Research works

Cross-regulation of secondary cell wall formation: a case study on MYB44 in cotton fibers

Abstract This paper systematically reviews breakthrough advances in research on cotton secondary cell wall (SCW) regulation and illustrates a novel four-tiered “MYB–NAC–MYB–structural gene” regulatory cascade orchestrated by GhMYB44. GhMYB44-interacting protein complexes sequenti...

Geographic Absence of Home-Based Palliative Care in Japan: Do Outpatient Services Cover These Areas? A Nationwide Ecological Study

Objective: To evaluate geographic access to home-based palliative care across Japan’s 335 secondary medical areas (SMAs) and whether outpatient palliative care remains reachable where home-based services are absent. Design: Nationwide cross-sectional ecological study. Setting: Al...

Optimized Endospore Production and Carrier Formulations of Endophytic Bacillus Species to Enhance Field Control of Wheat Blast

Harnessing endophytic bacteria for plant disease management offers a promising sustainable strategy. We previously demonstrated that endophytic Bacillus spp. significantly suppress wheat blast disease under field conditions. Despite their promising biocontrol potential, the succe...

From regulation to governance: The EU AI Act and HR governance along the employee lifecycle

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly used in human resource management (HRM) to streamline processes, enhance decision-making and maintain competitiveness. At the same time, it raises critical concerns around transparency, discrimination, and employee autonomy, which are...

The gradual institutionalisation of the reflexive approach in governmental evaluation systems

While transformation-focused evaluation is thriving in theory, less attention has been paid to how such approaches become institutionalised in governmental evaluation systems. Evaluation systems do not align well with transformation thought. In accordance with institutional theor...

Determination of the parameters in the Freundlich function using a modified method in the case of the bioaccumulation factor of Populus tremula

This study proposes a modified coefficient-estimation approach for the Freundlich function to model soil-to-leaf element transfer without relying on conventional logarithmic linearization. For this purpose, the leaf uptake capability of European aspen (Populus tremula L.), which...

WAYS TO ENSURE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT THROUGH IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF HUMAN CAPITAL

This article analyses theoretical and practical pathways for supporting sustainable development through improvements in human capital quality. Human capital is considered a multidimensional resource encompassing education, health, professional skills, experience, digital literacy...

Diagnostic performance of the Korean oral frailty screening questionnaire and diagnostic criteria for physical frailty, sarcopenia, and malnutrition: a pilot study

The association between declining oral health and function and the development of frailty, disability, and mortality has been well documented. This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic performance of the Korean oral frailty diagnostic criteria and screening questionnaire for id...

Analyzing the global project of Education for Sustainable Development through a Marxist lens: dialogues with the book Education for Sustainable Development in an Unequal World

In this article, I engage with the findings of the book, Education for Sustainable Development in an Unequal World: Biopolitics, Differentiation and Affirmative Alternatives, to argue that Marx’s method, historical-dialectical materialism, is essential to studying the global proj...

Translational Readiness of Dental Pulp Stem Cell and Extracellular-Vesicle Products: Manufacturing, Delivery, Safety, and Clinical Development

Dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs), stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth (SHED), and extracellular vesicles (EVs) show regenerative potential, but clinical translation depends on a reproducible product-process-procedure system. This systematic scoping review mapped how DP...

Harnessing Plasmonic Cu2− x Se Transducers for Quantitative Near-Infrared II Photothermal Lateral Flow Exosome Detection

Abstract Photothermal lateral flow assays (PT-LFAs) hold immense promise for advancing point-of-care (POC) diagnostics into the realm of robust, on-site quantitative analysis. However, their clinical translation remains fundamentally constrained by the absence of high-performance...

Rhythm-centred music interventions for motor coordination and rehabilitation: a scoping review of mechanisms, design principles, and technology-assisted assessment

OBJECTIVE: To map the evidence on rhythm-centred music interventions and movement-directed music-based strategies for motor coordination and rehabilitation, and to summarize their mechanisms, design principles, and technology-assisted assessment approaches. METHODS: This scoping...

Gate-controlled optical bistability via tunable self-action feedback in a semiconductor quantum dot–graphene nanodisk hybrid

We theoretically examine how electrostatic gating can tune the steady-state response of a semiconductor quantum dot (SQD)-graphene nanodisk hybrid between monostable and bistable regimes. The model combines the optical Bloch dynamics of a driven two-level SQD with a gate-dependen...

Global occurrences, exploration techniques, and geochemical controls on natural hydrogen systems

Hydrogen (H 2 ) is a versatile, zero-emission energy carrier pivotal for decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors like heavy industry, long-haul transport, and power storage, enabling sector coupling and complementing renewables amid the global energy transition. With no direct CO 2 e...

UAV Inspection and Collision-Aware Visual Perception Using Topology-Preserving RGB–Infrared Power-Line Graph Reconstruction

Accurate perception of overhead conductors is fundamental to autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) inspection, trajectory planning, and collision avoidance in transmission corridors. Existing vision-based approaches predominantly formulate power-line detection as a pixel-wise...

From Institutional Neutrality to Professional Identity: Conscientious Objection and the Regulation of Religious Presence in the Medical Professions

The article analyses the conscience clause in the medical professions as a manifestation of a broader process of regulating the presence of religion in professional practice. Its point of departure is the Polish cooperative model of state–religion relations, in which institutiona...

Efficacy of dietary supplements for treating pediatric metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: a systematic review and network meta-analysis

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a major chronic liver disease in children. The comparative effects and safety of dietary supplements in children with MASLD remain uncertain. This systematic review and network meta-analysis compared their effect...

Risk-coupling assessment system to improve the safety of urban subway construction

Purpose This study develops and evaluates a dynamic risk-coupling assessment system for urban subway construction that identifies how human, equipment, environmental, and management risks interact over time and supports stage-specific risk control. Design/methodology/approach Ris...

Development and Preclinical Evaluation of Novel STK3/4 Inhibitors with Anti-Obesity Potential

Background: Obesity is associated with impaired adipocyte metabolism driven in part by mitochondrial dysfunction.Serine/ threonine-protein kinase 3 (STK3) and STK4 promote mitophagy, leading to reduced mitochondrial mass in adipose tissue.Thus, inhibition of STK3/4 represents a p...

On the use of high-density polyethylene additional pipes for water hammer control in multi-material pipeline systems

This study investigates high-density polyethylene additional pipes as passive compliant components for mitigating water hammer in predominantly HDPE and HDPE–steel pipeline systems. Experiments were conducted for different flow rates, pipe lengths, and connection locations relati...