A study on the two-level allocation of carbon emission quotas in China at the provincial level.

Carbon emission reduction is an essential means to achieve the "double carbon goal," and the scientific and reasonable allocation of carbon emission quotas (CEQ) is the basis for promoting carbon emission reduction. In this study, the first level was based on the entropy TOPSIS scores of provinces under the principles of fairness, efficiency, sustainability, and feasibility and used the K-mean clustering method to cluster the 30 provinces and allocate the CEQ to each zone group; the second level consolidated the impacts of the four principles and the marginal abatement costs of CO2 to allocate CEQ to the provinces within the zone group. Finally, each province's initial spatial balance of CEQ (ISBQ) is classified and evaluated. The study shows that the most quotas are for Guangdong, Zhejiang, and Inner Mongolia, and the least for Ningxia, Shanxi, and Guizhou. This study compares the results of CEQ allocation with the current carbon emission scale and finds that 11 provinces, such as Shandong and Hebei, show a deficit in future carbon emission space, and 19 provinces, such as Hainan and Beijing, show a surplus in carbon emission space. Given each province's different emission reduction tasks and pressures, differentiated emission control policies are the key to achieving China's "2030 target".

Activation of persulfate with natural organic acids (ascorbic acid/catechin hydrate) for naproxen degradation in water and soil: Mechanism, pathway, and toxicity assessment.

In this study, we investigated the effects of different natural organic acids (NOAs), L-ascorbic acid (AA) and (+)-catechin hydrate (CAT), on the activation of persulfate (PDS) for the oxidation of naproxen (NAP) in water and soil. We found that only AA-activated PDS process had a significant degradation efficiency of NAP in water. High AA concentration (500 µM) inhibited the degradation of NAP, whereas high levels of PDS (7.5 mM) and acidic conditions (pH=3-7) were beneficial for NAP degradation. In soil, both CAT and AA promoted PDS activation and NAP degradation. Low soil organic matter and high Fe/Mn-mineral contents were favorable for NAP degradation by AA-activated PDS. Column experiments confirmed that NAP was readily transported and degraded under porous medium conditions using AA-activated PDS. Moreover, we revealed that SO4•- and HO• were the dominant reactive species for NAP degradation by AA-activated PDS. Intermediate products of NAP in the AA-activated PDS process were analyzed and the reactive sites of NAP were predicted. E. coli growth tests verified that the intermediate products in the AA-activated PDS process were less toxic than NAP. Our results highlight the high potential of NOAs-activated PDS process for the remediation of NAP-contaminated water and soil.

Assessment of Carotid Body Tumors by Superb Microvascular Imaging of Feeding Arteries During Preoperative Evaluation.

Purpose: Superb microvascular imaging (SMI) has led to new advances in vascular imaging applications. This study aimed to explore the blood supply and feeding arteries of carotid body tumors (CBTs) on SMI to improve the accuracy of information available to surgeons. Methods: Twenty-six CBT lesions were subjected to color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) and SMI and were later confirmed by pathology. The blood flow patterns and feeding arteries of the CBTs on CDFI and SMI were graded and compared. Results: The feeding arteries of two CBT lesions, which were not visible on CDFI, were identified as the internal carotid artery (ICA) on SMI. The feeding arteries of three CBTs were judged to stem from both the ICA and the external carotid artery (ECA) (MIX) based on SMI compared to the ICA or ECA on CDFI. We classified the feeding arteries of CBTs as originating from the ICA or others (including the ECA and MIX). One hundred percent (3/3) of the CBT lesions stemming from the ICA had Adler I or Adler II blood flow patterns, and 100% (23/23) of the CBT lesions stemming from other arteries had Adler II or Adler III blood flow patterns. Higher Adler categories were assigned based on SMI than CDFI (P < 0.001). Conclusion: SMI may be superior to CDFI in detecting the vascularity of CBTs, and SMI revealed more potential feeding arteries of CBTs than CDFI. CBTs originating from the ICA are less vascular than those originating from the ECA.

Quantitative Static and Dynamic Assessment of Balance Control in Stroke Patients.

In patients with stroke, damage to the central nervous system (CNS) can affect the postural stability and increase the risk of falling. Therefore, accurately assessing the balance is important to understand the type, extent, and causes of balance deficit, and to identify individualized interventions. Clinical assessment methods for balance function can be broadly divided into observation, scale assessment, and balance instrument testing. Here, a clinical protocol is presented for static and dynamic balance assessment in stroke patients, which includes three semiquantitative balance function scale assessments (i.e., Berg Balance Scale, Timed Up and Go Test, and Fugl-Meyer Assessment) and three quantitative instrumental balance evaluation (i.e., Stability Assessment Module, Proprioceptive Assessment Module, and Limit of Stability Module). It is recommended that clinicians consider the use of both classic clinical balance scales and instrumental balance measurements when assessing stroke patients to improve the accuracy of assessments, leading to a better individualized treatment plan.

Homogeneous BTK Occupancy Assay for Pharmacodynamic Assessment of Tirabrutinib (GS-4059/ONO-4059) Target Engagement.

Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) is a clinically validated target for B-cell leukemias and lymphomas with FDA-approved small-molecule inhibitors ibrutinib and acalabrutinib. Tirabrutinib (GS-4059/ONO-4059, Gilead Sciences, Inc., Foster City, CA) is a second-generation, potent, selective, irreversible BTK inhibitor in clinical development for lymphoid malignancies, including chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). An accurate pharmacodynamic assay to assess tirabrutinib target coverage in phase 1/2 clinical studies will inform dose and schedule selection for advanced clinical evaluation. We developed a novel duplex homogeneous BTK occupancy assay based on time-resolved fluorescence resonance energy transfer (TR-FRET) to measure free and total BTK levels in a multiplexed format. The dual-wavelength emission property of terbium-conjugated anti-BTK antibody served as the energy donor for two fluorescent energy acceptors with distinct excitation and emission spectra. The assay was characterized and qualified using full-length purified recombinant human BTK protein and peripheral blood mononuclear cells derived from healthy volunteers and patients with CLL. We demonstrated assay utility using cells derived from lymph node and bone marrow samples from patients with CLL and DLBCL. Our TR-FRET-based BTK occupancy assay provides accurate, quantitative assessment of BTK occupancy in the clinical trial program for tirabrutinib and is in use in ongoing clinical studies.