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This article explores the concept of regeneration as a model for business, focusing on its potential to address global crises such as climate change, inequality, biodiversity loss, and health issues. It goes beyond sustainability by emphasizing the importance of making systems better, replenishing natural resources, and promoting equity and resilience. The article provides examples of companies like Patagonia and Natura that have embraced regeneration in their business models. It also discusses the potential of regenerative agriculture in restoring ecosystems, reducing carbon emissions, promoting biodiversity, and empowering smallholder farmers. The article highlights the need for a fundamental shift in business models and mindsets, as well as the importance of holding businesses accountable for their impacts on society and the environment. It advocates for financing and shared standards to support regenerative practices, and emphasizes the role of certifications in promoting transparency and consumer trust in regenerative brands. Additionally, the article argues for a shift towards circular production systems that minimize waste and maximize reuse. Overall, it calls for a wholesale rethinking of business models to prioritize regenerative practices and address societal and environmental challenges. [Extracted from the article]

Research on how physical attractiveness affects labor market outcomes has yielded contradictory results. Conceptualizing attractiveness as a diffuse status characteristic, the authors emphasize the role of status consistency in matching job applicants to positions of varying prestige. They argue that the effects of attractiveness depend on consistency with the job seeker’s other status characteristics and fit with the status of the focal job. A résumé audit study in China and a survey experiment in the United States both show that more attractive applicants with elite educational credentials were favored for higher-status jobs and less attractive applicants from nonelite universities were favored for lower-status positions. Applicants with either attractive looks or elite educational credentials, but not both, were not favored for either type of job. The authors’ model reconciles the mixed results of previous research and illuminates the interplay between physical and nonphysical status characteristics in labor markets.

The work describes the interactions of nanosilver (NAg) with bacterial cell envelope components at a molecular level and how this associates with the reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated toxicity of the nanoparticle. Major structural changes were detected in cell envelope biomolecules as a result of damages in functional moieties, such as the saccharides, amides, and phosphodiesters. NAg exposure disintegrates the glycan backbone in the major cell wall component peptidoglycan, causes complete breakdown of lipoteichoic acid, and disrupts the phosphate-amine and fatty acid groups in phosphatidylethanolamine, a membrane phospholipid. Consistent with the oxidative attacks, we propose that the observed cell envelope damages are inflicted, at least in part, by the reactive oxygen radicals being generated by the nanoparticle during its leaching process, abiotically, without cells. The cell envelope targeting, especially those on the inner membrane phospholipid, is likely to then trigger the rapid generation of lethal levels of cellular superoxide (O2•–) and hydroxyl (OH•) radicals herein seen with a model bacterium. The present study provides a better understanding of the antibacterial mechanisms of NAg, whereby ROS generation could be both the cause and consequence of the toxicity, associated with the initial cell envelope targeting by the nanoparticle.

A G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) agonist protein, thaumatin, was site-specifically conjugated at the N- or C-terminus with a fluorophore for visualization of GPCR:agonist interactions. The N-terminus was specifically conjugated using a synthetic 2-pyridinecarboxyaldehyde reagent. The interaction profiles observed for N- and C-terminal conjugates were varied; N-terminal conjugates interacted very weakly with the GPCR of interest, whereas C-terminal conjugates bound to the receptor. These chemical biology tools allow interactions of therapeutic proteins:GPCR to be monitored and visualized. The methodology used for site-specific bioconjugation represents an advance in application of 2-pyridinecarboxyaldehydes for N-terminal specific bioconjugations.

Reductive dehalogenases (RDases) are key enzymes involved in the respiratory process of anaerobic organohalide respiring bacteria (ORB). Heterologous expression of respiratory RDases is desirable for structural and functional studies; however, there are few reports of successful expression of these enzymes. Dehalobactersp. strain UNSWDHB is an ORB, whose preferred electron acceptor is chloroform. This study describes efforts to express recombinant reductive dehalogenase (TmrA), derived from UNSW DHB, using the heterologous hosts Escherichia coliand Bacillus megaterium. Here, we report the recombinant expression of soluble and functional TmrA, using B. megateriumas an expression host under a xylose-inducible promoter. Successful incorporation of iron–sulfur clusters and a corrinoid cofactor was demonstrated using UV–vis spectroscopic analyses. In vitrodehalogenation of chloroform using purified recombinant TmrA was demonstrated. This is the first known report of heterologous expression and purification of a respiratory reductive dehalogenase from an obligate organohalide respiring bacterium.

The article focuses on the Chinese entrepreneurs that work together and pursue philanthropy collectively and prefer to establishes their own foundation and donor-advised fund. Topics discussed include concepts of philanthropy or organizational behavior in Chinese entrepreneurs, collectivist charity directs and mobilizes the collective economic, political, and social capital of entrepreneurs and public welfare initiatives and endorsing the promotion of corporate social responsibility.

In this era of increasing antibiotic resistance, the use of alternative antimicrobials such as silver has become more widespread. Superior antimicrobial activity has been provided through fabrication of silver nanoparticles or nanosilver (NAg), which imparts cytotoxic actions distinct from those of bulk silver. In the wake of the recent discoveries of bacterial resistance to NAg and its rising incorporation in medical and consumer goods such as wound dressings and dietary supplements, we argue that there is an urgent need to monitor the prevalence and spread of NAg microbial resistance. In this Perspective, we describe how the use of NAg in commercially available products facilitates prolonged microorganism exposure to bioavailable silver, which underpins the development of resistance. Furthermore, we advocate for a judicial approach toward NAg use in order to preserve its efficacy and to avoid environmental disruption.

Background: Up to 44% of ankle fractures have involvement of the posterior tibial margin. Fracture size and morphology are important factors to guide treatment of these fragments, but reliability of plain radiography in estimating size is low. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the accuracy of 2-dimensional computed tomography (2DCT) in the assessment of posterior malleolar fractures. Additionally, the diagnostic accuracy of 2DCT and its value in preoperative planning was evaluated.Methods: Thirty-one patients with 31 ankle fractures including a posterior malleolar fragment were selected. Preoperative CT scans were analyzed by 50 observers from 23 countries. Quantitative 3-dimensional CT (Q3DCT) reconstructions were used as a reference standard.Results: Articular involvement of the posterior fragment was overestimated on 2DCT by factors 1.6, 1.4, and 2.2 for Haraguchi types I, II, and III, respectively. Interobserver agreement on operative management (“to fix, or not to fix?”) was substantial (κ = 0.69) for Haraguchi type I fractures, fair (κ = 0.23) for type II fractures, and poor (κ = 0.09) for type III fractures. 2DCT images led to a change in treatment of the posterior malleolus in 23% of all fractures. Surgeons would operatively treat type I fractures in 63%, type II fractures in 67%, and type III fractures in 22%.Conclusion: Surgeons overestimated true articular involvement of posterior malleolar fractures on 2DCT scans. 2DCT showed some additional value in estimating the involved articular surface when compared to plain radiographs; however, this seemed not yet sufficient to accurately read the fractures. Analysis of the CT images showed a significant influence on choice of treatment in 23% with a shift toward operative treatment in 12% of cases compared to evaluating plain lateral radiographs alone.Level of Evidence: Level III, comparative study.

The article focuses on the emergence of subversive charities in China and their effort to address social problems that its government has either failed to put on the agenda or struggles to solve. The success of the subversive charity Free Lunch, which is founded by social change advocate Deng Fei, and the likes in raising funds through the use of the Internet as a platform for revolutionary action is explored.

The hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) plays an essential role in the replication of HCV and is a key target for novel antiviral therapies. Several RdRp inhibitors are in clinical trials and have increased response rates when combined with current interferon-based therapies for genotype 1 (G1) HCV patients. These inhibitors, however, show poor efficacy against non-G1 genotypes, including G3a, which represents ~20% of HCV cases globally. Here, we used a commercially available fluorescent dye to characterize G3a HCV RdRp in vitro. RdRp activity was assessed via synthesis of double-stranded RNA from the single-stranded RNA poly(C) template. The assay was miniaturized to a 384-well microplate format and a pilot high-throughput screen was conducted using 10,208 “lead-like” compounds, randomly selected to identify inhibitors of HCV G3a RdRp. Of 150 compounds demonstrating greatest inhibition, 10 were confirmed using both fluorescent and radioactive assays. The top two inhibitors (HAC001 and HAC002) demonstrated specific activity, with an IC50of 12.7 µM and 1.0 µM, respectively. In conclusion, we describe simple, fluorescent-based high-throughput screening (HTS) for the identification of inhibitors of de novo RdRp activity, using HCV G3a RdRp as the target. The HTS system could be used against any positive-sense RNA virus that cannot be cultured.

Exposure to fetal bovine serum (FBS) is shown herein to reduce the aggregate size of titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles, affecting uptake and consequent effect on A549 and H1299 human lung cell lines. Initially, the cellular uptake of the FBS-treated TiO2was lower than that of non-FBS-treated TiO2. Expulsion of particles was then observed, followed by a second phase of uptake of FBS-treated TiO2, resulting in an increase in the cellular content of FBS-treated TiO2, eventually exceeding the amount by cells exposed to non-FBS-treated TiO2. Surface adsorbed vitronectin and the clathrin-mediated endocytosis pathway were shown to regulate the uptake of TiO2into A549 cells, while the endocytosis mechanism responsible remains elusive for H1299. Intriguingly, nystatin treatment was shown to have the unexpected effect of increasing nanoparticle uptake into the A549 cells viaan alternate endocytic pathway. The surface adsorbed serum components were found to provide some protection from the cytotoxic effect of endocytosed TiO2nanoparticles.

This article analyzes the closing gap between regulation and enforcement of environmental protection in China and explores its implications for doing business there. It identifies three major dimensions that characterize change in regulatory systems: priorities and incentives, bureaucratic alignment, and transparency and monitoring. Using these dimensions, it describes the mechanisms that characterized China's prior period where enforcement of environmental protection was decoupled from regulation. Regulation and enforcement are becoming re-aligned. This is due to a change in national development strategy, reorganization of the bureaucracy, and increasing monitoring from both the government and general public. To address these changes, firms need to embrace environmental innovation and integrate local and global standards. They should also be more transparent and compete on reputation.

The work investigates the source of toxicity of copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) with respect to its leaching characteristic and speciation. Complexation-mediated leaching of CuO NPs by amino acids was identified as the source of toxicity toward Escherichia coli, the model microorganism used in the current study. The leached copper–peptide complex induces a multiple-fold increase in intracellular reactive oxygen species generation and reduces the fractions of viable cells, resulting in the overall inhibition of biomass growth. The cytotoxicity of the complex leachate is however different from that of equivalent soluble copper salts (nitrates and sulfates). A pH-dependent copper speciation during the addition of copper salts gives rise to uncoordinated copper ions, which in turn result in greater toxicity and cell lysis, the latter of which was not observed for CuO NPs even at comparable pH. Since leaching did not occur with micrometer-sized CuO, no cytotoxicty effect was observed, thus highlighting the prominence of materials toxicity at the nanoscale.

A novel biodegradable thiazolidine‐2‐thione functional chain transfer agent was synthesized and employed as a reversible additional fragmentation chain transfer agent to prepare well‐defined semitelechelic poly‐N‐(2‐hydroxypropyl) methacrylamides (polyHPMAs) with predetermined molecular weights and narrow polydispersities. The protein reactive group, thiazolidine‐2‐thione, was located at the polymer chain ends fixed by biodegradable disulfide bonds. The functional polyHPMA chains were subsequently conjugated to protein (lysozyme) by exploiting reactions between the thiazolidine‐2‐thione functionality and amine residues on the protein surface to form covalent amide linkages. The in vitro bioactivities of the lysozyme–polyHPMA conjugates were assessed by using Micrococcus lysodeikticuscells as substrates. The lysozyme bioactivity was significantly reduced following the conjugation procedure. However, cleavage of the polymer chains from the bioconjugates (under reducing conditions) yielded free protein and a remarkable recovery of bioactivity. In vivo tests were performed by subcutaneous injection into mice and clearly demonstrated decreased proteolytic degradation for the protein–polymer conjugate when compared with native protein, indicating effective protein protection through a conjugation strategy. This bioreversible approach to conjugation allows for a balance to be made between protein protection and effective bioactivity maintenance.

The article discusses the Creek War, a series of campaigns by military commander Andrew Jackson against Creek Indians following the massacre of settlers at Fort Mims, Alabama. Indian chief Red Eagle led a force of Creek Indians known as Red Sticks to attack the fort. Tennessee governor William Blount assigned Jackson to lead militia against the Red Sticks. Despite the disintegration of the volunteer militia force, Jackson defeated the Red Sticks at Horseshoe Bend, Alabama.

Predation by fish is generally assumed to be an important source of mortality of coral propagules. Field observations have confirmed that fish feed within the slicks of gametes that form following the annual mass spawning of corals on the Great Barrier Reef. However, these studies cannot determine which species are being consumed. To test whether the eggs of coral species were equally palatable, the eggs of eight common broadcast spawning scleractinian corals were fed to a planktivorous fish. Pomacentrus moluccensis readily consumed the eggs of five acroporid species and two faviid species, but often rejected the eggs of the agariciid Pachyseris speciosa; only 60% of the P. speciosa eggs were ingested compared with 90% of eggs of the other species. Assay testing for chemical defence showed that P. speciosa eggs were chemically distasteful to P. moluccensis. Extra keywords: chemical defence, coral reef, feeding preference, predation

Provides information on foeto-maternal alloimmune thrombocytopaenia. Pathophysiology; Therapy; Laboratory diagnosis. INSET: Better Foetal Monitoring, by Guy Nolch.

The article discusses the superbug resistance to antimicrobial activity of nanosilver. It reveals that the death rate of patients infected by antibiotic-resistant bacteria is approximately double that in patients infected by non-resistant ones according to the World Health Organization. The scope of antimicrobial activity of nanosilver is explained to note that some bacteria adapt quickly to its presence.