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Prior research recognizes intergroup emotions as crucial for intergroup attitudes and interactions, but the psychological mechanisms linking prior intergroup interactions to contact intentions remain incompletely understood. This study investigated the joint effects and interplay of Chinese students' positive and negative contact on behavioural intentions to interact with international students in the future. Six affective variables (fear, anger, anxiety, empathy, happiness, and trust) were tested as mediators. Results revealed that positive contact directly predicted stronger contact willingness and indirectly affected this variable through lower levels of fear, anger, and anxiety and higher levels of empathy, happiness, and trust. Negative contact, however, was negatively associated with positive emotions and contact willingness and predicted more negative emotions. All intergroup emotions played significant mediating roles in the relationship between intergroup contact and willingness for future contact, and anxiety, fear, and trust emerged as robust mediators. Notably, positive contact had larger effects as compared to negative contact. Moreover, no association was observed between negative contact and intergroup emotions when positive contact was frequent. However, when both positive and negative contact were at higher levels, positive contact emerged as a more influential predictor of all intergroup emotions. This research emphasizes examining both positive and negative contact and affective variables as contact mediators, shedding light on enhancing contact intentions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to test a mediation model to understand how the second language motivational self-system (L2MSS) affects second language (L2) proficiency and intercultural communication competence (ICC) through the mediating effects of foreign language enjoyment, anxiety, and boredom among English as a foreign language (EFL) learners in China. A total of 2,713 Chinese EFL learners, comprising 1,376 English majors and 1,337 non-English majors, voluntarily participated in the present study. Structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis was conducted to analyse the collected data. Additionally, a multigroup SEM approach was applied to compare potential differences between the two major types in the hypothesized relationships. The results revealed that the impacts of the ideal self and learning experience positively and directly predicted L2 proficiency and ICC, whereas the ought-to self had a direct and negative influence. Foreign language enjoyment, anxiety, and boredom mediated the relationships between L2MSS, L2 proficiency, and ICC. Also, L2 proficiency positively affected ICC. Moreover, the multigroup SEM analysis revealed that these two groups did not differ significantly in the hypothesized pathways, suggesting that these relationships were not moderated by students’ majors. These research findings may present significant implications for EFL learners and teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two new ansamycin derivatives, damavaricin H (1) and protostreptovaricin VI (2) were isolated from the Streptomyces spectabilis CCTCC M2017417 derived mutants of ΔstvP5 and ΔstvA2, respectively. The structures of 1 and 2 were established by analysis of the HRESIMS as well as 1D and 2D NMR datasets. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) results showed that compounds 1 and 2 possessed the corresponding anti-MRSA bioactivities of 4 ∼ 8 μg/ml and 8 ∼ 16 μg/ml, which confirmed the structure-activity relationships of streptovaricins reported previously and also revealed that addition of the hydroxyl group at C-8 increased the anti-MRSA activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two new spirotetronate natural products, lobophorin L (1) and lobophorin M (2), together with three known lobophorin-like spirotetronate antibiotics (3–5) and two known ansamycins (6–7), were isolated from the marine-derived Streptomyces sp. 4506. The structures of 1 and 2 were established on the basis of HRESIMS as well as 1D and 2D NMR datasets. Antibacterial assay showed that, compounds 1 and 3–5 exhibited strong to moderate antibacterial activities against Micrococcus luteus and Bacillus thuringiensis with MIC values ranging from 0.0625 to 8 μg/mL, while compounds 3 and 6 showed weak antibacterial activities against Staphylococcus aureus and MRSA. The antibacterial activities of the lobophorins in this study indicated that the more substitution number of the sugar moieties at C-9 of the lobophorin, the stronger antimicrobial properties it may deserve, and the higher the oxidation degree of substituent group at C-3D, the better antibacterial activities of its corresponding compound could be. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The "Chemical Society Reviews" journal published by The Royal Society of Chemistry features articles on various topics in chemistry. The contents list includes tutorials on catalysis under electric/magnetic/electromagnetic field coupling, unifying thermochemistry concepts in computational heterogeneous catalysis, and reactive carbon capture using electrochemical reactors. Additionally, the journal covers research on solar energy, photovoltaics, nanomaterial-enabled metabolic reprogramming strategies for boosting antitumor immunity, and other advanced systems for enhanced CO2 electroreduction. [Extracted from the article]

Background: Little is known about the specificity of manganese-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MEMRI) and its neurotoxic effect of the whole visual pathway. Purpose: To explore the specificity of MEMRI and the neurotoxic effect in the whole visual pathway. Material and Methods: Twenty-four rats were divided into four groups, in which 50, 100, 200, and 400 nmol MnCl2 were injected into the left eye of each rat through intravitreal injection, respectively. MEMRI was performed one day after injection of MnCl2. Moreover, another 10 rats were divided into two groups, in which 200 and 400 nmol MnCl2 were injected into the left eye of each rat. One day after injecting, chemical identification and transmission electron microscopy were performed to verify the presence and pathological effects. Results: The whole three-dimensional (3D) visual pathway of the left eye was observable on MEMRI with thin slab maximum intensity projection (TSMIP) in all rats except the 50 nmol group, which was confirmed by chemical identification. Higher dose of MnCl2 resulted in greater contrast-to-noise ratio, increasing the effectiveness of the technique. Transmission electron microscopy showed most structures of the visual pathway except the superior colliculus and visual cortex were poisoned in the 200 and 400 nmol groups, especially in the latter group. Conclusion: Our study indicated that MEMRI with TSMIP after injection of 200 nmol MnCl2 can best show the entire and 3D visual pathway in the rat with less neurotoxic changes. Additionally, chemical identification is useful for the confirmation of the specificity of MEMRI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Consumerism is a central feature of urbanism in China and has been actively promoted as a sign of urbanity in the official rhetoric and mass media. This urban ideology is exemplified by the ubiquitous presence of street advertisements that often occupy prominent urban public spaces. After all, turning every citizen of China into a consumer has become a widely accepted Chinese dream and one that is employed to mobilize a population otherwise divided by the ever-widening gap between the rich and poor. Advertisements have assumed a commanding role and are utilized by both official entities and private corporations to promote all kinds of urban consumption, ranging from concrete commodities such as high-end homes, beautiful neighbourhoods, and luxurious goods to intangible symbols such as lifestyle, ideology, and cosmopolitan identity. All these have fallen under the scrutiny of the Shanghainese artist Ni Weihua, whose photography documents billboards advertising official ideologies and real-estate projects in Shanghai and other cities. This study brings into context Ni’s artistic practice and examines specific ways in which his photographic series Keywords (关键词) and Landscape Wall (风景墙) engage with formal advertisements in the street both as an urban reality and as a site for deconstruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]