Navigating Environmental Ethics and Geography in the Climate Crisis Era

This study explores the moral dimensions of the planet’s challenges by examining the intersection of environmental ethics, metaphorical expressions, and geography in the context of the escalating climate crisis. The study employs the jellyfish metaphor and geographical ethics to link theoretical ethical issues with real-world societal behaviours. The study emphasizes the need to contextualize metaphors like climate change and jellyfish resilience to make them more relevant in real-world situations. This approach represents a shift in societal attitudes toward sustainable coexistence, emphasizing the use of metaphors to promote environmental consciousness and ethical action. The study aims to strongly promote ethical behaviour and environmental awareness

Continuity of retail therapy of fashion product shopping - A daily diary analysis -

Since the late 2000s, healing which is comforts and heals the tiredness has been emerging as a consumer trend, from economic recession and social relationships. This is emerging through consumers’ attitudes about their present happiness. Previous studies have explained that consumers can feel better through shopping, and introduced concepts such as \u27Retail Therapy\u27 or \u27Therapy Shopping\u27. This study analyzes the participants’ diary for a week to find the mechanism of retail therapy effect and continuity

Impurity-Driven Metal-Insulator Transitions in Holography

In this work, we study Metal-Insulator transition in a holographic model containing an interaction between the order parameter and charge-carrier density. It turns out that the impurity density of this model can drive the phase transition whose ordered phase corresponds to the insulating phase. The temperature behavior of DC conductivity distinguishes the insulating phase from the metal phase. We confirm this behavior by a numerical method and an analytic calculation. As a byproduct, we show the existence of a `quantum phase transition' supported by the Breitenlohner-Freedman bound argument.Comment: 22 pages, 21 figure

Functional Benefit after Modification of Radial Forearm Free Flap for Soft Palate Reconstruction

ObjectivesTo compare the velopharyngeal function, swallowing and speech of the conventional and modified radial forearm free flap (RFFF) for soft palate reconstruction.MethodsRetrospective clinical study. Twenty-eight patients who underwent oropharyngeal reconstruction with RFFF were divided into two groups: 10 patients had conventional folded RFFF and 18 patients underwent modified method.ResultsThe average speech intelligibility score in modified RFFF group was 8.0±2.4, and 6.2±2.2 in conventional RFFF group (P<0.05). The nasalance was 27.4±7.8% in modified group and 38.6±2.7% in conventional group during no nasal passage reading and 43.6±7.3% in modified group, 55.2±7.6% in conventional group during high nasal passage reading (P<0.05). The subjective swallowing functional score was 2.8 in modified group and 2.1 in conventional group.ConclusionThe speech assessment and nasalance demonstrate a more favorable outcome in modified group than conventional group

Role of Transcription Factor Modifications in the Pathogenesis of Insulin Resistance

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is characterized by fat accumulation in the liver not due to alcohol abuse. NAFLD is accompanied by variety of symptoms related to metabolic syndrome. Although the metabolic link between NAFLD and insulin resistance is not fully understood, it is clear that NAFLD is one of the main cause of insulin resistance. NAFLD is shown to affect the functions of other organs, including pancreas, adipose tissue, muscle and inflammatory systems. Currently efforts are being made to understand molecular mechanism of interrelationship between NAFLD and insulin resistance at the transcriptional level with specific focus on post-translational modification (PTM) of transcription factors. PTM of transcription factors plays a key role in controlling numerous biological events, including cellular energy metabolism, cell-cycle progression, and organ development. Cell type- and tissue-specific reversible modifications include lysine acetylation, methylation, ubiquitination, and SUMOylation. Moreover, phosphorylation and O-GlcNAcylation on serine and threonine residues have been shown to affect protein stability, subcellular distribution, DNA-binding affinity, and transcriptional activity. PTMs of transcription factors involved in insulin-sensitive tissues confer specific adaptive mechanisms in response to internal or external stimuli. Our understanding of the interplay between these modifications and their effects on transcriptional regulation is growing. Here, we summarize the diverse roles of PTMs in insulin-sensitive tissues and their involvement in the pathogenesis of insulin resistance

Human microglial cells synthesize albumin in brain

Albumin has been implicated in Alzheimer&#x27;s disease since it can bind to and transport amyloid beta, the causative agent; albumin is also a potent inhibitor of amyloid beta polymerization. In a pilot phase study of Human Brain Proteome Project, we found evidence that albumin may be synthesized in immortalized human microglial cells, human primary microglial cells, and human fetal and adult brain tissues. We also found the synthesis and secretion is enhanced upon microglial activation by Amyloid [beta]~1-42~, lipopolysaccharide treatment or human Alzheimer&#x27;s brain