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Based on 908 consumer questionnaire data from 15 urban areas in Shanghai, we use the binary logit model to empirically analyze the impact of traceability label trust on consumers' traceable pork purchase behavior and the moderating effect of food safety identification. After constructing the theoretical analysis framework, this paper verifies it from the two aspects of statistical analysis and econometric analysis and tests the robustness of the final results. The results show that: first, traceability label trust has a significant positive impact on consumers' traceability pork behavior. Second, food safety identification can significantly strengthen and promote this process. Third, consumers' purchasing behavior is significantly positively affected by traceable pork consumption scenarios and price labels, but the permanent elderly in the composition of family members significantly negative impact on it. Therefore, we put forward relevant policy suggestions, such as strengthening the knowledge popularization and publicity based on the advantageous commodity attributes of traceable pork, carrying out food safety knowledge popularization education, and enhancing consumers' risk perception and food safety identification ability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Federated learning (FL) is an emerging machine learning method in which all participants can collaboratively train a model without sharing their raw data, thereby breaking down data silos and avoiding privacy issues caused by centralized data storage. In practical applications, client data are non-independent and identically distributed, resulting in FL requiring multiple rounds of communication to converge, which entails high communication costs. Moreover, the centralized architecture of traditional FL remains susceptible to privacy breaches, network congestion, and single-point failures. In order to solve these problems, this paper proposes an FL framework based on blockchain technology and a cluster training algorithm, called BCFL. We first improved an FL algorithm based on odd–even round cluster training, which accelerates model convergence by dividing clients into clusters and adopting serialized training within each cluster. Meanwhile, compression operations were applied to model parameters before transmission to reduce communication costs and improve communication efficiency. Then, a decentralized FL architecture was designed and developed based on blockchain and Inter-Planetary File System (IPFS), where the blockchain records the FL process and IPFS optimizes the high storage costs associated with the blockchain. The experimental results demonstrate the superiority of the framework in terms of accuracy and communication efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To explore the mechanism of glioma from MYB family genes from the perspective of the circRNA-miRNA-mRNA regulatory network. Methods. First, the MYB family genes were analyzed by multiple bioinformatics analyses to identify one gene most associated with glioma. Then, the prognostic value and clinical characteristics of the gene were evaluated by bioinformatics analysis and experiments in glioma cells. Next, the target miRNA and circRNA were predicted and verified by dual-luciferase reporter assays. Besides, the functions of target circRNA in glioma were investigated by CCK-8 and Transwell assays. At last, the relation between the screened MYB gene, miRNA, and circRNA in glioma was identified by rescue experiments. Results. After expression and Cox and survival analysis of six MYB family genes, MYBL2 was identified as the gene most associated with glioma. Then, we found that MYBL2 expression in primary gliomas was higher than those in other histologies, and it had variable expression according to clinical features. Furthermore, MYBL2 knockdown in glioma cells impairs cell growth, invasion, and migration in functional studies. Then, miR-30e-5p and circFAT1(e2) were identified as targets of MYBL2 by bioinformatics prediction and experimental verification. Finally, the relationship between circFAT1(e2), MYBL2, and miR-30e-5p was elucidated by rescue experiments. Conclusion. circFAT1(e2) could promote glioma development by regulating MYBL2 and miR-30e-5p, and MYBL2 has diagnostic and prognostic values in glioma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online food delivery increases dramatically during the COVID-19 era and has grown into a global marketplace worth more than $150 billion dollars, necessitating a more effective and responsive governance system. Public-private governance systems with whistleblowing to the public are seen as an effective tool for addressing the formidable challenges of food security in modern society. Accordingly, this study aims to explore the determinants of whistleblowing intentions and to propose policy policies for the whistleblowing system to fully utilize the advantages of public-private governance systems. Through empirical research, this paper finds that employees' perceived effectiveness of government authorities, as well as their familiarity with whistleblowing systems, positively affect their intentions to blow the whistle. However, the whistleblowing intent of restaurant employees is adversely affected by the online platform's focus. The root cause lies in the employee's trust in both the government sector and corporate sector. This study thus argues that a suite of measures to promote individual trust in public-private governance systems is desired and that this is an effective means of better mitigating food safety governance challenges in terms of capacity and resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Toad venom, a dried product of secretion from Bufo bufo gargarizans Cantor or Bufo melanostictus Schneider, has had the therapeutic effects of hepatocellular carcinoma confirmed. Bufalin and cinobufagin were considered as the two most representative antitumor active components in toad venom. However, the underlying mechanisms of this antitumor effect have not been fully implemented, especially the changes in endogenous small molecules after treatment. Therefore, this study was designed to explore the intrinsic mechanism on hepatocellular carcinoma after the cotreatment of bufalin and cinobufagin based on untargeted tumor metabolomics. Ultraperformance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) was performed to identify the absorbed components of toad venom in rat plasma. In vitro experiments were determined to evaluate the therapeutic effects of bufalin and cinobufagin and screen the optimal ratio between them. An in vivo HepG2 tumor-bearing nude mice model was established, and a series of pharmacodynamic indicators were determined, including the body weight of mice, tumor volume, tumor weight, and histopathological examination of tumor. Further, the entire metabolic alterations in tumor after treating with bufalin and cinobufagin were also profiled by UHPLC-MS/MS. Twenty-seven active components from toad venom were absorbed in rat plasma. We found that the cotreatment of bufalin and cinobufagin exerted significant antitumor effects both in vitro and in vivo, which were reflected in inhibiting proliferation and inducing apoptosis of HepG2 cells and thereby causing cell necrosis. After cotherapy of bufalin and cinobufagin for twenty days, compared with the normal group, fifty-six endogenous metabolites were obviously changed on HepG2 tumor-bearing nude mice. Meanwhile, the abundance of α-linolenic acid and phenethylamine after the bufalin and cinobufagin intervention was significantly upregulated, which involved phenylalanine metabolism and α-linolenic acid metabolism. Furthermore, we noticed that amino acid metabolites were also altered in HepG2 tumor after drug intervention, such as norvaline and Leu-Ala. Taken together, the cotreatment of bufalin and cinobufagin has significant antitumor effects on HepG2 tumor-bearing nude mice. Our work demonstrated that the in-depth mechanism of antitumor activity was mainly through the regulation of phenylalanine metabolism and α-Linolenic acid metabolism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Promoting farmland transfer through the farmland rental market is an essential instrument to achieve the centralized scale operation of farmland in China. However, few studies have explored or verified the economies of scale after land concentration. This study uses face-to-face interviews to randomly select 395 farmers engaged in land scale management in 68 villages of 11 cities in Shandong Province. Based on these data, a production cost function model is used to measure the cost elasticity of farmland scale management and further empirically test whether farmland scale management can achieve economies of scale in actual agricultural production. The empirical results show that the development of farmland scale operation can reduce production costs and realize the economy of scale. In other words, the scale of farmland management still has the possibility of further expansion. More importantly, we find the operation cost of farmland is significantly influenced by the price of farmland transfer, fixed capital input and labor input, especially the scale operator with rich planting experience and good cultural quality is an important human capital stock, which can make significant contribution to reducing production cost and developing the positive effect of scale operation. To promote farmland scale management in China, we should pay attention to reducing the transferring cost and transaction cost of farmland by building the land transfer market trading platform, increasing the subsidies for farmland transfer and developing agricultural mechanization, which is helpful to improve agricultural productivity and realize the scale economy. This research can provide a reference for rational land scale management and land use policymaking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pig-breeding industry is one of the pillar industries of China's agriculture. Improving the green total factor productivity of pig breeding is the basis for ensuring the stable supply of pork, and is also the key to the green transformation of the pig industry. The existing studies about the green total factor productivity of pig breeding lack an analysis of regional coordination and the spillover of spatial technology efficiency at the macro level, and most studies focus on the impact of agricultural production's environment pollution and other undesirable outputs. Based on the input–output index system of the pig-breeding industry's green production, the DDF directional distance function model and the Malmquist–Luenberger (ML) productivity index were combined to measure the green total factor productivity of the pig-breeding industry. Moran's I-Theil index model was used to measure and reveal the technical efficiency differences among the dominant regions of the pig-breeding industry in China and the σ-convergence test was adopted to reveal the convergence trend of green total factor productivity. The results showed that: (1) The growth level of green total factor productivity of pig breeding in China was generally low from 2006 to 2018, and there were obvious regional and scale differences. (2) The green total factor productivity of pig breeding in each province had spatial autocorrelation; that is, there was technology spillover. From 2006 to 2018, with the advance of time, a pattern of gradual evolution from low-level equilibrium to high-level imbalance was formed. (3) Through the convergence test, the convergence trend of large and medium-scale development between different regions fluctuated, while the convergence trend of small-scale development between different regions was not obvious. Therefore, it is necessary to increase investment in technological innovation, promote the large-scale and standardized development of the pig-breeding industry, and strengthen the promotion of technology in producing areas with advantages in pig breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both environmental and economic factors have driven the development of degradable resin for carbon fiber (CF) recycling under mild conditions. However, the vast majority of thermosetting materials are difficult to recycle. This paper presents bio‐based polyimine vitrimers to fully recycle the CF. The effect of vitrimers fine structures on the thermal, mechanical, solvent resistance, and degradation properties is carefully investigated. The tensile strength at break and Young's Modulus of pure polyimine vitrimers reach ≈80.3 MPa and 2.89 GPa. Importantly, the mechanical property of isophoronediamine‐based polyimine vitrimers/two‐layers CF exhibits a slightly inferior value to that of bisphenol A epoxy. Polyimine vitrimers are easily degradable under acid solution at 60 °C for 24 h. The surface morphology and chemical structure of CF are not changed after recycling. This work on mildly degradable polyimine vitrimers from vanillin and readily recycling of CF is desirable for the development of eco‐friendly CF composites and lignin functional materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increased drug resistance and metastasis of melanoma resulted in poor prognosis of patients. Here, we designed and synthesized a novel hemicyanine-based fluorescent probe ZWZ-3, and investigated its application for melanoma imaging and treatment both in vitro and in vivo. ZWZ-3 preferentially accumulated in melanoma cells via a process that depended on the organic anion-transporting polypeptide (OATP), which targeted mitochondria on the hemicyanine cationic nitrogen. In addition, we investigated the effect and molecular mechanism of ZWZ-3 in melanoma. In vitro studies showed that ZWZ-3 promoted the generation of reactive oxygen species and induced mitochondrial-mediated cell apoptosis by upregulating Bax and activating caspase-3, caspase-9, and PARP. Importantly, ZWZ-3 also induced autophagy by upregulating LC-3II and Atg5 and downregulating P62. It significantly suppressed tumor growth of A375 xenograft tumor in mice without notable side effects. Histological and immunohistochemical analyses revealed that ZWZ-3 induced apoptosis and inhibited tumor cell proliferation. Thus, ZWZ-3 represents a novel theranostic agent that can be used to effectively targeting, detecting, and treating melanoma. It could also help monitoring disease progression and response to treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The epigenetic abnormality is believed as a major driver for cancer initiation. Histone modification plays a vital role in tumor formation and progression. Particularly, alteration in histone acetylation has been highly associated with gene expression, cell cycle, as well as carcinogenesis. By analyzing glioblastoma (GBM)‐related microarray from the GEO database and conducting chromatin immunoprecipitation‐sequencing (ChIP‐seq), we discovered that solute carrier family 30 member 3 (SLC30A3), a super enhancer (SE)‐regulated factor, was significantly reduced in GBM tissues. Furthermore, histone deacetylase 1 (HDAC1), overexpressed in GBM tissues, could inhibit SLC30A3 expression by promoting histone H3K27ac deacetylation modification of the SE region of SLC30A3. Our functional validation revealed that SLC30A3 can inhibit the growth and metastatic spread of GBM cells in vitro and in vivo, and can activate the MAPK signaling pathway to promote apoptosis of GBM cells. Moreover, overexpression of HDAC1 resulted in a significant increase in DNA replication activity, a significant decline in apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in GBM cells. In a word, these findings indicate that combined epigenetic targeting of SLC30A3 by HDAC1 and SE is potentially therapeutically feasible in GBM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a malignant tumor of the central nervous system, glioma exhibits high incidence and poor prognosis. Circular RNA HIPK3 (circHIPK3) is a circular RNA (circRNA) related to cancer progression. However, the role of circHIPK3 in gliomas remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of circHIPK3 in gliomas and its mechanism. The qRT-PCR method was used to determine the expression pattern of circHIPK3 in glioma cell lines. CCK-8 assay was used to detect cell proliferation. Cell migration and invasion were evaluated using the Transwell assay. Our results showed that circHIPK3 expression was significantly up-regulated in glioma tissues and cell lines. In vitro , the down-regulation of circHIPK3 significantly inhibited the proliferation, migration and invasion of glioma cells. Besides, we demonstrated that circHIPK3 acted as a sponge to absorb miR-124 and promoted CCND2 expression. In summary, our results indicated that circHIPK3 had carcinogenic effects by regulating the expression of CCND2 in glioma by sponging miR-124. These findings provided favorable evidence to reveal the role of circHIPK3 in the development of gliomas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs frequently dysregulated in human malignancies. In this study, we found that miR-181c was down-regulated both in glioblastoma tissues and cell lines. We also annotated 566 TCGA miRNA expression profiles and found that patients with high microRNA-181c (miR-181c)-expressing tumors had significantly longer OS and PFS. Overexpression of miR-181c evidently inhibited glioblastoma cell line T98G migration and invasion. Further, the expression of E-cadherin was significantly upregulated and that of N-cadherin and vimentin was significantly down-regulated. We also found that miR-181c overexpression inhibited TGF-β signaling by down-regulating TGFBR1, TGFBR2 and TGFBRAP1 expression. Overall, our study found that miR-181c plays a key role in glioblastoma cell invasion, migration and mesenchymal transition suggesting potential therapeutic applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel two-photon pH probe, 3-benzimidazole-7-hydroxycoumarin (BHC), was designed and synthesized based on the structures of hydroxycoumarin and benzimidazole. BHC showed good linearity in the pH ranges of 3.30–5.40 (pKa = 4.20) and 6.50–8.30 (pKa = 7.20) at a maximum emission wavelength of 480 nm. BHC in acidic and alkaline media could be distinguished by an obvious spectral shift of the maximum absorption wavelength from 390 nm to 420 nm. In addition, BHC was well localized to mitochondria and successfully applied to one-photon and two-photon imaging of pH changes in the mitochondria of HeLa cells. The findings presented herein suggest that BHC can serve as an excellent fluorescent probe for selectively sensing mitochondrial pH changes with remarkable photostability and low cytotoxicity. Unlabelled Image • A new fluorescent probe for one- and two-photon sensing of pH was developed. • The probe responded sensitively and selectively to pH changes within 3.0–6.0 (pKa = 4.20) and 6.0–9.0 (pKa = 7.20). • The probe was successfully applied for monitoring and imaging of mitochondrial pH in living cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the unique steric effect of di(silyl)methyl (DSM) groups, an exo-selective intermolecular Diels-Alder reaction of geminal bis(silyl) dienes with α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds is achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An efficient synthesis of functionalized γ-lactones is developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing low-carbon agriculture has become a development goal for low-carbon economies in various countries, and consumers' awareness and willingness to pay (WTP) for low-carbon agricultural products is an important link in achieving the sustainable development of low-carbon agriculture. The theory of planned behavior is a widely used framework to explain consumers' food choices. Considering the intrinsic norms of consumers, their perceptions of low-carbon agricultural products, and shifts in consumer behavior, our study adds the influence of environmental awareness and consumer preferences to the theoretical framework of analysis. We choose the contingent valuing method (CVM) and use 532 consumer questionnaires in Shanghai to validate Chinese urban consumers' WTP for low-carbon products and its influencing factors. The findings show that Chinese urban consumers have a high overall awareness of low-carbon agricultural products and, after strengthening the conceptual information of consumers, most consumers agree that low-carbon vegetables are more conducive to ecological environment protection, quality, and safety guarantees than conventional vegetables. The existing analysis showed that some variables such as bid price, behavioral attitudes, subjective norms, and consumption preferences significantly influenced consumers' willingness to pay for low-carbon leafy greens, while the effect of the environmental awareness variable was not significant. Further research found that consumers' WTP for low-carbon leafy greens showed significant group differences across income, gender, age, and education. Therefore, to promote the consumption of low-carbon agricultural products in China, we should attach importance to the publicity and guidance of low-carbon vegetables and strengthen the certification of low-carbon vegetable products. This study can provide policy reference for reasonably regulating and subdividing China's low-carbon agricultural products market.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on people's consumption behavior and habits. This paper takes Shanghai, China as a case study and uses a questionnaire survey of urban residents in all districts in Shanghai from April to May in 2022. Herein, we empirically analyze the factors affecting shopping modes for agricultural products, describe how things have changed compared to before the outbreak of the pandemic, and explore the underlying mechanism. This paper can provide a policy reference for how to ensure the safety of people's food supply in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The results show that urban residents pay more attention to the basic attributes of agricultural products such as the quantity guarantee and health safety, and will adjust their consumption modes for agricultural products according to the needs of families and management. Compared with shopping malls and supermarkets, the quantity and quality assurance of community groups and e-commerce platforms can better meet the consumption situation of agricultural products during the pandemic period. The moderating effect of consumer commodity preference in the positive influence of safety evaluation on the transformation of shopping mode is significant. In general, online e-commerce platforms and community group buying have played a significant role in ensuring the acquisition of supplies needed by people during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it remains to be determined whether the changes in the shopping modes for agricultural products of urban consumers brought by the current COVID-19 pandemic are long term or solidified.

Intrusion detection system plays an important role in network security. Early detection of the potential attacks can prevent the further network intrusion from adversaries. To improve the effectiveness of the intrusion detection rate, this paper proposes a hybrid intrusion detection method that utilizes ADASYN (Adaptive Synthetic) and the decision tree based on ID3 algorithm. At first, the intrusion detection dataset is transformed by coding technology and normalized. Subsequently, the ADASYN algorithm is applied to implement oversampling on the training set, and the ID3 algorithm is employed to build a decision tree model. In addition, the model proposed by the research is evaluated by accuracy, precision, recall, and false alarm rate. Besides, a performance comparison is conducted with other models. Consequently, it is found that the combined model based on ADASYN and ID3 decision tree proposed in this research possesses higher accuracy as well as lower false alarm rate, which is more suitable for intrusion detection tasks.

Combining photodynamic therapy (PDT) and chemotherapy can improve anti-cancer efficacy. In this study, a novel copolymer PTPP combining thioketal and protoporphyrin was synthesized and tested for antitumor activity. Self-assembled PTPP micelles loaded with doxorubicin (DOX) showed uniform size, narrow particle size distribution and greater antitumor activity in vivo and in vivo than DOX-loaded micelles made from the commonly used material mPEG-PCL. Under laser irradiation, the photosensitizing protoporphyrin of DOX/PTPP produces abundant reactive oxygen species (ROS) that directly kill tumor cells as well as destroy the micelles themselves, leading to drug release. The ROS and DOX then act synergistically against the tumors. These ROS-responsive, laser-sensitive polymeric micelles may be useful for combining PDT and chemotherapy.

Glioma is known to induce local and systemic immunosuppression, which inhibits antitumor T cell responses. The galectin-9-Tim-3-pathway negatively regulates T cell pathways in the tumor immunosuppressive environment. The present study assessed the expression of Tim-3 and galectin-9 in glioma patients, and evaluated the association between the expression of Tim-3 and galectin-9 with clinical characteristics. The present study identified that Tim-3 expression was significantly increased in peripheral blood T cells of glioma patients compared with those of healthy controls, and was additionally increased on tumor-infiltrating T cells. The expression of Tim-3 on tumor-infiltrating T cells was associated with the World Health Organization (WHO) grade of glioma, but negatively correlated with the Karnofsky Performance Status score of the glioma patients. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that the expression of galectin-9 in tumor tissues was associated with Tim-3 expression on tumor-infiltrating T cells and the WHO grade of glioma. These findings suggest that the galectin-9-Tim-3 pathway may be critical in the immunoevasion of glioma and may be a potent target for immunotherapy in glioma patients.

The unique steric effect of geminal bis(silane) [(R3Si)2CH] allows an exo-selective intermolecular Diels-Alder reaction of geminal bis(silyl) dienes with α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds. The approach shows good generality to form ortho-trans cyclohexenes in good yields with high exo-selectivity and high enantioselectivity in some asymmetric cases. The excellent exo-stereocontrol aptitude of (R3Si)2CH group is highlighted by comparing with R3SiCH2 and R3Si groups, which leads to endo-selectivity predominantly. The conformational analysis of dienes suggests that (R3Si)2CH group effectively shields both sides of the diene moiety, ensuring the desired exo-selectivity. Moreover, the geminal bis(silane) can be further functionalized to transform the resulting ortho-trans cycloadducts into useful synthons, which makes the approach hold great potential for organic synthesis.

An efficient synthesis of functionalized γ-lactones has been developed involving Sakurai exo-cyclization/rearrangement of 3,3-bis(silyl) enol esters with a tethered acetal. While the steric and electronic effects of geminal bis(silane) favor the desired Sakurai pathway, the methoxy species formed in the deprotection step also facilitates both cyclization and rearrangement. The synthetic value of this approach has been demonstrated by efficiently transforming the E-vinylsilane into enyne and the γ-lactone moiety into multisubstituted THF.

Geminal bis(silyl) enal 2a is shown to be a useful scaffold for anion relay chemistry (ARC) aimed at the stereoselective synthesis of C(3),O(1)-disilylated allylic alcohols. The ARC reaction is initiated by the addition of an alkyllithium to the aldehyde and features a CuCN-promoted C(sp2)-to-O 1,4-silyl migration to generate a vinylcuprate that reacts with activated electrophiles.