Hydrogel-based plant bioelectronics are emerging as promising platforms for real-time monitoring and modulation of plant physiology, stress responses, environmental interactions, and growth. Compared with rigid electrodes and conventional polymer films, hydrogels provide a soft, hydrated, conductive, and tunable interface that reduces mechanical mismatch with growing plant tissues while enabling electrochemical, electrophysiological, optical, and multimodal sensing. This review examines recent advances in hydrogel materials for plant bioelectronics, focusing on how network structure, design requirements, materials strategies including crosslinking chemistry, porosity, swelling, adhesion, conductivity, transparency, gas permeability, and biocompatibility affect plant-device performance. Applications in monitoring plant physiology, hormones, pH, moisture, glucose, and overall plant health are highlighted. Reported hydrogel systems exhibit Young’s moduli from ∼ 1 kPa to several MPa and ionic conductivities of 10−3-10−1 S cm−1. Several plant-interfacing devices sustain strains above 300 %, maintain stable electrical performance over 10,000 loading cycles, and support continuous growth monitoring for up to 14 days. Despite these advances, standardised evaluation under realistic agricultural conditions remains limited. Future research should prioritise standardised testing, biodegradable biomass-derived materials, multimodal sensing integration, and closed-loop bioelectronic systems to advance precision agriculture and bio-regenerative life-support applications.
Mesalazine (MES) is a first-line therapy for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD); however, its clinical use is limited by variable patient response, intolerance, and reduced efficacy in severe cases. To address these challenges, we have designed and evaluated seventeen MES derivatives (M1–M17) using a comprehensive in silico strategy. Density functional theory with the B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) basis set was employed to optimize geometries and explore electronic structure, stability, and reactivity. Structural characterization was further supported by FTIR and UV–visible spectral analysis. Molecular docking against five key IBD-associated targets (TNF, NOD2, ATG16L1, IL23R, and IL6) reveled that M1, M5–M8, M10, M11, M14, M16, and M17 showed stronger binding affinities than MES, where the M6 and M8 showed the strongest binding affinity. MES was more toxic towards the human body, although some of its derivatives were less toxic compared to MES, while M8 demonstrated an overall improved ADMET profile as an IBD medication. Molecular dynamics simulations of both M8–NOD2 and MES–NOD2 complexes revealed stable behavior in each system; however, M8 reduced structural fluctuations, flexibility, and solvent exposure, whereas MES promoted a more compact and conformationally restricted state, indicating distinct stabilization mechanisms, with M8 demonstrating superior dynamic control. Collectively, these findings identify M8 as a promising drug candidate for IBD, warranting further experimental validation through in vitro and in vivo studies.
The pursuit of sustainable growth and ecological balance has become a central policy priority for OECD nations. While prior studies examined economic, technological, and environmental determinants of sustainability, the joint effect of macroeconomic policies, technological innovation, and institutional uncertainty remains underexplored. This study addressed this gap by investigating how monetary policy, fiscal policy, economic complexity, energy transition, green technology, and ESG uncertainty jointly influence green growth and ecological footprint over the period 2003 to 2022 in 17 OECD nations. To account for nonlinear and asymmetric relationships, advanced econometric methods, including quantile-on-quantile regression (QQ) and cross-quantilogram (CQ) methods are employed. The results show that all six factors significantly promote green growth while reducing ecological footprint, indicating their complementary role in driving sustainable transformation. The results suggest the importance of integrating coordinated macroeconomic management, innovation-driven technological strategies, and transparent ESG practices to support a low-carbon transition. Policymakers are encouraged to implement green-oriented monetary and fiscal policies, foster technological efficiency, and strengthen institutional accountability to achieve long-term ecological stability. This study contributes to the literature by linking macroeconomic, technological, and environmental dimensions within a unified green growth framework, providing robust empirical evidence to guide policy design and promote sustainable development across OECD nations.
This study investigates how green and non-green goods, energy transition, digitalization, economic growth, and population affect the material footprint of G-7 countries from 1990 to 2023. Using an extended STIRPAT framework, we show that green and non-green goods increase material footprint, demonstrating the resource intensity associated with production and consumption patterns. Economic growth and population further intensify resource demands, underscoring structural environmental pressures. On the other hand, energy transition and digitalization reduce material footprint, indicating that renewable energy and digital technologies enhance resource efficiency. Overall, the findings highlight the trade-off between economic expansion and material sustainability in technologically advanced economies. Policy implications include reducing the material intensity of green goods through circular economy practices, expanding clean energy investment, and leveraging fintech to support more sustainable consumption, thereby enabling G-7 nations to better align prosperity with material sustainability.
The salt-tolerant genes (STGs) play important roles in protecting plants against salt stress. Although various types of STGs have been systematically characterized in plant species, the key genes (KGs) regulating salt stress tolerance in rice (Oryza sativa L.) remain elusive. This study focused on the identification and characterization of the members of STGs in rice through integrated bioinformatic and molecular approaches, including chromosomal location, physicochemical characteristics, protein–protein interaction, and expression profiles of the identified genes. A total of 164 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were systematically identified as responsive to salt tolerance and sorted out potential 12 kg (OsHSP20.2, OsGFP2, OsBBTI2, OsEN20.6, OsUBC17, OsACD5, OsPEAB5, OsDP11, OsDFP5, OsWD40.7, OsEP11.1, and OsGRAM12) through the CytoHubba algorithms analysis. Physicochemical characterization indicated substantial variation among KGs, including genomic sequences (824–4051 bp), amino acid length (148–659 aa), molecular weight (16.39–71.35 kDa), and isoelectric point (4.66–10.37). Protein–protein interaction (PPI) network prediction indicated intricate functional associations among key STGs. Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis revealed that the KGs are involved in numerous biological processes and molecular functions. Moreover, gene homology results revealed that KGs have multiple relationships with other plant species. Co-expression network analysis revealed that 12 kg are potentially involved in the regulatory mechanisms underlying the biological process. Relative gene expression through the comparative threshold (ΔΔCT) of qRT-PCR revealed that the KGs are salt-induced and may play crucial roles in rice responses to salt stress. Tissue-specific expression patterns revealed that the KGs significantly altered expression levels across different tissues and under stress. This systematic investigation demonstrated that the 12 identified genes may play roles in the development of salt-tolerant rice varieties.
