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Air travel has received increasing attention in the climate debate in recent years. Current climate policy in this sector remains weak in comparison to, for example, the road transport sector. In t...

Aviation constitutes about 2.5% of all energy-related CO2 emissions and in addition there are non-CO2 effects. In 2016, the ICAO decided to implement a Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for In...

Global greenhouse gas emissions from air travel (GHG-A) are on the rise, and projections point towards a rapid growth in the coming decades. This study aims to examine how local government (cities), addresses GHG-A in their Sustainable Energy Action Plans (SEAP). To fulfil this aim, over 200 SEAPs were analysed focusing on three issues: (1) Treatment of GHG-A in local emissions inventories; (2) Policy initiatives within this domain; and (3) The cities’ perceptions of the conflicts of interests. Results showed that more than half of the cities acknowledge the challenge of GHG-A, around one third include GHG-A in their emissions inventories, and more than one quarter have initiated policy interventions. To categorise these interventions, we have added a mode ‘governing by agenda setting’ to an existing analytical framework, ‘Modes of governing’. With their authority limited to the local setting, this mode of governing is a common channel for cities to push changes at higher levels.

In Sweden, both parents have a legal right to reduce their working hours to 30 hours per week. Quantitative analysis of 20,000 Swedish parents with children aged between 2 and 7, however, shows mothers to be 14 times more likely to work part time than fathers. Gender imbalance in parents’ part-time employment is thus even more pronounced than in their parental leave take-up, at least in Sweden. An analysis of 14 in-depth interviews with Swedish fathers who have chosen parental part-time work reveals that part-time work represents for them a way to reconcile their separate identities as professionals and as involved fathers. Nevertheless, this study revealed that certain difficulties of a more structural nature complicated this solution for these men; these issues included, in the first place, a strong full-time norm prevailing in male-dominated workplaces, and traditional ideals of masculinity centred on men’s breadwinning role. Furthermore, ideals of gender equality and involved fatherhood also showed themselves as having an impact, enabling new masculine positions for part-time working fathers to emerge.

Studies in patients with acute pancreatitis have shown a correlation between obesity and serious complications or a fatal outcome. However, the mechanisms by which obesity aggravates acute pancreatitis are not known. In the present study we used the sodium taurocholate model of pancreatitis to examine the effect of obesity on severity and outcome in acute experimental pancreatitis (AEP).AEP was induced at two degrees of severity by retrograde infusion of sodium taurocholate (0.2 ml x 3% or 0.4 ml x 3.5%) into the pancreatic duct of rats with obesity induced by high-fat diet, genetically obese (GO) rats or lean control rats. Surviving animals were sacrificed 72 h after induction of pancreatitis.In the low-dose experiment, there were no significant differences in pancreatic histology or survival rate between the groups. In the high-dose experiment, the GO rats had a significantly lower 72-h survival rate than the high-fat obese (HFO) or lean control (LC) groups (GO 25% versus HFO 73%, P0.05; GO 25% versus LC 100%, P0.001). Survival rates in the high-dose experiment correlated strongly with basal liver fat content (R2 = 0.86). Pancreatic histology showed significantly more fat necrosis and a higher total pathological mean score in the HFO rats than in the LC animals (both P0.05).Obesity had a negative influence on the outcome of necrotizing pancreatitis that was related to the magnitude of the pancreatic insult. The sodium taurocholate model in obese rats would be useful for future mechanistic studies of the effect of obesity on pancreatitis.

Luminal nutrients and growth factors regulate postresectional intestinal growth. The interplay between glutamine and regulatory gastrointestinal peptides is not known.The effects of intestinal resection on tissue and plasma concentrations of peptides were studied in 60 Sprague-Dawley rats divided into resected, transected, or unoperated groups. Subgroups were fed either a glutamine-free or a glutamine-supplemented diet for 7 days. Epidermal growth factor, transforming growth factor-alpha, insulin-like growth factors (IGF) I and II, peptide YY (PYY), and enteroglucagon were analyzed in intestinal mucosa and in portal plasma by radioimmunoassay.No glutamine-specific effects were seen. The mucosal content of IGF-II (P0.01) and the portal levels of enteroglucagon and PYY (P0.05-0.01) increased after intestinal resection.The increase in PYY and enteroglucagon in portal blood supports a hormonal role in the postresectional adaptation. The increase in IGF II in the ileal mucosa, without changes in plasma, implies autocrine or paracrine growth stimulation at this stage after resection.

We report the observation of a substantial enhancement in H2 + and H+ ion production when the two-colour (780 and 390 nm) pulses are superposed. A strong dependence of ion yield on the relative directions of the polarization of the two fields is observed. The experimental results are discussed and compared with existing theoretical calculations.

Islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP), also called amylin, is a hormonal peptide produced by the islet beta-cells of the pancreas. Because the peptide is co-stored and co-released with insulin, attention has been focused on IAPP's ability to interfere with glucose metabolism. However, IAPP also has other effects, such as a reduction of food intake.In this study we investigated the dose-response effect of acute systemic administration of rat and human IAPP on food intake, and the cumulative effect of chronically increased circulating IAPP concentrations on food intake and body weight in the rat.All doses of rat IAPP investigated acutely inhibited food intake. The lowest infusion rate of 8 pmol/kg/min caused an 28% inhibition of the food intake at 2 h (p0.05). No effect of human IAPP was observed. Chronic administration of rat IAPP via an osmotic minipump during a 6-day period caused prolonged inhibitory effects on food intake and reduced body weight. During the first 3 days of infusion the food intake of the IAPP group was only 44% of the food intake of the control group (p0.001). The body weight of the IAPP group had fallen 18.6 +/- 2.7 g by day 3, in contrast to a small increase in the control group (4.0 +/- 3.1 g; p0.001). The reduction in food intake was sustained throughout the last 3 days of study (IAPP, 16.7 +/- 1.1 g/day; control, 20.6 +/- 1.5; p0.05). Similarly, the body weight still differed at the end of day 6 and, compared with day 0, was -8.7 +/- 3.7 g for the IAPP group and +10.9 +/- 4.8 for the control group (p0.01).These findings show that chronic increase of circulating IAPP levels can cause a marked reduction in both food intake and body weight and, together with the reduced food intake seen after acute administration of the peptide, indicates the possibility of IAPP functioning as a satiety factor.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of macro-nutrient status on recovery in patients with hip fracture and to observe nutrition during 2 post-operative months. Fifty patients aged 70 years or older, admitted from their homes, were included. Weight index, triceps skinfolds thickness, arm-muscle circumference, serum albumin and transthyretin, body composition, food intake and functional state were determined on admission and 2 and 9 weeks later. On admission, 38% of the patients were regarded as protein-energy malnourished. Subsequent discharge to own homes or need of continued institutional care was not significantly influenced by admission values of nutritional status and body composition, but was related to mental state and social conditions before the fracture and post-operative functional state, including activities of daily living. Deterioration of nutritional status 9 weeks after fracture was significantly greater in the continuing care group than in the discharged patients. Mac...

To ascertain whether the increase in cholecystokinin (CCK) level associated with pancreaticobiliary diversion has a cytoproliferative effect on the liver similar to that on the pancreas, we studied three groups of rats: group I (n = 19) had a pancreaticobiliary diversion and 4 weeks later a 70% liver resection, group II (n = 13) had a liver resection only, and group III (n = 6) underwent a sham liver operation. Tissue samples were taken from the liver and pancreas 48 h after the liver operation. Liver regeneration was evaluated on the basis of continuous incorporation of tritiated thymidine into hepatocytes, liver weight, and DNA content. For confirmation of the increase in CCK levels the effects on the pancreas was studied by measuring wet weight, total protein, and total DNA content. The results showed trophic effects on the pancreas, as expected, but no effects whatsoever on liver regeneration. CCK does not seem to have any role in the regulation of liver regeneration.

We have studied the presence of five neuropeptides in knee joint synovial fluid from either patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis and pain (n = 18) or being subjected to arthroscopy due to meniscal/cruciate ligament injuries (n = 13). Radioimmunoassay technique was used for peptide analysis using antisera SP2 against substance P (SP), K12 against neurokinin A (NKA), CGRPR8 against calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), NPY1 against neuropeptide Y (NPY) and VIP2 against vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP). No SP could be detected, and lower levels of NKA was found in arthritic joints vs controls. CGRP and NPY was found in higher concentrations in arthritic patients vs controls. VIP was found sporadically in both arthritis and control patients. Our data show some quantitative differences between patients suffering rheumatoid arthritis and pain, and patients with non-inflamed joints without pain; indicating an involvement of peptidergic fibers in arthritis in humans.