PPAR beta/gamma mediates the antihypertensive activity of a synbiotic preparation of Bifidobacterium lactis and Lactobacillus acidophilus in spontaneous hypertensive rats.

Background: Hypertension is a global public health concern. A synbiotic preparation containing Bifidobacterium lactis and Lactobacillus acidophilus has been used as adjunct therapy for hypertension. We sought to elucidate the antihypertensive activity of this preparation and explore the underlying mechanisms. Methods and results: Blood pressure in rats was measured using the tail-cuff method. Colonization of the gastrointestinal tract by the two probiotics was determined by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Mechanistic studies were performed by proteomic analyses based on liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and STRING database and metabolomic analyses using the UHPLC-Q-TOF/MS platform and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)ß/γ antagonists. Although biochemical analysis of blood samples showed that the synbiotic preparation did not alter the levels of angiotensin II, aldosterone, or cortisol, it significantly lowered the systolic blood pressure in the treatment group. Moreover, the synbiotic preparation contributed to the localization of the two probiotics in the ileum and colon of the treatment group. Proteomics, immunochemistry, and real-time qPCR analyses showed that administration of the synbiotic preparation activated the PPAR signaling pathway in the ileum and significantly upregulated PPARß and PPARγ. The antagonist studies further confirmed this finding. In addition, metabolomic analyses demonstrated that among the 27 metabolites that showed significant differences between the control and model groups, administration of the synbiotic preparation significantly upregulated lysophosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylcholine in the ileum of the treatment group. Conclusion: The results of the study suggest that the novel synbiotic preparation reduces blood pressure by altering the composition of the intestinal microbiota, regulating PPAR signaling pathway, and activating the PPARß and PPARγ cascade reactions in the ileum.

Activation of Peroxymonosulfate by Co-Ni-Mo Sulfides/CNT for Organic Pollutant Degradation.

To explore advanced oxidation catalysts, peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation by Co-Ni-Mo/carbon nanotube (CNT) composite catalysts was investigated. A compound of NiCo2S4, MoS2, and CNTs was successfully prepared using a simple one-pot hydrothermal method. The results revealed that the activation of PMS by Co-Ni-Mo/CNT yielded an exceptional Rhodamine B decolorization efficiency of 99% within 20 min for the Rhodamine B solution. The degradation rate of Co-Ni-Mo/CNT was 4.5 times higher than that of Ni-Mo/CNT or Co-Mo/CNT, and 1.9 times as much than that of Co-Ni/CNT. Additionally, radical quenching experiments revealed that the principal active groups were 1O2, surface-bound SO4•-, and •OH radicals. Furthermore, the catalyst exhibited low metal ion leaching and favorable stability. Mechanism studies revealed that Mo4+ on the surface of MoS2 participated in the oxidation of PMS and the transformation of Co3+/Co2+ and Ni3+/Ni2+. The synergism between MoS2 and NiCo2S4 reduces the charge transfer resistance between the catalyst and solution interface, thus accelerating the reaction rate. Interconnected structures composed of metal sulfides and CNTs can also enhance the electron transfer process and afford sufficient active reaction sites. Our work provides a further understanding of the design of multi-metal sulfides for wastewater treatment.

Transcription factor DDIT3 is a potential driver in pancreatic cancer.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly lethal and aggressive tumor that affects the digestive tract, leading to high mortality and poor survival rates. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the expression levels of DNA damage-inducible transcript 3 (DDIT3) in pancreatic cancer and to investigate its effects in in vitro and in vivo experiments. Bioinformatics analysis indicated that DDIT3 expression was higher in pancreatic cancer tumor tissues and associated with a poor prognosis. Positive or strong positive DDIT3 expression was observed in PDAC, and no or weak expression was observed in normal pancreatic tissues. It was also highly expressed in PDAC cells, while being expressed at lower levels in normal pancreatic ductal epithelial cells. Transfection of short hairpin RNA targeting the DDIT3 gene reduced the proliferation, migration and invasion of PANC-1 cells. In vivo, in an in situ implantation tumor model with Pan02 cells, the size and weight of the tumors were reduced in the DDIT3 knockdown Pan02 cell-implanted group. These data suggested that DDIT3 represents a novel predictive biomarker for the potential treatment of patients presenting with PDAC.

Collaborative performance of CCER project concerning uncertain industrial benchmark and average sector reference points.

In the framework of Chinese Certified Emission Reduction (CCER), carbon reduction projects greatly contribute to achieve the "dual carbon" targets. According to prospect theory, the collaborative performance of a CCER is greatly influenced by uncertain external reference points, such as industrial benchmark and average sector levels. This study proposes a novel method to assess the perceived collaborative performance of CCER projects concerning dual grey reference points. Specially, an aggression method is proposed to calculate the comprehensive performance of a CCER project through data standardization. According to comparison results between comprehensive performance and grey reference points, four scenarios are exploded with associated probabilities. Moreover, the perceived performance assessment of a CCER project is explored including competitive perception performance (CPP) and industry performance increment (IPI), which are generated by the comparisons to industrial benchmark and average sector references. Finally, a numerical case is conducted to demonstrate its feasibility and effectiveness. This paper contributes to (1) Aggregation process of CCER actual performance through data standardization operation; (2) Computation method for perceived collaborative performances influenced by dual grey external reference levels; (3) Feasibility analysis reflecting the evolution of the perceived collaborative performances. Policy implications can assist CCER participants in selecting relevant carbon reduction key performance indicators (KPIs), identifying suitable innovation strategies, determining appropriate benchmarks, and mitigating information uncertainty.

FCSU-Net: A novel full-scale Cross-dimension Self-attention U-Net with collaborative fusion of multi-scale feature for medical image segmentation.

Recently, ViT and CNNs based on encoder-decoder architecture have become the dominant model in the field of medical image segmentation. However, there are some deficiencies for each of them: (1) It is difficult for CNNs to capture the interaction between two locations with consideration of the longer distance. (2) ViT cannot acquire the interaction of local context information and carries high computational complexity. To optimize the above deficiencies, we propose a new network for medical image segmentation, which is called FCSU-Net. FCSU-Net uses the proposed collaborative fusion of multi-scale feature block that enables the network to obtain more abundant and more accurate features. In addition, FCSU-Net fuses full-scale feature information through the FFF (Full-scale Feature Fusion) structure instead of simple skip connections, and establishes long-range dependencies on multiple dimensions through the CS (Cross-dimension Self-attention) mechanism. Meantime, every dimension is complementary to each other. Also, CS mechanism has the advantage of convolutions capturing local contextual weights. Finally, FCSU-Net is validated on several datasets, and the results show that FCSU-Net not only has a relatively small number of parameters, but also has a leading segmentation performance.

Multiple Mechanisms of Haematococcus pluvialis-Derived Carotenoids to Inhibit Glycidyl Ester Formation in Rice Oil and a Chemical Model at High Temperatures.

The common presence of glycidyl esters (GEs) in refined vegetable oils has been a concern for food safety. The present study aimed to investigate the inhibitory effects of three carotenoids derived from Haematococcus pluvialis microalga on GE formation in both rice oil and a chemical model during heating. The addition of astaxanthin (AS), lutein (LU), and ß-carotene (CA) at 0.6 mg/g in rice oil can reduce GE formation by 65.0%, 57.1%, and 57.5%, respectively, which are significantly higher than those achieved by common antioxidants such as l-ascorbyl palmitate (39.0%), α-tocopherol (18.5%), tert-butyl hydroquinone (42.7%), and quercetin (26.2%). UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS analysis showed that two new compounds, that is, propylene glycol monoester and diester of palmitic acid, were formed in the CA-added chemical model, which provided direct experimental evidence for the inhibition of antioxidants including AS, LU, and CA against GE formation not only by indirect antioxidative action but also by direct radical reactions to competitively prevent the formation of cyclic acyloxonium intermediates. Furthermore, it was interestingly found that only AS could react with the GEs. The adduct of AS with GEs, astaxanthin-3-O-propanetriol esters, was preliminarily identified using Q-TOF-MS/MS in the heated AS-GE model, suggesting that reacting with GEs might represent another distinct mechanism of AS to eliminate GEs.

LINC01370 suppresses hepatocellular carcinoma proliferation and metastasis by regulating the PI3K/AKT pathway.

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) poses a serious threat to human health worldwide. lncRNA dysregulation is frequently observed in various cancers, including HCC. However, the function of LINC01370 in HCC progression and its underlying mechanisms remain unclear. METHODS: LINC01370 expression in HCC tissues with cells was analyzed by applying the GEO and GEPIA databases and qRT-PCR. CCK-8 and Transwell assays were used to assess HCC cell proliferation, migration, and invasion. The PI3K, AKT, with p-AKT protein expression were analyzed by western blotting. RESULTS: Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) and Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA) showed that LINC01370 expression was significantly lower in HCC tissues than in normal tissues. LINC01370 overexpression markedly repressed HepG2 SMMC-7721 cells proliferation, migration, and invasion. To understand the downstream mechanism of LINC01370 regulation, we further analyzed the genes co-expressed with LINC01370 in GSE136247 and GSE132037 and then performed KEGG analysis. The PA pathway was found to be a downstream pathway regulated by LINC01370 in GSE136247 and GSE132037 via gene co-expression and KEGG analysis. Furthermore, PI3K and p-AKT protein levels decreased after LINC01370 overexpression. Importantly, rescue experiments showed that activation of the PI3K/AKT pathway disrupted the repressive effect of LINC01370 overexpression on the proliferation, migration, and invasion of HepG2 of SMMC-7721 cells. CONCLUSIONS: This study verified that LINC01370 suppresses HCC proliferation with metastasis by regulating the PI3K/AKT pathway.

The impact of restrictive blood transfusion on the safety of patients with esophageal varices after endoscopic variceal ligation: A single-center retrospective study.

An investigation was conducted to examine the impact of restrictive blood transfusion on the safety of early rebleeding following endoscopic variceal ligation (EVL) in patients with liver cirrhosis. Data were collected from patients with cirrhosis and esophageal varices who underwent EVL at the Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College between September 2021 and March 2023. Clinical information, including serum albumin levels, hemoglobin (Hb) levels, liver function classification, and the occurrence of early rebleeding, was recorded. Patients were divided into 2 groups based on their Hb levels: 60 g/L to 90 g/L (restrictive blood transfusion) or Hb ≥ 90 g/L after EVL. The impact of restrictive transfusion on the post-ligation safety of EVL was observed. A total of 246 cirrhotic patients were included in the analysis. Significant differences were found in Hb levels, liver function classification, early rebleeding rates, length of hospital stay, and hospitalization expenses between the restrictive transfusion and Hb ≥ 90 g/L groups. The early rebleeding rate was significantly varied between the groups with different Hb levels after EVL. Multivariate logistic analysis revealed that restrictive blood transfusion (OR = 4.61, 95% CI: 1.06-19.99; P = .041), Hb (OR = 0.96, 95% CI: 0.95-0.97; P < .001), and Child-Pugh class C (OR = 6.37, 95% CI: 1.28-31.67; P = .024) were identified as independent factors influencing early rebleeding. Our findings suggest that the risk of early rebleeding in cirrhotic patients after EVL may be increased by restrictive blood transfusion, and this should be further investigated in future research.

Insight into low methoxyl pectin enhancing thermal stability and intestinal delivery efficiency of algal oil nanoemulsions.

BACKGROUND: Algae oil has garnered widespread acclaim due as a result of its high purity of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and excellent safety profile. The present study aimed to develop stable nanoemulsions (NEs) systems containing DHA from algae oil through thermal sterilization by combining modified whey protein concentrate (WPC) with low methoxyl pectin (LMP), as well as to investigate the impact of LMP concentration on the thermal stability and the gastrointestinal delivery efficiency of DHA NEs. RESULTS: The addition of LMP enhanced the stability of the emulsion after sterilization, at the same time as improving the protective and sustained release effects of DHA in the gastrointestinal tract. Optimal effect was achieved at a LMP concentration of 1% (10 g kg-1 sample), the stability of the emulsion after centrifugation increased by 17.21 ± 5.65% compared to the group without LMP, and the loss of DHA after sterilization decreased by only 0.92 ± 0.09%. Furthermore, the addition of 1% LMP resulted in a substantial reduction in the release of fatty acids from the NEs after gastrointestinal digestion simulation, achieving the desired sustained-release effect. However, excessive addition of 2% (20 g kg-1 sample) LMP negatively impacted all aspects of the NEs system, primarily because of the occurrence of depletion effects. CONCLUSION: The construction of the LMP/WPC-NEs system is conducive to the protection of DHA in algae oil and its sustained-release in the gastrointestinal tract. The results of the present study can provide reference guidance for the application of algae oil NEs in the food field. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry.

Diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease: Towards accuracy and accessibility.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a serious dementia afflicting aging population and is characterized by cognitive decline, amyloid-ß plaques, and neurofibrillary tangles. AD substantially impairs the life quality of the victims and poses a heavy burden on the society at large. The number of people with dementia due to AD, prodromal AD, and preclinical AD is estimated to stand at roughly 3.2, 69, and 315 million worldwide, respectively. Current clinical diagnosis is based on clinical symptoms, and clinical research demonstrated that positron emission tomography (PET) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers had excellent diagnostic performance. However, the application of CSF biomarker tests and PET are restricted by the invasiveness and high cost. The presence of clinical symptoms means that AD pathology has been progressing for many years, and only a few drugs have been approved for the traetemnt of AD. Therefore, early diagnosis is extremely important for controlling the outcomes caused by AD. In this review, we provided an overview of developing clinical diagnostic criteria, diagnostic strategies under clinical research, developing blood based-biomarker assays, and promising nanotechnologically-based assays.

Leisure-time physical activity and the incidence of atrial fibrillation in senior adults: a prospective cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: Whether physical activity could reduce the risk of atrial fibrillation (AF) remains unclear. This study was to investigate the relationship of leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) with AF incidence among Chinese older adults. METHODS: A total of 3253 participants aged ≥60 years from the Guangzhou Heart Study were successfully followed between March 2018 and September 2019. LTPA was assessed using a modified Global Physical Activity Questionnaire. AF was ascertained by 12-lead electrocardiograms, 24-hour single-lead Holter and clinical examination. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to the estimate hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) after adjustment for confounders, and the population-attributable fraction (PAF) was estimated. RESULTS: A total of 76 (2.34%) new-onset cases of AF were identified during a median of 31.13 months of follow-up. After adjustment for confounders, subjects who had LTPA at least 10.0 metabolic equivalent (MET)-hours/week had a 55% lower risk of developing AF (HR: 0.45, 95%CI: 0.25-0.81), and at least 20 MET-hours/week reduced the risk by 45% (HR: 0.55, 95%CI: 0.34-0.92). At least 11% (PAF: 11%, 95%CI: 0%-20%) or 14% (PAF: 14%, 95%CI: 0%-26%) of AF cases could be avoided, respectively, if the subjects do LTPA at least 10 MET-hours/week or 20 MET-hours/week. A significant exposure-response trend was also observed between LTPA and AF risk (Plinear-trend = 0.002). For a specific LTPA, doing housework was associated with a 43% reduced risk, while engaging in ball games was associated with an increased risk. CONCLUSION: This prospective cohort study indicated that a higher LTPA volume was associated with a lower AF risk in Chinese older adults.

Streptomyces-Secreted Fluvirucin B6 as a Potential Bio-Fungicide for Managing Banana Fusarium Wilt and Mycotoxins and Modulating the Soil Microbial Community Structure.

Banana Fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Foc TR4) is the most destructive soil-borne fungal disease. Until now, there has been a lack of effective measures to control the disease. It is urgent to explore biocontrol agents to control Foc TR4 and the secretion of mycotoxin. In this study, fluvirucin B6 was screened from Streptomyces solisilvae using an activity-guided method. Fluvirucin B6 exhibited strong antifungal activity against Foc TR4 (0.084 mM of EC50 value) and significantly inhibited mycelial growth and spore germination. Further studies demonstrated that fluvirucin B6 could cause the functional loss of mitochondria, the disorder of metabolism of Foc TR4 cells, and the decrease of enzyme activities in the tricarboxylic acid cycle and electron transport chain, ultimately inhibiting mycotoxin metabolism. In a pot experiment, the application of fluvirucin B6 significantly decreased the incidence of banana Fusarium wilt and the amount of Foc TR4 and controlled fungal toxins in the soil. Additionally, fluvirucin B6 could positively regulate the changes in the structure of the banana rhizosphere microbial community, significantly enriching beneficial microbes associated with disease resistance. In summary, this study identifies fluvirucin B6, which plays versatile roles in managing fungal diseases and mycotoxins.

Short-chain fatty acids ameliorate imiquimod-induced skin thickening and IL-17 levels and alter gut microbiota in mice: a metagenomic association analysis.

Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) have been proposed to have anti-inflammatory effects and improve immune homeostasis. We aimed to examine the effects of SCFAs on skin phenotype, systemic inflammation, and gut microbiota in mice with psoriasis-like inflammation. Imiquimod (IMQ)-treated C57BL/6 mice served as the study model. We conducted a metagenomic association study of IMQ-mice treated with SCFAs or anti-IL-17 antibody using whole-genome shotgun sequencing. The associations among SCFA supplements, skin thickness, circulating inflammatory profiles, and fecal microbiota profiles were investigated. The microbiome study was performed using pipelines for phylogenetic analysis, functional gene analysis, and pathway analysis. In IMQ-treated mice, there were increases in skin thickness and splenic weight, as well as unique fecal microbial profiles. SCFAs ameliorated IMQ-induced skin thickening, splenic weight gain, and serum IL-17F levels, with results that were comparable with those receiving anti-IL-17 treatment. IMQ-treated mice receiving SCFAs had greater microbial diversity than mice treated with IMQ alone. SCFAs and anti-IL17 treatment were associated with alteration of gut microbiota, with increased prevalences of Oscillospiraceae and Lachnopiraceae and decreased prevalences of Muribaculaceae and Bacteroides, which have been predicted to be associated with increased glycan degradation, phenylalanine metabolism, and xylene degradation. SCFAs may mitigate IMQ-induced skin thickening and IL-17F levels and alter fecal microbiota profiles in IMQ-treated mice.

Helmet-Roled Molecules Carrying Double Metronidazole Frameworks and Phenyl Ring for Strengthening Adsorption and Anticorrosion on Mild Steel.

This study prepared new helmet-roled molecules (HMs) carrying metronidazole frameworks and a phenyl ring for strengthening adsorption and anticorrosion on mild steel. The adsorption of the HMs on the copper surface was understood by material simulation computation. Furthermore, the surface analysis experiments suggest that the studied molecules could be adsorbed to a mild steel surface through the chemical coordination bonding. The remarkable corrosion resistance of the HMs for mild steel in HCl was surveyed by potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy at 298 K. The HMs including two metronidazole skeletons displayed the stronger corrosion inhibition effect on mild steel than the HM1 bearing one single metronidazole part (the corrosion inhibition efficiency, HM3, 98.03%, HM2, 95.14%, HM1, 88.72%). The results presented in this study provided an efficient strategy to develop new clinical medicine-based corrosion inhibitors for metal in acid medium through molecular preconstruction.

Collaborative management of environmental pollution and carbon emissions drives local green growth: An analysis based on spatial effects.

Collaborative management of environmental pollution and carbon emissions (CMPC) has been a major policy instrument to promote Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) in recent years. However, the relationship between the benefits and drawbacks of this environmental management practice for green growth in and around a local area remains to be clarified. Using 30 provinces in China during 2001-2019 as the object of analysis, we assessed the efficiency of local CMPC practices using the nonradial directional distance function (NDDF) model, predicted local green growth using the frontier green complexity index (GCI), and empirically examined the spatial effects, locational heterogeneity, and threshold characteristics of the relationship using the spatial Durbin model and the panel threshold model. Our study finds that although efficient CMPC does drive local green growth, the promotion effect is nonlinear with decreasing marginal effect. This effect is particularly obvious in economically developed regions with higher CMPCs, which will absorb resources from neighboring regions and create a "siphoning" effect. It was found that local financial support and foreign direct investment (FDI) can radiate green growth to neighboring regions; therefore, CMPC practice needs to pay more attention to the effect of joint governance, supplemented by financial and foreign investment policy tools, to better promote the green transformation of local economy.

Spatiotemporal distribution and transport flux of organophosphate esters in the sediment of the Yangtze River.

The Yangtze River Basin is an important area for organophosphate esters (OPEs) consumption and emission. Studies proved high OPE detection in Yangtze River water, but there is limited information about the spatiotemporal distribution and transport flux of OPEs in sediment. The present study investigated 16 OPEs in sediment from upstream to mid-downstream of the Yangtze River. The mean concentration of OPEs was 84.30 ng/g, and alkyl-OPEs was the primary component. Great specific surface area and high content of organic carbon significantly increased OPE concentration in Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR) by physical adsorption and chemical bonds (p < 0.05), making TGR the most contaminated area in mainstream. No significant differences in OPE constituents were found in seasonal distribution. Four potential sources of OPEs were identified by principal component analysis and self-organizing maps, and traffic emissions were the dominant source for OPEs. The hazard quotient model results indicated that aryl-OPEs showed moderate risks in the mainstream of Yangtze River, alkyl-OPEs and Cl-OPEs showed low risks. TGR was a significant sink of OPEs in Yangtze River and buried 7.41 tons of OPEs in 2020, a total of 14.87 tons of OPE were transported into the sea by sediment.

Perinatal depression and risk of maternal cardiovascular disease: a Swedish nationwide study.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Increasing evidence suggests that some reproductive factors/hazards are associated with a future risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in women. While major (non-perinatal) depression has consistently been associated with CVD, the long-term risk of CVD after perinatal depression (PND) is largely unknown. METHODS: A nationwide population-based matched cohort study involving 55 539 women diagnosed with PND during 2001-14 in Sweden and 545 567 unaffected women individually matched on age and year of conception/delivery was conducted. All women were followed up to 2020. Perinatal depression and CVD were identified from Swedish national health registers. Using multivariable Cox models, hazard ratios (HR) of any and type-specific CVD according to PND were estimated. RESULTS: The mean age at the PND diagnosis was 30.8 [standard deviation (SD) 5.6] years. During the follow-up of up to 20 years (mean 10.4, SD 3.6), 3533 (6.4%) women with PND (expected number 2077) and 20 202 (3.7%) unaffected women developed CVD. Compared with matched unaffected women, women with PND had a 36% higher risk of developing CVD [adjusted HR = 1.36, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.31-1.42], while compared with their sisters, women with PND had a 20% higher risk of CVD (adjusted HR = 1.20, 95% CI 1.07-1.34). The results were most pronounced in women without a history of psychiatric disorder (P for interaction < .001). The association was observed for all CVD subtypes, with the highest HR in the case of hypertensive disease (HR = 1.50, 95% CI: 1.41-1.60), ischaemic heart disease (HR = 1.37, 95% CI: 1.13-1.65), and heart failure (HR 1.36, 95% CI: 1.06-1.74). CONCLUSIONS: Women with PND are at higher risk of CVD in middle adulthood. Reproductive history, including PND, should be considered in CVD risk assessments of women.

Does international trade improve carbon productivity? Evidence from countries along the Belt and Road.

The Belt and Road Initiative proposed by China has significantly increased trade in countries along the Belt and Road (B&R). Since most of these countries are developing and emerging economies, the pressure to reduce carbon emissions poses a leading challenge for them. Carbon productivity has become a key indicator for assessing the degree of low-carbon development, as it can link economic development with CO2 emission reduction. However, few studies have investigated how international trade affects carbon productivity. Based on panel data from 43 countries along the B&R during 2001-2019, this paper uses a system GMM model to explore the impact of international trade on carbon productivity. Then, we divide the 43 countries in the sample into two groups according to their income levels to compare the different effects of international trade on carbon productivity. The results show that, first, the carbon productivity of the examined B&R countries has an overall increasing trend, and there is a significant heterogeneity of carbon productivity among countries with different income levels. Second, the effects of international trade, export, and import on carbon productivity are all significantly positive, and export's effect is higher than import. In the high-income group, carbon productivity is more likely to be improved by trade than in the middle (low)-income group. Third, economic development level, urbanization, and energy productivity are positively associated with carbon productivity, while CO2 per capita and government size inhibit carbon productivity improvement. Insight into the impact of international trade on carbon productivity provides theoretical support for B&R countries to better leverage foreign trade activities to achieve a green economy.

Taxonomic identification and antagonistic activity of Streptomyces luomodiensis sp. nov. against phytopathogenic fungi.

Banana wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense tropical race 4 (Foc TR4) is a devastating fungal disease. Biocontrol strategies hold immense potential for inhibiting the spread of Foc TR4. Here, 30 actinobacteria were isolated from soils and screened for their antagonistic activity against Foc TR4. Strain SCA4-21T was selected due to its strongest antagonistic activity against Foc TR4. Strain SCA4-21T also exhibited strong antagonistic activity against the other eight phytopathogenic fungi. The strain was identified as the genus Streptomyces according to its physiological, biochemical, and phenotypic characteristics. The phylogenetic trees of 16S rRNA sequences demonstrated that strain SCA4-21T formed a subclade with S. iranensis HM 35T and/or S. rapamycinicus NRRL B-5491T with low bootstrap values. Considering that 16S rRNAs did not provide sufficient resolution for species-level identification, the whole genome of strain SCA4-21T was sequenced. Multilocus sequence analysis (MLSA) based on five housekeeping gene alleles (atpD, gyrB, recA, rpoB, and trpB) revealed that strain SCA4-21T clustered into S. hygroscopicus subsp. hygroscopicus NBRC 13472T with 100% of bootstrap value. The analysis of the genome-based phylogeny also approved the results. Average nucleotide identity (ANI) and digital DNA-DNA hybridization (dDDH) were 91.26 and 44.30%, respectively, with values below the respective species level threshold of 95 and 70%. Hence, strain SCA 4-21T represented a novel species within the genus Streptomyces, named Streptomyces luomodiensis sp. nov. The type strain is SCA4-21T (=GDMCC4.340T = JCM36555T). By the CAZymes analysis, 348 carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes) were detected, including 15 chitinases and eight ß-1,3-glucanases. The fermentation broth of strain SCA4-21T, exhibiting strong antagonistic activity against Foc TR4, demonstrated high activities of chitinase and ß-1,3-glucanase, which might be involved in antifungal activity. Our results showed an innovative potential biocontrol agent for managing plant fungal diseases, specifically banana fusarium wilt.