Purpose – This paper aims to analyze the conditions for co-creation in a non-commercial context. The particular aim is to show how a co-creative activity is framed for the participants and the consequences of the frames for the values that are co-created in the process. Design/methodology/approach – Goffman’s frame analysis is applied to investigate how co-creation is used as a marketing strategy

The frequency of obesity has risen dramatically in recent years but only few effective and safe drugs are available. We investigated if green-plant membranes, previously shown to reduce subjective hunger and promote satiety signals, could affect body weight when given long-term. 38 women (40-65 years of age, body mass index 25-33 kg/m(2)) were randomized to dietary supplementation with either gree

In this paper, we address surgical aspects on bariatric surgery in adolescents from a nationwide Swedish study. Laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery was performed for 81 adolescents with morbid obesity (13-18 years), while 81 adolescents with obesity-matched by age, sex, and BMI received conventional care. Another comparison group was adults undergoing gastric bypass at the same institution during

The interaction between polyelectrolytes and counterions in confined situations and the mutual relationship between chain conformation and ion condensation is an important issue in several areas. In the biological field, it assumes particular relevance in the understanding of the packaging of nucleic acids, which is crucial in the design of gene delivery systems. In this work, a simple coarse-grai

HC-128 is an eSTREAM final portfolio stream cipher. Several authors have investigated its security and, in particular, distinguishing attacks have been considered. Still, no one has been able to provide a distinguisher stronger than the one presented by Wu in the original HC-128 paper. In this paper we first argue that the keystream requirement in Wu’s original attack is underestimated by a factor

Obesity is a global problem and in aspects of lethal ethanol intoxications virtually unexplored. The cause of death in ethanol intoxication is generally considered to be suppression of the respiratory function. Previous research indicates that respiratory function is more vulnerable in obese subjects than in those of normal weight. We hypothesized that lethal blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is l

BACKGROUND: LDL oxidation in the vascular wall is associated with aldehyde modification of surrounding extracellular matrix proteins that may target autoimmune responses against vascular tissues. Here we investigated the possible influence of immunity against a malondialdehyde (MDA)-modified form of the basement membrane protein laminin on atherosclerosis. METHODS AND RESULTS: IgM and IgG autoanti

Poly(d,l-lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) is the most frequently used biodegradable polymer in the controlled release of encapsulated drugs. Understanding the release mechanisms, as well as which factors that affect drug release, is important in order to be able to modify drug release. Drug release from PLGA-based drug delivery systems is however complex. This review focuses on release mechanisms,

We examined the association between perceived environmental barriers to outdoor mobility and loneliness among community-dwelling older people. In addition, we studied whether walking difficulties and autonomy in participation outdoors affected this association.

Birds are generally thought to have excellent vision with high spatial resolution. However, spatial contrast sensitivity of birds for stationary targets is low compared to other animals with similar acuity, such as mammals. For fast flying animals body stability and coordination are highly important, and visual motion cues are known to be relevant for flight control. We have tested five budgerigar

This paper introduces two new methods of registering 2D point sets over rigid transformations when the registration error is based on a robust loss function. In contrast to previous work, our methods are guaranteed to compute the optimal transformation, and at the same time, the worst-case running times are bounded by a low-degree polynomial in the number of correspondences. In practical terms, th

A total of 239 isotope samples are used for establishing the delta C-13 chemostratigraphy in the upper Middle Ordovician to Lower Silurian succession in the approximately 70 m long Borenshult drillcore. The study interval starts in the upper Darriwilian Furudal Limestone and ends in the Rhuddanian Motala Formation. Four named delta C-13 excursions are recognized in 3-4 formations, namely the Gutte

In Parkinson disease (PD), affected midbrain dopamine (DA) neurons lose specific dopaminergic properties before the neurons die. How the phenotype of DA neurons is normally established and the ways in which pathology affects the maintenance of cell identity are, therefore, important considerations. Orphan nuclear receptor NURR1 (NURR1, also known as NR4A2) is involved in the differentiation of mid

This part of the Acoustofluidics tutorial series reviews applications in acoustic trapping of micron-sized particles and cells in microfluidic systems. Acoustic trapping enables non-invasive and non-contact immobilisation of cells and particles in microfluidic systems. Acoustic trapping has been used for reducing the time needed to create 3D cell clusters, enhance particle-based bioassays and faci

BACKGROUND:: Sexual health and sexual activity are important elements of an individual's well-being. For couples, this topic is often affected after a myocardial infarction (MI). It has become increasingly clear that, after an MI, patients are insufficiently educated on how to resume normal sexual activity. However, sufficient data on the general knowledge that patients and partners have about sex

Generic immunosuppressants may offer economic advantages, but their use is still controversial. At our centre, 55 heart-transplant patients were switched from CellCept(®) to Myfenax Teva(®) (MT) (n=51, 18% female, 8.1±6.6 years post-transplantation) and/or Prograf(®) to Tacrolimus Sandoz(®) (TS) (n=17, 41% female, 6.6±5.8 years post-transplantation).

Dodecyltrimethylammonium triflate (DTATf) micelles possess lower degree of counterion dissociation (a), lower hydration, and higher packing of monomers than other micelles of similar structure. Addition of sodium triflate ([NaTf] > 0.05 M) to DTATf solutions promotes phase separation. This phenomenon is commonly observed in oppositely charged surfactant mixtures, but it is rare for ionic surfactan

Local irritation and inflammation at the site of administration is a common side effect following administration of parenteral formulations. Biological effects of surface (interfacial) activity in solutions are less well investigated than effects caused by other physico-chemical parameters such as pH and osmolality. The interfacial activity in different systems, including human plasma, typical amp