A shorter dry period length has in studies abroad showed some positive effects among high yielding dairy cows. Among other things it has been suggested that the periparturient metabolic stress becomes lower, that the fertility is improved and dry off becomes gentler for the udder, due to a lower milk yield. The milk yield is generally reduced during the first period after calving, especially among primiparous cows. The aim of this master thesis was to investigate how Swedish cows were affected by a shortened dry period, regarding milk yield, metabolism, health, body condition and body weight from two months before calving to some weeks after calving. Also plasma concentration of lactose during the period before calving was determined.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the occurrence of Verotoxin-encoding bacteriophages in mussels, cultured downstream the sewage treatment plant in Lysekil.Mussels were collected in three growing areas from April 2008 to March 2009. Real-time PCR was performed for detection of vtx1 and vtx2 genes and enrichment of bacteriophages on non Verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli O157: H7 was carried out. All samples in real-time PCR analysis were negative; no presence of Verotoxin-encoding phages was shown. No plaque was formed on blood agar base plates, indicating that no bacteriophages had been taken up by E. coli bacteriaThe levels of Verotoxin-encoding phages and E.coli outside the sewage treatment plant in Lysekil were not high enough to be able to form VTEC in mussels, indicating that the faecal contamination was low.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of an infusion of hypertonic saline solution (HSS) in combination with an oral waterload on cows suffering from rightsided displacement of the abomasum (RDA). Six dairy cows were treated with 7,2% HSS in a dosis of 5 ml per kg bodyweight. They also received an oral waterload of approximately 15 liters. To monitor changes in fluid-, acid-base- and electrolyte-balance, bloodsamples were collected during the next 24 hours. During this period, the cows also underwent surgery to empty and correct the position of the abomasum.

Background: Heart failure is a complex condition which means that the hearts capacity topump blood is reduced. The aim of this study was to investigate how patients with heartfailure considered their knowledge and the information they received about their disease andself-care.Method: Patients suffering from heart failure, hospitalized at section 30 E (n=13), andpatients visiting the nurse led heart failure clinic (n=4) at Akademiska sjukhuset in Uppsala,were requested to participate in the study. The patients answered questions about knowledgeand information concerning self-care and their disease. Data were analyzed using SPSS 15.0.Results: The patients valued their knowledge about the disease as lower than their knowledgeabout self-care. The study showed that all the patients found the information they hadreceived about their self-care better than the information they had received about theirdisease.

SAMMANFATTNINGNatriuretiska peptider är en är en grupp proteiner som via natriuretiska, diuretiska och vasodilaterande egenskaper reglerar vätskehomeostasen i kroppen (Levin et al, 1998). De frisätts bland annat när hjärtmuskelcellerna utsätts för stress och kan fungera som biomarkör för att utvärdera hjärtsjukdom. Analysering av typ B natriuretic peptide (BNP) i blod kan komma att vara till hjälp för den praktiserande veterinären vid diagnostisering av hjärtsvikt och även vid uppskattning av grad av hjärtsjukdom. Det har även visat sig att BNP kan användas för att uppskatta prognosen hos hundar med kronisk klaffdegeneration (Chetboul et al, 2009; Moonarmart et al, 2010).Kronisk klaffdegeneration är den vanligaste hjärtsjukdomarna hos hund och drabbar fram för allt små till medelstora hundar från medelåldern och uppåt (Kogure, 1980). Atrioventrikulärklaffarna, vanligtvis mitralis, blir nodulärt förtjockade med inlagring av glukosaminoglykaner och fibrosvävnad vilket leder till klaffinsufficiens.

Bakgrund: Antalet personer med diabetes i världen ökar ständigt. Dåliga levnadsvanor ökar risken för diabeteskomplikationer. Vården har ett ansvar att stärka patientens motivation och förmåga till egenvård. Syfte: Undersöka effekten av MI som behandlingsmetod för att hjälpa diabetespatienter till förbättrad egenvård.   Metod: Litteraturstudie. Artikelsökningar gjordes i de medicinska databaserna Pubmed, Cinahl och Scopus. I studien inkluderades 10 originalartiklar varav fem var av medelkvalitet och fem av hög kvalitet.

Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) is a feline viral disease with high mortality. There is no cure or any effective vaccine available today. Many questions are yet to be answered about this disease and the immune response in affected cats. The aim of the study is to evaluate two different techniques for the study of cytokine profiles in cats vaccinated with a vaccine concept against FIPV. More information about the immune response in these cats could give valuable information to better understand the pathogenesis of the disease and the development of an effective vaccine.

Peritonitis is a potentially life-threatening disease in horses. With no published work from Sweden, the objective of the study was to describe the occurrence and demographics of horses with peritonitis and to evaluate the outcome of treatment in terms of short-term survival during a ten-year period in a large clinic in Sweden. Data were examined in a retrospective manner in 69 horses diagnosed with and treated for peritonitis at Universitetsdjursjukhuset (UDS) in Uppsala between 2002-2012. Demographic data examined included age, breed, gender, history, duration of illness before arriving at UDS, reason for seeking veterinary care, initial clinical findings (general state of health, heart rate, respiratory rate, mucous membrane appearance, rectal temperature, abdominal sounds, rectal examination, nasogastric tube results), abdominocentesis results (abdominal fluid analysis including visual inspection, leukocytes and protein, cytology, bacterial culture and sensitivity pattern), complete blood count (CBC), Serum amyloid-A (SAA) upon presentation and a follow up, plasma fibrinogen, plasma protein and albumin, treatments, length of hospitalisation and outcome. All medical records with the diagnosis of peritonitis were extracted from the medical records system Trofast. All records with any other diagnosis code referring to trauma such as rectal tear or ruptured uterus, recent abdominal surgery, external trauma or rupture in the gastrointestinal tract were excluded. To be included in the study, the peritoneal fluid should contain more than 20.000 cells/?L, have a peritoneal protein value of >30 g/L; or have a significantly changed peritoneal fluid sample (orange with increased turbidity or worse) in cases where no data on cells or protein were available. The horses were divided into two groups; one where the peritonitis was deemed to have an idiopathic aetiology (primary peritonitis) and the other group where the peritonitis had a possible aetiology such as intestinal parasites, impaction etc.

Laminitis is a debilitating disease causing much suffering to horses and ponies all over the world. It is manifested in the hooves as a mechanical failure of the suspensory apparatus between the hoof capsule and the distal phalanx. Due to the weight of the horse the disease may result in a dislocation of third phalanx. Six healthy standardbred trotters were used in this study on whether standardbreds tolerate forced recumbency as well as Shetland ponies. Recumbency was induced pharmacologically but maintained only by lowering the ceiling height of the box to a height of approximately 125 ? 140 % of the horse´s thoracic height.

SAMMANFATTNINGNatriuretiska peptider är en är en grupp proteiner som via natriuretiska, diuretiska och vasodilaterande egenskaper reglerar vätskehomeostasen i kroppen (Levin et al, 1998). De frisätts bland annat när hjärtmuskelcellerna utsätts för stress och kan fungera som biomarkör för att utvärdera hjärtsjukdom. Analysering av typ B natriuretic peptide (BNP) i blod kan komma att vara till hjälp för den praktiserande veterinären vid diagnostisering av hjärtsvikt och även vid uppskattning av grad av hjärtsjukdom. Det har även visat sig att BNP kan användas för att uppskatta prognosen hos hundar med kronisk klaffdegeneration (Chetboul et al, 2009; Moonarmart et al, 2010).Kronisk klaffdegeneration är den vanligaste hjärtsjukdomarna hos hund och drabbar fram för allt små till medelstora hundar från medelåldern och uppåt (Kogure, 1980). Atrioventrikulärklaffarna, vanligtvis mitralis, blir nodulärt förtjockade med inlagring av glukosaminoglykaner och fibrosvävnad vilket leder till klaffinsufficiens.

SAMMANFATTNINGNatriuretiska peptider är en är en grupp proteiner som via natriuretiska, diuretiska och vasodilaterande egenskaper reglerar vätskehomeostasen i kroppen (Levin et al, 1998). De frisätts bland annat när hjärtmuskelcellerna utsätts för stress och kan fungera som biomarkör för att utvärdera hjärtsjukdom. Analysering av typ B natriuretic peptide (BNP) i blod kan komma att vara till hjälp för den praktiserande veterinären vid diagnostisering av hjärtsvikt och även vid uppskattning av grad av hjärtsjukdom. Det har även visat sig att BNP kan användas för att uppskatta prognosen hos hundar med kronisk klaffdegeneration (Chetboul et al, 2009; Moonarmart et al, 2010).Kronisk klaffdegeneration är den vanligaste hjärtsjukdomarna hos hund och drabbar fram för allt små till medelstora hundar från medelåldern och uppåt (Kogure, 1980). Atrioventrikulärklaffarna, vanligtvis mitralis, blir nodulärt förtjockade med inlagring av glukosaminoglykaner och fibrosvävnad vilket leder till klaffinsufficiens.

In this study I compare the donor portraits on wallpaintings in Scanian churches from the 12th and the 15th century and relate them to medieval society.I find that women were equally capable of owning and donating land during the entire period. The image of the ideal woman changed during the 14th century from a married woman to the unreachable mistress of the chivalrous culture and the holy virgin. Women had a natural place beside their husbands in 12th century donor portraits, while single male donors are more frequent in the 15th century. While 12th century donors were supposed to show their position in society by offering plentiful donations directly to God, donors in the 14th century instead strived to present themselves as humble and pious. The individualisation of late medieval society meant that people had to depend on themselves to achieve salvation..

Totally 84 differentially expressed mRNA clones from infective L3 larvae of the parasite Haemonchus contortus, a blood sucking nematode, were analyzed with single strand hybridization assay (SSH). Altogether 79 clones were sequenced, edited, and compared with proteins found via BLAST in GeneBank. The aim was to investigate gene expression and potential protein expression following storage at 5 °C for 32 weeks. mRNA was extracted from fresh and stored L3. The SSH derived products were cloned into E.

Apart from recognizing and neutralizing threats, antibodies also have the ability to regulate immune responses against their specific antigen. IgG administered together with erythrocytes is well known to induce >99% suppression. This has been used to prevent haemolytic disease in new-borns since the 1960's, but the mechanism behind it is still not completely understood. The effect on the primary response is well established, but its influence on induction of immunological memory is still heavily debated. In this study adoptive cell transfer of splenocytes to irradiated mice was used to survey the effect IgG has on induction of immunological memory without disturbance from the primary IgG response.

In the early 1860´s, the author and opinion former Fredrika Bremer made a large donation of books to Högre lärarinneseminariet, which is the first governmental institute for higher education of women in Sweden. The aim of this thesis is to describe the collection of donated books as well as to extract information regarding Bremer's international network of contacts, her views on women's education and her relation to Högre lärarinneseminariet. Furthermore, the aim is to highlight the unique relationship between Fredrika Bremer's private collection of the books and the library of Högre lärarinneseminariet from a gender perspective. A handwritten list of the 321 titles constitutin the donation has been preserved in the seminar archive and three quarters of the books have been re-discovered in a bookcase at Årsta castle. The donation is characterized by its double origin as stamps and personal dedications remain as permanent traces in the books.