Search Results (68)

This study investigates how various renewable energy technologies influence national carbon intensity (CO₂ emissions per unit of GDP) across 184 countries over the period 2000–2020. In the context of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 7 and SDG 13) and the post-Paris-Agreement policy landscape, it addresses the gap in understanding technology-specific decarbonization effects and the role of governance. A dynamic panel framework employing the Dynamic Common Correlated Effects (DCCE) estimator accounts for cross-sectional dependence and temporal persistence, while disaggregating total renewables into hydropower, wind, solar, and geothermal generation. Environmental regulation is incorporated as a moderating variable using the World Bank’s Regulatory Quality index. Empirical results demonstrate that higher renewable generation is associated with statistically significant reductions in carbon intensity, with hydropower showing the most consistent negative effect across all income groups. Solar and geothermal technologies yield substantial carbon-reducing impacts in lower-middle-income settings once supportive policies are in place. Wind exhibits heterogeneous outcomes: positive or insignificant effects in some high- and upper-middle-income panels prior to 2015, shifting toward neutral or negative after more stringent regulation. Interaction terms reveal that stronger regulatory environments amplify renewable-driven decarbonization, particularly for intermittent sources such as wind and solar. Key contributions include (1) a comprehensive global assessment of four disaggregated renewable technologies; (2) integration of regulatory quality into decarbonization pathways, illustrating post-2015 policy moderations; and (3) methodological advancement through a large-sample DCCE approach that captures unobserved common shocks and heterogeneous country dynamics. These findings inform targeted policy measures—such as prioritizing hydropower where feasible, strengthening regulatory frameworks, and tailoring technology strategies—to accelerate low-carbon energy transitions worldwide. Full article

Background/Objectives: Hepatoblastoma, the most common malignant liver tumor in pediatric patients, is characterized by a remarkably low mutation rate, thereby impeding targeted therapies. Current treatment regimens rely on conventional cytotoxic agents that often cause severe adverse effects, necessitating the search for novel, less toxic therapeutic approaches. Methods: In this study, we explored the anti-tumor potential of heat shock protein 90 (HSP90) inhibitors using a unique collection of hepatoblastoma in vitro models. Results: Among the five tested inhibitors, we identified ganetespib as the most effective, significantly suppressing tumor cell growth while sparing healthy, non-tumor cells. Ganetespib treatment at low nanomolar concentrations markedly reduced cell proliferation, impaired long-term survival, and inhibited three-dimensional spheroid growth, ultimately leading to the induction of apoptosis. Mechanistically, ganetespib downregulated the expression of the HSP90 client protein cyclin-dependent kinase 1, a key cell cycle regulator controlling G2/M phase transition, which is heavily upregulated in hepatoblastoma. This disruption consequently resulted in cell cycle arrest, further contributing to its anti-tumor effects. Conclusions: HSP90 inhibition by ganetespib demonstrates significant potential as a novel therapeutic strategy for hepatoblastoma, offering a potential alternative to current cytotoxic treatments with fewer adverse effects. Full article

Acetic acid, a common weak acid in industrial fermentation processes, occurs naturally in lignocellulosic hydrolysates and is a byproduct of microbial metabolism. As a significant environmental stressor, it triggers the expression of multiple genes involved in various cellular responses, including biological processes, cellular components, and molecular functions. Using the acid-tolerant strain Pichia kudriavzevii PkAC-9, developed through adaptive laboratory evolution under acetic acid stress, we conducted a transcriptional analysis of 70 stress response-associated genes. RT-qPCR analysis revealed significant upregulation of several genes compared with the wild-type strain under acetic acid stress conditions. The most dramatic changes occurred in genes encoding key metabolic enzymes and stress response proteins associated with the TCA cycle (Fum: 18.6-fold, Aco: 17.1-fold, Oxo: 9.0-fold), carbon and energy metabolism (Tdh2: 28.0-fold, Erg2: 2.0-fold), electron transport chain (Gst: 10.6-fold), molecular chaperones (Hsp104: 26.9-fold, Hsp70: 13.0-fold, Sgt2: 10.0-fold), and transcriptional activators. Our findings indicate that the enhanced acetic acid tolerance of P. kudriavzevii PkAC-9 primarily depends on the coordinated upregulation of genes involved in energy metabolism, cellular detoxification mechanisms, and protein quality control systems through heat shock and transcriptional activator proteins. Full article

Background: Shoulder pain is a very common health issue among adults, being 8% due to calcifying tendinopathies (CT) of the shoulder. The evolutionary process of this lesion can be classified according to Bianchi Martinoli, depending on the ultrasound appearance. In 50% of cases, with first-line treatments, they resolve spontaneously. However, in the remaining 50%, they become chronic, requiring other lines of treatment, such as shock waves (ESWT) or ultrasound-guided barbotage (US-PICT). Objectives: The objective focuses on comparing the improvement in pain using the visual analgesic scale (VAS) and shoulder joint balance (ROM) in patients with CT based on the treatment received, stratifying according to the characteristics of the injury, with the aim of protocolizing said treatment. Methods: Randomized analytical controlled clinical trial in blocks with two arms according to the Bianchi Martinolli classification (I or II/III) in 56 patients affected by chronic pain by CT. The decision to treat will be made randomly 1:1, based on the treatment assigned to the previous patient. Results will be evaluated in three moments (1, 3, and 6 months). The following variables will be collected: VAS, Lattinen test, ROM (flexion, abduction, external and internal rotation), patient global improvement impression scale (PGI-I), global improvement impression scale (CGI-C). Discussion: The use of ESWT or US-PICT as treatments is a widely used practice in the daily life of this pathology. However, despite knowing that both treatments are useful in chronic CT, there are no known data or protocols by which one therapy is chosen over another, much less the influence that the evolutionary stage can have of the injury in the results obtained. Full article

Background: Extremity fractures are common injuries in polytraumatized patients. Concomitant injuries to the soft tissue, vessels and nerves in these fractures are defined as mangled extremities. The decision for or against limb salvage is dependent on the patient’s physiology and the limb status. In severely injured patients with critical physiological status, limb salvage may be contraindicated. International data on the epidemiology and management of mangled limbs in severely injured patients are lacking. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess the incidence of polytraumatized patients with severe injuries to either upper (UL) or lower limb (LL) as well as their management. Methods: A retrospective cohort analysis was conducted of patients aged 16 years and above with an Injury Severity Score (ISS) ≥ 16 who sustained fractures to the limbs and were admitted to a certified trauma center of the TraumaRegister DGU^® (TR-DGU) between 2009 and 2019. Results: In total, we assessed 32,572 patients (UL: 14,567, mean age 48.3 years, 70% male and LL: 18,005, mean age 47.0 years, 70.5% male) The mean ISS in UL was 28.8 (LL 29.3). Fractures to the humerus (n = 4969) and radius (n = 7008) were predominantly assessed in UL, and fractures to the femur (n = 9502) and tibia (n = 8076) were most common in LL. In both groups, the most frequent injury mechanism was motor vehicle accidents, and more than half (UL: 9416 and LL: 11,689) of the patients had additional severe Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) ≥ 3 chest trauma. 915 patients in UL and 1481 in LL died within 24 h of the index admission. Surgical amputation occurred in 242 (UL) and 422 (LL) cases with a peak ratio in patients with an ISS above 50 in both groups. In both groups, patients with severe concomitant chest trauma were more often surgically amputated. In both groups, fewer patients with surgical amputations died within 24 h of admission (3.3% vs. 6.3% UL; 6.4% vs. 8.3% LL) compared to patients without amputation, but more patients with surgical amputations died within the overall hospital admissions (15.7% vs. 11.9% UL; 19.2% vs. 14.2%). In both groups, hemodynamical shock as well as the administration of Packed Red Blood Cells (PRBCs) were associated with a higher amputation rate. Conclusions: Surgical amputations after major trauma seem to be rare. Hemodynamical instability seems to play a key role in the management of mangled limbs. Patients with life-saving surgical amputation still have an increased overall in-hospital mortality. Full article

Tardigrades are unique among animals in their resistance to dehydration, mainly due to anhydrobiosis and tun formation. They are also very resistant to high-energy radiation, low and high temperatures, low and high pressure, and various chemical agents, Interestingly, they are resistant to ionizing radiation both in the hydrated and dehydrated states to a similar extent. They are able to survive in the cosmic space. Apparently, many mechanisms contribute to the resistance of tardigrades to harmful factors, including the presence of trehalose (though not common to all tardigrades), heat shock proteins, late embryogenesis-abundant proteins, tardigrade-unique proteins, DNA repair proteins, proteins directly protecting DNA (Dsup and TDR1), and efficient antioxidant system. Antioxidant enzymes and small-molecular-weight antioxidants are an important element in the tardigrade resistance. The levels and activities of many antioxidant proteins is elevated by anhydrobiosis and UV radiation; one explanation for their induction during dehydration is provided by the theory of “preparation for oxidative stress”, which occurs during rehydration. Genes coding for some antioxidant proteins are expanded in tardigrades; some genes (especially those coding for catalases) were hypothesized to be of bacterial origin, acquired by horizontal gene transfer. An interesting antioxidant protein found in tardigrades is the new Mn-dependent peroxidase. Full article

While the transcriptional responses of yeast cells to a variety of individual stress conditions have been extensively studied, their responses to sequential stress conditions are less well understood. In this study, we present a comparative analysis of the transcriptome of an industrial strain and a laboratory strain exposed to different sequential stresses to establish a common response profile and also to identify genes whose expression is strain-dependent. Both strains induce pathways related to oxidative stress and osmotic stress response including those involved in glycerol synthesis, glutathione metabolism, and NADPH regeneration. Other genes that may also play an important role in this response include the transcription factor ADR1, SYM1, and most of the heat shock proteins. Induction of genes related to autophagy of mitochondria occurred only in the laboratory strain while possible stress tolerance factors, such as additional genes involved in glutathione production and detoxification, were uniformly enhanced only in the industrial strain. The analysis of the stress response to sequential stresses of two different strains allowed more precise identification of the response of yeast to complex environments. Identification of genes uniquely induced in the industrial strain can also be used to develop strategies to optimize various fermentation processes. Full article

Paediatric supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) is a common arrhythmia of great clinical significance. If not treated promptly, it can cause heart failure and cardiogenic shock. Depending on the patient’s condition, SVT treatment involves vagal manoeuvres, pharmacological, or direct current cardioversion. The goal of acute SVT management is to immediately convert SVT to a normal sinus rhythm (NSR) and prevent its recurrence. Adenosine is recommended as the first-line treatment for stable SVT by the European Resuscitation Council (ERC) and American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines, when vagal manoeuvres have proven ineffective. The ERC and AHA guidelines recommend the intravenous route of administration. The intraosseous (IO) administration technique is also possible, but still relatively unknown. The aim of this paper is to describe a 3.5-year-old child with SVT that was converted to NSR following IO administration of adenosine. Successful conversion was achieved after the second attempt with the adenosine dose. In the described case, there was no recurrence of SVT. Full article

Allergy to fur animals is becoming an increasingly common clinical problem in everyday medical practice. Depending on the route of exposure to the allergen, patients present with many, often non-specific symptoms. The most common illnesses among people with allergies to the above-mentioned allergens are as follows: allergic rhinitis, allergic conjunctivitis, atopic bronchial asthma, food allergy, allergic contact dermatitis, and sometimes anaphylactic shock. In recent years, there has been a change in the holistic approach to the treatment of allergy patients. The method of treatment should be tailored to a specific patient, taking into account his or her predispositions, economic possibilities, and therapeutic goals. The article describes the main methods of treating allergies, focusing primarily on allergies to fur animals. Allergy treatment always requires great care, and qualification for specific types of therapy should be preceded by a thorough and accurate diagnosis. Full article

The importance of assessing and estimating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on financial markets and economic activity has attracted the interest of researchers and practitioners in recent years. The proposed study aims to explore the pandemic’s impact on the economic activity of six Euro area economies. A class of dynamic panel data models and their corresponding Seemingly Unrelated Regression (SUR) models are developed and applied to model the economic activity of six Eurozone countries. This class of models allows for common and country-specific covariates to affect the real growth, as well as for cross-sectional dependence in the error processes. Estimation and inference for this class of panel models are based on both Bayesian and classical techniques. Our findings reveal that significant heterogeneity exists among the different economies with respect to the explanatory/predictive factors. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic varied across the Euro area economies under study. Nonetheless, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic profoundly affected real economic activity across all regions and countries. As an exogenous shock of such magnitude, it caused a sharp increase in overall uncertainty that spread quickly across all sectors of the global economy. Full article

Stress is a common denominator of complex disorders and the FK-506 binding protein (FKBP)51 plays a central role in stress. Hence, it is not surprising that multiple studies imply the involvement of the FKBP51 protein and/or its coding gene, FKBP5, in complex disorders. This review summarizes such reports concentrating on three disorder clusters—neuropsychiatric, cancer, and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). We also attempt to point to potential mechanisms suggested to mediate the effect of FKBP5/FKBP51 on these disorders. Neuropsychiatric diseases considered in this paper include (i) Huntington’s disease for which increased autophagic cellular clearance mechanisms related to decreased FKBP51 protein levels or activity is discussed, Alzheimer’s disease for which increased FKBP51 activity has been shown to induce Tau phosphorylation and aggregation, and Parkinson’s disease in the context of which FKBP12 is mentioned; and (ii) mental disorders, for which significant association with the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs1360780 of FKBP5 intron 7 along with decreased DNA methylation were revealed. Since cancer is a large group of diseases that can start in almost any organ or tissue of the body, FKBP51’s role depends on the tissue type and differences among pathways expressed in those tumors. The FKBP51–heat-shock protein-(Hsp)90–p23 super-chaperone complex might function as an oncogene or as a tumor suppressor by downregulating the serine/threonine protein kinase (AKt) pathway. In T2DM, two potential pathways for the involvement of FKBP51 are highlighted as affecting the pathogenesis of the disease—the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ) and AKt. Full article

Background and Objectives: Melioidosis is an infectious disease caused by Burkholderia pseudomallei, and it has a wide range of clinical symptoms. It is endemic in tropical areas, including Southeast Asia. Despite the availability of effective treatment, the mortality rate is still high, especially in patients presenting with septic shock. The aim of this study was to determine and explore clinical characteristics, microbiology, treatment outcomes, and factors associated with in-hospital mortality which could predict prognosis and provide a guide for future treatment. Materials and Methods: The population in this retrospective cohort study included all 262 patients with a diagnosis of melioidosis who were hospitalized at Surin Hospital, Surin, Thailand, from April 2014 to March 2017. We included patients older than 15 years with a positive culture for B. pseudomallei. Data regarding the clinical characteristics, microbiology, and treatment outcomes of the patients were collected and analyzed. The patients were divided into two groups dependent on outcome, specifically non-survival and survival. Logistic regression was performed to determine the risk factors associated with in-hospital mortality. Results: Out of the 262 patients with melioidosis during the study period, 117 (44.7%) patients died. The mean age was 57.2 ± 14.4 years, and 193 (73.7%) patients were male. The most common comorbidity was diabetes (123, 46.9%), followed by chronic kidney disease (35, 13.4%) and chronic liver disease (31, 11.8%). Four risk factors were found to be associated with in-hospital mortality, including age (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 1.04, 95%CI: 1.01–1.07), respiration rate (aOR 1.18, 95%CI: 1.06–1.32), abnormal chest X-ray finding (aOR 4.79, 95%CI: 1.98–11.59), and bicarbonate levels (CO₂) (aOR 0.92, 95%CI: 0.85–0.99). Conclusions: Our study identified age, respiration rate, abnormal chest X-ray finding, and CO₂ levels are predictive factors associated with in-hospital mortality in melioidosis patients. Physicians should be aware of these factors, have access to aggressive treatment options, and closely monitor patients with these risk factors. Full article

Flavonoids share a common structural framework that serves as a hallmark indicative of their biological activity. In this study, we investigated the effects of two structurally similar flavonoids, fisetin and morin, through independent and combined in vitro assessments on embryonic mouse cells overexpressing the human 70 kDa heat shock protein (Hsp70) (Tg/Tg) and normal mouse fibroblast cell line (NIH/3T3). The primary objectives were to evaluate the biocompatibility and potential cytotoxicity of these flavonoids, along with assessing the cytoprotective role of Hsp70 in these cellular environments. To address these objectives, we conducted dose- and time-dependent cell survival tests. Additionally, we utilized flow cytometry to detect intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and to analyze apoptosis and the cell cycle. Throughout the experimental procedures, a notable observation was made: NIH/3T3 normal cells exhibited greater susceptibility compared to Tg/Tg cells when exposed to fisetin and morin. This difference in susceptibility is likely attributed to the robust cytoprotective effect of Hsp70 in Tg/Tg cells. Importantly, both cell lines demonstrated increased sensitivity to fisetin toxicity in comparison to morin, leading to significantly lower cell survival rates. These findings shed light on the differential responses of cell lines to flavonoid exposure, emphasizing the influence of Hsp70 and the distinct impact of fisetin and morin on cell viability. Full article

This paper aims to identify the optimal reinforced concrete bridge construction for regions at risk of mining-induced seismic shocks. This study compares the performances of two common bridge types made of the same structural tissue, i.e., a reinforced concrete beam bridge and rigid-frame bridge under real mining-induced tremors using uniform and spatially varying ground motion models. This study investigates the dynamic responses of the bridges depending on wave velocity and assesses their susceptibility to mining-triggered tremors based on the contribution of quasi-static and dynamic effects in the global dynamic responses of the bridges. This study revealed significant changes in dynamic response under spatially varying ground excitation for both bridge types. It was observed that rigid-frame bridges show higher susceptibility to quasi-static effects due to their stiffness, whereas beam bridges are more susceptible to dynamic stresses. This study recommends that in regions with mining tremors, the choice between bridge types should consider the possibility of limiting individual components of stress. A solution may involve the reduction in quasi-static components through structural reinforcement or decreasing dynamic components by using vibration absorbers. It was found that beam bridges are more cost-effective and practical in mining-affected areas, especially when founded on weak grounds. Full article

Toxin–antitoxin (TA) systems are widely present in bacterial genomes. Mycolicibacterium smegmatis, a common model organism for studying Mycobacterium tuberculosis physiology, has eight TA loci, including mazEF and vapBC. This study aims to investigate the physiological significance of these TA systems. Proteomic profiling was conducted on a culture overexpressing the VapC toxin, and the involvement of VapC in M. smegmatis stress responses to heat shock and antibiotic treatment was examined. While deciphering the underlying mechanisms of the altered stress resistance, we assessed the antibiotic susceptibility of vapBC, mazEF, and double vapBC-mazEF deletion mutants. Additionally, the mRNA levels of vapC and mazF were measured following tetracycline supplementation. The results reveal changes in the abundance of metabolic enzymes and stress response proteins associated with VapC overexpression. This activation of the general stress response leads to reduced thermosensitivity in M. smegmatis, but does not affect susceptibility to ciprofloxacin and isoniazid. Under tetracycline treatment, both vapC and mazF expression levels are increased, and the fate of the cell depends on the interaction between the corresponding TA systems. Full article