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This article examines the interpretation and implementation of due diligence obligation in international climate litigation and advisory opinions, specifically by comparing Daniel Billy et al. v. Australia and the COSIS Advisory Opinion. It offers insights into the definition of due diligence obligation, the criteria for breach, and the remedies available under various legal frameworks. The due diligence obligation is not solely a direct duty under a specific treaty; it also imposes a positive obligation of conduct that must be evaluated within a broader legal framework. This method facilitates systemic integration. It facilitates the citation of pertinent regulations and precedents from different domains of international law during treaty interpretation. This approach promotes the harmonization and integration of various legal systems. The essay performs a comparative analysis of two cases. It analyses the implementation of the due diligence obligation in the realms of environmental and human rights protection. The emphasis is on the legal responsibility of States about climate change. The paper ultimately outlines the significance of the two instances for the future of international environmental law and the protection of human rights, highlighting the crucial role of due diligence responsibilities in combating climate change.

Knowledge graphs are a powerful concept for querying large amounts of data. These knowledge graphs are typically enormous and are often not easily accessible to end-users because they require specialized knowledge in query languages such as SPARQL. Moreover, end-users need a deep understanding of the structure of the underlying data models often based on the Resource Description Framework (RDF). This drawback has led to the development of Question-Answering (QA) systems that enable end-users to express their information needs in natural language. While existing systems simplify user access, there is still room for improvement in the accuracy of these systems. In this paper we propose a new QA system for translating natural language questions into SPARQL queries. The key idea is to break up the translation process into 5 smaller, more manageable sub-tasks and use ensemble machine learning methods as well as Tree-LSTM-based neural network models to automatically learn and translate a natural language question into a SPARQL query. The performance of our proposed QA system is empirically evaluated using the two renowned benchmarks-the 7th Question Answering over Linked Data Challenge (QALD-7) and the Large-Scale Complex Question Answering Dataset (LC-QuAD). Experimental results show that our QA system outperforms the state-of-art systems by 15% on the QALD-7 dataset and by 48% on the LC-QuAD dataset, respectively. In addition, we make our source code available.

Pelvic organ prolapse (POP) and urinary incontinence (UI) are common disorders that significantly impact women’s quality of life. Studies have demonstrated that cytokines, including pro- and anti-inflammatory immune mediators, play a role in illness genesis and progression. Research on the inflammatory milieu of the pelvic floor has shown that POP patients have increased inflammation in vaginal tissues. This evidence revealed that significant changes in the inflammatory milieu of the pelvic floor are an aspect of the pathogenesis of POP. POP patients exhibit increased levels of inflammatory cytokines (IL-1, TNF, IFN, and others) in the front vaginal wall, which may alter collagen metabolism and contribute to POP. Studies indicate that cytokines such as IL-6, IL-10, and TGF, which are involved in inflammation, remodelling, and repair, have dual effects on POP and UI. They can promote tissue healing and regeneration but also exacerbate inflammation and fibrosis, contributing to the progression of these conditions. Understanding the dual roles of these cytokines could help us improve the vaginal microenvironment of women and treat POP and UI. Given the considerable changes in these cytokines, this review addresses studies published between 2000 and 2024 on the molecular mechanisms by which pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines affect women with POP and UI. Furthermore, we explain novel therapeutic strategies for cytokine regulation, emphasizing the possibility of personalized treatments that address the underlying inflammatory milieu of the vagina in POP and UI patients. This thorough analysis aims to establish a foundation for future research and clinical applications, ultimately improving patient outcomes via designed cytokine-based therapies.

Background Papaya ( Carica papaya ) is an economically important fruit cultivated in the tropical and subtropical regions of China. However, the rapid softening rate after postharvest leads to a short shelf-life and considerable economic losses. Accordingly, understanding the mechanisms underlying fruit postharvest softening will be a reasonable way to maintain fruit quality and extend its shelf-life. Results Mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) are conserved and play essential roles in response to biotic and abiotic stresses. However, the MAPK family remain poorly studied in papaya. Here, a total of nine putative CpMAPK members were identified within papaya genome, and a comprehensive genome-wide characterization of the CpMAPKs was performed, including evolutionary relationships, conserved domains, gene structures, chromosomal locations, cis -regulatory elements and expression profiles in response to phytohormone and antioxidant organic compound treatments during fruit postharvest ripening. Our findings showed that nearly all CpMAPKs harbored the conserved P-loop, C-loop and activation loop domains. Phylogenetic analysis showed that CpMAPK members could be categorized into four groups (A-D), with the members within the same groups displaying high similarity in protein domains and intron–exon organizations. Moreover, a number of cis -acting elements related to hormone signaling, circadian rhythm, or low-temperature stresses were identified in the promoters of CpMAPKs . Notably, gene expression profiles demonstrated that CpMAPKs exhibited various responses to 2-chloroethylphosphonic acid (ethephon), 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) and the combined ascorbic acid (AsA) and chitosan (CTS) treatments during papaya postharvest ripening. Among them, both CpMAPK9 and CpMAPK20 displayed significant induction in papaya flesh by ethephon treatment, and were pronounced inhibition after AsA and CTS treatments at 16 d compared to those of natural ripening control, suggesting that they potentially involve in fruit postharvest ripening through ethylene signaling pathway or modulating cell wall metabolism. Conclusion This study will provide some valuable insights into future functional characterization of CpMAPKs, and hold great potential for further understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying papaya fruit postharvest ripening.

Phosphatidylinositol glycan anchor biosynthesis class U (PIGU), a crucial subunit of the glycosylphosphatidylinositol transamidase (GPI-T) complex, is an oncogene in hepatocellular carcinoma. However, its role in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remains poorly understood. This study aims to clarify PIGU’s role and mechanisms in ESCC by analyzing its expression across pan-cancer datasets, clinical relevance in TCGA-ESCA samples, and effects on cell behavior (migration, invasion, proliferation) and signaling pathways, validated via immunohistochemistry. To examine cell behavior, we used Transwell, colony-formation, CCK-8, and wound-healing assays to assess migration, invasion, proliferation, and wound healing.The epithelial-mesenchymal transition marker levels were measured using Western blot analysis, and the cell cycle and apoptosis were assessed using flow cytometry in conjunction with western blotting. Furthermore, we used western blotting to examine proteins implicated in the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.To further confirm PIGU’s role in ESCC progression, a subcutaneous xenograft mouse model was employed. Our findings suggest that PIGU is highly expressed in ESCC and is strongly associated with tumor growth, lymphatic metastasis and poor prognosis, and is an independent prognostic factor for ESCC patients.PIGU knockdown not only arrested the cell cycle and induced apoptosis, but also significantly reduced migration, invasion, and proliferation in ESCC cells. Additionally, vimentin and N-cadherin were downregulated when PIGU expression was silenced, although E-cadherin expression was simultaneously increased.Moreover, PIGU knockdown decreased the amount of phosphorylated Akt and PI3K. In vivo, PIGU knockdown inhibited ESCC cell proliferation and promoted apoptosis. These findings imply that targeting PIGU may represent a promising therapeutic approach, and that PIGU could potentially serve as both a diagnostic and prognostic biomarker for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC).

Background Colorectal cancer (CRC) is an aggressive tumor of the gastrointestinal tract, which is a major public health concern worldwide. Despite numerous studies, the precise mechanism of metastasis behind its progression remains elusive. As a member of the containing olfactomedin domains protein family, olfactomedin 2 (OLFM2) may play a role in tumor metastasis. It is highly expressed in colorectal cancer, and its role in the metastasis of CRC is still unclear. As such, this study seeks to explore the function of OLFM2 on CRC metastasis and its potential mechanisms. Methods Real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR and western blotting were used to study the expression of OLFM2 in human CRC and adjacent normal tissues. Knockdown and overexpression OLFM2 cell lines were constructed using siRNA and overexpression plasmids to explore the role of OLFM2 in the migration and invasion of CRC through transwell, and wound healing experiments. Finally, the expression of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) -related proteins and TGF-β/Smad signaling pathway-related proteins was investigated using western blotting. Results In this study, we observed an elevation of OLFM2 expression levels in CRC tissues. To investigate the function of OLFM2, we overexpressed and knocked down OLFM2. We discovered that OLFM2 knockdown inhibited migration and invasion of colon cancer cells. Furthermore, E-cadherin expression increased while N-cadherin and Vimentin expression were opposite. It is no surprise that overexpressing OLFM2 had the opposite effects. We also identified that OLFM2 knockdown resulted in reduced TGF-βR1 and downstream molecules p-Smad2 and p-Smad3, which are related to the TGF-β / Smad pathway. In contrast, overexpressing OLFM2 significantly boosted their expression levels. Conclusion The protein OLFM2 has been identified as a crucial determinant in the progression of CRC. Its mechanism of action involves the facilitation of EMT through the TGF-β/Smad signaling pathway. Given its pivotal role in CRC, OLFM2 has emerged as a promising diagnostic and therapeutic target for the disease. These results indicate the potential of OLFM2 as a valuable biomarker for CRC diagnosis and treatment and highlight the need for further research exploring its clinical significance.

Background This study aims to compare the effectiveness and safety of traditional endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD), endoscopic submucosal tunneling dissection (ESTD), and endoscopic submucosal dissection with C-shaped incision (ESD-C) in the treatment of superficial esophageal cancer and precancerous lesions, providing reference and guidance for the treatment of esophageal cancer. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of patients who underwent ESD ( n  = 96), ESTD ( n  = 103), and ESD-C ( n  = 98) for superficial esophageal cancer or precancerous lesions between January 2017 and December 2022. Through comparative analysis, the effectiveness and safety of the three surgical methods were evaluated, and the risk factors for postoperative esophageal stricture were explored. Results In terms of total operative time and dissection time, the ESD group > ESTD group > ESD-C group; in terms of dissection speed, the ESD group < ESTD group < ESD-C group; in terms of dissection area, the ESD group < ESTD group and ESD-C group; and in terms of wound treatment time, the ESD group > ESTD group and ESD-C group. In terms of surgical outcomes, the en bloc resection rate was 100% in all three groups, with complete resection rates of 86.84%, 90.79%, and 88.16% in the ESD, ESTD, and ESD-C groups, respectively. The risk factors for postoperative esophageal stricture included dissection area, circumferential proportion of the lesion, and injury to the muscularis propria. Conclusion Among the three surgical approaches, ESD-C demonstrated superior performance in operative time, resection speed, and procedural efficiency. Increased circumferential involvement of the lesion, larger resection area, and greater injury to the muscularis propria were associated with a heightened risk of postoperative esophageal stricture.

Disconnect switch and circuit breakers operations in gas insulated switchgear (GIS) systems may produce very fast transient overvoltage (VFTO). Detecting VFTO is the first step for researchers to reduce the damage to other equipment of the substation caused by VFTO. Most of the existing sensors used for VFTO are generally bulky, complex to install, and require modification of the GIS structure. In this paper, a miniaturized measurement system that uses capacitive voltage divider and differentiating–integrating circuit is proposed. A special sensor structure and optimized differentiating–integrating circuit components arrangement were designed to increase the bandwidth of the measurement system. The frequency-domain, time-domain and voltage divide calibration experiment was performed, and a comparison experiment with an internal VFTO sensor was conducted. The measurement system was applied in the 500 kV GIS substation, and the VFTO measurement under specific conditions was carried out. The measured time domain and frequency domain waveforms conformed to the definition of standard VFTO according to IEC 60,071. It was found that the proposed measurement system meets VFTO measurement requirements and can be applied to actual VFTO measurements.

Objective Submucosal infiltration of less than 200 μm is considered an indication for endoscopic surgery in cases of superficial esophageal cancer and precancerous lesions. This study aims to identify the risk factors associated with submucosal infiltration exceeding 200 micrometers in early esophageal cancer and precancerous lesions, as well as to establish and validate an accompanying predictive model. Methods Risk factors were identified through least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) and multivariate logistic regression. Various machine learning (ML) classification models were tested to develop and evaluate the most effective predictive model, with Shapley Additive Explanations (SHAP) employed for model visualization. Results Predictive factors for early esophageal invasion into the submucosa included endoscopic ultrasonography or magnifying endoscopy> SM1( P <0.001,OR = 3.972,95%CI 2.161–7.478), esophageal wall thickening( P <0.001,OR = 12.924,95%CI,5.299–33.96), intake of pickled foods( P =0.04,OR = 1.837,95%CI,1.03–3.307), platelet-lymphocyte ratio( P <0.001,OR = 0.284,95%CI,0.137–0.556), tumor size( P <0.027,OR = 2.369,95%CI,1.128–5.267), the percentage of circumferential mucosal defect( P <0.001,OR = 5.286,95%CI,2.671–10.723), and preoperative pathological type( P <0.001,OR = 4.079,95%CI,2.254–7.476). The logistic regression model constructed from the identified risk factors was found to be the optimal model, demonstrating high efficacy with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.922 in the training set, 0.899 in the validation set, and 0.850 in the test set. Conclusion A logistic regression model complemented by SHAP visualizations effectively identifies early esophageal cancer reaching 200 micrometers into the submucosa.

To support carbon stock assessment and ecological restoration under the “Carbon Neutrality” objective, this paper developed a high-precision vegetation biomass model for expressway corridors in Shanxi Province, China, by integrating Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) technology and the random forest algorithm. Based on climatic zoning and DEM data, 70 sample plots representing diverse vegetation and topography were selected. LiDAR point clouds and multispectral data were spatially connected using the BallTree algorithm, achieving an average matching rate of 73.98–82.01%. A joint biomass model incorporating tree height and crown width was constructed with spatial cross-validation. The results indicate that the model substantially outperformed single-factor models, with R2 values ranging from 0.839 to 0.934 (highest in the Hengshan–Wutaishan forest area). Accuracy was higher in forest-dominated zones but lower in areas with significant human disturbance. A representative sample library was established for model optimization. This paper provides a robust technical framework for biomass monitoring across comparable Northern Hemisphere latitudes, thereby supporting sustainable green transport development.