The purpose of this study was to find out what the educators view on the working method Matte på burk in preschool looked like. I also wanted to find out what the educators thought about the working method. My questions are: How does the educators in preschool experience the method Matte på burk? What do the educators in preschool believe that Matte på burk can give the children? The study was carried out through a qualitative interview study with six educators. During the interviews with the educators it became apparent that the method not only focused on mathematical exercises. The educators also saw that interaction, learning, play and language became included in the method. Those findings are fundamental in the study and are regarded from different authors and theoretical perspectives. The conclusion I have drawn from the study is that the educators has been aware of how they can work with mathematics in a simple way. However, it would have been good if there were several levels of difficulty within the method. Because the way the cans works now, it is the same material in the cans regardless of their age. The educators believe that the method is an ideal tool for mathematics, they also think that the method is a good method to acquire knowledge in more subject areas.

Grundläggande taluppfattning är en viktig utgångspunkt i barns matematiska utveckling. Syftet med studien var därför att ta reda på hur förskollärare arbetar med materialet Matte på burk för att väcka, stimulera och utmana barns utveckling och förståelse för tal. Genom kvalitativa intervjuer med tre förskollärare samt observationer av samlingar där man använder Matte på burk kom jag fram till att materialet Matte på burk väcker, stimulerar och utmanar barnens grundläggande taluppfattning under förutsättning att förskollärarna kan göra samlingarna med Matte på burk till erfarenheter av tal för barnen. En förutsättning för detta är att förskollärarna lyckas förena lek, socialt samspel och utforskande. Barns erövrande av taluppfattning kräver medvetna förskollärare som får möjlighet till kompetensutveckling i matematik och matematikdidaktik för att kunna utmana barnen i deras upptäckande av tal.

The aim of this thesis is to investigate the possibilities for creating a national interlibraryloan system in Sweden and to see how it could be integrated into an international network .The methods used are both qualitative and quantitative. We have sent inquiries to a numberof libraries and we have interviewed keypersons in the interlibrary loan field in Sweden.We have reached the conclusion that in spite of several impediments there is a lot that speaksfor a Swedish national interlibrary loan system in the near future. A national bibliographicdatabase is already evolving.

Sedan digitala bibliotekskataloger först introducerades i slutet av 60-talet och början av 70-talet har det funnits två skilda källor för metadata för bibliotek i Sverige. Å ena sidan Libris, utvecklad och använd av framför allt KB och forskningsbiblioteken, och å andra sidan Burk för folkbiblioteken. Nästan lika länge har det gjorts försök att skapa en gemensam, nationell katalog för alla svenska bibliotek, men trots alla ansträngningar, innefattande ett flertal direkt från regeringen, råder fortfarande det tvådelade systemet. Denna intervjustudie har till syfte att undersöka attityder hos anställda från olika delar av bibliotekssektorn i denna fråga. Även frågor om bibliotekssystem diskuteras. Det förefaller finnas stor enighet bland informanterna om att den bristande samordningen av katalogdata faktiskt är ett problem, men det råder delade meningar om vad som borde göras åt saken, och vem som borde göra det. Studien analyseras och sätts i ett sammanhang utifrån debatten om digital upphovsrätt i allmänhet och Tarleton Gillespies teorier i synnerhet. Slutsatser som dras är att samordning skulle underlättas om biblioteken använde sig av öppna data och öppen källkod, vilket skulle peka på Libris som källa för metadata och open source-bibliotekssystem som Koha. De bibliotek som har samordningsuppdrag, regionbiblioteken och KB, skulle behöva ta ett större ansvar för att samordning ska kunna komma till stånd. Om dessa förslag blev verklighet skulle leverantörerna behöva anpassa sina affärsmodeller för att kunna erbjuda data under öppna licenser. / Ever since digital library catalogues were first introduced in the late sixties and early seventies, there have been two separate metadata repositories for libraries in Sweden. On the one hand there is the Libris catalogue, developed and used mainly by the national library and the university libraries, and on the other hand there is the Burk catalogue for the local public libraries. For almost as long, attempts have been made to create a single, national catalogue for all Swedish libraries, but despite all efforts, including several government bills explicitly stating that this need to happen, the dual catalogue system prevails to this day. This interview study aims to find the opinions of people from different sectors of the library field on this matter. Views on integrated library systems are also debated. There seems to be great consensus among the interviewees that there is, in fact, a problem with lack of coordination of catalogues, but there is less agreement as to what should be done about it, and by whom. The study is analyzed and contextualized utilizing the debate on digital copyright in general and the theories of Tarleton Gillespie in particular. It is concluded that cooperation would be facilitated if libraries made use of open data and open source, which would suggest Libris as metadata repository and open source library systems such as Koha for ILS. Libraries assigned with interlibrary coordination, i.e. the regional and the national libraries, would have to take on a greater responsibility than the local libraries to implement these cooperations. Vendors serving libraries would have to adjust their business models if these proposals were to become reality to offer data under open licenses.

Sedan digitala bibliotekskataloger först introducerades i slutet av 60-talet och början av 70-talet har det funnits två skilda källor för metadata för bibliotek i Sverige. Å ena sidan Libris, utvecklad och använd av framför allt KB och forskningsbiblioteken, och å andra sidan Burk för folkbiblioteken. Nästan lika länge har det gjorts försök att skapa en gemensam, nationell katalog för alla svenska bibliotek, men trots alla ansträngningar, innefattande ett flertal direkt från regeringen, råder fortfarande det tvådelade systemet. Denna intervjustudie har till syfte att undersöka attityder hos anställda från olika delar av bibliotekssektorn i denna fråga. Även frågor om bibliotekssystem diskuteras. Det förefaller finnas stor enighet bland informanterna om att den bristande samordningen av katalogdata faktiskt är ett problem, men det råder delade meningar om vad som borde göras åt saken, och vem som borde göra det. Studien analyseras och sätts i ett sammanhang utifrån debatten om digital upphovsrätt i allmänhet och Tarleton Gillespies teorier i synnerhet. Slutsatser som dras är att samordning skulle underlättas om biblioteken använde sig av öppna data och öppen källkod, vilket skulle peka på Libris som källa för metadata och open source-bibliotekssystem som Koha. De bibliotek som har samordningsuppdrag, regionbiblioteken och KB, skulle behöva ta ett större ansvar för att samordning ska kunna komma till stånd. Om dessa förslag blev verklighet skulle leverantörerna behöva anpassa sina affärsmodeller för att kunna erbjuda data under öppna licenser. / Ever since digital library catalogues were first introduced in the late sixties and early seventies, there have been two separate metadata repositories for libraries in Sweden. On the one hand there is the Libris catalogue, developed and used mainly by the national library and the university libraries, and on the other hand there is the Burk catalogue for the local public libraries. For almost as long, attempts have been made to create a single, national catalogue for all Swedish libraries, but despite all efforts, including several government bills explicitly stating that this need to happen, the dual catalogue system prevails to this day. This interview study aims to find the opinions of people from different sectors of the library field on this matter. Views on integrated library systems are also debated. There seems to be great consensus among the interviewees that there is, in fact, a problem with lack of coordination of catalogues, but there is less agreement as to what should be done about it, and by whom. The study is analyzed and contextualized utilizing the debate on digital copyright in general and the theories of Tarleton Gillespie in particular. It is concluded that cooperation would be facilitated if libraries made use of open data and open source, which would suggest Libris as metadata repository and open source library systems such as Koha for ILS. Libraries assigned with interlibrary coordination, i.e. the regional and the national libraries, would have to take on a greater responsibility than the local libraries to implement these cooperations. Vendors serving libraries would have to adjust their business models if these proposals were to become reality to offer data under open licenses. / <p>QC 20230113</p>

Parkinson’s disease is an age-related neurodegenerative disorder. The major symptoms of Parkinson’s disease are closely linked to the pathology of the disease. The main pathology of Parkinson’s disease consists of the degeneration of neurons of the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc), which leads to reduced amounts of dopamine in the brain. One of the treatment strategies in Parkinson’s disease is to conserve dopamine by inhibiting the enzymes responsible for its catabolism. The monoamine oxidase (MAO) B isoform catalyses the oxidation of dopamine in the central nervous system and is therefore an important target for Parkinson’s disease treatment. Inhibition of MAO-B provides symptomatic relief for Parkinson’s disease patients by increasing endogenous dopamine levels as well as enhancing the levels of dopamine after administration of levodopa (L-dopa), the metabolic precursor of dopamine. Recent studies have shown that phthalide can be used as a scaffold for the design of reversible MAO inhibitors. Although phthalide is a weak MAO-B inhibitor, substitution on the C5 position of phthalide yields highly potent reversible MAO-B inhibitors. In the present study, sesamol and benzodioxane were used as scaffolds for the design of MAO inhibitors. The structures of sesamol and benzodioxane closely resemble that of phthalide, which suggests that these moieties may be useful for the design of MAO inhibitors. This study may be viewed as an exploratory study to discover new scaffolds for MAO inhibition. Since substitution at C5 of phthalide with a benzyloxy side chain yielded particularly potent MAO inhibitors, the sesamol and benzodioxane derivatives possessed the benzyloxy substituent in the analogous positions to C5 of phthalide. These were the C5 and C6 positions of sesamol and benzodioxane, respectively. The sesamol and benzodioxane derivatives were synthesised by reacting sesamol and 6- hydroxy-1,4-benzodioxane, respectively, with an appropriate alkyl bromide in the presence of potassium carbonate (K2CO3) in N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF). 6-Hydroxy-1,4- benzodioxane, in turn, was synthesised from 1,4-benzodioxan-6-carboxaldehyde. The structures of the compounds were verified with nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectrometry (MS) analyses, while the purities were estimated by high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC). Sixteen sesamol and benzodioxane derivatives were synthesised. To determine the inhibition potencies of the synthesised compounds the recombinant human MAO-A and MAO-B enzymes were used. The inhibition potencies were expressed as the corresponding IC50 values. The results showed that the sesamol and benzodioxane derivatives are highly potent and selective inhibitors of MAO-B and to a lesser extent MAOA. The most potent MAO-B inhibitor was 6-(3-bromobenzyloxy)-1,4-benzodioxane with an IC50 value of 0.045 μM. All compounds examined displayed selectivity for the MAO-B isoform over MAO-A. Generally the benzodioxane derivatives were found to be more potent inhibitors of human MAO-A and MAO-B than the sesamol derivatives. The reversibility and mode of MAO-B inhibition of a representative derivative, 6-(3- bromobenzyloxy)-1,4-benzodioxane, was examined by measuring the degree to which the enzyme activity recovers after dialysis of enzyme-inhibitor complexes, while Lineweaver- Burk plots were constructed to determine whether the mode of inhibition is competitive. Since MAO-B activity is completely recovered after dialysis of enzyme-inhibitor mixtures, it was concluded that 6-(3-bromobenzyloxy)-1,4-benzodioxane binds reversibly to the MAO-B enzyme. The Lineweaver-Burk plots constructed were linear and intersected on the y-axis. Therefore it may be concluded that 6-(3-bromobenzyloxy)-1,4-benzodioxane is a competitive MAO-B inhibitor. To conclude, the C6-substituted benzodioxane derivatives are potent, selective, reversible and competitive inhibitors of human MAO-B. These compounds are therefore promising leads for the future development of therapy for Parkinson’s disease. / MSc (Pharmaceutical Chemistry), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Parkinson’s disease is an age-related neurodegenerative disorder. The major symptoms of Parkinson’s disease are closely linked to the pathology of the disease. The main pathology of Parkinson’s disease consists of the degeneration of neurons of the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc), which leads to reduced amounts of dopamine in the brain. One of the treatment strategies in Parkinson’s disease is to conserve dopamine by inhibiting the enzymes responsible for its catabolism. The monoamine oxidase (MAO) B isoform catalyses the oxidation of dopamine in the central nervous system and is therefore an important target for Parkinson’s disease treatment. Inhibition of MAO-B provides symptomatic relief for Parkinson’s disease patients by increasing endogenous dopamine levels as well as enhancing the levels of dopamine after administration of levodopa (L-dopa), the metabolic precursor of dopamine. Recent studies have shown that phthalide can be used as a scaffold for the design of reversible MAO inhibitors. Although phthalide is a weak MAO-B inhibitor, substitution on the C5 position of phthalide yields highly potent reversible MAO-B inhibitors. In the present study, sesamol and benzodioxane were used as scaffolds for the design of MAO inhibitors. The structures of sesamol and benzodioxane closely resemble that of phthalide, which suggests that these moieties may be useful for the design of MAO inhibitors. This study may be viewed as an exploratory study to discover new scaffolds for MAO inhibition. Since substitution at C5 of phthalide with a benzyloxy side chain yielded particularly potent MAO inhibitors, the sesamol and benzodioxane derivatives possessed the benzyloxy substituent in the analogous positions to C5 of phthalide. These were the C5 and C6 positions of sesamol and benzodioxane, respectively. The sesamol and benzodioxane derivatives were synthesised by reacting sesamol and 6- hydroxy-1,4-benzodioxane, respectively, with an appropriate alkyl bromide in the presence of potassium carbonate (K2CO3) in N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF). 6-Hydroxy-1,4- benzodioxane, in turn, was synthesised from 1,4-benzodioxan-6-carboxaldehyde. The structures of the compounds were verified with nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectrometry (MS) analyses, while the purities were estimated by high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC). Sixteen sesamol and benzodioxane derivatives were synthesised. To determine the inhibition potencies of the synthesised compounds the recombinant human MAO-A and MAO-B enzymes were used. The inhibition potencies were expressed as the corresponding IC50 values. The results showed that the sesamol and benzodioxane derivatives are highly potent and selective inhibitors of MAO-B and to a lesser extent MAOA. The most potent MAO-B inhibitor was 6-(3-bromobenzyloxy)-1,4-benzodioxane with an IC50 value of 0.045 μM. All compounds examined displayed selectivity for the MAO-B isoform over MAO-A. Generally the benzodioxane derivatives were found to be more potent inhibitors of human MAO-A and MAO-B than the sesamol derivatives. The reversibility and mode of MAO-B inhibition of a representative derivative, 6-(3- bromobenzyloxy)-1,4-benzodioxane, was examined by measuring the degree to which the enzyme activity recovers after dialysis of enzyme-inhibitor complexes, while Lineweaver- Burk plots were constructed to determine whether the mode of inhibition is competitive. Since MAO-B activity is completely recovered after dialysis of enzyme-inhibitor mixtures, it was concluded that 6-(3-bromobenzyloxy)-1,4-benzodioxane binds reversibly to the MAO-B enzyme. The Lineweaver-Burk plots constructed were linear and intersected on the y-axis. Therefore it may be concluded that 6-(3-bromobenzyloxy)-1,4-benzodioxane is a competitive MAO-B inhibitor. To conclude, the C6-substituted benzodioxane derivatives are potent, selective, reversible and competitive inhibitors of human MAO-B. These compounds are therefore promising leads for the future development of therapy for Parkinson’s disease. / MSc (Pharmaceutical Chemistry), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

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