Central Bank Digital Money (CBDC): A Literature Review

AbstractMoney has taken many forms over the centuries, evolving with the sophistication of societies. Today, the way people use money is once again changing due to new technologies, the digitization of economic exchanges and the rise of crypto-currencies since the appearance of Bitcoin in 2009.To accompany this movement and to take better advantage of new technologies to ensure their traditional missions, central banks are engaged in reflections on the issuance of their own digital currency: the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).This paper provides a framework for determining the characteristics of CBDC by comparing them with those of fiat and non-cash money, the obstacles to issuing CBDC, and the experiences of some countries in this area.Keywords: money, central bank digital currencies (CBDC), central bank, crypto currency.JEL: E41, E42, E51, E58. Monnaie numérique de la Banque centrale (CBDC) :Une revue de la littératureRésuméL'argent a pris de nombreuses formes au cours des siècles, évoluant avec la sophistication des sociétés. Aujourd'hui, la façon dont les gens utilisent l'argent change à nouveau en raison des nouvelles technologies, de la numérisation des échanges économiques et de l'essor des crypto-monnaies depuis l'apparition du Bitcoin en 2009.Pour accompagner ce mouvement et mieux tirer parti des nouvelles technologies pour assurer leurs missions traditionnelles, les banques centrales sont engagées dans des réflexions sur l'émission de leur propre monnaie numérique : la Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).Ce document fournit un cadre pour déterminer les caractéristiques des CBDC en les comparant à celles de la monnaie fiduciaire et non monétaire, les obstacles à l'émission de CBDC et les expériences de certains pays dans ce domaine. Mots-clés : monnaie, monnaies numériques de banque centrale (CBDC), banque centrale, crypto-monnaie.JEL : E41, E42, E51, E58

Screening of the effects of Zinc oxide based nanofertilizers on the germination of Lathyrus sativa L. seeds

Zinc based nanofertilizers may be useful tools in improving crop culture, especially in Zinc deficient soil. The present study aims to investigate the role of nanosized zinc oxide particles (ZnO NPs, diameter<100 nm) in modulating seed germination, embryo nutrition and growth of grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.). Our data revealed ameliorating or inhibiting effects depending of the concentration of ZnO NPs administrated. At metabolic level, the growing embryonic axes seem to cope with induced oxidative stress, by enhancing hydrogen peroxide scavenging capacity. We revealed interesting regulatory mechanisms evolved within the embryonic cells to limit the oxidative damages induced by ZnO NPs and Zinc sulfate when applied at low concentrations (0.01 mg mL-1, 0.1 mg mL-1). Nonetheless, at high concentrations (1 mg mL-1, 10 mg mL-1), ZnO NPs led to drastic perturbations in the metabolism, which resulted in the inhibition of root and seedling growth. Our work may bring novel insight into the mechanistic understanding of the physiological role of the nanosized ZnO in enhancing the efficacy of fertilization. We also assess the critical role of applied concentration of nano-fertilisers to avoid toxicity to plants. Such phytotoxicity is not only affecting crops yield, but also may alter the biological properties and the nutritive quality of plant-derived food products, which may endanger or risk human health

Protective role of exogenous phytohormones on redox status in pea seedlings under copper stress

The present work aims to provide insight on the role of phytohormone application in developing efficient practical defense strategies to improve plants tolerance under heavy metal contamination. For this purpose, pea (Pisum sativum L.) seeds were germinated in an aqueous solution of 200 mu M CuCl2 up to the 3rd day and then continued to germinate in the presence of distilled water (stress cessation) or were subjected to following combinations: Cu + 1 mu M IAA and Cu + 1 mu M GA(3) for 3 additional days. The results showed that copper excess induced oxidative stress in germinating seeds, which resulted in changes of the redox state of glutathione and cysteine, and proteomics revealed Cu-induced modifications of thiols (SH) and carbonyls (CO) (indicators of protein oxidation). However, application of IAA or GA(3) in the germination medium after 3 days of Cu exposure alleviated toxicity on seedlings, despite the persistence of Cu up to 6th day. This improving effect seems to be mediated by a cell Cu accumulation decrease and a protein reduced status recovery, since phytohormones modulate thioredoxin/ferredoxin systems in favor of protecting proteins against oxidation. In addition, an IAA and GA(3) protective effect was evidenced by a cellular homeostasis amelioration resulting from the balance conservation between the regeneration and consumption processes of glutathione and cysteine reduced forms. The exogenous effectors also induced modifications of profiles of SH and CO, suggesting changes in the regulation and expression of proteins that could be involved in defense mechanism against Cu stress

Efficiency of the green synthesized nanoparticles as new tools in cancer therapy: insights on plant-based bioengineered nanoparticles, biophysical properties, and anticancer roles

The aim of this work is to review the current knowledge on the efficiency of plant-based synthesized nanoparticles in medical field, particularly in the prevention, diagnosis, and therapy of cancer. For this, we examine the advantages of nanotechnological tools. Besides, a particular attention was given to understand the mechanism by which plant-based bioengineered nanoparticles can interact with components of cancerous cells. Green biosynthesized nanoparticles seem to be novel tool for prognostic biomarkers for cancer diagnosis and drug delivery in tumor cells. They can act either by leading to the damage of tumor cells, or by the protection of healthy cells, via mechanisms involving the specific properties of nanoparticles themselves and the antioxidative and antitumor properties found in plants. However, special attention should be given to the choice of plant species, extracts, and the toxic dose of some phytocompounds during the biosynthesis process. An increase in metal or trace element release from metal and metal oxide biosynthesized nanoparticles can lead to greater oxidative stress, which is associated with higher risk of cancer. Hence, plant-based nanosystems should be more developed to increase their specific targeting of the cancerous cells, in order to preserve the healthy ones

Alleviation of copper toxicity in germinating pea seeds by IAA, GA3, Ca and citric acid

The ameliorating effects of four exogenous effectors were investigated in germinating pea seeds exposed to copper excess. The results showed that the application of IAA, GA3, Ca or citric acid alleviated Cu-induced inhibition of growth and simultaneously reduced the oxidative stress injury, particularly contents of hydrogen peroxide, malondialdehyde and carbonyl groups. The improving effects can probably be mediated by the decreases in lipoperoxidation and protein oxidation as evidenced by changes in antioxidant enzyme activities. In addition, the efficiency of this recovery was compared within two types of treatments. Obtained results demonstrated that the stress abruption by the addition of effectors after three days of Cu application (treatment of type II) seems to be more effective than the simultaneous application of ‘Cu + effectors’ at the beginning of germination (treatment of type I). Data could provide some clues to physiological and biochemical mechanisms of the response of germinating seeds to the addition of chemicals under heavy metal stress

Effects of copper on reserve mobilization in embryo of Phaseolus vulgaris L.

The present research reports a biochemical and micro-submicroscopic analysis of copper effect on reserves mobilization during germination of Phaseolus vulgaris L. var. soisson nain hatif seeds. Dry embryonic cells are rich in protein bodies and little starch grains. In Cu-treated embryos copper inhibited 50% of albumin and globulin mobilization after 72 h imbibition. The severe alterations in treated embryo cells, observed by electron microscope, were probably the cause of the inability to utilize the amino acids freed by protein mobilization and so possibly the cause of the inhibition of P. vulgaris embryonic axes elongation