Search Results (987)

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are persistent contaminants that require very strict performance criteria from the methods that want to analyze them in food for research or regulatory purposes. This systematic literature review tried to evaluate Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, Safe (QuEChERS) extraction methodologies coupled with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) and high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) for PFAS determination in food. Peer-reviewed articles (2010–2025) were eligible if they analyzed PFAS in food matrices using QuEChERS extraction protocols with LC-MS/MS or HRMS and reported performance and/or validation data. Scopus, WoS and Google Scholar were searched up to 18 December 2025. Due to heterogeneity in matrices, PFAS panels and reported validation metrics, no meta-analysis was performed, and the results were synthesized narratively. Twenty-four studies met the inclusion criteria. Most methods used acidified acetonitrile (ACN)-based QuEChERS workflows and achieved limits of quantification (LOQ) reported to be compatible with EU Regulation 2023/915 and Commission Implementing Regulation 2022/1428. Analytical scope expanded from 9 to 15 legacy PFAS to >40 analytes. Short-chain PFAS analyses in vegetable matrices and methods from developing countries are underrepresented. QuEChERS-based LC-MS/MS and HRMS methods support regulatory PFAS monitoring and PFAS research. The main limitation of this review is the heterogeneity of included studies and the absence of formal meta-analysis. Full article

Certain medications may adversely affect health during hot days and heatwaves by altering chronic conditions, comorbidities, fluid balance, or impairing heat adaptation. This study aims to develop evidence-based cross-sectoral recommendations for the safe administration of heat-sensitive medications, compiled into a so-called ‘CALOR’ list (calor: Latin for ‘heat’). Development of the CALOR list will follow a four-pillar process. First, a scoping review of scientific literature and best practices will identify potentially inadequate medications during heat events (heat-PIMs) and adaptation measures, resulting in a first draft. Second, an expert panel will refine this draft through a Delphi process to reach consensus on clinically relevant recommendations. Third, German statutory health insurance (SHI) claims data will be analysed to determine heat-PIMs prevalence; data from Cologne residents will additionally be linked with climate data to investigate health outcomes during heat events. Fourth, thirty health professionals (i.e., medical doctors, nurses, pharmacists) will field-test the CALOR list in summer, providing qualitative feedback on feasibility, leading to further refinement of the CALOR list. To our knowledge this study protocol presents the first study attempting to collate a comprehensive and actionable list of recommendations for drug safety management during hot days and heatwaves. Full article

Drawing on Governance Theory and institutional perspectives, this study analyses the relationship between e-government use and SDG16-related institutional outcomes across 27 European countries during 2010–2022. Using longitudinal panel data estimations with country and year fixed effects, complemented by an exploratory cluster analysis, the paper examines how technological, economic, and demographic factors influence trust in public institutions, voice and accountability, and control of corruption. The results reveal substantial heterogeneity across institutional dimensions. Economic variables, particularly income per capita and unemployment, emerge as the most robust predictors of institutional performance. By contrast, the effects of technological variables weaken considerably once structural country heterogeneity is controlled for. The findings suggest that digitalisation is more strongly associated with institutional trust than with improvements in democratic accountability or corruption control. Cluster analysis identifies heterogeneous trajectories of e-government adoption across European countries, indicating that digitalisation does not automatically generate governance improvements in all contexts. Overall, the study shows that the effectiveness of e-government depends heavily on broader institutional and socio-economic conditions and highlights the importance of distinguishing structural cross-country differences from within-country longitudinal dynamics. Full article

The relationship between forest ecosystem services and human health has emerged as a key topic in forest economics and health policy research. This study develops a spatial modelling framework to quantify the health benefits of forest ecosystem services and proposes policy mechanisms to incorporate these benefits into governmental health strategies. Using county-level panel data from 66 administrative units in Zhejiang Province, China, covering the period 2013–2023, we analyse the relationship between forest-mediated air purification services and two population health outcomes: the incidence of respiratory diseases and cardiovascular disease mortality. We employ a Spatial Durbin Model (SDM) to estimate both direct and spatial spillover effects across county boundaries. The findings indicate that forest ecosystem services exert significant negative effects on adverse health outcomes, with spillover effects extending beyond administrative boundaries. The monetised health benefit of forests is estimated at approximately RMB 1108.6 per hectare per year, substantially exceeding current ecological compensation standards and suggesting systematic undervaluation of forest health services. Heterogeneity analysis reveals that health benefits are greater in urbanised regions and among vulnerable population groups, including the elderly. These findings provide an empirical basis for reforming health-oriented ecological compensation mechanisms and offer implications for sustainable land use governance aligned with SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being) and SDG 15 (Life on Land). Full article

Using a global panel of bilateral digitally delivered services exports for 192 economies from 2006 to 2022, together with large-scale international news data, this study examines the impact of international media sentiment on digital service exports, with particular attention to the institutional-barrier channel. To address the temporal aggregation mismatch between high-frequency media sentiment and annual trade flows, as well as potential endogeneity concerns, we employ a Mixed Two-Stage Least Squares (M2SLS) approach. The results show that more favorable international media sentiment has a positive and statistically significant effect on digital service exports. This finding remains robust across a range of measurement checks, placebo tests, alternative instrument constructions, subsample analyses, and Bayesian estimation. Further analysis supports an institutional-barrier interpretation by showing that favorable media sentiment is associated with lower bilateral digital service trade policy heterogeneity. The impact is stronger in trust- and reputation-intensive service sectors and in cultural contexts where reputational signals are more salient, while it weakens or reverses in technical service sectors and in highly secular-rational and institutionally asymmetric trading relationships. Full article

How older adults psychologically appraise their health while managing multiple chronic conditions is a behavioral-science question as much as a clinical one. This study estimated the weighted prevalence of favorable mental-health self-appraisal, identified its behavioral, social, and functional correlates, and compared the relative salience of diagnosed-condition burden and functional limitation among U.S. adults aged ≥ 50 years with multimorbidity. This retrospective cross-sectional secondary analysis used the 2023 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) Full Year Consolidated Data File (HC-251). Multimorbidity was defined as at least two diagnosed chronic priority conditions. The primary outcome represents favorable mental-health self-appraisal, derived from MNHLTH53 (excellent/very good/good vs. fair/poor). Covariates were organized using Andersen’s Behavioral Model and health-psychology concepts of adaptation, resources, and lived functional burden. Weighted prevalence estimates and survey-weighted logistic regression models were fitted using PERWT23F, VARSTR, and VARPSU. Robustness checks examined a stricter outcome threshold, proxy adjustment/non-proxy restriction, and a physical-health extension model. The analytic sample included 5523 respondents, representing approximately 77.9 million U.S. adults aged ≥ 50 years with multimorbidity. The weighted prevalence of favorable perceived mental-health self-appraisal was 86.6% (95% CI 85.4–87.7). In the fully adjusted core model (complete-case n = 5330), age 65–74 years (aOR 1.52, 95% CI 1.17–1.98) and age ≥ 75 years (aOR 1.79, 95% CI 1.36–2.36) were associated with higher odds of favorable appraisal. Lower odds were observed for Hispanic respondents, non-Hispanic Asian respondents, lower educational attainment, lower income, non-employment, ≥4 diagnosed conditions, and any functional limitation. The strongest inverse association was limitation status (aOR 0.32, 95% CI 0.27–0.39). Sensitivity analyses were directionally consistent. Favorable mental-health self-appraisal remained common in this medically complex older population, but it was socially and functionally patterned. Functional limitation appeared more behaviorally salient than diagnosis count alone. Because the analysis was cross-sectional and based on household-interview reported measures, these results should be interpreted as associations rather than causal effects. Full article

Increasing external uncertainty, supply disruptions, and market volatility have made resilience enhancement increasingly important for sustainable agricultural supply chains. While existing studies mainly examine agricultural supply chain resilience from macro or operational perspectives, limited attention has been paid to how firms’ strategic AI investment reshapes organizational resilience under external shocks. Using panel data on Chinese agricultural-related listed firms from 2010 to 2024, this study examines whether and how strategic AI investment enhances supply chain resilience. Empirical results show that strategic AI investment significantly improves both dimensions of supply chain resilience, namely resistance capacity and recovery capacity. Mechanism analyses indicate that this effect mainly operates through supply diversification, technological innovation, and information transparency. Further analyses reveal heterogeneous effects across supply chain positions, ownership structures, and regional digital development environments. In addition, compatibility analyses show that strategic AI investment not only strengthens supply chain resilience but also improves operational efficiency, R&D investment intensity, and financial stability. Overall, this study highlights strategic AI investment as an important organizational capability for strengthening agricultural supply chain resilience under increasing external uncertainty. Full article

This study examines whether firm-level digital transformation capability (DTC) is associated with stronger operational resilience and whether governance structures condition this relationship. Operational resilience is treated here as a business-sustainability dimension based on continuity and stability of operating outcomes, not as a broad measure of environmental, social, and governance (ESG), environmental, or social sustainability performance. Using an international firm-year panel that combines standardized financial data with disclosure-based measures of implemented digital practices and governance architecture, the analysis provides observational evidence on the role of DTC in strengthening firm adaptability. In the controlled fixed-effects models, DTC is positively associated with the sales resilience ratio (SRR) (β = 0.071) and the cash-flow stability index (CFSI) (β = 0.058); an interquartile increase in DTC corresponds to approximately 0.024 in SRR and 0.019 in CFSI, or roughly 16% and 10% of their sample standard deviations. The association is stronger in firms with stronger internal oversight, auditable review mechanisms, and external ecosystem monitoring. Mechanism analyses point to supply flexibility and data visibility as plausible transmission paths, while additional tests address reproducibility, disclosure-intensity bias, construct validity, alternative governance specifications, placebo timing, restricted-shock logic, and measurement boundaries. Overall, the findings provide evidence consistent with a contingent and observational association between DTC and operational resilience when digital capabilities are embedded within accountable governance frameworks. Full article

Against the background of green transformation and sustainable urban development, improving urban eco-environmental resilience (UER) is essential for enhancing ecological security and long-term urban sustainability. Using panel data from 260 Chinese cities from 2006 to 2023, this study constructs a new quality productive forces (NQPF) index based on new-quality laborers, new-quality means of labor, and new-quality labor objects, and measures UER from the dimensions of resistance, recovery, and adaptation. The results show that: (1) NQPF has a significant U-shaped effect on UER, indicating that it may inhibit UER in the early stage due to transformation costs and insufficient institutional adaptation but promotes UER after crossing a certain development level; (2) NQPF improves both green innovation level (GIL) and green innovation efficiency (GIE), while GIL faces short-term transformation constraints and GIE more directly enhances UER; (3) threshold, heterogeneity, and spatial analyses show that the positive effect of NQPF is stronger in cities with higher economic development levels and in the eastern region, and both NQPF and UER exhibit spatial clustering. This study provides empirical evidence for promoting productivity upgrading, ecological resilience, and sustainable urban transition. Full article

Objectives: To facilitate the innovation and efficient utilization of specialty maize germplasm, this study aimed to systematically evaluate a panel of 222 inbred lines. The objective was to comprehensively characterize phenotypic variation, genetic diversity, and genotype–phenotype associations to screen for representative germplasm resources. Methods: We integrated Best Linear Unbiased Prediction (BLUP) values derived from multi-environment field trials with high-density whole-genome single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data. Population structure and genetic diversity were analyzed, Mantel tests were conducted to assess genotype–phenotype correspondence, and a genome-wide association study (GWAS) was performed to identify significant loci. Results: The population exhibited substantial phenotypic variation, particularly in plant height and tassel traits, with distinct morphological differentiations among specialty types. Genetic diversity analyses revealed varying diversity levels among subpopulations. While Mantel tests indicated a weak overall genotype–phenotype correspondence, specific traits showed significant associations with genetic distance. GWAS successfully identified significant loci associated with plant height and tassel traits. Furthermore, population structure analysis revealed distinct genetic stratification corresponding to specialty types, albeit with a certain degree of admixture. Conclusions: By integrating multi-dimensional phenotypic and genomic profiles, a panel of highly diverse and representative candidate germplasm was identified. These findings provide a crucial theoretical basis for specialty maize breeding and the optimized utilization of germplasm resources. Full article

This study examines the association between foreign exchange (FX) governance and financial stability by analysing empirical evidence from multinational entities. We analyse a 16-year panel (2009–2024) comprising 6613 firm-year observations using OLS regression with industry and year fixed effects. Firm-level data on financial sustainability, FX governance, board attributes, and controls are drawn from the London Stock Exchange Group (formerly Refinitiv), while country-level institutional and economic indicators are obtained from the World Bank. The result suggests that FX governance is negatively associated with earnings volatility, implying that FX governance enhances the financial stability of organisations. The baseline result is robustness to endogeneity and selection bias. However, our subsample analysis reveals that the impact of FX governance on financial stability varies based on institutional quality and industry. Whereas FX governance is negatively associated with earnings volatility thus enhancing financial stability in high-institutional-quality settings, the impact is not significant in low-institutional-quality environments. This study contributes to knowledge by empirically validating the relevance of FX governance to financial stability. Our study also contributes to the limited studies on the role of FX governance in diminishing earnings volatility, thus exposing FX management as a strategy for achieving financial sustainability. The international sample analysed in the study contributes to the generalisability of results. Full article

Conventional anthropometric measures used to predict dyslipidemia, such as body mass index and waist circumference, vary over time and may not fully capture early-life influences on metabolic risk. Fixed skeletal proportions, including limb length ratios, remain stable after physical maturity and may reflect developmental exposures relevant to lipid metabolism. This study examined the association between the upper arm–to–upper leg length ratio (UA/UL), a fixed skeletal proportion metric with established links to diabetes risk and dyslipidemia; this represents an application not previously reported in a nationally representative U.S. population. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of adults aged ≥20 years using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2017–March 2020 (n = 7569). The UA/UL ratio was calculated from standardized upper arm and upper leg length measurements and categorized into quartiles based on the weighted sample distribution. Dyslipidemia was defined according to National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III criteria or current lipid-lowering medication use. Survey-weighted logistic regression models were used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) across progressively adjusted models. Dyslipidemia prevalence increased across UA/UL quartiles (58.4% in Q1 to 81.3% in Q4; p < 0.001). In unadjusted analyses, individuals in the highest UA/UL quartile had greater odds of dyslipidemia compared with the lowest quartile (OR 3.10, 95% CI 2.49–3.86). Associations remained significant after adjustment for demographic factors and for anthropometric measures considered separately. However, the association was attenuated and no longer statistically significant in fully adjusted models that included demographics, adiposity measures, hypertension, and diabetes. In sex-stratified analyses, the association was attenuated and no longer statistically significant in either sex after full adjustment; formal interaction testing confirmed no significant effect modification by sex (p-for-interaction = 0.943). Full article

Cellular senescence drives aging and age-related disease through the accumulation of senescent cells and their senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). Emerging evidence suggests intermittent (“hit-and-run”) senolytic interventions may improve healthspan by reducing senescent cell accumulation and the SASP. Healthy adults aged 45–79 were recruited for a decentralized, single-arm pilot study (NCT06953518) evaluating 2 days of nutraceutical supplementation (Qualia Senolytic). Fingerstick blood samples and validated quality of life (QoL) questionnaire data were collected on days 0 and 7. Primary outcomes were SASP biomarkers measured by the Olink^® Target 48 Cytokine panel, including tumor necrosis factor (TNF), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), interleukin-8 (CXCL8), and vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA). Protein data were analyzed using linear mixed models and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests. Seventy-one adults enrolled and 53 (74.6%) provided paired protein samples. No significant changes occurred in primary outcomes. Exploratory unadjusted analyses revealed significant reductions in the established senescence chemokines CXCL9 and CXCL10, as well as CCL8 and CXCL11, and increases in interleukin-17F and oncostatin M. QoL significantly improved without safety concerns, though results are expectation-sensitive. Preliminary findings support the feasibility of this decentralized approach and identify candidate SASP biomarker signals in healthy adults warranting validation in randomized, placebo-controlled trials. Full article

Background/Objectives: Depression among older adults with disabilities represents a significant public health concern, with well-documented socioeconomic disparities. However, the mechanisms through which socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with depression in this population remain insufficiently specified. Guided by the Reserve Capacity Model (RCM), this study examines whether social support is statistically associated with the SES–depression relationship and whether this association varies according to psychosocial and structural resources. Methods: Data were drawn from the 18th wave (2023) of the Korea Welfare Panel Study (KoWePS) and its supplementary disability survey (N = 845). Moderated mediation analyses were conducted using the PROCESS macro with 5000 bootstrap samples to estimate indirect and conditional associations. Results: SES was negatively associated with depressive symptoms and positively associated with social support. Social support demonstrated a statistically significant indirect association between SES and depression, consistent with a partial mediation pattern, although the direct association remained significant. Self-esteem did not significantly moderate the indirect association. In contrast, public service utilization significantly moderated the association between social support and depression, such that the indirect association between SES and depression was attenuated at higher levels of service utilization. Conclusions: The findings indicate that depression among older adults with disabilities is associated with both socioeconomic disadvantage and variations in social and structural resources. These results underscore the relevance of considering both psychosocial and structural dimensions of resources when examining mental health disparities. Full article

Green technology innovation is widely recognized as a crucial driver for combating environmental pollution and achieving carbon reduction goals. Based on panel data from 30 provinces in China spanning 2006 to 2021, this study aims to examine the impact of green technology innovation (GTI) on carbon emission performance (CEP). The results indicate that (1) a significant U-shaped relationship exists between green technology innovation and carbon emission performance. (2) Heterogeneity analyses reveal that the effect is more pronounced in regions with higher levels of human capital, stronger macro-control, and a smaller urban–rural income gap. (3) Mechanism tests reveal that green technology innovation significantly improves carbon emission performance by driving the decarbonization of energy consumption structure. Furthermore, energy intensity negatively moderates the U-shaped relationship, leading to an “energy rebound effect”. (4) Spatial spillover analysis indicates that green technology innovation has a U-shaped impact on the carbon emission performance of adjacent regions. The findings of this study provide empirical evidence of and new perspectives on the crucial role of green innovation in achieving low-carbon sustainable development. Full article