Increased Corneal Epithelial Turnover Contributes to Abnormal Homeostasis in the Pax6(+/-) Mouse Model of Aniridia

We aimed to test previous predictions that limbal epithelial stem cells (LESCs) are quantitatively deficient or qualitatively defective in Pax6(+/-) mice and decline with age in wild-type (WT) mice. Consistent with previous studies, corneal epithelial stripe patterns coarsened with age in WT mosaics. Mosaic patterns were also coarser in Pax6(+/-) mosaics than WT at 15 weeks but not at 3 weeks, which excludes a developmental explanation and strengthens the prediction that Pax6(+/-) mice have a LESC-deficiency. To investigate how Pax6 genotype and age affected corneal homeostasis, we compared corneal epithelial cell turnover and label-retaining cells (LRCs; putative LESCs) in Pax6(+/-) and WT mice at 15 and 30 weeks. Limbal BrdU-LRC numbers were not reduced in the older WT mice, so this analysis failed to support the predicted age-related decline in slow-cycling LESC numbers in WT corneas. Similarly, limbal BrdU-LRC numbers were not reduced in Pax6(+/-) heterozygotes but BrdU-LRCs were also present in Pax6(+/-) corneas. It seems likely that Pax6(+/-) LRCs are not exclusively stem cells and some may be terminally differentiated CD31-positive blood vessel cells, which invade the Pax6(+/-) cornea. It was not, therefore, possible to use this approach to test the prediction that Pax6(+/-) corneas had fewer LESCs than WT. However, short-term BrdU labelling showed that basal to suprabasal movement (leading to cell loss) occurred more rapidly in Pax6(+/-) than WT mice. This implies that epithelial cell loss is higher in Pax6(+/-) mice. If increased corneal epithelial cell loss exceeds the cell production capacity it could cause corneal homeostasis to become unstable, resulting in progressive corneal deterioration. Although it remains unclear whether Pax6(+/-) mice have LESC-deficiency, we suggest that features of corneal deterioration, that are often taken as evidence of LESC-deficiency, might occur in the absence of stem cell deficiency if corneal homeostasis is destabilised by excessive cell loss

HAMK Kaupallisten tapahtumien liiketoimintamalli

Tämän opinnäytetyön toimeksiantajana toimii Hämeen ammattikorkeakoulun Työelämän lähipalvelut. Opinnäytetyön tavoitteena oli määritellä Työelämän lähipalveluiden kaupallisten tapahtumien liiketoimintamalli. Liiketoimintamallin tavoitteena on toimia kaupallisten tapahtumien tuotantoprosessin tukena. Liiketoimintamalli havainnollistetaan Business Model Canvas-työkalua hyväksi käyttäen. Työn teoriaosuus koostuu liiketoimintamallista, liiketoimintamallin rakentamisesta ja tapahtumatuotannosta. Liiketoimintamallin teoriaa avataan käyttäen Business Model Canvas-työkalun kokonaisuuksia hyväksi käyttäen. Työhön on tehty teemahaastattelu, jossa haastateltiin kolmea henkilöä jotka toimivat tapahtumatuotannon asiantuntijoina. Haastattelun avulla selvitettiin Työelämän lähipalveluiden kaupallisten tapahtumien nykytilannetta ja tulevaisuuden mahdollisuuksia. Haastattelun tulokset on huomioitu liiketoimintamallia rakentaessa. Opinnäytetyön tuloksena on syntynyt kaupallisten tapahtumien liiketoi-mintamalli. Liiketoimintamalli havainnollistaa kaupallisten tapahtumien asiakaskuntaa, myyntiä, tapahtumatuotantoa ja kustannustehokasta ajattelua. Opinnäytetyön loppuun on koottu kehitysehdotukset. Kehitysehdotuksissa käydään läpi kokonaisuuksia, jotka saattaisivat parantaa kaupallisten tapahtumien tuotantoprosessia.This thesis was commissioned by the Business Services of Häme Univer-sity of Applied Sciences. The subject of this thesis was to make a business model of the commercial events of the Business Services. The business model is made to be part of the commercial events’ production process. The business model is illustrated by using the Business Model Canvas tool. The theoretical part of the thesis deals with the parts of the business model, how to build a business model and the event production. The business model itself is opened by using the Business Model Canvas tool. The thesis uses a qualitative research method. The study was made by in-terviewing three professional event organizers. The point of the interview was to clarify the current status of the Business services’ commercial events and the possibilities of the future. The results of the interviews were used when creating the actual business model. As the result of this thesis, the business model was created for the Business Services. The business model elaborates customer markets, sales, event production and cost-efficiency approach of commercial events. The final part of the thesis compiles the development points, which could help the production process of the commercial events

Intermarriage and the risk of divorce in the Netherlands : The effects of differences in religion and in nationality, 1974-1994

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