Protein pharmaceuticals is one of the fastest growing class of therapeutics today. However, they pose a lot of challenges in production lines due to their poor stability. Protein aggregation is one of the most common results of protein instability and is a risk factor regarding the quality of therapeutics. This master thesis at RISE focused on validating the techniques Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS) and multi angle DLS (MADLS) with respect to detection of aggregation. The model protein B-lactoglobulin was used to assess the robustness and accuracy of DLS. A comparison between two instruments from Malvern, Zetasizer Nano (2006) and Zetasizer Ultra (2018) was done with respect to DLS. It was determined that they were in many ways equivalent, but the newer model Ultra was favourable due to reduced noise and its ability to detect a lower concentration of aggregates. MADLS produced more precise results which is reflected in narrower distributions and has a higher sensitivity than DLS with regards to separating particles near in size. Both techniques proved sensitive enough to differentiate between aggregates and native protein. Experimental trials were performed with an active pharmaceutical ingredient, API. The experimental trials with the API aimed to investigate what conditions and surface-interfaces that might pose a risk for aggregation. Despite efforts put in creating an environment where aggregation could be monitored, aggregation could not be established. Measurements with the API generated less reliable results due to noisy data and a lack of reproducibility between individual measurements.

Brain tumors or brain cancer is a disease than affects people of all ages. The median age of a person living with a brain tumor is 60 years, it is however a disease that affects children and young adults in high grade. Brain cancer is the second most common type of cancer among children and is also the most common cause of cancer related death among this group. To ensure that the damages on the brain is as small as possible, it is important that a tumor can be diagnosed and removed as early as possible. Previous methods of diagnosis is based on biopsy where a part of the tumor is removed and examinated by a pathologist. This is a time consuming process that also is biased by the human factor, there is therefore a need for a method that can be used \textit{in situ} with an unbiased result. One method that have shown great promise is photensitation with 5-Aminolevoluic acid (5-ALA). However, this method have shown to only work properly on tumors of high malignancy in adults. As a comlpiment to photosentisation, Raman spectroscopy have shown good promise in previous studies.  This study was conducted to investigate the use of Raman spectroscopy as a tool for \textit{in situ} brain tumor diagnostics. The use of Raman spectroscopy was tested by comparing two previously performed studies, where they looked at a number of Raman bands from biological markers that are known to change in cancerous tissue as well as the intensity ratio between some Raman bands.  A measurement system for Raman spectroscopy was designed and built at Luleå University of Technology where the system were evaluated on tissue samples from conventional meat i.e. pork and beef to ensure that is was possible to achieve spectroscopic information of protein and lipid content in tissue. The measurement system was then transported to Linköpings University where the measurements on six brain tissue samples where performed. The samples came from five different tumors of which one tumor was thought to come from a high malignant tumor based on preliminary histopathological analysis and four from low malignant or benign tumors. Two samples where obtained from the high malignant tumor that was photosentisized with 5-Aminolevoluic acid and one of the samples where illuminated with blue light prior to the Raman spectroscopic measurements.  The spectroscopic data was pre-processed before analysis using conventional methods. The analysed spectra from the brain tissue samples showed presence of the Raman bands associated with brain tissue. It was also possible to see Raman bands associated with 5-ALA in the samples that had been photosentisized, however when the tissue had been illuminated with blue light it was also possible to see distinct Raman bands associated with brain tissue. One tissue sample also showed presence of reduced Neuroglobin (NGB). The composition of NGB is also known to change in tumorous tissue and could therefore be used in future work as a biological marker for brain tumors. When comparing the results obtained in this study with the two previously performed, one of the studies showed that two samples were from a tumor of high malignancy and the other from low malignant or benign tumors. This result was in accordance with the preliminary histopathological assessment of the brain tissue samples. When comparing the results to the other study, the results where contradictory and indicated that all tissue samples where from low malignant or benign tumors.  The conclusion of this work is that Raman spectroscopy is possible to use as a tool for brain tumor diagnostics. It would be desirable to use this method in combination with 5-ALA staining since the Raman bands from brain tissue could be resolved when the tissue had been illuminated with blue light. / Hjärntumörer kan drabba människor i alla åldrar, medelåldern för människor som lever med en hjärntumör är 60 år, men det är ett tillstånd som även drabbar barn och unga i stor utsträckning. Hjärntumörer är den näst vanligaste cancerformen hos barn och är även den främsta orsaken till cancerrelaterad död i den åldergruppen. För att minimera skadorna på hjärnan är det viktigt att en tumör kan lokaliseras och tas bort så tidigt som möjligt. De metoder som används idag bygger framför allt på biopsi, där en del av tumören tas bort och undersöks av en histopatalog. Det är en process som tar lång tid och även påverkas av den mänskliga faktorn, det finns därmed ett behov av en metod som kan avändas \textit{in situ} som ger ett resultat som inte påverkas av den mänskliga faktorn. En metod som har visat lovande resultat är fotosensibilisering med 5-Aminolevulinsyra (5-ALA). Desvärre har den metoden bara visat sig fungera bra för högmaligna tumörer hos vuxna. Som ett komplement till fotosensibilisering har Ramanspektroskopi visat lovande resultat i tidigare genomförda studier.  Det här arbetet genomfördes för att undersöka användningen av Ramanspektroskopi som ett verktyg för diagnostisering av hjärntumörer. Som grund användes två tidigare genomförda studier där de undersökte Ramanband från biologiska markörer i hjärnvävnad som ändras i cancerogen vävnad. De undersökte även hur den biokemiska sammansättningen av hjärnvävnaden ändrades genom att jämföra intensiteten av olika Ramanband.  Ett mätsystem för Ramanspektroskopi designades och byggdes upp på Luleå Tekniska Universitet där det även testades på vävnad från kött (fläsk och biff). Därefter transporterades mätsystemet till Linköpings Universitet för att genomföra mätningar på sex olika vävnadsprov från fem hjärntumörer av olika malignitet. Baserat på en preliminär histopatalogisk bedömning var en av tumörerna högmalignt och de fyra andra tumörerna var antingen lågmalignta eller benigna. Två av proverna som undersöktes kom från den högmalignta tumören som även var fotosensibilierad med 5-Aminolevulinsyra, varav ett av proverna var belyst med blått ljus innan de Ramanspektroskopiska mätningarna genomfördes.  Innan resultatet från Ramanspektroskopiska mätningarna analyserades behandlades datan med konventionella metoder i MatLab. I de resulterade spektrumen gick det att se tydliga Ramanband associerade med hjärnvävnad. Det gick även att se Ramanband associerade med 5-ALA i de två prover som var fotosensibiliserade och i det provet som var belyst med blått ljus innan de spektroskopiska mätningarna gjordes gick det även att se tydliga Ramanband associerade med hjärnvävnad. När resultatet analyserades gick det även att se spektra associerat med reducerat Neuroglobin (NGB) i ett av proverna. Sammansättningen av NGB är också någonting som ändras i cancerogen vävnad och skulle därför också kunna användas som en bilogisk markör för hjärntumörer i framtida studier.  När resultaten från den här studien jämfördes med de tidigare studierna indikerade den ena studien att två av vävnadsproverna kom från en högmalignt tumör och att de resterande fyra från lågmaligna eller benigna tumörer, vilket stämmer överens med den preliminära diagnosticeringen av tumörerna. När resultatet istället jämfördes med den andra studien stämde inte resultatet lika bra med den preliminära diagnosticeringen av tumörerna. Metoden presenterad av Zhou m.fl. indikerade att alla tumörer kom från lågmaligna eller benigna tumörer.  Slutsaten av det här arbetet är att Ramanspektroskopi skulle kunna användas som en metod för diagnosticering av hjärntumörer. Metoden skulle även fungera bra som ett komplement till fotosensibilisering med 5-ALA eftersom att det var möjligt att se Ramanband associerade med hjärnvävnad när vävnaden hade belysts med blått ljus.

Gottlob Harrer (1703-1755) composed at least twenty-seven sinfonias for his patron Count Heinrich von Bruhl in Dresden from 1731-1747, placing them among the earliest concert symphonies written. Harrer's mostly autograph sinfonia manuscripts are significant documents that provide us with a more thorough understanding of musical activities in and around Dresden. Several of the works indicate topical references, including dance, march, and hunt allusions, that comment on the Dresden social occasions for which Harrer composed these works. Harrer mixes topical references with other gestures in several of his sinfonias to create what I believe is an unrecognized affective language functioning in instrumental works of the time. An examination of the topical allusions in Harrer's works solidifies their connection to the social milieu for which he wrote them, and therefore better defines the genre of the concert sinfonia of the time. The first part of this study of Harrer's sinfonias addresses evidence about the composer, his patron, Dresden society, and the circumstances surrounding the first performances of several works, musical evidence of the composer's stylistic and formal approach to the genre, and the rhetorical meaning of topical gestures in the scores in ways not yet explored. In this dissertation, I demonstrate that the stylistic and formal characteristics of Harrer's sinfonias were often influenced by the function and context of their premieres. Part Two of the dissertation provides transcriptions of Harrer's sinfonias, making them available for performance and further study in the hope that such a holistic approach will enrich our appreciation of musical life in Dresden in the 1730s.

This study reports the duties and activities of surveyed public school business education teachers and offers some training alternatives.

Syftet med denna litteraturstudie var att undersöka världens konsumtion och produktion av soja samt den påverkan sojaodlingarna har på ekosystem och ekosystemtjänster. Sojan är rik på protein vilket har gjort den till en viktig gröda för människan, framförallt för vår utfodring av djur. Men den används också i framställningen av biobränsle. Konsumtionen av sojabönorna är störst i Kina men mycket av sojan stannar också kvar i produktionsländerna. Vi har identifierat USA och Brasilien som nutidens största producenter och har fördjupat oss i deras sojaproduktion. I USA påverkar produktionen främst inlandsvåtmarker, gräsmarker och lövskog. Ekosystemtjänster som vattenreglering, kolinlagring och uppväxtmiljöer går förlorade. I Brasilien odlas soja i Amazonas där tropisk regnskog är det ursprungliga ekosystemet, och på Cerradon, vilket är ett tropiskt gräs- och skogslandskap. De främsta förlusterna av ekosystemtjänster är den biologiska mångfalden och flödet av vatten. En för kraftig avskogning av regnskogen har potential till att orsaka en kollaps av ekosystemet som då ersätts av savann. Utöver detta finns en tvåvägsinteraktion i flödet av vatten mellan Cerradon och Amazonas, där båda ekosystemen stöttar varandra. Sojaodlingarna bidrar med ekosystemtjänster i form av mat och råmaterial och har potential till att kompensera en del av sitt ekosystemtjänstavtryck via vattenfiltrering, pollinering och skadedjursbekämpning. Vår slutsats är att sojan även i framtiden kommer vara en viktig gröda på grund av sitt proteininnehåll. Dock behövs en förändring i hur den används då direkt konsumtion av växtprotein är mer effektivt än protein från animaliska källor i en värld där resurserna blir alltmer knappa.  Syftet var även att skapa ett didaktiskt arbetsområde grundat i kunskapen om sojan och dess roll i världen vilken tagits fram i litteraturstudien. Arbetsområdet hittas under rubrik 10. ”Pedagogisk planering”.

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Background & Purpose: The current standard dosimetry in brachytherapy treatment planning, the TG-43 formalism, ignore the presence of non-water media and finite patient dimensions. This can cause clinically relevant errors in dose estimates. To over- come the limitations of the TG-43 formalism, Model-Based Dose Calculation Algorithms (MBDCAs) have evolved. One of the commercial available MBDCAs is the Advanced Collapsed cone Engine (ACE) by Elekta. In ACE, the total dose is divided into three components, the primary, the first-scattered and the multiple-scattered dose, where the two last mentioned are calculated by the means of the Collapsed Cone Algorithm. In this study the performance of ACE has been investigated. The study has been di- vided into 2 parts, where the aim of part 1 was to analyze the relationship between the so called discretization artifacts, caused by the collapsed cone approximation, and the number of dwell positions. The severeness of the artifact is thought to decrease as the number of dwell positions are increased. The second part focus on ACE’s behavior in cortical bone, with the aim to form a hypothesis (explanation and solution) to the previously observed dose underestimation of the dose to bone made by ACE. Materials and Methods: The generic 192Ir source, the Oncentra Brachy (OcB) treatment planning system (TPS) and the Monte Carlo (MC) platform ALGEBRA have been utilized. In the first part of the study, six source configurations, all with a different number of dwell positions, were created and placed in the center of large water phantoms, i.e. under TG-43 conditions in which the TG-43 formalism can be assumed to yield a high accuracy of the estimated dose. The accuracy of ACE has been judged by its’ deviation from TG-43. In the second part of the study, a cubic source configuration, of 27 dwell positions, was positioned at the center of a cubic water phantom. Three cases where constructed, with a small cortical bone heterogeneity positioned at different distances from the source configu- ration. The ACE calculated dose distribution has been divided into its’ three constituents. The accuracy of ACE and TG-43 has been judged by its’ deviation from MC. Results: Part 1 showed that increasing the number of dwell positions does not guar- antee an improved accuracy of ACE. Local dose difference ratios of > 2%, caused by the artifacts, were mainly located outside the 5% isodose line. A general dose underestima- tion was observed in ACE, with an increased magnitude as the dose level decreased. The majority of local dose difference ratios below -4% were found where the multi-resolution voxelization grid of ACE has a voxel size of ≥23 mm3, that is at a distance of ≥8 cm from the closest dwell position when using the ACE standard accuracy level. In part 2, ACE underestimated the dose to cortical bone, with an increased magnitude as the bone was positioned farther away from the source configuration. The TG-43 formalism gave slightly better estimates of the mean dose to bone than ACE, especially at higher dose levels. For a mean dose to the cortical bone heterogeneity equal to 45% of the prescribed dose, TG-43 and ACE underestimated the mean dose with 1% and 4%, respectively. The estimated mean dose to a volume located directly behind the heterogeneity agreed within 1% between ACE and MC. However, an increased amount of positive local dose difference ratios were observed in this volume. Conclusions: Increasing the number of dwell positions cause a ”blurring” effect of the artifact, but may also increase the fluence gradient. In such situations the severeness of the artifact may not be improved. In patient cases the dwell positions are usually added in a more random manner which may favor the ”blurring effect”. The underestimations observed in ACE are thought to be caused by both the multiple- resolution voxelization grid of ACE and the relationship between the dimensions of the phantom in which the multiple-scattered kernel has been generated and the current calcu- lation volume. ACE was unsuccessful to predict the dose to cortical bone, and should hence be used with caution when cortical bone is an organ at risk, as long as the problem remains. The results indicates that the error in ACE is located in the scatter dose calculations and that the heterogeneity cause ACE to displace the dose. The error is thought to be located in the multiple-scattered dose component, which was also shown by Terribilni et al.. A hypothesis is that the problem is caused by the neglected effect of media dependent absorption coefficients in the multiple-scattered dose calculation. A suggested solution, left to be proven, is to use effective attenuation scaling factors.

Våtmarker kan vara ett kostnadseffektivt sätt att reducera den stora mängden näringsämnen som varje år läcker från land ut i Östersjön. I den jordbrukstäta kommunen Mörbylånga på Öland har hittills få åtgärder gjorts för att minska näringsläckaget. Av denna anledning startade Ölands vattenråd tillsammans med Mörbylånga kommun våren 2020 ett pilotprojekt för att utreda möjliga miljöeffekter av att skapa våtmarker inom kommunen. Detta examensarbete syftar till att undersöka den potentiella retention av kväve-och fosfor i fem olika lokaler samt undersöka hur retentionseffektivitet påverkas av storleken (volymen) på våtmarkerna. För att beräkna retention användes Jordbruksverkets retentionsmodeller skapade för våtmarker i södra Sverige. Sambanden mellan retention och våtmarksvolym undersöktes genom regressionsanalys. Våtmarkernas areaspecifika-och relativa retention jämförs och rangordnas, liksom våtmarkernas vattenmagasineringspotential. Resultatet visar att våtmarkers totalretention (kg/år) blir större med ökad våtmarksvolym medan den arealspecifika retentionen (kg/ha och år) blir mindre. Per år kan 830-2655 kg kväve och 14-115 kg fosfor avskiljas i de förslagna våtmarkerna. Störst årlig retention sker i de till ytan största våtmarkerna. Rangordningen för högst total retention av både fosfor och kväve följer våtmarkernas volym i storleksordning från största till minsta. Den arealspecifika retentionen blir 36-760 kg kväve/ha och år och 1,6–115 kg fosfor/ha och år. Högst arealspecifik retention sker i de till ytan mindre våtmarkerna. Rangordningen för arealspecifik retention följer våtmarkernas storlek från minsta volym till största. Resultatet speglar tidigare studier som visat att högre belastning av näringsämnen per ytenhet ökar retentionseffekten. Mindre våtmarker mottar ofta en högre belastning/ha än stora och blir således effektivare per ytenhet. För att minska näringsläckaget till Östersjön kan alltså fler mindre våtmarker på Öland vara mer effektiva än enstaka stora med motsvarande yta. / Pilotprojekt Ölands vattenråd

We present the supersymmetry and localization of an N=2 theory on S3b along with that of an N=(2,2) theory on S2. Performing the dimensional reduction of the theory on S3b produces a theory on S2 with no flux-sectors. A re-evaluated version of twisted reduction is applied on the level of the S3b partition function, arguing for a splitting of the partition function into pieces. The splitting produces flux-like sectors correspondent to the S2 theory but holds the potential for superfluous sectors. An argument interpreting these sectors as true flux is given and utilized to remove superfluous sectors due to topological restrictions on S2. The final result is a method which gives a bijective mapping ZS3b to ZS2 . / Vi utför konstruktionen av två supersymmetriska teorier på en deformerad 3-sfär samt en 2-sfär. Den utökade symmetrin tillåter oss att använda en lokaliseringsmetod för att reducera partitionsfunktionerna till ändligt-dimensionella integraler. På 2-sfären finner vi diskreta konfigurationer vars tolkning vi vill finna i konstruktionen på 3-sfären. Vi utför en dimensionell reduktion ifrån 3-sfären till 2-sfären och finner en ekvivalens som saknar dessa konfigurationer. Som substitut presenteras en metod där integralen delas upp i delar som kan tolkas att vara ekvivalenta med de avsaknade diskreta konfigurationerna. Slutligen framförs ett argument för vilka delar av integralen som kan existera på 2-sfären och resterande delar avfärdas. Resultatet är en exakt avbilding mellan partitionsfunktionerna.

Within temperate coastal seascapes, macroalgae provide habitats for different organisms such as invertebrates and fish. In analogy to seagrass meadows, macroalgae beds are known for their importance as fish nurseries. However, within the Baltic Sea the importance of the canopy forming macroalgae Fucus vesiculosus for coastal fish communities, especially the juveniles, is unclear. In order to address this knowledge gap, fish communities in areas with and without F. vesiculosus were investigated around Askö, an island in the archipelago of the Baltic Sea. Sites were subjected to different exposures (sheltered, exposed or very exposed) and three different methods were used for sampling (underwater visual census (UVCs), beach seine netting and remote underwater videos (RUVs)). Overall, fish community composition differed significantly among locations and fish abundance and fish biomass were significantly higher in sites with F. vesiculosus than sites without. There was no significant relationship between algae cover or habitat complexity and fish abundance/biomass in sites with F. vesiculosus. Fish behaviour differed between sites with and without F. vesiculosus, with fish feeding more in sites with F. vesiculosus and traveling more in sites without F. vesiculosus. Only one location, Knabberskär, had significantly higher species richness in F. vesiculosus than in sites without F. vesiculosus. There were no differences in juvenile abundance among sites with or without F. vesiculosus and abundance of adult fish was higher than juvenile fish, regardless of location, site or species. Mean invertebrate abundance was a twice as high in the sheltered location Husbåtsviken than in Knabberskär. Higher fish abundance, fish biomass and species richness in sites with F. vesiculosus compared to sites without, suggest that macroalgae may play an important role in the Baltic Sea, however it might not be as important for juvenile fishes as predicted. The three different sampling methods provided similar results for fish abundance, but not for fish biomass. Continued studies where the relationship between fish communities and aspects of F. vesiculosus structure (such as canopy height) as well as linkage with other habitats is recommended for further understanding and better protection of F. vesiculosus habitats.