Tissue factor (TF), a 47 kDa glycoprotein, is the initiator of the extrinsic pathway of blood coagulation and consequently of the upmost importance when damage to blood vessel occurs. The source of TF in circulation has been investigated. However, the source of TF is still not clear. One theory is that platelets express and increases the expression of TF after stimulation and the aim of our report was to investigate whether platelets really are a source for TF in circulation.Using specific primers for TF mRNA, platelets in plasma from healthy volunteers and from patients suffering from cardiac infarction were analyzed by using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Gel electrophoresis was performed after amplification of TF mRNA to verify the results.The samples were negative for TF when using real-time PCR and the few positive all had cycle threshold (Ct) values above 35.

When constructing a road the risk of emission of substances from the used materials to the surrounding environment has to be evaluated. The aim of this study is to present a proposal for how to evaluate the risk of contamination as a result of emission from the materials in a road construction. The study is based on literature studies, an inventory and a questionnaire that examines how experts in governmental agencies, industries and universities evaluate the risk of contamination. The inventory indicates that guidelines for evaluating the risk of emission from secondary materials in a road construction do not exist. The conclusions from the questionnaire are: that there is no common way to evaluate the risk of contamination as a result of emission from materials in the road construction, there is no uniform interpretation of the terms "minor" and "significant" risk of contamination and that the evaluation is subjective.

AbstractThis report aims, through interviews, observations and literature review to examine what some of the youngest children know about the heart, blood and bloodstream. The sample size was twenty children, half of them are at the age of three and the other half is at the age of six.The interviews showed that children at the age of six had better knowledge than children at the age of three, but one child knew that we have the blood corpuscle in the body. He was also the only one who mentioned the blood corpuscle of all children who participated in the research. Children at the age of three could not see the functional relationship between the blood and heart. One child who was six years told that the air we breathe goes directly in the heart from where the blood is circulating to the rest of the body, together with the food.Keywords: heart, blood, bloodstream, the body.

The purpose of this BA-study is to analyse articles about blood selling and blood donations in the Chinese daily newspaper People?s Daily between 1985 and 1998.With publications of popular scientific material, reports from rallies and portraits of blood donating ?heroes? etc., the People?s Daily, i.e. the Chinese Com­mu­nist Party, actively addresses the underlying cultural reluctance to give blood by different means. People?s Daily and the CCP resolutely aims to transform negative Confucian and other traditional notions of losing blood into represen­tations of courage, honour, duty, etc.

Following the wake of the AIDS-catastrophe in the beginning of the eighties, homosexual men or 'men who have sex with men' (MSM) have been barred from donating blood throughout the planet. In this thesis I look into the different discourses at play in the context of creating the legal framework for blood donation in Sweden. Genealogically tracing the emergence of the category of MSM and mapping how the category is brought to use in contemporary negotiations on blood safety, I scrutinize how scientific truth is established within blood transfusion practice. I argue that the rationality of risk group exclusion is contingent on economical grounds, and that the foucauldian concept of biopolitics could productively be used to understand this rationality. In particular, the concept of the 'biopolitics of blood' can be employed in order to understand the reluctance from the involved actors to acknowledge the heteronormative consequences of the legal framework of contemporary blood donation..

In Sweden, lowest acceptable haemoglobin levels in blood donators are 125g/L for women and 135g/L for men for a test sample taken in the beginning of the blood donation. Levels, which are 10g/L lower, are accepted if the sample is taken after the blood donation. Earlier studies show that the haemoglobin level decreases for a person that is lying down.The two aims of this study were to examine how much the haemoglobin levels change during blood donation and to examine if the photometrical instrument Pronto-7TM shows equivalent results to that of the established method Cell-Dyn Sapphire.In the study, 120 blood donors participated. Blood samples were taken in the beginning and in the end of the donation. Analyses by Pronto-7TM were done before and after the donation.The haemoglobin level decreased significantly during the blood donation.

In this study, pollen contamination (measured by the number of seeds pollinated by pollen not belonging to any of the clones on the seed orchard) is compared between open pollination and isolated pollination environments in a Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) seed orchard called Västerhus, located outside Önsköldsvik. In this seed orchard a tent experiment is taking place. Skogforsk has built six large tents covering 12-14 trees with each tent. Fertilization patterns were compared between one tree in a tent with a supplementation of pollen from five clones not represented in the tent and another tree of the same clone subject to open pollination outside the tents. By using DNA markers the paternity was determined for 48 seeds from each tree.

In this study, pollen contamination (measured by the number of seeds pollinated by pollen not belonging to any of the clones on the seed orchard) is compared between open pollination and isolated pollination environments in a Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) seed orchard called Västerhus, located outside Önsköldsvik. In this seed orchard a tent experiment is taking place. Skogforsk has built six large tents covering 12-14 trees with each tent. Fertilization patterns were compared between one tree in a tent with a supplementation of pollen from five clones not represented in the tent and another tree of the same clone subject to open pollination outside the tents. By using DNA markers the paternity was determined for 48 seeds from each tree.

Hematology-instruments that analyze blood cells can at specific cases be followed by manual counting with a hemocytometer. The plastic hemocytometer which has a fixed coverslip and is assigned for disposable use, appears to reduce the problems arising from the use of the traditional glass hemocytometer, for instance coverslip-application difficulty and dust particles. Capillary whole blood sampling may be useful for patients at the emergency department and in addition, a smaller volume of blood is taken compared to venous blood sampling. This study will focus on the platelet- and leukocyte count (PLT and WBC) in venous and capillary blood, in order to compare the plastic- and glass hemocytometers with Sysmex XN-2000 (Sysmex Corporation, Kobe, Japan), and verify if capillary whole blood sampling can be used for the measurement of these hematological parameters. 30 subjects donated both capillary- and venous blood samples and these blood samples were analyzed with glass- and plastic hemocytometers with Sysmex XN-2000 as the reference method.

Hemoglobin is an oxygen binding protein in erythrocytes. Hemoglobin is composed of four polypeptide chains. During the fetal stage the type of hemoglobin called fetal hemoglobin (HbF) dominates. After birth HbF is replaced by adult hemoglobin (HbA). HbF persists in concentrations less than 1%.

The present MA thesis analyzes how body and blood functions as historical and narrative elements in Yu Hua's novel Chronicle of a Blood Merchant (1995). In the novel, the story and the plot can not be regarded as disparate items; the two levels of the text are tightly interwoven by what the thesis introduces as a sangvinolent narration. The term conceptualizes the use of blood as a structural element and the thrust of the text, in this case how the ability to sell blood is a prerequisite for the story and the plot.Close readings reveal the structural correlations between the blood-selling main-character Xu Sanguan in the plot on the one hand, and in the story on the other, which can be detected to have, inter alia, an effect on the temporality of the narrative. Themes linked to identity, belonging and survival (performativity, mimicry, reification and alienation) permeate the text. In the novel the body and bodily fluids are sacrificed in order to form and enforce perceptions of identity and societal roles.The rhetorical use of ?blood and tears? (Ch.

Aim: The aim is to create a review that examines different forms of massage therapy and their effects on hypertension.Method: Literature review of 10 scientific articles on the subject of massage and its effects on blood pressure. The literature searches were made with PubMed and Cinahl using the keywords "massage therapy", "effects" and "blood pressure".Results: The articles showed that massage had a positive effect in lowering blood pressure. This could be explained by greater extent of relaxation in the participants investigated and an increased activity of parasympaticus and reduced secretion of stress hormones. The articles do not agree on what form of massage therapy is most effective in lowering blood pressure and it is uncertain for how long the effect can remain.Conclusion: Massage is usually seen as a treatment without scientific basis. There is evidence that suggests that massage therapy is an effective treatment for lowering blood pressure.

Blood sampling is one of the most important diagnostic tools in veterinary medicine, and this is also true for avian medicine. A properly collected and handled venous sample can be used for serology, biochemistry and electrolyte analysis, as well as for blood smears, packed cell volume and cell differentiation. Caring for sick birds is a challenge for all veterinary staff. Many birds are easily stressed individuals, and to a very ill bird a big increase in stress level can even be fatal. Avian patients who are presented in a veterinary clinic are often in a poor condition, and blood sampling is an invasive procedure that can cause stress to the patient.

 The aim of the study was auditing medical records examine postoperative blood glucose levels after undergoing CABG surgery. Furthermore the aim was to determine if the ward staff abides the local guidelines frame of reference concerning each ward, regarding blood glucose measurements and blood glucose levels. The study included 70 patients undergoing CABG surgery at the cardiothoracic surgery, Uppsala University Hospital. The study was conducted by retrospective medical record auditing. Studied factors were postoperative blood glucose levels, number of registered blood glucose measurements, a current diagnosis of DM and preoperative HbA1c.

Aim: The aim is to create a review that examines different forms of massage therapy and their effects on hypertension.Method: Literature review of 10 scientific articles on the subject of massage and its effects on blood pressure. The literature searches were made with PubMed and Cinahl using the keywords "massage therapy", "effects" and "blood pressure".Results: The articles showed that massage had a positive effect in lowering blood pressure. This could be explained by greater extent of relaxation in the participants investigated and an increased activity of parasympaticus and reduced secretion of stress hormones. The articles do not agree on what form of massage therapy is most effective in lowering blood pressure and it is uncertain for how long the effect can remain.Conclusion: Massage is usually seen as a treatment without scientific basis. There is evidence that suggests that massage therapy is an effective treatment for lowering blood pressure.