The aim of this thesis was to examine, describe and assess in detail the method, process, and outcome of the first national Turkish technology foresight study - Vizyon 2023 - and draw conclusions about its effect on the Turkish science, technology and innovation system. Technology foresight has gained widespread acceptance all over the world as a policy tool used in identifying future technologies, setting priorities, formulating science and technology policies and wiring up the national system of innovation. In this context, a review of the literature on technology foresight is undertaken and major concepts are established. The cases of the French and Hungarian technology foresights are examined in comparison to the Turkish technology foresight. Particular emphasis is given to describe the link to science and technology policy of the Vizyon 2023 technology foresight in order to assess its immediate and expected impacts. It is concluded that the Vizyon 2023 technology foresight was a carefully practiced study in line with current trends and knowledge, the linkage to policy was successful, but the result fell short in pointing to clear directions in terms of the implementation agenda. Furthermore, it is ascertained that the science and technology strategy formulated on the basis of the Vizyon 2023 Technology Foresight can only be successful, if implemented with the close coordination and collaboration of all actors of the national innovation system.

Thesis (Ed.D) -- University of Western Sydney, Nepean, 1999. / "Submitted for the degree of Doctor of Education 1999, School of Lifelong Learning and Educational Change, University of Western Sydney Nepean" Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Canterbury, 2008. / Typescript (photocopy). "August 2008." Includes bibliographical references (p. 219-232). Also available via the World Wide Web.

Master's paper (MSLS)--University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2001. / Also available in PDF via the World Wide Web.

Trombocytopeni behandlas primärt med trombocyttransfusion. Trombocytkoncentraten kan erhållas genom poolning av lättcellskikt framställda ur helblodsenheter från flera blodgivare. Helblodsenheterna kyls vanligen ner på en CompoCool®-platta för att snabbt komma ner till rumstemperatur och kan då prepareras redan efter 2 h. Detta brukar vara logistiskt fördelaktigt och gynnar erytrocyterna som framställs ur samma helblodsenheter. Det går även att låta helblodsenheterna kylas ner i rumstemperatur vilket å andra sidan sägs ge ett högre trombocytutbyte då studier visat att trombocyter är känsliga för kyla. Syftet med examensarbetet var att framställa och jämföra kvaliteten på trombocytkoncentrat där helblodsenheten hade kylts ner på CompoCool®-platta respektive kylts ner i rumstemperatur. Hypotesen var att trombocytutbytet skulle bli högre vid nedkylning av helblodsenheten i rumstemperatur än vid nedkylning på CompoCool®-platta. Framställningen av trombocytkoncentraten gjordes genom poolning av 5 st lättcellskikt och en påse trombocytsuspensionsmedium efterföljt av centrifugering och separation i en automatisk blodkomponents separator. Kvalitén utvärderades med avseende på trombocytkoncentration, leukocytkoncentration, swirling samt bakterieodling. Samtliga resultat för kvalitetskontrollerna låg inom de rekommenderade gränsvärdena. Det beräknade t-testet för trombocytkoncentrationen var högre än det kritiska t-värdet vilket innebar att det var en signifikant skillnad mellan de olika nedkylningsmetoderna. Genom användning av de erhållna resultaten kunde hypotesen bekräftas och slutsatsen dras att trombocytutbytet är signifikant högre då helblodsenheten kyls ner i rumstemperatur jämfört med CompoCool®-platta.

Infertility is defined as not being able to conceive after 1 year of regular intercourse without use of contraception. Unexplained infertility is a diagnosis given to couples where the reason to infertility cannot be clarified even after the routine examination. Undefined infertility is a common and growing problem because most people are not aware of the fact that fertility decreases after the age of 35. Hyper- and hypothyroidism has been known to affect the menstrual cycle as well as increased risk of miscarriage. However, the specific effect of thyroid hormones on infertility has not yet been clarified. This study aims to compare the gene expression of two thyroid hormone receptors DIO2 and MOT8 in human endometrium and fallopian tube tissue from two phases of the menstruation cycle, follicular phase and lutheal phase. The methods used were RT-qPCR and immunohistochemistry, which showed a statistically significant difference in the expression of DIO2 and MOT8 between fallopian tube tissue and endometrium, but not between follicular and lutheal phase. However, MOT8 seemed to have a tendency to be down-regulated in the follicular phase but the results need to be validated with different endogenous controls and larger study groups.

Honey bee colonies all over Europe and North America have been declining dramatically for over three decades and is continuing to do so which is causing significant threats to economy, agriculture and ecosystems. The main reason behind the declining colonies is an ectoparasitic mite known as Varroa destructor and viruses vectored by the mite. In previous studies, it has been suggested that a unique mite-resistant subpopulation of honey bees (Apis mellifera) in Gotland, Sweden have developed adaptive tolerance to these viruses as they have managed to survive high mite infestation through natural selection without any mite control treatment. This indicates that there might be a correlation between resistance to Varroa destructor and virus tolerance. This project examined if a correlation between virus resistance and/or virus tolerance can be observed in Varroa-resistant honey bees from unique subpopulations in Europe covering Sweden, Norway, France and Netherlands. Results showed that no correlation could be established based on the findings in this project. However, significant differences in winter colony survival numbers between mite-resistant and mite-susceptible honey bees suggest that tolerance mechanisms could be present in these subpopulations. Further studies are required to verify this hypothesis.

No description available.

Fästingburna infektioner är ett ökande problem, och därmed även infektioner orsakade av Rickettsia spp. Syftet med studien var att undersöka risken att drabbas av en infektion efter bett av rickettsiainfekterad fästing. Specificitet och sensitivitet av Fluidigm-PCR jämfördes mot real time polymerase chain reaction (realtids-PCR) vid detektion av Rickettsia spp. i fästingar som bitit människor. Vidare undersöktes om det finns någon korrelation mellan fästingens blodsugningstid och serokonversion mot Rickettsia spp. 753 fästingar lämnades in av 104 deltagare i Sverige och på Åland. Fästingarna analyserades med realtids-PCR för att detektera gltA-genen som är specifik för Rickettsia spp. 3,5 % av fästingarna var positiva för Rickettsia spp. med realtids-PCR. Vid analysering med Fluidigm-PCR av samma material blev 1,3 % av proverna positiva. Beräkningar som gjordes med realtids-PCR som referens visade att Fluidigm-PCR har sämre specificitet och sensitivitet jämfört med realtids-PCR. Deltagare som serokonverterade (n=5) lämnade endast in rickettsianegativa fästingar som därför inte kunde kopplas till infektionen. Därmed kunde inga slutsatser dras om risken att drabbas av en infektion efter bett av rickettsiainfekterad fästing eller om det föreligger någon korrelation mellan fästingens blodsugningstid och serokonversion. / Tick-borne infections are increasing, including infections caused by Rickettsia spp. The aim of this study was to examine the risk of developing an infection after being bitten by a tick infected with Rickettsia spp. Specificity and sensitivity of a Fluidigm-PCR assay were compared to real time polymerase chain reaction (real-time PCR) assay when detecting Rickettsia spp. in ticks that had bitten humans. Possible correlation between the tick's feeding time and seroconversion against Rickettsia spp. was also investigated. A total of 753 ticks from 104 participants in Sweden and the Åland Islands (Finland) were analyzed with real-time PCR to detect the gltA gene specific for Rickettsia spp. 3.5 % of the samples were positive for Rickettsia spp. with real-time PCR, while only 1.3 % of the samples were positive with Fluidigm-PCR. Calculations showed that Fluidigm-PCR assay has lower specificity and sensitivity than the real-time PCR assay. Unfortunately, no conclusions could be drawn considering correlation between the tick's feeding time and seroconversion of the bitten humans since no participants who had seroconverted had also submitted ticks containing Rickettsia spp. Therefore, no conclusions could be drawn considering the risk of developing an infection after being bitten by a tick infected with Rickettsia spp. / STING-studien

Humanpatogena stammar av bakterien Yersinia enterocolitica kan orsaka akut gastroenterit. För identifiering av bakterien odlas fecesprover ut på CIN-agar. På senare år har en kromogen agarplatta framtagits som differentierar mellan patogena och apatogena stammar av Y. enterocolitica. Syftet med studien är att jämföra och utvärdera två CIN-agar, med agarbaser och supplement från två olika företag (Liofilchem och Oxoid), och CHROMagar Y. enterocolitica (CHROMagar). Odling av fecesprover samt seriespädning av sex Y. enterocolitica stammar och en Y. pseudotuberculosis utfördes. Vid utodlade fecesprover jämfördes växt och hämning av övriga bakterier. Vid seriespädning räknades antal kolonier på plattorna för respektive spädning, samt utseende av kolonier på plattor bedömdes. Resultatet tyder på att skillnad av hämningseffekt av Y. enterocolitica och utseende på kolonierna finns mellan de två CIN-agarplattorna. Oxoid’s CIN-agar erhöll större kolonier, lägre hämningseffekt av Y. enterocolitica och detektionsgräns än Liofilchem’s CIN-agar. På CHROMagar-plattan växte de patogena stammarna med bleklila kolonier och de apatogena stammarna med blåa kolonier. Hämningseffekt av Y. enterocolitica hos CHROMagar-plattan är densamma som Oxoid’s CIN-agar. Slutsatsen är således att Oxoid’s CIN-agar och CHROMagar har samma hämningseffekt av Y. enterocolitica men CHROMagar differentierar mellan patogena och apatogena stammar. Liofilchem’s CIN-agar har högre hämningseffekt än CHROMagar och Oxoid’s CIN-agar. / Pathogenic strains of Yersinia enterocolitica can cause acute gastroenteritis in humans. To identify the bacterium, cultivation of stool samples on CIN-agar are performed. A chromogenic medium has been developed that differentiate between pathogenic and nonpathogenic strains of Y. enterocolitica. The purpose is to compare and evaluate two CIN-agar, with agar bases and supplements from two companies (Liofilchem and Oxoid), and CHROMagar Y. enterocolitica (CHROMagar). Growth of stool samples and serial dilutions of six Y. enterocolitica strains and one strain of Y. pseudotuberculosis were performed. Comparisons of the growth and inhibition of other bacteria were done for the stool samples. Colonies for each dilution were counted and appearance of the colonies was evaluated. The result indicates that a difference in inhibitory effect on Y. enterocolitica and appearance of colonies exist between the two CIN-agar. All strains grew with larger colonies on Oxoid CIN-agar than on Liofilchem’s. Oxoid CIN-agar and CHROMagar have a lower inhibitory effect on Y. enterocolitica than Liofilchem’s. On CHROMagar, the pathogenic strains grew with mauve colonies, whilst the nonpathogenic strains grew with blue colonies. Thus, the conclusion is that CHROMagar and Oxoid CIN-agar have less inhibitory effect on Y. enterocolitica than Liofilchem’s. CHROMagar can differentiate between pathogenic and nonpathogenic strains.