Corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting is a communication channel between companies and stakeholders. As the literature has largely been confined to exploring privately-owned enterprises, ...state-owned enterprises (SOEs)—a typical example of public sector organizations—warrant further investigation. This study examines SOEs’ accountability structures and reporting features, which are dominated by state owners and mainly driven by non-financial objectives. Through a content analysis of the CSR reports of 49 SOEs and 111 non-SOEs in China, we analyze the stakeholders and CSR domains involved in the reporting. The findings demonstrate that SOEs disseminate the full coverage of stakeholders and a wider scope of CSR domains in disclosure. We extend the debate on CSR-reporting research by demonstrating how state ownership influences hybrid organizations’ self-expression and accountability frame through our finding of a distinctive specialized sub-organization with strong ties to the state that drives CSR internally.
Reverse roll coating in which a thin single layer of liquid is applied onto a substrate has been used in industry for decades and has been extensively analyzed in the literature. Modern coatings, ...however, are often composed of more than one layer to improve product performance and to reduce manufacturing cost. Pre-metered methods such as slot, slide and curtain coating are typically used to produce such multilayer coatings. If the caliper of the substrate to be coated is not constant, the coating gap and consequently the final film thickness deposited on the web will also be non-uniform. In this study we focused on the use of reverse roll technique with slot die liquid delivery system to produce a uniform thin two-layer coating. The use of this coating technique to produce such a coating has not been previously explored. The liquid film surface as it is transferred from a rigid steel roll to a deformable urethane covered roll was visualized in order to find out how the uniformity of two layer coating is affected by the speed ratio between two rolls, layers wet thickness and liquid viscosities. The effect of these parameters on the ribbing frequency and amplitude was also investigated. The results show that in two layer coating, as in the single layer reverse transfer, there is a critical web speed above which ribbing occurs. The critical speed is determined by the bottom layer viscosity.
The extent of rare side effects of mRNA vaccines for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) remains unclear. Several cases of antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV) ...following COVID-19 vaccination have been reported. We herein report a 72-year-old man who presented with a fever after receiving the second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. He was diagnosed with acute kidney injury due to myeloperoxidase-ANCA-associated vasculitis and was treated with intermittent hemodialysis, high-dose prednisolone, and intravenous rituximab. His general symptoms and renal impairment subsequently improved. When systemic symptoms are prolonged or renal abnormalities appear after COVID-19 vaccination, the possibility of AAV should be considered.
Hydrogel‐based, molecular permeable electronic devices are considered to be promising for electrical stimulation and recording of living tissues, either in vivo or in vitro. This study reports the ...fabrication of the first hydrogel‐based devices that remain highly electrically conductive under substantial stretch and bending. Using a simple technique involving a combination of chemical polymerization and electropolymerization of poly (3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT), a tight bonding of a conductive composite of PEDOT and polyurethane (PU) to an elastic double‐network hydrogel is achieved to make fully organic PEDOT/PU–hydrogel hybrids. Their response to repeated bending, mechanical stretching, hydration‐dessication cycles, storage in aqueous condition for up to 6 months, and autoclaving is assessed, demonstrating excellent stability, without any mechanical or electrical damage. The hybrids exhibit a high electrical conductivity of up to 120 S cm−1 at 100% elongation. The adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation of neural and muscle cells cultured on these hybrids are demonstrated, as well as the fabrication of 3D hybrids, advancing the field of tissue engineering with integrated electronics.
Highly conductive and stretchable 2D and 3D hybrids of a poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) and polyurethane (PU) composite with a double‐network hydrogel are described. These hybrid platforms retain high conductivity during stretching, bending, storage in water, and autoclaving, together with permeability and biocompatibility, and have immense potential to advance tissue engineering by applying concerted mechanical and electrical cues.
Background and aims
The aim of this study was to evaluate structural and functional alterations of human serum albumin (HSA), with a special focus on the oxidized and reduced forms, in patients with ...chronic liver disease. We also investigated whether oral branched-chain amino acid (BCAA) supplementation could induce structural changes and improve the functions of HSA.
Methods
The proportion of reduced and oxidized HSA was determined in 16 healthy controls and in 20 chronic hepatitis and 100 cirrhotic patients with stable conditions. To evaluate the functional properties of HSA, this study focused on the antioxidant and binding functions. The radical scavenging activity and binding ability of purified HSA were measured in 68 participants. After BCAA administration for 6 months, 29 patients were evaluated for HSA structural changes, with 19 out of the 29 patients also analyzed for HSA functional changes.
Results
There was a significant decrease in the amounts of reduced HSA in conjunction with liver disease progression. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis demonstrated that the levels of reduced HSA had high accuracy in determining disease progression. Functional alterations were strongly correlated to the levels of reduced HSA. BCAA supplementation led to substantial increases in the amount of reduced HSA. The altered HSA was able to scavenge significantly more radicals and restore the binding ability.
Conclusion
This study describes structural alterations and functional disturbances of HSA in patients with chronic liver disease, and indicates that the levels of reduced HSA might reflect disease progression and the functional properties of HSA. Moreover, oral BCAA supplementation increases the amount of reduced HSA, thereby leading to the restoration of HSA function in cirrhotic patients.
Isocitrate dehydrogenase-1 (IDH1) R132 mutations occur in glioma, but their physiological significance is unknown. Here we describe the generation and characterization of brain-specific Idh1 R132H ...conditional knock-in (KI) mice. Idh1 mutation results in hemorrhage and perinatal lethality. Surprisingly, intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) are attenuated in Idh1-KI brain cells despite an apparent increase in the NADP(+)/NADPH ratio. Idh1-KI cells also show high levels of D-2-hydroxyglutarate (D2HG) that are associated with inhibited prolyl-hydroxylation of hypoxia-inducible transcription factor-1α (Hif1α) and up-regulated Hif1α target gene transcription. Intriguingly, D2HG also blocks prolyl-hydroxylation of collagen, causing a defect in collagen protein maturation. An endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress response induced by the accumulation of immature collagens may account for the embryonic lethality of these mutants. Importantly, D2HG-mediated impairment of collagen maturation also led to basement membrane (BM) aberrations that could play a part in glioma progression. Our study presents strong in vivo evidence that the D2HG produced by the mutant Idh1 enzyme is responsible for the above effects.
Mutations in the IDH1 and IDH2 genes encoding isocitrate dehydrogenases are frequently found in human glioblastomas and cytogenetically normal acute myeloid leukaemias (AML). These alterations are ...gain-of-function mutations in that they drive the synthesis of the ‘oncometabolite’ R-2-hydroxyglutarate (2HG). It remains unclear how IDH1 and IDH2 mutations modify myeloid cell development and promote leukaemogenesis. Here we report the characterization of conditional knock-in (KI) mice in which the most common IDH1 mutation, IDH1(R132H), is inserted into the endogenous murine Idh1 locus and is expressed in all haematopoietic cells (Vav-KI mice) or specifically in cells of the myeloid lineage (LysM-KI mice). These mutants show increased numbers of early haematopoietic progenitors and develop splenomegaly and anaemia with extramedullary haematopoiesis, suggesting a dysfunctional bone marrow niche. Furthermore, LysM-KI cells have hypermethylated histones and changes to DNA methylation similar to those observed in human IDH1- or IDH2-mutant AML. To our knowledge, our study is the first to describe the generation and characterization of conditional IDH1(R132H)-KI mice, and also the first report to demonstrate the induction of a leukaemic DNA methylation signature in a mouse model. Our report thus sheds light on the mechanistic links between IDH1 mutation and human AML.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Turmeric products have many useful physiological functions and are widely used as health food and food ingredient. Here, we report the use of HPLC-ESI-MS/MS to simultaneously quantify bisacurone and ...three curcuminoids (curcumin, demethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcumin) in turmeric products (high viscosity liquid, granular powder, tablet, and solution). The results showed that the standard values and measured values of curcumin in each product were almost same. Demethoxycurcumin and bisdemethoxycurcumin were contained in each products. Meanwhile, the content of bisacurone differed greatly among the products. In particular, the highest amount of bisacurone was found in the turmeric product A (high viscosity liquid, 9.48 g/100 g product). It would become important to consider the bisacurone content in turmeric products.
Natural selection operates on a suite of life-history traits. Those traits are under constraints and trade-offs which often differ among species. Thus, there are an array of suites found in insects. ...Studies conducted to date predict two reproductive strategies in the family Cerambycidae: body-size dependent ovariole number and pro-ovigeny versus body-size independent ovariole number and synovigeny. To investigate these relationships, we examined the elytral length, the body mass, the number and development of ovarioles, and the content of alimentary canals for adult females of three cerambycid species captured in mulberry orchards. The results confirmed synovigeny in two lamiines
Apriona japonica
Thomson (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) and
Psacothea hilaris
(Pascoe) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) and no adult feeding in the cerambycine
Xylotrechus chinensis
(Chevrolat) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae). We also found the dependence of ovariole number on body size and pro-ovigeny in
X. chinensis
, whereas invariable numbers of ovarioles irrespective of body size and synovigeny were found in
A. japonica
and
Ps. hilaris
. Two likely different suites of reproductive traits including size dependence of ovariole number and ovigeny are discussed by comparing life-history traits of nine cerambycids reported by the present and previous studies.
Tumor cells generally require large amounts of nucleotides, and thus activate de novo purine synthesis (dnPS). In the dnPS reactions, 10-formyltetrahydorofolate (10-fTHF) supplied by one-carbon ...metabolism is utilized as a formyl group donor. We focused on aldehyde dehydrogenase 1 family member L1 (ALDH1L1), which metabolizes 10-fTHF to tetrahydrofolate and whose expression is often attenuated in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We generated ALDH1L1-expressing HuH-7 cells to perform metabolome analysis and found that intracellular levels of serine were reduced and glycine was increased. In addition, 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleotide (ZMP), a dnPS intermediate, accumulated due to the consumption of 10-fTHF by ALDH1L1, which inhibited ZMP formylation. Importantly, ALDH1L1-expressing cells showed reduced ZMP sensitivity and higher mitochondrial activity. The suppression of mitochondrial serine catabolism by ALDH1L1 expression was speculated to be closely related to this phenotype. Gene set enrichment analysis utilizing The Cancer Genome Atlas data revealed that genes related to oxidative phosphorylation were enriched in HCC patients with high ALDH1L1 expression. Moreover, drug sensitivity data analysis demonstrated that HCC cell lines with low expression of ALDH1L1 were sensitive to ZMP and cordycepin, a structural analog of ZMP and AMP. Our study revealed that ZMP and AMP analogs might be effective in the pharmacotherapy of HCC patients with low expression of ALDH1L1.
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