Microplastics in the atmospheric of the eastern coast of China: different function areas reflecting various sources and transport.

Suspended atmospheric microplastics (SAMPs) display varying occurrence characteristics on different underlying surfaces in urban areas. This study investigated the occurrence characteristics, source apportionment, and transportation patterns of SAMPs in two typical underlying surfaces: the downtown area (Site T) and the industrial area (Site C) of a coastal city in China. In the spring of 2023, a total of 32 types comprising 1325 SAMPs were detected.

Icariin modulates the sirtuin/NF‑κB pathway and exerts anti‑aging effects in human lung fibroblasts.

Icariin (ICA) has been used as a promising anti‑aging drug; however, its underlying molecular mechanism is yet to be elucidated. The present study aimed to determine the anti‑aging molecular mechanisms of ICA. D‑galactose (D‑gal) was used to generate a cell aging model.

Pirfenidone alleviates pulmonary fibrosis in vitro and in vivo through regulating Wnt/GSK-3β/β-catenin and TGF-β1/Smad2/3 signaling pathways.

Background: Pirfenidone (PFD) is effective for pulmonary fibrosis (PF), but its action mechanism has not been fully explained. This study explored the signaling pathways involved in anti-fibrosis role of PFD, thus laying a foundation for clinical application.

Methods: Pulmonary fibrosis mice models were constructed by bleomycin (BLM), and TGF-β1 was used to treat human fetal lung fibroblasts (HLFs).

SU5416 attenuated lipopolysaccharide-induced acute lung injury in mice by modulating properties of vascular endothelial cells.

A potent and selective vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) inhibitor SU5416, has been developed for the treatment of solid human tumors. The binding of VEGF to VEGFR plays a crucial role in the pathophysiology of respiratory disorders. However, the impact of SU5416 on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced acute lung injury (ALI) remains unclear.

Vasogenic cerebral edema associated with the disability in activities of daily living in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to explore whether patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) develop vasogenic cerebral edema, and whether this edema contributes to the COPD-related disability.

Methods: Eighteen stable patients with COPD and 17 matched healthy volunteers were enrolled. Apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values were calculated by voxel-based analysis using DTI-Studio software based on diffusion tensor imaging.

Hyaluronan ameliorates LPS-induced acute lung injury in mice via Toll-like receptor (TLR) 4-dependent signaling pathways.

Toll-like receptor-4 (TLR4) signaling has been implicated in innate immunity and acute inflammation following acute lung injury (ALI). As such, modulating inflammatory response through TLR4 represents an attractive therapeutic approach to treat ALI. Increasing evidence demonstrates that hyaluronan (HA) can modulate TLR4 activation and has shown early promise as a therapeutic agent in ALI.

Robustness of a partially interdependent network formed of clustered networks.

Clustering, or transitivity, a behavior observed in real-world networks, affects network structure and function. This property has been studied extensively, but most of this research has been limited to clustering in single networks. The effect of clustering on the robustness of coupled networks, on the other hand, has received much less attention.

Cascading failures in bi-partite graphs: model for systemic risk propagation.

As economic entities become increasingly interconnected, a shock in a financial network can provoke significant cascading failures throughout the system. To study the systemic risk of financial systems, we create a bi-partite banking network model composed of banks and bank assets and propose a cascading failure model to describe the risk propagation process during crises. We empirically test the model with 2007 US commercial banks balance sheet data and compare the model prediction of the failed banks with the real failed banks after 2007.

Identifying influential directors in the United States corporate governance network.

The influence of directors has been one of the most engaging topics recently, but surprisingly little research has been done to quantitatively evaluate the influence and power of directors. We analyze the structure of the US corporate governance network for the 11-year period 1996-2006 based on director data from the Investor Responsibility Research Center director database, and we develop a centrality measure named the influence factor to estimate the influence of directors quantitatively. The US corporate governance network is a network of directors with nodes representing directors and links between two directors representing their service on common company boards.

[Pulmonary fibrosis induces erectile dysfunction in rats].

Objective: To study the impact of pulmonary fibrosis on erectile function in rats and its mechanism.

Methods: Forty 12-week-old healthy male SD rats were randomly divided into Groups A (4-week pulmonary fibrosis), B (6-week pulmonary fibrosis), C (4-week control, and D (6-week control). The models of pulmonary fibrosis were established by injection of bleomycin at 5 mg/kg in the trachea, while the controls were injected with normal saline only.

Robustness of interdependent networks under targeted attack.

When an initial failure of nodes occurs in interdependent networks, a cascade of failure between the networks occurs. Earlier studies focused on random initial failures. Here we study the robustness of interdependent networks under targeted attack on high or low degree nodes.