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The purpose of this bachelor thesis is to highlight a problem that is very relevant for young adults of foreign-born parents in Sweden. By conducting in-depth interviews with young adults who have experience of brokering during their childhood, we get a better understanding of how the role impacts immigrant families. In our analysis we use sociopsychological theories to illustrate on how the role of brokering contributes to an inner conflict, conflicts between parent and child, and changes in family dynamics. Conflicts arise from the child trying to define him-/herself from being seen as a child while also having increased responsibilities compared to its peers. These responsibilities increase with time, and as such lead to conflicts between the parent and the child, as the role dissolves traditional power hierarchies in families. The child however is not limited to only brokering for their own parents. They also act as brokers for other family members. Our central analysis is that while children act as brokers, they are progressively assigned more tasks by the parents. With time, these tasks lead to increased power for the child and makes the parents more dependent on the child. We define this process as spiral of power.

<p>Apoptosis plays a key role in the regulation and development of healthy multicellular organisms throughout their lifetimes. The mitochondria play a key role in this cellular process, as it contains proapoptotic factors, which once released into the cytosol of the cell, results in the death of the cell. The Bcl-2 family of proteins play a key role in apoptosis, acting as the gateway between life and death of the cell. Proteins such as tBid and Bax act to permeabilize the mitochondrial outer membrane (MOM), releasing the proapoptotic factors into the cell’s cytosol. The interactions between these proteins and the mitochondrial outer membrane have yet to be fully understood. The lipid composition and cholesterol content of the membrane effectively inhibit or promote pore formation by Bax. Specifically, the addition of cholesterol into the membrane inhibits pore formation. This thesis attempts to further understand the effects cholesterol has on the structure of the MOM, and link those changes to the inhibited activity of Bax pore formation. MOM-like lipid bilayers were studied under varying temperatures and with the addition of cholesterol using x-ray reflectivity. Increasing temperatures from 10°C to 30°C resulted in bilayer thinning, as did decreasing cholesterol concentrations below 30%. From 10°C to 20°C, bilayer thickness showed a bell shaped profile, and changed to a linear decrease above about 20°C. This may assist Bax in pore formation, as it has also been observed to cause bilayer thinning. Increasing Cholesterol concentrations up to 30% resulted in little variation in bilayer thickness though hindrance of Bax pore formation is observed at content levels as low as 8%. Thus it is unlikely that bilayer thickening by cholesterol causes the inhibition of Bax pore formation. In addition, cholesterol was observed to increase the electron density of the core of the bilayer at concentration levels above 25%.</p> / Master of Science (MSc)

PagP is an integral outer membrane enzyme that transfers a palmitoyl group from a phospholipid to lipid A and the polar headgroup of phosphatidylglycerol (PG). Palmitoyl-lipid A and palmitoyl-PG (PPG) have been implicated in resistance to host immune defenses. PagP proteins are diverse, the E. coli PagP belongs to the major clade of PagP homologs and palmitoylates lipid A regiospecifically at the 2-position, whereas P. aeruginosa PagP belongs to the minor clade of PagP homologs and instead palmitoylates lipid A regiospecifically at the 3’-position. Our objective was to understand how PagP has been adapted in nature to interact with multiple lipid substrates and products. We investigated the structure-function relationships of key major clade homologs, to show that Bordetella PagP palmitoylates lipid A at the 3’-position and employs surface residue T29 in its palmitoyltransferase reaction. Legionella PagP palmitoylates lipid A at the 2-position and was confirmed to select a palmitate chain from a pool including iso-methyl branched phospholipids characteristic of this species. PagP is usually encoded as a single copy on the chromosome in most bacteria, but two copies of pagP are found in endophytic bacteria. These duplicated PagP homologs from the major clade branch into two subclades, namely chromosomal and plasmid-based PagP homologs. The chromosomal PagP homologs exhibit interacting periplasmic D61 and H67 residues, which are naturally mutated in plasmid-based PagP homologs, and are associated with a conformational change in the -barrel that determines its ability to palmitoylate PG. Chromosomal PagPs can convert PPG to bis(monoacylglycero)phosphate (BMP) and lysophosphatidylglycerol (LPG) through a periplasmic active site controlled by the invariant Y87 residue of E. coli PagP. Plasmid-based PagP homologs appear to have been adapted instead as monofunctional lipid A palmitoyltransferases. These results points to a common ancestor for PagP proteins. Knowledge gained from these studies can be applied to protein engineering. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

BACKGROUND: Vibrio cholerae and Enterotoxigenic E. Coli (ETEC) are enteropathogens that are global causes of cholera and traveler’s diarrhea which are responsible for millions of diarrhea cases every year. ETEC and cholera are primarily found in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, particularly in nations with inadequate sanitation systems or little access to clean water. Infants and children are most vulnerable to these diseases, as severe infections can lead to stunting and death. The incidence of cholera and ETEC diarrhea have increased, due in part to changing weather patterns. At present, robust animal models for studies of ETEC colonization are lacking to study colonization and bottlenecks. The only licensed vaccines against cholera in endemic countries are killed whole cells, however, new live attenuated oral cholera vaccines (OCV) are in development and offer significant advantages. PanChol is a live attenuated OCV entering phase I trials. SPECIFIC AIMS: To propel studies of ETEC pathogenesis, I attempted to create a suckling mouse model of this globally important pathogen. To accomplish this goal, I constructed barcoded ETEC libraries that enabled me to determine founding population sizes along with intestinal ETEC burdens. To better understand PanChol, a new live attenuated OCV, I studied the shedding of the vaccine in the first 3 human volunteers to ingest this novel agent. METHODS: Triparental mating of donor strains MFDλpir pJMP1039 and MFDλpir pSM1 with recipient ETEC strains enabled construction of barcoded libraries. Neonatal CD-1 and C57BL/6 mice were infected with 104-107 CFU of wild-type ETEC to develop an infant mouse model. Founding population sizes of ETEC strains were compared via sequencing and STAMPR analysis while CFU burdens were determined via plating. Shedding of PanChol was done through enumeration of serial dilutions of fecal samples. Serotyping of shed PanChol was carried out using anti-Ogawa and anti-Inaba antisera. RESULTS: There were marked differences in ETEC small intestinal colonization in different mouse strains. Outbred CD-1 suckling mice only colonized with a 107 dose. In contrast, colonization of ETEC was approximately 106 CFU/small intestine at inocula sizes of 105 or greater in C57BL/6 mice. Laboratory studies using simulated bottlenecks made by serial dilutions established that the barcoded libraries accurately reflect founding population sizes up to 105 CFU. There was no difference in founding population sizes at the same inoculum size between WT ETEC and a hypervesiculation ∆mlaE mutant, though the founding population size increased with increasing input. PanChol retained the Hikojima serotype and shedding occurred in all volunteers with maximum colonization occurring 3 days post administration of 106 CFU. CONCLUSIONS: C57BL/6 P5 mice can serve as a new model to study ETEC intestinal colonization. Hypervesiculating ETEC did not produce a difference in founding population or colonization at the same input as WT ETEC strains. PanChol shows great promise as a viable OCV with shedding at 106 input and no serotype reversion.

Brucella abortus is a zoonotic agent that primarily infects cattle and causes brucellosis. B. abortus strain RB51 is a live, attenuated vaccine licensed for cattle. However, there is no available vaccine to prevent human brucellosis. Outer membrane vesicles have been tested as potential vaccines to prevent diseases caused by bacterial species. OMV are constantly released from Gram-negative bacteria. They are comprised principally of the outer membrane components and periplasmic proteins from the bacterial cell envelope. The research in this thesis examined the adjuvant property of non-replicative, metabolically active irradiated strain RB51 and the protective ability of OMV derived from strain RB51. Irradiated B. abortus strain RB51 was assessed for its ability to act as an adjuvant to induce protection against malaria. It was found that irradiated B. abortus strain RB51 administered along with fasciclin related adhesive protein (FRAP) to mice induced a protective immune response and a significant decrease in parasitemia after challenge with Plasmodium berghei. Strain RB51 and strain RB51 over-producing Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (Cu/Zn SOD) were used to produce OMV. Western blotting and SDS-PAGE gel staining confirmed the presence of OMV and the over-production of Cu/Zn SOD. OMV were delivered to mice using an intraperitoneal route and, in some cases, with aluminum hydroxide adjuvant. The immune response was assessed by antibody isotyping with respect to OMV and measuring splenic clearance (i.e. protection) from a B. abortus strain 2308 challenge. The results demonstrate that OMV from B. abortus strain RB51 or strain RB51 over producing Cu/Zn SOD produced a Th1 polarized immune response as measured by specific OMV antibodies and cytokines but no statistically significant protection was observed. / Master of Science

This thesis argues for a critical examination of the published writings of Le Sony'r Ra, also known as Sun Ra, a groundbreaking jazz musician and philosopher of the 20th century. Recent redistribution of Sun Ra's musical output, which includes hundreds of releases on many record labels from the 1950's onward, has prompted a critical renaissance towards his influence on jazz orchestration, band management, do-it-yourself ethics, and structured improvisation In spite of this resurgence of interest in his music, his written corpus has failed to produce a comparable level of criticism or discussion. It is my firm belief that it is the body of work's relative scarcity in print, not its value as literature, that has kept the material underground for such a lengthy period of time. With the recent republication of Sun Ra's daunting body of poetry and prose, the discovery of early manuscripts, and the surfacing of relevant critical essays, the time has come to analyze his poetic position within the context of African-American philosophical thought. / Master of Arts

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Yes / This paper revisits the series of disarticulated human remains discovered during the 1980s excavations of the Cnip wheelhouse complex in Lewis. Four fragments of human bone, including two worked cranial fragments, were originally dated to the 1st centuries BC/AD based on stratigraphic association. Osteoarchaeological reanalysis and AMS dating now provide a broader cultural context for these remains and indicate that at least one adult cranium was brought to the site more than a thousand years after the death of the individual to whom it had belonged.