A number of recent studies have shown that beta-amyloid (Abeta) inhibits the induction of long-term potentiation (LTP) in the hippocampus. However, little is known about the mechanisms underlying such inhibition of LTP. In the present study, we present evidence that the cytokine tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha has a key role in the Abeta inhibition of LTP. The suppression of LTP by Abeta was absent in mutant mice null for TNF receptor type 1 (TNF-R1) and was prevented by the inhibitors of TNFalpha, infliximab and TNF peptide antagonist, and by the inhibitor of TNFalpha production, thalidomide. In addition, exogenous TNFalpha inhibited LTP induction, an action mediated via TNF-R1 as such inhibition was absent in mutant mice null for TNF-R1. The inhibition of LTP by TNFalpha involved activation of group I metabotropic glutamate receptor and p38 MAP kinase, identical to that for the Abeta-mediated inhibition of LTP induction.

Rapid urbanization has led to a growing number of environmental challenges in large parts of China, where the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) urban agglomerations serve as a typical example. To evaluate the relationship between environmental sustainability gaps and urbanization in 26 cities of the YRD, this study revisited the environmental sustainability assessment (ESA) by combining the metrics of environmental footprints and planetary boundaries at the city level, and then integrated the footprint-boundary ESA framework into decoupling analysis. The results demonstrated considerable spatiotemporal heterogeneity in the environmental sustainability of water use, land use, carbon emissions, nitrogen emissions, phosphorus emissions and PM2.5 emissions across the YRD cities during the study period 2007–2017. Decoupling analysis revealed a positive sign that more than half of the 26 cities had achieved the decoupling of each category of environmental sustainability gaps from urbanization since 2014, especially for nitrogen and phosphorus emissions. On the basis of ESA and decoupling analysis, all the cities were categorized into six patterns, for which the optimal pathways towards sustainable development were discussed in depth. Our study will assist policy makers in formulating more tangible and differentiated policies to achieve decoupling between environmental sustainability gaps and urbanization.

Based on the price data of 19,211 second-hand houses based in the Fuyang District and West Lake District from the years of 2014, 2015, and 2019, along with the characteristic data of second-hand houses, this paper studies the influence of the city-county merger of Fuyang. Through a combination with the double differences model and the hedonic price model, it was found that the city-county merger had time and spatial effects on housing prices. With regard to time effect, the city-county merger hindered the growth of Fuyang’s housing prices in the short term, while it had a promoting effect on Fuyang’s housing prices in the long term. With regard to the spatial effect, it was found that in the long term, the effect of the city-county merger on the promotion of Fuyang’s housing prices increased first and then weakened with an increase in distance from the West Lake District. In addition, it had the strongest effect on the promotion of housing prices within 3–6 km of the West Lake District.

This paper examines the development of government-business relations in China’s recent economic reform and development. The paper first provides a review of theoretical issues about the role of government in economic development and the concepts of business promotion and government regulation. Next, the paper introduces major policies and changes that have been developed by the Chinese government. On the business promotion side, it includes major changes in incentive policy, government structure, and management operation that have been implemented during the reform years. On the government regulation side, the paper identifies new challenging issues in consumer, environment, and labor protection that may affect China’s future development. Finally, lessons and implications about the development of Chinese government-business relations are emphasized in the conclusion section.

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