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AbstractThis study examined the impact of safety awareness on the branding effectiveness of cultural events in the context of globalization. Focusing on BTS’ ‘Yet to Come’ concert, a significant event supporting South Korea’s bid to host the Busan World Expo 2030, we analyzed responses from 552 attendees using SPSS 26.0 and AMOS 21.0. Our findings revealed that while safety awareness education elevates expectations for safety management services, general safety awareness significantly improves both safety and emergency services. Furthermore, life safety awareness enhances emergency services. Importantly, effective safety services bolster national pride and increase attendees’ willingness to participate in similar future events. This underscores the crucial role of government involvement in ensuring safety and trust in the safety management of events aimed at international audiences. These insights provide a foundation for improving event safety management, contributing to the success and reputation of such performances on a global scale.

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between flood safety awareness and the vulnerability/resilience associated with flood damage, focusing on the characteristics of regions that have experienced floods. Specifically, this study addresses the following research questions: (1) How does flood safety awareness vary among regions with different levels of vulnerability and resilience? (2) What patterns emerge in the relationship between regional characteristics and residents' flood safety awareness? A fuzzy analysis was used by selecting structural and social indicators to analyze vulnerability and resilience. A survey was conducted for each region to assess flood safety awareness among residents. The analysis results showed that vulnerability and resilience exhibit three distinct patterns according to regional characteristics, which correspond to the flood safety awareness of residents. Regions with low vulnerability and high resilience demonstrated high safety awareness, whereas regions with high vulnerability and low resilience demonstrated low safety awareness. This study lies in its comparative analysis of flood safety awareness across different regional contexts and its use of fuzzy analysis to provide a nuanced understanding of vulnerability and resilience. This study accurately identifies problems and regional differences by analyzing vulnerability and resilience and establishing preventive measures that fit regional characteristics. Furthermore, this study provides a guideline for suggesting effective disaster response strategies, contributing new insights into disaster preparedness and community resilience.

Allergic asthma (AA) is a common inflammatory airway disease characterized by increased airway hyper-responsiveness (AHR), inflammation, and remodeling. Akkermansia muciniphila is a strictly anaerobic bacterium residing in the gut and is a promising next-generation probiotic to improve metabolic inflammatory syndrome. A recent study suggested the beneficial effect of live A. muciniphila on allergic airway inflammation (AAI) in mice. However, whether the heat-killed form can improve AAI requires further investigation. Mice sensitized and challenged with house dust mites (HDM) develop AA hallmarks including inflammatory cell infiltration, goblet cell hyperplasia, and subepithelial collagen deposition in the lungs. These phenomena were reversed by oral administration of the heat-killed A. muciniphila strain EB-AMDK19 (AMDK19-HK) isolated from the feces of healthy Koreans. Furthermore, AMDK19-HK diminished the HDM-induced AHR to inhaled methacholine, lung mast cell accumulation, and serum HDM-specific IgE levels. It also led to the overall suppression of IL-4, IL-13, and eotaxin production in bronchoalveolar lavage fluids, and Il4, Il5, Il13, and Ccl17 gene expression in lung tissues. Moreover, AMDK19-HK suppressed Th2-associated cytokine production in the splenocytes of HDM-sensitized mice in vitro. Additionally, a combination of 16S rRNA gene sequencing and short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) analysis in cecal samples revealed that AMDK19-HK modulated the relative abundance of circulating SCFA-associated gut genera, including a positive correlation with Lachnospiraceae_ NK4A136_group and a negative correlation with Lachnoclostridium and significantly increased cecal SCFA concentrations. Finally, AMDK19-HK improved intestinal mucosal barrier function. These results suggest that the oral administration of AMDK19-HK ameliorates HDM-induced AAI in mice by suppressing Th2-mediated immune responses and could have a protective effect against AA development.

This study aims to analyze the operation of fire emergency dispatch, understand the impact of golden time on fire emergency dispatch, and identify factors and improvement measures for effective fire emergency dispatch with in prime time. According to the results of the study, rescue dispatch activities varies depending on the nature of the incident. The summer season had a higher number of calls than other seasons, and Saturday was the day of the week with the highest number of calls (i.e., Spring: 13,189, Summer: 15,652, Fall: 13,128, Winter: 14,545). When analyzing the spatial distribution of rescue incidents, it is found that rescue incidents were concentrated in some areas. In particular, the arrival time tended to be relatively long in areas south of the Han River and in areas where some fire stations or safety centers were not deployed. Results showed that rescue incidents dispatched by the stations other than neighboring stations were also concentrated in certain points. Based on these findings, the following policy implications can be drawn: first, the location of fire stations or safety centers should be adjusted; second, dispatch personnel and equipment should be strengthened; third, interagency cooperation should be strengthened; and fourth, prevention and education programs should be strengthened. Implementing these policy recommendations will improve fire emergency services' efficiency and response capabilities and minimize the occurrence and damage of life-saving events.

Kinesin-streptavidin complexes are widely used in microtubule-based active-matter studies. The stoichiometry of the complexes is empirically tuned but experimentally challenging to determine. Here, mass photometry measurements reveal heterogenous distributions of kinesin-streptavidin complexes. Our binding model indicates that heterogeneity arises from both the kinesin-streptavidin mixing ratio and the kinesin-biotinylation efficiency.

Adipose tissues serve as an energy reservoir and endocrine organ, yet the mechanisms that coordinate these functions remain elusive. Here, we show that the transcriptional coregulators, YAP and TAZ, uncouple fat mass from leptin levels and regulate adipocyte plasticity to maintain metabolic homeostasis. Activating YAP/TAZ signalling in adipocytes by deletion of the upstream regulators Lats1 and Lats2 results in a profound reduction in fat mass by converting mature adipocytes into delipidated progenitor-like cells, but does not cause lipodystrophy-related metabolic dysfunction, due to a paradoxical increase in circulating leptin levels. Mechanistically, we demonstrate that YAP/TAZ-TEAD signalling upregulates leptin expression by directly binding to an upstream enhancer site of the leptin gene. We further show that YAP/TAZ activity is associated with, and functionally required for, leptin regulation during fasting and refeeding. These results suggest that adipocyte Hippo-YAP/TAZ signalling constitutes a nexus for coordinating adipose tissue lipid storage capacity and systemic energy balance through the regulation of adipocyte plasticity and leptin gene transcription.

Abstract Previous studies have demonstrated that somatosensory stimuli influence dopamine transmission in the mesolimbic reward system and can reduce drug-induced motor behaviors, craving and dependence. Until now, the central links between somatosensory and brain reward systems are not known. Here, we show that the dorsal column (DC) somatosensory pathway contains projections that convey an inhibitory input from the periphery to mesolimbic reward circuits. Stimulation of the ulnar nerve under HT7 acupoint suppressed psychomotor response to cocaine, which was abolished by disruption of the DC pathway, but not the spinothalamic tract (STT). Low-threshold or wide-dynamic range neurons in the cuneate nucleus (CN) were excited by peripheral stimulation. Lesions of dorsal column or lateral habenula (LHb) prevented the inhibitory effects of peripheral stimulation on cocaine-induced neuronal activation in the nucleus accumbens (NAc). LHb neurons projecting to the ventral tegmental area (VTA)/rostromedial tegmental nucleus (RMTg) regions were activated by peripheral stimulation and LHb lesions reversed the inhibitory effects on cocaine locomotion produced by peripheral stimulation. These findings suggest that there exists a pathway in spinal cord that ascends from periphery to mesolimbic reward circuits (spino-mesolimbic pathway) and the activation of somatosensory input transmitted via the DC pathway can inhibit the psychomotor response to cocaine.

Addressing age-related immunological defects through therapeutic interventions is essential for healthy aging, as the immune system plays a crucial role in controlling infections, malignancies, and in supporting tissue homeostasis and repair. In our study, we show that stimulating toll-like receptor 5 (TLR5) via mucosal delivery of a flagellin-containing fusion protein effectively extends the lifespan and enhances the healthspan of mice of both sexes. This enhancement in healthspan is evidenced by diminished hair loss and ocular lens opacity, increased bone mineral density, improved stem cell activity, delayed thymic involution, heightened cognitive capacity, and the prevention of pulmonary lung fibrosis. Additionally, this fusion protein boosts intestinal mucosal integrity by augmenting the surface expression of TLR5 in a certain subset of dendritic cells and increasing interleukin-22 (IL-22) secretion. In this work, we present observations that underscore the benefits of TLR5-dependent stimulation in the mucosal compartment, suggesting a viable strategy for enhancing longevity and healthspan.