Under en individs liv erfars i regel många livsomvälvande händelser som fungerar förändrande och utvecklande. I vissa fall leder en företeelse till att en individs identitet genomgår en förändring. Denna studies fokus riktas mot förhållandet mellan ett reviderat självkoncept och den personliga identiteten. En kvalitativ metod genomfördes där åtta individer med sjukdomen MS intervjuades. Studien visade att intervjupersonernas upplevelse av den egna kroppen, sig själva och de värderingar de attribuerade till sig själva, det vill säga självkonceptet, förändrades till följd av de hinder och begränsningar sjukdomen bidragit till. Detta fick till följd att den personliga identiteten omskapades i fråga om karaktärsdrag och målsättningar. Studien bidrar med fördjupade kunskaper om förändringar i självkonceptet och den personliga identiteten vid sjukdom. / During an individual’s life many events develop and change the person and some may even change the individuals’ identity. Focusing on the relationship between an altered self-concept and the personal identity, a qualitative attempt was made. Eight interviews were made with individuals who suffered from MS. The result showed that the way the participants experienced themselves, their bodies and the way they attributed themselves changed dependent on the obstacles and limitations the disease contributed to. This was followed by changes in the personal identity in terms of characteristics and goals. The study contributes with advanced knowledge about alterations of the self-concept and the personal identity concerning illness.

GnRH peptides have been discovered in a wide variety of vertebrate and invertebrate organisms, and work is ongoing to characterize additional unique isoforms. This dissertation describes the investigation of reversed-phase chromatographic and mass spectrometric behavior of GnRH peptides, the development and application of an LC-MS/MS method for qualitative identification of GnRH peptides, and the comprehensive validation of an LC-MS/MS method for simultaneous, quantitative measurement of hydroxyproline9GnRH (Hyp9GnRH) and mammalian GnRH (mGnRH) in rat brain tissues. Chromatographic and mass spectrometric behavior of GnRH isoforms was characterized for six GnRH model peptides. Using reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), nearly complete separation of the model GnRH peptides was achieved. Evaluation of electrospray source conditions indicated that certain parameters can be adjusted to affect the abundance of selected charge states and improve response. Using the conditions found to be optimal for GnRH peptides in general, a method was developed to facilitate characterization of novel GnRH isoforms or confirm the identity of known isoforms. Fragmentation patterns for six model GnRH isoforms were examined to determine what portion of the primary sequence could be elucidated by de novo sequencing, and a simple solid phase extraction protocol was developed to isolate the model GnRH compounds from tissue samples. Application of the method to rat brain samples resulted in successful isolation and structural confirmation of hydroxyproline9GnRH and mammalian GnRH. A quantitative method for the determination of concentrations of hydroxyproline9GnRH and mammalian GnRH in rat brain tissue was developed and rigorously validated. Guinea pig brains were found to be a suitable substitute matrix for rat brains, and accuracy and precision were determined after four validation runs. Stability of both peptides in samples over long-term storage and under experimental conditions were evaluated, and the LC-MS/MS method was compared to an enzyme-linked immunoassay. Thirty-one brains from Sprague-Dawley rats were analyzed using the LC-MS/MS procedure and compared to published results for Hyp9GnRH and mGnRH.

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Bacterial research has been flourishing ever since 17th century. Bacteria play an important role in clinical microbiology, food microbiology and environmental microbiology. Therefore, the rising need to detect bacteria in clinical, food and environmental samples is emerging onto a craving research frenzy. There are some established methods to study bacteria, such as genetic techniques like PCR, culturing and RNA based analysis, but these require time, resources and labor. This thesis concentrates on highlighting the importance of MALDI-MS in rapid, direct, and simple detection of bacteria from food and clinical samples. The method is to enable detection of bacteria in real samples. First attempts were made to detect bacteria from yogurt sample, because as already known commercial yogurt samples contain bacteria. And yogurts were used in this study to demonstrate the capability of MALDI-MS technique to detect the bacteria directly by culture-free methods. Since the bacterial signals were quenched because of the strong milk peaks, we had to employ nanoparticles and ionic solution for affinity capture of the bacteria for bacterial detection. The results showed that addition of ionic solution and Ag nanoparticles lead to enhanced bacterial detection. The deterioration of the yogurt bacteria on improper storage ( at room temperature) and after extended storage in refrigerator beyond expiry date was studied using MALDI-MS. The day by day deterioration in the microbiological quality of the yogurt was also detected. A special selective media for growth of the yogurt bacteria, DifcoTM Lactobacilli MRS Broth (Agar) was used to quantify the bacteria in various experiments. MALDI-MS results were useful in understanding the shelf life and quality control on extended storage. The second part of this thesis concentrates on the use of MALDI-MS in clinical analysis. The major goal in this work was to use MALDI-MS to detect bacteria in mousy blood and urine. Phase I of this study involved detection of the bacteria by direct MALDI-MS in blood and urine samples spiked with bacteria. We call these experiments as in vitro experiments. Analysis using MALDI was a challenge since the blood peaks interfered with the bacterial peaks and subdued them. Ionic liquid is a pretty excellent extraction solvent when combined with SDME (Single-drop Microextraction). Just one drop of 1-butyl-3methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate can extract bacteria from spiked samples. What¡¦s more, the LOD can be lower to ~105 cfu / mL using SDME with ionic liquid. It¡¦s definitely showing that 1-butyl-3methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate, that is to say, the ionic liquid has good ability to trap pathogenic bacteria. This bacterium is injected into mouse and the growth kinetics of bacteria in vivo was studied as a function of time. Samples taken at specific time points were simultaneously analyzed using standard plate count method as well as MALDI-MS. Analysis using MALDI was a challenge since the blood peaks interfered with the bacterial peaks and subdued them. Therefore, we employ the use of silver and zinc oxide nanoparticles and ionic liquid.

Abstract Rapid and reliable identification of microorganisms is of paramount importance for advancing homeland security. Mass spectrometry is emerging as an effective bioanalytical tool having unique capabilities in handing complex mixtures. Matrix-assisted layser desorption / ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry ¡]MALDI/TOF MS¡^is commonly used in the analysis of bio-molecules owing to its merits of high sensitivity, wide mass range, and ease-of-operation. The objective of the first part of the thesis is to develop an analysis method to characterize the genus, strains, and subspecies of the infections gastroenteritis bacteria by using MALDI/TOF MS. MALDI/TOF MS can be applied to classify different microoganisms based on examination of ion patterns from different microoganisms and unique distinguishing protein ions as biomarkers for different strains. The second section, bacteriophages MS2 and T4 were used as materials for identification of their specific protein markers. Protocols including sample preparation, purification, combined in gel digestion and post source decay to which the mass spectrometer brought for analytical specificity were employed. According to the experimental results, classification of different microorganisms based on examination of ion patterns is feasible. Furthermore, the peak at m/z 5255 in the MALDI mass spectra of MS2 analysis and the peak at m/z 8600 of T4 can provide the unique distinguishing signals. The experimental mass spectral peaks were submitted to the database search, and one of these peaks was matched to a tail fiber assembly helper protein. Thus, the method developed and the mass spectra presented in this thesis can be potentially applied to the practical virus analysis.

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Determination of metal in milk powder and soil by slurry sampling electrothermal vaporization inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry