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The idea that energy taxes and innovation may contribute to lowering greenhouse gas emissions and fostering the development of a more sustainable energy future is gaining popularity. Therefore, the study's main goal is to explore the asymmetric impact of energy taxes and innovation on CO2 emissions in China by employing linear and nonlinear ARDL econometric methods. The outcomes of the linear model demonstrate that long-term increases in energy taxes, energy technological innovation, and financial development cause CO2 emissions to reduce, while increases in economic development cause CO2 emissions to climb. Similarly, energy taxes and energy technological innovation cause CO2 emissions to fall in the short run, while financial development promotes CO2 emissions. On the other hand, in the nonlinear model, the positive energy changes, positive energy innovation changes, financial development, and human capital help reduce the long-run CO2 emissions, and economic development increase the CO2 emissions. In the short run, the positive energy and innovation changes are negatively and significantly connected to CO2 emissions, while financial development is positively linked to CO2 emissions. The negative energy innovation changes are insignificant in both the short and long run. Therefore, Chinese policymakers should try to promote energy taxes and innovations as tools to achieve green sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soil is the largest carbon (C) pool in terrestrial ecosystems. A small change of soil organic carbon (SOC) storage may have a substantial effect on the CO2 concentration in the atmosphere, potentially leading to global climate change. Forest stand density has been reported to influence SOC storage, yet the effects are often inconsistent. In order to reveal the mechanisms of effect of stand density on SOC storage, larch plantations with three different stand densities (which were 2000, 3300 and 4400 trees per hectare) were chosen. Soil properties were measured in three soil layers which are: 0–20 cm, 20–40 cm and 40–60 cm. An incubation experiment with 14C-labeled cellulose addition was subsequently conducted to study the decomposition of SOC and cellulose, as well as the enzymes activity involved in C and nutrients cycle. The results showed that SOC storage increased with increasing stand density in larch plantations, which was due to the higher C stored in heavy fraction instead of light fraction in higher density. The decomposition of added cellulose decreased with increasing stand density in each soil layer, as well as the cumulative soil derived CO2 emission rate. The activity of enzymes involved in C-cycle and C- and nitrogen (N)-cycle remained unaffected by stand density in the 0–20 cm and 20–40 cm layers. The enzyme activity involved in the phosphorus (P)-cycle did not change corresponding to the stand density in each soil layer. Enzymes involved in the N-cycle showed the highest activity in the middle stand density in 0–20 cm, but no difference was observed among different densities in the subsurface layer except for tyr in the 40–60 cm layer, which showed the lowest activity in high stand density. Cellulose addition stimulated the extracellular enzymes activity involved in the C-cycle and P-cycle in the 0–20 cm layer, and the stimulation declined with increasing stand density. However, significant stimulation of cellulose addition to C-cycle involved enzymes activity was not found in the subsurface layer. We aim to reveal the mechanism of effects of stand density of larch plantations on SOC storage by focusing on the cellulose and SOC decomposition and the corresponding extracellular enzymes activity. In the plots of higher stand density, larch plantations may lead to a weaker C output and stronger C input, which leads to the higher SOC storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Resource input is the prerequisite to maintain the operation of socio-economic systems. Exergy analysis provides a wide and clear vision of the use and degradation of natural resources, with essential implications to sustainability. This paper aims to perform an exergy-based system account of the resource utilization in China, one of the most complex societies around the world. An overall systems diagram with seven independent and complimentary social departments is designed to illustrate the clear-cut processes of resource use and exergy destruction and loss. The national total input of resource exergy in 2012 reached 158.11 EJ, with the net input of 155.87 EJ. Its per capita resource consumption increased to 111.95 GJ, compared with 51.5 GJ in 2003. Industry accounted for 26.3% of the total resource exergy consumption, followed by Conversion 23.2%, Household 18.3%, Agriculture 10.2%, Tertiary 10.0%, Exaction 6.7% and Transportation 5.3%. The sectoral conversion coefficients of resource exergy were estimated as 91.92% for Extraction , 34.58% for Conversion , 29.75% for Agriculture , 32.18% for Industry , 18.46% for Transportation , 34.28% for Tertiary and only 1.28% for Household . The structure and efficiencies of resource exergy use of the Chinese society haven’t witnessed a prominent improvement in the recent decade, and its resource utilization performance was still inferior to those of some industrialized societies. Exergy-based unified accounting for a benchmark year provides solid foundation for resource policy formation and can serve as the tool for identifying resource footprint and sustainable development mode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regional imbalance in development is amongst the most important challenges for China. As the country’s leading economic engines, three major economic circles representing 6.5% of the national land territory contributed to more than 2/5 of national gross domestic product (GDP). This paper focuses on the impact of these three growth poles in China’s regional development, particularly for their embodied energy uses in light of multi-regional input-output analysis. Significantly, the three developed areas generated huge demands for embodied energy, 1237.52 Mtce and 40.1% of the total domestic supply in 2010, but far from self-sufficient. In Yangtze-River-Delta , Pearl-River-Delta and Jing-Jin-Ji , 93.1%, 85.1% and 63.4% of their embodied energy uses respectively can be traced back to the energy-supply provinces such as Shanxi, Inner Mongolia and Shaanxi and other trade partners. Over a half of the national interregional transfers of embodied energy via domestic trade were induced by the three economic circles’ final demand, largely resulted from their large-scale infrastructure construction, upgraded consumption structures, high export dependency and ongoing urbanization process. The results indicate that demand-driven embodied energy is a comprehensive indicator to reflect the real energy use patterns of developed regions or megacities and reveal their industrial positions in domestic and even global supply chains. Understanding the temporal and spatial energy transition along with regional development from consumption-based insights is a vital step toward appropriately targeted policy making for the nationwide energy saving and emission reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In situ hybridization (ISH) is a general molecular biological technique used to determine the spatiotemporal expression of genes in many species. In the past few years, numerous ISH protocols have been established in many species. Turnip (Brassica rapa var. rapa) is an important crop in the world, especially in the Plateau area of China, and is a traditional Tibetan medicine. However, ISH protocol in turnip has not been established. Results: We explored and established an optimal workflow for mRNA ISH system for turnip which has been evaluated using BrrCLV3 and BrrWUSa. The optimal methods include: (1) fixation method, (2) protease K pretreatment time, (3) probe length and concentration, (4) washing temperature. We also provide advice on weakening background and improving the efficiency of RNA transcription in vitro. The expression of the BrrCLV3 gene in turnip was detected by the optimized system, and the applicability of the system was confirmed by using BrrWUSa. Conclusions: In this study, we established and optimized the mRNA ISH system for turnip. We explored and found that (1) FAA fixative was the optimized fixation method, (2) 30 min was the optimized protease K pretreatment time, (3) 100 bp, 100 ng/ml probe had good hybridization signal, (4) the optimized washing temperature was 52 °C. It provides a powerful method to locate mRNA in the tissue, which can study the expression and function of turnip's genes. As such, it has considerable advantages in terms of time and cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Consumption demands are final drivers for the extraction and allocation of natural resources. This paper investigates demand-driven natural resource requirements and spatial outsourcing within China in 2012 by using the latest multi-regional input-output model. Exergy is adopted as a common metric for natural resources input. The total domestic resource exergy requirements amounted to 125.5 EJ, of which the eastern area contributed the largest share of 44.5%, followed by the western area (23.9%), the central area (23.0%) and the northeastern area (8.6%). Investment was the leading final demand category, accounting for 52.9% (66.4 EJ) of national total embodied resource use (ERU). The total trade volumes of embodied resource were equivalent to 69.6% of the total direct resource input (DRI), mostly transferred from the central and western regions such as Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Shaanxi and Xinjiang to the eastern regions such as Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Guangdong and Shanghai. The northeastern and eastern areas had physical net imports of 1213.5 PJ and 38452.6 PJ, while the central and western inland areas had physical net exports of 6364.5 PJ and 33301.5 PJ, respectively. Shanghai, Beijing, Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Guangdong had prominent ERUs which respectively were 101.6, 12.6, 11.7, 8.4 and 4.3 times of their DRIs. The ERUs of Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Ningxia and Guizhou were equal to only 17.6%, 25.3%, 27.9%, 46.0% and 50.2% of their DRIs, respectively. Regional uneven development resulted in imbalanced resource requirements across China. The findings can provide a deep understanding of China's resource-driven economic development mode, and contribute to reducing regional resource footprints and their environment outcomes under the "new normal economy". Highlights • Outsourcing resource requirements within China 2012 is systematically revealed. • Exergy is adopted as a common metric for various natural resources input. • 69.6% of national total resource requirements were transferred via domestic trade. • Regional resource use patterns under the "new normal economy" are identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primary energy requirements have close interaction with resource, technology, environment, infrastructure, as well as the socio-economic development. This study links the entire supply chain of the Chinese economy from energy extraction to final consumption by using input-output analysis and structural path analysis. The results show that the domestic primary energy input amounted to 3318.7 Mtce in 2012, of which 49.5% was induced by investment demands. Despite being one of the world's largest energy importers, embodied energy uses (EEUs) in China’s exports were equivalent to about one fourth of its total domestic supply. All Manufacturing sectors accounted for 44.3% of the total EEUs, followed by Construction for 33.3%, Services for 11.6% and Power & Heat for 3.9%. After examining the embodied energy paths, critical economic sectors such as Construction of Buildings , Construction Installation Activities , Transport Via Road , Production and Supply of Electricity and Steam and Processing of Steel Rolling Processing , and supply chain routes starting from final uses to resource extraction such as “Capital formation → Construction of Buildings → Production and Supply of Electricity and Steam → Production and Supply of Electricity and Steam → Mining and Washing of Coal ”, were identified as the main contributors to China’s raw coal and other primary energy requirements. Restructuring Chinese economy from manufacturing industries to construction and services with huge economic costs cannot fundamentally conserve energy, owing to their almost identical structures in higher production tiers; more appropriate policies on technology efficiency gains, energy mix improvement, economic structure adjustment and green consumption deserve to be considered in the light of upstream and downstream responsibilities from a systematic viewpoint. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to uneven development and unbalanced resource endowments within China, ensuring reliable energy, water and food supply is a core challenge to regional socio-economic development. This study makes a first attempt to examine and compare demand-driven energy, water and arable land (E-W-L) resource outsourcings within China based on the latest multi-regional input-output model. Results show that interprovincial trade reallocated 73.4%, 33.9% and 38.1% of the national total E-W-L resource inputs in 2012, respectively. Investment was the dominant final demand category for driving energy requirements, while consumption was the leading final demand category for water and arable land requirements. Important provincial regions and critical transmission sectors for the trade of embodied E-W-L resources are identified. Substantial E-W-L resources were transferred from the central and western regions to the eastern regions. Especially, Inner Mongolia was the top interregional net exporter of embodied energy, while Jiangsu topped the net importer list. Regarding virtual water transfer, Xinjiang and Shandong were the biggest interregional net exporters and net importers, respectively, while Heilongjiang and Guangdong stood out in the net trade of embodied arable land. Owing to the impact of interprovincial trade, the resource occupancy levels of the eastern developed area were much higher than those of the northeastern, central and western areas. The imbalances in the levels of socio-economic development amongst provincial regions are mirrored by their patterns of E-W-L uses and related trade transfer. Understanding the synchronal outsourcings of E-W-L resource requirements provides important implications for targeted resource management in Chinese interprovincial supply chains. • Energy, water and arable land resource outsourcings within China are examined. • Consumption-based accounting contributes to revealing resource inequality issue. • Eastern developed regions induce large amounts of resource transfers via trade. • Regional uneven development leads to the unequal access to resources. • Managing interprovincial supply chains can reduce resource footprint. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Data on the evolution of congenital heart disease (CHD) in China remain scarce. Based on a Chinese echocardiography database, we analyzed the observed rate (OR) and spectrum changes of CHD over the past 18 years with a focus on the congenital aortic valve malformation (CAVM) and Adult CHD (ACHD)., Methods and Results: The transthoracic echocardiographic data of 682,565 records from 2003 to 2020 were retrospectively reviewed at Fujian Medical University Union Hospital, China. A total of 37,200 CHD cases were recruited in this study. Over the three periods (from 2003 to 2008, 2009-2014, to 2015-2020), the OR of Total CHD decreased (106.72, 90.64, and 67.43 per 1000 cases, respectively); the proportion of Simple CHD to Total CHD increased (80.96%, 83.41%, and 87.97%, respectively), with a decrease in the proportion of Complex CHD (18.11%, 15.51%, and 10.42%, respectively) (p < 0.05 for all). The proportion of ACHD increased in most types of CHD [Total CHD: 25.79%, 27.84%, and 31.43%; CAVM: 69.02%, 73.42%, and 78.16%; CAVM with aortic stenosis (AS): 67.42%, 70.73%, and 79.25%; respectively, p < 0.05 for all], with a much higher proportion in both CAVM and CAVM with AS than in the other CHD types. The proportion of CHD patients receiving intervention increased over the designated periods., Conclusions: This study depicts the longitudinal changes of CHD in the Chinese population with a single-center echocardiographic data, revealing an increased proportion of Simple CHD, ACHD (including CAVM and CAVM with AS), and a decreased OR of Total CHD and proportion of Complex CHD., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest None., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Globalization has characterized geo-economic integrations of world regions via South-South, North-North, and South-North trades, which play a critical role in displacing global greenhouse gas emissions. Based on the global CH 4 emission inventories from the EDGAR database and the global multi-region input-output accounts from the EORA database, this study explores the trade-induced CH 4 emission transfers of 20 geographical regions of the world from 1990 to 2015. Global total CH 4 emissions increased by 19.13% in 2015 compared to 1990, while trade-related emissions increased by 46.28% over the same period. Western Europe, the USA, Japan, Other East Asia, and Mainland China were the largest five importers of embodied CH 4 emissions, while Sub-Saharan Africa, Russia, Middle East, Mainland China, and Southeast Asia were the largest five export regions of embodied CH 4 emissions. Substantial agriculture- and energy-related CH 4 emissions were transferred from developed regions to developing regions. The trade between economies from the global south and the global north had undergone positive changes, with the trade structure and transfer path showing a trend of divergence. Among the total CH 4 emissions embodied in international trade, the CH 4 emissions embodied in South-North trade accounted for more than half (55.94-62.72 Tg, 71%-55%) from 1990 to 2015. The CH 4 emissions embodied in the South-South trade accounted for 19%-34% (14.62-39.46 Tg), and the proportion of CH 4 emissions embodied in the North-North trade appeared to be relatively small (10%-11%, 8.05-12.82 Tg) during the period. It is imperative to strengthen South-South, South-North, and North-North cooperation in multilateral trade to jointly cut down the CH 4 emissions among world regions., (Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)