Adoption of sustainable farming practices in Vietnam: A discourse of the determining factors.

To delve into the intricacies of sustainable agricultural practices, our study investigates both the behavioral and non-behavioral factors influencing farmers' decision-making processes. Employing the New Ecological Model (NEP) to capture social factors, our research framework integrates insights from the sustainable livelihood framework, which delineates five crucial types of livelihood capital: (1) human capital, (2) natural capital, (3) financial capital, (4) physical capital, and (5) social capital. This comprehensive approach enables us to incorporate additional non-behavioral factors and their impacts on farmers' decisions. We underscore the pivotal role of farmers' decisions in fostering sustainable agriculture, aligning with seven of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Leveraging survey data collected from 303 Vietnamese farmers, we validate our research framework using two analytical models: Structural Equation Model (SEM) and binary logit analysis. Our findings underscore the significant influence of farmers' risk propensity and concerns regarding food safety and environmental conservation on the adoption of organic farming practices. Notably, farmers' level of knowledge emerges as a critical determinant shaping their inclination towards sustainable agriculture. The study underscores the importance of targeted educational initiatives and awareness campaigns, identifying key determinants such as proximity to green spaces and farm size in shaping farmers' choices towards sustainable practices.

Highly adsorptive removal of ciprofloxacin and E. coli inactivation using amino acid tryptophan modified nano-gibbsite.

Adsorption of essential amino acid, Tryptophan (Tryp) on synthesized gibbsite nanoparticles and their applications in eliminating of antibiotic ciprofloxacin (CFX) and bacteria Escherichia coli (E. coli) in aqueous solution. Nano-gibbsite which was successfully fabricated, was characterized by XRD, TEM-SAED, FT-IR, SEM-EDX and zeta potential measurements. The selected parameters for Tryp adsorption on nano-gibbsite to form biomaterial, Tryp/gibbsite were pH 11, gibbsite dosage 20 mg/mL and 1400 mg/L Tryp. The optimum conditions for CFX removal using Tryp/gibbsite were adsorption time 60 min, pH 5, and 20 mg/mL Tryp/gibbsite dosage. The CFX removal significantly raised from 63 to 90% when using Tryp/gibbsite. The Freundlich and pseudo-second-order models achieved the best fits for CFX adsorption isotherm and kinetic on Tryp/gibbsite, respectively. The amount of CFX increased with increasing ionic strength, suggesting that both electrostatic and non-electrostatic interactions were important. After four reused time, CFX removal was greater than 66%, demonstrating that Tryp/gibbsite is reusable with high performance in removing CFX. The application in bacterial activity in term of E. coli reached greater than 98% that was the best material for bacteria inactivation. The present study reveals that Tryp/gibbsite is an excellent bio-material for removing CFX and E. coli.

Gene alterations in the nuclear transport receptor superfamily: A study of head and neck cancer.

In cancer cells, the nuclear transport system is often disrupted, leading to abnormal localization of nuclear proteins and altered gene expression. This disruption can arise from various mechanisms such as mutations in genes that regulate nuclear transport, altered expression of transport proteins, and changes in nuclear envelope structure. Oncogenic protein build-up in the nucleus due to the disturbance in nuclear transport can also boost tumor growth and cell proliferation. In this study, we performed bioinformatic analyses of 23 key nuclear transport receptors using genomic and transcriptomic data from pancancer and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) datasets from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia and found that the total alteration frequency of 23 nuclear transport receptors in 2691 samples of the PCAWG Consortium was 42.1% and a high levels of genetic alterations was significantly associated with poor overall survival. Amplification was the most common type of genetic alterations, and results in the overexpression of nuclear transport receptors in HNSCC compared to normal tissues. Furthermore, our study revealed that seven out of eight cell cycle genes (CDK1, CDK2, CDK4, CDK6, CCNA1, CCNB1, and CCNE2) were significantly and positively correlated with nuclear transport receptor genes in TCGA pancancer and CCLE datasets. Additionally, functional enrichment analysis showed that nuclear transport receptor genes were mainly enriched in the adhesion junction, cell cycle, ERBB, MAPK, MTOR and WNT signaling pathways.

Chemicals from Cimicifuga dahurica and Their Inhibitory Effects on Pro-inflammatory Cytokine Production by LPS-stimulated Bone Marrow-derived Dendritic Cells

Inflammation is a biological response caused by overactivation of the immune system and is controlled by immune cells via a variety of cytokines. The overproduction of pro-inflammatory cytokines enhances abnormal host immunity, resulting in diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer's disease, and cancer. Inhibiting the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin (IL)-12p40, IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α might be one way to treat these conditions. Here, we investigated the anti-inflammatory activity of compounds isolated from Cimicifuga dahurica (Turcz.) Maxim., which is traditionally used as an antipyretic and analgesic in Korea. In primary cell culture assays, 12 compounds were found to inhibit the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-12p40, IL-6, and TNF-α) in vitro in bone marrow-derived dendritic cells stimulated with LPS.

Anti-osteoporotic and Antioxidant Activities by Rhizomes of Kaempferia parviflora Wall. ex Baker

In this report, we investigated the antioxidant (peroxyl radical-scavenging and reducing capacities) and anti-osteoporotic activities of extracts and isolated constituents (1 - 16) from the rhizomes of Kaempferia parviflora Wall. ex Baker on pre-osteoclastic RAW 264.7 cells. Compound 5 exhibited significant peroxyl radical-scavenging capacity, with TE value of 8.47 ± 0.52 µM, while compound 13 showed significant reducing capacity, with CUPRAC value of 5.66 ± 0.26 µM, at 10.0 µM. In addition, flavonoid compounds 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, and terpene compound 15 showed significant inhibition of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) in NF-κB ligand-induced osteoclastic RAW 264.7 cells, with values ranging from 16.97 ± 1.02 to 64.67 ± 2.76%. These results indicated that K. parviflora could be excellent sources for the antioxidant and anti-osteoporotic traditional medicinal plants.

Soluble Epoxide Hydrolase Inhibitory Activity from Euphorbia supina Rafin

In our search for natural soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) inhibitors from plants, an extract of the dried whole plants of Euphorbia supina Rafin was found to significantly inhibit sEH activity in vitro. Phytochemical investigation of E. supina resulted in isolation of 17 compounds (1 - 17), including triterpenes (1 - 4), phenolic compounds (5 - 8), and flavonoid derivatives (9 - 17). The structures of the isolated compounds were established mainly by extensive analysis of the 1D and 2D NMR, and MS data. All of the isolated compounds were evaluated for their sEH inhibitory activity. Among the isolated phenolic compounds, 8 was identified as a significant inhibitor of sEH, with an IC50 value of 15.4 +/- 1.3 microM. Additionally, a kinetic analysis of isolated compounds (2, 5, 8 - 11, 13, and 17) indicated that the inhibitory effects of flavonoid derivatives 10 and 11 were of mixed-type, with inhibitory constants (Ki) ranging from 3.6 +/- 0.8 to 21.8 +/- 1.0 microM, whereas compounds 2, 5, 8, 9, 13, and 17 were non-competitive inhibitors with inhibition Ki values ranging from 3.3 +/- 0.2 to 39.5 +/- 0.0 microM.

Anti-inflammatory Triterpenes and Glyceryl Glycosides from Kandelia candel (L.) Druce

Phytochemical investigation of Kandelia candel resulted in the isolation of six triterpenes (1 - 5) and two glyceryl glycosides (6 and 7) and their structures were determined by comparing the spectroscopic data with those of reported values. In present study, we described the inhibitory effects of fractions and isolated compounds from K. candel on pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-12 p40, IL-6, and TNF-alpha) production in lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulated bone marrow-derived dendritic cells (BMDCs). Results indicated that compounds 3, 6, and 7 showed potent inhibition on IL-6 production (IC50 values at less than 0.5 microM, respectively). Meanwhile, compounds 6 and 7 exhibited strong inhibitory effects on the production of TNF-alpha (IC50 values of 1.7 +/- 0.1 and 5.5 +/- 0.2 microM). Compounds 1 and 3 were also showed the inhibitory effects on IL-12 p40 production (IC50 values of 8.9 +/- 0.4 and 3.3 +/- 0.1 microM, respectively).