogas plant may reach 1% of the biogas energy content which is extremely high. A mixing study was performed where data specific stirring power (W/m3) and energy consumption (kWh/day) has been obtained from real cases and then compared against each other. Correlation between larger reactor volumes and higher energy consumption per day for agitation could be. While connections between smaller plants and higher specific stirring power (W/m3) could also be. A digester heating demand is theoretically at around 33% for thermophilic processes and 20% for mesophilic processes of the theoretical energy output for a plant with a digester of 750 m3. A planned facility with reactor volume of approximately 3000 m3 and specific stirring power at 22 W/m3, should have a higher electricity demand per year than 100 000 kWh/year.

Energy audit and calculation strategies for energy flows in buildings: a case study of Vallongatan 1   This thesis involves an energy audit of a building with offices and laboratories in Uppsala, Sweden. The calculations are performed in Microsoft Excel and were later used as the basis for developing calculation strategies for similar, future, energy audits.   The building was erected in the early 1990s and the heating requirement of just above 700 MWh is covered by district heating from the city network. The total gross floor area is about 8400 m2 and is served by an air conditioning system consisting of seven ventilation units with rotary heat exchangers, heating and cooling coils, as well as water radiators throughout the building.   No significant improvement measures have been implemented since the construction, and the building therefore has a potential to improve its energy performance. The report addresses a number of measures that could be taken, as well as an evaluation of each one. The most economically viable of these would be to clean the rotary heat exchangers, which is deemed to have a potential to save about 70 MWh or 48 700 SEK annually. In comparison to the estimated cost of between 35 000 and 42 000 SEK this is likely to become profitable as early as the first year.   The calculation templates that were developed cover three different building standards, these are categorized as low, improved and advanced standard. Here, the desired areas and types of activities are typed in easily for either individual rooms or entire offices or buildings. The templates provide estimates regarding power and energy needs for heating and comfort cooling, recommended air flows, heat development and dissipation as well as carbon dioxide concentration in the room air.

The decrease in productivity caused by fescue toxicosis has been estimated to cost the United States livestock industry more than $1 billion per year due to reduced growth and diminished reproductive efficiency. This goal of the research presented in this dissertation is to enhance the knowledge base concerning the underlying physiological changes that occur during fescue toxicosis that lead to reduced intake and weight gain in cattle. As one of the factors associated with fescue toxicosis is a reduction in feed intake, achieving a consistent and adequate intake of toxins can be a complication. Results from experiment 1demonstrate that ruminal dosing of ground seed and a seed extract are able to mimic the classic symptoms of fescue toxicosis in cattle. This model whereby seed or extract is directly dosed into the rumen eliminates the possibility of reduced alkaloid intake due to refusal of feed by the animal. This model allows for more precise and repeatable dosing of alkaloids in fescue research. Experiment 2 results indicate that ingestion of endophyte-infected tall fescue leads to decreased fasting heat production in cattle. This is indicative of a reduction in maintenance energy requirements and may be related to a decrease in liver size or other metabolic activity in animals grazing endophyte-infected pastures. In addition, a reduction in basal metabolic rate may cause the compensatory gain often observed in cattle entering the feedlot after grazing endophyte-infected pastures. Data from experiment 3 provides evidence that whole body nitrogen and energy metabolism are not altered by fescue alkaloid ingestion. Experiment 3 also addresses the rate of feed degradation and ruminal passage rates in cattle ingesting endophyte infected fescue. While ruminal VFA profile is altered, this is likely due to reduced absorption, not increased production. The data from this experiment indicate that the reduction in weight gain and productivity seen during fescue toxicosis is primarily a function of reduced intake and not secondary effects of alkaloid ingestion.

<p>With the use of a process-orientated ecosystem model andmeasurements conducted at different Swedish coniferous forestsites, abiotic and biotic interactions between tree and soilwere identified and related to governing factors. Two differentmodelling approaches to describe soil temperatures at two sitesincluding hydrological transects were tested (I). The approachin which both canopy and soil were considered proved to be amore flexible tool to describe soil temperatures, especiallyduring snow-free winter periods. Five sites along a climatetransect covering Sweden were used to describe soil carbon poolchanges during an 80-year period simulation (II). The dynamicmodelling approach, with a feedback between abiotic and bioticsub-models, was successful in describing simplified patterns offorest stand dynamics and furthermore in differentiatingbetween climate and nitrogen availability factors. The largereffect of nitrogen availability compared to climate on soilcarbon pool changes was clearly shown.</p><p><b>Keywords:</b>SPAC; soil surface energy balance; Norwayspruce; canopy; LAI; climate; nitrogen; CoupModel</p>