•This paper is the first to compare the impacts of government policies and national culture on social distancing.•This paper is the first to investigate the relationship between social distancing and ...all six of Hofstede’s national culture dimensions.•This paper focus on the first wave of the COVID-19 outbreak since it isolates the impact of culture and government policies better than in the second wave.
We assess the impact of national culture and government policies on social distancing to fight COVID-19 across major economies during the first wave of the pandemic. To do so, we regress government stringency index from Oxford COVID-19 government response tracker together with Hofstede’s national culture scores on social distancing data from Google mobility reports. We find that government stringency has a far larger impact on social distancing than national culture. Social distancing increases with government stringency. We find two cultural dimensions matter: social distancing decreases with ‘Long-term Orientation’; the opposite is true for ‘Indulgence’. Our results convey that policymakers must act decisively rather than blaming the culture.
The aim of the present study was to investigate the protective effects of Shenfu injection (SFI) against myocardial ischemia–reperfusion injury (MIRI) in model rats and to explore its mechanism of ...action. Sprague–Dawley (SD) rats were pretreated with SFI and NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) via tail vein injection and then rats were subjected to ischemia by occlusion of the left anterior descending coronary artery for 30 min followed by reperfusion for 120 min. Left ventricular function was evaluated by echocardiography. Hemodynamic was measured by the Millar pressure–volume system; serum creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and serum troponin (TNNI3) levels were determined. Myocardial infarct size was observed by 2,3,5-triphenyl-2H-tetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining; p-Akt/Akt, and p-endothelial nitric oxide synthase (p-eNOS)/eNOS levels were assessed by Western blotting; nitric oxide (NO) content in serum was determined by the Griess reaction. SFI significantly decreased serum CK, LDH and TNNI3 levels in MIRI rats, while it significantly increased the level of left ventricular systolic pressure (LVSP), left ventricular diastolic pressure (LVDP), maximal rate of the increase of left ventricular pressure (+dp/dtmax), maximal rate of the decrease of left ventricular pressure (−dp/dtmax), left ventricle ejection fraction percentage (EF), and stroke volume (SV). In addition, SFI significantly reduced myocardial infarction area and activated the phosphorylation of eNOS via Akt. The phosphorylation of eNOS and the concurrent increase of NO production contributed significantly to the protective effects of SFI. These results demonstrate that SFI protects the rat heart against MIRI and that this effect is mediated in part by Akt/eNOS signaling.
PM2.5 is becoming a worldwide environmental problem, which profoundly endangers public health, thus progressively capturing public attention this decade. As a fragile target of PM2.5, the underlying ...mechanisms of endothelial cell damage are still obscure. According to the previous microarray data and signaling pathway analysis, a new form of cell death termed ferroptosis in the current study is proposed following PM2.5 exposure. In order to verify the vital role of ferroptosis in PM2.5-induced endothelial lesion and further understand the potential mechanism involved, intracellular iron content, ROS release and lipid peroxidation, as well as biomarkers of ferroptosis were detected, respectively. As a result, uptake of particles increases cellular iron content and ROS production. Meanwhile, GSH depletion, and the decrease of GSH-Px and NADPH play significant roles in PM2.5-induced endothelial cell ferroptosis. Moreover, significantly changed expression of TFRC, FTL and FTH1 hinted that dysfunction of iron uptake and storage is a major inducer of ferroptosis. Importantly, index monitored above can be partially rescued by lipid peroxidation inhibitor ferrostatin-1 and iron chelator deferoxamine mesylate, which mediated antiferroptosis activity mainly depends on the restoration of antioxidant activity and iron metabolism. In conclusion, our data basically show that PM2.5 enhances ferroptosis sensitivity with increased ferroptotic events in endothelial cells, in which iron overload, lipid peroxidation and redox imbalance act pivotal roles.
PM2.5 could ignite endothelial cell ferroptosis through iron overload and redox imbalance.
Quercetin is a bioactive compound that is widely used in botanical medicine and traditional Chinese medicine due to its potent antioxidant activity. In recent years, antioxidant activities of ...quercetin have been studied extensively, including its effects on glutathione (GSH), enzymatic activity, signal transduction pathways, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) caused by environmental and toxicological factors. Chemical studies on quercetin have mainly focused on the antioxidant activity of its metal ion complexes and complex ions. In this review, we highlight the recent advances in the antioxidant activities, chemical research, and medicinal application of quercetin.
High demand for green ecosystems has urged the human community to reconsider and revamp the traditional way of synthesis of several compounds. Ammonia (NH3) is one such compound whose applications ...have been extended from fertilizers to explosives and is still being synthesized using the high energy inhaling Haber‐Bosch process. Carbon free electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) is considered as a potential replacement for the Haber‐Bosch method. However, it has few limitations such as low N2 adsorption, selectivity (competitive HER reactions), low yield rate etc. Since it is at the early stage, tremendous efforts have been devoted in understanding the reaction mechanism and screening of the electrocatalysts and electrolytes. In this review, the electrocatalysts are classified based on the periodic table with heat maps of Faraday efficiency and yield rate of NH3 in NRR and their electrocatalytic properties toward NRR are discussed. Also, the activity of each element is discussed and short tables and concise graphs are provided to enable the researchers to understand recent progress on each element. At the end, a perspective is provided on countering the current challenges in NRR. This review may act as handbook for basic NRR understandings, recent progress in NRR, and the design and development of advanced electrocatalysts and systems.
This review focuses on electrocatalytic properties of periodic elements toward the nitrogen reduction reaction. Recent advancements and working mechanisms of various elements are illustrated with appropriate tables and graphs. Overall, this review intends to open different directions for the fabrication of high efficiency electrocatalysts.
High gravimetric energy density, earth-abundance, and environmental friendliness of hydrogen sources have inspired the utilization of hydrogen fuel as a clean alternative to fossil fuels. Hydrogen ...evolution reaction （HER）, a half reaction of water splitting, is crucial to the low-cost production of pure H2 fuels but necessitates the use of electrocatalysts to expedite reaction kinetics. Owing to the availability of low-cost oxygen evolution reaction （OER） catalysts for the counter electrode in alkaline media and the lack of low-cost OER catalysts in acidic media, researchers have focused on developing HER catalysts in alkaline media with high activity and stability. Nickel is well-known as an HER catalyst and continuous efforts have been undertaken to improve Ni-based catalysts as alkaline electrolyzers： In this review, we summarize earlier studies of HER activity and mechanism on Ni surfaces, along with recent progress in the optimization of the Ni-based catalysts using various modern techniques. Recently developed Ni-based HER catalysts are categorized according to their chemical nature, and the advantages as well as limitations of each category are discussed. Among all Ni-based catalysts, Ni-based alloys and Ni-based hetero-structure exhibit the most promising electrocatalytic activity and stability owing to the fine-tuning of their surface adsorption properties via a synergistic nearby element or domain. Finally, selected applications of the developed Ni-based HER catalysts are highlighted, such as water splitting, the chloralkali process, and microbial electrolysis cell.
The neuroanatomical basis behind acupuncture practice is still poorly understood. Here, we used intersectional genetic strategy to ablate NPY+ noradrenergic neurons and/or adrenal chromaffin cells. ...Using endotoxin-induced systemic inflammation as a model, we found that electroacupuncture stimulation (ES) drives sympathetic pathways in somatotopy- and intensity-dependent manners. Low-intensity ES at hindlimb regions drives the vagal-adrenal axis, producing anti-inflammatory effects that depend on NPY+ adrenal chromaffin cells. High-intensity ES at the abdomen activates NPY+ splenic noradrenergic neurons via the spinal-sympathetic axis; these neurons engage incoherent feedforward regulatory loops via activation of distinct adrenergic receptors (ARs), and their ES-evoked activation produces either anti- or pro-inflammatory effects due to disease-state-dependent changes in AR profiles. The revelation of somatotopic organization and intensity dependency in driving distinct autonomic pathways could form a road map for optimizing stimulation parameters to improve both efficacy and safety in using acupuncture as a therapeutic modality.
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•Intersectional genetic manipulation of NPY+ sympathetic cells•Electroacupuncture stimulation (ES) drives distinct sympathetic pathways•ES operates in somatotopy- and intensity-dependent manners•NPY+ noradrenergic neurons bidirectionally modulate systemic inflammation
Liu et al. reveals a neuroanatomical basis for acupuncture practice, showing that electroacupuncture stimulation can drive distinct autonomic pathways and modulate systemic inflammation in somatotopy-, stimulation-intensity-, and disease-state-dependent manners.
The exploitation and utilization of mineral resources can induce externality problems. An environmental tax rate directly affects pollution reduction results and the green production of resources ...industries. Considering the higher pollution emission of resource-based industries, China’s environmental tax rate is too low to fully compensate for externality and it impedes technological innovation. This paper firstly calculates the optimal tax rate of China’s resource-based industries, based on the statistical relationship between environmental tax rates and pollution emissions. Then, the efficiency of green technology innovation is evaluated. The results show that environmental externalities have a depressing effect on green technology innovation. Furthermore, this paper constructs a threshold effect model of the impact of the optimal environmental tax rate on green technology efficiency. It turns out that the air pollution tax rate has a non-linear effect on green technology innovation, and the implementation standard of tax is lower than the optimal tax rate. In addition, the water pollution tax has no optimal level and has an uncertain impact on green innovation. Therefore, China should gradually increase the environmental tax rate, in order to achieve pollution reduction and technological innovation.
•Optimal Environmental tax should be commensurate with the level of emissions.•China’s environmental tax rate is too low to compensate for externality.•Environmental externality has a depressing effect on green technology innovation.•The implementation standard of tax is lower than the optimal tax rate.•The air pollution tax rate has a non-linear effect on green technology innovation.
Endothelial cells integrally form a crucial interface that maintains homeostasis of the cardiovascular system. As a vulnerable target of PM2.5, the underlying mechanisms of endothelial cell damage ...have yet to be fully elucidated. In the current study, two types of cell death, including autophagy and apoptosis, and an important organelle of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) were focalized following PM2.5 exposure. As a result, the internalization of PM2.5 has the ability to induce excess ER stress, which is a crucial step for further autophagy and apoptosis in human endothelial cells, as confirmed by the pre-treatment with the inhibitor of ER stress (4-PBA) which effectively mitigates the apoptosis rate and LC3II expression. Intriguingly, crosstalk between ER stress and autophagy demonstrated that ER stress is probably involved in autophagic events, whereas autophagy has no significant effect on ER stress but confer a protective role against PM2.5-induced endothelial cell apoptosis. Moreover, PM2.5 results in blockage of autophagic flux (failed fusion between autophagosomes and lysosomes), which is detrimental to endothelial cell survival. In conclusion, our findings provide a valuable insight into the relation between autophagy and apoptosis under PM2.5-induced ER stress conditions, where the interplay between them ultimately determines cell fate.
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•ER stress induced by PM2.5 facilitates endothelial cell autophagy and apoptosis.•Autophagy confers a protective role in PM2.5-induced apoptosis.•Dysfunction of autophagic flux, or defective autophagy promotes cell apoptosis.•ER stress may lead to autophagic events in response to PM2.5, but not vice versa.
This article reviews the correlation between angiotensin‐converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) and severe risk factors for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) and the possible mechanisms. ACE2 is a crucial ...component of the renin‐angiotensin system (RAS). The classical RAS ACE‐Ang II‐AT1R regulatory axis and the ACE2‐Ang 1‐7‐MasR counter‐regulatory axis play an essential role in maintaining homeostasis in humans. ACE2 is widely distributed in the heart, kidneys, lungs, and testes. ACE2 antagonizes the activation of the classical RAS system and protects against organ damage, protecting against hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Similar to SARS‐CoV, SARS‐CoV‐2 also uses the ACE2 receptor to invade human alveolar epithelial cells. Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a clinical high‐mortality disease, and ACE2 has a protective effect on this type of acute lung injury. Current research shows that the poor prognosis of patients with COVID‐19 is related to factors such as sex (male), age (>60 years), underlying diseases (hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease), secondary ARDS, and other relevant factors. Because of these protective effects of ACE2 on chronic underlying diseases and ARDS, the development of spike protein‐based vaccine and drugs enhancing ACE2 activity may become one of the most promising approaches for the treatment of COVID‐19 in the future.
Research Highlights
ACE2 plays an important role in renin‐angiotensin system and homeostasis.
ACE2 has a protective effect on acute lung injury and for the COVID‐19 patients with underlying diseases.
The development of spike protein‐based vaccine and drugs enhancing ACE2 activity may become one of the most promising approaches for the treatment of COVID‐19.
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