In the framework of foreign direct investments (FDI) and green finance (GF), environmental regulations (ERs) and green technologies have influenced China’s green economic recovery between 2000 and ...2020. The idea is to conduct an empirical investigation of the main drivers behind China’s green economic revival. Second-generation panel cointegration techniques were adopted for the analysis. The relationship among ERs, green technological investment, GF, and green economic recovery is supported by the long-run cointegration results. In this context, some of the most important measures include ER, GF, and increased investment in environmentally friendly technologies. The estimated results demonstrate a positive contribution towards the green economic recovery from GF, the development of green technologies, and ERs. Evidence suggests that green economic recovery is inversely associated with FDI. The establishment of an environmentally sustainable economy can be rendered by policy implications to continue advocating for the green shift in financial institutions along with enforcing the appropriate regulations and laws.
Osteoporosis is characterized by a decrease in bone mass and destruction of the bone microarchitecture, and it commonly occurs in postmenopausal women and the elderly. Overactivation of osteoclasts ...caused by the inflammatory response or oxidative stress leads to osteoporosis. An increasing number of studies have suggested that intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) are strongly associated with osteoclastogenesis. As a novel angiotensin (Ang) II receptor blocker (ARB), azilsartan was reported to be associated with the inhibition of intracellular oxidative stress processes. However, the relationship between azilsartan and osteoclastogenesis is still unknown. In this study, we explored the effect of azilsartan on ovariectomy-induced osteoporosis in mice. Azilsartan significantly inhibited the receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL)-mediated osteoclastogenesis and downregulated the expression of osteoclast-associated markers (Nfatc1, c-Fos, and Ctsk)
. Furthermore, azilsartan reduced RANKL-induced ROS production by increasing the expression of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2). Mechanistically, azilsartan inhibited the activation of MAPK/NF-κB signaling pathways, while Nrf2 silencing reversed the inhibitory effect of azilsartan on MAPK/NF-κB signaling pathways. Consistent with the
data, azilsartan administration ameliorated ovariectomy (OVX)-induced osteoporosis, and decreased ROS levels
. In conclusion, azilsartan inhibited oxidative stress and may be a novel treatment strategy for osteoporosis caused by osteoclast overactivation.
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic and degenerative condition that persists and progresses over time. Sipeimine (Sip), a steroidal alkaloid derived from Fritillariae Cirrhosae Bulbus, has attracted ...considerable attention due to its exceptional anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antioxidant, and anti-cancer characteristics. However, Sip's effects on OA and its mechanism still need further research.
This study utilized network pharmacology to identify initial targets for Sip. Functional associations of Sip in OA were clarified through Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis, bioinformatically analyzing a list of targets. Subsequently, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis assessed pathways linked to Sip's therapeutic efficacy in OA. Molecular docking techniques explored Sip's binding affinity with key targets. In vitro experiments assessed Sip's impact on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced pro-inflammatory factors and its protective effects on collagen-II and aggrecan degradation within the extracellular matrix (ECM). Western blotting and fluorescence analyses were conducted to determine Sip-mediated signaling pathways. Moreover, in vivo experiments using a mouse OA model validated Sip's therapeutic efficacy.
The results from network pharmacology revealed a total of 57 candidate targets for Sip in OA treatment. GO enrichment analysis demonstrated a robust correlation between Sip and inflammatory response, response to LPS and NF-κB-inducing kinase activity in OA. KEGG enrichment analysis highlighted the significance of NF-κB and PI3K-AKT pathways in Sip's therapeutic potential for OA. Furthermore, molecular docking results demonstrated Sip's robust binding affinity with p65 and PI3K. In vitro experiments demonstrated Sip's effectively suppressed the expression of pro-inflammatory factors induced by LPS, such as COX-2, iNOS, IL-1β, and IL-18. Besides, Sip counteracted the degradation of collagen-II and aggrecan within the ECM and the expression of MMP-13 and ADAMTS-5 mediated by LPS. The safeguarding effects of Sip were ascribed to its inhibition of PI3K/AKT/NF-κB pathway and NLRP3 inflammasome mediated pyroptosis. Additionally, in vivo experiments revealed that Sip could alleviate the subchondral remodeling, cartilage degeneration, synovitis as well as ECM degradation a mouse model of OA.
Sip exhibited potential in attenuating OA progression by suppressing the PI3K/AKT/NF-κB pathway, consequently inhibiting the activation of NLRP3 inflammasome and pyroptosis.
The translational potential of this articleThis study provides a biological rationale for the use of Sip as a potential candidate for OA treatment, provide a new concept for the cartilage targeted application of natural compounds.
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The translational potential of this article: This study provides a biological rationale for the use of Sip as a potential candidate for OA treatment, provide a new concept for the cartilage targeted application of natural compounds.
We present here a fully coupled global aerosol and chemistry model for the troposphere. The model is used to assess the interactions between aerosols and chemical oxidants in the troposphere, ...including (1) the conversion from gas‐phase oxidants into the condensed phase during the formation of aerosols, (2) the heterogeneous reactions occurring on the surface of aerosols, and (3) the effect of aerosols on ultraviolet radiation and photolysis rates. The present study uses the global three‐dimensional chemical/transport model, Model for Ozone and Related Chemical Tracers, version 2 (MOZART‐2), in which aerosols are coupled with the model. The model accounts for the presence of sulfate, soot, primary organic carbon, ammonium nitrate, secondary organic carbon, sea salt, and mineral dust particles. The simulated global distributions of the aerosols are analyzed and evaluated using satellite measurements (Moderate‐Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)) and surface measurements. The results suggest that in northern continental regions the tropospheric aerosol loading is highest in Europe, North America, and east Asia. Sulfate, organic carbon, black carbon, and ammonium nitrate are major contributions for the high aerosol loading in these regions. Aerosol loading is also high in the Amazon and in Africa. In these areas the aerosols consist primarily of organic carbon and black carbon. Over the southern high‐latitude ocean (around 60°S), high concentrations of sea‐salt aerosol are predicted. The concentration of mineral dust is highest over the Sahara and, as a result of transport, spread out into adjacent regions. The model and MODIS show similar geographical distributions of aerosol particles. However, the model overestimates the sulfate and carbonaceous aerosol in the eastern United States, Europe, and east Asia. In the region where aerosol loading is high, aerosols have important impacts on tropospheric ozone and other oxidants. The model suggests that heterogeneous reactions of HO2 and CH2O on sulfate have an important impact on HOx (OH + HO2) concentrations, while the heterogeneous reaction of O3 on soot has a minor effect on O3 concentrations in the lower troposphere. The heterogeneous reactions on dust have very important impacts on HOx and O3 in the region of dust mobilization, where the reduction of HOx and O3 concentrations can reach a maximum of 30% and 20%, respectively, over the Sahara desert. Dust, organic carbon, black carbon, and sulfate aerosols have important impacts on photolysis rates. For example, the photodissociation frequencies of ozone and nitrogen dioxide are reduced by 20% at the surface in the Sahara, in the Amazon, and in eastern Asia, leading to 5–20% reduction in the concentration of HOx and to a few percent change in the O3 abundance in these regions.
By concurrently manipulating the degrees of freedom associated with polarization and orbital angular momentum (OAM), a variety of vector fields can be generated, which exhibit unique characteristics ...and have found extensive application in both classical and quantum optics. However, the OAM dimensions in these fields have been predominantly confined to two. Different from high-order OAM with a large topological charge, broadening the OAM dimensions beyond this limit and generating OAM spectra with multiple OAM modes can significantly enhance the scope of research. In this study, we explore vector fields with OAM dimensions exceeding ten, achieving polarization-controlled spectra in higher-dimensional OAM. Our findings not only offer a method for controlling high-dimensional OAM through polarization but also pave the way for potential applications in both classical and quantum realms utilizing high-dimensional vector states.
Floral scents are considered major attractants for pollinator species and scent composition is likely to be under pollinator‐mediated selection. Relatively, few studies have investigated geographical ...variation in floral scents in plant species with generalist pollination, and little is known about the mechanism behind this variation, often interpreted as the result of local adaptation to pollinators without considering phenotypic plasticity. One possible way to investigate this question is to compare floral bouquets both in natural populations and in populations reared under controlled conditions.
We compared the identity and proportions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), collected on plants both in the field and in the greenhouse, emitted by four generalist plant species found in six calcareous grasslands distributed along an environmental and diversity gradient. We recorded pollinator visits in the field to document geographical variation of pollinator communities associated with each plant species. We then analysed the relation between VOCs and pollinator variation using a redundancy analysis (RDA).
We found that VOC composition differed among species and among populations, but also between field and greenhouse. The RDA showed a significant effect of the variation in pollinator communities associated with the variation in the VOCs emission, even after removing potential confounding effects, suggesting some stability in the compounds attractive to a given pollinator species. However, only one species showed significant geographical differences among populations tested in both conditions, suggesting local genetic adaptation. Another species showed geographical variation in VOC proportion in the field, but these results were not confirmed by the greenhouse extractions, suggesting an effect of phenotypic plasticity.
Our findings suggest that geographical variation of floral scent may, in some cases, be genetically based and possibly explained by pollinator‐mediated selection, even in generalist pollinated species, which represent the large majority of pollination systems. However, our results also showed significant phenotypic plasticity, suggesting that studies of floral volatiles must be conducted in natural populations to obtain a representative picture of the signal that can be potentially perceived by pollinators.
A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.
Résumé
Les odeurs florales sont considérées comme des composants attractifs majeurs pour les pollinisateurs et la composition des odeurs est devrait être soumise à une sélection médiée par les pollinisateurs. Relativement peu d'études se sont focalisées sur la variation géographique des odeurs florales chez les espèces végétales à pollinisation généraliste, et peu de choses sont connues sur les causes de cette variation, souvent interprétée comme le résultat d'une adaptation locale aux pollinisateurs, sans tenir compte de l'effet de la plasticité phénotypique. Une façon d'étudier cette question est de comparer les bouquets floraux à la fois dans les populations naturelles et dans les populations cultivées en conditions contrôlées.
Nous avons comparé l'identité et les proportions des composés organiques volatils (COV), prélevés sur les plantes à la fois sur le terrain et en serre, au sein de quatre espèces végétales généralistes présentes dans six prairies calcaires réparties le long d'un gradient environnemental et de diversité. Nous avons mesuré les visites des pollinisateurs sur le terrain afin de documenter la variation géographique des communautés de pollinisateurs associées à chaque espèce de plante. Nous avons ensuite analysé la relation entre les COV et la variation des pollinisateurs en utilisant une analyse de redondance (RDA).
Nous avons constaté que la composition des COV différait entre espèces et entre populations, mais aussi entre le terrain et la serre. La RDA a montré un effet significatif de la variation des communautés de pollinisateurs associée à la variation de l'émission des COV, même après avoir éliminé les effets confondants potentiels, suggérant une certaine stabilité dans les composés attractifs pour une espèce de pollinisateur donnée. Cependant, une seule espèce a montré des différences géographiques significatives entre les populations testées dans les deux conditions, ce qui suggère une adaptation génétique locale. Une autre espèce présente une variation géographique dans la proportion de COV sur le terrain, mais ces résultats n'ont pas été confirmés par les extractions en serre, ce qui suggère un effet de plasticité phénotypique.
Nos résultats suggèrent que la variation géographique de l'odeur florale peut, dans certains cas, avoir une base génétique et peut‐être expliquée par la sélection médiée par les pollinisateurs, même chez les espèces avec une pollinisation généralistes, qui représentent la grande majorité des systèmes de pollinisation. Cependant, nos résultats ont également montré un rôle significatif de la plasticité phénotypique, suggérant que les études sur les bouquets floraux doivent être menées dans des populations naturelles pour obtenir une image représentative du signal potentiellement perçu par les pollinisateurs.
A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.
Objective
We evaluated the effect of a novel modified OLIF technique (anteroinferior psoas approach, AIPA) for anterior decompression reconstruction in lumbar burst fractures, and compared the ...clinical, radiological outcomes and approach-related complications with the mini-open, lateral transpsoas approach (LTPA).
Methods
From March 2016 to November 2019, 68 patients with lumbar burst fractures underwent one-stage monosegmental posterior/anterior surgery from L1–L4 segments. 35 patients included in AIPA and 33 patients in LTPA group underwent anterior decompression reconstruction. The clinical, radiological and functional evaluation outcomes were recorded during the 16–60 months follow-up period.
Results
At the latest follow up, neurological state of one or more ASIA grades were achieved in AIPA (90.9%) and LTPA group (94.9%). No significant differences were noted between the two groups regarding preoperative and postoperative Cobbs angle. The surgery time (192.29 vs. 230.47 min,
P
= 0.02) in AIPA group was better compared with LTPA. The AIPA showed better improvement on Oswestry Disability Index (43.4% vs. 60.8%,
P
< 0.05) and Mental Component Score (49.0% vs. 43.7%,
P
< 0.05) one month after surgery, but no difference at the latest follow-up. 10 patients (9 in LTPA and 1 in AIPA) experienced temporary motor deficits in hip flexor and groin or thigh numbness, which disappeared six months after surgery.
Conclusions
Compared with lateral transpsoas approach, anterior decompression reconstruction
via
mini-open, anteroinferior psoas approach was a safe and less invasive approach, with fewer approach-related complications in the treatment for unstable lumbar burst fractures
The interface energies and electronic structures of (112) grain boundaries of CuInSe
2
thin films were investigated by first-principle calculations. It is found that the grain boundary with a Cu ...vacancy has low interface energy and exists widely in the films. The Cu deficiency may cause the charge imbalance and result in an upward band bending at the grain boundary. It also weakens the repulsion between Cu-3d orbital and Se-4p orbital and leads to the downward shift of valence band maximum. The two mechanisms, namely the band bending from the charge imbalance and the depression of the valence band maximum, have effects on the (112) grain boundaries with different defects. The change of band structure forms a potential barrier to prevent electrons or holes from approaching the grain boundary and reduces their recombination. This might be used to explain the effects of the grain boundary on carrier transportation and why polycrystalline Cu(In,Ga)Se
2
thin film solar cells have better performance than single-crystal cells.
The formation of succinimide in proteins has attracted considerable attention in protein aging and biopharmaceutical research. The succinimide formation occurs spontaneously in proteins and is prone ...to hydrolysis to yield aspartate and isoaspartate, resulting in altered protein functions. Herein, we demonstrated that the coupling reagent 4-(4,6-dimethoxy-1,3,5-triazin-2-yl)-4-methylmorpholinium chloride (DMTMM) can mediate intramolecular cyclization of aspartic acid to form succinimide efficiently in the LL37-derived short antimicrobial peptide KR12. The formation of succinimide in KR12 was confirmed by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance. Moreover, the succinimide-containing KR12 displayed decreased antimicrobial activity, helicity, and serum stability in comparison with unmodified KR12. The succinimide formation usually changes the protein structure and function, and only in rare cases, it can help to maintain the protein stability. In addition to succinimide, DMTMM can also mediate intraresidue cyclization of N-terminal glutamate to form pyroglutamate. Our work thus provides a convenient and efficient method for preparation of succinimide/pyroglutamate-containing peptides, which can be used for studying their impact on peptide/protein function.
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