Green innovation efficiency and multiple paths of urban sustainable development in China: multi-configuration analysis based on urban innovation ecosystem.

Enhancing the effectiveness of urban green innovation is a powerful strategy for advancing urban sustainability. A strong urban innovation ecosystem is a crucial building block for advancing urban green innovation's effectiveness. We use the fsQCA method to investigate the pathways and models of innovation ecosystems to promote the green innovation efficiency of cities from a histological perspective, using 71 innovative cities in China as cases. This method is based on the DEA-SBM model to measure the green innovation efficiency of cities and the Necessary Conditions Analysis. According to our analysis, individual innovation factors are not required to increase urban green innovation efficiency. But cities with good openness can attract creative forces and foster open innovation, which is essential for producing high levels of green innovation efficiency in cities. The innovation subject-balanced development model, the innovation environment-innovation asset dual drive model, and the innovation subject-open drive model have all been identified as additional models to support urban innovation efficiency. Finally, we discovered that it is not possible to increase the efficiency of green innovation in the city when each innovation factor in the city is performing poorly, and when there is also a lack of innovation subject and system openness. This study attempts to offer fresh theoretical angles and a variety of urban low-carbon development pathways.

Sustainable development goals perspective: nexus between Christians' religious tourism, geopolitical risk, and CO2 pollution in Italy.

Travel and tourism support a country's economy and improve its social outlook. The religious inclination is an important factor influencing tourism and constitutes a significant part of general tourism. Thus, assessing and evaluating its real impacts on a country is crucial. As the world continues to grapple with the effects of environmental degradation, numerous studies have delved into the research between tourism, energy consumption, and pollution emissions. However, the impact of religious tourism on the environment is often overlooked. To bridge this gap, this study explores the relationship between religious tourist arrivals, geopolitical risk, and environmental quality in Italy. By employing ARDL and wavelets coherence analysis on the Italian data from 1997 to 2019, the findings of this study reveal a mitigation effect of religious tourist arrivals and geopolitical risk on CO2 pollution levels. In contrast, it highlights the significance of foreign direct investment and transportation as significant contributors to CO2 pollution. In conclusion, the study highlights the crucial role that religious tourism and religious leaders can play in mitigating environmental pollution and the importance of considering this aspect in future environmental studies as well as emphasize the need for Italian authorities to pay close attention to the impact of foreign direct investment and transportation energy consumption on the environment to achieve sustainable development goals.

Study on carbon emission reduction effect of institutional openness in China.

As the main means to dovetail the domestic system with international rules, institutional openness is the key to deepening participation in the global economic governance system, breaking through energy and carbon emission constraints, and achieving green and sustainable economic development. Taking 284 prefecture-level cities in China from 2006 to 2019 as the research sample, this paper uses the establishment of Pilot Free Trade Zones as a quasi-natural experiment to systematically identify and test the actual impact of institutional openness on urban carbon emissions in China through the asymptotic difference in difference method, instrumental variables method, spatial econometric model, and mediating effects model. Meanwhile, technological progress is used as the entry point to analyze the intrinsic mechanism of action by adopting digital transformation oriented to efficiency improvement and green innovation capability oriented to R&D innovation as the differentiated perspective. It is found that institutional openness significantly suppresses urban CO2 emissions, and there is a certain heterogeneity and spatial spillover effect of this effect. Further study finds that institutional openness achieves carbon emission reduction through technological progress. The study aims to find new institutional innovation and development paths for low carbon development.

Factors Affecting Green Agricultural Production Financing Behavior in Heilongjiang Family Farms: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach.

Adhering to large-scale agricultural operations is one of the basic ways to develop green agriculture, and it is also an inevitable choice for the development of modern agriculture in the country. Among them, as a major agricultural production province in China, the development of family farms in Heilongjiang Province has a significant impact on green agriculture. Based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB), this study takes the 222-demonstration bases of family farms evaluated in Heilongjiang Province in 2019 as samples and constructs a structural equation model (SEM) to discuss the influence of participation in the family farms in green agricultural production financing behavior in-depth based on directional design, distribution, recycling, and sorting out questionnaires. The research found that the financing willingness of the farmers is determined by the attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavior system of the family farm manager, and the financing willingness of the farmers and perceived behavioral control are determined by the financing behavior of the farmers. Among them, attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control have a significant positive impact on financing intention and have a further effect on financing behavior. Financing willingness and perceived behavioral control have a direct effect on financial behavior and have a significant positive effect on it. This article aims to improve and enhance the financing environment for family farms to participate in green agriculture, to increase the enthusiasm of the new agricultural operators to participate in green agriculture.

Paeonol suppresses solar ultraviolet-induced skin inflammation by targeting T-LAK cell-originated protein kinase.

Excessive exposure to solar UV (SUV) is related with numerous human skin disorders, such as skin inflammation, photoaging and carcinogenesis. T-LAK cell- originated protein kinase (TOPK), an upstream of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38) and c-Jun N-terminal kinases (JNKs), plays an important role in SUV -induced skin inflammation, and targeting TOPK has already been a strategy to prevent skin inflammation. In this study, we found that the expression of TOPK, phosphorylation of p38 or JNKs was increased in human solar dermatitis tissues. The level of phosphorylation of p38 or JNKs increased in a dose and time dependent manner in HaCat cells or JB6 Cl41 cells after SUV treatment. Paeonol is an active component isolated from traditional Chinese herbal medicines, and MTS (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2H-tetrazdium) assay showed that it has no toxicity to cells. Microscale thermophoresis (MST) assay showed that paeonol can bind TOPK ex vivo. In vitro kinase assay showed paeonol can inhibit TOPK activity. Ex vivo studies further showed paeonol suppressed SUV-induced phosphorylation level of p38, JNKs, MSK1 and histone H2AX by inhibiting TOPK activity in a time and dose dependent manner. Paeonol inhibited the secretion of IL-6 and TNF-α in HaCat and JB6 cells ex vivo. In vivo studies demonstrated that paeonol inhibited SUV-induced increase of TOPK, the phosphorylation of p38, JNKs and H2AX, and the secretion of IL-6 and TNF-α in Babl/c mouse. In summary, our data indicated a protective role of paeonol against SUV-induced inflammation by targeting TOPK, and paeonol could be a promising agent for the treatment of SUV-induced skin inflammation.

Salidroside suppresses solar ultraviolet-induced skin inflammation by targeting cyclooxygenase-2.

Solar ultraviolet (SUV) irradiation causes skin disorders such as inflammation, photoaging, and carcinogenesis. Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) plays a key role in SUV-induced skin inflammation, and targeting COX-2 may be a strategy to prevent skin disorders. In this study, we found that the expression of COX-2, phosphorylation of p38 or JNKs were increased in human solar dermatitis tissues and SUV-irradiated human skin keratinocyte HaCaT cells and mouse epidermal JB6 Cl41 cells. Knocking down COX-2 inhibited the production of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), the phosphorylation of p38 or JNKs in SUV-irradiated cells, which indicated that COX-2 is not only the key enzyme for PGs synthesis, but also an upstream regulator of p38 or JNKs after SUV irradiation. The virtual ligand screening assay was used to search for natural drugs in the Chinese Medicine Database, and indicated that salidroside might be a COX-2 inhibitor. Molecule modeling indicated that salidroside can directly bind with COX-2, which was proved by in vitro pull-down binding assay. Ex vivo studies showed that salidroside has no toxicity to cells, and inhibits the production of PGE2, phosphorylation of p38 or JNKs, and secretion of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) caused by SUV irradiation. In vivo studies demonstrated that salidroside attenuates the skin inflammation induced by SUV. In brief, our data provided the evidences for the protective role of salidroside against SUV-induced inflammation by targeting COX-2, and salidroside might be a promising drug for the treatment of SUV-induced skin inflammation.

Cefradine blocks solar-ultraviolet induced skin inflammation through direct inhibition of T-LAK cell-originated protein kinase.

Skin inflammation, and skin cancer induced by excessive solar ultraviolet (SUV) is a great threat to human health. SUV induced skin inflammation through activating p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38) and c-Jun N-termeinal kinases (JNKs). T-LAK cell-originated protein kinase (TOPK) plays an important role in this process. Herein, the clinical data showed TOPK, phospho-p38, phospho-JNKs were highly expressed in human solar dermatitis. Ex vivo studies showed that SUV induced the phosphorylation of p38 and JNKs in HaCat and JB6 cells in a dose and time dependent manner. Molecule docking model indicated cefradine, an FDA-approved cephalosporin antibiotic, directly binds with TOPK. The result of in vitro binding assay verified cefradine can directly bind with TOPK. In vitro kinase results showed cefradine can inhibit TOPK activity. Ex vivo studies further showed cefradine inhibited SUV-induced the phosphorylation level of p38, JNKs and H2AX through inhibiting TOPK activity in a dose and time dependent manner, and cefradine inhibited the secretion of IL6 and TNF-α in HaCat and JB6 cells. In vivo studies showed that cefradine down-regulated SUV-induced the phosphorylation of p38, JNKs and H2AX and inhibited the secretion of IL6 and TNF-α in Babl/c mice. These results indicated that cefradine can inhibit SUV-induced skin inflammation by blocking TOPK signaling pathway, and TOPK is an effective target for suppressing inflammation induced by SUV irradiation.