Picroside I inhibits asthma phenotypes by regulating Tbet/ GATA-3 ratio and Th1/Th2 balance in a murine model of asthma

Purpose: To examine the anti-asthmatic activity of picroside I in murine asthma model, and to elucidate the mechanism(s) involved.Methods: The study involved systematic sensitization of acclimatized BALB/c mice with ovalbumin (OVA), and subsequent exposure to aerosol allergens. The effect of picroside I on associated IgE formation was determined. All assays were performed using standard protocols. Protein expression was assessed using western blotting.Results: Picroside I inhibited allergic airway inflammation, AHR, and the production of OVA-associated IgE and Th2 cytokines. Moreover, it altered the T-bet/GATA3 ratio by suppressing the phosphorylation of STAT6 in a dose-dependent manner.Conclusion: These results indicate that the anti-asthmatic effect of picroside I occurs via a mechanism involving inhibition of Th2 cytokines by suppression of the expressions of pSTAT6 and GATA-3, and upregulation of the expression of T-bet. Thus, picroside I is a promising agent for the management of asthma.Keywords: Picroside, Asthma, Allergic response, IgE, GATA-3, pSTAT

Economic transition and speculative urbanisation in China: gentrification versus dispossession

Gentrification requires properties to be available for investment through market transactions. In mainland China which has gone through transition from a planned to a market economy, it is necessary to unleash decommodified real estate properties and make them amenable to investment. This entails inhabitants’ dispossession to dissociate them from claiming their rights to the properties and to their neighbourhoods. This paper argues that while China’s urban accumulation may have produced new-build gentrification, redevelopment projects have been targeting dilapidated urban spaces that are yet to be fully converted into commodities. This means that dispossession is a precursor to gentrification. Dispossession occurs through both coercion and co-optation, and reflects the pathdependency of China’s socialist legacy. The findings contribute to the debates on contextualising the workings of gentrification in the global South, and highlight the importance of identifying multiple urban processes at work to produce gentrification and speculative urban accumulation

Methodology and applications of city level CO2 emission accounts in China

China is the world's largest energy consumer and CO2 emitter. Cities contribute 85% of the total CO2 emissions in China and thus are considered as the key areas for implementing policies designed for climate change adaption and CO2 emission mitigation. However, the emission inventory construction of Chinese cities has not been well researched, mainly owing to the lack of systematic statistics and poor data quality. Focusing on this research gap, we developed a set of methods for constructing CO2 emissions inventories for Chinese cities based on energy balance table. The newly constructed emission inventory is compiled in terms of the definition provided by the IPCC territorial emission accounting approach and covers 47 socioeconomic sectors, 17 fossil fuels and 9 primary industry products, which is corresponding with the national and provincial inventory. In the study, we applied the methods to compile CO2 emissions inventories for 24 common Chinese cities and examined uncertainties of the inventories. Understanding the emissions sources in Chinese cities is the basis for many climate policy and goal research in the future

Surface modification of Mg/Al layered double hydroxide by camphorsulfonic acid doped polyaniline and its applications for anticorrosive coating

Although Mg/Al layered double hydroxide has significant anion exchange capability and hydrophobicity, its layer-blocking performance is rarely investigated for anti-corrosive performance. In this work, the camphorsulfonic acid doped polyaniline(CPANI)-modified Mg/Al layered double hydroxide (LDH) composites were successfully prepared through oxidative polymerization with an aim to improve dispersion of hydrotalcite in waterborne epoxy resin. Through a series of basic characterizations, camphorsulfonic acid doped polyaniline was successfully coated on the surface of layered double hydroxide and its dispersibility in water was greatly improved. In addition, the CPANI modified LDH was pigmented into waterborne epoxy resin to form a composite coating, further, potentiodynamic curve and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy were employed to study the corrosion behavior in 3.5 wt% NaCl aqueous solution. Composite coating with CPANI/LDH exhibited excellent anticorrosion performance owing to the barrier and passive effect of LDH and CPANI. The optimized specimen CAPNI/LDH0.5% presents a superior barrier property during 45 d immersion compared with pure epoxy coating

In situ polymerization of sulfonated polyaniline in layered double hydroxide host matrix for corrosion protection

The hybrid material of sulfonated polyaniline/Mg Al layered double hydroxides (SPANi/LDHs) was obtained through polymerization of o-aminobenzenesulfonic acid and aniline in the galleries of LDHs. The structure of SPANi/LDH was characterized by field-emission scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transformed infrared and Raman spectroscopy. The as-prepared SPANi/LDH showed an irregular lamellar shape with an average diameter of 4-6 m and offset of XRD reflections, which revealed that SPANi successfully grew between the LDH interlayers and expanded the interlayered structure slightly. Besides, the monolayer thickness of the SPANi/LDH was about 2.67 nm, which exhibited a significant structure of a nanosheet. The as-prepared SPANi/LDHs hybrids were applied to waterborne epoxy coatings for steel substrates and exhibited significant corrosion protection capacities compared with those of neat epoxy and pure SPANi blended epoxy composites. The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) technique was used to describe the electrochemistry dynamics and remarkable corrosion protection performance. Furthermore, corrosion products beneath the epoxy coatings immersed in a 3.5 wt% NaCl aqueous solution were also investigated, which indicated the barrier property and passivation effect of SPANi/LDH. In addition, the mechanism of corrosion inhibition was explored via the analysis of rust layers, and the barrier effect and passivation effect of the composite materials was also demonstrated

Recent Advances in Fluorophosphate and Orthosilicate Cathode Materials for Lithium Ion Batteries

We review recent research on fluorophosphate and orthosilicate cathode materials for lithium ion batteries. Emphasis is placed on the relationship between structures, methods of preparation and properties of the cathode materials. We especially focus on factors leading to an improvement in their electrochemical performance. Trends of research into fluorophosphate and orthosilicate cathode materials are also discussed.Specialized Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education of China[20090041120020]; Foundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities, China[DUT10JN06