Identification and characterization of a rice expansin-like protein with metal-binding properties.

Heavy metal (HM) contamination poses significant threat to agricultural productivity. This study identified and characterized Os09g29690 (OsELP), a rice expansin-like protein. We demonstrated OsELP localizes to the cell wall and is upregulated under various abiotic stresses.

Do the theories of planned behaviour and protection motivation provide probabilistic sufficient and necessary conditions for residential water conservation? Combined use of PLS-SEM and NCA.

Understanding the key determinants of residential water conservation is crucial for designing effective water demand management policies in arid and semiarid regions. While extant literature has frequently identified such determinants using statistical significance and correlations, there is a growing emphasis on understanding these determinants using probabilistic sufficiency and deterministic necessity logics. Integrating these two logics to test an integrated model of the Theories of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and Protection Motivation (PMT), this study identifies and differentiates the probabilistic sufficient and necessary conditions or "must have" factors that need to exist for residential water conservation intentions and behaviours to occur.

Macrophage foam cell-derived mediator promotes spontaneous fat lipolysis in atherosclerosis models.

Ectopic lipid accumulation in macrophages is responsible for the formation of macrophage foam cells (MFCs) which are involved in the crosstalk with the perivascular adipose tissue (PVAT) of the vascular wall that plays a pivotal role in the progression of atherosclerosis. However, the interrelationship between MFCs and PVAT implementing adipocyte dysfunction during atherosclerosis has not yet been established. We hypothesized that MFC-secreted mediator(s) is causally linked with PVAT dysfunction and the succession of atherosclerosis.