Does combined heat and power mitigate CO2 emissions? A cross-country analysis.

Combined heat and power (CHP), which produces both heat and electricity at the same time, is so efficient that it can reduce energy use and emit less carbon dioxide (CO2) than conventional fossil fuel use. This article attempts to look empirically into the impact of CHP share in total electricity generation on CO2 emissions in a cross-country context. Data from 35 countries during the period 2009-2015 are used. For this purpose, the variable of CO2 emissions is regressed on three variables of constant, gross domestic product, and CHP share using two robust estimators. The results show that the level of CHP share of a country affects the level of its CO2 emissions negatively. That is, CHP leads to less CO2 emissions.

Assessing the external benefits of contaminated soil remediation in Korea: a choice experiment study.

Korean government has made and will continue to make a considerable investment in contaminated soil remediation to rectify the problems that arise from soil pollution. Quantitative information on the benefits of contaminated soil remediation is widely demanded by the public as well as the government. This article aims to assess the external benefits of contaminated soil remediation. A survey of 1000 randomly selected households was undertaken in Korea. The results show that the marginal willingness to pay values for a 1% decrease in human health hazard, a 1% improvement in biodiversity restoration, and 1000 new job creation by contaminated soil remediation are estimated to be KRW 204 (USD 0.17), 593 (0.50), and 238 (0.20) per household per year. The findings can provide policy-makers with useful information for both evaluating and planning the contaminated soil remediation.

Transcriptional regulation of adrenomedullin by oncostatin M in human astroglioma cells: implications for tumor invasion and migration.

Adrenomedullin (ADM), a secretory peptide with multiple functions in physiological to pathological conditions, is upregulated in several human cancers, including brain, breast, colon, prostate, and lung cancer. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the regulation of ADM expression in cancerous cells are not fully understood. Here, we report that oncostatin M (OSM), a cytokine belonging to the interleukin-6 family, induces ADM expression in astroglioma cells through induction of signal transducer and activator of transcription-3 (STAT-3) phosphorylation, nuclear translocation, and subsequent DNA binding to the ADM promoter. STAT-3 knockdown decreased OSM-mediated expression of ADM, indicating that ADM expression is regulated by STAT-3 in astroglioma cells. Lastly, scratch wound healing assay showed that astroglioma cell migration was significantly enhanced by ADM peptides. These data suggest that aberrant activation of STAT-3, which is observed in malignant brain tumors, may function as one of the key regulators for ADM expression and glioma invasion.

Benzylideneacetophenone derivatives attenuate IFN-γ-induced IP-10/CXCL10 production in orbital fibroblasts of patients with thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy through STAT-1 inhibition.

The aim of the present study was to identify a new candidate anti-inflammatory compound for use in the active stage of thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy (TAO). Benzylideneacetophenone compound JC3 [(2E)-3-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)phenylpro-2-en-l-one] was synthesized based on a structural modification of yakuchinone B, a constituent of the seeds of Alpinia oxyphylla, which belongs to the ginger family (Zingiberaceae), has been widely used in folk medicine as an anti-inflammatory phytochemical. Orbital fibroblasts were primarily cultured from patients with TAO, and the potential of JC3 to suppress the interferon (IFN)-γ-induced protein (IP)-10/CXCL10 production in these cells was determined. IFN-γ strongly increased the level of IP-10/CXCL10 in orbital fibroblasts from patients with TAO. JC3 exerted a significant inhibitory effect on the IFN-γ-induced increase in IP-10/CXCL10 in a dose-dependent manner; its potency was greater than that of an identical concentration of yakuchinone B with no toxicity to cells at the concentration range used. Moreover, the constructed dimer and trimer polystructures of JC3, showed greater potency than JC3 in suppressing the IFN-γ-induced production of IP-10/CXCL10. JC3 significantly attenuated the IP-10/CXCL10 mRNA expression induced by IFN-γ, and a gel-shift assay showed that JC3 suppressed IFN-γ-induced DNA binding of signal transducer and activator of transcription-1 (STAT-1) in TAO orbital fibroblasts. Our results provide initial evidence that the JC3 compound reduces the levels of IP-10/CXCL10 protein and mRNA induced by IFN-γ in orbital fibroblasts of TAO patients. Therefore, JC3 might be considered as a future candidate for therapeutic application in TAO that exerts its effects by modulating the pathogenic mechanisms in orbital fibroblasts.

Loss of the promyelocytic leukemia protein in gastric cancer: implications for IP-10 expression and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes.

Gastric cancer is one of the most common causes of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Expression of the tumor suppressor, promyelocytic leukemia (PML) protein, is reduced or abolished in gastric carcinomas, in association with an increased level of lymphatic invasion, development of higher pTNM staging, and unfavorable prognosis. Herein, we investigated the relationship between the extent of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes and the status of PML protein expression in advanced gastric carcinoma. We observed higher numbers of infiltrating T-cells in gastric carcinoma tissues in which PML expression was reduced or abolished, compared to tissues positive for PML. The extent of T-cell migration toward culture supernatants obtained from interferon-gamma (IFN-γ-stimulated gastric carcinoma cell lines was additionally affected by expression of PML in vitro. Interferon-gamma-inducible protein 10 (IP-10/CXCL10) expression was increased in gastric carcinoma tissues displaying reduced PML levels. Moreover, both Pml knockout and knockdown cells displayed enhanced IP-10 mRNA and protein expression in the presence of IFN-γ. PML knockdown increased IFN-γ-mediated Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription-1 (STAT-1) binding to the IP-10 promoter, resulting in elevated transcription of the IP-10 gene. Conversely, PML IV protein expression suppressed IP-10 promoter activation. Based on these results, we propose that loss of PML protein expression in gastric cancer cells contributes to increased IP-10 transcription via enhancement of STAT-1 activity, which, in turn, promotes lymphocyte trafficking within tumor regions.