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result(s) for
"Lin, Jing"
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Does market competition dampen environmental performance? Evidence from China
Research summary: Departing from the extant literature, which assumes that firms pursue strong environmental performance as a differentiation strategy, we analyze the general relationship between firms' competitive strategy and their response to heightened market competition. We find that, using a large sample of Chinese manufacturing firms between 2000 and 2005, intensified market competition has an overall negative impact on firms' environmental performance. The negative impact is exacerbated in firms adopting a cost-leadership strategy, but is attenuated in those adopting a differentiation strategy. The results emphasize the importance of including an examination of the particular competitive strategies chosen by firms in seeking to understand the impact of intensified market competition. Managerial summary: Advocates of corporate social responsibility (CSR) have long argued for the differentiation role of CSR. However, managers may be misguided if the assumed benefits of differentiation critically depend on certain presumptions. In the Chinese context and focusing on the environmental dimension of CSR, our study finds a negative relationship between market competition and corporate environmental performance. It suggests that firms, to a large extent, cannot escape competition via environmental differentiation. Managers should therefore be cautious about the value of strategic investment in CSR as a viable competitive device.
Journal Article
State-owned MNCs and host country expropriation risk: The role of home state soft power and economic gunboat diplomacy
Expropriation risk has a binding effect on foreign direct investment (FDI). However, state-owned multinational corporations may counter the monopoly power of the host state by leveraging the political influence of their home government. The magnitude of this counter force, we argue, may vary, depending on the strength of political relations between the home and host state, and the level of economic dependence of the host country on the home market. We find supporting evidence of our hypotheses using Chinese firm-level FDI information between 2003 and 2010.
Journal Article
Electrochromic two-dimensional covalent organic framework with a reversible dark-to-transparent switch
Electrochromic (EC) materials with a dark-to-transmissive switch have great applications in optical communications, infrared wavelength detectors for spacecraft, and infrared camouflage coatings. However, such electroactive materials with high stability and cyclability are rare. Considering the advantages of the donor-acceptor approach (wide-range tuneable band position) and porous two-dimensional (2D) covalent organic framework (COF, well-ordered crystalline framework with stable structure and high surface area), in this work we constructed an extended delocalised π-electron layered dark purple EC-COF-1 by reacting the donor N,N,N′,N′-tetrakis(
p
-aminophenyl)-
p
-benzenediamine (TPBD) with the acceptor 2,1,3-benzothiadiazole-4,7-dicarboxaldehyde (BTDD). A sandwiched device made of EC-COF-1 exhibits the two-band bleaching (370 nm and 574 nm) in the visible region and becomes transparent under the applied potential with an induced absorption centring at 1400 nm. This discovery of a stable dark-to-transmissive switch in COF might open another door for their application in many EC devices for various purposes.
Electrochromic materials are important for different optical applications but often these materials show low stability. Here, the authors demonstrate a stable donor-acceptor covalent organic framework which shows a stable dark-to-transmissive switching behaviour.
Journal Article
Redox-switchable breathing behavior in tetrathiafulvalene-based metal–organic frameworks
Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) that respond to external stimuli such as guest molecules, temperature, or redox conditions are highly desirable. Herein, we coupled redox-switchable properties with breathing behavior induced by guest molecules in a single framework. Guided by topology, two flexible isomeric MOFs, compounds
1
and
2
, with a formula of In(Me
2
NH
2
)(TTFTB), were constructed via a combination of [In(COO)
4
]
−
metal nodes and tetratopic tetrathiafulvalene-based linkers (TTFTB). The two compounds show different breathing behaviors upon the introduction of N
2
. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction, accompanied by molecular simulations, reveals that the breathing mechanism of
1
involves the bending of metal–ligand bonds and the sliding of interpenetrated frameworks, while
2
undergoes simple distortion of linkers. Reversible oxidation and reduction of TTF moieties changes the linker flexibility, which in turn switches the breathing behavior of
2
. The redox-switchable breathing behavior can potentially be applied to the design of stimuli-responsive MOFs.
Modulating the adsorption behaviours of metal-organic frameworks using external stimuli is desirable, but challenging to achieve. Here, Zhou and colleagues design an indium-based MOF in which tetrathiafulvalene ligands undergo reversible redox reactions that alter the framework breathing behaviour.
Journal Article
Thermodynamically stable whilst kinetically labile coordination bonds lead to strong and tough self-healing polymers
There is often a trade-off between mechanical properties (modulus and toughness) and dynamic self-healing. Here we report the design and synthesis of a polymer containing thermodynamically stable whilst kinetically labile coordination complex to address this conundrum. The Zn-Hbimcp (Hbimcp = 2,6-bis((imino)methyl)-4-chlorophenol) coordination bond used in this work has a relatively large association constant (2.2 × 10
11
) but also undergoes fast and reversible intra- and inter-molecular ligand exchange processes. The as-prepared
Zn(Hbimcp)
2
-PDMS
polymer is highly stretchable (up to 2400% strain) with a high toughness of 29.3 MJ m
−3
, and can autonomously self-heal at room temperature. Control experiments showed that the optimal combination of its bond strength and bond dynamics is responsible for the material’s mechanical toughness and self-healing property. This molecular design concept points out a promising direction for the preparation of self-healing polymers with excellent mechanical properties. We further show this type of polymer can be potentially used as energy absorbing material.
There is often a trade-off between mechanical properties (modulus and toughness) and dynamic self-healing in materials. Here the authors design and synthesize a polymer containing thermodynamically stable whilst kinetically labile coordination complexes to address this conundrum.
Journal Article
Simple non-fused electron acceptors for efficient and stable organic solar cells
The flexibility in structural design of organic semiconductors endows organic solar cells (OSCs) not only great function-tunabilities, but also high potential toward practical application. In this work, simple non-fused-ring electron acceptors are developed through two-step synthesis from single aromatic units for constructing efficient OSCs. With the assistance of non-covalent interactions, these rotatable non-fused acceptors (in solution) allow transiting into planar and stackable conformation in condensed solid, promoting acceptors not only feasible solution-processability, but also excellent film characteristics. As results, decent power conversion efficiencies of 10.27% and 13.97% can be achieved in single and tandem OSCs consisting of simple solution-cast blends, in which the fully unfused acceptors exhibit exceptionally low synthetic complexity index. In addition, the unfused acceptor and its based OSCs exhibit promising stabilities under continuous illumination. Overall, this work reveals valuable insights on the structural design of simple and effective electron acceptors with great practical perspectives.
Non-fullerene electron acceptors have pushed the efficiency of organic solar cells up to 15% but they all contain fused rings and are inconvenient to synthetic access. Here Yu et al. develop fully unfused acceptors featuring non-covalent intramolecular interactions, high efficiencies and high stability.
Journal Article
A rigid and healable polymer cross-linked by weak but abundant Zn(II)-carboxylate interactions
Achieving a desirable combination of solid-like properties and fast self-healing is a great challenge due to slow diffusion dynamics. In this work, we describe a design concept that utilizes weak but abundant coordination bonds to achieve this objective. The designed PDMS polymer, crosslinked by abundant Zn(II)-carboxylate interactions, is very strong and rigid at room temperature. As the coordination equilibrium is sensitive to temperature, the mechanical strength of this polymer rapidly and reversibly changes upon heating or cooling. The soft–rigid switching ability σ, defined as G’
max
/G’
min
, can reach 8000 when ΔT = 100 °C. Based on these features, this polymer not only exhibits fast thermal-healing properties, but is also advantageous for various applications such as in orthopedic immobilization, conductive composites/adhesives, and 3D printing.
Combining solid-like properties with fast self-healing is a great challenge due to slow diffusion dynamics. Here the authors demonstrate a rigid and healable material by using weak but abundant coordination bonds to crosslink a PDMS polymer.
Journal Article
A lymphocyte–microglia–astrocyte axis in chronic active multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis (MS) lesions that do not resolve in the months after they form harbour ongoing demyelination and axon degeneration, and are identifiable in vivo by their paramagnetic rims on MRI scans
1
–
3
. Here, to define mechanisms underlying this disabling, progressive neurodegenerative state
4
–
6
and foster development of new therapeutic agents, we used MRI-informed single-nucleus RNA sequencing to profile the edge of demyelinated white matter lesions at various stages of inflammation. We uncovered notable glial and immune cell diversity, especially at the chronically inflamed lesion edge. We define ‘microglia inflamed in MS’ (MIMS) and ‘astrocytes inflamed in MS’, glial phenotypes that demonstrate neurodegenerative programming. The MIMS transcriptional profile overlaps with that of microglia in other neurodegenerative diseases, suggesting that primary and secondary neurodegeneration share common mechanisms and could benefit from similar therapeutic approaches. We identify complement component 1q (C1q) as a critical mediator of MIMS activation, validated immunohistochemically in MS tissue, genetically by microglia-specific C1q ablation in mice with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis, and therapeutically by treating chronic experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis with C1q blockade. C1q inhibition is a potential therapeutic avenue to address chronic white matter inflammation, which could be monitored by longitudinal assessment of its dynamic biomarker, paramagnetic rim lesions, using advanced MRI methods.
Single-nucleus transcriptomics defines a diverse set of immune and glial cells at the chronically inflamed leading edge of demyelinated white matter lesions in patients with multiple sclerosis.
Journal Article
Pinocembrin ameliorates intermittent hypoxia-induced neuroinflammation through BNIP3-dependent mitophagy in a murine model of sleep apnea
Background
Intermittent hypoxia (IH) caused by obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) leads to neuroinflammation. Pinocembrin has been shown to have neuroprotective effects, while the therapeutic functions under IH condition are still unknown.
Methods
An OSA model was established by CIH exposure inside custom-made chambers. C57BL/6 mice were intraperitoneally injected with pinocembrin (40 mg/kg, i.p.) or vehicle (PBS containing 5% povidone; i.p.), and the changes of behavior on mice were detected by the Morris water maze test. Immunohistochemical staining, western blotting, immunofluorescence assays, and immunoprecipitation were used to investigate the association between NLRP3 inflammasome and BNIP3-dependent mitophagy. The mitochondrial morphology and mitophagosomes were detected under a transmission electron microscope. The detrimental effects of IH were tested by annexin V-FITC/PI staining, Mito SOX Red staining, and JC-1 mitochondrial membrane potential assay.
Results
In this study, our observations in vivo indicated that the administration of pinocembrin can restore spatial learning and memory ability and reduce neuronal apoptosis and hippocampal inflammation. Pinocembrin treatment significantly inhibited the formation of NLRP3 inflammasome and infiltration of microglia and enhanced BNIP3-mediated mitophagy in the hippocampus of IH mice. Additionally, our in vitro results show that pinocembrin protects microglial cells against IH-induced cytotoxicity by activating BNIP3-dependent mitophagy through the JNK-ERK signaling pathway.
Conclusions
In summary, our findings demonstrated that pinocembrin can act as a potential therapeutic strategy for IH-induced neuroinflammation.
Journal Article