Efficiency,Equity and Effect:a case study on virtual water consumption characteristics

Scarcity of water is the key factor restricting the growth of social economy.The virtual water theory provides a new way to solve the problem of water scarcity.For this paper,we have calculated the virtual water consumption of each household,grouped by income,of Gansu province for 1992-2005.Then we advanced the indicator of virtual water with per-unit-of-consumption expenditure to analyze the efficiency of virtual water consumption.Additionally,we recurred to the diversity theory advanced by Ulanowicz,which is broadly employed by ecologists and biologists,to analyze the characteristics of virtual water consumption.As a result,the virtual water consumption of each group decreased yearly from 1992 to 2005,on the whole;decreasing proceeded slower during the period of 1992-1997 than during 1998-2005.Per-unit-consumption expenditure of virtual water for each group represents the same characteristics,on the whole,as virtual water consumption.The largest variation of this indicator exists in the group of the lowest income,which ranges from 1.58 to 0.18 m3/Yuan.yr;whereas the least exists in the highest income group,which is 0.58 to 0.07 m3/Yuan.yr.The virtual diversity indicator increased year by year,and the change of this indicator in 1992-1997 was more obvious than in 1998-2005.Finally,from this study we find that,in view of virtual water,we can save water by means of changing consumption patterns and increasing consumption diversity,but without degrading the quality of living and reducing the demands of living.When the problem of water scarcity becomes more and more serious in Gansu of China,this suggestion becomes more and more important.The consumption,the role of guiding production produce,is very important.An unsustainable consumption pattern is the main factor causing the deterioration of the world environment,especially in a developing country.The sustainable consumption is the only way to develop human beings and achieve the economical sustainable economics.

Cryptotanshinone increases the sensitivity of liver cancer to sorafenib by inhibiting the STAT3/Snail/ epithelial mesenchymal transition pathway

Objective:Sorafenib resistance has been a major factor limiting its clinical use as a targeted drug in liver cancer.The present study aimed to investigate whether cryptotanshinone can enhance the sensitivity of liver cancer and reduce the resistance to sorafenib.Methods:Sorafenib-resistant cells were established based on HepG2 and Huh7 cell lines.And the anti-tumor effect of sorafenib combined with cryptotanshinone on the sorafenib-resistant cells was verified by MTT,colony formation,transwell assays and tumor growth xenograft model.Moreover,the effects of the combined treatment on the expression of phosphorylated(p)-STAT3,as well as epithelial mesenchymal transition(EMT)and apoptosis related proteins of cells were evaluated by western blot analysis.Results:It was identified that cryptotanshinone inhibited the viability of both HepG2 and Huh7 cells in a dose-and time-dependent manner,and decreased p-STAT3 expression rather than total STAT3 expression at a concentration of 40μmol/L.In the sorafenib-resistant cells,sorafenib in combination with cryptotanshinone markedly inhibited cell viability,invasion and migration compared with sorafenib alone.In contrast,increased p-STAT3 level by colivelin led to the inhibition of the synergistic effect of cryptotanshinone and sorafenib not only on cell viability,but also on EMT and apoptosis,suggesting that cryptotanshinone and sorafenib may act by downregulating STAT3 signaling.Further,the inhibition of carcinogenicity effect was also verified in xenografted tumor models.Conclusion:The present results indicated that cryptotanshinone could synergize with sorafenib to inhibit the proliferative,invasive,and migratory abilities of sorafenib-resistant cells by downregulating STAT3 signaling.